There is evidence that primary schools are important places where gender inequalities are prevalent. The aim of this study was to explore how gender relations amongst grade two boys and girls in an African junior primary are constructed. It investigated how gender relations amongst 7/8 year old grade two boys and girls in an African Catholic junior primary school situated in Mariannhill, Durban, are constructed. It explored the process through which young township boys and girls attach meaning to gender and forge their gender identities. In this study young boys and girls were active agents in the construction of their gender identities. This study adopted a qualitative approach. Observations and unstructured interviews were used as methods of collecting data from grade two boys and girls. Purposive sampling was used in selecting seven boys and seven girls to participate in group interviews. The study focussed on micro dynamics of boys and girls pertaining to friendships, sexualities, play, violence, religion, classroom chores and school subjects in a detailed analysis. It showed that gender equalities are pervasive in the little cultural world of grade two boys and girls. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2008.

No abstract available. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, 1999.

This research focuses on establishing the gendered nature of sport participation at J.C. Primary. In an attempt to establish the gendered nature of sport participation in a Durban Primary School, based on existing, theoretical, comparative and historical literature, the data revealed that boys generally participated more actively in sport. However, the data also revealed that girls benefited from the school's sport policy, which encouraged boys and girls to participate. In particular, Indian girls played more sport than Indian boys. My findings, based on the use of qualitative and quantitative data received from the participants in terms of their questionnaires, revealed that Indian boys/girls dominate in terms of participation while African boys and girls are very sports active and tend to make more use of the school's sport policy than the majority of Indian girls. Unsurprisingly, many more boys than girls were opposed to girls playing soccer. About 25% of boys in each race groups were opposed to girls playing soccer. Predictably the vast majority of girls across race groups favoured soccer being played by girls. My semi-structured interview with the Principal revealed that he was 'sports mad' as he enthusiastically promoted sport at the school, regardless of gender and race. My focus was on the efforts that were consciously made to create sport as an arena of gender and racial mixing, In so doing, the following key questions were focused on: What is the rate of participation at J.C. Primary in terms of race and gender? In terms of participation rates, which sport is the most popular amongst boys and girls? Are there any differences in the ways boys and girls view sport participation at J.C. Primary? What does the school currently do to promote or encourage sport participation at school, particularly insofar as gender-equal participation is concerned? I had observed that although there was a trend for boys to be given preferential treatment in sport than girls, at J.C. Primary the school's sporting policy impacted in a positive way to even out differences and inequalities in sport participation between boys and girls. Although schools and other agencies are implicated in the manner in which sport is played, whereby gender inequality is practiced, boys and girls at J.C. Primary were given equal opportunities in sport, which encouraged their participation in sport. This study has, in fact, shown that J.C. Primary promotes sport in a very active way as it provides facilities and organizational energy and it goes to great lengths to ensure widespread participation. It has also shown that the school's policy has been successful in promoting equal gender participation even though, historically, most sporting cultures have been predominantly male. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of Kwazulu-Natal, Durban, 2009.

The overall aim of this research is to probe, and attempt an understanding of, women student teachers' choice of teaching as a career. Because of various limitations, this research is no more than an exploratory study, which, hopefully may contribute to a deeper appreciation of teaching as a worthy career. This researcher's own feminist perspective has determined the questions asked in this study. Both quantitative and qualitative research was undertaken, in order to answer the central question of this research: How do some women students at Edgewood College of Education perceive the teaching profession and their role in it? It became obvious that teaching is perceived by too many as a short term job, rather than as a long-term career; but when circumstances governing teachers' employment, coupled with the influences of a patriarchal society are considered, this perception is perhaps not unexpected. Some tentative recommendations are offered to counter this negative perception of teaching as a convenient, but temporary job for women. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Durban, 1992.

Work on gender in education has only recently gained impetus in South Africa. The GETT report (1997) draws attention to the paucity of context-based and qualitative research in this area particularly with regard to the extent to "which knowledge, skills and attitudes developed by boys and girls through schooling are gendered, and the extent to which such factors as ... teaching practices and out-of-school experiences are involved" (GETT, 1997: 116). It was in specific response to the above area of concern that this project was conceived. In this light, the project provides a detailed analysis of a classroom in which the teacher taught (what she considered) a seemingly innocuous, 'gender neutral ' short-story to a grade 10 (standard eight ) class. An in-depth examination of how pupils interacted with the short-story as well as the teacher's approach to the text was undertaken to establish how a gendered discourse was generated and how that discourse fed into, or undermined, dominant hegemonic gender practices. In addition, a closer look at interactional processes (that is, learning styles and strategies; and teacher-pupil and pupil-pupil interaction) was conducted to uncover whether gender was implicated in their operation within the classroom. Hence, the project constitutes an attempt to explore the extent to which the text, pedagogical practices, and out-of-school (lived) experiences were involved in shaping the pupils' knowledge and understanding of their gender identities. The particular class of forty grade 10 pupils who formed the main focus of the study came from an ex-House of Delegates (HOD) secondary school at which I am presently a senior teacher of English. The school was established in 1961 in Asherville, a middle- to working class Indian residential area about 5 kilometres west of Durban's Central Business District. The school serves about 950 pupils from the surrounding areas of Clare Estate, Overport and Sydenham. It must be borne in mind that despite its location, there are pupils from as far as Umlazi, Chesterville and Kwa Mashu which are former apartheid townships for a largely African population. The complexity of this project required careful planning of the research design and methodology. The data drawn on here was collected using three different methods, namely, questionnaires; interviews; and classroom observation. The questionnaire was designed in a way to draw on the pupils' 'lived experiences' in order to understand how they positioned themselves with regard to the shaping of their ' masculinities ' and 'femininities'; and, to discover the kind of gender identities they were developing in response to the text. The primary aim of the interview phase was to solicit the pupils' attitudes towards their teacher's pedagogical approach to the text. It also involved participants reflecting on their own lives. The former was an attempt to understand how their sets of learned gendered experiences (which they brought with them into the classroom) interacted with the teaching-learning context. Because of my commitment to qualitative research, the data obtained was entirely the participants' personal reflections. The theoretical considerations underpinning the study are based on perspectives of gender and education with particular reference to the role that school textbooks play in the construction and articulation of gendered subjectivities and classroom interaction investigations of conversation (talk). Interwoven with the overall theoretical discussion will be post-structuralist feminist perspectives on language and gender. This contextual approach project demonstrated that the gendered meanings which were generated during the English lesson were deeply embedded in the variety of lived experiences and discourses that the pupils drew on to make sense of their lives. In other words, it showed how the text, pedagogical practices, and lived experiences interacted in shaping the pupils' gendered identities. Through the analysis of classroom interactional processes, it also became evident that although the teacher played a considerable role in influencing the pupils, they were not without agency as some of them were capable of resisting the ideologically hegemonic patterns and even influencing the teacher. Although constrained by some limitations, this research project has implications both for further research on discourse patterns in the classroom and for strategies to foster gender sensitive education. I believe that I have identified an important area in South African education which should be explored in much greater depth. Whatever the outcomes are of such comprehensive qualitative research, the urgency is still the same - to sensitise teachers to practices which subtly implicate gender differentiation in their operation within a classroom. It is hoped that teachers cognisant of the processes illuminated in the study may translate these insights into concrete action for change through collective efforts. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, 1998.

This thesis describes the casualisation of teachers' work (in Greater Durban) during the period of the democratic transition in South Africa. It provides evidence that contract teaching exists among men and women teachers employed in primary and secondary schools. These teachers are relegated to the secondary labour market with low income, poorer working conditions and lack of job security. It begins by adopting an electic theoretical approach, combining labour process and interactionist theories, to understand teachers' work. From this eclectic theoretical perspective, it is argued that contract teachers control and influence over their work is considerably eroded by the casualisation of the teaching labour process. However, unlike existing international studies, it is argued that casualisation of teaching in the Durban area serves not only as a deskilling process for most contract teachers but also as a re-skilling process for a few. Furthermore, this study shows that contract teaching has a gendered dimension. Not only because women teachers are mostly affected by casualisation of teaching but that it tends to relegate women to the primary school system where they teach young children. It is therefore argued that the casualisation of teaching extends women's mothering role into the classroom. The historical basis for casualisation of teaching, in South Africa, especially its gender dimension is a result of the 'Marriage Bar 'of 1912, the legacy of the Bantu Education system and the non-standardisation of teachers' qualifications until the 1980s, as well as the education policy flux during the period of political transition. Because contract teaching has existed over a long period, it has to be acknowledged as a sub-category of the national teaching corps. This means that the contribution of contract teachers towards the formation and transformation of the capacity to learn should not only be recognised and accordingly rewarded by education authorities but that casualisation of teaching should constitute an area for further academic research. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of Natal, 1998.

Summaries in Afrikaans and English / Die Bruinvrou in die onderwys het 'n besondere rol om te vertolk veral in die !ewe van die volwassewordende kind asook in die hele skoolopset. Die doel van hierdie ondersoek was om hierdie rol te bepaal. Tersaaklike gegewens is verkry deur middel van Iiteratuurstudie, die outobiografiese teks, onderhoude asook vraelyste. Deur die inligting bekom, is vasgestel dat die omstandighede waaronder 'n groot gedcelte van die Bruinonderwyseresse werk, nie altyd gunstig is nie. Baie Bruinlccrclcrs woon in sosio-ekonomiese agtergeblewe gebiede waar misdaad en bendebcdrywighedc aan die orde van die dag is. Waardestelsels, leefstyl van die subkultuur, onvoldoende materiele versorging en gebrekkige opvoeding veroorsaak steuringe in die leerders se ingesteldheid teenoor die skool. Haar vrouwees laat die onderwyseres baie empatie toon in haar opvoedingskommunikasie met die leerder. Sy poog om toereikend na sy behoeftes om te sicn. As medcganger help sy die leerder om elke mylpaal wat hy bereik, te beskou as die begin van 'n ander. Deur haar meelewendheid word veral die milieugestremde Bruinkind se menswaardigheid erken. Baie bruinleerders het aangedui dat onderwyseresse rolmodelle vir hulle is. Sommige onderwyseresse word verplig om jarelank dieselfde graad te onderrig. Aangesien hulle so 'n betekenisvolle rol in die volwassewording van die kind speel, is dit nodig dat hulle ervaring opdoen van die verskillende grade in die skool. Die vrou is baie veelsydig en het moontlikhede wat tocreikcnd aangewend kan word in al die fasette van die skoolopset. Sy kan '11 baie belangrike bydrae lewer in die organisasie en administrasie van die skool as sy die geleentheid gebied word. Haar ingesteldheid op die menslike en die belangrikheid van gesonde verhoudinge asook haar hoe pligsbesef dui daarop dat die onderwyseres by magte is om 'n uitstekende onderwysleier te wees. Nieteenstaande die feit dat onderwyseresse volgens statistieke oorverteenwoordig is in die onderwys, is hulle onderverteenwoordig in bestuursposte. Alhoewel die Grondwet van die Republiek van Suid Afrika 1996, gebaseer is op die beginsels van gelykheid en menswaardigheid, is seksisme en diskriminasie op grond van geslag nog steeds ernstige struikelblokke vir die onderwyseres op haar weg na beter vooruitsigte in die onderwys. Aanbevelings vir praktykverbetering asook verdere navorsing is gemaak. / The Coloured woman in education has a particular role to play, especially in the life of the child growing towards adulthood as well as in the school in general. The aim of this investigation is to determine that role. Relevant information had been obtained by means of literary sources, autobiographical texts, interviews and questionnaires. Having obtained this information, it was established that the circumstances in which a large proportion of Coloured female educators work, are not always favourable. Many coloured learners live in socio-economic disadvantaged areas where crime and gangsterism prevail. Value systems, lifestyles of the subculture, inadequate material care and a serious lack of education are causing disruptions of learners' inclination towards the school. Being a woman enables the female educator to show considerable empathy in her pedagogic communication with the learners. She endeavours to sufficiently provide in their needs. As pedagogic accompanist she assists the learner to see every milestone that he/she achieves as the basis for another. Her involvement brings about an acknowledgement of the human dignity of the milieu-deprived Coloured child. Many coloured learners have indicated that their female educators are their role models. Some female educators are compelled to teach the same grade for years. Their significant role merits experience of teaching the various grades at school. Women are very versatile and have potential which can be utilized adequately in all the facets of the school situation. They can make very important contributions towards the organisation and administration of the school as a whole, given the opportunity. Their focus on human nature and the importance of sound relationships as well as their high sense of duty are indicative of the ability female educators have to become excellent leaders in education. They are nevertheless under-represented in educational management positions. Although the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, is based on the principles of equality and human dignity, sexism is still a stumbling block in the path of female educators. Recommendations for an improvement m educational practice as well as further research were made. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Filosofie van die Opvoeding)

Summaries in Afrikaans and English / Die Bruinvrou in die onderwys het 'n besondere rol om te vertolk veral in die !ewe van die volwassewordende kind asook in die hele skoolopset. Die doel van hierdie ondersoek was om hierdie rol te bepaal. Tersaaklike gegewens is verkry deur middel van Iiteratuurstudie, die outobiografiese teks, onderhoude asook vraelyste. Deur die inligting bekom, is vasgestel dat die omstandighede waaronder 'n groot gedcelte van die Bruinonderwyseresse werk, nie altyd gunstig is nie. Baie Bruinlccrclcrs woon in sosio-ekonomiese agtergeblewe gebiede waar misdaad en bendebcdrywighedc aan die orde van die dag is. Waardestelsels, leefstyl van die subkultuur, onvoldoende materiele versorging en gebrekkige opvoeding veroorsaak steuringe in die leerders se ingesteldheid teenoor die skool. Haar vrouwees laat die onderwyseres baie empatie toon in haar opvoedingskommunikasie met die leerder. Sy poog om toereikend na sy behoeftes om te sicn. As medcganger help sy die leerder om elke mylpaal wat hy bereik, te beskou as die begin van 'n ander. Deur haar meelewendheid word veral die milieugestremde Bruinkind se menswaardigheid erken. Baie bruinleerders het aangedui dat onderwyseresse rolmodelle vir hulle is. Sommige onderwyseresse word verplig om jarelank dieselfde graad te onderrig. Aangesien hulle so 'n betekenisvolle rol in die volwassewording van die kind speel, is dit nodig dat hulle ervaring opdoen van die verskillende grade in die skool. Die vrou is baie veelsydig en het moontlikhede wat tocreikcnd aangewend kan word in al die fasette van die skoolopset. Sy kan '11 baie belangrike bydrae lewer in die organisasie en administrasie van die skool as sy die geleentheid gebied word. Haar ingesteldheid op die menslike en die belangrikheid van gesonde verhoudinge asook haar hoe pligsbesef dui daarop dat die onderwyseres by magte is om 'n uitstekende onderwysleier te wees. Nieteenstaande die feit dat onderwyseresse volgens statistieke oorverteenwoordig is in die onderwys, is hulle onderverteenwoordig in bestuursposte. Alhoewel die Grondwet van die Republiek van Suid Afrika 1996, gebaseer is op die beginsels van gelykheid en menswaardigheid, is seksisme en diskriminasie op grond van geslag nog steeds ernstige struikelblokke vir die onderwyseres op haar weg na beter vooruitsigte in die onderwys. Aanbevelings vir praktykverbetering asook verdere navorsing is gemaak. / The Coloured woman in education has a particular role to play, especially in the life of the child growing towards adulthood as well as in the school in general. The aim of this investigation is to determine that role. Relevant information had been obtained by means of literary sources, autobiographical texts, interviews and questionnaires. Having obtained this information, it was established that the circumstances in which a large proportion of Coloured female educators work, are not always favourable. Many coloured learners live in socio-economic disadvantaged areas where crime and gangsterism prevail. Value systems, lifestyles of the subculture, inadequate material care and a serious lack of education are causing disruptions of learners' inclination towards the school. Being a woman enables the female educator to show considerable empathy in her pedagogic communication with the learners. She endeavours to sufficiently provide in their needs. As pedagogic accompanist she assists the learner to see every milestone that he/she achieves as the basis for another. Her involvement brings about an acknowledgement of the human dignity of the milieu-deprived Coloured child. Many coloured learners have indicated that their female educators are their role models. Some female educators are compelled to teach the same grade for years. Their significant role merits experience of teaching the various grades at school. Women are very versatile and have potential which can be utilized adequately in all the facets of the school situation. They can make very important contributions towards the organisation and administration of the school as a whole, given the opportunity. Their focus on human nature and the importance of sound relationships as well as their high sense of duty are indicative of the ability female educators have to become excellent leaders in education. They are nevertheless under-represented in educational management positions. Although the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, is based on the principles of equality and human dignity, sexism is still a stumbling block in the path of female educators. Recommendations for an improvement m educational practice as well as further research were made. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Filosofie van die Opvoeding)

Gender stereotyping is a phenomenon found in all spheres of life. School children often have to bear the brunt of these prescribed roles and stereotypes. This study includes a literature review of the characteristics of a professional educator as well as the theoretical background on gender issues. It employed Participatory Action Research as a strategy with the aim to empower teachers to improve their classroom practice, and ultimately, to improve the teaching-learning dynamics for learners in the science and technology classrooms. The participants, who are science and technology teachers, are vastly different people whose one common goal it was to empower themselves and to change their classroom practice on a continuous basis. The study looks at some of the beliefs these teachers now hold after the intervention for promoting gender equality in the classroom. Science and technology are the domains of historically male-dominated fields, and by means of this study I aim to equalise the learning opportunities for both boys and girls. / Comparative Education / M. Ed. (Comparative Education)

Gender stereotyping is a phenomenon found in all spheres of life. School children often have to bear the brunt of these prescribed roles and stereotypes. This study includes a literature review of the characteristics of a professional educator as well as the theoretical background on gender issues. It employed Participatory Action Research as a strategy with the aim to empower teachers to improve their classroom practice, and ultimately, to improve the teaching-learning dynamics for learners in the science and technology classrooms. The participants, who are science and technology teachers, are vastly different people whose one common goal it was to empower themselves and to change their classroom practice on a continuous basis. The study looks at some of the beliefs these teachers now hold after the intervention for promoting gender equality in the classroom. Science and technology are the domains of historically male-dominated fields, and by means of this study I aim to equalise the learning opportunities for both boys and girls. / Comparative Education / M. Ed. (Comparative Education)