The research reported is a theoretical investigation of the interaction of land-use and transport in relation to the use of energy. Of particular interest is the relationship between the spatial arrangement of settlements and the use of energy within them for both transport and building services. The literature of scenarios of energy futures is reviewed, and three scenarios of future constraints on regional planning are adopted. The adopted scenarios emphasise constraints imposed by energy policy and the availability of fuels; they form the background to the comparison of a number of theoretical regional settlement patterns, in terms of their implications for land-use and their potential for fuel-conservation. A study of an existing regional settlement pattern is used in combination with published land-use data as the basis of a configurational model. This model is intended to characterise the real pattern spatially, quantitatively and in a manner suitable for experimental manipulation. The model encompasses the pattern of developed land (disaggregated by uses), the shape of the transport network, and the intensity of development (in terms of population and floorspace). A review is then made of published proposals for energy-efficient settlements, which are found to include concentrated, dispersed, nucleated and linear patterns. Five modified versions of the regional configurational model are then constructed in order to characterise the range of realistic possibilities for future regional form which might result from the fuel-conservation policies inherent in the proposals reviewed. The five regional configurations and the original pattern are then compared by means of a specially-developed land-use transport and energy-evaluation model. The comparison is made in terms of the accessibility of the population in each pattern to employment and services (measured 'biy the model as "benefits"), and. in terms of the use of fuel in both transport and domestic space heating. Fuel use in transport is related to modal split and vehicle speed; fuel use in homes is related to dwelling size and location. Parametric calibration of the land-use and transport models allows the comparison of the patterns to be repeated in the context of each of the three adopted energy scenarios, taking into account changes in travelling behaviour, vehicle efficiencies, and building services technologies. The results of the comparison are discussed and assessed in terms of their implications for long-term strategic planning policy.

The study originated from an independent evaluation of a Local Education Authority (LEA) project on multicultural education undertaken by a team of four teachers in two schools; a predominantly white, co-educational rural grammar school and a multi-racial, co-educational urban secondary modern. The thesis examines some key aspects of the conceptualisation, establishment, management and operationalisation of the project. The concepts of multicultural and antiracist education and the related research literature on their initiation in schools are considered. The procedures for the recruitment and selection of the project team are also examined along with the selection of the project schools, their organisation and ethos. The study focuses on the work of the team and their attempt to facilitate and initiate change at departmental and whole-school levels. The difficulty of the team's task and the complexity of racism are highlighted through a senior teacher's life history which examines his perspectives on 'race' and education. The research findings question the adoption of low-key multicultural approaches suggesting that they might marginalise the ability to address the issue of racism in schools and thus be counter-productive. Variables are also identified, in particular the occupational culture of teachers, which might have restricted the team's access to departments, the facilitation of collaborative teaching strategies and the implementation of whole-school policy. It is suggested that a team approach needs to be planned, executed and continually re-evaluated according to clear goals and shared objectives. It is also suggested that it might be advantageous for a team to possess subject-specific expertise and an ability to relate it to racism in the departmental curriculum. Moreover, throughout the process of change the issue of racism needs to remain explicit and, whenever possible, involve the black community in the decision-making process.

<p> Creating a positive, engaging school culture is a goal of most school districts and school administrators (Clark, 2015). Many educators believe the most effective methods of instilling a positive school culture include school-wide systems of implementation (Gruenert &amp; Whitaker, 2015). This qualitative study included an in-depth look at the perceptions of implementation teams from two counties in southwest Missouri on the impact of school-wide character development models on school culture, student behaviors, and student leadership skills. The study was also designed to determine the factors within a school that have the greatest impact on the implementation process. Interviews were conducted with focus groups to gather insight into the perceptions of teachers, administrators, and implementation leaders. After completion of all focus groups, it was evident many commonalities exist among the implementation teams across the varying buildings and districts. Most participants agreed their implemented character development model had a positive impact on school culture throughout the process. The impact associated with student behaviors and student leadership skills depended much more specifically on the goals associated with the school-wide systematic model. The study also resulted in data indicating factors that impact the implementation process are very similar to factors that impact any large-scale change initiative. The results of this study can provide insight for administrators and implementation leaders when considering the preparation and planning of systematic character development models.</p><p>

<p> In recent years, magnets schools have abandoned a goal of integrating student populations for goals of innovating education. The goal of magnet schools has become the primary filter for determining how effective the school will be at integrating the student population. However, some research shows that even magnet schools that superficially hail a diverse population can still be segregated by race, socioeconomic status, and ability, especially in the higher-level classes. This &lsquo;within-school&rsquo; segregation has been credited to academic tracking, or the process of placing at-risk and minority students in academic classes that do not filter into the most successful course. This is of particular concern because simply enrolling in higher-level classes, like Advanced Placement (AP) courses, increases the likelihood of enrolling in, and graduating from, college.</p><p> The purpose of this study is to contribute to the understanding of the effects of integrated public schools on the achievement gap by examining how magnet schools, desegregation districts, and magnet schools in desegregation districts are providing minority students access to and success in AP classes. </p><p> The 2013-2014 Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC), a biennial survey of self-reported data, was used to analyze all high schools (grades 9-12) in the country that offer AP courses (n=12,406). Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM) was applied to control for several characteristics of the school and the desegregation status of the school district. The effect of magnet schools and desegregation districts on AP enrollment, AP test-taking, and AP performance was analyzed for all student demographics. Each model was run for each variable for all high schools, then, the total population was divided into five subcategories based on school-wide enrollment percentage of at-risk students.</p><p> An analysis of the data found evidence of within-school segregation, especially in schools with low and integrated minority enrollment, and very little evidence that desegregation districts or magnet schools in desegregation districts close the gap between minority AP enrollment, test-taking, and performance and the minority school enrollment. Furthermore, only Asian and Other AP enrollment, test-taking, and test performance was positively affected by an integrated school enrollment. Black, Hispanic, and White, non-Hispanic AP enrollment, test-taking, and performance were positively affected when the school enrollment was more segregated and homogenous to the respective demographic group. This study also found that integrating an AP program shows evidence of negatively affecting the AP test-taking and AP performance of minority students while increasing the minority enrollment had a positive effect on minority AP test-taking and AP performance. There was no evidence of the widely accepted belief that integration improves the academic performance of minority students when evaluated by AP programs.</p><p> As a result, this study suggests that there may be some bias&mdash;either perceived by the student or given by classmates and teachers&mdash;that makes it less likely for minority students to take the AP exam and perform better on the exam when the AP program is integrated. This study provides enough evidence to warrant the need for more specific policies evaluating the integration of schools before determining desegregation compliance.</p><p> While there are a few instances of magnet schools, desegregation districts, and/or magnet schools in desegregation districts improving the AP enrollment, test-taking, and test performance of minority students, there is not enough evidence to prove that these school- and district-level characteristics prevent within-school segregation. In fact, there is more evidence to suggest that they are contributing to the problem.</p><p>

No description available.

Despite the level of concern generated by adolescents who repeatedly self-harm, there is a dearth of empirically validated interventions for this client group. In the adult domain, dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT; Linehan, 1993) is the only evidence-based intervention for individuals at high risk of repetition, and preliminary research has suggested its utility with adolescents. This study employed a qualitative methodology to evaluate an existing inpatient DBT programme for adolescents with multiple presenting problems including deliberate self-harm. Four female adolescents were interviewed in depth about their experiences and the perceived impact of receiving DBT. Transcripts were analysed for significant and recurrent themes using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Overall, the results supported existing quantitative data indicating that this client group can benefit from DBT. Participants emphasised the role of applying DBT skills in gaining a sense of control over internal experiences and overt behaviours (including self-harm). However, there were marked individual differences in the degree to which such control was attained. Furthermore, for most participants, the effective use of DBT skills was at least partially dependent upon the continued receipt of therapy. Motivation to engage in and comply with therapy appeared to be significantly influenced by participants' perceptions of staff and peers within the inpatient unit. A sense of connection or identification with others emerged as an important source of learning and inspiration, as well as serving to normalise participants' difficulties. The role of social comparison was particularly salient in participants' attempts to make sense of the changes in self since entering DBT. The findings are discussed in relation to the existing literature, with particular emphasis on the extent to which therapeutic processes deemed important by DBT theory were concordant with participants' experiences. Implications for clinical practice are highlighted and directions for future research suggested.

The present study was conducted to evaluate perceptions of the importance of various factors that may determine the wage or salary level in jobs. Items describing various job characteristics reflecting the factors of Skill, Effort, Responsibility, Working Conditions, and Organizational characteristics were rated by 510 subjects from a variety of organizations. Results indicated that the items did not cluster into the five categories noted above. Instead, three factors were identified and labeled Job Complexity, Accountability, and Work Context. There were few gender or occupational differences in the ratings of the items. The implications of the results for the development of equitable wage and salary systems are discussed.

No description available.

abstract: The National Research Council developed and published the Framework for K-12 Science Education, a new set of concepts that many states were planning on adopting. Part of this new endeavor included a set of science and engineering crosscutting concepts to be incorporated into science materials and activities, a first in science standards history. With the recent development of the Framework came the arduous task of evaluating current lessons for alignment with the new crosscutting concepts. This study took on that task in a small, yet important area of available lessons on the internet. Lessons, to be used by K-12 educators and students, were produced by different organizations and research efforts. This study focused specifically on Earth science lessons as they related to earthquakes. To answer the question as to the extent current and available lessons met the new crosscutting concepts; an evaluation rubric was developed and used to examine teacher and student lessons. Lessons were evaluated on evidence of the science, engineering and application of the engineering for each of the seven crosscutting concepts in the Framework. Each lesson was also evaluated for grade level appropriateness to determine if the lesson was suitable for the intended grade level(s) designated by the lesson. The study demonstrated that the majority of lesson items contained science applications of the crosscutting concepts. However, few contained evidence of engineering applications of the crosscutting concepts. Not only was there lack of evidence for engineering examples of the crosscutting concepts, but a lack of application engineering concepts as well. To evaluate application of the engineering concepts, the activities were examined for characteristics of the engineering design process. Results indicated that student activities were limited in both the nature of the activity and the quantity of lessons that contained activities. The majority of lessons were found to be grade appropriate. This study demonstrated the need to redesign current lessons to incorporate more engineering-specific examples from the crosscutting concepts. Furthermore, it provided evidence the current model of material development was out dated and should be revised to include engineering concepts to meet the needs of the new science standards. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Curriculum and Instruction 2013

<p> During the late 20th and early 21st centuries, a trend developed for schools to meet the needs of struggling and at-risk learners through the implementation of multi-tiered response to intervention models (Apple, 2014). Response to intervention (RtI) is one of those frameworks and has been extensively researched from the perspective of those working in urban elementary schools (Burns &amp; Gibbons, 2013). This research project was designed to allow for better understanding of the rural secondary perspective of RtI through investigation of the perceptions of administrators, counselors, and educators who have implemented RtI frameworks. This qualitative examination resulted in a narrative gathered through interviews with teachers, counselors, and administrators working in rural secondary schools of southwest Missouri about their experiences with academic intervention strategies and response to intervention. Data were gathered during the fall and spring of 2017. The purpose of this study was to add to the limited body of research about the implementation, operationalization, and improvement of RtI programs in rural secondary schools. Respondents identified difficulties and obstacles and illustrated how the implementation of RtI has affected their roles. Both similarities and differences were discovered between rural secondary-level staff and their urban elementary-level colleagues. Respondents explained how solutions addressed problems with their programs. The researcher noted how this process created one-of-a-kind multi-tiered intervention programs. Lastly, suggestions for additional research were offered.</p><p>