Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This dissertation sought to understand the experience of six participants as members of a cluster group of socially marginalised youth in a farmworker community. Through a collaborative process, the study sought to reframe the perceptions around the behavioural outcomes of membership to such an outcast group. Theories of empowerment through active participation underpinned the whole study. The study was qualitative in nature and used a Participatory Action research methodology which created the space for creative exploration with enabling methodologies such as the Youth Engagement Cycle and Activity Theory. Data were collected through focus group- and semi-structured interviews; participant observation and participant generated artefacts. Six adolescent males who were part of an already established cluster group of socially marginalised youth at a school were purposively selected into the study. The analysis of data was an ongoing and iterative process informed by the theories that underpinned the study and through content analysis of emerging themes. The study revealed that the cluster group was not formed with delinquent intent. Instead, it was created as a space that allowed its members to feel a sense of belonging, security and being valued. However, the group dynamic caused individual self-efficacy to become so enmeshed with collective agency that if left unchecked, it had the potential to propel its members along a trajectory to delinquency. The dissertation recommends understanding cluster groups as unique heterogeneous entities that show insight and empathy into the challenges their cohorts experience. Recognising that this elevates the peer group's influence above that of adults the study recommends a collaborative, well-structured and strategic intervention that allows individuals to experience success and self-influence in attaining mastery within the group dynamic. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie verhandeling het ten doel gehad om ses deelnemers se ervaring as lede van 'n 'cluster' groep gemarginaliseerde jongmense binne 'n plaaswerker gemeenskap te probeer verstaan. Deur middel van 'n proses van samewerking, het die studie gepoog om die persepsies rakende die gedragsuitkomste van lidmaatskap binne so 'n geïsoleerde groep te herformuleer. Die hele studie is gebaseer op teorie van bemagtiging deur middel van aktiewe deelname. Die verhandeling was kwalitatief van aard en het gebruik gemaak van 'n Deelnemende Aksie Navorsingsmetodologie wat ruimte geskep het vir kreatiewe ontdekking met bemagtigende metodologieë soos bv. "Youth Engagement Cycle" en "Activity Theory". Data is ingesamel deur middel van 'n fokusgroep en semi-gestruktureerde onderhoude; deelnemer waarneming en deelnemer gegenereerde artefakte. Ses adolessente mans wat reeds deel was van 'n gevestigde groep sosiaal-gemarginaliseerde jongmense by 'n skool, is doelbewus geselekteer vir die studie. Die analise van die data was 'n deurlopende en iteratiewe proses wat belig is deur die teorieë waarop die studie gebaseer was asook deur inhoudsanalise van die ontluikende temas. Die studie het getoon dat die 'cluster' groep nie gevorm is met misdaad as doel nie. Inteendeel, die groep het ontstaan as 'n ruimte wat sy lede toegelaat het om 'n mate van geborgenheid, sekuriteit en waardering te ervaar. Die groepsdinamiek het individuele self-doeltreffendheid toegelaat om so verbonde te raak met kollektiewe agentskap dat indien dit nie gekontroleer was nie, dit die potensiaal getoon het om sy lede op 'n trajek van jeugmisdaad te plaas. Die verhandeling beveel dus aan dat 'n 'cluster' groep gesien word as 'n unieke heterogene entiteit wat insig en empatie toon met die uitdagings wat lede ervaar. Op grond van die feit dat dit die portuurgroep se invloed bo die van die volwassenes verhef, wil die studie 'n samewerkende, goedgestruktureerde en strategiese bemiddeling aanbeveel wat die individu sal toelaat om sukses en selfgelding te ervaar met die bereiking van bemeestering binne die dinamiek van die groep.

by Yvonne Lee Kit Shan. / Questionnarie in Chinese. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1997. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 71-78). / ABSTRACT --- p.ii / ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS --- p.iii / TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.iv / LIST OF TABLES --- p.vi / LIST OF FIGURES --- p.vii / LIST OF APPENDICES --- p.viii / Chapter CHAPTER ONE - --- INTRODUCTION / Rationale for prevention programs for people with mental retardation --- p.1 / Conception of prevention --- p.10 / Program description and evaluation --- p.12 / Critique of prevention programs --- p.15 / Side effect of prevention program --- p.18 / Purpose of the present study --- p.19 / Chapter CHAPTER TWO - --- METHOD / Subjects --- p.23 / Instructor and interviewers --- p.25 / Measures --- p.25 / Procedures --- p.28 / Analyses --- p.31 / Chapter CHAPTER THREE - --- RESULTS / Attrition analysis --- p.33 / Pretreatment analysis --- p.35 / Reliability of measures --- p.35 / Outcome evaluation --- p.38 / Side effect of the program --- p.55 / Chapter CHAPTER FOUR - --- DISCUSSION / The need for sexual abuse prevention program --- p.57 / Outcome evaluation of the Behavioral Skill Training (BST) program --- p.58 / Side effect of sexual abuse prevention program --- p.62 / Transfer of knowledge from child sexual abuse research --- p.63 / Limitations --- p.66 / Clinical implication --- p.68 / Conclusions --- p.69 / REFERENCES --- p.71 / APPENDICES --- p.79

Life Orientation is one the learning areas which was introduced by Curriculum 2005 in the General Education and Training band. Its inclusion in the Further Education and training curriculum from 2005 is indicative of its unsurpassed importance to learners. However, these changes have brought about challenges and uncertainty among educators. A literature study was done to discuss the concepts of Life Orientation content, the role of educators, the skills Life Orientation educators should possess and adolescence. The different approaches in relation to the teaching of Life Orientation were also explained. A survey study, using a quantitative research design, was done to investigate educators' response on their knowledge of Life Orientation content, Life Orientation skills and adolescent development. The results of the study indicate that Life Orientation educators lack confidence in these three areas. Therefore, educators require training to equip them to cope with the challenges of the learning area, Life Orientation. / Educational Studies / M.Ed. (Specialisations in Guidance and Counselling)

The aim of the study was to investigate the role of the life skills training programme in instilling resilience to HIV infection among teen mothers. The study targeted teenage mothers who took part in a life skills training programme in a rural area of Lesotho between 2009 and 2014. The objectives of the study were to; understand what teen mothers have learnt by participating in the project; understand how useful the knowledge was in helping them to cope with HIV and AIDS; understand whether the teen mothers are still using the skills they have been taught to cope with HIV and AIDS, and to understand how the participation in the project benefited them. The research design of the study was quantitative research. A census survey was used to collect data among research participants. The study employed the Health Belief Model, self-efficacy, and resilience theories to explore levels of resilience among teen mothers. The findings show that the teen mothers’ resilience to HIV and AIDS was enhanced by the life skills training. It also shows that the information raised teen mothers’ levels of awareness of health risks and mitigating actions (life skills). This in turn improved their confidence and competency to implement positive behaviour change. It has also emerged from the study that there is continued use of the acquired knowledge and skills by the teen mothers after the project. The findings also provide evidence of the value of conducting follow up studies on intervention programmes. The study recommends life skills programme be an inseparable part of HIV and AIDS awareness, especially among teenagers. Such intervention should ideally form part of the school curriculum. / Sociology / M.A. (Social Behavior Studies in HIV and AIDS)

Summaries in English and Afrikaans / Life skills are coping skills taught to learners, with the purpose of developing self-reliant and confident people with skills, to cope with important life's challenges in times of change. Where life skill education initiatives are being set up, much time and resources are channelled into training teachers, promoting, disseminating and implementing life skill education. For life skill education to be effective and continue to be relevant, research needs to be undertaken as an integral part of the whole process. This study focuses on the 'Life Skills Train the Trainer Programme'. The aim being to evaluate the success of this programme in empowering teachers to teach life skills. It was found that although life skill education has been found to be an important area in every learner's life, there are obstacles that may affect an effective implementation of life skill education in schools. These obstacles need to be attended to. / ewensvaardighede word aan leerlinge onderrig met die doe! om selfstandigheid en selfversekerdheid te ontwikkel, sodat hulle in staat is om lewenseise te midde van veranderende tye te kan hanteer Wanneer lewensvaardighede-onderrig gelnisieer word, word baie tyd en hulpbronne gekanaliseer in die opleiding van onderwysers, asook in die promovering, verspreiding en implementering van sodanige onderwys. Vir lewensvaardighede-onderrig om effektief te wees en relevant te bly, moet navorsing 'n integrale dee! van die hele prose vorm. Hierdie studie is gerig op die "Life Skills Train the Trainer Programme". Die doe! was om vas te stel tot watter mate hierdie program bydra tot die bemagtiging van onderwysers in die onderrig van lewensvaardighede. Die bevinding was dat alhoewel erkenning gegee word aan die belangrikheid van lewensvaardighede-onderrig, daar tog struikelblokke is wat effektiewe implementering in skole kan belemmer Hierdie struikelblokke moet aangespreek word. / Educational Studies / M.Ed.

This study aimed at exploring the Life Orientation (LO) teachers’ knowledge and teaching of study skills in high schools, Ekudibeng cluster, Gauteng East. The Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) is the most recent curriculum policy (Department of Basic Education [DBE], 2012) and serves as an action plan to 2030 for the South African education system in order to address some of the origins of underperformance in South African schools (Nicolson, 2013). Life Orientation (LO) can be described as a learning area within the educational context that promotes the holistic development of a child. The educational context refers to all processes at school level involved in training children’s minds and abilities so that they can acquire knowledge and develop skills to succeed in life. Life Orientation integrates subjects, such as life skills, career guidance, health education, physical education, human rights studies and religious education (Pillay, 2012). According to the Life Orientation 2011 CAPS document, Life Orientation teachers are expected to teach study skills to learners starting from grade 10 – 12 (Further Education and Training (FET) Phase (DBE, 2011). Learning or study skills carry over into other areas of life and beyond school. Study skills are therefore critical tools that ensure that learner achievement leads to success. Furthermore, effective study skills need effective interaction between teachers and learners (Gettinger, & Seibert, 2002). The teacher is a social agent and should make study skills accessible through the process of teaching in the classroom. This implies that the teacher is a central tool for equipping the learners with the necessary study skills which can aid in the unlocking of their future potential (Sasikala, 2012). As such, it was considered important to explore the knowledge and skills for teaching LO as well as the challenges faced and their needs for further development. Three schools in Ekudibeng cluster, Gauteng East were purposefully selected for this purpose on the basis of their results in the previous year’ matric exit examinations. Qualitative case studies of the Further Education and Training LO teachers’ experiences at each of these schools were undertaken utilising semi-structured interviews as a data collection tool. The data were analysed via qualitative content analysis techniques. The findings of this study emphasise the need for a focus on study skills teaching and teacher proficiency in the high school education system. The South African Education System role-players need to take LO seriously and have teachers qualified to teach LO, and to meet their needs through study skills training workshops. Comprehensive continuous improvement in learner performance requires a constant determination of trained LO teachers, qualified for the subject and properly equipped with relevant knowledge to cascade it to learners and cooperative community members, where parents are involved/hands on in shaping their children’s’ future. / Psychology of Education / M. Ed. (Guidance and Counselling)

The purpose of this study is to examine the level of social support in a sample of foster youth nearing emancipation. Additionally this study seeks to examine if a relationship between social support and anxious and/or avoidant attachment styles can be observed.

The South African school curriculum recognises the vital importance of life skills acquisition through the learning area, Life Orientation (referred to in the primary school as Life Skills). The Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) Life Skills (Creative Arts) for the Intermediate Phase promotes drama-based instruction in life skills learning. The curriculum links to Forum Theatre techniques which are aimed at the learner’s holistic development through, among others, social game playing, improvised role-play and devising and performing a problem play which includes audience participation mediated by a ‘Joker,’ a facilitator role usually filled by an experienced and trained teacher. Children learn about the self, their peers and society through reality-based exploration and the conflicts that arise due to socialisation and power-based problems. Cognitive behavioural, existential and experiential learning theories and the theatrical theory and practice of Augusto Boal, who invented Forum Theatre as part of the Theatre of the Oppressed, formed the framework for this performative case study inquiry conducted in a South African primary school. A researcher-designed Forum Theatre intervention was implemented by the Grade 6 (Creative Arts) teacher with four Grade 6 classes over eight weeks in Life Skills (Creative Arts) classes, culminating in Forum Theatre performances by the four classes, respectively. Data were gathered through classroom observation in which the researcher assumed the role of observer-participant, conducted individual and focus group interviews with Grade 6 teachers, did interviews with Grade 6 learners, took video recordings of learners’ classroom activities, recorded the Forum Theatre performances, and collected the learners’ written reflections. The findings indicated: the process adjustments required to facilitate Forum Theatre activities in a primary school setting; effectiveness of experiential learning of life skills through game-playing and discovery; performative pedagogy fostered life skill acquisition; performative pedagogy harnessed nonverbal, embodied learning to build social insight; and describes the teacher experience in implementing a Forum Theatre intervention. Recommendations for practice include teacher training for experiential, explorative, and performance-based teaching in line with the CAPS document, which provides for a range of performative teaching and learning activities to promote effective life skills acquisition in primary school learners. / Educational Studies / Ph. D. (Education)

This study aimed to evaluate the benefits of life skills training as a preventive strategy for HIV and AIDS, for secondary school learners in one secondary school in the Moretele District of Mpumalanga. The objectives of this study were to determine the levels of learners’ knowledge about HIV and AIDS, and levels of teacher training in life skills, to assess how teachers’ and learners’ attitudes affect life skills training, to explore the perceptions of teachers and learners regarding the usefulness of life skills training in the prevention of HIV transmission and to assess the usefulness of the learning and teaching support materials (LTSM) used in life skills training. The study also investigated the challenges encountered by learners and teachers in life skills training in order to make recommendations for improvements. This is a qualitative evaluation study that involved qualitative focus group interviews, qualitative semi-structured interviews and qualitative observation. Sampling was purposive and it entailed 30 grade 9 learners and 2 grade 9 Life Orientation teachers. The Health Belief Model and Social Cognitive Theory formed the theoretical framework for this study. The results of the study showed that the aspects which significantly benefited learners were: sufficiently acceptable levels of knowledge about HIV and AIDS, the use of other resources from the library, and development of positive attitudes of learners and teachers involved in life skills. Aspects of life skills training which demonstrated partial benefits for the learners were teacher training and involvement of parents and other health care professionals. However, aspects which were less developed were the learners’ and teachers’ knowledge and application regarding some skills needed for prevention of HIV infection / Social Work / M.A. (Social Behaviour Studies in HIV-AIDS)

Extra-marital affairs seem to be rampant among Seventh-day Adventist adult membership in Botswana. To determine the extent of the problem, to investigate the causative factors and to suggest ways in which individuals and families can be helped, has been the motivation for this study. It was discovered that 11.8% of married adults in the survey had at least one secret sexual partner, and 42.6% of singles had an illegal sexual partner(s). Seventh-day Adventist adults' sexuality in Botswana is characterized by hetero-sexual, multiple partners. Some of the contributing factors are economic, cultural and spiritual. Despite the prevailing influences, the majority of the adults (68%) still disagree with lax sexual behavior. This gives hope to work for their restoration and empowerment. Two key areas that were seen to be critical in empowering them were the family and spirituality. A psycho-spiritual program called, Harmonious Development, is being suggested for a systematic, educational, holistic and lifelong empowerment. This model is based on the psycho-educational theory developed by W.J. Schoeman for adult training. / SCH: HUM, SOC SCIENC & THEO / DTH (SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY)