This study dealt with the problem of training selected basic interviewing skills to beginning counselors. The purposes of this investigation were 1) to assess the effectiveness of microcounseling for training the skills of open-ended questioning and verbal minimal encouraging; 2) to assess the influence of microcounseling on counselor verbal participation; 3) to determine whether training in these skills via the microcounseling model will generalize to the actual counseling setting and be maintained over time; and, 4) to determine whether microcounseling is a practical method of teaching therapy skills to practicum students.

M.A. / South Africa is a country which has undergone many changes since its first democratic elections in 1994. Amongst other societal implications, these changes have catapulted South African businesses and employees into the global economy. Being part of the global economy means that South African employees, like their northern hemisphere counterparts, are struggling to create balance in their lives. The stress resulting from the often opposing demands of work and family has lead to increasing scientific attention being paid to the matter of life balance. The present study has endeavoured to shed some light on this subject. Life balance was defined as the state that people reach when they experience contentment regarding their time involvement, emotional involvement and level of satisfaction achieved from each life role. This conceptualisation encompassed Super’s five adult life roles, namely those of student, worker, citizen, leisurite and home and family person. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between personality traits and life balance amongst employees of the South African corporate sector (N = 175). Each participant completed the Basic Traits Inventory, a life balance questionnaire and a biographical data questionnaire. The general hypotheses stated in the research pertained to the relationship between personality traits and life balance. More specific hypotheses were formulated pertaining to the relationships between individual traits and life balance, as well as the combined and predictive effect of personality traits on life balance. Examination of the individual personality traits in relation to life balance was done through the use of Pearson’s product-moment correlations. The results indicated that Extroversion (r = 0.151; p < 0.05), Conscientiousness (r = 0.303; p < 0.01) and Openness to Experience (r = 0.204; p < 0.01) had statistically significant positive relationships with life balance, while Neuroticism (r = -0.192; p < 0.05) surrendered a statistically significant negative relationship with life balance.

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No description available.

The primary purpose of this study was to compare performance on selected gross motor skills of elementary school-aged children diagnosed as dyslexic and a similar group of school-aged children who are identified as non-dyslexic. A secondary purpose of the study will be to compare performance within the dyslexic group according to the severity of the affliction.

Ecclesiastes has often been seen as a sceptic's view of life and because of its complex nature has not been studied thoroughly nor clearly understood. It is a very interesting book in the Bible because it addresses pertinent issues of life such as pleasure, fame, money, achievement, worship, satisfaction, work, justice, happiness and death. Each of these aspects affects the purpose and fulfilment of life. Solomon, the writer of Ecclesiastes, sought to examine life so that he could determine its real meaning, in order to teach these principles to others and leave a lasting legacy. He was a man who had the time, the money, the wisdom, and the authority to examine life thoroughly and he had the means to pursue his every desire. He came to the conclusion that any pursuit in life, apart from a relationship with God and submitting to His purpose, was transitory and did not bring lasting satisfaction. These discoveries are the focus of Ecclesiastes and they direct one towards the understanding that life only has meaning in a relationship with God and living out His purposes. Solomon uses a unique form of"goad and nail" (Ecc. 12:11) in his writing style to capture the reader's attention and then direct them to a conclusive foundation of truth on which they can base their view of life. I believe it is the "Gospel of the Old Testament" and an authoritative book for evangelising and teaching life skills to Youth today. This thesis is a thorough study of Ecclesiastes, so as to accurately determine the message that Solomon wanted to convey and then apply those truths to Youth today. As a book contained in the Biblical scope of wisdom literature, Ecclesiastes teaches life skills on how to understand, approach and live life meaningfully. This is an important topic for all people and especially for Youth who have their lives ahead of them and are seeking for meaning and purpose, so that they can live fulfilled lives. However, because of the secularisation of our western society and the influence of Postmodernism, Youth are not receiving a true or realistic message on which to base their worldview. Much of what they have gleaned and believe is based on superficial thinking, feeling and presumption. Life's philosophies must be based on a solid foundation of convictions, which are based on absolute truth. This absolute truth is God's truth, as found in the Bible. As God inspired the writing of the book of Ecclesiastes, it becomes one of those bases within the scope of the Scriptures that authoritatively addresses the issues Youth face when developing their life purpose. Before trying to teach Youth the truths of Ecclesiastes one must first gain their acceptance because they have been influenced to reject absolutes. Thus it is necessary to cause them to re-evaluate their philosophies of life before teaching them biblical truth. Positive Deconstruction is the proposed method of approach and re-evaluation. The proposed method of teaching Youth the truths laid out in Ecclesiastes is through interactive discussion. This is a form of discussion that involves them and causes them to think independently. This method can be used by parents with their teens at home, teachers with their learners at school and also Youth leaders at church. Research also includes personal interviews with young people to determine their life goals and purpose. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2016. / Practical Theology / PhD / Unrestricted

archives@tulane.edu / Young children’s adaptive behaviors, particularly those relating to self-care skills (e.g., independent dressing), are markers for school-readiness. Yet little is known about how self-care skills develop or how children’s ability to perform self-care skills can be facilitated. We conducted two studies to examine how children learn to button (Study 1) and how clothing design may inhibit or promote children’s buttoning ability (Study 2). In Study 1, we asked 48 children, ages 5- to 7-years-old, to button shirts with both small and large buttons in varying spatial locations (on themselves, on stuffed animals placed across from them, on stuffed animals placed in their laps). Results showed a developmental progression whereby children became more effective and efficient when buttoning on themselves than buttoning on another. We also found that large buttons were easier for children to manage than small buttons. However, when we conducted an environmental scan of children’s clothing in department stores (Study 2), we found that children’s shirts most often have small buttons. This suggests that clothing may not be designed in a way that would promote independent dressing. Collectively, our results provide important insights into the ways in which the design of daily artifacts can be tailored to children’s developing abilities. / 1 / Blair Youmans

The purpose of this study was to replicate a study on consultation skills, done by Knoff, Hines, and Kromrey (1995) while expanding the sample base to include teaching assistants and parents. The Consultant Effectiveness Scale (CES), a questionnaire consisting of 75 consultant skills and characteristics, was used to survey the perceptions of 75 consultants and consultees (18 consultants, 23 teachers, 17 teaching assistants, and 17 parents) regarding the degree to which they believed each skill was important to the effectiveness of consultation. Results were examined for differences across groups, for consistency with the factor structure obtained by Knoff, Hines, and Kromrey (1995), and to determine the impact of demographic variables. A follow-up telephone interview was conducted with 2 consultants, 3 teachers, 3 teaching assistants, and 3 parents to verify questionnaire results. The ratings of respondent groups were compared and contrasted across the top 15 ranked items and several consistencies were found to exist across groups. Parents were found to have rated all items generally lower than consultants or teachers. A factor analysis was completed using the 52 items from the original four factors (Knoff, Hines, & Kromrey, 1995) and resulted in a high degree of consistency with the original factor structure generated by Knoff, Hines, and Kromrey. A one-way ANOVA was conducted and significant differences were found on three of the four factors with the consultants rating the items higher than the parents (p <.05). No significant differences were found across demographic variables. The results of the telephone interviews were consistent with the high ratings of many of the interpersonal and relationship-building skills and content skills identified in the questionnaire responses. Recommendations are made calling for future research to further validate the scale, and to confirm differences between respondent groups. The value of the scale and its contents are highlighted in the context of preservice and in service training for consultants. / Graduate

This workshop demonstrated the utility of a patient-centered web-based/digital Breaking Bad News communication training module designed to educate learners of various levels and disciplines. This training module is designed for independent, self-directed learning as well as group instruction. These interactive educational interventions are based upon video-recorded patient stories. Curriculum development was the result of an interdisciplinary, collaborative effort involving faculty from the East Tennessee State University (ETSU) Graduate Storytelling Program and the departments of Family and Internal Medicine at the James H. Quillen College of Medicine. The specific goals of the BBN training module are to assist learners in: (1) understanding a five-step patient-centered model that is based upon needs, preferences, and expectations of patients with cancer and (2) individualizing communication that is consistent with patient preferences in discussing emotions, informational detail, prognosis and timeline, and whether or not to discuss end-of-life issues. The pedagogical approach to the training module is to cycle through Emotional Engagement, Data, Modeled Practices, Adaptation Opportunities, and Feedback. The communication skills addressed are rooted in concepts found within the Reaching Common Ground communication training. A randomized control study investigating the effectiveness of the Breaking Bad News module found that medical students as well as resident physicians improved their communication skills as measured by an Objective Structured Clinical Examination. Four other similarly designed modules were also created: Living Through Treatment, Transitions: From Curable to Treatable/From Treatable to End-of-Life, Spirituality, and Family.

Presented in fulfilment of the requirements for a Master of Education Degree in the Department: Foundations of Education at the University Of Zululand, South Africa, 2011. / The world is changing fast due to the increasing innovation in technology. New products and services are emerging faster than ever before. The task of identifying opportunities for creating new processes, services and products leading to the creation of wealth and jobs, will increasingly fall on the shoulders of a new generation of entrepreneurs. Learners need to be more oriented towards the entrepreneurial practices and create room for hands-on projects. In order for South Africans to have hope in the education that is on offer for today’s youth, there must be a strong emphasis on having learners understand the entrepreneurial process. The future of South Africa lies in the youth education of today. They must understand what makes a society and organization entrepreneurial. Learners need to be creative and innovative. They must be given the opportunity to identify areas in which innovation has particular advantages or weaknesses. In addition, they must be able to determine with a reasonable degree of certainty whether or not that innovation is viable before investing money in it. Quality in the education context can be described as good achievement, worthy and add value to one’s living. This will involve learners, parents, teachers, employers and industry as the major stakeholders in the education scenario. Entrepreneurship should be applied both practically and theoretically in education which will in return empower learners to bring forth natural talents and capacitates them to become creative and critical. Learners are mentored to become self-driven, life–long seekers of knowledge and to respond to challenges with the enthusiasm of great entrepreneurship. Education has encountered many problems in the past because of political agendas; for that reason, the focus must now change to offering basic education to primary schools, since nowadays children in this country head most of the families. They therefore need to attain strategies of entrepreneurship at an earlier stage in order to sustain their families. This paper aims at scrutinizing the link between the practical and theoretical part of teaching entrepreneurship among learners. The Department of Education in South Africa has identified educational opportunities, preparing young people for the world in response to intermediate and higher-level skills requirements. The government is very optimistic about meeting its targets for 2004 - 2009 and 2010 – 2014, which are geared towards minimizing inadequate education and skills development. India and China have managed to transform themselves from economic prey to corporate raiders of international repute and world-class competitors (Agelasto & Adamson, 1998: 433). The introduction of a new Outcomes Based Curriculum and the Revised National Curriculum in South Africa, amongst other things, have aimed at attaining critical outcomes, which included problem-solving skills, teamwork, communication by means of mathematics, language and the application of science and technology. Thus, to a large degree, this curriculum has been a response to the demands of globalization; hence there has been the shift to new curriculum which is Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statements (CAPS.) Generally, there is a need of a curriculum to become more vocationally orientated. Learners are expected to be more in touch with the world of work, as practiced in the Netherlands, Japan, China and India (Dore & Sako, 1989: ix). They are made aware of the brave new world they will be facing in the workplace (Lemmer,1999:37). Herrington (2008:1) indicated that, “the low business prevalence rates remain a major concern for South Africa”. The poor sustainability of start-ups in South Africa relative to other countries highlights the need for policy interventions aimed at supporting and mentoring entrepreneurs through the difficult process of the firm’s birth and skilled labourers.