In my final thesis I have dealt with the development of metacognitive strategies for primary school pupils in the Montessori environment. The aim of the first part of the thesis was to anchor the entire issue in the broader context of the current educational situation with respect to the requirements of The General educational program. In the second part of the thesis I described both - metacognitive strategies as well as key aspects of Montessori education. This characteristic I based on the analysis of the available literature. The final part of theory deals with the synthesis of both areas. This synthesis showes their harmonious connections and considerable complementarity. In this section I also revealed some problems that educators face in practice, and I tried to outline possible ways to address them - from my own experience of teaching practice. Empiric part of thesis uncovers the ways of introduction metacognitive strategies to education and presents few "examples of good practice.

When difficulties appear concerning the environment and the social relationships in teams, leading others become very interesting as well as challenging. I am sharing in this research an understanding of the concept of hardship in order to point out a main leadership issue, which is to lead others in extreme situations. It is a new and innovative approach of leadership within the business area based on the literature and completed by sailors’ experiences of hardship.Offshore sailors have the use to handle hardship situations alone as well as in crews, and they cannot avoid it when they are far away from the coasts. Thus when a problem occurs they must fix it themselves. During offshore races and expeditions, sailors have to deal with teams issues and cannot quit for going back home. Thereby, a boat, which is going to sail for few months without stop, is a real laboratory of leadership and social relationships.The starting point of this approach concerns the art of leading oneself, which represents a prerogative for a great leadership in extreme conditions. Indeed when a leader loses his or her self-control in extremes situations, he or she will probably not be able to lead others. Thus, in order to illustrate the literature approach to this concept, this thesis has been completed with an auto-ethnographical approach. I as a sailor have experimented hardship alone on my boat during some offshore sailing trips. I present an analysis of these experiences to explain the issues of leading oneself in such conditions. Thanks to the participation of some sailors experts in hardship, I illustrate the possibility to lead others in hardship context with the inspiration of their experiences. It is possible to lead others in very extremes conditions, and offshore sailors that I called hardship experts could represent a real inspiration to leaders, for a real and great leadership.

The aim of this research is to show theoretical similarities between emotional intelligence and self-actualisation. The empirical results give evidence of the relationship between these two concepts. An assessment battery consisting of the BarOn Emotional Quotient Inventory (BarOn EQ-i), an emotional intelligence instrument and the Personal Orientation Inventory (POI), a self-actualisation instrument was used to measure the concepts of emotional intelligence and self-actualisation. A sample of 71 employees was assessed using psychometric tests and a biographical questionnaire. The data was collected over a period of four months. The statistical methods used in this research focus on quantitative measurement. Calculations are mainly done with t-tests and Pearson's product moment correlation coefficient. The empirical results of this research give partial evidence of the correlation between emotional intelligence and self-actualisation. Positive relationships between various factors of emotional intelligence and self-actualisation were found. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / M.A.(Industrial Psychology)

The study focuses on the experiences of female cyclists who participate in the cycling club at a tertiary institution in South Africa. By qualitatively exploring these experiences an attempt was made to understand how female cyclists narrate themselves within a specific context. In embarking on this research I have worked from a narrative position that focuses on experiences that people live on a daily basis. The way people tell about these experiences allows them to make sense of their lives. People’s experiences are shaped by history and culture which allows them to tell their narratives differently as context and time differs. The methodology employed is that of narrative analysis which entails attending, telling, transcribing, analysing and reading the text presented by the participants. Themes introduced by the participants were analysed and commented upon by the researcher in the final chapters. / Dissertation (MA (Counselling Psychology))--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Psychology / unrestricted

There is a high demand for competent Information Systems (IS) / Information Technology (IT) graduates in a globalised knowledge-driven economy with rapidly evolving Information and Communication Technology (ICT). However, becoming a competent IS/IT graduate is not a once-off event because rapid technological changes require that IS/IT graduates continually strive to be up-to-date and relevant. Continuous updating of knowledge, keeping up-to-date, acquiring a diverse set of IS/IT/ICT competencies, and being competent is a problematic task globally, and requires building competencies comprising knowledge, skills, abilities and values. This thesis employs Classic Grounded Theory Methodology (CGTM) with a single case to identify the main concern of senior IS undergraduates during their learning process, and how they resolve the concern. Data were obtained from two diverse groups of senior IS undergraduate classes using multiple data collection methods, embedded in constant comparative analyses. Understanding what was going on in the substantive research area and explaining how the senior IS undergraduates' main concern was resolved was the focus of the data collection and conceptualisation. Through the single case exploratory CGTM study, the senior IS undergraduates' main concern emerged as a perceived lack of IS Competency, and the main concern was explored. A substantive theory of Competency Maturing conceptualises and explains how these students attempt to resolve their perceived lack of IS Competency. A substantive theory of Competency Maturing is a Basic Social Process (BSP) which involves engaging in learning by doing, and spontaneous learning within an organic learning environment. Three phases of the BSP of Competency Maturing are student engagement, self-awareness of competency, and self-development. This thesis recommends a Framework for a South African senior IS undergraduates' programme and offers a set of conceptual propositions developed from empirical data. The thesis makes theoretical and practical contributions to the IS education body of knowledge of student engagement, learning environment, senior IS undergraduates' curriculum development and competency development. A substantive theory of Competency Maturing is relevant to IS educators who wish to break away from traditional, teacher-centred approaches in higher education, and are willing to create learning environments where senior IS undergraduates are motivated to learn in rich, relevant and real-world contexts. The thesis contributes to IS educators who seek to understand how the learning environment and IS educational content influence and support student engagement and Competency Maturing. This thesis also offers IS educational practitioners an understanding of the educational content and a delivery style that can provide senior IS undergraduates with strong theoretical and practical foundations. The thesis's findings suggest that creating an organic learning environment can be a useful approach to developing more competent IS graduates.

Recruitment and retention of public child welfare workforce is in crisis due to turnover caused by 1) dissatisfaction with job; 2) excessive stress and burnout, including vicarious trauma; and 3) a lack of support from supervisors and organizations. No instrument was found to evaluate the impact of supervisory support and the use of organizational and professional strategies. The Supervisory and Organizational Support (SOS) survey instrument was created in response to the need for reliable and valid instruments to measure issues related to child welfare workforce turnover. The purpose of this study was to investigate the psychometric properties of the SOS survey instrument and was designed to address the following research questions: 1) Does the instrument have demonstrated content validity? 2) Does the instrument have demonstrated construct validity as developed through factor analysis techniques? 3) Does the instrument have demonstrated reliability? 4) To what extent do the instrument and its' subscales correlate with measures of theoretically related and unrelated variables? The results of this study with a sample of 387 employees in 18 Virginia Department of Social Services agencies provide good beginning evidence of content, construct, convergent, and discriminant validity, and reliability of the SOS survey instrument. As such, the SOS survey can be used in studies of social services workforce turnover/ retention. However, to increase confidence in this recommendation, further research should address the implications and limitations of the current study and provide replication of the results with a different sample using confirmatory factor analysis. Finally, the SOS survey instrument may serve to assist in the evaluation of practice and policy efforts aimed at increasing worker retention. / Ph. D.

Summaries in Afrikaans and English / In hierdie studie word die ontstaan en ontwikkeling van demokrasie in die opvoeding in tydperspektief, naamlik aan die hand van 'n tiental opvoedkundiges se opvoedingsidees en onderwyspraktyke vanuit 'n histories-opvoedkundige perspektief ondersoek. Die nuwe uitkomstegebaseerde onderwys- en leerbenadering in Suid-Afrika word ook ondersoek. Die opvoedkundiges is onder meer: • Plato (427-347 vC) • Marcus Fabius Quintilianus (35-100 nC) • Aurelius Augustinus (354-430 nC) • Desiderius Erasmus (1466-1536 nC) • Johan Amos Comenius (1592-1670) • John Locke (1632-1704) • Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) • Maria Montessori ( 1870-1952) • John Dewey (1859-1952) • Paulo Freire (1921-1997) Daar is bevind dat die demokrasie van die vroegste tye af (sedert die antieke Grieke) tot in ons huidige eeu in die opvoeding en onderwys aangespreek, gevestig en uitgebou is. Ten slotte word die uitsprake en praktyke van die vermelde opvoedkundiges en 'n uitkomstegebaseerde onderwys- en leerbenadering in Suid-Afrika beoordeel in terme van demokratiese wesenskenmerke en aanbevelings met betrekking tot die kontemporere en toekomstige opvoeding en onderwys in Suid-Afrika word gemaak. / In this study the origin and development of democracy in education through the ages is traced in terms of a historico-educational examination of the ideas and practices of about ten educationists. The new outcomes-based education and learning approach in South Africa is also examined. The educationists are inter alia: • Plato (427-347 BC) • Marcus Fabius Quintilian (35-100 AD) • Aurelius Augustine (354-430 AD) • Desiderius Erasmus (1466-1536 AD) • John Amos Comenius (1592-1670) • John Locke (1632-1704) • Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) • Maria Montessori (1870-1952) • John Dewey (1859-1952) • Paulo Freire (1921-1997) It was found that democracy in educational theory and practice was addressed, established and developed since ancient times (the ancient Greeks) right up to the present. Finally, the educational philosophy and practices of these educationists as well as the outcomes-based educational approach in South Africa are examined in terms of their essential democratic features and recommendations are made regarding the present education system in South Africa. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Historiese Opvoedkunde)

Text in Afrikaans / Die doel van hierdie ondersoek is om die verskil in effek tussen direktiewe en nie-direktiewe insette van die fasiliteerder, tydens sensitiwiteitopleiding, te bepaal deur sommige kliente voor te berei op die ervaring deur middel van 'n uitdeelstuk en ander kliente nie voor te berei nie. Die sensitiwiteitgroepe word deurgaans op ongestruktureerde wyse hanteer en met behulp van 'n kwantitatiewe meting en verwerking met t-toetse asook 'n kwalitatiewe meting word hipoteses getoets. Die instrumente wat gebruik word is die POI, Rotter, Firo-B en 'n oopvraag-tegniek. Die resultate dui daarop dat persone wat voorberei word op die ervaring 'n groter interne lokus van kontrole openbaar. / The aim of this study is to determine the difference in effect between directive and non-directive inputs by the facilitator during sensitivity training, by preparing some clients for the experience with the aid of a handout while other clients go through the same experience unprepared. The sensitivity groups are run on an unstructured basis and effects are measured with a quantatitive measurement and calculated with t-tests as well as qualitative. measurement, thereby testing the hypotheses. The instruments that are used are the POI, Rotter, Firo-B and an open question technique. The results seem to indicate that people who are prepared for the experience show a higher internal locus of control. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / M.A. (Bedryfsielkunde)

本研究採質性研究（qualitative research）之深度晤談法（indepth interview）進行資料收集，再以紮根理論方法進行文本分析，共訪12位中年女性，本研究結果如下： 一、照顧家中失能老人中年女性之照顧經驗與感受 個案因「角色認同、婚姻綁樁、反哺回饋及無法承受之罪」承接照顧責任，面臨「專業照護技能學習、人際關係緊張疏離、生活陷入窘迫、家人支援不足」等壓力；透過「修正照顧認知、尋找照顧意義、暫離照護情境」調適壓力；家庭照護政策未見具體效益。 二、照顧家中失能老人中年女性之生命經驗 （一）身心知覺 個案出現身心變化，關心「健康」；對身體變化未積極面對。視更年期為正常發展，對荷爾蒙等醫療處置態度保守；性生活漸入佳境，部分個案偏重心靈契合。 （二）家庭關係 夫妻角色清楚分工，情感依附互補隨時間而質變，婚姻風暴者多已迎刃而解，夫妻做到「獨留心靈空間、相近的價值觀及穩定的經濟基礎」婚姻狀態即非常滿意；先生參與家中特殊兒童的照顧，影響婚姻滿意度。個案親子關係頗佳，隨年齡增加而變化；角色功能多似朋友，成人期親子關係轉為「互惠」。 （三）自我發展 個案自我圖像偏重社會我、心理我的描述，人際互動呈現多元自我，生命經驗中的依序或脫序事件均為中年女性之人生轉捩點，但更年期或停經則非其人生重要里程碑。 三、照顧家中失能老人對中年女性生命經驗之影響 照顧工作影響身心變化；影響夫妻「親密互動」及「依附關係」；對親子關係產生「連累子女、身教典範、矛盾依附」三項結果；對自我發展的「自我實現」及「老年與死亡準備」產生影響。 關鍵字：中年女性照顧者；生命經驗；失能老人；身心知覺；家庭關係；自我發展。 / The main purpose of this study was to explore the life experiences of midlife women who caring disabled elders at home. Twelve midlife women participated in this research. In this study, the semi-structure and in-depth interviews were used to collect data. Their answers were audio-taped as data collection. Ground theory analysis was used to analyze the data. The major findings were divided into three parts according the purposes of this study as follows: （1） The experience and perception of caring disabled elders which we found in this study： The reasons of midlife women caring disabled elders were the sense of responsibility, marriage connection, repay the kindness from disabled elders and didn’t want to be a guilty person. The stressors of caring disabled elders were short of homecare skills, the strain of interpersonal relationship, distress of daily life and deficiency of family support. The coping of the stressors were modifying the cognition of caring responsibility, finding the meanings of caring, and leaving the caring setting for a while. In this study, we didn’t find the efficacy of family care polity. （2）The life experience of mid-age women were divided into three parts： The first part result is psychosomatic perception, we found that women are going through psychosomatic change and more concerned about health. Climacteric is just a nature event for them, most mid-age women never minded that and refuse treatment by medicine. They also expressed the sexual relationship with their husbands are improving in the midlife. The second part is family relationship of the midlife women, we found the marital relations and parent-child relations were dynamic and changeable. The couples had the clear division of gender role, who had the conflicts and were handled finally. Free mind, independent, similar value and stable income were important key points of marriage satisfaction. The midlife women have good parent-child relationships who treat their children as friend. The relationship between midlife women and their adult children turn into mutual benefits. The third part is self development of the midlife women, we ask midlife women to descript themselves focusing on social self and psychological self. We found multiple dimensions of self when women interact with others . All of the twelve mid-age women thought that off time events or on time events are both the turn points in their life-cycle, but climacteric or menopause is not. It is just a nature event. （3）The influence of caring disabled elder for the life experience of midlife women： Caring disabled elder induced some psychosomatic symptoms, disturbing the intimate relations and emotion bond of couples. The influence of caring disabled elder for the parent-child relationships were children of midlife women need to help the caring work, mid-age women were the role model of their children and induced the contradiction between midlife women and their children. In the aspect of self development, caring disabled elder interrupted their plans of the future, reminded mid-age women to prepare their elder life and thinking about death issue. Key words：midlife women; caregiver; life experience; disabled elders; psychosomatic perception; family relationship; self development.

Summaries in Afrikaans and English / In hierdie studie word die ontstaan en ontwikkeling van demokrasie in die opvoeding in tydperspektief, naamlik aan die hand van 'n tiental opvoedkundiges se opvoedingsidees en onderwyspraktyke vanuit 'n histories-opvoedkundige perspektief ondersoek. Die nuwe uitkomstegebaseerde onderwys- en leerbenadering in Suid-Afrika word ook ondersoek. Die opvoedkundiges is onder meer: • Plato (427-347 vC) • Marcus Fabius Quintilianus (35-100 nC) • Aurelius Augustinus (354-430 nC) • Desiderius Erasmus (1466-1536 nC) • Johan Amos Comenius (1592-1670) • John Locke (1632-1704) • Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) • Maria Montessori ( 1870-1952) • John Dewey (1859-1952) • Paulo Freire (1921-1997) Daar is bevind dat die demokrasie van die vroegste tye af (sedert die antieke Grieke) tot in ons huidige eeu in die opvoeding en onderwys aangespreek, gevestig en uitgebou is. Ten slotte word die uitsprake en praktyke van die vermelde opvoedkundiges en 'n uitkomstegebaseerde onderwys- en leerbenadering in Suid-Afrika beoordeel in terme van demokratiese wesenskenmerke en aanbevelings met betrekking tot die kontemporere en toekomstige opvoeding en onderwys in Suid-Afrika word gemaak. / In this study the origin and development of democracy in education through the ages is traced in terms of a historico-educational examination of the ideas and practices of about ten educationists. The new outcomes-based education and learning approach in South Africa is also examined. The educationists are inter alia: • Plato (427-347 BC) • Marcus Fabius Quintilian (35-100 AD) • Aurelius Augustine (354-430 AD) • Desiderius Erasmus (1466-1536 AD) • John Amos Comenius (1592-1670) • John Locke (1632-1704) • Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) • Maria Montessori (1870-1952) • John Dewey (1859-1952) • Paulo Freire (1921-1997) It was found that democracy in educational theory and practice was addressed, established and developed since ancient times (the ancient Greeks) right up to the present. Finally, the educational philosophy and practices of these educationists as well as the outcomes-based educational approach in South Africa are examined in terms of their essential democratic features and recommendations are made regarding the present education system in South Africa. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Historiese Opvoedkunde)