The government of Malawi established the community based childcare (CBCC) programme with the aim of addressing early childhood problems and achieve national development in the long run. The CBCC programme, as one of the approaches to early childhood development (ECD), is guided by the national early childhood development policy. It promotes some practices that somehow deviate from the traditional childcare ways that communities have always known. Experience has shown that programmes that have elements of conflict with commonly held beliefs are bound to meet with resistance in society. The study employed a mini survey, focus group discussion, observation and document review to understand how the CBCC childcare practices in Malili intersect with commonly held beliefs about childcare as well as how they reflect on the national ECD policy. The study also focused on understanding the perceptions of community members on the CBCC programme. The study revealed that while some aspects of CBCC delivery conform to commonly held beliefs about childcare in the area under study, others diverge from such beliefs. Such convergence and divergence appear to be in line with the propositions of transformalist globalisation theory- one of the perspectives adopted for the study. The study also found that care practices at CBCC are not a true reflection of the national ECD policy as community members’ perceptions, poor community participation, poverty and lack of caregiver training in ECD contribute towards poor quality of care in CBCC, contrary to what is defined in the national ECD policy. The study also found that while both CBCC caregivers and sampled community members perceived the quality of care at the centers as poor, caregivers had a more positive perception towards the CBCC than community members. The study indicated that CBCC are centres of desperation for low economic status communities. Findings from the research have revealed that cultural values and commonly held beliefs, and exposure to new knowledge through globalisation play a role in determining childcare practices as well as perceptions towards them. In this sense the study has indicated that meanings that communities attach to development interventions influence their actions and perceptions towards it.

This qualitative research, specifically a content analysis of 31 tribal colleges' mission statements and curricula, examined how the colleges' curricula aligned with the five educational concepts suggested in the colleges' mission statements. Cajete's (1994) seven foundations to indigenous thinking proved to be a major theoretical framework which provided a worldview for tribal learning. The study concluded that whereas the five educational concepts aligned between mission statements and curricula, the curricula emphasized culture, tribal community, and academic success at a greater level than mission statements indicated. Further, tribal colleges' curricula did not emphasize economic concepts as the mission statements indicated. A particular finding suggests that tribal colleges' are investing in environmental studies programs, thus increasing their intellectual capacity to protect their environmental interests while promoting indigenous thinking and community learning across all academic disciplines. Considerable implications include that an increase of American Indian environmental studies graduates may have a positive impact on environmental justice matters as well as the ability to promote new agricultural technologies. Additional implications include how mainstream universities will adapt to an increase of native students studying the sciences rather than liberal arts.

American relations with Pakistan went through various ups and downs from being allied during the Cold war to imposing sanctions in last decade of the twentieth century. After 9/11 attack on World Trade Center and Pentagon Pakistan quickly joined the United States in the War on Terror. In my thesis I analyze positions and influence of Pakistan during invasion to Afghanistan. and seven next years of the Operation Enduging Freedom during George W. Bush administration. At first I concentrate on historical experience of Pakistan and development in the area before american invasion to Afghanistan. I also surveying terrorist movements on Pakistani soil, which are important for later development and are connected to Pakistani secret service ISI. ISI tried some years after 2001 to maintain friendly relations with Taliban and other terrorist groups along Afghan - Pakistan border, but terrorists, basically anti-system movements, wanted to establish in Pakistan and Afghanistan states constituted as Islamic emirates. President Musharraf under pressure of forthcoming events and the United States understood that supporting Taliban is no longer sustainable policy and decided to act against terrorist groups home in Pakistan. This move however triggered suicide bombings and massive uprising which hit in 2006/2007...

Balikumbat and Bafanji are the names of two villages in the Northwest Region of Cameroon that have been warring against one another over Bangang, a tract of fertile land. The conflict hinges on perceived differences about who should have access to this fertile land. Both villages claim ownership. This conflict has persisted from colonial times to the present with no tangible resolution. Understanding the place of land within the political, social, and economic fabric of the lives of both villages prior to and after the arrival of the colonial administration is the centerpiece of this research endeavor. This study sheds light on why the conflict persists. The land tenure decree of 1973, which was later promulgated into Cameroon law in 1984, is the most recent attempt at resolving disputes over land. It did not resolve this conflict. A clash of cultures between the indigenous population and the European colonizers may have triggered a legacy of land conflict between these two communities. This study unravels and seeks to explain when the Balikumbat and Bafanji villages transitioned from being two loving neighbors, capable of sharing their use of and kinship to the land, to hostile enemies ready to fight and kill one another at the earliest opportunity. In this study, interviews, observations, journal intakes, field notes, as well as document reviews, are pivotal tools used in justifying the claims highlighted in the research.

No description available.

Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) are educational institutions owned by Native American tribes intended to address the failure of the education system to support Indigenous students. Significant research has been done on the value of culturally sustaining pedagogy (CSP) and on TCUs, but little has been done to examine whether and how TCUs implement CSP. This study aims to fill that gap by examining teaching at Chief Dull Knife College (CDKC), a tribal college on the Northern Cheyenne reservation. Interviews were conducted with eight white faculty members and four Cheyenne administrators at CDKC. Analysis of the interviews revealed that the instructors saw building personal connections with students as the foundation of teaching at CDKC and that they engaged in attempts at individual adaptation and structural change to support such teaching. The Cheyenne administrators found these efforts valuable, but suggested that more needed to be done to foster a connection between the white faculty members and the Cheyenne community and culture. Ultimately, this study reveals that instructors at CDKC are attempting to implement CSP, but that there are still gaps in that implementation. The interviews suggest that further structural changes are needed at CDKC to better support CSP and ensure that students are receiving the support they need to succeed.

No description available.

This research sets out to examine the main excuses, often mentioned in connection to the so-called “honour killings” in Pakistan. In this way, the aim is to discuss the idea of “honour killings” by looking at trends and patterns in this kind of homicides in Pakistan. This study also explores what legal and judicial obstacles stand in the way of putting an end to the abuse of killing women in the name of honour.The first part is mainly theoretical and analytical. In this part a set of concepts is theorized as the notion of patriarchy, public/private division and cultural globalization. These theories test the empirical data of “honour killing” in the last decade and try to find their role in the society of Pakistan. This study also analyzes the “honour killing” cases in a different way by telling stories. Second part contributes to the research regarding Islam the official religion of Pakistan. This section mainly concerns the status of women in Islam and their rights of life and free will to choose their spouses. This study also tries to remove the misconception in the minds of the West regarding Islamic teachings towards women.This study proceeds mainly under the qualitative method with the supplementary help of quantitative method. At the end, the thesis bears some finding under the abductive technique. The results show that the tested theories have a significant role in upholding the ancient practice of “honour killings” in Pakistan, and Qur’aanic and Prophetic Islam has no link with the abuse of “honour killing” in general. It is ancient tribal phenomena that have entered in some cultural norms of the society.

Several studies have indicated that American Indian students in the United States higher education system confront unique challenges that derive from a legacy of colonialism and assimilationist policies (Huff 1997). Several scholars, American Indian and non-Native alike, have explored the effects of this history upon students in higher education (Brayboy 2004; Guillory and Wolverton 2008; Waterman and Lindley 2013). Very few, however, have explored the role of the educators of American Indian students, and most of the literature focuses on K-12 educational settings (McCarty and Lee 2014; Yong and Hoffman 2014). This thesis examines exploratory user research conducted to generate a foundational understanding of educators of American Indian students in higher education. Utilizing methods from design anthropology and user experience, semi-structured interviews and think-aloud sessions were conducted, almost exclusively virtually, for 17 participants. This research was conducted for a client, Fire & Associates, as part of the applied thesis process. Findings revealed a complex web of needs for educators of American Indian students in higher education related to teaching diverse students, the use of media and technology in the classroom, and the process of networking among other educators. The research culminated in content and design implications for the Fire & Associates website as well as suggestions for further research based on best practices in the field of user experience.

A community development project involving the tribal leaders, civic organisations and the aged action group had been completed in 1994 in Rathoke, a rural area in the Mpumalanga Pre ince. In the process, the reseacher observed tension built as a result of the refusal of people in authority like tribal officers, civic organisation members and individual professionals to acknowledge that aged people can take a lead in articulating their needs and alternative solutions. Assumptions prevailing among them are that: 1. Old and rural people need help. 2. Have no potential for leadership development. 3. Are dependent on existing leadership structures and 4. Their needs are not a priority. On the bases of these assumptions, the reseacher undertook to do a case study based on the analysis of community development process reports kept for the project.There have been a number of learnings which can be of benefit to people interested in the leadership concept in the field of community development. / Social work / M.A. (SS) (Mental Health)