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Subject and learning support librarianship first began in African university libraries in the 1960s, but became more prevalent in the 1980s. Subject librarians, who were known by different titles in various universities, were responsible for one or more subjects, departments, schools or faculties, in terms of providing a subject-based information service, and performing subject-based collection development, user education, and liaison functions. They were organised according to specific models or structures which determined whether or not they performed only subject duties in the library. They formed a core part of the university library, and with each major technological advance, they had to reassess their roles, titles, functions, duties, educational qualifications and skills, so as to adapt to the new information environment. Unfortunately, the inception, development, re-assessment and adaptation of subject librarianship on the African continent did not follow a standard path, and no standards guidelines were compiled that could be utilised by new subject services. The purpose of this study was to investigate the roles, responsibilities and skills of subject librarians in the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) region. The target population consisted of subject librarians in this region and a census method was used to determine participants. The quantitative research approach employing a survey design was used by the study. Data was collected using questionnaires, and results were clarified by interviews with a selection of library managers. Data was analysed using SPSS, MS-Excel and content analysis. The research found that the main models of subject librarianship in place were the dual and hybrid models. It determined the main titles that subject librarians were known by, and that their role, involved providing teaching, learning and research support to faculty members, staff, students and researchers. It also determined the main functions and related duties performed, and the main educational qualifications and skills held by, or required by subject librarians. Since the study found that no guidelines, specifically targeted at subject librarians in the region, were available, as one of its outcomes it provided guidelines, in the form of an appendix, for new subject services to adapt or adopt if they desired. / Information Science / D. Litt. et Phil. (Information Science)

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A non-invasive, on-line method for detection of mechanical (rotor, bearings eccentricity) and stator winding faults in a 3-phase induction motors from observation of motor line current supply input. The main aim is to avoid the consequence of unexpected failure of critical equipment which results in extended process shutdown, costly machinery repair, and health and safety problems. This thesis looks into the possibility of utilizing machine learning techniques in the field of condition monitoring of electromechanical systems. Induction motors are chosen as an example for such application. Electrical motors play a vital role in our everyday life. Induction motors are kept in operation through monitoring its condition in a continuous manner in order to minimise their off times. The author proposes a model free sensor-less monitoring system, where the only monitored signal is the input to the induction motor. The thesis considers different methods available in literature for condition monitoring of induction motors and adopts a simple solution that is based on monitoring of the motor current. The method proposed use the feature extraction and Support Vector Machines (SVM) to set the limits for healthy and faulty data based on the statistical methods. After an extensive overview of the related literature and studies, the motor which is the virtual sensor in the drive system is analysed by considering its construction and principle of operation. The mathematical model of the motor is used for analysing the system. This is followed by laboratory testing of healthy motors and comparing their output signals with those of the same motors after being intentionally failed, concluding with the development of a full monitoring system. Finally, a monitoring system is proposed that can detect the presence of a fault in the monitored machine and diagnose the fault type and severity

This research explored the factors that influence whether Learning Support Assistants (LSAs), who support the learning of pupils with very complex learning needs, are equipped with the necessary skills to help these students learn. A significant feature in the delivery of educational support to pupils with low incidence needs is that it is LSAs who provide the majority of educational instruction and, furthermore, these paraeducators work with only limited supervision from class teachers. It therefore follows that if high quality educational assistance is to be available to pupils, then those undertaking the majority of this support need to have appropriate pedagogical knowledge. I explored this complex subject by undertaking a workplace ethnography at a single special school over the course of an academic year. In my ethnography, I used a number of data collection methods, including semi-structured interviews with teachers, LSAs and therapists, as well as participant and non-participant observations. The limited literature on the topic of LSA learning concludes that they are not being provided with the learning opportunities they need for the demanding work they do. However, because of the scarcity of information in the literature pertaining to the development of this important group of the educational workforce, I needed to look to the literature on organisational learning more broadly to inform my work and relate it to my own area of interest. The lack of priority given to non-formal learning was a key theme across these texts, with opportunities for participative learning emerging as an important feature. However, this aspect alone could not explain the reasons why these paraeducators did not have access to learning provision appropriate to their needs and so I looked to other theories of workplace learning. The conceptual and analytical approach of the Working as Learning Framework (WALF) (Felstead, et al., 2009), with its incorporation of the concepts of systems of production, discretion, and learning environments and territories, offered me the opportunity to scrutinise the situation regarding the learning and development of LSAs from a wide perspective. Through my adoption of the WALF I have identified the influences that shaped the workplace learning environment of the LSAs at the special school. In doing so, I have added to the limited research on this important and yet inadequately understood group. Although my study focused on one special school this research can inform how the abilities of paraeducators in different educational settings can be developed, because of my adoption of the theoretical standpoint of the WALF. Furthermore, by applying the WALF, my thesis has utilised workplace learning theory to make an important intellectual contribution to the discussion about how high quality educational provision can be delivered. My thesis is also apposite, because the number of children with more complex learning difficulties is increasing and these individuals require specialist paraeducators to be appropriately equipped to meet their needs, whether they are being educated in special or mainstream schools.

The capacity for online learning environments to provide quality learning experiences for students has been the focus of much speculation and debate in the higher education sector from the late 1990s to the present day. In this area, 'quality' has become synonymous with engaging students in a learning community. This study reports on a qualitative research project designed to explore the significance of community for students when they study in online learning environments. This project used three case studies to explore tertiary students' thoughts and expectations about community in the online environment. The research was constructed iteratively. Data from the initial case suggested the need to explore the relationship between the constructed online learning environment and the development of learning communities or what I have termed Social Learning Support Networks (SLSN). To explore this issue further, the project was expanded and subsequent cases were chosen that included fundamentally different types of online learning environments. The project had two significant results. Firstly, students not only confirmed popular educational theories on the value of learning communities, but also described how this form of social connection might practically benefit their learning. Secondly, the project found that certain forms of synchronous online environments provided enhanced opportunities for students to form social connections that supported their learning. This project provides new evidence of the benefit of community for students studying online and argues that future online learning environments should be shaped by five key principles designed to foster a sense of social connection between students.

The aim of this essay has been to find out whether the individual development plan does make it easier to teachers to discover any needs of the students to get education or material changes and by that make adjustments in the classroom. I chose to seek information by interviewing special educators at four compulsory schools, since they have an overall apprehension of how the work is carried out at the school, especially the work with students in need of any form of extra support. All students at the Swedish compulsory school shall have an individual development plan. The purpose with the plan is, besides that the student is to be given possibilities to form his own pedagogical and social goals, that the teacher shall get early signals if a student may be in need of getting education and materials changed and adjusted for to easier manage his studies. The individual development plan of the student should have the function as a tool to the teacher to facilitate for his students. The answer of my question can be sum-up in a no, the inherent potential in the individual development plan is not utilized by the teachers that seem to have the apprehension that the plan is for the student all by him/herself. The teaching staff has obviously not understood the use they can get out of it.

This study pertains to the provision of learning support to remote distance learners from the Basarwa and Bakgalagadi communities in Botswana who enrolled for a secondary school-leaving certificate. The purpose of this case study was to document these learners’ perceptions and experiences of learning at a distance and to improve service delivery. The literature on distance learning support emphasises the importance of making learners’ voices audible as these help gauge the efficacy of learning support. The study was informed by an interpretive paradigm using a mixed-methods approach and is underpinned by Holmberg’ theory of conversational learning (2003). Qualitative data methods collection involved semi-structured interviews, journals, document analysis and observations while a questionnaire provided nested quantitative data. Data sets were triangulated and trustworthiness was enhanced by using Atlas.ti® for qualitative analysis and SAS version 8 software to generate percentages. The key findings showed that distance learners exhibited high intrinsic motivation and 72.1% of them were satisfied with the learning support provided. This substantiates that learner motivation remains a key attribute for successful distance learning in any context. However, policy and managerial flaws did frustrate and unintentionally disadvantage these remote distance learners. Despite their adverse circumstances positive perceptions and experiences were exhibited where learners had access to personalised academic and affective support from empathetic tutors. Implications for practice include policy reviews, ODL staff training and adoption of best practice. A needs assessment to establish learner needs, expectations and aspirations is critical for the design and development of relevant learning materials, and for the delivery of quality learning support to enhance the academic experience of remote learners from marginalised communities. Recommendations may be applicable in other underdeveloped distance learning contexts. Topics for further research exploration in learning support, policy and curriculum issues have been suggested. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Education Management and Policy Studies / unrestricted

This research focuses on the perception of the learning support teacher regarding the use of play therapy with learners with special educational needs. The purpose of the research was to determine the perception of learning support educators regarding the utilization of play therapy as an aid with foundation phase learners with special educational needs. In order to achieve this purpose, information was gathered and a theoretical framework drawn up through an extensive literature study in consultation with experts. An empirical study was conducted by means of in-depth interviews with ten different learning support educators, in order to obtain empirical information. The researcher worked from an applied research perspective to attempt to use this newly gained practical information to determine whether play therapy could be utilized to help the learner with special educational needs. The researcher made use of an exploratory research design and the following research question formed the basis of the study: What is the perception of the learning support educator regarding the value of using play therapy as a form of aid with the foundation phase learner having special educational needs? Flowing from the empirical information gleaned during the interview schedule the following points emerged: · Learning support educators identify emotional, social, behavioural, family and academic problems, as well as other forms of trauma, associated with the learner who has special educational needs; · The learning support educator regards it as his or her task to refer problems connected to the learner and the learner’s family, where such problems are outside of his or her field of expertise. · The learning support educator has both positive and negative perceptions, as well as misconceptions regarding play therapy; and · The learning support educator has a need for a working relationship with the play therapist in the assistance of the learner with special educational needs. The research has therefore shown that the learning support educator has a positive perception regarding the utilization of play therapy with the foundation phase learner with special educational needs. / Dissertation (MSD (Play Therapy))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Social Work and Criminology / unrestricted

Stock Forecasting is commonly used in different forms everyday in order to predict stock prices. Sentiment Analysis (SA), Machine Learning (ML) and Data Mining (DM) are techniques that have recently become popular in analyzing public emotion in order to predict future stock prices. The algorithms need data in big sets to detect patterns, and the data has been collected through a live stream for the tweet data, together with web scraping for the stock data. This study examined how three organization's stocks correlate with the public opinion of them on the social networking platform, Twitter. Implementing various machine learning and classification models such as the Artificial Neural Network we successfully implemented a company-specific model capable of predicting stock price movement with 80% accuracy.