Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education in the Faculty of Humanities at the University of the Witwatersrand, September 2016 / The research investigates the contribution of the low-fee private school sector towards access to quality education by examining two models of low-fee private schools in the Gauteng province, South Africa. The study generates insights about the contribution to quality education and implications of a growing low-fee private school sector for equity in the South African context. It looks at the factors that encourage the growth of the sector, the nature and challenges of running private schools and the quality of education offered by low-fee private schools. The study uses an exploratory qualitative research methodology and a case study design. Elite interviews with three experts; three founding directors; principals and two teachers from two low-fee private schools (one non-profit and the other one for-profit) in Bramley, Johannesburg were used as data collection instruments. The findings reveal that government support for private schools post-1994; excess demand due to middle class population growth in certain areas and differentiated demand owed to better quality and faith-based education are the key factors driving the growth of the private school sector in South Africa. The quality of education offered by low-fee private schools in South Africa is different across schools and mirrors the inequalities in the public school system. With reference to the literature, it is clear that the low-fee private school sector plays a noteworthy role, ensuring that some learners have access to schools in areas where government has not been able to keep up with the middle class population growth. Low-fee private schools give parents the opportunity to choose faith-based schools in a country where the public education system is faith-neutral. Although low-fee private schools are viewed as an alternative from public schools due to the poor quality offered by the latter, it is important to note that there are great differences with the quality offered by different schools in the private sector. / MT2017

No abstract available. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1994.

Text in Afrikaans / Ouers was aanvanklik verantwoordelik vir die onderwys van hul kinders. Namate die samelewing komplekser geword het, het die staat as instelling by die onderwys betrokke geraak met die doel om individue en gemeenskappe te ontwikkel in belang van openbare welsyn. Die onderwystaak van die staat het in so 'n mate uitgebrei dat die staat vandag die onderwys monopoliseer. Mettertyd het die staat en groepe in die samelewing probleme met staatsbeheerde onderwys ervaar. Onderwys het duur geword, en bevredig ook nie die behoeftes van almal in die gemeenskap nie. Privatisering van die onderwys word toenemend beskou as 'n moontlike oplossing vir probleme van die onderwys. Privatisering vind sy oorsprong by die vryemarkdenke van die ekonomie, en dit beklemtoon verantwoordelikheid en vryheid van keuse. Alhoewel privatisering primer 'n ekonomiese motief het, het dit ook ander motiewe, waaronder 'n politieke motief. Privatisering neem verskeie vorms aan en het spesifieke doelwitte asook bepaalde voor- en nadele. Die hantering van die verskaffing van kapitaaldienste in die openbare onderwys in Suid-Afrika bewys dat sekere funksies van die staat in samewerking met die private sektor volledig en suksesvol geprivatiseer kan word. Ander onderwystake is elders geprivatiseer en hou baie voordele in, veral vir die individu en vir groepe in die gemeenskap. Privatisering van die onderwys loop uit op private skole. Bestaande private skole maak baie aansprake, onder meer dat dit onafhanklikheid en kwaliteitonderwys in die hand werk. Dit is egter baie moeilik om klinkklare bewyse vir die aansprake van private skole te vind. Alhoewel private skole van elitisme en separatisme beskuldig word, strewe openbare skole ook na 'n eie etos. Privatisering van die onderwys bied opwindende moontlikhede vir en uitdagings aan die staat, die samelewing en die private sektor. Dit behoort die verantwoordelikheid van die onderwys terug te besorg aan die ouers en die gemeenskap, en sal die soewereiniteit van die onderwys verseker. Privatisering van die onderwys moet egter altyd die belange van die kind eerste stel. Suksesvolle privatisering van die onderwys sal dus deeglike evolusionere beplanning deur die staat en die samelewing verg. / Parents were originally responsible for the education of their children. As society became more complex, the state as an institution became involved in education with the aim to develop individuals and communities in the interest of general well-being. Education has now become the responsibility of the state to such an extent that the state presently monopolises education. The state, and groups within the community, have now come to experience problems with state-controlled education. Education has become expensive and does not make provision for distinctive education for individual groups in the community. Privatisation of education is increasingly regarded as a possible way of solving problems in education. Privatisation originates in the economic concept of the free market, and it stresses responsibility and freedom of choice. Although privatisation has an economic motive, it also has other motives, including a political one. Privatisation assumes many forms and has specific aims, as well as advantages and disadvantages. The handling of the provision of capital of the services in South Africa is proof that certain functions of the state can be very successfully privatised. Other tasks in education have also been privatised and these tasks have many advantages, especially for the individual and for groups in the community. Privatisation of education culminates in the private school. Existing private schools claim, among others, that they promote independence and quality education. It is, however, very difficult to prove, unequivocally, the claims of private schools. Although private schools are accused of elitism and divisiveness, public schools also strive for an own ethos. Privatisation of education offers the state, the community and the private sector exciting possibilities of education and challenges. It should ensure the sovereignty of education and once again place the responsibility for education on the parents and the community. Privatisation of education should, however, always put the interests of the child first. The successful privatisation of education will therefore require thorough and evolutionary planning by the state and the community. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Vergelykende Opvoedkunde)

This study explores the extent to which the ethos and the basic approach to education taken by three Eastern Cape private schools influences the practice of environmental education within these schools. Their environmental education programmes are evaluated in terms of the guiding principles adopted by the international community in the 'Tbilisi Principles of Environmental Education'. An ethnographic approach was adopted for this research and findings are essentially descriptive and qualitative, with special regard to social structures and the attitudes of individuals within these structures.

Domino Servite School (DSS) is a private school, founded in 1986, and situated on KwaSizabantu (KSB) mission station in the Natal midlands. This research into DSS is a case study which aims to present an illuminative evaluation in the Whole School genre, within that branch of educational research concerned with effective schools. The project aimed to make use of a compatibility paradigm accommodating nomothetic and anthropological data. In attempting triangulation of methodological approaches, it tried to establish the extent to which DSS may be considered an efficient and effective 'New Private' school. It also aimed to understand the school's raison d'ětre. In order to illuminate the relevance and social processes of DSS, evaluation made use of internal and external referents. The internal investigation sought to make judgements in reference to the efficiency of the school as an organisation. On the macro-level, whole school evaluation required extensive curriculum evaluation. On the micro-level, appraisal of teaching and assessment of pupil performance was undertaken. This internal investigation required a critical analysis of the school's formal, informal and hidden curriculum. The external evaluation sought to make judgement in reference to the effectiveness of DSS. On the macro-level, this required evaluation of the findings of the internal investigation in terms of a broader South African context. Implications, for example of the school's 'private' status, and its 'Christian' curriculum in respect of multi-culturalism, education for nationhood , and ethnicity were examined. The analysis of these dimensions paid attention to the school's spatial context in terms of both its 'rural' and missionary setting. Here the focus was on the school's formal curriculum. Analysis of the inter-relational context paid attention to its informal curriculum or the way in which the school deals with the commonality and diversity of its clientele and staff. The inter-relational context of the school examined the hidden curriculum, or the relationship between the school and the broader South African Community. A critical ethnographic account of this institution was therefore possible because of the dual focus on the internal and external evaluation reference points. Internal evaluation made extensive use of direct (non-participant) observation, structured and nonstructured interviews, questionnaires, and documentary analysis. Indirect (participant) observation, in particular Clinical Supervision (CS), was also used. Indirect (non-participant) observation made extensive use of Flanders' Interaction Analysis Categories (FIAC). Teacher self-evaluation was also included, while analysis of pupil performance made use of 'standardised' achievement testing and a tracer study. External evaluation required detailed study of local and international literature on issues relating to private schooling, rural and multi-cultural education, education for nationhood and ethnicity. The research found that much of the school's curriculum path is incongruous with its rural context largely because of its association with the former Department of Education and Training (DET), and because of its missionary heritage. As such the school is presently (1) located within a questionable (formal) curriculum tradition which has little relevance to, nor potential for, the transformational needs of either rural Natal or South Africa in general. However, this does not preclude the possibility of the school making a contribution to education for development in South Africa. (2) The school advocates a mono-cultural Christian value system and modified cultural pluralism which attempts to assimilate pupils from diverse socio-economic and ideologically homogeneous backgrounds. Multi-cultural education, plural values, religious and values democracy are therefore not part of the school's raison d'ětre. (3) The school, through its associated organisation Christians for Truth (CFT), represents a social view espousing either a modified cultural pluralism or multi-nationalism which allows for allegiance to a transcendent value system without compromising group. values and associations. This means that the school aims at assimilating or amalgamating diversity into a mono-cultural unity that transcends group identity. This transcendent culture is defined in Christian terms. The study recommends inter alia, further investigation into the educational implications of_values neutrality and the particularism of secular humanism; a comparative analysis of a random sample of private missionary schools and ordinary state controlled rural schools so that more generalisable results might be obtained; and a more thorough investigation into the parental and pupil contributions to the school, their attitudes and perspectives on missionary education and their feelings about the management styles evident in the organisation.

Text in Afrikaans / Ouers was aanvanklik verantwoordelik vir die onderwys van hul kinders. Namate die samelewing komplekser geword het, het die staat as instelling by die onderwys betrokke geraak met die doel om individue en gemeenskappe te ontwikkel in belang van openbare welsyn. Die onderwystaak van die staat het in so 'n mate uitgebrei dat die staat vandag die onderwys monopoliseer. Mettertyd het die staat en groepe in die samelewing probleme met staatsbeheerde onderwys ervaar. Onderwys het duur geword, en bevredig ook nie die behoeftes van almal in die gemeenskap nie. Privatisering van die onderwys word toenemend beskou as 'n moontlike oplossing vir probleme van die onderwys. Privatisering vind sy oorsprong by die vryemarkdenke van die ekonomie, en dit beklemtoon verantwoordelikheid en vryheid van keuse. Alhoewel privatisering primer 'n ekonomiese motief het, het dit ook ander motiewe, waaronder 'n politieke motief. Privatisering neem verskeie vorms aan en het spesifieke doelwitte asook bepaalde voor- en nadele. Die hantering van die verskaffing van kapitaaldienste in die openbare onderwys in Suid-Afrika bewys dat sekere funksies van die staat in samewerking met die private sektor volledig en suksesvol geprivatiseer kan word. Ander onderwystake is elders geprivatiseer en hou baie voordele in, veral vir die individu en vir groepe in die gemeenskap. Privatisering van die onderwys loop uit op private skole. Bestaande private skole maak baie aansprake, onder meer dat dit onafhanklikheid en kwaliteitonderwys in die hand werk. Dit is egter baie moeilik om klinkklare bewyse vir die aansprake van private skole te vind. Alhoewel private skole van elitisme en separatisme beskuldig word, strewe openbare skole ook na 'n eie etos. Privatisering van die onderwys bied opwindende moontlikhede vir en uitdagings aan die staat, die samelewing en die private sektor. Dit behoort die verantwoordelikheid van die onderwys terug te besorg aan die ouers en die gemeenskap, en sal die soewereiniteit van die onderwys verseker. Privatisering van die onderwys moet egter altyd die belange van die kind eerste stel. Suksesvolle privatisering van die onderwys sal dus deeglike evolusionere beplanning deur die staat en die samelewing verg. / Parents were originally responsible for the education of their children. As society became more complex, the state as an institution became involved in education with the aim to develop individuals and communities in the interest of general well-being. Education has now become the responsibility of the state to such an extent that the state presently monopolises education. The state, and groups within the community, have now come to experience problems with state-controlled education. Education has become expensive and does not make provision for distinctive education for individual groups in the community. Privatisation of education is increasingly regarded as a possible way of solving problems in education. Privatisation originates in the economic concept of the free market, and it stresses responsibility and freedom of choice. Although privatisation has an economic motive, it also has other motives, including a political one. Privatisation assumes many forms and has specific aims, as well as advantages and disadvantages. The handling of the provision of capital of the services in South Africa is proof that certain functions of the state can be very successfully privatised. Other tasks in education have also been privatised and these tasks have many advantages, especially for the individual and for groups in the community. Privatisation of education culminates in the private school. Existing private schools claim, among others, that they promote independence and quality education. It is, however, very difficult to prove, unequivocally, the claims of private schools. Although private schools are accused of elitism and divisiveness, public schools also strive for an own ethos. Privatisation of education offers the state, the community and the private sector exciting possibilities of education and challenges. It should ensure the sovereignty of education and once again place the responsibility for education on the parents and the community. Privatisation of education should, however, always put the interests of the child first. The successful privatisation of education will therefore require thorough and evolutionary planning by the state and the community. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Vergelykende Opvoedkunde)

M.Ed. (Curriculum Studies) / This research focuses on the role the curriculum plays in the existence of certain types of private schools in the RSA. Private schools in South Africa currently number in excess of 500 and the number is increasing every year. The various private schools claim that they offer curricula suited to the specific needs of certain pupils. A structured interview was compiled and used to interview three different schools namely a volkskool (a people's school), a church school and an independent school. The responses received during the interview were then analysed and interpreted to reach certain conclusions and to put forward certain recommendations. It was inter alia concluded that: The volkskool (people's school) attaches importance to religion and ethnicity. The church school stresses the religious principles of a specific church. The independent school considers the economic demands of the world we live in as of importance. For a child to cope in the adult world he must be academically prepared and qualified. It was furthermore established that the processes of curriculum design and development do take place in private schools. This is inter alia evident from the specific subjects that are offered in certain private schools. While a subject like "Volksgeskiedenis" (History of the people) is offered at volkskole, Church History is taught at church schools, and independent schools concentrate on, for instance, Life Skills to prepare their respective pupils towards eventual choices of career. It is then concluded that to effect a stable education environment private schools should be given the greatest amount of freedom to compile their own curricula.

Ph.D. (Marketing Management) / The ability of independent schools to survive and grow would be enhanced by knowledge of what motivates parents when selecting independent schools in order to assist these schools in better targeting their marketing efforts (McGovern, 2011:16). The primary objective of the study is to recommend marketing guidelines for independent schools and was achieved to identify the choice factors influencing parents’ selection of independent primary schools, identifying the most important choice factors and demographic differences regarding the importance parents attach to choice factors. The external factors influencing the selection of independent schools, the relative importance of price, school facilities and the enrolment process were determined. The usefulness of the sources of information used in the decision-making process was investigated. Both exploratory (qualitative technique) and conclusive (quantitative technique) research designs were followed. For the qualitative technique, dept interviews with ten parents from different independent schools in Gauteng were conducted. For the quantitative technique, a non-probability judgement sample of 669 grade one parents from thirty (30) independent schools in Gauteng participated in the study. The findings of the study identified 29 different choice factors with small class size ranked the highest as choice factor. Previous interactions with the school are the highest ranked external factor influencing the decision-making process of parents and they prefer discount when two or more children from the same household are enrolled. With regard to school facilities, a computer centre is the most important for parents, and a science laboratory is less important. Parents prefer an interview with the principal when enrolling their child and the school open day and school website are the most valuable sources of information for prospective parents. Social media are not considered to be particularly a valuable source of information …

The focus of this research is the New Era Schools Trust (N.E.S.T.) system of non-racial, multi-cultural schooling,with its first school Uthongathi as an exemplification of its unique approach. In the theoretical component of the research, a thorough study is made of literature relating to multi-cultural education, with the issues of culture, race and socioeconomic class explored as problematics of central concern to the South African context. Selected strategies are analysed, upon which the possible implementation of multi-cultural education in South Africa might be based. A chapter is included on the the socio-political origins of N.E.S.T. Its birth and infancy are set against background events that have impinged on education in South Africa since World War 11. The empirical section of the research is focused on Uthongathi, as it evolved and developed during the period January 1987 to July 1989. Among the most important findings emanating from the research are the following: 1. New Era Schools Trust was established primarily as a reaction to the historically evolved policy of apartheid, which the originators of the endeavour perceived to be unjust. 2. Central to the endeavour is the creation of school communities that are the antithesis of the present, largely ethnocentric, state educational structures. It is hoped to thereby create a vehicle to aid peaceful evolutionary change as an alternative to the violent and confrontational strategies widely current. 3. Uthongathi propounds (and is guided by) policies of nonracialism, multi-culturalism, and access for pupils of various socio-economic classes and both sexes. 4. Some tension is apparent between the policy of a "balance of races" and the school's egalitarian aims, although the racial balance itself appears to be remarkably effective in practice. An impressive level of social solidarity is evident amongst the pupils. 5. A broad, liberal education is offered. It is focussed on university entrance, and is enriched by a wide variety of extra-mural pursuits. Self-help and a comprehensive community service scheme operate. 6. Despite the absence at the present time of academic results gained through public examinations, upon which objective judgements can be based, it is clear that high academic standards are pursued. A comprehensive academic support programme has been mounted in the lower standards in order to assist those pupils who originate from educationally and economically deprived backgrounds. Bursary support is generous. 7. The N.E.S.T. schooling model appears to be malleable to suit regional needs. It appears to have relevance to future policy directions for state and private schooling alike. The costs and fee structures are, however, likely to limit the extent of extrapolation possible. 8. Tentative suggestions have been made for appropriate action. More accurate judgements on the adoption of N.E.S.T. schooling as a proposed model for South Africa will become possible as the system evolves further to incorporate the four schools initially planned. 9. Recommendations have also been made for further research. There is a great need for selected facets of the N.E.S.T. schools to be researched in greater depth than has been possible in this exploratory study. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, 1989.

From Chapter 1: At the 1956 Conference of Headmasters and Headmistresses of Private Schools of South Africa a motion was introduced proposing that the term 'private school' in the title of the Conference should be replaced by that of 'independent school'. The motion was defeated on the grounds that such an alteration would be 'difficult and misleading', (HMC, 1956(1)). This might well have been the case, but the proposer of this motion was no doubt aware that the term 'private school' was equally difficult and misleading.The first problem with the term 'private school' is historical. South Africa was in the British sphere of influence for more than a century and a half and consequently education in South Africa in general and 'private' education in particular has owed a great deal to that influence.