A research report submitted to the Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Masters in Education (Educational Psychology). / Although various policies have been implemented to lessen the impact of Apartheid on all levels of education since 1994, sub-Saharan Africa still has the lowest level of higher education enrolment in the world (Bloom, Canning & Chan, 2006). This study therefore aimed to identify which factors contributed to students' university enrolment in South Africa and how these factors affected their academic success at university. A self-developed questionnaire assessing factors influencing enrolment for three key areas (personal, parental and schooling) was administered to 337 psychology one students registered at the University of the Witwatersrand and academic success was estimated using their psychology one mark for the first semester. Data was analysed using frequency counts, Spearman's correlations and two independent sample t-tests. Results showed that intrinsic and extrinsic motives had the greatest influence on individuals' decision to attend university, with those students intrinsically motivated performing better on average than those motivated by any other factor. In addition, socio-economic status played a role in success at university, possibly because it affects the quantity and quality of resources available to an individual. As a result, those students' with a higher socio-economic status tended to do better than those of lower socio-economic status. Further analysis indicated that fluency in English also had an effect on student's overall success. / AC2017

Using Tinto‟s (1993) interactionalist theory of student retention and Beatty Guenter‟s (1994) students retention strategy as guiding lenses, this study investigated the implementation of five student retention programmes in two universities in South Africa. Specifically the study sought to interrogate a) the mechanisms used to select students and peer facilitators who participate in each of the programmes, b) the delivery strategies that are in place and c) the programme monitoring and/or evaluation mechanisms in place to ensure that programme goals are achieved. The study adopted a concurrent mixed design embedded in the post positivist paradigm. The study revealed minimal student participation in all programmes, including those that were compulsory, owing to inconsistent enforcement of policies, stigmatisation, and poor perceptions about these programmes. In addition, the study found challenges in selection, support and monitoring of peer facilitators in almost all the programmes. This was linked to limited qualified staff, high dependence on borrowed delivery models and poor co-ordination among stakeholders. The study through a proposed Comprehensive Model for Student Retention, suggested collaborated and intensive and ongoing training of all facilitators in functional literacies, basic counselling and handling diversity, as well as co-ordinated selection and monitoring of the five programmes.

Submitted in compliance with the requirements for the Master’s Degree in Business Administration, Durban University of Technology, 2017. / Technology, student diversity, socio-economic factors, student attrition and retention has significantly affected the teaching and learning environment at university. A first-year student’s life is significantly affected by this changing environment and many first-year students at universities experience difficulties adapting to the new environment and being successful in their academic tasks. The aim of this study was to determine the factors affecting the motivation of first-year students in the Department of Construction Management and Quantity Surveying. The study used the quantitative method approach where questionnaires were given to the first-year students and the first-year lecturers (lecturing the first-year students). Questionnaires were administered to 126 first-year students comprising the target population but only 121 completed questionnaires were received. Findings from this study emphasise the need for lecturers to engage in alternate study methods, such as the use of the blackboard and visual aids to assist students. Students need to be adequately informed about the support systems available to them so that they can have a satisfying cultural, social and academic life. There was also a need for better equipped lecturing facilities. The absenteeism of students had a negative impact on the morale of lecturers. Absenteeism has a two-fold effect, in that it disrupts the morale of the lecturer as well as that of the students who attend class. The marketing strategy of both the Department as well as the university needs to be re-visited in terms of recruiting students and in particular the misunderstanding that exists amongst students regarding the different programme offerings. The above issues are critical to ensure a transformative higher education agenda and DUT’s strategic goals of engagement and student centredness. The study recommends that a greater extent of student centredness, student-lecturer engagement and innovative teaching and learning approaches could increase the motivational level of first-year students in the Department. / M

Submitted in fulfillment for the Degree of Doctor of Technology: Public Management, Durban University of Technology, 2010. / In South Africa, the transformation of public higher education has placed much emphasis on the accountability and performance of individual institutions. Various indicators are used to assess institutional performance, as is the case internationally. Examples of such indicators include teaching and learning, research outputs, graduate employability, financial sustainability and productivity and the use of resources. This case study which is predominantly qualitative, examined: i) Performance by a selected South African University of Technology, the Durban University of Technology (DUT), in specific performance indicators as determined by policy on student enrolment planning. Student enrolment planning is an important strategy adopted by government to address a number of distortions in the higher education system which had been developed over a number of years within the ideology of apartheid. ii) The measures taken by the institution to give effect to the policy. The case study utilised multiple methods of data collection within three units of analysis. The three units of analysis of the case are: Unit of analysis One: The practices used at the DUT for marketing, student recruitment, student selection and admission to achieve the input indicators of the student enrolment plan. Unit of analysis Two: implementation strategies for meeting the output (success) indicators of the plan. Unit of analysis Three: The problem of low student retention. The original contribution made by this research study is that it provides detailed insight into the implementation of policy of student enrolment planning, using the Durban University of Technology as an example. In so doing, the researcher has identified critical areas that impact on student enrolment planning in South Africa, as well as specific weaknesses in the implementation of the policy at the DUT. A part of the study’s findings is that the DUT is well–placed to meet the performance indicators of the enrolment plan. However, the addressing of weaknesses in the areas of student selection, marketing and recruitment could improve the DUT’s ability to exert more influence over its enrolments. The study determined that the problem of low student retention is a factor that threatens the DUT’s throughput and graduation rates. Broad and specific recommendations are made for implementation, including the adoption of the organisational framework of enrolment management supported by institutional research.

Success rates remain a critical challenge in higher education. National and international data continue to suggest that the majority of students entering higher education withdraw before graduation. There is a strong indication in the literature that a student’s integration into the academic and social systems of higher education plays a critical role in student retention, persistence and success. In addition, research data demonstrates that student success is strongly influenced by the experiences students encounter in their first year of study. Established interventions have not helped to stem the tide of dropout rates. The primary aim of the study was therefore to investigate the academic and social integration of first-year students into the higher education system. The specific objectives were to explore the factors that contribute to academic and social integration, as well as the outcomes of academic and social integration in the first year of study. The study is grounded in Tinto’s theory of student integration, which holds at its centre, the constructs of academic and social integration. Tinto’s model proposes that academic and social integration are instrumental to students’ persistence in higher education. The methodology employed for the study is a systematic review, in an attempt to sum up the best available research in response to the research question. It involved identifying, selecting, appraising and synthesising all quality research relevant to the academic and social integration of first-year higher education students. Several themes emerged from the systematic review. The main factors found to be contributing to academic integration were: interaction with academic staff, classroom and curriculum centrality, preparatory education, self-efficacy, interaction with peers, academic engagement, motivation and issues related to first-generation higher education students. Those for social integration were: interaction with peers, sense of belonging and identity, interaction with staff, involvement and accommodation issues. The main outcomes for both academic and social integration were found to be student retention, persistence and academic success. The findings are consistent with past research on academic and social integration. Based on the emergent themes, recommendations were made with the aim of improving success rates in higher education. The results of the study could be of particular value in the South African higher education context by offering insights into the global and local trends with regard to academic and social integration. The findings could hopefully offer possible responses to current critical student success challenges experienced in South African higher education, especially in the light of the call by the #FeesMustFall movement for free and decolonised education.

Research report (MPhil (Curriculum Studies))--University of Stellenbosch, 2010. / Bibliography / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: In this research report I have argued that postgraduate student retention and completion rates in nursing education can be enhanced by attending to the following actions: increased institutional support, initiating students into an ethics of care, and engaging students and lecturers in some form of dialogical communication. In order to ensure that students do not prematurely depart from their programme of study, I have shown that it is not sufficient to offer merely institutional (mostly administrative) support to students, but also cultivating caring and dialogical communication in teaching and learning activities. My argument in defence of caring and dialogical communication is corroborated by an empirical investigation which confirms students’ non-completion and retention in the non-clinical postgraduate nursing education programmes offered by Stellenbosch University’s Nursing Division in 2008. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: In hierdie navorsingsverslag het ek geargumenteer dat die nagraadse studentebehoud- en voltooiingkoerse in verpleegonderwys versnel kan word deur aandag aan die volgende aksies te skenk: toenemende institusionele ondersteuning, inisi¸ring van ’n etiek van omgee ten opsigte van studente en die betrokkenheid van studente en dosente in ’n vorm van dialogiese kommunikasie. Om te verhoed dat studente nie voortydig die studieprogram verlaat nie, het ek aangedui dat dit nie voldoende is om slegs institusionele (meesal administratiewe) ondersteuning aan studente te verskaf nie, maar ook om ’n kultuur te skep van omgee en dialogiese kommunikasie in onderrig- en leeraktiwiteite. My argument ter stawing van omgee en dialogiese kommunikasie word ondersteun deur ‘n empiriese ondersoek van studente se nie-voltooiings- en retensiekoerse in die nie-kliniese nagraadse onderwysprogramme wat deur Universiteit Stellenbosch se Verpleegkunde-afdeling in 2008 aangebied is.

D. Tech. Business Administration / The purpose of this study is to increase the depth of understanding of university managers and programme facilitators of the management and process pertaining to students performance and how the process is used to empower first year students in the Faculty of Management Sciences.

The purpose of the study was to investigate the success of the Extended Programme at Walter Sisulu University, with particular reference to throughput rates. Programmes offered by the institution to students are intervention measures to assist in improving student retention. This research investigated the role of the university with regards to retaining engineering students at Buffalo City. Also discussed will be the impact of financial support or lack thereof to paying for academic education. Lastly, the discussion will focus on Extended Programme courses offered to students and their impact on retention of students. Through Tinto’s model, Koen discussed that institutions have a responsibility for integrating academic and social activities to create holistic competent students (2007:65). It was also discovered that the institution through the Centre for Learning and Teaching Development (CLTD), offers services that benefit both students and lecturers. Merriam found out that the key to understanding qualitative research is the idea that meaning is socially constructed by individuals in their interaction with the world, (2002:3). This study called for qualitative research to get meaning from each participant. The research was conducted using questionnaires to both students and lecturers. The investigation discovered that an education institution is not only about academic studies. Data was collected and analysed using qualitative methods which included coding and colouring of responses. Research deduced that lecturers and students conclusively complained about the poor infrastructure of the university. It has been found that students think about their educational development, their personal growth and development, their employability and their prospects for career preparation or change (Moxley 2001:39). When students have this kind of attitude it means they have the courage to get through the choice no matter what challenges they face (2004: 212). According to Moxley, members of staff who expand their roles into tutorials, independent studies and small group projects, could be a pivotal strategy of the institutional retention mission, (2001:39). This is supported by Coetzee who state that lecturers should provide students with feedback quickly, promote independent thinking, guide and motivate students (2001:31).

The technical and vocational education and training, (TVET) sector has shown a rapid growth since 1998 in South Africa. This sector aimed to provide education and training to empower the youth of South Africa. Policies were established and put in place to manage students’ attendance, however, absenteeism seemed to be on the rise. This study aimed to explore factors influencing students’ absenteeism and recommend strategies to address the factors influencing students’ absenteeism at a TVET College in Nelson Mandela Bay District. In an attempt to address the aim of this study, a qualitative research approach was employed and a case study method was used. Data were collected by means of focus group interviews, semi-structured interviews and document analysis. The findings of this study revealed that student absenteeism was caused by students’ factors, college-related factors and socio-economic factors. This study revealed that National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) was the major contributing factor in students’ absenteeism due to delayed payments. With respect to the negative impacts of students’ absenteeism, the findings of the study further revealed that lecturers are experiencing hardships in completing the syllabi on schedule time. The result revealed that student attendance policy was ineffective to manage student attendance. This study recommended that the TVET college should exercise discipline to students and establish a disciplinary committee. This will ensure that the students adhere to the attendance policy and improve students’ attendance. / Educational Management and Leadership / M. Ed. (Education Management)

Student non-attendance is a main challenge in TVET Colleges, especially in teaching and learning and the academic functioning of students. Various studies on student absenteeism and absenteeism in schools were reviewed in the literature. However, not much has been written about the challenges in TVET colleges. The focus of this research is on the three TVET College campuses in the Bojanala District in the North West Province. The qualitative method was used. Semi-structured interviews and non-participative observation were employed to gather information and the views of the participants about student absenteeism. The researcher selected the participants purposefully, as they have experienced the problem of absenteeism. Students and lecturers were selected as participants in the study. Lecturers acknowledged that the poor background of students was a contributing factor to poor attendance. The study concludes with recommendations on how to reduce the challenge of student non-attendance. The lack of transport money is a socioeconomic factor that contributes to student absenteeism in TVET colleges. It is recommended that NSFAS pays the transport money directly to the service provider. When students apply for a NSFAS bursary, they should provide proof of the transport that they use to help the bursary office in terms of transport arrangements. It is further recommended that all campuses should have student accommodation, and that bursary money should be paid directly to the accommodation services. / Educational Management and Leadership / M. Ed. (Education Management)