11613 research outputs found
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The influence of musical analysis as a strategic tool on undergraduate piano students’ memorisation of a classical sonatina
No full textAs a normalised notion, professional pianists are often expected to perform recitals from memory, which can increase their performance anxiety. In pursuit of committing the various components of a piece to memory, analytical strategies in particular are beneficial to establishing a secure memory of a piece, as concluded in previous research by Williamon and Valentine (2002), Timperman and Miksza (2019) and Ginsborg (2019), among others. Regarding memorisation strategies, the literature to date has concluded that piano students often refrain from using analytical strategies to facilitate memorisation, despite their positive effects. The limited nature of the existing literature in providing adequate guidance in this regard might explain this phenomenon. Accordingly, this study therefore investigates the influence of musical analysis as a strategic tool on undergraduate piano students’ memorisation of a Classical sonatina as they have experienced it. The aim of the study was to support undergraduate piano students’ memorisation of Classical sonatina movements by means of an analytical strategy based on William Caplin’s theory of formal functions (applied to the Classical sonatina by Edward Jurkowski [2010]). A second aim was to establish the ways in which implementing such a strategy influences their memorisation process – in this case, three undergraduate piano students.
To this end, a collective case study was conducted in which three voluntary undergraduate piano students from two different South African institutions implemented a formulated analytical strategy over a six-week period to facilitate the memorisation of a Classical sonatina movement. The strategy consisted of complementary materials, including an example analysis, a series of videos and a glossary of relevant terms. These materials aimed to demonstrate and explain how concepts specifically related to Caplin’s theory can be implemented practically to facilitate memorisation primarily through structural analytical processes. The data collected through various procedures provided valuable insights into the participants’ experiences. Analysis of the data highlighted the effect that the implementation of the strategy had on their memorisation. It provided insights into their experience and perception of the strategy and revealed how analysis could be used in combination with other strategies to achieve the goal of memorisation of a piece. Overall, the findings reflected positive engagements with structural analysis to facilitate memorisation, to the extent that they will hopefully inspire both the participants and readers to explore further the use of analysis for this purpose
Exploring project leadership through team engagement and cohesion at Hillside smelter
No full textDissertation (MBA (Business Administration))--University of the Free State, 2024The primary purpose of this study was to identify leadership behaviours that enable project leaders to foster team cohesion and engagement among project teams. At Hillside, project leaders are expected to be knowledgeable about technical processes and skilled in their applications to achieve demanding deadlines, anticipate restrictions, overcome financial constraints, and ensure quality requirements.
A qualitative case study research design was therefore used, and structured interviews with current project leaders were conducted to learn more about their leadership behaviours that are critical for team performance, team cohesiveness, and team engagement. Participants in this study were project representatives from different departments that enabled project execution at the Hillside plant in Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal across various levels of leadership. The inquiry engaged 10 project team members through structured interviews. Key findings showed that planning and coordination, building a collaborative and supportive work environment, diversity management and interpersonal sensitivity were enablers of team cohesion and engagement in Hillside project teams. In contrast, limited resources and working in silos were identified as potential pitfalls to team cohesion and engagement. The adoption of practicable tools and procedures that improve the efficiency of the planning and coordination of teams was recommended. The second recommendation was for the organisation to cultivate a culture in which project team members actively acknowledge not only each other’s contributions and needs but also those of their leaders and managers. The last recommendation is that project leaders prioritise effective communication strategy that promotes both personal and business interactions to facilitate ongoing cohesion and engagement efforts in Hillside smelter project teams
Assessing Multiple Regression Analysis (MRA) model fit for forecasting air traffic movements using log transformation: a case study on ATNS air traffic movement dataset during COVID-19 pandemic
No full textDissertation (M.Sc.(Applied Statistics))--University of the Free State, 2024The COVID-19 pandemic introduced unprecedented challenges to the aviation industry, significantly impacting air traffic movements (ATM). This study investigates the effectiveness of log transformation in evaluating the goodness of fit of multiple regression models in predicting ATM within the South African aviation sector. Specifically, it compares the performance of a standard Multiple Regression Analysis (MRA) model with a log-transformed MRA model to determine whether log transformation enhances model accuracy and reliability.
The research explores traditional model fit assessment techniques, including R-squared (R²), Adjusted R-squared (R²adj), p-values, F-tests, residual analysis, Mean Squared Error (MSE), and normality tests such as the Shapiro-Wilk Test. Using data from Air Traffic and Navigation Services (ATNS), the study applies MRA to assess the impact of key predictors such as revenue, lockdown levels, confirmed COVID-19 cases, COVID-19-related deaths, exchange rates, GDP, and population on ATM.
Findings indicate that the standard MRA model outperforms the log-transformed model in terms of explained variance, predictive accuracy, and coefficient significance. While the log-transformed model offers slight improvements in residual normality and insights into non-linear relationships, it does not surpass the standard model in overall predictive power. As a result, the study concludes that, for practical forecasting and decision-making in air traffic management, the standard MRA model is preferable. However, future research exploring non-linear relationships may benefit more from advanced modeling techniques, such as polynomial regression or machine learning, rather than a simple log transformation
Sexuality communication in African families: the dynamics of openness and closedness
No full textThesis(Ph.D.(Communication Science)--University of the Free State, 2024Family conversations on sex and sexuality are often one of the most challenging conversations for parents and adolescents although there is proof that effective talks can reduce adolescents’ sexual risk (Grossman, Jenkins & Richer, 2018; Rogers, 2017; Rogers, Ha, Stormshak & Dishion, 2015; Braithwaite, Schrodt & Carr, 2014). Research has presented adolescents as the most risk-taking population (United Nations (UN), 2016; United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF), 2011) and parents are aware of this. Parents’ attitudes towards sex and sexuality shape adolescents’ perception (UNICEF, 2019; Grossman et al., 2018) and their subsequent communication on sex and sexuality. Yet, many parents continue to evade sex-related communications with adolescents for many reasons including that they are waiting for adolescents to come of age (Blaisse, 2010). Similarly, research presents that adolescents do not want to engage in sex and sexuality talks with their parents either (Tilton-Weaver, Kerr, Pakalniskeine, Tokic, Salihovic & Stattin, 2010). It is not only because their parents have not talked to them. Adolescents avoid sex talks because they do not trust the quality of knowledge from their parents. Consequently, they would rather talk to their siblings and peers or learn from school. Haydon, Hill, Ward and Eggett (2023) shed more light on this by stating that they thrive to be different. As such, not revealing their private information means preserving what makes them unique.
This study fills the gap on how African family members in South Africa, with adolescents, communicate sex and sexuality with each other including how they decide on what to say and what not to say. Guided by the Communication Privacy Management theory (CPM), this qualitative design-based study explores how family members negotiate rule management, how they coordinate boundaries, how they handle privacy violations, and advice on how they should actually communicate these. This thesis is the result of 40 in-depth interviews with participants from African families residing within the borders of South Africa. 20 parents of adolescents share their experiences as adolescents, but mostly while parenting adolescents, and 20 young adults spoke in retrospect about their adolescence.
The main purpose of this study was to understand the role which sex and sexuality communication play in the lives of adolescents in African families in South Africa, and what influences the openness or closedness of their communication. In the process of exploring these topics, responses were coded and presented to answer four research questions that guide this study. Topics discussed include the following: rules development, boundary coordination, boundaries turbulence, and advice to parents and adolescents. Findings indicate that due to existing rules that govern sex and sexuality communication, family members encounter known and unknown boundaries because they see sex and sexuality communication as intruding. At the same time, disclosure rules facilitate how information ownership and secrets are managed alongside encounters of privacy violations. I interpret the findings, provide the implications of the findings, present the study’s limitations, and future directions
The application of a seamless learning approach in the year 9 of the LGR-22 music curriculum using the SLED framework: a case study
No full textThesis(Ph.D.(Odeion School of Music))--University of the Free State, 2024Despite numerous studies on seamless learning in education, little is known about its application in music education. In this study, I deal with a gap in the literature on the application of a seamless learning approach in the Year 9 LGR-22 Music Curriculum at a primary school in Stockholm, Sweden. To meet the differentiated needs of 21st-century students, a traditional music curriculum was modified using the Seamless Learning Experience Design (SLED) framework. A qualitative case study was used, including classroom observations, semi-structured interviews (with 13 students), end-of-lesson questionnaires (50 students) and end-of-unit reflective questionnaires (181 reflections). To consolidate my findings and develop a coherent narrative, thematic coding together with an inductive approach was used to categorise the themes within the qualitative data. The data analysis indicated that the seamless learning approach offered a range of advantages that allow for a personalised learning experience for students. In this research, I attempt to indicate the significance of teaching and learning approaches in catering to students’ content consumption, interaction, creation and presentation preferences and promoting self-directed and student-centred learning environments. Additional advantages of the way a seamless learning approach can improve a traditional music curriculum to meet the needs of contemporary students are also emphasised, rendering the learning environment more dynamic, inclusive and flexible. Helpful recommendations to teachers are provided on how to apply the SLED framework in their subjects with a view to creating pragmatic learning experiences that enhance students’ overall learning experience
Social capital, culture, and codes in higher education: Bourdieusian and Bernsteinian philosophical underpinnings in the South Africa environment
No full textSocial capital ignored is an “object of political and ideological struggle” created to stifle working-class students in educational spaces. Furthermore, as societal dynamics are constructed in the student-lecturer relationship, this article seeks to evaluate how deliberative democracy in the online higher education space can inspire care through the ongoing dialogue between student and lecturer. This is framed against the Bourdieusian (social capital) and Bernsteinian (social code) framework because both theorists’ work highlights how the dominant class (represented by lecturers) consciously and unconsciously tends to ignore students’ social and cultural capital and codes. This, in turn, leads to a lack of dialogue and care in student-lecturer relationships in higher education. One of this study’s findings is that higher education is aimed to support more middle-class students. The reason for this is that our findings show that lecturers tend not to know what to do with the social habitus of working-class or disadvantaged students. The aforementioned phenomena were foregrounded through Bourdieusian (social capital) and Bernsteinian (social code) model that is situated in the sociological approach, which is interpretive in nature, to explore whether dialogue and care were shown.Publisher's versio
A new species and new records of Chumma (Araneae, Macrobunidae) from South Africa
No full textA new species of the genus Jocqué, 2001, C. . ., is described from the Western Cape, South Africa. New distribution records for . Jocqué & Alderweireldt, 2018, . Jocqué & Alderweireldt, 2018 and . Jocqué, 2001 are presented. The genus is recorded from the Northern Cape Province for the first time, extending its range extensively to the northwest by approximately 450 km. The distribution of all species is mapped.Publisher's versio
Using an uptake enhancer to mitigate nitrogen leaching while enhancing uptake efficiency
No full textNitrogen (N) has the most crucial influence on raising agricultural productivity of all other plant nutrients given to crops. However, 50% of the N given to crops is dissipated to the environment globally, resulting in environmental concerns due to leaching. Current research shows that intensive agricultural production systems, which are still used in a large proportion around the world, are prone to N loss. This study aimed to investigate the effect of uptake enhancer applications on N movement in the soil profile based on 10 cm depth intervals, as well as its effects on N uptake and vegetative growth of oats at 4-week intervals over a 16-week period, using sandy soil as a growing medium. Oats were cultivated in a glasshouse setting in polyvinyl chloride (PVC) columns of 60 cm in height. Six treatments were employed at the 3rd leaf growth stage, and each was replicated four times. The experiment had a constructive and a destructive part, which was employed to monitor crop N uptake at four growth stages. Analyses of soil and plant samples were carried out in all the growth stages. The treatments containing the uptake enhancer prevented N from leaching, particularly at the top 20 cm soil depth, with impressive reductions of 194% at 0–10 cm depth and 186% at 10–20 cm depth, during the first 4 weeks after planting. The uptake enhancer also promoted early vegetative growth and crop performance with 15%. In conclusion, the study revealed that employing the uptake enhancer can improve the efficacy of N fertilizer, thereby reducing the application rate of the fertilizer in agroecosystems.Publisher's versio
Exploring strategies to enhance democratic management practices in teacher education classrooms in a selected South African university
No full textThesis (Ph.D.(Education Management and Leadership))--University of the Free State, 2024Democratic classroom management practices play a vital role in fostering student participation and exposing learners to diverse perspectives and engagement opportunities in educational settings. However, there exists a significant disparity between the ideals of democratic education and the prevailing traditional classroom management approaches observed in university classrooms. In South Africa, the translation of democratic principles into actionable classroom management strategies remains a challenge, particularly within university classrooms. To address these challenges, this study examined the perceptions of student-teachers and lecturers regarding democratic classroom management practices in university-based teacher training. The study adopts critical theory as its guiding framework and employs a transformative research paradigm within a qualitative research approach. A participatory research design is utilised, with data being collected through observation and semi-structured interviews involving 10 student-teachers and 5 lecturers from a selected university in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. Thematic analysis is employed to analyse the data. The study is divided into three publishable articles, with the main findings emphasising the necessity for comprehensive reforms in teacher education to establish inclusive and democratic learning environments that strike a balance between student autonomy and classroom discipline. Additionally, the study reveals resistance to participatory learning due to traditional teaching methods and institutional constraints, highlighting the need for systemic changes to promote equitable and inclusive democratic management practices in university classrooms. Finally, by emphasising student engagement, collaborative teaching, and critical reflection, the study underscores the importance of inclusive and democratic classroom environments in preparing students for real-world challenges. The study formulates and recommends a Democratic Classroom Management Model to facilitate effective democratic classroom management practices
Media and technology usage, attitudes towards media, sex, and generational status as predictors of mental health among university students
No full textDissertation(M.Soc.Sc.(Clinical Psychology))--University of the Free State, 2024Research has shown that university students are a vulnerable population that faces multiple challenges, especially relating to their mental health. It has become evident that depression, anxiety, and stress are common mental health concerns reported among undergraduate university students. Although various factors contribute to the reported increase in depression, anxiety, and stress, one prominent and concerning factor that has been identified is student’s media and technology usage in their daily functioning as well as their attitudes toward media and technology usage. The main objective of this research study was therefore to determine which predictor/independent variable(s) or combination of variables investigated in the current study were responsible for the largest percentage of variance in the mental health (i.e., depression, anxiety, and stress) of undergraduate university students.
The predictor/independent variable(s) that were investigated includes media and technology usage, attitudes towards media, sex, and generational status of students. Moreover, the differences in mental health of undergraduate university students with regards to sex (male vs female), and generational status (first-generation vs non-first-generation) were also investigated in the study. This study used a quantitative research approach along with a non-experimental research type. Moreover, a cross-sectional correlational research design was used to investigate the relationship between the different dependent and independent variables. An existing data set of a research project was used in the study. The sample included 1191 undergraduate university students, between the ages of 18 and 29 years old, from the Faculty of the Humanities at the University of the Free State (UFS), Bloemfontein, South Africa.
The study made use of the , , (DASS) and the (MTUAS) to measure the students’ mental health and media and technology usage as well their attitudes towards media and technology respectively. The results from the hierarchical regression analyses indicated that the combination of independent (predictor) variables statistically significantly predicted Depression and Anxiety respectively, with both findings indicating medium practical significance. The results of the stepwise regression analyses conducted indicated that five of the nine independent variables, namely Media Usage for Leisure, Preference for Task Switching, Positive Attitudes towards Media and Technology, Media Anxiety/Dependence, and Media Usage for Communication in combination statistically significantly contributed to 12.2% of the total variance in Depression. Moreover, five of the nine independent variables, namely Media Usage for Leisure, Preference for Task Switching, Positive Attitudes towards Media and Technology, Media Anxiety/Dependence, and Media Usage for Communication in combination statistically significantly contributed to 13.8% of the total variance in Anxiety.
Lastly, five of the nine independent variables, namely Preference for Task Switching, Media Usage for Leisure, Media Anxiety/Dependence, Positive Attitudes, and Negative Attitudes made a statistically significant contribution to the variance of Stress, although the results indicated that these variables, individually or in combination, were of no practical significance