M.Ed. (Educational Management) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

Any enquiry follows some incident which has prompted the question that leads to the enquiry. This study was prompted by a review of the 1974 first year examination results at the University of Fort Hare. The average percentage pass rate for that year was 59.3%. The cynic may remark that this is no different to the first year pass rate at white South African universities (cf. Erens and Louw, 1978), but when it is realised that students entering Fort Hare, or any other black university for that matter, are a highly select group, these figures have more Impact. The consequences of failure in terms of the wastage of human potential are immense (cf. Auerbach, 1977) but are more critical when this occurs, as It does, "... in a society which is competitive rather than co-operative, where people are for ever being classified according to what they have rather than that they can contribute and where competition plus classification inevitably breeds fears." Bligh (1978). A review of the first year examination results for the five years from 1971 revealed an average pass rate of 55.5% and for 1976, 1977 and 1978 a marked decline to 39.32%. For the earlier period, Downing (1977) found that 19.69% of students completed their degree courses In the minimum number of years. For the latter period (1976 to 1978) this has dropped to 16.3%, which, with the figure for the earlier period, suggests that whilst the failure rate may be highest at the end of the first year, in subsequent years it is also high. In this respect Fort Hare differs from white universities where about 75% of students complete their degrees in minimum time (cf. Erens and Louw, 1978)

M.A. (Sociology) / Traditionally, the husband has a higher status than his wife. When the wife improves her status however, this relationship can be changed into one that is unconventionally asymmetric. One important factor that can lead to such an unconventional asymmetry, is the furthering of the wife's educational status, a tendency found increasingly among Black women. Since many Black women who study at a university are married, it is important that they get the support of their husbands in coping with the heavy workload resulting from simultaneously studying and running a household. The aim of this study was to use qualitative research in an explorative way to collect in-depth information on how Black women, who are studying at a university, experience the way their husbands support them. Attention was paid to three main areas of support, namely moral support, support in doing the household tasks and support with looking after the children. Attention was also paid to the extent to which quarreling is caused by the wife's studies. The responses in personal interviews yielded four profiles of support experienced by the wives. The first pattern is one of high support experienced by the wife, characterized by high moral support, medium to medium-high support with the household, medium to high support with the children and little quarreling caused by the wife's studies. The second pattern is one of medium to high support experienced by the wife, characterized by medium moral support, medium-high support regarding the household, high support with the children and little quarreling that the wife experiences as being caused by her studies.

Young people learn about and interact with health and fitness through multiple pedagogical sites, including after-school programs, print and social media, fitness centers, families and peers. As such, the purpose of this dissertation was to explore the ways in which Black and Latinx youth interacted with health and fitness in an urban after-school context. To do so, a visual ethnographic approach was used over 18-months, working with youth in different ways over that time period. Data generation methods included participant observation (field notes, informal conversations), semi-structured interviews, participant-driven visual diaries and a scrapbooking project. Data analysis involved various inquiry techniques such as thinking through (affect) theory, Maggie MacLure’s interpretation of coding, and collage as analysis. Affect theory, from a new materialist and feminist lens, framed this dissertation. Using these theoretical and methodological approaches, I share three manuscripts that highlight affective flows produced at different points in the dissertation research. These involve (1) a focus on beginning to experiment with visual methods and five youth; (2) a pedagogical encounter between four youth, two fitness professionals and myself; and (3) a collage-as-analysis that held potential to de-territorialize research practices as usual. Through these manuscripts, I argue that this dissertation begins to create (non-traditional) ways to reimagine health and fitness so that all bodies (Black/Latinx youth and fitness professionals, White woman researcher, images, texts, words) come to matter for research and pedagogical practices with high school-aged youth in an urban after-school context.

Exposure to hate, racism, discrimination, and microaggressions is prevalent on college campuses, and such exposure also occurs beyond the context of the college campus, whether involving police violence against Blacks, in particular, as well as Hispanics. Also, the COVID-19 pandemic year of 2020 saw a rise in hate and violence toward Asians. The present study aimed to identify the significant predictors of a high prevalence of experiences of microaggressions for Black, Latinx, and Asian students enrolled in college during the pandemic whether at the undergraduate or graduate level in the United States (U.S.). A total of 341 participants (mean age=26.62, female=40.6%, Black/Latinx=54.5%, Asian=45.5%, U.S. born=66.9%, ever attended Historically Black Colleges or Universities/Hispanic Serving Institutions (HBCU/HSI)=52.2%) participated online, having been recruited via a social media campaign and asked to complete the I EXPERIENCED HATE Survey. Independent t-tests indicated that U.S. born respondents experienced significantly more microaggressions (mean=1.91, SD=.843) than non-U.S. born (mean=1.62, SD=1.016; t=-2.595, df=190.5, p=0.01), and those who ever attended an HBCU/HSI experienced significantly more microaggressions (mean=1.97, SD=0.705) compared to those who never attended HBCU/HSI (mean=1.65, SD=1.073; t=-3.247, df=275.8, p=0.001). Pearson’s correlations showed that a higher level of experiencing microaggressions was significantly correlated with lower rating of college climate (r=-.185, p=.001), higher stage of change for coping and responding to racism and oppression (r=.182, p=.001), higher or more frequent experiences of hate (r=.397, p=.000), and higher stressful and traumatic impact of hate (r=.325, p=.000). Backwards stepwise regression analysis indicated that the significant predictors for a high prevalence of experiences of microaggressions were ever attending an HBCU/HSI (b=.447, SE=.109, p = .000), more experiences of hate (b=.360, SE=.059, p=.000), and more stressful and traumatic impact from hate (b=.131, SE=.052, p=.013). However, the final model explained 26.3% of the variance (adjusted R2=.263). This suggests that future studies should identify additional independent variables for inclusion. The present study findings supported the initial anticipated findings that Black, Latinx, and Asian students who had more frequent hate experiences and had more and higher negative stressful/traumatic impact from hate experiences would significantly predict the high prevalence of experiences of microaggressions. Implications of findings are discussed.

Racism, defined as the creation or maintenance of a racial hierarchy supported through institutional power, is a pervasive issue in the United States that affects educational institutions across the country in various ways, such as through unequal educational access, school funding, hiring practices, and school discipline. Rather than directly challenging and working toward combating injustices that emerge in institutions, most school leaders disregard race-based educational inequities by providing explanations for racist actions and patterns that occur. There is often a hesitancy to engage in discussions about race and racism in predominantly White spaces because it feels “uncomfortable” and can lead to conflict. This discomfort encourages colorblind ideology, resulting in a lack of dialogue that enables racial hierarchies to thrive. Thus, some members of society benefit from the system, while others are exploited. In this qualitative case study, I explore how students of color who attend an affluent, predominantly White, suburban, public middle school experience a course designed to discuss issues of race and racism. Although anti-bias education is commonly thought to be beneficial for schools located in urban areas, this dominant narrative disregards the needs of predominantly White suburban school communities that have traditionally ignored issues of race and racism, yet due to shifts in immigration patterns, are becoming more diverse. This study explores the challenges students of color face when discussing issues of race and racism in predominantly White, suburban school settings. The culture of silence that permeates educational institutions maintains racial hierarchies and disadvantages students of color who are often “subjected to institutionalized conditions that contradict their interests and their humanity.” Information gleaned from this study may be used to improve upon existing racial literacy courses in predominantly White spaces to ensure that all students feel safe and included in the curriculum.

The question of how black students select four year colleges in Virginia was addressed by analyzing factors which influence their decisions: socio-economic status, proximity of college to home, and criteria for college selection. Attention was directed to the role of information networks in the decision-making process and corresponding relationships between informal versus formal network use, college selected, socio-economic status, and distance. Results indicated few differences among students with regard to criteria for selection. Black students appear to maximize both educational and job opportunities in their selection of colleges and curricula to the extent that personal resources allow. Students surveyed at traditionally white institutions (TWI's) showed reliance on formal educational networks, particularly college recruitment representatives. In contrast, students who selected a traditionally black institution (TBI) solicited college information from informal interpersonal networks, friends in college, parents and relatives. Three TWI's (Old Dominion University, University of Virginia and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University) and one TBI (Virginia State University) participated in the analysis. / M.S.

The aim of this study was to investigate the causes of learner dropout in secondary schools around Johannesburg South, Gauteng Province. Twenty-seven participants from three secondary schools in Orange Farm area were purposively sampled for the study. A qualitative design was used. In-depth interviews were conducted to collect data to allow the researcher a platform to ask open-response questions and to explore the participants’ perspectives about the causes of learner dropout. The data was analysed thematically by carefully identifying and describing significant themes that emerged from educators, learners, parents, SGB chairpersons and principal’s responses to interview questions. The study revealed that teenage pregnancy, lack of parental involvement, substance abuse and peer pressure, among others, were the causes of learner dropout. The study recommends that schools put more efforts on abstinence programs, sex education and the use of contraceptives such as condoms, pills and injectables; training of educators on the management of drugs and pregnancy, and resuscitation of extra-mural activities. Recommendations for further research were made. / Inclusive Education / M. Ed. (Inclusive Education)

Master's degree in Research Psychology Research report, University of the Witwatersrand, 2016. / This study explored the stories of South African black female postgraduates, in particular, focusing on family dynamics in their childhoods and the role these relationships played in their academic development. South African higher education is a site of contestations as access opens up for students previously excluded from universities. However access and success continue to be racialized and gendered hence black women are unevenly represented in higher education particularly at postgraduate level. This study brings forth stories of women who have succeeded in this context, exploring questions of social and cultural capital (Bourdieu 1994).Thematic analysis highlights predominant themes across the narratives of these women. There is a very strong thread across the narratives that these women feel that their academic achievement is primarily due to hard work and a ‘natural’ or intrinsic intellectual talent that was recognised by their families and teachers from a young age. Despite the emphasis on individual aptitude, the findings also highlight participants’ recognition of the value of support from family in their schooling and even continuing into their lives as young adult postgraduate students. The nature of family dynamics in these women’s childhood and adult lives was revealed, including, the friendship that characterises daughter-mother relationships, the absence of fathers, and the role of grandmothers and other members of the extended family and community networks . It is worth noting that all participants talk of the sudden movement from public township schools to private or Model C schools that disrupts their narratives of schooling. The lack of reading in the childhood homes of some of these women contradicts the common assumption that a reading home environment is vital for the development of the appropriate cultural capital necessary for academic success. Instead, it is evident that these multigenerational families provide a range of support that allows learning to take place, including emotional and financial support, providing critical social capital. / GR2017

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2006. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 271-283).