Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 241-268). / Within international theory of gender and education, sexuality is implicated as one of the major factors responsible for the differential participation of boys and girls in schooling and the persistent gender inequalities in education in Sub-Saharan African countries and Uganda in particular. In spite of multiple interventions to address the inequalities, gender disparities remain apparent and such disparities continue to entail increased vulnerability to sexual abuse, HIV transmission, unwanted teenage pregnancies, sexual exploitation and the overall silence about sexual experience, for those gendered as girls and women. Comprehensive gendered sexuality education is widely seen as a valuable site of intervention for addressing these problems, thereby facilitating the process of attaining gender equality and equity in society. The relationship between sexuality education and gender dynamics remain, however, complex at multiple levels of the educational process. The main objective of this study is to explore the operation of gender dynamics in school sexuality education. The research interrogates the interactions between contemporary curriculum based ideas of sexuality education in Uganda and the gendered realities of key participants in the pedagogic process. The substantive focus of my study is on secondary school students' and teachers' experiences and interactions with formal school sexuality curriculum. Under the notion that the community of pedagogy for students comprises parents, the research includes an exploration of parents' engagement with the school-based sexuality education. My study draws on qualitative data obtained through qualitative methods namely observation, in- depth and key informant interviews and focus group discussions. Template and thematic analysis was used. The study theorises that the current sexuality education being conducted in Uganda's secondary schools is deficient in terms of content and approach and is based on gender biased materials and textbooks. Overall the education offered is inadequate, largely prescriptive and feminized, generally divorced from students' personal experiences, and sometimes even contradictory. The study reveals complex gendered sexual experiences of students that position boys and girls differently often causing gender inequalities in sexuality education classrooms. The study illuminates the need for a rigorous re-examination of the current curriculum learning resources and advocates an empowerment approach that integrates considerations of gender dynamics throughout the approach to formal sexuality education in a bid to challenge gendered discrimination.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 270-284). / This study examines the critical role that adult education played in a housing social movement whose membership was mainly poor African women in informal settlements. In this social movement women have combined learning with the struggle to obtain social goods from the state. The study explores the interconnectedness between learning, development and social change. The conceptual framework developed from a feminist critique of popular education was applied in the methodology and yielded insights with regard to the learning of VM women. The feminist critique allowed for an exploration of the contradictions within popular education and people-centred development. In addition it provided a vocabulary to explain the learning and agency of VM women. The conceptual framework allowed me to argue that learning is contextual, and to analyse and understand learning in the micro-context (VM and the life changes and learning of VM women) it is necessary to examine the interaction between the macro-- (political, economic and policy context of South Africa) and micro-contexts. The interaction of these contexts has brought political opportunities to mobilise the agency of poor African women who were seeking solutions to their housing problems.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 160-167). / This Master's Research Project has sought to investigate the discursive space for 'gender struggles' within contemporary South African class based social justice activism. It has done so in the form of a qualitative case study, analysing particular 'gender' interventions designed by a left-wing popular education organisation during 2006, and how these are theorized and contextualised against this specific moment in time in post-apartheid South Africa. The research has looked at how and why the organisation is presently trying to challenge gendered power inequalities in its internal and external work, strengthening women activists in the Community-based organisations and Social Movements which it targets, and contribute to putting women's strategic gender interests on the agenda of these movements, while simultaneously seeking to theorize the meaning of 'political' gender work in relation to its dominant perspective of class justice. The researcher has followed a specific empowerment initiative targeting women activists during the year, and has also engaged closely with the institutional dynamics in the organisation under study. The data has been gathered through interviews with staff members and women activists, and through participatory observation in educational events and office meetings. The theoretical framework for the study was designed in relation to Shireen Hassim's investigations of the "discursive space" for South African feminist groups to articulate their demands while continuing to work within the dominant, male-led resistance movements (Hassim, 2006:14-19), and to Amanda Gouws' theorizing of citizenship as including 'embodied' participation in political processes and activism (Gouws, 2005:1-16,71-87). It furthermore builds on contemporary theories on social movements and grassroots mobilisation in South Africa (recaptured by Ballard et. aI., 2006:3-19), on feminist consciousness-raising (Kaplan, 1997) and on organisational change for gender equality (Rao and Kelleher, 2003). Some of the suggestions made, while analysing the data against this theoretical framework, include; That the conflict which has emerged in the organisation under study in relation to the new 'gender programme' is indeed a contestation over the meaning of 'political' gender work, and over who can be a legitimate 'political actor' (Hassim, 2006: 17); simultaneously and contradictive, there is an awareness in the organisations that the nature of the 'working class' is shifting in pace with neo-liberal globalisation processes, and that rank-and-file members in working class organisations are now the unemployed or the casual workers, a majority of them being women (although leadership structures largely remain male territory), which theoretically should also prompt a shift in the focal organisations approach to 'political' gender work, but in practice, this is still a struggle; the empowerment programme which the research has followed closely throughout the year has led to women participants being ostracised, after surfacing issues of sexual harassment in the movements, but the rational/intellectual, spiritual and emotional learning which has happened in the group is analyzed as having been empowering on both an individual and collective level, inspiring new women's network to develop within movements of both men and women. The study suggests that engaging 'gender' and expanding the notion of 'political work' and who can be a 'political actor' is crucial if left-wing education and support organisations seek to remain relevant within a rapidly changing context.

This research paper aims at analysing the evidentiary hurdles of sexuality-based refugee applications in Cape Town, the so-called gay capital of Africa. Amidst authorities' fear of bogus applicants, asylum-seekers fleeing homophobic persecution in their country of origin have to navigate the burden of proving to the South African state that they are 'truly' gay, despite sexuality's arguably elusive and intangible nature. Drawing from a literature review from fields as diverse as international human rights, queer and critical race theory, postcolonial feminism, and migration studies I start from a macro perspective by analysing the evolution of refugee studies and the emergence of the 'sexual refugee' within the human rights system, going on to explore the implications of such emergence for sexual minorities from the Global South. The study then brings its focus to the regional/local in order to look at the relationship between South Africa and the rest of the continent in terms of LGBT and refugee protection, at which point I trace the directions and encounters of my brief empirical research, dwell on issues of research reflexivity and positionality, and present the data collected through semi-structured interviews with three gay men from Uganda and Zimbabwe who sought asylum in Cape Town.

The purpose of the study was to explore gender experiences of Home economics professionals in Botswana educational institutions with the aim of presenting argument against this colonial mentality that still lingers in the education system of Botswana and result in Home economics teachers suffering professional indignity in schools and colleges. In Botswana. Home economics teachers do not easily progress to senior positions like other subject teachers do. However they always find themselves overloaded with both domestic and public activities. This situation prevents them from being fully and effectively productive in their day-to-day duties. The researcher of the paper is a Home economics teacher, first in secondary school and now in colleges of education. She has a first-hand experience of this indignity and it is this frustration that sparked her to do so much research and create a correct image of this long neglected or down trodden noble subject.

This study explores the narratives of men who become male sex workers after being in prison. This study looks at prison as a fluid space for sexual expression and gender performativity, which is ironic given the view of prison as punitive and repressive. Sex within the South African prison system is silenced and taboo particularly within the Number prison gang where sex is heavily regulated, ritualized and fiercely guarded. The research question asks how do men who are or become male sex workers construct and perform their gendered and sexual identities in prison and on the street? This qualitative study employs the organizing metaphor of dramaturgy to explore how prison as a social setting (stage) impacts on the gendered and sexual performances of men (actors) who have been incarcerated. Drawing on Foucault's theories of the repressive hypothesis and peripheral sexualities (1990), Butler's theory of performativity (1990) and Gagnon and Simon's scripting theory (1973) this study illustrates theoretically how prison sex culture and male sex work can be theorized from a feminist standpoint perspective. This feminist study is located in the social constructionist paradigm. It is underpinned by grounded theory and narrative methodology to explore the narratives of men who have been incarcerated and continue into sex work post-release. Biographical interviews were conducted with 15 men who were participants in a male sex work support group. Findings revealed two overarching themes in the narratives that explain how men construct and perform their gendered and sexual identities in prison. Renegotiation was the process where the subject engaged in an internalized monologue with self, constantly exploring and (re)constructing the gendered and sexual self in response to the shifting contexts of prison and the streets. Negotiation was the process where the subject engaged in an external dialogue with others. Through interactions with others, they were able to perform gender and sexuality publicly. By framing it within the discourse of dramaturgy, this study shows an alternative view of prison sex culture. (Re)imagining prison as the 'stage', prisoners as the 'actors', prison rituals as the 'script' and identity performances as the 'act', we can begin to envision an alternative script and narrative of prison unfolding.

Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references.

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 114-119) / This thesis examines the utilization of forum theatre techniques to explore the processes of gendering women within a workshop consisting of twenty-three young women in Manenberg, South Africa. It examines the opportunities that these techniques provide the group in uncovering, understanding and questioning the practices, norms and patterns that inform the construction of femininity. This thesis draws on theories of community theatre praxis in South Africa, gender and development discourse as well as research on contemporary 'rites of passage' practices in Manenberg. As a qualitative study embedded in feminist epistemology and feminist activism, this research utilises a range of methods, including participant observation, appreciative inquiry and second hand ethnography. There methods are used to critically analyse the opportunities and gaps that emerge when using forum theatre with this particular group. My positionality as a researcher and activist is engaged in this thesis as a critical site for reflection and analysis. This research establishes that forum theatre through specific activities provide the space for the exploration, analysis and comprehension of the gendered experiences of the young women in Manenberg. However there are methodological shortcomings, which are pointed out as areas for future research.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 191-196).