The aim of this study is to investigate the probable adaptability problems Afrikaans speaking pupils experience in the international, multicultural, private schools of Botswana and how these problems concerning adaptability can have an influence on their academic success. Over the last forty years Botswana has made name for itself as the most stable country in Africa. Here is no dictators craving for power, no poverty because of mismanagement and no violent oppression or unconstitutional behavior visible. On the contrary, since the country became independent in 1966, it only knew the road to prosperity. When the country became independent there was only eight kilometers of tarred road found in the whole of Botswana. Today the main routes don’t have to stand back one step for those found in South Africa. The local currency, the Pula, is stronger than the rand and there is less crime as what is the case in South Africa as well as much less visible poverty. Al the facts mentioned above are only a few reasons why Botswana became an attractive refuge, close but still outside the borders of South Africa, for so many South African citizens. Approximately 80% of all the companies found in the capital, Gaborone have South African roots. Since 1990 the number of South Africans that relocated to Botswana has tripled. Education plays a very important role in the prosperity of Botswana and the country spends in the vicinity of 22% of its annual budget on education. Because of the huge influx of foreigners, especially over the last ten years, a number of international, English medium, private schools were founded. In the past, these English medium schools provided mostly education for foreign learners. The current tendency is however that more and more local learners start attending especially the secondary, private schools because of the international curriculums these schools offer. Afrikaans speaking learners coming from Afrikaans medium schools in South Africa are faced with definite problems concerning adapting when they visit the international, multicultural private schools of Botswana for the first time. The four most important concepts identified in the study were the international education environment of the multicultural, private schools in Botswana, multicultural education, and the concepts culture and milieu-handicapped. The problems concerning adaptability experienced by Afrikaans speaking pupils are mostly found on the social- and cultural domains as well as adapting to the new medium of education. There are several factors, internally as well as externally from the school environment identified which can play a leading role in the successful adaptation of these learners. The social- en psychological development of the child as well as the style of education portrayed by the parents can both play a leading role in the successful adaptation of these learners. Factors that can all contribute to a more or less extend to the successful social adaptation of Afrikaans speaking pupils include the role of the school, community, peer group, church and media. Concerning the successful cultural adaptation of Afrikaans speaking pupils several factors are identified. These include cultural differentiation, cultural integration, cultural continuity, cultural relativity, cultural pluralism, the philosophy of life concerning culture, the economic technical cultural domain, the social welfare cultural domain as well as the spiritual cultural domain. Lastly the study looked at the adaptation regarding the medium of education Afrikaans speaking pupils face. Factors which play a role here include the differences of the language spoken at school, in the home and in the community as well as the influence language and culture have. The successful social- and cultural adaptation and adaptation regarding the medium of education of Afrikaans speaking pupils can all contribute to the successful academic performance of these learners. A poor academic record, limited intellectual possibilities, unfavorable personality characteristics, inadequate study methods as well as school migration can contribute to the successful academic performance of Afrikaans speaking pupils. By means of a comprehensive study of literature the factors which can play a role in the adaptation of Afrikaans speaking pupils in the international, multicultural, private schools are in detail examined and discussed. An empiric investigation, where both the Afrikaans speaking pupils and their parents played a part, was done after the study of literature. The investigation proofs that Afrikaans speaking pupils do suffer from adaptation problems and are mostly experienced in the cultural domain. Continuing research in the field of adaptation problems of Afrikaans speaking pupils, not only in Botswana but globally, should be undertaken. With the huge number of South Africans leaving South Africa this research can be a source of information to both parents and learners alike. / Thesis (PhD (Curriculum Studies))--University of Pretoria, 2005. / Curriculum Studies / unrestricted

This study analyses the adoption and rejection of some dairy farm innovations by Lower Fraser Valley dairymen. It also analyses use of information sources, length of time spent in the adoption process, reasons for delay in proceeding through the adoption process, reasons for rejection and discontinuance of innovations, and dairyman-district agriculturist contact. Data for the analysis were collected by interviewing a representative sample of the Lower Fraser Valley dairymen. There was a distinct tendency for the earlier adopters to have large farms, a high production per cow, less than 20 years farming experience, a high farm plus off-farm employment income, large numbers of dairy young stock, office visits with the district agriculturist, agriculture courses at vocational schools, and enjoyment from dairying. There were no significant differences between the earlier and later adopters regarding age, years of school completed, social participation, tenure, specialization, use of hired labour and place of birth. A number of the respondents had had no contact of any type with the district agriculturist in the year previous to the interview but on the average each respondent used 2.53 types of contact. When classified by the nature of the activity, the most used sources of information were personal, followed by individual instructional, mass and instructional group. When classified by origin, the most to least used sources were personal, commercial, government and farm organization. The proportions in which the information sources were used for the two groups of innovations differed. On the average each respondent was unaware of 2.19 of the 10 innovations and continuing in the adoption process for 1.57. Rejection had occurred for an average of 4.38, adoption for 1.66 and discontinuance for 0.20 of the 10 innovations. Almost half the decisions to reject innovations were made at the awareness stage in the adoption process. From the laggard to the early adopter-innovator category, unawareness and rejection decreased while continuation in the adoption process, adoption and discontinuance increased. Situational factors made up more than two-thirds the reasons for delay in proceeding through the adoption process but characteristics of the innovations made up more than two-thirds the reasons for rejection and discontinuance of innovations. The rate of rejection and discontinuance was higher and adoption lower when less than one year was spent than when one or more years was spent in the adoption process. An adoption tendency score was derived and compared with the adoption score but it could not be determined that use of one or the other was a more useful way of identifying differences among the respondents. / Land and Food Systems, Faculty of / Graduate

The purpose of this study was to develop a reasonably comprehensive scheme of categories that describes what facilitated and hindered adaptation to corporate restructuring. Interviews were conducted with individuals who worked in a company during reorganization and adapted. The Critical Incident Technique (Flanagan, 1954) was utilized to elicit 543 incidents from 28 participants. Thirty-four categories emerged from the analysis of the reported events and were organized into five clusters. Several procedures were employed to examine the soundness and trustworthiness of the categories. The results indicate that adaptation was hindered by: enduring a negative state, receiving increased workload, experiencing negative attitudes of colleagues, termination of colleagues, destabilizing moves, encountering a demoralizing situation, removed from a position, experiencing devaluation of company, excluded from decision making, blocked from accomplishing a task, not receiving support, receiving a threat about job, experiencing estrangement, receiving disaffirmation for job competence, and vital information withheld. However, individuals can take action in four ways to facilitate adaptation. First, they can shape the work environment by: refusing exploitative requests, making a decision concerning work, discovering and adhering to a firm guideline, making a beneficial change in the work setting, accomplishing a task, experiencing a challenging task, creating a work position, creating space to work, and dissociation from a bad person. Second, they can gain support by: receiving advice, receiving personal support, receiving assurance about job, experiencing camaraderie, receiving affirmation for job competence, receiving vital information. Third, they can help others by: giving empathy, using humor, forming a relationship, looking out for others, providing practical help, securing work for others. Fourth, they can help themselves by: realization of a positive perspective, preparing for change, initiating a change outside of work, and engaging in an activity outside of work. The category system attempts to provide a reasonably comprehensive description of what helps and hinders adaptation to corporate restructuring. Such an organization of factors may be valuable in planning counsellor training programs and useful for therapists working with individuals adapting to corporate change. / Education, Faculty of / Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department of / Graduate

The appropriation of open space is a common and organic process that is constantly taking place in the contemporary South African city. The tabula rasa approach of Apartheid and modernist planning had little consideration for these natural spatial patterns. This dissertation argues for a democratic approach to architecture and space-making in the contemporary South African city, one that embraces diversity, multifunctionality, and the eventuality of incremental development. Drawing from theories such as Control of Complexity (Habraken 1987), Space as Ritual (van Rensburg & da Costa 2008), and Safe-to-Fail (Ahern 2011), the research explores the possibilities of designing for emergent and adaptable space as a tool for enablement in the context of Mamelodi. The inherited Apartheid spatial legacy of Mamelodi has led to the prevalence of monofunctional, medium density development that has limited economic opportunity and encouraged pendulum migration in search of employment. This presents the opportunity to introduce new scales of urbanity to the context, whilst still being sensitive and encouraging existing spatial functions and patterns. / Mini Dissertation MArch(Prof)--University of Pretoria, 2018. / Architecture / MArch(Prof) / Unrestricted

There are commercial imperatives for companies to consider low-income markets for expansion. This research study investigated how firms, who traditionally focused on the upper- and middle-income markets, were adapting to operating in dual markets, an ability termed ‘ambidexterity’. While there is abundant research available on ambidexterity, this construct has not been studied in the context of the low-income market.The primary aim of this study was to explore the tensions that existed for firms exploring the low-income market and how firms went about resolving these tensions. A deductive research approach was followed and 23 managers, representing 14 companies across eight commercial sectors, were interviewed using semi-structured interviews and qualitative research methodology. The data was analysed using content, thematic and narrative analysis techniques.A central finding of this research study was that companies needed committed leaders to help resolve tensions for the firm and create the balance between exploring low-income markets and exploiting the traditional markets. Change management was found to be a critical integration technique to help resolve tensions between the “explore” and “exploit” business units.The outcome of this research adds to the theory base of both low-income markets and ambidexterity. It also provides a decision-making framework for firms who are considering the organisational requirements for the exploration of low-income markets. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

The concept of adaptability in architecture is one that very often bears technical rather than social connotations. What are the mechanisms and systems that allow buildings to adapt to fluctuating environmental and climatic conditions? These responses are often the driving force behind design considerations, placing emphasis on the manner in which the technical resolutions facilitate appropriate adaptability and environmental response. This adaptability is generally addressed through the building envelope, which acts as the mediator between the interior conditions of a building, and the exterior conditions of its environment (Lovell, 2010). However, beyond addressing these environmental conditions, there are greater urban and social conditions that bear equal weight within any design inquiry. Building adjacencies, ethnographics, social development and imageability of spatial ordering are all fundamental factors that need to be addressed within building envelope design (Lovell, 2010). The design dissertation inquiry explores the multi-faceted nature of building envelopes as well as an architecture of internal and external thresholds. The inquiry examines ways in which building envelopes respond to both the environmental and social complexities of a context, as well as how internal and external threshold and edge conditions can be design generative and communicative; expressing spatial organisations, conditions of privacy and mechanisms of adaptability. This topic of adaptive envelopes and defining thresholds in relation to social complexities has been explored in an architectural design project, which aims to practically address social and environmental issues. This exploration yields a set of key findings into an architecture of thresholds and adaptability in response to the sociotechnical conditions of a context where the lines between the formal and informal are blurred.

An ever-changing world and environment demands on organizations ability to adapt. Research shows that organizations that can respond adaptively to change have a greater chance of surviving. This study aimed to identify and account for factors in organizational culture that are seen as adaptive. The study was carried out through a qualitative narrative literature study where 11 articles in different research fields were examined. The study identified factors that characterized an adaptive organizational culture. These factors were flexibility, risk-taking, innovation, creativity and openness to change. The study also reports on appropriate strategies and desirable conditions for creating an adaptive organizational culture where the organization is adaptable in relation to its environment. Examples of that are the importance of establishing commitment, involvement, trust, internal adaption and common purpose, when implementing an adaptive organizational culture. Furthermore the role of leadership and the significance of the organizational structure are discussed in relation to adaptive organizational culture. Despite the results of this study, there is a complexity in assessing an adaptive organizational culture and the field requires more research.

It was the purpose of this study to test a possible method of assessing adjustment that could be used quickly and easily by teachers. The tool, to be effective, would (1) have to be administered to groups of children; (2) have clear and concise directions understandable to children in lower grades; (3) be easily scorable; and (4) have a definitive scale of scoring.

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