Gender inequality remains the greatest challenge for many societies and this has implications for the sustainable development and well-being of societies. There exists gender inequalities with regards to access to resources such as land, healthcare, credit, information, education and decision-making power between races and between the sexes. The advent of democracy brought freedom for all South Africans and the new government understood gender inequality as a deterrent to the achievement of sustainable development for all and the building of a democratic state. The National Policy Framework for Women‟s Empowerment and Gender Equality provides a roadmap through which gender should be mainstreamed within government and elsewhere towards achieving the goal of gender equality. It stresses that the shift from inequality to equality requires the transformation of government and civil society. The efforts of the Department of Social Development towards gender mainstreaming are premised in this national framework. The purpose of the present research is to ascertain whether and how gender is being mainstreamed in the National Department of Social Development (DSD), specifically looking at the conceptualization, management and structures in place for gender mainstreaming. This is a qualitative research analysis, using in-depth interviews as primary data collection methods, as well as a review of official gender mainstreaming documents of the DSD. Eighteen officials in middle management from all the different branches (reflected in the organogram in Figure 1) of DSD were selected. Middle management refers to staff that have the rank of Assistant and Deputy- Director. These are members of staff who are directly involved in policy implementation and, in many instances, contribute to the development of policies. The findings indicate that the implementation of gender mainstreaming is varied in the Department, with considerable success towards the attainment of employment equity target of 50/50 women representation in senior management. According to the DSD Employment Equity Report 2007/2008, women constituted 48% of senior managers. The official reports of the DSD point to progress being made in gender mainstreaming within the Department. This includes working towards approving a range of service delivery policies that address concerns of women and men, in intensifying service provision to respond to people‟s vulnerabilities and to ensure sustainable development of communities. The respondents in this study argued that policy commitments to gender equality are not supported by political and administrative will and necessary resources. The majority of the respondents did not know that there was a Gender Focal Point, whose responsibility is the facilitation of gender mainstreaming in the Department. They struggled to define basic gender concepts with gender mainstreaming, mainly understood to be employment equity. The respondents were also not conversant with the Gender Mainstreaming Guidelines and did not know what is needed in implementing gender mainstreaming. The gap between the official reports of the Department on successful gender mainstreaming implementation and the negative perspectives of the respondents needs further investigation. / Thesis (M.Soc.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.

This study is based on fieldwork carried out between October 1995 and December 1996 and has two dimensions. The first dimension reflects the study of social relationships between children with and without disabilities in the regular school setting. The second dimension reflects the process involved when moving from quantitative to qualitative research methodology. This research is presented as three case studies. The first is a behaviourist case study that utilised a peer-training intervention to improve social interactions and social relationships between a six year old boy labelled 'severely disabled' and his regular classroom peers. An increase in the number and length of interactions raised some important questions about the context of social relationships. Two qualitative observational case studies then followed, with the focus on social relationships, especially the structures and people that shape and influence them in the school setting. In the first of the qualitative case studies, the first and over-riding theme was the influence of the school structure. The second theme was the opportunities to interact available to the children in the classroom and the playground. The characteristics of the social interactions and relationships that I observed between a seven year old girl with a disability and her peers were the third theme. In the second qualitative case study three themes also emerged. The first was the role the school played in children's social relationships, the second was the opportunities available to the children to interact and the third theme was the characteristics of the social interactions and relationships that I observed between an eight year old girl with a disability and her peers.

The study deals with the causes of unjustified differences in pay between women and men in the banking sector. The purpose of this paper has been to examine how a gender project implemented in the private banking organizations from a gender-and implementation perspective. The aim of the project examined is to even unjustified differences in pay between men and women in the banking and finance sector. The main issues are: ● How has the project been implemented and what are the real and perceived results? ● How can the opportunities and barriers to successful implementation course with emphasis on gender? The method used is a qualitative study, where the empirical material consisted of focus group interviews. The two main conclusions that we can say is : First, the organization's managers needs to take action in practice for implementation to be successful in the organization, otherwise they constitute an obstacle to the implementation of equal pay for equal work. The barrier consists of the implementation cannot be realized without active management actions. From a gender perspective, this can be understood as the prevailing gender structures maintained and thus unwarranted pay differentials. Second, long-term need for equality implementation. A long-term approach is essential , from a gender perspective to gender patterns are deeply rooted in our culture. They are so ingrained in our way of thinking about gender which can´t change in just a few years. It requires long-term and duration to correct overcoming unwarranted pay differentials. Short-term work preserves gender structures and therefore constitutes an obstacle in the implementation of equal pay for equal work by segregating them or become a side issue.

The purpose of this study was to identify correlates of successful social adaptation in secondary schools, as perceived by students, teachers and parents. A description of behaviors important for mainstreaming mildly exceptional students into grade levels six through twelve was sought.The long term significance of the study was to begin development of an adaptive behavior scale for adolescents which would discriminate normal from mildly handicapped students. The literature contains substantial agreement that no reliable method or measure exists for the evaluation of adaptive behavior in the mildly handicapped secondary student, although the Education for Handicapped Children Act CPL 94-142) requires such an evaluation.Subjects of this study were middle and senior high school classes selected at random from three middle and three senior high schools in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Teachers and parents were also participants, as were secondary special education teachers throughout the system.An eighty item checklist was composed from the literature. It described personal or behavioral characteristics and was distributed to all subjects, who were asked to select ten items from the list which, in their opinions, described the most important requirements for successful adaptation in their respective middle and senior high schools.Responses from participating groups were tabulated and compared on the bases of grade placement, sex, and adult status (regular teacher, parent, special educator). One question asked about previous special placement and located a number of mainstreamed survey participants. Data revealed notable similarity in checklist selections by age group. Selections of mainstreamed students at all grade levels resembled those of middle school students. Adult participants concurred in many of their selections; in terms of the total survey, there was some overlap in the item choices but sufficient difference to demonstrate varying priorities between students and adults. Some aspects of the returns suggest possibly new considerations regarding expectations for mainstreamed students, and contain data for future factor analytic studies toward eventual development of a measurement instrument.

This investigation explored special education and mainstreaming in the social-historical context of U.S. general formal public education and society from the American Revolution to 1990. Its main purpose was to examine the obstacles to and prospects of 'purposeful' mainstreaming in this wider context. First, special education was placed in the context of general education and society. Second, the objectives of general education were viewed historically to examine the influence of evolving societal conditions on special education. Third, the outcomes of PL 94-142 (Education for All Handicapped Children Act) from its passage to the late 1980s were explored in conjunction with the various models and practices of mainstreaming. Fourth, the meaning of the 1980s' 'excellence' reforms were scrutinized. It was found that: (1) the concept of 'society as primarily an economic entity' has had a decisive influence on the objectives of U.S. formal education and special education; (2) special education has functioned mainly as a means of educational amelioration and social control; (3) there have been three major waves of reform in special education arrangements in U.S. history--in the first two waves the element of social control outlasted the element of educational remediation; (4) the latest wave of special education reform, led primarily by the federal government and corporate business and targeting disadvantaged students and their families, has commenced since the 1960s; and (5) the principal mode of reform for the latest wave appears to be 'interagency collaboration' which has inherent elements of educational improvement and social control. Implications of these findings for 'purposeful' mainstreaming are discussed. Based on the suggestion that the obstacles to mainstreaming be situated in the wider social-historical context of the U.S. society, several recommendations are given for strategic planning and more meaningful reform.

In celebrating 10 years of democracy, South Africa has among other things placed even greater emphasis on human rights. The education of those experiencing barriers to learning, where it has been offered, has historically been separate from general education. The right to inclusive education is currently an international concern and can be viewed as one of the many initiatives that could steer this country into the future. However, other demands also highlighted in this research, make it difficult for ordinary schools to take up the challenge. The primary aim of this research was to investigate current conditions in one typical South African classroom in a disadvantaged area, with reference to inclusion. The study took place at a primary school and attempts to provide a rich description of the school, classroom, educator and learners. The context described is one likely to be familiar to many educators. The study identifies and portrays in detail the range of barriers to learning present in a particular classroom and describes the educator and methods used to accommodate learners. <br /> <br /> The findings indicate that this educator&rsquo / s classroom can to a certain extent be described as an inclusive classroom and some of the strategies used to accommodate learners are in line with inclusive practices. The final discussion raises a number of important issues with respect to barriers to learning, curriculum, educator training and school support. It is hoped that this study will highlight key issues and possible solutions that could facilitate the implementation of inclusion in South Africa.

Zugl.: Münster, University, Diss., 2006.

Pädag. Hochsch., Diss., 2006--Heidelberg.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--University of Tulsa, 1987. / Bibliography: leaves 58-63.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1992. / Vita. Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 211-221). Also available via the Internet.