M.A. (Linguistics) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

M.Ed. / Please refer to full text to view abstract

M.Ed. / There is a great need for technical artisans in South Africa. Unfortunately the previous educational dispensation did not do much to remedy the situation, and now education, especially in the technological field, suffers a crisis as far as credibility, provision and relevance are concerned. Technology is changing every day, and to keep up to date, one must realise that learners do not choose technical subjects at school, or for that matter, do not pursue a career in technology. A qualitative approach was followed, interviews conducted at selected schools, and the result analysed to find out what the perceptions of learners are for not choosing technical subjects. The data yielded four categories, namely experience, ambition, status and technology. It seems that past experiences of parents cause learners not to go into technical careers for the perception exists that it entails is called "dirty work"; these jobs also have no status and learners would prefer to pursue university careers. Some recommendations are made, one being that the government of the day should take up the responsibility to get involved to make the technological field more attractive to prospective job seekers. Better salaries, especially for teachers, upgrading of schools and technical centres, better job opportunities and fighting perceptions of prejudice might solve this problem.

M.Ed. (Sociology of Education) / The study aims to investigate the educators' perceptions of the implementation of the Life Orientation learning area in schools. The investigation arose from the fact that Life Orientation is a new learning area introduced in the Foundation and Senior Phase as part of Curriculum 2005. The aim of this learning area is to empower learners in a holistic manner to live meaningful lives in a society that demands rapid transformation. However, the implementation of the outcomes-based approach as expressed in Curriculum 2005 in general, and in particular in the newly developed Life Orientation learning area, has proved to be complex and resulted in negativity on the side of teachers. The question addressed in this study is: What are educators' perceptions of and experiences of the implementation of the Life Orientation learning area in their schools? The aim for this study is to provide curriculum developers and educational teacher trainers with a clearer picture of the facilitation of the Life Orientation learning area. »:> The research method used included literature review of the nature and aims of the Life Orientation learning area within the framework of Curriculum 2005. An empirical investigation of teacher's perceptions of the Life Orientation learning area and its implementation was performed using both the qualitative and the quantitative approaches. Respondents were selected from a purposeful sample of schools representing former Model C schools, informal settlement schools as well as township schools. The following findings from the investigation deserve mention: • • The majority of educators emphasised the need to improve the quality of training in the Life Orientation learning area. The training facilitators need to be equipped with the knowledge and skills, as well as relevant resources and teaching aids to provide effective training for educators. Most educators enjoyed teaching Life Orientation as they realised that it focussed on real life issues, coping skills as well as learner development in various aspects (physical, emotional, social, spiritual and intellectual). The aim or purpose of teaching Life Orientation is to provide learners with useful skills to cope with useful skills to cope with life and its challenges, as well as to mould them to adulthood...

M.Ed. / Following the ascendance to power of a democratically elected government in South Africa, many things had to be restructured to fit the realities of the time. Education was one of the areas where many changes occurred. The previous education system was replaced with a new system dubbed Curriculum 2005. The new system was outcomes based. Environment is one of the themes included in the new education curriculum which was not in the previous education system. Environment is a cross-curricular theme in the new education system which means it is taught in all the learning areas. Each educator or teacher is expected to integrate the theme in their areas of specialisation. This has compelled the government departments, institutions of higher learning and NGOs to retrain teachers to cope with this challenge. The implementation of Curriculum 2005 is in its third year now. Despite the training efforts that has been put in, teachers still find it difficult to cope with. This study explores the causes of the problems experienced in the formal education system in an attempt to implement EE. Chapter one.(1) outlines the problem and claims that teachers' problems in implementing EE in schools in South Africa emanates from their training. It also outlines the social problems associated with the current problems in formal education if they are not checked. The chapter concludes that it in important for the study to be undertaken so as to isolate the problems that stifle the progress in implementing this theme. Chapter two (2) reviews existing literature in teacher education, theories of learning and environmental education. The links between community education are also reviewed. The chapter attempts to establish whether the existing theory is considered in the practice of EE. An array of problems are revealed as contributing to the current problems affecting the implementation of EE in schools in South Africa and worldwide. The chapter concludes that there is a gap between theory and practice. In chapter three (3) an attempt is made to collect data from the field using four methods namely: oral interview, group focus interview, document analysis and observation. The chapter elaborates how this was done and how the relevant data was collected in order to support or refute the claim made in chapter one. In chapter four (4), data is categorised, coded and analysed. The data is then discussed. It is discovered that field data strongly supports literature reviewed in chapter two (2). The chapter concludes that there are problems that hinder the effective implementation of EE in formal education in South Africa and makes a number of recommendations to be implemented urgently for the situation to be arrested.

D.Ed. (Science Curriculum) / The main problem investigated in this research is the identification of cognitive skills required for the present day labour market which should be included in technikon instructional programs. The aim of this research 'is to identify those cognitive skills which are relevant to the work/labour milieu of the technikon, and to describe the importance of these skills in the context of the teaching program ...

Masters in Public Administration - MPA / The quest for change in the new South Africa on political , economical and social frontiers were primarily directed at entrance into the global markets, establishing democracy and leveling the playing fields amongst South Africa’s diverse population. Those previously disenfranchised on political, economical and social grounds waited in anticipation on the rewards for their participation in the struggle against the discriminative minority regime of the past. These rewards would be in the form of radical policy changes sometimes far removed from the realities of the ordinary citizen. These reforms especially those on the educational level would prove to be flawed with constraints not anticipated by these policy developers as well as the government of the day. The educational transformation process was thus deemed as significant in order to address equity and equality and in so doing also provide skilled citizens which are able to be globally competitive.These educational changes in terms of schools were externalised in the form of Curriculum 2005 and Outcomes-based Education. Curriculum 2005 was viewed as a planned framework (process) of curriculum innovation underpinned by factors such as redress, access, equity and development. Outcomes-based Education in turn was the approach focusing on what is learned and how learning is taken place. This study will focus on Curriculum 2005 and OBE as education transformation tools and to what extent grade 7 teachers as implementers and modifiers understand and practice C2005 and OBE in their respective classrooms. One of the biggest problems facing the educational transformation process is the fact that there exists a gap between theory (policy) and practice (implementation). This gap can be attributed to different factors present in the historical disadvantaged school context in South Africa.This study will follow a qualitative approach which is directed at an inquiry process of understanding based on a distinct methodological approach. Data- gathering tools such as direct observation, structured interviews and questionnaires will be used. The research was primarily conducted in historically disadvantaged schools in the Metropole-east circuit of the Western Cape Educational Department. The sample was made up of schools in Macassar, Firgrove, Somerset-West, Strand, Temperance Town and Sir Lowry’s Pass. / South Africa

Please read the abstract in the section 00front of this document / Thesis (PhD (Research Methodology))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Science, Mathematics and Technology Education / unrestricted

The current investigation was conducted in the Mthatha Education District. It sought to investigate factors affecting the implementation of the National Curriculum Statement (NCS) in the Mthatha schools of the Eastern Cape Province in South Africa. Literature reviewed showed that teachers, as the key role players to the implementation of the curriculum in schools, are still experiencing difficulties in implementing the NCS. It is thus important to establish and investigate the factors affecting the implementation of the NCS. The research was both exploratory and explanatory in nature and adopted a mixed method approach. Questionnaires were distributed among 210 teachers who were randomly selected from 363 schools in the Mthatha Education District. Out of 210 teachers who were provided with questionnaires to fill out, it was 148 (70.5 percent) of them who completed and returned the questionnaires. Semi-structured interviews were conducted face-to-face with 10 purposefully selected teachers to collect the data from those who participated by filling out the questionnaires. The researcher analysed the data both quantitatively and qualitatively. The data was presented, analysed and discussed according to themes derived from the main research question and sub-questions. The quantitative data (closed-ended statements) was analysed statistically by means of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). In the case of the qualitative data (open-ended statements in questionnaires and interviews), similar responses were analysed in themes as per the research question and sub-questions for easy interpretation. Note-taking and tape-recording were done during the interview sessions. Qualitative data were transcribed, coded and analysed. The findings which emerged from the study indicated that intermediate-phase teachers experienced difficulties in implementing the NCS. These were attributed to, amongst others, a lack of resources such as learning material and infrastructure, redeployment of teachers, a high learner teacher ratio, inadequate in-service training and support from the DoE. These factors need to be addressed to enhance the implementation of the NCS and to avoid the repetition of those shortcomings in any future envisaged changes to the curriculum such as the implementation of CAPS.

Fleisch (2002) and Jansen and Christie (1999) hold that implementation of the national school curriculum in post-apartheid South Africa was riddled with uncertainties, ineffective classroom management and a general lack of academic performance by learners, mainly as a result of inadequate training and support (SMTs) to support the implementation process through proper planning and subsequent management of the implementation (Rogan and Grayson, 2003:1172-1195). Middlewood (2003a: 66- 68) thus assigns the primary responsibility of planning, managing and overseeing the curriculum implementation process to the SMT. Research problem and question 1 In the context of this study, the School Management Team (SMT) includes the school principal, the deputy-principal and the head(s) of department(s) or senior teachers. 4 for teachers in the classroom. Having considered the above essential aspects related to curriculum implementation, there is thus reason to be concerned about the effectiveness of curriculum implementation in South African schools, specifically in rural schools. Due to their remoteness, limited resources, and fluctuating quality of teacher expertise, these schools are often more challenged in terms of curriculum implementation (Delport and Mangwaya, 2008:224). Although there are many factors affecting the (in)effectiveness of implementation, this study regards a school’s curriculum implementation plans and the subsequent management of these implementation plans as crucial to ensuring successful implementation of a new curriculum. The central research problem that guided this study thus relates to the planning and subsequent management of curriculum implementation at school level. The above problem has culminated in the formulation of the following research question: How do selected rural schools plan and manage curriculum implementation?.