The study of popular music has experienced an astonishing growth in the past two and a half decades; however, the detailed analysis of musical texts has lagged far behind other areas, such as the sociology of the youth audience and analysis of the visual components of music video. This thesis undertakes a survey of recent approaches to popular music at the textual level, before examining the construction of an individual song, the Beach Boys' 1964 recording of "All Summer Long". While many parameters affecting the creation of the cultural significance of the text in question are discussed, ultimately the exegesis serves to problematize larger issues in scholarly work on popular music, particularly the dominance of the paradigms of rupture, rebellion, and authenticity in relation to the historiography and criticism of the formation known as "rock".

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The main aim of this study was to compare fitness levels of Indian high school boys in two cohorts: 1977 and 1997. A secondary aim was to identify if the same problem areas or strengths still exist in 1997 as in 1977 or if the levels of fitness have further deteriorated or improved, as well as the establishment of norms for boys 14 - 18 years. Ten different Secondary schools from the Durban Metropolitan area participated in this study. The test battery included eight tests measuring four components of motor fitness based on the Fleishman study. The tests that were used consisted of fifty metre shuttle run, fifty metre dash, sit-ups, pull-ups, medicine ball put, shot-put, 250m shuttle run and 12 minute run/walk test. Data from 500 hundred boys were included in the research analysis and these were categorized into 5 different age groups, 13,6 - 14,6 years; 14,7 - 15,6 years; 15,7 - 16,6 years; 16,7 - 17,6 years and 17,7 - 18,6 years. Basic statistical procedures were used to determine the normality of the samples for height and weight in each age group. Standard score tables were drawn for each age group. A paired t-test was used to determine if a significant difference between the means existed. The level of significance was set at 0,05. The means of both studies were compared to ascertain the difference in fitness levels in the two cohorts. The analysis of the data revealed that the fitness status of adolescent boys have deteriorated over two decades. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Durban-Westville, 2000.

This study evaluates the effects of the Ka Mahuri programme, which is a multicomponent 10-week intervention for 5-8 year-old children displaying antisocial and off task behaviours in their mainstream classrooms. The intervention was evaluated by evaluating the progress of five children across two intakes on nine measures. Although substantial difficulties were experienced in collecting the planned data on the children’s progress, it was apparent from the results that the programme effectively managed the children’s negative classroom behaviour during the intervention. Little evidence of academic gains was apparent and the intended parental involvement only occurred in one case. Further follow up data for each child will be required to determine whether the changes made through the intervention were maintained in the long term.

This thesis has investigated and statistically analyzed the responses of delinquent and non-delinquent adolescent male subjects to Julian B. Rotter's Internal-external Locus of Control Scale. An individual with an "internal locus of control" is characterized by believing that what happens to him is a direct result of his own actions. A person with an "external locus of control" is more likely to feel that forces beyond his control such as fate or luck, determine what will happen to him.Delinquent subjects were obtained through a juvenile court. Non-delinquent subjects were obtained through school systems and youth groups. Selection of subjects was controlled for race, age, socio-economic level, and number of parents living at home. No significant difference was found for locus of control between delinquent and non-delinquent groups or between races.

This research focused on how three principals in Melbourne boys-only schools view and influence the place of massed singing within their respective school cultures. The views of the principals themselves and their own capacity for self-reflection were critical to the thesis. The study was underpinned by three theoretical propositions: principals, although not usually involved in the teaching of massed singing, nevertheless exert an influence on it; massed singing has a unique power to enhance the broader school culture; and, cultural assumptions about gendered participation in music-making can affect student attitudes towards massed singing. The review of literature highlighted three themes which informed the conceptual framework underpinning the research: organisational and educational leadership; the construct of masculinity in boys’ education and in leadership; and the nature and benefits of massed singing. Given the themes of the review, it seemed appropriate to undertake a study which would be essentially qualitative, interpretive, and based on indepth interviews with the key stakeholders. In the case of each of the three participating principals, data was collected from key documents produced by the schools, from a written questionnaire, and from a semistructured interview. The questionnaire was designed both to collect data and to raise participants’ consciousness prior to the interview. The questionnaire’s 17 questions, structured so as to address the three themes identified through the review of literature, were designed to create a flexible framework for an in-depth exploration of key issues in the context of the interview itself. Findings from the study indicated that there was a very strong belief amongst the participating principals that massed singing affects the overall culture of their schools in a range of profound and significant ways; that they themselves exercise a sponsorial or support role in relation to the singing programs in their schools, and rely on experts for the effective delivery of musical content; that traditional stereotypes of gender can be challenged and debunked through student participation in massed singing; and that their own personal histories of singing, and their favourable disposition towards it, are significant factors in how effectively they are able to promote and support it. The study findings have implications for school leaders and their boards; the teaching profession in general, and choral and vocal educators in particular; parents and the arts community; government education authorities and policy makers; and this researcher himself. Recommendations for further research have also emerged out of this study.

In my thesis I explore way in which adolescent male students negotiate and interrogate discursive ideologies relating to hegemonic masculinities and to the normality of "whiteness", specifically within one English classroom in an Australian private single sex boys’ school in Perth, Western Australia. A feminist poststructuralist theoretical framework is employed to explore how gendered and racialized positions available to adolescent males contribute to the shaping of their subjectivities, and how the social constructions of masculinities and femininities contribute to the ways in which adolescent males represent themselves. A quantitative approach, which included individual classroom observations, questionnaires and interviews, provided me with tools essential for examining the complexities of the effects of social constructs such as gender, sexuality and ethnicity on masculinist positionings at school. The study reveals the complexities surrounding discourses of hegemonic heterosexual masculinities and privileges of whiteness on the situationally specific formation and negotiation of subjectivities in adolescent males’ lives in one school. Central findings of the study show that adolescent males in this single sex boys’ school easily maintained socially constructed ideas surrounding the feminisation of females and masculinization of males, with notions of homophobia embedded in discourses of hegemonic masculinities. A resistance to alternative masculine discourses shows the impact and maintenance of hegemonic heterosexual masculinities for adolescent males. However, through the use of particular texts, female teachers in the all boys’ classroom were able to open up spaces for male students to interrogate hegemonic forms of masculinities, to interrogate power relationships, and to access alternative masculinities. Ina similar vein, my findings show how easy it is for students to ignore social injustices in relation to racism and stereotyping of Indigenous Australians, and to retain notions that reinforce these injustices. A major conclusion of the study is that social injustices are easily maintained through educational institutions as active agents of reinforcing ideas and ideologies, particularly when changes mean disruption of privileges, such as privileges associated with hegemonic masculinity or with whiteness. Although this study was conducted within a middle class milieu, and thus the students were from an advantaged position in life, this does not justify their ignorance of issues of social justice. Indeed, the findings highlight the importance of this kind of critical approach with middle class boys in single sex schools. Important implications of this study are that findings contribute to the discovery of ways of changing deeply ingrained ideologies such as perceived gender dichotomies, the masculinization of males and the feminisation of females. My findings also contribute to ways in which privileges, such as whiteness, can be deconstructed and interrogated by those in privileged positions. My findings have potential significant implications for pedagogical practices. Education provides a means by which tools can be utilized to deconstruct and interrogate notices which maintain privileges, and in the study particularly white male privileges. Within the educational systems, an understanding relating to how subjectivities are shaped within a classroom setting will also lead to greater educational insights into how specific texts and classroom interactions affect students’ self representation and understanding. Thus a gender equity and social justice curriculum committed to interrogating the ways in which male students subscribe, invest and negotiate hegemonic masculinities in advocated and has particular relevance to those males already in privileged class positions in terms of working towards a more socially just society.

Research and public attention into boys’ education has increased in recent times among an emerging concern about the performance and retention of boys in schools. This concern, in many ways, constitutes a “moral panic” (Foster, Kimmel & Skelton, 2001, p.1) sometimes producing generalised and alarming statements such as ‘all boys are underachieving in school’ and are therefore becoming the “new disadvantaged” (Foster, et, al., 2001, p.7). Alongside these populist concerns about boys in schools generally, is an emerging body of contemporary academic studies into early school leaving, (Trent & Slade, 2001; Smyth, Hattam, Cannon, Edwards, Wilson & Wurst,. 2000; Smyth & Hattam, 2004) boys’ experiences of schooling, (Martino & Pallotta-Chiarolli, 2003), as well as some broader statistical evidence indicating a general decline in school retention rates in Australia since the early 1990s (Lamb, 1998). Performance in schools generally, and declining retention rates specifically, has been described as an “unacknowledged national crisis” (Smyth & Hattam, 2002, p.375). This study investigates boys’ education generally and early school leaving specifically, by focusing on boys who leave school before completing year 10. The study explores the stories, meanings and constructed experiences of a small sample (5) of young boys aged 14 – 16 years, who have left secondary school just prior to being interviewed. This is a qualitative critical ethnographic (L. Harvey, 1990) study located within a constructivist epistemology (Crotty, 1998). It aims to investigate early school leaving through narrative (Cortazzi, 1993; Way, 1997) and ethnographic inspired analysis (Robson, 2002) of transcribed interview data. Such analyses are referenced against a macro socio-political, economic, and cultural context characterised by changing global socio-economic and political circumstances, especially in regard to how these impact on schools and future possibilities for young people (Spierings, 2002). It seeks further understanding by drawing from a framework of concepts that invoke discussion of school culture, identity practices and how these are inferred (Smyth & Hattam, 2004), produced, understood and enacted within schools and social contexts. This study reveals that schools (as cultural and institutional practices) co-construct the often painful, lengthy and contradictory processes and experiences of early school leaving. Early school leaving therefore needs to be seen as an institutional and not merely personal or individual phenomenon. Appreciating the way schools assist in the process of early school leaving is important to understand, as it is within this domain that alternative educational practices can be located, constructed and enacted. It is hoped that this study will contribute to the current public policy debates on boys in schools, and as such be seen as an important contribution to public discourses and policy processes that help shape responses to boys in schools in general, and early school leaving in particular.

The research examines the relationship between the two variables Attention- Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (A-D/HD) and Locus of Control in boys identified with A- D/HD.The major issues addressed are: the extent to which attentional deficit predicts external Locus of Control and the effect of a cognitive-behavioural intervention on boys with A- D/HD and a highly externalised Locus of Control. Reducing the externality of Locus of Control is seen as an innovative means of addressing some behavioural aspects of A-D/HD.The study involved 77 A-D/HD boys with A-D/HD and 23 boys who were not A-D/HD, but who demonstrated similar levels of disruptive behaviours, from schools in Western Australia. Australian norms were established for the Locus of Control instrument (CNS-IE) using 300 male classmates of the participants.Each boy was assessed by parents and teachers on established measures of A-D/HD (the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and the Attention Deficit Disorders Evaluation Scale (ADDES)). The boys completed the CNS-IE both before and after the intervention. The boys with A-D/HD were medicated with Dexamphetamine or Ritalin, as prescribed by an appropriate medical practitioner.The association of A-D/HD diagnostic subtypes, (Predominantly Inattentive Type, Predominantly Hyperactive Type, Combined Type) with Locus of Control was also investigated.The results demonstrate that a significant (p < 0.001) correlation exists between attention deficit (assessed by the two parallel measures, CBCL and ADDES) and Locus of Control. The Locus of Control of boys with A-D/HD was significantly (p < 0.001) more external than that of the non-A-D/HD boys. This finding held true for each of the three A-D/HD subtypes when they were compared to the non-A-D/HD group.Participation in the cognitive behavioural intervention (the Stop, Think, Do program) significantly (p < 0.001) reduced the level ++ / of externality of Locus of Control in all groups of subjects.The research also examined the relationship between parents and teachers ratings of the same individual's behaviour. Ratings were found to be highly consistent between both groups. Parent ratings of inattention appear to be particularly salient both in identifying boys with an associated external Locus of Control and as an indicator of A-D/HD.The results of the research support the use of appropriate cognitive behavioural interventions in addressing self-regulation and responsibility, the central issues put forward in the Behavioural Disinhibition model of A-D/HD.Implications for the management of A-D/HD in the long term are also addressed. A multi- modal model involving medication and two stages of cognitive-behavioural intervention is recommended, where a cognitive behavioural intervention is used initially to develop a more internal Locus of Control, this being followed by a reframing program to sustain and develop more adaptive perceptions and behaviours.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Ohio University, June, 2007. / Title from PDF t.p. Includes bibliographical references.