Graduate Theses

Permanent URI for this collection

Browse

Recent Submissions

Now showing 71 - 75 of 626
  • Item
    Remix + Praxis: A Rapademic Approach to Critical and Culturally Relevant Education
    (Mount Saint Vincent University, 2022) McGuire, Michael Douglas
    A decade ago, the province of Nova Scotia identified what it designated as achievement gaps—a significant disparity in scholastic performance for Black and Indigenous students relative to those of European descent as a result of longstanding Euro-centrism in educational spaces. This led to a number of calls for culturally relevant pedagogical approaches to be adopted as a means of combatting the negative trend. In the intervening years, however, educators have struggled to find ways to make this a reality. This dissertation makes use of a combined autoethnographic and songwriting-based method to detail the author’s efforts to bring his educational practices in line with culturally relevant and responsive pedagogies. Through a critical hip hop lens, a praxis-based method for curriculum development takes shape, presenting a pathway toward liberatory educational experiences that can be adapted to virtually any cultural context to the benefit of both teachers and students. Borrowing from the hip hop practice of remixing, the author outlines a method that gives educators an opportunity to continually reimagine and realign their curricula in a way that encourages student-centered critical education and adaptable curricular planning. While this dissertation outlines the author’s journey in coming to develop a hip hop-based pedagogy, it presents a praxis-based method that can be achieved through any number of approaches. While this is not presented as the definitive model for culturally relevant and responsive education, it offers an autoethnographic look at one way of attaining those goals.
  • Item
    Bridge or Barrier: an Examination of the Accessibility of Ontario University Accessibility Services Offices Webpages
    (Mount Saint Vincent University, 2022) Walker, Paige
    Research examining the web accessibility of postsecondary institutions has primarily focused on the homepage of the website, with few examining Canadian institutions. This study explored how easy it is to locate the homepage of each Ontario University Accessibility Services Office and evaluated the compliance of each homepage with the most recent version of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.1). Using qualitative methodology and an automated accessibility tool (Total Validator), 21 Ontario University Accessibility Services Offices homepages were analyzed. Each homepage was located, and all failed to comply with WCAG 2.1 standards. Across homepages, 100% had at least one WCAG 2.1 Level A error, and 71% had at least one WCAG Level AA error. The most common WCAG 2.1 error was improperly nesting headings. Implications and recommendations for Ontario University Accessibility Services Offices are discussed, along with considerations for future research.
  • Item
    Understanding Mental Well-Being of Youth in Nova Scotia: A Focus on the Influence of Lining in Poverty, Sex, and Gender
    (Mount Saint Vincent University, 2022-06) Haidar, Pascale Marie
    Mental well-being is a predictor of life satisfaction, academic achievement, and self-esteem but little is known about the mental well-being of Nova Scotian youth. Additionally, socioeconomic status can be a predictor of life satisfaction, leaving some individuals at a disadvantage. The current study aimed to explore the mental well-being of Nova Scotian youth and the extent to which well-being might differ across the sex and gender spectrum, and across economic factors, with a specific focus on understanding youth living in poverty. Participants were aged between 16 and 19 years old and completed a survey asking about their mental well-being, beliefs about social mobility, and subjective social status. No caregivers participated in the study; therefore, socioeconomic status was unable to be calculated. Rather, asking youth about their beliefs about social mobility and their subjective social status informed the research question. Regression analyses were planned but not possible, therefore, bivariate correlations were calculated to assess initial linear relations. The findings indicate that Nova Scotian youth do not all have good mental well-being (M = 46.45). There was a significant positive correlation between mental well-being and both youth subjective social status in comparison to others at their school and subjective family social status in comparison to Canadian society. Social mobility beliefs were not found to significantly predict mental well-being. Allowing youth to voice their needs will provide the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development with the information needed to make schools an environment where Nova Scotian youth can thrive and live fulfilling lives.
  • Item
    How are the Students Doing? An Investigation of Nova Scotian Youth Mental Well-Being
    (Mount Saint Vincent University, 2022-06) Britten, Allison
    How are the students doing? Of particular concern during the Coronavirus global pandemic, mental health crises are occurring worldwide, affecting individuals in a variety of ways. The objective of this study was to provide a starting point of descriptive statistics and descriptive qualitative representation of students’ voices to understand how the students are doing. In an effort to promote youth MWB, the current study sought to answer: 1. How does selfreported Mental Well-Being vary across participants’ identities both from within school and general life self-reports? 2. What are youth’s experiences coping with the global pandemic in relation to their MWB? We anticipated that Nova Scotian youth would report low levels of MWB, specifically in relation to the ongoing global pandemic. Participants consisted of 29 Nova Scotian youth between the ages of 16 and 19 years old, who were registered in a Nova Scotia high school. The survey included the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale (WEMWBS) and qualitative questions to capture student experiences. Results of WEMWBS highlighted that although some Nova Scotian students are doing well, there are many students who reported not doing well. Qualitative findings demonstrate that students are experiencing emotional distress, and signs of lower levels of mental well-being, in many domains of their lives. As anticipated, overall findings suggest that not all students are doing okay during the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19 has created significant stressors and barriers to basic psychological needs for MWB. Our youth are not doing okay and we can do better to support them.
  • Item
    Integrating a Palliative Approach to Care in Long-Term Care: A Comparative Case Study of Two Provinces
    (Mount Saint Vincent University, 2021-10) Hubley, Emily V.
    Aging in place initiatives have contributed to a shift in long-term care (LTC) where residents are now entering at an older age, have greater health complexities, and have a shorter length of stay. Veering from the traditional biomedical approach to address the changing needs, integrating a palliative approach to care in LTC aims to provide comfort and improve the quality of life for residents and their families. A comparative case study design was used to understand how two Canadian jurisdictions, British Columbia (BC) and Nova Scotia (NS), integrate a palliative approach into LTC policy and how they differ. An iterative process of data collection and analysis was used wherein a total of 29 LTC-specific regulatory policies (16 in BC and 13 in NS) were examined using a qualitative content analysis method. Analysis was guided by an innovative framework of 10 domains developed specifically for this analysis (adapted from the Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association and Accreditation Canada). The 10 domains encompass a palliative approach to care and are as follows: care delivery; care planning; communication; end-of-life care/management; loss/grief/bereavement; physical health; practical activities; psychological; social; and spiritual and cultural. After all policies had been coded as part of the content analysis, thematic analysis was used within each domain to uncover the specific themes related to a palliative approach to care and how they were supported in policy and similar to or different in each jurisdiction. Analysis revealed highly similar findings across both BC and NS in terms of the recurrence of domains that were supported. In both jurisdictions, communication, physical health, social, and care delivery were among the most coded and end-of-life care/management and loss/grief/bereavement were the least coded. Promising approaches were identified around open communication among the interdisciplinary team, processes to discuss and document an individual’s goals of care and advance care planning, health assessments and safety, and encouraging social relationships and activities were identified. Although many domains of a palliative approach to care are highly reflected in LTC policy, gaps are identified around end-of-life care and providing supports post-death in loss, grief, and bereavement. In conclusion, policy must go beyond the here and now and further support the final stages of life and post-death care to improve residents and families’ experiences at the end of life.