The purpose of this study was to begin constructing an expanded framework for child literacy learning with participants who educate children in formal and informal settings in literacy, the arts and environmental education. The study explored how a broader framework for child literacy learning could gain strength and purpose from our increasingly diverse and complex social environment. I used participatory arts-based research to spark dialogue and foster partnerships. The design of the study was intended to demonstrate how the arts, in this case photography, can be effective as a means of attending, exploring, and communicating ideas. Three major themes emerged: Child Literacy Practices and how they can attend to belonging and voice; Arts and Culture and the engagement of children in the arts and how this is relevant to child literacy learning ;and Environmental Destruction looking towards preparing children to be ecologically literate in the context of child literacy learning. / Graduate

L’objectif de cette étude consistait à explorer la contradiction naissante entre d’une part, la politique de l’eau menée au Cameroun depuis l’indépendance et d’autre part, les réalités urbaines de contrôle et d’usage informels de l’eau. Les concepts de « gouvernance » et de « communauté » ont été utilisés pour analyser comment les populations affirmaient, de façon individuelle ou collective, leurs droits sur l’eau et comment de telles revendications étaient légitimées. Les concepts de « négociabilité » et de « flexibilité » ont permis de comprendre comment les droits d’utilisation et d’accès à l’eau étaient négociés et contestés en fonction de conditions changeantes. Le concept de « société civile » a été employé pour refléter le caractère multi scalaire du pouvoir et sa normalisation dans des réseaux de la vie quotidienne, régulant ainsi les pratiques et les relations sociales. Les résultats montrent l’existence d’un grand nombre d’arrangements institutionnels de niveau local qui régissent l’accès à l’eau potable dans les communautés. Les leaders traditionnels, les représentants élus et les comités de gestion des points d’eau potable tendent à se compléter dans le développement et l’application des arrangements institutionnels. L’étude conclut que l’informalité des institutions et des droits de propriété dans la gouvernance de l’eau des petites villes semblent entretenir des situations socio-économiques complexes. Il s’agit là d’un point commun entre les trois sites étudiés. En définitive, la multiplication des acteurs de l’eau a débouché sur une sorte de chevauchement des compétences de contrôle et de gestion tant dans l’espace que dans le temps. / The objective of this study was to explore the emerging contradiction between on the one hand, the water policy conducted in Cameroon since independence and secondly, the urban realities of “informal” water control and use on the other. The concepts of "governance" and "community" were used to analyze how people individually or collectively claimed, their water rights and how such claims were legitimized while the negotiability/flexibility and hybrid concepts were used to analyze how resource rights and access are negotiated (informal and formal) and contested in view of changing conditions. The concept of "civil society" was used to reflect the multiscale nature of power and its standardization in networks of daily life, thereby regulating the practices and social relations. Results show that there are a number of local level institutional arrangements that govern access to potable water in communities which may vary depending on the source, ownership (privately owned or communally owned) interest and the purpose for which the water will be used. Traditional leaders, “elected” leaders and the relevant water point committees tend to complement each other in developing institutional arrangements and enforcing these. The study concludes that the informality of institutions and property rights in small town water governance harbor complex socio-economic situations, which is a common feature in the three study sites (Bali, Bafou and Kumbo), where rights overlap in both time and space with a variety of different degrees of intensity being applied in the management of different water schemes. Such processes are not predictable, because of the specific characteristics of each community, and one has to deal with setbacks and conflicts.

Magister Philosophiae - MPhil / This study investigates ways in which migratory trajectories relate to the gradual insertion and eventual integration of immigrants. It therefore shows the contribution of social capital in the migration and insertion into the entrepreneurial city of the host country. The focus of the study is on immigrants of African origin. It is hypothesized that immigrants of different nationalities in South Africa use particular assets to engage in street vending as a way of insertion into their new environment. Data were obtained through a survey of two hundred and eight (208) respondents conveniently selected. The survey was carried out in five suburbs of Cape Town and as well as at some major road junctions where these vendors are found. The Statistical package for Social Science (SPSS) was used to analyse the data. The results showed that nationality was an important determinant of the migratory trajectories of immigrant vendors.Migration has been on the increase with the improvement in technology and globalization. In the same light, migration into South African cities mainly from the rest of Africa and Asia took an upward trend especially after the fall of Apartheid Regime and the advent of democracy in the nineties. Street vendors form part of these immigrants in South Africa. Many of them especially from other African countries find it a suitable means of survival. Faced with the difficulty of getting jobs in South Africa, immigrants resort to informal trading as a starting point for survival.They may change to other activities depending on certain variables like duration of stay, level of education, age, sex, marital status, social capital and networks. Coming from different socioeconomic, cultural and political backgrounds, these immigrants resort to different ways of migrating and forms of adaptation aimed at sustaining their livelihood in their new environments.Most studies in the field of migration and entrepreneurship focus on remittances by the migrants as well as their impact on both their place of departure and on the place of destination. Little attention is paid to the way they migrate and how they insert themselves in the entrepreneurial city.

This research investigates, using the New Institutional Economics theories of property rights and transaction cost, two interrelated problems. Firstly, the question of whether real estate markets in the urban informal settlements of Namibia could be used to alleviate poverty or, to put it differently, create wealth. The second problem relates to the question of whether specific forms of property rights matter for engendering pro-poor outcomes in real estate markets and, if so, what form these are likely to take. Corresponding to these questions are two working hypotheses respectively. Firstly, it is hypothesised that real estate is a significant asset held by the urban poor in Namibia and that there is potential for capital accumulation by trading up in real estate markets. Secondly it is hypothesised that, by affecting the incentive structure of, and transaction costs in real estate markets, systems of property rights affect market outcomes, thus ultimately determining whether these markets may be efficacious for poverty alleviation. The study employs the comparative institutional methodological approach in a case study framework to examine effects of three types of property rights regimes on low income real estate markets in settlements located on Windhoek’s periphery. The main empirical data for the study were collected by means of a questionnaire survey of 440 households in two settlements called Goreangab and Okahandja Park respectively. This survey was supplemented by 14 unstructured interviews with selected respondents and by key-informant interviews with officials from the Windhoek City Council (WCC), the Namibian Housing Action Group (NHAG), and the Namibian Housing Enterprises (NHE). The study finds that real estate is indeed a major asset held by the respondents. The study finds that, while there are robust rental markets for rooms and backyard structures, there is very limited sale activity. The study also finds that in the absence of formal property rights, social networks and hierarchical organisations rather than impersonal markets provide the institutional structure to transaction activity. It is found that the degree of formality of property rights correlates to perception of security, that property rights affect investment in housing and that property rights (to some extent) affects the degree of market activity. The study therefore concludes that while not insignificant gains are to be had from rental markets, there is at present limited potential to derive benefits from sale markets in Namibia due to a lack of trading activity. The first hypothesis is thus only partially confirmed. It is also concluded that while social networks guarantee access to urban land for the poor, they tend to lock them in enclaves of ethnic and kinship relations, inhibiting the development of wider, impersonal markets argued to be necessary for capital accumulation. Further, it is concluded that formal property rights create incentives for investment and therefore matter for capital accumulation, but that they are not necessarily accessible to the poor. The second hypothesis, that property rights affect market outcomes, is substantially confirmed. Overall the study concludes that there is good potential for leveraging real estate markets in Namibia’s (and other developing countries’) informal settlements for capital accumulation but that these need to be primed first. This means deliberate interventions with the aim of bringing about increased trading activity. In this regard specific proposals have been made for policy intervention in three key areas, namely, the creation of appropriate property rights systems, together with supporting organisational infrastructure, the expansion of physical infrastructure and the building of shared understanding and trust in urban communities. The study makes a number of key contributions to knowledge about the relationship between real estate markets and poverty alleviation in the area of theory, methodology, policy and empirical data. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Construction Economics / unrestricted

The purpose of this study was to explore an asset-based intervention with educators in enhancing their knowledge of HIV&AIDS and their skills in supporting community members in coping with the challenges associated with HIV&AIDS. The goals of the study were firstly to explore and describe the ways in which educators are currently supporting community members infected with and affected by HIV&AIDS (more specifically in terms of coping with the learners in their classrooms and the caregivers or parents of these children). Secondly, the study focused on identifying the areas related to supporting community members in coping with the challenges associated with HIV&AIDS in which the participants (educators) felt that they needed more skills or information. Thirdly, I developed and facilitated an asset-based intervention, in the format of a workshop, with the participants (educators) to address the identified competence limitations. Fourthly, I assessed the outcome of the asset-based intervention in terms of the degree to which it fulfilled the participants’ need to be better equipped to support community members infected with and affected by HIV&AIDS. The primary working assumption with which I approached this study was that educators do possess the necessary competencies to support their communities in coping with the challenges presented by HIV&AIDS. I followed a qualitative research approach and selected a case study research design, applying some participatory action research principles, with the case being an informal settlement community situated in the Eastern Cape. Four participants were selected by means of convenience sampling to participate in face-to-face interviews, upon which four areas of support in which participants experienced a lack of sufficient competencies could be identified based on analysis. These areas related to referral of infected individuals; coping with infected learners in a classroom as well as ways in which educators might support community members on both an emotional and physical level. These four areas were addressed during an asset-based intervention with ten educators, which I facilitated during a follow-up field visit. During interviews the educators also indicated that they wanted to support their community (both learners and parents) to cope with the challenges presented by HIV&AIDS but that they felt inadequate in supporting the community, despite their efforts. After completion of the asset-based intervention, I facilitated a focus group discussion, focusing on whether or not the asset-based intervention had addressed participants’ (perceived) lack of competencies in supporting the community to cope within the context of HIV&AIDS. Two sub-themes emerged. Firstly, participating educators reported that they experienced increased levels of self-confidence in their ability to support their community in the context of HIV&AIDS, as well as a general feeling of empowerment, as a result of attending the asset-based intervention. The second sub-theme relates to the potential snowball effect of the asset-based intervention, whereby participating educators indicated that their role in the community had expanded and that they reportedly could transmit the knowledge obtained during the asset-based intervention sessions to others. / Dissertation (MEd (Educational Psychology))--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Educational Psychology / MEd / unrestricted

The global community is experiencing an increasing number of disasters that ranges from earthquakes, floods, storms, epidemics, fires, landslides, hurricanes, tsunamis and social conflicts that result to loss of life and properties. South Africa is dominated by localised incidents, such as wild fires, seasonal flooding, droughts and accidents in the mining industry. Resource-poor communities such as those residing in many parts of South African informal settlements, currently live with a range of stresses and risks including climate risks, HIV/AIDS and access to insecure land. While disaster relief has been at the forefront for quite a long time, communities are increasingly looking at disaster risk reduction as the best solution to safeguard human lives and property. Scholars and policy makers are relying on disaster preparedness and resilience as strategies to ensure disaster risk reduction. Disaster education has emerged as a pinnacle for both the preparedness and resilience by teaching communities about the prevalence of hazards and associated vulnerabilities. The aim of this investigation was to determine how education in particular, curriculum and instructional design contributes to learners’ awareness of hazards and disasters. A mixed method research was used to address the question combining questionnaires, interviews and document study as data collection strategies. The questionnaires were distributed to 150 educators from schools located in informal settlements of Ivory Park in Gauteng, Brits in North West Province, Isipingo in KwaZulu-Natal, Bizana in the Eastern Cape and Khayelitsha in the Western Cape. Interviews were conducted with 5 curriculum specialists, 3 disaster specialists and 2 disaster lectures. The findings of the investigation is that the South African National Curriculum Statements explicitly prescribe hazards and disaster learning outcomes only for Grade 7 Social Science and is silent in other grades and learning areas. Some scholars pointed out that there is no adequate translation of curriculum policy provisions to classroom practice in South Africa, which raises questions on the extent to which learners from South African schools are taught about hazards and disasters as prescribed in the National Curriculum Statements. The investigation also found that educators are overburdened with administrative work and would not be in the position to collaborate with one another to develop learning programmes and to teach indigenous knowledge or hazards and disasters. In this study, it is argued that for education to make effective contribution to learners’ awareness of hazards and disasters, the national curriculum should focus on the broad learning outcomes used as guideline to develop learning programmes for disasters and hazards that are provincial, district and local areas specific. The development and teaching for hazards and disasters should be specified in all grades across all learning areas. Another argument presented in this study is that the National Disaster Management Centre should play a crucial role in mobilising other stakeholders involved in disaster risk reductions to develop learning programmes as they have hands-on experience of managing disasters so that alleviate the burden for educators to be gathering data for learning programme development. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Humanities Education / unrestricted

Students’ interactions can be an influential component of students’ success in an interactive learning environment. From a participation perspective, learning is viewed in terms of how students transform their participation. However, many of the seminal papers discussing the participationist framework are vague on specific details about what student participation really looks like on a fine-grained scale. As part of a large project to understand the role of student participation in learning, this study gathered data that quantified students’ participation in three broad areas of two student-centered introductory calculus-based physics classes structured around the Investigative Science Learning Environment (ISLE) philosophy. These three broad areas of classes were in-class learning activities, class review sessions that happened at the beginning of every class, and the informal learning community that formed outside of class time. Using video data, classroom observations, and students’ self-reported social network data, this study quantified students’ participation in these three aspects of the class throughout two semesters. The relationship between behaviors of students’ engagement in various settings of an active learning environment and (a) their conceptual understanding (measured by FCI gain) and (b) academic success in the courses as measured by exam scores and scores on out-of-class assignments were investigated. The results from the analysis of the student interaction in the learning process show that three class components, viz. the Review Session, Learning Activities, and Informal Learning Community, play distinct roles in learning. Students who come in the class with better content knowledge do not necessarily participate more in the learning activities of active learning classrooms. Learning Communities serve as a “support network” for students to finish assignments and help students to pass the course. Group discussions, which are facilitated by students themselves, better help students in gaining conceptual understanding. Since patterns of students’ participation do not change significantly over time, instructors should try to ensure greater participation by incorporating different learning activities in the active learning classroom.

The informal economic sector is a very important part of the economy for any developing country; it is a growing employment sector for the less skilled people living in both rural and urban areas. Organizing the informal sector and reorganizing its role as a profitable activity may contribute to local economic development. This can also build the capacity of the informal workers to meet their basic needs by increasing their incomes and strengthening their legal status. Municipal support for the informal business sector may play an important role in achieving these objectives. The problem statement of this research report highlights the problems of poverty and unemployment in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, which has resulted in the growth of informal business sector. In order to improve economic development, local authorities are expected to give support to any sector that provides employment and incomes for the poor, including the informal sector. The overall aim and objectives of the research were to investigate the role of Local Economic Development strategies in the informal sector in Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality. To discover whether there is any support programme employed by Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality Local Economic Development Unit to boost the informal sector economy. To, assess the impact of the informal sector, in generating income for the unemployed. To identify Local Economic strategies employed in the area to develop the local economy. An overview of the literature on the informal sector provided a basis for the research into the problems facing street traders in Mdantsane, a large township adjacent to East London in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality. Both qualitative and quantitative research methods have been used in the study. The use of data collection tools such as interviews, questionnaires and observation helped to solicit the required information. An analysis of the findings confirmed that the informal sector plays an important role in in generating an income for the unemployed particularly for unemployed women. It appears that the informal traders have some basic requirements that would make a difference to their survival and working conditions, but that minimal support is received from the municipality. These findings recommend that in the absence of formal job opportunities in Buffalo City, the Municipality should develop strategies to support the informal sector participants to survive and thrive in difficult economic times.

The informal economy in South Africa and other parts of the continent is a safe haven for many who are unable to find jobs in the formal sector of the economy. In the case of South Africa, it is not only the nationals of the country who are striving to survive and generate their income from this sector. Since 1994, the country has experienced a huge influx of immigrants from other parts of the continent some escaping from dire living conditions in their home countries and looking for better life opportunities while many others were forced to migrate from their own countries as a result of political unrest and lack of stability and security. Among these later example is the Somali community who are the subject matter of this study. Many of these mainly African immigrants including Somalis got involved themselves in the informal sector of the South Africa. This has increased the competition in this sector and caused clashes between South Africans and immigrants who were also involved in the sector. This study examines the involvement of the Somali immigrants in South Africa’s informal sector. The study is exploratory in nature and tried to find the surrounding factors that impacted on the involvement of Somalis in the informal economy of Motherwell. The study has found that Somalis who arrived in Motherwell are generally young unmarried men who were attracted to the area mainly because there were affordable business opportunities in the township. Somalis financed their businesses through various resources including their savings from working while working inside and outside South Africa and from the contributions by their families and friends. Despite facing high levels of crime where many Somalis were killed and their property looted, they are still determined to stay in the township. This can be shown by their high level of savings and their intention to invest in the township. Although this research does not aim to be comparative in nature, personal and business characteristics of Somalis as well as South Africans who are also involved in the sector vii were compared. Because of this comparison, it has became clear that though price is an important factor in the business competition between the two groups, it is not the only factor, neither the most important, that creates friction and the shift of loyalty of customers from one side to another. Quality of service, the number of the people working in the business, responsibility towards the area the business serves, the strictness or the leniency towards customers who want to buy but are short of money and many other factors created a friendly atmosphere between the businesses run by the Somalis and their customers. The study showed that some of the Somali as well South African business owners were of this view. Although the vast majority of the Somalis have a minimum level of education, they still contribute positively to the economy of the township and the greater Nelson Mandela Bay. This is done through renting business premises, paying both direct and indirect taxes and taking the business services to remote areas of Motherwell. The study suggests that there is a need to sooth the relationship between the two groups particularly between Somalis and South Africans who are involved in grocery businesses through meetings, seminars, and other get-together activities. This can be done by South African Police Service, Somali Association of South Africa in Korsten, community elders from both sides and other concerned government institutions as well as the academic institutions particularly Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University. The business skills of both groups need to be uplifted in order to maximise their profitability and contribution to the people in the area.

The commercialisation of natural resources such as medicinal plants is a strategy that is increasingly being employed by poor people in developing countries such as South Africa, as a means of generating an income. Increasing economic hardship and a lack of employment opportunities in the formal sector of the economy has led to many urban dwellers seeking alternative means of meeting their everyday livelihood needs. Although the contribution of natural resources to subsistence economies is widely recognised, there are few studies that have examined the significance of the trade in medicinal plants to the livelihoods of poor and marginalised people. Thirty informal street traders were interviewed to investigate the role of the medicinal plant trade in sustaining the livelihoods of the traders who operate in the informal sector of the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality, South Africa. The findings of the research indicate that the sale and collection of medicinal plants is an activity which is exploited by people with limited resources, few skills, little or no education and often without any other source of household income. Middle-aged women from impoverished, single income households dominated the trade. Although income from the trade is modest, it contributed substantially to the total household cash income of the traders. Other benefits of the trade included independence and having a sense of purpose in life, as the traders felt that they were not only helping their families but also the wider community. However, without the income from the trade, many of the traders and their families would be destitute and thus the medicinal plant trade is vital to the wellbeing of these people.