In 2000, the Minister of Education, Professor Kader Asmal announced that all learners exiting the Further Education and Training band as from 2001 must accumulate marks in the subjects offered at Grade 12 through a process of Continuous assessment (CASS) (DoE, 2001d). Apart from indicating the value of CASS to the external summative component in the ratio of 25% for CASS and 75% for the summative examination, there were and there still is no other policy to regulate the conduct of CASS at Grade 12 level. The situation is worsened by the non-preparation of educators to cope with the challenges of CASS implementation. This study focuses on the implementation of CASS in Mathematics and Science since there is a body of firm evidence, which indicates that, the results in Mathematics and Science in South Africa is not very good. The TIMSS-R study conducted in 1998/1999 indicates that South African learners performed poorly in Mathematics and Science when compared to other participating countries (Howie, 2001). Since it has been established that continuous assessment conducted in a formative manner in subjects such as Mathematics and Science can lead to improved academic performance (Black&Wiliam, 1998), it is essential that attention be given, and initiatives taken to improve the quality of assessment in these critical subjects. In the analysis of the 2001 Senior Certificate examination, it became evident that the CASS marks of learners in many instances were not valid (SAFCERT, 2000a). To address the concern of inflated CASS marks, Umalusi resorted to the use of statistical moderation to ensure that the CASS marks do not deviate drastically from the examination marks of learners. This predominantly quantitative study makes use of surveys to gather data on the problems and challenges experienced by Grade 12 educators in the effective implementation of CASS and the kinds of support provided to educators to strengthen and to sustain the effective implementation of CASS in the classroom. In addition, the study seeks to examine to what extent the Grade 12 CASS marks are fair, valid and reliable. Data was collected from a non - random sample of 21 subject advisors and 60 educators of Mathematics, Biology and Physical Science across six provinces namely, Eastern Cape, Northern Cape, Limpopo, KwaZulu - Natal, Gauteng and Mpumalanga and across all locations (rural, township and urban). Individual interviews were also conducted with four experts on CASS from national, provincial and district levels and an official from Umalusi. It is apt to end this abstract by indicating that, “our education system has been subjected to many far - reaching initiatives which, whilst taken in reaction to concerns about existing practices, have been based on little evidence about their potential to meet those concerns. In the study of formative assessment there can be seen, for once, firm evidence that indicates clearly a direction for change, which could improve standards of learning. Our plea is that national policy will grasp this opportunity and give a lead in this direction” (Black&Wiliam, 1998). / Dissertation (MEd (Assessment and Quality Assurance))--University of Pretoria, 2005. / Curriculum Studies / unrestricted

No description available.

Background. In the field of risk management, focusing on digital infrastructure, there is an uncertainty about which methods and algorithms are relevant and correct. Behind this uncertainty lies a need for testing and evaluation of different risk management analysis methods in order to determine how effective they are in relation to each other. Purpose. The purpose of this thesis is to manufacture a reproducible and universal method of comparison between risk management analysis methods. This is based on the need to compare two risk assessment analysis methods. One method relies solely on impact information and the other expands on that concept by also utilizing information about the network environment. Method. A network is modeled into a scenario. A risk assessment is conducted on the scenario by risk assessment experts which will be used as the correct solution. The tested risk management analysis methods are applied to the scenario and the results are compared with the expert risk assessment. The distance between the assessments are measured with Mean Square Error; A smaller distance between one assessment and the experts assessment indicates that it is more correct. Result. The result shows that it is possible to reproducibly compare risk management analysis methods by comparing the respective output with an established truth. The conducted comparison shows that a method that use network environment data is capable of producing a more correct assessment than one which simply uses impact data. Conclusion. A scenario based approach to compare risk management analysis methods for risk assessment has been proven effective.

No description available.

No description available.

<p>This study explores the assessment practices of adult educators in Mamelodi Adult Learning Centers using a qualitative methodology. The study recognizes that assessment is an important activity within the education and training enterprise since it can be used to improve the quality of teaching as well as improve and support the learning process. The study sets out to investigate how Mamelodi adult educators conceptualize assessment / the skills levels of these educators / the nature of support and training these educators received to enhance their assessment practices / the different assessment methods employed by the adult educators to assess learners / and the educational validity and efficacy of these practices.</p>

<p>This study explores the assessment practices of adult educators in Mamelodi Adult Learning Centers using a qualitative methodology. The study recognizes that assessment is an important activity within the education and training enterprise since it can be used to improve the quality of teaching as well as improve and support the learning process. The study sets out to investigate how Mamelodi adult educators conceptualize assessment / the skills levels of these educators / the nature of support and training these educators received to enhance their assessment practices / the different assessment methods employed by the adult educators to assess learners / and the educational validity and efficacy of these practices.</p>

Magister Educationis (Adult Learning and Global Change) - MEd(AL) / This study explores the assessment practices of adult educators in Mamelodi Adult Learning Centers using a qualitative methodology. The study recognizes that assessment is an important activity within the education and training enterprise since it can be used to improve the quality of teaching as well as improve and support the learning process. The study sets out to investigate how Mamelodi adult educators conceptualize assessment; the skills levels of these educators; the nature of support and training these educators received to enhance their assessment practices; the different assessment methods employed by the adult educators to assess learners; and the educational validity and efficacy of these practices. / South Africa

Considering the point that existing WIL programmes are somewhat amorphous and do not optimally utilise available technologies, the TUT decided to embrace a technology-based WIL framework for improving its WIL programmes. Inspired by the fact that assessment is fundamental to the success of any WIL programme, the researcher wanted to attend to e-assessment within the context of WIL. Hence, this study intended to identify and examine the factors that should be included in the development of e-assessment as component of WIL. In addition, it was also aimed at determining the resultant experiences, emanating from the determined factors, of the implementation of e-assessment as component of WIL. By conducting a literature and an empirical study, the purpose of the study was realised. Based on the literature study, the importance and relevance of WIL as authentic learning experience was described, while e-assessment was explained, discussed and justified within the context of WIL. For the empirical study, a sequential, embedded mixed-methods research design, anchored in an exploratory case study, was executed in two phases. In Phase 1, the factors that should be included in the development of e-assessment as component of WIL were determined by means of individual interviews with institutional WIL coordinators and a document study of relevant TUT documents. From the data obtained in this phase of the study, a prototype of e-assessment as component of WIL was developed and implemented. In Phase 2, online questionnaires and online individual interviews, supplemented by face-to-face focus group interviews, were used to uncover the experiences of workplace mentors and WIL students of the implementation of the prototype of e-assessment as component of WIL. The key findings of the empirical study confirmed that assessment is fundamental to the success of WIL. Although optimism about the implementation of e-assessment was revealed, the empirical data further indicated that a variety of factors needs to be considered for its successful implementation. Amongst others, it was suggested that e-assessment should be institutionally driven; that special care should be taken to ensure access to and availability of appropriate technology; that all stakeholders should be subjected to proper orientation and training regarding e-assessment, and that collaboration between the workplace and the academic institution should be improved. It was furthermore suggested that assessment tasks should meaningfully relate to the realities of the workplace; that the development of assessment tasks should be meticulously done and that such tasks should be regularly revised and that attention should be given to constructive feedback to enable student growth and development. By considering the experiences regarding the implementation of the prototype of e-assessment, a more sophisticated version was proposed. The study concluded by indicating its limitations and suggested areas for further research. In the final analysis it was resolved that this study laid the foundation for exploring e-assessment in the context of WIL more vigorously, since e-assessment shows remarkable potential to benefit students, academic departments and workplace environments. / PhD (Learning and Teaching)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015

Considering the point that existing WIL programmes are somewhat amorphous and do not optimally utilise available technologies, the TUT decided to embrace a technology-based WIL framework for improving its WIL programmes. Inspired by the fact that assessment is fundamental to the success of any WIL programme, the researcher wanted to attend to e-assessment within the context of WIL. Hence, this study intended to identify and examine the factors that should be included in the development of e-assessment as component of WIL. In addition, it was also aimed at determining the resultant experiences, emanating from the determined factors, of the implementation of e-assessment as component of WIL. By conducting a literature and an empirical study, the purpose of the study was realised. Based on the literature study, the importance and relevance of WIL as authentic learning experience was described, while e-assessment was explained, discussed and justified within the context of WIL. For the empirical study, a sequential, embedded mixed-methods research design, anchored in an exploratory case study, was executed in two phases. In Phase 1, the factors that should be included in the development of e-assessment as component of WIL were determined by means of individual interviews with institutional WIL coordinators and a document study of relevant TUT documents. From the data obtained in this phase of the study, a prototype of e-assessment as component of WIL was developed and implemented. In Phase 2, online questionnaires and online individual interviews, supplemented by face-to-face focus group interviews, were used to uncover the experiences of workplace mentors and WIL students of the implementation of the prototype of e-assessment as component of WIL. The key findings of the empirical study confirmed that assessment is fundamental to the success of WIL. Although optimism about the implementation of e-assessment was revealed, the empirical data further indicated that a variety of factors needs to be considered for its successful implementation. Amongst others, it was suggested that e-assessment should be institutionally driven; that special care should be taken to ensure access to and availability of appropriate technology; that all stakeholders should be subjected to proper orientation and training regarding e-assessment, and that collaboration between the workplace and the academic institution should be improved. It was furthermore suggested that assessment tasks should meaningfully relate to the realities of the workplace; that the development of assessment tasks should be meticulously done and that such tasks should be regularly revised and that attention should be given to constructive feedback to enable student growth and development. By considering the experiences regarding the implementation of the prototype of e-assessment, a more sophisticated version was proposed. The study concluded by indicating its limitations and suggested areas for further research. In the final analysis it was resolved that this study laid the foundation for exploring e-assessment in the context of WIL more vigorously, since e-assessment shows remarkable potential to benefit students, academic departments and workplace environments. / PhD (Learning and Teaching)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015