UNDERSTANDING THE PURPOSE OF RESTORATIVE PRACTICES FOR SCHOOLS: A NEW ZEALAND PERSPECTIVE

Alternative disciplinary strategies for K-12 educational institutions have been gaining popularity around the globe for challenging the epidemic of suspensions and expulsions that foster unsafe school climates and position youth on the pipeline-to-prison. This study used a qualitative approach to investigate Restorative Practices (RP) an innovative, alternative approach to discipline that appears to make a difference in New Zealand schools. The purpose of this intrinsic case study was to gain qualitative insight from twelve experienced professionals in RP in New Zealand into an approach that appears to transform school cultures and helps students remain in school and continue learning. The data collected from participants included their perspectives on the purpose and significance of the RP approach and offered insight into the implementation process and suggestions for long lasting sustainability. Participants also stressed how harsh disciplinary policies can impede positive school climates, which ultimately in large measure shape our society. Furthermore, it has been well documented that punitive practices, such as zero-tolerance are largely responsible for the enormous number of suspensions and expulsions that disproportionately impact primarily students with disabilities and students of color. California and other states around the US are currently using the RP model to address problems. The approach has been noted in this study as a paradigm shift in school culture that largely depends on leadership buy-in and effective implementation for success. The objective of this study was to investigate the purpose and significance of the RP for schools using qualitative methods to conduct twelve in-depth interviews of professionals with significant experience of RP in the region of Auckland, New Zealand. Findings from this study suggested that RP is a useful approach for attending to relational harm, which threatens to breakdown social structures in educational institutions. RP was also found to strengthen relationships, improve classroom and school climates and cultures and build social capital. Findings also indicated that RP shifts the power dynamic in the classroom, empowering students by enabling voice and agency, while improving teacher-student relationships, known to help narrow achievement gaps. Moreover, findings showed that RP teaches students valuable life skills, enabling them make better decisions, have healthier relationships, and be positive contributors to society. Finally, the findings suggested that RP repositions education significantly amounting to a huge revolution that can potentially change the future of education. Astute educational leaders and institutions around the globe recognize the need for systemic transformation. New Zealand is highlighted in this study as the leading country for RP in schools worldwide, as it has experienced transformative success with this approach so far

Action to Awareness: Surfacing Dysconscious Racism through Focused Professional Development

Utilizing critical race theory (Ladson-Billings and Tate, 1995) and King’s (1991) theory of dysconscious racism, this dissertation aims to explore the beliefs and actions of teachers operating within an inherently racist society. Teachers struggle with many disadvantages from inadequate funding to lacking support structures. Yet these teachers continue to work hard to support their students. One external disadvantage these teachers may face and not even be aware of is dysconscious racism. Through a qualitative pilot study of journals and discussions of two middle school English Language Arts teachers, this research intends to explore how intentional classroom changes to encourage and support diversity affect both the students and the teachers

Implementing Undercover Anti-Bullying Teams; A Restorative Intervention Program to Address Bullying Relationships in Schools

Abstract School bullying negatively impacts the lives of children, including the bullies, the victims and the bystanders. This project investigated the implementation process and perceived effectiveness of Undercover Anti-Bullying Teams. The no blame approach idea to healing bullying relationships originated by Bill Hubbard, was modified with a narrative perspective by Michael Williams, a counselor at a high school in Auckland, New Zealand. The purpose of this qualitative project was to gain insight from four practitioners, two in New Zealand and two in California, about their personal experiences with the implementation of this approach. The study found that Undercover Anti-Bullying Teams can foster a safer school environment for students to learn and can create positive change for students personally and in their classroom environment

Why Don't Women Cycle? A Case Study of Women's Perception of Cycling in San Francisco

Safety and women’s perceptions of safety is a prevalent factor affecting the gender gap of cycling within the US. In this study, the use of bike lanes in the South of Market Area of San Francisco found that only 29% of the cyclists were female despite accounting for 50% of the population in the area. This research brief summarizes key issues found in this study of women’s perceptions of safety when cycling

Functional adaptation of mercuric reductases from the deep brine environment of Atlantis II in the Red Sea to high temperature

The lower convective layer (LCL) of the Atlantis II (ATII) brine pool of the red sea is a unique environment characterized by high salinity of around 4 Molar, temperature of 68οC, and very high concentrations of heavy metals. We have previously described a metagenome-derived mercuric reductase, ATII-LCL MerA, from the LCL of the ATII brine pool that is thermo-stable at 60oC and retain more than 70% of its activity after 10 minutes incubation at 70oC. One of the structural characteristics of this enzyme, that distinguish it from a thermo-sensitive ortholog, is the limited substitutions of amino acids, less than 9%, including the presence of 4 aspartic acids at positions 414 to 417 replacing 4 alanine in the thermo-sensitive MerA. In this work, we identified a metagenome-derived MerA from the ATII-LCL environment, ATII-LCL-NH, that is lacking all the substitutions observed in ATII-LCL MerA. Site-directed mutagenesis replacing alanine 415 and 416 found in ATII-LCL-NH with the corresponding aspartic acids present in ATII-LCL increased the thermo-stability of the enzyme. However, substituting the 4 alanine, 415 to 417, with the corresponding four aspartic acids present in ATII-LCL decreased tremendously the thermal stability of the enzyme. Three-dimensional modeling of the MerA with the substituted Aspartic acids 415/416 revealed newly formed salt-bridge with arginine residue at position 420 and hydrogen bonds that may explain the enhanced thermal stability of this ATII-LCL-NH with the substituted Aspartic 415/416. Please click Additional Files below to see the full abstract

The effect of word familiarity and treatment approach on word retrieval skills in aphasia

The purpose of the current investigation was to examine the effect of subjective familiarity on an aphasic individual’s word retrieval skills and ability to improve in short, intensive treatment. Four males with chronic aphasia were participants. Familiarity was determined by having participants rate the Roussion and Pourtois' (2004) colorized pictures with a rating scale adapted from work by Gilhooly and Hay (1977). Participants were assigned to one of two treatment approaches (SFA or Phonological Components Analysis) and then underwent the other treatment approach focusing on retrieval of familiar and unfamiliar words based on their ratings. Results revealed that all four participants showed greatest improvement on familiar treated stimuli, regardless of treatment approach or initial severity of aphasic impairment. However, minimal generalization to probe stimuli was observed for any participant, regardless of familiarity. Results support the premise that familiarity is an important variable that influences improvement in word retrieval therapy in chronic aphasia

Pelaksanaan Pembiayaan KPR Muamalat iB Menggunakan Akad Musyarakah Mutanaqishah dan Ijarah di Bank Muamalat Cabang Cilegon

KPR Muamalat iB merupakan produk pembiayaan dalam perbankan syariah dengan menggunakan akad musyarakah (partnership), yang dalam pelaksanaannya nasabah dan bank berkongsi dalam pengadaan sebuah rumah, misalnya 30% dari nasabah dan 70% dari bank. Untuk memiliki rumah tersebut, nasabah harus membayar kepada bank sebesar porsi yang dimiliki bank. Karena pembayarannya dilakukan secara angsuran, porsi kepemilikan bank pun berkurang secara proporsional sesuai dengan besarnya angsuran. Rumah yang telah dibeli secara kongsi tadi baru akan menjadi milik nasabah setelah porsi nasabah menjadi 100% dan porsi bank 0%. Akad musyarakah yang digunakan dalam KPR Muamalat iB ini merupakan musyarakah mutanaqishah. Metode penelitian yang digunakan adalah metode penelitian deskriptif analisis, yaitu metode penelitian yang mendeskripsikan pelaksanaan pembiayaan KPR Muamalat iB di Bank Muamalat cabang Cilegon. Sumber data primer dalam penelitian ini adalah karyawan Bank Muamalat cabang Cilegon, sedangkan sumber data sekundernya berupa buku-buku yang relevan dengan penelitian ini. Teknik pengumpulan data ditempuh dengan menggunakan teknik observasi, wawancara dan studi kepustakaan. Hasil penelitian ini menunjukan bahwa: (1) Ketentuan pembiayaan KPR Muamalat iB adalah: nasabah merupakan WNI yang cakap hukum, memiliki penghasilan dan mencukupi pengembalian, memiliki kelengkapan bukti legalitas rumah, tidak bermasalah dalam BI checking, pembiayaan hingga jangka waktu 15 tahun, uang muka minimal 10%, Pelunasan sebelum jatuh tempo tidak dikenakan pinalti, (2) Mekanisme pembiayaan KPR Muamalat iB adalah: nasabah mengisi formulir dan melengkapi persyaratan yang telah ditentukan oleh pihak bank, bank melakukan analisa cash ratio, BI checking, karakter dan verifikasi data nasabah, pihak bank melakukan taksasi, pengajuan usulan pembiayaan kepada panitia pembiayaan (komite), apabila pembiayaan disetujui oleh komite maka pihak bank mengeluarkan offering letter, nasabah menyiapkan biaya-biaya, akad kredit (penjual/developer, pembeli, bank dan notaris), nasabah menyerahkan asli sertifikat, IMB dan PBB tahun terakhir kepada pihak bank, nasabah membayar uang muka (DP), pencairan dana, selanjutnya nasabah membayar angsuran bulan berikutnya sampai dengan jangka waktu yang telah disepakati, ketika jatuh tempo pembiayaan nasabah mendapatkan surat keterangan lunas dan surat roya untuk menghapus tanggungan pihak bank pada sertifikat ke BPN dan (3) Dalam pembiayaan KPR Muamalat iB menggunakan akad musyarakah mutanaqishah terdapat ketidak sesuaian dengan fatwa DSN, dimana sertifikat rumah yang merupakan objek syirkah tertulis atas nama nasabah ketika akad berlangsung. Hal ini menunjukan bahwa rumah tersebut sudah dimiliki nasabah tanpa harus menunggu porsi kepemilikan bank terhadap rumah menurun atau berkurang hingga 0% atau setelah selesai pelunasan penjualan

DAMPAK PERNIKAHAN USIA DINI BAGI USIA MUDA (STUDI KASUS DI DESA UKUI DUA KECAMATAN UKUI KABUPATEN PELALAWAN)

Dorry Armadi (2020) : DAMPAK PERNIKAHAN USIA DINI BAGI USIA MUDA (STUDI KASUS DI DESA UKUI DUA KECAMATAN UKUI KABUPATEN PELALAWAN) Pernikahan bagi manusia merupakan hal yang penting, karena dengan pernikahan seseorang akan memperoleh keseimbangan hidup baik secara biologis, psikologis maupun secara sosial. Namun usia pernikahan yang terlalu muda dapat mengakibatkan meningkatnya kasus perceraian karena kurangnya kesadaran untuk bertanggung jawab dalam kehidupan berumah tangga. Beberapa kasus pernikahan usia dini banyak terjadi seperti di Desa Ukui Dua, Kecamatan Ukui, Kabupaten Pelalawan dimana pada tahun 2018 ada sebanyak 2 orang yang menikah dalam usia dini dan pada tahun 2019 ada sebanyak 3 orang yang menikah dalam usia dini. Dampak yang kemudian timbul adalah usia pernikahan yang hanya beberapa tahun saja dan pisah tanpa proses hukum yang benar, keluarga yang tidak harmonis serta terjadinya tindakan Kekerasan Dalam Rumah Tangga (KDRT). Adapun teori yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah menggunakan pendapat yang dikemukakan oleh Akhmad Jayadiningrat. Teknik pengumpulan data menggunakan wawancara, observasi dan dokumentasi, sedangkan analisis data menggunakan analisis deskriptif kualitatif. Hasil penelitian menemukan bahwa dampak pernikahan usia dini bagi usia muda di Desa Ukui Dua, Kecamatan Ukui, Kabupaten Pelalawan adalah berdampak negatif terhadap pasangan dan terhadap keluarga. Dimana istri yang ditinggalkan merasa sangat merasa sangat malu, depresi dan tertekan setalah ditinggalkan oleh suaminya sedangkan hubungan keluarga keduanya menjadi tidak baik karena dianggap telah mempermainkan sebuah pernikahan anaknya. Kata Kunci : Dampak, Pernikahan Usia Dini

EFFECTIVENESS OF ANTI-BULLYING TEAMS FROM PRACTITIONERS\u27 PERSPECTIVES

School bullying is a worldwide problem and has been called a “social phenomenon” that is negatively impacting the lives of children, including the bullies, the victims and the bystanders. This project used qualitative methods to investigate the implementation process and effectiveness of a bullying intervention called Undercover Anti-Bullying Teams. The “no blame” approach idea to healing bullying relationships originated by Bill Hubbard was later modified with narrative perspectives by Michael Williams, a counselor at a high school in Auckland, New Zealand. The purpose of this project was to gain qualitative insight from two practitioners in New Zealand, and two practitioners in California, about their personal experiences with the implementation of this approach. The data collected from the practitioners included implementation procedures of the undercover teams program, their personal success stories, team members’ responses, and the positive impact that the experiences have had for their lives. The study found that Undercover Anti-Bullying Teams have the potential to help students create positive change personally and in the classroom and school environment. The study also found that undercover teams have the potential to foster a safer environment for students to learn. Bullying is a serious problem in schools and has severe negative consequences for everyone involved. Effective bullying interventions and preventative measures can help create awareness that can minimize the prevalence of this growing epidemic