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The present study was a qualitative research study aimed to explore and describe the role of the lecturer in the subjective well-being of first-year education students. This research utilised secondary data that was collected for a prior study, comprising essays completed by first-year education students at the University of Pretoria. 125 students from randomly selected modules participated in the original study. The narratives concerned how the students described their lecturers as motivating and demotivating. The narratives, completed by male and female students, were selected based on lengthy, content-rich narratives. An inductive thematic analysis was completed to explore and analyse the data from a qualitative, interpretivist perspective. The five dimensions of the PERMA model (Positive emotions, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning and Accomplishment) guided and were used as the theoretical framework of the present study to help understand students’ subjective well-being (Seligman, 2011). Three themes emerged from the students’ descriptions of their lecturers as motivating. The findings suggest that the students were motivated when their lecturers utilised effective teaching approaches, facilitated a positive student-lecturer relationship and when students felt satisfied with their learning. One theme emerged where the students described their lecturer as demotivating; this was the case when their lecturers used ineffective teaching approaches. All five dimensions of the PERMA model were identified when students felt motivated by their lecturers, while two dimensions of the PERMA model were identified when students felt demotivated by their lecturers. There is a need for lecturer training programmes aimed at increasing the awareness of the lecturers’ role in student motivation and student subjective well-being, as well as teaching practises that aim to promote student motivation. Consequently, student subjective well-being can be valuable to universities in improving students’ academic success as well as their subjective well-being. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2019. / Educational Psychology / MEd / Unrestricted

This qualitative study aimed to explore the constructions of childhood depression as portrayed in South African women's interest magazines. Departing from a postmodern paradigm and utilising a social constructionist framework, these magazines were regarded as part of larger mass media discourses on childhood depression. The magazines contribute to the construction of 'truths' about childhood depression in its audience. To explore the research question, three of the highest circulating magazines in South Africa containing texts related to childhood depression were identified. The magazines were aimed not only at women, but at both English- and Afrikaans-speaking women, and at African, Caucasian, and possibly Coloured women. The hardcopies of these magazines were sourced from the publisher for a period of approximately two years each. A total of 20 articles that spoke to childhood depression were identified in these magazines. Two forms of analysis were used in a mutually enriching and recursive manner. The contextual analysis allowed an enriched insight into the context of the articles. The thematic analysis gave way to themes and subthemes to emerge. It was found that although perceptions in these articles were most often in line with professional psychological knowledge, at times it failed to speak to uniquely South African concerns regarding childhood depression, and often reified problematic discourses. It was concluded that mass media may be a powerful tool to employ by government organisations, health professionals, and social scientists, to address problematic mental health discourses in South Africa. / Mini Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Psychology / MA / Unrestricted

Maps are increasingly being used in traditional and virtual media, and civic discourse on political, social, and environmental issues, among others, is more and more becoming influenced by them. The often-used expression of a “picture tells a 1000 words” has never been so apt in our progressively more visual world. Despite this increased role and importance of maps, map literacy, as a field of research, remains rather underdeveloped. This is especially so for thematic maps, the very type of map that is finding increasing currency in discourse. As part of this under-developed nature of map literacy, the quantitative skills used in map reading and interpretation have not been systematically investigated, and previous commentary on the subject has been limited to listings of relatively low-level skills. As modern technologies, such as GIS, enable the more sophisticated production of maps, their interpretation can come to depend on more advanced quantitative literacy. The quantitative literacy required for map interpretation can also be expected to vary significantly with the type of map, and while map literacy studies generally recognize the broad distinction of reference and thematic maps, they do not provide a more nuanced framework for investigating how quantitative literacy may vary both within these broad categories and for maps which overlap these categories. This dissertation represents a first attempt to address these issues, and at least provide conceptual frameworks for their investigation. For the first conceptual framework, the dissertation introduces a three-set Venn model to discuss the content and relationships of three “literacies”: map literacy, quantitative literacy, and background information. As part of this, the field of Quantitative Map Literacy (QMP) is introduced and defined as the knowledge (concepts, skills and facts) required to accurately read, use, interpret, and understand the quantitative information embedded in geographic backgrounds. It is conceptualized as the intersection of the Map Literacy and Quantitative Literacy “sets”. The dissertation also introduces the conceptual framework of a compositional triangle based on the ratio of reference to thematic map purpose and the level of generalization/distortion within maps. This framework allows for any type of map to be located within the triangle and then related to the type and level of quantitative literacy they demand. Finally, based on these two frameworks, the dissertation uses the pedagogical tool of “word problems” to explore the variability of map reading skills and knowledge, and does this for specific map examples.

Doctor Educationis / The overarching purpose of this research study was to ascertain the deliberations preservice mathematics teachers engage with when they construct alternative mathematical models for social phenomena. The study is situated within the mathematical competencies and, in particular, on the evaluation competency with the possibility of developing alternative models flowing from the evaluation. Twenty fourth-year pre-service mathematics teachers participated in the completion of three different mathematical modelling tasks on which the analysis was based. The data collected was analysed qualitatively. The researcher exploited a thematic analysis design to investigate how pre-service mathematics teachers build alternative models.

Background: First responders (firefighters, paramedics, and police officers) are often exposed to potentially psychologically traumatic events. When combined with insufficient social support and reduced help-seeking behaviours, such exposures may increase the risk of mental health challenges, particularly among paramedics who report the highest rates of mental disorders. Objective: The current study used the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF) and the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR) to identify critical barriers and facilitators to help-seeking and accessing mental health care, and the feasibility and sustainability of a first responder clinic. Methods: Semi-structured qualitative interviews included 11 paramedics (frontline, mid-and-senior management, and union), recruited using purposive and snowball sampling. Interviews were analyzed using content and thematic analyses. The TDF and CFIR guided study design, interview content, data collection, and analysis. Results: Barriers included the complexities of stigma, confidentiality, cultural competency, and trust. Conclusions: The findings will be instrumental in developing evidence-based approaches to mental health care for paramedics.

This study aimed to explore the experiences of middle managers in the implementation of the Balanced Scorecard (BSC) at a public organisation in Botswana. The BSC is regarded as the most widely used tool in measuring organisational performance globally. The public organisation in Botswana has followed global best practice and implemented the BSC to measure organisational performance; however, the organisation is repeatedly unable to meet its set objectives. To gain an improved understanding of managers’ experiences of using the BSC, face-to-face, semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight middle managers at the public organization. Interview data were thematically analysed yielding five key themes: inconsistencies in training, the culture of the organisation, lack of communication, use of information technology and the disparity between individual and organisational performance. Based on the study findings, recommendations are offered to conduct needs analyses prior to introducing new systems, to assess the viability of such a system, and automating the balanced scorecard to reduce fatigue.

This qualitative case study examined how integrating technology, specifically digital storytelling, influenced secondary student perceptions of literacy learning and student engagement in an English language arts and reading classroom in a rural district. Understanding student perceptions of literacy learning can offer insight into which technological tools can support literacy development and classroom engagement. Through the implementation of case study design and thematic analysis, overarching themes highlight participant experiences and equip education professionals to make more informed choices regarding technology integration decisions.

This project addresses the promotion of role-related self-compassion (SC) in psychotherapists as part of their professional development and maintenance. There is evidence that therapists who are more self-compassionate are better-protected from emotional burnout (Beaumont et al., 2016), suggesting that self-compassion become part of therapist education(Nelson et al., 2018), but there is a lack of research regarding how this role-related selfcompassion is addressed by supervisors. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 6 clinical supervisors in Ontario and Quebec, Canada. Thematic analysis (TA) derived 5 main themes, including Participants’ Definitions of SC, Supervisee struggles leading participants to address SC in supervision Participants’ approaches to addressing SC with supervisees, Institutional structures addressing self-care, self-compassion, and Challenges associated with addressing SC in supervision. Results suggest that participants viewed self-compassion as an important component of therapist self-care, and employed a number of direct and indirect methods to address and encourage it with supervisees. Implications for practice and training are included.