American essayists of the last two decades; and how they have reacted to the international problem of peace

Thesis (M.A.)--Boston Universit

The Democratization of South America

In traditional and popular political analysis South American nations have never been seen as particularly democratic. Yet recently there has been a developing trend toward more moderate political systems on the continent. Ecuador, Venezuela, Colombia and Peru all have relatively democratic systems, and reforms are being promised even in such repressive regimes as Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay. This trend is due not to external influences or forces, but to internal upheaval and change. It is perhaps inevitable that change come to South America as the nations become economically and politically developed, throwing off the traditions of the past. South American nations have had a unique past, which makes it difficult, if not irrelevant, to analyze and categorize her nations solely using traditional western definitions and methods. However, by tempering traditional comparative politics methodology with South American concepts and traditions, it is possible to arrive at some conclusions as to just how democratic South American political systems really are

Inclusion and pupils on the autism spectrum in secondary schools :exploring process, and the contribution of an educational psychologist in moving from rhetoric to reality

D. Ed. Psy. ThesisThis research explores some of the factors which might impact on promoting the inclusion of pupils on the autism spectrum in secondary schools. The experience of inclusion for these pupils is often described as problematic, and that the general ‘top down’ information led approaches offered to schools to support their inclusion of this group of pupils seems to be problematic, failing to acknowledge the individuality of their pupils, staff, and the uniqueness of their contexts. This study utilises a practitioner action research framework in order to explore the experiences and theories about inclusion of staff and pupils on the autism spectrum within a secondary school. This research aimed to ‘grow’ inclusion within this context and reflect on the key process elements which supported any changes to occur. The main findings of the study suggested that it is possible to ‘grow’ inclusive practice and that a number of process elements were necessary to this growth. The significant process elements which emerged were; co-constructing practice and experience local to the community, explicit activity with reference to the process of change and development, and professional expertise relating to autism, the process of change and evaluation. Based on the findings of the study a model for future practice is proposed and discussed which combines learning from research in the areas of; autism and inclusion, school effectiveness, solution oriented and motivational psychology, and theory based approaches to evaluation. The model developed suggests that in order to grow inclusive practice, including for those on the autism spectrum, we need to move away from a simplistic standards/competency based approach. Instead what is suggested is that inclusion in practice should: have regard to and be constructed by those within a community, requires a process which has regard to both the goals and motivations of individual members of staff and of the broader organisational and social context, and that this requires professional expertise and facilitation. Discussion as to the implications of the findings of this study in terms of the role of an educational psychologist in this process and the value of practitioner action research in generating evidence on which to base future practice is also undertaken

Planning and governance under the LGA: Lessons from the RMA experience.

The purpose of this report is to identify ways in which experiences gained from the RMA as a devolved and co-operative planning mandate can enable local and central government and other stakeholders to more effectively implement the LGA. The report is based on findings from the FRST-funded research programme on Planning under Co-operative Mandates (PUCM). We argue in this report that the experiences gained from the RMA can inform effective implementation of the LGA in three important respects: Preparation and implementation of LTCCPs; The community consultation process for formulating community outcomes; and Māori participation in planning and governance

Resource management, plan quality and governance: A report to Government

This Report contains the main findings from FRST-funded research into planning under the Resource Management Act. It includes five sets of interrelated recommendations. These recommendations identify many actions that are essential if Government is serious about achieving its goal of environmental sustainability. Implementation of the recommendations will require a significant increase in expenditure at all levels of the planning hierarchy, but especially central government

Iwi interests and the RMA: An evaluation of the quality of first generation council plans

This working paper analyses the processes adopted by councils for involving hapū /iwi in plan implementation, including the resource consents process. Three topic issues were investigated to assess plan implementation — urban amenity, storm water, and issues of importance to iwi. Questions were asked about the capacity of hapū/iwi to engage in the resource consent process, which resource issues were of concern to them, their relationship with council and consent applicants, and their perception of the consent process. Most resources listed in the questionnaire were of concern to hapū/iwi, with water quality, wāhi tapu and heritage the most commonly cited. In conclusion, we found a general dissatisfaction on the part of hapū/iwi with councils’ performance with respect to both Treaty relationships and consent processing under the RMA. A further contributing factor to the poor relationships found between hapū/iwi and councils, was the lack of clarity over the role of hapū and iwi in resource management. In several districts, diverging responses from hapū/iwi and councils to questions about level of understanding and commitment suggests there is a need for more effective communication. These problems are compounded by the generally low capacity of hapū/iwi to participate in resource consent processes. These findings suggest that there is much to be done to improve relationships and behaviour of these key stakeholder groups in the plan implementation process if key provisions in the RMA related to hapū/iwi interests are to be fulfilled. The differences shown in reciprocal perceptions have serious implications for establishing a sound working partnership between councils and hapū/iwi in their areas. Making clear these discrepancies is a first step towards taking the measures needed for building a better partnership. Further, the capacity of hapū/iwi to participate could be better utilised if there was greater integration between regional and district councils on issues of significance and processes for iwi involvement

Rocking the boat : women's participation in the World Council of Churches, 1948-1991

When the inaugurating assembly of the World Council of Churches (WCC) met in 1948 questions about women's participation in the life and work of the churches, including the ordained ministry, were already on the agenda, placed there by women even though few women participated in any official capacity in the assembly. Since 1948 women's participation has become an increasingly important issue within the life and work of the WCC itself. This thesis, which is based on extensive primary research, documents and discusses women's participation in the WCC from that first assembly in 1948 to the seventh in 1991. By women's participation I understand both the inclusion of women among the representatives of the member churches who participate with some authority in the various policy and decision making bodies within the Council and the contribution of women's experiences, insights and perspectives to its policies and programmes. I argue that although women's participation in the WCC has increased significantly in the period 1948-1991 this increase has occurred only as a result of considerable struggle by women themselves, and that the ongoing pressure from women for their full and equal participation with men gives rise to serious tensions and problems within the WCC today. The basic approach is chronological, with documentation and discussion organised around the seven WCC assemblies held in the period 1948-1991. The slow processes of bureaucratic change through which women's participation has increased are documented in some detail, with particular attention given to their participation in assemblies and on the central committee, these being the two most powerful bodies in the governance of the WCC. Significant changes in the policies and programmes of the WCC resulting from women's participation are discussed, with particular attention paid to the "women's department" which, although its title and mandate have changed more than once, has consistently been the locus of advocacy for women's participation, and the commission on Faith and Order which has addressed theological questions raised by and about women's participation. The conclusion drawn from this study is that women's participation offers a number of significant challenges to the WCC and its member churches in their quest for unity

The quality of district plans and their implementation: Towards environmental quality

Since inception of the Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA) the issue of sustainable management has dominated planning practice in New Zealand. Over the past decade, councils have wrestled with converting the concept of sustainable management into policy and practice. Implicit to the requirement that district councils develop plans for managing the environmental effects of the use and development of natural and physical resources is the assumption that good quality plans will result in improved environmental quality. The key question to be addressed in this paper is: Do good plans matter? Measuring the quality of plan implementation is a complex task, and little, if any, attempt has been made in councils to do it. The PUCM research is the first in New Zealand to attempt a quantitative analysis of the links between the quality of plans produced under the RMA and the quality of plan implementation. The purpose of this paper is to describe the methodology that we adopted for the research and to present some preliminary results from studying the implementation of plans through the resource consent process. Overall, we are trying to determine: how best to measure the quality of plan implementation and the effect that district plan quality has on implementation quality; and what factors influence the relationship between plan quality and implementation quality. This paper is structured into three main parts. The first is a description of the methodological approach taken to conduct the research. In the second part, the key preliminary results are presented. Finally the findings and the implications for achieving good environmental outcomes are discussed

Pre-Adolescents' and their Parents' Interests in the Family Living Program in the Middle School at Stillwater, Oklahoma

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