Digital Commons Network^™

Understanding The Impact On The Wellbeing Of Students With Specific Learning Difficulties Through Teaching Interventions, Dylan K Williams

Plymouth Institute of Education Theses

The study set out to explore whether teaching methods can improve the wellbeing of students with SpLDs. This study addresses a gap in the literature, identifying wellbeing differences between different types of educational environment and SEN provisions. It explores whether there are benefits from inclusive education to student wellbeing, considering constructs of wellbeing relevant to the impact of SpLDs, synthesising pedagogic, psychotherapeutic and developmental perspectives. 74 student participants were recruited through the SEN departments of 4 UK schools - each with differing approaches to SEN support. Student participants completed two psychometric wellbeing questionnaires. They also engaged in photographic exercise, capturing …

Comparing Interventions And Beliefs About Autism And Links To Interpersonal Relatedness In Two Cities, In Turkey And England, Mahmut Serkan Yazici

Plymouth Institute of Education Theses

This thesis explores similarities and differences between interventions and beliefs about autism in Turkey and England. It is known that Turkish culture is interdependent and English culture is independent. It is also known that differences in interpersonal relatedness affect views about social behaviour, life goals and social priorities. This thesis, therefore, also explores whether interpersonal relatedness influences interventions and belief about autism in both countries. This research is based on case studies of special and mainstream schools in two cities, one in Turkey and one in England. The study used mixed research methods including questionnaires, interviews and observations. Participants included …

The Impact Of Arts Education Programmes On Anti-Racist School Practice In The South West Of England, Heather Knight

Plymouth Institute of Education Theses

In predominantly White schools, a common belief exists that anti-racist education is unnecessary, despite a rise in the number of people who admit to being racially prejudiced. A colour-blind approach, which silences issues of race, tends to dominate in schools, while, fear of ‘getting it wrong’ prevents meaningful dialogue. My thesis addresses the question, in what ways do arts programmes support anti-racist education in predominantly White areas? This includes two threads. Firstly, I take a critical race theory approach, drawing on Whiteness studies, to explore White teachers' and school students’ assumptions about racism and education. Secondly, using a critical pedagogy …

From The Secret Garden To The Panopticon? Changing Freedoms And The Growing Crisis In Primary School Headteacher Recruitment., Paul Hodson

Plymouth Institute of Education Theses

A headteacher recruitment crisis continues in the primary education sector (Howson & Sprigate, 2011; Rhodes et al., 2008). This research offers a voice for an increasingly marginalised group and synthesises the experiences of 15 primary headteachers, including retired, experienced and new school leaders against the changing educational scenery of four decades. An extended metaphor describing a changing epistemological landscape is utilised (Pascale, 2011), including dramaturgical discourse (Goffman, 1974). The research assesses whether the lived experiences of school leaders evidence a supposed movement away from the ‘freedom’ of the ‘secret garden’ of the pre-National Curriculum era to a time of reducing …

Air Quality Management Review: Systematic Literature Review And Case Study Of Local Air Quality Management In The United Kingdom (Uk), Amanda Shenton

School of Nursing and Midwifery Theses

Advancements in the scientific understanding in the associated health implications of air pollution, coupled with raised public awareness and media coverage has brought this ever evolving public and environmental health issue into the forefront of society’s agenda, within the UK. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact the current Local Air Quality Management framework has had at reducing air pollution. The research project was designed in two phases: The initial structured literature search and review appraised the current body of knowledge in this area, developed an understanding of the known successes and shortfalls of Local Air Quality …

A Centuries-Long Delay Between A Paleo-Ice-Shelf Collapse And Grounding-Line Retreat In The Whales Deep Basin, Eastern Ross Sea, Antarctica, Philip J. Bart, Matthew Decesare, Brad E. Rosenheim, Wojceich Majewski, Austin Mcglannan

Marine Science Faculty Publications

Recent thinning and loss of Antarctic ice shelves has been followed by near synchronous acceleration of ice flow that may eventually lead to sustained deflation and significant contraction in the extent of grounded and floating ice. Here, we present radiocarbon dates from foraminifera that constrain the time elapsed between a previously described paleo-ice-shelf collapse and the subsequent major grounding-line retreat in the Whales Deep Basin (WDB) of eastern Ross Sea. The dates indicate that West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) grounding-line retreat from the continental shelf edge was underway prior to 14.7 ± 0.4 cal kyr BP. A paleo-ice-shelf collapse occurred …

Autonomous Biogeochemical Floats Detect Significant Carbon Dioxide Outgassing In The High-Latitude Southern Ocean, Alison R. Gray, Kenneth S. Johnson, Seth M. Bushinsky, Stephen C. Riser, Joellen L. Russell, Lynne D. Talley, Rik Wanninkhof, Nancy L. Williams, Jorge L. Sarmiento

Marine Science Faculty Publications

Although the Southern Ocean is thought to account for a significant portion of the contemporary oceanic uptake of carbon dioxide (CO₂), flux estimates in this region are based on sparse observations that are strongly biased toward summer. Here we present new estimates of Southern Ocean air-sea CO₂ fluxes calculated with measurements from biogeochemical profiling floats deployed by the Southern Ocean Carbon and Climate Observations and Modeling project during 2014–2017. Compared to ship-based CO₂ flux estimates, the float-based fluxes find significantly stronger outgassing in the zone around Antarctica where carbon-rich deep waters upwell to the surface ocean. …

The Position Of The Estate Owner And The Adverse Possessor, A Comparison Between England And Wales, Scotland And The Republic Of Ireland, Victoria Boruta

The Plymouth Law and Criminal Justice Review

This article analyses the concept of the doctrine of adverse possession by comparing the legal position of the estate owner and the adverse possessor in three legal systems, England and Wales, Scotland and the Republic of Ireland, with a view to identifying which jurisdiction offers more protection to each party. It explores the theoretical underpinnings of adverse possession in the context of the shifting priorities of land law more generally.

Identifying Factors That Influence The Use Of Dark Web Cryptomarkets: Qualitative Interviews With Cryptomarket Users, Michael Felstead

The Plymouth Law and Criminal Justice Review

Dark Web cryptomarkets represent a phenomenon in modern criminality and their study is of key importance to contemporary criminology. This study aims to identify factors that influence the use of cryptomarkets and to gain further insight into the opinions and experiences of their users. The aims of the study were achieved by identifying multiple cryptomarket users through snowball sampling and conducting a series of semi structured interviews. Users described quality, anonymity and harm reduction as major influencing factors of their cryptomarket use. Participants displayed the qualities of a rational consumer orientation and explained that their use of cryptomarkets was linked …

The Demise Of The Traditional Jury And Jury Impartiality With Particular Focus On Media Intrusion, Jessica Clarke

The Plymouth Law and Criminal Justice Review

In a world where 24 hour news and social media are ingrained into people's everyday lives it can be difficult to uphold traditional values and practice. This is particularly pertinent in respect of the impact of such factors on the fundamental system of trial by jury and its impartiality. This article examines the issue of mass media and its influence and impact on jury decisions.

Tearing Up The Patchwork Quilt: An Examination Of How, Why And When Liability For Psychiatric Injury In The Tort Of Negligence, Jordan Owen

The Plymouth Law and Criminal Justice Review

This paper grapples with the question of whether the law of psychiatric injury remains fit for purpose in the twenty-first century. Through analysing the historical development of this area of law an attempt is made to understand how it has come to be degradingly described as a patchwork quilt of distinctions. Once the history has been set out an attempt is made to learn from whatever historical mistakes there may have been and devise a way forward whereby the mistakes of the past can be avoided and a return to clarity can be achieved.

Monitoring And Managing Fatigue In Basketball, Toby Edwards, Tania Spiteri, Benjamin Piggott, Joshua Bonhotal, G. Gregory Haff, Christopher Joyce

Health Sciences Papers and Journal Articles

The sport of basketball exposes athletes to frequent high intensity movements including sprinting, jumping, accelerations, decelerations and changes of direction during training and competition which can lead to acute and accumulated chronic fatigue. Fatigue may affect the ability of the athlete to perform over the course of a lengthy season. The ability of practitioners to quantify the workload and subsequent fatigue in basketball athletes in order to monitor and manage fatigue levels may be beneficial in maintaining high levels of performance and preventing unfavorable physical and physiological training adaptations. There is currently limited research quantifying training or competition workload outside …

Kettle Test Efficacy In Predicting Cognitive And Functional Outcomes In Geriatric Rehabilitation, Kristie J. Harper, Karleen Llewellyn, Angela Jacques, Katharine Ingram, Sara Pearson, Annette Barton

Health Sciences Papers and Journal Articles

Background/aim: Limited research has been available to support the use of the Kettle Test in a subacute rehabilitation setting with patients diagnosed with a variety of medical conditions. The Kettle Test is an occupation based performance measure designed to detect cognitive processes and function. The aim of this research was to measure the correlation between three cognitive tests, the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Cognitive Functional Independence Measure (Cognitive FIM) and the Kettle Test. Secondly, to assess the efficacy of these tests in predicting functional outcomes via the motor subscale of the Functional Independence Measure (mFIM).

Methods: A prospective single-centre cohort …

The Decline Of Free Speech On The Postmodern Campus: The Troubling Evolution Of The Heckler's Veto, Kenneth Lasson

All Faculty Scholarship

The Twenty-First Century has presented new challenges to the traditional ways that free speech in America has been encouraged and protected. While the right to express one’s opinions has become increasingly problematic in society at large, it is particularly imperiled in the very places that pride themselves as being open marketplaces of ideas – on college and university campuses.
Today we’re faced with numerous campus speech codes that substantially limit First-Amendment rights. They are ubiquitous and often cavalierly invoked. For civil libertarians the good news is that not one of the few such codes that have been tested in court …

Ocean Futures Under Ocean Acidification, Marine Protection, And Changing Fishing Pressures Explored Using A Worldwide Suite Of Ecosystem Models, Erik Olsen, Isaac C. Kaplan, Cameron Ainsworth, Gavin Fay, Sarah Gaichas, Robert Gamble, Raphael Girardin, Cecilie H. Eide, Thomas F. Ihde, Hem Nalini Morzaria-Luna, Kelli F. Johnson, Marie Savina-Rolland, Howard Townsend, Mariska Weijerman, Elizabeth A. Fulton, Jason S. Link

Marine Science Faculty Publications

Ecosystem-based management (EBM) of the ocean considers all impacts on and uses of marine and coastal systems. In recent years, there has been a heightened interest in EBM tools that allow testing of alternative management options and help identify tradeoffs among human uses. End-to-end ecosystem modeling frameworks that consider a wide range of management options are a means to provide integrated solutions to the complex ocean management problems encountered in EBM. Here, we leverage the global advances in ecosystem modeling to explore common opportunities and challenges for ecosystem-based management, including changes in ocean acidification, spatial management, and fishing pressure across …

Examining Influences Of Parenting Styles And Practices On Physical Activity And Sedentary Behaviors In Latino Children In The United States: Integrative Review, Ana Cristina Lindsay, Minerva Wasserman, Mario A. Muñoz, Sherrie F. Wallington, Mary L. Greaney

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

Background: Research indicates that parents influence their children’s physical activity (PA) and sedentary behaviors (SB) through their parenting styles and practices.

Objective: The objectives of this paper were to evaluate existing research examining the associations between parenting styles, parenting practices, and PA and SB among Latino children aged between 2 and 12 years, highlight limitations of the existing research, and generate suggestions for future research.

Methods: The method of this integrative review was informed by methods developed by Whittemore and Knafl, which allow for the inclusion of qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods studies. Using the Preferred Reporting Items …

Teachers’ Knowledge, Perceptions And Practices Regarding Academic Literacy Development Of Long-Term English Learners, Daniel William Alamo

LMU Theses and Dissertations

Secondary educators must be knowledgeable in their content while increasing the academic literacy of their students, a process further complicated when working with students who are long-term English learners (LTELs). This mixed-methods study explored the knowledge, practices, and perceptions of six secondary teachers working to develop the academic literacy of LTEL students in content-specific classrooms. Set within a sociocultural framework, the study provides a greater understanding of the challenges and successes educators experience when working at the secondary level with students with diverse learning needs. The data were collected in two phases. Phase I included a quantitative survey of teachers, …

Homegrown Teacher Project: Developing An Early Intervention Pipeline For Teachers Of Color, Yadira Moreno

LMU Theses and Dissertations

The dissertation aims to explore a solution to address the cultural and racial gap between the teaching force and the student population in California. Homegrown teachers are teachers who return to their community where they were born and educated. Addressing the equity issues faced in public schools begins with exploring the benefits of teachers of color in the classroom.

This action research study followed five homegrown first-generation Latina teachers through a 3-month process of mentoring first-generation Latina sixth-graders who hope of entering the teaching profession in the future. The study was guided by critical pedagogy, a mentoring framework, the critical …

A Critical Interrogation Of The Mind, Brain, And Education Movement: Toward A Social Justice Paradigm, Bibinaz Pirayesh

LMU Theses and Dissertations

Much attention has been given to “bridging the gap” between research and practice since neuroscience research first made claim to its potential impact in classrooms. With the inception of Mind, Brain, and Education (MBE) as a new interdisciplinary field, an unprecedented opportunity to explore the educational implications of new research coming out of neuroscience has presented itself. And yet, the gap between research and practice persists while new problems arise as education looks to brain science for answers with ongoing social and academic difficulties faced by students. A critical bicultural methodology, grounded in a decolonizing interpretive approach, is utilized to …

Art Museums And Latino English Learners: Teaching Artists In The K-8 Classroom, Veronica Alvarez

LMU Theses and Dissertations

Latino English learners (ELs), among the largest student population in the United States K-12 school system, continue to lag behind their English-proficient peers. They also tend to attend segregated schools, have less-qualified teachers, and lack access to rigorous curriculum, including the arts. Museum education departments have increasingly sought to fill the gap in arts education for underserved populations. This mixed methods study explored the degree to which teaching artists (TAs) from a large metropolitan museum are effectively addressing the art education needs of Latino ELs. The dissertation study occurred in two phases. Phase 1 included quantitative analysis of observations of …

Hablando De La Herida: Honoring Spanish-Speaking Parents’ Experiences Obtaining School-Based Speech And Language Services For Their Children, Amalia W. Hernández

LMU Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the experiences of Spanish-speaking Latino/a parents in their attempts to obtain school-based speech and language services for their children; the impact of these experiences on parents; and parent perspectives on how school-based speech-language pathologists can co-create collaborative relationships. Through a detailed analysis of a focus group and individual interviews of 31 Spanish-speaking parents of children in the REAAD! (Reaching Educational Achievement and Development) Literacy Enrichment Program at a university in Los Angeles, California, this study provided a space for parents to share their experiences and offer insights regarding what shaped their experiences. Through the theoretical lens of …

"Nevertheless, She Persisted": The Challenges And Opportunities Experienced By Novice Female Charter School Principals, Heather Mcmanus

LMU Theses and Dissertations

While education is typically considered a feminized field, educational administration has long been dominated by males. This dissertation examines the historical reasons for this gender paradox and explores the challenges and opportunities specifically for novice female charter school principals through the theoretical frameworks of organizational socialization and social role theory. The dissertation studied 7 novice female charter school principals within their first 3 years in the role and utilized a qualitative methodology with semistructured interviews, focus groups, and field notes as data sources. Findings indicate that it is still difficult to be considered a good leader and a good female. …

Transformative Urban Education Leaders In Los Angeles, Sarah Figueroa

LMU Theses and Dissertations

The job of an education system-level leader in urban environments is becoming more demanding, and the environment in which they operate more complex. Filling these very critical roles with individuals who possess the right characteristics could mean the difference between success and failure at improving the educational outcomes of students who are more often than not students of color and economically disadvantaged students.

Through seven interviews, this qualitative study focused on understanding the leadership dispositions that contributed to the success of transformative urban education system-level leaders in Los Angeles. The new transformative urban education leadership framework was developed using elements …

Dentists’ Perceptions Of Their Professional Roles In The Context Of Referral Decisions In Primary Dental Care In England, Zoe Elizabeth Allen

Other Faculty of Health Theses

Background Within Primary Dental Care (PDC), there is variation in dentists’ views about who should be treated in general dental practices and who should be referred to community dental services (CDSs), creating confusion about where patients can access dental care. Aims This research aimed to explore the meanings which general dental practitioners (GDPs) and community dentists in England ascribe to their roles. It focused on why they make, accept or decline patient referrals within PDC. Methods I conducted a configurative systematic review of literature about referrals within PDC in the UK. Data were synthesised using Critical Interpretive Synthesis. I interviewed …

Transitioning From Homelessness Into A Sustained Tenancy: What Enables Successful Tenancy Sustainment? (The Moving On Project), Leonie Boland

Other Faculty of Health Theses

For individuals with multiple and complex needs, leaving homelessness is recognised as a dynamic and complex process. Furthermore, despite the provision of supports, tenancies may not be maintained and individuals return to using homelessness services. Tenancy sustainment—the maintenance of a tenancy to avoid a premature end of tenure—is fundamental to the resolution and prevention of homelessness. There is a paucity of research about the occupations of individuals as they establish and maintain tenancies. This thesis aimed to understand the transition process from homelessness, and tenancy sustainment, from an occupational perspective, to inform a potential occupational therapy intervention. Underpinned by the …

An Investigation Into The Validation Of Pedometers To Detect Foreleg Steps In Horses (Equus Caballus) At Walk And Trot, Elizabeth Jane Francis

Other Faculty of Science and Engineering Theses

Background: Current research, surrounding motor laterality at a population level in horses, indicates that in order to stand with the left forelimb in advance of the other, it is achieved by taking a greater amount of steps with the left foreleg than the right foreleg (McGreevy & Thomson 2006; McGreevy et al. 2007); suggesting that pedometers could effectively estimate asymmetry of forelimb locomotion in grazing horses. This novel method of detecting forelimb preference also reduces the likelihood of operator influence and provides an inexpensive objective measure of vertical movement which has the advantage of scoring large sample sizes, avoids single-day …

Algorithmic Sovereignty, Denis Roio

Other Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business Theses

This thesis describes a practice based research journey across various projects dealing with the design of algorithms, to highlight the governance implications in design choices made on them. The research provides answers and documents methodologies to address the urgent need for more awareness of decisions made by algorithms about the social and economical context in which we live. Algorithms consitute a foundational basis across different fields of studies: policy making, governance, art and technology. The ability to understand what is inscribed in such algorithms, what are the consequences of their execution and what is the agency left for the living …

Listening Patterns. From Music To Perception And Cognition, Massimiliano Viel

Other Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business Theses

The research aims to propose a narrative of the experience of listening and to provide some first examples of its possible application. This is done in three parts. Part One, “Words”, aims to methodologically frame the narrative by discussing the limits and requirements of a theory of listening. After discussing the difficulties of building an objective characterization of the listening experience, the research proposes that any theorization on listening can only express a point of view that is implied by descriptions of listening both in linguistic terms and in the data they involve. The analysis of theories about listening is …

Imagining Peace And War: Plymouth 1918-1939, Glyn Potter

Other Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business Theses

After the trench warfare of the Great War the development of aerial warfare and widespread urbanisation meant that military doctrine in any future conflict would likely bring unprecedented death and destruction to non-combatants. Therefore, war prevention became the most important foreign policy issue in Britain, and after the collapse of the disarmament conference in 1934 and the Spanish civil war (1936-1939), war preparation became the dominant concern for the decision makers and the public. Both were hotly debated at all levels of British public life in the 1920’s and 1930’s. This dissertation uses Plymouth as the case study for an …

The Other Middle-Earth: Intertextuality And Iconography In Sergei Iukhimov’S Illustrations For The Lord Of The Rings, Joel Merriner

Other Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business Theses

J. R. R. Tolkien once remarked in a 1949 letter to George Allen & Unwin that his friends were so impressed by Pauline Baynes’ illustrations for Farmer Giles of Ham that they labelled his text an adjunct to her drawings. This apparently light-hearted anecdote conceals an interesting truth: the relationship between text and image can be problematic and the reading of an illustration depends largely on the culturally acquired “discursive precedents” which an individual viewer brings to the act of looking. This situation may be further complicated when account is taken of any incidences of visual borrowing (motif) within the …