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Archive for December, 2009

High school is an important phase of your life. It plays a major role in shaping up your future and your overall development. High school is not just about books and classes. Extra curricular activities along with the studies can be very helpful, making your high school life very interesting. You would not feel the pressure to complete your studies through the year. Involve yourself in various activities and at the same time try to excel in your studies. When you move out to college these efforts that you put in may count for a lot.

Socialize: When at high school it is necessary that you do not simply end up with only books in hand. Schools always undertake to provide opportunities for students to socialize. There are various group assignments arranged which allow the students to learn to work together and coordinate amongst them. Even simple things like classroom discussions can help. For students, participation in such discussions can be a good chance to come out of with their views and understand others views as well. There may be debates and competitions in schools that again are good ways to display your skills and develop your personality as well. These skills are useful when you start your professional life.

Discover yourself: High school is the right time for you to discover yourself and bring out some of your hidden talents. The overall courses at high schools are much more challenging. You may find that you are better at English than you were earlier or have grown an interest for Math. High schools provide many other opportunities for students to participate in. There are student governments, clubs, sports etc. that you could be involved in. For e.g. student governments allow students to manage and organize various activities like cultural events, dramas, sports events, school trips etc at school etc. These help develop leadership skills and management skills at an early age, which in turn is a way of preparing students to manage and plan their careers better.

Life skills

Various competitions, team events, and other activities like these are great sources for students to sharpen their people skills. Balancing all activities is an experience in time management. If you have taken up a part time job along with your high school you would have to juggle your time for studies, and extracurricular activities. Such management can go a long way in teaching you to manage things better when you take up a job. Moreover, they help build your character. You would be better prepared for additional stress that you may feel some times.

When at high school you should pick up your classes wisely. Depending upon what you are interested in and your career plan you should choose appropriate classes. Doing something that you barely like may get you very low scores as well as lose precious time. Take up interesting and challenging classes that would allow you to put in those extra efforts. Challenges always bring the best in you and that can be very useful in the future.

Colleges as well as employers give a lot of consideration to these things as well. It is more important for them to know that you have the ability to manage things and also armed with good academic qualifications.

The Illinois State Board of Education has approved the state’s first virtual public elementary school, the Chicago Virtual Charter School. The Board acted against State Superintendent Randy Dunn’s recommendation to disapprove the Chicago schools application, as well as against the opposition of the powerful Chicago Teachers Union, by voting a five-to-four approval.

Though virtual schools already exist in the United States, they usually are high schools. Several states, however, prohibit virtual charter schools, such as Indiana, Tennessee and New York. South Carolina goes one step further by prohibiting any home-based instruction at its charter schools.

Opposition to the Chicago schools’ new virtual elementary school stem from a variety of areas. Here are just a few:

• Computers will replace teachers and/or reduce their role in education, eliminating many teacher positions.
• The one-on-one attention that students may receive in a physical classroom setting will be lost.
• Virtual students in the Chicago schools will not receive enough social interaction, stunting their socialization skills.

Proponents believe the Chicago schools new virtual institution may give some children a chance to succeed, where traditional schools already have failed. The state board’s Chairman Jesse Ruiz noted that he received many compelling letters from parents, pleading for an alternative approach for their Chicago schools children.

Another issue that faced the state board is the current Illinois law on charter schools, which states they must be “non-home based”. It was for this reason that State Superintendent Dunn had recommended the new Chicago schools’ application be denied. This added more fuel to the Teachers Union’s argument against approving the school.

State board members and proponents argued that the charter school laws were enacted in the 1990s, before lawmakers could have anticipated the growth of technology that makes a virtual school possible. Chicago schools General Counsel Patrick Rocks told the board that the restrictions on home-based charter schools were from concerns that home schools would attempt to reposition themselves as charter schools in order to secure public funding.

Charter schools are part of the Chicago schools system and are given more flexibility in staffing, curriculum and other areas — similar in theory to home schools. They receive public funding per student, causing the lawmakers concern over a possible redefinition of home schools. Rocks presented board members with letters from several of the lawmakers who enacted the law that stated their intent was not to block Internet-based schooling.

After the vote, Teachers Union President Marilyn Stewart vowed to take “swift and appropriate” action to stop or block the opening of the school. Rocks noted that it was very unlikely that the Union could mount any viable legal challenge.

The Chicago schools’ new virtual institution opens September 13, 2006. Already about 300 families have applied for their children to attend, and the school can accept another 300 students, according to Sharon Hayes, head of the school.

Once enrolled, the Chicago schools families receive desktop computers, workbooks and other student materials. The Chicago schools students are required to meet weekly at a downtown Chicago learning center, located within DePaul University. The students interact regularly with teachers through emails, conferences and workshops, as well as interacting with teachers and other students at the learning center.

Chicago Virtual Charter School already scheduled to serve a wide variety of elementary Chicago schools children. They include gifted and special education students, as well as children who previously attended public, private and home schools. Their web site is at: www.chicagovcs.org.

Besides choosing an accredited program, you should study potential doctorate programs online to define which suit your wants and needs. How are the classes held? Are there any multimedia components? Should the degree be obtained in a particular amount of time? Will a mentor be assigned to you to help through the hardest years ahead? You need to make a list of prospective questions to interview a representative from every doctorate program online.

Besides completing courses, typically doctorate programs ask students to pass some in-depth subject-matter examinations, write a thesis or dissertation, and defend it before university faculty. Actually, before enrolling in an online doctorate program, you need to ask for a list that details the school’s specific graduation demands.

Not each doctorate degree can be obtained via the internet. Some training like that obtained by medical doctors, should be highly supervised. Though, most other doctorate degrees may be earned online. Some of the most acceptable doctoral degrees online include: EdD (Doctor of Education), DPH (Doctor of Public Health), PhD (Doctor of Psychology), and DBA (Doctor of Business Administration).

Most doctorate degree programs online ask students to spend their time taking classes and attending lectures on campus. Certain programs online require only a restricted residency, requiring students to attend some weekend lectures and meetings. However, other programs may need one year of on-campus residency. Generally, residency demands are non-negotiable, thus, you should be sure the PhD program online you choose has demands fitting your schedule.

Getting an online doctorate degree may cost money. When a lot of brick-and-mortar colleges provide doctorate learners paid teaching fellowships, the online learners are not afforded such luxury. In case your doctorate degree help you become a better employee, you can ask the employer to disburse for a part of the doctorate degree expenses. A lot of graduates qualify to take subsidized student loans and lower-than-average rates of interest.

The importance of learning and educational outcomes for Maori is receiving greater interest, with key indicators illustrating underperformance of Maori in modern educational environments. Recent reviews of the processes of education indicate that the Eurocentric view and approach to learning may not be as applicable to the specific requirements of Maori. The New Zealand government has commissioned various research projects in reaction to these concerns, with key findings being proposed to follow through to policy formation of educational outcomes and environments. A joint project headed by Waikato University, the Waikato Institute of Technology and Auckland University, was initiated to examine how the success rate of adult Maoris in the ‘learning foundations of literacy, language and numeracy’ can be built on the foundations of Maori culture and identity, applied to a wide range of courses and educational facilities.

The research provided key insights as to how the strong cultural beliefs and traditions that Maori adhere to have implications, not only for their success rates in learning outcomes, but their desire and motivation to do so. However, it is also important to recognise that Maori students are not a homogenous group, and all bring with them varying experiences, attitudes and abilities that must be accustomed for.

As in previous research, the findings of the report reinforced the connections between students and their wider families (whanau). Learning outcomes are not always viewed as individualistic, with the outcome of learning often being seen not only for themselves but for other people around them, including their ancestors and elders. The importance of a sense of well-being by students and the importance of working together remains highly valued, which lends itself to locational based learning to focus on unique marae based educational programs. This research confirmed that the context of the marae was especially significant for Maori learners, as it provides an environment that is considered safe and where knowledge has already been gained, with the ability to reinforce the learner’s identity as Maori in a culturally congruent learning context.

Additionally, the presence and availability of suitably qualified Maori tutors, and the relationship that is established between these tutors and students greatly influences learning and development. The current research indicated that successful tutors needed to focus on building students self esteem and self confidence in their ability to learn and succeed, concentrating on establishing and nurturing trust and confidence between themselves and their students.

The Ministry of Education, in response to these key findings, initiated a separate piece of research, titled ‘Language and Literacy in Marae-Based Programmes’. Its findings reinforced the role of the marae in facilitating higher educational outcomes for Maori, with the use of maraes on educational institutions and campuses becoming increasingly popular in attracting Maori students.

Carmelita Thompson and William Allan Kritsonis, PhD 

 

Introduction

 The Ways of Knowing Through the Realms of Meaning (Kritsonis, 2007) offers a pragmatic framework to strategic planning that will move educational organizations in innovative directions.  In developing a strategic plan, an educational organization must implement Dr. Kritsonis’ (2007) six fundamental patterns of meaning designated respectively as symbolics, empirics, esthetics, synnoetics, ethics, and synoptics.  Strategic planning is the process in which an educational organization determines its current status, envisions its long-term goals, makes projections for the future, and develops strategies to achieve those future aspirations.  Strategic planning must be flexible and practical and yet serve as a guide to implement programs to evaluate the educational organizations progress.  A strategic plan intertwining the six fundamental patterns of the Ways of Knowing Through the Realms of Meaning (Kritsonis, 2007) constructs innovative analytical and critical thinking that will improve and enhance the performance of educational organizations.

  Purpose of the Article

             The purpose of this article is to discuss ways in which strategic planning implemented by utilizing the Ways of Knowing Through the Realms of Meaning (Kritsonis, 2007) creates a high performing educational organization.  Skilled strategic planning makes a current assessment of needs, develops the educational organization’s future thinking, builds commitment, and serves as the guiding document for the educational organization.  Effective strategic planning includes articulating the educational organization’s vision, mission, and values to set a course for future aspirations.

 

The First Realm:  Symbolics

The first realm of meaning is symbolics.  Dr. Kritsonis (2007) states that ordinary language such as gestures, rituals, and rhythmic patterns allow people to communicate on a personal level.  Effective leadership is the cornerstone of an educational environment.  Eaker and Gonzalez write about learning leaders.

They create systems and processes to engage collaborative teams of teachers in 1) clarifying the essential knowledge and skills students are to acquire for every course, grade level and unit of every instruction 2) developing frequent common assessments to monitor each student’s learning on a timely basis, and 3) implementing a school-wide plan of intervention to guarantee students receive additional time and support for learning as soon as they experience difficulty. (Eaker & Gonzalez, 2007, p. 6)

The leader’s ability to articulate the educational organization’s vision, mission, and values to propel the organization into its preferred future is essential.  A vision statement is a description upon which the organization aspires.  It emphasizes where the educational organization will be at a specific time in the future. The organizational mission  supports  the  vision and  it  describes the  purpose of  the  organization.  The organizational values  state the organization’s  intentions and  the organization’s  core priorities in the organization’s culture. 

Implementing the strategic plan requires the use of symbolics. The vision must be clearly communicated within the educational organization.  The vision needs to capture the present status of the educational organization, and serve to guide the direction of the organization. As a means of setting a central goal that the educational organization will aspire to reach, the vision helps to provide a focus for the mission of the organization.  The vision should resonate with every member of the educational organization. The educational organization must clearly communicate its expectations so that members are able to perform effectively.  The strategic planning is effective when it energizes and engages the educational organization. 

 The Second Realm:  Empirics

The second realm of meaning is empirics.  Empirics encompass facts and discovering the truth.  Dr. Kritsonis says, “These sciences provide factual descriptions, generalizations, and theoretical formulations and explanations that are based upon observation and experimentation in the world of matter, life, mind, and society” (Kritsonis, 2007, p. 12).  According to Dr. Kritsonis (2007), science is concerned with matters of fact and facts refer to data of observation.  Educational data collection is vital for strategic planning in educational organizations.

Strategic planning, with an emphasis on empirics, provides an understanding of the design of the educational organization’s assessment of needs, finances, and it allows the organization to set specific data-driven priorities.  The educational organization is obligated to be data driven to aide accountability within the organization.  It is essential to the strategic planning of an educational organization to conduct a continuum of critical analysis of the system, policy formulation and appraisal, management and monitoring, and evaluation.  Gathering data and analysis of the current situation of the organization and the critical issues pertaining to the organization’s status and functioning is required in an educational organization. The  strategic planning process requires a multi-method approach in gathering comprehensive data. These multi-method approaches include standardized testing,  observation, surveys, interviews, document collection, and other formal and informal measures of organizational status. Findings and remedial options are formulated to provide policy orientations.  As the system is analyzed, future direction can be established.  Specific programs may be developed or resources may be mobilized based upon the information obtained through the data analysis.  A continuum of monitoring, review, and analysis takes places.  The learning leadership understands that the organization must continually change (Eaker & Gonzalez, 2007).  The more data educational organizations collect, the more effectively the organization can improve.  Assessment is required to constantly improve the strategic planning and ensure the execution of the educational organization’s vision. 

 

The Third Realm:  Esthetics

Dr. Kritsonis says that health means wholeness which may be regarded as personal wholeness (2007).

  The educational organization needs to include the arts in its strategic plan.  It is imperative that educational organizations make meaningful connections across academic disciplines and everyday life.  The arts can reinforce skills that connect learning to the real world.  The additional positive effects of art education on student learning include attendance, communication, and critical thinking.  Art education also requires discipline and skill which carries over into the community.  A study conducted by Allen, Edmonson, and Fisher (2009) revealed art to benefit students’ verbal and linguistic skills.  Allen, Edmonson, and Fisher’s findings were that he nature of fine arts classes was to help students better demonstrate ideas, feelings, and emotions through expressive use of their body and creative skills.  This training could be beneficial to students in the form of written expression through TAKS writing and also help students in the reading portion of the TAKS. (Allen, Edmonson, & Fisher, 2009, p. 47)

  The Fourth Realm:  Synnoetic

Dr. Kritsonis describes synnoetics as “…meanings in which a person has direct insight into other beings (or oneself) as concrete wholes existing in relation”  (Kritsonis, 2007, p. 393).   Synnoetics can easily be ascribed to strategic planning.  It is imperative that an educational organization understand its present position to understand its future aspirations.  Critical analyses of the educational organization’s internal and external environments provide information to assess the organization’s current needs and needs for future planning.  The heart of strategic planning is flexibility and ongoing evaluation of both the strategic plan and the planning process to ensure the organization’s success.  Dr. Kritsonis clearly states, “A person is a being who both remembers and anticipates.  He is related not only to himself as present, but also as past and as future” (Kritsonis, 2007, p. 397).  This statement can be applied to the educational organization as well.  The educational organization must have knowledge of itself to provide the best educational opportunities today, tomorrow, and into the future.  The educational organization must gain a historical perspective to determine how previous perceptions influenced current initiatives.  The educational organization must also understand the external environment, the global market, to meet the needs of students and prepare them for global challenges.

  

The Fifth Realm:  Ethics

              The fifth realm is ethics.  According to Dr. Kritsonis, “The essence of ethical meanings, or of moral knowledge, is right deliberate action, that is, what a person out to voluntarily do” (2007, p. 443).  An educational organization must incorporate ethics in its strategic planning.  The educational organization must establish policies or codes of conduct.  Steven Bowman (2008) explains that the best way to describe ethics is by utilizing the following four words: rights, obligations, fairness and integrity. He goes on to say that these words have energies underlying them that seem to get at the basis of ethical considerations.

Ethical standards are important to ensure that the educational organization operates within the law and is viewed by the public as an ethical organization of learning.  Codes of ethics within educational organization are necessary for promoting ethical teaching practices.  The educational organizational must conduct a continuum of evaluation to promote ethical standards within the organization.  Ethics provide justification for the actions that occur within the organization.  Ethics provide the base upon which the vision, mission, and values are created. 

Some other important ethical codes that are addressed in educational organizations are honesty, integrity, and respect.  These beliefs are the very foundation of culture and civilization.  The educational organizations must encourage students to collaborate across disciplines and learn the viewpoints and contributions of others. This combination of depth in learning fosters critical thinking skills, creativity, integrity, responsibility, and ethics.

 

The Sixth Realm:  Synoptics

            Synoptics is the sixth realm.  Dr. Kritsonis says this about synoptics, “This term comprises meanings having an integrative function, uniting meanings from all realms into a unified perspective that is, providing a “single vision” on “synopsis” of meanings” (2007, p. 483).  Dr. Kritsonis relates that history is concerned with the understanding of past events.   The historian must describe, order, and interpret events (2007).  Understanding the past of the educational organization is a basic premise for strategic planning.  By reviewing the organization’s history, the strategic planning builds upon past accomplishments or failures to broaden the organization’s reach.  This type of planning builds a bold and aggressive educational organization to keep pace with social, economic, and demographic trends with proactive performance measures that gauge organizational success.

The educational organization’s strategic planning method should include a thorough analysis of the organization’s history and current situation.  The educational organization must review important milestones to determine their influences on the organization.  Effective strategic planning requires the educational organization to visualize the organization’s future status by looking back at its past history.  It is necessary for educational organizations to be committed to being more responsive to society.  Educational organizations are obligated to provide educational services required by present and future citizens to make the contributions needed to sustain society.  The educational organization will meet these obligations by properly utilizing resources provided by taxpayers. Although Miech is skeptical about strategic planning in education, he writes, “Strategic planning can also play an important public relations role in education. For example, strategic planning in education can help improve school-community relations by involving parents and community members in the formal strategic planning process” (Miech, 1995, section 8).  The strategic plan can bridge the gap between the schools and the community.  The strategic plan also includes the educational organizations commitment to providing access to a broad range of educational services.

 

Concluding Remarks

In conclusion, education is a focal point for American society today.  The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, signed into law by President Bush in 2002, is a reauthorization of the Elementary  and  Secondary  Education  Act (Education Week, 2004).  The No Child Left Behind Act has expanded the federal government’s role in education.  This came about because of the wide concern about the state of education.  This legislation is expected to target every public school in America.  At the core of the No Child Left Behind Act are a number of provisions designed to ensure broad gains in student achievement and to hold states and schools more accountable for student progress (Education Week, 2004).

The need for effective strategic planning is critical for all educational organizations.  The constant challenges in education and pressures of student achievement will be guided by a well-developed strategic plan that serves as an integral part of day-to-day leadership and future aspirations in educational organizations.  Dr. Kritsonis’ Ways of Knowing Through the Realms of Meaning (2007) provides a pragmatic framework that connects strategic planning to the six realms of meaning.  The six realms provide the foundations for strategic planning that will be vision, mission, and value driven which will create a successful educational organization.  The strategic planning aligns the organization with the environment and explores perspectives and cultures from around the globe to achieve long-term stability.  Strategic planning is an ongoing process. Strategic planning in an educational organization will provide a framework to support high-quality, student-focused education.

  

REFERENCES

(2009).  The value of fine arts education:  

A student-centered analysis.  National FORUM of Educational Administration and Supervision Journal, 25(3), 28-49.

Bowman, S.  (2008). Embedding ethics into strategic planning.  Retrieved on July 5,

2009, from http:// www.conscious-governance.com/strategic.html

Eaker, R., & Gonzalez, D.  (2007).  Leading in professional learning communities. 

National FORUM of Educational Administration and Supervision Journal, 24(1), 6-13.

Education Week (2004, September).  No child left behind.  Retrieved on July 6, 2009, from http://www.edweek.org/rc/issues/no-child-left-behind/

Kritsonis, W.  (2007). Ways of knowing through the realms of meaning.  Houston, TX:  National FORUM Journals.                       

Miech, E. J.  (1995). The rise and fall of strategic planning and strategic planning in

education.  Retrieved on July 5, 2009, from http://www.hepg.org/her/abstract/310

 

Dr. William Allan Kritsonis has served as a superintendent of schools, principal, teacher, director of field experiences and student teaching, university professor, editor, publisher, invited guest lecturer at the Oxford Round Table in the United of Oxford, United Kingdom.

  

 

 

 Since 1983, over 4,200 scholarly articles have been published by National FORUM Journals

NEED AND CONTEXT

It has been observed that the recent economic growth in the Asian cities indicate that there has been a breakdown of traditional support systems such as the family because of rapid urbanization and modernization. Moreover, a large number of people are living below the poverty line in impoverished environment in urban and rural communities. Their acute needs for housing, food, health, education, and incomes are the very forces that push adolescents to look for a means of livelihood on the streets, engage in prostitution, be hooked up with crime/drug syndicates, or become victims of sexual and physical abuse. It is a battle of bare struggle for daily survival and contributes in every ways they can. Any measure to penalize parents of such children will only result in further abuse and oppression of people who are already disadvantaged. Such children struggle hard in getting the most essential requirements to meet the basic needs of life and such children need special attention and educational intervention. These disadvantaged adolescents are generally malnourished and often anemic; many of them physically stunted, suffer psychologically from undue family pressures and abuses and are neglected at home. They tend to develop low self-esteem from broken families, single-headed households because of the death, separation, or labor migration of one of their parents. Moreover, they live in slums and squatter communities, sub-human conditions and are susceptible to crime syndicates and gang conflicts, substance/drug abuse, and gambling.

In the developing and under developed countries like India and Thailand a large percentage of population live below the poverty line and adolescents from such environment face difficulties in getting access to good education. It is therefore felt that in both the surround adolescents are of in the process of development and failure to meet their developmental need have lend to safe and serial destructions behaviors. Adolescents lack necessary life skills for cape up in to the realities and challenges of life. Adolescents accords for the largest portion of the world’s population and have been on an increasing trend and there are “230 million Indian adolescent in the age of group of 4 to 19” that (Population and Health IndoShare, 2006). Moreover, it is expected that this age group will continue to grow reaching over “214 million by 2020” (United Nations (UN) 2000) due to has traditionally been a male dominated society and has a strong son preference in most part of but Indian girls tend to be discriminated against by their families and also demographic trends indicate deep-rooted gender discrimination. In India, the condition of disadvantaged adolescents resembled that of their centers pail Thailand. Indian Young adolescents are facings serious problem of lack of access to reliable knowledge on the process of growing up reproductive health practices and value system. There has been a need to provide education on the developmental changes and needs during teenagers. This may reduce the risk of future.

Today, almost every Indian and Thai whether rich or poor, young or old, is exposed to much that is foreign, largely because in the last two decades India and Thailand has become one of the region’s most popular tourists destinations. At times, the growing economy and favorable investment opportunities have also attracted many foreign multinationals, which continue to add to the already fair large expatriate community. However, despite the intensity of their exposure to “foreign” influences, particularly western cultures and lifestyles, Indian and Thai culture remains a solid influence within family life and early childhood. From birth, Indian and Thai adolescents are still much more deeply immersed in culture than they are exposed to foreign influences despite the fast-paced changes that have been affecting Indian and Thai adolescents. The adolescents of deferred families are emotionally disturbed and driven adrift as wanderers, delinquent children with im-permissive behaviors such as loitering, gambling, drug addiction, crime, truancy, prostitution, and begging, illegal dealings. As the consequence of these adverse behaviors, cases of illegal pregnancy, baby abandonment, and HIV/AIDS infection are becoming more and more severe.

There also reported, “Thai Children are spending more time in talking and chatting on the phone and the trendiest models of mobile phones, love hanging out with their friends at night, the drugs problem and the loss of Thai identity and shopping for brand name products. The latest fashion among the hobbies of many of today’s Thai children is they are becoming increasingly violent and blaming society and their own families for their behavior and involve in premature sex, drugs and aggressiveness”. “The study found that despite the well-to-do family backgrounds of the teens surveyed, most of them shared a common problem of loneliness, depressive tendencies and a need for love”. The gap between parents and children is greater than ever before, arising from broken families or from families which faille to inculcate morals in their children because they havenless time for their children and had left them to the peril of sick and violent society in Thailand (Aphaluck Bhatiasevi, Thongbai Thongpao 2002), (Tong Thum Struggles, 2006)

With the best intention and efforts of the education as a social instrument, it is possible to promote the complete welfare of disadvantaged population. Among the several types of disadvantaged adolescents, Adolescents forced to enter the labour market, adolescents affected by HIV/AIDS and adolescents affected by narcotic drugs need special attention. They have trouble in getting proper guidance to overcome personal problems and require proper guidance and counseling to become aware of the ill effects narcotic drugs, labour market and HIV/AIDS. It may not be possible to develop awareness in the expected manner through normal school curriculums. Hence, a separate educational intervention, which is nothing but a planned programme of educational guidance, organized to meet the scientific and psychological needs of disadvantaged adolescents in the age group of 13-16. Hence, in this study, an attempt will be made to study the educational adjustment of disadvantaged adolescents and to find out the impact of a structured educational intervention programme in developing proper awareness and attitude towards reproductive health, drugs, sexuality and values.

The present study examined the impact of an educational intervention programme on the knowledge and attitude on disadvantaged adolescents in Northern India and Thailand. The study intends to assess and compare the knowledge about the process of growing up, HIV/AIDS awareness, values and attitude of teen-age students staying in the schools. Reproductive health education is a key strategy for promoting preventive measures among teenagers.

METHOS

The sample for the study consisted of 225 disadvantaged adolescents who included 125 adolescents from India (Chennai Himmat Slum area, Jammu region) and Thailand (Yong People Develop Chiang Mai and Teresa Anusorn Foundation (Ban Teresa) Chiang Rai, Province). The sample populations of disadvantaged adolescents are residents of orphanages and slum area and studying in high school classes in the age of groups from 13 to 16 years. Data was collected by administering knowledge test consisted of items on process of growing up HIV/AIDS, reproductive organs and their functions family planning and parenting and attitude scale to measure beliefs and practices about sexuality and abstinence. An experimental design consisted of experimental and control group was formed. Questionnaires were translated from English to Hindi and Thai, (mother tongue of the respondent), then back in to English to ensure that no meaning was lost in translation. There were use two groups of learner: both the groups were given Pre-Test as well as Post-Test, where experimental group were given intervention programme and control group was not be given any intervention programme.

Control group: – there were in two states: ten administrators conducted face-to-face interviews and Focus groups with disadvantaged adolescent in India and Thailand.

First state, in India country; 10 Indian administrators were called the Indian disadvantaged adolescents from there house at Slum area (Jammu), meeting for data collected were an adjustment questionnaire in each of person and groups by Hindi (mother tongue of the respondent).

Second state, in Thailand country: 125 questionnaires in Thai (mother tongue of the respondent) were administered to the Thai disadvantaged adolescent of two orphanages, I collected later the questionnaires.

Intervention / Treatment Programme

Experts: Facilitators who were willing to participate in the study were invited for receiving community sensitization, booklet distribution, and CD training;

Experimental group: 200 students (and also inmates) belonging to Channai Himmat, Slum area (Jammu, India), Teresa Anusorn Foundation (Ban Teresa), and Yong People Develop (Thailand) who had got least scores namely, were given one day training programme on intervention or treatment as;

In the morning: the orientation and participants programme concentrated on basic issues such as general framework of adolescent growth, and consisted of discussions and demonstrations. The training programme practiced the activities to develop the knowledge level and the attitude about HIV/AIDS, drug abuse and reproductive health education

In the afternoon until evening: the revised questionnaires were administered to the experimental group in 3 sessions as: (a) the personal details. (b) The knowledge level and attitude were administered to find out themselves and whenever they had doubt in understanding the items, the administrators made them easy by giving supplementary examples. In addition, (c) group discussed for preparation of suggestive measures to improve and policies.

Design of the study

An educational intervention programme consisting of awareness activities presented through media presentation, discussion and interaction was presented to the experimental group. Universals and multivariate analysis of the data were used to assess the impact of interventions and to identify the predictors of change in knowledge and attitude. Significant changes in terms of gain between pre-test and post-test was observed.

Analysis

The completed questionnaires were collated and entered into the computer. The data was entered and analyzed using SPSS. After verification and reduction of data, descriptive frequencies were completed. This was followed by uni-variate and multi-variety procedures to assess the impact of the interventions and to identify other predictors of change in knowledge and attitude. Analysis was stratified by sex shown how responses to the variables of knowledge and attitude, differ boys, girls, age, and education. Descriptive statistics was used to profile the study population. Knowledge and attitude was then used to explore the demographic variables associated with HIV/AIDS, drug abused and reproductive Health Education. The following statistical techniques were applied in the present project: Paired Samples “T”-test and “F”-test.

FINDINGS

The demographic profile of the 250 Indian and Thai respondent questionnaires is shown the relationships between demographic characteristics of Indian and Thai were founds Indian boys (54.40%) less than Thai boys (56%), and Indian girls (45.60%) more than Thai girls (44%). In the same age group of Indian and Thai 15 years old, and the same of the secondary school of Indian: (Standard: 9) and Thai: (Grades 3), had significant .05 is shown in Table 1.

Answers were grouped in comparing scores from Indian and Thai disadvantage adolescent after received a treatment on knowledge and attitude about HIV/AIDS, drug abuse and reproductive health education, all participating (N= 200) were group interviewed and after the intervention had significant difference is (0.05), are shown in Table 2-16.

The findings also revealed significant differences between boys and girls in knowledge and attitude towards reproductive health education. Implications of the study for the awareness programmes were suggested.

DISCUSSION

In many Northern states of India and Thailand, the HIV/AIDS, drug abuse and reproductive health needs of Indian and Thai disadvantaged adolescents are either poorly understood or not fully appreciated. Evidence is growing that this neglect can seriously jeopardize the HIV/AIDS, drug abuse and reproductive health education needs and future well-being of them.

The policies addressed the effectiveness of the programmed to highlights what there needs to be done to promote and protect to the disadvantaged adolescent in India and Thailand in the future as: all schools should develop textbooks making learning interesting by following extensive community sensitization in support of adolescent reproductive health education appropriate in Indian and Thai cultural and tradition. Because of Indian and Thai culture and tradition, adolescents kept learning by them long time ago that, made them grow up in the wrong life and have been against morality.

Indian and Thai adolescent problems erupt from families and by themselves after they have been sexually abused or because their families could not understand adolescent behavior and teach them about reproductive health education and sexual health education. Such as should improve in knowledge and attitude among school-going adolescents with the media modern of families. In addition, it was found that sexually abused violated in Indian and Thai adolescents should learn and practice self-protection and should gather knowledge of the Child Rights and much more.

India disadvantaged adolescents

1. Indian disadvantaged adolescents are neglected from home, school and there country of the knowledge. They tend to undeveloped of the confidents and very poorly of the knowledge, attitude about Reproductive Health, drug and HIV/AIDS. Thus as, should to improve and increase and learn the knowledge attitude and understanding of disadvantaged adolescents

2. In India, the responsible organizations both governmental and non-governmental of India have to develop policies for adolescent and should to include HIV/AIDS education and health programme in schools curriculums. In addition, those reproductive health educational services for adolescent girls are especially needed in schools and families.

3. Parents, families, teachers and administrators in orphanages or schools should be encouraged to discuss or give guidance and approval about reproductive health education, drug and HIV/AIDS with their disadvantaged adolescent.

Thailand disadvantaged adolescents

1. Should to improve and increase the knowledge attitude and understanding of disadvantaged adolescents in Northern about reproductive health education and sexual health education.

2. Especially, in Northern, Thailand having spread of higher Drug and HIV/AIDS, thus as should to teach or train to get about the knowledge attitude and understanding of reproductive health to adolescents and parents more then other.

3. The reproductive and sexual health education should be included in the curriculum for the second level – primary education (Grades 4-6), Third level – secondary education (Grades 1-3) and Fourth level – secondary education (Grades 4-6). It is too late to start from Third level – secondary education (Grades 1-3) in Thailand thus; the Ministry of Education has to prepare a new policy to put this subject at the Basic Education Curriculum Standard as soon as possible.

4. It appears that in Thailand media has caused a change in sex related values among adolescents. With the misuse of Internet in getting information on sex related issue supplemented by the use of Cell phone, TV, VCD, DVD and booklets is increasing Crime problems of sexually abused. Thus, the qualities of the textbooks or booklets to be distributed to the adolescents.

TABLE

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I thank to Dr. Y. N. Sridhar, Guide of Research for me. I would like too many helpful and thank the following students, Mr. Kasame Sakonllapap, Mr. Santi Jongkongka, Mr. Prasarn Ruansang and people for their supported. I thankfulness to Father Carlo Luzzi, Mother Elisa Cavana, Father Niphot Thiengwiharn and my family, for contributing to this study by providing funding.

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PHD will certainly be a word you would recognize if you have performed any research into the area of high level degrees. Representing a form of doctoral degree, it is a distinguished degree that is considered the highest level of education attainable. When obtaining a doctoral degree the recipient will have attained an extremely high level of skill and knowledge of on a subject with the toughest level of educational study. Hence by earning a doctorate they will be considered an expert in their field.

The work required to meet the requirements for this degree is vast and there is no easy way of getting around it. This is one of the reasons the online availability of doctoral degrees has made such a huge impact. Online doctoral degree programs are responsible for allowing students the option of learning from home when pursuing their doctoral degrees. This is sometimes the only option a person may have to earn such a prestigious degree.

Why Pursue a Doctoral Degree?

The possession of a doctoral degree can have quite a few benefits. The prestige of having a recognized school confirming the expert knowledge of a graduate will be quite a boost to a person’s accreditation as a professional.

An old adage says all education is of value. But what makes it even more priceless is the work and requirements that have been faced to get to the end result. This is an affirmative fact with recipients of this prestigious degree. This is the reason they are considered to be of such value. The skills that are developed while attaining the degree are second to none and alone equip the graduate with a valuable tool.

Why Earn A Doctorate Degree Program Online?

As previously mentioned, flexibility and inclusiveness are among the most beneficial attributes of online doctoral degrees. In the past, when the only option of acquiring a doctoral degree centered on attending class “in person”, those that could not commit to a rigid schedule would need to slowly chip away at their degree requirements for several years.

Then, there were those that were left with no options. They simply could not partake in a degree program at all. Through the advent of online degree programs, the ability to actually complete an advanced degree becomes a viable option for many. The ability to do the research and study within a flexible schedule allows an online doctoral degree to be completed whilst continuing to meet current work and family commitments. There are many reasons why online degree programs suit today’s lifestyles that make online learning a nice option for most people.

What Choices Are There for Online Doctoral Degree Programs?

Online doctorate programs include the same options that are available in a conventional university or college setting. Liberal arts and sciences are partly available online. Other programs that will require a physical presence can also be partially taken online.

Will it Benefit My Career By Acquiring a Doctoral Degree?

There are many different professions that look to hire those with doctoral degrees. As the highest possible form of education you can achieve you will be viewed as an expert in your chosen field and hence are very valuable to the right employer. The federal and state governments look to acquire talented individuals with such a degree. The teaching profession significantly seeks such individuals. Various research and policy institutes require professionals with PHD skills. Really, the avenues open for a person with a doctoral degree are vast and the earning potential that goes with it is very attractive as well. That is why the degree is so valuable.

As you can see, possessing a doctoral degree can open many professional doors. Now, online doctoral degree programs make access to such a degree much more inclusive. There are many fully accredited and highly respected schools that offer doctoral degree courses online and for most online programs financial support is available.

The result is that persons with the aspirations to become the best in a certain field now have the opportunity to achieve this goal. Are you one of the people that would like to obtain the professional qualities that you can have by completing a doctoral degree online?

Why do schools need digital signage? The simple answer is that we are all bombarded with information and schools need to compete. Just as the blackboard had to give way to the interactive whiteboard as technology developed, now the whiteboard must be replaced by more contemporary technologies if schools are to be seen as stimulating modern places that are fun and exciting to work and learn in.

To compete with iPods, Twitter, text messages and the barrage of other messages hitting teenagers every minute, schools need to use vibrant technology to enhance the learning experience and engage students. This is where digital signage comes in.

A digital signage solution for education replaces static text and pictures with an eye-catching display that can incorporate moving images, video, TV, scrolling text and highlighted messages to create an impact.

Digital Signage can be used in education, from Primary Schools through to Higher Education establishments. Through the use of screens placed in reception areas, staff rooms, canteens and boarding houses Digital Signage is a proven method to communicate effectively to pupils, students, staff and guests.

Why is Digital Signage so useful?

The Education ‘industry’ is increasingly introducing technological advancement within the education environment at all levels.

With digital signage the means of presenting information is very varied and can include video, Flash animation, moving text, alternating images, RSS feeds and live TV.

The same message can be introduced at multiple screen locations, perhaps in different buildings, counties or even countries, from a remote central point.

In addition information can be easily disseminated in several languages: in today’s multi ethnic schools this can be invaluable.

Some examples of how Digital Signage can be used in schools include:
Ensuring staff and students are up-to-date with latest information: e.g. schools can spend a lot of time printing class timetables, only to encounter confusion when classes printed in timetables are cancelled or rescheduled.   While e-mail can be helpful, dynamic message boards, updated in real-time, help reach students who aren’t near a computer.
Fully customised branding to reflect the schools image, particularly across a large site, enabling a school to stand out from other schools in an increasingly competitive environment where differentiation is critical.  Accurate and consistent presentation of graphical and editorial elements (official logos and colour scheme, for example) to both internal and external audiences can be easily managed using a digital signage system. Communication: For example where a school magazine was once the sole communication method, with digital signage, students and staff can create their own school TV
Education: Screens communicate concepts to students more clearly than blackboards and older, projector-based solutions. They also serve video-extension and distance-learning setups well, particularly for higher education.   A lesson or lecture held in one classroom can be broadcast to a large screen in another room.  With streaming, free-to-air channels can also be broadcast to classrooms and individual student’s PCs over the network.  For interactivity, digital whiteboarding tools can be used by students to upload work they’ve done on a laptop to the screen seen by all.

Improved information flow to staff, pupils, parents and visitors e.g Emergency information: the speed with which a digital signage network can disseminate information throughout a large school building can be literally a life saver should a serious emergency arise. Fire evacuations are just one example, when instructions must be conveyed quickly, clearly and with authority.
Community Development: Traditional bulletin boards and printed posters cannot keep up. With a digital signage system, information can be communicated instantly across an entire site, replacing existing noticeboards with dynamic, eye catching screens.  A digital signage network instantly informs students of speakers, sporting events, student achievements, class timetables, photos of school plays and out of school activities.
Restaurant / Canteen Menus: Whether the students are standing in line or sitting down to eat, digital signage is a great way to catch attention and for example post daily specials in addition to the standard menu.

Getting started: Concerns

With all new technologies there are concerns surrounding adoption. Digital signage is no exception:

Too expensive.

No. Good digital signage manufacturers will offer free software updates, and free support, and cost effective trade-in schemes to keep hardware up-to-date.

No.  A good digital signage solution should be easy to use by even non-technical users, with very little work being required of the school staff.  The ease of use will encourage buy in of both staff and students to the new system; with digital signage, it is easy to dynamically change the content with non technical staff, and customize different screens in different locations.

Fresh and regularly updated content is essential to maximise the value of a digital signage system, so a dedication to content renewal needs to be established at the outset.  A good digital signage system will be easy and intuitive to use for real-time updating and scheduling.

The content management system for each digital signage solution will also vary with some being more simple than others; while some systems can offer much greater flexibility they may be more complex to use. The content management solutions will also vary in terms of how much you can change within a template. Most solutions will allow a school to create their own designs with other solutions proving fixed templates allowing only changes to content.

Only a few trained individuals will be able to use it

No.  A good digital signage system has a simple, easily accessible web based interface so anyone with appropriate permission can upload new information or content without any training whatsoever.  Thus the school digital notice board or school TV becomes a live instant trading place for information and a hub central to school life.

Why not DIY?

If it is that simple why not do it yourself? There are several reasons:

It can become a project for an already overstretched IT dept
The time cost will be greater than result
Just doing Powerpoint is not good enough
The quality will be lower
There will be a single point of data entry by an expert versus distributed for all to access.

In conclusion

Digital signage is becoming ubiquitous and schools can chose to adopt it and use it effectively to improve and enhance their students’ learning experiences. Schools that are less innovative are likely to get left behind and will have less to offer the individuals they teach.

Adopt-A-Classroom has generated a lot of appreciation for the program’s fundraising platform for schools. A number of philanthropic foundations, civic groups, businesses, teachers, parents and other individuals have praised the program for its innovative program which allows donors to contribute financially to a certain elementary school classroom in order to improve the educational resources available to the students. Elementary schools in this country differ vastly in quality of education mostly due to these schools’ resource allocation and budgetary concerns. Often times, a lot of classrooms in these schools that lack appropriate endowment suffer in terms of the learning curve of students.

An integral part of children’s learning process is through tools and teaching aids. These have to be purchased by the school, but these days, it has become difficult for schools to do this, especially if they are going through a financial crunch. The Adopt-A-Classroom program has initiated unique fundraising ideas for schools through their support program.  It is easy for teachers to participate in the program as there is no financial commitment required.  Donors can easily participate as well by using the website to make online donations which can be any amount they are comfortable donating.

The donations collected through the Adopt-A-Classroom are all channeled to the classroom teacher; Adopt-A-Classroom does not take out any money for administration.  The program has garnered much success among all the fundraising ideas for schools because teachers feel empowered with their community partners.  By adopting a classroom, donors form partnerships with specific classrooms of their choosing. The teacher’s sense of purpose in the classroom and in the lives of their students is revived when they feel that they have the appropriate tools and partners to do their job.  So in essence, these donations not only provide financial support, but moral support as well.  Donors then feel that they made a meaningful contribution to education.  It is also all the more rewarding for the donors because they can themselves chart the progress the entire group of students has made, and can palpably tell the difference that their support has made.

Adopt-A-Classroom’s fundraising ideas for schools and teachers really help to alleviate the financial burden that teachers take on to try to get the appropriate resources for their classrooms. This added financial stress should not be a part of anyone’s job especially teachers who are serving a civic duty.

There are a host of fundraising ideas for schools that serve different purposes.  While other ideas focus on improving the school environment, infrastructure, or providing field trips or other extracurricular activities, Adopt-A-Classroom’s purpose is to raise money so that teachers can purchase educational resources that they think are essential for learning.  The program benefits both the teachers as well as the students, as the community support for teachers helps boost their morale, and the children also benefit from not only the acquired educational resources and learning materials, but also the feeling that their wellbeing is under consideration by both teachers as well as the larger community.

A lot of schools at every end of the academic and professional spectrum are starting to recognize the limitations of traditional, in classroom/ on campus education and are turning to alternatives to offer more educational opportunities for a wider variety of students. But have you ever wondered how exactly the transition from a classroom based course to an online based degree program takes place? Or perhaps you have been considering enrolling in an online course but you are unsure how the formatting would work or if it would be right for you? Then read on to familiarize yourself with the ways that universities are creating virtual classrooms to meet the needs of the students enrolled in online degree programs.

First it is important to point out that, depending on the particular university and the specific program of study, a lot of instructors are opting to use traditional text books, usually the same ones that the on campus students are using. So that is simple enough, not much of a transition required there. However, other professors are preferring to put all of the material online and depending on the program this often works a lot better. Having your texts and supplemental material online means that you can access it from anywhere at any time without having to worry about lugging a bunch of text books with you everywhere you go; so if you want to catch up on some reading at work during your lunch break, no problem. And since you do not have to worry about the costs of buying text books, which can often get quite pricey, online materials make your educational goals a lot more affordable. Online formats also allow instructors to make their content a lot more dynamic than is possible with traditional texts. By adding demonstration videos, links, animations, and audio as well as video lectures students can have a richer educational experience than many in a traditional setting.

One concern that students who are contemplating an online degree program often have is the issue of classroom interaction, both with the professor and with other students. Most program directors and instructors are aware of the importance of contact and support during your course of study; therefore they have implemented a variety of ways to help you interact and get feedback on your progress. Through a combination of chat rooms, message boards, email, and online exercises students are able to communicate and discuss course material and receive immediate feedback on their understanding and application of that material. Some universities, like Mountain State University, utilize virtual classroom software, such as Blackboard, to enable students to communicate, give presentations, access online exams, and keep track of their progress and grades all from one convenient location. Additionally, other universities such as the University of Cincinnati, will divide students into small peer groups assigned to a professional facilitator to make this interaction more constructive.

And lastly, what about hands on experience? There are a few programs where hands on, real world application is an essential part of the educational process but expert educators have developed projects to compensate for this where students work under the guidance of a professional in their own community to gain the experience they need. The University of Florida’s doctorates program in Pharmacy is a good example of this method.

The concept of an online program is rather simple; however, most schools will make sure that you have adequate support so that you have someone to turn to whenever you are in doubt or have questions. So set back and enjoy the convenience of online education.