A framework for mobile digital literacy skills of educators using mobile technology in rural formal education

Information and communication technology (ICT) is considered a vital enabler in the quest to reduce the disparities between the developed and developing world. Developments in mobile technology have dramatically changed the ICT landscape. Mobile cellular technologies have flourished and proliferated more rapidly than any previous technology hitherto and is thus considered, at this time, the most pervasive technology in the world. However, the introduction of mobile ICT in rural formal education is faced with many challenges and ways in which to maximise its usage is still being explored. This research explores mobile digital literacy skills required by a rural educator to successfully integrate mobile technology into the classroom. This exploration used the ICT for rural education development (ICT4RED) project as its case study and added dimensions to the project through the development of a framework for mobile digital literacy skills. ICT4RED was an appropriate case for the exploration as it met the following criteria: educators were using mobile technologies in the classroom, educators had been part of the Teacher Professional Development (TPD) course offered by the ICT4RED project and educators were based in a rural resource-constrained area in South Africa. Questionnaires were used to gain insight into which skills educators rated as most important, and least important, as based on their teaching experience using mobile technologies in the classroom. The work is grounded on an interpretivist research philosophy and followed an inductive reasoning approach. Additionally, the research employed a qualitative method of analysis with a single case study, comprising of two units, facilitating a perspective of the phenomenon. Framework development was enabled through a literature review which assisted in theorising the mobile digital literacy skills. An expert review, followed by a questionnaire driven survey for educators, was conducted. The qualitative analysis revealed that most of the mobile digital literacy skills from literature were important and should be employed. The majority of educators and experts felt that the skills could not be categorised as, due to the lack of resources, most are considered very important. The lack of stable internet connection/s were also considered a major (if not the major) hindrance to successful mobile integration in rural areas. The main research question answered by this study is: How can a framework for educators’ mobile digital literacy skills support educators using mobile technology in formal rural education? The findings of this research should be significant to developers of mobile technology training programmes, as well as educators trying to successfully integrate mobile technology into their classrooms. The framework will enable both trainers and educators to prioritise skills and channel resources into the acquisition of those skills which have been identified as important by this research work.School of ComputingM. Sc. (Computing

The teaching of electronics in schools and further education: a case study in curriculum change.

This case study describes the development of Electronics within the curriculum in line with how both (Reid and Walker I975, Case Studies in Curriculum Change) and (Goodson I983, School Subjects and Curriculum Change) discussed changes in terms of theories of curriculum change. Alternative definitions of the term innovation are reviewed and for the purpose of this study a definition is adopted which includes syllabus change and major changes of scale and strategy. The study gives an outline of the major theories of innovation and implementation strategy. Features of centralisation and rationalisation are described insofar as these features led to current educational initiatives. An account Is given of how Electronics developed as a topic within ‘A’ level Physics, a subject within B.E.T.E.C. (previously O.N.C/T.E.C.) and as a separate G.C.E. subject. Data on examination entries In G.C.E. and C.S.E. Electronics are presented. These data are related to the- size of L.E.A.s, the type of centre, and also to explore the viability of G.C.E./G.C.S.E. provision in Electronics. Initiatives such as M.E.P., T.V.E.I., C.P.V.E., S.S.C.R. are described as they are expected to have a significant impact on the growth of Electronics. The position of Electronics within the curriculum and its educational value are discussed. Comment is made on the Systems and Components approaches to Electronics and on the importance of project work. Teacher difficulties with project work are noted and suggestions are made on the use and range of equipment available so that a suitable teaching style may be -developed

The SAC mentality: the origins of organizational culture in Strategic Air Command, 1946-1962

This dissertation explores the origins of Strategic Air Command’s organizational culture. Organizational culture—the assumptions, values, and rituals of an organization— has an ideological and a material component. Formed in 1946, SAC inherited part of its organizational culture from the assumptions of Air Force leaders who believed that strategic air power should be organized under one independent commander. This provided the initial values and organizational doctrine for the command. The shared historical experiences of those who fought in World War II provided the formulation for the tactics and cultural rituals that became part of SAC culture. Constructing a ‘force-in-being’ meant preparing SAC to execute its war plan on a moment’s notice. Curtis LeMay put SAC on alert; war was not months or weeks but hours away. As SAC organized, trained, and, in the minds of its leaders and members fought the Cold War, other organizational routines, rituals, and symbols evolved. Many of SAC’s first cultural forms—standardized procedures, lead crews, and the survival school—grew out of the leaders’ shared experiences. Other cultural elements— security, competition, and architectural designs—developed out of the command’s involvement in the Cold War. Security and competition oriented people towards an enemy and to vigilance. Although SAC tried to build a family friendly command, its atmosphere of competition ran counter to the cooperation needed at home to maintain a healthy family life. In 1957, the Soviet Union’s launch of Sputnik I changed the circumstances of the Cold War and added new elements to SAC culture. Alert—the ability to launch bombers and ICBMs within fifteen minutes—became a cultural routine that lasted in SAC until the Cold War ended. The responsiveness required of the alert force meant mistakes, especially with nuclear weapons, were not tolerated. SAC culture dictated perfection as the standard. Missiles, however, stood in stark contrast to the values and assumptions of the organization. These new weapons were ‘pilotless.’ Therefore, SAC took measures to make sure this new SAC subculture espoused the same values and beliefs as the larger organization. SAC’s culture emphasized standardization, perfection, and the physical presentation of power because this was the type of war the organization fought

The Papers of Thomas A. Edison

This richly illustrated volume explores Edison’s inventive and personal pursuits from 1885 to 1887.Two decades after the American Civil War, no name was more closely associated with the nation’s inventive and entrepreneurial spirit than that of Thomas Edison. The restless changes of those years were reflected in the life of America’s foremost inventor. Having cemented his reputation with his electric lighting system, Edison had decided to withdraw partially from that field. At the start of 1885, newly widowed at mid-life with three young children, he launched into a series of personal and professional migrations, setting in motion chains of events that would influence his work and fundamentally reshape his life. Edison’s inventive activities took off in new directions, flowing between practical projects (such as wireless and high-capacity telegraph systems) and futuristic ones (exploring forms of electromagnetic energy and the convertibility of one to another). Inside of two years, he would travel widely, marry the daughter of a prominent industrialist and religious educator, leave New York City for a grand home in a sylvan suburb, and construct a winter laboratory and second home in Florida. Edison’s family and interior life are remarkably visible at this moment; his papers include the only known diary in which he recorded personal thoughts and events. By 1887, the familiar rhythms of his life began to reassert themselves in his new settings; the family faded from view as he planned, built, and occupied a New Jersey laboratory complex befitting his status. The eighth volume of the series, New Beginnings includes 358 documents (chosen from among thousands) that are the most revealing and representative of Edison’s work, life, and place in American culture in these years. Illustrated with hundreds of Edison’s drawings, these documents are further illuminated by meticulous research on a wide range of sources, including the most recently digitized newspapers and journals of the day

December 1996

DEPARTMENTS AT DEADLINE ...•...................................................................... 3 COMMENTARY ........................................................................ 6 EDITORIAL .............................................................................. 6 PRO-CON ............................................................................ 7 CLOSE-UP: DR. MARIO MOLINA .......................................... 8 CORPORATE PROFILE: ROY 0 . HUFFMAN ROOF CO . .... 10 THE EMPLOYERS GROUP .................................................. 14 EXPORTING .......................................................................... 16 CORNER ON THE MARKET ................................................ 26 EXECUTIVE TIME OUT: BODEGA BAY ............................... 35 CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ................................................. 45 REAL ESTATE FOCUS ............................................................ 46 MANAGING ............................................................................ 49 DESERT BUSINESS JOURNAL ........................................... 52 PEOPLE, PLACES & EVENTS ............................................. 55 RESTAURANT REVIEW: PETRELLI\u27S ................................. 56 ENTERTAINMENT GUIDE ..................................................... 57 NEW BUSINESS LIST .......................................................... 62 BANKRUPTCIES .................................................................. 60 MANAGER\u27S BOOKSHELF .................................................. 61 CALENDAR ........................................................................... 65 MONTH IN REVIEW ·····························································66 NEWS/FEATURES BARTER CLUBS: PART 2 ...................................................... 3 MOTOR VOTER LAW STALLS AT THE POLLS? .................... 3 SUIT THREATENED AGAINST ANSWERING SERVICE ........ 5 ROGERSDALE USA TO REFLECT TRADITIONAL VALUES .... 5 CALL FOR ENTRIES: INLAND EMPIRE AD CLUB ............... 9 LUXURY AUTO DEALERS LIST ........................................... 12 ATTORNEY GENERAL DELAYS HOSPITAL SALE ............. 20 ON-SITE RETAIL ENVISIONED FOR HOSPITALS .............. 22 ALZHEIMERS DISEASE IN THE WORKPLACE ................... 29 WHAT OPEN ENROLLMENT MEANS TO BUSINESS ......... 30 QUARTERLY BANKING REVIEW ......................................... 36 MONEY FOR THE ASKING: SBA LOANS ............................ 38 BANKING UPDATE ................................................................ 39 ECONOMIC FORECAST BREAKFAST ................................ 40 REGION\u27S REAL ESTATE MARKET REBOUNDS .............. .41 CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE LIST ...................................... 43 RECOVERY TO CREATE \u27BUBBLE OF OPPORTUNITY\u27 .... 4

Pandemic Exposures

For people and governments around the world, the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic seemed to place the preservation of human life at odds with the pursuit of economic and social life. Yet this simple alternative belies the complexity of the entanglements the crisis has created and revealed not just between health and wealth but also around morality, knowledge, governance, culture, and everyday subsistence. Didier Fassin and Marion Fourcade have assembled an eminent team of scholars from across the social sciences conducting research on six continents to reflect on the multiple ways the coronavirus has entered, reshaped, or exacerbated existing trends and structures in every part of the globe. The contributors show how the disruptions caused by the pandemic have both hastened the rise of new social divisions and hardened old inequalities and dilemmas. An indispensable volume, Pandemic Exposures provides an illuminating analysis of this watershed moment and its possible aftermath