Philosophiae Doctor - PhD (Education)

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Pre-service teachers’ preparedness, adoption, and integration of ICTS for technological pedagogical practice at a higher education institution in South Africa
(University of the Western Cape, 2026) Ebimomi, Oluwafemi Ebiseni
Integration of information communication technologies (ICTs) and other digital innovations in teaching-learning has gained global popularity and thus become one of the most promising prospects, particularly in teacher training institutions. This research aimed to explore pre-service teachers’ level of preparation, adoption, and integration of ICT in their pedagogical skills during classroom presentations, and in their professional development. The study is underpinned by three prominent technological theories: Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK), Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), and Technology Integration Planning Model (TIP) to provide a theoretical explanation for the potential implementation of technology in classrooms. Additionally, this study introduces the Pedagogy, Technology and Content (PTC) model, to illustrate how the interconnectedness between pedagogy, technology and content could facilitate effectiveness in teaching and learning in the modern classroom. This study employs a mixed method explanatory research design using a descriptive survey and interviews as sources of primary data collection. The quantitative research part adopt the use of a structured questionnaire with a five-level Likert-scale rating of Undecided (U), Strongly Agree (SA), Agree (A), Strongly Disagree (SD), and Disagree (D) which were administered to the participants. Relevant items in the questionnaire include statements developed from the seven dimensions of the TPACK, TAM, and TIP models on the extent to which students were prepared to integrate ICTs, and the challenges faced by the pre-service teachers in their use of ICTs in the classroom. SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) v25 was used to get the aggregated descriptive statistical mean values and regression analysis value of the dimensions of the administered questionnaire items. The population of this study comprised 300 third and fourth year Bachelor of Education (BEd) students in the Faculty of Education at a higher education institution in the Western Cape Province.
Identity, and emergent counter-narratives of teachers of Afrikaans
(University of the Western Cape, 2025) Kearns, Lu-Ann Millicent
The historical relationship between the Afrikaans language, race and teacher identity is representative of language inequalities which are deeply embedded through language ideology. Language serves as a powerful instrument of inclusion and exclusion but also has the potential to create different ways of ‘being’. In this research, identity, specifically teacher identity, is framed within the ideological margins of language. Language ideology therefore facilitates an in-depth analysis of race, language and identity. This study offers a decolonial interpretation to theoretically and analytically explore the existing and pre-existing linguistic and societal norms which informs the current language reality. This approach anchors the perception of self and identity, deeply rooted within social systems, which include society, culture and history. Therefore, Critical Theory and Critical Race Theory CRT), a LangCrit approach, specifically raciolinguistics, form the theoretical underpinning of this study. This facilitates a critical analysis of race, language and identity focusing on teachers of colour. Race is understood as a socially constructed category and the ideas that emanate from it, are historically determined. The lived experiences of teachers served as a source for authentic and reliable data which is translated into narratives. Narratives are identities; a narrative approach was therefore used to study the intersection between teacher identity, race and language. Semi-structured interviews with five teachers of Afrikaans informed the study. Data is used inductively to construct and enlighten interpretations and theories. This informs counter-narratives which question representations of identity, especially within an unequal language environment. Findings suggest that the silences governing the spaces of race and language teaching continue to compromise teachers’ voices, create dissonances and influence educational practices. These voices are instrumental in deconstructing the deeply embedded norms and values that impede the decolonisation agenda.
The raison d'etre of the Muslim mission primary school in Cape Town and environs from 1860 to 1980 with special reference to the role of Dr A. Abdurahman in the modernisation of Islam-oriented schools
(University of Cape Town, 1986) Ajam, Mogamed
This d~ssertation concerns the modernisation of Islam-oriented schooling in Cape Town and environs whereby Muslim Mission Primary Schools emerge as a socio-cultural compromise between community needs and State school provision policy. It proceeds from the recognition of the cultural diversity that has since the pioneering days characterised the social order of the Mother City. Two religious and cultural traditions have coexisted here in a superordinate and subordinate relationship; one developed a school system for domestication and cultural assimilation, and the other a covert instructional programme for an"alternative religious system and behaviour code. The thrust of the argument is that the Islamic community, developed on the periphery of society that excluded non-Christians, were in the main concerned with cultural transmission, first in the homes of Free Blacks during the Dutch regime, and later in the mosques that arose when religious freedom was obtained. Traditional schools for Islamic culture transmission were conducted by imams and tended to attract in large numbers the children of slaves and other non-white children causing concern among evangelists In 1863, a political understanding between the governments of Britain and Turkey resulted in Abu Bakr Effendi being assigned by the Sultan to conduct a school in Cape Town to effect some uniformity of Islamic instruction. A latent consequence of this Turkish funded school was the production of the first Afrikaans textbook on Islam, a step in the modernisation of cultural transmission. After Effendi's demise the school was discontinued. State education policy ensured that non-white children generally were educated only at State-funded Christian Mission schools. Most Muslim children received only Islamic instruction at the various madressahs (traditional schools) as a result. An increasingly rigid segregation of public schools oriented towards reproducing the superordinate-subordinate culture relationship resulted in a widening gap of literacy which was increasingly important for the economic and political dispensation. Concerned Muslims organised themselves to address the educational deficiency.
n’Kritiese studie ten-opsigte van die status van die plattelands’ onderwyser in die Ceres - Tulbagh gebied
(University of the Western Cape, 1987) Baartzes, Wesley Barry
'n Waarheid wat dikwels aangehaal word is dat die onderwyser die spil is waarom die onderwys met al sy aspekte uiteindelik draai. Onderwysfasiliteite wat grootliks tot die sukses van die onderwysproses bydra, word wel voorsien, maar daar word dikwels gesê dat sonder die inspirerende aandeel van die entoesiastiese, bevoegde en toegewyde onderwyser daar geen sweem van ware onderwys kan wees nie. Die taak waarmee die onderwyser gemoeid is, was nog altyd swaar en veeleisende een. Die veranderinge - ekonomies, maatskaplik en kultureel - wat in resente tye in die lewens van landsburgers plaasgevind het, het egter groter eise aan die onderwyser gestel. Hierdie eise moet nietemin nagekom word as die skool sy funksie as 'n moderne instrument van onderwys wil vervul. 1 ) Om hierdie uitdagings die hoof te bied, het dit gebiedend noodsaaklik geword dat die onderwyser te alle tye 'n aanvaarbare status moet handhaaf , Statusverryking kan verkry word deur die voornemende onderwyser akademies goed toe te rus, hom aan die heilsame en opvoedende invloede van 'n omvattende opleiding vir 'n betreklike lang tydperk bloot te stel, aan die goedgekwalifiseerde onderwyser h kompeterende salaris te betaal en aan hom gunstige diensvoorwaardes en diensomstandighede te bied. 'n Bevredigende professionele werksklimaat vereis op sy beurt dat die onderwyser h gesonde gesindheid en houding teenoor die onderwys moet koester. Sy professionele optrede moet gekenmerk word deur hoedanig hede soos professionele aanspreeklilcheid, integriteit, trots, effektiwiteit, idealisme, gesag, kollegialiteit, altruïstiese dienslewering ring, die regte houding van diensbaarheid te handhaaf en waardigheid wat eerbied by ander sal wek. Verder behoort sy houding deur hoë ideale gelei en deur professionele etiek beinvloed te word. Om dit anders te stel: die onderwysowerheid se verantwoordelik heid is om die werksomstandighede te verskaf, terwyl die beroep self die klimaat skep waarin die onderwyser sy taak op so ~ wyse verrig dat die beroep in alle opsigte as 'n professie be stempel kan word.
Urban social movements in metropolitan Cape Town South Africa
(University of Illionois, 1989) Williams, John James
This study set out to investigate the conditions under which urban issues triggered grassroots mobilization in Metropolitan Cape Town, South Africa between 1976 and 1986. It sought to understand the form taken by such collective behavior and tried to discover the relations of power that inform urban social movements, locally, regionally and nationally. I did not only observe neighborhood social life, but neighborhood-based protests. Through a close observation of social practices in different neighborhoods I have managed to document the influence of urban social movements on the dominant relations of power in Cape Town. In this regard, I have demonstrated that through the organizational strategies and mobilizational tactics of neighborhood associations, political institutions in Black townships have been turned upside down; social relationships in some neighborhoods have been dramatically challenged and reviewed, and perhaps most significantly the legacy of constructed cultural silence amongst the oppressed and exploited has been significantly eroded from unconscious acquiescence to the status quo to a conscious disobedience to the dominant relations of power politically, economically and ideologically. It is in the mobilizational moments of resistance and organizational strategies of city-wide neighborhood networks in the form of urban social movements that there emerge, through conscious struggle, the organic potential and conjunctural possibilities for the construction and propagation of counterhegemonic social relations in the arena of conflict and contestation where the State, since 1976 is finding it increasingly difficult to elicit the consent of the governed. Thus, it is in this historically-informed context that urban social movements are first and foremost an expression of an organized attempt by the people at the grassroots level to transform the dominant Apartheid practices at all levels of society.
The difference between rural and urban Xhosa varieties: A sociolinguistic study
(University of Natal, 1989) Thipa, Henry Mothebesoane
This thesis examines two interrelated issues, namely, the concept of language variety, also called linguistic diversity or linguistic variation and the difference between rural and urban Xhosa varieties in terms of standard and non-standard forms, respectively. The thesis is conceived partly against the background of the pioneer work of Labov (1966) on language variety and partly against a heterogeneous background of developments in the area of language change. The study is essentially about the nature, causes and the result of language change. Consequently, such aspects as language variety, culture, speech community, lexical borrowing, terminology and language standardization are dealt with insofar as they relate specifically to language use and language change. For purposes of the thesis, some parameters are set in terms of which the difference between rural and urban Xhosa varieties is conceived. Because the study is sociolinguistic, no detailed consideration of grammar as such is given. such aspects of grammar as are treated relate specifically to the objective of the thesis. Selected aspects of phonology, syntax and the lexicon are considered. The selection has been done on the basis of the possibility of these aspects being best suited to the kind of comparison the study undertakes. One of the expectations of a research project is that its findings, or at reast some of them, must be capable of being generalized in other areas. It is for this reason that this thesis considers some of the imprecations of the study of language varieties for language planning and language teaching.
Die voorligtingsbehoeftes van Sekondêre leerlinge in 'n benadeelde gemeenskap en die implikasies daarvan vir hul groepvoorligtingsprogram:'n opvolgstudie
(University of the Western Cape, 1990) Gouws, Andre
Hierdie ondersoek is onderneem om die voorligtingsbehoeftes van leerlinge in sekondêre Kleurlingskole in Wes-Kaapland te bepaal en die implikasies daarvan vir hul groepvoorligtingsprogram aan te toon. Die navorser het ook die bevindings van die huidige ondersoek met die van sy meningsopnames in 1979 en 1983 vergelyk. 'n Literatuurstudie is aangewend om die aard, doelstellings en beginsels van groepvoorligting te kelingstake van die Westerse en Afrikaanse - adolessent te ondersoek, formuleer, die ontwikspesifiek die Suiden lig te werp op die spesifieke ontwikkelingsbehoeftes en -probleme waarmee Kleurlingjeugdiges te kampe het. Vraelyste deur leerlinge en skoolvoorligters voltooi, het die relevantheid van die amptelike program se groepvoorligtingsonderwerpe beoordeel, aangedui watter moontlik bestaande onderwerpe kan vervang of daarby gevoeg kan word, en kommentaar oor die inhoud en aanbieding van die huidige program gelewer. Ten opsigte van di,e~~rd van groepvoorligting is bevind dat die huidige Handleiding en Program slegs enkele vereistes toelig en dus hersien behoort te word om alle essensiale aspekte van voorligting te dek. Die afwesigheid van spesifieke dQelá!allinaá vir groepvoorligting in die amptelike handleiding voorsien nie die nodige riglyne aan voorligters vir hul taak nie, en dus is 'n reeks doelstellings in funksionele terme geformuleer. Havighurst (1972) se formulering van adolessente ontwikkelingstake, aangevul deur die navorsing van Burns (1988), kan as n bruikbare raamwerk vir die terrein van groepvoorligting gebruik word. Dis is voorgestel dat elke sekondêre standerd persoonlikheidsvoorligting, voorligting, opvoedkundige voorligting en voorligting behoort te ontvang. sosiale beroeps- Ten opsigte het die onderwerpe van die inhoud van 'n groepvoorligtings programliteratuurstudie onder andere aangetoon dat by die leerlinge se ontwikkelingsvlak en veranderende behoeftes aansluiting moet vind, die program buigsaam moet wees om by plaaslike vereistes te kan aanpas, en dat die klem op die bevordering van leerlinge se persoonlike waardestelsels behoort te val.
Luck, knowledge and excellence in teaching
(University of the Western Cape, 1991) Pendlebury, Shirley
Three questions are central to this thesis: First, can the practice of teaching be made safe from luck through the controlling power of knowledge and reason? Second, even if it can be made safe from luck, should it be? Third, if it is neither possible nor desirable to exclude luck from teaching, what knowledge and personal qualities will put practitioners in the strongest position to face the contingencies of luck and, more especially, to face those conflicts which arise as a consequence of circumstances beyond the practitioner's control? Martha Nussbaum's account of luck and ethics in Greek philosophy and tragedy prompts the questions and provides, with Aristotle, many of the conceptual tools for answering them; Thomas Nagel's work on moral luck provides the categories for a more refined account of luck and its place in teaching With respect to the first two questions, I argue that as a human practice teaching is open to the vicissitudes of fortune and cannot be made safe from luck, except at the expense of its vitality. Like other human practices, teaching is mutable, indeterminate and particular. Both its primary and secondary agents (teachers and pupils) and the practice itself are vulnerable to luck in four categories: constitutive, circumstantial, causal and consequential. But teaching is not just a matter of luck; it is a public practice in which some people are put into the hands of others for specific purposes, usually at public expense. If we have no way of holding practitioners accountable for their actions, the practice loses credibility. Any money or trust put into it is simply a gamble. For these and other reasons, the drive to exclude luck from practice is strong. Yet strong luck-diminishment projects are themselves a threat to the vitality of the practice. During the twentieth century two strong luck-diminishment projects have been especially detrimental to teaching: one rooted in the science of management, the other in the empirical sciences. Both have resulted in a proliferation of unfruitful and often trivial research projects, to misconceived programmes of teacher education, to distorted notions of knowledge and excellence in teaching, and to self-defeating and impoverished practice.
Perceived deterrents to participation in compensatory education educationally disadvantaged adult South Africans
(University of the Western Cape, 1991) Reddy, Kistammah Bergmann
South African society is regulated by inequality and discrimination based on race. Fundamental human rights and privileges have been extended only to a small sector of the population. The majority of South African citizens remain constrained within a context of imposed inferiority in every aspect of their lives. Inequality, entrenched in political and economic apartheid structures, is also reflected in educational provision for Black citizens. Decades of apartheid schooling have resulted in a large population of illiterate, low-literate and educationally disadvantaged adults. Educational, political and economic discrimination all contribute to relegate Blacks to the lowest socioeconomic strata of South African society. Since numerous Blacks, particularly Africans, are restricted from effectively learning in South African schools, there is an escalating need for compensatory adult education Segregation and unequal educational provision have always characterized education in South Africa. The system of apartheid schooling was formalized by the government in 1953 when different education systems for distinct population groups were introduced. Inequalities in the structural features of apartheid schooling were evident in the discriminatory allocation of funds for public education. In 1953 government funds allocated for the education of each White child were approximately R128 (Rands), for every Indian and Coloured child R40, and for every African child R17 (a 7:1 ratio between the 'White and the African allocations). In 1976, the year of uprising by school children in Soweto, the discrepancy in allocation of educational funds had widened to a 10:1 ratio with the White allocation rising to R724, Indian to R357, Coloured to R226, and Africans to only R71 (Horrell, 1982, p. 115). At that time White, Indian and Coloured children were provided with at least ten years of free compulsory schooling. Nonetheless, the unequal distribution of educational funds afforded White children better educational facilities and better qualified teachers than those provided for other racial groups.
Free or co-ordinated markets? education and training policy options for a future South Africa
(University of the Western Cape, 1994) Kraak, Andre
This thesis is a comparative study of competing education and training (ET) policy options in South Africa today. The thesis examines the economic and ET policy proposals of the South African state, and in particular, the recently published National Training Strategy and Education Renewal Strategy. These documents are both critically examined and contrasted with the policy proposals which are currently emerging in the African National Congress (ANC) and Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu). The analysis establishes a continuum of ET systems, with the policy proposals of the South African state representing a
Towards the democratization of instructional leadership in South African schools: current trends and future possibilities.
(1995) Williams, Clarence Gordon
The Department of Education of the South Mrican Government of National Unity has accepted democratic governance as one of the principles of its education and training programme. At school level, especially at historically black schools, there is also an increasing demand for meaningful involvement in the decision-making that affects school policy. Unfortunately educational leaders have generally not been empowered to make a meaningful contribution to the transformation of the schools into democratic teaching and learning organizations. This motivated the decision to undertake this thesis. The focus on the democratization of instructional leadership is meant to serve as an example and catalyst for the democratization of all other aspects of the school. In order to contextualize the investigation the main approaches to schooling in South Africa were interrogated against the background of the conservative, liberal and radical theories of democracy in western capitalist societies. The main finding is that, in spite of obvious differences, South African schooling is essentially another form of mass education used as the legitimating apparatus of state ideology. Within this framework Christian-National Education and liberalism form the dominant educational discourse in South Africa while the aspirations of the majority of blacks find manifestation in People's Education which embodies radical/nco-Marxist theories. In spite of the claims of it being basically neutral and value free, educational leadership in South Africa has generally been used to legitimate and reproduce the existing hegemony. An investigation of the positivistic, interpretive and critical research paradigms indicated that, given the South African context, critical action research with its emphasis on, amongst others, collaborative participation, empowerment and emancipation is the most appropriate means to effect the democratization of instructional leadership. Relevant theories and research findings from the literature on action research were then explicated and made applicable to instructional leadership.
Emancipatory education in a workplace
(University of the Western Cape, 1995)
The thesis is about an action research project which had an emancipatory educational intent. The social situation in which this research took place involved people in a specific workplace. Because education is historically constructed, the process of education in the research was considered in relation to the historical background and prevailing socio-political, educational and business situation. The research efforts in this context were directed towards seeking "truth; not as an absolute category, but as a structural and relational one" (Giroux, 1988b:xx). Ostensibly this research was about my own practice. On the one hand, I wanted to examine traditional views of workplace operation in an educational context, and on the other hand, reveal new possibilities which would change my practice and the traditional approach to education that I was part of. In the process a practical learning experience for employers and employees, in a particular workplace, was set in motion. The need for this learning experience was identified by the people in the specific workplace and the attempts at change-action were developed based on the democratic values of equality; justice; empowerment; participation; responsibility and accountability. The primary focus of the employers (and hopefully the employees) in the workplace, was to produce profitable productive work, but one cannot work in a social and political vacuum. Ignoring the reality that a workplace was an area of accommodation and contestation among differentially empowered people was problematic. Issues such as culture, race, gender, economic access and educational opportunity were (are) highlighted in the South African situation and needed to be confronted Workplaces retreat into discourses of management and administration with a focus on issues of efficiency, control and results. It is a myth to believe a workplace can do without these. However, through this research I intended to alert people in workplaces that they need to develop a discourse which reveals the understanding of experiences by questioning, inquiring and reflecting on these experiences.
Besluitnemingsvaardighede: 'n Sielkundig-andragogiese perspektief
(University of the Western Cape, 1995) Strydom, Irene
Die volwassene wat 'n professionele beroep beoefen, vervul nie net die rol van professionele beroepsbeoefenaar nie, maar is ook 'n voltydse leerder (student); tuisteskepper en landsburger. Hierdie verskillende rolle kan só veeleisend raak dat die volwassene oorweldig voel en in spanningsituasies of te midde van 'n vol program, onvanpaste besluitnemingstrategieë aanwend. Die openbaring van onvanpaste besluitnemingsgedrag sluit in die onvermoë om • die kern van die probleem te formuleer • alternatiewe te genereer en te evalueer • die besluit te neem, te implementeer en te evalueer 'n Empiriese ondersoek is onderneem om te bepaal watter besluitnemingstrategieë deur professionele volwassenes bemeester behoort te word en of die andragoog die volwassene tydens die afhandeling van die besluitnemingsproses moet bystaan. Die faktore wat 'n rol by besluitneming speel, is ook behandel. Die navorser se eie voorstelling van die besluitnemingsproses, wat as opsomming van die literatuurstudie beskou kan word, is as raamwerk gebruik om vrae te genereer wat in die vraelys opgeneem kon word, asook om onderhoude te voer. Die belangrikste gevolgtrekking van die ondersoek is dat professionele volwassenes tydens die besluitnemingsproses op ondersteuning aangewese is en dat besluit nemingskonflik verlig kan word indien 33 belangrike besluitnemingsvaardighede bemeester is. Verder is gevind dat daar beduidende verskille is ten opsigte van die besluitnemingsvermoë van die agt verskillende beroepsgroepe wat by hierdie navorsing betrek is, asook tussen manlike en vroulike respondente en Afrikaanssprekende en Engelssprekende respondente. Die algemene gevolgtrekking waartoe gekom is, is dat sommige professionele volwassenes onderpresteer wat besluitneming betref en dat hulle in besonder op begeleiding aangewese is. Die andragoog wat as besluitnemingskonsultant optree, sal hom dit spesifiek ten doel stelom sy medevolwassene wat ontoereikende besluitnemingsgedrag openbaar, te begelei tot die vorming van 'n realistiese besluitnemingsidentiteit. Verder word 'n nuwe, meer omvattende uiteensetting van die besluitnemingshandeling vanuit die Sielkundige Opvoedkunde voorgestel wat ten doel het om 'n meer indringende beskrywing van dié konatiewe handeling daar te stel as wat tans in die opvoedkundige sielkundige teorie te vind is.
'n Poging tot onderwysinnovasie in die Richtersveld
(University of the Western Cape, 1997) Van Heerden, Monica Martha Aletha
This thesis represents the outcome of an interaction between a participating "outsider" and a group of teachers during which a continued dialogue between theory and practice was pursued. The goal was to enhance the quality of teaching practice in a specific situation on the one hand and on the other, gain deeper insight into the theoretical aspects which have a bearing on classroom practice. The research project was initially started in response to teachers' request for help with the teaching of Afrikaans first language to learners whose home language was Afrikaans, but who did not make satisfactory progress in Teachers from four schools in the Richtersveld, a far-off region in the Northern Cape, one of the nine provinces of South Africa, joined the INSET project and participated in a hands-on language programme in which a different approach from the traditional teaching and learning model was advocated. The innovative programme focused on an integrated approach to the teaching and learning of reading and writing as meaning-making activities. The research was carried out within a qualitative research framework in which participants not only had to carry out specific innovative learning tasks, but had to reflect on the value of their actions with a view to become change agents who would facilitate learning in such a manner that their pupils would also develop into reflective agents who would be able to take charge of their particular life world. The project experience was shared through a narrative which required of readers to take a stance since they had to make meaning of the identified themes and motifs which gradually emerged. Some of the major themes which, in my view, developed were: that successful communication between stakeholders in die teaching and learning event is a prerequisite for successful learning. Language is a social construct, but is the central medium of communication, therefore, all participants should understand the operative "rules" of communication in a specific learning context. All pupils in multi-lingual classes should be in a position where their life chances, not only their life-styles, are enhanced.
Teacher development mediation: a cognition-based reconsideration
(University of the Western Cape, 1997) Abel, Lydia
The research was prompted by two main issues prevalent in South African education in the last decade. These were particularly the critical state of the schooling system, especially in the educationally disadvantaged schools (mainly ex-Department of Education and Training) and the relationship of the teacher to teaching and the related issue of teacher upgrading. The resultant effect was that the educationally disadvantaged communities became more and more disadvantaged over time because of decreasing mental stimulation and mental development. The answer lay in finding a theory of intellectual growth and development which takes into account the learning environment of the disadvantaged child. The Educational Support Services Trust (ESST) has been active in addressing this very issue since 1986. It provides appropriate learner-centred mediational texts to disadvantaged pupils around the country. These materials concentrate on the development of practical intelligence by relating leaming to everyday experience. The Teachers' Methodology Project was designed to change the teachers who were using the ESST materials from being disseminators of information to being managers of a learning-centred classroom environment. The idea was to change the way that teachers thought about teaching and learning. This was accomplished by sharing the methodology of the existing pupils' materials and theories of cognition and mediation with them so that they could become adept at mediating at the level of deconstruction of complex ideas and using this knowledge in the construction and development of their own learning materials, thereby contributing to the mental development of their pupils. My experience as a staff member of the ESST and my background in education provided an entry point to this research via Feuerstein et at's (1980,1991) criteria for mediation, Haywood's (1993) mediational teaching style and a range of other theories and ideas including group work and co-operative learning, graphic organisers, and the ESSTs own theory of mediatory text (Sinclair, 1991). These were consolidated into a learning-centred approach to teaching in which the learner, the teacher and the task become part of the total learning-centred environment.
Ideaal en werklikheid in die opleiding van verpleegkundiges in Suid-Afrika: ‘n Aksienavorsingsbenadering tot praktykyerbetering
(University of the Western Cape, 1997) Boshoff, Ellen Louisa Dorothea
This dissertation documents the attempt to address one of the major problems in nursing education i.e. the existing gap between the educational philosophy of nursing and nursing education practices, by means of an action research project during the period 1991-1996. The research in this dissertation is recorded in three phases. Phase One elaborates on the biographical and professional background of the researcher and the reasons why action research was selected for the purpose of this particular project Since action research provides opportunities for teachers to change and transform their own teaching practices, it was obviously the best choice for the research. The emphasis was on collaboration and participation and the researcher was morally bound to consider and observe all internal and external factors which influence and limit her own teaching practice, in order to initiate change and transformation in teaching. In order to define and contextualize the problem and to describe the situation in which this particular problem has been identified, the role of the statutory body, the South African Nursing Council which governs the profession and basic professional nursing education were explored. The problem is formulated as the existing gap between the educational philosophy on which existing nursing and nursing education practices are theoretically grounded and the way in which both nursing and nursing education practices appear in reality. Phase One also deals with the historical and philosophical foundations and development of nursing and nursing education. In an attempt to describe the researchers's teaching practice appropriately, as a social practice, it was essential to consider not only the professional and social boundaries of nursing education, but also the current situation regarding national education, the existing health system and all factors related to education and health. The dissertation then draws the attention to the essential features and historical context of a progressive and critical pedagogy, as a foundation for action research.
Effects of exemplary teaching and learning materials on students performance in biology
(University of the Western Cape, 1998) Ramorogo, Gaobolelelwe Jimmy
This study sought to determine the effects of exemplary teaching and learning materials on students' participation and achievement in biology in Botswana science classrooms. In particular, it was concerned with examining the effects of student-teacher-material interactions on the students' participation and achievement in biology. The method adopted for this study was an eclectic approach in which both quantitative and qualitative approaches were used to complement each other. In order to understand the social processes and meaning that the participants in this study attach to phenomena, a qualitative approach based on social interactionism was adopted. The role played by the researcher in this study was that of a participant-as- observer. To explore life in Botswana biology classrooms and to unravel the complex social aspects of teaching and learning, a holistic ethnography (used alongside a variety of micro-ethnographies) were adopted for the study. Ten experienced biology teachers were involved in identifying the topic that could be developed for exemplary practice as well as in validating the materials that were produced. They also responded to the exploratory questionnaire on the traits of an exemplary biology teacher, which formed the basis for the development of the exemplary package. An induction workshop was conducted for the exemplary teachers to help them explore and reflect on their practice with a view to create in them an appreciation for the exemplary approach to teaching and learning. The curriculum package consisted of the students' workbook, scheme of work, lesson plans and an achievement test. A sample of seven schools was used in the study. Two schools were used for each of the co-operative, competitive and individualistic groups and the last school was the used as the true control group. To minimize the effects of contamination, the treatment groups were chosen from different areas of the country. A total of seven teachers md 446 students were involved in the study. A quasi-experimental research design modified from the Solomon-three- control group design was used. Also, qualitative methods were used to capture the data that were not easily amenable to quantification.
Towards an inclusive democratic educational theory and practice in South Africa: mediating individualism and collectivism, difference and commonality
(University of the Western Cape, 1998) Subotzky, George Isaac
This thesis is concerned with the definition of an inclusive democratic educational theory and practice which mediates the assumed tension between individualism and collectivism, difference and equality, and liberty and equality. In Part 1, I set out the elements of an inclusive theory of democracy and then proceed in Part 2 to examine various aspects of educational practice in the light of this. My main claim is that these assumed tensions can be mediated through the conceptualising of our composite identity in terms of the notion of dual social ontology. This refers to our two-fold identities as universal, common human beings and our multiple subjective positions as particular, different individuating beings. Together, these two aspects of our identity constitute the basis for conceptualising our simultaneous commonality and difference and for an inclusive notion of democracy. I argue further that the key to understanding the intersection of commonality and difference in social relations and institutional practices is the concept of the spheres of social relations and their constitutive meanings. The latter provide the criterion by which we can judge the appropriateness of difference or equality in that sphere or in practices which relate to it. In the light of these concepts, I trace the ideological contestation at the heart of democratic theory between liberalism and socialism. My claim is that the mutual limitations of these theories preclude constructing an inclusive theory of democracy which incorporates collective equality and individual liberty in a non-polarised way. I argue that the tension between individualism and collectivism can be mediated by analysing these cluster concepts into non-polarised simpler elements. My main contention is that only self-interested individualism, which assumes individuals as atomistic self-seekers, is necessarily in conceptual conflict with collectivism. The other two elements of individualism which I identify, namely, individuality, our universal common identity as bearers of rights, and individuation, the process of self-development through the expression of the unique difference, are shown to be compatible with collective concerns and the social view of human identity.
Signification of African cultural identity, individual African identity and performance in Mathematics among some standard nine African pupils in Mangaung high schools
(University of the Western Cape, 1998) Mahlomaholo, Geoffrey Mahlomaholo
This study investigates how two groups of African pupils, namely the low and high performers in standard 9 mathematics classes in some high schools in Mangaung, construct meaning of their African cultural, individual African identity and performance in mathematics respectively. The observation underpinning this investigation is that social structural factors have not gained much attention in research as bases for explaining differentiated performance in mathematics, hence this study. To arrive at the findings mentioned below, the study used three quantitative instruments namely Mboya's Self-Description Inventory II (MSDI-II), Rotter's I-E scale and Tuekman's Mathematics Attitude Scale (MAS). Four hundred pupils who constituted the sample that responded to these questionnaires were controlled as to confounding variables like, gender, social class, exposure to mathematics and future aspirations relating to this subject. MSDI-II and Rotter's I-E Scale accessed data relating to signification of African individual identity while MAS and one of MSDI-Il's subscale, Maths Ability were 'triangulated' to access data relating to signification of performance in Mathematics. To triangulate findings on these two variables as well as to allow the sampled pupils' voices to be heard, discourse analysis was conducted on the open interviews with the two groups of low and high performing pupils in their respective schools. This qualitative approach also enabled the study to access information relating to signification of African Cultural Identity. No quantitative instrument was found suitable for this purpose. Although the study is careful not to make strong causal inferences between meaning construction (signification) and performance, the results show that (i) low performers are not sure about whether they are Africans or not since according to them African cultural identity implies an obsolete and primitive way of doing things. They are unable to identify with this. High performers see African Cultural Identity as involving lived experiences which challenge them to transform their despised status as Africans (ii) Low performers are not as positive as high performers about Africanness (individual identity) and (iii) they are also not positively inclined towards mathematics and their own ability to perform well therein, while high performers are very positive as they see doing well in mathematics as an act of struggle that would enable them to improve their social standing and that of other Africans. On the basis of the above the study is able to conclude that low performers construct meaning of the mentioned factors in agreement with the dominant discourses that see Africanness as being primitive, incompetent and unable to adequately comprehend the intricacies of modem day subjects like mathematics. High performers on the other hand tend to contest this negative definitions about what it means to be an African (identity, culture and performance in mathematics). They are thus positioned within counter-hegemonic ideology and discourses in as far as their meaning construction is concerned. Grounded on the above findings and conclusions, the study recommends that efforts should not be spared to enable the low performers (and/or pupils at risk of failing) to adopt positive meaning making strategies of high performers. These strategies may be accompanied by enhanced positive feelings about self and what one is capable of, which may in tum also impact positively on performance in mathematics, in particular. The research further argues that this goal may be achieved through curriculum enrichment, guidance, counselling and teaching, couched in the framework of African Renaissance. Therefore further research needs to be conducted that will elaborate clearly (i) what the implications of African Renaissance are on education, teaching, learning and mathematics curriculum in particular, (ii) what are the most effective means of transferring high performers' strategies of meaning construction to the low performers in the context of African Renaissance and (iii) how to strengthen and further sustain the positive meaning making strategies among high performers. Recommendations relating to curriculum enrichment in the context of Curriculum 2005 and Outcomes Based Counselling are also made as well as suggestions for future relevant research based on the concepts generated in this research.
School organisation development (OD): Learning from a success story in South Africa
(University of the Western Cape, 1999) De Jong, Terence Anthony
In concluding this dissertation I am reminded of Patton's (1990) contention that in order to decide what the appropriate unit of analysis is in a study, you need to decide what it is you want to be able to say something about at the end of the study. The unit of analysis of this study was the characteristics of and strategies for developing a successful school. At the end of this study, in relation to the South African education context, I wanted to say something about what a successful school looks like and, with special reference to school OD, how a school can become successful by examining Modderdam's success story (the case) in relation to TIP's school OD model (the intervention), international and local research on successful schools (the literature), and' current South African education policies and reform initiatives (national education reform). I was particularly concerned with saying something about the implications of this study for education reform in South Africa and, where possible, other contexts. These intentions were based on the two broad aims of this study which were: The nature of this study was illuminative and not scientifically absolute. Based on the principle of learning from success it endeavoured to deepen our understanding of what constitutes a successful school and how a school can become successful. The particular context is the South African education reform process. As such, it aimed to provoke insights rather than definitive answers in response to the aims of this study. The insights that have been generated by this study have manifested at different levels of 'depth'. Chapter eight discussed emerging insights which ranged from findings such as the striking similarity between the case study's successes and the twelve generic characteristics of a successful school based on the literature, to the contention that, unlike schools in a developed context, a school in the South African context cannot be the primary unit of change. Chapter nine consolidated these emerging insights into three key insights which have in some respects gone beyond the aims of this study by, for example, proposing a framework of core conditions for an enabling school level environment.

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