M.Ed. / The importance of teaching guidance in the life orientation learning area, particularly in four primary schools in an informal settlement of Daveyton in the Ekurhuleni District cannot be over-emphasised. The researcher believes that learner achievements and success depend on the balance between educator’s experience, knowledge and consistent training, including the use of appropriate and relevant skills to impart knowledge to the learners. In order to achieve the intended objectives, schools require well-trained and qualified life orientation educators to execute this monumental task with great insight, skill and passion. This study focuses on the lived experiences of educators who are teaching guidance in life orientation in Grade Eight in four primary and informal settlement schools in Daveyton, in schools with predominantly black African learners. Different situations and problems are encountered by learners in Grade Eight in primary and informal settlement schools. Learners are quite often unable to manage these issues in their day-to-day living. Under such circumstances the principal, the school management team and class educators are often obliged to intervene almost on a daily basis. As a consequence the smooth delivery of the entire curriculum is often disrupted. Research has shown that the high rate of school leavers in South Africa nationally, from Grade Eight to Grade Twelve reveals that learners are not taught enough knowledge and skills in teaching guidance life orientation learning area. As a result they do not complete senior primary and secondary school, and they drop out of school with life skills which are inadequate to face the demands of life. This qualitative study was conducted in an attempt to answer the research question: What are the lived experiences of educators who teach guidance in life orientation in four primary schools in informal settlements schools in Daveyton at the Ekurhuleni District Schools? The data was collected through in-depth interviews. They were audiotaped and transcribed.

M.Ed. / The focus of this practitioner's research inquiry is primary educators’ perceptions and conceptions, and thus their self-evaluation on the impact of the introduction of computers on their educational practice. Its main aim was to explore and capture the way primary school educators in Gauteng, South Africa, who participated in the study perceived the impact of the introduction of computers on their educational practice. The case study was conducted within the parameters of the relevant literature review to determine the impact of the introduction of computers on educational practice of educators worldwide. It looked at the way in which educators utilise both current and emerging computer technologies and how they express their perceptions and conceptions of the impact of the introduction of computers on their educational practice. A further aim was to identify trends in educational technologies in developing countries; to identify the benefits and limitations of computer technology in education around the world and to position this study within the South African context. This research also looked into educators as facilitators and creators of the learner and educator support material (LESM), producing a product of high quality. Educators through their personal research into technology could express, create and discover which in turn informed and impacted on their didactics and pedagogies which indirectly has a positive effect on the learners. Based on this research, the paper concludes that computer technology enables educators to find new ways of unlocking reality for learners to attribute meaning to it in a more comprehensive manner. / Dr. G.V. Lautenbach

Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka hur lärare i F-3 kan undervisa för att stödja elever med låga prestationer i matematik. Utifrån syftet konkretiserades en frågeställning för att göra studien undersökningsbar: Hur kan lärare undervisa för att hjälpa elever i allmänna matematiksvårigheter? Metoden som valdes för att undersöka denna fråga var en systematisk litteraturstudie. Sökning av relevant litteratur har skett genom olika databaser, litteraturen har granskats och analyserats för att sedan sammanställas till ett resultat. Resultatet visar en varierande bild på hur lärare ska arbeta för att stödja elever i allmänna matematiksvårigheter. Strategiundervisning bör vara en central roll i undervisningen. Beroende på elevers individuella förutsättningar bör antingen läraren styra inlärningen av strategier eller låta elever utveckla en flexibilitet i sin egen strategiutveckling. Resultatet visar på vikten av att läraren bör ha matematiska samtal med eleverna och användning av teknologiska spel i undervisningen visades även vara positivt för elever i låga prestationer i matematik. Slutsatserna av denna studie är att lärare måste erfara elevers individuella förutsättningar för att kunna stödja dem på bästa sätt där matematiska samtal och strategiutbildning ska vara en central roll i matematikundervisningen.

Magister Artium (Sport, Recreation and Exercise Science) - MA(SRES) / Background: Hearing loss in children can contribute to a loss or delay in motor skills development and has been shown to negatively affect their participation in physical activity. Lack of physical activity may then further delay motor and balance skill development and therefore impact on their health-related quality of life. Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the effects of a 12-week exercise intervention on motor control abilities in hard of hearing children in Grade R to Grade 3 in Cape Town, and on the parent’s perceptions of their child’s health-related quality of life.

Student Number : 9603194F - MA research report - School of Human and Community Development - Faculty of Humanities / The primary objective of this study was to explore what primary school learners’ knowledge and fears of HIV/AIDS were. The researcher surveyed 633 primary school learners from four primary schools in Lenasia (Gauteng, South of Johannesburg). Learners were drawn from Grade 6 (n=292; 46%) and Grade 7 (n=341; 54%). The majority of learners ranged from 11 years to 15 years of age, with a mean age of 12.22 years (SD = 0.89). Quantitative methods were employed to analyse the data collected. Most of the assumptions for a parametric test were met, except for the sample distribution, which seemed to have been slightly skewed, i.e. the sample consisted of more Black learners (n=407) than Indian learners (n=226). Concurring with recent evidence, this study found knowledgeability about AIDS among respondents to be moderately high; however, it was evident that learners held misconceptions concerning HIV/AIDS. The answers provided by learners in this study indicated that the awareness of the severity of the disease was higher amongst Black learners than Indian learners. Those learners who were more knowledgeable about AIDS were not necessarily less fearful of contracting AIDS. The results derived from the two-way ANOVA and regression models indicate that there appears to be a significant gender difference, as more females were worried of getting AIDS than males. These were just some of the main findings of the study. The limitations of the study were also discussed.

This study aims to examine whether and to what extent Cypriot primary school teachers understand and engage in reflective practice and the implication of this for their professional development. In particular this study explores the Cypriot primary school teachers’ understanding of professional development; their engagement in and understanding of reflective practice; the changes brought about in practice through reflective practice; the factors associated with these changes; and the extent to which Cypriot primary school teachers set themselves long term goals for professional development as an outcome of reflection. The study is qualitative and uses semi-structured interviews in which 18 Cypriot primary school teachers describe and explain their experiences and illustrate these with examples from their practice. The analysis of the interviews revealed that Cypriot primary school teachers perceive professional development as the receipt of knowledge from an official authority, mainly the Ministry of Education and Culture (MOEC). Whereas the Cypriot primary school teachers use reflective practice to compare their practice with performance outcomes, comparison of their practice with espoused beliefs is either ignored or limited. Espoused beliefs are only analysed through reflective practice in relation to teaching methods. The study reveals how changes in practice, which are brought about as an outcome of reflective practice, are associated with the following factors: a) length of teaching experience; b) theories in use which can either restrict or promote the critical examination of practice and change; c) the kind of professional exchange in which the teachers engage. In addition a mismatch emerged between the Cypriot primary school teachers’ views of reflection and their long term goals for professional development. This study concludes by discussing the implications of the findings and suggests ways in which Cypriot primary school teachers can be encouraged to recognize the knowledge which they develop from their own practice and to increase their understanding and use of reflective practice. It also identifies the need for changes in the organizational environments in Cypriot primary schools in order to support the developmental needs of its teachers including the reconsideration of the dual role of inspectors who are responsible for both professional development and evaluation.

The purpose of this study was to contribute to the paucity of literature present on educational psychology involvement in supporting primary school-aged children’s sleep. The research was formed using a pragmatic, mixed-methods approach with a two-phase design. Phase one explored the views of 59 participants (teachers, n= 16; parents/carers, n= 21; children, n= 22) about children’s sleep, their academic outcomes and psychosocial functioning. There were some associations between parent, child, and teacher reports of children’s sleep-related difficulties, academic outcomes and aspects of children’s psychosocial functioning. Phase two adopted a time-series pre- and post-intervention design with the aim of evaluating a school-based, six-week Sleep Club intervention for children. Twenty-nine participants (teaching assistants, n= 2; parents/carers, n= 13; and children, n= 14) took part in phase two, with the findings drawing on evaluations, quizzes, field notes, surveys, and parent interviews. Six children were selected to provide greater insight into parent and child views through case study analysis. At the end of the intervention, there was an increase in children’s sleep-related knowledge, and there were improvements in many aspects of children’s sleep-related behaviours. Thematic analysis identified that the Sleep Club facilitated communication about sleep between children and their parents and raised children’s awareness and understanding of their sleep. Children enjoyed being part of a club with other children, from whom they felt they were able to learn. Learning about emotions, sleep and the body was noted by several children, though some children did not enjoy completing the given questionnaires. Overall, participants felt that the individual sessions and the intervention could have lasted longer than the time offered. Twenty-two participants (76%, including parents, children, and school staff) reported that they would recommend the Sleep Club intervention to others. The role of the educational psychologist in supporting children with sleep difficulties is discussed.

This dissertation explored how a professional developer, using the Center’s Professional Development Model for Innovating Instruction, supported two teachers’ acquisition of the knowledge needed for their mathematics instruction. Through analysis of detailed field notes and semi-structured interviews of two experienced elementary school teachers working in an urban, high-need school, this dissertation studied how the design and situate components of the Center’s Professional Development Model for Innovating Instruction can lead to multiple ways of supporting teachers’ instruction depending on the teachers’ needs and interests. Findings from these two case studies suggest that there is a need for teacher education mathematics programs—In-service and pre-service—to provide teachers with the knowledge for innovative mathematics instruction needed to create demanding learning experiences in their classrooms. This dissertation elaborates on these results, discusses connections with other research, and ends with implications of these results, in terms of their immediate application and the need for future research.

To deal with the challenge of deprivation and its impact on learning, there is a long history of schools attempting to respond by working beyond the school gates. Despite a wealth of how-to-do-it guides and advocacy texts for this approach, there is little detailed research into how community-oriented schools are understood and enacted by various core educational professionals, particularly those working in primary schools. Given the centrality of educational professionals' practice in this policy arena, this study aimed to respond to such a gap. This study focused on an in-depth analysis and reflection on the ways in which community-oriented schooling was understood by professionals and what has influenced their thinking, as well as their ensuing action in one particular primary school. The overarching research question was: what are professionals' perceptions and practices of a community-oriented approach in the context of a primary school located in a socio-economically disadvantaged community? This required a research design that allowed a sample of eight school staff to be analysed using a case study design. Within this, a suite of research methods was applied, including interviews, observations and analysis of key school documentation to explore multi-level factors that impact on professionals. Finally, a synthesising tool was developed to examine the interrelationships between the factors. The findings state that the way individual professionals respond to the proximal and distal factors is not linear or straightforward to understand. Instead the data suggested a dynamic complexity where a spectrum of factors intersected for individuals in distinct ways. Such findings point to the use of an ecological approach to help explain the various perceptions and practices of community-oriented schooling. This study suggests that policy development and enactment of community-oriented schooling cannot be generalised in any unilateral way but instead needs to be understood within localised settings.

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