This study investigates Heads of Department’s (HoDs’) understandings of their roles as curriculum managers and their level of preparedness for instructional support and supervision to educators in the implementation of Outcomes-Based Education (OBE) in schools. This is a qualitative case study focusing on one rural primary school in KwaZulu-Natal. There were nine participants comprising three HoDs and six randomly selected educators in the study. Data was collected by means of questionnaires, interviews, observation, and document analysis. The study examines HoDs’ understandings of their roles as curriculum managers and their perceptions about their levels of preparedness for curriculum management and supervision roles. In addition, an attempt is made to identify some of the professional development needs of HoDs in the context of OBE implementation in schools. The key findings that emerged from the research were that HoDs did not fully understand their curriculum management and supervision roles and were not adequately trained and prepared to fulfil their management and supervisory responsibilities. It was found that HoDs required professional development in the form of workshops, in-service training, networking or information sharing meetings and seminars to prepare them for their role as curriculum managers. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2008.

This study investigates the role of the School Management Team in curriculum / Thesis (M.Ed.) - University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2009.

The aim of this study was to identify problems experienced by African educators in developing the school curriculum. The kinds of attitudes and beliefs of African educators in developing the school curriculum are also determined. The study indicates that African educators experienced problems in developing the school curriculum. Learners in urban areas had more advantages than those in rural areas such as availability of facilities and well qualified staff. Schools need adequate resources in order to be effective. The implication the study suggested was that, building schools was not a guarantee for society's success. The advantages of multicultural institutions are caused by the socio-economic backgrounds of various learners of diverse cultures. The differs from the environment of public schools of the rural area where learners had the same background and same culture and have many things in common. Educators at public schools need more training and workshops. African educators should become so confident that they could produce good results at the end of the year. / (M. Ed.) North-West University, Mafikeng Campus, 2005

Ph.D. / This study investigates the relevancy of the current Agricultural Science curriculum for the Senior Secondary school phase. It also surveys whether the syllabus addresses the needs of the world of work in the agriculture community. The process of curriculum development for compiling the current syllabus within the context of a new South Africa is evaluated and proposals made in order to make it more democratic and to make participation an important principle at all levels of the development process ...

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education. Johannesburg, South Africa, 2015 / Curriculum studies (CS) provided an important focus for international scholars: Pinar (1978; 2011) in the United States of America; Barriga (2003) in Mexico; Moreira (2003) in Brazil; Green (2003) in Australia; Chambers (2003) in Canada and Smith and Ewing (2002) in Australia. International perspectives to understand CS include the traditionalist, conceptual-empiricism, reconceptualization and the internationalization perspectives (Pinar 1978; 2011). There has been a movement internationally in favour of internationalization as this promised a regional and global understanding of curriculum issues, while maintaining a focus on local curriculum issues. In South Africa, scholars such as Hoadley (2010), Hugo (2010) and Le Grange (2010) also focused on CS. Hoadley (2010) analysed scholarship in the field of CS in South Africa from 2000-2007 through a study that characterised scholarship in the ‘knowledge’, ‘knower’ and the ‘bureaucratic’ modes. The problem this current study addressed is the dearth of knowledge about the nature of CS scholarship in South Africa in the period 2008-2010. A qualitative case study approach informed a review and analysis of three accredited and peer-reviewed South African journals, which drew on theoretical concepts informed by Pinar (1978; 2011) and Hoadley (2010) to provide insights into the dominant theoretical and methodological attributes of CS scholarship in this context. Focusing on issues related to schooling, this study’s findings revealed that the national field of CS scholarship was rich, diverse, multi-faceted and fragmented in its theoretical and methodological attributes. Diverse disciplines, specialisations and theoretical frameworks meant that the field lacked a clearly defined focus. Implications of this study for cumulative work and methodological rigour in the production of knowledge in CS are highlighted. The strength of this study is that it draws on international and national perspectives to characterise the theoretical and methodological attributes of scholarship in the field of CS in South Africa. Based on this study, scholars are able to gain a better understanding of the nature of the field. Consequently, they may advance the field by developing appropriate theories and methodologies to solve curriculum issues and advance scholarly practices based on historical insights gained from existing scholarship. Keywords: Curriculum studies scholarship; theoretical perspectives in curriculum studies; theoretical attributes of curriculum studies scholarship; methodological attributes of curriculum studies scholarship; post-Apartheid curriculum studies scholarship

M. Tech. Education / Since 1994, the field of education in South Africa has been facing a huge number of challenges. Curriculums and matters associated with curriculums in South Africa did unfortunately not escape these challenges. The current state of affairs is that South African educators do not play any part in curriculum development and are in no way involved in it. It seems that curriculums developed somewhere by government officials, or so-called curriculum specialists, and that those curriculums are then handed over to the educators for implementation. The above situation is a cause of concern for educator, who despite being regarded as the most important stakeholders in education; ironically have no say in the curriculums they have to implement. The current top down approach in curriculum development is detrimental to education in this country, since educators cannot adjust something they were not part of. Educators, business people and parents should be afforded opportunities to become partners in the process of curriculum development by letting their voices be heard before the actual implementation of any curriculum development. It is therefore imperative that educators should be given opportunities and platforms to give their inputs and to play an active role in all curriculum matters. Educators are the principal role-players in addressing educational challenges. The process has not yet stabilised and therefore it is so important that there should be dialogue about what is expected of educators when it is suggested that they should be involved in curriculum development. The main purpose of this study was to investigate and explain the possible links between curriculum development and the involvement of educators.

The study aimed at exploring curriculum responses to community-based air pollution. This was done through an analysis of educator and learner perceptions of community-based air pollution and an examination of how the curriculum (teaching and learning content) responds to local air pollution. The key forms of the study - (what are the perceptions of educators and learners to community-based air pollution and how do educators and learners respond to community-based air pollution within the formal curriculum). Ethnography as a qualitative methodology was adopted in the study. This methodological tool created spaces to understand curriculum responsiveness in the context of wider social and political power relations in the South Durban Basin. Ethnography suited the study since it was a unique example of educators and learners in real situations and lived experiences, and enabled a clearer understanding of the theory and praxis of curriculum. The primary research methodology used in order to gather data to answer the research questions was observation, participant observation and interviewing of educators and learners. This study was conducted with educators and learners in the Further Education and Training phase (Grade 10), within the Human and Social Sciences in the year 2006 . Curriculum responses to community-based air pollution in Geography and Life Orientation were investigated. Learners were traced from previous primary schools in the area and who were in Grade 10. It was found that all participants in the study were knowledgeable and well informed about air pollution through consistent exposure to local air pollution. Collectively, they presented a sense of enduring struggle against community-based air pollution. They have been part of the struggle for clean air for many years and reside in the South Durban Basin. Participants display perspicuity in respect of how air pollution infects and affects them . Attempts at including community-based air pollution into the curriculum have been sporadic and at times incidental from learners' point of view . On the other hand, educators' responses were very constructive and established . Furthermore with reference to curriculum response to the subjects Geography and Life Orientation, both educators and learners responses were similar in that they displayed sophisticated accounts of knowledge of community-based air pollution. There was a deep sense of understanding of content and related to lived experiences. It was also found that educators and learners choose to live optimistically amidst the air pollution at Valley Secondary. Issues of class, poverty and powerlessness emerge from the data - these govern the lives of educators and learners. Participants in the study provided several motivations for Environmental Education to be included as a separate subject for future curriculum initiatives by the Department of Education. The recommendations included a strong need for responsive teaching to community-based air pollution. Learners should also be guided on how they should handle air pollution incidents. Recommendations in respect of re-organising the existent Environmental Club at Valley Secondary School also emerged. There is a clear sense that schools in the area should mobilise against the cooperate giants. Recommendations were provided for Curriculum Planners , Policy, and Policy Makers at the level of the Department of Education for the inclusion of Environmental Education as a separate subject rather than a devolved input. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2007.

This study focuses on moral values in education, in particular, their inclusion as part of the academic curricula of Durban University of Technology (DUT), Faculty of Management Sciences. The literature lends much support for moral values as being important for students and Higher Education as a whole but there is still very little focus provided with regards to having them incorporated as part of a module in the programmes of Higher Education. This study is based on the researcher’s view that the teaching of moral values should be intrinsically linked to academic programmes to produce well groomed graduates who would become morally responsible and add value to a democratic society and in particular the world of work. The research study seeks to ascertain the opinions of the students and staff of DUT concerning: - the integration of the study of moral values in academic programmes at the DUT? and - the roles staff and students could play in reinforcing the importance of moral values? This research falls within an interpretivist paradigm and takes a qualitative approach as it examines views, perceptions and feelings of the relevant role players of the Durban University of Technology. The Faculty of Management Sciences is chosen for this research study. Students from the cohorts of 1st, 2nd and 3rd year levels of the four selected departments are chosen as part of the research sample. The sample also includes three academic staff from the four selected departments as well as all Heads of Departments from the Faculty. Semi-structured interviews are conducted with management members chosen by the researcher. Arising from the findings of the study, staff and students are of the view that if moral values are absent in students they will display a negative behaviour which has an adverse impact on their working career. Many students are of the view that including moral values in the curricula of Higher Education will build students’ characters and morally equip and develop them into responsible citizens. Arising from the strong support of the various stakeholders, it is recommended that the teaching of moral values should be integrated in the curricula of Higher Education. It is also recommended that educators and management lead by example and be role models to their students. Debates, case studies and community-based learning in relation to ethical issues are some of the more popular teaching methods that are recommended. It can be concluded that there is support from various authors and major role players for the integration of moral values in the curricula of Higher Education.

South African higher education institutions are being increasingly plagued by high attrition rates (especially in first year) and low graduation rates. The students entering the higher education institutions have diversified considerably in terms of race, level of maturity and level of preparedness for the higher education system. This change in student characteristics has led higher education institutions to urgently investigate strategies to enhance the teaching and learning environment, so that these students can be empowered to transcend their backgrounds and achieve their potential. One such strategy identified by the Council of Higher Education is the matching of teaching styles to students' learning styles to improve the performance of the students and ultimately the retention rates of the institution.This study aimed to explore the learning styles of the first year anatomy students at a South African University of Technology, to ascertain any association between gender and these learning styles and to investigate the impact of matching teaching and assessment styles to student learning styles. The VARK learning style questionnaire was used to determine the students? learning styles. The VARK learning styles are based on four sensory modalities that a student may use to receive, process and transmit information. Sixty seven students completed the VARK questionnaire, the majority of whom favoured a combination of learning styles. The most commonly exhibited unimodal (single) learning style was the kinaesthetic mode, while both genders recorded a multimodal learning preference. No significant relationship was found between the performance of students whose learning styles were matched to the teaching and assessment styles and those where the learning styles were mismatched with the teaching and learning styles.This study served to highlight the diversity (in terms of learning styles) present among the first year anatomy students. The study advocates a teaching and assessment strategy that is balanced and is considerate of multiple learning styles rather than attempting to match the teaching and assessment strategy to the learning styles of the students. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.

The purpose of this study was to determine the challenges faced by adult learners in relation to the school curriculum in the Mafikeng District. This research was conducted on how adult learners are experiencing financial problems, accommodation, long distance, family concerns and the irrelevance of curriculum. A questionnaires and interviews found out that there are many learners who drop out due to the challenges that they face. Most adult learners are unemployed and as a result they are unable to pay for their fees. They have numerous problems at home that include pregnancy and looking after children. / M.Ed. (Adult Education) North-West University, Mafikeng Campus, 2006