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Between Worlds: German Missionaries and the Transition to Bantu Education in South Africa by Linda Chisholm
Get PDFLinda Chisholm, one of the most talented educational researchers in South Africa, has published on a great variety of topics over the past thirty years and has been one of the most prolific commentators on educational policy and practice. Her most recent endeavour relating to the history of the Hermannsberg Mission Society and its educational involvement in South Africa over a period of a century and a half is therefore to be applauded as a unique endeavour to engage with the complexities and ambiguities of educational policy and practice in a colonial context. It focuses on the continuities and ruptures that were presented to SouthAfrican black education from the 1950s by Bantu Education. This is therefore an important contribution to the literature on the South African history of education to set in the context of the impressive relatively recent collections edited by Hanns Lessing et al. (2012, 2015 on German Protestant missions in Southern Africa and Richard Elphick’s definitive work on Protestant Missions (2012). As Chisholm demonstrates through a careful use of previously neglected sources in Germany and South Africa, this is a complex story that challenges manyof our easy preconceptions about colonial education and it defies any simple categorization of missionaries as agents of colonialism
Problems around Accessing Information in Rural Communities
Get PDFPoverty is known to be a rural phenomenon regardless of developments taking place. Rural communities of underdeveloped countries are regarded to be living in those parts of the country that lack almost all kinds of services and basic needs even worse. Information society should be maintained because information has a significant impact in ensuring development in communities but this is not the case in rural areas because of information poverty caused by lack of means to access it. The study addresses the problems to access information in rural communities. This research explores the problems to access information through ICTs such as computer and Internet in rural communities and proposes guidelines on how to ensure proper access to information for rural residents. Rural communities and the government will benefit a lot from the success of this research. Government is the one that ensures that every citizen has the means to access information in order to bridge the gap of information poverty and digital divide
Gesture-based Technology and Organisational Strategy: A Study of a Quick Service Restaurant Franchisor
Get PDFThe aim of the study was to derive a theoretical framework that is hinged on critical success factors, enablers and Inhibitors, for the Alignment of Gesture-Based Technology and Organisational Strategy for the quick serving restaurant sector. The critical success factors, enablers and inhibitors that were used to formulate the framework were extrapolated from the literature. The sample design of this research study is a Non-Random, Purposive Sample. The key analysis of the research was to test whether critical success factors, enablers and inhibitors indeed can be used to derive a theoretical framework using a questionnaire. It was concluded that critical success factors, enablers and inhibitors were indeed core to the formulation of a theoretical framework. All of the critical success factors, enablers and inhibitors presented in the sample were accepted
Resilience of Somali Migrants: Religion and Spirituality among Migrants in Johannesburg
Get PDFVarious studies have already been done on the mistreatment of migrants and the psychological effects thereof. This study sought to explore the resilience of Somali migrants residing in Fordsburg/ Mayfair, Johannesburg by interrogating how religion and spirituality may have assisted them in coping with their challenges. A qualitative study was undertaken, using purposive sample of ten Somali migrants. In addition, face to face in –depth interviews were undertaken with participants between the ages of 20 and 55 years. The findings of the study indicated that by supporting the resilience of the Somali migrants, religion and spirituality had played a major role. The interesting part is that their culture and religion becomes integral to their migration. In this regard the community has devised relational, cultural, and religious resources that help them navigate their challenges of migrations. Scholars of migration have, in recent decades, developed increasing interest in the processes and practices through which migrants maintain social relationships that connect the places they leave behind and those where they arrive. Religious affiliations and relationships strengthen these relations. This article argues that resilience can be attributed to their religion, spirituality and cultural identity of the Somali community living in South Africa. The article concludes that high levels of resilience can be linked to the improved socio–economic status of Somali migrants in South Africa
Deconstructing African History from Western Historicism
Get PDFIf a people were to write their own history to be solely accepted as an ideal, it would not be abnormal for them to do so in their own favour. The history of the African peoples as documented by Western literatures, mostly comprises the exaltation of European culture through various stereotypical labellings of African history and culture.In the same vein, most Africans would be tempted to rewrite African history in favour of the cultures/ traditions of the African people themselves. Western historicism, however, has gradually denied the African an identity, primarily by eulogising its vindictive colonial presence in Africa, with the purpose of creating a cultural superstructure for the West. Through critical analysis and the conversational method, we submit that a balanced reordering of history in a sane manner is quickened when informed African scholars in their various disciplines take up the task of historiography to create their own peculiar narrative that will provide both the scholarly agenda and its related content, to set the African people on a course of wholesome prosperity
Crises, Contestations, Contemplations and Futures in Higher Education
Get PDFThe theme of this special edition once again derives from the Annual Teaching and Learning Conference hosted by the University of KwaZulu-Natal in 2017.For ten years (2007 - 2016), the conference has engaged a cauldron of issues that emerged in Higher Education, South Africa. During that decade, the academy charted a path of what it deemed to be relevant concerns around curriculum transformation and innovation, African perspectives and paradigms, reconstruction, internationalisation, policy analyses, research and teaching excellence, and professional development, all of which were suggestive of deep engagement with issues that mattered to higher education. The student uprisings (#RhodesMustFall and #FeesMustFall) disturbed the reverie that had lulled the academy’s senses to student concerns and aspirations. In fact, higher education students made explicit the ways in which the academy was complicit in the reproduction of inequalities and the marginalisation of local values and contexts. The outcome of academia’s lethargy to action and its propensity to ‘talk’ rather than ‘act’ to enable relevant and appropriate transformation, has had devastating consequences, culmina-ting in violent uprisings in South Africa. Simultaneously, though, it has also created new opportunities and improved access to higher education for those marginalised by race and class
#FEESMUSTFALL: Science Teaching during Student Unrest
Get PDFStudent protests are a regular feature of the tertiary landscape. However, there are claims that disruptions and potential threats to the academic project at traditional universities can be partially mitigated by online teaching and learning. This paper reports on insights gained when the mode of instruction was changed at short notice from contact to online teaching during student unrests at a South African university in 2016. A phenomenographic approach was used to generate a meta-reflection on experiences as reported by lecturers from 13 science departments during a pecha kucha1 event (very short PowerPoint presentations) at the beginning of 2017. Video data was analysed inductively to generate six themes/categories, encapsulating aspects of the challenges experienced by the participants, the insights they had and the actions they took to address these challenges. This paper attempts to demonstrate the approaches taken by lecturers and how they incorporated the blended learning environment to support their students to complete the academic year, despite difficult circumstances. It offers useful pointers to affordances and weaknesses of the virtual learning environment when implemented at short notice to replace contact teaching
Attitudes toward Plagiarism: The Case of Undergraduate Health Sciences Students at the University of Pretoria
Get PDFThe primary aim of the study on which this article is based was to investigate undergraduate health sciences students’ perceptions, attitudes to and awareness of plagiarism at the University of Pretoria in South Africa. The sample comprised 696 students from the School of Medicine and School of Healthcare Sciences in the Faculty of Health Sciences. Data were analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25. Analytical tools included frequencies, custom tables, independent t-tests and one-way analysis of variance. Exploratory factor analysis and reliability analysis were used to assess construct validity and internal consistency of the instrument tool respectively. Findings revealed that overall, the sample group of students seem to be generally aware of the University’s plagiarism policy and what it entails. However, it became evident that there is still a fairly significant percentage of students whose responses suggest a lack of understanding and awareness of plagiarism. Findings further revealed statistically significant differences in attitudes to plagiarism and awareness of it among the six programmes and across the levels of study. The paper advocates that plagiarism policies should be clearly written and communicated to ensure that students have consistent understandings of how plagiarism is defined, its purpose, due process and specific consequences
Development of a Smartphone Application to Enable Remote Monitoring in the Outpatient Management of Cirrhotic Ascites
Get PDFPatients who develop hepatic decompensation with ascites have a poor prognosis and often experience other complications including spontaneous bacterial peritonitis, hepatic encephalopathy and variceal bleeding. We hypothesised that smartphone (SP)-enabled remote monitoring of patients with ascites may enable early detection of infection and acute decompensation, facilitate timely intervention and improve patient outcomes. Aim: We aimed to design, develop and implement a remote monitoring system (RMS) for outpatients with cirrhotic ascites. Method: We undertook surveys with patients and hepatologists to quantify the demand for a RMS and identify issues regarding implementation. A smartphone and a web-based application were developed as a RMS. Patients used the RMS in a 6-week prospective non-randomised trial. Results: We surveyed 27 patients (mean age 56 years, 18 (67%) were male, 16 (59%) had Childs Pugh B cirrhosis, and 20 (74%) had a history of alcoholic liver disease) and 5 hepatologists. There were 19 patients (70%) who reported that they would use a RMS. The RMS was used by 10 patients for a mean 53.8days (11-70), who entered 20.6 (0-71) updates. A total of 18 automated alerts occurred. 22% of automated alerts resulted in clinically significant changes to management, such as inpatient admission n=1 (6%), early outpatient appointment n=1 (6%) and reinforced adherence n=2 (11%). Conclusion: We have successfully designed an internet-enabled RMS for outpatients with cirrhotic ascites that could be used as an adjunct to existing outpatient services. Future studies will optimise the alert thresholds, assess long-term patient adoption and quantify clinical impact
A Review of Current Heart Failure Apps
Get PDFBackground: Heart disease is the second leading cause of death in Canada, with tremendous economic impacts on the healthcare system. Currently, there are several smartphone based heart failure (HF) apps available for patients. These apps provide information to patients regarding HF, and how to monitor and manage their condition. This review describes the current literature on HF apps, and describes the features offered by these apps. Methods and Results: Peer-reviewed literature was searched and revealed only a limited number of studies (8) related to HF apps, including HeartMapp, SUPPORT-HF and CardioManager. A Google-based grey literature search was conducted, and Google Play and the Apple Store were also searched to identify additional HF-related apps. These searches revealed several other HF-related apps (total 11), the features of which are described in the current review. Conclusion: This review will help healthcare providers select apps for themselves and recommend HF apps to their patients that provide the most suitable disease and management information and monitoring capability. The insight will also help software developers design apps in the future that will provide better support to patients with HF and help the healthcare providers monitor their condition better