Strategic Change in Further Education

The research focus was to examine how organisations seek to respond to changes in their external environment through the development of strategies which matched organisational capability with external restraints. In April 1993 colleges of further education in England became incorporated bodies, responsible for their own management and their own strategic development under a new national funding framework. This provided an opportunity to research strategic change in these organisations, to investigate the effects on them of the changes in their environment, and to examine the strategies they had developed to enable them to cope with these changes. These strategies were compared with models of strategic change so that consideration could be given to the strategies colleges needed in order to be successful and to cope with future change. This research project covered the period from 1993 until 1999. Colleges were asked, in a national survey, what they considered to be the most important changes they faced at incorporation and in the years immediately after it and how they had coped with these changes. Key issues were identified from the results of this survey, which were followed up in case studies in order to consider the approaches to strategic change in a number of colleges. A conceptual model was developed in order to provide the theoretical foundation for the research and to provide a framework for the conclusions reached as a result. The findings of the research emphasised the importance of environmental assessment and organisational leadership in achieving effective strategic change

The Decline of Trust and Civic Engagement Since Alexis de Tocqueville\u27s Democracy in America

Since 1776 when the United States broke away from British colonial rule, Americans have considered themselves to be a profoundly free and equal people. When Alexis de Tocqueville toured the young nation in the 1830\u27s he argued that a profusion of voluntary associations, egalitarian values, and a substantial and vibrant religious presence combined to make this fledgling country and unusually civic and participatory democracy. Despite our beginnings as a nation of joiners, Americans\u27 engagement in political activity has fallen steadily. Voter turnout has been declining since the 1960\u27s and polling data reflects a trend of distrust in government. As a result, political elites began to consider whether such trends would have long-term effects on the health of the nation. Following the events of September 11, 2001, polls reflect a revival of trust in government. Similarly, a revival in civic engagement seems to have resulted from 9-11. Could such change be a revival of the democratic citizenship Alexis de Tocqueville observed and that subsequently inspired his Democracy in America? This thesis will consider whether declines actually constitute a crisis, consider the possible causes of decline, and analyze our present day milieu using Tocqueville\u27s understanding of democratic citizenship to determine whether a revival of trust and civic engagement is essential to the preservation of the blessings of self-government

Trends In Hpv 16/18-Associated Cervical Lesions In New Haven County, Connecticut, 2008-2014

Background: Current vaccines protect against human papillomavirus (HPV) types 16 and 18, which are associated with approximately 70% of cervical cancer and 50% of high-grade cervical lesions. Monitoring trends in HPV 16/18-associated lesions is important to assess vaccine impact. Methods: Cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) grades 2 and 3 and adenocarcinoma in situ (AIS) cases of women residing in the catchment area of New Haven County, CT were reported to the Connecticut HPV-IMPACT surveillance system, and diagnostic specimens were obtained for HPV DNA testing. Cases were geocoded to census tracts and linked to area-based measures of race, ethnicity, and poverty. Statistical analysis included logistic regression modeling and generalized estimating equations. This analysis included 1,820 New Haven County women aged 21-39 years diagnosed with CIN2+ from 2008-2014 who had at least one of the fifteen high-risk HPV types detected in the diagnostic specimen. Results: A total of 825 (45.3%) cases had HPV 16 or 18. Declines in prevalence of HPV 16/18 in lesions were observed, and in a model controlling for age and diagnosis grade, the year 2012 was associated with a lower likelihood of HPV 16/18 compared to the year 2008 (p=0.004). There was a significant interaction between year and area-based race with less of a decline in women living in areas with higher proportion of black residents (p=0.028). Among 21-24 year old women (n=552), there was a more evident decline in likelihood of HPV 16/18 in the lesions controlling for diagnosis grade, but the decline did not occur for women in areas of higher proportions of black, Hispanic, and poor residents. Conclusion: These results suggest that the proportion of lesions attributed to HPV 16/18 have declined in New Haven County, CT, particularly among young women, but the declines are not observed in areas of higher minorities and higher area-poverty

Elder Abuse: A Need for Awareness

Abuse of the elderly continues to be amplified as the older population of the United States has increased . Lack of professional awareness within healthcare institutions has put seniors at risk for violence . One problem associated with the identification of elderly abuse has been assaults going unreported or unnoticed for lack of poor assessment and observation skills. Therefore it is incumbent for healthcare institutions to take all steps necessary to better define and identify this serious and growing problem

‘Developing and adapting an early years literacy program for Aboriginal communities’

Through an innovative initiative, local Aboriginal organisation Waardi Limited partnered with Monash University and schools across the Kimberley region to develop an early year’s literacy program. The Literacy Acquisition for Pre-primary Students (LAPS) program aims to provide the best start to children’s literacy learning at school, integrating the aspirations of Traditional Owners, schools, families, and government. Our approach involves upskilling and building the capacity of teachers, support staff, and families to meet the needs of all children through strength-based, engaging strategies. The program continues to evolve based on research, reflection, and feedback from key stakeholders

HomologyBasis: Fast Computation of Persistent Homology

Simplicial complexes are used in topological data analysis (TDA) to extract topological features of the data. The HomologyBasis algorithm is proposed as an efficient method for the computation of the topological features of a finite filtered simplicial complex. We build up the implementation and intuition of this algorithm from its theoretical foundation ensuring this schema produces the desired simplicial homlogy groups as claimed. HomlogyBasis implemented and compared with the GUHDI algorithm to determine the HomologyBasis' efficiency at computing persistence pairs for finite filtered simplicial complexes. We find the HomologyBasis algorithm performs much better than GUHDI on large low-dimensional simplicial complexes but needs further refinement before it can more efficiently work with high-dimensional complexes.Master's Thesis in MathematicsMAT399MAMN-MA

Literacy Acquisition for Pre-primary Students: Developmentally and Culturally Informed Practice

Mystique and Deb share the success of Waardi’s early year’s literacy program, Literacy Acquisition for Pre-primary Students. Developed in consultation with Kimberley schools, the program addresses the cultural and linguistic needs of Aboriginal students, the developmental needs of early year’s students, and each learners’ needs as an individual. In a strength-based approach, explicit targeted teaching is embedded in engaging and meaningful literacy learning experiences

Organization theory and military metaphor: time for a reappraisal?

A ‘conventional’ use of military metaphor would use it to convey attributes such as hierarchical organization, vertical communication and limited autonomy. This is often used in contrast to a looser form of organization based on the metaphor of the network. However, this article argues that military practice is more complex, with examples of considerable autonomy within the constraints of central direction. It is suggested that not only might this be a more useful metaphor for many contemporary organizations, but also that simplistic uses of military metaphor divert our attention away from the functions that management hierarchies play. The discussion is embedded within a critical realist account of metaphor, arguing for both its value and the need for its further development

The female body in question: a study of Monique Wittig's writings with particular reference to L'Opoponax

PhDThis thesis is a comprehensive study of Monique Wittig's fiction, in which I explore the links between womanhood, sisterhood and writing. Particular attention is paid to L'Opoponax (1964), in which I argue that Wittig suggests a way out of the impasse of Freudian theories of femininity. This is achieved at all levels: stylistic, formal and thematic. I begin by defining my psychoanalytic and literary contexts (Freud, Klein and Irigaray for the former, contemporary French, English and American women's writing for the latter), in order to introduce the major debates connected with the concept of the female body and its representation in Western culture. I then show how the Freudian drama of sexual difference - namely, castration anxiety as it affects the little girl - is both powerfully evoked and systematically sidestepped in L'Opoponax, with its focus on relationships between women. Using Klein and Irigaray, I describe the problems arising within the mother/daughter dyad. I suggest that L'Opoponax hints at a healed relationship but also leaves much unsorted; this is seen to pull against the radical innovations of later texts, particularly Le Corps lesbien, accounting for some of the violence to be found there. The question of the mother versus the woman is thus not fully closed, but creates a space within which the amantes, female lovers, can begin to live and move. I end by replacing this question within its wider context as it is a crucial one for the future development of feminist writing