KovsieJournals - University of the Free State (UFS)
Not a member yet
5214 research outputs found
Sort by
Designerly and entrepreneurial thinking in architectural practice: A case study of Al Stratford
Full text linkTo remain resilient amid technological disruption and economic volatility, the architectural field must adopt entrepreneurial mindsets and methods. Design Thinking and Designerly Thinking have been the subject of comparison and analysis in the academic literature. However, their application in architectural practice and architectural entrepreneurship is vague. This article applies case-study research methodology to gain insight into how architects might apply their skills in new fields. This research adopts a qualitative approach, combining a comprehensive literature review with primary data collection through a semi-structured interview. The case study focuses on Al Stratford – an award-winning figure in architecture, product, and furniture design – who has successfully transitioned into entrepreneurship and industrial design. Thematic analysis was used to interpret both the literature and the interview transcript. The analysis considers what the thinking and design processes applied by Al Stratford in architectural design, product design, and business design are, how they differ, how they differ from the theoretical standard, and what the causes for any differences might be. The study suggests that architectural Designerly Thinking processes are often distinct and context specific, differing from broader notions of Designerly Thinking, while occasionally incorporating elements of Design Thinking. The key findings indicate that, for designers, the entrepreneurial process can align closely with Designerly Thinking, making the latter more suitable than Design Thinking in architectural contexts. Importantly, architects and designers are encouraged to identify entrepreneurial opportunities that emerge organically within the designerly process itself. In doing so, they should emulate Stratford’s commitment to addressing concrete, context-specific needs with appropriate and innovative solutions. This integration of creativity, contextual responsiveness, and problem-solving within the design process can serve as a foundation for entrepreneurial innovation in architecture
Roos, Neil. Ordinary Whites in Apartheid Society: Social Histories of Accommodation. Johannesburg: Wits University Press, 2024. ISBN: 9781776148905
Full text linkIn 2015, I, then a history honours student, attended a department seminar by Professor Neil Roos. With the Fallist movement and calls for decolonisation hitting South African university campuses, his appeal for new avenues of investigation into the everyday life of white South Africans under apartheid struck a chord, not only academically but personally. Growing up as a white South African who was semi-born free in a lower middle-class household, I knew all too well how ordinary whites remember apartheid in a new dispensation. Stability and normalcy are often lauded in white speak of the past. The euphemistic “good old days” of apartheid were fondly remembered as stable and normal. Ordinary
In search of clarity regarding the condonation of electronic documents under section 2(3) of the Wills Act: exploring an act-based approach and lessons from Australian law
Full text linkTechnology pervades every aspect of modern-day life, and the legal landscape is no exception. A prime example is the issue of electronic wills. Being excluded from the ambit of the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002, e-wills are currently a grey area in South Africa, with no laws governing them. Until this changes, a proper understanding of section 2(3) of the Wills Act 7 of 1953 – the so-called condonation provision – offers a way to accommodate electronic wills. Yet section 2(3) faces certain challenges relating to its interpretation and application, particularly as it pertains to electronic documents. This contribution presents an overview of MacDonald, Van der Merwe and Dryden three instances where the South African courts were called upon to adjudicate matters involving the condonation of electronic documents. Unfortunately, these judgments did little in the way of providing clarity, and Dryden, in particular, dashed all hope of certainty surrounding the condonation of electronic documents. In search of solutions, the paper examines Faber’s proposed act-based model as well as the current approach in Australia. The act-based model is suggested as a way to crystallise what our courts should be focusing on in adjudicating condonation applications, namely the act of testation, which comprises the written manifestation of the testator’s dispositive intention along with animus testandi. The two-part intention requirement in Australian law offers solid substantiation for this. Another lesson to be drawn from the Australian approach is the need for a broad statutory definition of “document” that includes various electronic forms, such as computer files, messages on mobile phones, and emails. This flexibility would better meet society’s evolving needs in a digital era and would help our courts establish the scope of application of the condonation provision. If South African law wishes to keep pace with international e-will trends, it will have to adapt and make more adequate provision forelectronic wills
Organisational commitment measuring instrument convergent and discriminant validity study in an educational setting
Full text linkThe contributions made by committed employees towards organisational success have been well documented. In the education context, it has been emphasised that committed teachers are not only attached to the teaching profession, but they also find ways to promote it and create an enabling environment for learners to realise learning outcomes. However, many of the instruments developed to measure the organisational commitment construct have focussed on employees in the business organisations with minimal attention paid to those in the school environment. This article evaluates the convergent and discriminant validity of organisational commitment measuring instrument for primary school teachers in the South African context. A preliminary analysis identified four explanatory factors of organisational commitment. The focus of this study was to identify factors influencing teachers’ organisational commitment. The study was conducted through a quantitative research design using a sample of primary school teachers in an educational circuit, South Africa. The organisational commitment instrument was completed by a sample (n = 350) with 86% response rate. Confirmatory factor analysis in structural equation modelling was conducted using SMARTPLS 3. Convergent validity and discriminant validity of three factors were confirmed in the study. Results from the structural equation model revealed that only two factors had the strongest influence on primary school teachers’ organisational commitment. The implication is that the adapted model can be used to explain primary school teachers’ organisational commitment in a school environment
Lessons learnt and insights shared: The Diagnostic Mathematics Information for Student Retention and Success (DMISRS) Case Studies Dialogue on teaching first-year mathematics in South Africa
Full text linkThe Diagnostic Mathematics Information for Student Retention and Success (DMISRS) project was a collaborative project focused on first-year mathematics, which drew together lecturers in South African higher education institutions and other related organisations. Various themes were explored during the annual DMISRS symposia from 2018 to 2022. The project’s culmination was a final DMISRS symposium held in November 2023, which focused on the case studies that examine the sub-projects that have emerged over the years. The symposia have tackled critical themes, including collaborative practices and courses that influence graduation rates, the psychological well-being of students, and innovative solutions in first-year mathematics, such as assessments, performance metrics, blended learning approaches and curriculumdevelopment. The case studies offer valuable narratives of day-to-day interactions, teaching and learning activities, and shared resources or practices in first-year mathematics education experiences. They showcase successes and delve into challenges and their corresponding solutions, providing practical insights that empower the community of practice across diverse higher education institutions and contexts. As a capstone to the DMISRS project’s final symposium, the DMISRS team invited those who contributed case studies to take part in a panel discussion, referred to as the “DMISRS Case Studies Dialogue”, on a range of topics, including their own experiences in setting up and implementing innovations or conducting investigations, and their reflections on the impact of and the legacy of the workdone as part of this project.This paper captures that conversation as a dialogue among the contributorsdone as part of this project. This paper captures that conversation as a dialogue among the contributors.
Instructional leadership: Principals’ roles in supporting continuous professional teacher development
Full text linkPrincipals play an integral role in enhancing the skills and professional development of their teaching staff when they provide constructive feedback to enhance the reflexive capabilities of teachers as determined by teacher education policy (MRTEQ, 2015) and can be the driving force behind their pursuit to provide quality education, as stipulated in Goal 4 of the UNESCO’s Sustainable Development Goals (UNESCO, 2015). This article explores the roles of school principals as instructional leaders in supporting continuous professional teachers’ development (CPTD). The study followed a qualitative research approach, using case studies which involved two schools in the Metropole Central Education District in the Western Cape. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with three teachers from each school. The finding suggests that CPTD plays a significant role in identifying the necessary gaps in pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) and how to manage a class to mitigate disruptive behaviour successfully. The data further highlights how the two principals prioritise CPTD at their schools by being directly or indirectly involved in the CPTD sessions of the staff. The data indicated that teachers want to develop professionally and expect principals to provide them with the freedom to evaluate their performance and identify where they need to grow. To serve the needs of the teachers and continually capacitate teachers, principals and the leadership (SMT) identified appropriate CPTD programmes that will improve teaching and learning, boost intellectual confidence, and eventually enhance learner achievement
Counsellors’ perspectives on managing learner discipline in some selected secondary schools in Nigeria
Full text linkThis empirical paper explores the challenges counsellors face when managing learner discipline in Nigerian secondary schools. The paper emphasises the importance of counselling for learners’ academic performance and how learners conduct themselves both in the classroom and the school environment. A significant challenge identified is the high learner-to-counsellor ratio, contributing to increased discipline problems among learners. The study is grounded in humanistic theory, which asserts that counsellors focus on understanding human experiences, selfactualisation, personal growth, and the significance of subjective perceptions and feelings. This research employs a case study approach, guided by an interpretive paradigm. Interviews were conducted with six counsellors from three rural schools, each with at least five years of experience in their respective schools. One of the key findings is the inadequate resources available to manage learner discipline in Nigerian schools. Based on these findings, the paper argues that collaborative efforts between school managers and counsellors can enhance the effectiveness of counselling services in Nigerian schools and improve learner discipline
The role of higher education in the development of financial literacy skills of small business owners in South Africa
Full text linkSouth Africa faces a critically high unemployment rate due to poor educational attainments and socio-economic disadvantages. The critical need for job creation demands a renewed look at entrepreneurial endeavours. Higher education institutions (HEIs) are critical in producing knowledge for society. Innovative ways of supporting entrepreneurial learning are required to bridge the financial knowledge gap of educationally marginalised socio-economic groups, such as small business owners from impoverished communities. The study aimed to gain insights into the perceptions of small business owners and ascertain the role of HEIs in developing financial literacy skills of small businesses. Data was collected from twelve small business owners who participated in a two-day financial literacy workshop. A phenomenological and mixed-method approach was applied to gather quantitative and qualitative data through questionnaires. Challenges faced by small business owners and the dire need for financial literacy were identified, suggesting an urgent role for HEIs to equip small business owners with the tools necessary to run their businesses effectively. Immense value was derived from the financial literacy workshop, which suggests that HEIs have a role in providing appropriate but tailored training to participants who often do not have an educational background
Histories of African Entrepreneurship
No full textThe relationship between capitalism and Africa’s long-term economic development has been of interest to economic historians since the 1960s. After a long hiatus, following the 1990s postmodernist turn towards social history, African economic history is experiencing a resurgence.1Within that current is a rekindled interest in the African entrepreneur as a legitimate historical actor and an economic development agent.2 This review essay examines the work of two economic historians who began their careers at opposite ends of the history of African economic history writing and have written books that examine African entrepreneurship. Both tomes, written by Antony Hopkins and Sean Maliehe, draw on their PhD research. In 1960, Hopkins initially wanted to study for his PhD on Lagos’ African entrepreneurs, but, unsure of the sources, he settled for “a safe, pedestrian economic history of the port between 1880 and 1914” (p. xiii). With Capitalism in the Colonies, Hopkins returns to the subject, building on more than half a century of producing benchmark scholarship on African economic history.3 For Maliehe, Commerce as Politics is his first undertaking, a book that follows the now- established early career researcher’s pathway into academia, based on his PhD thesis. Their case studies are just as contradictory, located on either side of the equator of the African continent. While Hopkins examines the West African port city of Lagos, connected to global commerce via the Atlantic Ocean, Maliehe studies the tiny Kingdom of Lesotho, a landlocked country encircled by South Africa
Cabrita, Joel. Written Out: The Silencing of Regina Gelana Twala. Ohio: Ohio University Press, 2023. ISBN: 9781776148615
Full text linkJoel Cabrita’s Written Out: The Silencing of Regina Gelana Twala is a compelling biographical work that centres on Regina Gelana Twala, a Black female anthropologist who, until her death, had been mainly written out of — if not entirely ignored by — academic discourse. Cabrita’s book rehabilitates Twala’s legacy, positioning her as a pioneering anthropologist who operated within a racially exclusionary academic environment and paid the price for being both Black and female. Drawing on a labyrinthine array of historical sources, Cabrita reconstructs the identity and intellectual contributions of Twala as both scholar and feminist