Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Removing barriers'

Article Excerpt: An intelligent student chooses to major in accounting. She persists through fraduation with a couble major in accounting and math and meets the 150-hour minimum education requirements…..

The paradigm of personal transportation is changing. Electric vehicles are here. The arrival of the Tesla Roadster, Nissan Leaf, and Chevy Volt has changed the way in which we have to think about the energy that fuels our transportation needs. As PEVs find their way into garages this year and especially in the coming years, the neighborhood, city, state, and regional electric infrastructure will take on a new importance for many people as their interactions with it become significantly more complex and intimate as a result of regular electric vehicle charging.

This paper analyzes the various costs and benefits associated with the Economic and Monetary Union of the European Union, specifically with respect to Hungary, though much of the theory can be applied generally across all Central and Eastern European EU member states. It begins with an examination of factors that have potentially slowed Hungary's economic progress on the institutional and macroeconomic level. Next, the political origins and significance of the EMU are considered. EMU membership brings more than economic benefit; it is a symbolic achievement that a country has advanced to a position that allows it to be put in the same category as the more developed economies of the West, and also signals a step towards the “inner circle” of the European Union. Some of the theoretical foundations of monetary and currency unions are then presented: the optimum currency area theory (OCA), the exogeneity theory of OCA, the endogeneity theory of OCA, pro-cyclical fiscal policy as it applies to developing countries, costs of euro area accession, the effects of financial integration, and the effect of euro membership on foreign direct investment (FDI). Then, an empirical overview of how well the monetary union has functioned with respect to expectations is presented. After that, a comparison with Greece is made to determine whether the EMU would consider them as a member even if the criteria were met. Finally, a comparison of Hungary's economic data is juxtaposed with that of the Maastricht criteria.

The objective of this thesis is to create a model, which provides a detailed description of the electrical load on a low voltage distribution network in the context of a typical UK urban feeder from a primary transformer. The aim of the work, when used in association with a power flow analysis package, is to help to provide a risk assessmenfto r over-voltagee vents and over-heatingi n the network when different levels of embedded generation are applied. A fine-grained domestic load model has been constructed with a three layered approach-to provide per-consumer, 1-minute averaged loads on an end-use basis. Datasets from the Load Research Group have been used as the starting point and form the basis for layer 1 which represents group-averaged demands on a halfhourly basis. Layer 2 of the model introduces diversity in terms of number of occupants, living space, ownership and soci?- economic factors. Layer -3 uses appliance duty cycles to create wider variations by random triggering to derive 1- minute loads from assigned half-hourly values. The domestic model has been adaptedf or use with smaller( sub MOW) non-domesticc onsumers. The research question for this study is whether or not the models provide an adequate representation of the electricity demand for a typical urban LV network, judged in terms of a variety of parameters. The output from the domestic model comparesw ell with measuredd ata giving realisticd emandc haracteristicsin terms of mean, peak, load factor and distribution. Compared against diversified peak demands currently in use within the industry, the model estimates values within 10% for groups fewer than 25 and 5% for groups of 100 or more. When used together with a power flow analysis package, the predicted voltage variation agrees with measured results in terms of mean value and distribution. The investigation of time and group averaging of demand, power factor surveys and, with a matching model for PV and solar thermal output, studies into electrical demand reduction within mixed communities are all possible additional applications for the model.

While there was a wealth of research and documentation on meeting student learning needs in mainstream national schools, the world of international schooling appeared to have remained relatively untouched by the march towards inclusion. The motivation for this inquiry was to examine efforts to develop inclusive educational provision in the elementary department of an international school. This small-scale study gave the researcher access to an international elementary school that was considered successful in responding flexibly to the needs of all learners. As there had been little research in the area of inclusion and international schooling the theory for this study was generated from the data and from a comparison with the findings of research on inclusion in national education systems. The research aimed to identify the climate and conditions present in the primary school at the time of the research by considering how it had removed barriers to learning for three students in different levels of learning support. A qualitative approach sought to use the data to understand the context and an ‘emergent’ design combining grounded theory and a case study approach was used. A central principle of constructivist grounded theory is that of giving voice to research participants and this study incorporated the voices, views and experiences of the students alongside their parents, educators and the specialists who worked with them. Data was collected from interviews and multidisciplinary child study meetings. Interviews were carried out with the senior leadership team, the students, their parents and educators. Classroom observations were carried out to supplement interview data for the student in intensive levels of support and further data was collected from school documentation written for parents. The findings indicated that the school climate was characterised by a strong focus on learning, access and solution seeking and the conditions found to support this climate were space and resources. Space was considered in terms of the use of space and the time required to facilitate both collaboration within the wider school community and collaborative teaching practices. Resources considered at the level of school organisation included personnel, therapies, policies and procedures, and the school curriculum. The overall findings from this study indicate that inclusion in this context was a process bound up in a proactive, dynamic, continuous cycle where a focus on solution seeking, learning and access drove the cycle. Based on the findings from this small-scale study it is recommended that international schools locate inclusion in the arena of whole school development where learning, access and solution seeking drives the school development cycle. It is recognised that the emerging theory could not be divorced from the interpretations of the researcher and additional research by a diverse range of researchers, in diverse international school contexts is needed. To better inform international school leaders it is hoped that these results will become part of a larger body of research that better reflects the range of international school contexts.

This doctoral study examines the everyday experiences of the Learning Mentor, a support role introduced into English state schools fifteen years ago. It was conceived as part of a broader New Labour policy agenda which sought to resolve the relationship between ‘risk’ and ‘social exclusion’ as the root cause of many social problems. According to the official narrative, Learning Mentors were part of a wider initiative to ‘eliminate and never excuse’ underachievement in the most deprived parts of England. Their primary task of ‘removing barriers to learning’ was premised on the notion of offering a different type of pupil-support from that which already existed in schools, being described in official accounts as a “professional friend” and “challenger of assumptions”. The role can also be understood as part of a transformative agenda which elevated ‘low level’ workers to paraprofessional status across a range of public services. The thesis is premised on two key areas: first, how this type of occupational domain has been historically constructed and continues to evolve through policy transformations which are enacted at the local level. Second, how the work activities and practices associated with these and other school support workers, expose issues around ‘structure’ and ‘agency’. The methodological approach was informed by Institutional Ethnography in that in order to establish how the work of Learning Mentors was practised, viewed and understood within the school, the researcher undertook to gather and document the work knowledges of several groups: firstly the mentors themselves, followed by children and young people as pupils; teaching and support staff, and middle and senior managers. In tracing the genealogy of Learning Mentor practice, attention was also paid to the legacy of an earlier educational paraprofessional emerging in the 1960s and termed the ‘community agent’; along with a burgeoning youth mentoring movement from the late 1980s – developments which both took place in the United States of America. The problematic of the study which became apparent was that although warmly received by pupils, Learning Mentor practices were marginalised, misunderstood and relatively unseen; casting doubt on the role’s level of influence suggested by formal prescriptions. Furthermore, despite the support systems in which they worked being formally presented as coherent and straightforward entities, they were in fact found to be ‘messy’ and contested spaces which were inhabited by different groups of practitioners, whose differing identities informed and underpinned their own respective practices.

The Latino population is not accessing community mediation centers throughout Oregon. Mediation provides a safe space to resolve conflicts outside of the adjudicative processes and at a lower cost. Through interviews with program coordinators/directors of community mediation centers around Oregon, mediators with experience in bilingual mediation and Latino stakeholders, I explore the barriers that exist and methods to increase the participation of the Latino population in community mediation centers. The research asserts that mediation program practitioners have a desire to reach out to the Latino population but face enormous difficulty due to a lack of trust and, frequently, a lack of resources. The findings illustrate that energy and time focused on outreach and community building with the Latino population is necessary to increase trust, knowledge and willingness to participate in mediation. There is a need to train new mediators and to design programs to bring conflict resolution into diverse communities.

This thesis explores the relationship between architecture and the blind people. For better clarity and understanding of the topic, The work has been divided into five distinctive parts. In the first, introduction part, I approach space sensation of a blind person from the physiological and psychological angle. This analysis is very important for the understanding of imagination, which the blind person has. Another important fact to understand is the way in which the blind person gets the information about the space and what is his ability to process it. Further, I explain the basic principles of the blind person’s movement through space and describe instructions of how to help blind people in the concrete spatial situations. In the next part, I give a short information about the historical progress of the relation between the society and the blind people. An important fact is that, as late as 200 years ago, the blind people were considered as “sub men” and did not have the full freedom privilege. This relation has been modified over time and nowadays, the blind people have the freedom of movement and all the rights to enjoy their lives. To meet the needs of the blind people, many associations have been created that act on their behalf. The associations have different modes of functioning, but their common goal is to help blind people with their social rehabilitation, looking for employment and removing architectural barriers. The core of my work is divided into two parts. In the first one, I focus on the problematic of the blind people and architecture from the functional aspect. The functional aspect is vital for the blind people. It corresponds to their safety in the environment. In this chapter, I treat in detail basic elements for designing buildings, for specifying barriers and principles of design for blind people. Furthermore, I describe the help tools the blind people need in order to move in the space. I evaluate the future of these tools and indicate the rapid technological progression which makes the life of blind people more comfortable. In the next part, I focus on the problematic of the blind people and architecture from the aesthetic aspect. This question has not been much explored yet, but is, nonetheless, very important. In this part of my work, I use more my personal experience and the knowledge coming from the exploration of space. Aesthetical values are subjective for all the people, with or without a handicap. Therefore, in this final chapter, I try to note the facts that can be used in the process of the aesthetical perception and to reflect on them. In the domain of aesthetical research, there also exist tools and institutions that help blind people in their comprehension of architecture. The division of my work emerged from the compilation of diverse facts in the process of writing. This thesis has an informative and practical character. It is intended for people who want to understand and to be informed about how to design architecture for the blind people. It will be directed towards people who build this kind of architecture and need an overview of how to make it. It is also intended for people interested in learning more about architecture.

Two groups of therapist characteristics were explored as predictors of working alliance (WA) with African American women substance abusers (n = 102). This study tested the hypotheses that Population Sensitive Therapist Characteristics (PSTCs; i.e. multicultural competence [MC], egalitarianism [EG], and empowerment [EM]) would explain an additional and significant amount of the variance in WA beyond that explained by general therapist characteristics (GTCs; i.e. empathy, regard, and genuineness); and that GTCs partially mediate the effect of each individual PSTC on WA. Hierarchical multiple regression revealed that PSTCs explained an additional 12% of the variance in WA, after controlling for GTCs. Bootstrapping analyses demonstrated that GTCs fully mediated the effect of MC and EM on WA, and partially mediated the effect of EG on WA. Together, these findings suggest therapists can facilitate a stronger WA with the target population through demonstration of PSTCs and that these characteristics are facilitative in whole or in part, because they increase the likelihood the therapist is perceived as demonstrating GTCs (i.e. empathy, regard, and genuineness).