Sweden's prosperity is one fifth based on successful and innovative industries. To be able to meet the increasingly demanding and complex market the manufacturing companies need to be able to change. This, in turn, puts high pressure on leadership and internal and external communication before a transformation within the organisation, even more so on a global organisation. To meet these requirements, the manufacturing companies need to work hands on with dissemination of information between the organization's boundaries before change. This study aims to investigate how management can work with dissemination of information before a change. A qualitative method approach was used to answer the study's research question and the method of choosing was semistructured individual interviews. Sensemaking was used as a theoretical perspective to analyse the collected data. The study results show that management and bosses need to adapt their way of communication depending on which individual the information is addressed to, and that organizations need to work with organizational culture to encourage change. This study also reversals that it is important for concerned organisational members to feel involved in, and to understand the meaning with, the change. The management within the organization can therefore establish a change group to work with these issues. / Sveriges välstånd är till en femtedel byggt på framgångsrika och innovativa industrier. För att tillverkningsföretagen ska kunna möta den allt mer komplexa och krävande marknaden behöver de kunna förändras. Detta sätter i sin tur hög press på ledarskap och intern och extern kommunikation inför en förändring, och allra främst på globala organisationer. För att kunna möta dessa krav behöver tillverkningssektorn aktivt arbeta med informationsspridning mellan organisationens gränser inför förändringsarbeten. Den här studien kommer att undersöka hur ledning kan arbeta med informationsspridning inför ett förändringsarbete. En kvalitativ metod ansats har använts för att besvara studiens forskningsfråga och den valda metoden utgjordes av semistrukturerade individuella intervjuer. För att analysera studiens insamlade data användes Sensemaking som ett teoretiskt perspektiv. Studiens resultat visar att ledning och chefer behöver anpassa sitt sätt att kommunicera beroende på vilken individ informationen riktar sig till, samt att organisationer behöver arbeta med organisationskultur för att främja förändringsarbeten. Studien visar även att det är viktigt att berörda organisationsmedlemmar känner sig involverade i, och förstår meningen med, förändringen. Ledningen inom organisationen kan bland annat arbeta med detta genom att tillsätta en förändringsgrupp.

In the first part of this master's thesis there is briefly presented the biomechanics of the human voice creation and an overview of the hitherto published computational models of the vocal tract and dissemination of the acoustic waves around the human head. The second part of the thesis deals with the creation of the computational model of a dissemination of the acoustic waves through vocal tract and further into a space around the head during the pronouncing of the Czech vowel /a:/. The vocal tract is excited by a harmonic signal in the place of vocal chords. On the surface of the vocal tract and the part of the head including hair and skin there is defined an acoustic absorption. The dissemination of the acoustic waves in the vocal tract, in the near field around the mouth, in the area around the head and in the points on the cheeks is detailed mapped. The dissemination of the acoustic waves is analyzed in the points where the speech microphones are placed. Acoustic pressure dependence on frequency, transmission functions between defined points and the acoustic pressure amplitudes depending on the distance from the mouth are obtained. In particular, the frequency distortion of the spectra is observed at the points indicated. Furthermore, the radiation impedance in the mouth area is evaluated. The results obtained are compared with the results of the hitherto published experimental measurements and can be used for the exact measurement of human voice or for the frequency correction of the microphones during the scann of the speech and sing placced in the analyzed points.

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The construction industry is one of the least digitized industries in the world which results in projectdelays, poor quality, uninformed decision-making, and unnecessary spending. Initiatives from the governmentthat promotes digitalization will therefore play an important role. In Sweden, Smart Built Environment is suchan initiative, that through a bottom-up process where public and private actors from the built environment sectorcooperate in projects together to develop products and services in sustainable perspectives. However, there arechallenges when it comes to transferring and reaping benefits from knowledge developed in projects. The aimof the paper is to investigate how project outcomes from Smart Built Environment projects are handled andhow projects are linked to the program’s intended short-term effects. Through a case study and document analysison two projects, nine different semi-structured interviews with representatives of the organizations involvedin the projects were identified. As the Smart Built Environment's short-term effects were embeddedwith the project goals, it was concluded that the project results were linked to the program's intended shorttermeffects in theory, but that it becomes tangible when implemented in practice. Furthermore, the projectresults spread individually where it was implemented on future projects, internally within the organization inthe form of presentations, and finally through interest groups (BIM alliance) where it was presented to actorsin the entire built environment sector.

Bygg- och fastighetssektorn hör till de branscher som har störst påverkan på miljö och klimat. Med utgångspunkt i detta går det att argumentera för att branschen bör satsa på hållbarhetsområdet för att skona miljön. NCC är ett bygg- och fastighetsutvecklingsföretag som vill vara i framkant, inte enbart i fråga om hållbarhet utan även då det kommer till innovativa lösningar. NCC håller på att utveckla ett hållbarhetsverktyg, ABS – always, better, superior, med målet att konkretisera organisationens hållbarhetsarbete och påvisa mervärdet av hållbara affärer. Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka förutsättningarna för hur hållbarhetsverktyget ABS skulle kunna utgöra ett stöd i produktionsverksamheten. Vidare är syftet att undersöka hur verktyget ABS kan kopplas till ISO 14001 och därmed företagets möjlighet till ständig förbättring av sin miljöprestanda. För att undersöka den formulerade forskningsfrågan användes kvalitativa intervjuer som sedan analyserades med en tematisk analys. Samtliga intervjuer genomfördes på NCC:s huvudkontor i Solna och främst på avdelningen Bostad Stockholm. Resultatet påvisar bland annat att hållbarhetsarbetet i en organisation kan hindras i många led. Det kan dels vara en fråga om brister i kunskapsspridningen inom organisationen eller mot kund, ett internt motstånd mot nya koncept, kostnadsfokus eller brist på incitament att bedriva hållbarhetsarbete. Vidare hinder skulle kunna vara avsaknad av rätt resurser eller ledningsstöd. En åtgärd som föreslås är pedagogiska insatser, både internt och mot kund. Verktyget ABS bör vidare utformas som en checklista för att vara enkelt, tydligt och användbart. Resultat och diskussion visar vidare på att det är möjligt att harmonisera ABS med ISO 14001. Detta främst genom att göra vissa anpassningar av ABS-kriterierna efter de betydande miljöaspekterna som identifierades i samband med NCC:s ISO 14001-certifiering. Således kommer ABS vidare kunna utgöra ett stöd för att påvisa ökad miljöprestanda. / The construction and property business falls among the sectors that have the greatest impact on the environment and climate. Due to this it is possible to argue that the entire sector should invest in protecting the environment. NCC is a construction and property development company that aims to be on the forefront, not only in terms of sustainability but also when it comes to innovative solutions. NCC is currently developing a sustainability tool called ABS - always, better, superior. This in order to concretize the organization's sustainability goals but also to be able to exemplify added value of a sustainable business. Further, the purpose of this study is to investigate on what basis the sustainability tool ABS is perceived to be a support in production. The purpose of this study is also to examine how the tool ABS can be linked to ISO 14001 and thus the company's ability of continuous improvement in their environmental performance. The method used to investigate the research question was qualitative interview. The data was analyzed by using a thematic analysis. The result demonstrates that there are many obstacles for the sustainability work of the organization due to many levels. Gaps in the knowledge management, either within the organization or towards customers, internal resistance to new concepts, focus on costs or disincentives to engage in sustainability are some examples. Further obstacles could be lack of proper resources or in management support. This study recommends educational efforts, both internally and towards the customers. The ABS tool could work as a support in the organization's sustainability work, provided that it is user friendly. This to avoid that the tool is considered an administrative burden in the projects. It seems that the results and discussion indicate that it is possible to harmonize ABS with ISO 14001. This primarily by making some adjustments to the ABS criteria to incorporate significant environmental aspects identified in NCC's ISO 14001 certification. Thus, the ABS tool can also serve as a support for the detection of environmental performance.

The purpose of this study was to explore and describe the experiences of teachers fulfilling the role of facilitators of the STAR intervention with fellow teachers at two neighbouring schools. The study constituted part of a broader research project that commenced in 2003, at a primary school in the Eastern Cape. At the time of the current study, seven of the ten teachers who participated in the initial study were replicating the initial study’s strategy in two neighbouring schools in an attempt to assist the teachers in providing psychosocial support. In an attempt to explore the experiences of the teacher-facilitators I observed a STAR intervention session (November, 2008), that involved four participants facilitating a STAR intervention session at the neighbouring school. Following my observation of the intervention session, I co-facilitated a focus group, exploring the teacher-facilitators’ experiences in fulfilling the role of peer-facilitators. Two days after the first focus group, I co-facilitated a follow-up focus group for the purpose of member-checking. In addition, I relied on field notes and visual data as data sources. Based on the data analysis that followed, three main themes emerged. Firstly, the teachers seemed to ascribe meaning on a personal level in terms of their experiences as facilitators of STAR. They experienced joy in sharing knowledge and enabling others, feelings of self-worth and self-confidence, personal development and growth, as well as confirmed commitment and motivation. Secondly, they experienced a shared voice in the community, in response to the peer-facilitation of STAR, referring to appreciation and trust that inspired enthusiasm for participation in various school-community systems and a sense of community as outcome of facilitation. Thirdly, participants identified aspects related to being a peer-facilitator, in terms of overcoming feelings of uncertainty and concern, working as a team, relying on creative problem solving when dealing with potential challenges, and extending the scope of facilitation. Based on the findings of the study I concluded that the participating teachers experienced the facilitation of STAR in a positive manner on both a personal and professional level. As a result of their positive experiences, they seemed to become even more committed and motivated than initially, to support their community through the facilitation of STAR. Their positive experiences seemingly influenced their perceived development in terms of self-efficacy beliefs and actualisation, which in turn enhanced their personal and professional growth, thereby forming a cycle of improved positive experiences on various levels. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Educational Psychology / unrestricted

The main purpose of this study was to investigate the responses of educators and school management team members on a Curriculum Delivery Intervention Programme (CDIP) in a township school. The study also examined the factors that might influence the opinions educators and school management team members hold about curriculum delivery. The participants of this study were 60 educators who are teaching at an underperforming secondary school in Mpumalanga province. The secondary school was conveniently selected from 8 under-performing schools in the Witbank area. The data were collected through a mix-method approach using questionnaires, individual interviews and an observational checklist. A 100% responses rate was achieved. The literature review was conducted to identify the main interventions contained in the CDIP. Educators and school management teams responded to curriculum delivery interventions questionnaires. Data was collected by means of individual interviews and an observational checklist. The focus fell on the following main interventions: departmental support, professional development and classroom practices. The data for the study were analysed using both quantitative and qualitative techniques. The findings of the study show that both educators and SMT members agree about the value of curriculum delivery intervention programme in the school. They also showed that the school had not been supported with necessary resources by the Department that well. The results also indicate that educators and SMT members disagree that skills development covers everybody in order to pursue educators’ development in the school. The staff agreed that they have an important role to play in ensuring that the implementation of CDIP is successful in their school. The study also revealed that the school did not have all key and relevant documentation as expected in the school files. However, educators indicated that the Department is not objective enough when delivering the curriculum in the school. The results derived from the curriculum delivery intervention might not be that accurate and reliable. The responses of staff correspond with their experiences on curriculum delivery practices initiated by the Department. Most of them also indicated that they have not seen much change since the CDIP started to enhance learners’ performance. The majority of staff members also indicated that factors such as lack of furniture, unavailability of learning materials, lack of teacher professional training and development, large number of learners in classrooms and shortage of educators in scarce subjects, play a significant role in influencing their teaching performance of the school. A number of recommendations were made for further research. The limitations of the study were also discussed. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Science, Mathematics and Technology Education / unrestricted

Purpose – Back in the year 2000, the European Council (2000) declared in its Lisbon Agenda that the European Union should become “[…] the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world, capable of sustainable economic growth with more and better jobs and greater social cohesion.” This vision encompassed far more than just societal and economic growth in a global world; it also included educational strategies and an e-learning action plan. For example, in 2011, the European Commission mentioned the following as a key policy issue (Communication 2011): to “better exploit the potential of ICTs to enable more effective and personalised learning experiences, teaching and research methods (e.g. [sic] eLearning and blended learning) and increase the use of virtual learning platforms.” In accordance with this roadmap, higher education institutions are called on to reflect and re-engineer their educational systems, adapt them to current and future technological and didactical demands and address new generations of teachers and students. New concepts like connectivism (Siemens 2004) and the recognition of non-formal and informal learning (OECD 2016) enhance traditional formal learning settings and lead far beyond the provision of mere learning content management systems. New e-learning and blended learning arrangements like MOOCs (Cormier & Siemens 2010), collaborative learning in the virtual classroom (Tawileh, Bukvova & Schoop 2013) and flipped classroom approaches (Hussey, Fleck & Richmond 2014) are evolving and must be explored, evaluated and then strategically implemented into everyday teaching and learning processes. A comprehensive e-learning strategy should therefore address four fields: didactics, technology, organisation and economy and culture (Seufert & Euler 2004). Besides orientation on the actual trends, the strategy development should also recognise and integrate practical local experiences of early adopters and actors of e-learning in the field. Therefore, a community of knowledge experts in e-learning application has been involved in the strategy development. Design/methodology/approach – Best practice report of a comprehensive quality initiative for the sustainable improvement of everyday teaching and learning processes at a large university. The challenges of current and future trends in formal and informal learning, collaboration in virtual classrooms and internationalisation of research and teaching processes are analysed and addressed by the strategy implementation plan and a regular evaluation and improvement concept is presented and discussed. Originality/value – The e-learning strategy presented was developed, discussed and adopted in 2015. Its implementation plan is currently at the final discussion stage, having been due for adoption in January 2016. Practical implications – The e-learning strategy’s implementation plan lists targets and sub-targets, underlined by concrete measures, tools and methods, responsible institutions and persons and financial sources. Regular evaluations and improvements will give elearning providers a set of proven instruments to further improve their activities and provide the broad range of students and teachers with a set of best practices to follow, enabling them to discover the benefits of e-learning for their everyday processes.

Meaning and Understanding in the Context of Thought of Jacques Derrida and Hans-Georg Gadamer The focus of the present study is mainly on the discussion of the process of understanding and emergence of meaning. Using the example of Gadamer's hermeneutics it becomes clear what are the limits of positive attempt to express conditions of understanding within the context of the philosophy of finitude. In spite of its undeniable benefits, hermeneutic understanding shows itself to be vulnerable towards ideology and it could be seen as suspected of hidden normativity thanks to its emphasis on agreement and coherency. Derrida's deconstruction on the other hand shows the dynamics of emergence of meaning in language, it emphasizes plurality and ambiguity in contrast towards totalizing unicity and agreement; however, due to this approach, it is unable to offer anything close to what we call the truth. In a parallel line of interpretation, philosophical- antropological approach of Ernst Cassirer standing in comparison with Heidegger's existential analytics of Dasein shows that already at the fundamental level in the process of establishment of terms and concepts and earlier our understanding is already determined to a certain extent. Discussion between Gadamer and Derrida shows a necessity of certain arbitrary...

Le nombre de véhicules circulant sur les routes dans le monde est passé de 500 millions en 1986 à 1 milliard de véhicules en 2010. Un tel réseau routier immense a apporté un certain confort à de nombreux conducteurs mais d'un autre coté il a représenté environs 1,24 millions d'accidents en 2010. Avec ces chiffres vient l'augmentation du niveau des émissions de CO2 et des milliards d'heures perdues dans les embouteillages. Avec le progrès et le développement des technologies sans fil ces dernières années, les réseaux véhiculaires ont rapidement évolués. Beaucoup de constructeurs automobiles et de pays ont intégré et imaginé différentes applications dans les réseaux véhiculaires : des applications de sécurité routières, d'autres pour l'information sur le trafic, ainsi que des applications de divertissement. Cette dernière catégorie d'applications se distingue des autres par la quantité et le volume de données échangées, et constitue un réel problème dû à la nature des communications sans fil véhiculaires. Dans cette thèse, nous traitons le problème de la dissémination d'information dans les systèmes véhiculaires distribués. Notre objectif principal est de proposer des solutions pratiques et réalisables pour diffuser les données dans des environnements véhiculaires réalistes. Le concept de la diffusion des données est large et significatif. Dans ce contexte, nous nous référons à la diffusion de données chaque fois qu'il y a une certaine quantité de données qui doit être répartie sur un réseau distribué sans fil. Les données sont envoyées vers plusieurs destinations (même à tous les nœuds du réseau dans certain cas) qui sont intéressés pour récupérer la totalité ou une partie des informations générées. A titre d'exemples, nous pouvons considérer les applications de partage de fichiers, la diffusion de fichiers multimédia et ainsi de suite. Nous abordons dans cette thèse le problème de dissémination de données dans les réseaux véhiculaires, plus précisément la dissémination de grands volumes de données tel que le contenu multimédia. Avec l'évolution au cours de ces dernières années des réseaux véhiculaires notamment grâce au support de nombreux constructeurs automobiles (e.x. Toyota, Nissan, BMW, Ford, etc.), la quantité de données échangée a augmenté de manière exponentielle au fil des années. Malheureusement malgré l'avancement des technologies de communications sans fil, l'échange de grands volumes de données dans des réseaux véhiculaires reste un réel défi, à cause des caractéristiques de communications sans fil et celles spécifiques aux réseaux véhiculaires. / The number of vehicles on the roads in the world increased from 500 million in 1986 to 1 billion vehicles in 2010. Such a huge road network has brought some comfort to many drivers but on the other hand it represented around 1.24 million accidents in 2010. With the progress and development of wireless technologies these recent years, vehicular networks quickly evolved. Many car manufacturers and countries have built and imagined different applications in vehicular networks: road safety applications, others for traffic information, and entertainment applications. This last category of applications is distinguished from others by the quantity and volume of exchanged data, and represents a real problem due to the lossy nature of vehicular communications. In this thesis, we address the problem of data dissemination in distributed vehicular systems. Our main objective is to provide practical and workable solutions to disseminate data in realistic vehicular environments. The concept of data dissemination is large and significant. In this context, we call data dissemination each time there is a certain amount of data which must be distributed on in wireless network. The data is sent to multiple destinations who are interested to recover all or part of the information. As examples, we can consider the file sharing applications, streaming multimedia files and so on. We discuss in this thesis the data dissemination problem in vehicular networks, specifically the dissemination of large volumes of data such as content distribution. With the evolution in recent years of vehicular networks thanks to many car manufacturers support (eg Toyota, Nissan, BMW, Ford, etc.), the amount of exchanged data has increased exponentially over the years. Unfortunately, despite the advancement of wireless communications technologies, exchange large volumes of data in vehicular networks remains a challenge because of wireless communications features and those specific to vehicular networks.