Thesis (MTech (Conservation and Marine Sciences))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2016. / Invasive alien plant species pose a major threat to global biodiversity by displacing native vegetation and transforming habitats. In South Africa, invasive alien plants have become a major component of most habitats. River systems are particularly affected owing to their dynamic nature and to anthropogenic activities. This has resulted in fynbos riparian scrub vegetation being replaced mainly by Acacia and Eucalyptus species, with serious ecological and economic impacts. The presence of alien trees along river banks leads to a reduction in native plant species richness and their high water consumption adds on to the existing water challenges in an already dry country. However, with regards to native fauna, it largely remains unknown both at small or large spatial scale, whether alien trees provide additional habitat which increases biodiversity, or if their presence leads to a reduction of native biodiversity. Impacts on water supply have led to large-scale clearing of invasive alien trees from riparian zones by the government through the Working for Water (WfW) programme. Monitoring and evaluation studies carried out after clearing are not well-rounded and mostly focus on vegetation response to clearing. Although some of these studies have reported successful restoration through passive methods, ecosystem recovery remains partial. There is evidently a lack of information regarding the response of animal communities to invasive alien plant clearing. Therefore, the main objective of this thesis was to investigate bird assemblage response to alien tree invasion and clearing. As a study system, I used the riparian area of the Berg River within the fynbos biome of the Cape Floristic Region, South Africa. The area historically consisted of renosterveld vegetation characterised by a matrix of shrubs and a high diversity of geophytes but relatively poor avifaunal diversity. This area is heavily affected by invasive alien trees and shrubs including Eucalyptus camaldulensis. I employed bird assemblages as an indicator, and used fixed-point bird counts to compare bird species richness and bird abundance between invaded and near-pristine habitats. Invasion by E. camaldulensis significantly reduced bird species richness and abundance. In particular, nectarivores and frugivores, which play important mutualistic roles in the fynbos, were reduced and unexpectedly; there were fewer raptors in invaded areas. I proceeded to carry out a space for time substitution, comparing plant and bird assemblages in invaded sites, near-pristine sites and in sites cleared in 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2014. A general increase in bird species richness and bird abundance with time since clearing exists with bird assemblages in cleared sites being similar to those in near-pristine sites. However, bird assemblages in cleared sites have not yet fully recovered a decade after clearing and four native plant species are still absent. In the third part of my thesis I assessed the impacts of invasive alien plants on bird assemblages at a larger spatial scale. The different responses shown by bird assemblages to invasive alien plant cover depended on the intensity of invasion, spatial scale and other land uses. From a bird’s eye view, this study supports the current clearing by WfW given the significant negative effects of invasive alien plants on bird diversity both at plot and large spatial scales. However, passive restoration is unsuccessful in restoring the full complement of plants and birds, therefore, active restoration should be considered. To limit the cost, I suggest a focused restoration approach of selected keystone tree species which can assist to establish a functional native ecosystem.

Thesis (MEd)--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2018. / This study investigates some of the factors affecting the adoption and use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) for curriculum delivery in selected private high schools in the Western Cape. In this 21st century, ICT has penetrated the society to the point that it is most likely to assume that the private high school in general, are effectively incorporating them (ICTs) in delivery of the curriculum. Regrettably, this assumption is not always true as revealed in most of the cases examined in this study. Instead, a lot of private high school teachers who were selected as participants or respondents in this study revealed that they are still facing critical challenges when they want to effectively adopt and use ICTs for curriculum delivery. While the previous studies have focused more on the ICT integration in pubic schools in disadvantaged communities, this study employed a mixed methods research design (that is both quantitative and qualitative research methods) to explore the factors affecting the adoption and use of ICTs in private high schools in the Western Cape Province. The two frameworks adopted in this study, the Teacher Development framework (DoE, 2007) and the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework guided the researcher in the analysis of the research findings. The study also used both deductive and inductive reasoning in the interpretation of the results. The results of the study show that despite the high level of appreciating the importance of ICT adoption and use in teaching and learning by private high school teachers in the Western Cape Province, there are still critical factors that continue to militate against the effective integration of technology in the classroom. The study revealed the following factors as critical regarding the effective adoption and use of ICTs in curriculum delivery: lack of skills, limited access to ICT resources, lack of technical support, shortage of class time, and lack of teacher motivation.

Thesis (MTech (Quality))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2019. / Customer satisfaction is a topic of global interest in higher education and it also forms the backdrop of the research presented in this thesis. This study focuses on the employees (academics and non-academics) in the Faculty of Education at a South African university of technology (UoT) who play a key role in providing the services that their customers receive. The study is underpinned by the understanding that in order for the customer’s experience of service provision to be positive, a healthy relationship between the customer and the service provider is critical. The organization, in this case a higher education institution, has to have a sense of quality culture in order for the service provider to maintain a good relationship with a customer. Quality culture assessment can help to better understand complex organizational culture and its impact on service delivery. Quality culture assessment also helps to direct the implementation of organizational changes for better service delivery structures. The type of quality culture dominant in an organization may positively or negatively affect service quality, employee performance and motivation. As a result, the service delivery experience of the customer may be influenced. Quality culture affects the way in which employees interact with each other and with their customers. This study therefore, presents an inquiry into quality culture within a higher education context with the aim to evaluate quality culture within the Faculty of Education at a UoT using quality management principles (QMPs) as a framework. This study employed QMPs because of their increased effectiveness in enhancing customer satisfaction and improving customer loyalty. The quality management principles are: customer focus, leadership, engagement of people, process approach, improvements, evidence-based decisions and relationship management (ISO 9001, 2015:Online). This study used a quantitative research approach and was designed as a survey case study. Data was collected through a structured questionnaire that was disseminated to all the academic and non-academic staff in the Faculty of Education at the UoT. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software was used as a tool for data analysis. Findings in this study reveal that a safe working environment, communication between employees, communication between management and employees, in addition to good working relationships, may affect service quality in the Faculty of Education at the UoT. This implies that having a healthy working environment in an organization is beneficial for employees in order to perform their duties better and to provide quality services to their customers. In an organization with good quality culture, there is close cooperation between employees which leads to good service quality. If the institution under study is concerned with providing value to customers, it needs to consider improving customer value by formally applying QMPs throughout the organization. QMPs are central to the practice of quality management and service delivery. The findings of this study suggest that quality culture affects service quality in the Faculty of Education at the UoT as some of the quality management principles are lacking. This study recommends that the Faculty of Education have a closer look at improving communication between employees, communication between management and employees, in addition to encouraging good working relationships as well as an enabling environment that allows employees to work efficiently. It is also recommended that quality culture be on the Faculty of Education’s agenda in order to enhance the service delivery experience of customers. The Faculty of Education should support a quality culture environment by providing appropriate structures such as service delivery structures within their organizations. These structures may be needed in order to facilitate, maintain and show commitment of staff members towards a quality culture environment and service delivery. Furthermore, these structures may contribute to quality culture by introducing new shared values and behavioural norms that might facilitate the long-term success and well-being of the organization. It is also recommended that the institution under study formally apply quality management principles throughout the organization for the purpose of improving customer value, customer experience and meeting customer needs.

Increasingly, organisations are realising that they have to establish an equitable balance between the employee&rsquo / s contribution to the organisation and the organisation&rsquo / s contribution to the employee. Establishing this balance is one of the main reasons to reward and recognise employees. Organisations that follow a strategic approach to creating this balance focus on the three main components of a reward system, which includes, compensation, benefits and recognition (Deeprose, 1994). Studies that have been conducted on the topic indicates that the most common problem in organisations today is that they miss the important component of recognition, which is the low-cost, high-return ingredient to a well-balanced reward system. A key focus of recognition is to make employees feel appreciated and valued (Sarvadi, 2005). Research has proven that employees who get recognised tend to have higher self-esteem, more confidence, more willingness to take on new challenges and more eagerness to be innovative (Mason, 2001). The aim of this study is to investigate whether rewards and recognition has an impact on employee motivation. A biographical and Work Motivation Questionnaire was administered to respondents (De Beer, 1987). The sample group (N= 184) consists of male and female employees on post-grade levels 5 to 12. The results of the research indicated that there is a positive relationship between rewards, recognition and motivation. The results also revealed that women, and employees from non-white racial backgrounds experienced lower levels of rewards, recognition and motivation. Future research on the latter issues could yield interesting insights into the different factors that motivate employees. Notwithstanding the insights derived from the current research, results need to be interpreted with caution since a convenience sample was used, thereby restricting the generalisability to the wider population.

The research explored the new health care service vehicle of South African with special reference to health service providers in Western Cape Department of health for the period 1995-2001. A study was made of the District Health System and the shift of emphasis from tertiary and secondary level of health care to the more cost effective Primary Health Care Service rendered at District level.

Motivation is considered to be the desired positive willingness that prompts a person to action. The factors that influence or lead to this positive willingness, are considered to be motivation factors, and include specific needs, wants, drives or impulses (Hersey &amp / Blanchard, 1988).<br /> <br /> People are motivated by different things, both intrinsic and extrinsic factors. For some, it is power and money that motivate them while for others, it is flexibility or a social workplace. According to Herzberg&rsquo / s theory, intrinsic factors are motivators or satisfiers and can be described as a person's relationship with what she or he does, many related to the tasks being performed (Buitendach &amp / De Witte, 2005 / Mehta, Anderson &amp / Dubinsky, 2000). Extrinsic factors, also known as hygiene factors or dissatisfiers, have to do with a person's relationship to the context or environment in which she or he performs a job (Buitendach &amp / De Witte, 2005 / Mehta et al., 2000). Some individuals are highly motivated by both intrinsic and extrinsic rewards. This is supported in a study amongst medical students (Beswick, 2002). In another study by Shim, Gehrt and Goldsberry (1999), it was found that students entering a career in retail viewed intrinsic aspects as the most important predictor of a retail career, followed by lifestyle flexibility aspects and then extrinsic aspects. Furthermore, research within a service organisation has indicated that various biographical factors have an influence on work motivation (Bezuidenhout, 2001). However, limited research has been conducted to determine whether biographical factors have an influence on work motivation within the retail industry.<br /> <br /> The aim of the study was to investigate the motivation of retail managers in a retail organisation in the Western Cape. Furthermore, it investigates whether the motivation levels of retail managers are influenced by their biographical variables. The Work Satisfaction and Motivation Questionnaire developed by De Beer (1987) and a self-developed biographical questionnaire was administered to elicit work content, promotion, supervision, reward and recognition in relation to work motivation. The questionnaires were distributed to the target population (n=236) of retail managers which were inclusive of store managers, store assistant managers and department managers. Convenience sampling was used to draw a sample (n=109) of male and female retail managers. Statistical analyses involved both descriptive and inferential statistics (ANOVA, Multiple Regression Analysis, Pearson&rsquo / s Correlation Co-efficient and Scheffe&rsquo / s test). The results revealed that there is a significant positive relationship between the investigated dimensions of work motivation and satisfaction. It was found that the investigated dimensions of motivation only account for 49.5% of the variance in total motivation experienced by retail managers. Furthermore, significant differences were found between the biographical variables and responses to the questionnaire. It is suggested, for future research that a proportionate stratified random sample be drawn which will allow the findings of the study to be reliably generalised to the population. Furthermore, it is also recommended that future research consider dimensions of motivation, such as, achievement, responsibility, security, autonomy, feedback and morale, which are not investigated in this study.

There is a growing sense of apathy and lack of focus amongst the youth, which contributes to the threat of social integration. Constructive alternatives are therefore needed to curb gangsterism, drug abuse and other criminal activities among youth at risk. It has become imperative to challenge the present situation in which crime has become one of the most attractive options facing our youth. Through a programme of contructive engagement, a substantial difference can be made in their rehabilitation and ultimately their active participation in building a safer society. A strong emphasis should be placed on the development and implementation of effective restorative justice principles, alternative sentencing and community-based rehabilitation programmes, particularly for young people in marginalised communities.

The Table Mountain group aquifer system has the potential to be an important supply of water. Although the aquifer system is used to some extent, a number of aspects relating to the aquifer system are poorly understood and unquantified. This study aimed to take into consideration the importance of differenct ecosytems, which is essential in predicting the effects of groundwater abstruction. However, the ecological requirements of systems that depend on groundwater are poorly understood. This project identified &quot / type areas&quot / for further detailed research into the impacts of large-scale groundwater abstraction from the Table Mountain group aquifer system based on the nature and functioning of ecosystems across groundwater dependent ecosystem boundaries of a regional scale.

Multilingualism has always been a feature of South African Education. It is only in recent years that a particular form of linguistic diversity has become unmanageable for schools implementing the official English/Afrikaans bilingual model associated with the previous regime. The subject of this study is a remedial language enrichment or support programme instituted as a response to multilingualism in the junior primary section in a parallel medium primary school in the Western Cape.

This thesis explored the relationship between community adult education and social action. The study investigated how LEAD (Leadership Education for Action and Development), a non-governmental organisation based in the Western Cape, has empowered women to assume leadership and take social action in their communities.