A Documentary Study of the Integration of Intercultural Communicative Competence in Bhtuan’s English Curriculum

This study aimed to analyze the integration of Intercultural Communicative Competence (hereby ICC) in Bhutan’s English curriculum for key stage II. ICC is defined in this study as a set of skills that allows one to engage effectively and appropriately with others who are linguistically and culturally different. Bhutan’s English curriculum for key stage II refers to students in grades IV, V, and VI in Bhutan. A documentary research design was employed to analyze one hundred eighteen numbers of classroom activities suggested in the curriculum for students. A Thematic Analysis method was used to analyze the data, which involved deriving codes and categories. The findings of the study revealed the amount of classroom activities related to ICC in Bhutan’s English curriculum is minimal. According to the findings, there is no clear mention of any classroom activity that involves students in understanding various cultures. Based on the findings, the present study discusses Bhutan's English curriculum for key stage II should include a variety of activities in the curriculum that would let students compare different cultures

Tibetan American Women Leaders: Constructing their own cultural paradigms for leadership

Abstract Tibetan women as household leaders are not a new notion; however, in the public form, Tibetan women leaders are a recent concept. This study explores Tibetan American women leaders and how they navigate and experience their held leadership positions. The significance of the findings lies in Tibetan American women leaders\u27 passion for leadership, which in this study was described as serving the Tibetan communities where they live. There is solid evidence that Tibetan cultural gender expectations and stereotypical views about Tibetan women have tremendously impeded and will impede those still climbing to the top. What is apparent is Tibetan American women leaders are creating new social constructs and identities. They construct their identities at the intersection of leadership, American culture, and Tibetan cultural gender roles/expectations. Though this construction is not yet fully formed in a collective way, the experiences and leadership of the participants in this study are working to create this construction through their individual efforts. I interviewed six Tibetan American women from California, Massachusetts, Washington DC, and Minnesota who self-identified as leaders and held formal leadership positions. Organically, many study subjects focused their leadership experience leading within the Tibetan American community through various vantage points. The study identified participants navigating between two dominant cultures, Tibetan and American, and how socially constructed institutions impacted their identity as Tibetan American women leaders

Perceptions and attitudes of bhutanese people on Sowa Rigpa, traditional bhutanese medicine: a preliminary study from Thimphu

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Many claims are made that the use of traditional medicine is a substantial and growing part of healthcare behavior around the world. In Bhutan traditional medical practice is one of the country's tangible heritages. The country hosts two forms of traditional medicines: local healing practices and the official traditional medical system known as <it>sowa rigpa</it>, meaning "the science of healing". This paper explores the attitudes on <it>sowa rigpa </it>among Bhutanese living in Thimphu, the capital of Bhutan.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This study was conducted from May to September 2009. In total, 155 people coming from diverse social backgrounds were randomly selected for the study. The study made use of qualitative as well as quantitative approaches, involving the administration of questionnaires and conducting in-depth interviews.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>From the 155 respondents 99% have heard about <it>sowa rigpa</it>, mainly from their friends or relatives. The study showed that <it>sowa rigpa </it>is popular among the respondents since more than half (51%) have said that they have been treated by <it>sowa rigpa </it>doctors. The data revealed that the majority (83%) of the respondents are satisfied with the treatment received.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The Bhutanese healthcare system that integrates <it>sowa rigpa </it>and modern medicine offers an opportunity for active healthcare decision-making by the patients. The improved understanding of the knowledge, attitudes and treatment seeking practices of the participants in the study provides useful information for health practitioners and policy makers to plan health activities. The present preliminary study represents only people living in the capital city of Bhutan. Therefore, a further nationwide study is planned to better understand the role <it>sowa rigpa </it>plays also in rural Bhutan.</p

Status of women in Butan : a social and political perspective

Thesis(Master) --KDI School:Master of Public Policy,2010masterpublishedby Rinzin Lhamo

Assessing the influence of human settlements on the plant diversity in wetlands of Phobji and Gangtey, Bhutan

Plant diversity in the wetlands of Phobji and Gangtey represents an important aspect of the overall wetland ecosystem. However, over the years, the increasing trend in population has initiated the building of many infrastructures and accommodations which lie at close proximity to the core wetland area. The plant diversity in human settled area and core undisturbed area was studied, with an objective to assess the influence of human settlement on the plant diversity. A belt transect method was used for the purpose of vegetation survey and Shannon Wiener diversity was calculated using the relative dominance. Plants were analyzed for their diversity, richness, dominance and invasive nature. Additionally, soil and water parameters were also tested to see the current situation of the pH and nutrient levels. A total of 136 species belonging to 39 families was identified in both the areas. The overall diversity index and species richness was found to be higher in the undisturbed areas. Soil analysis did not show much of a difference in physical and chemical parameters except for a slight difference in potassium content. Similarly, water parameters did not show much difference but only showed variation in calcium content. The findings of the study indicated towards the increasing influence of human settlement in the wetland

Optimization of Solar Energy Tapping by an Automatic Solar Radiation Tracker

If the entire solar energy is tapped for an hour, it is believed to be able to light up the earth for a year” said Dr. Simone Boehme while addressing CST students on April 25th, 2017. However, it is not possible to extract one hundred percent of the solar energy anywhere at any time of the day with the present technology. The only possible thing is to optimize the available solar energy and there are numerous ways to enhance the solar energy tapping. The solar panel that could sense the movement of the sun would be one of the best alternatives to tap optimum solar energy as the panel will receive direct sunlight for a longer duration. This paper explains how the LDRs is used to move the solar panel according to the movement of the sun

Bridging the Gap in Medication Access

https://digitalcommons.pcom.edu/bridging_gaps2016/1000/thumbnail.jp

SOCIAL MEDIA-BASED SELF-CRITICISM AMONG BHUTANESE UNIVERSITY STUDENTS IN THAILAND AND BHUTAN: A TRIANGULATION STUDY

Self-criticism focuses on what traits others may have that is missing in oneself. Bhutan’s cultural gender differences and gross national happiness measure uniquely define their population. This mixed-method study describes the social media-based self-criticism among Bhutanese university students and considered significant differences according to gender, and, country of study. A total of 352 students responded. Descriptive statistics, t-test, and thematic analysis were done. There is a moderate level of social media-based self-criticism among Bhutanese university students in Thailand and Bhutan. There are also significant differences in terms of gender and country of study. Written narratives were coded into positive and negative comparatives versus neutral comparative, which also served as a guide in formulating the interview questions for 6 key informants, recruited from the respondents. Digital freedom and self-enhancement surfaced as the themes of the study. The study concludes the Bhutanese university students are responsive to the increasing influence of social media. Gender and studying in a country with more access to social media determine their propensity towards social media-based self-criticism. Social media-based self-criticism after graduation, gender differences, and inclusion of more variables are recommended for further studies

Boundary Crossing by a Community of Practice: Tibetan Buddhist Monasteries Engage Science Education

As a globalized world struggles with division and disinformation, engaging across difference has emerged as a major challenge to communication and collaborative action needed to address growing global challenges. As such, the initiative by Tibetan Buddhist leaders to incorporate western science in curricula for monastic education may serve as an important case study that illuminates the conditions and processes at work in genuine cultural outreach and exchange. That project, spearheaded in the Emory-Tibet Science Initiative (ETSI), involves reaching out across two quite different communities of practice, Tibetan Buddhism and science, and the willingness and ability of individuals to cross the boundaries between them. In the study reported here, we apply existing understandings of communities of practice and of learning mechanisms that mediate boundary crossing to probe for presence of conditions and processes that promote effective outreach among Tibetan Buddhist monastic students. We deploy analysis of qualitative survey, interview, and self-report data from monastic students shortly after ETSI began (2009) and after science education had been rolled out in the monasteries (2019) to, first, identify initial cultural conditions related to outreach and engagement with science, and, second, probe for post-rollout presence of boundary crossing learning mechanisms among monastic students which facilitate communication from one community of practice to another. We found a range of robust initial cultural conditions (e.g., perceived overlap in subjects and methods of inquiry), along with strong presence of mechanisms that facilitate boundary crossing (e.g., reflection, transformation) and operate through time. We observed cascading effects of these conditions and mechanisms on student engagement with science. Furthermore, interactions of these conditions and mechanisms allow monastic students to engage with science on their own Buddhist terms and to regard learning science as potentially beneficial rather than threatening to their personal or collective Buddhist goals