VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
Struggling adolescent and young adult readers from the Ontario child welfare system
Keywords: Education, Social aspects
Education, Ontario
Poor youth, Education
Poor youth, Ontario
Reading, Ability testing
Reading, Ontario
English language, Written English
English language, Ontario
English language, Written English
English language, Ontario
Developmental reading, Ontario
Reading, Psychology of

Study 1 also used a reading classification system to categorize the 55 youth into one of three poor reader subtypes based on their pattern of cognitive deficit. Using criteria derived from the Double Deficit Hypothesis, 96% of the sample could be classified; 41% presented with a PA Deficit Only; 2% a RAN Deficit Only; and 57% a Double Deficit (DD). The DD subgroup were the most impaired readers. These results were compared to a school-aged sample of poor readers classified in Lovett, Steinbach and Frijters's (2000) study. This thesis describes the results from two studies. Study 1 examined the cognitive processing skills of 55 struggling readers from the child welfare system to determine whether their cognitive skills differed from the skills of struggling readers within the general population. The results showed these 55 youth presented with a pattern of cognitive deficits similar to that which characterizes poor readers in the general population. They showed deficits in phonological awareness (PA), rapid automatized naming (RAN), vocabulary, and memory. The cognitive skills of these 55 youth were also compared to the skills of 15 good readers from the child welfare system. Overall, the good readers performed significantly better than the poor readers on most of the cognitive measures although, individually, many of the good readers presented with weaknesses on these measures as well. In a second set of analyses, the good readers were matched onintelligence and age to a smaller sample of 15 poor readers. The results of these analyses were similar to the first set. In Study 2, 24 youth-in-care with poor reading skills participated in one of two reading programs (Program A or Program B) to see if either intervention would improve their reading. The results showed that participants made significant gains on the majority of measures administered to them at post-test. The youth in both programs made significant gains with Program A participants showing greater gains on only one of the measures, suggesting that the youth benefited equally from the programs. Youth with different patterns of cognitive deficit, based on the Double Deficit classification, also benefited equally from the two programs.
The diabetogenic effects of atypical antipsychotic medication: an animal model
Keywords: Neurosciences
Mental health
Pharmacology

In the schizophrenia population, the increased prevalence of atypical antipsychotic use has been paralleled by an increase in reported incidence of obesity, type 2 diabetes, diabetic ketoacidosis and other metabolic abnormalities. These side effects contribute additional health risks to a population that is already burdened by issues of increased morbidity and mortality. We have developed an animal model to evaluate a number of variables relating to antipsychotic treatment and disruptions in metabolism. Investigating measures of insulin sensitivity, and secretion we assessed the chronic versus acute effects of atypical antipsychotic treatment, the differential effect of various antipsychotics, and a neural component by which the atypical antipsychotics induce glucose dysregulation. Chronic administration of olanzapine resulted in a decrease in insulin sensitivity. This insulin resistance was also observed with acute administration of olanzapine. Clozapine and risperidone induced insulin resistance, while ziprasidone and haloperidol did not change insulin sensitivity. We report novel data that show olanzapine and clozapine can have an immediate and significant impact on pancreatic beta cell function. We also initiated experiments to help uncover the pathways mediating antipsychotic-induced glucose dysregulation. Our results show that ICV injections of olanzapine affect both insulin sensitivity and secretion. Our acute data challenge prior notions that weight gain is the primary side effect of treatment with atypical antipsychotic medication and that the host of metabolic problems observed are merely a result of this increased adiposity. We highlight the significant risk to homeostatic glucoregulatory mechanisms in the acute phase of treatment with atypicals reiterating the need for clinicians to monitor metabolic status from the earliest stages of pharmacotherapy.
Are the medical inadmissibility provisions of Canada's Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA, 2001) inconsistent with the human rights principles with respect to the treatment of persons with disabilities?
Keywords: Human rights, Canada
People with disabilities, Legal status, laws, etc
People with disabilities, Canada
Admission of nonimmigrants, Canada

The paper provides a legislative account of Canada's law of entry restrictions with respect to persons with disabilities and argues that Canadian immigration law and policies contradict the principles of inclusion and accommodation that dominate international and domestic human rights law in this area and create vast barriers to full participation of immigrants with disabilities in Canadian society. First, human rights principles for disabled individuals are extracted from a number of international covenants and domestic sources, including the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Canadian Human Rights Act and Ontario Human Rights Code with accompanying jurisprudence. Second, the medical inadmissibility provisions with their jurisprudence are analyzed, and their conflict with human rights principles highlighted. The third section focuses on how Canadian immigration policy could be changed with the aim of incorporating human rights law in terms of allowing the entry to Canada of those who have health impairments.
Application of long gauge fiber optic measurement system: long gauge fiber optic sensor
Keywords: Optical fibers, Testing
Optical fiber detectors
Optical communications

A novel Long Gauge Fiber Optic Sensor (LGFOS) system and Spatial Division Multiplexing (SDM) concept are developed and tested in this Master's thesis. Advantages over existing strain measuring devices include immunity to EMI and relatively small size, as well as lower cost (standard single mode fiber). Performance of this innovative sensor is evaluated and discussed in uniform and variable strain distribution load cases. Field tests are conducted to apply sensors to practical structures. Successes and improvements are presented in the thesis. Major developments in research involve improved sensor installation techniques such as pre-tensioned sensors, stripped sensor fiber coating, and adhesion. Accurate and precise results in tension tests of LGFOS are achieved while compression results show significant improvement using new sensor installation techniques and upgraded instrumentation. The major achievement is a conceptually working 3-sensor SDM system which is described in this thesis.
Understanding the mechanism of idiosyncratic drug reactions: Identification of the metabolic pathway leading to nevirapine-induced skin rash
Keywords: Toxicology
Pharmacology
Pharmacy

Idiosyncratic drug reaction (IDR) refers to a kind of adverse drug reaction that does not occur in most patients at any dose and does not involve any known pharmacological properties of the drug. The mechanisms of most IDRs are unknown but the characteristics of these adverse reactions suggest that they are immune-mediated and circumstantial evidence strongly suggests that most are mediated by reactive metabolites. In this thesis, the focus will be on determining which reactive metabolite, if any, is responsible for a specific IDR; specifically nevirapine-induced skin rash.
Understanding team learning in a multiprofessional health care setting
Keywords: Group work in education
Medical education
Organizational learning

The aim of this research is to determine how team-learning activities occur among team members in the multiprofessional context of an academic health care organization. I use a qualitative case study approach to describe the characteristics embedded in the daily interactions of a well-established team of experts from various health professions providing team focused healthcare in a peritoneal dialysis unit. The two broad themes of this thesis reflect team-learning characteristics and activities: First, the nature of the team within an aspiring learning organization and second, the nature of team learning activities focusing on the use of knowledge. These themes are not isolated, but rather are intermingled and represent the learning and functioning of this single well-established multiprofessional healthcare team. Findings support the key point, the role of leaders is crucial in the outcome of teams learning to work together. There are recommendations for healthcare organizations moving towards becoming learning organizations.
No longer crying in the wilderness: Canadian evangelical organizations and their networks
Keywords: Church buildings, Canada

This dissertation establishes that Canadian evangelicals are no longer, if they ever were, completely isolated from each other and from the communities in which they operate. It explores how networks among evangelical churches influence the functioning of those same churches and their relationship with other organizations in the local community. It does this by examining the nature and structure of the networks evangelical churches are involved in, in one geographical location. It establishes who these evangelicals are, and how and why they interact with each other, and with other organizations in the local community. I conclude that there is significant diversity within the local Protestant religious community; that interconnections among churches can relate to organizational similarity but just as often, cross-denominational, theological, and size boundaries; that reasons for interaction are often functional, rather than based on characteristic similarity; and finally, that direct connections are relatively sparse but indirect connections are plentiful. These conclusions establish that different types of Protestant churches do not line up in two distinct camps opposite in focus in all situations.
Assessing the need and demand for sedation or general anesthesia in dentistry: a national survey of the Canadian population
Keywords: Anesthesia in dentistry, Canada

The aim was to assess need and demand for sedation or general anesthesia for dentistry in Canada. A national telephone survey of a random sample of Canadians 18 years and over was undertaken. Data were collected by a professional survey organization using a 14-item questionnaire. Of 1,101 participants, 5.5% reported being either very afraid or terrified of dental treatment and 7.6% had avoided dentistry because of fear or anxiety. 12.4% were definitely interested in sedation or anesthesia and 42.3% were interested depending on cost. In a hypothetical situation of a severe toothache requiring endodontics, 12.7% reported high fear; 20.4% were definitely interested in sedation or anesthesia; 46.1% interested depending on cost. Preference for sedation or anesthesia if undergoing any one of: cleaning; fillings; endodontics; periodontal surgery; or extraction; was greater than current prevalence. These findings demonstrate significant need and demand for sedation and anesthesia for dentistry in Canada.
Living in "Chicken Cage": a narrative inquiry into cross-generational Taiwanese experiences in learning and teaching from the 1930s to the present
Keywords: Education, History
Education, Taiwan
School environment, History
School environment, Taiwan
Teacher-student relationships, History
Teacher-student relationships, Taiwan

My thesis research is a consequence of my inquiry into my and my father's lived stories of learning and teaching, in which I use "Chicken Cage"--The nickname of our hometown in northern Taiwan---as a metaphor for our lived experiences. It suggested a conflict between our educational situations and Dewey's (1916/1997) emphasis on "the conditions which insure growth" and his idea of "continuous reconstruction of experience" (p. 51). Through this narrative inquiry, I have come to see that the only way out of the constraints of "cages"--like hegemonic relations---is through conversation. My vision is that "narrative conversation" be carried on in schools and in many other lived spaces in Taiwanese society. These conversations will serve to form and reform new concepts of educational situations, and enhance growth and change, not only in personal and professional lives, but also in the objective conditions under which experiences are lived. As I inquired into my and my participants' lived experiences, I realized that as learners or teachers, my participants and I were given no room to develop freely according to our individual needs and diversified capacities. What was commonly lacking was a dialogical interchange in which the authority (e.g., preconception, tradition) is constantly challenged. It showed that a "hegemonic nature" was inherent in our school system, and caused the "cages" to confine my participants and me. Later, through a comparative study, I found that the hegemonic relations were penetrating in every educational system that followed the standard model of schooling."Do other Taiwanese people have similar 'cage' experiences like those of my father and me?" I wondered. My thesis research: a narrative inquiry into cross-generational Taiwanese experiences in learning and teaching ties together the stories of my father, my elementary school teacher, four former classmates and colleagues, and two young schoolteachers, and asks whether my personal experience research is not only of interest to me, but also potentially of use to the lives of others. This question urged me to shift my personal narrative outward to the larger social contexts with the lived stories of many others.
Maintaining professional competence: impact of organizational and individual factors on the updating activities of public reference librarians
Keywords: Reference librarians
Public librarians
Employees, Training of
Professional education

The purpose of the dissertation is to examine the role of selected individual characteristics and organizational factors in affecting the participation of reference librarians in updating activities to maintain their professional competence in the light of rapid developments in technology. Concerns about the obsolescence of skills of the aging workforce of professional librarians, together with a lack of knowledge about the extent of professional development at the individual level prompted this study. The conceptual framework is based on theoretical foundations in organizational behaviour, psychology, gerontology, education and information studies. The independent variables in the conceptual framework are motivation, barriers to participation, age, professional commitment, updating climate and managerial support. The dependent variable is participation in updating activities. Information on the study variables was collected from 297 reference librarians working in large urban public libraries in Ontario, outside of Toronto, by means of a mail survey questionnaire in Spring 2001. Libraries have an aging workforce: the average age of reference librarians was 46.9 years. Analysis of the data revealed that managerial support was instrumental to participation in both formal and informal activities. Motivation was an important predictor of participation in informal activities. Age, particularly feeling old, and part-time status had a negative impact on participation levels in formal and informal activities. Barriers to participation had a negative effect on participation in informal activities and paradoxically, updating climate had a negative effect on participation as well. This study contributes to a better understanding of the process of maintaining professional competence among reference librarians. The results point to the important role that organizational factors play in the process. A supportive manager is key to librarians' participation in both formal and informal updating activities. Written policies on training and development are needed. The links between updating and rewards need to be emphasized as well as the provision of the appropriate rewards for updating. For older workers, intrinsic rewards are the valued rewards. Part-time status reduces opportunities for updating, yet as libraries come to rely on part-time librarians, their updating needs should be addressed. Finally, providers of formal updating courses should provide distance learning opportunities.
Crossing the border: identity and education : a narrative self study (Hong Kong, Chinese)
Keywords: Identity (Psychology), China
History, Study and teaching
History, China
Local history, Study and teaching
Local history, China

In the second part, the focus of inquiry shifted from identity to identity education. Five curricular episodes in history and civic education, which I was personally involved in the capacity of a curriculum officer and a teacher educator, were used to inquire into my perceptions and those of other educators of the nature and approaches of identity education. It was found that while most of us preferred an inclusive approach to cultivate local, national as well as global identities, there was no consensus over whether the promotion of the Chinese identity should be given top priority at the eve of 1997. There were differences in the approaches to be adopted in representing the PRC regime in nationalistic education. Moreover, an interesting fact to note was that many civic educators were found inadequately prepared for their job. This is a narrative self study into my personal and professional experience of the issue of identity of Hong Kong Chinese in the context of Hong Kong's reunification with China in 1997. In the first part, snapshots of my crossing the border between Hong Kong and mainland China between 1963 and 1993 were taken to inquire into the issue of identity. There revealed changes and continuities of three major narrative threads in my stories as Hong Kong Chinese to live by in these different occasions. My personal narrative was constructed to illuminate the collective experience of Hong Kong people over their identity issue. It was found that the already ambiguous sense of identity of Hong Kong Chinese was complicated by the presence of the 1997 Question. The transitional period saw their odyssey in search for meanings and implications of their changing identities in face of 1997. Their perceptions of the People's Republic of China (PRC) regime had given rise to controversies and concerns over the issue. There were rivalries for predominance between the Hong Kong and the Chinese identities in the process of their identity construction. I hope this inquiry has contributed to the literature on the identity issue of Hong Kong Chinese, narrative self studies, and professional development of teachers of identity education.
Reconceiving discretion: from discretion as power to discretion as dialogue
Keywords: Administrative discretion, Canada
Judicial review of administrative acts, Canada
Judicial discretion, Canada

This thesis articulates, and contrasts, the two conceptions of discretion that inform the case law on administrative discretion in Canadian law: discretion "as power" and discretion "as dialogue". I suggest that the latter conception provides the best explanation for the progressive trend which developed in the law of discretion over the last twenty-five years, whereby courts devised procedural and substantive constraints on the exercise of discretion while endorsing a posture of deference towards that kind of decision-making power. Moreover, I argue that the normative foundations for that conception of discretion can be found in a combination a relational theory exemplified in writings by J. Nedelsky, a democratic theory of the kind expressed by H. Richardson, and a vulnerability theory, articulated by J. Handler and L. Sossin. I argue further that a view of discretion as dialogue is justified under an attractive understanding of the rule of law and consequently contributes to the recognition of the legitimacy of the administrative state. Finally, my conception of discretion as dialogue favours the realisation of the legitimate projects of the welfare state while at the same time recognising a role for the rule of law in government.
Interrogation of pedagogical practices of mother tongue bilteracy in French and English: a Francophone case study
Keywords: French-Canadians, Education
French-Canadians, Ontario
Bilingualism, Ontario
English language, Study and teaching
English language, Ontario
French language, Study and teaching
French language, Ontario
Native language and education, Ontario

This 2004 ethnographic inquiry, set in the evolving Winfield-Wessex context of French colonization in Ontario, interrogated the informal and formal pedagogical practices of mother tongue biliteracy in "francais langue maternelle" and English as constructed through changing language policies, language ideologies, and inherited "f/Francophone" illiteracy. I focused my case study on examining the embodied interactions and effects of these practices on the study's participants within the two grade 9 languages/literacies classrooms and everyday school life at l'Envol, the French-language secondary school. I define mother tongue literacy development and related pedagogical practices as ideological concepts that contain underlying views of language, literacy, identity, and power relationships. To attend to participants' language/literacy interactions and practices, to understand them, explain their sources, how they work and their effects, I adopt an experiential framework based on my reflections and insights as a Franco-Ontarian researcher that is couched within an interpretive and critical approach to the ethnography of communication and d/Discourse analysis. My study took account of the perceptions and practices of differently positioned adolescent students, teachers, parents, members of the secondary school staff, and school board administrators all of whom reflected multiple individual, family, and community interests. By using selected excerpts from my interviews, my observations, and relevant documents that reveal a disjuncture between language ideology, pedagogy, and situated practice, I argue that the pedagogical practices of French mother tongue (in its restricted meaning and its "francais langue maternelle" school literacy incarnation) create constraints and tensions for the diverse participants in Room 101 and the educational community at l'Envol as a whole. These restrictive practices invalidate students' other mother tongue identities and act against incorporating student background experience and knowledge as scaffolds for their biliteracy development. I invoke the concept of third space to bring together the divisive ideological language views and pedagogical practices of the dominant "francais " space of mother tongue biliteracy and those of the English mother tongue space to build students' unified bi/multilingual repertoires as they evolve in the in-between spaces of a globalized world.