M.Sc. (Nematology) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

M.Ed. / Please refer to full text to view abstract

D.Ed. (Educational Psychology) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

D.Ed. / Stereopsis -- binocular depth perception is a visual function which falls within the ambit of the hyperacuities. The term, Hyperacuity, is one coined by Westheimer (1976) to describe thresholds of discrimination which cannot be explained on the basis of the optical components or sensory elements of the eyes alone. By implication such levels of discrimination are effected by higher levels of brain function. It is reasoned that an individual's stereoscopic hyperacuity should in some way relate to other measures of higher sensory and motor brain functions. In a school situation hyperacuity should relate to measures of intelligence, as well as scholastic and sporting achievement. The design and implementation of an experiment to test this premise forms the basis of this thesis. A literature review is reported of current knowledge relevant to this study together with a description of the stereoscopic testing instruments commonly available in clinical practice. A rationale for modifying these instruments and testing methods to suit the needs of this study is also included. This study exposes new knowledge about the process of static nearpoint stereopsis. This stereopsis proves to be a complex of diverse skills, which are significantly age-related and developmental in nature. These skills are seen to influence and be influenced by educational interventions. It may be concluded from this study that there is value in measuring stereopsis in more depth than has been done previously and that it is crucial to measure the speed of stereo performance in its own right in addition to the measures of stereoacuity. The study reveals significant differences of performance which relate to stereopsis in front as opposed to behind the plane of regard and also related to figure/ground contrast differences. The two non-stereoscopic tests and the six different stereoscopic tests described in this thesis prove to be highly discriminative and diagnostic with respect to age, grade level, I.Q., scholastic achievement and sporting ability.

M.Ed. (Psychology of Education) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

M.Phil. (Subject Didactics) / The urgency of the issues concerning man's relationship to the natural environment is confirmed by the large-scale publicity given these issues by the media. This has resulted in a fairly general public awareness of environmental issues, which is at present reflected by numerous efforts to further stimulate positive interests in conservation and the responsible use of natural resources. It is generally accepted that the next generation of decisionmakers should be more thoroughly equipped to face these environmental issues and problems, some of which threaten life's very existence. Over the past 15 years, therefore, several organizations have accepted the responsibility of making schoolchildren much more aware of the environment and of encouraging in them a sense of· responsibility towards it. To date, however, efforts to bring this about have been made outside the formal education sector. In fact, there are indications that Environmental Education has had very little impact on our school programmes. It appears that particularly those school subjects which are supposed to introduce pupils to aspects of the natural environment, are still taught as if there were nothing wrong with the environment and as if the environment were just another topic to be studied. Environmental issues are avoided in most current school syllabuses, designed as they are to prepare pupils academically for university or the labour market. However, there are indications that, particularly as a result of increased public pressure, the formal education sector will eventually have to accept responsibility for assimilating the principles of Environmental Education into school curricula. The White Paper on Environmental Education (April 1989) seems to support this. It is generally accepted· that Environmental. Education will not be regarded as a new school subject, but that it will re-emphasize classic educational principles aimed at encouraging positive pupil attitudes towards the environment. These attitudes can be define by terms such as responsibility, concern, inclination towards conservation, environmental awareness and respect for creation.

M.A. (Applied Linguistics) / In June 1991 Parliament passed the following amendment to paragraph (b) of Section 3 of Act 90 of 1979: that the language or languages to be used as the medium of instruction at a school and the extent and duration of such use shall be determined by the Minister after consultation with the parents of pupils enrolled at that school, which consultation shall take place in the manner as prescribed. Act 90 of 1979 is the Education and Training act which legislates for black education under the control of the Department of Education and Training. The education epartments in the self-governing states tend to align themselves with DET policy, but the TBVC states have acted independently even though there have been correspondences between their policies and the DET's which might suggest otherwise. The amendment replaces the following wording of paragraph (b): that the universally accepted principle of mother-tongue instruction be observed: Provided that this principle shall be applied at least up to and including Standard two: Provided further that the wishes of the parents shall be taken into consideration in the application of this principle after Standard two, and also in the choice of one of the official languages as the medium of instruction where the mother tongue cannot be used as the medium of instruction after Standard two. The essential difference between the two is that the original wording prohibited the use of any medium other than the mother tongue before Standard 3 whereas the amendment does not. Both versions make prov1s1on for the wishes of parents to influence but not actually to determine language policy: the Minister reserves the right to do that. The 1991 amendment legislates in favour of the options listed in section 7.11 of the White Paper on the Provision of Education in the Republic of South Africa of 1983 quoted below, which in turn quotes at length from the report of the Education Working Party of the HSRC De Lange Commission. Paragraphs (a) to (e) acknowledge the desirability of mother tongue instruction and of developing African languages accordingly, but paragraphs (f) and (g) imply that the then current language medium policy of mother tongue for at least the first four years was not necessarily the best one, and that "pragmatic approaches to the language medium problem include the use of English from Sub A".

M.A. (Psychology) / The study of behavioural toxicology was started in 1972 with the Port Pirie Cohort study and therefor a relative young field. Little information is available about the effect of cigarette smoke, containing the toxic substance carbon monoxide, on the neurocognitive functioning of children. The purpose of this study was to determine whether carbon monoxide has an effect on the neurocognitive functioning of children, more specifically as it relates to school performance. A group of school children was selected in the Vaal Triangle area who were sUbjected to a large quantity of cigarette smoke during the day and a group of children was selected who had no contact with any cigarette smoke during the day. The results of these groups were compared. From the results obtained it appears that cigarette smoke, would have a negative neurocognitive functioning of the children.

M.A. (Clinical Psychology) / In this project, the author explores, analyses and interprets the experiences of a group of students and teachers who worked together at a farm school for almost a year. Certain pertinent questions relating to the nature of therapy, training, research and community work are examined. The dominant view is that therapy and community work are different activities, requiring different sets of skills, for which different training is needed. Fundamental to this discussion is the issue of what is meant by community. The author proposes that community can be usefully conceptualised as the meaning people give to the evolving processes of their inter-connectedness, and their co-creation of ideas. Furthermore, these processes contain the potential for individuals to experience personal shifts that may be described variously as learning/growth/change/transformation. There is impetus for transformation at the interface between connectedness and disconnectedness. This renders unnecessary any differentiation between the process of training students for clinical and community work. Central to all training would be a person's ability to connect and utilise this connectedness, or its counterpart of disconnectedness, in a meaningful way. Essentially all interactions, including those in a training, therapy, research and community context, could then be viewed as a process of co-creation around people's sense of connectedness disconnectedness. The implications of all the above are that the processes of co-creation of community constitute fundamental elements of training, therapy, research and community work. The author uses an alternative research paradigm, subscribing to the principles of ecological inquiry, according to which research and intervention are inseparable.

M.Sc. / The Kruger National Park is internationally one of the best known conservation areas. The perennial rivers draining eastward towards and through the park are of great importance in maintaining a healthy ecosystem. The Olifants River catchment is the largest of all the rivers flowing through the Kruger National Park. Although this river has ceased flow for three days in 1968, problems experienced in the Olifants River are of a qualitative rather than a quantitative nature. Several factors contribute to the deteriorating water quality of the Olifants River. Urbanization, agricultural, industrial and mining activities in the Phalaborwa area pose a threat to the lower parts of the Olifants River. Pollution has on several occasions lead to mortalities of populations of fish in these parts...