The present research examined whether teachers in South Africa could use feedback from a learning environment instrument to help them to increase the degree to which they emphasised constructivist-oriented teaching strategies in their classroom. The study also investigated the validity of a widely-applicable classroom environment questionnaire, as well as associations between attitudes and classroom environment. The study involved a combination of quantitative and qualitative research methods and was carried out in two phases. In the first phase of the study, data were collected using the Constructivist Learning Environment Survey (CLES), to assess learners' perceptions of the constructivist learning environment, and an attitude scale to assess learners' attitudes towards their mathematics classroom. The instruments were administered to 1864 learners in 34 intermediate (Grades 4 - 6) phase and senior phase (Grades 7 - 9) classes. Data were analysed to determine whether (a) the CLES is valid and reliable for use in South Africa and (b) relationships exist between learners' perceptions of the learning environment and their attitude toward their mathematics classes. Descriptive analysis was used to generate feedback information for teachers based on graphical profiles of learners' perceptions of the actual and preferred learning environment for each class. Analyses of data collected from 1864 learners in 34 classes supported the factor structure, internal consistency reliability (Cronbach alpha coefficient), and discriminant validity of the CLES, as well as its ability to differentiate between classes. The results suggest that researchers and teachers can be confident about using the modified version of the CLES in mathematics classes in South Africa in the future. / Simple correlation and multiple regression analyses were conducted to examine whether associations exist between learners' attitudes towards their mathematics class and their perceptions of the learning environment. The results indicated that student attitudes were associated with more emphasis on all four CLES scales used. Two scales, Uncertainty and Student Negotiation, were found to contribute most to variance in student attitudes in mathematics classes in South Africa when the other CLES scales were mutually controlled. Descriptive analysis was used to provide information about the constructivist nature of mathematics classes in the Limpopo Province of South Africa. The results indicate that students would prefer a learning environment that is more positive than the one that they perceive as being present in terms of emphasis on all four CLES scales used. The second phase involved a 12-week intervention period during which two teachers used the pretest profiles of actual and preferred classroom environment means to assist them to develop strategies aimed at improving the constructivist orientation of their classroom learning environments. The teachers implemented the strategies and maintained daily journals as a means of reflecting on their teaching practices. Throughout the 12-week period, the researcher made regular support visits that included classroom observations, reviews of daily journals, discussions with teachers and interviews with learners. / As well, the researcher had the opportunity of giving support to the teachers in the implementation of their strategies. At the end of the 12 weeks, the CLES was re-administered to learners to determine whether their perceptions of the constructivist emphasis in their classroom learning environments had changed. The posttest graphical profiles indicated that there was a sizeable improvement in teachers' emphasis on CLES dimensions in their classrooms. Apparently, teachers using action research are able to use learners' responses to the CLES to develop and implement strategies for improving their learning environment. The study suggests that journal writing, as a tool used by teachers on a daily basis, can improve their professional expertise as reflective practitioners.

This study inquires how the idea of districts came into being in the South African education system in the absence of official policy. It questions why there is no explicit government policy on education districts, particularly in view of the ubiquity of districts in South African education policy discourse. In doing so, the study elucidates the character of South African local education, and illuminates the niche that districts occupy in the education system. Additionally, by invoking Sutton and Levinson’s (2001:4) thesis that ‘people make policy through practice’, the study brings to light practical meanings assigned to districts by schools, and by national, provincial and district officials. The study argues that the central dilemma of education districts in South Africa is their structural condition. It concludes that districts operate at the intersection of the dual, related dichotomies of support and pressure, centralisation and decentralisation. Districts persistently endeavour to coalesce the dichotomy of support and pressure in their work with schools; at the same time, they struggle to straddle their role as deconcentrated field units of provincial head offices and as school support centres. The study proposes that only conscious engagement with these dichotomies, as well as active agency on district-school relationships, will districts manage the tensions between the policy, support and management roles expected of them. The dominant discourse on the role of districts in South Africa places districts as support centres for schools (Mphahlele, 1999; DoE, 2000). While districts post-1994 do not reflect the authoritarian and controlling features of the apartheid era, the study found that policy transmission, policy compliance and ‘policy alleviation’ (a process where district officials attempt to ‘soften’ the rough edges of policy effects on schools), tend to dominate district functions. Even the ‘support’ provided by districts to schools reflects that which is intended by government, rather than that experienced by schools. District agendas are set from the top down rather than the bottom up; hence schools rarely experience district support as a response to their own problems and needs. In reflecting on the character of districts, the study concludes that there is no system of local education in South Africa since there are no common norms and standards governing it. Local education in South Africa does not function as a single organism but comprises disparate structures that vary considerably in organisational design and nomenclature. Despite these differences though, the all-encompassing concept of ‘districts’ to describe local education in South Africa remains ubiquitous in education discourse. An explanation for the homogenisation of the discourse on local education resides with the observation that as deconcentrated units of provincial education departments, districts reflect a common rationale for their existence, namely to serve as field units of government. The reasons for the absence of a policy on districts are rooted in constitutional, legal, historical and political influences. The Interim Constitution (RSA, 1993), for example, shaped government thinking on local education by concentrating government’s attention on school-level rather than local-level governance. Moreover, interpretations of the Constitution (RSA 1996) by key legal experts suggest that national government cannot develop policy on provincial organisation, as this is a provincial competence. However, the establishment of the district health system created by the National Health Act, 2003, stands in contradiction to this line of reasoning, and reinforces the conclusion of the study – that national education authorities have not established a statutory district education system because there is no South African precedent for it and no political incentive to create it. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Education Management and Policy Studies / unrestricted

Magister Administrationis - MAdmin / This research identifies the challenges of a three-year environmental education project in a primary school in Cape Town. The project, an indigenous fynbos garden, was located at a school in a working class area in Cape Town’s south eastern areas, also known as the “Cape Flats”. The garden at the school was initiated as a formal partnership project with Kirstenbosch Gardens in 2006 and the partnership ended in 2009. The research sought answers to the following questions: to what extent and how have the goals/guidelines as stipulated in the Kirstenbosch Outreach Greening Project (KOGP) partnership been understood and implemented by the educators; what have been the kinds of support from school management for the project; what factors might increase the sustainability of the KOGP at Stephen Road Primary School? The research drew on policy implementation literature, in-depth interviews and personal observations. The findings were that while the project was doable, it was not in line with the declining human resources available and added to stresses experienced by teachers who were trying to perform basic tasks related to classroom teaching and getting learners to pass basic subjects. Also the school saw a dramatic decline in learner and educators numbers from 2006 onwards. Although all educators were involved in environmental activities at the school, none of them was fulltime in Environmental Education (EE) and had many other areas to teach or administer. The success of the KOGP also depended on the active participation of the school’s management and the School Governing Body (SGB) and this also seemed to be lacking.

This thesis postulates that the inability of the post-apartheid government to deal decisively with the “legacies of apartheid education” is linked to the macro-educational policy trajectory endorsed by the African National Congress government in the early 1990s. It notes that post-apartheid education policymaking shows similarities with the National Party reforms initiated towards the end of the 1980s in education. In the late 1980s the apartheid government implemented a broad educational framework consonant with the rise of neo-liberal restructuring emerging internationally. It is argued that the teacher unions, and the South African Democratic Teachers Union (SADTU) in particular, were active role-players in shaping the new educational trajectory and discourse and that it was particularly because of the acquiescence of the unions that the government was able to embark on the road of neo-liberal restructuring with very little organised opposition. SADTU’s weak opposition to the rising influence of neo-liberal educational restructuring greatly facilitated the creation of a two-tier education system that South Africa is grappling with today, one for the rich and one for the poor. / Thesis (PhD (Education Policy Studies))--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Education Management and Policy Studies / PhD / unrestricted

Masters of Art / This mini-thesis seeks to understand how the colonial and apartheid state imagined the African child in South Africa through education policies and their associated hidden curriculum. It asks what educational project was deemed suitable for the African child and how did this project configure her future? At the core of this enquiry is a preoccupation to understand how institutions, their curricula and objects rid themselves of colonial precepts. In working through this, I employ Blythswood Institute as a provocation to think and to historicise the education of African children, such as those at Blythswood, in three moments: colonialism and the founding of Blythswood in 1877; apartheid and the passing of the Bantu Education Act of 1953, and the post-apartheid times of democratic South Africa.

This essay is a MFS case study conducted at a South African high school in 2010. The study examines how students and teachers perceive the meeting with apartheid in a post-apartheid classroom within the framework of History and English. The empirical data consists of observations and interviews with Grade 11 students and teachers in an affluent school environment in Cape Town. The study shows that there are gaps between how the teachers and learners perceive apartheid as relevant and relatable and how a silencing classroom climate limits the space for interaction on the subject matter. From the position of the South African steering documents and a socio-cultural perspective on learning, I discuss the didactical challenges that arise from a gap between the student and teacher perceptions.

Rethinking education in rural areas firstly requires reviewing different legislation from a historical perspective and then reconsidering the place of education in the current rural development debate. To a large extent, rural areas have been neglected in development policies and similarly, the rural dimension of basic education issues, especially in South Africa, has been largely overlooked. Basic facts and figures, as elaborated in this thesis, shed light on the need to devote more attention to rural education. In this thesis, South African legislation in relation to basic education for Black people in rural areas during the colonial period up to the democratic era was investigated. The impact of South African legislation on Black education in rural areas is difficult to unravel and solve overnight since its thinking and practice was consolidated over centuries. However, an attempt was made to determine what the policymakers, mostly White dominated governments who ascribed to segregatory and racial attitudes, did to ensure that different policies enshrined in various legislation impacted negatively on education of people predominantly residing in rural areas. The research affirmed that education of Black people in rural areas was, in most instances negatively impacted by policies of previous White governments. The apartheid government (1948-1993) used poor funding strategies to ensure that there were low teacher-pupil ratios and teacher qualifications. Unequal pattern of education spending continued well into the democratic era. This poor funding which impacted negatively on, especially rural schools, made infrastructural provision in rural areas difficult. Even though the democratic government have competitive legislative policies in place, it was concluded that educational policies since 1994 were hastily implemented and insufficient consideration has been given to the contextual realities in South African schooling, particularly in rural areas. Hence the democratic government still need to give grave attention to the issue of education in rural areas. / Educational Studies / DED (HISTORY OF EDUCATION)

Rethinking education in rural areas firstly requires reviewing different legislation from a historical perspective and then reconsidering the place of education in the current rural development debate. To a large extent, rural areas have been neglected in development policies and similarly, the rural dimension of basic education issues, especially in South Africa, has been largely overlooked. Basic facts and figures, as elaborated in this thesis, shed light on the need to devote more attention to rural education. In this thesis, South African legislation in relation to basic education for Black people in rural areas during the colonial period up to the democratic era was investigated. The impact of South African legislation on Black education in rural areas is difficult to unravel and solve overnight since its thinking and practice was consolidated over centuries. However, an attempt was made to determine what the policymakers, mostly White dominated governments who ascribed to segregatory and racial attitudes, did to ensure that different policies enshrined in various legislation impacted negatively on education of people predominantly residing in rural areas. The research affirmed that education of Black people in rural areas was, in most instances negatively impacted by policies of previous White governments. The apartheid government (1948-1993) used poor funding strategies to ensure that there were low teacher-pupil ratios and teacher qualifications. Unequal pattern of education spending continued well into the democratic era. This poor funding which impacted negatively on, especially rural schools, made infrastructural provision in rural areas difficult. Even though the democratic government have competitive legislative policies in place, it was concluded that educational policies since 1994 were hastily implemented and insufficient consideration has been given to the contextual realities in South African schooling, particularly in rural areas. Hence the democratic government still need to give grave attention to the issue of education in rural areas. / Educational Studies / DED (HISTORY OF EDUCATION)

The principles of Total Quality Management (TQM) have been used in the business, commercial and industrial sectors to improve both product and service. In a limited number of schools worldwide, there have been attempts to adapt TQM theory and practice to the educational management of institutions. In this thesis there has been an attempt to adapt the TQM philosophy to the field of educational practice. Quality tools and techniques used in TQM organisations have been studied to ascertain their applicability in schools. During the course of the study, the researcher discerned the need to give TQM a distinct identity within the domain of educational management. In the management of schools, there are philosophies and practices which are different from those encountered in noneducational settings. The concept Total Quality Education (TQE) was used to acknowledge this reality. Action research was done over a three-year period at a South African co-educational public primary school. During the four research cycles of looking, thinking and acting, TQE principles were implemented in the school. Stakeholders such as parents, learners and teachers identified areas for improvement of the quality of education. Areas identified included the curriculum, physical resources, extramural activities, staff development, learning and financial management of the school. Quality tools and techniques were applied by all stakeholders to effect the desired improvements. In the fourth and last cycle of the research a questionnaire was given to a sample of the parent community. Progress made in the improvement of the quality of education provided was noted and areas to be improved further were identified. The researcher submits that TQE can be meaningfully applied in South African schools. The various stakeholders can make contributions to the betterment of schools. Through the application of the principles of the TQE philosophy, it is possible to transform South African schools into institutions where all learners can experience education of true quality. / Educational Leadership and Management / D. Ed. (Educational Management)

Summaries in Afrikaans and English / Text in Afrikaans / Die Landelike Stigting poog om deur die proses van gemeenskapsontwikkeling die lewenstandaard en ontwikkelingspeil van die plaaswerkergemeenskap te verhoog. Binne hierdie proses word volwasse onderwys as belangrike instrument aangewend. Vervolgens is die probleem wat nagevors is die toepassing van volwasse onderwys deur die Landelike Stigting binne landelike ontwikkeling. Eerstens is ondersoek ingestel na die doelstellings en filosofiese orientasies van volwasse onderwys. Binne hierdie kognitiewe raamwerk het hierdie studie tweedens die bepaling van die Landelike Stigting se filosofie en doelstellings behels. Die Landelike Stigting se volwasse onderwysprogram toon duidelike ooreenkomste met radikale volwasse onderwysdenke. Die teoretiese onderbou van die program is vereenselwigbaar met kontemporere ontwikkelingsdenke wat mensgesentreerde, deelnemende en handhawingsontwikkeling beklemtoon en fokus op ontwikkeling as 'n leerproses. Met hul teoretiese uitgangspunte slaag die Landelike Stigting daarin om 'n volwasse onderwysprogram daar te stel wat nie-rassige, nieseksistiese en demokratiese leerbeginsels ondersteun. Hierdie uitgangspunte manifesteer egter tans nie in die praktyk nie. / The Rural Foundation strives to promote the living standard and level of development of the farm worker community through the process of community development. Adult education is an important instrument within this process. Consequently the problem researched is the application of adult education in rural development. Firstly, the objectives and philosophical orientations of adult education were explored. Following from this cognitive framework this study secondly determined the objectives and philosophy of the Rural Foundation. The adult education programme of the Rural Foundation closely corresponds to radical adult education thinking. The theoret i ca 1 substructure of the programme is comp at i b 1 e with contemporary deve 1 opment thought which emphasises people-centred, participatory and sustainable development and focuses on development as a learning process. With their theoretical premises, the Rural Foundation succeeds in establishing an adult education programme which supports non-racial, non-sexist and democratic learning principles. However, these premises do not manifest in practice. / Development Studies / M.A. (Development Administration)