Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf): Open Journal Systems
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Challenges of Implementing Enterprise Resource Planning and The Role of Knowledge Management: Evidence from the National Youth Development Agency
No full textUsing the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) as a case study, this paper considers the challenges of implementing enterprise resource planning (ERP). Data was collected from management and employees using both qualitative and quantitative research techniques. The study established challenges beyond the technical issues, these included: misalignment of the system to the organisation processes, product quality and unavailability of the system’s helpdesk, lack of top management support, and lack of pilot testing, insufficient end-user training, resistance to change management, lack of processes integration, poor technology planning and security and risk matters. Furthermore, the management process that resonates on knowledge transfer, knowledge management, and change management poses a complex challenge in the implementation of ERP. The study recommends the alignment of the user environment, effective change management, and knowledge strategies that are essential to drive ERP. It is also recommended to close the gap between what ERP offers and what end users want and can do
Natural Language-Driven Dialogue Systems for Support in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
No full textThis paper presents a natural language-driven dialogue system designed to support healthcare professionals and students in the field of physical medicine and rehabilitation. The system seamlessly integrates concepts from intelligent information systems, data mining, ontologies, and human-computer interaction, employing at its core a rule-based dialogue mechanism. The system harnesses the power of ontology-based graph knowledge, underscoring its domain-specific efficacy. This article delves into the automated knowledge base formation, utilising Python scripts to translate EBSCO’s dataset of articles on physical medicine and rehabilitation into an OWL ontology. This methodology ensures adaptability to the ever-evolving landscape of medical insights. The system’s approach to natural language processing encompasses text preprocessing, semantic category discernment, andSPARQL query creation, providing 26 predefined categories. As an innovation in performance optimisation, the system integrates a strategy to cache precomputed responses using a PostgreSQL database, which aids in resource conservation and reduction in query execution latency. The system’s user engagement avenues are further detailed, showcasing a Telegram bot and an API, enhancing accessibility and user experience. In essence, this article illuminates an advanced, efficient dialogue system for physical medicine and rehabilitation, synthesising multiple computational paradigms, and standing as a beacon for healthcare practitioners and students alike
Climate change and natural resource conflict in ECOWAS and ECCAS regions: implications for state security forces
No full textClimate change has emerged as the imminent threat to national security in many regions of the world. Nowhere is this reality more acute than in West and Central Africa where surging population growth, rising urbanisation, persistent environmental degradation, emergence of violent extremist organisations and weak state capacity have created a perfect storm of insecurity. It is against this backdrop that this article examines the nexus and dynamics of climate change and natural resource conflicts in ECOWAS and ECCAS regions, with a view to highlighting its security implications. This study notes that climate change contributes to increased conflict, but along indirect pathways. Across the two regions, climate change is experienced through rising temperatures, droughts and destructive floods, which greatly undermine people’s well-being and compound the fragility of states. This calls for the capacitation of state security forces through orientation and training that foster good understanding of the complex relationship between climate change, peace and security. The study concludes by offering strategic recommendations and policy directions to effectively tackle the climate change and natural resource conflict challenges in the contiguous regions
Building peace from the grassroots with informal peace infrastructures: experience from Ojoo Community, Ibadan, Nigeria
No full textOne of the greatest resources for promoting peacebuilding and sustaining peace in the long term is always rooted in people and their culture. Bearing this in mind is a major step towards addressing domestic violence, intimate partner violence, disputes over land ownership and challenges associated with weak social cohesion that plague Ibadan, Nigeria. This study explores the contributions of informal peace committees (IPCs) as informal peace infrastructures (IPIs) in responding to the menace and powering peacebuilding from below in the local setting of Ojoo, Ibadan, where the study was conducted. The qualitative study adopts participatory action research design. It uses purposive sampling techniques and sourced primary data from individual interviews, focus group discussions, observation and diarising. Twenty respondents were interviewed and three focus group discussions were conducted for the study with a view to collecting primary data. Although IPIs also have their own weaknesses, the study revealed that local peace infrastructures, such as IPCs are resourceful and effective in addressing multiple threats, including domestic and intimate partner violence, disputes over land ownership, weak social cohesion and building peace from below. 
Proctoring as a human substitution for online summative assessments in a comprehensive open distance e-learning institution: Opportunities and obstacles
Get PDFAt a comprehensive open distance e-learning (CODeL) university in South Africa, assessment practices were converted and offered online during and post COVID-19. Innovative proctoring methods were applied to secure the authenticity of online summative assessments. However, the use of such proctoring tools to ensure ethical behaviour of students during summative assessments remains questionable, as these tools are not infallible. A qualitative approach was applied to explore ways in which online proctoring tools can contribute toward ensuring authentic summative assessments. Through the application of collaborative autoethnography, the researchers obtained insight into opportunities and obstacles that may influence the effective use of online proctoring tools to support summative assessment activities. Findings indicate that students would go to great lengths to consult unauthorised material and share answers during summative assessments. Therefore, to enhance perceptions of ethical conduct in higher education, it is recommended that ethical principles are expanded through extended training and guidance with revolutionised proctoring technologies
Socio-economic status predicts mathematics self-concept: A correlational study in OR Tambo Inland District
Get PDFThe current study explored the level to which socio-economic status predicts mathematics self-concept. A correlational and regression research designs were used. The study was carried out in OR Tambo Inland District in the Eastern Cape Province. The sample size comprised of 351 Grade 9 mathematics students, of which 171 were girls and 180 were boys. For generalizability purposes and fair distribution and representation of the sample across the population, both rural and urban geographical locations were represented by three schools each. The level of socio-economic status and mathematics self-concept was measured by use of a standardized questionnaire. The data collection tool was tested valid and reliable. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to perform regression and correlation analysis. The research findings depict that mathematics self-concept was heavily influenced by socio-economic status of a parent. Furthermore, mathematics self-concept varied according to the socio-economic status and the variation was statistically significant. Recommendations were made to all implicated stakeholders to improvise strategies of improving mathematics self-concept despite the family’s economic hardships
