An investigation of professional learning in dynamic environments

Typically, individuals and managers of organisations seek to sustain competitive advantage and maximise their potential through participation in training and development. Prior to this study, little was known about the specific nature of the relationship between training and development and organisational change in the participating organisations. The purpose of this research was to investigate, describe and evaluate this relationship in a volunteer organisation and two government agencies in Australian contexts. So, the researcher investigated adult learning within three organisations in order to understand participants’ experiences with professional learning in a context of organisational change. As a result of this study the researcher made recommendations and developed a model that informs professional learning in dynamic environments.This research was situated within the interpretive paradigm and data were collected using multiple methods. Data collection involved 210 questionnaires and 70 semistructured interviews conducted across the three participating organisations. Quantitative questionnaire data were analysed using SPSS: Qualitative data from the questionnaires and interviews were entered into NVivo 7 and subsequently analysed with themes and categories identified. The major themes were provision, accessibility, motivation, effectiveness and relationship; the themes related directly to the research questions. Individual case reports were sent to managers in the participating organisations. The results are reported in the thesis as separate case studies and include the perspectives of both managers’ and non-managers’ experiences of training and development and its relationship to organisational change. Additionally, a cross-case analysis was conducted and discussed in relation to the literature reviewed in the thesis.Primarily, the researcher found that there were direct and indirect links between training and development and the organisational change agenda, but participants were not always aware of these relationships. Typically, managers provided formal learning opportunities for staff but overlooked the benefits of informal learning. In practice, participants used formal education, non-formal programs, informal and incidental learning; they recognised the benefits of informal and incidental learning. In this research, middle managers had difficulty accessing role-related training and development; managers and non-managers sought their own career development and job-related training and development beyond what was provided by their employers. Individuals’ motivation to participate in training and development was influenced by its relevance to their careers, jobs, and interests. Their motivation to transfer what they had learned into practice in the workplace depended on the purpose of the learning and opportunities for its implementation. Also, it was found that program evaluation was inconsistent and evaluation of staff training and development was marginalised.As a result of the findings, the researcher developed the ‘Integrative Model: Professional Learning in Dynamic Environments (IMPLIDE)’; comprised of three components - capacity, process, and approach. A key feature of IMPLIDE was the up skilling of managers and human resource developers to facilitate effective training and development programs. The findings of this research and the subsequent development of this model have significance for academics and practitioners in the field of human resource development. As a consequence of this research, areas for further research have been identified, particularly, in relation to the current capacity and professional development of middle managers

Technical innovation changes standard radiographic protocols in veterinary medicine: is it necessary to obtain two dorsoproximal-palmarodistal oblique views of the equine foot when using computerised radiography systems?

Since the 1950s, veterinary practitioners have included two separate dorsoproximal–palmarodistal oblique (DPr–PaDiO) radiographs as part of a standard series of the equine foot. One image is obtained to visualise the distal phalanx and the other to visualise the navicular bone. However, rapid development of computed radiography and digital radiography and their post-processing capabilities could mean that this practice is no longer required. The aim of this study was to determine differences in perceived image quality between DPr–PaDiO radiographs that were acquired with a computerised radiography system with exposures, centring and collimation recommended for the navicular bone versus images acquired for the distal phalanx but were subsequently manipulated post-acquisition to highlight the navicular bone. Thirty images were presented to four clinicians for quality assessment and graded using a 1–3 scale (1=textbook quality, 2=diagnostic quality, 3=non-diagnostic image). No significant difference in diagnostic quality was found between the original navicular bone images and the manipulated distal phalanx images. This finding suggests that a single DPr–PaDiO image of the distal phalanx is sufficient for an equine foot radiographic series, with appropriate post-processing and manipulation. This change in protocol will result in reduced radiographic study time and decreased patient/personnel radiation exposure

Financiële gevolgen van de recessie voor de eigen inkomsten en uitgaven van gemeenten

Als gevolg van de economische recessie hebben gemeenten te maken met tegenvallende inkomsten en oplopende uitgaven. Ook nemen veel gemeenten maatregelen om de gevolgen van de recessie te verzachten. Dit rapport doet verslag van een eerste inventarisatie van de omvang van de directe financiële gevolgen van de recessie voor gemeenten. Indirecte effecten via de rijksbegroting ? eventuele toekomstige verlagingen van de algemene uitkering of specifieke uitkeringen ? vallen buiten dit onderzoek. Het onderzoek heeft betrekking op 2009 en 2010.

Evaluation Of Present Day Treatment Of Peptic Ulcer

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/111139/1/j.1532-5415.1953.tb01110.x.pd

Blanking by means of the finite element method

This paper summarizes the results of simulating the blanking process by means\ud of the Finite Element Method. Unlike most of the research in this eld, the focus is not on the blanking process itself but on the deformed shape of a product after blanking. Two ways of determining the shape of a product after blanking are investigated. One way is to calculate the internal stresses caused by the blanking process and relax these stresses to calculate the new shape. The internal stresses can be transfered into an equivalent load model that can characterize the blanking process. With this equivalent load model the deformed shape of a product after blanking can be determined in a very fast and easy way.\ud Experiments are done to verify the results. Both introduced methods give qualitatively good results. Also some suggestions for improvements are made