This bachelor thesis asks why, when there are existing factors allowing the special administrative region of Macau to report news on the neutral side, Macau-based news agencies support Mainland...Show moreThis bachelor thesis asks why, when there are existing factors allowing the special administrative region of Macau to report news on the neutral side, Macau-based news agencies support Mainland China's take on the Taiwan question. This thesis argues the explanation for this puzzle lies in the notion of the established national identity for both Mainland China and the port-city of Macau.Show less
Abstract Story and reading comprehension are important parts of education and daily life and there has been concerns about the decrease in the comprehension level of Dutch children. The goal of the...Show moreAbstract Story and reading comprehension are important parts of education and daily life and there has been concerns about the decrease in the comprehension level of Dutch children. The goal of the current study was to determine the difference between video, audio and text when it comes to story comprehension. Besides the difference between the three different media, we were interested in the difference between the comprehension of strong and weak readers on these media. Because the standard of coherence could play an important part in story comprehension, we also examined if there was a difference in the standard of coherence between strong and weak readers. Children between eight and twelve years old (Grade 4-6) participated in this research. A within-subjects design was used and all children were presented with a video, an audio and a text. They answered open-ended questions to test their comprehension of the story. Their standard of coherence was tested with a self-report questionnaire. The results indicated a difference between the comprehension across different media. After watching a video, the story comprehension was better in comparison to after reading a text. No difference was found between audio and the other media. Strong readers appeared to have better comprehension than weak readers, but the pattern wasn’t different for video, audio and text. In addition, the standard of coherence didn’t differ between strong and weak readers. These findings have implications for the educational practice. Apparently both strong and weak readers seem to benefit from watching a video when it comes to their story comprehension. Teachers could therefore use videos to increase the story comprehension of their students. No difference was found between audio and text, but teachers may use audio to add some change to their lessons, in order to increase the engagement and motivation in reading education.Show less
The role of ICT in the classroom is becoming increasingly prominent for the transmission of knowledge. One of the challenges associated with the educational use of ICT is finding out what motivates...Show moreThe role of ICT in the classroom is becoming increasingly prominent for the transmission of knowledge. One of the challenges associated with the educational use of ICT is finding out what motivates teachers to use ICT for educational purposes. The main focus of this study is to examine the relationship between external factors and the educational use of ICT among primary school teachers. A distinction was made between three types of external factors: postive cognitive valences, perceived external support and school collegial support. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data from 227 primary teachers in the Netherlands. Ten teachers were interviewed using a semi-structured interview guide. No relationship is found between gender and positive cognitive valences. The data didn’t support the expectations of a relationship between school collegial support and educational ICT use. The results show that perceived external support influences the educational use of ICT among primary school teachers. In particular, the results show that environments supporting teachers to engage in ICT activities increase the ICT usage of primary school teachers. The outcome of the qualitative analysis shows that teachers referred mostly to the school as a source of external support. Parents were the second-most mentioned source and students seemed to be the least prominent source of external support. Further research is necessary to make a distinction between different types of perceived external support and their influence on educational ICT use.Show less
Master thesis | Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology (MSc)
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In 2004, Ayaan Hirsi Ali and Theo van Gogh made the anti-Islam film Submission. Four years later, Geert Wilders published his own anti-Islam film, Fitna. These movies were both a reason for and a...Show moreIn 2004, Ayaan Hirsi Ali and Theo van Gogh made the anti-Islam film Submission. Four years later, Geert Wilders published his own anti-Islam film, Fitna. These movies were both a reason for and a consequence of a Dutch sociopolitical climate in which anti-Islam sentiments were widely spread. Using academic literature about orientalism, media and gender, such as described by Edward Said as well as many others, I researched the use of orientalist characteristics in representing Muslims and the Islam in both of these movies, paying attention to the texts, visual aspects and implications of the films, as well as looking at the intentions of the makers and the place of the movies in the wider Dutch context.Show less
This thesis analyzes the development of social movements in China since the beginning of Deng Xiaoping's reforms. A comparison of the democracy movements of the 1980s and the labour movements of...Show moreThis thesis analyzes the development of social movements in China since the beginning of Deng Xiaoping's reforms. A comparison of the democracy movements of the 1980s and the labour movements of the 2000s is the central focus of the paper with special attention given to the role of the media, and social networking, in the development of these movements. It is argued that both movements share the strikingly similar grievances and methods of organization, and that the media, despite its continuing liberalization, continues to play only a marginal role.Show less
