The dissertation is concerned with Christian religious education as a school subject in Gazankulu. As such, the research aims at establishing the nature, as well as the problems experienced in Gazankulu secondary schools concerning this subject. The founding of Swiss Mission stations among the Tsonga/ Shangaan people since 1873, went hand in hand with the founding and maintenance of schools for almost 82 years - a period in which Religious Education was overemphasised. Certain aspects of the Welsh Commission Report of 1935-1936 as well as of the Eiselen Commission Report of 1949-1951 revealing the position of Religious Education, and the subsequent introduction of the so-called Bantu Education with its negative effects on Religious Education, are examined. Problems experienced in Gazankulu secondary schools have, therefore, been exposed and their influence on pupils have been assessed. A few practical solutions in the form of recommendations concludes this study / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (History of Education)

<p> The culture of American education that is largely predicated on acquiring the proverbial golden ticket for entrance to an esteemed college has produced the most anxious, stressed, and sleep-deprived generation ever (Jones &amp; Jones, 2006). As students strive to graduate from high school with perfected profiles that impress and garner admission to these colleges, high school success and educational practices are typically focused on achievement as reflected by test scores, grades, college acceptance results, and scholarship offers (Zins, Bloodworth, Weissberg, &amp; Walberg, 2004). As a result, instead of prioritizing process-oriented learning that is associated with a growth mindset, achievement performance measures focus on extrinsic rewards often linked with a fixed mindset such as grades, scores, rankings, and awards (Dweck, 2006). As students pursue accolades and marks of achievement, various aspects of learning are supplanted including risk, struggle, persistence, resilience, and growth, often at the expense of character, values, integrity, and psychological well-being (Guang, Hanchao, &amp; Kaiping, 2016). </p><p> The study revealed the relationship between mindset and psychological well-being for a sample of 123 high achieving, college-bound senior students attending private, college-preparatory Christian high schools in Orange County, California. It also reviews the factors related to the college admission process that affects and shapes the life experiences of these students. Quantitative data reveal the relationships and themes related to mindset and psychological well-being and offer insight and strategies that may promote positive, healthier outcomes for college-bound students as well as topics for future research. This study adds to the current body of knowledge related to implicit theories of intelligence, mindset, adolescent psychological well-being, and social emotional learning. </p><p> Furthermore, this study is relevant because it reveals the underlying factors related to the emotional needs of today&rsquo;s adolescents, providing teachers, counselors, and school administrators with important information that may influence vision, goals, policies, and instruction. The results of this study support the need to reevaluate the effects of the college admission process on adolescent mindset and psychological well-being.</p><p>

<p> The purpose of this qualitative explanatory single case study was to understand why Knights of Columbus (KofC) volunteers in Ontario, Canada demonstrate motivation, organizational commitment, and engagement. The scope of the study was guided by two main research questions: &ldquo;Why do KofC members volunteer?&rdquo; and &ldquo;How do KofC members combine elements of motivation, organizational commitment, and engagement in their volunteer activity?&rdquo; The triangulation of participant interviews, observations from KofC general meetings, and online archived documents supported the study&rsquo;s qualitative methodology that required rich, descriptive data. For feasibility, the population of this study was comprised of KofC volunteers within three councils in Ontario, Canada and 17 KofC members were selected purposively based on age and experience criteria for face-to-face interviews. Transcribed interview data, observational field notes and archival documents were analyzed and coded using NVivo 11 to uncover three emerging themes: living one&rsquo;s faith, loyalty, and flexibility. The findings indicated that KofC members have alignment between personal and organizational values, intend to follow Biblical scripture to live their faith in the public square, and feel obligated to help others in need. Fraternity and unity were welcomed benefits that KofC members enjoyed while volunteering. KofC provides volunteers with role and task variety, which allows volunteers to choose the activities that suit their interest, skill set, and time commitment. By gaining insights from these themes, organizational leaders can improve their communication to potential and existing volunteers, foster stronger relationships among volunteers, and develop programs that engage volunteers through catered recruitment and retention strategies. </p><p>

<p> This study examined the relationship between school leaders&rsquo; self-reported levels of emotional intelligence and teacher perceptions of school climate in K&ndash;12 Catholic schools in Indiana. This study built upon the findings of a mixed-method study by Juma (2013) that was limited in scope and generalizability, and examined the relationship between a principal&rsquo;s perceived emotional intelligence and teacher perceptions of school climate. The current study used a quantitative methodological approach and a larger sample size to enhance understanding of the relationship between school leaders&rsquo; perceptions of emotional intelligence and teacher perceptions of school climate. The Emotional Intelligence Quotient 2.0 (EQ-i 2.0) and the Organizational Climate Questionnaire (OCQ) were completed by 200 teachers and 30 school leaders in 30 K&ndash;12 Catholic schools in Indiana. This study did not find a significant relationship between a school leader&rsquo;s perceived level of emotional intelligence and teacher&rsquo;s perceived school climate. Prior research on these variables has been inconclusive. This study adds to the body of research examining the possible connection between a school leader&rsquo;s emotional intelligence and school climate.</p><p>

<p> As the continuous search for educational alternatives in Philadelphia intensifies, one only has to look at the current landscape, our surrounding communities, and fiscal pressures to appreciate the need for better alternatives to our public system. This study examines one such &ldquo;alternative,&rdquo; though long-standing education model, Philadelphia&rsquo;s Catholic schools. Within these schools, perhaps we have leaders and a system that may be positioned to play an even greater role in providing a set of experiences that may impact the later life pathways of graduates, potentially predisposing them to community or civic service interests in their adult lives. I have completed an analysis of recollections of Catholic high school graduates across multiple graduation eras and collected insights from their narratives, to help illuminate those potential connection points. Further, unlike many previous longitudinal and correlational studies, in both Catholic and secular schools, I have conducted qualitative research to map earlier student experiences to current-day life practices and dispositions. Through surveys, one-on-one interviews and a focus group with graduates of Philadelphia&rsquo;s area high schools, I am surfacing findings to determine if graduates are embracing certain values from their experiences and whether and how this may have helped shaped their civic and community interests years later.</p><p>

<p> As Christian faith-based institutions of higher education strive to uphold Christian values, there is a need to be intentional in identifying and developing future leaders. This study was viewed through the lens that women are underrepresented in senior-level positions in Christian institutions, they have unique leadership attributes to offer, and learning more from their lived experiences might increase the number of women in senior-level roles in Christian institutions of higher education. </p><p> This study utilized a qualitative phenomenological research design. The researcher interviewed 8 Christian women leaders who serve as Deans in institutions that are full members of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities. The interviews were conducted face-to- face and virtually using a semi-structured interview protocol comprising of 11 questions. The questions explored the lived experiences and perceptions of these Christian women leaders. </p><p> Three conclusions resulted from this study. First, prayer, study, and meditation were the most influential of the 12 spiritual disciplines. Second, spiritual disciplines may have a transformative effect on the character and leadership practices of women leaders in Christian higher education. Third, faith was integrated into the identity and daily practices of these Christian women leaders. </p><p> The researcher recommended that Christian women leaders in higher education must prioritize, or &ldquo;make time,&rdquo; for regular practice of the spiritual disciplines, particularly prayer, study, and meditation. The practice of spiritual disciplines, or the Christian way of life, should be incorporated into professional development and mentorship opportunities for Christian women leaders.</p><p>

<p> The project director serves as the director of operations for the New Breed Church Planting Network (NBCPN). A necessity for developing a reproducible disciple-making strategy for the church planters of NBCPN existed. The project exists to develop a reproducible disciple-making practicum to meet the needs of NBCPN.</p><p> Within the first chapter, the project director explored the ministry project proposal and purpose. Listing main objectives, limitations, assumptions, term definitions, and a detailed project rationale explain the project process. The project director researched four North American church planting organizations to assess the respective utilization of disciple-making processes, while providing an explanation for NBCPN&rsquo;s need for a reproducible strategy.</p><p> Within the second chapter, the project director examined two separate passages of scripture. The texts of Matt 28:18&ndash;20 and Acts 1:8 (ESV) became the foundational basis upon which the project director analyzed and made reproducible disciple-making conclusions. Chapter two consists of exegesis, exposition, and application of the chosen texts and explained the biblical and theological foundation of the ministry project.</p><p> Within chapter three, the project director provided research for the ministry foundations aspect of the project. The project director identified and explored past and present ecclesiological disciple-making procedures. The project director&rsquo;s goal for chapter three provided information concerning the development of historical and 11 contemporary reproducible disciple-making, as well as, examining theoretical and application models.</p><p> Within chapter four, the project director described the development of the ministry project. The chapter focused on the project director&rsquo;s seven-practicum reproducible disciple-making strategy for the church planters of NBCPN. The project director&rsquo;s compiling of information regarding the utilization of an expert panel, incorporated Great Commission components, integrated research of chapters two and three, and implemented expectation, completed the chapter. </p><p> In chapter five, the project director documented an overall summation of the ministry project. The director examined the evaluation of the project process, analysis of the findings, and an overview of the lessons learned. The strengths, weaknesses, and personal reflection of the ministry project offered descriptive insight to the project director and for reader clarity. </p><p>

<p> Educational reforms have created a climate of accountability and high academic pressure that has resulted in a pushing down of the curriculum into early childhood education. Once a prominent pedagogical feature, play is disappearing from kindergarten. The following is a doctoral dissertation that studied administrator, teacher, and parent perceptions of play and its role within the kindergarten curriculum at a Catholic elementary school in the Los Angeles Archdiocese. Using a qualitative case study method, the study noted how play was utilized in transitional kindergarten and traditional kindergarten classrooms at the school site. Interviews, classroom observations, and document review of school publications contributed to the following findings: play was used as a reward for classroom management, adults did not commonly see the connection between play and learning, and academic achievement was valued over play. These findings were placed in the larger context of kindergarten, play, and curriculum by using a theoretical framework built on Early Child Education theories and Epstein&rsquo;s (2011) Parental Involvement framework. This case study highlighted factors that influenced curriculum design and implementation in kindergarten. It contributes to the effort to inform parents, teachers, administrators, and policy makers of the importance of defending play within kindergarten in light of social pressures that favor a didactic kindergarten setting.</p><p>

Recent studies show that Buchner's use of biblical allusions in his literary and political writings reflect considerable knowledge of and interest in religious topics. What has been largely neglected however, is the inseparable tie between biblical themes and social implications in Buchner's works. By providing an in-depth look into Buchner's protestant religious education in Darmstadt from 1821-1831, the dissertation sheds new light on this aspect of Buchner's writings. Born into a protestant but not zealously religious middle-class family, Georg Buchner received his first formal religious education through protestant textbooks used in Religion classes in elementary school (Zarnack, Salzmann, Kohlrausch, Snell; 1821-1825). These textbooks focussed on the figure of Jesus, his compassion with and assistance to the poor and rejection of the rich (Kohlrausch's "Anleitungen"). Readings in German class supported this depiction by providing the students with readings that show the rich as predominantly exploitative and heartless monsters deserving punishment. In high school (1825-1831), Heinrich Palmer, Buchner's Religion teacher from 1827-1831, shifted the focus to a thorough knowledge of the Bible and to protestant heroism. Basing his classes on texts by Ziegenbein and Niemeyer, Palmer promulgated their views further in his weekly addresses from the pulpit. Traces of these teachings are evident in Buchner's high school writings. They also show Heinrich Palmer and Gotthold Ephraim Lessing as sources from whom Buchner enjoyed borrowing. As further evidence from minutes, diary entries, and court depositions (1832 to 1837) made by Buchner's predominantly protestant friends in Strassburg, Giessen, and Darmstadt shows, Buchner seems to have adopted the teachings from his elementary and high school years by placing the social gap between the rich and the poor at the heart of his belief that a social "reformation" could only be brought about through religion and the use of the Bible. While religious topics were also read and discussed in the context of other subjects, socio-religious thought and protestant heroism were at the heart of religious instruction and echo most loudly from Buchner's high school writings, from his political pamphlet Der Hessische Landbote (1834) and from the mission statement of the Gesellschaft der Menschenrechte. In view of these findings, Buchner's plays and the novella fragment Lenz are richly deserving of analysis in future studies.

The political concept of corporatism is used to analyze Catholic-sponsored organizations as providers of US welfare-state services. Corporatism nowadays characterizes a political arrangement by which professional and industrial sectors acquire state-like powers in order to coordinate social productivity. Though corporatism usually refers to nongovernmental fields which acquire government-like status, this dissertation takes a somewhat reverse perspective by focusing on the welfare state, an area which by definition already is governmental, yet by 1996 US welfare reform legislation is slated to increase its delegation of welfare delivery services to non-government practitioners. Much of early twentieth century corporatist thought was founded on the papal encyclicals Rerum Novarum (1891) and Quadragesimo Anno (1931), but the Church cut Its involvement with corporatism after disastrous coöptations by fascism. This study presents a revised formulation of Catholic corporatism by tracing its origins to the eleventh century canon law concept of the Mystical Body of Christ, whereby sacred imagery was invoked to protect religious vocations from encroachments by the newly evolving sovereign state. Today, as the devolution of the welfare state includes faith-based organizations, the largest of which are Catholic, a more complete genealogical look at Catholic corporatism provides a framework to evaluate a welfare industry increasingly run by a semi-public aggregation of professional institutions invested with the duties and resources of the state. The study uses a conjectural hypothesis, “Catholic Welfare Corporatism,” defined by three traits—organicism (unity), subsidiarity (localism), and multimodality (performance across business, government and community forums). By this measure, Catholic-sponsored organizations in the welfare service industry are found to demonstrate a “social-corporatist” orientation at odds with the “state-corporatist” authoritarian category into which Catholic corporatism is typically placed. But the public warrant of Church-sponsored operations in the US have been contingent on their adaptation to American democratic pluralist values. The balance struck between a Catholic corporate identity and its responsiveness to the culture which it serves is key to its survival. Prewar Catholic corporatist inclinations toward monopolism, institutional hubris and political naiveté must be resisted for corporatist innovations to progress.