Proefschrift--Amsterdam. / "Tituli librorum qui in hac dissertatione citari sunt aut ad idem argumentum spectant": p. [188]-192. The author's "Theses" ([4] p.) are inserted in this copy.

Proefschrift--Amsterdam. / "Tituli librorum qui in hac dissertatione citari sunt aut ad idem argumentum spectant": p. [188]-192. The author's "Theses" ([4] p.) are inserted in this copy.

Thesis (doctoral)--Abo akademi, 1988. / Extra t.p. with thesis statement inserted. Summary in English. Includes bibliographical references (p. 361-366).

Membership of school governing bodies is a new experience for many communities in South Africa, because the election system for school governing bodies was only introduced during 1997 for the purpose of a decentralised management and governing system for schools in the country. The new dispensation of democracy brought about some unique challenges, for example, how to deal with diversity effectively. In this sense, the successful management of diversity in education is viewed as one ·of the toughest challenges in the South African education system. The aforementioned challenge led to the rationale for this research, which focused on the influence of diversity on the functionality of school governing bodies and how to manage diversity in the school governing bodies from the Laingsburg education region. The strategy for the research was based on a qualitative research approach that took the form of an interactive investigation of the views and experiences of the participants in relation to the research topic. The research was further undertaken from an interpretative approach which is appropriate, because the social experiences of the participants were central to this research. Some of the most important findings were that prejudices and stereotyping with regard to diversity posed a stumbling block for the effective functioning of school governing bodies. To the contrary, it was also found that the perspective of diversity as variety, is an advantage due to the multiplicity of available talents and competencies which can be utilised to the benefit of education. Policy frameworks for the management of diversity and I appropriate communication were also part of the findings that have an influence on the functionality of school governing bodies. The recommendations included amongst other that all role players should be represented in the school governing body; training is regarded as a priority; members should be willing to accept the role of servant leadership and finally the roles of the principal and school governing body should be clarified to avoid friction and possible conflict. The value of the research is in the first place a contribution to a better understanding of the concept of diversity and it also supports the management of diversity in school governing bodies of rural areas. / MEd (Education Management), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

Membership of school governing bodies is a new experience for many communities in South Africa, because the election system for school governing bodies was only introduced during 1997 for the purpose of a decentralised management and governing system for schools in the country. The new dispensation of democracy brought about some unique challenges, for example, how to deal with diversity effectively. In this sense, the successful management of diversity in education is viewed as one ·of the toughest challenges in the South African education system. The aforementioned challenge led to the rationale for this research, which focused on the influence of diversity on the functionality of school governing bodies and how to manage diversity in the school governing bodies from the Laingsburg education region. The strategy for the research was based on a qualitative research approach that took the form of an interactive investigation of the views and experiences of the participants in relation to the research topic. The research was further undertaken from an interpretative approach which is appropriate, because the social experiences of the participants were central to this research. Some of the most important findings were that prejudices and stereotyping with regard to diversity posed a stumbling block for the effective functioning of school governing bodies. To the contrary, it was also found that the perspective of diversity as variety, is an advantage due to the multiplicity of available talents and competencies which can be utilised to the benefit of education. Policy frameworks for the management of diversity and I appropriate communication were also part of the findings that have an influence on the functionality of school governing bodies. The recommendations included amongst other that all role players should be represented in the school governing body; training is regarded as a priority; members should be willing to accept the role of servant leadership and finally the roles of the principal and school governing body should be clarified to avoid friction and possible conflict. The value of the research is in the first place a contribution to a better understanding of the concept of diversity and it also supports the management of diversity in school governing bodies of rural areas. / MEd (Education Management), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Institute of Social Studies, The Hague, 2004. / Errata slips (3 p.) inserted. Includes bibliographical references (p. [242]-260).

The phenomenon of the public policy process, which encapsulates the public policy implementation, has been in existence long before the political transformation that took place in South Africa in 1994. However, the ushering in of the new dispensation saw the integration of the existing public policies. In addition, it inevitably heralded the introduction of the new public policies and national guidelines across all sectors of the South African public institutions. Public policy implementation, as an integral stage of the public policy process, emerged as indispensable towards effective and efficient public service. The basic education, as a public institution, could also not be exempted from such inevitability of heightened public policy implementation. The introduction of the new education related public policies included the developmental appraisal system (DAS), the whole school evaluation (WSE), the integrated quality management systems (IQMS) and the discipline and safety national guidelines (DSNG). This, consequently, bears testament to what became an inevitable transformation process in South African basic education. Using the DAS, the WSE, the IQMS and the DSNG as points of departure and Empangeni education district as a reference area, the focus of this study has been the public policy process, the internal organisational arrangements and structures for public policy implementation, the public policy implementation process together with its inherent challenges and an improved model aimed at alleviating or even eradicating such public policy implementation challenges. The theoretical models, both descriptive and prescriptive, suggest that the public policy process, which entails namely: public policy agenda, public policy formulation, public policy adoption, public policy implementation and public policy evaluation, is premised on the public policy models. Of all the above-listed public policy process stages, public policy implementation stands out as the pinnacle around which the public policy process revolves. The public policy implementation stage, therefore, suggests a point where the influence, the impact and the successes or failures of the public policy process unfold. In light of this inextricable link of the public policy implementation stage to the general public policy process that is influenced by models, the effective public policy implementation is, subsequently, embracive of attributes and lessons derived from the public policy models. Some of these attributes and lessons, inter alia, include; the mutual participation by all actors involved, rather than dominance by an elite group (derived from the elite/mass model), the identification of institutional structures responsible for the public policy implementation (derived from the institutional model) and the accommodation of the implementation review as well as feedback (all indicative of the systems model). The literature review and the empirical data analyses show convergent views that suggest that the effective public policy implementation is directly proportional to the extent of internal organisational arrangements and structures as well as to the basic functionality of schools as centres for the implementation process. This implies that where internal institutional arrangements and structures are evident and functional, the implementation of public policies is bound to be effective and efficient, while the contrary also holds. Given Empangeni education district being the focal point of the study, it has emerged that the use of personnel from other units and the absence of a district unit designated to solely oversee the coordination, the implementation and the evaluation of the education related public policies, inhibit the potential of adequately achieving the intended objectives of the education related public policies implemented. In case of schools as the institutional centres for public policy implementation, empirical data analyses have established an inter-connection between the public policy implementation and the schools‟ basic functionality. Consequently, it is in functional schools (i.e. schools where the school management teams and school governing bodies are visible, effective and work collaboratively), where public policy implementation thrives and is effective. The contextualisation of the empirical research analyses to the study focus area, Empangeni Education District (EED), established that its current implementation model faces public policy implementation challenges. The most evident challenges, inter alia, include: * the inadequate advocacy of the education related public policies to be implemented; * the two or three days, currently accepted as a capacity building period by those expected to implement education related public policies, are not proportional to the volume of work to be covered and it suggests an inadequate time-frame for capacity development in the EED's current model; * the material and mechanisms used to perform functional work do not accommodate all role-players (also called actors in this study) according to their demographical needs, like language, which renders them inept to perform to their optimum level; * the primary structure of the current EED's public policy implementation model is a top-down directional structure which underscores the top-down cascading model; * current communication technology employed, do not take advantage of the 21 century‟s information computer technology in order to make the work environment more user-friendly, efficient and effective; * the simultaneous implementation of education related public policies poses a challenge to internal organisational arrangements, such as public policy implementation (PPI) structures and personnel, for effective implementation of such policies; and * the evident inadequate continuous and deliberate monitoring of implemented education related public policies. Conclusions and inferences drawn from this study suggest that the EED's current public policy implementation model is inadequate to deal with the identified challenges. Finally, this study proposes a strengthened EED public policy model, which accommodates recommendations to EED's public policy implementation challenges. Inherently, the proposed strengthened public policy implementation model is not limited to dealing with the identified challenges only, but it radically embraces the introduction of systems and internal organisational structures that promote inclusive, collaborative and traceable implementation of education related public policies. / PhD (Public Management and Governance), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

The phenomenon of the public policy process, which encapsulates the public policy implementation, has been in existence long before the political transformation that took place in South Africa in 1994. However, the ushering in of the new dispensation saw the integration of the existing public policies. In addition, it inevitably heralded the introduction of the new public policies and national guidelines across all sectors of the South African public institutions. Public policy implementation, as an integral stage of the public policy process, emerged as indispensable towards effective and efficient public service. The basic education, as a public institution, could also not be exempted from such inevitability of heightened public policy implementation. The introduction of the new education related public policies included the developmental appraisal system (DAS), the whole school evaluation (WSE), the integrated quality management systems (IQMS) and the discipline and safety national guidelines (DSNG). This, consequently, bears testament to what became an inevitable transformation process in South African basic education. Using the DAS, the WSE, the IQMS and the DSNG as points of departure and Empangeni education district as a reference area, the focus of this study has been the public policy process, the internal organisational arrangements and structures for public policy implementation, the public policy implementation process together with its inherent challenges and an improved model aimed at alleviating or even eradicating such public policy implementation challenges. The theoretical models, both descriptive and prescriptive, suggest that the public policy process, which entails namely: public policy agenda, public policy formulation, public policy adoption, public policy implementation and public policy evaluation, is premised on the public policy models. Of all the above-listed public policy process stages, public policy implementation stands out as the pinnacle around which the public policy process revolves. The public policy implementation stage, therefore, suggests a point where the influence, the impact and the successes or failures of the public policy process unfold. In light of this inextricable link of the public policy implementation stage to the general public policy process that is influenced by models, the effective public policy implementation is, subsequently, embracive of attributes and lessons derived from the public policy models. Some of these attributes and lessons, inter alia, include; the mutual participation by all actors involved, rather than dominance by an elite group (derived from the elite/mass model), the identification of institutional structures responsible for the public policy implementation (derived from the institutional model) and the accommodation of the implementation review as well as feedback (all indicative of the systems model). The literature review and the empirical data analyses show convergent views that suggest that the effective public policy implementation is directly proportional to the extent of internal organisational arrangements and structures as well as to the basic functionality of schools as centres for the implementation process. This implies that where internal institutional arrangements and structures are evident and functional, the implementation of public policies is bound to be effective and efficient, while the contrary also holds. Given Empangeni education district being the focal point of the study, it has emerged that the use of personnel from other units and the absence of a district unit designated to solely oversee the coordination, the implementation and the evaluation of the education related public policies, inhibit the potential of adequately achieving the intended objectives of the education related public policies implemented. In case of schools as the institutional centres for public policy implementation, empirical data analyses have established an inter-connection between the public policy implementation and the schools‟ basic functionality. Consequently, it is in functional schools (i.e. schools where the school management teams and school governing bodies are visible, effective and work collaboratively), where public policy implementation thrives and is effective. The contextualisation of the empirical research analyses to the study focus area, Empangeni Education District (EED), established that its current implementation model faces public policy implementation challenges. The most evident challenges, inter alia, include: * the inadequate advocacy of the education related public policies to be implemented; * the two or three days, currently accepted as a capacity building period by those expected to implement education related public policies, are not proportional to the volume of work to be covered and it suggests an inadequate time-frame for capacity development in the EED's current model; * the material and mechanisms used to perform functional work do not accommodate all role-players (also called actors in this study) according to their demographical needs, like language, which renders them inept to perform to their optimum level; * the primary structure of the current EED's public policy implementation model is a top-down directional structure which underscores the top-down cascading model; * current communication technology employed, do not take advantage of the 21 century‟s information computer technology in order to make the work environment more user-friendly, efficient and effective; * the simultaneous implementation of education related public policies poses a challenge to internal organisational arrangements, such as public policy implementation (PPI) structures and personnel, for effective implementation of such policies; and * the evident inadequate continuous and deliberate monitoring of implemented education related public policies. Conclusions and inferences drawn from this study suggest that the EED's current public policy implementation model is inadequate to deal with the identified challenges. Finally, this study proposes a strengthened EED public policy model, which accommodates recommendations to EED's public policy implementation challenges. Inherently, the proposed strengthened public policy implementation model is not limited to dealing with the identified challenges only, but it radically embraces the introduction of systems and internal organisational structures that promote inclusive, collaborative and traceable implementation of education related public policies. / PhD (Public Management and Governance), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

The purpose of this study is to investigate the transformation process that has taken place in the local government sphere over the past sixteen years. This process is based on the Constitution, Act 108 of 1996. Transformation applies to all areas of society, including the disabled – the focus point of this study. More specifically the focus of the study is on the effect of the transformation process on the disabled. The study was done within Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality, taking into consideration the Constitution of 1996, as well as internal policies. The main focus during this study is to emphasize the position of the disabled, focusing on recognition, basic needs, funding, promotion, careers, and the incorporation of the disabled into the Municipality. / Thesis (M. Development and Management)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011.

The realisation of the objectives of the South African Schools Choral Eisteddfod (SASCE) is influenced by the national education system and the environment it operates in. This thesis accordingly studies the SASCE within the organisational framework of the Department of National Education. It provides a comprehensive description of the factors that influence the achievement of the objectives of the SASCE in the FET band in the Motheo district of the Free State Province. South African national education policy provides for a single unified democratic system for the organisation, governance and funding of schools. The Department of National Education formulates policy and provinces are responsible for its implementation by means of district offices. In this respect the education system is regarded as an organisation consisting of different sub–organisations that must provide effective education in line with the educational needs of the country. A generic five–point model of effective organisational structure accordingly was applied to determine the factors impacting on the realisation of the objectives of SASCE. Data were gathered and analysed by means of personal observations, document analysis and semi–structured interviews with education officials, school principals and choir conductors. The challenges of the national education system with regard to appropriate facilities, equipment, funding, appropriately trained officials and educators, support staff and effective policy implementation are consistent with the challenges facing the Department of National Education’s enrichment programmes, of which the SASCE forms part. Findings and recommendations are offered for all research questions. A general recommendation pertains to a proposed restructuring of the provincial enrichment programmes sub–directorate in order to address some of its organisational shortcomings and also the challenges facing the SASCE. / Thesis (Ph.D (Music))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011.