Thesis (M.A. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2007.

Effectiveness, productivity and motivation of police members are important factors that contribute to a country's stability, economic growth and development. As such, understanding experiences that police members might have with regard to the relationship between their work and personal life is the main focus area in this study. The objectives of this study were to determine how Afrikaans speaking police members experience work-personal life interaction, and secondly, to determine the main dimensions in the lives of Afrikaans speaking police members that is in interaction with each other, and thirdly, to determine the major antecedents and consequences of work-personal life for Afrikaans speaking police members, and fourthly, to determine which strategies Afrikaans speaking police members use to deal with work-personal life issues. Unstructured interviews were conducted with ten males and females in the police stations based in the Potchefstroom and Klerksdorp areas. Qualitative interviews based on the phenomenological paradigm, were used to determine police officers perception regarding work and personal life interaction. A Content analysis was used to analyse, quantify and interpret the research data. Police members reported experiencing their work as stressful, in that it interfered negatively with their lives and also had certain health implications. They further experienced some aspects in their personal lives (e.g., household duties, family responsibilities) interfering with their work. Furthermore, they reported using certain strategies (e.g., communication, support from a spouse) as a way of bettering the interaction between their work and personal lives. Recommendations for future research were made, / Thesis (M.A. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2007.

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Children with specific learning disability (SLD) struggle with reading, spelling and/or writing, and tend to have poor narrative skills (Fey, Catts, Proctor-Williams, Tomblin & Zhang, 2004; Scanlon, 2013). Although learners with SLD mostly use grammatical sentences after discharge from conventional speech-language therapy, they often still struggle with creating narratives and find comprehension tasks challenging. For this study, I chose an action research design (McNiff & Whitehead, 2013). I used a lesser known therapy approach with some of these learners, in an attempt to ascertain whether kinetic methods of teaching language can improve their narrative skills. The research question posed was: What changes in narrative skills (if any), measured in terms of micro and macro structure, are brought about by the Sandtray Play Approach (STPA) in first language (L1) Afrikaans-speaking Grade 3 learners with SLDs? I used the STPA with four L1 Afrikaans-speaking Grade 3 boys with SLD over a course of six weeks (on average two therapy sessions per week). During each session, they each choose a variety of miniature objects with which they individually built a so-called “Sandworld” in their own sandtray. After each Sandworld was built, the boys took turns telling their story and listening to those of the other group member. After each narration, each listener made one positive comment and asked one question about the story. During the intervention period, I regularly presented mini-sessions teaching the participants how to create, improve and expand their narratives. The Language in Multilingual Society: Multilingual Assessment of Narratives (LITMUS: MAIN-Afrikaans) (Gagarina, Klop, Kunnari, Tantele, Valimaa, Baluciuniene, Bohnacker, & Walters, 2012) was used to analyse pre- and post-intervention narratives in terms of story structure components; (in)completeness of episodes; mean length of utterance (in words); and use of subordinating and co-ordinating conjunctions, conjunctive adverbs and internal state terms. The pre- and post-intervention results of the four boys in the experimental group were compared to those of four boys who did not receive any STPA intervention and who formed the control group. All eight participants had been clinically diagnosed as presenting with an SLD. Comparisons of the LITMUS: MAIN-Afrikaans scores indicated inter-group differences: Post-intervention, the experimental group used a higher number of story structure components, internal state terms, words, and utterances (those linguistic aspects introduced and practised during STPA intervention) than the control group. The experimental group’s Sandtray narratives also increased in multiple areas of structural complexity – e.g., in the use of conjunctive adverbs; subordinating and co-ordinating conjunctions; and embedding. These results have implications for speech-language therapy practice, showing that the STPA is potentially a valuable resource for teaching narrative skills to learners with SLD, and that positive changes can be observed in as little as six weeks. The STPA has been used in Europe with learners with hearing or learning impairment and with mainstream learners. In the South African context, it appears only to have been used to teach oral language use to deaf learners; and no South African studies on the use of the STPA for narrative skill development could be traced. This study was the first of its kind and indicated that using the STPA can assist Speech-Language Therapists in developing narrative skills of children with atypical language development. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Kinders met spesifieke leergestremdheid (SLG) sukkel met lees, spelling en/of skryf, en neig om swak narratiefvaardighede te hê (Fey, Catts, Proctor-Williams, Tomblin & Zhang, 2004; Scanlon, 2013). Alhoewel leerders met SLG meestal grammatikale sinne gebruik ná ontslag uit konvensionele spraak-taalterapie, sukkel hulle steeds gereeld met narratiefproduksie en begripstake. Vir hierdie studie het ek gekies om ‘n aksienavorsingsmetode (McNiff & Whitehead, 2013) te gebruik. Ek het ‘n minder bekende terapiebenadering met sommige van hierdie leerders gevolg, in 'n poging om vas te stel of kinetiese metodes van taalonderrig hulle narratiefvaardighede kan verbeter. Die navorsingsvraag was: Watter veranderinge in narratiefvaardighede (indien enige), gemeet in terme van makro- en mikrostruktuur, word teweeg gebring deur die Sandbak-Speelbenadering (SBSB) in eerstetaal- (T1) Afrikaanssprekende Graad 3-leerders met SLG? Ek het die SBSB met vier T1 Afrikaanssprekende Graad 3-seuns met SLG oor ses weke gebruik (gemiddeld twee terapiesessies per week). Tydens hierdie sessies het elkeen ‘n verskeidenheid miniatuur voorwerpe gekies waarmee elkeen individueel ‘n sogenaamde “Sandwêreld” in hulle eie sandbakkie gebou het. Nadat elke Sandwêreld gebou is, het die seuns beurte geneem om hulle storie te vertel en na die stories van die ander groeplede te luister. Nadat elke storie vertel is, het elke luisteraar een positiewe punt van kommentaar oor die storie gelewer en een vraag oor die storie gevra. Gedurende die intervensietydperk het ek gereeld mini-sessies aangebied om die deelnemers te leer hoe om narratiewe te skep, te verbeter en uit te brei. Die Language in Multilingual Society: Multilingual Assessment of Narratives (LITMUS: MAIN-Afrikaans) (Gagarina, Klop, Kunnari, Tantele, Valimaa, Baluciuniene, Bohnacker, & Walters, 2012) is gebruik om voor- en ná-intervensie-narratiewe te ontleed in terme van storiestruktuurkomponente; (on)volledigheid van episodes; gemiddelde lengte van uiting (in woorde); en die gebruik van onderskikkende en neweskikkende voegwoorde, verbindingsbywoorde en interne toestand-terme. Ek het hierdie tellings vergelyk met dié behaal deur 'n kontrolegroep (vier manlike klasmaats van die eksperimentele groep). Ek het ook 'n seleksie van drie verteenwoordigende sandbaknarratiewe per eksperimentele groepdeelnemer in terme van hierdie metings geassesseer Al ag deelnemers is klinies gediagnoseer met SLG. Vergelykings van die LITMUS: MAIN-Afrikaans-tellings het inter-groepsverskille aangetoon: Die eksperimentele groep het ná intervensie ‘n groter aantal storiestruktuurkomponente, interne toestand-terme, woorde en uitinge (d.i. daardie linguistieke aspekte wat bekendgestel en geoefen is tydens SBSB-intervensie) gebruik as die kontrolegroep. Die eksperimentele groep se sandbaknarratiewe het ook toegeneem in terme van veelvuldige areas van strukturele kompleksiteit – byvoorbeeld in die gebruik van verbindingsbywoorde, onderskikkende en neweskikkende voegwoorde, en inbedding. Hierdie resultate het implikasies vir spraak-taalterapiepraktyk: Dit toon aan dat die SBSB potensieel ‘n waardevolle hulpbron is vir die leer van narratiefvaardighede aan leerders met SLG, en dat positiewe veranderinge in so min as ses weke waarneembaar is. Die SBSB word in Europa met leerders met gehoor- of leergestremdheid gebruik asook met hoofstroomleerders. In die Suid-Afrikaanse konteks is dit skynbaar nog slegs gebruik om gehoorgestremdes te leer praat; geen Suid-Afrikaanse studies oor die gebruik van die SBSB vir narratiefvaardigheidsontwikkeling kon gevind word nie. Hierdie studie was die eerste van sy soort en toon aan dat die gebruik van die SBSB Spraak-Taalterapeute kan help om narratiefvaardighede te ontwikkel in kinders met atipiese taalontwikkeling.

In 1946 a rich gold reef was discovered on the farm Geduld in the vicinity of Odendaalsrus and approximately 3 miles (4, 8 km) from the town. At that stage it was recognised as the richest gold reef in the world. The discovery led to further and progressive explorations in the Goldfields and finally resulted in the coming of many people to settle in the area. As the mining sector developed, the need for certain infrastructure on socio-economic and the social precinct had deepened. The proceeding development of the mining sector had led to the establishment of Welkom, because Odendaalsrus could not comply with the expectations of mining magnates like Ernest Oppenheimer. Consequently, the establishment and layout of Welkom made provision for such requirements like infrastructure, etc. Likewise, with the surrounding mining industry of Anglo-American, Welkom had become the metropolis in the Goldfields. Thereby equal to the mining industry, secondary industry developed on an increasing scale in the Goldfields. Odendaalsrus played on the other hand an important role in the emergence and developing processes of the Dutch Reformed Churches, since the Volksraad of the O.F.S. gave distinct consent on the 26 April 1899 for the layout of the town on the farm of Kalkkuil. Inclusively, the founding and development of the Reformed Churches in South Africa (Gereformeerde Kerke in Suid-Afrika), also started with their church activities during the early years of the gold discovery near Odendaalsrus. None the less, the Reformed Church of South Africa (Ned. Hervormde Kerk van Suid-Afrika) also had been founded and church activities escalated during the same time in the Goldfields, and more specifically in St. Helena, a well-known established suburb of Welkom. In the same way, it is necessary to emphasise the Evangelical Reformed Church of South Africa (Evangelies-Gereformeerde Kerk van Suid-Afrika) which founded on May 1960 in Welkom, although the members of the church were active with church activities in Welkom long before their congregation was finally established. The culminating factor of the economic power regarding the mining industry may not be overlooked in its influence on the emergence of the various church congregations in the Goldfields. The constant influx of mineworkers to the Goldfields made the existence of the church inevitable for its member’s spiritual well-being. Naturally, the church had to overcome major obstacles, namely: the expansion to new residential areas, the availability of finances, planning schemes for church amenities, the purchase of church estates, the need of ministers, knowledgeable church councillors and general encompassing assistance, etc. Furthermore, the church encountered during the pioneering years all sorts of social disorders, while the minister at times had the working load of approximately two congregations to handle at the same time. Accordingly, it was virtually impossible for the minister to cope with such a strenuous working load effectively, and consequently some issues were at times inevitably neglected in the congregation. The demands of the time and difficult circumstances without proper roads, communication networks like direct telephone systems, the lack of church buildings, manses, the long distances between the central point of worship and some visiting areas within the confinements of the congregation had necessarily complicated the task of the minister. Nevertheless, the church continued and gave concrete stature to its calling by virtue of the founding congregations for meaningful and efficacious spiritual care to its members. Herein, the church was successful because the focus of faith remained on God. All the praise and glory is due to Him. / Thesis (DPhil (Church History and Church Polity))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Church History and Church Polity / unrestricted

Using a qualitative, gender-sensitive approach, this particular case study explores the narratives of a group of white, Afrikaans-speaking, women employed in the financial sector of Gauteng. All of the participants were managers on various levels of the management hierarchy at the time of the interviews. I have chosen various feminist approaches to frame my study. These include standpoint feminism, intersectionality and moral feminism. Furthermore, I have incorporated theories around socialisation and the interpretive social science approach. Based on semi-structured interviews this study has aimed to explore women's experiences regarding their political context and their socialisation process and how this affects their career choices and ideals on how to 'balance' work and home life. In terms of career life, this study has attempted to illustrate some of the obstacles that women face when it comes to being promoted, but it has also looked at the positive elements of being a so-called 'career woman'. It has further attempted to show how women exude agency when they attempt to challenge out-dated but present patriarchal norms and values. This study has attempted to show how working women try to manage spending the little free time they have with family and their children and how most of them still have to assume the bulk of the home responsibilities. This particular group's position is fairly ambiguous within contemporary South African society, since they have been known to have enjoyed certain privileges in the past relative to other groups, but they have also suffered and still suffer gender discrimination and gender inequality under patriarchy. Recently some have come to question whether white women should also benefit from Affirmative Action policies. This is not an easy question to answer since it has been widely acknowledged that women experienced discrimination and gender inequality during the apartheid era differently (Kongolo&Bojuwoye 2006: 364). Thus, it is important to understand their accounts of the past, as well as, the future. AFRIKAANS : Hierdie studie volg ʼn kwalitatiewe, gender-sensitiewe benadering wat die narratiewe ondersoek van ʼn geselekteerde groep wit, Afrikaans-sprekende vrouens wat tans aangestel is in die finansiële sektor van Gauteng. Al die deelnemers was aangestel as bestuurders op verskeie vlakke van die bestuurshiërargie. Ek het verskeie feministiese benaderings gebruik om my studie te raam, naamlik, standpunt feminisme, interseksionaliteit en morele feminisme. Verder het ek ook teorieë rondom sosialisering en die interpretatiewe sosiale wetenskap benadering, gebruik. Hierdie studie is gebaseer op semi-gestruktureerde onderhoude wat poog om vrouens se ervarings rondom hulle politieke konteks en hul sosialiseringsproses te ondersoek. Dit poog verder om te sien hoe die bogenoemde aspekte die deelnemers se keuses rondom loopbane en ideale beinvloed, veral ten opsigte van hoe hulle hul werk en huislewe 'balanseer'. Met betrekking tot loopbane, kyk hierdie studie na die potensiële struikelblokke wat kan voorkom in terme van verhogings en ander moontlikhede, maar ek ondersoek ook die positiewe elemente wat voorkom as mens ʼn loopbaan-gedrewe vrou is. Verder word daar gekyk na hoe vroue hul agentskap bewys wanneer hulle poog om argaïese, patriargale norme en waardes uit te daag in die werksomgewing asook die huishouding. Hierdie studie bestudeer hoe werkende vroue probeer om die beperkte tyd wat hulle het, te spandeer met hulle gesinne en kinders maar ook hoe hulle nog steeds die meerderheid van die huishoudelike take moet verrig. Hierdie spesifieke groep se posisie is dubbelsinnig in die kontemporêre Suid Afrikaanse konteks, want in die verlede het hulle sekere voordele bo ander groepe geniet, maar hulle het ook onderdrukking ondervind, en hulle ondervind dit steeds ten opsigte van patriargie. Onlangs was daar bevraagteken of wit vroue ook voordeel moet trek uit regstellende aksie wetgewing. Dit is nie ʼn maklike vraag om te beantwoord nie, maar dit is alombekend dat die meerderheid Suid Afrikaanse, vrouens diskriminasie en gender ongelykheid ervaar het tydens die apartheid era, al was hierdie ervarings verskillend (Kongolo&Bojuwoye 2006: 364). Dus, is dit belangrik om die perspektiewe oor die verlede en die toekoms in ag te neem wanneer daar gepoog word om huidige besluite te verstaan. Copyright / Dissertation (MSocSci)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Sociology / unrestricted

Thesis (MA (Sociology and Social Anthropology))--University of Stellenbosch, 2010. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study seeks to present a picture of the racial discourses circulating among white Afrikaans-speaking youth in South Africa, with closer focus to students at the Stellenbosch University (SU). Fifteen years into democracy, Afrikaans-speaking whites find themselves in a position where their ‘Afrikaner’ identity does not enjoy the same government-supported security as under apartheid. The responsibility is thus shifted onto white Afrikaans-speakers themselves to negotiate and secure this identity in the light of new challenges brought on by the post-apartheid context. In this regard, the white Afrikaans-speaking youth, in particular, are faced with the ambivalence of being both exposed to a habitual scheme of normalised racial divisions, as well as to a context where ‘old’ frameworks need to be transcended in the name of survival in multi-racial South Africa. SU, a historically white, predominantly Afrikaans-medium university, is currently faced with the challenges of government-induced transformation and the attended ‘language debate’, the aims of which are to make the university more accessible to non-white sectors of society who, under apartheid, was excluded from this institution. Making use of interviews and participant observation among students on the SU campus, an attempt was made to shed light onto the types of discourses employed by white Afrikaans-speaking Stellenbosch students to negotiate their position in this setting, as well as to determine to what extent such discourses are racially based. With the help of a social anthropological approach to discourse analysis, the discourses encountered during fieldwork were considered within the context of macro-historical processes, and were conceptualised as complex sets of meanings produced within the context of interaction, appropriated and employed by individuals, strategically and artistically, in response to moment to moment situations. It is argued that these discursive processes are immensely complex, as it is influenced and shaped by a plethora of factors. These youth are, firstly, faced with a received framework in which dualistic and racial distinctions are subconsciously reproduced. Secondly, they take part in a rhetoric in which group boundaries manage to reproduce itself and, lastly, they are exposed to a popular discourse, reinforced by the media, that strongly relies on race-based sense-making. However, politically induced transformation ideals do call for a readjustment of priorities within white ‘Afrikaner’ discourse and students have been observed to respond to this in creative ways. Finally, it is argued that the heavy emotional baggage accompanying the race topic, exacerbated by media emphasis and the ‘racist taboo’, can lead to denial and indifference among white Afrikaans-speakers so that no space is created for constructive engagement with the topic. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die doel van hierdie studie is om ‘n voorstelling van ‘ras-diskoers’ daar te stel soos wat dit onder die wit Afrikaanssprekende jeug in Suid-Afrika voorkom, met spesifieke verwysing na studente van die Universiteit van Stellenbosch (US). Tydens die skryf van hierdie tesis is dit reeds vyftien jaar in die ‘nuwe Suid-Afrika’. Waar Afrikaanssprekende blankes se ‘Afrikaner’ identiteit destyds deur die apartheidsregering beskerm en bevorder is, berus die verantwoordelikheid tans op hierdie groep self om hul identieitsbelange te beskerm en te onderhandel in die lig van nuwe uitdagings. In hierdie opsig is die fokus veral op die jeug aangesien die raamwerke wat dikwels tuis aan hul oorgedra is, nou moet plek maak vir ‘n nuwe manier van dink wat aanpas by blootstelling aan veelrassigheid op alle gebiede in Suid-Afrika, in hierdie geval op die universiteitskampus. Die US, ‘n histories wit, hoofsaaklik Afrikaans-medium universiteit, word tans in die gesig gestaar deur kwessies rondom ‘transformasie’ en die ‘taaldebat’, deurdat aan die regering se vereistes voldoen moet word om die instelling meer toeganklik te maak vir ‘n sektor van die samelewing wat onder apartheid toegang tot sulke universiteite geweier is. Met behulp van onderhoude en deelnemende waarneming by die US is gepoog om vas te stel hoe wit Afrikaanssprekende studente in hierdie konteks hul eie posisie verstaan en onderhandel, en tot watter mate die diskoers waarmee hul sin maak van hul omgewing, ras-gebaseerd is. Die studie maak gebruik van ‘n sosiaal-antropologiese benadering tot diskoers analise. In hierdie opsig word diskoers beskou binne die konteks van makro-historiese prosesse, en word dit verstaan as betekenis wat op komplekse wyse gegenereer word tydens interaksie, betekenisse wat op hul beurt strategies en op kreatiewe wyses toegeëien en aangewend word in reaksie op situasies. Daar word aangedui hoedat die diskursiewe praktyke wat hierdie diskoers ondelê, uiters kompleks is deurdat dit beïnvloed en gevorm word deur ‘n verkeidenheid van faktore. Eerstens is daar ‘n oorgeërfde raamwerk waarin dualistiese raamwerke wat ras-onderskeid reproduseer, onbewustelik seëvier. Tweedens is daar ‘n landwye kulturele retoriek wat die idee van grense tusen groepe as onoorbrugbaar voorstel, en laastens word ‘n populêre diskoers, wat sterk staatmaak op ‘n ras-gebaseerde verstaan van die Suid-Afrikaanse samelewing, dikwels deur die media versterk. Ten spyte van bogenoemde, is daar egter ook waargeneem hoedat studente grootliks bewus is van die polities-gemotiveerde transformasiedoelwitte wat vereis dat die prioriteite vervat in wit Afrikaanssprekende diskoers, daarby aanpas. Laastens word egter ook geredeneer dat die swaar emosionele bagasie wat met die ras-onderwerp gepaard gaan, onder andere die groot taboe rondom ‘rassisme’, op die ou end onder wit Afrikaasnsprekende student lei tot apatie en ignorering van die onderwerp, wat konstruktiewe bespreking daaroor kan belemmer.

Microreproduction of original thesis. / Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 1986. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: see item for full text AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: sien item vir volteks.

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

Thesis (MPhil (General Linguistics))--University of Stellenbosch, 2009. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The financial sector of South Africa is increasingly under pressure to ensure that the language used in all communication is aligned with international best practice and, furthermore, that the correct business terminology is applied. Standards of language proficiency and usage have, however, deteriorated over the past few years. This appears to be due mainly to lack of good language education at school level. In Nedbank, specifically, the language used by employees in written external communication is not always on par as is evident from the documentation that Nedbank Editorial and Language Services (Nels), the “language custodian” of the bank, has to edit and translate. Nels decided six years ago that, instead of rewriting all these documents, which is not timeor cost-efficient, to rather give business-writing training across the bank to enable Nedbank employees to increase their general writing proficiency of English. This study aims to establish whether there are discrepancies in the type of error made in English as used by Coloured Afrikaans mother tongue speakers and White Afrikaans mother tongue speakers in order to determine how to customise the business-writing training materials to the benefit of each cultural grouping in Nedbank. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die finansiële sektor in Suid-Afrika is toenemend onder druk om te verseker dat die taal wat in alle kommunikasie gebruik word in ooreenstemming is met internasionale “beste praktyk”, en verder dat die korrekte besigheidsterminologie gebruik word. Taalvaardigheids- en taalgebruiksvlakke het egter oor die afgelope aantal jare verswak, waarskynlik a.g.v. onvoldoende taalonderrig op skool. In Nedbank is die taalgebruik van werknemers in geskrewe eksterne kommunikasie nie altyd van ’n aanvaarbare standaard nie, soos duidelik blyk uit die dokumentasie wat Nedbank Editorial and Language Services (Nels), die bank se “taalbewaarder”, moet redigeer en vertaal. Nels het ses jaar gelede besluit om besigheidskryfkursusse vir die hele groep aan te bied, eerder as om al die eksterne kommunikasie oor te skryf, wat nie tyd- en koste-effektief is nie. Sodoende kan werknemers hulle algemene skryfvaardighede in Engels verbeter. Hierdie studie probeer vasstel of daar moontlike verskille is in die soort foute wat in Engels deur gekleurde Afrikaans-moedertaalsprekers en wit Afrikaans-moedertaalsprekers gemaak word, in ‘n poging om doeltreffende opleidingsmateriaal te ontwikkel vir elke kulturele groepering in Nedbank.

Reading plays a significant role in society and currently there is worldwide pressure for higher literacy results. The focus of this thesis is reading motivation and how it relates to a learner's amount of reading, reading comprehension and academic achievement since these problematic constructs are attracting the interest of researchers internationally. Researchers have investigated the relationships among these constructs with a variety of results. These relationships, however, have not yet been investigated in a South African context with Afrikaans-speaking adolescent readers, and the only information available on the reading motivation of Afrikaans-speaking adolescent readers is information on their reading preferences in regard to literary texts. Hence the following three research aims were determined for this study: the compilation of a reading motivation profile of Afrikaans-speaking adolescent readers, the analysis of the relationships among Afrikaans-speaking adolescent readers' reading motivation and their amount of reading, reading comprehension and academic achievement in an Afrikaans Home Language environment, as well as the development of a reading motivation framework, particularly for use in the school and classroom environment, for these adolescent readers. The study was carried out in the post-positivistic research paradigm by means of a non-experimental quantitative research approach. Three methods of data collection were used, namely a structured questionnaire (based on the eleven reading motivation dimensions of Wigfield and Guthrie's (1997) Motivation for Reading Questionnaire, which for this purpose had been adapted for the South African context), two reading comprehension tests and obtaining the data regarding the academic achievement of the respondents. The 823 respondents that had participated in this study were the grade 9 learners (Afrikaans Home Language) of seven schools from the Dr Kenneth Kaunda district (North West Province, South Africa), selected by means of purposive sampling so that different quintiles and geographic areas were represented. Information obtained from a comprehensive literature study on relevant motivation theories, on reading motivation in practice and on the relationship among their reading motivation, amount of reading, reading comprehension and academic achievement, as well as from the results of an empirical investigation of the reading motivation of specific grade 9 learners, was used to compile a reading motivation profile of Afrikaans-speaking adolescent readers. The motivation theories on which motivation in this study was based, were the social-cognitive theory, the self-efficacy theory, the ecological system theory of human development and the expectancy-value theory, because these theories emphasise the individual's behaviour within particular social contexts and because constructs such as self-efficacy, task value and mastery, which emanate from these theories, play a cardinal role in determining suitable reading motivation strategies for specific readers. It was essential to compile a reading motivation profile of Afrikaans-speaking adolescent readers before a reading motivation framework for these adolescent readers could be compiled. The reading motivation framework recommends specific reading motivation strategies various social role-players in the school and classroom environments can implement so as to improve Afrikaans-speaking adolescent readers' reading motivation levels. The various social role-players that would influence the Afrikaans-speaking adolescent reader's reading motivation and the reading motivation strategies each of them could use, was systematised (namely the Department of Education, the school principal and management team, teachers and parents). The essence of the contribution made by this study is that a reading motivation profile of a group of Afrikaans-speaking adolescent readers (grade 9 learners) could be compiled, that clear mutual relationships among the respondents' reading motivation and their amount of reading, reading comprehension and academic achievement came to the fore from this study and that a reading motivation framework could be developed by means of which to improve the reading motivation levels of these adolescent readers. / PhD (Curriculum Development, Innovation and Evaluation), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014