The primary objective of this study was to establish sedimentary models for peat formation in the southern part of the Klip River coalfield during Ecca (Permian) times and to assess palaeoenvironmental controls on coal seam behaviour and distribution. In order to achieve this approximately 2 400 borehole logs and 25 field sections were collected. The coal-bearing Vryheid Formation records early to late Permian fluvio-deltaic sedimentation within the northeastern main Karoo basin. Three informal lithostratigraphic subdivisions, based on the investigations of Blignaut and Furter (1940, 1952), are proposed: the Lower zone, Coal zone and Upper zone. An examination of the structural framework and history of the northeastern Karoo basin reveals that the southern and western boundaries of the Klip River coalfield are defined by zones of rapid basement subsidence : the Tugela and Oannhauser Troughs respectively. There is some doubt as to the locality of the source area to the rivers emptying into the Ecca sea. Ryan (1967) postulated the "Eastern Highlands" situated off the present southeast African coast, but it is contended that the Swaziland area, situated no more than 200 to 300 km to the northeast of the Klip River coalfield, constituted a more plausible source area. The Lower zone represents sedimentation along a westerly to southeasterly prograding coastline dominated by high-constructive lobate or braid deltas, but also showing significant influence by wave processes. The Coal zone, which varies in thickness from 35 to 60 m, represents a major phase of coastal progradation and braided-river deposition on extensive alluvial plains. Significant coal seams formed only during periods of fluvial inactivity, the duration of which was dependent on source-area processes. Coal seam geometry and behaviour in the Klip River coalfield were not influenced by the depositional environments of associated clastic sediments. The following factors were found to have of profound influence in determining the extent, distribution and rate of peat accumulation: 1. Platform stability and temporal and spatial variations therein. 2. The absence or presence of penecontemporaneous clastic sedimentation. 3. Duration of periods of peat formation. 4. Lithology and topographic expression of clastic sediments underlying peat-forming swamps. The peat-forming phase of the Vryheid Formation was terminated by an extensive transgression brought about by an eustatic rise in basin water-level and/or an increased rate of platform subsidence. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, 1988.

This thesis explores home-based care volunteer (HBCV) identity and how it is shaped by context in rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The literature on home-based care in Africa is dominated by the "burden of care narrative" which is supported by the themes of "women as caregivers", "poverty" and "stigma". The literature presents government and stakeholder collaboration as the general solution to alleviating the burden of care on women caregivers. A wider scope for research within the themes is necessary to discover alternative solutions to the problem of the burden of care. This study ventured to expand the scope of current research by exploring the area of HIV and AIDS home-based care volunteer (HBCV) identity and participation in care and support. Fifteen HBCVs were interviewed about their work and personal life stories and interviewed reflexively using narrative interviewing. Findings indicate that the women's stories were dominated by narratives of gender, poverty and sociopolitical factors (social field narratives). Meta-narratives influencing the women's lives were stories of communal motherhood, aspirations to service-oriented work and religious beliefs and commitment. The women's personal life stories revealed that they saw themselves as distinctively caring. Connections between the different aspects of identity and context revealed that the women made sense of their community participation through their personal identities as strong and loving mothers and the association with the group identity of community mothering. Home-based-care volunteerism was explored as a form of agency in response to a lack of recognition, support and acknowledgement for AIDS caregivers and their patients. Researcher reflexivity through autoethnography and poetry contributed to achieving depth in the study and to the understanding that HBCVs strive for space recognition, acknowledgement and validation for their work. In a resource strained context a balance must be found between material compensation and respect and recognition which can be effective in sustaining community initiated volunteerism. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2013.

According to Baker (1955), success of plant invasions can be attributed to autogamous breeding systems and generalist pollination systems. A test of Baker's rule was carried out on 19 invasive alien plant species in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Natural levels of fruit set in these plants was high (median= 71.5% fruit set per plant). Breeding system experiments for 18 species showed that 17% of the species are allogamous, 72 % are autogamous and 11% are apomictic. This contrasts markedly with a general flora of 1472 species in which 65% are allogamous, only 14% are autogamous, and 21% are apomictic. Because the breeding systems of the alien species were largely autogamous, pollinators make only a small contribution to the overall reproductive success. Seventy one percent of the 14 alien species for which pollinators were obtained were pollinated by honeybees, which are super-generalists and ubiquitous in a generalist pollination systems. However, some species showed pre-adaptation to relatively specialized pollination systems, involving hawkmoths, butterflies and Xylocopa bees respectively. Thus, alien plants were not visited by a wide range of insects, but rather showed pre-adaption to one or more pre-existing guilds in the new habitat. Pollen limitation experiments showed no evidence that reproductive success in populations of the species is limited by pollen availability. / Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2001.

Water and sanitation provision is a matter of life and death to humans, since its absence and shortage may increase incidences of waterborne diseases as well as have adverse effects on the learning environment at schools. Every human has a right to an adequate water supply as well as to proper sanitation services. The two cannot be separated; absence of either can have dire public health implications. Schools are an extension of communities and can therefore be seen as a reflection of societal trends and infrastructural conditions. In South Africa the national ministry of water affairs is the main custodian of water and sanitation services to all. However it is the responsibility of the education ministry to provide and extend water and sanitation services and build infrastructure in schools. One of the principles in the water and sanitation policy stipulates that the state has an obligation for ensuring service delivery within available resources. Other relevant stakeholders need to assist the government to augment service delivery. It is against this background that the study focuses on exploring the extent to which stakeholders are involved in providing water services to schools and whether their involvement has resulted in any service delivery improvement or not. The main themes explored in the study include profiling and demographics of the schools, the state of sanitation facilities and water infrastructure, operation and management of sanitation facilities and public health issues. The study also aims to provide an insight into service delivery challenges and includes success stories where partnerships have been involved. The study draws from theories that link water and sanitation to public health, child development and gender based on the human rights principles. Literature on various forms of institutional arrangements is explored in order to understand the regulatory framework upon which service delivery is based. The main findings indicated that sanitation facilities in the rural schools are generally poor unless there has been some type of intervention. Although it is the municipality’s responsibility to ensure potable water is supplied at a local level, these services are often not provided. Service delivery seems to be very slow for most schools. Stakeholder involvement has been at the level of providing infrastructure for the schools, whereas operations and maintenance has remained the responsibility of schools. There are still huge challenges for the government to improve service delivery in schools especially those in the rural areas. and shortage may increase incidences of waterborne diseases as well as have adverse effects on the learning environment at schools. Every human has a right to an adequate water supply as well as to proper sanitation services. The two cannot be separated; absence of either can have dire public health implications. Schools are an extension of communities and can therefore be seen as a reflection of societal trends and infrastructural conditions. In South Africa the national ministry of water affairs is the main custodian of water and sanitation services to all. However it is the responsibility of the education ministry to provide and extend water and sanitation services and build infrastructure in schools. One of the principles in the water and sanitation policy stipulates that the state has an obligation for ensuring service delivery within available resources. Other relevant stakeholders need to assist the government to augment service delivery. It is against this background that the study focuses on exploring the extent to which stakeholders are involved in providing water services to schools and whether their involvement has resulted in any service delivery improvement or not. The main themes explored in the study include profiling and demographics of the schools, the state of sanitation facilities and water infrastructure, operation and management of sanitation facilities and public health issues. The study also aims to provide an insight into service delivery challenges and includes success stories where partnerships have been involved. The study draws from theories that link water and sanitation to public health, child development and gender based on the human rights principles. Literature on various forms of institutional arrangements is explored in order to understand the regulatory framework upon which service delivery is based. The main findings indicated that sanitation facilities in the rural schools are generally poor unless there has been some type of intervention. Although it is the municipality’s responsibility to ensure potable water is supplied at a local level, these services are often not provided. Service delivery seems to be very slow for most schools. Stakeholder involvement has been at the level of providing infrastructure for the schools, whereas operations and maintenance has remained the responsibility of schools. There are still huge challenges for the government to improve service delivery in schools especially those in the rural areas. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2009.

The research interest is in the area of leadership and gender, with specific reference to promotion prospects of female educators in predominantly black schools. I seek to establish internal and external factors that contribute to women educators being marginalised. The investigation is carried out in the uMgungundlovu region of the KwaZulu-Natal's Department of Education. This region covers the rural areas of Vulindlela and the urban and peri-urban circuits of Pietermaritzburg. I made use of qualitative methodology to obtain data from a random sample of twenty one out of twenty five deputy principals from the two circuits. This was followed by a detailed interview of seven of the twenty one who formed the purposive sample The central thesis of this study is that constitutional laws which outlaw unfair discrimination and academic qualifications play a subsidiary role in the upward mobility of women. The study will seek to confirm or refute this claim. A major finding in this study indicates that hindrances to promotion among married women include family responsibilities of being mother and wife; disruption of career advancement as a result of husband relocating. Low self-esteem among some women also acts as a hindrance to promotion. However, the more intractable hindrances turned out to be external. Cultural conditioning and tradition both combine to relegate women to domestic responsibilities. There is the issue of unequal power relations between men and women in the work place and, in some instances, the failure to apply anti-discriminatory legislation during interview processes. It therefore made little or difference whether the research was carried out in an urban area like Pietermaritzburg or a rural environment like Vulindlela. Hindrances to female promotion were very similar. This study concludes by suggesting that women should form lobby groups to challenge unfair labour practices. They should also increase their visibility by placing their curriculum vitae in the hands of people of influence. A further suggestion is that they take an active part in professional bodies and publish academic articles. At the school level, they should resist all attempts at being treated in a condescending manner. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2007.

This mini-dissertation reports on a case study of teachers' perceptions of the performance appraisal system used at an independent school in the greater Durban area in Kwa-Zulu Natal. As the system was implemented at a time when appraisal was only mandatory in government schools and not in / Thesis (M.Ed.) - University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2005.

This study was conducted to investigate what the perceptions of Career Guidance Counselors were toward young girls and High Status Subjects. The study was underpinned by the work done by a number of researchers in other countries. These researchers all proved that the subjects Mathematics and Physical Science were not gender biased and girls could do as well as boys. The subject packages girls chose at the end of their grade 9 year would have an impact on possible career choices they could make after the completion of grade 12. The study also seeks to explore reasons why girls were not choosing these subjects and if the Career Guidance Counselors were actively encouraging the girls to take these subjects. The study was a qualitative one using interviews based on questionnaires. The answers were carefully recorded and decoded. The Career Guidance Counselors were interviewed at their schools in the central Durban area. The schools selected were those fortunate enough to have counselors on their staff. Many schools do not have Career Guidance Counselors as they are unable to accommodate them with their limited resources. The study found that at many schools there was little if any encouragement from the Guidance Counselors to enter these subjects in grade 10. The two schools that did encourage their female learners to select these subjects found that their learners achieved very well. This study will show that urgent intervention needs to be made if our young girls are to take their rightful place in our society in a number of high status occupations. / Thesis (M.Ed.) - University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2004.

This research explores the experiences of African learners in a school in which they constitute the minority. The aim of the study is to investigate how African learners perceive of their day to day experiences in an ex-House of Delegates school that still has a predominantly Indian learner population. The study was conducted in a primary school situated in a small suburb south of Durban. Ten African learners from grade seven were interviewed through semi-structured interviews in this qualitative study. This was followed by a focus group discussion with the ten respondents to further investigate specific issues and to serve as a debriefing since strong emotions had surfaced. Interviews were recorded on audiotape, and non-verbal indicators were recorded in the form of written notes. Non-participant observations were also conducted on the playgrounds. The content analysis method was used to analyze the data. Themes were identified and related to the conceptual framework of the study. The analysis revealed that learners experienced various exclusionary pressures as African learners in a predominantly Indian school. Unequal power relations are perpetuated through the intersection of race, class and ability as well as through a hidden curriculum. Racism as a form of oppression was evident in the racist name-calling and racist stereotyping. There appears to be a lack of a caring pedagogy as African learners feel marginalized. The findings reveal the need for a whole-school policy on anti-racist education. In addition, educators need training to help them interrogate the cycle of socialization to which they have been exposed. The implications are specific to the context. The formulation of a whole-school policy on anti-racist education and an educator intervention program are some of the recommendations. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2004.

The principle of quality education for all learners is embedded in all policy documentsand legislation and this emphasis on quality education for all suggests that schools have to meet the diverse needs of all learners. However, throughout South African schooling contexts, there are many learners who face barriers to learning and participation in view of the fact that schools are unable to respond to the diversity of needs in the learner population. The issue is not how the learners adjust to the learning environment but whether the learning environment is flexible enough to accommodate the diverse needs of all learners. The responsibility of achieving the goal of a non-discriminatory education system lies heavily on the shoulders of classroom teachers. The purpose of this study is to examine how teachers at a primary school experience diversity within the classroom. The research was undertaken in a historically Indian boys' only state primary school in KwaZulu-Natal, with a learner population of almost 95% African, 4% Indian and the other 1% comprising White/Coloured learners. The focus of the study was the teachers. I sought to investigate how teachers construct and respond to diversity in their classes. Within the context of the post apartheid South Africa, the classroom has become a microcosm of the 'rainbow nation', with teachers having to deal with many differences at varying levels within the classroom. How teachers interpret and respond to differences is likely to be subjective. In light of the fact that teachers' interpretations are subjective, for the purpose of this study, symbolic interactionism was used as a theoretical framework. Qualitative research , methodology, which took the form of a case study was used. Teachers experiences were examined through semi-structured interviews, observations and document analysis. Throughout the study, there emerged the "them" and "us" syndrome in teachers. The study shows that while the teachers did not treat African learners unfairly, there are numerous exclusionary practices at the school. Very little attempt is made by the teachers to change their teaching behaviours in ways that make the curriculum responsive to their learners. In fact, very little was done to change the ethos of the school, and African learners where expected to 'fit in' and become part of the existing culture of the school. There emerges from the study, a definite need to train teachers to think and work within a new frame of reference, that is, a human rights framework which constantly interrogates unequal power relations and inequalities that schools perpetuate. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2004.

This research project investigates the ways in which six Indian boys who have been officially proclaimed failures in grade 11 construct their masculinity in Meadowlands Secondary School, a predominantly Indian technical secondary school in a working class area of Chatsworth. The way in which failing Indian boys construct their masculinity is under-researched in South Africa. When boys are officially declared academic failures by the school, they often take other ways to validate their masculine identities. This study focused on the complex relationship between their academic failure and the formation of their masculinities. Drawing from semi-structured in-depth interviews with six boys who failed grade 11 in 2003 and are currently repeating grade 11 in 2004, the study shows the complex relationship between school failure, and the formation of boys' masculinities in three areas. These areas are the formal academic dimension of schooling, the informal social dimension of schooling and outside school activities. The major fmdings from the interviews indicate that boys construct their masculinity by resisting the demands placed on them in schools and engage in disruptive activities. They find alternate power and prestige in wearing brand name clothes, wearing jewellery, carrying cellular phones, having girlfriends, clubbing, taking drugs and joining gangs. They find school boring and equate academic achievement with being feminine and thus being gay and resist doing school-work. They are thus able to construct their masculinities in ways that are anti-school and anti-authority. The study concludes by suggesting that failing boys at MSS are in trouble and that schools and teachers must be more alert to why failing boys behave in the ways that they do. At MSS it is suggested that the school encourages the development of sport as a way of exposing boys to different ways of being a boy. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2004.