The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of the internet by the Faculty of Humanities, Development and Social Science third year students at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg campus. The study tried to establish how often students used the internet; what did students use the internet for; what internet services did students use the most and why were those services used. Furthermore, the study investigated what information services were relevant and important for students; whether students had the necessary skills to use the internet and what problems they experienced while using the internet. Conclusions were drawn and a set of recommendations were made based on the findings of the study. The study population comprised 330 Faculty of Humanities, Development and Social Science third year students. A total number of 254 undergraduate third year students responded, which gave a very good response rate of 77%. The researcher employed a triangulation approach where both qualitative and quantitative data were collected. For quantitative data collection the researcher used a questionnaire. An interview schedule to obtain qualitative data from the Director of Information Communication and Technology was used. The data from the interview was used to support the data from the questionnaire. The quantitative data was analysed using SPSS and the qualitative data was analysed using thematic content analysis. To maintain validity and reliability the questionnaire was pre-tested to non Faculty of HDSS undergraduate students at the UKZNP. The findings of the study showed that a majority of HDSS undergraduate third year students at UKZNP used the internet on campus with less than half of them also using the internet off campus. The most relevant and important internet services for third year students were e-mail, Web and telnet. However, the most used internet services by third year students were the Web, e-mail, social networks and telnet. A majority of students used GroupWise e-mail even though they had other e-mail accounts. In addition, a majority of students used FaceBook and students preferred Google more than other search engines. There were a number of challenges students experienced regarding the use of the internet. Such challenges included a limited number of computers in the LANs, slow internet connections, restricted access to certain sites and a lack of training on how to use the internet on campus. / Thesis (M.I.S.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.

The failure of student movements in higher education institutions in South Africa to critically engage the nature and the character of the 'democratic' transition in higher education has led to the questioning of the nature of student activism, activists and the academics of the new order. The substantive nature of our democracy which has no guarantees for transformative higher education system has since led to the adoption of neo-liberal policies that have perpetually excluded a certain sector of South African society. This oppression has been legitimised by failure of student movement and academics to uproot the current regimes of policy making which continue to hold captive the minds of a mass of people in a state of false consciousness. The current circumstances of "corporatised" higher education system makes it necessary now more than ever to begin to examine the issues of relativism as it relates to the questioning of current state of these institutions and student movements. South Africa needs student activist/intellectuals who are willing to participate in the auspices of the institution and the structure, and to transform it. Their task is to operate within time. However, the post 1994 era has left the student movement disgruntled and without direction. Student movements and their academic counter part have since been absorbed by the dominant ideology of the ruling elite. This has made transformation extremely difficult because of the materialism that this brings and a failure to engage the discourses of oppression with the goal of exploiting and deconstructing the dominant ideologies of subjection, betraying the scrutinizing role of a liberating education. This thesis seeks to argue that student movements, academies and academics have been defeated in an area where they should excel in the battle and struggle of ideas, for alternatives in search of a better society. / Thesis (M.A.) - University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2006.

Retirement from work can be viewed from a number of standpoints: economic; medical; administrative and social. In South Africa research has mainly focused on social and economic factors with a strong bias towards state old age pensions and how retired people are more vulnerable to poverty as they are forced to share their pensions with their families and look after HIV/AIDS orphans (Noumbissi and Zuberi, 2001:45). This research will fill a gap by exploring the administrative aspect, the various policies that regulate retirement, and how these affect decisions to retire on individuals and the perceived effect on the performance of an organization. Gustman and Steinmeier (1991:98) argue that exits through retirement are one of the important labor market flows that shape the age structure of faculty, and help to determine the quality and costs of higher education thus it is worth investigating the policies that regulate this labor flow. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2010.

Apartheid city planning ensured that different races lived separately. Non Whites i.e. Coloureds, Indians and African Blacks were sited far from city centres and from the public amenities closer to the wealthier parts of the city. Black residential settlements in particular, did not have proper:-(i) drainage (ii) roads (iii) libraries (iv) post-offices (v) sports fields (vi) public swimming pool for children (vii) bioscope arena and (viii) old age homes for the senior citizens. The mushrooming of the squatter camps in the Durban Functional area during the 80 's has been an indication that Blacks needed other basic urban infrastructure. They wanted to reside near the city centre where most of them sold their labour. When political violence erupted in the rural areas of KZN (after the unbanning of political organizations, mainly the African National Congress) people moved away from the violence - stricken areas to places near the city where they erected temporary structures, the shacks or "imijondolo ' in the Zulu language. After 1994 the Government of National Unity (the first democratically elected government) came with new initiatives to improve the living conditions in the shack villages. For the first time the Metro City planning policy system took informal settlement into consideration. Through the new government housing approach the poor were granted the housing subsidy which would enable them to own a new home in a place closer to their place of work. Canaan informal settlement could not be upgraded because of the landslide. Instead residents of Canaan were relocated to Quarry Heights where they now have access to proper infrastructure. The community now has access to electricity, clean water, properly constructed roads with streetlights and proper sewerage. This paper demonstrates that the beneficiaries of Quarry Heights have been the rightful recipients of the new product. They now live under improved conditions. The housing project/product of Quarry Heights, it seems has reached the intended target group, which is the poorest of the poor. The state is gradually meeting the needs of the homeless, their wants' are being prioritized and redressed. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2005.

In this dissertation I aimed at understanding and explaining what support staff have experienced during the placement and redeployment process at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. Support staff are crucial to the success of the vision and the mission of the university, therefore it was necessary to hear their voices. Five support staff members participated in this study. Using a qualitative case study approach, I sought to answer the following critical questions: 1) How did support staff experience placement and redeployment? 2) What can we learn from the support staff's experiences of placement and redeployment in both the School and the University? The literature review included the following issues: placement and redeployment in the organisation change, organisational change, how change occurred in the organisation, the human factor during organisational change, resistance to change, change management, leadership during change management, communication and education during managing change, participation and involvement and the role of organisational culture in organisational change. I adopted Lewin's theory of change as the framework for this study. This framework gives rise to thinking about a planned approach to changing things. Data were generated from focus group interview and document analysis. I examined data through ten themes, as follows: communication about placement, support staff participation and involvement in decision making about placement, shock, fear and confusion, experiences of application and placement process, handing over process, timing of placement and induction, new organisational structure and reporting lines, workload, job description and clarification of role, before the reconfiguration versus after the reconfiguration. The findings revealed that communication, participation and role clarification were key to successful implementation of change. From the findings, I concluded that power tactics and despotism cannot implement compliance, but can lead to resistance. Employee participation and involvement makes the employees feel appreciated and respected. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2012.

The present study sought to understand the relationship between attitudes and prevention knowledge of HIV I AIDS among matriculation students. HIV infection rates has reached epidemic proportions in South Africa and has serious consequences for individuals, particularly for adoiescellts as they make up the largest percentage of the vulnerable age group aged between 15 and 29. Given the high risks that adolescents are faced with, many awareness and prevention programmes have been implemented. These programmes have focused particularly on attitudinal and behavioural change towards HIV I AIDS prevention. The reason for this is that all sexual behaviour is mediated, facilitated and or justified by cognitions and beliefs (Vanwesenbeeck, Bekker & Van Lenning 1998). The sample was selected from a boys school, which chose to remain anonymous and a girls high school in Westville, Durban. Questionnaires aimed at assessing knowledge regarding the spread and prevention of HIV/AIDS were administered. Questionnaires aimed at assessing their attitudes towards prevention of HIV/AIDS were also administered to learners. Learners had been exposed to awareness and life skills programmes as part of their curriculum. Festinger's (1957) theory of cognitive dissonance was used as a framework to understand the relationship between one's attitudes and behaviour. The findings indicated that most respondents had adequate knowledge regarding HIV I AIDS spread and prevention. The results also indicated that there was a correlation between knowledge and attitudes but it was not a strong relationship suggesting that there may have been external factors that may have impacted on the relationship thus placing adolescents at a relatively high risk to the HIV infection. This according to Festinger's (1957) theory suggests that there is some inconsistency between attitudes and behaviour towards HIV I AIDS prevention amongst learners. The findings of the study also highlight the need for future research in this area, which would better inform and improve intervention programmes that have been targeted at adolescents in high schools. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2004.

The landscape of learning spaces in academic libraries is undergoing continual change, re-adaptation and reconfiguration. These winds of change are ushered in by the very nature of the dynamic information economy. Globally, information needs of end-users in academic libraries have dictated the changing space trends as in this case study of the Research Commons of the Howard College Library at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. The demands of the changing information economy have directed institutions of higher learning en route to tailoring their outcomes with the view to increasing research output and productivity. In view of this, Academic libraries are finding themselves increasingly becoming significantly involved in the process of research support. The Research Commons (RC) is one such research support initiative of UKZN Libraries. This RC opened its doors, offering research facilities to a designate cohort of Master’s, Doctoral students, Researchers and Academic staff on the 01st of October 2008. Three years to date, the facility has grown in its popularity and patronage. The study of the end-users of the RC emanated from an express interest of the researcher who supports EUs in the capacity of a Senior Librarian. Time spent in the RC further, piqued the interest of the researcher, who was particularly keen about how EUs interacted with the elements of this space and their experiences thereof. This study was conducted with the express aim of understanding, through a qualitative inquiry the experiences of the end-users of the (RC) situated at the Howard College Library of the University of KwaZulu-Natal. I the researcher in attempting to examine these experiences found myself having to address the following key research questions: What are the experiences of the end-users of the learning space? Who are the end-users of the Research Commons? With what elements of the Research Commons do the end-users interact? In what ways do the end-users interact with the different elements? The survey methodology approach was employed using the following instruments: Online and manual survey questionnaires Interviews Observations The different data collection techniques served to generate the richest data for the researcher to use in the interpretation of the results. An important element of this survey was an attempt to ascertain as deep an understanding of the experiences of the EUs in relation to their interaction with this designated space and its elements in their research journey. The findings of the survey demonstrated that the EUs of the RC did indeed encounter experiences that were precipitated by their interaction with the elements of this space. Significantly, it was revealed that EUs found that their time spent in the RC contributed positively to their research experiences. It was further established that interaction with the space and its elements influenced the way in which EUs work. In disclosing the desirability of the RC in meeting their research needs, the EUs were keen to render suggestions for changes and enhancements to the RC. Overall, it was verified that this study shed valuable evidence on how the EUs experienced the RC. Consequently, emanating through the interpretation of the data, the researcher was able to identify possible gaps in the provision of this research support unit which has perhaps added value to this study in providing library management with the necessary understanding in addressing the research needs of the EUs of the RC more than adequately. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2011.

The pass rate of first-year university mathematics students at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (Pietermaritzburg Campus) has been low for many years. One cause may be weak algebra skills. At the time of this study, revision of high school algebra was not part of the major first year mathematics course. This study set out to investigate if it would be worthwhile to spend tutorial time on basic algebra when there is already an overcrowded calculus syllabus, or if students refresh their algebra skills sufficiently as they study first year mathematics. Since it was expected that remediation of algebra skills would be found to be worthwhile, two other questions were also investigated: Which remediation strategy is best? Which errors are the hardest to remediate? Five tutorial groups for Math 130 were randomly assigned one of four remediation strategies, or no remediation. Three variations of using cognitive conflict to change students’ misconceptions were used, as well as the strategy of practice. Pre- and post-tests in the form of multiple choice questionnaires with spaces for free responses were analysed. Comparisons between the remediated and non-remediated groups were made based on pre- and post-test results and Math 130 results. The most persistent errors were determined using an 8-category error classification developed for this purpose. The best improvement from pre- to post-test was 12.1% for the group remediated with cognitive conflict over 5 weeks with explanations from the tutor. Drill and practice gave the next-best improvement of 8.1%, followed by self-guided cognitive conflict over 5 weeks (7.8% improvement). A once-off intervention using cognitive conflict gave a 5.9% improvement. The group with no remediation improved by 2.3%. The results showed that the use of tutorintensive interventions more than doubled the improvement between pre-and post-tests but even after remediation, the highest group average was 80%, an unsatisfactory level for basic skills. The three most persistent errors were those involving technical or careless errors, errors from over-generalising and errors from applying a distorted algorithm, definition or theorem. / Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2009.

Questions have been raised regarding factors influencing fertility in South Africa, particularly within the different population groups. Various studies have focused on fertility in South Africa and other developing countries, based on racial differences, socio-economic statuses and geographical or environmental factors. It is clear that the major omission in the existing studies is the much-needed investigation of cultural influences on fertility outcomes. Therefore, this study is an investigation of the role of culture in influencing fertility behaviour among young women at the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal, Durban. The central question of this paper is therefore: how does culture influence fertility behaviour among young university women? To respond to this question, the study used John Bongaarts' theory on proximate determinants of fertility as lenses for this investigation. A qualitative research design was used to collect data through 14 individual in-depth interviews with multiracial and multicultural women between the ages of 22 and 31. A thematic analysis revealed that culture still plays a significant role in determining fertility outcomes. Although the participants are aware of the conservative stand of their cultures and religions, the results indicate that their personal choices for fertility behaviour are influenced by education and desire for success in their careers. In addition, the findings showed that the extent to which culture influences fertility behaviour is different across the various racial groups in South Africa. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2012.

Tertiary institutions in South Africa have become culturally diverse and the question of the counseling services available to students from diverse cultural backgrounds is inevitable. The study investigated the views of different stakeholders of the University of KwaZulu–Natal (UKZN) on the incorporation of traditional healing into student counseling services. In-depth, open ended interviews and focus group discussions were held with purposefully-chosen students, psychologists, a traditional healer and deans of student services. Data were analyzed qualitatively using thematic analysis. The participants highlighted the potential usefulness of traditional healing especially in dealing with culture-bound syndromes and students’ identity issues. The logistics of having traditional healing services in spaces modeled along Western influences, as well as ethical issues were identified as the main challenges. The findings are discussed in relation to indigenous knowledge systems and the constitutional imperatives on cultural diversity. / Thesis (M.Soc.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2011.