title: The meaning of "Terrorism": An analysis of developments from Cicero, St Augustine and the Pirate, to the United Nations draft convention

authors: Williamson, Myra Elsie Jane Bell

subjects: terrorism

abstract: What is in a name? That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet. These famous words uttered by Juliet Capulet in a Shakespearean play set in an Italian town have come to represent the notion that what matters most is what something is, not what it is called. Although that assumption may apply to roses and star-crossed lovers, its validity is more arguable when applied to subjects such as that which we are discussing during this session of the 2007 Cortona Colloquium. This paper addresses the meaning of terrorism. It is premised on the assumption that, as opposed to the abovementioned Shakespearean interpretation of the importance of a name, when it comes to defining terrorism the name is all important. The question of which actions deserve to be daubed with the pejorative term "terrorism" is currently a live issue in international law and debate continues as to how the term "terrorism" should be defined, especially in light of the efforts to achieve an international comprehensive convention against terrorism. In this sense, the question "what's in a name", must be answered with a response of, "everything is in the name". This paper is divided into three parts. Part I focuses on the use of force by non-state actors in antiquity and seeks to show that the use of force against civilians to instil fear in order to achieve political or ideological objectives is not the exclusive domain of the twenty-first century. A brief examination of some non-state actors of antiquity, namely pirates, will be undertaken in order to provide some historical perspective for the latter stages of this paper. Part II summarises the attempts that have been made within various domestic jurisdictions to define "terrorism" and, by analysing some of those definitions, it becomes clear that defining a "terrorist act" is an apparently more achievable legislative task than defining "terrorism" per se. Part III then addresses the question of whether it is possible to achieve an international comprehensive convention which includes a universally acceptable definition of terrorism. One of the conclusions that will be reached towards the end of the paper is that there is still a great deal of disagreement between states as to how "terrorism" should be defined and that despite the continuing efforts at achieving consensus on a definition, the outcome may well represent an unsatisfactory compromise at the expense of genuine consensus.

text: The meaning of "Terrorism": An analysis of developments from Cicero, St Augustine and the Pirate, to the United Nations draft convention What is in a name? That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet. These famous words uttered by Juliet Capulet in a Shakespearean play set in an Italian town have come to represent the notion that what matters most is what something is, not what it is called. Although that assumption may apply to roses and star-crossed lovers, its validity is more arguable when applied to subjects such as that which we are discussing during this session of the 2007 Cortona Colloquium. This paper addresses the meaning of terrorism. It is premised on the assumption that, as opposed to the abovementioned Shakespearean interpretation of the importance of a name, when it comes to defining terrorism the name is all important. The question of which actions deserve to be daubed with the pejorative term "terrorism" is currently a live issue in international law and debate continues as to how the term "terrorism" should be defined, especially in light of the efforts to achieve an international comprehensive convention against terrorism. In this sense, the question "what's in a name", must be answered with a response of, "everything is in the name". This paper is divided into three parts. Part I focuses on the use of force by non-state actors in antiquity and seeks to show that the use of force against civilians to instil fear in order to achieve political or ideological objectives is not the exclusive domain of the twenty-first century. A brief examination of some non-state actors of antiquity, namely pirates, will be undertaken in order to provide some historical perspective for the latter stages of this paper. Part II summarises the attempts that have been made within various domestic jurisdictions to define "terrorism" and, by analysing some of those definitions, it becomes clear that defining a "terrorist act" is an apparently more achievable legislative task than defining "terrorism" per se. Part III then addresses the question of whether it is possible to achieve an international comprehensive convention which includes a universally acceptable definition of terrorism. One of the conclusions that will be reached towards the end of the paper is that there is still a great deal of disagreement between states as to how "terrorism" should be defined and that despite the continuing efforts at achieving consensus on a definition, the outcome may well represent an unsatisfactory compromise at the expense of genuine consensus.

year: 2007

title: Teaching languages in primary schools  using educational technologies:  Experiences of primary-school language teachers in Vietnam

authors: Vu, Nhung

subjects: Educational technology

abstract: Using educational technologies (ETs) in classrooms to teach languages in primary education has become increasingly popular worldwide in the last few decades. In Vietnam, since 2000, the government and the Vietnam Ministry of Education and Training (VMOET) have also encouraged teachers at all levels of education, including primary education, to use ET to support their teaching. The VMOET has created opportunities for teachers to improve their teaching with ET integration, with some teacher professional development (TPD) being offered. Thus, primary school language teachers in Vietnam have different experiences of using ET as well as the ET teacher professional development activities being provided. There have been a number of studies on teachers’ experiences of using ET and ET TPD in higher levels of education in Vietnam but few at the primary level, especially in language teaching. Therefore, this study examines the experiences of primary school language teachers and makes suggestions for teachers, school leaders, and policy makers to improve the quality of ET TPD activities, and thus the effectiveness of ET use in language classrooms.
The research method used in this study to gain an insight into the teachers’ experience is a mixed-method approach under the lens of hermeneutic phenomenology. First, teachers of languages in primary schools were surveyed to identify the more specific phenomena to study. Then, I interviewed primary school principals, school technology coordinators, and individual teachers about their lived experiences of applying ET in their teaching to have a deeper understanding of their experience. I also analysed documents such as teachers’ e-lesson plans, school policies, and government policy to address the aim.
There are three key findings of this study. First, the language teachers in this study experienced the use of a limited range of ET including both personal and school-owned ET, but most had a positive attitude and made judicious use of the ETs most of the time. Second, they experienced using ET with a teacher-centred approach, which means ET was substituted for printed materials and chalk and board tools to present the language e-lessons, although the VMOET was advocating for a more student-centred teaching approach with ET support. Third, these teachers had differing perceptions of the two types of ET TPD available. The formal TPD activities were not equally accessed, nor practical enough to address teacher needs, and any learning was not shared formally with colleagues; whereas, the language teacher's informal TPD activities were useful and met the teachers’ needs. These findings may be of use to teachers, school technology coordinators, and school leaders as confirmation of teachers’ predominantly positive perceptions of ET use and that they endeavour to use ET according to their availability and the language learning purpose for the teachers’ lessons. These findings affirm a shift in research attention from ET integration generally to a focus on curriculum specific subject use of ET for teaching and learning. Further recommendations include that the VMOET TPD programmes become more learner-centred to meet the needs of the teachers attending. Overall, these results confirm the need for bridging the gap between policy and the practice of using ET in language teaching in the primary education sector in Vietnam.

text: Teaching languages in primary schools  using educational technologies:  Experiences of primary-school language teachers in Vietnam Using educational technologies (ETs) in classrooms to teach languages in primary education has become increasingly popular worldwide in the last few decades. In Vietnam, since 2000, the government and the Vietnam Ministry of Education and Training (VMOET) have also encouraged teachers at all levels of education, including primary education, to use ET to support their teaching. The VMOET has created opportunities for teachers to improve their teaching with ET integration, with some teacher professional development (TPD) being offered. Thus, primary school language teachers in Vietnam have different experiences of using ET as well as the ET teacher professional development activities being provided. There have been a number of studies on teachers’ experiences of using ET and ET TPD in higher levels of education in Vietnam but few at the primary level, especially in language teaching. Therefore, this study examines the experiences of primary school language teachers and makes suggestions for teachers, school leaders, and policy makers to improve the quality of ET TPD activities, and thus the effectiveness of ET use in language classrooms.
The research method used in this study to gain an insight into the teachers’ experience is a mixed-method approach under the lens of hermeneutic phenomenology. First, teachers of languages in primary schools were surveyed to identify the more specific phenomena to study. Then, I interviewed primary school principals, school technology coordinators, and individual teachers about their lived experiences of applying ET in their teaching to have a deeper understanding of their experience. I also analysed documents such as teachers’ e-lesson plans, school policies, and government policy to address the aim.
There are three key findings of this study. First, the language teachers in this study experienced the use of a limited range of ET including both personal and school-owned ET, but most had a positive attitude and made judicious use of the ETs most of the time. Second, they experienced using ET with a teacher-centred approach, which means ET was substituted for printed materials and chalk and board tools to present the language e-lessons, although the VMOET was advocating for a more student-centred teaching approach with ET support. Third, these teachers had differing perceptions of the two types of ET TPD available. The formal TPD activities were not equally accessed, nor practical enough to address teacher needs, and any learning was not shared formally with colleagues; whereas, the language teacher's informal TPD activities were useful and met the teachers’ needs. These findings may be of use to teachers, school technology coordinators, and school leaders as confirmation of teachers’ predominantly positive perceptions of ET use and that they endeavour to use ET according to their availability and the language learning purpose for the teachers’ lessons. These findings affirm a shift in research attention from ET integration generally to a focus on curriculum specific subject use of ET for teaching and learning. Further recommendations include that the VMOET TPD programmes become more learner-centred to meet the needs of the teachers attending. Overall, these results confirm the need for bridging the gap between policy and the practice of using ET in language teaching in the primary education sector in Vietnam.

year: 2023

title: Ya got ta know when ta hold ‘em: Maori women and gambling

authors: Morrison, Laurie Elena

subjects: Maori

abstract: Gambling among Maori women is under-researched. In this study, I interviewed thirty Maori
women to investigate how they got involved in gambling, what maintained their gambling and
what they thought might help to moderate their gambling. I found that the whanau was central
to understanding these issues. As children, my participants were exposed to gambling within
their whanau. As adults, whanau and other social support relationships were an integral part of
their gambling, which most commonly occurred in the context of card schools and housie. A
sense of reciprocity was important in both forms of gambling. Card schools were reported to be
close-knit groups within which the money circulated, giving all a chance to win. By playing
housie, the women felt that they were contributing to the welfare of their marae. Through the
social bonds of gambling and the acquisition of skills, gambling contributed to these women’s
sense of identity. On the other hand, financial and relationship difficulties were identified as
negative consequences of gambling. The women felt there was a need for Maori-focused
services for problem gambling.

text: Ya got ta know when ta hold ‘em: Maori women and gambling Gambling among Maori women is under-researched. In this study, I interviewed thirty Maori
women to investigate how they got involved in gambling, what maintained their gambling and
what they thought might help to moderate their gambling. I found that the whanau was central
to understanding these issues. As children, my participants were exposed to gambling within
their whanau. As adults, whanau and other social support relationships were an integral part of
their gambling, which most commonly occurred in the context of card schools and housie. A
sense of reciprocity was important in both forms of gambling. Card schools were reported to be
close-knit groups within which the money circulated, giving all a chance to win. By playing
housie, the women felt that they were contributing to the welfare of their marae. Through the
social bonds of gambling and the acquisition of skills, gambling contributed to these women’s
sense of identity. On the other hand, financial and relationship difficulties were identified as
negative consequences of gambling. The women felt there was a need for Maori-focused
services for problem gambling.

year: 1999