In this study, the effects of an explicit reflective intervention on Swaziland elementary preservice teachers’ understanding of the Nature of Science (NOS) were investigated. The factors that had an impact on the development of participants’ NOS views were also investigated. The intervention made use of de-contextualized and contextualized activities as well as historical narratives as contexts for reflecting about the empirical, creative, subjective as well as the tentative NOS. The intervention included a discussion of the relationships and differences between observations and inferences as well as scientific laws and theories in the context of the aforementioned learning activities. Participants were 24 elementary pre-service teachers enrolled for their final year of their three year teacher development programme. An adapted version of the Views of Nature of Science Questionnaire-Form C (VNOS-C) was used in conjunction with individual interviews, to assess the participants’ understanding of NOS at the beginning and conclusion of the intervention. At the end of the programme, data from interviews, concept maps and reflective journals of seven participants were analysed to ascertain their perceptions of the elements of the course and other factors that had an impact on their development of more informed NOS views. These participants were selected on the basis of their differential gains in NOS understanding. The data that was analysed using both qualitative and quantitative techniques revealed that the intervention brought about significant gains in some participants’ understanding of NOS. Information obtained from the document analysis of journals and concept maps as well as exit interviews of the selected group revealed that the pre-service teachers’ development of more informed views was mediated by motivational and cognitive factors. These were the participants’ perception of the value of teaching and learning NOS, their views about teaching and learning science, and their ability to engage deeply with the NOS concepts as well as their epistemic beliefs. The explicit reflective attention to NOS as well as metacognitive strategies was reported by most of the selected participants as responsible for changes in their NOS views. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2014 / Science, Mathematics and Technology Education / unrestricted

Jordbromalmskolan was shut down despite protests from the citizens of Jordbro. It was going to give place for housing in an attempt to save a dying commercial centre, but it was occupied by cultural workers who managed to convince the municipality to keep the building as a culture house. This project addresses culture as an engine for public life by adapting a building to a new program, revealing existing qualities and adding new architectural layers. / Jordbromalmsskolan stängdes 2009 trots protester från Jordbros invånare. Skolan skulle ge plats åt nya bostäder i ett försök att rädda Jordbros döende centrum. 2012 flyttade några kulturorganisationer in i huset på ett rivningskontrakt och Jordbro Kulturhus skapades. Efter två års kamp lyckades kulturarbetarna övertyga kommunen att behålla huset som kulturhus. Det här projektet adresserar kultur som en motor för publikt liv genom att anpassa en byggnad till ett nytt program, lyfta fram befintliga kvaliteter och addera nya arkitektoniska lager.

The diploma thesis deals with projet documentation for execution of a new kindergarten building in the city of Velíková. The kindergarten is located in the properties with number 528/1. The building has one underground floor and two above-ground floors. In the basement there are storage rooms, technical rooms and air conditioning engine room. In the first above-ground floor there are two classes of kindergarten. Every classroom are designed for 16 childrens. In this floor there is a kitchen and laundry with storerooms. There are three teaching classes and offices of management in the second above-ground floor. The perimetr load-bearing masonry in the basement is designed of concrete blocks of permanent formwork. In the above-ground part of the building are load-bearing masonry designed af clay blocks. The ceiling structures are designed from prestressed reinforced concrete spiroll panels. The roof structure is designed as a warm flat roof. The kindergarten is insulated with a certifies thermal insulation system.

The diploma thesis on the topic of pension Solanec is processed at the level of documentation for the construction. The building is rectangular shape and contains a basement and three floors. The building will serve as a restaurant and guest house. The guest house contains nineteen double rooms and four quadruple rooms. A structural system of the building is brick, combined and consists of a permanent formwork in the basement and in the above floor is ceramic blocks of the type of THERM. The roof structures are designed as monolithic reinforced concrete slabs. The building is roofed by a saddle and pitched roof, formed by a truss system. The building is insulated with the ETICS system.

Diplomová práce se zabývá návrhem penzionu v kombinaci dřevostavby a železobetonové konstrukce. Objekt je zastřešen sedlovou střechou s obytným podkrovím a částečně podsklepen. V suterénu se nachází technické zázemí a skladovací prostory. V přízemí je restaurace pro 44 osob, kuchyně se zázemím a prostory pro personál. Ve 2. NP je navrženo 7 čtyřlůžkových pokojů oddělených od společenské místnosti a dětského koutku. V podkroví je 9 dvoulůžkových pokojů, z nichž jeden je řešen bezbariérově. Patra jsou propojena schodištěm a výtahem. V podkroví i 2.NP je sklad prádla a úklidová místnost. Objekt je opláštěn dřevěnými palubkami, které tvoří provětrávanou fasádu, a v přízemí také omítkou.

The subject of the diploma thesis is the elaboration of project documentation for the construction of a multifunctional house. The building is located on a building plot of parcel number 2176/15 in the cadastral area of Stará Boleslav. It is located in the northeastern part of the cadastral area. The terrain of the building plot is flat and currently the plot is covered with grass. It is a built-up area in which the development of apartment buildings predominates. The designed multifunctional house is spread over four floors. On the first floor there are three surgeries with a preparation room, facilities for staff and clients and communication areas of the building. The first floor is designed as barrier-free. There are six apartments on the second and third floors. On the fourth floor are designed two apartments and a walking terrace. The underground part consists of technical facilities, storage space and 13 parking spaces.

The student housing project is located in the oldest town neighbourhoods in Brno. This location has undergone lot of changes over the course of time. My goal was to return to one of those phases, to create inner couryard with additional new funcions. The concept is based on the regulation plan issued for this location by magistrate of Brno city. The building comprises various types of student housing as well as flats and rentable areas. The shape of the building is formed by character of Křížová street and opposite buildings. From the inner side building turns to the side of the courtyard.

The project of multifunctional building on Křížová street solves building over a gap at the end of the street next to the Mendel Square. The idea was to create a building that would usefully complement the existing block structure. The concept of urban multipurpose derives from the specific shape of the parcel as defined in the terms on which stands the main dark structure. This mass is penetrated by irregular cell structure of flats, which grid influences the whole interior layout. The whole building has four floors of underground parking, a ground floor with a café and shops and six floors of residential apartments from studio flats to 3 bedroom flats and luxury apartments on the roof.

In one of the sites tested in the winter semester design a municipal library in the scope and content corresponding to the goal of the study, construction and size of the specified property. project has the ability to design functional test any object in an urban environment, in relation to the surrounding Environments. The project must be documented in the author's sufficient maturity composition of external and interior, design layout of the building and its architectural design. The work must also unequivocally the structural, material and technical solution of the object. Building program part of the substrate.

Thesis advisor: Hans de Wit / Thesis advisor: Gerardo L. Blanco / Today’s global knowledge economy has become complex, dynamic, and competitive. In this environment, the talented workforce is increasingly diverse, educated, and mobile. International talents tend to migrate to anglophone countries and contribute to technological innovation, scientific discoveries, and economic growth. The largest international student population in the top destination countries comes from Asia. At the same time, research has shown that Asian international students reported lower satisfaction and higher adjustment challenges due to linguistic and cultural barriers, negatively impacting their learning and living experiences. This dissertation aims to understand and explain the transnational transition process through a subset of the Asian international student population. Thirty-five current university student interviewees are purposefully selected. They are graduates of the “International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme,” a rigorous education pathway program popular in Asia for families to prepare their children for Western higher education. Asian International Baccalaureate (IB) alums, who received education in linguistically and culturally diverse settings, offered more nuanced and complex answers to what traditional literature has indicated about international student transitions and experiences. A Successful International University Transition Model is generated from the grounded theory analysis. This model illustrates the causal and intervening conditions that impact international transitions, with the central tasks of being a university student and becoming an adult. Further, the results are discussed with Bourdieu’s concepts of habitus/practice to explain the heterogeneity in the process amongst the diverse international student population. Lastly, recommendations to stakeholders suggest ways to support globally mobile young adults in their transition and development journey. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2023. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education.