The rise in popularity of work-life balance (WLB) as an essential determinant of one’s health, wellbeing and effectiveness in modern society has included research on the WLB of those caring for children with special needs. Most previous studies have however focused on investigating the WLB of parents of children with special needs and consequently, very few studies have looked into the WLB of the professionals who work with these children. The purpose of my study was therefore to close this gap in the literature by gaining some insight into the work-life experiences of professionals who work with special children. The study sought to unearth how work-life balance plays out in these professionals’ lives and also to discover the factors that influence their work-life balance. Another objective was to ascertain the challenges that they face in integrating their work and life domains and to bring to light the strategies that they use to cope with their various work-life demands. An inductive qualitative inquiry carried out through combined phenomenological and autoethnography research design was used to investigate the work-life experiences of a sample of professionals who work with special needs children in therapy, pre-primary and primary schools, in the Gauteng Province in South Africa. Purposive and snowball sampling methods were used to select participants for inclusion in the study. Data was collected through a series of unstructured in-depth interviews, unstructured observations, personal memory and photographs. Seven themes emerged from the findings of the study. The results also indicated that the majority of the sampled professionals who work with special children were experiencing work-life conflict due to the time-based and strain-based conflict that emanated from their work domains. These professionals’ WLB was also found to be mostly influenced by work-related factors as the work domain appeared to be their major source of conflict. The study also unearthed some very interesting and unconventional micro-level WLB strategies used by these professionals in their attempt to achieve greater WLB. An example of such strategies include the use of prayer and faith in God to reduce perceptions of conflict and enhance capacity to deal with life’s adversities. The findings from this study may therefore be used to develop and focus meso and macro level interventions to assist professionals who work with special needs children to better manage the various demands from their life domains. This will in turn ensure a healthier lifestyle for these professionals, which also has positive implications for the developmental outcomes of the children under their care. Moreover, enhancing these professionals’ ability to achieve WLB is anticipated to improve their motivation, satisfaction and retention. / Dissertation (MCom)--University of Pretoria, 2019. / Human Resource Management / MCom / Unrestricted

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1 ABSTRACT The diploma thesis deals with the analysis of the educational needs of adults in professional education, specifically focuses on the analysis of the educational needs of grammar school teachers, which the student choses for the implementation of research. Today, the further education of pedagogical staff is a much-discussed topic, as one of the goals of the Strategie 2030+ document is to transform schools into learning organizations. But before a educational program can be determined, educational needs must be analyzed and identified. Therefore, the aim of the diploma thesis is primarily to analyze and identify the educational needs of grammar school teachers and then to design a program for their implementation. The work is divided into theoretical and empirical part. The theoretical part is based on the study of professional literature and other available sources. It deals with the definition of basic concepts related to the topic, competencies, self-education, further education of teachers, issues of adult education, motivations and barriers in adult education, lifelong learning, educational needs, especially their analysis and last but not least the teaching profession, the prestige of the profession, personalities of teachers and contemporary teacher education. The practical part is then...

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<p><strong>Purpose</strong></p> <p>Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the fourth most common cancer and the second leading cause of cancer death among Canadians. Little is known about the types of supportive care needs (SCNs) that patients with colon cancer experience during the diagnostic phase or whether these needs are met. To inform the development of population specific healthcare services, a needs assessment of patients with newly diagnosed advanced colon cancer was conducted to identify the types, prevalence, severity, and importance of unmet SCNs, as well as to identify any gaps between patient priority needs and their use of supportive care services.</p> <p><strong>Patients and Methods </strong></p> <p>A descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted. Over one year, all newly diagnosed patients with colon cancer at the Juravinski Cancer Centre were screened for eligibility. Sixty-two of 80 eligible patients completed a self-report written questionnaire prior to starting treatment (response rate = 77.5%). The questionnaire included the Supportive Care Needs Survey-Short Form, Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Colorectal and Health Service Utilization Questionnaire.</p> <p><strong>Results</strong></p> <p>‘Fears about the cancer spreading’ was the most prevalent unmet SCN (n = 52/62 or 84%). Unmet SCNs experienced by 65% or more of participants related to lack of control about treatment outcomes, the uncertain future, and concerns about family member well-being. Patients also rated these needs as being most severe.</p> <p>The two most severe CRC-specific concerns were related to ‘body appearance’ (Mean = 1.77, SD = 1.37) and ‘bowel control’ (Mean = 2.28, SD = 1.37). The most important or priority unmet needs were related to uncertainty about the future (43.5%), fatigue (24.2%), and information (22.6%). Less than 12% of participants had used existing supportive care services in the community.</p> <p><strong>Conclusion </strong></p> <p>Prevalent and priority unmet needs were related to psychosocial support and information. Recommendations for designing colon cancer-specific services are provided along with strategies to improve patient use of existing resources.</p> <p><strong> </strong></p> / Master of Science (MSc)

The purpose of this study was to examine special needs teachers´ knowledge about visual scaffolding and their opportunities for supporting teachers in creating an accessible learning environment. Special needs teachers were given questions formulated and connected to how they experience their own professional qualifications when they support other teachers in using visual scaffolding, in what way they think visual scaffolding can be used in order to create an accessible learning enviroment and what sort of visual scaffolding they find recommendable in different learning environments and school subjects. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten special needs teachers in Swedish compulsory school. The recorded interviews were transcribed and analysed in relation to the research questions. The results showed that special needs teachers recommend that visual scaffolding ought to be used in order to make learning environments accessible by visualizing what pupils are asked to do, how they are supposed to perfom different tasks as well as making words and expressions clear. Using pictures was pointed out as the best support, followed by using symbols, drawings and tangible concrete materials. Further education in visual scaffolding, time for collegial learning, discussions and competent guidance also emerged as critical factors for special needs teachers in their support and guidance to class tecahers.

I den svenska anpassade skolan finns det elever med intellektuell funktionsnedsättning (IF) som behöver stöd i att få sina röster hörda. Dels för att forskningsläget gällande matematikundervisning i anpassad skola är gjord i liten omfattning, dels för att den forskning som finns fokuserar på procedurförmåga och automatiseringsförmåga. Det är tydligt att det finns ett stort behov av att undersöka matematikundervisning i anpassad skola. Denna studies syfte är att få fördjupad kunskap om hur lärare/speciallärare i matematik i anpassad gymnasieskola planerar och genomför en undervisning och bedömning som främjar elevers lärande i ämnet matematik. Specifikt är syftet att få kunskap om hur elever i anpassad gymnasieskola erbjuds en undervisningsmiljö som främjar deras matematikutveckling. Urvalet består av fyra lärare och tolv elever från nationellt program. Studien genomfördes med en trianguleringsmodell bestående av lärarintervjuer, lektionsobservationer och fokusgruppssamtal med elever. Resultatet i studien analyserades med tematisk analys. Som teoretiska perspektiv användes Öhmans utökade didaktiska triangel och sociokulturellt perspektiv. Resultatet tyder på att det finns många matematikdidaktiska val som lärare kan göra för att underlätta för elever med IF i den anpassade gymnasieskolan. Resultatet visar även att det finns hinder som gör att matematikundervisningen inte blir som eleverna vill och kan genomföra. Både elevers och lärares undervisningspraktik, att planera och genomföra undervisning, påverkas av faktorer utanför klassrummet såsom skolans styrdokument och tillgång till individanpassat undervisningsmaterial. Studiens resultat visar att det finns ett fortsatt stort behov av att studera vidare interventioner i matematik som kan utformas tillsammans med lärare, speciallärare och elever med IF för att sedan kunna användas i matematikundervisningen.  Nyckelord: anpassad skola, intellektuell funktionsnedsättning, speciallärare, matematikundervisning / Students with intellectual disability (ID) in Swedish schools need to have their voices heard about their education. Since the research regarding intellectual disability linked to the design of mathematics education is made to a small extent and focusing on interventions that test students’ procedural skills and ability to automatise there is a need to research education of mathematics in special needs upper secondary schools. The aim of this study is to research how teacher and special needs teachers in special needs upper secondary schools plan, implement and assess in mathematics education for students with ID. It´s also to find out what the students’ perception of the education are. Four teachers and twelve students from special needs upper secondary schools participated in the study.  The study was conducted using a triangulation model consisting of interviews with teachers, observations in classrooms and focus groups with students. The data from the study was analysed using thematic analysis. Theories used where the extended didactic triangle by Öhman and the sociocultural perspective. The result shows that there are many mathematical didactic choices that teachers can make to facilitate learning for students with ID in special needs upper secondary schools. The study’s results also reveal obstacles that prevent mathematics education from aligning with students’ desires and capabilities. Both students and teachers teaching practise, to plan and implement teaching, is affected by external factors beyond the classroom as policy documents and individualised education material. The result shows that there is a further need to study interventions in mathematics that are developed with teachers, special needs teachers and students with ID that can be used in the mathematics education. Keywords: special needs school, intellectual disability, special needs teacher, mathematics education

No / It is imperative for strength and conditioning coaches to conduct a detailed analysis of the demands of a sport, identifying normative data where possible to permit an evidence-based evaluation of an athlete's current performance status and to inform the development of specific goals for the athletes' development. Part one of this article reviews the demands of female soccer and provides normative data from published research identifying specific areas that require development in female soccer players. Part two recommends evidence-based approaches integrated to athlete development and injury prevention strategies, as a result of the needs analysis.

In the absence of support programmes for HIV and Aids orphans in the Fezile Dabi Region this research set out to design guidelines towards an ecosystemic support programme to support HIV and Aids orphans in the Fezile Dabi Region. The literature review revealed that HIV and Aids orphans experience a wide range of support needs. Their psychosocial needs impair normal development due to unhappiness, stress, stigma, discrimination and a lack of care, love and support. In addition to this, emotional needs, which emanate from a lack of security and safety manifest in sadness, disruptive behaviour, poor relationships, poor self-image and isolation. Socio-economic needs expose them to poverty and being vulnerable to child labour with little reward, and deprive them of opportunities to obtain a proper education. All the above-mentioned problems lead to educational needs that manifest in poor school attendance, poor concentration, learning breakdown and dropping out of school. In addition to this, physical needs that stem from malnutrition caused by poverty and a low standard of living have an impact on the physical growth and health of the HIV and Aids orphans. In order to find out whether the abovementioned discussion holds true for HIV and Aids orphans in the Fezile Dabi Region, qualitative, phenomenological research by means of structured individual interviews was conducted with a convenient and purposive sample of 43 Black HIV and Aids orphans in the Fezile Dabi Region. The focus of the interviews was to gain a better understanding of the support needs that these learners experience due to HIV and Aids, and to explore how they are supported in dealing with these needs. The empirical research revealed that the HIV and Aids orphans in the Fezile Dabi Region who took part in my study experience psychosocial, emotional, socio-economic, educational and physical needs. Many of the needs, in the absence of strong community-based support in the region, are not supported adequately. Despite the identified needs, the data revealed strong tenets of resilience among the participants who took part in the study. In contrast to the literature, the findings of my study revealed that a number of the HIV and Aids orphans in the Fezile Dabi Region apparently manage to establish good social relationships that help them cope with their problems. Furthermore, they aspire to obtain a good quality education and have ambitions and goals in terms of their future careers that they would like to achieve. Based on the literature review and the interview data, guidelines towards an ecosystemic support programme for the HIV and Aids orphaned learners in the Fezile Dabi Region were designed. / PhD, Learner support, North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2012

In the absence of support programmes for HIV and Aids orphans in the Fezile Dabi Region this research set out to design guidelines towards an ecosystemic support programme to support HIV and Aids orphans in the Fezile Dabi Region. The literature review revealed that HIV and Aids orphans experience a wide range of support needs. Their psychosocial needs impair normal development due to unhappiness, stress, stigma, discrimination and a lack of care, love and support. In addition to this, emotional needs, which emanate from a lack of security and safety manifest in sadness, disruptive behaviour, poor relationships, poor self-image and isolation. Socio-economic needs expose them to poverty and being vulnerable to child labour with little reward, and deprive them of opportunities to obtain a proper education. All the above-mentioned problems lead to educational needs that manifest in poor school attendance, poor concentration, learning breakdown and dropping out of school. In addition to this, physical needs that stem from malnutrition caused by poverty and a low standard of living have an impact on the physical growth and health of the HIV and Aids orphans. In order to find out whether the abovementioned discussion holds true for HIV and Aids orphans in the Fezile Dabi Region, qualitative, phenomenological research by means of structured individual interviews was conducted with a convenient and purposive sample of 43 Black HIV and Aids orphans in the Fezile Dabi Region. The focus of the interviews was to gain a better understanding of the support needs that these learners experience due to HIV and Aids, and to explore how they are supported in dealing with these needs. The empirical research revealed that the HIV and Aids orphans in the Fezile Dabi Region who took part in my study experience psychosocial, emotional, socio-economic, educational and physical needs. Many of the needs, in the absence of strong community-based support in the region, are not supported adequately. Despite the identified needs, the data revealed strong tenets of resilience among the participants who took part in the study. In contrast to the literature, the findings of my study revealed that a number of the HIV and Aids orphans in the Fezile Dabi Region apparently manage to establish good social relationships that help them cope with their problems. Furthermore, they aspire to obtain a good quality education and have ambitions and goals in terms of their future careers that they would like to achieve. Based on the literature review and the interview data, guidelines towards an ecosystemic support programme for the HIV and Aids orphaned learners in the Fezile Dabi Region were designed. / PhD, Learner support, North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2012