Koers (E-Journal)
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Learner discipline at school: A comparative educational perspective
Get PDFLearner discipline constitutes an acute problem in South African schools, especially if it is approached within a Reformational frame of reference. The aim of the research underlying this article was to survey the available subject-related literature on school discipline abroad. The available published research results are largely limited to the United States of America, the United Kingdom and Australia. In these three countries learner discipline in schools constitutes a problem, although it seems to be only relatively minor forms of misbehaviour that dominate. Serious forms of misbehaviour, such as criminal offences are rare. The causes/determinants/correlates of learner-discipline problems can be grouped into five categories: learner-related factors, teacher-related factors, school-related factors, parent-related factors and society-related factors. This discussion draws suggestions from available subject-related literature as to how the discipline issue in schools should be approached. The conclusion is, however, reached that, while worthwhile guidelines can indeed be drawn from available subject-related literature for the correction of deviant behaviour, reference is unfortunately never made to the need of learners to be guided and to be enabled to become followers (disciples) of Jesus Christ in the profound sense of the word, especially in a world that does not adhere to Biblical values. True disciples tend to lead disciplined, well-behaved and intentional lives in His service and to His glory. In conclusion, the role of (Christian) religion and of values based on religious conviction in the creation of healthy school discipline is explicated
Telling women to be like men? Some theoretical aspects regarding the interpretation of the Bible on gender issues
Get PDFThe RCSA is in desperate need of a new way of approaching the Bible. The hermeneutical principles that gave birth to a theological legitimation of apartheid are still active in the theological legitimation of a patriarchal order in the RCSA (Gereformeerde Kerke in Suid-Afrika). It is as if the RCSA suffers from a theological schizophrenia which bars a critical approach from taking root. The article explores some hermeneutical impediments within the RCSA, illustrated by the 2000 Synod and a declaration published for the advent of Reformation Day in October 2000. Those impediments can be traced back to a seminal article of the 1980s, written by J.C. Coetzee, B.J. de Klerk and L. Floor (“Die hermeneuse van die Skrif met die oog op hedendaagse kerklik-etiese vraagstukke”), and to the influence of Afrikaner civil religion in the reading of the Bible. In the light of these three aspects, the article surveys the problem of imitating the text in terms of its values or characters, since the discussion of the role of women in the church is based on what is said about women in the Bible as a male text. The article concludes with a tentative proposal for an ethics of reading, with regard to the theoretical aspects when discussing gender issues in the Bible
Die geborgenheid van die onderwyser as voorwaarde vir opvoedende skoolonderwys
Get PDFTeacher security as a pre-condition for adding pedagogical value to teaching in schools Since 1994 the new political dispensation in South Africa has led to several disruptions in the education system. Teachers have not escaped the effects of this disruption, and many teachers manifest symptoms of insecure behaviour. Because of their insecurity, many teachers are unable to add pedagogical value to their teaching efforts. The disruption they are currently experiencing is, however, by no means more radical or acute than in other periods in South African history. A number of guidelines are offered by means of which (teachers’ perceptions of) teacher security can be improved. This is done on the premise that strengthening teacher security and safety will not only enable teachers to understand their divine calling as well as the nature of pedagogical involvement with learners, but will indeed motivate them to also apply pedagogical principles and insight in actual classroom practice
A perspective on balancing the legal and moral rights and responsibilities of HIV positive and HIV negative individuals
Get PDFIn South Africa HIV/AIDS is no longer being described as an epidemic, but rather as a pandemic due to the devastating impact that it is having on all spheres of societal life. HIV/AIDS is not exclusively a health issue – it has also become a matter of political, economic, moral and legal concern and debate. One of the issues that consequently needs to be addressed is the establishment of an effective and equitable approach to dealing with HIV/AIDS issues – based on principles of justice and equity – that acknowledges the legal and moral rights and duties of both HIV positive and HIV negative persons. Legislation is a useful instrument in protecting and upholding the rights of citizens irrespective of their HIV status. However, because HIV/AIDS has an underlying socio-moral dimension it follows that important processes in understanding the epidemic and in establishing perspectives on confronting the issue include the identification of and enquiry into the perceived moral rights and obligations of those affected by the disease. Furthermore, in a country where Christianity is one of the predominant religions with distinctive moral tenets, a Christian community stance on HIV/AIDS issues should be probed
Including a learner with physical disabilities: stressful for teachers?
Get PDFLearners with physical disabilities have been entering mainstream schools for some years now. Whereas early research on inclusive education necessitated a strong focus on the needs of the learners, there has also been a recent interest in the role of the teachers in inclusive education. By adopting constructivism as the paradigm for inquiry a study was undertaken to establish the stress factors for teachers who have to include a learner with a physical disability in their mainstream classes. The rationale for the study is threefold: i) Learners with physical disabilities are entering mainstream schools increasingly, ii) it is often assumed that inclusive education is too stressful for teachers to cope with, and iii) related research has shown that increased contact with individuals with disabilities has a positive effect on attitudes towards individuals with disabilities. In accordance with the dialectical methodology of constructivism, the Teacher Stress and Coping Questionnaire and in-depth interviews were utilised to establish the stress factors and the extent of the stress factors that may be present. The aim of the constructivist inquiry process is to promote understanding and reconstruction. In this article the quantitative results indicate overall low or non-existent levels of stress in teachers who have to include a learner with a physical disability, and the results therefore contribute to our understanding of this situation. The qualitative results reconstruct the meanings that these teachers attach to the inclusion of a learner with a physical disability and reveal some albeit limited concerns about the communication processes between parents and teachers and a perceived lack of pre-service training
Integrity and consensus: A Christian perspective on ethical management and education in South Africa
Get PDFIn this article the compliance- and values-based approaches to ethical management are explained and the challenges of the contemporary business and societal contexts in South Africa noted. The need for both moral integrity and character (with respect to perception, intention and virtue) and ethical consensus is extensively discussed. The importance of ethical dialogue as a means of reaching moral consensus, and the contribution of public theology (particularly Christian theology) are assessed. Finally, vital issues relating to business ethics management and education are outlined and some practical possibilities suggested
Calling and resistance: Huldrych Zwingli’s (1484-1531) political theology and his legacy of resistance to tyranny
Get PDFHuldrych Zwingli’s ground-breaking contribution to Reformational political theory has not been accorded the necessary exposure that it deserves. Zurich and Genevan Reformational thought during the fifteenth century owed much of its political insight to Zwingli’s expositions pertaining to the functions of the offices of magistracy and ministry, as well as on resistance theory. Zwingli also heralded the idea of the Christian community, in which church and society are not to be viewed as two separate entities – the view that the Christian nation is both church and political community under the rule of God. Not only was this inheritance of Zwingli’s thought limited to the continent but it also manifested itself in the English and Scottish Reformational worlds. Consequently, this article serves as a reminder that the more familiar proponents of early Reformational thought (in the context of Reformational political expositions) such as Heinrich Bullinger, and to a lesser degree John Calvin, were preceded and influenced by the legacy of Huldrych Zwingli’s Reformational political theology
Epistemologiese oortuigings en die onderrigen leerhandeling
Get PDFEpistemological convictions with regard to teaching and learning It is often assumed by teaching-learning specialists that teaching and learning are proportionally related technical activities, and can be accurately measured in examinations or experiments. The fact that teaching and learning are respectively, as well as in combination with each other, embedded in a multitude of pre-scientific and scientific presuppositions is frequently overlooked. This discussion is aimed at revealing that views and standpoints regarding teaching and learning can hardly be substantial or plausible without cognisance and evaluation of the epistemological convictions in which they are grounded. Such convictions also determine the nature of their application in actual class-room practice