This is a comparative study of the spatial patterns of peasant crop farming in Chibombo District between the 1980s and the 1990s. The study lists and discusses the agricultural support system, communication infrastructure and the crop production and patterns of the 1980s within the environment of centralised planning and then compares these to the structures and patterns of the 1990s in an atmosphere of economic liberalisation. This comparison in crop production, cropping patterns, institutional support systems and the communication infrastructure in five sampled farming wards of Chibombo District, leads to the conclusion that there is a marked change in the structures and patterns of the 1990s from those of the 1980s. Thus, in Chibombo District, the state of the communication infrastructure in the 1990s is generally poorer than the communication infrastructure of the 1980s, the agricultural support system of the 1990s is largely privately owned and found in fewer farming areas while the agricultural support system of the 1980s was state controlled and more widely spread, and crop patterns in some farming wards are different in the 1990s from those of the 1980s. In the 1990s, crop production in farming wards with a supportive environment has increased than it was in the 1980s but decreased in those where a conducive environment lacks. In this line, the study makes several recommendations for consideration on how to mitigate the problems that the peasant farmers are facing or how to enhance the positive changes that have occurred in Chibombo District. / Geography / M.A. (Geography)

This is a comparative study of the spatial patterns of peasant crop farming in Chibombo District between the 1980s and the 1990s. The study lists and discusses the agricultural support system, communication infrastructure and the crop production and patterns of the 1980s within the environment of centralised planning and then compares these to the structures and patterns of the 1990s in an atmosphere of economic liberalisation. This comparison in crop production, cropping patterns, institutional support systems and the communication infrastructure in five sampled farming wards of Chibombo District, leads to the conclusion that there is a marked change in the structures and patterns of the 1990s from those of the 1980s. Thus, in Chibombo District, the state of the communication infrastructure in the 1990s is generally poorer than the communication infrastructure of the 1980s, the agricultural support system of the 1990s is largely privately owned and found in fewer farming areas while the agricultural support system of the 1980s was state controlled and more widely spread, and crop patterns in some farming wards are different in the 1990s from those of the 1980s. In the 1990s, crop production in farming wards with a supportive environment has increased than it was in the 1980s but decreased in those where a conducive environment lacks. In this line, the study makes several recommendations for consideration on how to mitigate the problems that the peasant farmers are facing or how to enhance the positive changes that have occurred in Chibombo District. / Geography / M.A. (Geography)

This dissertation presents a study on Grade 10 learners’ understanding of key Mathematics concepts in selected secondary schools in Chibombo District of Zambia. The performance of learners in Mathematics countrywide has not been gratifying. This study therefore sought to investigate the Grade 10 learners’ understanding of key Mathematics concepts. This poor performance in Mathematics by learners in many schools at grade 12 final examination in Chibombo District prompted the researcher to conduct this study. The target population was 250 Grade 10 learners in five secondary schools in Chibombo District. The data were collected by means of questionnaire and focus group discussions. A concurrent triangulation design was adopted for the study in which the researcher simultaneously gathered both quantitative and qualitative data merged it using both quantitative and qualitative data analysis. The study revealed that Grade 10 learners’ understanding of the key Mathematics concepts of zero, equal, function, and variable is unsatisfactory. However, it is surprising how these learners can reach secondary school level with such a weak understanding of mathematical concepts, which are ubiquitous in the subject. It is anticipated that the findings of this study will provide curriculum developers with new insights into this problem so that they come up with a curriculum that focuses on learners’ understanding of basic concepts that serve as building blocks to next levels. The Ministry of General Education should rigorously monitor this process and provide both technical and financial support required. Finally, based on the findings of this study, the researcher gave some recommendations for improving learners’ understanding of mathematical concepts in schools. / Mathematics Education / M. Ed. (Mathematics Education)