The rationale behind Science Expos is to develop and empower learners to be able to identify problems and find solutions (Eskom Expo Project Guide Book, 2013). It is believed that involvement in Science Expos arouses learners' interest to pursue science related careers. But despite these ideals, there is still poor participation in Science Expos by educators and learners. I conducted this case study in five schools in Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, South Africa. The purpose of this study was to understand educators' and learners' perceptions and experiences of their participation in Science Expos. The case study was designed within an interpretive paradigm. The data were generated, triangulated and validated by a variety of methods, namely, document analysis, interviews (semi-structured and focus group) and observations. The main findings of the study were that learners who participate in Science Expos attend workshops organised by Scifest and SAEON office with the help of some of the educators and lecturers from Rhodes University. Learners' participation was influenced and assisted by the educators and peers with whom they were able to communicate and share their projects with. It emerged from the study that, as a result of participating in Science Expos, educators (teachers) and learners were exposed to a wide variety of scientific investigations and skills that are necessary for their classroom based-scientific investigations. It also emerged from this study that educators and learners face the challenge of a lack of motivation; insufficient support from schools and parents; time constraints to support learners in their participation and a lack of knowledge among some educators on their learners' projects. Some learners are even discouraged from participating in Science Expos by their peers on the grounds that they have no chance of winning. Teachers therefore require continuous mentorship and capacity building in order to encourage their learners to partake.

The aim of this study was to explore how peer education is enhancing social-emotional learning in four secondary schools in Fort Beaufort Education District. An empirical investigation using the qualitative approach examined the situation of the peer education clubs at the four schools. Data was gathered using interviews, focus groups, observations and document analysis. The purpose of the study was to examine the role of peer education programmes in enhancing social and emotional learning in schools. In this research study specifically the qualitative research approach was used. The study also adopted a purposive sampling procedure which is acceptable for special sampling situations where the researcher applied her own experience to select cases which form part of the participants. Four schools were selected, four principals, four teachers who work with peer education clubs, four focus groups, one HIV/AIDS district coordinator, and one peer group trainer. It emerged from the analysis of the collected data that peer education clubs in Fort Beaufort have a number of challenges facing them, resulting in them making insignificant contributions towards the enhancing of social-emotional learning. The clubs’ efforts have resulted in little positive behavioural change among the youth. Among the challenges revealed are: lack of proper structures and support from school administrators, poor selection of peer educators, lack of time and facilities in which to carry out their work, lack of adequate training for both teachers and peer educators. Teacher interference was also cited regularly at all four schools, thereby defeating the whole idea of peer education. The study also revealed that peer educators in Fort Beaufort are not receiving adequate support from other stakeholders like, the police, the justice department and social welfare. Another critical observation made during the study was that peer education clubs are lacking clear standards of practice, rigour and sustainability, all which should be addressed in order to enhance social-emotional learning in schools. Data was analysed using a thematic content analysis. The analysis was carried out in a manner that related to the research questions and objectives in the study. A transcript was made from the respondents’ answers. Reflection and coding was done and data was categorised as an important learning tool in schools, and to recognise its contribution to social emotional learning. The study concluded that peer education clubs in schools, despite their huge potential to improve both behaviour and academic results, are not being given a conducive environment to operate in or the necessary support. This effectively means that learners with some behavioural problems and who have the potential to reform are also being denied the opportunity to lead better lives. The Department is advised to increase the number of both peer education trainers and trained peer educators. Furthermore the training period of peer educators should be increased from the current five days. There is need for the Department of Education to formalise peer education clubs in schools and craft laws that makes it mandatory for schools to provide the clubs with decent facilities like confidential rooms to conduct their activities. More so the study recommends that there is need to train all teachers in schools in social skills and not only LO teachers to ease supervisory burden on the LO teachers.

Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements of the Degree of Master of Applied Science in Food and Nutrition, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa, 2016. / There is a lack of information and research on nutrition content in the curriculum for learners at the secondary school level. While nutrition content is addressed in the curriculum for Grades 8 and 9 in Natural Science, Social Science and Life Orientation, not all aspects of nutrition education are included. In Grades 10 to 12, nutrition content exists in Life Orientation, Agricultural Science, Agricultural Technology, Design Studies, Civil Technology, Electrical Technology, Mechanical Technology, Dance Studies, Information Technology, Consumer Studies and Hospitality Studies, however, not all learners are exposed to the learning areas that contain nutrition content. An important consequence of this lack of exposure to information on nutrition content is that learners who leave school after Grade 12 with inadequate nutrition knowledge potentially become adults who suffer from lifestyle diseases. This study focused on the nutrition content in the curriculum in Grades 8–12 in Kwa-Zulu-Natal in order to: evaluate the content in the curriculum referring to nutrition and to analyse the critical and developmental outcomes of nutrition education;. assess the nutrition knowledge of learners in Grades 8–12 in the Durban Central area (for the purpose of following a healthy lifestyle); determine the views of educators on the inclusion of nutrition content in the curriculum; highlight the importance of applying nutrition content in the curriculum to educate learners on disease prevention and good eating habits. The design of the study was evaluative, analytical and descriptive, and adopted both the quantitative and qualitative methodologies. The purposive sampling method was utilised for the selection of sample. The study was located in Central Durban and the sample comprised of boys and girls in Grades eight–12 at Durban High School and Ridge Park College, respectively. The sample included 343 boys and 360 girls who participated in the study. In order to establish the views of educators who teach nutrition knowledge in the curriculum, the study also included 134 educators purposively selected from 15 schools in the Umlazi District in KwaZulu-Natal. Two sets of instruments were used for data collection. The Nutrition Knowledge Questionnaire (NKQ)(previously developed) was used to determine the nutrition knowledge of learners in Grades eight–12 and across genders in both schools. An Educator Questionnaire (EQ) (developed for the study) on the learning areas that contained nutrition content was utilised to measure the extent to which the educators teaching those learning areas completed the curriculum content on nutrition. The Educator Questionnaire was used to ascertain the educators’ views on the importance of nutrition knowledge. The results of the research showed that the content dealing with nutrition in the school curriculum for Grades eight–12 was inadequate in certain learning areas to adequately educate learners on nutrition for the purpose of following a healthy lifestyle. The compulsory learning areas that contain aspects of nutrition knowledge were Life Orientation, Natural Science and Social Science for Grades eight and nine. In Grades10 to 12, Life Orientation is the only compulsory learning area that contains aspects of nutrition knowledge content. Nutrition knowledge investigation showed that learners are not adequately prepared in respect of all aspects of nutrition knowledge when they leave school at the end of Grade 12. The curriculum analysis of the learning areas in Grades 10 to 12 showed that the learning areas that contain nutrition knowledge are specialist learning areas not offered at all schools in the Durban Central area. The Educator Questionnaires showed that learning areas that include nutrition content in Grades 10 to 12 are not offered at all schools, thus probably negatively impacting on the learners’ level of nutrition content. The results of the Educator Questionnaire reinforced the notion that the curriculum for nutrition education was inadequate. The research concluded that the curriculum does not prepare learners adequately in respect of all areas of nutrition knowledge to enable them to follow healthy lifestyles. The results revealed that there is a correlation between the nutrition knowledge of learners and certain nutrition education aspects in the curriculum. Such results showed that the total mean scores for all the Food Based Dietary Guidelines ranged from 62.0% as the lowest, to the highest total mean score of 72.0%. However, the scores are low in critical areas of nutrition knowledge when individual scores are taken into consideration. An important consequence is that learners who leave school at the end of Grade 12 with inadequate nutritional knowledge become adults with the potential to suffer from lifestyle diseases. It is recommended that a compulsory learning area for all grades that deals exclusively with health, physical education and nutrition be introduced into the curriculum to assist learners to follow healthy lifestyles during and after school. / M

This study explores the feelings, perceptions and experiences of Mathematics educators as they use classroom management to improve Mathematics education in the sampled four secondary schools in the Gauteng province. The main research question was to understand the place and role of effective classroom management in the improvement of mathematics education. In answering this question, the researcher collected data through purposively and conveniently selected four schools in Gauteng province. The researcher engaged the Mathematics head of department and Mathematics educators of participating schools to conduct face-to-face semi-structured interviews with heads of departments, and focus group discussions with Mathematics educators. Data was also collected through limited observation of different administrative aspects in Mathematics classrooms. Data collected was thematically analysed. The data analysis resulted in four main themes emerging. Overall, it was identified that Mathematics educators are expected to perform multiple tasks which necessitate good classroom management skills thereby enhancing an improvement in the performance of learners. From the data obtained, analysed and discussed, the study established that good Mathematics teaching cannot be separated from effectively managing classes, and that effective classroom management is a necessity in Gauteng province. Several elements which enhance effective classroom management were found to be, possession of relevant and adequate resources in the form of material and physical or material, educator professional skills and characteristics, parental and school management support as well as positive learner participation. it was seen that educators were facing several challenges which interfere with their efforts to restore and maintain an organised teaching–learning environment. / Educational Management and Leadership / Ph. D. (Educational Management)

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), an intellectual impairment, generally characterised by inattentiveness and impulsivity has become prevalent in South African schools. ADHD learners require support from within the classroom to accommodate their academic and behavioural needs. A quantitative research was undertaken to determine the impact of an educator's knowledge of ADHD on teaching support strategies. An educator's ADHD knowledge is based on their understanding of the diagnosis, causes, symptoms and management of ADHD as well as the effect that ADHD has on a learner's classroom skills. Data was obtained from responses to questionnaires from randomly selected respondents within randomly selected government secondary schools in the Umlazi District of Kwa-Zulu Natal. The data was descriptively analysed to conclude that the level of ADHD knowledge possessed by educators impact on the appropriateness of their teaching strategies. There is a need to impart knowledge regarding learning barriers to educators, to ensure the efficacy of teaching strategies. / Inclusive Education / M. Ed. (Inclusive Education)

Educators play an essential role within the education system as role models. Many educators, in addition to being affected by learners living with HIV and AIDS, are themselves living with HIV and struggle to cope. SMTs have to play a role in the provision of psychosocial services. The purpose of this study was to explore the types of psychosocial services provided to ELWHIV by their SMTs in order to gain insight and understanding and to make suggestions on how psychosocial services can be improved. A qualitative study was undertaken in 2008. Fifteen interviews were conducted with ELWHIV and members of SMTs at four primary schools in Bela-Bela, Limpopo Province. The findings reveal that SMTs are failing to implement government policies and are not providing adequate support for ELWHIV. None of the participating schools had a functional AIDS policy. Support structures were found to be inadequate and ineffective. Disclosure was identified as one of the major obstacles to the provision of effective services. / Sociology / M.A. (Social Behaviour Studies in HIV/AIDS)

The importance of a collaborative engagement between parents and teachers in order to enhance learning in the classroom is so great that the two parties seem inseparable. In this study the teachers indicated that they need the assistance of the parents of the learners whom they teach for them to do well. On the other hand, the parents are also keen to lend a helping hand, since it is the future of their children which is at stake. The challenge that emerges from this situation is that, more often, there is a breakdown in communication. The teachers and parents blame each other, especially when the learners do not perform well at the end of a year. The teachers will say the parents did not do anything to help their children with their schoolwork, while the parents will insist that the teachers failed to do their work. It is of utmost importance to stop the blame-game, but rather to seek ways in which both groups can help the learners to do well in the classroom. The teachers need to inform the parents how they (the teachers) expect them to play their part in helping their learners with their schoolwork. Informing parents about their roles and how they may play them is very important, because then the parents will be able to meet the teachers’ expectations, whereby teaching and learning will be facilitated. The ultimate beneficiaries will be the learners, because they will receive education which is well-coordinated by both the teachers and the parents. The collaboration between teachers and the parents will be guided because the kind of parental involvement will be an informed one. The engagement between teachers and parents will yield good results, because in the process they will help each other to find strategies that will assist the learners in the classroom. This study intends to ascertain from the teachers how they expect the parents to help their children with their schoolwork. It seeks to establish what the teachers’ perceptions are regarding parental involvement, that is, what they think it is, and how they think it should be. Two teachers from two primary schools in the Mogalakwena District of Limpopo Province were used in order to collect the data. These teachers clearly indicated that, indeed, the parents can be of great help, because they can touch some aspects that the teachers cannot reach in the lives of the learners. x They, however, also suggested ways in which the parents are supposed to help their children with schoolwork. The study also explored ways how the roles that the parents must play are communicated to the parents. The researcher’s aim was to explore the teachers’ expectations of parental involvement, and also possible ways in which it can be communicated to the parents.Recommendations were made to the policymakers to refer to when they draw up policies for the governance of schools. / Curriculum and Instructional Studies / M. Ed. (Curriculum Studies)

MA (Linguistics) / Department of Communication and Applied Language Sciences / See the attached abstract below

DEd (Educational Management) / Department of Educational Management / The aim of this study was to explore the effect of mentoring as a strategy for teacher professional development. The study was underpinned by Vygotsky, Piaget and Bandura socio-cultural theories. The study is anchored on the interpretivist or constructivist paradigm to enable the investigator to deconstruct the realities of the experiences of practicing teachers during the mentoring process. The qualitative research approach was adopted in the study. The population comprised all teachers at six (6) selected high schools in the Thabina Cluster schools. Purposeful sampling method was employed to select 12 teachers that participated in the study. Qualitative data was generated through face-to-face interviews, observations and document analysis. Data was analysed thematically. The study established that teachers value and acknowledge the importance of mentoring as a strategy for teacher professional development. There is also a need for mentoring to be conducted with new teachers to offer them opportunities for professional growth. The study recommendations are that the Department of Education should develop and regularly implement mentoring programmes to enhance the competency of teachers. / NRF

MA (Linguistics) / Department of Communication and Applied Language Studies / The study investigates why English is chosen as a language of learning and teaching by School Governing Bodies in selected public primary schools in Vhembe District. Historically, only English and Afrikaans were regarded as official languages that could be used as media of instruction in schools. The advent of democracy in 1994 saw nine most spoken languages in South Africa, besides English and Afrikaans, being elevated to the level of official languages. These languages included Tshivenda, Sepedi, Xitsonga, Sesotho, Seswati, isiZulu, isiXhosa, Setswana and isiNdebele, Since the South African constitution guarantees equal status to all the eleven major languages that are spoken in South Africa, one would expect to find schools choosing other languages, besides English, as a language of learning and teaching. The Language-in-Education Policy Act of 1997 stipulates that, for the first three years of schooling, learners should be taught in home language. The South African Schools Act number 84 of 1996, gives the mandate to determine the language of learning and teaching to School Governing Bodies (SGB). Amidst this freedom of choice, English remains the language of choice in public primary schools of Vhembe District. Studies have indicated that learners cannot cope with the sudden switch from home language to English, and that they end up failing or even dropping out of school. This study aimed to find out why English remains the language of choice for learning and teaching despite the fact that SGBs have the power to choose indigenous languages. The study was undertaken in the following municipalities: Collins Chabane and Makhado. A collective case study was used as a research design. Twelve respondents, from six selected schools, namely; six SGB chairpersons and six school Principals participated in the study. Respondents were purposively selected because they were the ones responsible for school governance matters. Three data collection methods were used, namely; observations, interviews and document anlysis. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Findings revealed that SGBs lack capacity to execute their duties as school governors, and that English remains the language of choice because of the status it has in the economic and academic world. The study also found that SGBs cannot choose African languages because they are not developed as languages of science and technology. Conclusions drawn from this study are that SGBs do not participate in the v drafting of the language policy because most members are illiterate and are not aware of the power vested in them by SASA to determine the language policy of their schools. The study also concluded that home languages are not chosen as media of instruction because there are no learning and teaching materials in those languages, and also that home languages are not used as media of instruction in secondary schools and tertiary institutions that admit learners from these primary schools. A major recommendation of the study is that indigenous languages should be developed into languages of science and technology if they are to be used as languages of teaching and learning, and that there should be a programme designed to assist grade 4 learners with the transition from using home language as medium of instruction, to using English as medium of instruction. / NRF