An enquiry into the construction of classroom culture: the case of two language classrooms in Singapore

This study is an ethnographically-influenced investigation into the ways teachers and students co-construct language classroom culture. Classroom culture is viewed as comprising classroom discourse and action. The everyday interactional discoursal practices and actions of teachers and students are cultural practices which on the one hand represent and reflect the culture of the classroom, and on the other make, maintain and develop this culture.Data is drawn from two multilingual and multicultural Secondary One English language classrooms in the same school in Singapore. These classrooms were selected because one is composed of supposedly more competent language learners than the other. This lends to the study a comparative dimension where data from one classroom is matched against data from the other, allowing for an exploration of similarities and differences that facilitate data interpretation and analysis.To describe and understand the coming about of classroom culture, a range of data was collected and analysed: • non-participant observation audio-recordings of 28 lessons, as well as field notes on the physical organisation of the classrooms, non-verbal features of teacher-student interaction, and both pedagogic and non-pedagogic events that occurred during lessons • interviews with the two teachers, their students, the Principal and key staff • student questionnaires • supplementary documentary data in the form of the school diary, school yearbook, and photographs of the two classrooms • descriptions of the social context of the school (including field notes of daily morning assemblies and weekly school assemblies)Data analysis was qualitative, and focused chiefly on classroom observations. Analysis was data driven, and through a process of progressive focusing, led to detailed descriptions of observations and recordings of episodes where teachers: • explicitly install systems of behaviour (classroom procedure); • practice discipline and control (classroom management); • issue procedural instructionsAttention was also given to student questioning behaviour which emerged as a research interest. Interpretation and explanation of observed patterns of classroom discourse and action are proposed using analytical tools such as participant structures, and participant role relationships.Research findings indicate that both English language classrooms share similar cultural traits, and that these traits mirror the macro social contexts, i.e. the culture in the general education system and that in Singapore society. More interesting and unexpected however, are findings that point at the differences between these microcultures. It appears that the striking differences in microcultures are attributable to the different roles played by the teachers in their attention to classroom procedure, classroom management, and procedural instructions. Teacher differences seem to encourage student questions in one class, and to deter them in the other. In exploring the relationship between classroom interaction and the evolving classroom microculture, this study captures an insider's view of how in one class there is the socialisation of academic success, and in the other, there is the socialisation of failure.Conclusions are drawn from the study for further research into classroom culture in general and student questioning behaviour in particular. Recommendations are made for pre-service and in-service teacher training which aim at improving the ways in which the education system in Singapore serves society

Impact of Relational Marketing of Laptops: High Tech Product Adoptions in a Retail Setting

Marketing has developed from using a simple transactional model to a more sophisticated relational orientation model. Selling and marketing practices are different according to the culture of a country, purchasing power parity, economical situations, political conditions, the demand versus supply gap ratio and the socioeconomic conditions of the market place. Academics have translated these factors into a simple sales discipline. However, every region and country has its own style of business. The business problem in this study was to understand ‘how retailers develop effective marketing strategies to increase the consumer’s propensity to buy high-tech products from their retail stores in a declining product life-cycle?’ Three research questions were set for the study: 1) Does Relational Marketing (RM) have a role in the adoption of high tech products in the technological retail industry? 2) What impact does the Retail salesperson have on the adoption of high-tech products? 3) What impact does the retailer have on the adoption of high-tech product purchasing? In-depth answers have been provided as to whether relational theory is important in today’s global market place where consumers feel confident and emotionally attached to a respective retail outlet. Also, the importance of the relationship of consumers with salespersons and the retail store to gain benefits or otherwise has been determined. The research addressed the issue of whether present retailers, along with their professional salespeople, have adopted the relationship marketing (RM) strategy in their selling process to help consumers reach their purchasing decisions. The major objective of RM is to reduce available market choices and engage in relational market behaviour by attracting the same marketer in subsequent choice situations. The current research confirmed previous research that consumers like to reduce their available choices and engage in relational market behaviour because they want to simplify their buying and consuming tasks, simplify information processing, reduce perceived risks and maintain cognitive consistency and state of psychological efforts. In addition, as time becomes a very valued asset in the busy lifecycle of modern people, they want to have easy access to the information and, ultimately, decide on their specific purchase once they have established their need for a product or service. Also, it was found that they engage in relational market behaviour because of family and social norms, peer group pressure, government mandates, religious tenets, employer influences and market policies. Findings supported the argument by academics that the willingness and ability of consumers and marketers to engage in relational marketing leads to greater marketing productivity, unless either the consumer or marketer abuses their mutual interdependence and cooperation. Relationship marketing is a win-win situation for both consumer and marketers. The research indicated that today’s retailers are managing their customer relationships aggressively and effectively. The retailer’s strategy of relationship marketing (RM) is helping consumers take the ultimate decision in purchasing. Whereas traditional transaction marketing was dominant with retailers focused on acquisition and making transactions as quickly as possible, modern retailers use the relationship marketing strategy by considering the long term benefits of loyal consumers. Customer for life is the philosophical agenda of most top managers, so that organisations reap the fruits of consumer loyalty over a decade. Currently, retailers focus on delivering superior service quality to satisfy their customers, to differentiate themselves from the competition and to build a steady customer base by focussing on customer retention. The research was carried out in six countries and data collected and analysed as composite data; however, the data also can be used to compare purchasing power and consumer behaviour in future research. The hypothetical conceptual model designed for current study was confirmed by the research as comprising seven constructs and their relationships; viz., purchase intent, retail store image, salesperson likeability, relationship orientation, trust in salesperson, commitment to retail store and involvement of consumer. A two-step structural equation modelling procedure was used as the primary statistical technique to test the hypothesised relationships

An Organizational Ethnography

This PhD thesis is an ethnographic exploration of strategy work in practice. The academic contribution of the thesis is positioned in the overlap between Critical Approaches to Strategy and Strategy as Practice. This implies a critical position that does not take strategy for granted and which emphasizes a philosophical understanding of the practice concept. Other studies have adopted a similar Critical Strategy as Practice position, but very few ethnographic studies of strategy work have been conducted from this point of departure. Thus, the thesis aims to contribute two-fold to the existing Critical Strategy as Practice literature: One, to strengthen the tradition theoretically through the development and mobilization of a conceptual braid of practice, narrative, and performativity; and two, to provide an extensive empirical analysis of strategy work from this perspective. The case for the thesis is strategy work in the Stakeholder Department of a multinational biotech corporation, which is here called Bioforte. The thesis explores the dual aspects of the title as “making strategy-work”—the specific doings of crafting strategy; and “making Strategy work”—finding ways for strategy, as a concept, to function in the context of an organization. Building on the double entendre of the title, the guiding research question for this exploration is quite simply: What does strategy work do? The answer to this question is, however, not simple, because as the ethnographic exploration demonstrates, strategy work in the Stakeholder Engagement Department at Bioforte has a range of performative effects. Through narratives of everyday practice, the thesis demonstrates how strategy work contributes to organizing the organization by shaping The Strategy Working Group, the department, the work, and the selves of the people working with strategy. The organizing force of strategy work is partly achieved through the continual collective creation and maintenance of distinctions such as strategic/operational and left brain/right brain. In this sense, the thesis argues that the organizing forces of strategy is to be found in the performative nature of strategy work

Law and Policy for the Quantum Age

Law and Policy for the Quantum Age is for readers interested in the political and business strategies underlying quantum sensing, computing, and communication. This work explains how these quantum technologies work, future national defense and legal landscapes for nations interested in strategic advantage, and paths to profit for companies

Children and Youth at Risk in Times of Transition: International and Interdisciplinary Perspectives

Children and youth belong to one of the most vulnerable groups in societies. This was the case even before the current humanitarian crises around the world which led millions of people and families to flee from wars, terror, poverty and exploitation. Minors have been denied human rights such as access to education, food and health services. They have been kidnapped, sold, manipulated, mutilated, killed, and injured. This has been and continues to be the case in both developed and developing countries, and it does not look as if the situation will improve in the near future. Rather, current geopolitical developments, political and economic uncertainties and instabilities seem to be increasing the vulnerability of minors, especially in the wars and armed conflicts currently being waged not only in Europe, but on almost every continent. How can risks children and youth are exposed to in times of transition be reduced? Which role do state agencies, non-governmental organisations, as well as children's coping strategies play in mitigating the vulnerabilities of minors? This volume addresses risks to which children and young people are exposed, especially in times of transition. The focus is on different groups of children in the European wartime and post-war societies of the Second World War, 'occupation children' in Germany, teenage National Socialist collaborators in Norway, and more recent cases such as child soldiers, refugee children, and children of European "Islamic State" fighters. The contributions come from international scholars and different academic disciplines (educational and social sciences, humanities, law, and international peace and conflict studies) and are based on historical, quantitative, and/or qualitative analyses.Kinder und Jugendliche gehören zu den am meisten gefährdeten Gruppen einer Gesellschaft. Dies war auch schon vor den aktuellen humanitären Krisen in der Welt der Fall, die Millionen von Menschen und Familien zur Flucht vor Kriegen, Terror, Armut und Ausbeutung veranlassten. Minderjährigen wurden Menschenrechte wie der Zugang zu Bildung, Nahrung und medizinischer Versorgung verweigert. Sie wurden entführt, verkauft, manipuliert, verstümmelt, getötet und verletzt. Dies war und ist sowohl in den Industrie- als auch in den Entwicklungsländern der Fall, und es sieht nicht so aus, als würde sich die Situation in naher Zukunft verbessern. Dieser Band befasst sich mit Risiken, denen Kinder und Jugendliche vor allem in Zeiten des Übergangs ausgesetzt sind. Im Mittelpunkt stehen verschiedene Gruppen von Kindern in den europäischen Kriegs- und Nachkriegsgesellschaften des Zweiten Weltkriegs, "Besatzungskinder" in Deutschland, jugendliche NS-Kollaborateure in Norwegen und neuere Fälle wie Kindersoldat*innen, Flüchtlingskinder und Kinder von europäischen "Islamischen Staat"-Kämpfer*innen. Die Beiträge stammen von internationalen Wissenschaftler*innen und verschiedenen akademischen Disziplinen (Erziehungs- und Sozialwissenschaften, Geisteswissenschaften, Rechtswissenschaften und internationale Friedens- und Konfliktstudien) und basieren auf historischen, quantitativen und/oder qualitativen Analysen

Crime and its Control in the People's Republic of China

The Centre for Criminology at the University of Hong Kong was established in 1999 to provide a home for indigenous studies of crime and criminal justice in Hong Kong and the region. As part of this objective it sought to provide a platform for both academics and practitioners to share their knowledge and to assist in the development of effective strategies to deal with the increasingly sophisticated problem of crime. The annual symposium on 'Crime and its Control in Greater China' functions as a forum to discuss interdisciplinary research on crime relevant to Greater China. The various components of Greater China have common cultural, linguistic and economic bonds that give rise to some similar crime problems and opportunities to resolve them. Therefore it seemed appropriate that both scholars and practitioners from Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan should meet to discuss their research on these issues. In the furtherance of these objectives it has been gratifying that the Chinese Peoples' Public Security University has participated in these events and co-hosted the 3rd Symposium. They also organised a Symposium in Beijing in 2002 to discuss ‘Criminal Trends and Countermeasures’and invited the Centre for Criminology to co-host, that event. This is the type of synergy that our annual event aspires to generate. A conscious intention of the annual symposium is to be broad in terms of both the range of topics covered and the depth of experience of the speakers. For this reason the symposium has provided a platform for postgraduate students to introduce their research as well as for well-established scholars with an international reputation for excellence in their chosen area of research. To further the concept of providing a bridge between academia and practice, several speakers are usually invited from the private sector to present their views on the problems and issues that concern them. These proceedings provide a record of selected papers presented at the various symposia and demonstrate the wide variety of topics covered and interests of speakers. I hope this bilingual event will help to fill the need that exists for a joint effort to review and discuss developments in criminology relevant to Greater China