11613 research outputs found
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The capabilities of male migrant miners in preventing and managing HIV: A Lesotho case study
No full textThesis (Ph.D. (Development Studies))--University of the Free State, 2022Previous research has shown multiple HIV programmes at the mines and in Lesotho. However, despite the availability of these HIV programmes, Lesotho migrant miners who work in South Africa's mines are still plagued by HIV and are amongst the worst-hit groups. Evidence in the literature suggests fragmentation and ineffectiveness in HIV prevention and management strategies for Lesotho migrant miners. Other literature suggests that the ineffectiveness of the HIV prevention and management strategies results from irrelevant theoretical approaches that do not consider aspects of development in HIV prevention and management. This study used a qualitative approach, underpinned by the capabilities approach framework, to explore the capabilities of Lesotho male migrant miners working in the Free State mines in South Africa in preventing and managing HIV. The Capabilities Approach (CA) is a social justice theory founded by Economist-philosopher Amartya Sen in the 1980s. Fifty returning Lesotho migrant miners (those visiting home) who work in the Free State Province, South Africa and were either HIV positive or negative participated in the study. Data were collected in July 2021 on the streets of Maseru, Lesotho. Structured interviews with open-ended questions using purposive, snowballing and street outreach methods were used. The interviews were audio-taped, transcribed and translated into English and thematic analysis was used as the method of data analysis. The study concluded that structural factors like the culture at the mines that accept commercial sex often lead to the miners losing control over their daily lives, constricting their capability to prevent HIV. Other structural factors like policies, healthcare quality and the miners' circular migration patterns have characteristics that either expand or constrict the miners' capabilities to prevent and manage HIV. The miners had adequate personal conversion factors and abundant social conversion factors. However, these conversion factors operate amid many social constraints, making the cultivation of capabilities to prevent and manage HIV difficult. The miners' environmental conversion factors were inadequate, particularly those related to accessing ARVs in the mines, denying them some basic freedoms and entitlements. Finally, the miners engage in functionings that either expand or constrict their capabilities to prevent and manage HIV. For those who are HIV positive, functionings like being stigmatised and enduring the side-effects of ARVs, negatively affects their psychological, physical and social wellbeing
Exploring distributed instructional leadership practices in high performing Zimbabwean primary schools
No full textThesis (Ph.D.(Education Management and Leadership))--University of the Free State, 2022Instructional leadership has been one of the most discussed leadership constructs in educational research over the times. The focus of instructional leadership is on principals as the people with all the knowledge to develop schools to greater heights. The increasing workload for principals and the advent of distributed leadership made it prudent for school principals to distribute leadership to other staff members. This practice made use of by effective school principals helped schools to improve their instructional performance. This study was, therefore, motivated by the thought of distributing instructional leadership to all members in a school.
Distributed leadership calls for more players in instructional leadership. This results in the tapping of knowledge and expertise in school members. The aim of this study was to have a deeper understanding of how distributed instructional leadership practices were enacted in high performing primary schools for improved performance. The study focused on examining the main activities that characterised instructional leadership practice in the selected schools. It also focused on how the major activities of instructional leadership align with and or exhibited features of distributed leadership. In specific, the study focused on how distributed instructional leadership is enacted in high performing primary schools in Zimbabwe.
The qualitative research approach and a multiple case study research design were adopted for this study. A sample of three school principals and nine teachers were purposively selected. Structured interviews, observations and document analysis were used to gather data. The study concluded that the school principals were involved in instructional leadership. The principals carried out instructional leadership activities through distributing leadership practices to other members in their schools. Distributed instructional leadership practices were enacted through varied leadership activities undertaken by various school members.
It was established that visioning the school was a key activity of instructional leadership in these successful schools. The schools had specific visions which were developed through collaboration among the principals, teachers and the school community, an example of a distributed instructional leadership practice in the schools. Another finding was that in all the three successful primary schools, managing instruction was prioritised by the principals who all took a distributed approach in executing this activity with their teachers. It was also found that the schools relied on two major strategies to manage instruction and promote instructional improvement, viz, observation of teaching and feedback together with modelling of exemplary practice by the leadership team. The final finding was that the schools had conducive environments for teaching and learning that they created through professional development and collaborative leadership practice.
The study recommends that principals nurture teachers through distributing leadership to all members to enable them to grow professionally. This has benefits for both teachers and learners. It is also recommended that teachers are made aware of the importance of distributing instructional leadership. Further research on a wider scale on how distributed instructional leadership is enacted in schools is recommended
Conceptualising education for ecological democracy in Lesotho: an African philosophy of education perspective
No full textThesis (Ph.D.(Policy Studies in Education))--University of the Free State, 2022Climate change is a global threat that has brought us to the edge of ecological precarity. The crisis we face due to climate change impacts all aspects of human life, a reality which raises substantial concerns while highlighting our communities' relationship with the environment. Natural factors such as volcanic eruptions, changing ocean currents, solar variations, and internal variability are experienced in different countries. These natural factors are inducing climate change at an alarming rate. Such natural factors have been identified among those responsible for the climate-related disasters experienced by various countries in the recent past. Therefore, we are compelled to articulate and put in place structures to mitigate the causes of climate change to the changes already occurring. This qualitative study explored the potential contribution of the African Philosophy of Education, grounded in communitarianism and expressed through the concepts of ubuntu and ukama, to conceptualising education for Ecological Democracy in the Lesotho education policy context. The study adopted a transformative paradigm to address the main research question: What potential does the African Philosophy of Education offer to conceptualise education for ecological democracy within the context of the Lesotho education policy? A qualitative approach supported by a literature review, document and policy analysis unpacked the African Philosophy of education and its communitarianism concepts of ubuntu and ukama. As a literature review study, the study did not have participants but was guided by Samuel's guidelines on policy reading and Gagnon and Labonte's framework of analysis. I analysed the content of selected documents that address climate change in Lesotho and the Lesotho educational policy landscape to conceptualise the potential of Lesotho education for ecological democracy. Analyses of the documents revealed that climate change mitigation in Lesotho is possible when citizens are motivated to work through communities to maintain and preserve the Basotho cultural identity grounded within the African Philosophy of Education and its incorporation of the African ideas of ubuntu and ukama. By communitarianism living and observing democratic governance, people in communities learn to cooperate and collaborate, and care for the environment, and this will benefit not only humans but also non-humans through the creation of structures allowing harmonious living between humans and non-humans, and contribute to the knowledge of ecological democracy
Reading the forest as inter-species commune in Matthee's circles in a forest (1984) and Ehrlich & Reed's my octopus teacher (2020)
No full textDissertation (M.A. (English))--University of the Free State, 2022This study investigates the forest as a site of commune for human and nonhuman sentients in Matthee’ s Circles in a Forest (2005), the Afrikaans novel published in 1984 and the English translation published in 2005, and the Netflix nature documentary, My Octopus Teacher (2020). The objective of this work is to find the ways in which the forest space extends and adds to the conversation around ecological sustainability by means of regenerative communities. South African author, Dalene Matthee’s Circles in a Forest (2005) presents the Knysna forest as an example of a sustainable biological and relational system that is made possible by the responsible practices of those who partake in its community of human and nonhuman inhabitants. South Africa’s first ever Netflix Original nature documentary, My Octopus Teacher (2020), directed by Pippa Ehrlich and James Reed, documents the interspecies encounters between a local film maker, Craig Foster, and a common octopus or octopus vulgaris, within a False Bay kelp forest, located within the South Atlantic Ocean, off the South African coast. This dissertation investigates how intimate connections between human and nonhuman lead to rehabilitative and sensitising possibilities within the space of the forest. A textual analysis of the two primary texts alongside a comparative study reveals how the forest offers alternative ways of practicing community-based ethics within human-disturbed landscapes which can be used to inspire sustainable futures for the environment. The terrestrial Knysna forest and aquatic kelp forest engage in relational economies of reciprocity, vulnerability, and deep interconnection, the combination of which forms the units of exchange between the encounters of humans, nonhumans, and the environment
Professional development needs of Foundation Phase teachers in the identification of learners with learning barriers
No full textThesis (Ph.D.(Psychology of Education))--University of the Free State, 2022The research study focused on teachers’ professional development needs in identifying LWLB in the Foundation Phase. Teachers’ training and professional development needs for South African Foundation Phase teachers have never been inevitable. The Department reported the failure of Higher Education to produce competent, skilled Foundation Phase teachers to meet the needs of the learners in the diverse classrooms. For decades, the status and image of teaching had been viewed from the position of racial discrimination. The democratic dispensation ended unfair discrimination in the education system by adopting the Inclusive Education and Training System Policy in 2001 to improve access to quality education for vulnerable learners and those who experience learning barriers. Policies and guidelines were reformed, and teachers received training. However, the research shows that many professional development programmes have failed to improve teachers’ training. Despite reforming policies and exposing teachers to training, the training and professional development did not equip teachers with the relevant skills and knowledge of appropriate strategies to identify LWLB. It is a fact that if the teachers’ needs are fulfilled, learners’ achievement will improve.
This study aimed to explore how teachers’ training and professional development can be improved in identifying LWLB in Foundation Phase schools in Motheo District, Free State. The study sought to answer the main research question: What are the training and professional development needs of Foundation Phase teachers in identifying LWLB and the implications for teacher education? An interpretivist paradigm and qualitative model were chosen to determine the views of the participants in terms of their training. Data were derived from semi-structured face-to-face and focus group interviews with Foundation Phase teachers, support teachers, and Subject Advisors in South African primary schools. Participants were purposively selected. The theoretical frameworks used constructivist and socio-constructivist learning theories. The analysis of qualitative data was conducted using thematic analysis. The research revealed that professional development does not address teachers’ needs; numerous challenges were experienced by teachers in identifying LWLB, although they had received training. The study implies that Subject Advisors ought to pay attention to the various learning theories to engage in networking activities to learn from one another. The Department of Education needs to find ways to adjust training to policy; make the training practically applicable; increase the time available for practice teaching that would allow teachers to interact with one another; and share ideas and experiences to handle challenges in identifying LWLB. Adequate and relevant resources (i.e ICT equipment), teachers' engagement during training, and learning that involves social-constructivism and constructivist theories, were suggested. The researcher proposed the use of Social Constructivism and Constructivist learning theories as strategies to develop teachers to enable them to identify LWLB in the Foundation Phase and improve the performance of such learners
Exploring perpetrator trauma amongst juvenile offenders incarcerated for violent crimes
No full textDissertation(M.Soc.Sc.(Psychology))--University of the Free State, 2022Globally, extensive research has been conducted on psychological trauma. The main intention of this scientific enquiry was to provide insights into the explanatory and aetiological factors of such trauma, as well as provide measures of how to manage and treat it effectively. These scientific exercises within psychological trauma research have led to the development and recognising of posttraumatic stress disorder and acute stress disorder as official and diagnosable disorders. However, much of these research studies on psychological trauma and these trauma-related disorders have focused primarily on victims and witnesses of trauma, completely overlooking and neglecting offenders (perpetrators). Despite this, other scholars have sought to investigate whether perpetrators might experience psychological trauma and scarring from their actions. These scholars observed combat veterans and law enforcers who have committed murder or harmed others in their line of duty, as well as perpetrators of major atrocities such as holocausts and genocides.
Their findings established and concluded that perpetrating violence is associated with various psychological consequences, particularly post-traumatic stress reactions. However, these scholars focused mainly on combat veterans, police officers, and perpetrators of mass atrocities, thus neglecting offenders, particularly juvenile offenders. In South Africa, juvenile offenders are largely at risk of violent offending due to various criminogenic risk factors predisposing them to violent offences. Both grey and empirical literature and government reports have established that juvenile offenders engage in more violent offences than any other offence category. Their involvement in these violent offences makes them more susceptible to developing perpetrator trauma, which might have deleterious and debilitating effects on their rehabilitation and reintegration, leading to cycles of violence and increasing their risk of re-offending. Therefore, this study set out to explore perpetrator trauma amongst juvenile offenders incarcerated for violent offences.
The study was qualitative in nature, using descriptive phenomenology to provide descriptive accounts of perpetrator trauma as experienced by the participants. The nature of the study was both descriptive and explorative, while a single case study design was utilised as a research design. The study used a two-phase sampling procedure, consisting of convenience sampling during the first phase and purposive sampling in the second phase. The first phase consisted of 60 participants who completed a perpetrator trauma symptomatology screening questionnaire developed by the researcher. Participants who reported that they experienced various perpetrator trauma symptoms were then selected for the data collection. The data were collected using semi-structured audio-recorded individual interviews with 10 participants.
The data was analysed using Braun and Clarke’s six-phase framework for thematic analysis using both deductive and inductive methods (Abduction analysis). The analysis generated a total of six themes and nine subthemes. The findings revealed that the offenders experienced multidimensional consequences from their actions. They experienced emotional and moral torments for transgressing legal, societal, spiritual, cultural, and familial rules and norms governing human interaction and functioning. They also experienced various symptoms related to or associated with their offences and victims, including reliving symptoms, psychotic symptoms, psychogenic amnesia of the offence and the victims, and experienced a persistent negative emotional state. They also engaged in reckless and self-destructive behaviours, avoidant behaviours, and significant behavioural changes could be noted in their behaviour.
There were also offence-specific and individual contextual factors that negatively influenced their trauma sequelae, such as their age, motivation for the offence, others’ responses to the offence, and the nature of the relationship with the victim. Incarceration also negatively influenced their trauma sequelae. Nonetheless, they reported various protective experiences, activities, and behaviours within the correctional centre and outside, which helped alleviate their distress. Lastly, they conceptualised their trauma as spiritually induced by their victims’ families to haunt them
Leadership effectiveness in a virtual environment in a information technology department at a South African Bank
No full textDissertation (MBA (Business Administration))--University of the Free State, 2022COVID-19 has led to organizations operating their business in a different way to what
they were used to. Employees went from being office bound, to working from home, so
that organizations were able to continue operating. This led to organizations being faced
with challenges when working in a virtual environment. The problem that managers in the
IT (information technology) department at a South African bank faced was that, if they did
not lead their teams effectively whilst working in a virtual environment, it could lead to a
decrease in employee satisfaction and performance. This research identified leadership tools to assist leaders in achieving leadership effectiveness in a virtual environment at the IT department at a South African bank. The researcher identified leadership tools a leader can use to achieve leadership
effectiveness in a virtual environment. The researcher used the quantitative method to
conduct the research. Online surveys were used to gather data from the IT department
of a South African bank. The researcher then used means, graphs, correlations and box
plots to analyse and interpret the collected data. The respondents responded positively
to most of the questions posed to them. The researcher was able to conclude that
sufficient communication was taking place between the leaders and employees of the IT
department. Employees believed that they were able to trust their leaders and that their
leaders supported them in achieving their goals. The data revealed that the leaders were
displaying certain behaviours representing leadership styles identified by the researcher
from literature. The researcher found that the employees believed that the leader did not
always bring a sense of order to their work. The research also indicated that, when
employees experience conflict, the leaders do not always assist in resolving it.
The researcher made recommendations that the IT department can apply to improve its
leadership effectiveness. Implementing these recommendations will assist the IT
department to achieve their objectives and achieve leadership effectiveness in a virtual
environmen
Nutrigenomics: perceptions of South African dietitians and general practitioners
No full textIntroduction: Although investigations into the emerging field of nutrigenomics are relatively limited and more research in this field is required, experts agree that there is potential for it to be incorporated into health care practice. If health care professionals can promote healthy dietary behavior based on nutrigenomic testing, it can assist in addressing the health consequences of poor diet and lightning the strain on the South African health care system. Methods: Registered dietitians (RDs) and general practitioners (GPs) registered with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) who obtained their qualification in South Africa (SA) were eligible to participate in this cross-sectional study. Participants were identified using convenience and snowball sampling. A self-administered electronic survey using EvaSys Software® was completed by those that agreed to participate. Results: Nearly all RDs (97.3%), but less than a third of GPs (30.4%), had heard of the term nutrigenomics. Approximately three-quarters of RDs (74.7%) and GPs (73.9%) had or would personally consider undergoing genetic testing. More than 40% (43.5%) of RDs ranked direct-to-consumer genetic testing companies as the most equipped, while 31.8% of GPs ranked RDs as the most equipped to provide patients with nutrigenomic services. Both RDs and GPs ranked similar reasons as “strongly agree” for why consumers were motivated to make use of nutrigenomic services, which included “motivated by a desire to prevent or manage disease” (56.7%), “prevent a disease based on family history” (65.9%), “control health outcomes based on family history” (54.9%), and “improve overall health-related quality of life” (48.6%). Cost concerns were reported as the greatest barrier to implementing nutrigenomic services (75.7%). Other barriers included confidentiality issues (47.8%) and moral concerns (37.3%). Greater individualization of diet prescription (66.5%), stronger foundations for nutrition recommendations (62.4%), and dietary prescriptions that would manage or prevent certain diseases more effectively (59.0%) were all perceived as benefits of including nutrigenomics in practice. Conclusion: This study identified perceived consumer motivators and barriers that might affect the willingness to seek nutrigenomic services in SA. In addition, the need for more nutrigenomic training opportunities, including the planning of personalized diets based on genetic testing results and interpretation of results, was confirmed. However, both RDs and GPs felt that the emerging field of nutrigenomics needs further development before it can be applied effectively in routine private and public health care in SA.Publisher's versio
The ground spider genera Leptodrassex Murphy, 2007 and Leptopilos Levy, 2009 (Araneae: Gnaphosidae) in southern Africa, including the description of a new genus and seven new species
No full textThe ground spider genera Leptodrassex Murphy, 2007 and Leptopilos Levy, 2009 are recorded from southern Africa for the first time, with the description of five new species: Leptodrassex murphyi sp. nov. (♂ ♀) from Mozambique and South Africa, and L. capensis sp. nov. (♀) from South Africa; Leptopilos butleri sp. nov. (♂ ♀) and L. vasivulva sp. nov. (♂ ♀) from Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe, and L. digitus sp. nov. (♂ ♀) from South Africa. Further, the new genus Afrodrassex gen. nov. is described, with the type species A. balrog sp. nov. (♂ ♀) from South Africa and Angola, and A. catharinae sp. nov. (♂ ♀) from South Africa described therein. Details of the somatic and genitalic morphology of all three genera are examined by scanning electron microscopy, and revised descriptions of Leptodrassex and Leptopilos are presented.Publisher's versio
A hostage economy: the impact of Rhodesia's Unilateral Declaration of Independence on Zambia, 1965-79
No full textIn November 1965, Rhodesia’s Prime Minister Ian Smith announced a Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI), prompting the United Nations and the British government to impose economic and financial sanctions on his government. In the context of regional politics of decolonisation, the Zambian government interpreted UDI as a moral affront to African freedom, independence, dignity as well as posing a grave danger to the country’s national security. They responded to the crisis by supporting international sanctions on Rhodesia and embarked on an exercise to extricate the economy from dependence on the illegal regime. This article traces part of these strategic initiatives employed by the Zambian government in response to UDI and illustrates how strict compliance to international sanctions along with economic disengagement severely strained the country’s economic stability. It argues that although UDI immeasurably compromised Zambia’s development efforts and brutally exposed the limitations and vulnerability of its economy, ultimately the government exploited the situation to its advantage by promoting the country’s development agenda through establishment of alternative transport routes, new sources of energy and electricity, and import substitution industries. Economic diversification became a major priority of government policy in the wake of UDI. The article utilises evidence from the Zambian archives to investigate the nature and extent of the challenges and opportunities UDI imposed on Zambia’s economy between 1965 and 1979. Until now, scholars have hardly interrogated this aspect.Publisher's versio