The implementation of South African sign language (SASL) and sign bilingualism in a school for the deaf interpreted through the identity metaphors used by school leadership (SMT) and teachers

Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in the Faculty of Humanities at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa October 2017The aim of this case study is to explore and understand how the school leadership of a school for the Deaf, through the principal and School Management Team (SMT) experiences and understands and assists the process of transformation to South African Sign Language required for the implementation of CAPS SASL curriculum and sign bilingualism. Secondly, how teachers of the Deaf change and re-imagine themselves as sign bilingual teachers of the Deaf within the new pedagogical space of CAPS SASL. Thirdly, how the researcher’s autoethnography contributes towards the sign bilingual narrative of Deaf epistemology research. A theoretical framework of narrativity of SMT and teachers identity is used to understand the post-colonial, transformation. Literature around the concepts of post-colonialism, audism, bilingual education, sign bilingualism (as second wave dynamic bilingualism), context of South African Deaf Education, ontological and conceptual metaphors, identity and space are reviewed. A model of cognitive transformation (i-PTSD) is proposed and used to interpret teacher’s mental transformation (border crossing, Martin, 2010) to a new paradigm and discourse of sign language and sign bilingualism. In addition, the transformational leadership model of Fullan (2004) is used to interpret school leadership’s narrative of transformation. This case study collected narrative data from three focus groups, three key interviews and sixteen journals of teachers at a school for the Deaf in the Western Cape Province pioneering the transforming to SASL. A modified phenomenographic research method is used to interpret the narratives of teachers to understand the architecture of transformation within hearing and deaf teachers and within school leadership. The researcher’s blogs provide a parallel reflective autoethnographic narrative. The findings show that school leadership’s (SMT) alignment with the five person-centred, practical and visionary transformational leadership principles: re-culturing through re-languaging of minds to and through SASL, developing people as signing, bilingual teachers of the Deaf as ‘bridges’ and supportive teams (SMT), the principal as critical thought leader on SASL language policy and pedagogy and implementation of sign bilingualism, the moral purpose of transformation to support teacher’s growth of sign language for equality and educational access of learners through an epistemology of empathy and the leadership identity of the principal as a ‘servant leader’ (Greenleaf, 2003) through critical dialogue. This meso-level (Fullan, 2004) narrative of transformation was both instrumental and essential in supporting teacher’s cognitive (micro-level) transformation and implementation of SASL and sign bilingualism. Teachers’ professional identity was changed and re-imagined around the epistemological metaphor as educational (learner-centred) ‘partners’ through their nearness and connection with sign language and sign bilingualism. Through post-audism, sign bilingual is recognised as a valid post-colonial identity space. Post-audism is a powerful lens for interpreting post-colonial narratives of sign bilingual Deaf epistemology and ontology. Similarly, the autoethnographic narrative provides a subaltern voice to an unexplored post-audist Deaf epistemology of a deaf sign bilingual researcher.MT 201

Aspects Of The Ecology And Hunter Harvest Of The Black Bear In Prince William Sound

Thesis (M.S.) University of Alaska Fairbanks, 197

The denial of the self: the romantic imagination and the problem of belief in Muriel Spark's The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1961)

This thesis investigates the treatment, form and function of Romanticism and the Romantic imagination in Muriel Spark’s The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1961). Critical engagement with the work of Spark has marginalised Romanticism as an important influence on The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, and this study seeks to develop new critical perspectives which emphasise the centrality of the hitherto overlooked Romantic imagination in Spark’s novel. Recent recognition of Child Of Light (1951) – Spark’s study of Mary Shelley – as an important piece of Romantic criticism provides the catalyst for enquiry into Spark’s treatment of the Romantic in Jean Brodie. By undertaking a comparative reading of Jean Brodie and Frankenstein, while referencing Spark’s criticism in Child Of Light, this study will contend that although Spark’s novel can be placed within the Scottish literary trajectory identified by G. Gregory Smith as the ‘Caledonian anti-syzygy’ (1919), The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie owes an equal debt to Shelley’s Frankenstein specifically, and Romantic literature and art in general. Spark’s treatment of the solipsism that evolves from Romanticism’s emphasis on the self is considered alongside John Henry Newman’s assertion of the beneficial conflict between authority and private judgement, as outlined by Benilde Montgomery (1997). The portrayal of the various Romantic artists who populate The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, and their exemption from dominant moral codes, are considered within the context of Romanticism’s aesthetic, secular and sacred modes of transfiguration. Spark’s narrative techniques are scrutinised within the triangulation of postmodernism, religion, and Romanticism, in order to illuminate the engagement with the Romantic imagination in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie

Muriel Spark and the Romantic ideal

By narrowing the disparate and often contradictory trajectories of Romantic thought into a compressed framework, this thesis seeks to scrutinise the treatment of the Romantic ideal in the fiction of Muriel Spark. A number of recurring themes can be understood to collectively constitute this Romantic ideal. These include Coleridge’s theory of the power of the imagination to coalesce disparities into unity and harmony. The relationship between creativity and psychosis in The Comforters (1957) is considered within a wider discussion on the nature of creativity and the conception of the visionary Romantic artist. This leads to an investigation of the Romantic Movement’s emphasis on interiority and the self, and the influence of John Henry Newman in The Mandelbaum Gate (1965). The resulting discussion treats the concepts of transfiguration and the sublime as they relate to individual subjectivity in The Driver’s Seat (1970). The Romantic fascination with the reinvigoration of myth, legend and oral narrative cultures is examined in relation to The Ballad of Peckham Rye (1960), and the discussion returns to unity, harmony, vision, and the artist in The Finishing School (2004). The investigation of these elements of the Romantic ideal highlights a number of corollary questions. The emphasis on the self prompts the examination of Spark’s engagement with the themes of solipsism, ego, and performance, while Keats’ ‘Negative Capability’ is considered in the attempt to comprehend the other. The methodology will be comparative textual analysis with reference to relevant extant criticism, alongside consideration of literature from anthropology and folklore studies. By illuminating previously overlooked connections with Romanticism and Romantic literary methodologies, this interdisciplinary approach will assist in ascertaining whether Spark’s sustained engagement with these themes is evidence of a complex, multivalent relationship with the Romantic ideal, or whether recent criticism positing her rejection of Romanticism can be upheld

A narrative exploration of educational experiences on deaf identity.

This study explores from the perspective of deaf persons, how the identity of deaf persons is shaped by their educational experiences. Previous studies on identity by Erickson (1984) and Leigh (2001) on deaf persons have located identity within either the medical model, as a discourse of assimilation, or within the reactive social model, as a discourse of human rights. It is argued that the ‘first wave of deaf identity politics’ (Wrigley, 1996) of the medical and social model binary are sites of oppression and resistance. This binary provides both an insufficient and a static explanation of deaf identity as a victim is increasingly at odds with the lives of deaf persons in a post-modern ontology. Subsequently, this study engages in exploring the post-modern driven ‘second wave of identity politics’ and proposes a bi-cultural Dialogue model that recognises and explores, through cross-cultural exploration, the complexity and fluid construction of a DeaF identity. Later, the contributions of Bat-Chava (2000); Glickman (1993) and Ohna (2006) towards deaf identity are discussed within the post-modern educational framework. This ethnographic study explores the identity development of nine deaf participants through their narratives. The inclusion of the researcher as a DeaF participant in this study provides an auto-ethnographic gateway into exploring the lives of deaf/Deaf/bi-bi DeaF persons. The themes of ‘significant moments’; ‘connections at home and school’ and ‘deaf identity development’ were investigated. This study investigated the educational experiences of both deaf learners who attended regular mainstream schools and also deaf learners who attended schools for the Deaf. The findings suggest that deaf identity is not a static concept, but a complex ongoing quest for belonging and acceptance of being deaf through ‘finding ones voice’ in a hearing dominant society. This study challenges educators, parents and researchers through using dialogue and narrative tools to broaden their understanding of deaf identity and the dignity associated with being a deaf person

Toll-7 and Toll-6: central nervous system functions as Drosophila neurotrophin receptors

The Drosophila Toll receptor is crucial for dorsoventral patterning in embryos, and for innate immunity. Toll also functions during central nervous system development, promoting neuronal survival and targeting. There are nine Toll paralogues in Drosophila, and it is unknown whether any of these also function in the CNS. Toll’s ligand, Spz, has an NGF domain. NGF is a vertebrate neurotrophin - a growth factor that regulates the development and function of the nervous system. Drosophila Neurotrophin 1 (DNT1), identified by homology to the vertebrate neurotrophin BDNF, and DNT2 are paralogues of spz. The three DNTs – DNT1, DNT2 and spz – are structural and functional homologues of vertebrate neurotrophins, and they promote neuronal survival, targeting and synaptogenesis in Drosophila. However, the receptors for DNT1 and DNT2 are unknown. Here, using a combination of in situ hybridisations and reporters that drive GFP expression, I investigate the expression of Toll paralogues in the Drosophila nervous system. By generating null mutant flies and gain-of-function transgenic flies, I examine genetic interactions between Tolls and DNTs. I also investigate the rolls of these receptors in adult locomotion, axon targeting and cell survival. Finally, in cell culture, I test whether DNTs can signal through Tolls to activate NFκB

Determining the effects of cattle grazing treatments on Yosemite toads (Anaxyrus [=Bufo] canorus) in montane meadows.

Amphibians are experiencing a precipitous global decline, and population stability on public lands with multiple uses is a key concern for managers. In the Sierra Nevada Mountains (California, USA), managers have specifically identified livestock grazing as an activity that may negatively affect Yosemite toads due to the potential overlap of grazing with toad habitat. Grazing exclusion from Yosemite toad breeding and rearing areas and/or entire meadows have been proposed as possible management actions to alleviate the possible impact of cattle on this species. The primary objective of this study was to determine if different fencing treatments affect Yosemite toad populations. We specifically examined the effect of three fencing treatments on Yosemite toad breeding pool occupancy, tadpoles, and young of the year (YOY). Our hypothesis was that over the course of treatment implementation (2006 through 2010), Yosemite toad breeding pool occupancy and early life stage densities would increase within two fencing treatments relative to actively grazed meadows due to beneficial changes to habitat quality in the absence of grazing. Our results did not support our hypothesis, and showed no benefit to Yosemite toad presence or early life stages in fenced or partially fenced meadows compared to standard USDA Forest Service grazing levels. We found substantial Yosemite toad variation by both meadow and year. This variation was influenced by meadow wetness, with water table depth significant in both the tadpole and YOY models

Ambulatory monitoring of activity levels of individuals in the sub-acute stage following stroke: a case series

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>There is an important need to better understand the activities of individual patients with stroke outside of structured therapy since this activity is likely to have a profound influence on recovery. A case-study approach was used to examine the activity levels and associated physiological load of patients with stroke throughout a day.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Activities and physiologic measures were recorded during a continuous 8 hour period from 4 individuals in the sub-acute stage following stroke (ranging from 49 to 80 years old; 4 to 8 weeks post-stroke) in an in-patient rehabilitation hospital.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Both heart rate (p = 0.0207) and ventilation rate (p < 0.0001) increased as intensity of activity increased. Results revealed individual differences in physiological response to daily activities, and large ranges in physiological response measures during 'moderately' and 'highly' therapeutic activities.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Activity levels of individuals with stroke during the day were generally low, though task-related changes in physiologic measures were observed. Large variability in the physiological response to even the activities deemed to be greatest intensity suggests that inclusion of such extended measurement of physiologic measures may improve understanding of physiological profile that could guide elements of the physical therapy prescription.</p

Do functional walk tests reflect cardiorespiratory fitness in sub-acute stroke?

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The Six-Minute Walk Test (6MWT) has been employed as a measure of functional capacity, but its relationship to cardiorespiratory fitness in stroke is not well established. Gait speed measured over short distances is commonly used as an index of walking competency following stroke. We evaluated the relationship between the 6MWT, aerobic fitness (VO(2)peak) and walking competency in sub-acute stroke. METHODS: Thirty-six individuals (mean age ± SD, 64.6 ± 14.4 years; time post-stroke 16.2 ± 13.3 days) were evaluated using the 6MWT (distance, speed, heart rate), a maximal exercise test (VO(2)peak, heart rate, exercise test duration), and walking competency using a five meter walk (speed, symmetry ratio). Correlation analyses were used to examine the relationships between these outcomes. RESULTS: There was a strong correlation between the 6MWT and five meter walk velocity for preferred (r = 0.79) and fast (r = 0.82) speed (p < 0.001). On average, the 6MWT speed was faster than the preferred gait speed (94.9 cm/s vs. 83.8 cm/s, p = 0.003), but slower than the fast-paced walk (115.1 cm/s, p < 0.001). There was significant though more moderate association between 6MWT distance and VO(2)peak (r = 0.56, p < 0.001) and exercise test duration (r = 0.60, p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: The speed selected during the 6MWT was strongly related to the velocities selected during the five meter walk distance (intermediate to the selected preferred and fast speeds). Although the 6MWT may be challenging to the cardiorespiratory system, it appears to be more strongly influenced by potential limits to walking speed rather than cardiorespiratory capacity. As a result, this test is not, by itself, an adequate measure of aerobic fitness early after stroke

Electrophysiological Correlates of Changes in Reaction Time Based on Stimulus Intensity

Background: Although reaction time is commonly used as an indicator of central nervous system integrity, little is currently understood about the mechanisms that determine processing time. In the current study, we are interested in determining the differences in electrophysiological events associated with significant changes in reaction time that could be elicited by changes in stimulus intensity. The primary objective is to assess the effect of increasing stimulus intensity on the latency and amplitude of afferent inputs to the somatosensory cortex, and their relation to reaction time. Methods: Median nerve stimulation was applied to the non-dominant hand of 12 healthy young adults at two different stimulus intensities (HIGH &amp; LOW). Participants were asked to either press a button as fast as possible with their dominant hand or remain quiet following the stimulus. Electroencephalography was used to measure somatosensory evoked potentials (SEPs) and event related potentials (ERPs). Electromyography from the flexor digitorum superficialis of the button-pressing hand was used to assess reaction time. Response time was the time of button press. Results: Reaction time and response time were significantly shorter following the HIGH intensity stimulus compared to the LOW intensity stimulus. There were no differences in SEP (N20 &amp; P24) peak latencies and peak-to-peak amplitude for the two stimulus intensities. ERPs, locked to response time, demonstrated a significantly larger pre-movement negativity to positivity following the HIGH intensity stimulus over the Cz electrode