Magister Educationis - MEd / This study analysed the modelling competencies of grade 11 learners and also explored the degree to which the learners’ competency in setting up a mathematical model inhibits the development of an acceptable solution for word problems. The research data comprised 30 learners drawn from a secondary school in the Western Cape Province, South Africa. Data was collected via a task-based activity response sheet containing five word problems linked to either one of the following concepts: rectangle, two-digit number, average speed and petrol price. Learners’ responses were graded into four categories viz: correct, partially correct, incorrect and no response. Thereafter, the modelling competency framework was used to diagnose the modelling competencies of the sampled learners.

Thesis (MTech (Business Administration in Project Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2019 / A large number of IT projects fail due to uncertainties involved in these projects. Some of these uncertainties include the changing of specification of the original project and the cause of that can be attributed to the ever changing IT environment. These changes lead to scope creep which causes cost and schedule overruns. For IT projects to be pronounced as being successful, they have to be completed within the specified time, budget, and according to quality. To run successful IT projects is always a difficult task due to the fact that project managers lack the necessary skills and competencies. There is a great need for project managers that are competent in managing budget, time, and quality in IT projects. The poor management of IT projects is a global challenge; it’s not only happening in South Africa. In this study the researcher adapted the use of both qualitative and quantitative research methods to evaluate competencies of the project manager with the aim of determining those that would assist project managers to execute successful IT projects. The current study focuses on the competencies that make IT project managers to run successful IT projects, these are Leadership competencies to influence and persuade project team to follow a certain direction, Communication competencies to communicate all the project information effectively to relevant stakeholders, Decision making competencies to make crucial decisions in a timely fashion, Problem solving competencies to provide needed solutions on critical problems.

The commercial space industry is facing a shortage of qualified workers due to the aging and retirements of the workforce and the inability to find sufficient candidates who can meet the security requirements. Additionally, technically qualified individuals are also looking to other industries instead of space. The needs of the industry, and for manufacturing engineers specifically, are not well understood. In order to better understand and satisfy the needs of industry and for manufacturing engineers, the purpose and objective of this study was to explore the training, educational experiences, and technical competencies of entry-level manufacturing engineers. All the participants in the study had worked as a manufacturing engineer in the commercial space industry. There were five expert level and three entry-level manufacturing engineers (n = 8). Expert-level manufacturing engineers had at least three years of experience and entry-level manufacturing engineers had less than three years of experience. This qualitative descriptive study involved interviewing the participants to explore their experiences. Six themes emerged from the findings and included: (a) mentoring used as a teaching tool, (b) you’re going to be doing pretty good, (c) worst case is millions of lives, (d) understand, be familiar, or proficient, (e) the interpreter or the bridge between the design engineer and the shop floor, and (f) the storyteller or make your data tell a story.

Magister Artium (Child and Family Studies) - MA(CFS) / One of the sustainable development goals the World Health Organization (WHO) has set for member countries is the implementation of universal health coverage (UHC) in order to ensure all citizens have the right to access healthcare. In recognising that the global demand for traditional and complementary medicine (T&CM) continues to grow, the WHO has encouraged the inclusion of T&CM into the national health systems of member countries as a way of ensuring that UHC can be achieved.

Doctor Educationis / The overarching purpose of this research study was to ascertain the deliberations preservice mathematics teachers engage with when they construct alternative mathematical models for social phenomena. The study is situated within the mathematical competencies and, in particular, on the evaluation competency with the possibility of developing alternative models flowing from the evaluation. Twenty fourth-year pre-service mathematics teachers participated in the completion of three different mathematical modelling tasks on which the analysis was based. The data collected was analysed qualitatively. The researcher exploited a thematic analysis design to investigate how pre-service mathematics teachers build alternative models.

This presentation compares the development and implementation of competency checklists for orienting and mentoring practitioner that supports the needs of management, patients and NICU therapist's. Competencies from four NICUs across the US were compared by three neonatal physical therapists via a coding system. After coding, themes arose which described similarities which were then referenced back to the published physical therapy competencies. This varied between hospitals, depending on specific rehabilitation professionals employed, the evolution of NICU status and the complexity of the patient. The neonatal therapist has a unique opportunity to utilize the information from this study to bridge the gap between the operational management and the educational demands of the rehabilitation therapist in the NICU team.

Background Evaluation of interprofessional education (IPE) has been limited to students’ self-report and rarely assessed content validity using real-world input. Purpose This study compared students who did and did not complete an IPE curriculum using a mock interview. Aims were to compare them: 1) in terms of competencies around team based care, and 2) as rated by clinicians providing team based care. Method Students participated in a mock field placement interview. Study staff rated transcripts on IPE competencies. Clinicians rated and ranked students in terms of their knowledge/values and preference for hiring. Discussion. IPE students had higher ratings on seven of eleven competences than non-IPE students. Clinical experts rated IPE students higher and ranked them as more preferable. Conclusions This study demonstrates the efficacy and validity of foundational IPE beyond self-report. IPE impacted students’ responses in a real-world scenario in a way that discriminated them from their peers.

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Blended learning is the fastest-growing modality in North America and much of the world. However, research and training in blended learning is far outpaced by its usage. To remedy this gap, we developed a competency framework and self-survey instrument to help teachers and researchers evaluate teacher readiness for blended environments. The purpose of this research is to prove that the model and accompanying survey instrument are reliable for use with teacher candidates both before and after going through a blended teaching course. To accomplish this, we sent out a survey instrument to 326 teacher candidates studying in a blended teaching course at a university in the western United States. The teachers took the survey at the beginning of class, and then once again, three months later. Using confirmatory factor analysis, we determined that the pre-class survey results fell within the range of the four fit statistics cutoffs (RMSEA=.056, CFI=.906, TLI=0.900, SRMR=.04). And with slight modification, the post-class survey results did as well (RMSEA=.052, CFI=.914, TLI=.907, and SRMR .058). We also showed that the factor loadings and communalities were statistically significant. By testing the factors in this way, we make a case for the survey to be a valid and reliable instrument in assessing teacher competency, and make a case for thinking of blended teaching competencies in terms of our model. We then tested for measurement invariance, but were unsuccessful in making a case for it. The results of our findings provide teacher educators, teacher candidates, and researchers a new pedagogically-oriented framework and scientifically validated self-survey to use in order to improve and personalize teacher education and professional development for blended settings.

Speed and measure of the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0) is bringing about shifts in power, wealth and knowledge. For entrepreneurs, who are known to drive innovation, Industry 4.0 offers a wide scope of opportunities in the future. As a middle-income country, South Africa needs to use its knowledge and innovations to sharpen its innovative edge in order to compete globally and stimulate innovation. Hence, this research attempts to determine the relationships between entrepreneurial competencies, entrepreneurial absorptive capacity and innovation capacity. Three conceptual frameworks of the interrelationships between these constructs were synthesised from the literature. As ample research on entrepreneurial competencies is widely available, a Delphi study was employed, together with a concept matrix to determine which entrepreneurial competencies should be included specifically significant for innovation within the 4IR context in South Africa. Four entrepreneurial competency categories emerged: cognitive (knowledge), functional (skills), social (attitudes and behaviours) and meta (facilitating learning) categories. Using a survey method, the analysis on a sample of 452 innovative entrepreneurs in South Africa was mainly done by empirically testing the causal linear relationship through structural equation modelling (SEM). Furthermore, an Artificial Neural Networking (ANN) technique which tests non-linear relationships and develop pattern recognition as well as modelling was conducted to compare the results of a non-linear relationship with those of a linear relationship. However, explorative comparisons of the performance of linear SEM models with non-linear NN indicated that the SEM models in this case performed better in explaining the variance in the dependent variables than did the ANN. Through the theories of innovative performance, person-entrepreneurial fit and knowledge spillover, the findings of the study indicate the importance of incorporating a unified entrepreneurial competency typology perspective on innovation. The cognitive, functional, social and meta competencies as well as entrepreneurial absorptive capacity are significant predictors of innovation capacity. The implications of this extend to transmitting knowledge through absorptive capacity, which allows entrepreneurs to identify and exploit opportunities, identified from new knowledge sources and incorporated into new innovations. Additionally, entrepreneurial absorptive capacity mediates the relationship between social, meta, and functional competencies and innovation capacity. Entrepreneurial absorptive capacity was also found to be a moderator between cognitive competencies and innovation capacity. Therefore, the development of certain entrepreneurial competencies, significant for innovation, is crucial for improving the strength of the relationship between entrepreneurial absorptive capacity and innovation capacity of entrepreneurs. These results have important implications for Industry 4.0 entrepreneurs, educators, policy makers as well as entrepreneurship models. / Thesis (PhD (Entrepreneurship))--University of Pretoria, 2020. / Business Management / PhD / Unrestricted