The theory of the dual economy and African entrepreneurship in Kenya

Models of the dual economy so permeate research and policy that some very important developments are being overlooked. Their implications could considerably shift the emphasis of policy. This paper looks at this aspect of an important piece of research on Kenyan African businessmen and puts it into a context of the dual economy. The implications of a third sector in Kenya are examined alongside some Kenyan data.     

Oh the irony! A reflective report on the assessment of reflective reports on an LLB programme

Reflective practice is generally regarded as an important part of legal education, and the typological models of reflection created by the likes of Schon, Boud, Mezirow and Moon to develop and evaluate the reflective practitioner are becoming as instrumental in LLB curriculum design as the learning models of Bloom, Gibbs and Kolb. What is less clear is the most appropriate methodology for the assessment of reflection, and, in particular what constitutes good reflective writing in this context. By using the medium of reflective writing this piece will explore and evaluate the approach taken to the assessment of the reflective report component of the problem-based learning LLB at York Law School. Reflective practice is an important part of the design of the problem-based learning curriculum and is fully embedded in the learning and teaching at York Law School. It will be shown here that it is just as important to engage the marking team in the rationale and educational benefit of reflective practice as it is the students. Only with a clearly defined task, a structured assessment framework, and ongoing marker training and development, will reflective practice have a meaningful place as an assessed component of the LLB.     

Standard of Living and Disability in Cambodia

Little is known about the extra costs faced by households with disabled members in low resource settings and the impact of these costs on living standards. In this paper we estimate the direct cost associated with disability for households in Cambodia. Using the Standard of Living approach, the direct cost associated with having a member with disabilities is estimated to be 19 per cent of monthly household consumption expenditure. Accounting for the direct cost of disability doubles the poverty rate amongst households with disabled members from 18 per cent to 37 per cent, and increases the poverty gap from 3 to 8 per cent. A comparison of the direct cost associated with disability and income support received from government and family sources reveals that only 7 per cent of the costs of disability are met. Our findings suggest that, in the absence of increased coverage of public income support, households with disabled members will continue to experience a lower standard of living compared to households without disability in Cambodia.     

The significance of outcomes within european health sector reforms: towards the development of an outcomes culture

Recently, policy makers, managers and users of health services have focused their attention on questions about service outcomes and effectiveness. However, the stakeholders in health care-communities, patients, clinicians, insurers, purchasers, managers and policy-makers - may, for various reasons, desire different outcomes to be realised over different timescales. Whilst a focus on outcomes forms a key evaluative criteria within the reforms of European health care systems, the significance of information and the priorities given to outcomes vary across Europe. A central tension lies between the pursuit of individual as opposed to population health gain. Other key issues include the need to separate the evaluation tools from their use and the importance of user choice and user involvement. The article outlines a model of the possible roles and needs for outcomes information. It differentiates between the uses of outcomes information at the patient care and population levels and for considering individual and population health gain. The needs to enhance country-based outcomes databases and to aid the development of an outcomes culture across health care systems in Europe are discussed. The article also discusses issues relating to developing an outcomes culture as an essential element of the health care reform process.     

Exit Britain: British Withdrawal From the Palestine Mandate in the Early Cold War, 1947–1948

The British decision to withdraw from the Palestine mandate in 1947–1948 may at first glance appear contradictory to British strategic interests. The Middle East and Palestine were vital to Britain's Cold War strategy, and its government repeatedly stated the need for a continued British presence in the region to prevent Soviet expansion. Why then withdraw from Palestine just as the Cold War started? The traditional explanation is that Britain withdrew because of economic exhaustion and its inability to remain a great power. But this article shows that economic and strategic considerations both contributed to the decision to withdraw. Britain's involvement in Palestine threatened to undermine its relations with the independent Arab states, and the decision to withdraw from Palestine was therefore taken in the hope that this would secure Britain's position in the rest of the Middle East.