| 1. |
- Arjmand, Reza, 1963-
(author)
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Inscription on Stone : Islam, State and Education in Iran and Turkey
- 2008
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- This study explores the role of education as means of creation and maintenance of religious hegemony in Iran and Turkey. In the context of this study, state-sponsored systems of mass education aim to socialize generations of children into accepting the ideology and values of the dominant groups as the normal state of affairs. Hegemony, thus, is advanced not solely by excluding oppositional forces but by moral leadership throughout the total ideological and socio-political structure. Reviewing the notion of education in Islam and the role of the Quran and Sunna and other sources of knowledge in Islam, the study focuses on the impact of Shari'a in forming the theories of state and education in Islam. Representing two different schools of Muslim thought, Iran and Turkey have different interpretations of the state and its role in education which determines the degree of involvement and extent of authority of the political and religious leaders over education. Unity of Islam and the state in the Iranian theocratic system provides an ideologically-laden education which is rooted in one principle: training a new generation of pious, “ideologically committed Muslims”. However, the endeavors of the Turkish secular state have been focused on establishing a mass popularized secular education in order to produce nationalist citizens. The Iranian revolution of 1979 contributed extensively to the awakening of the religious revival, calling for a shift from a Western model of social order to the one deeply rooted in Islamic beliefs and values. The close link between education and ideology in Iran is apparent from the goals set for educating the young, most of them openly political: acceptance of God's absolute authority manifested through the authority of ulama; support for the political, economic, and cultural unity of all Islamic global community (umma) and for oppressed peoples (mustaz’afin); rejection of every form of oppression, suffering, and domination. The four ideological pillars of the Islamic Republic, inseparability of religion and politics, Islamic revival, cultural revolution, and creation of a committed Muslim, have had a direct impact on Iranian education. The “Unity of Education Act” in the Republic of Turkey placed all educational activities under strict government control by introducing a state monopoly on education. Kemalism is based on an emphasis on national and republican principles and secularism in which religion has no place and is left out of the scope of formal education. Hence, the transmission of religious knowledge from one generation to another was only possible through informal channels such as family, the small community or underground activities of religious orders. Islam, however, gradually penetrated the public life in Turkey and challenged the secularism. The goal of the Turkish national education as to unite the entire nation through a national consciousness, to think along scientific lines, and intellectually as well as worldly, leaves no place for Islamic religious education. In spite of the government's emphasis on a secular and nationalist system, Islam remains as a force, particularly in its capacity to utilize new elements required for a modern society. Although Islam has not yet challenged the supremacy of secular education in Turkey, it expanded its influence both in formal and informal education, content and structure.
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| 2. |
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| 3. |
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| 4. |
- Biamba, Cresantus
(author)
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Implementing the Millennium Development Goals 2000-2015 : Has Education Made a Difference?
- 2013
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Book (other academic/artistic)abstract
- In recent years there has been a growing body of literature on the interconnectedness of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the need to maximize opportunities for education and their linkages. The existing empirical studies confirm some of the arguments about the benefits of education and the linkages to the MDGs.With the developmental outcomes of basic education in mind, this desk study set out to examine in what ways, and under what conditions investment in education is important in relation to the millennium development goals. It provides a synthesis of research on the potential contribution of basic education to achieving the MDGs, focusing on key texts produced by the international institutions. Within this review a key focal point will be the context in which education appears to impact the various MDGs outcomes, which is referred to as the ―enabling environment‖. The report sought to explore the evidence about the contribution of basic education to poverty reduction and the achievement of the MDGs within certain countries or regions. It considered the critical support systems, policy environments and national capacities upon which good quality basic education depends, and assessed the role of basic education in developing and sustaining these.In response to the global call to achieve the MDGs by 2015, many countries are making remarkable progress demonstrating that setting bold, collective goals in the fight against poverty yields results. Expanding access and improving the quality of education are both imperative for MDG progress. A balance must be struck to move both objectives forward.
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| 5. |
- Biamba, Cresantus, 1964-
(author)
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The Role of Principals in Government Secondary Schools in Cameroon: Demands, Constraints and Choices : A Case Study of Eight Secondary Schools
- 2012
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The main aim of this research was to explore the present role of the secondary school principals and the challenges they face in carrying out their duties in the Northwest region of Cameroon. The research, which was exploratory and conducted in the interpretive paradigm, is a case study which was carried out at eight secondary schools. Working in an interpretivist research paradigm within a qualitative research design, the study used semi-structured interviews, observation and document analysis methods.The researcher shadowed each principal for a week of intensive observation and interviewing.The findings reveal that tradition, culture and political contexts are crucial factors in understanding what the secondary school principals in Cameroon do and how they conceptualize principalship. The findings show that discussions with parents, staff and desk work were found to be the major job functions taking up most of the principals' time. The findings reveal that principals are agents of accountability and management; they are involved with different regional and local services; are concerned with the safety and security of students; and their day is extended through participation in parent teacher associations and with other local community activities.However, the findings also indicate the multi-varied nature of the principal's role. The principal's day was generally hectic in pace, varied in its composition, discontinuous and superficial in any pursuit of tasks, with the unexpected always as one of the few certainties of the job. The dominant model was that of the transactional leader in fixing things, managing and coping in order to maintain the smooth operation of the school.Results indicated that deputy principals presented similar feedback to that presented by principals. The major difference being in the way deputy principals perceived tomorrow’s principalship ─ one beyond the transactional model of principal as administrator to the transformational model of principal as leading professional.
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| 7. |
- Boström, Ann-Kristin, 1947-
(author)
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Lifelong learning, intergenerational learning, and social capital : from theory to practice
- 2003
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between lifelong learning, intergenerational learning and social capital by reporting on an analysis of the concepts and an investigation of one instance of intergenerational interaction, namely “the granddad programme” – an intervention project run by a limited number of schools in the Stockholm area. The theoretical background concerns both the lifelong perspectiveand the lifewide perspective of learning across the lifespan. The lifewide perspective includes both formal and informal learning. Social capital is also explored, in order to establish the extent to which this concept is compatible with the conceptual framework outlined in this study.First a structural model is developed in order to elucidate the conceptual framework and its relationship to classroom practice. Indicators for measuring social capital are then constructed on the basis of questionnaire data. Responses from a total of 580 pupils, 19 granddads and 27 teachers in 17 schools were collected, after which Structural Equation Modelling (SEM), using the statistical software LISREL, was applied in order to test the model. With regard to the granddads themselves, an additional qualitative analysis was also carried out on a set of narrative data, regarding their perceptions and experiences of their work in the schools.The results indicate that the granddads’ work itself is forming part of the social capital between individual granddads and the pupils. The pupil responses indicate that boys and girls consider that they enjoy similar opportunities in school, that they feel equally secure in school and that the granddad assists everyone. The results support the claim concerning increased social capital for the pupils, although there are differences between boys and girls with regard to the relative significance of the various entities of social capital. The responses from the granddads, indicate that they find their work demanding, but nonetheless rewarding because of the social network that it has established for them with the staff and pupils and the positive response from the pupils. This indicates an increase in social capital for the granddads themselves in the school context. These results support the theoretical model because interaction that occurs in the classrooms in schools where there is granddad intervention provides opportunities for both formal and informal learning and for increased social capital to be generated on the part of both the younger and the older generation.
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| 8. |
- Boudard, Emmanuel
(author)
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Literacy proficiency, earnings, and recurrent training : a ten country comparative study
- 2001
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The purpose of the study is to theorise on participation in recurrent training and to estimate a statistical model. The main focus is the links between latent variables, such as observed skills based on literacy proficiency, firm size, literacy practices at work and at home, and other latent correlates, such as educational attainment, labour force status, experience, occupational status and earnings. Three models are specified: A model predicting literacy proficiency; a model predicting earnings; and a model predicting participation in recurrent training. The two first models represent intermediate steps in the construction of the final model.The data set employed in this study is derived from the International Adult Literacy Survey. It combines tools from educational assessment and household survey, in order to collect background information about the participants and their labour force experience, and makes use of an innovative measure of human capital stock, namely proficiency on a functional literacy assessment. The analysis also includes countries from different parts of the world: Eastern Europe; Northern Europe; Southern Europe; and North America. Structural Equation Modeling has been used.The results show that all three models confirm the importance of educational attainment as one of the main predictors of literacy proficiency, earnings and recurrent training, with the effects of educational attainment most often mediated by other variables. Hence literacy proficiency and educational attainment are both important for modeling earnings or participation in recurrent training. The magnitude of educational attainment is seen to provide justification for signalling theory, job matching theory, and principal agent theory, as earnings and occurrence of recurrent training are related more to employees' educational attainment than to their actual levels of knowledge and skills. Work related learning and home related learning are strong predictors of the outcome variable in all three models. The main policy implication of this finding is that no form of education should be favoured, but rather each should be considered valuable and complementary to the others.The total effect of parents' education suggests that parents continue to have an influence on the life careers of their children a long time after the completion of initial, formal education. In other words, the kind of start a child has in life is a very strong predictor of his or her actual level of literacy proficiency, earnings, or whether or not he or she will take part in further training, lending support to social capital theory, as well as to resource conversion theory.The importance of the long arm of the job is confirmed for the prediction of earnings, as well as for the prediction of recurrent training. Labour force status, firm size and, to a lesser extent occupational status, are important indicators.No particular relationship is observed between men and women as regard to models predicting literacy proficiency and earnings. Conversely, gender differences in recurrent training are evident, with, on the one hand, determining factors for women, for example, earnings, and, on the other hand, determining factors for men, such as firm size and literacy practice at work. Hence, the study suggests that women's participation in recurrent training is determined by different factors than that of men.
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| 9. |
- Brooks, Sheila, 1948-
(author)
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Learning Motivation in International Primary Schools : The Voices of Children
- 2005
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The overall aim of this study is to contribute to a greater understanding of learning motivation in primary school education. Particular emphasis is given to investigating how various contextual or situational aspects of the classroom/school environment affect motivation. The study, further, strives to identify, describe and interpret the views and perceptions of students enrolled in two international schools in Switzerland and Sweden.As globalization processes, world cultural flows and personal mobility expand and accelerate, school populations are becoming increasingly multicultural in composition. Educators are challenged to develop and adapt educational programs to fit heterogeneous rather than homogeneous groups of learners. In this study, a multicultural, international population of learners was selected as a sample as they may be representative of diverse student populations becoming more common in the future. Four classes of grade five students, a total of sixty-six children, were selected as participants in this comparative, case study investigation.An eclectic conceptual approach guided the research including principles drawn from problem-based, constructivist and humanistic theories of learning. Bandura’s social cognitive motivational theory also provided a background for the choice of methods and data collection procedures employed. An exploratory, mainly qualitative approach was taken during the two phases of fieldwork. Participant observations were made and in-depth interviews were conducted; a short questionnaire was also administered to provide background information and to function as a screening instrument or guide for subsequent interviews.The findings indicate that a variety of factors in the classroom/school environment affect students learning motivation. Areas identified and described in the study include what to learn, learning processes, learner autonomy, teacher influences, the physical environment and psycho/social influences. In comparing the results from the two case study schools, notable differences were found in student responses in the areas of learning processes, learner autonomy, teacher influences and overall attitude towards school. Students at the school in Switzerland were consistently more positive than those at the school in Sweden. Most of the differences identified were related to the curriculum model utilized and type of school organization and leadership employed. The findings indicate that the educational program based on constructivist, inquiry-based theories of learning implemented in a cohesive, all-school approach, produced higher levels of motivation in individual students.
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| 10. |
- Carm, Ellen, 1954-
(author)
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Caught in Culture? : Cultural Transformation through HIV/AIDS Prevention Education in Zambia
- 2017
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The study explores the role and contribution of education in developing a localized and relevant HIV/AIDS prevention strategy through a multi-voiced approach, involving the educational institutions, as well as the traditional leaders, community-members, including parents. The study comprised all public schools in one Zambian province from 2002-2008. The study explores, among other factors, the role of traditional culture in mitigating and exacerbating the spread of the disease.Zambia was one of the countries hardest hit by the HIV/AIDs epidemic, and one of the few countries in the region that, in 2002, had a clear policy on the role of education in fighting the epidemic. Through the process of developing and implementing a learner-centered interactive HIV/AIDS education program in the province. based upon MOE`s HIV/AIDS policies and strategies, syllabi, and teachers guides, and at the same time emphasizing the broader community as a point of departure.The qualitative and interpretivist research was conducted within a constructivist grounded theoretical approach. The study applies comprehensive and multilayered perspectives while utilizing a broad range of methods. Documentary analyses, structured and semi-structured interviews, in depth conversations with traditional and educational leaders, teachers, parents and pupils, were all carried out during the period of the study. Nvivo, a computer-supported data analysis tool was used to support the process of categorizing the qualitative data and the study applied Cultural- and Historical Activity Theory for analytic purposes.The study revealed the mismatch between the decentralized, national HIV/AIDS prevention education approach, as stated in the policy documents and the global UNAIDS, centralized and cross-sectoral strategies favored by the Zambian government. The uncoordinated efforts did not reach the grassroots level, where professionals, at district and school level, perceived and applied policies in highly different ways, if at all reaching students and the communities.The main categories of drivers of the epidemic were of socio-cultural and economic character, e.g. polygamy, sexual cleansing, local healing, gender inequality and poverty, sexual violence, multiple concurrent sexual partners and prostitution, but there were also variety of local drivers, depending upon context.When analyzing the participatory approaches of the HIV/AIDS prevention strategy, predominantly, at the school-community level, the findings revealed that the traditional leaders, being legitimate leaders in their kingdoms, and the custodians of culture and traditions, were found to be gate openers to promote behavioral change and cultural transformation in their villages.The traditional leaders worked hand in hand with the schools and the villagers. Their involvement legitimated that discourses and HIV/AIDS prevention actions were taken at school as well as within their own chiefdom. Utilizing their traditional leadership structures, the chiefs sustained their cultural rites, e.g. cleansing, in order to chase away the evil spirits, by turning the rites into practices that do no put people at risk for contracting HIV. Particularly at the global and state level, culture has been seen as drivers of the epidemic. The study revealed that the traditional leaders used their role as significant others, became gate-openers, using their legitimate role as custodians of culture to transform cultural rites and practices.
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| 11. |
- Cars, Mikiko, 1970-
(author)
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Project Evaluation in Development Cooperation : A Meta-Evaluative Case Study in Tanzania
- 2006
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The research reported here is a meta-evaluative case study of project evaluation in the context of Official Development Cooperation (ODC) in the education sector in Tanzania, where the particular focus is on capturing the relative values attached to evaluation by various stakeholder groups.Perspectives from the constructivist paradigm are adopted, implying relativist ontology, subjectivist epistemology, and naturalistic interpretive methodology. Based on these perspectives, a review is provided of development theories and evaluation theories, including the actor-oriented approach to development, participatory monitoring & evaluation, utilization-focused evaluation, and responsive-constructivist evaluation. An exploratory qualitative case study strategy is taken, combining several complementary methods e.g. in-depth interviews, questionnaires, document analysis, and observations.Evaluation is considered as an applied social research, implying a managerial and political purpose. It is a reflective interactive process, where the relevance, effectiveness and impact of an intervention in pursuit of certain objectives are assessed, adding value in order to construct knowledge for the enhancement of decision-making. In order to facilitate understanding of the cases under study, their structural contexts are investigated: 1) ODC evaluation systems and strategies (international/ macro context); and 2) ODC in the education sector in Tanzania (national/meso context). Each case (at local/micro level) is located within these contexts and analyzed applying a meta-evaluative framework.Integrating the perspectives of the stakeholders, the study demonstrates the strengths of, and constraints on, each case, factors which are to some extent determined by their respective time-frames. A number of significant discrepancies between theory and practice in ODC evaluation are reported. Findings indicate the significance of constructing consensus values that are based on a synthesis of multiple stakeholders’ values and perspectives complementing each others. The study also find that evaluation ought to be used as a powerful tool in which the values, needs and aspirations of various stakeholder groups can be reflected, especially those of local communities, who are now too often powerless in ODC projects in the education sector.
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| 12. |
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| 13. |
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| 14. |
- Chinapah, Vinayagum, 1950-
(author)
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Participation and performance in primary schooling : a study of equality of educational opportunity in Mauritius
- 1983
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The aim of the study is to examine the extent to which policies formulated to ensure equality of educational opportunity have been implemented at the primary school level in Mauritius.Universal free primary education was achieved during the early 1970s. The most immediate problem at the primary education level today is to find ways to reduce the gap in scholastic performance between the few pupils who excel, and the majority, who cannot even reach a minimum level of knowledge required from six years of education.Educational success requires educationally supportive environments at home and in school. This is not the case for the majority of primary school pupils. Schooling benefits the most the already priviledged: children from advantaged socioeconomic, cultural, linguistic, and regional backgrounds. The school acts as a stratifier, it maintains and reproduces social inequalities existing already in society as a whole.The division of the school system into four separate sectors - government rural, government urban, aided rural, and aided urban - and a combination of various analytical techniques, from simple univariate analyses to complex path analyses with latent variables based on PLS and LISREL methods, are used to increase the understanding of how schools operate in various settings and for various groups of children.
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| 15. |
- Dedze, Indra
(author)
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Reading ability of Latvian students : results from an international study
- 1999
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Reading literacy is becoming a crucial skill for the success in the modern society. Since Latvia is an industrialized country, with a relatively small population, it is of a crucial importance that the educational system produces well literate people. This is important both in order to sustain and to improve country's social and economic development.The International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) was organized in the 1960's as a non-governmental and cooperative organization to conduct comparative studies concentrating on educational policies and practices in order to improve learning within and across systems of education. The IEA Reading Literacy Study was the first national study in the field of comparative education carried out in Latvia in early 90's. About 1000 nine-year-old students from 54 classrooms and 800 fourteen-year-old students from 53 schools participated in the study. The study provides us with important information about student reading habits, home background, as well as about teaching strategies. Whenever it is possible, an international comparison is given.Two-level structural equation modeling is applied in a reanalysis of the IEA Reading Literacy Study data from Latvia. The aim is to present the relations between the factors derived from student home conditions and reading performance factors at the individual level and at the classroom level. The results shows that at the nine-year-old student classroom level a general socioeconomic factor has rather high connection with the reading performance, while at the individual level factors called "good reader" and "reading resources" had a strong effect upon student reading achievement. In the fourteen-year-old students group the factors "liking school" and "good reader" have influence upon reading achievement on student level, and the factors "liking school" and "reading resources" - on the classroom level.Since the current situation in beginning reading instruction in Latvia is still influenced by the educational policies and practices that were in use during the Soviet era, the analyses on the beginning reading instruction in Latvia is given. Basic terms and categories such as the definition of reading, reading models, and goals of reading instruction are presented as they are used and understood in Latvia and compared with those described in Russia and the literature on reading research in other countries.The study has notable implications for teachers and policy makers, as well as for future research.
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| 16. |
- Desjardins, Richard, 1974-
(author)
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Learning for well being : Studies using the International Adult Literacy Survey
- 2004
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- This thesis is a collection of five independent but closely related studies. The overall purpose is to approach the analysis of learning outcomes from a perspective that combines three major elements, namely lifelonglifewide learning, human capital, and the benefits of learning. The approach is based on an interdisciplinary perspective of the human capital paradigm. It considers the multiple learning contexts that are responsible for the development of embodied potential – including formal, nonformal and informal learning – and the multiple outcomes – including knowledge, skills, economic, social and others– that result from learning. The studies also seek to examine the extent and relative influence of learning in different contexts on the formation of embodied potential and how in turn that affects economic and social well being. The first study combines the three major elements, lifelonglifewidelearning, human capital, and the benefits of learning into one common conceptual framework. This study forms a common basis for the four empirical studies that follow. All four empirical studies use data from the International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS) to investigate the relationships among the major elements of the conceptual framework presented in the first study.Study I. A conceptual framework for the analysis of learning outcomesThis study brings together some key concepts and theories that are relevant for the analysis of learning outcomes. Many of the concepts and theories have emerged from varied disciplines including economics, educational psychology, cognitive science and sociology, to name only a few. Accordingly, some of the research questions inherent in the framework relate to different disciplinary perspectives. The primary purpose is to create a common basis for formulating and testing hypotheses as well as to interpret the findings in the empirical studies that follow. In particular, the framework facilitates the process of theorizing and hypothesizing on the relationships and processes concerning lifelong learning as well as their antecedents and consequences.Study II. Determinants of literacy proficiency: A lifelong-lifewide learning perspectiveThis study investigates lifelong and lifewide processes of skill formation. In particular, it seeks to estimate the substitutability and complementarity effects of learning in multiple settings over the lifespan on literacy skill formation. This is done by investigating the predictive capacity of major determinants of literacy proficiency that are associated with a variety of learning contexts including school, home, work, community and leisure. An identical structural model based on previous research is fitted to the IALS data for 18 countries. The results show that even after accounting for all factors, education remains the most important predictor of literacy proficiency. In all countries, however, the total effect of education is significantly mediated through further learning occurring at work, at home and in the community. Therefore, the job and other literacy related factors complement education in predicting literacy proficiency. This result points to a virtual cycle of lifelong learning, particularly to how educational attainment influences other learning behaviours throughout life. In addition, results show that home background as measured by parents’ education is also a strong predictor of literacy proficiency, but in many countries this occurs only if a favourable home background is complemented with some post-secondary education.Study III. The effect of literacy proficiency on earnings: An aggregated occupational approach using the Canadian IALS dataThis study uses data from the Canadian Adult Literacy Survey to estimate the earnings return to literacy skills. The approach adapts a labour segmented view of the labour market by aggregating occupations into seven types, enabling the estimation of the variable impact of literacy proficiency on earnings, both within and between different types of occupations. This is done using Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM). The method used to construct the aggregated occupational classification is based on analysis that considers the role of cognitive and other skills in relation to the nature of occupational tasks. Substantial premiums are found to be associated with some occupational types even after adjusting for within occupational differences in individual characteristics such as schooling, literacy proficiency, labour force experience and gender. Average years of schooling and average levels of literacy proficiency at the between level account for over two-thirds of the premiums. Within occupations, there are significant returns to schooling but they vary depending on the type of occupations. In contrast, the within occupational return of literacy proficiency is not necessarily significant. The latter depends on the type of occupation.Study IV: Determinants of economic and social outcomes from a lifewide learning perspective in CanadaIn this study the relationship between learning in different contexts, which span the lifewide learning dimension, and individual earnings on the one hand and community participation on the other are examined in separate but comparable models. Data from the Canadian Adult Literacy Survey are used to estimate structural models, which correspond closely to the common conceptual framework outlined in Study I. The findings suggest that the relationship between formal education and economic and social outcomes is complex with confounding effects. The results indicate that learning occurring in different contexts and for different reasons leads to different kinds of benefits. The latter finding suggests a potential trade-off between realizing economic and social benefits through learning that are taken for either job-related or personal-interest related reasons.Study V: The effects of learning on economic and social well being: A comparative analysisUsing the same structural model as in Study IV, hypotheses are comparatively examined using the International Adult Literacy Survey data for Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The main finding from Study IV is confirmed for an additional five countries, namely that the effect of initial schooling on well being is more complex than a direct one and it is significantly mediated by subsequent learning. Additionally, findings suggest that people who devote more time to learning for job-related reasons than learning for personal-interest related reasons experience higher levels of economic well being. Moreover, devoting too much time to learning for personal-interest related reasons has a negative effect on earnings except in Denmark. But the more time people devote to learning for personal-interest related reasons tends to contribute to higher levels of social well being. These results again suggest a trade-off in learning for different reasons and in different contexts.
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| 17. |
- Duberg, Roland, 1935-
(author)
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Schooling, work experience and earnings : a study of determinants of earnings in a Third World corporate setting
- 1982
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The aim of the study is: (1) to investigate determinants of earnings in a Third World corporate setting; (2) to estimate the relative importance of these determinants; (3) to compare the determinants between different sectors; and (4) to provide some evidence concerning the validity of a number of economic theories. A Third World country (Liberia) and a corporate setting (LAMCO) are described. A synopsis of economic theories relevant in studying personal income distribution an determinants of earnings is made. A data-analytical study of determinants of earnings in this setting is carried out. A basic model and a segmented model are specified. The basic model, which includes eight variables, suggests nineteen hypotheses. Log Annual Earnings is the criterion variable. Key theoretical constructs in orthodox theory include Region, Sex, Age, Formal Education, Family Size, Work Experience, and Job Level. In segmentation theories, key theoretical constructs include the effect of labor market segmentation, group characteristics and membership, technology and micro-economic policies. The analysis involved descriptive and analytical statistics including path analysis. The significant features of the study are reported under three major headings: (1) the issue of group differences, and development; (2) the use of education and training as means for industrial and national development; and (3) policy implications serving equality and efficiency objectives. It was found that workers in the secondary labor sector (lower level jobs) face lower rewards to schooling (lower slope) than workers in the independent (higher level jobs) labor sector. At the departmental level, it was found that the marginal returns to an increase in the mean level of education are higher in the industrial departments with the lowest mean education. Finally, the study gives evidence of (1) a threshold effect of education, with an extremely limited payoff to primary education; and (2) that work experience and specific on-the-job training is a much more powerful predictor of earnings than formal education.
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| 18. |
- Dutt, Khaleda Gani, 1968-
(author)
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The Role of Adult Literacy in Transforming the Lives of Women in Rural India: Overcoming Gender Inequalities : Comparative case studies in Bhilwara District Rajasthan & Howrah District West Bengal India
- 2017
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The Indian diaspora is woven around castes, languages, dialects, religions- a young nation boasting of an ancient civilization in which inequalities are deeply ingrained in its culture and traditions. Although vital government interventions have succeeded in increasing the literacy rate of women in both urban and rural areas general household characteristics such as income, caste, occupation and education attainments of parents still continue to determine access, attendance, completion and learning outcomes of girls and women from severely disadvantaged communities. The critical issue investigated in the comparative case study is why and how established hegemonic roles changed because of the catalytic role of adult literacy. The research was conducted in Bhilwara District, Rajasthan and Howrah District, West Bengal, India where literacy has played an intrinsic role in transforming the lives of the rural and marginalized women. In Indian society social norms often prevent women from exercising their free choice and from taking full and equal advantage of opportunities for individual development, contribution and reward. So assessing empowerment/transformation would mean identifying the constraints to empowerment, how women’s agency has developed and finally looking if ‘agency’ was able to address the constraints to women’s access to adult literacy. This would also entail seeking answers to questions such as ‘How is transformation represented in their narratives? What was the impact of literacy upon their lives?
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| 19. |
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| 21. |
- Fredriksson, Ulf
(author)
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Reading skills among students of Iimmigrant origin in Stockholm.
- 2002
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- I Stockholm utgör elever med invandrarbakgrund ungefär en fjärdedel av alla elever. Läsning är en central färdighet av betydelse för elevers möjligheter att lyckas i skolan. Läsförmågan hos 11 179 elever med invandrarbakgrund i årskurs 3 i Stockholms skolor under åren 1993 - 1999 jämförs med 33 915 "svenska" elever under samma period. De svenska eleverna läser bättre än eleverna med invandrarbakgrund. På test där eleverna enbart läste fristående ord var skillnaden mindre än när eleverna läste hela texter. Elever med invandrarbakgrund var kraftigt överrepresenterade i de skolor som hade de lägsta medelvärdena på testen. När olika grupper av elever med invandrarbakgrund jämfördes med varandra så fanns stora skillnader. Elever som var födda och uppvuxna i Sverige läste bättre än de som själva invandrat. Elever från några språkgrupper läste lika bra och i något fall t.o.m. bättre än de svenska eleverna, medan elever från andra språkgrupper hade resultat på lästesten som var betydligt under de svenska elevernas resultat. När elever med invandrarbakgrund som deltagit i modersmålsundervisning eller gått i tvåspråkiga klasser jämfördes med de som ej deltagit i någon modersmålsundervisning fanns inga skillnader mellan gruppernas medelvärden på lästesten på svenska. När resultaten på lästest för elever som 1994 gick i årskurs 3 och 1999 i årskurs 8 (alltså till stor del samma elever, men fem år äldre) jämfördes var skillnaden i testresultat mellan de svenska eleverna och de elever med invandrarbakgrund som bott hela livet i Sverige den samma 1999 som 1994.
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| 22. |
- Fris, Ann-Margret, 1932-
(author)
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Policies for minority education : a comparative study of Britain and Sweden
- 1982
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The aim of the study is to examine how policies for minority education in Britain and Sweden have developed over the last twenty-five years. Policy has been used in a broad sense, including not only central but also regional and local decisions, not only written documents but also administration, interpretation and application of policies. During the initial stage the authorities in both countries encouraged immigration and only later did they realize the implications for the education systems. The acquisition of the majority language by the minorities has been emphasized in both countries. The role of the mother tongue in education is a major issue in Sweden, where all children are entitled to mother tongue teaching. In Britain the mother tongues of the minorities have normally not been included in the curriculum but some projects have started during the last few years. Multi-cultural aspects of education for all children have been more emphasized in Britain than in Sweden. Within the devolved British education system local policy patterns have developed differently whereas in Sweden the policy pattern is more uniform. A trend towards policies for minority education on a supernational level in Europe has been observed in the EEC Directive on education of migrant workers’ children.
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| 23. |
- Gao, Shuting, 1966-
(author)
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Learner support for distance learners : A study of six cases of ICT-based distance education institutions in China
- 2012
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- This thesis focuses on learner support in Chinese distance education. It draws a picture of Chinese modern distance education, covering the major issues in the field of learner support, and small group work as peer support. The aim of the study is to find out whether or not the learner support, that distance students at university level obtained, has the tendency to support students’ deep learning. The aim has been achieved by examining learner support in six institutions of ICT-based distance education in China. Three other sources of learner support are investigated. The main objectives of the study are: 1) to describe the distance students’ characteristics; 2) to examine their learning habits, learning organizations, and their interactions; 3) to investigate the student support provided by the institutions; family support; societal support; and peer support in the form of small group work. The purpose of this study is to define current practices of learner support in the six distance education institutions, determining the extent of similarities and differences on learner support services among these institutions.The study is applying a case-study approach, using qualitative and quantitative methods to investigate the six Chinese distance education institutions. During the first stage, several field visits were conducted in different research sites with on-site participant observation, non-participant observation and interviews for obtaining knowledge of Chinese distance education. In the second stage, a survey with a student questionnaire was distributed to students present and others online, in total 587. In addition, semi-structured interviews with staff members (administrators, instructors and tutors), individual students, and student focus groups were performed. The present research is one of the few in-depth case studies that focus on the relation between learner support system and different approaches to learning. On the basis of these research findings, the importance of a well-designed learner support system for the distance learner, a system for fostering creative, critical or independent thinking skills, or deep learning, in line with Chinese cultural and social conditions, is underlined.
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| 24. |
- Garrouste, Christelle, 1976-
(author)
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Determinants and Consequences of Language-in-Education Policies : Essays in Economics of Education
- 2007
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- This thesis consists of three empirical studies. The first study, Rationales to Language-in-Education Policies in Postcolonial Africa: Towards a Holistic Approach, considers two issues. First, it explores the factors affecting the choice of an LiE policy in 35 African countries. The results show that the countries adopting a unilingual education system put different weights on the influential parameters than countries adopting a bilingual education system. Second, the study investigates how decision makers can ensure the optimal choice of language(s) of instruction by developing a non-cooperative game theoretic model with network externalities. The model shows that it is never optimal for two countries to become bilingual, or for the majority linguistic group to learn the language of the minority group, unless there is minimum cooperation to ensure an equitable redistribution of payoffs. The second study, The Role of Language in Learning Achievement: A Namibian Case Study, investigates the role played by home language and language proficiency on SACMEQ II mathematics scores of Namibian Grade-6 learners. HLM is used to partition the total variance in mathematics achievement into its within- and between-school components. Results show that although home language plays a limited role in explaining within- and between-school variations in mathematics achievement, language proficiency (proxied by reading scores) plays a significant role in the heterogeneity of results. Finally, the third study, Language Skills and Economic Returns, investigates the economic returns to language skills, assuming that language competencies constitute key components of human capital. It presents results from eight IALS countries. The study finds that in each country, skills in a second language are a significant factor that constrains wage opportunities positively.
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| 25. |
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