It is imperative to prepare South African learners to participate and function confidently within the context of a rapidly changing world. The curriculum of the South African Education System emphasises the significance of optimising learners‟ cognitive development as early as pre-school age to enable them to become creative and critical citizens who lead purposeful lives in a safe and prejudice-free environment. Despite continuous efforts by educators to optimise cognitive development, recently executed research studies indicate that cognitive development has not been adequately optimised in South African schools. This study was undertaken to establish the cognitive development level (cognitive and meta-cognitive skills and strategies, cognitive functions and non-intellective factors) of Grade R-learners and to determine the effect of an intervention programme, the Cognitive Enhancement Programme for Pre-schoolers (CEPP), on their cognitive development. By means of a literature study, I investigated whether, to what extent the cognitive development of Grade R-learners was taking place, and established which cognitive and meta-cognitive thinking skills and strategies, cognitive functions and non-intellective factors are required for effective cognitive development among Grade R-learners. In addition to this, the role of mediation for optimising cognitive development was investigated. A concurrent embedded mixed methods design was conducted in the implementation of the research. Intervention research within a quasi-experimental research design was applied. The data collection by means of a quantitative strategy (quasi-experimental research) and qualitative strategy (observation study) was executed simultaneously. By means of convenient sampling, one Grade R-class with twenty learners was subjected to a pre-test to establish their cognitive developmental level. The test results as well as the observations conducted during the pre-test revealed that the learners experienced problems related to their cognitive development. Ten of the twenty learners were then divided purposively based on their test performance into two experimental groups, Experimental Group A and Experimental Group B consisting of five participants each. Experimental group A and Experimental Group B took part in the CEPP intervention based on the principles of mediation on a rotational basis over a period of twelve weeks, during which intentional attempts were made to optimise their cognitive development. Both groups completed a post-test and delayed post-test (retention) to determine the effect of the CEPP intervention on their cognitive development. In addition to the test results, observations in the form of structured running and anecdotal records and reflective notes were utilised to understand the nature and quality of the cognitive development of the learners better. Furthermore, the effect of the intervention on their cognitive development was established. The cognitive development of Grade R-learners who participated in this study was optimised, which is a clear indication that cognitive capacity can be optimised when instruction is based on the principles of mediation / PhD, Teaching and Learning, North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2012

Σκοπός της παρούσας διατριβής είναι η μελέτη της επίδρασης των εφαρμοζόμενων διδακτικών στρατηγικών για την διδασκαλία της Χρηματοοικονομικής στη διαμόρφωση των μαθησιακών στρατηγικών των φοιτητών και στην ανάπτυξη των δεξιοτήτων κριτικής σκέψης, με την χρησιμοποίηση της οικονομετρικής τεχνικής της quantile regression (QR). Η επισκόπηση της διεθνούς βιβλιογραφίας καθώς και η έρευνα για την παρούσα διατριβή δείχνουν, αφενός ότι στους συγγενείς επιστημονικούς χώρους της Οικονομικής, της Χρηματοοικονομικής και της Λογιστικής εφαρμόζονται διδακτικές στρατηγικές που βασίζονται στη μέθοδο των διαλέξεων και φαίνεται να επηρεάζουν την διαμόρφωση των μαθησιακών στρατηγικών και αφετέρου ότι η χρησιμοποίηση διδακτικών στρατηγικών ενεργού εμπλοκής των φοιτητών στην μάθηση μπορεί πράγματι να επηρεάζει τη διαμόρφωση των μαθησιακών στρατηγικών και να συμβάλλει στην ανάπτυξη δεξιοτήτων κριτικής σκέψης. Από την ως άνω επισκόπηση έχει καταφανεί ότι η στατιστική ανάλυση των ως άνω επιδράσεων στηρίζεται, κατά το πλείστον, σε υπολογισμό συντελεστών συσχέτισης, σε ανάλυση της διακύμανσης καθώς και στην χρησιμοποίηση της κλασικής παλινδρόμησης. Η διαμόρφωση των μαθησιακών στρατηγικών εκτιμάται μέσα από την διαμόρφωση των τρόπων και τύπων μάθησης των φοιτητών, με τη χρησιμοποίηση του Learning Style Inventory (LSI) του Kolb και του Learning Styles Questionnaire (LSQ) των Honey και Mumford. Με το LSI (που χρησιμοποιήθηκε και στις δυο φάσεις της έρευνας) εκτιμάται η προτίμηση προς τέσσερεις τρόπους μάθησης (Απτή Εμπειρία, Στοχαστική Παρατήρηση, Αφηρημένη Αντίληψη Εννοιών και Ενεργός Πειραματισμός), με βάση τους οποίους προκύπτουν τέσσερεις τύποι μάθησης (Αποκλίνων, Αφομοιωτικός, Συγκλίνων και Διευκολύνων). Για την εκτίμηση του επιπέδου ανάπτυξης των δεξιοτήτων κριτικής σκέψης των φοιτητών, χρησιμοποιείται το California Critical Thinking Skills Test (CCTST), δημιουργημένο από τον Peter Facione με βάση τα συμπεράσματα της Delphi Report (American Philosophical Association). Το CCTST εκτιμά πέντε επιμέρους δεξιότητες κριτικής σκέψης (Ανάλυση, Αξιολόγηση, Συμπερασμός, Επαγωγικός και Απαγωγικός Συλλογισμός) καθώς και την συνολική ικανότητα στις δεξιότητες κριτικής σκέψης. Η έρευνα δια την συγκέντρωση παρατηρήσεων διενεργήθηκε σε δυο φάσεις: στην πρώτη εκτιμήθηκαν μόνο οι τρόποι και τύποι μάθησης με τη χρήση των LSQ και LSI και στην δεύτερη εκτιμήθηκαν οι τρόποι και τύποι μάθησης με τη χρήση μόνο του LSI καθώς και οι δεξιότητες κριτικής σκέψης με τη χρήση του CCTST. Η στατιστική ανάλυση των δεδομένων της έρευνας στηρίζεται στη χρησιμοποίηση του οικονομετρικού μοντέλου της quantile regression (QR), με το οποίο μπορούν να υπολογιστούν συντελεστές ακόμη και για τα 99 εκατοστημόρια της κατανομής της εξαρτημένης μεταβλητής, αυξάνοντας θεαματικά την αντλούμενη πληροφόρηση, έναντι της κλασικής παλινδρόμησης. Προκύπτει έτσι ένα σημαντικό ερμηνευτικό πλεονέκτημα, το οποίο φωτίζει την επίδραση που ασκείται σε όλο το εύρος της κατανομής και συμβάλλει στην εκτενέστερη και βαθύτερη κατανόηση των ασκούμενων επιδράσεων. Αυτή η δυνατότητα έχει κατ’ εξοχήν σημασία στην ερμηνεία της αλλαγής της προτίμησης από τον έναν τρόπο μάθησης στον διαμετρικά αντίθετό του και την ενδιάμεση κατάσταση της ισορροπημένης μάθησης, για κάθε μια από τις δυο διαστάσεις μάθησης του μοντέλου Εμπειρικής Μάθησης του Kolb. Η QR χρησιμοποιείται επίσης για την έρευνα της επίδρασης των διαμορφωμένων τρόπων και τύπων μάθησης στην ανάπτυξη των δεξιοτήτων κριτικής σκέψης. Θεωρητικά υποστηρίζεται ότι ο Συγκλίνων μαθήτυπος του μοντέλου του Kolb υπερτερεί στην επίδοση στις δεξιότητες κριτικής σκέψης, υπόθεση που δεν τεκμηριώνεται στην περίπτωση που αναπτύσσεται ισορροπημένη προτίμηση προς τους τέσσερεις τρόπους μάθησης. Οι εν λόγω επιδράσεις τεκμηριώνονται με την ανάλυση των δεδομένων από την πειραματική εφαρμογή διδακτικού μοντέλου ενεργού εμπλοκής των φοιτητών στην διαδικασία διδασκαλίας-μάθησης της Χρηματοοικονομικής με τη χρήση της QR. Τα βασικά συμπεράσματα της παρούσας διατριβής είναι τα εξής: α) Το μαθησιακό περιβάλλον που διαμορφώνεται από την εκάστοτε εφαρμοζόμενη διδακτική στρατηγική επιδρά διαφορετικά σε κάθε τμήμα της κατανομής της εξαρτημένης μεταβλητής. β) Η ανάπτυξη ισορροπημένης προτίμησης προς τους τρόπους μάθησης είναι επωφελέστερη, έναντι της επιλεκτικής προτίμησης, για την ανάπτυξη δεξιοτήτων κριτικής σκέψης. γ) Η διάδραση που αναπτύσσεται μεταξύ των φοιτητών σε ομάδες που απαρτίζονται από διαφορετικούς τύπους μάθησης ασκεί σημαντική επίδραση στην ανάπτυξη ισορροπημένης μάθησης και στη βελτίωση του επιπέδου των δεξιοτήτων κριτικής σκέψης. δ) Η εκτίμηση πολλών συντελεστών παλινδρόμησης με την χρήση της QR διευρύνει σημαντικά την ερμηνεία των επιδράσεων των ανεξάρτητων στις εξαρτημένες μεταβλητές, έναντι άλλων απλών στατιστικών μέτρων καθώς και της κλασικής παλινδρόμησης. ε) Στον τομέα της διδασκαλίας στον επιστημονικό χώρο της Χρηματοοικονομικής στην Ελλάδα, η παρούσα εργασία είναι μοναδική και πρωτότυπη και η συμβολή της είναι καθολική, αναδεικνύοντας ταυτόχρονα ένα οικονομετρικό μοντέλο – την QR – σε ερμηνευτικό εργαλείο των σχέσεων που αναπτύσσονται στην διδακτική πράξη. / The aim of this dissertation is the study of the effect of the implemented teaching strategies in Finance teaching on the formation of students’ learning strategies and development of critical thinking skills, by using the econometric model of quantile regression (QR). The review of the relevant literature, as well as the research for this dissertation show that on the one hand the implemented teaching strategies in the related disciplines of Economics, Finance and Accounting are mainly based on the use of the lecture method and seem to affect the formation of students’ learning strategies and on the other hand the use of teaching strategies that involve students in the teaching-learning process may affect the formation of students’ learning strategies and contribute to the development of critical thinking skills as well. The literature review also shows that statistical analysis of effects is mostly based on correlation coefficients and analysis of variance, as well as the use of traditional regression. The formation of students’ learning strategies is estimated through student learning styles and types, by the use of Kolb’s Learning Style Inventory (LSI) and Honey & Mumford’s Learning Styles Questionnaire (LSQ). By the use of the LSI (which has been used in both phases of the relative research), student preferences towards four learning styles (Concrete Experience, Reflective Observation, Abstract Conceptualization and Active Experimentation) are estimated. Based on the relevant preference for two consecutive learning styles, in the order depicted above, four learning types may occur: Divergers, Assimilators, Convergers, and Accommodators. The California Critical Thinking Skills Test (CCTST) is used for estimating the level of development of students’ critical thinking skills. This instrument has been developed by Peter Facione and is based on the results and recommendations of the Delphi Report of the American Philosophical Association. The CCTST estimates five discrete critical thinking skills, namely Analysis, Evaluation, Inference, Induction and Deduction and the overall critical thinking skills ability as well. The research for the collection of data has been carried out in two phases. In the first phase the LSQ and LSI instruments have been used for the estimation of students’ learning styles and types and in the second phase the LSI has been used for the estimation of students’ learning styles and types and the CCTST for the estimation of students’ critical thinking skills. The statistical analysis of the research data is based on the use of the econometric model of the quantile regression (QR), by which coefficients for as many as 99 percentiles of the dependent variable can be computed. In this way derived information is extremely richer than that derived by using traditional regression. This renders a significant explanatory advantage, which sheds light of the impact on the whole distribution of the dependent variable and thus it contributes to the more comprehensive and deeper understanding of the caused effect. This capability is especially important for explaining the change in the preference from one learning style to its diametrically opposite one and the interim situation of balanced learning, for each of the two dimensions of learning of Kolb’s Experiential Learning Model. QR is also used for the exploration of the impact of the formed learning styles and types on the development of critical thinking skills. Theory suggests that the Converging learning type of Kolb’s model beats the other three in critical thinking skills performance, but this suggestion is not corroborated in the case that a balanced preference towards all four learning styles is developed. The aforementioned impact is documented by the analysis of data rendered by the experimental implementation of a teaching strategy of active engagement of students in the teaching-learning process in Finance teaching, by using the QR. Basic results of this dissertation are as follows: a) The learning environment develop by the implemented teaching strategy has a different impact on each segment of the distribution of the dependent variable. b) The development of balanced preference towards the learning styles is more beneficial for critical thinking skills development than selective preference. c) The developed interactivity between students in groups made up by different learning types has a significant effect on developing balanced learning and on the improvement of the level of critical thinking skills development. d) The use of the Quantile Regression and the computation of many regression coefficients expands significantly the explanatoty potential about the impact of the independent variables on the dependent ones, against other simple statistical metres as well as traditional regression. e) Regarding the teaching endeavors of instructors in the area of Finance in Greece, this dissertation is unique and original and contributes in a total sense, while it simultaneously highlights the advantages of an econometric model – the QR – as an hermeneutic instrument for the relationships development in the teaching process.

It is imperative to prepare South African learners to participate and function confidently within the context of a rapidly changing world. The curriculum of the South African Education System emphasises the significance of optimising learners‟ cognitive development as early as pre-school age to enable them to become creative and critical citizens who lead purposeful lives in a safe and prejudice-free environment. Despite continuous efforts by educators to optimise cognitive development, recently executed research studies indicate that cognitive development has not been adequately optimised in South African schools. This study was undertaken to establish the cognitive development level (cognitive and meta-cognitive skills and strategies, cognitive functions and non-intellective factors) of Grade R-learners and to determine the effect of an intervention programme, the Cognitive Enhancement Programme for Pre-schoolers (CEPP), on their cognitive development. By means of a literature study, I investigated whether, to what extent the cognitive development of Grade R-learners was taking place, and established which cognitive and meta-cognitive thinking skills and strategies, cognitive functions and non-intellective factors are required for effective cognitive development among Grade R-learners. In addition to this, the role of mediation for optimising cognitive development was investigated. A concurrent embedded mixed methods design was conducted in the implementation of the research. Intervention research within a quasi-experimental research design was applied. The data collection by means of a quantitative strategy (quasi-experimental research) and qualitative strategy (observation study) was executed simultaneously. By means of convenient sampling, one Grade R-class with twenty learners was subjected to a pre-test to establish their cognitive developmental level. The test results as well as the observations conducted during the pre-test revealed that the learners experienced problems related to their cognitive development. Ten of the twenty learners were then divided purposively based on their test performance into two experimental groups, Experimental Group A and Experimental Group B consisting of five participants each. Experimental group A and Experimental Group B took part in the CEPP intervention based on the principles of mediation on a rotational basis over a period of twelve weeks, during which intentional attempts were made to optimise their cognitive development. Both groups completed a post-test and delayed post-test (retention) to determine the effect of the CEPP intervention on their cognitive development. In addition to the test results, observations in the form of structured running and anecdotal records and reflective notes were utilised to understand the nature and quality of the cognitive development of the learners better. Furthermore, the effect of the intervention on their cognitive development was established. The cognitive development of Grade R-learners who participated in this study was optimised, which is a clear indication that cognitive capacity can be optimised when instruction is based on the principles of mediation / PhD, Teaching and Learning, North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2012

The primary aim of the study was to design a model for changing teachers' attitudes towards the value of teaching critical thinking skills. Currently, information regarding the conceptualisation of this topic is inadequate and vague. In this study the nature of the complexities involved in the management and implementation of the teaching of critical thinking skills were researched through a literature study and an empirical investigation. A model was then designed for the effective management of the implementation thereof. The findings from the research indicated that teachers' attitudes towards the value of teaching critical thinking skills to learners are negative. It also became evident that the school principal should manage the implementation of the teaching of critical thinking skills to learners. The focus of the proposed model is on how teachers' attitudes towards the value of teaching critical thinking skills can be changed to ensure quality educative teaching and learning in and outside of the classroom. The study therefore serves to present a useable model for the management of the implementation of teaching critical thinking skills to learners. The study is further based on a well balanced opinion as experiences of teachers in the senior phase (grades 7, 8, & 9) were investigated by means of structured questionnaires. Recommendations regarding research findings were made for stakeholders and education departmental officials to note. / Thesis (Ph.D. (Education Management))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2010.

The primary aim of the study was to design a model for changing teachers' attitudes towards the value of teaching critical thinking skills. Currently, information regarding the conceptualisation of this topic is inadequate and vague. In this study the nature of the complexities involved in the management and implementation of the teaching of critical thinking skills were researched through a literature study and an empirical investigation. A model was then designed for the effective management of the implementation thereof. The findings from the research indicated that teachers' attitudes towards the value of teaching critical thinking skills to learners are negative. It also became evident that the school principal should manage the implementation of the teaching of critical thinking skills to learners. The focus of the proposed model is on how teachers' attitudes towards the value of teaching critical thinking skills can be changed to ensure quality educative teaching and learning in and outside of the classroom. The study therefore serves to present a useable model for the management of the implementation of teaching critical thinking skills to learners. The study is further based on a well balanced opinion as experiences of teachers in the senior phase (grades 7, 8, & 9) were investigated by means of structured questionnaires. Recommendations regarding research findings were made for stakeholders and education departmental officials to note. / Thesis (Ph.D. (Education Management))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2010.

Introduction Saudi Arabia is the largest country in the Middle East occupying the majority of the Arabia Peninsula. In 1934 the exploration of oil propelled this country from one of the poorest to one of the highest in per capita income. Islamic law forms the basis of Saudi Arabia's constitution, its civil and penal codes and guides the Saudis in their daily and family lifestyles, governing morals, dress, eating habits and business dealings. Between 1970 and 1980, there was a sharp increase in the rate of population. Currently the population is estimated at 20.8 million with a projected increase to 44.8 million by the year 2025, with approximately 49% under the age of 20. This rise in population has implications for the health care industry, of which expatriates make up more that 85% of the country's health care system. Purpose The purpose of the study was to examine the social and cultural experiences associated with living and working as a registered nurse in a major teaching hospital in Saudi Arabia and to identify and understand how to develop critical thinking skills in Saudi nurses during a nursing education/intervention program in Saudi Arabia. Methodology The researcher reviewed the literature on critical thinking, which allowed the construction of a conceptual model (Appendix 1) to guide teaching and evaluation of critical thinking skills and maintained the focus on dialogue to stimulate interaction and participation in order to promote critical thinking abilities in Saudi nurses. This study adopted ethnography as a methodology and utilised Spradley's (1979)ethnographic research cyclical tasks for data collection and analysis, which are explained in the exploratory, descriptive and explanatory phases of the research. The researcher was a participant observer and collected ethnographic data in the social situation. A variety of data collection methods were employed, which included observation of students and clinical instructors, evaluation of clinical instructors teaching techniques in utilising critical thinking strategies, evaluation of students' responses in the use of critical thinking strategies, focus group interviews of students and clinical instructors and informal interviews conducted within the hospital setting with relevant informants. The use of multi-methods provided the opportunity to examine more fully the richness and complexities of the culture, by gathering data from various sources to validate the consistency of information to reflect the multiple realities of this cultural group. Cultural domains were identified after examining field notes and interviews for terms and clues repeatedly verbalised by informants, in particular students. The researcher organised the domains to formulate taxonomies, leading to cultural themes, which are answered within the research questions in Chapter 8. The research questions for this study are as follows: Research questions 1. What are the issues related to the implementation of critical thinking in a Professional Development Program to improve critical thinking in Saudi nurses? 2. What major elements are involved in creating and sustaining the Saudi Arabian nursing profession? 3. How might Saudi culture be used to support the development of professional nursing identity? Implications for the study This study has the potential to make a significant contribution to nursing education in Saudi Arabia in promoting critical thinking in nurses and in curriculum development for the following reasons. First, didactic instruction was replaced with an interactive approach by utilising critical thinking strategies and devices to facilitate the development of critical thinking abilities. Second, working with a conceptual framework or model made it easier to manage complex multifaceted concepts, such as critical thinking. The model maintained the focus on dialogue and experiential learning thereby assisting students and staff to integrate theory and practice. This model was effective for the program and if duplicated by other programs, could create a learning environment that would allow the effective development and evaluation of critical thinking. The model is reflected in Appendix 1. Recommendations for the nursing profession in Saudi Arabia * To establish the Nursing Practice Act which subsequently leads to the formation of a National Nursing Registration Board. * To transfer nursing into the higher education sectors, to be on par with their Western counterparts. To foster career incentives for men to meet the cultural needs of the people, increase Saudi nurses in the workforce and to raise the image of nursing. * To enact Saudiisation policy. * To incorporate Islamic nursing history into diploma nursing and other nursing educational programs and implemented into the workplace, government policy and the media. * To construct separate male and female hospitals to solve the gender issues. * To systematically collect, collate and analyse nursing data. * To develop continuing education programs to meet educational needs of nurses.

Text in Afrikaans / Real empowerment of school learners requires preparing them for the age of technology. This empowerment can be achieved by developing their higher-order thinking skills. This is clearly the intention of the proposed South African FET National Curriculum Statements Grades 10 to 12 (Schools). This research shows that one method of developing higher-order thinking skills is to adopt an integrated curriculum approach. The research is based on the assumption that an integrated curriculum approach will produce learners with a more integrated knowledge structure which will help them to solve problems requiring higher-order thinking skills. These assumptions are realistic because the empirical results of several comparative research studies show that an integrated curriculum helps to improve learners' ability to use higher-order thinking skills in solving nonroutine problems. The curriculum mentions four kinds of integration, namely integration across different subject areas, integration of mathematics with the real world, integration of algebraic and geometric concepts, and integration into and the use of dynamic geometry software in the learning and teaching of geometry. This research shows that from a psychological, pedagogical, mathematical and historical perspective, the theme conic sections can be used as an integrating factor in the new proposed FET mathematics curriculum. Conics are a powerful tool for making the new proposed curriculum more integrated. Conics can be used as an integrating factor in the FET band by means of mathematical exploration, visualisation, relating learners' experiences of various parts of mathematics to one another, relating mathematics to the rest of the learners' experiences and also applying conics to solve real-life problems. / Mathematical Sciences / D.Phil. (Wiskundeonderwys)

Cette thèse questionne les pratiques des enseignants et leur capacité à exploiter les appareils théoriques présentés durant leur formation à l’enseignement dans leur pratique quotidienne. L’objectif est d’analyser des « praxéologies » d’enseignement, au travers de l’étude de la transposition qui s’effectue dans le cas de la formation aux théories de « l’éducation centrée sur la résolution de problèmes (PCE) » vers les pratiques concrètes d’enseignement. Les parties théoriques s’emploient à définir la notion de « compétences à enseigner » ainsi que la notion de PCE. Le but ultime est de définir les compétences qui sont indispensables pour l’organisation de l’apprentissage dans le cadre de la PCE. La partie empirique étudie les praxéologies des enseignants qui travaillent avec la PCE. L’analyse des données permet de repérer dans les praxéologies des professeurs des éléments pertinents pour l’enseignement dans le cadre du modèle PCE qui représentent certains indicateurs de compétence. / The research addresses the problem of teaching competences and the transposition of certain theoretical understandings into teachers’ own practice.The aim is to study teaching praxeologies of teachers who learn to work with the Problem-Centred Education (PCE) in order to shed light into the question of how teachers construct their teaching competence in this domain.The theoretical part explores the concept of teaching competences in general and defines those relevant for the PCE in particular. The concept of the PCE is also defined and positioned among the existing ‘problem’ approaches. The aim is to outline teaching competences relevant for the PCE.The empirical part aims at studying teachers’ understanding and practical application of the Problem-Centred Education. The analysis allowed revealing certain essential components in teachers’ praxeologies that are assumed to serve as an indicator of a certain level of teaching competence in the domain of the PCE. A tentative relation between some components has also been suggested.

Fostering students’ creativity in school subjects has recently become a central focus of educational researchers, educators, and educational policymakers around the world. In Kuwait, educational researchers and teacher educators have supported the need to foster students’ creativity via a national curriculum. Yet, the Ministry of Education has conducted few studies to explore practitioners’ perspectives on how to foster creativity through the current curriculum. The overall aims of this study were to explore science teachers’ pedagogical beliefs and practices in fostering creativity in science classrooms as well as to investigate the influences of sociocultural factors on teachers’ beliefs and practices in fostering creativity. The study also examined the consistency and inconsistency levels between teachers’ beliefs and practices. The study has a qualitative nature that stands on an interpretive worldview. The methodology uses eight case studies, each of which consisted of a male science teacher and one of his classes. Multiple methods were used, including semi-structured interviews (pre- and post-observational interviews), student focus groups, unstructured observations, participants’ drawings, and field notes. The analysis was based on thematic analysis model proposed by Braun and Clarke (2006). Thematic findings and case studies findings were drawn from the analysis of the data collected. In general, the thematic findings indicated that science teachers are able to define the meaning of creativity and its main aspects. Professed pedagogical beliefs enforce four teaching approaches to foster creativity in the science classroom: the teaching of thinking skills, inquiry-based learning, cooperative learning, and practical investigation (experimentation). The teachers believe that these approaches could promote students’ creativity in science classroom when specific sociocultural factors facilitate the effectiveness of such approaches in terms of fostering creativity. Three interdependent categories represent these facilitating factors: (1) educational setting-related factors, (2) teacher-related factors, and (3) student-related factors. Differences and similarities appeared when these professed beliefs were compared to the applied classroom practices. The thematic analysis revealed several themes underlying the main categories. Extensive teacher-centred practices and modest student-centred practices were evident; more specifically, the observations revealed primarily teacher-centred approach inside the science classes. Meanwhile, student-centred approaches were modestly applied in comparison to teacher-centred activities. The teachers justified their practices in accordance with the sociocultural factors that mediate their beliefs and practices as well as the role of their goal orientation. The science teachers perceived the mediating factors as constraints that prevent them from applying their beliefs about fostering creativity in classroom practices. Multiple constraining factors emerged, and they were categorised into personal, external, and interpersonal constraints. Concerning the case study findings, consistencies and inconsistencies were identified using a cut-off point as an analytic technique to classify teachers’ beliefs and practices into traditional (non-creativity fostering), mixed, or progressive (creativity fostering). The case study findings identified four consistency and inconsistency levels characterizing teachers’ beliefs and practices: traditional (consistent level), mainly traditional (inconsistent level), mixed (consistent level), and mainly progressive (inconsistent level). Each level was represented by an exemplary case study. The exemplary case studies revealed that sociocultural contexts influence teacher’s belief-practice relationship with respect to fostering students’ creativity in science classroom. Further, the thematic and case study findings were discussed in relation to the existing body of knowledge, followed by an illustration of significant conclusions, including some implications, contributions, limitations, and future suggestions.

Academics encounter problems with the selection, evaluation, testing and implementation of e-assessment software tools. The researcher experienced these problems while adopting e-assessment at the university where she is employed. Hence she undertook this study, which is situated in schools and departments in Computing-related disciplines, namely Computer Science, Information Systems and Information Technology at South African Higher Education Institutions. The literature suggests that further research is required in this domain. Furthermore, preliminary empirical studies indicated similar disabling factors at other South African tertiary institutions, which were barriers to long-term implementation of e-assessment. Despite this, academics who are adopters of e-assessment indicate satisfaction, particularly when conducting assessments with large classes. Questions of the multiple choice genre can be assessed automatically, leading to increased productivity and more frequent assessments. The purpose of this research is to develop an evaluation framework to assist academics in determining which e-assessment tool to adopt, enabling them to make more informed decisions. Such a framework would also support evaluation of existing e-assessment systems. The underlying research design is action research, which supported an iterative series of studies for developing, evaluating, applying, refining, and validating the SEAT (Selecting and Evaluating an e-Assessment Tool) Evaluation Framework and subsequently an interactive electronic version, e-SEAT. Phase 1 of the action research comprised Studies 1 to 3, which established the nature, context and extent of adoption of e-assessment. This set the foundation for development of SEAT in Phase 2. During Studies 4 to 6 in Phase 2, a rigorous sequence of evaluation and application facilitated the transition from the manual SEAT Framework to the electronic evaluation instrument, e-SEAT, and its further evolution. This research resulted in both a theoretical contribution (SEAT) and a practical contribution (e-SEAT). The findings of the action research contributed, along with the literature, to the categories and criteria in the framework, which in turn, contributed to the bodies of knowledge on MCQs and e-assessment. The final e-SEAT version, the ultimate product of this action research, is presented in Appendix J1. For easier reference, the Appendices are included on a CD, attached to the back cover of this Thesis.. / Computing / PhD. (Information Systems)