Although food waste is known to have a negative impact on the environment, little research about the causes for food waste in school and kindergarten kitchens has been made. In order to identify factors with a significant influence on food waste in schools and kindergartens, divided into plate and serving waste, correlation analysis was performed on quantitative factors. Among the factors that were analyzed, children’s age (n=35, p<0.001, Kendall’s rank correlation tau=0.44), the number of semesters with food waste measurements (n=151, p<0.05, Kendall’s rank correlation tau=0.15) and portion size as an indicator for overproduction (n=97, p<0.01, Spearman’s rank correlation rho=0.28) were significantly increasing plate waste. Serving waste was significantly increased by portion size (n=97, p<0.0001, Spearman’s rank correlation rho=0.42) and was generally higher in satellite units than in production units (n=142, p<0.05, Pearson’s product-moment correlation r=0.19). Multiple linear regression models were developed to quantify the factors’ impact on plate, serving and total waste. While possible causes for serving waste should be further researched, the model for plate waste explained over 70 % of the variation in plate waste in schools and kindergartens. Due to the correlation between children’s age and plate waste, schools with students in higher grades could introduce more structured lunch breaks in order to reduce their plate waste. Furthermore, plate waste could be reduced if students are constantly aware of the food waste issue. Schools and kindergartens should also improve the grounds for the planning of their food production to reduce their portion sizes.

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether there is a positive relationship between environmental responsibility and financial performance of South African listed companies. For the purposes of this study annual financial statements for the periods ending from 1994 to 1998 were investigated. Only companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) during the calendar years 1994 to 1998 were included. The investigation was not limited to certain sectors of the JSE in order to include all possible environmentally responsible companies. In the review of the related literature the theoretical foundation of environmental reporting was investigated based on fundamental accounting principles. The stakeholders interested in environmental reporting were identified and their influence on the environmental information presented in annual financial statements was examined. The costs or disadvantages versus the benefits or advantages of environmental responsibility were explored. The findings of previous studies that examined the relationship between environmental performance and financial performance were investigated. Environmental responsibility was defined, taking previous researchers' definitions into consideration. Pressures towards environmental responsibility that companies experience and progress made by companies were discussed. Previous studies were used to identify the most appropriate measures to use when measuring environmental responsibility. A control list and a judgement scale developed from previous research were selected for use in this study to determine environmentally responsible companies. Profitability, as a key component of financial performance, was defined. Elements of financial performance were discussed under the profit zone and causal factors. Financial performance measures most often used were identified from relevant literature. These measures were considered as well as measures used in previous research before selecting return on equity, return on assets, return on capital and economic value added for purposes of this study. Correlation analyses were performed for the following groups of companies for every year from 1994 to 1998: · Total qualifying population of companies; · total population excluding wild points regarding environmental reporting percentages; and · companies reporting on environmental matters during four to five years of the period examined. The financial performance measures ROE, ROA and ROC were individually correlated with the environmental reporting percentages for all the companies, regardless of the JSE sector of the companies. The correlation of EVA with the environmental reporting percentages was limited to industrial companies. Analyses per sector were performed by way of the following trend analyses for every year from 1994 to 1998: · Environmental responsibility per sector; · average financial performance for environmentally responsible companies in comparison to average financial performance for companies without a environmental responsibility measure per sector; and · data plots. There is a positive relationship between the environmental responsibility and the financial performance of South African listed companies; i.e. the higher the environmental responsibility of a company is, the higher is the financial performance of that company. However, it is important to note that this conclusion is based on the results in total and that causality could not be addressed. There are still many sectors with no or very little evidence of environmental responsibility. / Dissertation (DComm(Accounting Sciences))--University of Pretoria, 2002. / Accounting / unrestricted

Science education becomes more important for future national development globally in high-technology-based society. In reaction to the trend, the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) has conducted achievement tests in science along with mathematics, called TIMSS every four years. In TIMSS 2003, while Korea was a higher-performing country, South Africa was ranked in the lower-performing countries. Korea features homogenous demography, centralized curriculum, and competitive educational zeal while South Africa is characterized by multicultural demography with various languages, and previously segregated schools based on races. The current research, which is a secondary analysis of TIMSS 2003 data, aimed at explaining the differences and similarities by identifying factors most likely to influence science achievement in the two countries. A conceptual research framework was built on the comprehensive literature review which involved mainly school effectiveness research and factors related to science achievement. The conceptual framework consists of multi-levels, viz., student, classroom, school, and context, and three key concepts, namely time on task, opportunity to learn, and quality. Two research questions were formulated to reach the goal of the research and the first question is: To what extent does TIMSS 2003 reflect factors related to effective science education? Data from the student, teacher and school questionnaires were included in conjunction with the achievement data and analysed by means of factor, reliability and correlation analyses. The factors found to influence science achievement in three levels are as follows: at the student level, books at home, attitudes towards science, time on task; at the classroom level, time scheduled for science and teacher interaction; at the school level, school size, community size, and student background. The second research question is: To what extent do the factors derived from the analysis explain the differences in the achievement of Korean and South African students? To answer this question, the current research used multilevel modeling techniques to deconstruct the total variance in achievement into within- and between-classroom/school level. The strongest predictor is attitudes towards science in both countries at the student level. Student background in Korea and safety in school in South Africa is the strongest predictor of science achievement at the classroom/school level. Furthermore, educational resources such as books at home and educational level of father are significant in Korea while language, teacher qualification, physical resources, and educational leadership are significant in South Africa. For Korea, 93% of total variance in science achievement occurred at the student level while only 7% was attributable to the classroom/school level. For South Africa, 41% of the total variance was assigned at the student level and 59% at the class/school level. From this comparative study, it was recommended that development of student-centred teaching practices to address negative attitudes to science in Korea be considered as opposed to basic issues such as improving teachers’ subject knowledge, developing language skills, and fostering a culture of learning to improve science performance in South Africa. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Science, Mathematics and Technology Education / unrestricted

Master's thesis deals with the assessment of selected financial indicators of the company through a financial analysis and statistical methods, on the basis of which then evaluates the current situation of the company. The thesis is divided into three parts. The theoretical part contains the issues necessary for the analytical part. The analytical part is focused on the analysis of selected indicators and the subsequent application of statistical methods to predict their future development and to detect dependencies between the indexes. The last part formulates possible solutions to problems caused by financial indicators that do not reach the required values.

The diploma thesis evaluates the economic situation of BPS Bicycle Industrial s. r. o. time series analysis. The theoretical part describes financial indicators, time series analyzes and regression and correlation analysis. Based on the analyzes, suggestions were made to improve the current situation of the company. BPS has proven to be financially sound. Shortcomings to improvement were identified from the analyzes. For example, share of equity and debt, use of surplus funds and turnover of receivables and payables. This ratio needs to be addressed through greater use of debt. The system of sanctions is solution for problem the turnover of receivables and the use of surplus funds by investing in shares.

Master´s thesis deals with the assessment of selected financial indicators of the company using a statistical methods. The first part is focused on the theoretical description of financial indicators, time series analysis as well as regression and correlation analysis. The practical part contains a statistical analysis of selected indicators with subsequent prediction of indicators for the next two years. The practical part also contains a comparison of selected indicators with the industry average and a correlation analysis to determine the dependence of selected indicators. The last part contains suggestions to improve the situation of the company.

The diploma thesis deals with the evaluation of the economic situation of the company ABC, in the years 2012 to 2019. The first, theoretical part of the thesis describes financial indicators, regression and correlation analysis and time series. The practical part of the diploma thesis contains calculations of financial indicators, some of them are selected for statistical analysis, which further serves as a prediction of development in the next two years. The practical part also compares the results with the industry average. The last part of the work contains proposals that lead to the improvement of the financial situation of the selected company.

The diploma thesis is focused on the assessment of selected indicators using statistical methods. The first part is devoted to theoretical background, which describes financial indicators, time series analysis and regression and correlation analysis. The second part deals with the analysis of selected indicators and statistical analysis, which predicts the values of indicators for the next two years. Then correlation analysis is created, which determines the dependence between selected financial indicators. The last part is devoted to proposals leading to the improvement of the current situation of the company.

The master’s thesis deals with the assessment of the financial performance of a company using statistical methods. The theoretical part describes the problems of time series, regression analysis, correlation analysis and financial analysis. In the practical part statistical methods are used to reveal the dependence between the indicators and the prediction of the future development of the company in the coming years. On the basis of established results the company is compared with two important rivals, and there are made some suggestions how to improve its economic situation.

Master’s thesis assesses the financial and economic situation of the joint-stock company Composite Components. There are theoretical aspects including financial, regression and correlation analysis in the first part of the thesis. Financial indicators are computed and then subjected to the mentioned analyses in order to get prognoses for following years. The created suggestions which are in the end of the thesis are based on the indicators and prognoses.