The notion of social capital (SC) is increasingly used as a framework for describing social issues in terrestrial communities. For more than a decade, researchers use the term to mean the set of trust, institutions, social norms, social networks, and organizations that shape the interactions of actors within a society and that are considered to be useful and assets for communities to prosper both economically and socially. Despite growing popularity of social capital especially, among researchers in the social sciences and the humanities, the concept remains ill-defined and its operation and benefits limited to terrestrial communities. In addition, proponents of social capital often use different approaches to analyze it and each approach has its own limitations. <p>This thesis examines social capital within the context of technology-mediated communities (also known as virtual communities) communities. It presents a computational model of social capital, which serves as a first step in the direction of understanding, formalizing, computing and discussing social capital in virtual communities. The thesis employs an eclectic set of approaches and procedures to explore, analyze, understand and model social capital in two types of virtual communities: virtual learning communities (VLCs) and distributed communities of practice (DCoP). <p>There is an intentional flow to the analysis and the combination of methods described in the thesis. The analysis includes understanding what constitutes social capital in the literature, identifying and isolating variables that are relevant to the context of virtual communities, conducting a series of studies to further empirically examine various components of social capital identified in three kinds of virtual communities and building a computational model. <p>A sensitivity analysis aimed at examining the statistical variability of the individual variables in the model and their effects on the overall level of social capital are conducted and a series of evidence-based scenarios are developed to test and update the model. The result of the model predictions are then used as input to construct a final empirical study aimed at verifying the model.<p>Key findings from the various studies in the thesis indicated that SC is a multi-layered, multivariate, multidimensional, imprecise and ill-defined construct that has emerged from a rather murky swamp of terminology but it is still useful for exploring and understanding social networking issues that can possibly influence our understanding of collaboration and learning in virtual communities. Further, the model predictions and sensitivity analysis suggested that variables such as trust, different forms of awareness, social protocols and the type of the virtual community are all important in discussion of SC in virtual communities but each variable has different level of sensitivity to social capital. <p>The major contributions of the thesis are the detailed exploration of social capital in virtual communities and the use of an integrated set of approaches in studying and modelling it. Further, the Bayesian Belief Network approach applied in the thesis can be extended to model other similar complex online social systems.

These decades in the past, the progress of science and technology brought the human happiness; it is exhausted to also bring the serious environmental pollution, ecological disruption, resource day by day. So go over the faith that ' man is the master of his own fate ' begin to shake changing into and becoming gradually ' people are a natural part, mankind must with getting along naturally ', sustainable development become key concept of new paradigm. In 1978 Dunlap & Van Liere thought that the dominant social paradigm at that time was to demonstrate the inside out ecological image, only consider the social one's own demand, and get rid of the mankind outside the nature, ignore the environmental impact on society, so call this kind of view ' Human Exceptionalism Paradigm, HEP ' . Dunlap & Van Liere propose a kind of ' New Environmental Paradigm, NEP ¡¥, the reason why they call that ' New Environmental Paradigm ' because with mankind at that time for to model very different dominant social paradigm. It can be with the change of faith , attitude and values that the appearance of NEP mainly hopes, enable mankind to make a thorough review on people and naturally real relation, change mankind's attitude immoderate to the natural demand. Environmental sustainable planning deeply international while paying attention to , Taiwan environmental planning professional person, body in environmental front most of planning, in the face of new environmental paradigm arrival of times, how much deep understanding about the concept of the environmental sustainable ? The impact that is changed fast by the whole external environment condition, plan also the revolutionary transformation is taking place in the planning paradigm, the professional personnel of urban planning get along with during the process of adapting to. Has planned the contention in theory to extend all the time constantly in the last hundred years, and planning paradigm to replace constantly, so the related one influences planners to public interests cognition and treatment method . In the face of the arrival of the era of knowledge-driven economy, the city is in global economy and ripe democratic politics day by day competed for day by day, plan to need marching toward the new model badly. So face the transitions of the paradigm of planning and ideological trend, does the environmental planning professional person in Taiwan do a good job of due adjustment? Over a long period of time, the urban growth and renovation in Taiwan have been spinning out of control and falling into disorder. The same problems have arisen time and again. For instance, deforestation and overexploitation of hillside lead to landslide; urban sprawl resulted in the shortage of public facilities; the developers were unable to internalize the externalities. If learning is deemed as a process of accumulating and readjusting life experience, then what¡¦s the problem with our society, which has failed to learn from the repeated urban issues and create new models for practice. What are the factors impeding this society¡¦s potential to remold the past experience? Traditional planning, overweight the human space and satisfaction of the demand, so that often neglect the carrying capacity of the ecological environment , and the inspiration that the whole social people's train of thought link and giving a new lease of life to. ' the Environmental planning ' which the advanced country emphasizes at present, its idea is conversely; The planning of the environment, is a kind of new idea, the ones that emphasized from ecological environment carrying capacity, or the potentiality , chance or limiting conditions of the supply, have priority to suitability analysis, but not meet the human demand simply . Namely the planner must respect the resource and environmental supply, mediate the human demand. This kind of planning could make the balance between development and preserve. So this research one is in the face of new environmental paradigm appears, such as transition of ideological trend and public interests, etc. to describing of person who understands environmental planning professional, practice crisis of urban planning of Taiwan , the emerging in an endless stream of environmental planning problem of Taiwan, influence its to be cognitive with the behavior further? To present domestic environmental planning professional education and training is enough to deal with the changes like this of the environment? Possibility which the professional person practice community produces? So this research is probed into from it by this: 1. Planner personal basic attribute with and its environmental view (new environmental paradigm), environmental behavior (responsible environmental behavior) and what is relation to learning style? 2. Planners face the environment (Environmental view, action approach, practice crisis), person (self-regulatory, self-efficacy) and with to influence each other what is relation to behavior (environmental behavior, production of practice community)? Through the distinguishing of above-mentioned problems relation, achieve the following research purposes: 1. Probe into environmental planners of Taiwan and present the environmental paradigm shift. 2. Probe into the social cognition model of planners under the new environmental planning discussion. 3. Probe into the possible change and meaning of environmental planning specialized education of Taiwan. This research is mainly studying social learning and cognitive social cognition view of the theory of society of society proposed through Bandura, as the key structure of this research, this theory thinks that the behavior is to emerge via the reciprocal function of person and environment, instead of be determined by any dimensions among them. This view transform environment (E ) , person (P ) and behavior (B ) into three interrelated dimensions and acts on to some extent, namely ' the social learning theory ' and ' the social cognitive theory ' with Bandura - Probe into the self- regulation system among the person cognition, behavior and environment. Retrospect via relevant theory documents of this study, put it in order out under the social cognitive theory, professional person's influence way of environmental program among the three of ' the environment ,person , behavior ', and planner's personal learning style way is set up. With the new environmental paradigm concept, action approach of planning , planning practice crisis of the whole , planner personal self-efficiency and self-regulatory, responsible environmental behavior, and plan practice relevant parameter that community produce influence, and then build the intact model which construct out a environmental planner's social cognitive theory, and then concern the analytical method of the way (LISREL ) to verify this theory model with Joreskog & Sorbom linear structure of development. This study attempts to set up a planner's social cognitive theory way from the retrospect of theory documents, offer the school, the department is carrying on environmental planning education public and private, knowledge and action are being linked etc. The result of study of this study can be summed up as follows on policy implications: 1. To test and verify of the social cognitive theory - Have proved on one's to the environmental planning professional person that among the three of ' the environment , person , behavior ' hand in the relation influenced in social cognitive theory, environmental influences person; Individual influences the behavior; The behavior influences the environment. 2. To indicate and verify the new arrival of times of environmental planning paradigm - So no matter in the school, public department or private consultant firm is in the future in planning educational course design and arrange, environmental draft, implementation of planning of policy, etc., should change to some extent. 3. To Assert and introduce of the learning style of the persons who plan the professional roles - The educational professional of environmental planning that this research is thought to be domestic, arrange with the design in course of professional training, real should make relevant adjustment and plan, there can be chance of balanced study in the training course of letting the profession form, pay attention to ' concrete experience ' and 'active experimentation ' more with the planning.

This study focused on emerging bilingual students in an urban elementary bilingual classroom. Schools and teachers play a fundamental role in emerging bilingual children’s language acquisition and academic preparation. Emerging bilinguals currently enrolled in U.S. schools must learn a new academic language and academic content in a climate marked by standards-based reform and anti-immigrant sentiment. Utilizing case study methodology, this investigation explored the ways in which emerging bilinguals and their teacher co-constructed literacy practices and the connection between literacy practices and identity. Microanalysis of discourse was performed on data collected during literacy practices to examine positionings, the ways people present themselves in a situation. Data included field notes from classroom observations, audio and video recordings, teacher and student interviews, and artifacts in the form of student work and district and curriculum documents. Participants engaged in a wide variety of literacy practices utilizing material resources of the classroom, their teacher, their emerging bilingual abilities, and prior experiences both in and out of the classroom as resources to construct meaning from texts. Literacy practices were characterized by high expectations for student achievement and group membership, the development of students’ linguistic and cultural knowledge, building students’ self-efficacy related to literacy, and affirmation of participants’ bilingual/bicultural identities. Students demonstrated several positionings during literacy practices. Analysis of these positioning suggested that their identities were shaped by their participation in literacy practices and their interactions with other members of this community of practice. The community of practice that participants co-constructed was characterized by a focus on inclusivity, purposeful opening of interactional spaces, expanding repertoires of practice, and caring. Results of this study suggested that teacher and student disposition and affect can be taught, which raised questions about the current focus on only knowledge and skills in teacher education programs rather on teacher disposition and affect. There are also implications for teachers and researchers who have an interest in communities of practice and effectively educating emerging bilingual students. / text

This study is significant because U.S. schools are continuously being transformed due to the increasing numbers of linguistically and culturally diverse students, in particular Latina/o youths. Therefore, this qualitative dissertation study explored and described ways three Latina Tejana Maestras utilized Culturally Responsive Pedagogy (CRP) during literacy learning as they integrated students’ knowledge about their social and cultural environment, including their native language repertoire, while developing and implementing instruction. This study used sociocultural and borderlands theoretical construct to explore and describe ways the Maestras enacted and sustained CRP during literacy events. The sociocultural perspective is a fitting lens because it takes into account how knowledge is constructed in and through social interaction. Borderlands is also a fitting lens because it takes into account the Tejana Maestras borderlands identity of straddling simultaneous worlds — two languages, two cultures. Sociocultural theory and Borderlands theoretical lenses were complemented by CRP, a teaching approach that not only fits the school culture to the students’ culture, but uses the students’ culture as the basis for students to understand themselves and guiding them to becoming academically successful. The two questions used to guide this dissertation were: What culturally responsive pedagogical knowledge and practices do Tejana Maestras enact in bilingual classrooms? Second: How do Tejana Maestras acquire knowledge about the culture, language, and background experience of their students when planning and implementing instruction? The research revealed three themes, a) the presence of Building a Bilingual Classroom Community (BBCC) that was continuously evolving, and seamlessly functioning, as a system was clearly evident in each of the three classrooms, b) the Tejana Maestras notion of agents of change that guided their pedagogical literacy practices, and c) the notion of centering Mexican American students’ values, beliefs, and norms into the pedagogy and curriculum responsive to emergent bilinguals was recognizable. Six findings developed from the data; a) Tejana Maestras foster cultural awareness, b) embrace Latina/o bilingualism, c) employ a menu of culturally responsive literacy practices, d) learn from their students e) are conscious of their identity, and f) teaching philosophy. Due to U.S. schools being transformed by the increasing numbers of linguistically and culturally diverse students, the study demonstrated that it is important to conduct research about Tejana Maestras to learn the ways they are effectively meeting the needs of bilingual students by using CRP to promote academic success. / text

Enligt den situerade ansatsen ses kognitionen/tänkandet som en process i människans hjärna (neurala funktioner) och kropp (sensomotoriska mekanismer) påverkbar av omgivningen via sociala interaktioner. Den materiella och sociala omvärlden nyttjas av människan som verktyg för att stödja fysiska aktiviteter eller avlasta kognitiva processer. På samma sätt används olika typer materiella och kognitiva verktyg i grundskolundervisningen, t.ex. papper och penna eller iPads/datorer med webb-baserade läromedel. Eleven behöver omgivningens stöd vid lärandeaktiviteter. Syfte med aktuellt examinationsarbete är att undersöka via fältstudier på vilket sätt stödjer den materiella och sociokulturella kontexten eleven i lärandet som är baserad på verktygsanvändning. Studieobjektet är en högstadieskola som nyttjar en uppsättning av materiella och kognitiva verktyg i undervisningssyfte. Undersökningen utfördes genom intervjuer och observationer med ett antal elever och lärare. Insamlad data analyserades tematisk. Resultatet tyder på att elevens lärande stöds genom användning av specifika element samintegrerade till ett fungerande helhetssystem (skolans kultur) som är kvalitativt större än summan av de enskilda delarnas begränsade förmåga.

This study investigated the online interactions of parents using the constructs of Wenger’s (1998) community of practice theory. Parents were surveyed and blogs and comments selections were examined to determine whether a communities of practice perspective would be appropriate as a construct to examine parents’ online interactions, and whether parents could gain similar benefits to those found from face-to-face parent support groups. This study provides evidence to support the utility of parents’ online interactions and the relevance of a community of practice perspective as analyzed with the components of Wenger’s (1998) Communities of Practice Theory. / text

<p><font face="Times New Roman"> <p align="left"><font face="Arial">The study analyses the relationship between experience, participation and learning and seeks to establish how the experience of adult learners can be mobilised through active participation and how situational conditions can either facilitate or inhibit participation and learning amongst the learners. Another dimension of the study seeks to establish what caregivers learn and the processes through which they learn and how such learning contributes to changes in behaviour and relationships. In this study, the nature and dynamics of learning amongst adult learners in the NCTP programme at community level is explored as an example of socio-cultural theory and situated learning which hold that learning results from participation in various socio-cultural situations &ndash / the act of participation is seen as crucial in the learning. The study focused on a group of 10 learners in the National Certificate Training Programme for community health workers who are also caregivers in the Nokuthembeka Home-based Care Programme in New Crossroads in the Cape Town metropole and used a qualitative research design and interpretive approach to understand the situations in which they learn. An interpretive approach allowed for deeper insight into the socio-cultural contexts that influence the social interactions of caregivers with peers as well as their learning. In the study I argue that the experience of caregivers forms a critical resource and the foundational basis for learning.</font></p> <p>&nbsp / </p> </font></p>

This master thesis contextualise, and discuss the contemporary art as a catalyst for change, and raises social issues through art production in the urban district Nima. Perspectives of "community", and "community of practice" affiliates with examples of placed based art, mainly mural paintings performed in the urban landscape of the community, in the stigmatised community Nima, an area in Ghana’s capital Accra. The study has identified an artistic climate that is emerging from within the community, where artists have created a system for various forms of arts education. The artistic climate is a process of social practice, and this study further discuss the interaction of people in the process of art production, which provides both local, and global perspectives of art. Issues of representation, especially who is in the position to represent others, and how others are in fact represented are discussed and analysed as well as the terminology of “African art”.

This study was designed to explore the possible connections between student peer relationships and individual students’ roles in a network as it pertained to outcomes such as self-reported academic achievement and personal satisfaction with the first year of college. The research question directing this inquiry is: How does a student’s role within a residential community of peers relate to success in college? Social network analysis was employed for examination of individual engagement within the context of a larger community. The vast learning community literature tells an interesting story: 1.) a history of co-curricular peer learning environments, 2) a tradition of research intended to assess the value of these programs, 3) a body of literature that provides theoretical explanations for why learning communities should work. The gap in the literature is found regarding what happens within the communities. To learn how individuals within community learn from one another, community of practice was utilized as a framework in this mixed-methods approach to examine the influence of relationships, and exchange, acquisition, & development of social capital within a living learning community While this network study indicated that popularity, relational ties to staff, and being someone sought-after for advice were not statistically significant predictors of higher GPA, the network analyses confirmed strong network density, cohesion, and proper structure for ideal capital flow. The results of this study confirm that this community is effective in establishing familiarity and even more so, providing an environment that fosters friendships among participants and staff. Furthermore, students developed the ability to construct knowledge alongside their peers. Given the density and relation-rich nature of this community, this positive environment is able to foster more complex and self-authored levels of meaning-making for the students involved. Building this scaffolding facilitated student development, which effectively created a student transformation from dependence on external authority to self-authorship. This study confirmed that the primary goals of a learning community have been met: a group of strangers developed into a network of friends who reap social and academic benefits by virtue of being together in a shared and successful living learning community environment.

The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between language, identity construction and learning in the context of the Vehicle programme, a vocational program in Swedish upper secondary schools. The study focuses on language practices and the norms of language, gender and school work that are negotiated in conversations between pupils and between pupils and teachers. The language practices are considered as talk-in-interaction, and identity construction and learning are understood as processes in socially situated activities. The Vehicle programme has its basis in mechanics with links to the vehicle and transport trades, and can be identified as a male-coded program in several respects. The pupils participating in this study were both boys and girls attending a school situated in the North of Sweden. The study was conducted through an ethnographic approach, employing plural methods including observation, field notes, audio-recordings of conversations, and interviews with pupils in focus groups and individually. Recorded conversations were analysed using tools from conversation analysis. The analysis is based on Judith Butler’s theory of gender as performance, Raewyn Connell’s theory of hegemonic masculinity, and Penelope Eckert’s theory of the heterosexual market. A socio-cultural theory of learning describing communities of practice, by Lave and Wenger, which has also been applied to linguistics by Eckert and McConnell-Ginet, forms the basis of the theoretical framework. The analyses of conversations show that the language practices were confrontational, direct and humorous; characteristics that have strong connections to notions of a masculine conversational style. The pupils were not as aware of interactional patterns as they were of the words they used. Thereby the norms in the community of practice, which were based on notions of masculinity and heterosexuality, were not noticed, and worked as undercurrents in the interaction. The girls participated in the language practices in the same ways as the boys, but contrary to the boys, the girls interpreted the language practices as effects of other things than gender, for example as signs of being independent or daring. They also experienced that adjusting to the expectations of normative middle-class femininity was more oppressive than adjusting to the norms that were negotiated within the community of practice. The conversation analyses also show some of the complexity in teachers’ work and their role as mediators of norms and values. Peer reactions to individual pupil turns in the classroom conversations were of more importance for the development of the conversations than teacher responses. Thus there was usually a homogenization of the expressed perspectives. Norms of heterosexuality were constantly reconstructed in interaction within the community of practice and they controlled the pupils’ understanding of what was perceived as normal or deviant behaviour. Thereby the pupils constrained each other’s school performances in the core subjects and reconstructed a difference between being theoretical and practical, a process that was partly supported by the school as an institution. Generally, the pupils in the community of practice had to balance their identity constructions in relation to the peer group, teacher expectations, and their own ambitions, for which reason learning turned out to be more than just a process of acquiring knowledge.