published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

Thesis (MCur)--Stellenbosch University, 2001. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Informal discussions and the work experience of the researcher in the field of health care raised concerns about the problems regarding the sexual health of adolescents. This demonstrated the need for an integrated health care system to promote adolescent sexual health. Against this background the study was undertaken to: • Identify the attitudes of adolescents towards sexual health. • Determine their knowledge of sexual health • Determine what the practice of sexual health by adolescents entail. • Provide recommendations where applicable. Triangulation, which is a combination of qualitative and quantitative research methods, was used. The findings reflected the following: • A positive attitude towards sexual health, but adolescents are involved in high risk sexual behaviour. • Sub-optimal knowledqë regarding sexual issues. • A need for sexual education by parents and health workers, especially nurses. The following recommendations, are proposed: • Sex education should start at an age as early as possible, at home, by parents. • Health workers should be trained to give proper information and advice to adolescents about their sexual health. • Condoms should be freely available and accessible to all the people of Namibia. • Adolescents should be actively involved in the promotion of their own sexual health. Keywords: Prevention of teenage pregnancy I Sexually transmitted diseases I HIV I AIDS and Sex education. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Informele besprekings en praktiese ervaring van die navorser in die gesondheidsorgveld het probleme rakende die seksuele gesondheid van adolessente uitgewys. Dit het gedui op die behoefte aan 'n geïntegreerde gesondheidsorgsisteem ten einde die seksuele welsyn van adolessente te bevorder. Teen dié agtergrond is die studie onderneem om: • Die houding van adolessente teenoor seksuele welsyn te bepaal. • Die kennis van adolessente omtrent seksuele welsyn te bepaal. • Te bepaal wat die praktyk van seksuele welsyn van adolessente behels. • Aanbevelings soos van toepassing te maak. Die metode van triangulasie, wat 'n kombinasie van 'n kwalitatiewe en kwantitatiewe navorsingsmedotiek is, is gebruik. Die bevindings reflekteer die volgende: • 'n Positiewe houding jeens seksuele gedrag, maar adolessente is betrokke by riskante seksuele ged rag. • Suboptimale kennis ten opsigte van seksuele kwessies. • 'n Behoefte aan seksuele onderrig deur ouers en gesondheidswerkers, veral verpleegkundiges. Die volgende aanbevelings word voorgestel: • Onderrig ten opsigte van seksuele gedrag moet op die jongste moontlike ouderdom deur die ouers tuis gedoen word. • Gesondheidswerkers moet opgelei word om die regte en relevante advies en inligting aan adolessente oor te dra rakende hul seksuele gesondheid. • Kondome moet vrylik beskikbaar en bekombaar wees vir alle inwoners van Namibië.Adolessente moet aktief betrokke wees in die bevordering van hul eie seksuele welsyn. Sleutelwoorde: Voorkoming van tienerswangerskappelseksueel oordraagbare siektes I MIV I VIGS en seksuele voorligting.

Aim. The aim of this research was to explore parent-adolescent communication about sex and sexuality among university students. Background. The rates of HIV/AIDS and pregnancy among adolescents in South Africa are very problematic issues. In the context of children and adolescents' sexual socialization, both Western studies and studies from African countries have found that families, especially parents, are crucial in influencing adolescent attitudes, decision-making and participation in sexual behaviour. Methods. A qualitative study was conducted using focus groups to examine parent-adolescent sex education among university students. Findings. Participants reported that parents generally avoided discussions about sex especially fathers, framed sex negatively and highlighted the negative effects of sex such as HIV/AIDS and pregnancy. The reasons participants believed that parents were uncomfortable in discussing sex were due to insufficient knowledge to explain certain aspects of sex, that sex was taboo, that by discussing sex it would be viewed as condoning or encouraging sexual activity. Conclusion. Parents need to be educated regarding the benefits that comprehensive sex education will have for their children, in the light of the massive problem of HIV/AIDS in South Africa. Education on these matters is vital for all young people. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2011.

HIV prevalence remains a critical health concern particularly amongst the youth of South Africa. The demographic health survey suggests that open communication about sex is essential to delaying the onset of sexual activity, reducing teenage pregnancy and the spread of HIV/AIDS. Previous research has also indicated that parent-adolescent communication has positive influences on sexual behaviours. Further to that studies show that communication is the most effective way of helping teenagers understand their surroundings and make better decisions about sexually related issues. This study investigates the level of parent-adolescent communication about sexual related issues and identifies the main sources of sexuality information for adolescents. The study adopted a qualitative research approach using in-depth interviews with ten adolescents and their parents. This study reveals that both adolescents and parents view communication as important in the era of HIV/AIDS. More mothers than fathers communicate with adolescents about sexual related topics. Mothers viewed sexual communication as one of the ways they were fulfilling parental responsibility. Adolescents viewed growing up in an era of HIV/AIDS as a challenge due to the pressures they received from their peers. As a result adolescents trusted the information obtained from parents and teachers compared to the information from peers. The conclusion drawn from this study is that communication helps to create a bond between the parent and the adolescent. Adolescents felt important and cared for when parents were taking their time to talk to them about sexual related issues. Parent-adolescent communication was important in decreasing early sexual behaviour and preventing HIV/AIDS. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2009.

HIV/AIDS reflects many of the stresses and strains in contemporary South Africa and must be considered in relation to the socio-political, economic and cultural factors that the epidemic is deeply rooted in. This study investigated how secondary schools have responded to the problems of HIV/AIDS and the challenges faced by educators in the implementation of the National HIV/AIDS School Policy and the Life skills programme. It also evaluated the Life-skills, HIV/AIDS programme implemented in three selected schools in the eThekwini region. A multiphase research design, incorporating both qualitative and quantitative methods, was utilised in this study. In Phase One, face- to face interview schedules were administered with principals from 74 secondary schools. Phase Two comprised in-depth interviews with educators as well as interactive workshops with Grade Nine learners and their parents from three selected schools. In Phase Three one focus group with district co-ordinators and an in-depth interview was held with the national co-ordinator for the Lifeskills, HIV/AIDS programme from the Department of Education. The findings illustrate that there is a lack of institutional capacity at schools to deal adequately with the problem of HIV/AIDS. With the maturation and devastating effects of the epidemic at both micro (individual and families) and mezzo (school and community) levels, there is a need to move beyond sexuality education and knowledge about HIV/AIDS to include treatment, care and support services to learners, their families and educators who are either infected and or affected by the epidemic. Five key strategies are recommended as a fram~work to create an enabling environment in which not only risk reduction among the youth can occur but the effects of the maturation of the epidemic can be dealt with at the school, household and community level. Drawing on the practice elements embedded in structural theory and its application to HIV/AIDS intervention programmes in schools, recommendations are made for the re-conceptualisation of social work practice in contemporary South Africa. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2006.

In the recent past, teachers in South African secondary schools have begun to give lessons on life skills, sexuality and HIV/AIDS. The lessons are located within the curriculum in the learning areas of Life Orientation and Life Skills. These lessons are guided by policy documents which regulate what, when and how much information the learners must have access to. Issues explicitly concerning gender are addressed in these lessons as well. Although policy documents provide clear guidelines as to how policy should be implemented, teachers are still experiencing difficulties delivering life skills, sexuality and HIV/AIDS lessons. Consequently lessons pertaining to these issues are usually minimised in favour of less sensitive topics. Many reasons have been suggested for the poor implementation of these lessons, some of which include inadequate teacher training, a lack of support structures and services, and teacher attitudes and beliefs. Although the way policy is implemented is cause for concern, this dissertation focuses on the assumptions about gender that are concealed by policy documents, which in turn, impacts on the way these documents are interpreted and implemented by teachers. The purpose of this dissertation is to analyse national and provincial South African education policy documents for the gendered assumptions they make about teachers of life skills, sexuality and HIV/AIDS education. Although policy documents are "based on principles of gender equity" (Tallis, 2000: 58), this research tries to establish whether any gender assumptions exist about teachers of life skills, sexuality and HIV/AIDS education, that limit how effectual these policy documents are at the stage of implementation. The gendered neutrality of these documents conforms to the requirements of the South African Constitution, in that they are non-discriminatory. Given the inequalities of the apartheid era, it is possible to regard the use of genderless language in policy documents as progress towards the goals of gender equity. However, not differentiating between males and females is also problematic. Unequal gender power relations that exist between males and females ensure that their experiences are not the same. There are unintended consequences that flow from the use of gender-neutral terminology in policy documents and these include that the gendered realities of teachers are not taken into account and this may well be a reason for the reluctance or inability of teachers successfully to teach lessons on sexuality and HIV/AIDS. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of Kwazulu-Natal, 2005.

Teenagers have the highest rate of sexually transmitted diseases of any age group. Factors responsible for this include sexual experimentation which often follows Initiation of intercourse and adolescents reluctance to use contraceptives. Teenagers are typically reluctant to consider the possibility that a potential sex partner may have a sexually transmitted disease and often lack the communication skills necessary to discuss this possibility, placing them at even greater risk of contracting one. A large percentage of teenagers are engaging in risky sexual practices. Teenagers cite lack of sexual education from more reliable sources like their parents and schools. They receive most of their sexual information from their peers and the massive mass media. The information received from these sources is usually sensational and misleading. Parents keep the children ignorant because they are of the opinion that less sexual knowledge will be more protecting. They fear that if they inform their children about sex they will go out and experiment. Therefore parents are not talking to their children about sex because most cultures and mostly in the Black community it is taboo to talk to children about sexual issues or matters. Therefore because of lack of sexual education teenagers are at risk of contracting sexually transmitted infections including HIV/AIDS, teenage pregnancy, abortion, prostitution and sexual abuse. Sexual education should start at an early age most preferably at nursery school level. If children are given factual information about sex they will know how to handle their sexuality. They will not be pressurised to indulge in pre-marital sex by their peers. Therefore, information should be provided by parents and schools as most teenagers prefer to receive their sex information from a more reliable source. / M.A. (SW) North-West University, Mafikeng Campus, 2004

Thesis (M.S.)--University of North Texas, Dec., 2007. / Title from title page display. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the M Tech: Nursing in the Faculty of Health and Wellness Sciences at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Bellville Campus 2014 / Recent reports suggest that there has been an alarming increase in the pregnancy rate of young adults especially in the Outjo district, the northwestern part of Namibia. No formal studies have been conducted recently to get a better understanding of this phenomenon, which is of great concern to all social and healthcare stakeholders. According to the annual report of the Outjo hospital 2009/2010, 36% of the pregnancies reported at the hospital were youth still at school (Namibian 2011). Negative health outcomes of early pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including HIV/AIDS (Human immunodeficiency virus infection / Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome), threaten the health of these young adults who will become the mature adults and parents of the future. This study aimed to assess factors that hinder young adults both male and female from utilizing contraceptives in Outjo district in the north-western part of the Republic of Namibia. Some of the objectives of this study were to explore the personal factors that influence the decision to use contraceptives among young adult of the Outjo district; examine socio-economic factors that influence young adult’ decision to use contraceptives, and determine pregnancy rate amongst female young adults in the Outjo district. In order to achieve the objectives of the study, a quantitative descriptive survey method and retrospective analysis of the records was used. The study population was young adults 18 to 24 years of age. A semi-structured validated questionnaire was utilized to collect data. Data was analyzed by using SPSS 19 software to generate frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation. The findings can contribute and play a significant role in developing new strategies by all stakeholders including the Ministry of Health and Education, to approach non adherence of contraceptive use amongst the young adult population in an innovative ways, and ultimately stem the tide against the high rate of youth pregnancies in the Outjo district. Keywords: Adherence, contraceptives, young adults, youth, teenage pregnancy Namibia, Outjo district, quantitative descriptive survey

A mini-thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education in the Faculty of Education, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2010 / Education and knowledge are regarded as imperative tools to changing human attitudes, perceptions and behaviour. The researcher embarked on the study to explore possibilities in the teaching and learning process to substantiate the importance and implications of integrating HIV/AIDS education and awareness into the Grade 8 curriculum. The ultimate purpose of this study is to see how teaching and learning can take place in a collaborative setting, with the possibilities of exploring how effectively an integrated programme can be implemented into the curriculum. The secondary purpose of this study is to use this information to make a contribution to integrate HIV/AIDS education and awareness into the Grade 8 curriculum. The pivotal question with regard to the integration of life-skills into the school curriculum is: How do educators and learners perceive a teaching-learning scenario that can efficiently promote genuine learning of HIV/AIDS within the Life-skills curriculum? In this study, semi-structured interviews and a tool for teaching styles was used to assess 16 educators’ perceptions towards integration and how it can lend itself to integrate HIV/AIDS education and awareness. Furthermore, a questionnaire and a learning styles inventory were used to assess 70 learners’ perceptions of integration. The study found that learners could be assisted with information and be guided to make their own responsible choices. The ideal could therefore be to provide learners with the skills, knowledge, attitudes and values that might enable them to make informed choices among conflicting and competing moral codes. The study found that learners should be given more ownership and responsibility in the teaching and learning process. In doing so, educators should relinquish more control. Educators should also work in collaboration with their colleagues in order for integration to be successful. It will be essential to develop curricula that prepare learners for a new reality which might threaten their future with the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Outcomes-based education allows learners to learn at their own pace and the content selected can be age appropriate that suits learners and their community best to prepare them to be responsible citizens in a democratic country.