This thesis describes an Action Research project within the researcher's practice as a teacher educator in Rwanda. A teaching style informed by the Theory of Didactical Situations in Mathematics (Artigue, 1994; Brousseau, 1997; 2004; Douady, 1991) and by the Zone of Proximal Development (Gallimore & Tharp, 1990; Meira & Lerman, 2001; Rowlands, 2003; Vygotsky, 1978) was conducted with first-year mathematics student teachers in Rwanda. The aim of the teaching model was to develop the student teachers' understanding of the concepts of the definite and the indefinite integrals and their link through the fundamental theorem of calculus. The findings of the analysis answer the research questions, on the one hand, of what concept images (Tall & Vinner, 1981; Vinner & Dreyfus, 1989) of the underlying concepts of integrals student teachers exhibit, and how the student teachers‟ concept images evolved during the teaching. On the other hand, the findings answer the research questions of what didactical situations are likely to further student teachers' understanding of the definite and the indefinite integrals and their link through the fundamental theorem of calculus; and finally they answer the question of what learning activities student teachers engage in when dealing with integrals and under what circumstances understanding is furthered. An analysis of student teachers' responses expressed during semi-structured interviews organised at three different points of time - before, during, and after the teaching - shows that the student teachers' evoked concept images evolved significantly from pseudo-objects of the definite and the indefinite integrals to include almost all the underlying concept layers of the definite integral, namely, the partition, the product, the sum, and the limit of a sum, especially in the symbolical representation. However, only a limited evolution of the student teachers' understanding of the fundamental theorem of calculus was demonstrated after completion of the teaching. With regard to the teaching methods, after analysis of the video recordings of the lessons, I identified nine main didactical episodes which occurred during the teaching. Interactions during these episodes contributed to the development of the student teachers' understanding of the concepts of the definite and the indefinite integrals and their link through the fundamental theorem of calculus. During these interactions, the student teachers were engaged in various cognitive processes which were purposefully framed by functions of communication, mainly the referential function, the expressive function, and the cognative function. In these forms of communication, the cognative function in which I asked questions and instructed the students to participate in interaction was predominant. The student teachers also reacted by using mainly the expressive and the referential functions to indicate what knowledge they were producing. In these exchanges between the teacher and the student teachers and among the student teachers themselves, two didactical episodes in which two student teachers overtly expressed their understanding have been observed. The analysis of these didactical episodes shows that the first student teacher's understanding has been triggered by a question that I addressed to the student after a long trial and error of searching for a mistake, whereas the second student's understanding was activated by an indicative answer given by another student to the question of the student who expressed the understanding. In the former case, the student exhibited what he had understood while in the latter case the student did not. This suggests that during interactions between a teacher and a student, asking questions further the student's understanding more than providing him or her with the information to be learnt. Finally, during this study, I gained the awareness that the teacher in a mathematics classroom has to have various decisional, organisational and managerial skills and adapt them to the circumstances that emerge during classroom activities and according to the evolution of the knowledge being learned. Also, the study showed me that in most of the time the student teachers were at the center of the activities which I organised in the classroom. Therefore, the teaching methods that I used during my teaching can assist in the process of changing from a teacher-centred style of teaching towards a student-centred style. This study contributed to the field of mathematics education by providing a mathematical framework which can be used by other researchers to analyse students' understanding of integrals. This study also contributed in providing a model of teaching integrals and of researching a mathematics (integrals) classroom which indicates episodes in which understanding may occur. This study finally contributed to my professional development as a teacher educator and a researcher. I practiced the theory of didactical situation in mathematics. I experienced the implementation of some of its concepts such as the devolution, the a didactical situation, the institutionalization, and the didactical contract and how this can be broken by students (the case of Edmond). In this case of Edmond, I realised that my listening to students needs to be improved. As a researcher, I learnt a lot about theoretical frameworks, paradigms of study and analysis and interpretation of data. The theory of didactical situations in mathematics, the action research cyclical spiral, and the revised Bloom‟s Taxonomy will remain at my hand reach during my mathematics teacher educator career. However, there is still a need to improve in the analysis of data especially from the students' standpoint; that is, the analysis of the learning aspect needs to be more practiced and improved. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.

The purpose of this study is to determine women's perceptions and choices of different categories of occupations and the reasons for such choices. Since the installation of the first democratic post apartheid government in South Africa, national policy has advanced women's rights. Affirmative action has opened up opportunities previously closed to women, but there is little research documenting changes in career trends. The influence of race, gender, social and political changes on perceptions and choices of occupations of women in the country is not known. This study has focused on African and Indian females in the 15 to 60 age range in the greater Durban area. Women born between 1940 and 1985 have experience of the pre- and post apartheid era, and therefore changes in perceptions and choices could be investigated. A survey questionnaire was administered to 390 female learners in seven former Indian schools. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 African and Indian women; six daughters in non - traditional occupations and six mothers in traditional occupations. The results from the survey and interviews suggest that women have a strong sense of empowerment and do not regard gender as a barrier to occupational choices. A limited number of occupations were categorized as suitable for men only, while the majority were deemed suitable for both men and women. Survey data indicated that African learners were more conservative in their choices than Indian learners. Interviews with the older women however, revealed that African women were more positive about opportunities open to them in the new South Africa. Detailed family profiles suggest that socio - economic factors rather than parental influence, impacted on decision-making patterns. The unique experiences of women in this country, who have been subject to political and social pressures of the apartheid policy and the rapid change of the post apartheid era, must be documented before any theoretical positions can be articulated about the career development of South African women. This study has contributed to research on the career development of women by providing some insight into how a sector of African and Indian women perceive and categorize occupations. / Thesis (Ph.D)-University of Durban-Westville, 2000.

Abstract not available. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, 1960.

No abstract available. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1997.

No abstract available. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1978.

The release of the Language-in-Education Policy (LiEP) in July 1997 marked a fundamental and almost radical break from the state-driven language policy of the apartheid government, to one that recognizes cultural diversity as a national asset, the development and promotion of eleven official languages and gave individuals the right to choose the language of learning and teaching (DoE, 1997: 2-3). The LiEP aimed at providing a framework to enable schools to formulate appropriate school language policies that align with the intentions of the new policy, namely, to maintain home language(s) while providing access to the effective acquisition of additional language(s) and to promote multilingualism. This research explores language use and implementation of the LiEP in a rural commercial farm community. The study is guided by three research questions, namely: 1. What is the language use and preference of a selected rural commercial farm community? 2. How do teachers on rural commercial farm schools respond to the LiEP and its implementation? 3. What are the implications of the language preference and use of a selected rural commercial farm community and teachers’ responses to the LiEP and its implementation for language practice at rural commercial farm schools? After reviewing literature on rurality and language policy implementation in South Africa, the study articulated a broader contextual framework which is titled Rurality as a sense of place. This perspective captures the uniqueness of the context and facilitates a deep understanding of how rurality as a sense of place influences language preference and use. A further theoretical framework, namely the combined models of Stern (1983) and Sookrajh (1999), facilitate an understanding of rural community language preference and the implications for practice in the school environment. xiv To achieve the aims of the study, both quantitative and qualitative methods were used to collect data. A language preference and use survey questionnaire was conducted with respondents comprising parents, teachers and learners. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with selected teachers and principals and school governing body chairpersons. The findings were inter-related at the policy, community and school levels. The study identified patterns and problems of language use at different levels. At a community level, it focused on language profiles of parents teachers and learners; language use in private and public situations; attitudes towards public language policy and language choices in the language of teaching and learning as well as the use of mother-tongue and additional languages as subjects. At the school level, it focused on teacher and principals’ beliefs and understandings of the LiEP and implementation challenges being faced. The study found that while most respondents come from multilingual backgrounds, the use of African languages is confined to “home and hearth.” English and to a diminished extent, Afrikaans is still widely used in public interactions. At school level, there has been no significant change to school language policy developments. The subtractive model of language teaching where mother-tongue is used in the early grades and an abrupt transfer to English as the language of learning and teaching from grade four onwards continues to exist in three of the four schools. This situation is exacerbated by the fact that English is not widely used in the rural community and learners have no exposure to quality English language interactions. This study recommends a market-oriented approach to promoting African languages which effectively involves all stakeholders participating in concert to implement the multilingual policy. Since English remains the dominant language in South Africa and is viewed as the language of opportunity, the language of international communication, the language of economic power, and the language of science and technology, schools should promote education that uses learners’ home languages for learning, while at the same time providing access to quality English language teaching and learning. / http://hdl.handle.net/10413/1062 / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2007.

Over the last decade or two, there has been a discernible move to include modeling in the mathematics curricula in schools. This has come as the result of the demand that society is making on educational institutions to provide workers that are capable of relating theoretical knowledge to that of the real world. Successful industries are those that are able to effectively overcome the complexities of real world problems they encounter on a daily basis. This research study focused, to some extent, on the different definitions of modeling and some of the processes involved. Various examples are given to illustrate some of the methods employed in the process of modeling. More importantly, this work attempted to build on existing research and tested some of these ideas in a teaching environment. This was done in order to investigate the feasibility of introducing mathematical concepts within the context of dynamic geometry. Learners, who had not been introduced to specific concepts, such as concurrency, equidistant, and so on, were interviewed using Sketchpad and their responses were analyzed. The research focused on a few aspects. It attempted to determine whether learners were able to use modeling to solve a given real world problem. It also attempted to establish whether learners developed a better understanding when using Sketchpad. Several useful implications have evolved from this work that may influence both the teaching and learning of geometry in school. Initially these learners showed that, to a large extent, they could not relate mathematics to the real world and vice versa. But a pertinent finding of this research showed that, with guidance, these learners could apply themselves creatively. Furthermore it reaffirmed the idea that learners can be taught from the general to the more specific, enabling them to develop a better understanding of concepts being taught. Perhaps the findings and suggestions may be useful to pre-service and in-service educators, as well as curriculum developers. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Durban-Westville, 2004.

As South Africa emerges from the years of struggle against apartheid, the education system is characterised by fragmentation, inequity, racism and a culture of intolerance. This study tests the experiences and challenges of learners, educators and relevant stakeholders in a multicultural setting: The study was conducted at five multicultural schools in the Ethekwini Region in the province of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. Literature is based on historical background of multicultural education and sketches the concept of culture, equality and multiculturalism. The methodology of choice was an empirical research. The first stage involved the gathering of information through questionnaires, observations and interviews. In the second stage: the analysis indicates the roles played by principals, educators and learners in multicultural schools. The findings of this study reveal that learners, educators and principals face serious problems in multicultural schools and are unable to deal with learner diversity. Firstly, in a multicultural country like South Africa it is important that learners reach high levels of proficiency in at least two languages. Secondly, the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (Act 108 of 1996) provides the basis for curriculum for transformation and development. Lastly, there is a need for educator training so that educators can handle diverse learners. Religion and education brings about moral values and contributes to create an integrated community that affirms in diversity therefore religious diversity needs to be facilitated by trained professionals. This study seeks to build on the new direction in education and proposes numerous strategic recommendations for a new approach in multicultural education in South Africa. Finally, the study provides useful insights and guidelines to the general public, educators, policymakers, lectures and managers of the institution of learning. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Durban-Westville, 2004.

South Africa is a country with tremendous diversity. Previously, many learners who experienced barriers to learning and development were excluded from the education system, preventing them from meeting their educational needs. With the implementation of inclusive education, barriers to learning and development are no longer seen to reside primarily within the individual learner, but instead emphasis is placed on transforming the education system to accommodate a variety of learning needs. Many learners in South Africa display symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) which frequently affects their learning and development. In some instances very little is being done to accommodate such learners to ensure that they are given the opportunity to develop to their full potential, as many educators continue to view these learners negatively, and fail to question the effect that they themselves may have upon the learners’ development. The implementation of inclusive education, however, ought to create a space in schools where educators can support learners with ADHD in a unique manner and assist them to develop to their full potential. It is on the basis of this acknowledgement and commitment of support by Education White Paper 6 that this research project was conceived, to explore how grade three learners with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder experience the support provided by their educators. A qualitative approach was employed in the study and participants were selected through purposive sampling. As the primary participants were young learners, the data was obtained through the use of arts-based (collage) focus group interviews. Individual interviews were also used to gather additional data from the learners’ educators. The data from both the learners with ADHD and their educators was then transcribed. After a thorough analysis, using an open-coding technique, the findings clearly indicated that attempts are being made to implement the policy of inclusive education within schools. Educators and staff are beginning to value the diversity of learners, and evidently are attempting to make adjustments to cater for the individual needs of learners and promote their successful learning and development. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2008.

This auto-ethnographic research emerges from an historical account of my self-understandings, perceptions and intentions, constructed from a journal that was kept of my experiences during the various stages of my development as an art teacher. The study revolves around two pivotal questions: ―How have I come to be the art teacher I am?‖ and ―What are the meanings and definitions that have informed my identity as an art teacher in a multiracial classroom?‖ I draw upon Brian Fay‘s theory of self/false consciousness and show how false consciousness works to liberate the self. It does that through the excavation of different layers of consciousness of self, and offers an understanding of how I came to be and to act in particular situations and moments of crisis. This theoretical position enabled me to understand my struggles as a black, African, male art teacher teaching in a multiracial school. By engaging in an auto-ethnographic approach I am able to reflect on the self through my journals and artworks (paintings, pottery, photographs and poems) and on the impact of critical moments in my life. It provides me with the lens to zoom in and out of my life experiences and understand the meanings (false/borrowed/assimilated) that I took up as a marginalised black African male interested in learning art in a white-dominated world. By adopting a critical stance, this research reveals both personal issues and broader social structures, institutions and processes, and shows how they are intertwined. Firstly, the study offers an analysis of chosen critical moments of my life. Secondly, it presents an understanding of those moments and my part in them. Thirdly, it explores the meanings that I came to adopt in those moments of crisis. Fourthly, it reflects on how this self-searching assisted me to liberate myself from false consciousness as a black African male art teacher. It tries to trace the gradual movement from the prison of my past to my development as a teacher in a South African classroom in a new democratic dispensation. Auto-ethnography provides deeper access to self-understanding, and engaging through this reflective process, I was able to understand and know that educational change can only happen meaningfully if I know and confront my personal and professional meanings and how they have been shaped and continue to inform the choices I make in my classroom daily. As a Black, African, Male, Art Teacher who learnt and lived through the legacy of apartheid, false consciousness was a way of being ‗other‘. The realisation of being ―a coconut‖ (Ferguson: 2006) and the meanings of the art world that went with it, proved liberating. ―Coconut‖ is term referring to a black person who does and acts like a white person. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2008.