An investigation of instructional leadership in a Namibian teacher training college
- Alexander, Christa Henriette
- Authors: Alexander, Christa Henriette
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Windhoek College of Education Educational leadership -- Namibia Education -- Namibia Teachers -- Training of -- Namibia
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1634 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003516
- Description: This thesis investigates how instructional leaders at the Windhoek College of Education (in Namibia) make sense of their roles. The Windhoek College of Education (WCE) was selected for this study because that is where I work, therefore it would be easy to observe some of the responses provided by the interviewees. It was also observed that instructional leadership is little researched in Namibia and hence study would contribute towards understanding the various perceptions that instructional leaders have of their roles. There is a need for information about the skills and tasks required to support practices of instructional leadership so that the best possible instruction can be provided. The thesis examines and presents such skills. A qualitative research framework, in particular an interpretative approach was used for the study. As my research is concerned with people’s perceptions, it is located in the interpretative paradigm. Semi-structured, open-ended interview questions were asked in order to gather information on how the participants make meaning of their roles as instructional leaders. The sample for the study consisted of eleven instructional leaders over different levels, i.e., executive leaders, leaders on middle-management level and leaders on classroom-instructional level. The findings indicated a narrow view of instructional leadership at the college. Factors contributing to this narrowness are addressed, e.g., the way concepts such as delegation, guidance and monitoring/supervision are perceived. The findings also addressed certain expectations that are needed from instructional leaders in order to ensure efficiency in their practice. The study concludes by recommending alternative, expansive ways of thinking about instructional leadership.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Alexander, Christa Henriette
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Windhoek College of Education Educational leadership -- Namibia Education -- Namibia Teachers -- Training of -- Namibia
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1634 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003516
- Description: This thesis investigates how instructional leaders at the Windhoek College of Education (in Namibia) make sense of their roles. The Windhoek College of Education (WCE) was selected for this study because that is where I work, therefore it would be easy to observe some of the responses provided by the interviewees. It was also observed that instructional leadership is little researched in Namibia and hence study would contribute towards understanding the various perceptions that instructional leaders have of their roles. There is a need for information about the skills and tasks required to support practices of instructional leadership so that the best possible instruction can be provided. The thesis examines and presents such skills. A qualitative research framework, in particular an interpretative approach was used for the study. As my research is concerned with people’s perceptions, it is located in the interpretative paradigm. Semi-structured, open-ended interview questions were asked in order to gather information on how the participants make meaning of their roles as instructional leaders. The sample for the study consisted of eleven instructional leaders over different levels, i.e., executive leaders, leaders on middle-management level and leaders on classroom-instructional level. The findings indicated a narrow view of instructional leadership at the college. Factors contributing to this narrowness are addressed, e.g., the way concepts such as delegation, guidance and monitoring/supervision are perceived. The findings also addressed certain expectations that are needed from instructional leaders in order to ensure efficiency in their practice. The study concludes by recommending alternative, expansive ways of thinking about instructional leadership.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
An investigation of local community contributions to the Malawi College of Fisheries curriculum: a case study focussing on the Chambo fishery
- Kachilonda, Dick Daffu Kachanga
- Authors: Kachilonda, Dick Daffu Kachanga
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Malawi College of Fisheries -- Curricula Fishery management -- Study and teaching Fishery management -- Malawi Fisheries -- Malawi Fishes -- Nyasa, Lake
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1857 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004537
- Description: The aim of the study was to investigate local community contributions to the existing Malawi College of Fisheries curriculum with a focus on Chambo fishery. Chambo fish (Oreochromis species) is the most favoured fish in Lake Malawi. Chambo catches have declined over the years. Responding to the declining catches, the Fisheries Department is engaged in a number of management options to address the issues. Most of these management options are governed by scientific recommendations and do not consider the socio-economic situation of the people who are dependent on fishery. This approach to fishery has influenced the Malawi College of Fisheries curriculum. The existing curriculum is product-centred, developed by a consultant. During the development of the curriculum, there was little consultation with the lecturers and no consultation with the local communities who are using the resource. The fishing communities have been fishing for a long time and have acquired knowledge, skills and experience worth investigating for its potential role in improving the existing curriculum. Through the use of interviews, focus group discussions and workshops with local communities local knowledge was identified for inclusion into the curriculum. A review of the existing curriculum revealed that it has primarily technical focus, grounded in the protection, control and management of the fish stocks, while the local knowledge has a practical focus based on existing practices and requiring an understanding of the sources of the issues. There is also more emphasis on a historical perspective and the context in which fishing practices take place at the moment. It was evident from the study that local communities have much of knowledge, skills and experience gained over the years of fishing , and if properly utilised, it can improve the MCF curriculum. I therefore recommend in this study that the curriculum be reviewed in order to integrate and draw on the local knowledge through a deliberative and participatory process between the local communities and the government so that it addresses the needs of the local communities and improves the training of the extension workers.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Kachilonda, Dick Daffu Kachanga
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Malawi College of Fisheries -- Curricula Fishery management -- Study and teaching Fishery management -- Malawi Fisheries -- Malawi Fishes -- Nyasa, Lake
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1857 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004537
- Description: The aim of the study was to investigate local community contributions to the existing Malawi College of Fisheries curriculum with a focus on Chambo fishery. Chambo fish (Oreochromis species) is the most favoured fish in Lake Malawi. Chambo catches have declined over the years. Responding to the declining catches, the Fisheries Department is engaged in a number of management options to address the issues. Most of these management options are governed by scientific recommendations and do not consider the socio-economic situation of the people who are dependent on fishery. This approach to fishery has influenced the Malawi College of Fisheries curriculum. The existing curriculum is product-centred, developed by a consultant. During the development of the curriculum, there was little consultation with the lecturers and no consultation with the local communities who are using the resource. The fishing communities have been fishing for a long time and have acquired knowledge, skills and experience worth investigating for its potential role in improving the existing curriculum. Through the use of interviews, focus group discussions and workshops with local communities local knowledge was identified for inclusion into the curriculum. A review of the existing curriculum revealed that it has primarily technical focus, grounded in the protection, control and management of the fish stocks, while the local knowledge has a practical focus based on existing practices and requiring an understanding of the sources of the issues. There is also more emphasis on a historical perspective and the context in which fishing practices take place at the moment. It was evident from the study that local communities have much of knowledge, skills and experience gained over the years of fishing , and if properly utilised, it can improve the MCF curriculum. I therefore recommend in this study that the curriculum be reviewed in order to integrate and draw on the local knowledge through a deliberative and participatory process between the local communities and the government so that it addresses the needs of the local communities and improves the training of the extension workers.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
An investigation of the development and adoption of educational metadata standards for the widespread use of learning objects
- Authors: Krull, Greig Emil
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Metadata , Internet in education , Web databases , Education -- Standards , Educational technology , Computer-assisted instruction
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MCom
- Identifier: vital:1142 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002771 , Metadata , Internet in education , Web databases , Education -- Standards , Educational technology , Computer-assisted instruction
- Description: This research investigates the development and adoption of educational metadata standards for the widespread use of learning objects. Learning objects, metadata, the related IEEE standard and the various application profiles derived from the standard are discussed. A number of standards and specifications for educational metadata used to describe learning objects are explored, namely the Dublin Core, IMS, SCORM, ARIADNE, CanCore and the UK LOM Core. Three metadata editors and the experience with using one of them, RELOAD, is described. These educational metadata specifications are used in a practical metadata implementation scenario and the experiences are extrapolated to derive a localised instance of the generic IEEE standard. A new application profile is proposed, “RU LOM Core”, for the South African higher education context. Some existing results are confirmed about the complexity of using the IEEE standard and it is demonstrated that it is possible to instantiate the standard for South African conditions. The results are largely qualitative and based on practical experience. However, the results concur with results from related research. Although the development of an application profile is certainly not new, the development of RU LOM Core illustrates that the IEEE standard, developed largely within the northern hemisphere, can be adapted to work in the South African scenario. RU LOM Core has been developed for the South African higher education environment and takes linguistic and cultural diversity and the low rate of technological literacy into consideration. The lessons learned and the proposed LOM core can be built upon in further research and collaboration to use and support the use of such standards within South Africa.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Krull, Greig Emil
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Metadata , Internet in education , Web databases , Education -- Standards , Educational technology , Computer-assisted instruction
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MCom
- Identifier: vital:1142 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002771 , Metadata , Internet in education , Web databases , Education -- Standards , Educational technology , Computer-assisted instruction
- Description: This research investigates the development and adoption of educational metadata standards for the widespread use of learning objects. Learning objects, metadata, the related IEEE standard and the various application profiles derived from the standard are discussed. A number of standards and specifications for educational metadata used to describe learning objects are explored, namely the Dublin Core, IMS, SCORM, ARIADNE, CanCore and the UK LOM Core. Three metadata editors and the experience with using one of them, RELOAD, is described. These educational metadata specifications are used in a practical metadata implementation scenario and the experiences are extrapolated to derive a localised instance of the generic IEEE standard. A new application profile is proposed, “RU LOM Core”, for the South African higher education context. Some existing results are confirmed about the complexity of using the IEEE standard and it is demonstrated that it is possible to instantiate the standard for South African conditions. The results are largely qualitative and based on practical experience. However, the results concur with results from related research. Although the development of an application profile is certainly not new, the development of RU LOM Core illustrates that the IEEE standard, developed largely within the northern hemisphere, can be adapted to work in the South African scenario. RU LOM Core has been developed for the South African higher education environment and takes linguistic and cultural diversity and the low rate of technological literacy into consideration. The lessons learned and the proposed LOM core can be built upon in further research and collaboration to use and support the use of such standards within South Africa.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
An investigation of the experiences and perceptions of teachers with regards to staff development in a Namibian secondary school
- Authors: Nasima, Gideon Emmanuel
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Education -- Namibia Teachers -- In-service training -- Namibia School management and organization -- Namibia School principals -- Namibia
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1649 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003532
- Description: Staff development (SD) is regarded as an important process, both for the professional growth of teachers and the organizational development of schools. The literature on SD uses the concepts of ‘SD’, ‘professional development’ and ‘in-service training of teachers’ interchangeably. The purpose of this study is to investigate the teachers’ experiences and perceptions of SD practices in a Namibian secondary school. This qualitative case study was carried out at the school where I am teaching. Two methods were used to collect the data, namely a blend of semi-structured and unstructured interviews with three teachers and one focus group interview with five teachers. The analysis of the data collected was carried using the method suggested by Taylor and Bogdan (1998) which includes discovery, coding and discounting. These concepts are discussed in Chapter Three. The main finding of this research regards SD at the school as mainly in line with the traditional view. The study also made three other unusual findings that differ from the traditional view of SD held at the school. First, the principal’s role as a human resource manager of SD; second the pastoral role of a principal in SD and third the role of teachers’ unions in SD. All these findings are important for SD practices in schools and for further research because little is known in the current literature on SD. Finally, this study proposes further research to develop an organizational development (OD) cycle of problem solving to help create an internal policy on SD, which is currently nonexistent at the school.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Nasima, Gideon Emmanuel
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Education -- Namibia Teachers -- In-service training -- Namibia School management and organization -- Namibia School principals -- Namibia
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1649 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003532
- Description: Staff development (SD) is regarded as an important process, both for the professional growth of teachers and the organizational development of schools. The literature on SD uses the concepts of ‘SD’, ‘professional development’ and ‘in-service training of teachers’ interchangeably. The purpose of this study is to investigate the teachers’ experiences and perceptions of SD practices in a Namibian secondary school. This qualitative case study was carried out at the school where I am teaching. Two methods were used to collect the data, namely a blend of semi-structured and unstructured interviews with three teachers and one focus group interview with five teachers. The analysis of the data collected was carried using the method suggested by Taylor and Bogdan (1998) which includes discovery, coding and discounting. These concepts are discussed in Chapter Three. The main finding of this research regards SD at the school as mainly in line with the traditional view. The study also made three other unusual findings that differ from the traditional view of SD held at the school. First, the principal’s role as a human resource manager of SD; second the pastoral role of a principal in SD and third the role of teachers’ unions in SD. All these findings are important for SD practices in schools and for further research because little is known in the current literature on SD. Finally, this study proposes further research to develop an organizational development (OD) cycle of problem solving to help create an internal policy on SD, which is currently nonexistent at the school.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
An investigation of the factors that influence Grahamstown East grade 12 learners to aspire to higher education : a case study
- Burns-Ncamashe, Zimasa Nomsawezulu Ancilla
- Authors: Burns-Ncamashe, Zimasa Nomsawezulu Ancilla
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Education -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies , Education, Secondary -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies , Education, Higher -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies , Student aspirations -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies , High school graduates -- South Africa -- Attitudes -- Case studies , Vocational interests -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1650 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003533 , Education -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies , Education, Secondary -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies , Education, Higher -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies , Student aspirations -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies , High school graduates -- South Africa -- Attitudes -- Case studies , Vocational interests -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies
- Description: This research is an investigation into the factors that influence the decisions of grade 12 learners from Grahamstown East disadvantaged communities to pursue higher education. Research on learner aspirations has largely focused on access to higher education and little or no attention has been has been paid to the enabling or limiting factors and what can be done to increase the numbers of learners from disadvantaged communities who enrol at higher education institutions. This study aims to fill that gap. The research was a qualitative case study located in the interpretive paradigm. The data was gathered using questionnaires and focus group interviews for grade 12 learners. Individual interviews were conducted with the parents of the grade 12 research participants, educators and the school management team. Observation and documentary evidence from school documents were also used for data collection. The data were analysed using systematic patterning, were interpreted, and given meaning linking it to the literature surveyed. The main findings indicate that a number of enabling factors that influence grade 12 learners to pursue higher education co-exist with limiting factors. Recommendations arising from the main findings are presented and the limitations of the research are identified. Areas for possible further research in strengthening learner support so as to increase the numbers of learners who qualify for higher education and to enable the learners from disadvantaged communities to realise their aspirations, are suggested.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Burns-Ncamashe, Zimasa Nomsawezulu Ancilla
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Education -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies , Education, Secondary -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies , Education, Higher -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies , Student aspirations -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies , High school graduates -- South Africa -- Attitudes -- Case studies , Vocational interests -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1650 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003533 , Education -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies , Education, Secondary -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies , Education, Higher -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies , Student aspirations -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies , High school graduates -- South Africa -- Attitudes -- Case studies , Vocational interests -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies
- Description: This research is an investigation into the factors that influence the decisions of grade 12 learners from Grahamstown East disadvantaged communities to pursue higher education. Research on learner aspirations has largely focused on access to higher education and little or no attention has been has been paid to the enabling or limiting factors and what can be done to increase the numbers of learners from disadvantaged communities who enrol at higher education institutions. This study aims to fill that gap. The research was a qualitative case study located in the interpretive paradigm. The data was gathered using questionnaires and focus group interviews for grade 12 learners. Individual interviews were conducted with the parents of the grade 12 research participants, educators and the school management team. Observation and documentary evidence from school documents were also used for data collection. The data were analysed using systematic patterning, were interpreted, and given meaning linking it to the literature surveyed. The main findings indicate that a number of enabling factors that influence grade 12 learners to pursue higher education co-exist with limiting factors. Recommendations arising from the main findings are presented and the limitations of the research are identified. Areas for possible further research in strengthening learner support so as to increase the numbers of learners who qualify for higher education and to enable the learners from disadvantaged communities to realise their aspirations, are suggested.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
An investigation of the role of news values in the selection of news sources in a contemporary third world newspaper: a case study of the Daily Nation newspaper
- Authors: Kisuke, Connie Syomiti
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Daily Nation (Nairobi, Kenya) , Government and the press -- Africa , Reporters and reporting , Mass media -- Political aspects -- Africa , Newspapers -- Africa , Journalism -- Social aspects
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3446 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002900 , Daily Nation (Nairobi, Kenya) , Government and the press -- Africa , Reporters and reporting , Mass media -- Political aspects -- Africa , Newspapers -- Africa , Journalism -- Social aspects
- Description: News in our contemporary newspapers has come to be associated more and more with what the elites do and say. Both their deeds and misdeeds are treated as newsworthy events and in the process they become newsmakers, both actors and sources of news. Even when they are not directly involved in news events they are sought out by journalists to validate those events and to interpret the social reality to the readers as news sources. This study is about the selection of news sources in the Daily Nation, a contemporary, independent newspaper based in Nairobi, Kenya. In this study, I set out to unravel the complex processes that underlie newsmaking and source selection. This study is informed by the theory of news values and the paradigm of the role of media in democracy. Based on qualitative interviews, observations and content analysis of the front-page stories, it investigates the process of news and source selection in front-page stories. Through these approaches, I established that news values are significant criteria that inform journalists in both the selection of front-page news stories and the sources of these stories. I also established that social values of the society in which this newspaper operates are heavily embedded in the news. For example, the journalists preferred male politicians as sources of news in the front-page stories to women, and the elites to ordinary people, and this reflected on the social structures and cultural norms that are prevalent in this society. This study, further, established that the news values of this newspaper share commonly with the Western news media in terms of journalistic conventions and ways of interpreting the social reality in the news. Ideally, the newspaper embraces the principles of democracy in news reporting, but in practice it does not satisfactorily adhere to the full requirements of its democratic role in terms of source selection. The democratic principles in news reporting require, among other things, that the newspaper should allow a diversity of views in the news, representing various groups that are found in real society including the elites, non-elites, women, ordinary people and minorities. In the case of the Daily Nation, a tiny group of elite male professional politicians made up the largest majority of its front-page news sources.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Kisuke, Connie Syomiti
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Daily Nation (Nairobi, Kenya) , Government and the press -- Africa , Reporters and reporting , Mass media -- Political aspects -- Africa , Newspapers -- Africa , Journalism -- Social aspects
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3446 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002900 , Daily Nation (Nairobi, Kenya) , Government and the press -- Africa , Reporters and reporting , Mass media -- Political aspects -- Africa , Newspapers -- Africa , Journalism -- Social aspects
- Description: News in our contemporary newspapers has come to be associated more and more with what the elites do and say. Both their deeds and misdeeds are treated as newsworthy events and in the process they become newsmakers, both actors and sources of news. Even when they are not directly involved in news events they are sought out by journalists to validate those events and to interpret the social reality to the readers as news sources. This study is about the selection of news sources in the Daily Nation, a contemporary, independent newspaper based in Nairobi, Kenya. In this study, I set out to unravel the complex processes that underlie newsmaking and source selection. This study is informed by the theory of news values and the paradigm of the role of media in democracy. Based on qualitative interviews, observations and content analysis of the front-page stories, it investigates the process of news and source selection in front-page stories. Through these approaches, I established that news values are significant criteria that inform journalists in both the selection of front-page news stories and the sources of these stories. I also established that social values of the society in which this newspaper operates are heavily embedded in the news. For example, the journalists preferred male politicians as sources of news in the front-page stories to women, and the elites to ordinary people, and this reflected on the social structures and cultural norms that are prevalent in this society. This study, further, established that the news values of this newspaper share commonly with the Western news media in terms of journalistic conventions and ways of interpreting the social reality in the news. Ideally, the newspaper embraces the principles of democracy in news reporting, but in practice it does not satisfactorily adhere to the full requirements of its democratic role in terms of source selection. The democratic principles in news reporting require, among other things, that the newspaper should allow a diversity of views in the news, representing various groups that are found in real society including the elites, non-elites, women, ordinary people and minorities. In the case of the Daily Nation, a tiny group of elite male professional politicians made up the largest majority of its front-page news sources.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
An organisation development intervention in a previously disadvantaged school in the Eastern Cape
- Authors: Mitchell, Pauline
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Educational change -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Education and state -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Education -- Social aspects -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Education -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape School improvement programs -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Case studies Education -- Aims and objectives -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1682 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003565
- Description: “We often spend too much time coping with problems along our path that we forget why we are on that path” Peter Senge This study describes and analyses the implementation of Organisation Development (OD) to a previously disadvantaged school. OD is a relatively new method of planned change in South Africa. Unlike more traditional change initiatives, OD promotes collaboration; it tries to involve all members of an organisation in problem solving and decision-making. It is an applied behavioural science discipline dedicated to improving organisations and the people in them. Previously disadvantaged schools in South Africa continue to be disadvantaged. Ten years after the introduction of democracy there have been few changes in some of these schools and some seem to be getting worse. This study was an attempt to introduce a process of planned change to one such school. Since 1994 many changes have been imposed on our schools with new curricula, increased class sizes, changes in systems of assessment and teaching methods and the abolishment of past procedures such as corporal punishment. Teachers have had little say in any of these changes and this has resulted in resistance, resignation, frustration and in many cases a lack of ability to cope. OD was introduced to Acacia High School in the form of a Survey Data Feedback (SDF). An action research process followed and a diagnosis was made followed by action planning and then the execution of a plan. My study follows this process and the implementation of the plan describing its successes. Sadly change was not sustained and I highlight some of the challenges that face the school in order to bring about real long-term improvement in the culture of learning and teaching.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Mitchell, Pauline
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Educational change -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Education and state -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Education -- Social aspects -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Education -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape School improvement programs -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Case studies Education -- Aims and objectives -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1682 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003565
- Description: “We often spend too much time coping with problems along our path that we forget why we are on that path” Peter Senge This study describes and analyses the implementation of Organisation Development (OD) to a previously disadvantaged school. OD is a relatively new method of planned change in South Africa. Unlike more traditional change initiatives, OD promotes collaboration; it tries to involve all members of an organisation in problem solving and decision-making. It is an applied behavioural science discipline dedicated to improving organisations and the people in them. Previously disadvantaged schools in South Africa continue to be disadvantaged. Ten years after the introduction of democracy there have been few changes in some of these schools and some seem to be getting worse. This study was an attempt to introduce a process of planned change to one such school. Since 1994 many changes have been imposed on our schools with new curricula, increased class sizes, changes in systems of assessment and teaching methods and the abolishment of past procedures such as corporal punishment. Teachers have had little say in any of these changes and this has resulted in resistance, resignation, frustration and in many cases a lack of ability to cope. OD was introduced to Acacia High School in the form of a Survey Data Feedback (SDF). An action research process followed and a diagnosis was made followed by action planning and then the execution of a plan. My study follows this process and the implementation of the plan describing its successes. Sadly change was not sustained and I highlight some of the challenges that face the school in order to bring about real long-term improvement in the culture of learning and teaching.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
Animal suffering in factory farming and the best way to prevent it
- Authors: Watkins, Gareth
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Vegetarianism -- Moral and ethical aspects Food animals -- Moral and ethical aspects Animal rights Animal welfare Animal welfare -- Moral and ethical aspects Vegetarianism
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2728 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003736
- Description: This thesis moves beyond the traditional approaches of how we ought to treat animals, and instead concentrates on the best strategy for preventing animal suffering in the farming industry. Chapter 1 considers the question of how we can know that animals feel pain, and concludes not only that it is rational to believe that they can, but also that this is a significant fact. Chapter 2 then analyses one possible strategy for helping to prevent animal suffering, namely demi-vegetarianism. For a number of reasons, however, this strategy is found to be flawed, therefore Chapter 3 analyses a second possible strategy, namely vegetarianism, and concludes that this is, in fact, the best strategy for helping to prevent animal suffering in the farming industry.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Watkins, Gareth
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Vegetarianism -- Moral and ethical aspects Food animals -- Moral and ethical aspects Animal rights Animal welfare Animal welfare -- Moral and ethical aspects Vegetarianism
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2728 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003736
- Description: This thesis moves beyond the traditional approaches of how we ought to treat animals, and instead concentrates on the best strategy for preventing animal suffering in the farming industry. Chapter 1 considers the question of how we can know that animals feel pain, and concludes not only that it is rational to believe that they can, but also that this is a significant fact. Chapter 2 then analyses one possible strategy for helping to prevent animal suffering, namely demi-vegetarianism. For a number of reasons, however, this strategy is found to be flawed, therefore Chapter 3 analyses a second possible strategy, namely vegetarianism, and concludes that this is, in fact, the best strategy for helping to prevent animal suffering in the farming industry.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
Aspects of the ecology and management of the Soupfin shark (Galeorhinus galeus) in South Africa
- Authors: McCord, Meaghen Erica
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Soupfin shark -- South Africa , Soupfin shark -- Ecology -- South Africa , Fishery management -- South Africa , Shark fisheries -- Management -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:5223 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005066 , Soupfin shark -- South Africa , Soupfin shark -- Ecology -- South Africa , Fishery management -- South Africa , Shark fisheries -- Management -- South Africa
- Description: Global trends in teleost fisheries indicate significant population declines. Thus, alternative fisheries are being developed to meet the growing economic and nutritional demands of the expanding human population. Recently, it has been established that elasmobranch fisheries may fulfill these demands. As many elasmobranchs possess life-history characteristics that make them particularly vulnerable to overfishing, it is imperative to develop management strategies prior to the inception of these fisheries to ensure sustainable resource utilisation. In South Africa, elasmobranchs have been commercially exploited since the 1930s. Although generally considered an under-exploited resource, the potential for growth within these fisheries has been recognized. In 2005, the commercial shark fishery will undergo a transition from medium to long-term rights allocations. This represents an ideal opportunity for scientists and managers to develop precautionary species-specific management plans for commercially exploitable elasmobranch species. The soupfin shark (Galeorhinus galeus) is one of the principal target species in South Africa’s shark fisheries. Given its inherent susceptibility to overexploitation, G. galeus was selected as a management priority by South Africa’s regional fisheries organisation. The purpose of this study was to examine and describe the stock status of G. galeus in South Africa, and to develop a precautionary fishery management plan to ensure the sustainability of this resource. Age, growth, and mortality calculations for G. galeus were made from research survey data collected between 1996 and 1999. A small sample size precluded independent analyses of females. The maximum recorded age for G. galeus was 33 years. Estimated von Bertalanffy growth parameters from observed length-at-age for males and combined sexes were: L∞ 1542.8 mm TL, K 0.21 year⁻¹ , t₀ -2.79 year⁻¹ and L∞ 1560.3 mm TL, K 0.19 year¹, t₀ -3.03 year⁻¹, respectively. The age-at-50% maturity was determined to be 6 years, corresponding to 1011 mm TL for males and 1100 mm TL for combined sexes. Natural mortality was calculated as 0.126 yr⁻¹. The rate of instantaneous total mortality was calculated as 0.27 yr⁻¹. Catch trend analysis showed that catches and CPUE of G. galeus are increasing in the demersal longline fishery, and decreasing in the handline fishery. Decreasing catches and CPUE were observed in fishery-independent research survey data. The status of the soupfin shark stock was modelled using per-recruit analysis. The SB/R model indicated the soupfin shark is being optimally exploited and spawner biomass is at 43% of preexploitation levels. Current fishing levels ( F = 0.14 yr⁻¹) approximate the Fsb₄₀ level (F = 0.17 yr¹); thus, an increase in fishing pressure may lead to stock collapse. It was determined that the current age-at-capture (7.9 years) should be increased to 10 years, or 1420 mm TL, to maximize yield and minimize the possibility of recruitment failure. The results of this study indicate a need for immediate scientific and management intervention in South Africa’s soupfin shark fishery. An assessment report and fishery management plan for G. galeus was compiled, and several management options were proposed. These include the implementation of licence and size restrictions, as well as seasonal/area closures. The potential for an experimental gillnet fishery should be investigated.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: McCord, Meaghen Erica
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Soupfin shark -- South Africa , Soupfin shark -- Ecology -- South Africa , Fishery management -- South Africa , Shark fisheries -- Management -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:5223 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005066 , Soupfin shark -- South Africa , Soupfin shark -- Ecology -- South Africa , Fishery management -- South Africa , Shark fisheries -- Management -- South Africa
- Description: Global trends in teleost fisheries indicate significant population declines. Thus, alternative fisheries are being developed to meet the growing economic and nutritional demands of the expanding human population. Recently, it has been established that elasmobranch fisheries may fulfill these demands. As many elasmobranchs possess life-history characteristics that make them particularly vulnerable to overfishing, it is imperative to develop management strategies prior to the inception of these fisheries to ensure sustainable resource utilisation. In South Africa, elasmobranchs have been commercially exploited since the 1930s. Although generally considered an under-exploited resource, the potential for growth within these fisheries has been recognized. In 2005, the commercial shark fishery will undergo a transition from medium to long-term rights allocations. This represents an ideal opportunity for scientists and managers to develop precautionary species-specific management plans for commercially exploitable elasmobranch species. The soupfin shark (Galeorhinus galeus) is one of the principal target species in South Africa’s shark fisheries. Given its inherent susceptibility to overexploitation, G. galeus was selected as a management priority by South Africa’s regional fisheries organisation. The purpose of this study was to examine and describe the stock status of G. galeus in South Africa, and to develop a precautionary fishery management plan to ensure the sustainability of this resource. Age, growth, and mortality calculations for G. galeus were made from research survey data collected between 1996 and 1999. A small sample size precluded independent analyses of females. The maximum recorded age for G. galeus was 33 years. Estimated von Bertalanffy growth parameters from observed length-at-age for males and combined sexes were: L∞ 1542.8 mm TL, K 0.21 year⁻¹ , t₀ -2.79 year⁻¹ and L∞ 1560.3 mm TL, K 0.19 year¹, t₀ -3.03 year⁻¹, respectively. The age-at-50% maturity was determined to be 6 years, corresponding to 1011 mm TL for males and 1100 mm TL for combined sexes. Natural mortality was calculated as 0.126 yr⁻¹. The rate of instantaneous total mortality was calculated as 0.27 yr⁻¹. Catch trend analysis showed that catches and CPUE of G. galeus are increasing in the demersal longline fishery, and decreasing in the handline fishery. Decreasing catches and CPUE were observed in fishery-independent research survey data. The status of the soupfin shark stock was modelled using per-recruit analysis. The SB/R model indicated the soupfin shark is being optimally exploited and spawner biomass is at 43% of preexploitation levels. Current fishing levels ( F = 0.14 yr⁻¹) approximate the Fsb₄₀ level (F = 0.17 yr¹); thus, an increase in fishing pressure may lead to stock collapse. It was determined that the current age-at-capture (7.9 years) should be increased to 10 years, or 1420 mm TL, to maximize yield and minimize the possibility of recruitment failure. The results of this study indicate a need for immediate scientific and management intervention in South Africa’s soupfin shark fishery. An assessment report and fishery management plan for G. galeus was compiled, and several management options were proposed. These include the implementation of licence and size restrictions, as well as seasonal/area closures. The potential for an experimental gillnet fishery should be investigated.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
Asset prices and inflation-targeting : implications for South Africa
- Authors: Cosser, Leigh Emma
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: South African Reserve Bank , Monetary policy -- South Africa , Inflation (Finance) -- South Africa , South Africa -- Economic policy , Banks and banking, Central -- South Africa , Anti-inflationary policies , Monetary policy -- Japan , Monetary policy -- United States
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MCom
- Identifier: vital:1127 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1020849
- Description: An analysis of the current monetary policy framework in South Africa, which followed the exampie of a number of developed countries by implementing an inflation-targeting regime in 2000, is presented. The primary goal of the framework is to establish price stability, with financial stability a secondary objective. However, as has been evident in other countries, price stability does not guarantee financial stability. Movements in asset prices and the development of asset price bubbles have resulted in a number of episodes of financial instability, which negatively impacted on the growth and development of the countries involved. In addition, the majority of these episodes have occurred in periods of low and stable inflation. The dissertation analyses whether monetary policy would be more efficient if asset price movements were incorporated within the inflation-targeting regime. International experience indicates that early intervention of monetary policy can dampen the negative effects that result when an asset price bubble "bursts". However, if the monetary authorities act too early the effects on the economy can be just as disruptive. The literature is scrutinized to establish what the most effective form of monetary policy should be. The results are then transposed within the South African context to establish how the South African Reserve Bank can best ensure both price and financial stability.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Cosser, Leigh Emma
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: South African Reserve Bank , Monetary policy -- South Africa , Inflation (Finance) -- South Africa , South Africa -- Economic policy , Banks and banking, Central -- South Africa , Anti-inflationary policies , Monetary policy -- Japan , Monetary policy -- United States
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MCom
- Identifier: vital:1127 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1020849
- Description: An analysis of the current monetary policy framework in South Africa, which followed the exampie of a number of developed countries by implementing an inflation-targeting regime in 2000, is presented. The primary goal of the framework is to establish price stability, with financial stability a secondary objective. However, as has been evident in other countries, price stability does not guarantee financial stability. Movements in asset prices and the development of asset price bubbles have resulted in a number of episodes of financial instability, which negatively impacted on the growth and development of the countries involved. In addition, the majority of these episodes have occurred in periods of low and stable inflation. The dissertation analyses whether monetary policy would be more efficient if asset price movements were incorporated within the inflation-targeting regime. International experience indicates that early intervention of monetary policy can dampen the negative effects that result when an asset price bubble "bursts". However, if the monetary authorities act too early the effects on the economy can be just as disruptive. The literature is scrutinized to establish what the most effective form of monetary policy should be. The results are then transposed within the South African context to establish how the South African Reserve Bank can best ensure both price and financial stability.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
Betwixt and between: exploring the passage of liminal space
- Authors: Key, Michelle
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Bourgeois, Louis, 1911- Spider , Art and anthropology , Art criticism , Liminality
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2406 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002202 , Bourgeois, Louis, 1911- Spider , Art and anthropology , Art criticism , Liminality
- Description: The focus of this thesis is on the liminal space, limen being Latin for threshold. The liminal space is used as a means of figuring and reading artworks that appear to be in a process of becoming and disappearing. A dialectical and reciprocal reading is made of Bourgeois’ “neo-Baroque” artwork Spider (1997) and Michelle Key’s Betwixt-in-Between (2004). Liminality here is discussed within the theoretical framework of several key conceptual concerns, including abjection (as examined principally by Julia Kristeva), Baroque thought (as discussed by Mieke Bal, Gilles Deleuze, Jacques Lacan and Slavoj Žižek) and allegory (as figured primarily by Walter Benjamin and commentators on Benjamin’s writings). What links these concerns are their focus on indeterminacy, instability, and process as opposed to certitude and finitude. The exploration of the inscription of time in space; that is the temporal process, which gives rise to, which produces, the spatial dimension, is attempted in order to make meaning, however provisionally, of what may be argued to destabilise meaning and to consider possibilities for both art-making and interpretation that would engage critically with this instability.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Key, Michelle
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Bourgeois, Louis, 1911- Spider , Art and anthropology , Art criticism , Liminality
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2406 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002202 , Bourgeois, Louis, 1911- Spider , Art and anthropology , Art criticism , Liminality
- Description: The focus of this thesis is on the liminal space, limen being Latin for threshold. The liminal space is used as a means of figuring and reading artworks that appear to be in a process of becoming and disappearing. A dialectical and reciprocal reading is made of Bourgeois’ “neo-Baroque” artwork Spider (1997) and Michelle Key’s Betwixt-in-Between (2004). Liminality here is discussed within the theoretical framework of several key conceptual concerns, including abjection (as examined principally by Julia Kristeva), Baroque thought (as discussed by Mieke Bal, Gilles Deleuze, Jacques Lacan and Slavoj Žižek) and allegory (as figured primarily by Walter Benjamin and commentators on Benjamin’s writings). What links these concerns are their focus on indeterminacy, instability, and process as opposed to certitude and finitude. The exploration of the inscription of time in space; that is the temporal process, which gives rise to, which produces, the spatial dimension, is attempted in order to make meaning, however provisionally, of what may be argued to destabilise meaning and to consider possibilities for both art-making and interpretation that would engage critically with this instability.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
Bioactive 4-methoxypyrrolic natural products from two South African marine invertebrates
- Authors: Rapson, Trevor Douglas
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Natural products -- South Africa , Marine invertebrates -- South Africa , Bryozoa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:4412 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006766 , Natural products -- South Africa , Marine invertebrates -- South Africa , Bryozoa
- Description: This thesis presents an investigation of the 4-methoxypyrrolic constituents of two South African marine invertebrates, the nudibranch Tambja capensis and the bryozoan Bugula dentata. Three known compounds tambjamine A (7), tambjamine E (13) and the tetrapyrrole (15) were isolated during this investigation. All three compounds were shown to be active against oesophageal cancer in accordance with the general anticancer and immunosuppressive properties observed for 4-methoxypyrrolic natural products. Tambjamine A (7), tambjamine E (13) and the tetrapyrrole (15), together with tambjamine K (21) and L (22) (previously isolated in our laboratory) were used as standards to quantitatively assess the presence of these tambjamines in T. capensis and B. dentata collected from three different sites along the South African coast. This study confirmed that B. dentata is the source of the 4-methoxypyrrolic natural products sequestered by T. capensis and eliminated the closely related bryozoan B. neritina as a source of these metabolites. The paucity of tambjamine L (21) and K (22) obtained in previous investigations of the sequestered chemistry of T. capensis prompted an attempt at the development of synthetic methodology that could be used to synthesize tambjamines in sufficient yield for in depth bioactivity studies. In order to by pass the extensively reported problems associated with the synthesis of this group of compound 3-methoxy-2-formylpyrrole (47), readily accessible from 3-methoxypyridine N-oxide (48), was used as the starting material in a singlet oxygen induced 2,2’ bipyrrole coupling reaction. Although 47 proved unreactive in this coupling reaction, when the N-Boc protected analogue of 47 was used, and the reaction worked up in the dark, the novel methyl 4-aza-5-oxo-6,6-di-(2-pyrrolyl)-2(Z)-hexenoate (57) was obtained in low yield. The physical properties of tambjamine (E) (13) and the tetrapyrrole (15) were investigated to further the understanding of the proposed oxidative DNA cleavage mechanism and to determine the potential of the 4-methoxypyrrolic natural products as photodynamic therapy agents.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Rapson, Trevor Douglas
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Natural products -- South Africa , Marine invertebrates -- South Africa , Bryozoa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:4412 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006766 , Natural products -- South Africa , Marine invertebrates -- South Africa , Bryozoa
- Description: This thesis presents an investigation of the 4-methoxypyrrolic constituents of two South African marine invertebrates, the nudibranch Tambja capensis and the bryozoan Bugula dentata. Three known compounds tambjamine A (7), tambjamine E (13) and the tetrapyrrole (15) were isolated during this investigation. All three compounds were shown to be active against oesophageal cancer in accordance with the general anticancer and immunosuppressive properties observed for 4-methoxypyrrolic natural products. Tambjamine A (7), tambjamine E (13) and the tetrapyrrole (15), together with tambjamine K (21) and L (22) (previously isolated in our laboratory) were used as standards to quantitatively assess the presence of these tambjamines in T. capensis and B. dentata collected from three different sites along the South African coast. This study confirmed that B. dentata is the source of the 4-methoxypyrrolic natural products sequestered by T. capensis and eliminated the closely related bryozoan B. neritina as a source of these metabolites. The paucity of tambjamine L (21) and K (22) obtained in previous investigations of the sequestered chemistry of T. capensis prompted an attempt at the development of synthetic methodology that could be used to synthesize tambjamines in sufficient yield for in depth bioactivity studies. In order to by pass the extensively reported problems associated with the synthesis of this group of compound 3-methoxy-2-formylpyrrole (47), readily accessible from 3-methoxypyridine N-oxide (48), was used as the starting material in a singlet oxygen induced 2,2’ bipyrrole coupling reaction. Although 47 proved unreactive in this coupling reaction, when the N-Boc protected analogue of 47 was used, and the reaction worked up in the dark, the novel methyl 4-aza-5-oxo-6,6-di-(2-pyrrolyl)-2(Z)-hexenoate (57) was obtained in low yield. The physical properties of tambjamine (E) (13) and the tetrapyrrole (15) were investigated to further the understanding of the proposed oxidative DNA cleavage mechanism and to determine the potential of the 4-methoxypyrrolic natural products as photodynamic therapy agents.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
Brain drain, exodus and chicken run : media discourses on emigration
- Authors: Bright, Sue-Ann
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Mass media and language -- South Africa , Mass media criticism -- South Africa , Discourse analysis -- Social aspects
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3163 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007672 , Mass media and language -- South Africa , Mass media criticism -- South Africa , Discourse analysis -- Social aspects
- Description: This paper explores the discourses of emigration in a South African daily newspaper from 1988 to 2001, and discusses the implications of these discourses on the way in which emigration is constructed within South African society In this paper, Potter and Wetherell 's (1987) approach to discourse analysis is utilized. It makes use of interpretative repertoires, to explore the functions and consequences of the discourses. The discursive framework thereby reveals the different subject positions related to nationalism, race and class. It is argued that economics and notions of culture and social class, do more than provide a useful medium through which the phenomenon of emigration can be understood. They also support the affirmations of certain groups of people above others, by claiming that emigration is unpatriotic and disloyal. This paper concludes by identifying the negative connotations of media discourses in the construction of emigration and acknowledges that many alternate constructions are silenced in this matter.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Bright, Sue-Ann
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Mass media and language -- South Africa , Mass media criticism -- South Africa , Discourse analysis -- Social aspects
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3163 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007672 , Mass media and language -- South Africa , Mass media criticism -- South Africa , Discourse analysis -- Social aspects
- Description: This paper explores the discourses of emigration in a South African daily newspaper from 1988 to 2001, and discusses the implications of these discourses on the way in which emigration is constructed within South African society In this paper, Potter and Wetherell 's (1987) approach to discourse analysis is utilized. It makes use of interpretative repertoires, to explore the functions and consequences of the discourses. The discursive framework thereby reveals the different subject positions related to nationalism, race and class. It is argued that economics and notions of culture and social class, do more than provide a useful medium through which the phenomenon of emigration can be understood. They also support the affirmations of certain groups of people above others, by claiming that emigration is unpatriotic and disloyal. This paper concludes by identifying the negative connotations of media discourses in the construction of emigration and acknowledges that many alternate constructions are silenced in this matter.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
Clay sculpture within an object relational therapy: a phenomenological-hermeneutic case study
- Authors: Masters, Carin-Lee
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Art -- Psychology , Art therapy -- Case studies , Psychotherapy , Modeling -- Therapeutic use
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3015 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002524 , Art -- Psychology , Art therapy -- Case studies , Psychotherapy , Modeling -- Therapeutic use
- Description: The overall aim of this thesis is to explore the process of working with the Edwards claywork method with a psychotherapy client who had significant relational difficulties and feared being exposed as defective. Within this there are particular aims: Firstly, to investigate whether the distancing that art therapy can create, can help the client with relational difficulties to tolerate unexpressed disavowed feelings, in particular her sense of shame about being exposed as defective; and secondly, to examine whether material evoked through the claywork process can assist in furthering the psychological formulation of this kind of client. The research was a phenomenological-hermeneutic case study of a psychotherapy client, called Kim. Kim’s experience of therapy, including two claywork sessions, was documented. This comprises a thematic narrative of her therapy process prior to the claywork process, as well as a thematic narrative focusing on the two claywork sessions. Her clay sculpture was photographed and alphabetically labeled according to the chronological order in which she made the eight pieces comprising her sculpture. A hermeneutic reading of the narratives was conducted using theoretical perspectives including object relations, Adlerian psychology and art therapy. It was concluded that, firstly, the distancing that art therapy can create does help the client, who is afraid of being exposed as defective, to tolerate previously disavowed and unexpressed feelings; and secondly, art therapy such as the Edwards claywork method, does deepen psychological formulation of the client’s affective and relational difficulties. However, although the image may graphically symbolize unconscious aspects of a client’s psyche, the present study illustrates that a client may not always be able to enter into a relationship with the image or dialogue between conscious and unconscious states. In this respect, the present study focuses on aspects of art therapy of which there is limited literature.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Masters, Carin-Lee
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Art -- Psychology , Art therapy -- Case studies , Psychotherapy , Modeling -- Therapeutic use
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3015 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002524 , Art -- Psychology , Art therapy -- Case studies , Psychotherapy , Modeling -- Therapeutic use
- Description: The overall aim of this thesis is to explore the process of working with the Edwards claywork method with a psychotherapy client who had significant relational difficulties and feared being exposed as defective. Within this there are particular aims: Firstly, to investigate whether the distancing that art therapy can create, can help the client with relational difficulties to tolerate unexpressed disavowed feelings, in particular her sense of shame about being exposed as defective; and secondly, to examine whether material evoked through the claywork process can assist in furthering the psychological formulation of this kind of client. The research was a phenomenological-hermeneutic case study of a psychotherapy client, called Kim. Kim’s experience of therapy, including two claywork sessions, was documented. This comprises a thematic narrative of her therapy process prior to the claywork process, as well as a thematic narrative focusing on the two claywork sessions. Her clay sculpture was photographed and alphabetically labeled according to the chronological order in which she made the eight pieces comprising her sculpture. A hermeneutic reading of the narratives was conducted using theoretical perspectives including object relations, Adlerian psychology and art therapy. It was concluded that, firstly, the distancing that art therapy can create does help the client, who is afraid of being exposed as defective, to tolerate previously disavowed and unexpressed feelings; and secondly, art therapy such as the Edwards claywork method, does deepen psychological formulation of the client’s affective and relational difficulties. However, although the image may graphically symbolize unconscious aspects of a client’s psyche, the present study illustrates that a client may not always be able to enter into a relationship with the image or dialogue between conscious and unconscious states. In this respect, the present study focuses on aspects of art therapy of which there is limited literature.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
Coastal dune dynamics and management at the Bushman's River mouth, Kenton-on-Sea
- Authors: Fraser, Claire
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Sand dunes -- South Africa -- Management , Sand dune ecology -- South Africa -- Kenton-on-Sea , Coastal ecology -- South Africa -- Kenton-on-Sea , Coastal zone management -- South Africa -- Kenton-on-Sea
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:4192 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003761 , Sand dunes -- South Africa -- Management , Sand dune ecology -- South Africa -- Kenton-on-Sea , Coastal ecology -- South Africa -- Kenton-on-Sea , Coastal zone management -- South Africa -- Kenton-on-Sea
- Description: A study of the dynamics and functions of a coastal dunefield at the Bushman’s River Mouth in Kenton-on-Sea was conducted to provide essential information for the formulation of a management strategy based on an ecosystem approach. Bi-monthly tacheometric surveys were undertaken at the Westbourne Road Car Park dunefield to investigate the sedimentological processes. Changes in the topography, the amount and rate of sand accretion were monitored. Accretion and progradation were the dominant long-term sedimentological processes at the site. Long-term spatial variation in these processes corresponded to the temporal pattern of sedimentation in the river mouth while short-term variation resulted from dynamics inherent to the types of dunes present. Factors affecting aeolian accretion at the site are topography, river mouth configuration, dune types and the presence of vegetation as well as the seasonal wind regime. A vegetation study, recording species present, cover and abundance of the plants along the surveyed transects, was also conducted to examine the progressive establishment of vegetation. Five plant communities were discerned namely, saltmarsh, pioneer, enriched pioneer, open scrub, closed scrub and scrub-thicket communities. The spatial distribution of these communities coincided with the north-westerly development of the sandbank. A successional trend in community change occurred along a gradient of increasing diversity, complexity and age. Initially, autogenic changes wrought by pioneer species facilitated the recruitment and survival of other species and commenced succession at the study site. Multiple successional pathways were discussed in relation to subsequent species establishment that occurred after facilitation. The amalgamation of ecological data with a social study in the form of public perception surveys allowed for a greater understanding of the present interactions between the ecosystem and the demands placed on it. The area primarily functions as a recreational site that offered numerous beach and water-related activities. A lack of information regarding the ecology and management programmes influenced public perception of the environment and management issues in general. Different management perspectives and the use of the information presented in this study were also discussed.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Fraser, Claire
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Sand dunes -- South Africa -- Management , Sand dune ecology -- South Africa -- Kenton-on-Sea , Coastal ecology -- South Africa -- Kenton-on-Sea , Coastal zone management -- South Africa -- Kenton-on-Sea
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:4192 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003761 , Sand dunes -- South Africa -- Management , Sand dune ecology -- South Africa -- Kenton-on-Sea , Coastal ecology -- South Africa -- Kenton-on-Sea , Coastal zone management -- South Africa -- Kenton-on-Sea
- Description: A study of the dynamics and functions of a coastal dunefield at the Bushman’s River Mouth in Kenton-on-Sea was conducted to provide essential information for the formulation of a management strategy based on an ecosystem approach. Bi-monthly tacheometric surveys were undertaken at the Westbourne Road Car Park dunefield to investigate the sedimentological processes. Changes in the topography, the amount and rate of sand accretion were monitored. Accretion and progradation were the dominant long-term sedimentological processes at the site. Long-term spatial variation in these processes corresponded to the temporal pattern of sedimentation in the river mouth while short-term variation resulted from dynamics inherent to the types of dunes present. Factors affecting aeolian accretion at the site are topography, river mouth configuration, dune types and the presence of vegetation as well as the seasonal wind regime. A vegetation study, recording species present, cover and abundance of the plants along the surveyed transects, was also conducted to examine the progressive establishment of vegetation. Five plant communities were discerned namely, saltmarsh, pioneer, enriched pioneer, open scrub, closed scrub and scrub-thicket communities. The spatial distribution of these communities coincided with the north-westerly development of the sandbank. A successional trend in community change occurred along a gradient of increasing diversity, complexity and age. Initially, autogenic changes wrought by pioneer species facilitated the recruitment and survival of other species and commenced succession at the study site. Multiple successional pathways were discussed in relation to subsequent species establishment that occurred after facilitation. The amalgamation of ecological data with a social study in the form of public perception surveys allowed for a greater understanding of the present interactions between the ecosystem and the demands placed on it. The area primarily functions as a recreational site that offered numerous beach and water-related activities. A lack of information regarding the ecology and management programmes influenced public perception of the environment and management issues in general. Different management perspectives and the use of the information presented in this study were also discussed.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
Conceptualizing and implementing the meaning of Africa's new partnership with the industrialized north : implications and possibilities for the renaissance
- Authors: Somhlaba, Zamokwakhe Ludidi
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: New Partnership for Africa's Development , Sustainable development -- Africa , Economic development -- Africa , Africa -- Foreign economic relations , Africa -- Economic conditions -- 1960-
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2841 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004655 , New Partnership for Africa's Development , Sustainable development -- Africa , Economic development -- Africa , Africa -- Foreign economic relations , Africa -- Economic conditions -- 1960-
- Description: This study is a contribution to the on-going debate about the path that Africa has taken in realising the vision of its renewal. The central theme of the study is the idea of Africa's 'new partnership' with the industrialised North, which is envisaged under the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). Acknowledging that asymmetrical partnerships have existed between Africa and the North, particularly in the last century, the question this study poses is: to what extent does the idea of the 'new partnership' represent something new? The study argues two points. Firstly, it argues that the idea of the new partnership has become a terrain of contestation between the Africanist and the post-modernist social forces. Secondly, the study argues that it is unlikely that conceptualising the idea of the new partnership in post-modernist terms will result in sustainable development and rebirth of Africa. That is particularly the case, because post-modernity suggests a certain degree of loyalty to the prevailing and asymmetrical global order. Against this background, the study concludes that the extent to which Africa will enjoy the benefits of a truly revised partnership with the North, and thus fulfil the vision of its rebirth, will be determined, by and large, by the modalities of accommodation and struggle between these social forces.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Somhlaba, Zamokwakhe Ludidi
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: New Partnership for Africa's Development , Sustainable development -- Africa , Economic development -- Africa , Africa -- Foreign economic relations , Africa -- Economic conditions -- 1960-
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2841 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004655 , New Partnership for Africa's Development , Sustainable development -- Africa , Economic development -- Africa , Africa -- Foreign economic relations , Africa -- Economic conditions -- 1960-
- Description: This study is a contribution to the on-going debate about the path that Africa has taken in realising the vision of its renewal. The central theme of the study is the idea of Africa's 'new partnership' with the industrialised North, which is envisaged under the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). Acknowledging that asymmetrical partnerships have existed between Africa and the North, particularly in the last century, the question this study poses is: to what extent does the idea of the 'new partnership' represent something new? The study argues two points. Firstly, it argues that the idea of the new partnership has become a terrain of contestation between the Africanist and the post-modernist social forces. Secondly, the study argues that it is unlikely that conceptualising the idea of the new partnership in post-modernist terms will result in sustainable development and rebirth of Africa. That is particularly the case, because post-modernity suggests a certain degree of loyalty to the prevailing and asymmetrical global order. Against this background, the study concludes that the extent to which Africa will enjoy the benefits of a truly revised partnership with the North, and thus fulfil the vision of its rebirth, will be determined, by and large, by the modalities of accommodation and struggle between these social forces.
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- Date Issued: 2005
Consolidating democracy, building civil society : the South African Council of Churches in post-apartheid South Africa and its policy of critical solidarity with the state
- Authors: Joseph, Stacey-Leigh
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: South African Council of Churches Church and state -- South Africa Christianity and politics -- South Africa Apartheid -- Religious aspects -- South Africa AIDS (Disease) -- Government policy -- South Africa Debts, External -- South Africa South Africa -- Foreign relations -- Zimbabwe South Africa -- Politics and government -- 1994
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: vital:2874 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007957
- Description: The South African Council of Churches (SACC) played an extremely crucial role during the struggle against apartheid. The role of the SACC was first and foremost to provide a voice for the voiceless. It managed, among other tasks, to actively fill the void left by movements banned by the illegitimate apartheid government. As a result of its fight against the inequalities that existed in South Africa, its work adopted a political character. In the aftermath of post-apartheid South Africa, the SACC was left with the task of redefining its role within South African society and civil society, specifically. The euphoric sentiment in the mid-1990s was in part reflected in the SACC. However, the conclusion reached by the Council in 1995 was that it would also play a role of 'critical solidarity' which essentially meant that it would not shy away from attacking the government when the need arose. Since 1994, the South African government has implemented a number of policies that do not appear to be in the immediate interest of the majority of South African citizens atld have brought church and state into conflict. This thesis attempts to tackle three issues which are pertinent to the South African situation and which shed light on state-civil society interactions. These issues are HIV I Aids, the question of odious debt and the Zimbabwe crisis. By using both primary and secondary sources, the SACC's responses to government's handling of these matters will be compared with the responses of the South African Catholic Bishops Conference in order to determine their relationships with government. The conclusion of this investigation is that the SACC has in fact managed to maintain a position of critical solidarity. It has been faced with numerous challenges with regard to maintaining the fragile boundary of alliance with government on the one hand, and becoming anti-government on the other. However, by forming alliances with other civil society actors as well as fostering a relationship with government in order to facilitate mediation this dissertation argues that the SACC has become an essential member of South Africa's vibrant civil society.
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- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Joseph, Stacey-Leigh
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: South African Council of Churches Church and state -- South Africa Christianity and politics -- South Africa Apartheid -- Religious aspects -- South Africa AIDS (Disease) -- Government policy -- South Africa Debts, External -- South Africa South Africa -- Foreign relations -- Zimbabwe South Africa -- Politics and government -- 1994
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: vital:2874 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007957
- Description: The South African Council of Churches (SACC) played an extremely crucial role during the struggle against apartheid. The role of the SACC was first and foremost to provide a voice for the voiceless. It managed, among other tasks, to actively fill the void left by movements banned by the illegitimate apartheid government. As a result of its fight against the inequalities that existed in South Africa, its work adopted a political character. In the aftermath of post-apartheid South Africa, the SACC was left with the task of redefining its role within South African society and civil society, specifically. The euphoric sentiment in the mid-1990s was in part reflected in the SACC. However, the conclusion reached by the Council in 1995 was that it would also play a role of 'critical solidarity' which essentially meant that it would not shy away from attacking the government when the need arose. Since 1994, the South African government has implemented a number of policies that do not appear to be in the immediate interest of the majority of South African citizens atld have brought church and state into conflict. This thesis attempts to tackle three issues which are pertinent to the South African situation and which shed light on state-civil society interactions. These issues are HIV I Aids, the question of odious debt and the Zimbabwe crisis. By using both primary and secondary sources, the SACC's responses to government's handling of these matters will be compared with the responses of the South African Catholic Bishops Conference in order to determine their relationships with government. The conclusion of this investigation is that the SACC has in fact managed to maintain a position of critical solidarity. It has been faced with numerous challenges with regard to maintaining the fragile boundary of alliance with government on the one hand, and becoming anti-government on the other. However, by forming alliances with other civil society actors as well as fostering a relationship with government in order to facilitate mediation this dissertation argues that the SACC has become an essential member of South Africa's vibrant civil society.
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- Date Issued: 2005
Creating a relationship: a discourse analysis focusing on the construction of identities and relationships in distance education materials for a teacher upgrade programme
- Authors: Van der Mescht, Caroline
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Distance education -- South Africa Teachers -- Training of -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1467 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003348
- Description: Distance education, and therefore the writing of distance materials, is a growing field in South Africa. This makes it potentially a site of innovation and change as writers experiment with ways of creating effective teaching situations at long range. The Fort Hare Distance Education Project materials seem to be a response to both the increased need for teacher upgrade programmes and the need for innovation to tailor those programmes to the needs of local teachers in a changing society. This innovative attempt to communicate with tertiary distance students has unusual features which suggest that they are worth investigation. Using discourse analysis, including the work of Scollon and Scollon on politeness theory, and an analysis of visual elements using categories developed by Kress and van Leeuwen, this study focuses on 18 pages of a sample text, booklet 9, “A Whole Language Approach,” to investigate how the writer-reader relationship and the identity of the reader are constructed. The analysis reveals a complex, interlocking construction of identity and relationship, producing and resolving apparent contradictions as writers move from one position to another while they negotiate their ongoing and evolving relationship with the readers. Features of identity and relationship operating through the text include issues of authority, changing roles of teachers and learners, trust, what constitutes appropriate language and materials, acknowledging prior learning in under-qualified professionals, ownership of the text, hierarchy and egalitarianism, and stereotyping. The study suggests that the Fort Hare Distance Project materials offer an example of strategies suited to local students which should benefit those who design such courses. It further suggests that visual analysis together with discourse analysis provides insights which seem not to be accessible through a study of the verbal text, and that an analysis of visual elements may widen a researcher’s options. It reveals ways in which writers can negotiate conflicting positions and consciously or unconsciously attempt to resolve contradictions and ambivalence. It suggests issues which need to be negotiated in any text written in South Africa for a similar audience.
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- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Van der Mescht, Caroline
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Distance education -- South Africa Teachers -- Training of -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1467 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003348
- Description: Distance education, and therefore the writing of distance materials, is a growing field in South Africa. This makes it potentially a site of innovation and change as writers experiment with ways of creating effective teaching situations at long range. The Fort Hare Distance Education Project materials seem to be a response to both the increased need for teacher upgrade programmes and the need for innovation to tailor those programmes to the needs of local teachers in a changing society. This innovative attempt to communicate with tertiary distance students has unusual features which suggest that they are worth investigation. Using discourse analysis, including the work of Scollon and Scollon on politeness theory, and an analysis of visual elements using categories developed by Kress and van Leeuwen, this study focuses on 18 pages of a sample text, booklet 9, “A Whole Language Approach,” to investigate how the writer-reader relationship and the identity of the reader are constructed. The analysis reveals a complex, interlocking construction of identity and relationship, producing and resolving apparent contradictions as writers move from one position to another while they negotiate their ongoing and evolving relationship with the readers. Features of identity and relationship operating through the text include issues of authority, changing roles of teachers and learners, trust, what constitutes appropriate language and materials, acknowledging prior learning in under-qualified professionals, ownership of the text, hierarchy and egalitarianism, and stereotyping. The study suggests that the Fort Hare Distance Project materials offer an example of strategies suited to local students which should benefit those who design such courses. It further suggests that visual analysis together with discourse analysis provides insights which seem not to be accessible through a study of the verbal text, and that an analysis of visual elements may widen a researcher’s options. It reveals ways in which writers can negotiate conflicting positions and consciously or unconsciously attempt to resolve contradictions and ambivalence. It suggests issues which need to be negotiated in any text written in South Africa for a similar audience.
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- Date Issued: 2005
Developing an environmental education strategy framework: a case study of the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT)
- Authors: O'Grady, Janis
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Endangered Wildlife Trust Environmental education -- South Africa Conservation of natural resources -- South Africa Biodiversity -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1494 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003375
- Description: The study focused on the development of an environmental education (EE) strategy framework in the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) of South Africa. Evidence shows that the roles of conservation and biodiversity education could potentially be merged towards producing a practical strategy, beneficial to the organisation and its individual staff members. Questionnaires, interviews and the individual perceptions of staff members, as well as the analysis of relevant documents, suggested that the potential for the practice of EE towards the development of an EE strategy within the organisation is substantial. EWT staff members can contribute towards a change in the way that South Africans think about conservation and nature. Environmental ethics need to be promoted and understood by all. Within the EWT, environmental education activities are in place and diverse, yet they lack any form of monitoring and evaluation. The Trust is already practicing a form of EE but the potential to do more and the opportunities for expansion are unlimited.
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- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: O'Grady, Janis
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Endangered Wildlife Trust Environmental education -- South Africa Conservation of natural resources -- South Africa Biodiversity -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1494 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003375
- Description: The study focused on the development of an environmental education (EE) strategy framework in the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) of South Africa. Evidence shows that the roles of conservation and biodiversity education could potentially be merged towards producing a practical strategy, beneficial to the organisation and its individual staff members. Questionnaires, interviews and the individual perceptions of staff members, as well as the analysis of relevant documents, suggested that the potential for the practice of EE towards the development of an EE strategy within the organisation is substantial. EWT staff members can contribute towards a change in the way that South Africans think about conservation and nature. Environmental ethics need to be promoted and understood by all. Within the EWT, environmental education activities are in place and diverse, yet they lack any form of monitoring and evaluation. The Trust is already practicing a form of EE but the potential to do more and the opportunities for expansion are unlimited.
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- Date Issued: 2005
Developing strategies for creating an environmental focus in a school: narrating the change process
- Authors: Hope, Megan Samantha
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Environmental education Educational change School environment
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1946 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008093
- Description: Effective environmental education goes beyond raising environmental awareness and developing positive environmental values, to the encouragement of personal responsibility and action in response to contextual environmental issues in particular. The whole school approach has been advocated as the best approach to environmental education, based on the assumption that the values and attitudes espoused in the classroom need to be reflected in the day-to-day school practice. By practising what they teach, schools reinforce values with action. In contrast, inconsistencies between the formal and non-formal curriculum may lead young people to question the integrity of their teachers or condition them to accept such inconsistencies as cultural and social norms, which in turn may lead to apathy about the environment. Adjustments to the ethos of a school to foreground the environment, both within the curriculum , the management of the school and the behaviour of teachers, pupils and support staff, is not a straightforward undertaking. Institutional factors influence the change process in schools and each school presents a unique context. It is, therefore, difficult to develop a general strategy for the evolution of an environmental ethos. This case study narrates an attempt to implement a change towards an improved environmental focus in a school, and focuses on developing an understanding of how available resources can assist this process while engaging with complexity of change.
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- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Hope, Megan Samantha
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Environmental education Educational change School environment
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1946 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008093
- Description: Effective environmental education goes beyond raising environmental awareness and developing positive environmental values, to the encouragement of personal responsibility and action in response to contextual environmental issues in particular. The whole school approach has been advocated as the best approach to environmental education, based on the assumption that the values and attitudes espoused in the classroom need to be reflected in the day-to-day school practice. By practising what they teach, schools reinforce values with action. In contrast, inconsistencies between the formal and non-formal curriculum may lead young people to question the integrity of their teachers or condition them to accept such inconsistencies as cultural and social norms, which in turn may lead to apathy about the environment. Adjustments to the ethos of a school to foreground the environment, both within the curriculum , the management of the school and the behaviour of teachers, pupils and support staff, is not a straightforward undertaking. Institutional factors influence the change process in schools and each school presents a unique context. It is, therefore, difficult to develop a general strategy for the evolution of an environmental ethos. This case study narrates an attempt to implement a change towards an improved environmental focus in a school, and focuses on developing an understanding of how available resources can assist this process while engaging with complexity of change.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005