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

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

Thesis (M. Sc. (Dietetics)) -- University of Limpopo, 2021 / Background: Most school food environments in low socioeconomic countries offer cheaper unhealthy snacks of low nutritional value. Generally, these defeat the aims and goals of the National School Nutrition Programmes that offers nutritionally balanced meals to enhance concentration and learning. These unhealthy snacks that are available in school food environments have the ability to promote food choices that may lead to early onset of obesity and diseases of the lifestyle. The creation of healthy school food environments should be observed as a fundamental priority and a responsibility to all stakeholders with the necessary powers. Objectives: The study explored the perspective of school vendors, learners and school governing bodies on snack sale in selected primary schools of Dimamo circuit, Limpopo Province, South Africa. Design and Methods: A cross-sectional, exploratory descriptive study was conducted on the perspectives of vendors, learners and school governing bodies on the sale of snacks in selected primary schools of Dimamo circuit, Limpopo Province, South Africa. Data were collected with 69 participants using a semi-structured questionnaire in one-on-one interviews and focus group discussions at three public schools in the Dimamo circuit. Criteria for trustworthiness were adhered to throughout the study. Ethical principles were adhered to in order to ensure the ethical standards of the study. Findings: A negative perception regarding the sale of snacks was found by both the learners and school governing bodies. However, the vendors were reluctant to raise their views with regard to the snacks sold in schools despite them being aware of the diseases experienced, such as ringworms, rash and vomiting. Improved hygiene practices and sale of healthy snacks was suggested by learners while drawing of a school food policy was seen as a last resort to improve the school food environment. Conclusion: A negative perception towards unhealthy snacks exists among the learners and teachers as they have been disruption in teaching and learning; due to random absenteeism associated with ailments allegedly caused by consumption of unhealthy snacks. However, the vendors reported learners’ preference for the sale of unhealthy snacks viii over the healthy ones due to cost. Furthermore,the vendors reported that the provision of free fruits by the NSNP in school was a challenge. Lack of cooperation, accountability and responsibility amongst the School Governing Bodies (SGB) and vendors were a barrier to facilitating a healthy food environment.

Self-management is a relatively new concept in South Africa. The transformation of education after 1994 resulted in the promulgation of the South African Schools Act (SASA) 84 of 1996, which started the process of decentralisation of education. The SASA mandates the school governing bodies (SGBs) to play an active role in decision making in schools. The justification for the self-management of schools is that it promotes effectiveness and efficiency in schools. The aim of the study was to investigate the challenges that are faced and the benefits/opportunities that exist for self-managing schools. The secondary aim of the study was to investigate how self-managing schools could be supported so that they become more efficient and effective. This study focuses on 2 ex-DET self-managing schools in Gauteng. The findings reveal that teamwork amongst educators, parents and communities is essential for self-managing schools to be effective and efficient. / Educational Studies / M.Ed. (Education Management)

The South African Schools Act of 1996 mandates the establishment of School Governing Bodies (SGBs) in all schools with grade eight and higher. Amongst others, the SGB has the authority to develop a Code of Conduct for learners in a school. This study includes a literature review of discipline in schools, the functions of SGBs, the development and implementation of a Code of Conduct by the SGB. A qualitative investigation of the perceptions of parents, educators and learners, of discipline and dealing with misbehaviour was conducted in three secondary schools in the North-West Province. It was established that role-players differed in their understanding of coming to a common understanding of what to include in a Code of Conduct. It seems as if measures to deal with misbehaviour are often in violation of the Bill of Rights in the Constitution. Based on the findings, recommendations for addressing discipline by means of a Code of Conduct were proposed. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Education Management)

The aim of the study was to investigate the training of school governing bodies in the Free State Province from an education management point of view. Since 1994 the South African government has adopted a number of policy documents aimed at democratizing education in the country. The transformation of education in the new South African context encompasses the idea of partnership in which participants - such as parents, educators, learners (in secondary schools) play an active role in taking decisions on behalf of the school. The State alone cannot control schools, but has to share its power with other stakeholders. However, this can only happen if participants in school governance are trained to have power and the capacity to decide on matters affecting their schools. Hence, training is the cornerstone of affirming governors in the execution of their roles and responsibilities. Since school governing bodies are composed of a cross section of people with different ideologies, expectations and levels of education - training is necessary to prepare then for co-operative governance. Without adequate and on-going in-service training, it is unlikely that school governing body members can make informed decisions. The empirical method, namely qualitative research, was successful in obtaining information from participants about the training offered to them. It also established how participants felt and thought about their experiences and perceptions about the training they received, whether it built capacity or not. A number of recommendations were made with regard to the research findings for stakeholders to note. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Comparative Education)

The concept of parental involvement has been viewed as an ideal style of leadership and management for school development purposes. In South Africa’s case, it is an educational policy which is expected to reign in all school management bodies. Many theorists envisaged parental involvement as enhancing active involvement of parents and it has been advocated by many scholars who believe it is the best leadership style in implementing democratic values to education, particularly South African rural education, which is still in a transitional stage. The primary purpose of this research was to investigate the extent to which parents contribute towards education of their children. This study involved transformative case study as a research design at one rural school in Waterberg district in South Africa. This research employed three data collection techniques, namely semi-structured interviews, focus groups and document analysis. When formal education was introduced in South Africa schools it was regarded as exceptional environment for teachers, school administrators and learners. To a large extent, parents and the communities regarded themselves as something outside of the education system. The main findings of this study revealed that there is a lack of joint understanding and shared vision between educators and parents in the School Governing Body. This problem underpins other more symptomatic problems, such as lack of accountability in the matter of school finances, differences in understanding the roles of School Board members and lack of parents’ motivation from the school management. It highlighted some of the challenges that hinder the effective involvement of parents in rural school governance, such as poor educational background among parents. The study has also revealed challenges and consequences of non-parental involvement in school governance. The conclusion that could be drawn from the study is that in schools where parent-community involvement is highly visible, teacher effectiveness is apparent and this contributed significantly to the improvement of learner performance while in schools where parent-community involvement is non-existent or minimal, the result is the opposite. / Educational Leadership and Management / M. Ed. (Education Management)

For many years the South African educational platform has been the target of international and national criticism for its apartheid ideals. Since 1994 the former Model C high school has endured a changing landscape characterised by the ideals of educational transformation. However, the current face of the former Model C high school has been marred by the challenge of learner ill-discipline. This research aimed to explore the challenges experienced by female principals in a former Model C high school. A literature review focussed on female leadership and school discipline through the lens of a theoretical framework based on the ethics of care and transformational leadership theories. Using a qualitative case study design, data were collected and analysed. The analysis revealed that school discipline was a major challenge to the principal personally and professionally, and to the school. It further highlighted the strong need for support by the Department of Education. / Educational Management and Leadership / M. Ed. (Education Management)

The study aimed to determine the impact of the role of the School Governing Bodies in the schooling system with regard to the implementation of education policies, including the South African Schools Act (Act 84 of 1996 as amended). In order to determine the role of the participants mentioned above who represented the SGBs in this project, the researcher interviewed them at their convenient times and environment. This study used a qualitative approach, since it involved a series of in-depth interviews, document analysis and field notes (see 4.5.4 and 4.5.5). The first interviews were individual interviews with school principals (see Annexure A). This was followed by focus group interviews with executive members of SGBs (see Annexures B, C and D). Learners were interviewed in the form of focus groups (see Annexure E). Observations too played an important role during the meetings with SGBs (see Annexure F). The findings indicate that SGB members who were interviewed had minimal knowledge of how their role affected the schools that they governed. It was also clear from interviews that training conducted by individuals from the Department of Education seemed not to be effective as they failed to make members of the SGBs understand the school policies on the South African Schools Act policy document. The study revealed that the school policies embodied in SASA documents and the South African Constitution were not understood and as such their effective use was not realised. In other words, the members of the SGB lacked proper knowledge of how to guide their school in order to run smoothly and efficiently. Again, the study revealed that there is a serious need to train members of SGBs at the school level because those interviewed complained about: the time allocated for their training, and the language used in their training by the facilitators. All the above factors have a strong bearing on the fact that the majority of members of SGBs are illiterate (see Section 5.3.2). Finally, the study revealed that: principals are expected to perform dual roles of representing their schools (as mentors) and simultaneously represent the Department of Education in an ex-officio position (see Section 5.3.1). Therefore, the study proposed that the principal must only represent his school and a neutral person be appointed by the department to represent it in all the SGBs in the circuit. Lastly, the study emphasised the need of the SGB members to work with other qualified individuals in the community who are experts in some areas of learning such as lawyers, accountants, farmers, architects, and business people (see Figure 5.1). All stakeholders are relevant, but they need to be made to function according to their qualifications and expertise and also respect the boundaries of specialisation of the others. In conclusion, the recommended and proposed model was deliberately designed and structured to offer practical solutions to the problems discussed in the research findings. It is also essential that the training be accompanied by some assessment, in order to determine whether the SGB members have understood what they were taught. Furthermore, there should be follow-ups to ascertain to what extent the SGB members have implemented what they were taught in their schools, which is not happening at present. / Die doel van die studie was om die rol en/of impak van deelnemende skole se beheerrade op die implementering van onderwyswetgewing en/of beleid was. Aangesien die studie kwalitatief van aard was, het die navorser hoofsaaklik van waarneming en onderhoude (indiepte indiwiduele sowel as fokusgroeponderhoude) gebruik gemaak om data in te samel. Navorsingsbresultate dui aan dat deelnemende skoolbeheerraadslede se geletterdheidsvaardighede en begrip van onderwyswetgewing en beleid gebrekkig is en dat opleiding wat deur amptenare verbonde aan die Departement van Onderwys verskaf is gebrekkig was. Gevolglik was die imlementering van onderwyswetgewing en beleid deur genoemde skoolbeheerrade as ‘n reël ondoeltreffend. Die resultate dui verder aan dat daar van skoolhoofde verwag word om sowel hul skole as die Department van Onderwys op skoolbeheerraadsvergaderings te verteenwoordig en dat, ten einde hul skole doeltreffend te bestuur, skoolbeheerraadslede ander gekwalifiseerde/professionele indiwidue in die gemeenskap – regsgeleerdes, boekhouers, boere, argitekte and besigheidsmense – in die skoolbeheerraad se aktiwiteite behoort te betrek. Op grond van hierdie bevindinge beveel die navorser dus aan dat (a) skoolhoofde slegs hulle skole op skoolbeheerraadsvergaderings behoort te verteenwoordig; (b) ‘n neutrale persoon deur die Departement van Onderwys aangestel word om dié se verteenwoordiger te wees; (c) die teoretiese opleidingsmodel wat hy in sy studie voorstel, moontlik kan bdra tot die uitskakeling van heelparty van die probleme/uitdagings wat in die studie uitgelig word; (d) opleiding een of ander vorm van assessering moet insluit ten einde te bepaal of bywonende skoolbeheerraadslede die nodige begrip verwerf het, en (e) opleiding deur skoolbesoeke opgevolg word om te bepaal tot welke mate dit skoolbeheerraadslede tydens opleiding geleer het toepas. / Maikemišetšo a phatišišo ye ke go utulla karalo yeo lekgotlataolo la sekolo le nago nayo go lenaneo la sekolo malebana le phethagatšo ya melawana ya thuto, le go akaretšwa le lenaneo la Taolo ya Dikolo (Act 84 of 1996 as amended). Gore go hlaolwe karalo ya batšeakarolo ba ka gare ga SGB tabeng ye, mofatišiši o boledišane le bona tikologong le nako yeo e ba swanetšego.Phatišišo e dirišitše mokgwa wa boleng ka ge go akareditšwe dipoledišano tša go tsenelela le phetleko ya dingwalwa tša maleba (cf 4.5.4 le 4.5.5).Poledišano ya pulamadibogo ke ya dihlogo tša dikolo (cf Annexure A).Seo se latetšwe ke dipoledišanothwi le maloko a makgotlaphethiši a makgotlataolo a dikolo (cf Annexures B, C le D). Go boledišanwe le barutwana ka sebopego sa dihlophana (cf Annexure E). Diphihlelelo le tšona di bile bohlokwa dikopanong tša makgotlataolo a dikolo (cf Annexure F). Dikutullo di laeditše gore maloko a SGB a go boledišanwego le ona, a na le tsebo ye nnyane ya ka moo batšeakarolo bja ona, bo nago le khuetšo dikolong tšeo ba di laolago. Dipoledišano di laeditše gore tlhahlo yeo balaodi ba Kgoro ya Thuto ba e abetšego maloko a SGB e a fokola ka ge e šitwa go kgontšha maloko a SGB go hlaologanya melawana ya thuto yeo e tšwago go molao wa taolo ya dikolo. Phatišišo e utulotše gore melawana ya thuto ye e akareditšwego ka go dingwalwa tša Molaotheo wa Afrika Borwa, ga e kwešišwe le gore ga e phethagatšwe ka tshwanelo. Maloko a SGB a hlaelelwa ke tsebo ya maleba go ka kgona go hlahla dikolo gore di sepetšwe ka katlego. Phatišišo e utulotše gape gore go tsomega tlhahlo ya maloko a SGB dikolong. Dintlha tše di laeditšwego di gatelela taba ya gore boati bja maloko a makgotlataolo a dikolo ga kgone go bala le go ngwala (cf 5.3.2). Mafelelong, go latetšwe gore dihlogo tša dikolo di raloke karalo ya go emela dikolo tša bona le go emela Kgoro ya Thuto ka bo emo bja semmušo (cf 5.3.1). Phatišišo e šišinya gore hlogo ya sekolo a emele sekolo sa gagwe gomme motho wa go ikema a emele Kgoro ya Thuto makgotlataolong a dikolo sedikothutong. Phatišišo e fetša ka go hlohleletša maloko a SGB go dirišana le ditsebi mafaphene a tša semolao, taolo ya ditšhelete le, balemi le ba bangwe (cf 5.1). Batšeakarolo ba bohlokwa ka moka ge go ka hlomphiwa bokgoni bja yo mongwe le yo mongwe. Go phethwa ka gore mokgwa wa tlhahlo o swanetšwe go sepelelana le tokelo go kgonthišiša kwešišo ya maloko a SGB go tšeo ba rutilwego. / Educational Management and Leadership / D. Ed. (Education Management)

The South African Schools Act of 1996 mandates the establishment of School Governing Bodies (SGBs) in all schools with grade eight and higher. Amongst others, the SGB has the authority to develop a Code of Conduct for learners in a school. This study includes a literature review of discipline in schools, the functions of SGBs, the development and implementation of a Code of Conduct by the SGB. A qualitative investigation of the perceptions of parents, educators and learners, of discipline and dealing with misbehaviour was conducted in three secondary schools in the North-West Province. It was established that role-players differed in their understanding of coming to a common understanding of what to include in a Code of Conduct. It seems as if measures to deal with misbehaviour are often in violation of the Bill of Rights in the Constitution. Based on the findings, recommendations for addressing discipline by means of a Code of Conduct were proposed. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Education Management)