This study examined the family literacy practices of ten adult participants who attend the Tembaletu Adult Basic Education (ABE) Centre in rural KwaZulu- Natal. The aim was to explore the influence of the ABE programme on these practices? The concept of family literacy in this rural context was interrogated. This is a qualitative case study, and the data collection techniques included individual interview, focus group interviews, observation, and document analysis. Findings revealed that women engaged in varied literacy practices in their homes. Story telling was more common than reading to children. The participants in the study for the first time are able to engage with their children in school related literacy activities. The extent to which the participants and their children supported each other in their literacy development was dependent on the levels of literacy. The Adult Basic Education programme had a direct impact on the literacy practices in the families of the participants. The benefits reported by the participants included personal empowerment, enhanced self-image, and the acquisition of literacy life skills that are crucial to the health and well being of their families. The study highlights tensions between the content of adult programmes and family literacy practices valued by the participants. Other key issues that emerged in the study are: the link between family literacy and culture; gender and family literacy; family literacy in the context of HIV/Aids. The findings in this study valuable perspectives on emerging family literacy in a rural context - an area of study that is in its infancy in South Africa. / Thesis (M.Ed.) - University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2005.

Language and literacy are of central importance to communication for most people in the world today. This case study investigates the language and literacy practices amongst African immigrant families in Pietermaritzburg. There are many immigrant families from different countries with different home languages and different backgrounds. This study examines the languages used in these different immigrant homes, and what factors lead to the choice of the languages. It investigates what literacy practices these families are engaged in. The study further examines the effects that the choice of languages used in these homes and the literacy practices engaged in have on the education of both the parents and their children. The literature reviewed for this study focused on six major themes on literacy, namely; (i) literacy as social practice, (ii) literacy networks, (iii) literacy domains, (iv) literacy events, (v) language, literacy acquisition and social identity and (vi) second language socialization. To collect the data necessary to for the study, three methods were used: group interviews, home observation and participant observation. Data was examined using Street’s ideological model of new literacy studies as theoretical framework. The findings for this study show that there are different languages used in each home but that the use of English is common in all the homes. The findings show that the literacy practices that these families are engaged in are similar despite coming from different countries. The study found that texts using cell phones play a major role during communication. This shows that electronic technology plays a vital role in both the children’s and adults’ language and literacy development. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2014.

There are many family literacy programmes in countries such as England, United States of America and Australia. The programmes usually include both parents and children and are presented in different forms. In South Africa there are very few family literacy programmes of any sort. This is a case study of a family literacy programme in a deeply rural area of KwaZulu-Natal. The study presents information gathered from interviews with parents and teachers on their perception of early childhood literacy and their role in its development in their children. The study contains information on the interventions of the Family Literacy Project in an attempt to assess the impact these have had on the behaviour and attitudes of the parents and teachers. Tentative conclusions are drawn and suggestions offered for future research and action. The study includes a review of related literature. This, together with the findings of the study should contribute to the discussion of how relevant family literacy programmes could be in South Africa. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of Natal, Durban, 2001.

This study assessed the information literacy (IL) skills of first-year students at Mangosuthu Technikon (MANTEC) at a pre-library orientation and instruction phase. What is evident is that students do, to a greater or lesser degree, display inadequate levels of IL skills. What is not so evident is the extent and nature of these inadequacies. The purpose of the study was to establish the level of these inadequacies. Background information concerning the MANTEC library orientation and instruction programme and the Eastern Seaboard Association of Libraries (esAL) User Education Pilot Project study was provided and an overview of MANTEC and its library was given. The assessment of IL skills in higher education libraries, with reference to the MANTEC library was discussed. The MANTEC students' IL skills were assessed using Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, which are evident throughout the objectives of the study. The research method used for this study was the descriptive survey method. The sample consisted of 170 first-year students. A purposive sampling procedure was used. The questionnaire consisted of two main sections, one which elicited demographic data of students and the other extracted data that addressed the objectives of the study. Results were coded and analyzed using the SPSS program. The findings of the survey indicated that there is a dearth of IL skills among the majority of MANTEC first-year students. Like many other studies it revealed that many first-year students, especially from the historically disadvantaged institutions (HDI) are under-prepared for tertiary education generally and for IL demands made on them at the tertiary level. Even those who have had previous library exposure appear to bring with them little or no IL competencies to tertiary institutions. Based on the findings for this study, recommendations were made with the aim of improving MANTEC students' IL skills. / Thesis (M.I.S.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2005.

The study is based on the assumption that there is an underutilisation of ICT resources in the university libraries of KwaZulu-Natal amongst subject librarians due to a lack of appropriate ICT knowledge and skills. The subject librarian's role has changed rapidly in recent years, in response to new forms of information and new methods of teaching and learning. Therefore, for subject librarians to perform their roles effectively and efficiently in such a demanding electronic environment they will need the necessary ICT knowledge and skills, that is, they will have to be computer literate. Also, the explosion of electronic information requires subject librarians to continuously update their knowledge and skills. A study population consisting of 43 subject librarians, in the university libraries of the Universities of Durban-Westville, Natal (Durban and Pietermaritzburg), and Zululand were surveyed by means of a mailed questionnaire to establish in what ways the subject librarians were using ICT, what the level of lCT knowledge and skill was amongst the subject librarians, what the ICT education and staff training and development needs were amongst the subject librarians and what problems the subject librarians faced in the use of ICT. A total of 3l subject librarians (representing 72.1 %) responded. Results were analysed in terms of frequency of responses. Results are graphically displayed in the form of pie charts and tables. Interpretation of the results reveals a low level of lCT knowledge and skill amongst subject librarians and a general lack of formal training for ICT amongst the subject librarians. Problems experienced by subject librarians were the result of a lack of ICT knowledge and skills and training. Recommendations for lCT education and staff training and development are made in light of the results of the survey and the literature review. / Thesis (M.I.S)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2002.

Sugar production in Natal agricultural estates and industrial mills began in the 1800's. The Canestone Sugar Mill and Estates (now 145 years old) which is the focus of this study, is still in operation although renovations and improvements have been done over the years. Initially the owners of these sugar farms in the Natal area employed Black labourers but soon realized that this method of cheap and available labour was not entirely suitable for their needs. In the late 1850's they initiated a process of change which saw the first group of Indian nationals arrive in South Africa in 1860. This group of people came specifically to work on these sugar farms; and their descendants, some now in their 5th generation, are still employed by the Canestone Sugar Company. With time, the standards of living have altered and the conditions of work have transformed. Thus, the level of communication has been modified and possibly improved. So the assumption can be made that there has been an element of change in existence. The following is an account of how the lives of the Canestone Sugar workers have been modified over the years with specific changes that took place from the 1960s to 1998. This thesis considers the world of Canestone from the 1960's to 1998, an area where sugar manufacturing in the North coast of Natal was extremely successful. The main intention of the work is to explain how a majority workforce of illiterate people was monopolised by a handful of literate people who used literacy and the art of writing to subjugate thousands of people into accepting, non-questioning beings. Account is taken of orality and general primary oral practices that were entertained by management whenever necessary. This thesis breaks new ground as the first detailed account of the challenges of change in a new-found democracy, described in an agrarian and industrial context. It also attempts to identify the way in which managerial changes in corporate environments can take place. In this dissertation I have compiled the many stories of the workers of the Canestone Sugar Company into one story. Against a backdrop of South African history of colonialism, apartheid and its new-found democracy, the Canestone Sugar Company reflects vestiges of the old era. In attitude, perception, and behaviour there are indications of this in the company; interviewees stated that "this is a white man's paradise "where "the black man had to pay for his head" and where many felt that the company "drank their blood, left them with their bones" and where they worked "worse than animals" until "their sweat turned into blood". I shall investigate the present status of the individuals of this multicultural working community. The individuals that I interviewed share a common work culture and they experience a subservient position as a result of the power dynamics that are in place. Van den Berghe looked at Canestone with an unbiased opinion and results of his work are the starting point of my discussion. His proposals, made in the early sixties, have not reached fruition as a great sense of dissonance still exists between the workforce and the management. This dissertation looks at how the Company has changed, and what role communication has played in the process. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, Durban,2002.

The purpose of this enquiry was to explore reading development experiences of adult learners learning English Level 4. The research focused on their early reading experiences and the development of their reading experiences over the years and particularly in the present classes. The research site was an Adult Literacy Centre at a school in Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal. The study was conducted within a qualitative interpretive paradigm, using a case study approach. Data collection techniques employed included personal interviews, observations and a focus group interview. The data collection instruments used was: interview schedules, observation checklists and audio visual aids. Data was analysed thematically. In exploring the participants’ lived experiences in the development of reading; this study drew on the Landscape Model of reading by David Rapp and Paul van den Broek, as well as Vygotsky’s social constructivism. The themes that emerged from the study were: reading development in Adult Basic Education (ABE) level 4 classes in relation to achieving the learners’ goals, reading development in ABE level 4 classes in relation to achieving the goals of the curriculum, motivation to read, reading and family life, reading and life in general, learners’ difficulties in expressing themselves, language gaps as a barrier to learning in the second language and finally, the functioning of and challenges faced at adult literacy centres. The main reasons for adult literacy centres not being fully functional were: a lack of learning, teaching and support material due to insufficient funds, some educators are not qualified or lacked the skills to teach reading and writing, goals of the curriculum are too academic, the distances that learners have to travel to the centres are too long and the times of the classes are not always suitable to the learners, especially if they are employed. Finally, the study presented recommendations to improve the functionality at adult literacy centres, to enable learners to gain maximum benefit. Recommendations were made for further research. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermartizburg, 2013.