published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Philosophy

Since the shortage of humanities Ph.D.s turned to surplus in the early 1970s, a full generation of students has passed through graduate school and into the job market. This study explores the strategic changes undertaken by humanities departments in response to the continued surplus and the resulting unemployment of graduates. To gather data for the study, telephone interviews were conducted with representatives from 86 departments of English, history, and philosophy. The respondents were first asked what they thought should be done to alleviate doctoral unemployment. Then they were asked 19 questions representing individual strategic change alternatives being carried out in their departments, as well as one question concerning future changes they had planned. Finally, they were asked four questions concerning their past and present enrollments and doctoral placement rates. Analysis of the survey results showed that departments did indeed respond consciously to the poor employment prospects facing their graduates: they took measures to reduce the numbers of doctorates granted each year; they changed faculty personnel policies; they changed academic programs to better prepare their graduates for employment; they provided direct placement services, and they planned future changes. The findings also indicated that several intervening factors were related to the responses of departments. For example, public institutions were more responsive than independent institutions, and growing departments were more likely to implement changes than departments with shrinking or static enrollments. Research institutions and large institutions tended to cut back the number of graduates they produced, whereas other doctoral-granting or smaller institutions were likely to make certain academic program changes. Finally, history departments tended to prepare students for nonacademic employment; English departments prepared students for employment in high schools and community colleges, and philosophy departments were the most active in promoting their students to potential employers, although they did not target a particular job sector. In all, the departmental changes most positively related to graduate employment were changes in academic programs, and these program changes seemed to be more successful in placing doctorates in nonacademic careers than in academe.

The objectives of this research were to investigate the experiences of adult basic education and training educators and learners in their teaching and learning centres; and to develop a humanistic programme infused with Batho-Pele principles for use in adult basic education and training in South Africa. Both the literature review and the qualitative empirical research methods were used to achieve these objectives. The literature review revealed that Batho-Pele is a South African public service initiative to get public servants to be service orientated, to strive for excellence in service delivery and to commit to continuous service delivery improvement. It allows South African citizens to hold public servants accountable for the level of services they deliver. These two statements make it clear that Batho-Pele is not an "add-on" activity, but it is a way of delivering services by putting citizens at the centre of public service planning and operations, which also means that Batho-Pele seeks to include all citizens for the achievement of a better-life-for-all through services and programmes of a democratic nature. The literature review also revealed that Batho-Pele encapsulates ubuntu/botho ideals. Interdependence, communalism, sensitivity towards others and caring for others are some of the aspects of ubuntu as a way of life. The community and belonging to a community is part of the essence of traditional African human life. Humanness is very important in Batho-Pele and Ubuntu way of life in the sense of seeing human needs, interests and dignity as fundamental to human existence. It was evident from the literature review proceedings that traditional Africans believed that these ideals are communally accepted and desirable ethical standards that a person acquires throughout his/her life. From the foregoing paragraph it is clear that for Batho-Pele service to succeed in communities, management culture in adult basic education and training centres in communities has to be changed to accommodate Batho-Pele as a way of life. This means that adult basic education and training centres should take stock of their educational values, as well as behaviours and attitudes of people they serve. In this way, adult basic education and training centres would then be able to take necessary steps to prepare their educators for the revitalized Batho-Pele Culture of responsiveness, efficiency and effectiveness in delivering services to the adult learners. This research was conducted from an andragogical (an approach to education and training) based on assumptions of learner-as-adult) and ubuntugogical (an approach that emphasizes African way of life that promotes the common good of society and includes humanness as an essential element of human growth. An essential element of human growth, according to this approach, is that the community always comes first. The individual is born out of and into the community, therefore will always be part of the community) paradigms. A humanistic programme infused with Batho-Pele principles for use in adult basic education and training in South Africa was developed. / Thesis (M.Ed.)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2008.

This thesis explores treatment satisfaction and dissatisfaction in patients with chronic low back pain (CLBP). Chapters 1 and 2 provide background on CLBP, and treatment satisfaction and dissatisfaction. Chapter 3 presents study 1, the systematic review which identified research concerning treatment satisfaction and dissatisfaction in patients with CLBP. Findings indicated a need to define the concept, and establish appropriate measurement based on patient input and evidence to support the reliability and validity of items. Chapter 4 presents study 2, a qualitative study. Ten patients with CLBP taking medication and/or receiving physiotherapy were interviewed. A conceptual model of CLBP and a thematic map of treatment satisfaction and dissatisfaction were developed. Satisfaction was related to being 'happy' or 'pleased', and maintaining normal functioning. Treatment not working, causing discomfort, or negatively affecting health-related quality of life, as well as inconvenience of medication, lack of information, not feeling involved in treatment decisions, lack of trust and confidence in healthcare professionals, and being misdiagnosed or undiagnosed, were associated with dissatisfaction. Chapter 5 documents the development of the CLBP Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaire, based on patient input from study 2. Cognitive debriefing showed items were relevant and understood by patients. Chapter 6, study 3, explored the psychometric properties of the questionnaire. The longitudinal design involved data collection from 249 patients, some of whom participated in follow-ups. Results indicated that treatment satisfaction/dissatisfaction involves an appraisal of the following seven domains: 'Information Provided about Back Pain and Treatment', 'Burden of Back Pain', 'Impact of Back Pain and Treatment on Relationships', 'Satisfaction with the Treatment Process', 'Problems with Side Effects of Medication', 'Adherence to Physiotherapy', and 'Medication Acceptability'. Some evidence of reliability and validity are presented. This thesis concludes with Chapter 7, a discussion of the main findings of the studies, strengths and limitations, and recommendations for future research.

In Malaysia, ethnic and cultural tension and conflicts have escalated in the past 5 years bringing undesirable impacts on the nation’s economy and, most importantly, on inter-ethnic relationships. In line with the government’s 1Malaysia effort to produce a more integrated society, this study proposes the need to construct a shared Malaysian identity, starting from the classroom, which is facilitated by teachers through the use of Malaysian short stories. This proposition, amidst the differences in cultural, religious and beliefs systems, aims to close the ethnic and cultural divide and cultivate widespread inter and intra cultural awareness. The study is grounded in the notion of hybridity in the Third Space espoused by Bhabha (1994) and ameliorated and geared towards the classroom context by the works of Gutiérrez (1999, 2004, 2008). The inquiry was designed using primarily qualitative research instruments employing non-participant classroom observations, semi-structured interviews with 7 English Language teachers, and group interviews with 6 groups of students from 4 different schools in Kuala Lumpur. A one-day workshop was also conducted with the 7 teachers to introduce new Malaysian short stories and also for the purpose of sharing experiences in teaching literature in English. This data source was then supported by secondary quantitative data derived from self-completion questionnaires administered to the students of the teachers involved in this study. The findings from the analyses of the results show various attitudes, beliefs and teaching and practices in the English language classroom in response to the notion of constructing a shared identity in the Third Space. The notion of the hidden curriculum is also investigated to determine how it can be usefully theorized towards identity construction in the classroom. On the one hand, students mainly accepted the shared identity concept as a basis for classroom practice, whilst teachers had a range of views about this idea. In the conclusion, the thesis explores the implications of the classroom practices adopted by the teachers in this study as part of the process of constructing a shared Malaysian identity. It also examines the plausibility of and barriers to creating an awareness of the Third Space through the use of narratives produced by local writers, both as a medium for developing the skills to access the Third Space and also as the container of messages about Malaysian society and identity. Finally, this study suggests the way forward for realizing the country’s aspiration of a unified society and becoming a full-fledged developed country, which can possibly start in the classrooms.

Existing evaluation research has presented equivocal findings regarding the efficacy of outdoor adventure education (OAE) interventions for vulnerable young people. The evidence-base is weakened by methodological limitations and a paucity of unified theoretical models. The current study presents an evaluation of the psychological impact of a naturally occurring OAE intervention for children perceived to be vulnerable by their mainstream primary school teachers. This study attempts to address previous methodological limitations and to facilitate a real-world application of the Adventure Experience Paradigm (AEP: Martin & Priest, 1986; Priest, 1992, 1993). The mixed-methods research design involves an exploratory qualitative phase, a randomised control trial (RCT, n = 38) and group interviews with participants (n = 27). The RCT forms the most significant part of the design, measuring the impact of the intervention on participants’ locus of control, self-perceptions and teacher-reported emotional and behavioural difficulties (EBD). The results show that the intervention did not have a statistically significant effect on participants’ locus of control or self-perceptions. There is some evidence to suggest that the intervention had a positive impact on teacher perceptions of participants’ EBD, however, these findings are limited by a possible Hawthorne Effect. The group interviews allowed the researcher to explore participants’ perceptions of the OAE intervention however, conclusions are tentative due to the surface-level nature of the thematic analysis procedures employed. Participants appeared to perceive the intervention in a positive light with emerging themes of ‘The Physical Experience’, ‘Outside Comfort Zone’ and ‘Competence’ identified. These findings appear to contradict the quantitative findings and offer support for the AEP. Overall, the validity of the quantitative findings is limited by low statistical power and ceiling effects as a result of sampling error. These limitations are discussed and the findings are interpreted in line with existing research and the AEP. Implications for future research and professional practice are also considered. The findings support the benefits of mixed-methods approaches and RCT designs in future OAE evaluation research.

The thesis is in two parts. Part I examines the possibility of a humanistic science of persons. The failure of the psychometric approach to personality research is described. It is argued that psychometrics denies the common-sense, everyday-life basis of its procedures. Then, with the aim of constructing a true science of persons, some of the concepts of a philosophy of the person are introduced. Finally, it is suggested that a science of persons would be a science of interpretation. A methodology for such a science is set out, along with the examples of research which has exploited these methods. In Part II, a programme of substantive research is presented. The aim is to investigate those experiences which individuals claim lead to their personal 'growth'. Two 'growth' movements - Transcendental Meditation and encounter groups - are studied as social-psychological phenomena. The methods used are personal accounts and participant observation. These activities are described as constituting unique identifiable 'regions of social reality'. It is concluded that they resemble forms of art such as novels or films more than forms of therapy or education. The implications of this conclusion are explored in a final Chapter.

In recent years, personalized learning has become a buzzword in the field of education and an approach that schools across the United States have adopted in their attempts to account for the diverse interests, aspirations, and needs of their students. Despite the growing interest in personalized learning, there is a dearth of empirical research on this educational approach, particularly as it relates to the student experience. Given the paucity of research in this area, little is known about the extent to which personalized learning can offer students a more beneficial quality of experience than traditional educational methods. This question is further complicated by the fact that personalized learning has been defined and put into practice in diverse ways. Given these conditions, the purpose of this study was to explore students' experiences with more humanistic forms of personalized learning at three high schools in Vermont. A pragmatic approach to qualitative research was used along with self-determination theory (SDT) as a framework to investigate students' perceptions of their autonomy, competence, relatedness, motivation, and well-being within the context of personalized learning. SDT was used as framework because it offers a lens for analyzing how social contexts affect people's experiences and proposes that individuals experience higher qualities of motivation, engagement, and performance when their basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness are met. Study findings, which are based on interviews with 28 students from three Vermont high schools, suggest participants generally felt autonomous, competent, and related in their personalized learning environments, which contributed to their intrinsic motivation, engagement, and well-being within these settings. Some features of personalized learning that supported multiple facets of students' basic psychological needs were the individualized nature of instruction, student-driven curriculum, and structures that enabled and supported community-based learning. Although many students suggested personalized learning supported their basic psychological needs, some struggled to direct and manage their own learning, which diminished their feelings of competence while others indicated that the individualized nature of their projects undermined their sense of relatedness to their peers. Overall, the findings indicate that humanistic approaches to personalized learning have the potential to contribute to a more beneficial quality of experience for high school students than traditional educational methods. The study has implications for educational policy and practice as it suggests personalization may be an effective approach for engaging a variety of students with their education and promoting the skills and dispositions for lifelong learning.

University trains professionals who are able to face the challenges imposed on them, but this training should not focus only on the technical and scientific areas, it should include topics that are essential for the acquisition of a general culture. Higher education develops the processes of teaching, research and outreach, the latter one supported on cultural promotion, which influences the development of the students’ spirituality, as well as their personality. This article offers a proposal to favor the students’ humanistic training through the outreach process that takes place in the university educational project. In the preparation of this article, theoretical research methods have been employed, such as analysis and criticism of sources, and the hermeneutical method. Both methods foster interpretation and analysis of the study topic criteria, assessment and conclusions. / La universidad prepara profesionales capaces de enfrentar los retos que se les imponen, pero esta no debe centrarse solo en lo científico-técnico, debe abarcar aristas esenciales para la adquisición de una cultura general. En la educación superior se desarrollan los procesos de docencia, investigación y extensión, este último tiene como soporte la promoción cultural, lo que influye en el desarrollo de la espiritualidad de los estudiantes, de su personalidad. En el artículo se reflexiona sobre una propuesta para favorecer la formación humanística y humanista de los estudiantes mediante el proceso extensionista que se desarrolla en el proyecto educativo universitario, lo que constituye su objetivo. En su elaboración se han empleado métodos de investigación del nivel teórico: Análisis y crítica de fuentes y el método Hermenéutico. Ambos propician la interpretación y análisis de criterios sobre el tema objeto de estudio, las valoraciones al respecto y la elaboración de las conclusiones.

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