MPM / Oliver Tambo Institute of Governance and Policy Studies

Thesis (MTech (Public Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2006. / The right of learners to participate in decision-making as stakeholders in their own education was a significant area of controversy between learners and education authorities prior to 1994. At the end of the apartheid regime in 1994 the foundation was laid for a South Africa based on democratic values, social justice and fundamental human rights as provided for in the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 (Act 108 of 1996), hereinafter referred to as the Constitution RSA. To give effect to these constitutional rights and to entrench the democratic values in society, a new system of education and training which required the phasing-in of new education legislation had to be created. The National Education Policy Act, 1996 (Act 27 of 1996) [NEPAl was the first comprehensive new act promulgated by the government after 1994. This act mainly provides for the promulgation of education policy by the Minister of Education. The South African Schools Act, 1996 (Act 84 of 1996) [SASAj, as amended, provides a national system of school education that advances democracy, the development of all leamers and the protection of rights, as well as promoting acceptance of responsibility by learners, parents and educators for the organisation of the school, its governance and its funding. The SASA has entrenched the rights of learners to participate as stakeholders in education by affording them representation in school governing bodies which have the status of being the only legitimate bodies representing parents and learners in public schools.

Thesis (M. Tech.) - Central University of Technology, Free State, 2010 / The aim of this study was to establish factors that contribute to poor learner discipline in the primary school. Although discipline has addressed in many schools, putting it through in the classroom is always another story. To address the issue of discipline, this article examines the factors that influence poor discipline in schools, in the Free State province and sought to suggest strategies that may be implemented to improve poor discipline in schools and sustain positive nation of discipline. Questionnaires were administered to educators and information gathered from responses. Both the literature study and empirical research revealed that there were factors which negatively influenced discipline in schools. Finally, several recommendations were made to rectify the current situation.

DEd (Educational Management) / Department of Educational Management / The study investigated the effectiveness of information collected through the SASAMS form in the Department of Basic Education in John Taolo Gaetsewe District in the Northern Cape. The research adopted the two research paradigms, namely, positivism and interpretivism. The research is situated within theories of leadership and organizational effectiveness. The mixed methods research design was used in this study. The study used the survey, interviews, documentary analysis and observation as research methods. The population comprised 171 schools in John Taolo Gaetsewe District. A simple random sampling procedure was employed to get a sample of 30 schools comprised 240 teachers, 3 teacher union representatives and 5 school governing body (SGB) members. Purposive sampling technique was also employed to choose 6 school principals and two EMIS Unit personnel. Qualitative data was generated through interviews, observation and documentary analysis. A survey was administered to obtain quantitative data. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24 was used for statistical information. Grounded theory was also employed, and it further provided a descriptive framework which assists in the understanding of a phenomenon that was being investigated. It was established that there were big disparities between enrolment figures declared and the actual ones that prevailed in schools. The study recommends that Circuit District Offices should constantly check and monitor the existence and maintenance of data source documents in schools in order that correct enrolment figures are maintained in schools at all times to enable effective planning processes. The SA-SAMS form should also incorporate a mechanism for detecting ‘ghost personnel’ and ‘ghost learners.’ The study further recommends the linking of HRMS and SA-SAMS tools to play complimentary roles so as to curb malpractices bedeviling the DBE. Additionally, the DBE should consider revising the policy where schools are allowed to factor in a 10% enrolment increase as it creates a good foundation for data falsification by unscrupulous officials. / NRF