The social environment we live in today is exceptionally informal. In the past the type of language the learners used, as well as their spelling ability, gave an indication of the type of education they had received. In present times, it often occurs that people are judged according to their spelling ability to determine whether the specific person is suitable for a certain career. People only realise the importance of writing and spelling correctly once they have completed their studies and started working (often this is too late).This leads to distress and problem situations in universities and schools because learners cannot read and spell. Because of globalization, young people today regard English as the global language. This opens doors for them and the use of English is becoming easier. The result is that Afrikaans is also becoming more informal and this is expressed in the learners' writing and spelling ability. Learners' spelling therefore is atrocious. Decline in language and spelling usage is the result of little (or no) education in spelling in general and also because learners give so little attention to reading lately. Research indicates that students and learners experience the "no rules" of poor spelling (also due to SMS language) as a freeing experience and they do not realise the seriousness of speaking, writing and reading standard Afrikaans. The youth regard this era we live in as "cool" and they believe that it protects them against the embarrassment of poor spelling. A finger is often pointed at educators because learners can no longer read and spell. Educators complain that learners have a "couldn't care less" attitude towards correct spelling. Learners use a telegram style for writing, and poor spelling increasingly occurs in creative writing. They ruin their writing skills with bad spelling. Learners no longer have a general knowledge of spelling words and in this way their poor spelling skills are further weakened. "Upsetting spelling problems" originate because learners are not made aware of the phonemes of sounds from an early age and educators are ignorant of how to develop these awareness skills in learners. In the light of these statements one would expect that educators would have received the necessary guidance concerning spelling methods and strategies for teaching and educating spelling. However, the opposite is true as indicated in the literature, namely that educators often have to depend on their own experience to develop several aspects, for instance to develop phonemic awareness in learners so as to ensure success in spelling. Educators discuss learners, their own successes, etcetera but they never discuss the methods they use. The young and inexperienced educator must depend on book-knowledge, personal initiatives, trial and error as well as spontaneous methods to teach spelling. In this study, attention is focused on the link between phoneme awareness and the spelling ability of learners, especially in the Foundation Phase. To achieve the aim of this study the spelling ability of a group of Grade 3 learners was studied using various tests over a certain period of time. The results showed that learners who have no or very little phonemic awareness also do not possess the necessary spelling skills. This study indicates the importance of phonemic awareness as determinant for good spelling. Consequently a definite link exists between phonemic awareness and spelling. From the empirical study that was conducted it became very clear that the level of phonemic awareness and spelling achievement is determined by the education process and the involvement of the educator. Valid theoretical principles were discussed to highlight the necessity of this aspect. Language gatekeepers and educators, especially in the Foundation Phase, thus have an enormous task to develop phoneme awareness from an early age in learners so that they can become aware of the importance of correct spelling. / Thesis (M.Ed.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2008.

PURPOSE. To determine the influence of cataractous and refractive blur on postural stability and limb-load asymmetry (LLA) and to establish how postural stability changes with the spatial frequency and contrast of the visual stimulus. METHODS. Thirteen elderly subjects (mean age, 70.76 ± 4.14 [SD] years) with no history of falls and normal vision were recruited. Postural stability was determined as the root mean square [RMS] of the center of pressure (COP) signal in the anterior¿posterior (A-P) and medial¿lateral directions and LLA was determined as the ratio of the average body weight placed on the more-loaded limb to the less-loaded limb, recorded during a 30-second period. Data were collected under normal standing conditions and with somatosensory system input disrupted. Measurements were repeated with four visual targets with high (8 cyc/deg) or low (2 cyc/deg) spatial frequency and high (Weber contrast, 95%) or low (Weber contrast, 25%) contrast. Postural stability was measured under conditions of binocular refractive blur of 0, 1, 2, 4, and 8 D and with cataract simulation. The data were analyzed in a population-averaged linear model. RESULTS. The cataract simulation caused significant increases in postural instability equivalent to that caused by 8-D blur conditions, and its effect was greater when the input from the somatosensory system was disrupted. High spatial frequency targets increased postural instability. Refractive blur, cataract simulation, or eye closure had no effect on LLA. CONCLUSIONS. Findings indicate that cataractous and refractive blur increase postural instability, and show why the elderly, many of whom have poor vision along with musculoskeletal and central nervous system degeneration, are at greater risk of falling. Findings also highlight that changes in contrast sensitivity rather than resolution changes are responsible for increasing postural instability. Providing low spatial frequency information in certain environments may be useful in maintaining postural stability. Correcting visual impairment caused by uncorrected refractive error and cataracts could be a useful intervention strategy to help prevent falls and fall-related injuries in the elderly.

This thesis aims to explore the relationship between the geographies of law, society, economy and the physical environment in late eighteenth and early nineteenth century rural England. It uses as its exploring ground the operation of the Old Poor Law in rural Oxfordshire. This county was chosen because it was both a microcosm of the farming landscape of Southern England and was one of the counties where the problem of poor relief was most acutely felt. Chapter 1 establishes that the mapping out of spatial diversity, and the consideration of the forces moulding it, is fundamental to an understanding of the functioning of the Old Poor Law. Chapter 2 uses data contained in the parliamentary returns to demonstrate some clear regional differences in the level of poor relief and the chronology of change. Chapters 3 and 4 show that these regional averages and trends do not make intelligible the kaleidoscopic welter of local variations indicated by a closer examination of parish records. Chapters 5 and 6 consider poor relief expenditure in four parishes: Cropredy, Pyrton, Spelsbury and Stoke Lyne. These show that differences in the level of poor relief expenditure cannot automatically be taken to indicate variations in the level of what we might think of as unemployment or poverty. The generosity of disbursements, and therefore the real incomes of the poor, could also vary markedly between parishes. Thus, the Old Poor Law cannot be detached from the particular places in which it acquired its meaning and saliency. Its impact upon the daily lives of ratepayers, administrators and recipient can be established and the poor treated as individuals rather than as abstract units of labour.

Despite the recognition that culturally diverse groups of children in low income areas are at elevated risk for future health problems, no dietary/nutritional studies have been reported on this population. Children aged 9-12 were sampled from schools selected on the basis of a poverty index and ethnicity. Nutritional information (24-hour recall, heights and weights) indicated children were growing well but a high proportion were overweight. A comparison of reported energy intake to calculated BMR indicated that overweight children under-estimated their intakes. Mean intakes met the Canadian RNIs except for calcium in 10-12 year old girls. Nutrient intake was related to family size, income and ethnic origin. Validation of two alternative tools to measure fat intake proved unsuccessful. In conclusion, dietary intake for these school children was adequate for all nutrients except calcium in 10-12 year old girls, but for approximately 40% of children, intake exceeded energy requirements.

The aim of my research was examine the impact of race, class and gender in Ottawa's educational system. I sought to find out if these factors played a role in the streaming of Black youths in basic or vocational programs and, if so, to what degree. While looking at the issue, I examined the narratives of both middle-class and working-class students and parents. / The study found that a student's socio-economic background largely determine her/his educational stream, be it basic, general or advanced. For example, all the participants in the vocational stream were working-class students while the participants that were streamed into the university bound program were from middle-class families. Teachers within the system also treated the parents differently. Middle-class parents had a greater degree of reciprocity between themselves and teachers compared to working-class parents.

No description available.

In spite of its spontaneous and improvised character, the informal sector has provided virtually the only appropriate housing, in terms of the organization of the outdoor space, for the urban poor of the developing countries. Through an analysis of the outdoor spaces in Eziukwu-Aba, a low-income and informal settlement in Aba, Nigeria, this thesis investigates the organization and mode of use of outdoor spaces, in relation to the day-to-day activities of the urban poor. It focuses on the patterns of outdoor spaces, the categories of activities found in them and the periods of time of the occurrence of the activities. / The findings of this study are compared with those of earlier studies, and the broader implications of these findings on contemporary low-income urban housing in the developing countries are briefly outlined. This study posits that for the urban low-income group of the developing countries, (a) usable space takes precedence over aesthetics and permanence and (b) housing and environmental quality in terms of construction standards are of little significance, compared with employment.

This thesis analyses the representation of poverty in the charity programmes broadcast on Turkish television, namely Deniz Feneri, Kimse Yok mu, Yarinlar Umut Olsun and Yolcu. It examines the continuities, discontinuities and breaks in the representation of poor with reference to Turkish cinema, novel and media. Critical discourse analysis of the charity programmes indicates that poverty is legitimised and naturalised, being made no reference to social, economic and political context of poverty. The construction of the poor as &ldquo / objects of aid&rdquo / given by &ldquo / philanthropists&rdquo / is examined and it is argued that the poor become a means of salvation, self-realisation and self-fulfilment of &ldquo / philanthropist&rdquo / . It is here claimed that Islam and nationalist-conservative discourse serve the internalisation and tranquillisation of poverty in the programmes. The study also analyses the visual and aural representations of the poor in the programmes. The slow-motion, black and white photographs, close-up, limited motion, and the music accompanying the pictures are the most fundamental tools of dramatising poverty in the charity programmes / and they address to &ldquo / conscience&rdquo / of &ldquo / philanthropists&rdquo / . It is also argued that voiceover and subtitling efface the voice of the poor.

This study attempts to focus on a narrower scope specifically is aimed to search for the possible explanations for women&rsquo / s and their daughters&rsquo / poverty experiences by arguing that within the household, women and their daughters are more vulnerable to poverty than men because of the dominant ideologies. I have already implemented a field study in one of Ankara&rsquo / s squatter area which is called Hidirliktepe located in district of Altindag with 30 women and their eldest daughters living in the same household. One of the qualitative interviewing techniques, in-depth interviewing, has been applied to the respondents and two different questionnaire frames used for mothers and the daughters. There are some important conclusions of the thesis. One of them is that poverty is experienced by women and their daughters different than the other members of the household. Another is that these experiences are also transferred to their daughters within the household. However, daughters are in a better condition than their mothers which might constitute a hope for their salvation from poverty because due to the changes in their social environments, their expectations also change. Moreover, survival strategies developed by women against poverty designate the level of poverty which is being experienced by women in the long term.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hawaii at Manoa, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 346-360). / Microfiche. / xvii, 360 leaves, bound ill., maps 29 cm