Text in Afrikaans / Die doel van hierdie studie was om te bepaal waarom kinders uit kinderhuise wegloop en om voorstelle ter voorkoming daarvan te maak. Ten opsigte van die fenomeen "wegloop" stateer die literatuur dat kinders wegloop vanaf onaangename omstandighede en/of wegloop na aangename omstandighede. Die belewing van gesinstres, gesinskonflik, portuurgroepdruk, utopiese voorstellings van wegloop, onaangename skoolbelewing en tiener swangerskap is aangeduide rolspelers onderliggend aan bogenoemde. Die empiriese studie na wegloop uit kinderhuise bet aan die lig gebring dat kinders uit kinderhuise wegloop weens traumatiese belewing van verwydering uit die ouerhuis, etikettering en inrigtingsversadiging. Voorts is bevind dat faktore wat onderliggend aan bogenoemde is, tot 'n groot mate voorkom kan word. Sekere aanbevelings ter voorkoming van wegloop uit kinderhuise is na aanleiding van die studie gedoen en kan gebruik word in die volwassene se bemoeienis met die kinderhuiskind. / The object of the study was to identify the reasons why children run away from children's homes and to make recommendations on how to prevent them from running away. On considering "run away" as a phenomenon, the literature states that children run away from harsh circumstances to acceptable or pleasant circumstances. Experiences such as family stress, conflict in the family, peer group pressure, romanticising the idea, harsh school experiences and teenage pregnancies are roll players subjacent to the above mentioned. The empirical study of "running away from children's homes" has confirmed that children run away because of traumatic separation from parental homes, labelling and institutional intolerance. Furthermore it was also found that factors subjacent to the above mentioned can be neutralised to a large extent. Certain guidelines have been recommended for adults when confronted with children in children's homes. / Psychology of Education / M. Ed. (Voorligting)

This thesis deals with the topic of Primary prevention of student's risk behavior at the chosen primary schools in the district of Strakonice. The main goal of this thesis is to find out if the students are educated enough about the risk behavior and it's prevention, and to evaluate prevention activities that the schools implement within the risk behavior. To fulfil the main and partial goals two research methods are used - questionnaire designed for students and interview with school prevention methodologist. The theoretical part of this thesis deals with the charasteristics of risk behavior and detailed description of chosen types of risk behavior. Moreover it deals with primary prevention, it's characteristics and describes prevention programs that school can use. This part also points out the prevention base of schools, thus institutions cooperating with school and documents that the schools support within the prevention of risk behavior. In the practical part, information gained from the research are analyzed and evaluated and this serves to verify the set goals of the thesis. Based on the research that was done, recommendations for improving the school prevention are suggested. In the conclusion of the thesis it is stated that the upper students (2nd grade) of elementary schools are on one...

Learner absenteeism is one of the major precursors to poor academic performance. If learners miss school, they do not learn and ultimately they fail or drop-out. Notwithstanding, this problem does not receive the attention it deserves. A literature study, which reviewed research findings concerning absenteeism in South Africa and selected countries, provided a framework for the ensuing empirical inquiry. A qualitative study using in-depth interviews, focus group interviews, document review and observation as data gathering techniques focused on two selected primary schools with a high rate of learner absenteeism in the Acornhoek area of Mpumalanga, South Africa. Participants were purposefully selected as information rich candidates: absentee learners, parents of absentee learners, teachers and school principals. Learner absenteeism negatively impacts effective professional practice, that is, teaching and learning. The study concludes with recommendations to prevent learner absenteeism in order to improve teaching and learning in South African primary schools. / Curriculum and Instructional Studies / M. Ed. (Curriculum Studies)

<p><p>Syftet med studien är att undersöka i vilken omfattning gymnasieelevers skolk är ett uttryck på brister inom skolans verksamhet. Utifrån syftet har två frågeställningar framkommit: Hur påverkar skolan som institution frekvensen av skolk? Vilket förändringsarbete bör ske inom skolan för att minska frekvensen av skolk? De perspektiv studien utgår ifrån är, kontextuellt samt ungdomskulturellt. Rapporten bygger på fem utförda fokusgruppsintervjuer med elever från årskurs två och tre på gymnasiet, samt sex enskilda semistrukturerade intervjuer med skolledning, elevhälsa och lärare. Materialet har bearbetats genom noggrann avlyssning av ljudinspelningar, med fokus på att finna likheter och olikheter i det empiriska materialet. Resultatet redovisas genom att väva samman informanters svar med relevanta begrepp och teorier, samt egna reflektioner och diskussioner. Genom en tematiserad meningskoncentrering, formuleras en komprimerad version av vad informanterna uttalat under intervjuerna. Som komplement till detta lyfts specifika uttalanden från våra informanter, genom citat som enligt oss bör belysas extra. Resultatet visar på en tydlig motsättning mellan personal och elever, där åsikter och erfarenheter kring fenomenet skolk skiljer sig åt i stor utsträckning. Materialet som helhet visar att relationen mellan elever och lärare på den aktuella skolan i dagsläget är ansträngd. Det resultat vi anser mest framträdande i vår studie, är faktumet att skolans gällande struktur och sociala miljö har en direkt inverkan på frekvensen av skolk. Det krävs en förändring inom skolan, i form av ett nytänkande, där elevens unika behov och välmående ställs i fokus.</p></p> / <p>The purpose of this study is to examine the extent to which high school students´ truancy is a manifestation of shortcomings in school activities. Based on our aim, we have arrived at two questions: How does the school, being an institution, affect the occurrence of truancy? How can changes in the way of working in schools, reduce the occurrence of truancy? The study is based on contextual, and youth culture perspectives. The report is based on five focus group interviews with students from grade two and three in Swedish upper secondary school, and six individual semi-structured interviews with the school management, student health group and teachers. The material has been processed by carefully listening to audio recordings, focusing on finding similarities and differences in the empirical material. The results have been reported by weaving answers together from the interviews with relevant concepts and theories, as well as with our own reflections and discussions. A condensed version of what the informants have expressed during the interviews is retold in themes. To complement these retells, specific quotations from the informants which are considered especially interesting have been included. The results show a clear contradiction between staff and pupils, where views and experiences surrounding the phenomenon of truancy vary greatly. The material as a whole shows that the relationship between students and teachers at this school, in the current situation, is strained. The results we consider most prominent in our study is the fact that the school's existing structure and social environment has a direct impact on the occurrence of truancy. According to us, the school needs to change; the students´ unique needs and well-being should stand in focus.</p>

Syftet med studien är att undersöka i vilken omfattning gymnasieelevers skolk är ett uttryck på brister inom skolans verksamhet. Utifrån syftet har två frågeställningar framkommit: Hur påverkar skolan som institution frekvensen av skolk? Vilket förändringsarbete bör ske inom skolan för att minska frekvensen av skolk? De perspektiv studien utgår ifrån är, kontextuellt samt ungdomskulturellt. Rapporten bygger på fem utförda fokusgruppsintervjuer med elever från årskurs två och tre på gymnasiet, samt sex enskilda semistrukturerade intervjuer med skolledning, elevhälsa och lärare. Materialet har bearbetats genom noggrann avlyssning av ljudinspelningar, med fokus på att finna likheter och olikheter i det empiriska materialet. Resultatet redovisas genom att väva samman informanters svar med relevanta begrepp och teorier, samt egna reflektioner och diskussioner. Genom en tematiserad meningskoncentrering, formuleras en komprimerad version av vad informanterna uttalat under intervjuerna. Som komplement till detta lyfts specifika uttalanden från våra informanter, genom citat som enligt oss bör belysas extra. Resultatet visar på en tydlig motsättning mellan personal och elever, där åsikter och erfarenheter kring fenomenet skolk skiljer sig åt i stor utsträckning. Materialet som helhet visar att relationen mellan elever och lärare på den aktuella skolan i dagsläget är ansträngd. Det resultat vi anser mest framträdande i vår studie, är faktumet att skolans gällande struktur och sociala miljö har en direkt inverkan på frekvensen av skolk. Det krävs en förändring inom skolan, i form av ett nytänkande, där elevens unika behov och välmående ställs i fokus. / The purpose of this study is to examine the extent to which high school students´ truancy is a manifestation of shortcomings in school activities. Based on our aim, we have arrived at two questions: How does the school, being an institution, affect the occurrence of truancy? How can changes in the way of working in schools, reduce the occurrence of truancy? The study is based on contextual, and youth culture perspectives. The report is based on five focus group interviews with students from grade two and three in Swedish upper secondary school, and six individual semi-structured interviews with the school management, student health group and teachers. The material has been processed by carefully listening to audio recordings, focusing on finding similarities and differences in the empirical material. The results have been reported by weaving answers together from the interviews with relevant concepts and theories, as well as with our own reflections and discussions. A condensed version of what the informants have expressed during the interviews is retold in themes. To complement these retells, specific quotations from the informants which are considered especially interesting have been included. The results show a clear contradiction between staff and pupils, where views and experiences surrounding the phenomenon of truancy vary greatly. The material as a whole shows that the relationship between students and teachers at this school, in the current situation, is strained. The results we consider most prominent in our study is the fact that the school's existing structure and social environment has a direct impact on the occurrence of truancy. According to us, the school needs to change; the students´ unique needs and well-being should stand in focus.

This study focuses on the therapeutic interventions by mental health practitioners when faced with rebellious youths. Rebelliousness refers to the act of defying lawful authority or a resistant way of relating to authority or convention. It is manifested in, amongst others, withdrawal, deviance, delinquency, antisocial behaviour, and suicide. To date there are no interventions for rebellious youths per sé. Rebellious youths are often treated with traditional strategies which are often ineffective and show little promise for eliminating rebellious behaviour. Research has revealed that teen problem behaviours stem from "life-problems" such as psychosocial stressors. Therefore treating the adolescent for substance abuse, for example, is treating him/her for the wrong reasons. It is no surprise that many adolescents who have undergone intervention programmes for specific behaviour problems relapse soon after they are released from the programmes. The study focuses on integrating different strategies in order to combat rebelliousness in adolescence and beyond. This holistic approach argues that all treatments share certain curative processes. Therefore each treatment works best when it is combined with other aspects of treatment. For this reason, individual, family and group therapy were combined together with school strategies. The results of this study indicate that combining procedures that are designed to improve problematic behaviour in teenagers are viable forms of treatment. / Educational Studies / D.Ed.(Psychology of Education)

This study examined the prevalence and the nature of truancy among early adolescent learners attending secondary schools in the Education Management and Development Centre (EMDC) in the eastern metropole of the Western Cape. The main purpose of the study was to answer the following question: How can secondary school educators, in loco parentis, be equipped with the required skills and resources in order to deal with the issue of truant behaviour among early adolescent learners? A comprehensive literature review was conducted to explore the character and extent of truancy. Thereafter, various theories of child development were highlighted, followed by a synopsis comprising different dimensions of the development of the early adolescent learner. The empirical investigation was carried out through quantitative as well as qualitative research methodology. A focus group interview was conducted with six learners, offering them an opportunity to express their perceptions and experiences as truants. Interviews were conducted with principals to obtain their impressions regarding truant behaviour. Thereafter, a questionnaire, which investigated truancy related aspects such as interaction with peers, parents and caregivers' involvement in learners' school activities, educators' influence on learners' school work and learners' self-esteem regarding their schooling, was administered to three hundred learners. The quantitative investigation revealed significant aspects about truant behaviour, indicating that predominantly more male than female learners (173 male and 26 as in the case of the present study) display this type of behaviour, truants generally originate from single parent families, and that they experience their educators and learning environments as extremely negative. Finally, two in-depth case studies were conducted on two learners, one identified as a truant and the other as a non-truant respectively. The purpose of the in-depth studies was to explore possible differences in their experiential worlds. Although the qualitative data is not generalisable, the findings of the case studies have revealed significant differences in the life worlds of the two learners. Comparatively speaking, it appears that non-truant learners are significantly better adjusted on all their functioning levels than truant learners. The results of the empirical investigation were compared with relevant findings which emerged from the literature study. Based on the present investigation, the study was concluded by offering a range of recommendations to secondary school educators, in loco parentis, empowering them in addressing the phenomenon of truancy among early adolescent learners in the Western Cape with its distinctive problems. / Educational Studies / D. Ed.(Psychology of Education)

Text in Afrikaans / Die doel van hierdie studie was om te bepaal waarom kinders uit kinderhuise wegloop en om voorstelle ter voorkoming daarvan te maak. Ten opsigte van die fenomeen "wegloop" stateer die literatuur dat kinders wegloop vanaf onaangename omstandighede en/of wegloop na aangename omstandighede. Die belewing van gesinstres, gesinskonflik, portuurgroepdruk, utopiese voorstellings van wegloop, onaangename skoolbelewing en tiener swangerskap is aangeduide rolspelers onderliggend aan bogenoemde. Die empiriese studie na wegloop uit kinderhuise bet aan die lig gebring dat kinders uit kinderhuise wegloop weens traumatiese belewing van verwydering uit die ouerhuis, etikettering en inrigtingsversadiging. Voorts is bevind dat faktore wat onderliggend aan bogenoemde is, tot 'n groot mate voorkom kan word. Sekere aanbevelings ter voorkoming van wegloop uit kinderhuise is na aanleiding van die studie gedoen en kan gebruik word in die volwassene se bemoeienis met die kinderhuiskind. / The object of the study was to identify the reasons why children run away from children's homes and to make recommendations on how to prevent them from running away. On considering "run away" as a phenomenon, the literature states that children run away from harsh circumstances to acceptable or pleasant circumstances. Experiences such as family stress, conflict in the family, peer group pressure, romanticising the idea, harsh school experiences and teenage pregnancies are roll players subjacent to the above mentioned. The empirical study of "running away from children's homes" has confirmed that children run away because of traumatic separation from parental homes, labelling and institutional intolerance. Furthermore it was also found that factors subjacent to the above mentioned can be neutralised to a large extent. Certain guidelines have been recommended for adults when confronted with children in children's homes. / Psychology of Education / M. Ed. (Voorligting)

No description available.

The main purpose of this study was to determine the management of the phenomenon of learners’ partial absenteeism and late coming at four public secondary schools of the Tshwane West (D15), in the light of the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) Circular 13 of 2002. Respondents targeted for data collection were members of the School Management Teams (SMTs) of the four public secondary schools (n35). To address the initial propositions of this study, a qualitative case study research design and its techniques for data collection and analysis were used. The emergent findings indicated that: absenteeism during school hours (partial absenteeism) and late coming, which also applies to educators, are rife across the four participating public schools. SMT members’ limited knowledge of school management in general, and the GDE’s Circular 13 in particular, were found to be the main barrier to the effective management of partial absenteeism and late coming. Additional contributory factors were learner’s attitude and conduct and poor school infrastructure. Recommendations to help address the problem under inestigation are also made. / Educational Leadership and Management / M. Ed. (Educational Management and Leadership)