173 research outputs found
The role of educative thought in the life and work of Antonio Gramsci
No full textMany philosophers have propounded a vision of an improved society, what distinguishes Antonio Gramsci is his continuous effort to make it happen by understanding the process in order to put into practice. Gramsci's conviction about the importance of educative development came from both theory and experience. While there has been considerable examination of Gramsci's work in relation to the Prison Notebooks, this study will seek to address a lacuna in Gramsci scholarship. Using Gramsci's philological method, I analyse Gramsci's pre-prison activity; his pre-prison articles and letters, which, together with his letters from prison, formed part of his educative mission. This educative process was necessary, in order to construct a new party which would develop a collective will, collaboratively, with the masses.In this study therefore, I explore the contexts and formative experiences of the first part of his life together with the intellectual sources from which Gramsci developed his later theories, making central hitherto underemphasised connections between them which informed his writing and ideas. I intend to illustrate that Gramsci's underlying purpose in his writing, and political activity, was not only practical, on how to create a new socialist ruling class, but also educative in forming the mindset and values of his comrades. So that in addition to outlining his vision of a new order, he implicitly guided or explicitly explained the processes by which the necessary changes in social relations and moral climate could be made in order to achieve it. Each person had to engage with the values of the new order so that each could contribute to the construction of a new robust state. It was essential to build a hegemony at the most profound level, one which was dependent on collective understandings and a collective will
Continuous Professional development for primary school teachers: Needs and Factors Hindering Teachers Participation
No full textThe government of Ethiopia has recognized quality education as a key to transform the economic and social development of the country. Teachers" professional development has been one of the priorities of the education sector to the realization of the country"s ambitious goals. The aim of this study was to investigate the professional development needs of teachers and the hindering factors that affect teachers" participation in CPD. The study employed mixed research approach. The participants of the study were 624 primary school teachers who were randomly selected from government primary schools of North Gondar Zone, Ethiopia. Data were collected by questionnaire, interview and focus group discussion from teachers, school principals, cluster supervisors and Woreda education officers. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected. The quantitative data were analysed by the help of percentage, mean, t-test and One-Way ANOVA. The qualitative data were analysed thematically. The study revealed that lack of incentives, work load, shortage of time, lack of support from stakeholders, and Lack of trained CPD facilitators were the most perceived barriers of CPD. Teachers were also asked to identify their professional development needs. Accordingly, subject matter knowledge, Knowledge of curriculum and classroom management skills were identified as their most preferred needs. Teaching students with special needs and action research were the least selected professional development needs. The t-test result shows that gender difference affects the perception of teachers toward the hindering factors and their professional development needs. Female teachers showed higher professional development needs than male teachers. ANOVA result shows that teachers teaching experience does not affect the perception of teachers professional development needs. But significance difference was observed between different experience groups about the hindering factors of CPD
Alene [Baene] and unidentified woman
No full textInscribed on back: \u27Alene [Baene], LWV MS Convention, 5-31-97, BYC, Biloxi\u27https://egrove.olemiss.edu/lwv_photo/1016/thumbnail.jp
Malnutrition in Grenada : Contributing Factors and Potential Solutions
No full textiv, 60 p.The author discusses the surprising prevalence of malnutrition (26% among young children in 1979) in the Caribbean nation of Grenada and the related issues of obesity, problem pregnancies and health concerns with the diet and ritual drug use of the island’s Rastafarian population. The author describes government efforts to improve the country’s nutrition through education and better access to food
Exterior view of the Old Mission (Mission of the Sacred Heart) on Couer de Alene River, built in 1843 by Indians and Jesuits, Idaho, [s.d.].
No full textPhotograph of the exterior view of the Old Mission (Mission of the Sacred Heart) on Couer de Alene River, built in 1843 by Indians and Jesuits, Idaho, [s.d.]. The mission building has a six-column portico entrance. Above the entrance is a multicurved gable where within it is a window designed to resemble the sun. A similar sun symbol is situated above the double door entrance. Another building is visible at left. Scrub grass and a few bushes cover the yard. Mountains are visible in the distance.; "The Old Mission (Mission of the Sacred Heart) is the oldest standing building in Idaho. Jesuits (Blackrobes) arrived at the invitation of the Coeur d'Alenes in the early 1840's. The first mission church was established on the St Joe River about 35 miles south of the present site. Due to flooding, it was closed in 1846, and a new mission church was begun on this site, which has always been sacred to the natives of the area. The Old Mission (built 1848-1853) was a combined effort of the missionaries and over 300 native Catholics. Fr. Ravalli, an Italian born Jesuit, designed the building to resemble the elegant cathedrals of his homeland, using local materials. Wood was milled on the site, and wattle and daub construction used to make the walls both durable and light. The decorations of the interior illustrate both the piety of the workers and their ingenuity. Chandeliers were constructed from old tin cans, the altar was faux-painted to resemble marble." -- unknown author
Predictors of the Achievement of Primary School Students in Sciences and Mathematics in North Western Ethiopia
No full textThis study explores the key factors that shape students’ performance in science and mathematics among primary school students in Northwestern Ethiopia. Using a cross-sectional design, data were gathered from 2,928 students enrolled in 24 primary schools between January and April 2016. The schools and participants were selected through a two-stage stratified random sampling method. Information was collected using structured questionnaires and interviews with students, teachers, and school administrators. The results indicate that poor teacher performance, especially in science and mathematics, and a shortage of qualified teachers are major barriers to student achievement. Low teacher motivation and limited access to learning resources, such as textbooks and library facilities, further compound the problem. Gender differences were also considered that male students generally scored higher in science and mathematics, whereas female students showed strong interest and attitudes toward language subjects. Factor analysis revealed weak connections between teacher–student interactions and overall school engagement, suggesting gaps in the learning environment. Multivariate analysis identified school type, gender, availability of textbooks, and access to teaching materials as significant predictors of academic success. Multilevel modeling showed considerable variation in student achievement between schools, with an intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) of 0.664, highlighting the strong role of school-level conditions in shaping learning outcomes. Overall, the findings call for comprehensive measures to strengthen school infrastructure, improve teacher training and motivation, and provide better academic support for students both at school and at home. Strengthening these areas is essential to raise achievement levels in science and mathematics and to ensure more equitable educational outcomes across schools in the region
A Study of Gesture in Elocution and Oral Interpretation During the Years 1870 to 1930 in the United States
No full textThe purpose of this thesis was to make an historical study examining a selected list of textbooks dealing with the subject of gesture in elocution, expression, or oral interpretation between the years 1870 and 1930 in the United States. A preliminary chapter reviewed the backgrounds of elocution in the United States before 1870. The succeeding chapters reviewed the textbooks chosen for study for each twenty-year period to gain an insight into each author\u27s philosophy of teaching gesture in delivery. Each textbook contained definitions of the various terms involved, which definitions also served to disclose the author\u27s attitude toward the teaching of gesture in delivery. The chapter covering the period from 1870 to 1890 presented the theories of Francois Delsarte as presented by three of his pupils, Abbe Delaumosne, Angelique Arnaud, and James Steele MacKaye, and by two teachers of the Delsarte system, Genevieve Stebbins and Anna Morgan. The chapter covering the period from 1890 to 1910 presented the theories of Moses True Brown, Robert I. Fulton and Thomas C. Trueblood (collaborators), Emily M. Bishop, J. W. Shoemaker, and S. S. Curry. The chapter devoted to the period from 1910 to 1930 presented the theories of S. H. Clark, Lee Emerson Bassett, and Charles Henry Woolbert. The only unifying effort within each period was that of progressing through time with a major emphasis in the study of gesture during each twenty-year period. The first period reflected the mysticism of Delsarte\u27s trinitarian system for studying all phenomena of life. The Delsarte system produced elocutionists, who gave readings for the entertainment of audiences with little effort made to communicate the thought of the selection or material read. The second period, 1890 to 1910, reflected the search for principles other than those of Delsarte and resulted in an eclecticism which attempted to synthesize many theories relating directly or indirectly to gesture. The indirect influences were borrowed from academic disciplines other than speech and included psychology, physiology, philosophy, and aesthetics. Dr. Curry used the word expression rather than the word elocution to disassociate himself from the elocutionists and their methods. During the third period, 1910 to 1930, emphasis changed from the study of the use of gestures to the study of the textual material to be read and interpreted to an audience. By this change, gesture took its place with other speech techniques as a means to an end, the end being the communication of thought and feeling in the art of oral interpretation. Thus the transition from elocution, to expression, to interpretation was complete. The study indicated a shift away from gesture as a separate study to the study of gesture as part of delivery in the total speecn process. By the end of the period the reader or interpreter was being taught to search for the unity of the text and its delivery. The major theories and emphases found from this study which related to gesture were: (1) the Delsarte system of the trinity, (2) eclecticism, (3) the natural method, (4) the emphasis on the forms of literature for interpretation, (5) the conversational method, (6) the concept of abandon, (7) the recognition of the importance of the audience, and (8) the emphasis on the unity of the speech process
Landscape Targeted Crop-Fertilizer Response in the Highlands of Ethiopia Version 1.0
No full textThe dataset is meant for developing fertilizer management decision support tool for an effective crop-nutrient management. The dataset is developed on the basis of landscape targeting on-farm trials on crop-nutrient response and crop yield gap assessment across the Africa Rising target districts and other scaling up locations in the Ethiopian highlands.Africa RISIN
Book Review on:“African History: A Very Short Introduction” and “How Europe Underdeveloped Africa”
No full textA book entitled by “African history: A very short introduction” which was written by John Park and Richard Rathbone generally highlights about the physical place and people; and about the past history of African. The authors in their book tried to argue that Africa is full of diverse and the site of early mankind. The history of Africa considered by some as insignificant, an ideological weapon by some other and lack precise definition. The true history of Africa was much debatable among historians. It was considered for a long period of time by European as no history, primitive, Barbaric and illiterate. However, this kind of nomenclature of African history seems flaw and intentionally done to hide and to justify and give legal ground the 19th century colonialism. There were however, evidences that shown Africa has had ancient history. It was inescapable fact that Africa had their own history and culture. A few African states (Ethiopia, Tunisia, Egypt, Morocco, Burundi, Rwanda, Madagascar, Swaziland, Lesotho, and Botswana) have a meaningful pre-colonial identity and history. For example, today nobody can question the fact that the great walls of Zimbabwe were erected by African hands; old age Axum obelisk, a wonderful rock hewn church of Lalibela, Fasiledes castle etc were made by the African themselves in general and the Ethiopian in particular (Asfaw, 2008; Davidson, 1994). The authors also tried to explain the environmental history of Africa and they argued that Africas’ ecological zones are too diverse and they have also changed and continue to change over time. One of the notable examples of environmental change in Africa is the draying and an increment of drought and desertification in Sahara areas. Consequently the volume of rain fall began to decline and hence it in turn push people who resides around it to move to other places down in to the fertile Nile valley, which creates concentration of population. Again, John Park took middle Niger as a central place to the perception and understanding of African history. His historical interpretation seems flaw as he took merely Ghana, Mali and Songhay to determine the continents past history. We disagree his assumption of such interpretation because he misses other ancient civilized African countries like Ethiopia, Egypt, which has more than three million years of civilization. In this regard, historians like Alex Thomson and Asfaw Teferra argued in a detailed manner about the history and culture of Africa. In contrast to John Park, they stated that prior to Ghana, Mali and Songhay civilization, there were few African countries such as Egypt, Ethiopia, Morocco, Tunisia, Burundi, Rwanda and Swaziland etc have their own pre-colonial identity history and state name prior the coming of European power to Africa ( Alex, 2004; Asfaw, 2008). Surprisingly, as Asfaw in his book Africa, past, present and future development briefly explained, the civilization of Africa has been a significant impact in Europe especially in Greek and Spain, and even in for American civilization. For example, Martin Bernard as cited in Asfaw (2008) has demonstrated well that the Greek and Spain civilization had African origin. In addition, Francis Bacon, the founder of modern European science, had to go to Morocco to learn Mathematics. Asfaw tried to justify his argument by stating two way or journeys of African civilization move to Europe. The first was by way of the Nile valley to Palestine and Persia and then to Greece and Italy. The second was by way of North Africa to Spain and Portugal. In spite of this fact, European used colonialism to deny the history of Africa to establish White domination (Asfaw, 2008). Another book written by the author Walter Rodney (1982) entitled “How Europe Underdeveloped Africa” concluded that Africa had their own indigenous identity, culture, religion and civilization prior to the coming of Europe in Africa land. In fact there are African countries which have got their name and existence after the coming of Europe. Unlike John Park, Walter Rodney interperate African history in such a way that even few ancient African countries for instance, Egypt, Ethiopia and Nubian’s etc history was highly influenced and ruled by foreigners. Rodney in his sub title of his book rightly investigated the right era of European colonialism over Africa since the late 19th and early 20th century which was later than Latine America. It was true as Diedre L. in his book “Global organization: African union” tried to explained that Africa were not fully colonized by European until 1875. Both authors have similar interpretation about the pretext of European power to colonize Africa, that is, to civilize, to preach Bible and to expand infrastructure and other communication facilities on Africa since Africa considered by them as a dark continent. Moreover, European imperialists invade Africa on the pretext that Africans were incapable of properly governing themselves, they unable to govern without the active engagement of Africa alliance and the intermediaries’ one. However, the pre-colonial African history told us that African states prior to the coming of Europe were stable, harmonious, strong institutional arrangement and had kinship attachment that helps them to administer themselves effectively (Asfaw, 2008; Betts, 1986). Conclusion As historical evidences and historians told to us, African states have their own history and ways of civilization earlier to the colonial period. However, after European come to African land, they made African underdeveloped through employing different techniques and their historical heritages were destroyed and vanished by colonizers. For example, exploiting natural resources such as (cocoa, Gold), and paying of miserable wage for African workers. Moreover, African farmers were compelled to produced certain cash crops such as Cocoa in Gold coast, ground nuts in Senegal and Gambia, cotton in Sudan; cotton and coffee in Uganda etc but the production of food for local consumption was retarded. This made African to consume what they did not produce and to produce what they did not consume. Food crops were to be imported. As a result, the economies of African countries are mainly dominated by one or two commodities of such kind and their indigenous cultures were dominated by oversees culture. Reference Asfaw, Teferra (2008). Africa: Past, present and future development: A Panorama of historical evolution. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Betts, Raymnd (1986). The scramble for Africa. Portsmouth, Heinemann. Davidson, Basil (1994). The search for African history. Villers, London. Diedre, Bodejo (2007). Global organization: the African union. University of Michigan-Flint. Parker, John and Rathbone, Richard (2007). African History: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press Inc., New York. Rodney, Walter (1982). How Europe Underdeveloped Africa Howard University Press. Washington , D. C. Thomson, Alex (2004). An introduction to African politics. Routledge, New York
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