The ushering in of the new democratic order in South Africa in 1994 brought with it far-reaching changes that impacted on the lives of every citizen. South Africa was faced with the task of translating the dreams of its citizens into reality. To do so, the state, through its various departments had to revisit it approach to service delivery. this led to the extensive restructuring processes that characterised the first decade of democratic rule in this country. The changes that occurred and are still occurring in education are remarkable and commendable. Post 1994, the Ministry of Education had to dismantle the apartheid structure and create a unified education system. During apartheid there were 19 Education Departments, which had to be amalgamated into one National Department, which is further divided into nine Provincial Education Departments (Hofmeyer, 2000:2). this was to create a more equitable system of financing in a context of the huge demand on the limited financial resources and to create a policy framework, which gave concrete expression to the values, which underpinned the post apartheid state. The first five years of reconstruction were dedicated towards the dismantling of apartheid, and the creation of structures and procedures. This included transfers of staff, offices, records, assets and more than ten million learners and educators into the new system without compromising service delivery. Educators are central to educational change, the policy on norms and standard for educators were introduced in 2000 (Robinson, 2003:19). This policy created the framework and procedures for the approval of teacher education programmes and outlined the kinds of qualifications that the Department of Education would consider for funding and for employment. The policy provides an outline of the knowledge, skills and values that are seen as the hallmarks of a professional and competent educator (Robinson, 2003:21 ). / (MBA) North-West University, Mafikeng Campus, 2006

The objective of this study is to develop a general understanding of the evolution of the commercial communication satellite industry. Initial information classifies the industry as an oligopoly with the vendors as price setters. The approach to this thesis is to examine the supply and demand of satellites as a capital good. Assuming the demand curve slopes downwards, the study examines the change in the price of a standard unit satellite. The underlying motivation is the conventional identification problem. Over three generations, the technical attributes of communication satellites are advancing. Taking the hedonic regression approach, the price of satellites is shown to decrease over time. Exploring the relationship between price and complexity, it is demonstrated that in the short-run the oligopoly structure of this industry is accompanied by a simple form of cost-plus price-setting. This finding solves the identification problem, so that simultaneous equation methods are not required. Assuming a constant degree of monopoly power in the industry, changes in multi-factor productivity are estimated. Productivity growth increases until 1980, but decreases slightly afterwards. The learning coefficients estimated for this industry are smaller than those found for the airframe industry. The fall in quality-corrected prices, however, is not big enough to support the interpretation that the expansion of satellite capacity was due to supply shifts along a stationary market demand schedule. Factors driving demand lead to a faster rate of expansion outside the original western world, but in the second half of the period, the ability to use software data compression moderated the rate of growth of demand for new satellites. The study explains the adjustment of the stock of satellite capacity in response to the desired stock: the speed at which countries adjust their stock depends on their characteristics and regional profile.

There are a number of factors recognised as significant for nursing staff retention. These include, a lack of organisational care, bullying (commonly referred to as horizontal violence), and high workload acuity. However, there does not appear to be any indication that these factors influence the retention of nurses within the speciality of acute perioperative nursing. A descriptive study using postpositivist methodology and triangulation of methods was designed to answer the question: What are the critical factors that influence staff retention in an acute perioperative environment? Forty-eight (n = 48) perioperative nurses answered a questionnaire in relation to individual needs, provision of nursing care and administration and management. Four (n = 4) nurses subsequently participated in a focus group interview that explored in more depth, the survey data related to the following characteristics: Educational opportunities; Level of workload acuity; Rostering flexibility; Management; Established policies/Quality assurance; Graduate orientation programs and Professional relationships in an acute perioperative setting. Data analysis revealed that > 90% of respondents agreed that these characteristics are important for job satisfaction and influence staff retention in an acute perioperative environment. A sense of belonging appears to be the most important theme that emerged from the qualitative data. Job satisfaction and staff retention are attained when nurses have a sense of belonging in the workplace. To achieve these, nurses need to identify barriers, develop their communication and leadership skills and determine the ideal professional practice model. The themes (Figure 5), "Finding time" and increased "sick leave", in relation to workload acuity are new findings that provide a platform for future research.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2007. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis PlanB (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Stout, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M. S.)--Economics, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2008. / Committee Chair: Maurizio Iacopetta; Committee Member: Olga Shemyakina; Committee Member: Tibor Besedes.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 1997. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves [115]-120).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 1996. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 130-134). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 1996. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 130-134). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Pennsylvania, 1992. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 313-326).