The following research project was a comparative study of teachers in Support Units and teachers in Special Schools. They were teachers currently involved with the implementation of the 1989 NSW Department of Education Mandatory Curriculum Change for the education of students with severe intellectual disability. The purpose of the research was to present a comparative study on teachers' responses, in both educational settings, examining their understanding of the curriculum change, the concerns of individuals and the levels of curriculum usage in relation to the factors affecting implementation. The application of the Concerns-Based Adoption Model of Change (Hall and Loucks, 1987), enabled the study to focus on the various forms of the innovation, including the innovation configuration, stages of concern, and the levels of use from the two given perspectives, teachers in Support Units and teachers in Special Schools, in relation to the major factors affecting implementation. The study findings highlighted that in both educational settings, change is accomplished by individuals and is a highly personal experience, demanding adequate support by facilitators of the change through appropriate actions, in order to assist effective and successful implementation of the change.

Finding ways to deal with complex situations has been a long issue of interest by researchers and scholars alike. Researchers and scholars have provided the strategy community with an insightful understanding of the phenomenon of complexity. The traditional understanding of complexity in strategic management, mainly coming from the design school of strategy, has given way to modern complexity perspectives. These perspectives are from Chaos Theory, Dissipative Structures and Complex Adaptive Systems (CAS). Complexity sciences seek to look at the challenges associated with knowing and understanding the unknowable by focusing on the interactions in complex systems. The properties of complex systems in turn provide lessons that can be transferred to the field of strategic management in a form of approaches to deal with complexity. The CAS metaphor will be used as a model to contrast the approaches in current use by the organisation of study in strategic management. Insights from studies on complex systems points to a need for constant exploratory studies in organisations to determine how well organisations are responding to complexity. The aim of this study is to explore approaches that inform thinking and management practices in strategic management by the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education (department) in view of complexity - increasing difficulties to understand the world. Firstly, results of the study are intended to contribute to understanding how insights arising from the study of complex systems, in the world, are being used to rethink and design government departments – public sector organisations - systems and strategic approaches, so that they are more flexible, adaptable and able to respond efficiently and effectively to changes in larger environment. Secondly, where the study finds that the current complexity approaches of the department are not informed by the latest thinking on complexity, recommendations are made on ways the department can improve its approaches. / Thesis (MBA)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Westville, 2011.

The purpose of this research activity was to determine the nature of in-service training as a mode of capacitating and developing teachers in public secondary schools serviced by the Matlosana Area Office (AO). The process of teacher in-service training is constantly faced by challenges, which derail and stall progress and sometimes negatively affect learners’ performance. Amongst others, these challenges include: changes in the curriculum, inconsistent monitoring and follow-up on in-service training programmes, the impact of teacher performance on learners’ attainment, the HIV/AIDS scourge, poor learner discipline, incorrect placement of teachers with regard to school and subjects taught, and the low participation of key role-players. The Department of Education (DoE) is divided into the Department of Basic Education and the Department of Higher Education. A literature study to look into the Department of Basic Education’s Acts, policies, strategies and other relevant documents aimed at skilling and developing teachers, was carried out. This assisted the researcher in understanding the legal parameters that guide teacher in-service training. Upon completion of the literature study, a brief explanation of the empirical research design, the administration and the use of the questionnaire as a research tool, are given. Data were collected from the respondents in the randomly selected secondary schools in the focus area – by means of a questionnaire. These data gave the researcher an idea of the situation with regard to teacher in-service training in the Matlosana Area Office’s responsibility area. To respond to the statements, respondents were required to indicate their views by ticking on a 5-step Likert scale. Respondents were given the opportunity of writing down their opinions; and these were summed up and indicated. Data collected were analysed and presented in the form of tables and histograms. This was followed by the interpretation of these data. Chapter 5 of the mini-dissertation presents a summary of the research activities. The findings, in accordance with the literature review, and the results of the empirical research with regard to the stated research objectives, are also presented. Finally, based on the findings, conclusions are drawn and recommendations subsequently formulated. Major findings include the need for more time to be dedicated to in-service training, thorough monitoring and prompt follow-up thereof. Data collected also indicated that the DoBE has a number of programmes in place to develop teachers and to put them on a par with curriculum requirements. Despite these efforts, some schools are still performing below the required standard. / Thesis (M Development and Management)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012

The purpose of this research activity was to determine the nature of in-service training as a mode of capacitating and developing teachers in public secondary schools serviced by the Matlosana Area Office (AO). The process of teacher in-service training is constantly faced by challenges, which derail and stall progress and sometimes negatively affect learners’ performance. Amongst others, these challenges include: changes in the curriculum, inconsistent monitoring and follow-up on in-service training programmes, the impact of teacher performance on learners’ attainment, the HIV/AIDS scourge, poor learner discipline, incorrect placement of teachers with regard to school and subjects taught, and the low participation of key role-players. The Department of Education (DoE) is divided into the Department of Basic Education and the Department of Higher Education. A literature study to look into the Department of Basic Education’s Acts, policies, strategies and other relevant documents aimed at skilling and developing teachers, was carried out. This assisted the researcher in understanding the legal parameters that guide teacher in-service training. Upon completion of the literature study, a brief explanation of the empirical research design, the administration and the use of the questionnaire as a research tool, are given. Data were collected from the respondents in the randomly selected secondary schools in the focus area – by means of a questionnaire. These data gave the researcher an idea of the situation with regard to teacher in-service training in the Matlosana Area Office’s responsibility area. To respond to the statements, respondents were required to indicate their views by ticking on a 5-step Likert scale. Respondents were given the opportunity of writing down their opinions; and these were summed up and indicated. Data collected were analysed and presented in the form of tables and histograms. This was followed by the interpretation of these data. Chapter 5 of the mini-dissertation presents a summary of the research activities. The findings, in accordance with the literature review, and the results of the empirical research with regard to the stated research objectives, are also presented. Finally, based on the findings, conclusions are drawn and recommendations subsequently formulated. Major findings include the need for more time to be dedicated to in-service training, thorough monitoring and prompt follow-up thereof. Data collected also indicated that the DoBE has a number of programmes in place to develop teachers and to put them on a par with curriculum requirements. Despite these efforts, some schools are still performing below the required standard. / Thesis (M Development and Management)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012

This paper discusses research on Insertion and applicability of Moodle as Educational Management tool, as it sought to build a form of communication with interaction and interactivity between the Municipal Agudo - RS and the directors of municipal schools. Held first a literature review on the prospects of many authors who present concepts coming to clarify and understand the research problem, which is to identify what are the limits and possibilities of integration and applicability Moodle as Educational Management tool facilitator of interaction and interactivity. Following the analysis of the application and insertion of this Educational Management tool, approaching the communication of directors of municipal schools of Agudo - RS with the City Department of Education. The work is divided into three chapters that cover from the context, conceptualization and analysis of the application and integration of Moodle in this reality. Followed by referrals Methodological and Theoretical presenting authors such as Castells (2003/2013), Okada (2003), Taspscott & Williams (2007), Nakamura (2009), Son (2014), among others that cause reflection on this issue to seek Moodle integration as Educational Management tool. Besides deepening the study on the importance of the new features, increasingly present in the school context, then the Virtual Environment Teaching and learning Moodle, can present the advantages of its use in education, going beyond the classroom, seeking understanding that there are tools which can contribute positively on the relationship between the actors involved in the educational context of a municipality. To this end, this analysis and research was based on a set of variables that include the study and understanding of interaction and interactivity in educational management processes. Concluding that when thinking about the limits and possibilities of insertion and the applicability of Moodle as Educational Management Tool facilitator of interaction and interactivity in Educational Management processes, one can see how Moodle can be important and help exchange and search for information, coming from the fields for the educational context. The final product will be the Moodle environment created to be explored and used by the Department of Education and its directors, serving as basis for other municipalities and / or researchers to make this insertion and applicability of Moodle as an educational management tool, promoting communication between educational actors. Thus, the final product of this research was the creation and implementation of the Virtual Environment Moodle as Educational Management tool because when applying found the possibility of using this feature in other Departments, not only the Department of Education and still completing the participation of a larger number of participants. The final product was the atmosphere created and used by the Municipal Education Agudo - RS and the directors of the eight public schools, in which we sought behold, educational, pedagogical, administrative and informative. The same can be used for research and basis for application in other sectors or in other municipalities. / O presente trabalho aborda a pesquisa sobre Inserção e aplicabilidade do Moodle como ferramenta de Gestão Educacional, em que se buscou construir uma forma de comunicação com interação e interatividade, entre a Secretaria Municipal de Agudo RS e os diretores das escolas municipais. Realizou-se em primeiro lugar uma revisão de literatura, sobre as perspectivas de diversos autores que apresentam conceitos que vem no sentido de esclarecer e compreender o problema da pesquisa, que vem no sentido de identificar quais são os limites e possibilidades da inserção e da aplicabilidade do Moodle como ferramenta de Gestão Educacional facilitadora de interação e interatividade. Seguindo com a análise da aplicação e inserção dessa ferramenta de Gestão Educacional, aproximando a comunicação dos diretores das escolas municipais de Agudo RS com a Secretaria Municipal de Educação. O trabalho está dividido em três capítulos que abordam desde a contextualização, conceituação e análise da aplicabilidade e inserção do Moodle nessa realidade. Seguido dos Encaminhamentos Metodológicos e Teóricos que apresentam autores como Castells (2003/2013), Okada (2003), Taspscott & Williams (2007), Nakamura (2009), Filho (2014), dentre outros que fazem refletir sobre este assunto de buscar a inserção do Moodle como ferramenta de Gestão Educacional. Além de aprofundar o estudo sobre a importância dos novos recursos, cada vez mais presentes no contexto escolar, nesse caso o Ambiente Virtual de Ensino-aprendizagem Moodle, pode apresentar como vantagens do seu uso na Educação, indo além da sala de aula, buscando a compreensão de que existem ferramentas as quais podem contribuir positivamente na relação entre os atores envolvidos no contexto educacional de um município. Para tal, esta análise e pesquisa apoiou-se num conjunto de variáveis que contemplam o estudo e a compreensão sobre interação e interatividade nos processos de Gestão Educacional. Concluindo que ao se pensar nos limites e nas possibilidades da Inserção e da aplicabilidade do Moodle como Ferramenta de Gestão Educacional facilitadora de interação e interatividade nos processos de Gestão Educacional, pode-se perceber o quanto o Moodle pode ser importante e auxiliar na troca e na busca de informações, vindas dos campos referentes ao contexto educacional. O produto final será o ambiente Moodle criado para ser explorado e utilizado pela Secretaria de Educação e seus diretores, servindo assim como base para que outros municípios e/ou pesquisadores façam essa inserção e aplicabilidade do Moodle como ferramenta de gestão educacional, promovendo comunicação entre os atores educacionais. Sendo assim, o produto final da presente pesquisa, foi a criação e a implementação do Ambiente Virtual o Moodle como ferramenta de Gestão Educacional, pois ao se aplicar constatou-se a possibilidade de utilização desse recurso por outras Secretarias, não somente a Secretaria de Educação e ainda completando a participação de um número maior de participantes. O produto final foi o ambiente criado e utilizado pela Secretaria Municipal de Educação de Agudo RS e os diretores das oito escolas municipais, em que se buscou contemplas, aspectos educacionais, pedagógicos, administrativos e informativos. O mesmo pode ser utilizado para pesquisa e base para aplicação em outros setores, ou ainda em outros municípios.

Magister Artium (Psychology) - MA(Psych) / The inclusive education system in South Africa is one that accepts children with many types of barriers to learning, whether these are physical, emotional or cognitive in nature. In 2001, the Department of Education published the White Paper 6 in order to address inclusive education in the South African context over a time frame of 20 years. It has been 15 years since the White Paper 6 was published, and many South African educators still face the same challenges as they did at the start of the Inclusive Education System. Managing children with barriers to learning comes with many challenges and uncertainties, and with the high prevalence of children diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) globally, there is a strong need to understand what the condition entails and how to manage it effectively. A study like this is imperative in order to explore management strategies used by Grade 1 educators when working with learners presenting with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder symptoms in mainstream schools in the Western Cape. A further aim is to explore the support structures currently available to these educators as well as the support required by these educators. The study also aims to understand the challenges facing educators in these settings as there are limited research studies and literature available which focus on how to apply the inclusive education policies that exist in South Africa. The study used bio-ecological systems theory as a theoretical framework. A qualitative approach was used to conduct the study, including semi-structured individual interviews and data that was analysed by thematic analysis. A total of four local schools were included in the study, comprising of twelve interviews with Grade 1 educators from mainstream schools based in the Western Cape. The findings were as follows: many educators felt that they did not receive enough training on Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, therefore lacking knowledge on how to apply management strategies to address this. Managing a diverse range of learners, lack of resources, lack of parental involvement, lack of assistance in the classroom, as well as distracted and disorganised children posed as challenges for educators working with learners presenting with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder symptoms. Some educators felt that class sizes were too big; helping non-English learners who displayed symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder to reach their full potential was challenging; and covering all the content in the Curriculum Assessment Policy Statements (CAPS) was overwhelming for some as it does not always allow space for learners who learn differently in the classroom. Educators teaching in lower-income communities struggled with parental support and generally had fewer resources available to them. Not all of the participants received sufficient support from other professional health practitioners, principals, and support at various levels of the education system in the Western Cape and Department of Education.

This study aimed at exploring the perceptions of teachers regarding HIV/AIDS in the Thohoyandou area. A survey design was employed to find out how teachers perceive HIV/AIDS. A group-administered questionnaire was used as a method of data collection. One Hundred and Fifty teachers were selected by using stratified random sampling technique. From each stratum the systematic random sampling method was used to select the sample. The respondents were selected from the population of teachers in the Thohoyandou, Thulamela area, in the Limpopo Province. HIV/AIDS in the workplace, with special emphasis on theoretical background, perceptions regarding HIV/AIDS and HIV/AIDS prevention strategies has been provided. Theoretical background covered what HIV/AIDS is, factors promoting the AIDS epidemic, HIV/AIDS in the workplace and psychosocial impact of HIV/AIDS on employees. Perceptions regarding HIV/AIDS covered voluntary counseling and testing and issues around working with someone who is HIV positive. HIV/AIDS prevention strategies focused on prevention and wellness programme, abstinence from sex, being faithful to one sexual partner, condom usage, managing STI and HIV/AIDS in the workplace. The research findings were presented graphically and discussed. It was found that teachers perceive HIV/AIDS as a reality and they also know the ways to prevent it, although most of them do not utilize those methods. Generally, teachers in Thohoyandou area are still at risk of contracting HIV/AIDS. The conclusion and recommendations derived from the study are provided lastly. / Dissertation (MSoc.Sci (EAP))--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Social Work and Criminology / unrestricted

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / The 'conversations' under investigation have all been initiated by the National Department of Education (DoE) and are identified in this thesis as the following: the Values Report (2000); Opening Pathways (2002), the Manifesto (2001); and the Baseline Report (2004). During 2000 the Minister of Education, who recognised the need for public discussion on values in education, appointed a working group to produce a document on values in education, namely the Values Report. That report proposed six values to be nurtured in schools. The DoE invited public comment on the Values Report and these comments were taken into account when a conference on values in education was held during February 2001, namely the Saamtrek Conference. Meanwhile, the DoE commissioned school-based research during 2000. The purpose of the research was to establish what meanings school communities assigned to the values that were proposed in the Values Report. The research findings were published in 2002, but an interim report, Opening Pathways, was published during 2001, and informed discussions at the Saamtrek Conference. The Manifesto was published later during 2001, and proposed ten values to be nurtured in schools. It also proposed sixteen educational strategies that could be employed to nurture these values. During 2004 the DoE again commissioned school-based research, the baseline research, which culminated in the Baseline Report. The purpose of the baseline research was to establish what were the perceptions and practices of school communities in respect of values and human rights. There was vigorous engagement with the issue of values in education during the first few years of the 21st century. During 2002 the DoE launched a Values in Education Programme of Action in order to promote the nurturing of values in education. One of the initiatives of this programme was the introduction of an Advanced Certificate in Education (ACE) programme aimed at practising teachers. This was the ACE: Integrating values and human rights across the curriculum, which was funded by the DoE, and offered at various institutions of Higher Education from July 2003 to June 2005. There was less vigorous engagement with the issue of values in education after 2004, when a new Minister of Education was appointed. An example of less vigorous engagement with values in education is the following: the ACE on values and human rights was not state-funded beyond 2005. It is against this background that I engaged with the mentioned conversations about values in education. My interest in conversations about values in education arose out of my involvement, from 2003 to 2005, with the ACE programme on values and human rights which was offered by the University of the Western Cape. My thesis format differs from the majority of theses in this country since my research was entirely text-based, thus devoid of fieldwork. This thesis corresponds to what I have identified as a topic-based format. Each chapter, with the exclusion of the .introductory, research methodology and conclusions and recommendations chapters, investigates a specific topic that forms part of the conversations about values in education. My research data consisted of conversations about values in education as captured in the documents mentioned above, namely the Values Report. Opening Pathways, the Manifesto and the Baseline Report. My thesis does not have a separate literature review chapter. Neither does it have a chapter in which research findings are presented, analysed and discussed. Separate chapters on a review of the literature and on presentation, analysis and discussion of research findings are usually features of a thesis which relies for its data on fieldwork. However, a review of the literature and research findings are infused in five of the eight chapters that comprise this thesis. I made use of relevant literature in order to interrogate DoE conversations about values in education. That interrogation led me to arrive at research findings in respect of DoE conversations about values in education. My research methodology was located within a qualitative research paradigm, with an interpretive metatheoretical approach. I identified my research design as philosophy as social practice, and my research method as philosophical investigation. I undertook an investigation of the grammar of these conversations about values in education, that is, an investigation of the arguments provided by the DoE for claims made in respect of values in education. That investigation included the following: a clarification of assumptions underpinning DoE arguments; uncovering of DoE conceptions about the goals and purposes of schooling; establishing the extent of continuity amongst DoE conversations; highlighting the extent of conceptual clarity in DoE conversation; and exploring what meanings are assigned by the DoE to value concepts. The investigation of the grammar of the relevant DoE conversations illuminated DoE engagement with the following concepts: 'values', 'character', 'morality', 'conversation', 'education', 'inquiry', 'schooling', 'ethics', 'citizenship' and 'whole school'. In the process of this investigation I developed a conceptual framework for thinking about values in education, engaged with the notion of developing shared understandings in respect of values in education, drew attention to inquiry as a type of conversation that is conceptually linked to education, and investigated the notion of deliberation as a way of nurturing values in education.

Corporal punishment is a widespread phenomenon in South African schools in spite of legislation prohibiting spanking of learners. Section 10 of the South African Schools Act No 84 of 1996 states that No person may administer corporal punishment at a school to a learner. The legal consequences for an educator administering corporal punishment could result in dismissal. However, empirical evidence indicates that seven in every ten primary school learners and one in every two secondary school learners still receive corporal punishment from educators. Hence, the purpose of the study is to understand and explain corporal punishment from educators’ perceptions. Six educators from three schools were interviewed using a qualitative approach. Participant educators are not convinced that the use of corporal punishment is illegal and a criminal offence. The findings of the study show that these frustrated educators believe that corporal punishment is effective to maintain discipline in classes with a high educator-learner ratio. Furthermore, the participant educators are convinced that alternatives to corporal punishment are ineffective in comparison with the positive effect of corporal punishment on instruction and learning. The ineffectiveness of alternatives to corporal punishment is exacerbated by the poor support provided by the Department of Education in implementing these measures. The study concluded that the implementation of the abolishment of corporal punishment is a tug-of-war between legislation and reality. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Education Management and Policy Studies / unrestricted

This study investigated the self-efficacy (also often referred to as self-confidence) of principals as determined by school administrator certification credentials and teaching endorsements at low performing middle schools in Mississippi. In educational literature, the term “self-confidence” is often referred to under the nomenclature of self-efficacy. In the context of an educational environment, self-efficacy pertains to a principal’s capability to organize and execute courses of action required in leading and managing a school. Successful school management requires a leader who is task oriented, consistently stays focused, employs effective strategies, and utilizes managerial skills. The investigation focused on the self-efficacy, as determined by credentials and endorsements, of the principals charged with leading and managing the 24 Mississippi middle schools that received Mississippi Department of Education accountability ratings of “D” or “F” in relation to student academic performance. The overall research question that guided the investigation asked: Did the self-efficacy of the principals charged with leading and managing the 24 Mississippi middle schools that received low accountability scores suggest any connection to the ratings? Based on the findings of the investigation, it may be concluded that the self efficacy of the principals charged with leading and managing the middle schools that received low accountability scores didn’t appear to have any connection to the ratings. Also, neither the principals’ certification credential levels nor teaching endorsements appeared to be factors.