The introduction of e-learning in teaching and learning has necessitated the training of staff members in Information and Communication Technology (ICT). This study focuses on the challenges that staff members, who are the facilitators of learning, experience when undergoing training in ICT. The research design employed a qualitative methodology which involved focus groups from a public university. Data was collected from the participants through semi-structured interviews. The findings indicate that the challenges that staff members experienced during ICT training are related to a lack of computer competence, lack of time, an information overload, the non-involvement of staff in the planning of their training, facilitation limitations, lack of technical support and institutional challenges that involve infrastructure. The study further revealed that the principles of adult learning play a reciprocal role in the staff’s professional developmental challenges. In view of these findings, this study offers recommendations for improving the ICT training of staff members. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Adult Education)

The fragmented and unequal system of technical and vocational education and training in South Africa is a consequence of the apartheid era. Since 1994 comprehensive legislation has been introduced to create a transformed system of Further Education and Training (FET) guided by the principles of redress, equity and lifelong learning and aimed at producing graduates who can contribute to making South Africa a key player in the global economy. In particular, the Technical College sector requires transformation. This in turn demands new knowledge, attitudes and skills from college managers and educators. Therefore, relevant staff development programmes is a key instrument of change in colleges. Against this background this study examines the management of staff development programmes in FET colleges in Gauteng Province by means of a literature study and an empirical investigation. The former addresses the management of change, human resource management, staff development and organisational development with an emphasis on the application of chaos/complexity theory. Moreover, the dynamic FET landscape in South Africa is sketched and FET policies and legislation since 1994 are discussed. The empirical investigation adopts a qualitative approach using focus group and individual interviews, observation and document analysis to gather data from a small sample of participants: educators and members of senior and middle management. Participants were selected by purposeful sampling from three former Technical Colleges (one previously advantaged and two previously disadvantaged) in Gauteng, which have recently merged to create a new multi-campus college, the Tshwane North College. The findings of the interviews present the experience of participants according to six themes: the management of change; communication during change; stakeholder involvement in change; the impact of FET legislation; human resource management and the role of staff development programmes in this process. These findings were integrated with observations of staff development programmes and their management and analysis of key documents. It was concluded that people are complex and may resist change; during change effective communication, stakeholder participation, adequate funding for staff development and its effective management are essential. Recommendations for the improvement of practice are presented based on the findings of the literature and empirical study. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Education Management)

The evolution of technologies used for learning in open distance learning (ODL) has compelled academics to upgrade their teaching skills and competencies in order to teach in an ever-changing environment. While the earlier ODL generations were characterised by the use of written, printed texts, radio, television, print media and postal services, the current generations are characterised by the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) to enhance teaching and learning. This study explored the experiences of academics who participated in the staff development courses for innovative teaching and learning at the University of South Africa. To explore the experiences, a qualitative research design of a phenomenological genre was adopted. Using interviews, data was collected from six purposively selected academics and analysed following Giorgi’s phenomenological methods. The academics’ experiences and concerns provided some insight into their development needs and how they would have liked to have been developed for innovative teaching. It emerged that staff development provided valuable knowledge, skills and competencies, enabling and promoting innovative forms of e-teaching and learning. These experiences and concerns were synthesised into a staff development framework consisting of four phases: Orientation; Learning; Acquisition of skills and Competencies; and Performance indicating that effective staff development requires that participants are initially orientated to the training programme before exposure to authentic learning activities. Through this exposure they acquire the vital online teaching skills and competencies thereby enhancing their performance as online teachers. The staff development framework indicated further that for effective staff development to take place, the different phases should not only be supported by university management but also by an evaluation mechanism to establish whether the objectives in each phase have been achieved. It also emerged that time played an important role in staff development, as the duration of each phase and the development intervention as a whole affects how well academics are able to acquire and perfect their teaching skills. / Curriculum and Instructional Studies / D. Ed. (Curriculum Studies)

The introduction of e-learning in teaching and learning has necessitated the training of staff members in Information and Communication Technology (ICT). This study focuses on the challenges that staff members, who are the facilitators of learning, experience when undergoing training in ICT. The research design employed a qualitative methodology which involved focus groups from a public university. Data was collected from the participants through semi-structured interviews. The findings indicate that the challenges that staff members experienced during ICT training are related to a lack of computer competence, lack of time, an information overload, the non-involvement of staff in the planning of their training, facilitation limitations, lack of technical support and institutional challenges that involve infrastructure. The study further revealed that the principles of adult learning play a reciprocal role in the staff’s professional developmental challenges. In view of these findings, this study offers recommendations for improving the ICT training of staff members. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Adult Education)

Faced with the influx of emerging technologies, educators must continuously equip themselves with the necessary skills to effectively impact on today’s learners. Central to successful curriculum reform and student retention is the realisation that educators need to engage in continuous professional development, to meet the learners’ needs. The purpose of this research study is to explore and study how educators’ skills, knowledge and experience in e-learning can contribute to the successful achievement of the institution’s and students’ educational goals and to the design of a quality support system in an ODeL environment in a developing country. A mixed-method research approach was adopted. The target population was the University of South Africa (Unisa) academic staff members who enrolled for an elearning programme with the University of Maryland University College (UMUC) between the year 2012 and 2014. Convenience non-probability sampling was used and a total of 60 candidates were invited to participate in the study. Most of the participants pointed to the empathetic support they received from the relevant UMUC staff and also indicated that they are now ready to create an empathetic learning environment for their own students at Unisa. It is the premise of this paper that academics cannot impart and/or transfer what they do not have or know to learners and it gives recommendations on striving towards an effective empathetic students support in distance education and e-learning continuous professional development to effectively impact on today’s learners. The importance of pace, assignment due dates, use of rubrics, turnaround time for feedback, built-in support, and appropriate assessment strategies are also key findings in the report. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Open and Distance Learning (ODL)

A teaching portfolio allows lecturers to track their own growth and development in teaching and learning, as it helps to document their career’s journey. This study gained insight into this experience from the lecturers’ perspectives. The research paradigm was qualitative and the study used a sample of lecturers from an independent tertiary institution in Johannesburg. Personal interviews provided rich data and themes were developed from the data to answer the research questions concerning the value of doing a teaching portfolio. Lecturers’ perceptions provided clear evidence of the value of doing a teaching portfolio, because it developed their personal competence, knowledge, skills and higher-order thinking. However, the findings showed that the success of a teaching portfolio remained dependent on individual motivation and how the process was implemented. Any challenges experienced tended to negatively affect motivation, thereby decreasing the perceived value of a teaching portfolio. This study recommended that a teaching portfolio might offer a solution to some of the current education issues within the South Africa context, especially with regard to the lack of content knowledge and the disempowerment of teachers. / ʼn Onderrigportefeulje maak dit vir dosente moontlik om hul eie groei en ontwikkeling ten opsigte van onderrig en leer te monitor, omdat dit hulle help om hul loopbaan te dokumenteer. Hierdie studie gee insig in hierdie ervaring vanuit dosente se oogpunt. Die navorsingsparadigma was kwalitatief en die studie het ʼn steekproef van dosente van ʼn onafhanklike tersiêre instelling in Johannesburg behels. Persoonlike onderhoude het ryk data opgelewer en temas is op grond van die data ontwikkel om die navorsingsvrae oor die waarde van ʼn onderrigportefeulje te beantwoord. Dosente se persepsies was ʼn duidelike bewys van die waarde van ʼn onderrigportefeulje, omdat dit hul persoonlike bevoegdheid, kennis, vaardighede en hoërorde-denke ontwikkel. Die bevindinge het egter getoon dat die sukses van ʼn onderrigportefeulje steeds onderhewig is aan individuele motivering en hoe die proses geïmplementeer is. Enige uitdagings was geneig om ʼn negatiewe invloed op motivering te hê en sodoende die vermeende waarde van ʼn onderrigportefeulje te verlaag. Hierdie studie beveel aan dat ʼn onderrigportefeulje ʼn oplossing kan bied vir sommige van die opvoedingskwessies in die Suid-Afrikaanse konteks, veral met betrekking tot die gebrek aan inhoudkennis en die ontneming van onderwysers se mag. / Photefolio ya go ruta e kgontša bafahloši go latišiša kgolo le tšwetšopele tše e lego tša bona ka go goruta le go ithuta, ka ge e thuša go rekhota leeto la mošomo wa bona. Thutelo ye e hweditše tshedimošo maitemogelong a go tšwa tebelelong ya bafahloši. Dikgopolo ka ga nyakišišo e bile tša go hwetša tshedimošo ka go kwešiša le go lemoga mabaka a bothata gomme thutelo ye e dirišitše sampolo ya bafahloši go tšwa institušeneng ye e ikemetšeng ya morago ga marematlou go la Johannesburg. Ditherišano tša motho ka botee di tšweleditše datha ye bohlokwa gomme merero e hlagišitšwe go tšwa datheng go fa karabo ya dipotšišo tša dinyakišišo tše di lebanego bohlokwa bja go dira photefolio ya go ruta. Dikgopolo tša bafahloši di file bohlatse bjo bo kwešišegago bja bohlokwa bja go dira photefolio ya go ruta, ka gobane e godišitše, botsebi, tsebo, mabokgoni tša bona le mokgwa wa go nagana wa maemo a godimo. Le ge go le bjalo, dikhwetšo di bontšhitše gore katlego ya photefolio ya go ruta e dutše e ithekgile go tutuetšo ya motho le ka moo tshepedišo e phethagaditšwego. Ditlhohlo dife goba dife tšeo di itemogetšwego di bile le go huetša tutuetšo, ka gorealo tša fokotša boleng bjo bo lebeletšwego bja photefolio ya go ruta. Thutelo ye e šišintše gore photefolio ya go ruta e ka fa tharollo go tše dingwe tša ditlhagišo tša bjale tša thuto kemong ya Afrika Borwa, gagolo malebana le tlhokego ya dintlhatsebo, dikgopolo le melaotshepetšo tšeo di rutwago le go ithuta ka tšona gammogo le go se be le maatla ga barutiši. / Psychology of Education / M. Ed. (Psychology of Education)

Abstracts in English, Zulu and Setswana / This study investigated the feasibility of using WhatsApp Messenger as a tool to enhance the professional identity and inquiry-based pedagogy through the professional development of university chemistry teachers. The epistemological interpretive paradigm was used to guide the study. The study assumed a naturalistic, exploratory investigation. The qualitative research methodology was used to conduct the study. Nine university teachers were purposively sampled from three universities (three teachers from each university) for the study. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, participant observations, and focus group discussions. Data analysis was completed using the thematic networks analysis. Ethics considerations were observed by not disclosing personal information of the participants or information about the universities where they represented. This study was guided by four theoretical underpinnings: the connectivism theory, the transformative learning theory, the expectancy-value theory, and the dual systems theory. The primary research question guiding this study was: How does the professional identity of university chemistry teachers develop as they learn IBP through WhatsApp Messenger? A two-pronged approach was used in the research: (1) comparing the professional identity of the teachers before and after the course, and (2) observing and describing the professional identity process as the teachers undertook the course. The results from the interviews conducted before the teachers undertook the WhatsApp Messenger-based IBP course showed that most teachers had a negative professional identity. They had become teachers for a variety of reasons, but they did not consider themselves teachers and believed they would leave university teaching if opportunities arose in the industry. They had no formal qualifications in pedagogy, and they did not believe that such knowledge was necessary. The majority of these teachers used teacher-centred approaches. Results from participant observations during the WhatsApp Messenger-based IBP course showed that the course slowly imparted to the teachers the norms associated with not only IBP, but other teaching approaches as well. WhatsApp Messenger provided a flexible online platform where the teachers interacted and exchanged ideas without the need to meet in a physical space. The results from the interviews conducted after the teachers participated in the WhatsApp Messenger-based IBP course showed that the participants' professional identity had changed positively. They now recognised the importance of pedagogy in teaching, they positively identified with the teaching profession, and some were considering acquiring formal qualifications in pedagogy. / Lolu cwaningo beluphenya ithuba lokusetshenziswa kwangempela kwe-WhatsApp Messenger njengethuluzi lokuqinisa isithombe sesisebenzi kanye nohlelo lokufundisa olwencike phezu kophenyo lothisha besifundo seKhemistri (chemistry) enyuvesi, ngohlelo lokuthuthukisa abasebenzi. Uhlelo lwepharadayimu echazayo ye-ephistemoloji lwasetshenziswa ukuhlahla indlela yesifundo, okuyindlela enqume ukulandela indlela yemvelo, ephenyayo. Umethodoloji wocwaningo olwencike kuKhwalithi (Qualitative) lusetshenzisiwe ukwenza ucwaningo, ndawonye nothisha basemanyuvesi ayisishiyagalolunye abakhethwe ngenhloso kumanyuvesi amathathu (abathathu kwinyuvesi eyodwa). Idatha yaqoqwa ngokusebenzisa izinhlolovo ezimbaxambili (semi-structured interviews), ngokubheka izenzo zomdlalindima (participant observation) kanye nezingxoxo zeqembu eliqondiwe (focus group discussions), kanti ukuhlaziywa kwedatha kwenziwa kwaqedwa ngokusebenzisa uhlelo lokuhlaziya oluwuthungelelwano lwendikimba (thematic network analysis). Kubonakele ukulandelwa komgomo wokuziphatha ngokungadaluli ulwazi lomuntu ongumdlalindima noma ulwazi olumayelana namanyuvesi ababewameleyo. Ucwaningo beluholwa yizinhlaka ezine zethiyori: i-connectivism theory, i-transformative learning theory, i-expectancy-value theory kanye nama-dual systems theory. Umbuzo wokuqala wezocwaningo ohola ucwaningo bewuthi: Ngabe isithombe sobizo lobuthishela wekhemistri enyuvesi sithuthukiswa kanjani ngesikhathi befunda uhlelo lwemfundo eyencike ekuphenyeni (inquiry-based pedagogy (IBP) ngokusebenzisa i-WhatsApp Messenger? Indlela embaxambili iye yasetshenziswa: 1) ukuqhathanisa isithombe sobizo lobuthishela ngaphambi nangemuva kwesifundo,, kanye no-2) baqhathanisa isithombe sobizo lobuthishela sothisha ngaphambi nangemuva kwesifundo, kanye no 2) babheke futhi bachaza uhlelo lwezimpawu zokwakha isithombe sobizo lobuthishela njengoba othisha baye badlala indima kulesi sifundo. Imiphumela evela kwizinhlolovo ezenziwe ngaphambi kokuba othisha bahambele isifundo se-WhatsApp Messenger-based IBP, ikhombise ukuthi iningi lothisha libe nesithombe sobizo esibi. Baye bafundela ubuthishela ngezizathu ezahlukahlukile, kodwa abakaze bazibona bangothisha futhi baye bacabanga ukuyeka inyuvesi uma ngabe kuvela amathuba kwimboni. Abakaze babe neziqu zokufundisa, kanti abazange bakholwe ukuthi ulwazi olunjalo kwakunesidingo sokuba nalo, kanti iningi lothisha lwalandela indlela izindlela ezencike kuthisha. Imiphumela evela ekubukeni izenzo zothisha ngesikhathi sesifundo se-IBP ikhombise ukuthi isifundo kancane kancane sinikeze othisha izimfundiso ezithile, kanti futhi nezinye izindlela zokufundisa. Uhlelo lwe-WhatsApp Messenger lunikeze inkundla ye- inthanethi engenamngcele lapho othisha bebahlangana futhi baphakelane ngemibono nhlangothi zombili ngaphandle kwesidingo sokuhlangana endaweni ephathekayo. Ngemuva kwesifundo se-IBP abadlalindima baye babika ukuthi babone izithombe zobizo lwabo zizinhle kakhulu. Manje sebeyakwazi ukubaluleka kwendlela yephedagogi ekufundiseni, bazibona behambisane kahle kakhulu nobizo lobuthishela. Kanti abanye baze bacabanga ukuthola ezinye iziqu ezisemthethweni zobizo lobuthisha. / Thuto e, e dirile dipatlisiso tsa kgonagalo tsa go dirisa WhattsApp Messenger jaaka sediriso sa go tlotlomatsa tlhaolo ya borutegi le potsiso theo ya thuto ya sekolo ya barutabana ba Yunibesithi ba thuto ya khemise, ka tlhabololo ya borutegi. Go dirisitswe pharataeme ya phetolo ya episitemoloji go kaela thuto e e tsaletseng botlhagiso jwa tlhago le tlhotlhomiso. Thutatsela ya patlisiso e e boleng e ne ya dirisiwa go tsamaisa thuto, le barutabana ba ba robongwe ba diyunibesithi tse di neng di na le maikemisetso a bosupi go tswa mo diyunibesithi tse tharo (ba bararo go tswa mo go nngwe le nngwe ya tsona). Didatha di ne di kgobokantswe ka seka-popego sa dipuisano, kelotlhokomelo ya batsayakarolo le tsepamiso ya setlhopha sa dipuisano, fa tshekatsheko ya datha e feditswe ka go dirisa tshekatsheko ya kgokagano ya thitokgang. Kelotlhoko ya maitshwaro e ne e na le tlhokomelo ka go se senole tshedimosetso ya batsayakarolo kgotsa tshedimosetso ka diyunibesthi tse e leng baemedi ba tsona. Thuto e ne e kaelwa ke metheo e mene ya tiori: tiori ya kopano, tiori ya phetogo ya thuto, tiori ya boleng jo bo solofetsweng le tiori ya thulaganyo. Potso e kgolo ya patlisiso e e kaelang thuto e ne e le: tlhaolo ya borutegi e gola jaang mo barutabaneng ba yunibesithi ba thuto ya Khemise fa ba ithuta thuto ka theo-potsiso ya petakoji (IBP) ka WhatsApp Messenger? Go thapilwe tlhagiso e e tlhagelelang gabedi 1) go farologanya tlhaolo ya barutabana pele le morago ga khoso le 2) go ela tlhoko le go tlhalosa tshedimosetso ya tlhaolo ya borutegi jaaka barutabana ba batsayakarolo mo khosong. Dipholo tsa tsamaiso ya potsotherisano e e neng e le teng pele ga go tsena khoso ya WhatsApp Messenger-based IBP, di bontsha gore ba bantsi ba na le tlhaolo ya borutegi jo bo sa siamang. Ba ne ba nna barutabana ka mabaka a a rileng a a sa tshwaneng fela ba sa ipone sentle jaaka barutabana, ka megopolo ya go tlogela Yunibesithi fa ditšhono tsa intasetari di tlhagelela. Ba ne ba sena boatlhodi jwa semmuso ba petakoji, mme ba ne ba sa dumele gore kitso e jaana e a tlhokagala, ka bone bontsi bo ne bo tsaletswe ditlhagiso tsa go tsepama mo borutabaneng. Dipholo tsa kelotlhoko ya batsayakarolo mo nakong ya khoso ya IBP di bontsha gore khoso e e neetse barutabana ditlwaelo tse di rileng tse di sa tsamaisaneng fela le IBP gape le ditlhagiso tse dingwe tsa borutabana. WhatsApp Messenger e kgona go abelana mo polatefomong e e bonolo ya inthanete mo barutabaneng ba ba tlhaeletsanang le go abelana dikakanyo kwa ntle ga tlhokego ya go kopana mo lefelong ka sebele. Morago ga khoso ya IBP batsayakarolo ba begile gore ba leba ditlhaolo tsa bone tsa borutegi ka letshwao la koketso. Jaanong ba lemogile botlhokwa jwa petakoji mo go ruteng, se se tlhagisiwa ka letshwao la koketso mo boruteging jwa go ruta, ba bangwe ba ntse ba akanya go nna le boatlhodi jwa semmuso ka mo petakoji. / Curriculum and Instructional Studies / D. Phil. (Curriculum Studies)