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An analysis of the asset-based community development approach to early childhood development interventions in Grahamstown township pre-schools: a case study of the Centre for Social Development and Rhodes University Community Engagement

  • Authors: Maponya, Mapula
  • Date: 2018
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63670 , vital:28469
  • Description: Is the glass half-full or half-empty? The purpose of this research was to show how Centre for Social Development and Rhodes University Community Engagement applies the Asset-Based Community Development approach in ECD interventions in Grahamstown township pre-schools. The subsidiary goals of the research were to highlight the challenges in the Early Childhood Development sector in Gahamstown, find out how the approach contributes to empowerment, participation and sustainability, and analyse the challenges that CSD and RUCE face in applying the approach and the relationship between the two organisations. The case study focused on the Centre for Social Development (CSD) and Rhodes University Community Engagement (RUCE). These two cases established projects that aim to improve Grahamstown township pre-schools. The apartheid system created a childhood of adversity for black children including inadequate access to social services, quality nutrition, health care and education. Black children in rural areas and townships faced tremendous obstacles in terms of access to quality ECD centres due to poverty and lack of adequate resources. In Grahamstown, various problems such as unemployment, poverty and restrictive apartheid regulations created a need for ECD interventions. Both organisations applied the Asset-Based Community Development approach to improve ECD in Grahamstown. The asset-based approach was created as a response to the impact of the needs-based approach. The needs- based approach focuses on deficiencies that exist in a community and uses outside experts and resources to address the deficiencies. The needs-based approach builds communities from the outside in, further disempowers community members and creates an environment of dependency. The asset-based approach on the other hand, was created to change the legacy of dependency by focusing on capacity building. A capacity-focused paradigm recognizes the gifts, skills and talents of community members. This approach is bottom- up beginning with what is available in the community and building on that. The approach aims to empower people, create a positive outlook on circumstances, and encourages organisations to work together with community members in community development projects. To achieve the main and subsidiary goals of the research, qualitative research was conducted using the case study method. In pursuing the objective of the thesis, I conducted research among ECD practitioners, student volunteers and staff from CSD and RUCE. Based on the findings it is clear that the application of the Asset-Based approach has a positive impact on ECD practitioners, children at the pre-schools and student volunteers. Through the application of the ABCD approach, ECD practitioners became proactive and took the driving seat in the development process. The ECD practitioners built strong relationships with community members and outside organisations. They have improved their skills and qualifications, and are on their way to restoring their agency, finding their voice and achieving independence. This has a positive impact on children at the pre-schools as they receive quality education and care. There are various challenges and contradictions in the application of the approach but the ECD practitioners view the communities in which they operate as half-full and not half-empty
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An investigation into how a guided learner leadership programme can foster authentic leadership in a boys’ boarding school environment

  • Authors: Cuyler, Craig
  • Date: 2018
  • Subjects: Educational leadership -- South Africa Boarding schools -- South Africa Boys -- South Africa
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MEd
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/61756 , vital:28055
  • Description: This study is located within the field of Educational Leadership and Management and the research was undertaken in a boys’ private boarding school in Grahamstown, South Africa. Learner Leadership within the ELM field of study, has gained much interest in recent times and as the process of democratisation within schools continues to take place, it is important that research efforts be more focused in this area. The lack of learner voice initiatives within South African schools, in spite of policies being in place that encourage it, has created the impression that learner leadership is far more about rhetoric than actual practice. This appears to be the case in private education as well, owing to practices that are reliant on hierarchy and tradition to cement their position within these schools. It was with this in mind that a formative peer mentoring intervention was put in place in a boarding house at St Andrew’s College, a private boys’ school in Grahamstown, South Africa, with the object of developing authentic leadership in a boarding house context. This study was framed by Cultural Historical Activity Theory and sought to investigate how a guided learner leadership programme could foster authentic leadership in a boys’ boarding school context. The intervention consisted of three phases: 1) a pre-intervention questionnaire; 2) a Mentoring Course, during which Grade 12 learners were trained how to be mentors; and 3) a Mentoring Programme, during which Grade 12 learners were each allocated a Grade 8 learner to mentor during the course of the year. Data was collected during all three phases of the intervention and said data was obtained via questionnaires, interviews and from notes kept in an observation journal. The data was analysed inductively and later by using Cultural Historical Activity Theory, which acted as a lens through which data was interpreted. The findings reflected that learners responded well to the Mentoring Course and that they participated as active agents of change. It was during the Mentoring Programme, where contradictions became apparent and where the default to practices associated with hierarchy and tradition became evident. The Mentoring Programme did reflect some positive results, such as learners taking more ownership of the Programme and becoming critical of their own practice as mentors. This led to the further take-up of the Mentoring Programme in other boarding houses at St Andrew’s College after the intervention, and the course continues to grow and improve. My recommendations include that broader research be undertaken generally, to understand the role that tradition and hierarchy play, particularly in private schools, so that more authentic learner leadership can be put in place, and to conduct a longitudinal study to establish the success of the Mentoring Programme at St Andrew’s College specifically, over time.
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Towards an alternative spatial-based management approach for estuarine fisheries in South Africa, with a case study from the Sundays Estuary

  • Authors: Kramer, Rachel
  • Date: 2016
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/1007 , vital:20012
  • Description: Estuaries are productive habitats and biologically important ecosystems which serve as juvenile nursery areas and feeding grounds for adults from a host of fish species. They are, however, threatened habitats, increasingly exposed to human disturbance and exploitation. The stocks of several South African estuary-dependent linefish species are now considered as either overexploited or collapsed. It is clear that their dependence on estuaries would warrant the inclusion of these ecosystems into marine reserve planning exercises. Since traditional management strategies (e.g. bag and size limit restrictions) have proven ineffective for estuarine fisheries, there is a need for alternative management measures, such as spatial and temporal restrictions, to ensure increased survival of juveniles and recovery of adult breeding populations. This thesis explored the potential for an ecosystem-based approach through the application of a rapid sustainability assessment technique, and a spatial-based management approach for an important fishery species, using conservation planning software. The Sundays Estuary, Eastern Cape, South Africa falls within the footprint of the Addo Elephant National Park, with a proposed expansion to include a marine protected area (MPA). However the estuaries resources were not considered during the planning of the proposed MPA. This study conducted an indicator-based sustainability assessment based on the principles of sustainable development. The results showed that present levels of exploitation, due to non-compliance and a lack of law enforcement are unsustainable. The sustainability of the Sundays Estuary had a low overall sustainability score of only 23.8%. With limited enforcement of estuarine fisheries regulations in South Africa, alternative management measures such as spatial regulations may provide a viable option forward. The sustainability of fishery resources depends on the comprehensive understanding of the fishery resource. Acoustic telemetry is a technique that has been widely adopted to infer habitat and area use patterns of fish species. The second component of this study made use of high resolution telemetry data collected on juvenile dusky kob Argyrosomus japonicus movements within the Sundays Estuary to conduct a scenario-based approach using Marxan conservation planning software. The best solution given by Marxan, in the form of a protected area for the conservation of juvenile A. japonicus in the Sundays Estuary was identified in the middle (starting 7km from the mouth) to the upper reaches (approximately 16km from the mouth) of the estuary, ultimately providing protection to tagged individuals for 61% of their time in the estuary. Although Marxan presented a best solution, the Sundays Estuary’s small size and shape, and minimal features used, was too simplistic to be included into a Marxan analysis. However, new methods and tools to analyse and plan spatial-based management options at this scale are currently being developed. Using the Sundays Estuary as a case study, a decision tree was then developed as a protocol to assist management address the challenges of effective estuarine management depending on the unique biological and socio-economic characteristics of individual estuaries in South Africa.
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Nudus amor formam non amat artificem : representations of gender in elegiac discourse

  • Authors: Evans, Philippa A
  • Date: 2015
  • Subjects: Elegiac poetry , Gender identity in literature , Foucault, Michel, 1926-1984 , Butler, Judith, 1956- , Benjamin, Jessica , Mulvey, Laura , Tibullus , Propertius, Sextus , Sulpicia, active 1st century B.C. , Ovid, 43 B.C. - 17 or 18 A.D. Metamorphoses. Liber 10
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:3654 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1017895
  • Description: This thesis explores the representation of gender, desire, and identity in elegiac discourse. It does so through the lens of post‐structural and psychoanalytic theory, referring to the works of Michel Foucault, Judith Butler, Jessica Benjamin, and Laura Mulvey in their analyses of power, gender performativity, and subjectivity. Within this thesis, these concepts are applied primarily to the works of Tibullus, Propertius, and Sulpicia, ultimately demonstrating that the three love elegists seek, in their poetry, to construct subversive discourses which destabilise the categories by which gender and identity were determined in Augustan Rome. This discussion is supplemented by the investigation of Ovid’s use of elegiac discourse in Book 10 of his Metamorphoses, and the way in which it both comments upon Augustan love elegy and demonstrates a number of parallels with its thematic content. This thesis focuses especially on the representation of power relations within elegiac discourse, the various levels on which such relations operate and, finally, the possibilities for the contestation of and resistance to power, in addition to the motivations that might lie behind the poet‐lover’s frequent attraction and submission to it.
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Spatial and temporal variations in trophic connectivity within an estuarine environment : benthic-pelagic and terrestrial-aquatic linkages via invertebrates and fishes

  • Authors: Bergamino Roman, Leandro
  • Date: 2015
  • Subjects: Estuarine ecology -- South Africa , Marine invertebrates -- South Africa -- Ecology
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
  • Identifier: vital:5921 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1017799
  • Description: Estuarine ecosystems are among the most biologically productive areas and they provide important ecosystem services such as erosion control, habitat and refugia for several species. These environments are characterized by the presence of a variety of organic matter sources due to their transitional position between rivers and the sea. The biotic compositions can undergo spatial and seasonal changes along the estuary due to the spatial and temporal fluctuations of environmental factors such as salinity, temperature and seston loads. Therefore, the different combinations of biotic and abiotic factors make each estuary a unique ecosystem. Because of this spatial and temporal complexity, the understanding of estuarine food web structure and which factors affect the trophic relationships within the ecosystem through space and time represent challenging tasks. Furthermore, estuaries are under an increasing number of anthropogenic perturbations because of the growing concentration of human populations in coastal areas. Knowledge of ecosystem structure and functioning is essential for effective conservation and management planning of coastal areas.In this dissertation, I combine the utilization of biological tracers to examine spatial and temporal variability in the food web structure within a small temperate and microtidal estuary located in South Africa. To this end, fatty acid profiles and stable isotope signatures were measured in several primary organic matter sources and consumers (including zooplankton, fishes and benthic invertebrates) during four consecutive seasons and in three different estuarine regions: upper, middle, and lower reaches. The three reaches had distinct habitat features of vegetation type and morphology, and in particular the lower reaches were colonized by the marsh grass Spartina maritima. Isotopic mixing models were used to estimate the relative contribution of each food source to the diets of invertebrates and fishes within the estuarine food web. The isotopic and fatty acid data showed similar results. In general, the lower reaches of the estuary were characterized by a higher deposition and assimilation by brachyuran crabs of carbon derived from marsh grass detritus, whiletowards the upper reaches a mixture of microphytobenthos and particulate organic matter (phytoplankton and detritus) was deposited and sustained the pelagic and benthic fauna. The highest deposition and assimilation of marsh grass detritus in the lower reaches of the estuary occurred during periods of low freshwater discharge (autumn and winter). In the upper reaches, microphytobenthos and suspended particulate organic matter were dominant basal food resources for the food web during all seasons. These results indicated that benthic consumers incorporated mainly local carbon sources from their local habitat.To clarify isotopic and fatty acid patterns I examined the trophic behaviour of the sesarmid crab Sesarma catenata through laboratory feeding experiments. Results from these experiments validated that decomposed leaves of riparian trees and the salt marsh plant S. maritima were the preferred food of the sesarmid crabs, potentially due to high bacterial loads. The remaining leaf material not assimilated by crabs, together with faecal material, are likely important subsidies for adjacent environments, hence representing an important energy pathway involving the microbial food chain. Furthermore, this dissertation showed the importance of mobile top predators as vectors energetically connecting distinct food chains within the estuary (i.e. littoral, benthic and pelagic). I concluded that a combination of physical (i.e. patterns of freshwater discharge and estuary morphology) and biological factors (i.e. organism feeding behaviour, mobility, primary productivity, the local vegetation type) influence the pattern of dominant primary organic matter sources, and therefore the food web structure along the estuarine environment. In particular, marsh grass detritus contributed substantially to the diets of estuarine fauna during periods of low freshwater discharge. Given the importance of the salt marsh habitat in providing trophic resources, it is important to preserve this environment to sustain the natural biota and ecosystem functioning.
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An investigation into fraud and corruption risk management policies and procedures at institutions of higher learning

  • Authors: Makhooane, Stephen Malefane
  • Date: 2012
  • Subjects: Fraud -- South Africa -- Prevention Corruption -- South Africa -- Prevention Risk management -- South Africa -- Evaluation Education, Higher -- South Africa -- Finance
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
  • Identifier: vital:777 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003898
  • Description: Fraud and corruption cost South Africa billions of rand yearly. Institutions of higher learning are no less vulnerable to fraud and corruption than other organisations, but are also subject to risks that are unique to academia. The Public Finance Management Act. No.1 of 1999 requires Public entities including the councils (university or college controlling body) of public institutions of higher learning to adopt enterprise risk management, which includes a fraud and corruption risk management policy and procedures. The function of the fraud and corruption policy is to provide an objective strategy to prevent, detect and investigate any possible irregularity in order to prevent further loss in line with Corporate Governance requirements. The anti-fraud and corruption strategy measures include setting the appropriate tone by management of the institution, being proactive (fraud risk assessments), and being reactive (reporting process, investigation and taking appropriate action). The actions include disciplinary action and criminal or civil proceedings in order to recover assets lost. The procedures address the implementation of the policy. This research focused on identifying the relevant issues that could be included in the formulation of fraud and corruption risk management policies and procedures for institutions of higher learning. The research was conducted using a qualitative methodology consisting of a document analysis and interviews. It was found that, out of eleven institutions of higher learning investigated only one institution meets the criteria set out in the framework developed in the research as an assessment tool. The other institutions involved in the research did not have fraud and corruption risk management policies or procedures and therefore did not comply with the Public Finance Management Act.
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The participation of teachers in the management and decision-making of three schools in the Kavango region of Namibia: a case study

  • Authors: Muronga, Michael Muduva
  • Date: 2012
  • Subjects: Educational leadership -- Namibia -- Kavango School management and organization -- Namibia -- Kavango Teachers -- Namibia -- Kavango Teacher participation in administration -- Namibia -- Kavango Teachers -- Training of -- Namibia -- Kavango
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
  • Identifier: vital:1688 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003571
  • Description: The purpose of the research was to investigate stakeholders’ perceptions and experiences of teachers’ participation in school management and decision-making. Teachers’ involvement is a contested issue in schools. The goal was to find out to what extent and in what way teachers participate in school issues, as well as gain insight and understanding on the effects of participation of teachers in schools and how principals enhance democratic practice for quality education. The research was a case study conducted within the interpretive qualitative paradigm. I used document analysis, semi-structured interviews and observation to collect data for validity purposes and to counter subjectivity. The findings revealed at least a significant progress in terms of the Education Act, no 16 of 2001 requirement, of teachers’ participation in management and decision-making in schools, which has been an issue in the past. The study revealed that decisions are taken after consultation through consensus. The study revealed that the participation approach promotes ownership and commitment of staff to higher performance and common goals. The findings emerged that participative management has advantages for achieving higher performance through collaboration, consultation, and broader participation. The foremost findings include school principals’ roles in enhancing a collegial management approach by delegating, sharing leadership and responsibilities, and establishing organisation structures and committees involving teachers. Meetings serve as a platform for communication and sharing of information with stakeholders. However, there were also signs of tensions amid school management teams (SMTs) and teachers on participation in school matters in all aspects. Furthermore, its time-consuming nature, authoritarianism and accountability emerged as major challenges affecting the implementation of the participative approach. In addition to that, the study revealed that lack of knowledge and skills, unwillingness to involve others and to participate affects the implementation of the theory. As a result, the study recommends to the policies makers and the Ministry of Education to organize training for all stakeholders on participative management to empower them. Moreover, the study recommends to regional managers, inspectors, and advisory teachers (AT) to provide information to institutions responsible for teacher training to accommodate the theory into their curriculum. School principals should undergo training programmes or in-service training for participative leadership purposes to enhance their leadership capacity and to carry out their responsibilities effectively.
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Being Indian, being MK: an exploration of the experiences and ethnic identities of Indian South African Umkhonto we Sizwe members

  • Authors: Lalla, Varsha
  • Date: 2011
  • Subjects: Umkhonto we Sizwe (South Africa) -- Research Political activists -- Research -- South Africa East Indians -- Politics and government -- Research -- South Africa Ethnicity -- Political aspects -- South Africa -- Research
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:2792 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003002
  • Description: Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK) was a military organization dominated by black Africans. Although it is not generally associated with Indian South Africans, who form a minority in the country, there were Indian MK members. This thesis explores the way in which Indian MK members reconciled aspects of their ethnic identity with their membership of MK. It explores the experiences of two generations of members: those born between 1929 and 1944 and those born between 1960 and 1969. In particular it looks at whether they experienced tensions between their ethnic and political identities. It explores what set these Indian South Africans apart from the rest of the Indian South African community that did not join MK. It also looks at what significant differences there were between different generations of Indian MK members. The research results show that the first generation MK members believe that their MK activities were „the highest form of passive resistance‟. An explanation for this way of referring to their activities could be that this was a way of reconciling tensions between their ethnic and political identities. The first generation was also very critical of the Indian SA community. This could be because they still feel part of this community despite having a strong political consciousness that is different from most of the community. It was found that some of the features that set Indian MK members apart from other Indian South Africans were that they were not raised in very religious households and occupied a fairly low rather than „middle man‟ economic position. In addition, members of the first generation of MK members were raised in comparatively multi-racial areas. Both generations made the decision to join MK because of Indian role models. There were some marked differences between the two generations of MK veterans. Most notably, the younger did not see their activities as in line with passive resistance and they also displayed more ambivalence about their ethnic identities.
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How integrated are the African stock exchanges?: evidence from long term comovement, returns and volatility spillovers

  • Authors: Kambadza, Tinashe Harry Dumile
  • Date: 2011
  • Subjects: Stock exchanges -- Africa Money market -- Africa Globalization -- Economic aspects -- Africa International economic relations
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MCom
  • Identifier: vital:1017 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002752
  • Description: Stock market linkages have implications for portfolio diversification, asset pricing, monetary and regulatory policy as well as financial stability. This study examines the extent to which African stock markets are linked using daily data for the period 2000-2010. The study is divided into three main parts each focussing on the ways in which integration of the stock markets can be viewed. Firstly, we analyse the long run co-movement of the stock markets using both bivariate and multivariate Johansen (1988) and Johansen and Juselius (1990) cointegration approaches. Secondly, we analyse returns linkages using Factor analysis and the Vector Autoregressive (VAR) models. In the Factor Analysis model, we used two extraction methods, namely Principal Component Analysis and the Maximurn Likelihood technique. The VAR model was extended with impulse response, variance decomposition and block exogeniety. Thirdly, we analyse the behaviour of volatility and the volatility linkages among the stock markets. We initially analysed and modelled volatility in each stock market using the GARCH, EGARCH and GJR GARCH and then examined the long-term trend of the volatility. Conditional volatility series for each country were then estimated using the most appropriate model and were analysed using VAR, block exogeniety, impulse response and variance decomposition to determine the extent of their linkages. The findings of the study are as follows: Both the bivariate and multivariate models found slim evidence of cointegration amongst the stock markets, suggesting that there were opportunities for portfolio diversification for investors. In general, the financial crisis had very little impact on the long-run relationships of the stock markets. Results for the returns linkages showed that there were limited retums linkages with the exceptions of South African-Namibia and Egypt-Morocco to a lesser extent. South Africa was found to be the most endogenous, whilst Ghana and Nigeria were the most exogenous on the continent. We regards to volatility, we found that it was asymmetric and persistent across all the stock markets with long term trend of volatility showing that it significantly increased for most of the markets. Finally, there were limited volatility linkages, only between South Africa, Egypt and Namibia, implying that African stock markets are still largely segmented from each other. However, the linkages between South Africa and Egypt could have negative effects as they could lead to the spread of contagion effects during times of crises. Therefore, policymakers should consider revising and improving policies to enhance economic integration on the continent.
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An investigation of lower primary teachers' content knowledge of mathematics in Ohangwena region in Namibia

  • Authors: Haufiku, Amon
  • Date: 2009
  • Subjects: SACMEQ Namibia. Presidential Commission on Education, Culture and Training Mathematics -- Study and teaching (Elementary) -- Namibia Education -- Namibia
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
  • Identifier: vital:1637 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003519
  • Description: The poor performance in mathematics of learners in schools in Namibia, especially in the grades where learners sit for the national examinations, has been a concern of everybody. Since independence, the Ministry of Education in collaboration with several donor agencies has been aware of the poor performance in mathematics in the country. Several international and local studies have been made in an effort to identify the problems that are hindering learners’ performance in mathematics in Namibia. The findings of some studies that were conducted in the country such as the Southern Africa Consortium Monitoring Education Quality (2004), the Presidential Commission on Education, Culture and Training (1999), and the Mathematics and Science Teachers Extension Program (2002) revealed that the inadequate proficiency of primary teachers in mathematics content could be responsible for learners’ poor performance in mathematics. This study, therefore, is aimed at investigating the mathematical proficiency of lower primary (LP) teachers in Namibia. The study used three instruments to collect data namely, a profile questionnaire – to collect teachers’ demographic data, a proficiency test – to test their proficiency level of mathematics using the content of Grade 4 and 5 learners’ mathematics syllabi and a semi-structured interview schedule – to get views about their own mathematics content knowledge, attitudes towards mathematics as well as problems that hinder effective teaching and learning of mathematics at LP phase. The study was conducted with 30 lower primary teachers from five primary and combined schools in the Ohangwena circuit of the Ohangwena region. The study found out that: (1) the mathematical proficiency of LP teachers is below the Grade 7 Mathematics content. Most teachers are not able to solve the content of mathematics at upper primary (UP) phase. (2) LP education is receiving very little support from the Ministry compared to other phases. (3) There are no workshops or training courses organised for LP teachers. They do not receive enough textbooks and materials, their classrooms are overcrowded and teachers cannot pay attention to individual learners. (4) There is a dire need for LP Head of Departments (HODs) who are specialised at LP; most HODs for LP at schools are not specialised in this area. When it comes to views about future content of mathematics that should be given to LP teachers in Namibia, respondents recommended that future LP teachers should have knowledge of mathematics up to at least Grade 10 but preferably up to Grade 12. They do not want to be restricted to LP mathematics, but would like to have a broader knowledge of mathematics content. This would make them more confident in solving their children’s problems in mathematics. Overall, participants recognised the value of mathematics and the role that it plays in society.
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The relationship between innovation and leadership in First National Bank of South Africa

  • Authors: Ward, Philip Henry
  • Date: 2009
  • Subjects: First National Bank of Southern Africa Banks and banking -- South Africa Bank management -- South Africa Leadership -- South Africa Organizational change -- South Africa Organizational effectiveness -- South Africa Chief executive officers -- South Africa Technological innovations -- Economic aspects -- South Africa
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
  • Identifier: vital:795 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004306
  • Description: This research investigates the relationship between innovation and leadership in First National Bank in South Africa. In an information age paradigm, innovation is a key driver of organisational success. Innovation allows an information age company to create a sustainable competitive advantage over its competitors. First National Bank (FNB) has recognised the need for innovation and measures the amount of innovation generated in each business unit on an annual basis. Leadership is a key factor influencing innovation in large, multi-segment organisations, particularly transformational leadership. Large multi-segment organisations often have multi-functional teams and transformational leadership of these teams more effectively promotes innovation. Large multi-segment organisations also often have complex decision making processes. Transformational leadership ensures optimal innovative decisions rather than adequate decisions are reached. FNB is a multi-segment organisation comprising ten business units each headed by a Chief Executive Officer (CEO). The relationship between the level of innovation being generated annually by each business unit and the leadership style of the business unit CEO formed the focus of this research. The Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire was used to gather information on the leadership style of each CEO's. Data on the level of innovation within each of these business units was supplied by First National Bank. Data was statistically analysed against the innovation generated by each business unit using correlation analysis. Most of the results testing the relationship between transformational and transactional leadership and innovation were found not to be significant. This contradicts the theory which suggests a positive relationship between transformational leadership and innovation.
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Implementation of learner-centred education by Grade 4 BETD in-service teachers in selected Namibia schools

  • Authors: Amakali, Amram
  • Date: 2007
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
  • Identifier: vital:1849 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004457
  • Description: Before independence Namibia's education system was predominantly teacher-centred. Soon after its independence Namibia embarked on education restructuring and transformation. A new education system, leamer-centred education, was introduced to cater for the needs of all Namibian learners. It was seen as an effective antidote to the stifling teacher-centred practices of the previous education system. A new programme, the Basic Education Teacher Diploma (BETD) was introduced to prepare teachers to teach in a leamer-centred approach. Research has, however, indicated that many Namibian teachers have a somewhat shallow or naIve understanding oflearner-centred education. This small-scale case study, conducted in Oshikoto region, focuses on two Grade 4 teachers. The study examined the two teachers ' perceptions and experiences oflearnercentred education and the teaching strategies they use to develop learners' understanding. The study uses a qualitative approach in its exploration of teachers ' lived experiences of becoming learner-centred. The data emerging from this case study identify a number of misconceptions and understandings of leamer-centred education and its implementation. The findings suggest that teachers ' misconceptions are caused by a lack of deep understanding about the epistemology and theory of learning which underpins Namibia's reform policies and principles.
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Selecting stories to tell: the gatekeeping of international news at SAfm

  • Authors: Ticha, Abel Akara
  • Date: 2007
  • Subjects: South African Broadcasting Corporation SAfm (South Africa) Radio broadcasting -- South Africa Foreign news -- South Africa Radio journalism -- South Africa
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:3499 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004520
  • Description: The premise of this thesis is that the selection of international news to be aired on the bulletins of SAfm by SABC Radio News staff is influenced by more complex factors than could be seen solely from the prism of an empirical journalistic paradigm. Drawing from data obtained through participant observation and interviewing, it is noted that there has been a revolution from a propagandist approach during apartheid to a professional approach following the demise of apartheid, in the selection of international news for bulletins on SAfm. Using Lewin's theory of forces in decision making and locating it within four out of five levels of a framework of gatekeeping analysis provided by Shoemaker (1991) and Shoemaker et al (200 I), it is concluded that the delimiting well-tested routines of newsmaking act as powerful companions of individuals' selection decisions of international news broadcast on SAfm's bulletins. However, these routines are adapted to meet the organisational demands of the SABC, which as a Public Service Broadcaster (PBS) has embraced the discourse of South African nationalism/panAfricanism, as a major philosophy underpinning the Corporation's coverage of the world. Therefore, some individual, routine and organisational factors influencing the se lection of international news broadcast on SAfm's bulletins, are predetermined and co-determined by the social system (the ideological/discursive structure), which is promoted by certain social institutions. Instances of spokespersons of such institutions as governments, international governmental and non-governmental organisations, etc., officiating the news abound; the gatekeepers use them to meet routine professional standards of journalism. This potentially works to sustain the hegemonic discourses of the powerful in international affairs (in tenns of core/peripheral nations relations, and elite classlruled majority relations) though there is a conscious oppositional effort to modify or dwarf stories that explicitly promote imperialism and to hold rulers accountable to the public. It is posited that the time is ripe for newsworkers responsible for the production of bulletins for SAfm to take the risk that may be necessary to inject a few changes in routine practices that could limit the engineering of consent to the powerful elites in the international arena.
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School management team members' perceptions of their roles in managing Grahamstown secondary schools

  • Authors: Tyala, Zakunzima
  • Date: 2005
  • Subjects: School management teams -- South Africa -- Grahamstown School management and organization -- South Africa -- Grahamstown Educational leadership -- South Africa -- Grahamstown Education, Secondary -- South Africa -- Grahamstown
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
  • Identifier: vital:1759 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003644
  • Description: During the apartheid era, that is, before 1994, the education management system in South Africa was fragmented, authoritarian and top-down. Principals were expected to manage schools on their own without consulting the rest of the staff. The birth of political democracy in 1994 resulted in many changes in the education system. These changes include the creation of one national department. In line with this democratisation came the concept of school management teams (SMTs). Because of the democratic nature of this kind of a structure (SMT), it is required that educators work co-operatively and as a team. This has been problematic in some schools where the principal has traditionally felt comfortable taking decisions on his or her own without any input from relevant stakeholders. Furthermore, through the legacy of apartheid, teachers themselves have dogmatically been oriented to being the recipients of instructions and to view management as the prerogative of the principals only. The formalisation of SMTs thus brings new challenges to both principals and staff members, essentially the notion of democratic or team-management. The object of this study is to find out how the concept of democratic management is being received. This study includes all the government-aided high schools in Grahamstown (ten of them). Studying all 10 high schools - 6 from the local township, 3 ex-model C schools, and 1 from the coloured township – has produced a broad and varied picture of how SMTs are being received in Grahamstown secondary schools. The study was framed within the interpretive approach, and sought to unpack the perceptions of SMT members with regard to SMTs. An interpretive paradigm made it possible for me to gain an in-depth understanding of SMT members’ perceptions of team-management within their contexts. I used questionnaires, interviews and observation as research tools to gather data. This study has found that, although the concept of team management is well-received, there are significant obstacles to the acceptance of teamwork as an alternative form of management. Many of these may be the result of decades of disempowering governance strategies, resulting in impoverished notions of school ownership and joint responsibility. Some relate to the political nature of schools as organisations. Despite these problems, the study has confirmed that team-management is the preferred approach for a variety of reasons. Team-management usually results in enriched decision-making, the sharing of responsibilities and higher levels of support. A major systemic shortcoming highlighted by the study is the absence of meaningful training in democratic educational management.
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The life history patterns of the polychaete, Terebrasabella heterouncinata, a pest of cultured abalone

  • Authors: Simon, Carol Anne
  • Date: 2005
  • Subjects: Polychaeta -- Physiology Sabellidae -- Physiology Abalones -- Diseases Polychaeta -- Reproduction Sabellidae -- Reproduction Abalone culture -- South Africa
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
  • Identifier: vital:5336 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005632
  • Description: Terebrasabella heterouncinata is a small K-selected sabellid polychaete. It is a simultaneous hermaphrodite with a semi-continuous mode of reproduction, producing relatively few large eggs that are brooded within the parental burrow until the larvae emerge, to settle on the growing edge of the abalone shell. Despite its low fecundity, this worm has become problematic on abalone farms in South Africa. The present study was conducted to gain an understanding of the life history patterns of T. helerouncinata to determine how they contributed to the success of these worms under altered conditions. This study demonstrated that conditions prevalent on abalone farms were conducive to enhancing the reproductive success of this worm, and suggests that larger, more fecund worms may have been selected for in the decade that these worms have been present on the farms. Increased nutrient availability, and possibly the increased stability of the farm environment relative to its natural environment, has led to a 1.5-fold increase in the average size of the worms. Body size was found to be positively correlated with brood size, and this resulted in worms on farms brooding 3 to 4.5 times more offspring at a time than worms from wild abalone. The ability to increase the number of eggs produced at a time may have been limited by the fact that these worms have only two ovaries. Thus, the increase in fecundity may have been related primarily to the increase in the rate at which the eggs were laid by the worms on the farms, and the increase in the coelomic space available for the storage of these rapidly developing eggs. The ability to increase the rate at which oocytes develop may be related to the vitellogenic mechanisms employed by these worms. Vitellogenic oocytes are able to incorporate high molecular weight yolk precursors from the surrounding coelomic fluid through endocytotic activity. This may allow the oocytes to increase the rate at which they incorporate yolk material under conditions of nutrient enrichment. The increase in fecundity did not occur at the expense of offspring size and, presumably, quality. The increased reproductive output on the farms was compounded by a proportionate increase in the number of reproducing worms within the population. In addition, these worms are long-lived (worms from farmed abalone reached a maximum age of approximately 40 months) and exhibit negligible senescence. Thus, their reproductive output did not change significantly with an increase in age. Furthermore, the proportion of the reproductive worms did not decrease with an increase in age. Thus, within the age range tested, worms of all ages have the potential to make equal contributions to population growth. While diet and abalone stocking density could not be identified as having a significant effect on reproductive output and infestation rate under intensive culture conditions, it was demonstrated that in a naïve abalone population, the total intensity of infestation increased exponentially with time. This increase may be a consequence of an increase in fertilisation success. These worms continuously produce entaquasperm that are released into the water column. The sperm are collected by other individuals that then store the sperm in a single spermatheca. The ability to store sperm relieves individuals of a dependence on the synchronisation of spawning of eggs and sperm. As the population size and density increases, there could be more individuals releasing sperm into the water column, resulting in a continuous supply of sperm. The increased production of eggs would therefore not be constrained by a lack of sperm. The stored sperm are released into the brood chamber to fertilise eggs as they are laid, and this would probably increase the fertilisation success in the species. This study also provides evidence to suggest that reproduction in this worm has a seasonal component. Future studies should concentrate on measuring fertilisation success in greater detail, measuring the effect of season on reproduction, determining whether there are genetic differences between worms on farmed and wild abalone and determining whether wild worms have similar life-spans and age-related fecundity as worms on farms.
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Training needs for municipal employees: a case study of Makana Municipality

An examination of dreams and visions in the novels of Virginia Woolf

  • Authors: Dale-Jones, Barbara
  • Date: 1996
  • Subjects: Woolf, Virginia, 1882-1941 Criticism and interpretation Dreams in literature Visions in literature
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:2223 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002266
  • Description: This thesis explores the importance of the visionary experience in five novels by Virginia Woolf. In her fiction, Woolf portrays the phenomenal world as constantly changing and she uses the cycles of nature and the passing of time as a terrifying backdrop against which the mutability and transience of human life are set. Faced with the inevitability of change and the fact of mortality, the individual seeks moments of permanence. These stand in opposition to flux and lead to the experience of a visionary intensity. Woolf's presentation of time as a qualitative phenomenon and her stress on the importance of memory as a function which allows for the intermingling of past and present make possible the narrative rendering of moments which contradict perpetual change and the rigours of sequential time. Moments of stillness 'occur in the midst of and in spite of process and allow for individual contact with an experience that defies the relentless progression of time. Necessary for this experience is not only memory but also the imagination, a faculty which has the power to perceive patterns of harmony in the midst of the chaos that characterises the phenomenal realm. Fundamental to Woolf's writing, however, is the acknowledgement that visions are fleeting, as are the glimpses of meaning that emerge from them. Therefore, while several of her novels describe the artistic effort to create a structured order as a defense against change, Woolf uses the artist's struggle as a metaphor for the difficulties attached to describing the enigma that is life. None of her artist figures is able to formulate a construction that either sums up life or provides a permanence of vision. This study presents a chronological examination of the novels in order to demonstrate that the changing forms of Woolf's fiction trace the evolution of a style that accurately portrays both the workings of the human mind and the insubstantial and fragmentary nature of life. The chronology also reveals that her novels develop in terms of their presentations of the visionary experience. Woolf's final novel incorporates into its central vision the paradoxical fact of the permanence of time's progression and acknowledges that, beyond the individually mutable life, is a continuum that links pre-history to the future. This notion, which is explored in part in the earlier novels, but developed completely in Between the Acts, suggests that consolation can be found in the greater cycles of existence despite the fact of individual mortality.
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Spatial autocorrelation and the analysis of patterns resulting from crime occurrence

  • Authors: Ward, Gary J
  • Date: 1978
  • Subjects: Geography -- Statistical methods , Correlation (Statistics) , Spatial analysis (Statistics) , Criminal statistics -- South Africa -- Grahamstown
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:4864 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007244
  • Description: From Introduction: In geography during the 1950's there was a definite move away from the study of unique phenomena to the study of generalized phenomena or pattern (Mather and Openshaw, 1974). At the same time interrelationships between phenomena distributed in space and time became the topic of much interest among geographers, as well as members of other disciplines. The changing emphasis initiated acceptance of certain scientific principles (Cole, 1973), and mathematical techniques became the recognized and respected means through which objective analysis of pattern, structure, and interrelationships between a really distributed phenomena could be achieved (Ackerman, 1972; Burton, 1972; Gould, 1973). Geographers, as do members of other disciplines, frequently borrow mathematical techniques developed for problems encountered in the pure sciences and apply these techniques to what are felt to be analogous situations in geography.
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Attitude and personal orientation differences between clergy of Anglican and Pentecostal denominations with particular reference to sexual ethics

  • Authors: Davies, Alan Bruce
  • Date: 1977
  • Subjects: Clergy -- Sexual behavior Pentecostalism -- Sexual behavior Anglican Communion -- Clergy -- Sexual behavior Sex -- Religious aspects -- Christianity Christian ethics -- Anglican authors Sexual ethics
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
  • Identifier: vital:1247 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1011015
  • Description: The introduction provides a concise discussion of the confused condition of our Western sexuality. It is noted that this confusion has also manifested itself in ecclesiastical circles, and that the contribution of the church towards the resolution of 'moral' confusion in this sphere is in fact minimal. The study then proceeds to a more empirical investigation of certain phenomena which might enable us to demonstrate the close relationship which exists between the individual's psychological condition, or 'state of consciousness', and the type of theology or ethics he formulates or adopts. The present study was an investigation designed to determine whether Anglican clergy and Pentecostal pastors differed significantly with regard to theological orientation, level of self-actualization or the degree of flexibility they showed in the application of sexual values. Furthermore we were concerned to discover the inter-relation between these various traits. A third group of ordinands from St. Paul's College (C.P.S.A.) was also incorporated into the study. All forty eight subjects completed a series of tests and questionnaires which were scored according to eighteen different scales relating to selfactualzing traits, theological orientation and the application of sexual ethics. In brief the results showed that the Anglican clergy were significantly more self-actualizing, theologically liberal and more flexible in the application of sexual values than were Pentecostal pastors. Little difference was found to exist as a function of age and education, or between Anglican clergy and ordinands. Furthermore theological conservatism, general conservatism, dogmatism and inflexibility in the application of sexual ethics were all shown to correlate negatively with self-actualization. In the discussion of results the writer attempted to demonstrate the close relationship between the churchman's psychological make-up and the way in which he construes his world and formulates his theology and ethics. In the concluding discussion the writer once again widened the scope of concern in order to demonstrate how the findings of the present study can be fitted into the broader context of the life of the church. It has been suggested that the type of approach adopted by churchmen to problems of sexuality is very much determined by their psychological make up. Hence in this sense both the status of the church in modern society and the degree to which the church can assist in the resolution of our culture's problems in the field of human sexuality, is greatly dependent upon the 'states of consciousness' of our clergy.
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Hesiods Vorstellungen von Moipa, Timh, Themis and Dikh

  • Authors: Spandau, Stefanie
  • Date: 1973
  • Subjects: Hesiod , Homer , Greek poetry -- Criticism and interpretation
  • Language: German
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:3642 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1014548
  • Description: [Moipa, Timh, Themis and Dikh] geben Aufsehluβ über die Anschauungen des von Homer und Hesiod dargestellten Menschen, seinen Glauben, seine Rechts- und Staatsauffassung und seine Einsehatzung des Menschen. Moipa stellt einen Glaubensbereich dar, der neben den Göttern Gültigkeit hat. Timh ist ein Maβstab, an dem gewisse Menschen und aIle Götter gewertet werden. Themis und Dikh verkörpen Vorstellungen, die aus der politisch-rechtlichen Sphäre stammen. Darüber hinaus stellen diese vier Anschauungen den Versuch des Menschen dar, sich und seine Welt zu verstehen und sich in dieser Welt zurechtzufinden. Der Schiecksalsglaube stellt das Verständnis des Menschen von den ihn persönlich treffenden Ereignissen dar. Durch die Timh findet der Mensch oder Gott seinen ihm zugewiesenen Rang innerhalb der Gesellschaft; sie verleiht dem Einzelnen die Selbstsicherheit und den Wert, den er besitzen muβ, um vor den anderen bestehen zu können. Themis und Dikh sind Stutzen und Pfeiler, auf denen die Gesellschaft basiert. Mit ihr ordnet der Mensch seine Gemeinschaft rechtlich und politisch.
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