This thesis is centrally concerned with the current nee-liberal world order and its effects upon society. It is concerned to expose the contradictions and weaknesses within the knowledge systems that underpin our political reality. It considers economics as the determining discourse of neo-liberal politics, analytic biology as its determining discourse of individual persons, and analytic and neo-pragmatist philosophy as its leading systems of thought. In each case it finds a linear rationalism compatible with the determinist materialism of noo-Darwinism, and indeed explicitly invoking Darwin. This seems to vindicate Manuel Castells's fmding of this 'Knowledge Society' as driven by 'an abstract, universal instrumentalism'. The thought systems of this economic liberalism have seen politics subsumed within economics, de-humanising most of the institutions of the earlier Liberal tradition, to the detriment of both freedom and democracy. But it disputes Castells's assumption that this is a necessary reality and finds in neo-liberal education the exception to this dehumanising trend. Revitalised as 'Mode 2' knowledge production, this form of teaching, learning and research is found to be ideally suited to challenge the underpinnings of the very social order which initially produced it. The thesis as a whole is designed to employ Mode 2 methods in order to support this contention. Using this approach it seeks to demonstrate that in place of neo-Darwinism the ideas of the South African natural scientist Eugene Marais, concerning the significance of conscious thought itself within evolution, can provide a more convincing epistemoloy than the behaviourism and materialism of analytic biology. It finds John Maynard Keynes's acceptance of economics as a moral and not a natural science, more logically convincing and more inherently useful for social reconstruction than the current mathematicisation of economic theory. Prevalent philosophical approaches appear to serve only to reinforce the systems of thought already found (and found wanting) in politics, biology and economics. But again these philosophies are shown to be vulnerable to a Mode 2 critique, particularly employing the ontological understanding of the contemporary pragmatist philosopher Joseph Margolis, whose strong version of relativism allows for both bivalent and multivalent truth values more appropriate to understanding the complex realities of ethical and democratic societies. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, Durban, 2002.

The study was concentrated on the period following the first democratic elections for a new government in South Africa, that is, post -1994 up to the year 2000. The change from a system based on fixed apartheid ideology to a more open and democratic one meant that the political scene became more characterized by fierce competition and volatility. The aim of the research was to understand the nature of the contestation as it manifests itself in both the development and implementation of school governance policy at national, provincial and local levels in a climate of political change and turbulence.

In this critical evaluation of the National Policy on Religion and Education (Republic of South Africa 2003) , I will invite a multiplicity of voices and opinions from various disciplines and discourses - a Bakhtinian carnival of heteroglossic play . As opposed to the official feast, one might say that carnival celebrated temporary liberation from the prevailing truth and from the established order; it marked the suspension of all hierarchal rank, privileges, norms, and prohibitions. Carnival was the true feast of time, the feast of becoming, change, renewal. It was hostile to all that was immortalised and completed (Bakhtin 1984:10). In this time of postmodern carnival, official 'Truth' is constantly questioned and treated with suspicion and replaced by new and unofficial truths (Scott 1986; Hiebert 2003). God (if not religion) has been proclaimed dead and yet at the same time seems to be more alive than ever. This is a time when 'all the conventional norms and protocols are suspended, as the common life is invaded by a great wave of riotous antinomianism which makes everywhere for bizarre mésalliances' (Scott 1986:6). And the presiding spirit of blasphemy finds its quintessential expression in the ritual of the mock crowning and subsequent decrowning of the carnival king - who is the very antithesis of a real king, since he is in fact often a slave or a jester. In short, everything is topsy-turvy, and the disarray thus engenders an uproarious kind of laughter (Scott 1986:6). In his presidential address to the American Academy of Religion in 1986 titled 'The house of intellect in an age of carnival: some hermeneutical reflections', Scott (1986:7) explores the impact of the "multiplicity and fragmentation and diversity" facing 'the house of intellect', and identifies the challenge of not resorting to the safety of 'any sort of reductionism, [but] how to understand and interpret the multitudinous messages and voices that press in upon us, each clamouring for attention and for pride of place'. After acknowledging the polyphony surrounding Religionswissenschaft on the one hand and on the other hand rejecting any hermeneutical attempts at a 'totalistic' synthesis, Scott proposes moving among the different 'modalities' of interanimation between [the various] modes of discourse' (Ricoeur quoted by Scott 1986:11). Scott (1986:15) closes his address by appealing for continued conversations and dialogue among discourses and 'scatterings' of truth (1986:15) as a hermeneutical method that would take the plurality and heteroglossia of this time in history seriously. This thesis is an attempt - a personal but also a scholarly and academically responsible attempt - to plot many of the voices and contexts that would help to evaluate the specific understanding of the role of the study of religion in the broader contexts of citizenship in a postmodern age where nationalities, nation states and allegiances are constantly in flux and complex. This thesis is also submitted as proof of the validity of my own voice as one of many voices in and surrounding the house of intellect in an age of carnival. / Religious Studies and Arabic) / D. Litt. et Phil. (Religious Studies and Arabic)

Providing relevant and quality schooling for all South African learners is the paramount goal of the South African National Department of Education. South Africa 's historical and current socio-economic contexts provide many challenges for both the Department of Education and schools in this endeavour to provide quality teaching and learning. These challenges impact directly and indirectly on what happens in the classroom. Since 1994 a plethora of education and training policy has been introduced in South Africa to redress historical imbalances; to introduce a new education and training framework and approach; and to provide guidelines, principles and procedures for addressing some of the challenges that impact on schools. The National Whole School Evaluation Policy provides the legislative framework for the establishment of a quality assurance process in South African schools based on accountability and support. The subsequent Integrated Quality Management System attempts to provide a framework for integrating school evaluation and performance measurement. Policy frameworks are in place to guide quality assurance and school improvement, however, the reality of implementing this at a grass roots level is particularly challenging. The General Motors (GM) South Africa Foundation, a non-governmental development organisation, established by General Motors (GM) South Africa, commenced with the piloting the Learning Schools Initiative to investigate some of the challenges of whole school development and evaluation. This research documents the Learning Schools Initiative's intervention with the initial two pilot secondary schools situated in Port Elizabeth (Nelson Mandela Bay) over a four-year period. It reviews the relevant school reform and school development literature and adopts a critical realist evaluative research approach to investigate the key mechanisms that promote whole school development and change in this context. In keeping with this approach, the results of the research are analysed and discussed within a context-menchanism-outcome configuration that involves the identification of the key mechanisms that bring about desired outcome/s in a specific context. Seven key generative mechanisms are identified as critical at a school and classroom level (i) school culture, (ii) school structures, (iii) effective leadership and management, (iv) personal growth and meaning, (v) restoration of relationships, (vi) professional development of educators, and development of capacity to work together, and (vii) support and accountability. The need to structure school development interventions around the triggering of identified key mechanisms is also identified as an important overarching mechanism. Suggestions are made for further research required to facilitate a deeper understanding of how to bring about meaningful change that results in quality teaching and learning in South African schools.

No description available.

South Africa finds itself on the threshold of new challenges taking place in virtually every :possible sphere of life, i.e. the political, technological, human, social, economic and cultural spheres. The education system is also faced with these changes and cannot be viewed in isolation, rut demands new outlooks by educational planners and educationists. Non-formal education f orns an integral part of the provision of a system of education in' South Africa and is also influenced by these challenges. In order to make reasonable reconnnendations on how the challenges - particularly those of education management - should be approached by education planners and educationists, the following were investigated: * the role of and need for non-formal education in a system of education provision in south Africa so as to detenltlne the need to manage and administrate non-formal education successfully * the institutions which make the biggest contributions to the provision of non-formal education in south Africa, in order to point out where problem areas exist, and the resultant duplication, overlapping and fragmentation of training regional development and the role of regional bodies such as the Regional Development Advisory Conunittees, Regional Development Conunittees of the National Training Board, Training Board for Iocal Government Bodies and Regional services Councils the utilisation of Regional services COUncils to co-ordinate non-formal education at regional and local levels Based on the findings, an educational strategy is proposed to co-ordinate non-formal education on recJional and local levels through Regional Services councils. / Educational Leadership and Management / D. Ed. (Educational Management)

Rural education in South Africa, particularly within the black communities, has suffered neglect under Apartheid education policies. This has resulted in an array of problems which continue to beset the country's education system. The community, through its various institutions, has a major role to play in the whole education renewal process. The business sector is one such a community institution, which is directly affected by the quality of school education. Countries such as Britain and the U.S. provide excellent examples of close co-operation between business and schools in an effort to prepare pupils in accordance with the needs of the workplace. The qualitative study conducted in schools, within the Dzumeri community, showed that there is a dire need for business involvement with schools in order to address important areas of mutual concern. It is finally recommended that the government must formulate enabling policies, which will promote business education partnership activities and ensure proper coordination at all administrative levels / Educational Studies / M.Ed. (Comparative Education)

The aim of this study is to examine the role played by the state in developing partnerships in school governance, to establish how school governance reform and restructuring can enhance powers and functions of school governing bodies and to identify the needs and problems of partners in school governance. A literature study was conducted to investigate the role of the state in partnerships in school governance and its implications for school governing bodies. Reference was made to studies conducted in countries experiencing educational reform. An empirical survey was conducted to establish the views of the state and school governors. For this purpose, a questionnaire was sent to members of governing bodies, while an interview was held with an official in the Department of Education. It was found that the implementation of reform influences relationships and functions of governing bodies and causes problems which the state should address. / Educational Leadership and Management / M.Ed. (Educational Management)

Over the past ten years, South Africa has undergone substantial changes, following the advent of democracy. Key amongst these changes being the transformation of educational policy. These policy changes have introduced new structural frameworks within which we operate (including myself as a subject advisor) and new roles for educators. These policy changes affect all the levels of the education system, and have an impact at school level, where teachers are now responsible for learning programme development (including a focus on lesson planning). Lesson planning in an outcomes-based education framework is a challenging aspect of policy implementation. South Africa is faced with the challenges associated with policy change and implementation. The role of the subject advisors and facilitators who support the teachers to make sense of the curriculum is crucial, as they provide the interface between policy and practice. They are the people who work most with teachers, and have a responsibility for curriculum implementation. This study aimed to explore the strategies which are used by subject advisors and facilitators to support teachers develop lesson plans with an environmental learning focus. A qualitative case study was conducted in which I looked at how the support processes were provided by the subject advisors and facilitators in the Eastern Cape in particular the NEEP-GET cluster in the Makana district. The study employed a range of data producing techniques such as questionnaires, interviews, document analysis and observation. The data was analysed to report the findings. The research indicates that some strategies are used to provide curriculum and pedagogical support and guidance, but that these are superficially treated and others have not been attempted at all. This therefore shows that further growth in this area is possible amongst the subject advisors. Recommendations relevant to both the subject advisors and the Department of Education so as to enhance the support processes and professional development of subject advisors have been made.

D.Ed. (Education) / Please refer to full text to view abstract