The purpose of this study was to understand what the role of SADTU (South African Democratic Teachers’ Union) is in the implementation of the Teacher Redeployment Policy in schools. The Approach to data collection was that of qualitative research. The methods used to collect data were interviews and literature review. The study used the interpretive paradigm. The theory applied is the Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) theory. IPA aims to explore in detail how participants are making sense of their personal and social world. The approach to data analysis was that of a qualitative research. Qualitative data were organised and arranged categorically into themes and patterns emanating from the responses of participants. The data were analysed using descriptive explanations, based on the frequencies and similarities of the responses. The approach was primarily exploratory, just as would be expected of a qualitative research design. A combination of purposive, quota and snowball sampling was used in this research. The main finding in this research is that the role of SADTU in the implementation of teacher redeployment is not limited to observation as the policy prescribes. SADTU members go beyond that role and assume the role of active participation and decision making in the process. The main recommendation was that the policy should be amended to allow SADTU to participate actively in discussions and decision making. This will avert the unnecessary conflicts and instability in schools caused by the suppression of the union to participate actively. When the Teacher Redeployment Policy was conceived, the purpose was to achieve equity in teacher distribution by moving teachers from the historically advantaged White schools to the historically disadvantaged Black schools. The implementation of Teacher Redeployment Policy is causing more harm than good in so far as effective teaching and learning in schools is concerned. For most of the time, teachers are pre-occupied with worrying about how the process of teacher redeployment is going to affect them instead of focussing on delivering quality teaching in schools. Teachers who are most fitting to be the ones identified in excess in some cases enjoy the benefit of escaping redeployment for the simple reason that they are members of SADTU. At the same time, candidates who do not qualify to be placed in specific posts are placed into those posts at the expense of the best suitable candidates because of the biases. The role of the union is not to implement policy, but also to make sure that the policy is implemented in the spirit and letter in which it was formulated. The status of the teacher union in the implementation of policy is that of an observer who only surfaces when an observation is made whether there is unfairness and biases in the manner the Teacher Redeployment Policy is implemented. / Educational Management and Leadership / M. Ed. (Educational Leadership and Management)

With the dawning of a new era in South African politics in 1994 it became evident that education was going to be re-organised along with other government structures in South Africa. I begin the study by reviewing this curriculum change in South Africa that has taken place since 1995. This involved the development Curriculum 2005 (C2005) and the subsequent revision of C2005, which is now the National Curriculum Statement (NCS). This curriculum introduced an environmental focus into all the Learning Areas, which gave teachers a mandate not only to teach about environmental concepts and issues (such as biodiversity) at schools but to also address them in the communities outside the schools. This study considers biodiversity issues as biodiversity is a new focus in South African policy more broadly, and particularly in the Natural Science Learning Area. Our school has received vegetable and indigenous plant gardens from the South African National Biodiversity Institute, which provides a rich new resource for teaching about biodiversity, particularly in the Natural Sciences. My interest in the study was to investigate how schools (teachers) can use school gardens in the recontextualisation of the National Curriculum Statements focusing on the Natural Science Learning Area in Grade 7 at my school. I used Bernstein’s (1990) concepts of delocation, relocation, ideological transformation and selective appropriation and Cornbleth’s (1990) theory of curriculum contextualization to understand and interpret the recontextualisation process in the four lessons studied. In this research I was involved in the planning of the lessons with the Grade 7 Natural Science teacher. I taught one lesson as a demonstration and then observed while the teacher taught the other three lessons. I conducted this study as an action research case study. I used focus group interviews, classroom observations, document analysis and interviews as methods of data collection. The study found that the use of school gardens for teaching biodiversity can help with the recontextualisation of NCS in schools, and for the teaching of biodiversity, but that there is a need to understand and address various recontextualisation issues if this is to be done effectively. The study revealed that use of the school gardens for learning about biodiversity in the NS Learning Area is influenced by teachers’ knowledge, experience, teaching styles and available resources, as well as management issues and the complexity of the NCS discourse itself. The study also revealed that socio-cultural and structural factors (e.g. language and class size) also affect how biodiversity is taught in schools, and thus how the recontextualisation of the NCS takes place. The study concludes by making recommendations for taking this work forward in the context of our school as it addresses the gap that exists between policy and practice.

Teenage pregnancy is one of the major factors leading to girls dropping out of school especially in developing countries such as South Africa. To address the problem, the South African government has put forward policies which allow for the continued enrolment of learners who could fall pregnant while at school. However, there is evidence that pregnant learners drop out of school even though these policies are in place. Hence this study investigated the perceptions of the school stakeholders on the mainstreaming of pregnant learners and one of the stakeholders is the pregnant learners themselves. This study also aimed to investigate the way pregnant learners were perceived and treated in their schools and the views of the stakeholders on supporting the pregnant learners academically. It also aimed to explore leadership and management implications of the school stakeholders’ perceptions. This study revealed that some of the stakeholders were not aware of the existence of the policy that allows for the mainstreaming of pregnant learners in public schools. Those that indicated that they were aware of it reported to have a fuzzy idea of the policy. It seemed there was no shared understanding of the policy among the stakeholders; as a result the policy was not effectively implemented in the schools. This could also be the reason for the negative attitude shown by some of the school stakeholders to the policy. However, all stakeholders voiced out their opinions about this policy. With regards to the policy implementation they expressed fears that the educators may not be capacitated enough to deal with learner pregnancy and also that the pregnant learners may have a negative influence on other learners. Cultural beliefs and stereotypes seemed to play a role on how the stakeholders perceived the policy that legislated the mainstreaming of pregnant learners.

This is an interpretive case study that explores the workplace epistemologies and institutional structures of two nested cases within the broader context of the Environmental Education, Training and Development Practices - Level 5 qualification (EETDP qualification) that is registered on the South African National Qualifications Framework. The study provides insights to inform EETDP curriculum development that is enabling of reflexive environmental education and training processes. The study develops an understanding of workplace epistemologies related to environment and education, the structural factors that enable and constrain agency of environmental educators and the role of reflexivity in practice and in education in two nested cases: the agricultural and local government sectors. It draws on findings from workshops, semistructured interviews and document analysis of education materials in these two nested cases. The study notes that there are diverse and seemingly ambiguous understandings of both environment/sustainability and education processes in the two nested cases. This ambiguity seems to relate to environmental education practitioners drawing on different forms of knowledge, including differentiated or theoretical knowledge, and 'common-sense' ways of knowing, in their education practice. The understandings related to theoretical knowledge are, in both nested cases, dominated by scientific or technical understandings where environment is understood in the terms of the natural sciences and education is seen in instrumentalist terms as the transfer of mainly technical environmental knowledge to learners in order to effect behaviour change. The study opens up deeper understandings of the epistemological, socio-cultural and structural features of context, in the two nested cases, that have a bearing on environmental educators. It provides insights into workplace structures that can be both enabling and constraining of agency and notes that the causal power of structures to enable or constrain does not lie only in the structures but also in relation to the intentionality of the environmental education practitioners/agents. The study then examines reflexivity as one of the means through which environmental educators in the nested cases are able to consider appropriate actions or responses to structural constraints or enablements. Based on the insights offered by the research findings, the study makes recommendations for the EETDP curriculum development. It frames these recommendations within an understanding of curriculum as a contextualised social process that involves structural aspects of curriculum such as materials, as well as socio-cultural processes such as learning on the course and in the workplace.

Human capital development is one of the key factors in human development in which the state plays a tremendous and critical role. Policies and systems established by the government to enable education, trade and socialisation help or undermine human capital development. The study argues that in the post-apartheid era, the government has moved on from apartheid human capital development to equal human capital development. The state has moved away from providing a fragmented system of a racial and exclusive education and training system to a non-racial and inclusive education and training system that creates equal opportunities for learning for all races. The study identified several challenges that hinder human capital development and recommended that there is need for the current government to create clear working relations between various bodies administering the post-school system. In order to arrive at those findings, the study adopted a quantitative research methodology. / Economics / M.Com. (Economics)

Issues and challenges that teachers and educator encounter in implementing school-based Environmental Education have been established, described and explored against the background of the South African education system. In a succinct manner sources upon and from which Curriculum 2005 (C2005) is founded have been explored. Within C2005 the foundations of EE have been traced. International and national trends and developments have been illuminated and the contributions of these endeavours are eminent in school-based EE. The methodology and research process of study does not claim to be the only one appropriate for this research question. However, the research focus has been studied through the chosen methodology as the socio-historical context demanded. The research process has been dynamic with the researcher responding to the emerging data and being guided by the research activities outlined in the research design. The two case studies have provided the researcher with valuable data necessary for making sound judgements about issues and challenges encountered during the implementation of environmental learning in formal education structures. Although the research question has been adequately explored, the study does not claim to be exhaustive and with no limitations. It is hoped that the recommendations made in the study, based on the findings, will be valuable to teachers, educators and education policy makers involved with EE implementation in formal education. / Educational Studies / D.Ed. (Didactics)

Environmental education is a response to the environmental crisis. Due to the diversity of the environment, environmental education processes face a challenge, locally and globally, because it should respond to the diversity of local environmental issues, and contribute towards the addressing of local environmental issues. It is therefore important that environmental education programs focus on local environmental issues, and in the analysis there of accommodates investigative, problem solving and environmental action skills, because such programs proof to be more successful. The introduction of environmental education into formal education can only be successful within a structure that is conducive to a holistic integrated approach and accommodates investigative, problem solving and environmental action skills. Research however proves that within the school context, environmental education processes, as well as the addressing of local environmental issues, is fragmented. The development of a school environmental policy and management plan can provide a valuable framework for a holistic approach to the organization of environmental education processes in schools, that is integrated with the curriculum, resulting in the effective management of resources and the addressing of local environmental issues. Through this research, the implementation of school environmental policies and management plans in Mpumalanga was evaluated, in terms of the integration of environmental education processes in the curriculum, the organization of environmental education processes in schools, the effective management of resources in schools, and the addressing of local environmental issues. The conclusion was drawn that the implementation of school environmental policies and management plans contributes towards curriculum integration of environmental education, the organization of environmental education processes, the management of resources and the addressing of environmental issues in schools. The more exposure a school gets in terms of implementation of school environmental policies and management plans the higher the achievement in the mentioned areas. It can therefore be deducted that exposure to the implementation of school environmental policies and management plans will lead to the integration of the environment in the curriculum, the organization of environmental education processes in schools, the management of resources and the addressing of environmental issues in schools. / Educational Studies / D.Ed (Didactics)

This study reports on the practice of inclusive education in three rural disadvantaged communities within the Eastern Cape. The research focused on the development of inclusive educational practices such as teaching, assessment and support in inclusive education. Recognizing the changing needs in the teaching profession and consequently the changing needs of both in service and pre-service educators, this project was conceived as providing an insight into the response of educators to the challenges of inclusive education and the meanings that these experiences have for educators who have had practical exposure to inclusive education. The need to acknowledge barriers which have implications for planning, expectations and effectiveness of implementing inclusive education in this specific context is acknowledged. In South Africa direct support service delivery is only to a few advantaged schools and communities. Learners who are economically and environmentally disadvantaged are excluded even though they have an equal right to effective support. / Educational Studies / M. A.(Educational Management)

The new higher education system of South Africa is in the process of transformation. Part of the transformation process involves raising the use and status of indigenous languages to become essential part of the country‟s higher education system. The constitution of the Republic of South Africa (Act 108 of 1996) laid a foundation responding to the imperative regarding the use and status of indigenous languages. The Ministry of Education (Higher Education) pays special attention to fitting their education policies to the constitution by incorporating subsection 27(2) of the Higher Education Act, 1997 (Act 101 of 1997) that states “subject to the policy determined by the Minister, the council, with the concurrence of the senate, must determine the institutional language policy of a public higher education institution and must publish and make it available on request”. The Language Policy for Higher Education was published by the Ministry of Education in November 2002. Lastly, the Ministry of Education appointed a Ministerial Committee “to advise on the development of African (indigenous) languages as mediums of instruction in higher education.” This committee published its report in 2005. This study investigates the fit between government language policies and institutional language policies. The focus is on indigenous languages in the South African higher education system. The main purpose is to argue for the design of an integrated institutional language policy framework in a holistic way. The study population consisted of the 23 universities and the indigenous language academic staff. A case study and survey were used. All twenty-three indigenous language units from the 23 universities‟ departments were used in the survey section of this research. A random sample of respondents was used, all the respondents were indigenous language academic personnel. Questionnaires were sent to each one who agreed to participate. This questionnaire was the main research instrument for collecting data. The research showed that there is no fit between government language policies and institutional language policies. It is recommended that improvements in fit between government language policies and institutional language policies be embarked upon across the 23 universities‟ staff members and stakeholders (students). / African Languages / Thesis (D. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages))

The democratic era in South Africa has led to the introduction of a wide-ranging series of teaching and learning policies aimed at school reform. The study aimed at establishing how these policies are implemented by educators in selected schools. Qualitative and quantitative methods were used to gather information from educators, members of the School Management Teams and learners through in-depth individual and focus group interviews as the main data collection methods. Critical discourse analysis was used to examine participants‟ spoken words and the content of relevant documents such as lesson plans in detail. Comparisons were drawn and similarities identified through the coding, categorisation and condensation of data. The researcher interpreted the displayed data. A discussion of the main themes was presented and supported by quotations by participants. Findings indicate that there have been only few changes in terms of how educators teach; some educators conceded that they had not changed the way they teach since the introduction of new curriculum and assessment policies. The role played by learning outcomes in teachers‟ lesson planning was uneven. Members of School Management Teams demonstrated diverse views on teaching and learning policies. Learners who are taught in their home language encounter few difficulties in learning; this is not the case with learners who are taught through medium of a second language and thus lack the necessary language proficiency necessary for academic achievement. A shift from teacher-centred to learner-centred approaches to teaching is still required: that is, a shift from teaching to learning to enhance thinking and reflection which accommodates and draws on learners‟ prior knowledge and experiences. Class sizes should be reduced to enable effective educator and learner interaction. Educators‟ interest, tolerance, innovativeness and competency in the subject matter will help sustain learners‟ interest in the learning activities. Policy makers should explore professional development from viewpoint of the participating educators in order to identify the most effective strategies to support and change educators‟ classroom practice where necessary. / Curriculum and Instructional Studies / D. Ed. (Curriculum Studies)