Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree DOCTOR OF EDUCATION in the Faculty of Education and Social Sciences at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology 2014 / Educational inequality still exists in South Africa and permeates lower socio-economic communities. Improving the situation in schools serving poorer communities is essential. Intense interest in school effectiveness through research and policy could provide impetus for school improvement. The study aims to understand what makes a school effective within a disadvantaged community. To address school ineffectiveness, the study proposes a substantive theory developed from within a disadvantaged community. The study further focused on determining the effect of the social conditions on the effectiveness of the school. Disadvantaged communities are characterised in the study by aspects such as weak socio-economic conditions, poverty and high unemployment rates. The theoretical underpinnings of general systems theory (von Bertalanffy, 1950) and the theory of practice (Bourdieu, 1977) were used to conceptualise the study. The conceptual constructs of these theories were used as analytical tools in the study. The research study was based within an interpretive paradigm. The study made use of qualitative approaches as part of a case study research methodology. The case study is a high school in a poor community with black learners on the periphery of Cape Town. The sample used in the study included the school management team, school governing body, teachers, alumni and current Grade 12 learners. The data collection process involved interviews, both semi-structured and focus group interviews with the principal, the SMT, teachers and parents. Data was collected from learners by means of closed and open-ended questionnaires. The results of the research study have identified five critical factors that contribute to the effectiveness of the school in a disadvantaged community: effective leadership, cross-collaboration and communication, high expectations, effective teaching and development, and supportive learning field. The study further found that cross-field factors have a major influence on learners and schools in becoming effective. The cross-field factors refer to the influence of leadership and teachers on the learners. The study contributes to existing knowledge of school effectiveness, but particularly in the context of disadvantaged communities in the Western Cape. The substantive theory on school effectiveness was developed within a relevant context to address ineffectiveness. The study concludes with recommendations pertaining to leadership, collaboration, expectations, teaching, the learning environment and motivation of teachers. Recommendations were made to improve the practice of making schools effective in disadvantaged communities.

Thesis (MTech (Marketing))--Cape Technikon, 2002. / Brand image has long been recognised by marketers and brand researchers alike as an important concept in marketing. Brand image as defined by Keller (1993), is complex and consists of perceptions about a brand as reflected in memory by the brand associations held in consumer memory. These brand associations are the other informational nodes linked to the brand in memory and contain the meaning of the brand for consumers. Brand image in turn will impact on customer-based brand equity which Keller (1993) defmes as the differential effect that overall brand knowledge has on consumer response to the marketing effort of a brand. This study investigates the importance and relevance of brand image and its impact on customer-based brand equity in a high-involvement purchase, using the MBA market as the field of study. Based on the findings of the research conducted by Markinor (2001) regarding the perceptions of business schools by MBA graduates in South Africa, the writer developed an Integrated Brand Management Model which will serve as a conceptual framework for managing the "brand gap", defined as the gap that exists between brand identity (as proposed by the organisation), and brand image (as perceived by the consumer). Furthermore, the model illustrates the dimensions of brand identity that need to be managed on an ongoing basis by brand managers to ensure the success of a brand, and the resultant impact that this management process will have on the various dimensions of brand equity.

M.Ed. / Please refer to full text to view abstract

M.Ed. (Educational Management) / Any organisation, be it political, religious, commercial or educational has to strive towards the accomplishment of certain aims and objectives. Certain organisations realise their aims and objectives while others tend to be unsuccessful. In response to the fact that some schools are not able to achieve goals, Lane & Walberg (J 987:37) completed a research study comparing more effective schools to less effective ones. The community expects the school to achieve the aims it has been established for. Schools often fail to achieve their primary goals. Successful goal achievement depends to a large extent on the strategies and leadership styles of the managers in schools. This managerial position belongs to the headmaster. The interpersonal relationships between the headmaster and his staff is largely dependent on the management style used. This in tum influences the effective management which could in tum have a negative impact on the quality of teaching in a school. It would appear that the educational system of the Republic of South Africa is about to undergo drastic changes. The Various components of the education system are interwoven and hence changing one aspect must necessarily have an impact on all the other components. Amidst all these changes headmasters must still attempt to manage their schools and the various educational programmes in an effective .way. These changes are also likely to add to the already complicated management and leadership role which the headmaster has (Naidoo, 1991:1).

M.Ed. / The task of this research report has been to map out the historical experience of the People's Education movement in South Africa from its inception in 1986 to its eventual national closure in March 1995. The People's Education movement under the banner of the NECC had been an endemic part of the education struggles experienced in South Africa, and had played a major role in informing the post-apartheid educational bureaucracy. Its historical role is therefore a significant and essential part of our educational experience. As Wolpe (1991: 77), has said, "the historical significance of People's Education lies in the fact that its conceptions not only challenged all previous conceptions of educational transformations in South Africa, but in so doing, placed on the agenda questions which must constitute the necessary point of departure for the formulation of new policies and strategies under new conditions". The first chapter of this dissertation has demonstrated that the concept of People's Education had been adopted by the oppressed peoples of South Africa in various forms from a very early stage and has therefore not been a new notion. The official launching of the People's Education movement encouraged extreme state repression but despite this, the movement managed to initiate the introduction up of alternative textbooks and the redirection the opposition movement towards a more reconstructive channel. The second chapter of this theses has attempted to trace the experience of the NECC between the years 1986-1990. It was found that the concept of People's Education captured the interests of academics who attempted to make sense of the movement by dissecting and analysing the various terms employed by People's Education. This theoretical analysis did not paralyse the movement in any way. Instead, it revitalised it and enhanced its value. As Carrim (1993) has stated, "Intellectual theorising has been an endemic part of the struggle nationally, as well as within the NECC, and at no time did it paralyse it, rather, it was enhanced and informed by these debates". Theory and practice always compliment each other. The intellectual scrutiny that the People's Education movement experienced was a natural stage in its growth. Without the necessary theoretical debates, many ideas in the People's Education movement would remain unworkable on a practical level. The final chapter of this paper has historisised the People's Education movement during the political transformative years of 1990-1995. It showed that during this time the official banner of People's Education, the NECC, played an instrumental role in the negotiating process and at the same time succeeded in extinguishing numerous crisis situations. Its decision to expand on a national level by incorporating affiliated educational organisations tended to complicate the smooth running of the organisation, and the eventual withdrawal of international

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

M.Ed. (Curriculum Studies) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

M.Ed.(Education Management) / The ushering in of a new education system in South Africa comes with its own challenges to educational authorities. The role that school principals should play will still be significant as they are an important link between the school and outside authorities. Despite this important part they play, principals should always involve their staff, students, and parents in educational matters. Drawing in various stakeholders in the school will ensure that there is widespread responsibility. The platform suitable for stakeholders' participation appears to be the creation of teams. Teams have been identified as a suitable forum for the application ofTotal Quality Management in schools This approach, of looking at the interests of students first, should be coupled with ensuring that societal values, norms, mores, and . ethics are takencare of in schools. The essential function of a school leader is to present to students and teachers their ownpersonal vision of where the school and society should be going. Participation in school matters by teachers, students and parents alike necessitates that mutual respect be prevalent in such an environment. Thecollaboration of teachers, students and parents will foster teams which will provide greater power, both with regard to ideas and the ability to act on them. This study hashighlighted the following: I. The team is the major, and sometimes, the only source of emotional support for colleagues in schools. 2. Effective teams co-ordinate the interaction of members of staff so that they arc able to deal with information from many different directions and sources. 3. Teams generate greater ideas and considerable benefit IS derived when all members stimulate each other's professional growth. The establishment and building of teams should also encourage professional -,development of the teachers, which is also a vital element in teaching and learning. Delegation of essential management decisions to teams should be a common practice by the principal. This will ensure that interested parties in school matters will be kept informed of new developments. It will also draw in the participation of stakeholders, which create a pooling of ideas. Changing realities in the South African education system should not catch education authorities, principals, teachers. students and parents unawares. They need to keep abreast of developments through an imperative communication network. Teachers. students and parents should be empowered so that they not only play a vital role in education but a meaningful one as well.

D.Ed. (Psychology of Education) / The problem of high dropout rate or early school leaving is causing widespread concern amongst educators. This study is undertaken as part of a group project on school dropout or premature school leaving, which is undertaken by the Rand Afrikaans University of South Africa (RAU) and the Ben Gurion University of Israel. The purpose of this project is to identify the at-risk pupil, research the causes of school dropout, and identify the consequences of early school leaving in order to determine preventative measures. The following 4 factors have been studied in the profile of the school dropoutsocio- econornic factors social support political factors; and issues relating to the school itself In South Africa the high dropout rate in Black schools especially is a cause for concern. Under the new educational system, desegregation of schools is the ideal. This will, however, probably not be achieved overnight, and the problem of school dropout in Black schools will remain a problem for some time to come. Even if desegregation has been fully achieved, it can be argued that certain causes of dropout will always remain the same because not all causes are school-related. The cultural and home situation of potential dropouts will not necessarily improve on account oftheir being in desegregated schools. The focus of this study, therefore, will remain relevant.

M.Litt. et Phil. / The purpose of this study is to determine the need for civic education and the degree to which this need is addressed in Curriculum 2005. (Curriculum 2005 is the new education curriculum, implemented in state schools since 1998.) As a young democracy, one of the challenges South Africa faces is to consolidate democracy. Part of this challenge is to establish a culture of political tolerance. Civic education, implemented in schools, is a method to achieve these goals. In the rationale of Curriculum 2005, it is stated that ". . . the child is given opportunities to grow and develop as an active citizen, contributing constructively to the building of a democratic, non-racist, non-sexist and equitable society." (Foundation Phase: Draft Policy/Phase Document, 1997) Intentionally or unintentionally, Curriculum 2005 appears to be the Department of Education's answer to the need for civic education in South Africa at this stage. The degree to which this need is fulfilled needs to be determined, as well as the shortcomings and where and how it can be improved. For civic education to be successful and effective, broad criteria were identified for the content; the method; the approach; resource materials and teacher education. This study found that there is a fair degree of elements of civic education in Curriculum 2005. There are, however, five main problems that may hinder the effectiveness of civic education. The first is the method. Civic education is not taught as a separate subject, but interwoven in mainly the social learning area. The second obstacle is the content. Thirdly, the majority of teachers who have to teach civic education lack sufficient ability and knowledge, as they did not receive training in this field. A fourth point is the budget constraints. On the one hand time and money is needed to develop a civic education programme, while on the other hand, there are some urgent needs to upgrade and expand physical infrastructure in schools. Lastly, the lack of sufficient and appropriate resource material for teachers, probably poses the single biggest obstacle for the successful implementation of civic education. The Department of Educuation did not provide official textbooks or guidelines, and the sourcing of material for discussion and examples is left to the teacher's own discression. Although there is a clear need for civic education in South Africa, and the intention to fulfil this need seems to be present in Curriculum 2005, the means to achieve this goal are absent. The combination of these five points leads to the conclusion that if the results of civic education could be measured, any form of success and effectiveness in Curriculum 2005, would be nothing more than pure coincidence.