M.Ed. (Educational Psychology) / The pressure exerted on schools in South Africa to provide student support is ever increasing. This is directly attributable to the lack of support in the child’s home, often with both parents being absent due to work obligations. As a result, the growing need for classroom support rests solely upon the teacher. Teachers are finding themselves in a very difficult position, firstly to find the time with already full schedules looking after the curriculum and extramural activities, and secondly feeling incompetent to adequately provide the learner with the required support. The need for inter-professional collaboration between the teacher and the educational psychologist is clear. The educational psychologist is adequately trained to provide the necessary learner support, albeit facing a logistical problem of reaching all the learners in the school. To overcome this problem, the help of the teacher is vitally important. The question that arises and which is investigated further in this study, is: What is the nature of this inter-professional collaboration between the teacher and educational psychologist that is required to address the learner’s need for classroom support? To fully grasp and understand this concept of collaboration, the analysis has been applied within the framework of the existing interaction model which classifies it into two dimensions, one being relationship interaction and the other the interaction with the organisational milieu. The research methodology used in this study can be described as a qualitative study. The study took place within an interpretative paradigm with participants being chosen using a goal-orientated sample. The participants were selected from a single school within the Gauteng educational system, to ensure the study remains focused. The data were collected from research journals, semi-structured individual interviews and uncompleted questionnaires. Finally, the data was analysed by making use of a qualitative content analysis method.

M.Ed. (Educational Psychology) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

M. Ed. (Inclusive Education) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

Thesis (Ed. D.)--UCLA, 2009. / Vita. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 125-131).

M.Ed. (Educational Psychology) / The inclusive education shift, in South Africa, has caused classroom teachers to take on many more responsibilities than was expected from them in previous years. These increased expectations, stress and anxiety becomes heavy burdens and has a negative influence on teacher well-being. Factors such as the emotionally intense working environment, lack of time, space and resources, as well as student misbehaviour has a great negative impact on the classroom environment and the teacher‘s inner self. As this study is focused on the grade 9 classroom teacher, adolescence and misbehaviour within this developmental stage was investigated. From this investigation, passive aggression was identified as one of the main culprits of student misbehaviour when considering grade 9 learners. As this type of behaviour affects the teaching environment and is problematic for classroom management, it was found that this has a negative influence on teacher well-being. This study, therefore, aimed investigating the role of the educational psychologist, as a member of the School Based Support Team in supporting teacher well-being in classrooms where teachers are exposed to passive aggressive behaviour shown by grade 9 learners. The theoretical framework on which this research study was based, was Bronfenbrenner‘s bio-ecological systems theory. This theory emphasizes the influence that different systems have on each other, which is very important when working within the school community. An interpertive research paradigm was selected. The research approach employed within this study is qualitative. Participants were purposefully selected, from one school in the Gauteng education system. The methods used for data collection were written reflective notes, semi-structured individual interviews and qualitative content analysis was used in order to analyse the data collected. The research findings indicated that grade 9 classroom teachers have difficulty in effectively managing passive aggressive behaviour displayed by learners in their classrooms. Furthermore, it was also found that teachers perceive support, within the school, to be more focused on learners and that the support rendered is not always applicable for these teachers. This suggests that the educational psychologist, together with school management and classroom teachers should work together to emphasize support to be rendered to classroom teachers. Therefore, teacher well-being, which is a very important aspect of the teaching environment, could be supported and catered for.

M.Ed. / With the changes in the „new South Africa‟ came a change of approach in the curriculum from content-based to outcome-based, with the movement to develop inclusive education. This was necessary to accommodate a diverse range of learning needs. This required teachers to adopt a new form of teaching and a new way of thinking for which many teachers were not prepared or trained for. With this movement came the need for school-based support teams (SBST) to assist teachers to cope with the new paradigm. The focus of this paper was to study a best practice case of a school-based support team in an inclusive LSEN (Learners with Special Educational Needs) secondary school. According to White Paper 6 the key function for any SBST is to support all the learners, educators within the school environment to ensure that the full range of learning needs is met. The aim of this study was to improve the understanding of the functioning of a SBST in an LSEN environment. A case study design was chosen as it allowed for an in depth investigation into the functioning of a „supposedly best practice‟ school-based support team within an inclusive LSEN Secondary school context. One LSEN school was used in the research as it was seen by surrounding schools as a „supposedly best practice‟ SBST. Focus group interviews were conducted with school-based support team members, SBST documentation collected, SBST meetings were observed (field notes made) and document analysis was undertaken.

Thesis (M.Ed.(Curriculum studies)) -- University of Limpopo, 2016 / The purpose of this study was to explore how district office Curriculum Advisors (CAs) support teachers to implement curriculum policies requirements in the Capricorn District of the Limpopo Province. This exploratory case study addressed this knowledge gap by exploring the lived experiences of ten CAs in one district. Data was constructed through semi-structured interviews, observations and document analysis. This study revealed various forms of support that CAs offer to teachers, challenges they face and suggestions/strategies they use to deal with them. The kind of support CAs offer to teachers can be categorized into five themes: training, monitoring, moderation, setting tasks and enrichment programmes. Generally, the study also revealed that there are significant challenges to CAs‟ ability to effectively practise curriculum support. These include: overload due to shortage of CAs, lack of resources, political interference and challenges from teachers. Furthermore, CAs used teamwork and sacrifice as their way of dealing with these challenges. They also provided suggestions which the government may employ to eradicate these challenges. In conclusion, the study provides six recommendations related to policy-makers and government, and implications for future research. KEY CONCEPTS Curriculum Advisors, curriculum support, teachers.

Thesis (M.S.A.)--University of North Carolina at Wilmington, 2004. / Includes appendixes. Includes bibliographical references (leaves : 53-55).

Policy documents derived from the South African Constitution and the South African Schools Act clearly state that all learners are entitled to support, thus enabling them to reach their full potential. Support should be rendered effectively at school level within a well-established and functioning Institutional Level Support Teams (ILST). Institutional Level Support Teams (ILSTs) at primary schools within the Uitenhage District seem to be problematic, since parents, the school and the community do not realise that they should work interrelated with each other to enhance the effective establishment and functioning of the ILST. The main aim of this study is, therefore, to formulate guiding principles for the effective establishment and functioning of Institutional Level Support Teams. A qualitative research design using a phenomenological strategy was deemed appropriate for this study, as the researcher wants to gain a deeper understanding of the phenomenon under study. The researcher used a combination of convenience sampling, as well as purposive and judgement sampling. The sample group included educators, members of the Institutional Level Support Teams, Institutional Level Support Team co-ordinators, School Principals, community members and members of the District Based Support Team (DBST). Data were collected by means of semi-structured interviews, participant observations and questionnaires. Tesch’s eight step data analysis process was employed to identify possible common themes. The findings indicated that the stakeholder component of the social system representing learners, parents, schools and the community, do not provide sufficient support to learners experiencing learning challenges and therefore ILSTs are not functioning optimally presently.. Therefore the researcher provided supportive guiding principles to parents, the school and the community, for the effective establishment and functioning of the ILST, based on Bronfenbrenner’s eco-systemic theory, which is the theoretical framework of this study.

MEd (Educational Management) / Department of Educational Management / Subject heads of departments (SHDs) play pivotal role in the leadership and curriculum delivery in secondary schools; yet they are still expected to lead departmental teams and to promote quality of teaching and learning. They find themselves in complex situations of leading departmental teams and of leading instructions in secondary schools. The purpose of this study is to investigate the challenges facing SHDs in promoting quality teaching and learning of dysfunctional Secondary schools. Qualitative research methodology was employed using case study research design to collect data through interviews and on-site observation checklists. Purposive sampling procedure was used to select four (4) out of seven (7) dysfunctional secondary schools. Sixteen (16) SHDs from the seven secondary schools were the population of this study. A total of ten (10) SHDs were sampled to be the participants in this study. Semi-structured individual interview schedules and on-site observation check list were used to collect data from participants. A voice recorder was used to record interviews and data collected was interpreted verbatim. The purpose of using on-site observation was to serve check the practicability and verification of data collected during interviews. Data from the two instruments was triangulated, analysed and interpreted verbatim. Common themes were drawn followed by interpretations and conclusions. The researcher presented general views of participants and linked them with relevant literature. The researcher hoped that this study will benefit teachers, school management teams (SMT) and researchers in understanding the challenges facing SHDs in promoting quality teaching and learning in dysfunctional Secondary schools (DSS). Empirical findings revealed that SHDs are facing complex challenges of promoting quality teaching and learning in dysfunctional Secondary Schools. Furthermore, it is recommended that SHDs should be supported internally by Principals and deputy principals. Equally importance is that external support by curriculum advisors should be ongoing. / NRF