University of Zululand Repository
Not a member yet
2409 research outputs found
Sort by
Experiences and Perceptions of Economically Marginalised Women Food Vendors: An Exploratory Study of Informal Food Traders in Durban, South Africa.
Get PDFExperiences and Perceptions of Economically Marginalized Women Food Vendors: An Exploratory Study of Informal Food Traders in Durban, South Africa.Introduction Informal economies within developing states have become a norm for many societies. It has been estimated that the majority of workers earn their livelihoods the informal way and statistics have indicated that informal employment comprises more than 50% of non-agricultural employment globally. In some regions in South Asia, informal employment is at a rate of 82% and within sub-Saharan African countries it is on a continual increase (Mkhize, Dube, & Skinner, 2013). In South Africa the mainstream economy has been unable to provide sufficient employment opportunities – for youth in particular, and people seeking work more generally. Corresponding author: Sheetal Bhoola ([email protected]). Abstract Informal food vending has grown as a form of employment in South Africa’s cities and rural districts, particularly post 1994. For many, participating in informal food vending is the only option to earn a livelihood. The aim of this study was to describe the conditions of women who live on the margins of society and struggle as informal food vendors. Through purposive sampling, 12 qualitative in-depth interviews were conducted with black African women in the Durban central business district. Findings show the majority of participants lack support from their male spouses despite the labour intensive work that they are forced to do. Unorthodox cooking skills are required to prepare meals for customers and efficiency in production and marketing is required because the sales contribute to family livelihoods. Findings highlight the abuse and exploitation these vendors are exposed to by unscrupulous municipal officials and the lack of municipal and organized labour assistance to address their economic marginalization and social repression. This study highlights the challenges that these women face in the informal economy and their negative perceptions of civic organizations in Durban, South Africa
The Challenges of Youth Entrepreneurship from a Local Government Perspective in South Africa
Get PDFThe Challenges of Youth Entrepreneurship from a Local Government Perspective in South AfricaThis paper examines the challenges of youth entrepreneurship and aims to understand whether the local government sector in South Africa can act as a catalyst in consolidating youth entrepreneurship. The local government sector is essential in South Africa as it is mandated to grow and improve local infrastructure and community services and contribute towards economic development. Opening opportunities for young people in the entrepreneurship domain can help reduce unemployment. Through funding and training opportunities, the local government sector, a branch of government closer to the people, can play a significant role in fostering youth entrepreneurship. A qualitative research approach was employed where a literature review was untaken. Findings revealed that an
increasing youth unemployment rate faced South Africa, negatively affecting the need for inclusive development. The paper found that local government can contribute towards reducing youth unemployment by implementing programs encouraging and capacitating youth entrepreneurship and prioritizing entrepreneurship education. However, it was also revealed that the local government sector is confronted with several challenges, such as corruption, wasteful expenditure, and a lack of skilled personnel. Unless these issues are addressed, it will be impossible for the sector to consolidate policies that support and encourage youth entrepreneurship
Repurposing African teachers for sustainable development: Online global trends
Get PDFRepurposing African teachers for sustainable development: Online global trendsThis intellectual piece aims to repurpose African teachers for the achievement of Standard Development Goals (SDG) 2030 target through online global trends. To achieve this, a qualitative review method was adopted to gain insight to previous studies that have established the positive impact of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) skills and competencies in teaching and learning processes. The findings show that many African teachers need to be adequately equipped with ICT skills as captured in the UNESCO framework. The study, therefore, concludes that teachers are inevitably becoming reskilled and reequipped with a virtual learning-based framework so that the SDG 4 can be achieved. Hence, the virtual learning space model with potential to equip teachers with necessary and requisite skills and competencies was developed and recommended. This will enable teachers to transit into an online teaching environment, where the teaching and learning processes are sustained without being hampered by any future unprecedented circumstances
Enabling Network Stability in a Scalable Software-Defined Data Center Network
No full textA thesis submitted to the Faculty of Science, Agriculture and Engineering in fulfilment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Zululand, South Africa, 2021.In the recent past, Data Centre Network (DCN) has received a lot of research attention because of
the indispensable role that DCNs play in modern-day network communication as; the data storage
container for on-demand service provisioning. One of the major responsibilities of the DCN is the
management of the network’s need for optimization, thereby addressing request services. One
consequence of the increasing requests is network flow interference that incurs network instability.
Therefore, the task of addressing flow interference within a network becomes very important
because it plays a vital role in restoring network stability.
Network scalability continues to be the concern of many networks management engineers while
less consideration is given to the effectiveness and efficiency of their adopted network stability
solutions. Furthermore, very few approaches to network stability gave significant attention to
achieving an optimal solution. Several related works notably still left unaddressed slow
convergence, computational complexity, complex memory requirements and lack of adaptive
stability mechanisms among others. Therefore, the need to enhance network stability in a scalable
software-defined and data-oriented DCN remains an open issue for the research community to
contend with.
This research work addressed this knowledge gap by conducting a comprehensive literature review
on relevant existing approaches used by other researchers to address network stability. This
provided useful insight and motivation to launch a search for a more robust and appropriate
approach to fast network adaptation, and economical utilization of network resources with no
negative impairment on the expected optimal performance. The literature review revealed that the
concept of Adaptive Rendering Technique (ART) in Computer Graphics was generic and
analytically simple enough to adopt for high-level applicability to network flow.
The methodology for this study emerged from using ART as the analogy for modelling the traffic
flow interference which causes network instability. A Multi-Objective Optimization Crosspoint
Queue (MOCQ) was modelled after the primary stages of the ART’s adaptive pipeline processes.
The MOCQ process consisted of a control flow list, sorting entry matching, matching flow table
and matching operation. This process enabled the achievement of stable controller-switch states.
vi
The efficacy of the proposed ART-based MOCQ approach has been extensively validated using
numerical analysis, miniature testbed and computer simulations.
The approach resulted in improved performance over existing approaches as demonstrated by
faster stability, improved response time and network throughput, and speedy rate of convergence.
Furthermore, a balanced perspective of individual interests on the sides of both service providers
and end-users was attained. The emerging facts were confirmed by a measure of a 42.9% reduction
in the rate of network response delays, and over 150% point improvement in correcting the existing
rate of switch failures when compared to the ordinary Crosspoint Queue approach. The approach
also assisted in determining the level of stability attained and in the case of the setup in this thesis,
a level of 0.7 was achieved for the hierarchical data centre network we are considering. This
determination is an improvement over existing systems as they do not go all the way to achieve
this goal
Identification of potential groundwater recharge zones: a case study of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
No full textA thesis submitted to the Faculty of Science, Agriculture and Engineering in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Maters of Science in the Department of Hydrology at the University of Zululand, South Africa, 2022.Urbanization has accelerated the changes in the uMhlathuze watershed in Kwazulu-Natal resulting in a deterioration in the quantity and stability of water resources, hence calling upon the development of groundwater resources. This study combined the use of GIS and remote sensing to demarcate groundwater potential recharge zones in the uMhlathuze catchment and Maputaland region using various pertinent parameters. The AHP approach and Catastrophe theory were used to determine acceptable zones by assigning weights to the 10parametersand their sub-criteriafor the uMhlathuze catchment, whilst the potential groundwater zones of the Maputaland coastal plain of Kwazulu-Natal is identified by comparing the Analytic hierarchy process (AHP) –Multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) technique and Boolean logical approach. The map of groundwater potential zones for Maputaland was prepared by assimilating the 8 thematic layers, i.e., geology, geomorphology, lineament density, soils, slope, rainfall, and land use. Each thematic layer were assigned with subjective relative weights under AHP-MCDM technique and Boolean logic and were overlaid in a GIS platform to identify the groundwater potential zones. The groundwater potential zones were delineated under two different GIS techniques to obtain confident results. Weights of thematic layers were allocated using AHP normalized eigen vector methodology and weighted linear combination method was employed to find the groundwater potential index. Whereas in a Boolean approach, AND operator was applied in order to integrate thematic layers to delineate the groundwater potential zones. The AHP and the emerging Catastrophe theory was applied to the drainage density, geology, morphology, lineament density, soil type, rainfall, land use/land cover, transmissivity and aspect parameters and their sub-criteria for the uMhlathuze catchment and then integrated in a GIS environment. The Catastrophe theory consisted of firstly standardization of the parameters and sub-criteria, followed by the normalization of values using the complementary principle according to the model type and mathematical function encompassed by the model. Once they were normalized the highest mean value of the parameters were assigned the highest factor weight, whilst the lowest mean value was assigned the lowest factor weight. The delineated groundwater potential maps using AHP-Boolean-MCDM technique for Maputaland indicates that 6.0% (310.5 km2) from total area falls under very good; 67% (3467 km2) good; 25% (1294 km2) poor and 2% (103.5 km2) under very poor, whereas in Boolean 6logic about 70 % of the area (i.e.,3623 km2) constitutes good and 30 % (1552 km2) of the areas constitutes poor groundwater potential zone and the for the uMhlathuze catchment it was discovered that, 22.92% and 26.38% of the catchment is encompassed by 'Low' groundwater potential recharge zones, 0.37% and 0.08% by 'Very low' groundwater potential recharge zones, 9.42% and 10.26% by 'Good' groundwater potential recharge zones, 66.87%and 63.19% by 'Moderate', and 0.42%and 0.09% by 'Very good', for the AHP and Catastrophe theory respectively. Further, the obtained results in Maputaland indicate that the geology, geomorphology, land use and slope played a vital role in groundwater recharge. This pioneer study in Maputaland coastal plain explores the baseline data of the potential groundwater zones. Furthermore, in the uMhlathuze catchment, it was deduced that due to the hard rock complexion of the catchment, this attribute significantly limited presence of ‘Good’ and ‘Very good’ zones. The resultant groundwater recharge potential recharge zones maps were validated against TDS and nitrate concentrations, and groundwater level data of boreholes in the study area. It was revealed that the lowest and highest TDS, nitrate, and groundwater levels overlap with the ‘Good and Very good’ and ‘Low and Very low’ groundwater potential recharge zones respectively. The results emanating from this study can be used in further understanding of the available groundwater resources and can be helpful in future to find suitable groundwater exploration sites in the area. It was inferred that the convergence and use of GIS and remote sensing for delineating groundwater potential recharge zones are effective and may be utilized for groundwater planning and governance.National Research Foundation (NRF
University language policy management: the case of a university of technology in South Africa
Get PDFA dissertation submitted in fulfillment of the academic requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in the Department of General Lingustics in the Faculty of Arts, University of Zululand, 2022.The present study examined language policy management in higher education institutions in South Africa using a University of Technology as a case study. The first objective of the study was to ascertain the extent of students’ language learning problems that manifest at the University of Technology after the adoption of the English-only language policy. The second objective was to determine whether students’ biographical factors (gender, age, year of study, home language, and faculty) have any influence on their language learning problems. The third objective was to ascertain the nature of lecturers’ opinions regarding English as a medium of instruction at the University of Technology. The fourth objective was to determine whether the faculty variable has any influence on lecturers’ opinions regarding English as a medium of instruction at the University of Technology. To this end, a questionnaire was administered to a randomly selected sample of 110 students and 84 lecturers who completed and returned the questionnaires. The last objective was to establish the reasons why the University of Technology changed its language policy from a dual-medium to a monolingual language policy. To this end, purposive sampling, namely a single-case study, was used to select the Registrar as the participant in this study.
The findings revealed that the students differed in the extent of their language learning problems that manifest at the institution after the adoption of an English-only language policy. A very high percentage (78.18%) of students reported a moderate language listening problem. The findings also revealed that the year of study influenced students’ experiences of listening problems. Fourth-year students experienced more challenges from learning problems than first-, second- and third-year students. The findings showed that lecturers differed significantly in the nature of their opinions regarding English as a medium of instruction at the institution. A very high percentage (83.33%) of lecturers reported an uncertain opinion level. The findings on the analysis of each item indicated that the faculty variable had a significant influence on lecturers’ opinions regarding some of the single items. The findings from the interviews regarding reasons as to why the University of Technology changed its language policy from a dual-medium to a monolingual language policy, point to inclusivity to accommodate black students who are in the majority but also driven by sociolinguistic, bureaucratic, and economic factors which lead to ineffective language management in South Africa and at South African universities.
On the basis of the findings of this study, a model for the process of implementing the university language policy management was proposed and recommended
Memory, orality and ‘God-talk’ in sub-Saharan Africa
No full textMemory, orality and ‘God-talk’ in sub-Saharan AfricaThe indigenous people of sub-Saharan Africa approach their Supreme Being and express their reverence in diverse ways, as depicted in the different local names that describe this supernatural being. The African cultural worldview foregrounds that virtuous rapport with the Supreme Being provides wisdom and facilitates good cohabitation among humans. It is argued in this article that teachings from the Christian Bible contribute negatively to the disintegration, fragmentation and death of indigenous knowledge systems, which include African cultural values, memory and oral traditions. Recently, some African scholars have begun to create awareness of some of Africa's lost treasures. However, such contributions are disappointingly few. This study argues that memory and orality among Africans should be promoted and supported through various platforms, such as academic writing. This article will discuss memory, orality and 'God-talk' in terms of the following: teachings on moral values (e.g. relationships, marriage, humaneness [ubuntu or hunhu]) and the preservation of cultural heritage. The discussion uses qualitative analysis of secondary data and personal observation.
CONTRIBUTION: Firstly, the present study will provide for the readership in general, and academia in particular, a new perspective on African customs and indigenous belief systems about a Supreme Being. For example, Musiki as a Shona local dialect name for 'God' was already in use before the emergence of Christianity in Southern Africa. Secondly, previous contributions have not sufficiently explored memory and orality. This investigation serves as a resource or starting point for further research on memory and oralit
THE LEGALITIES OF MANDATORY COVID-19 VACCINATION AT UNIVERSITIES: LESSONS TO BE LEARNT FROM
Get PDFTHE LEGALITIES OF MANDATORY COVID-19 VACCINATION AT UNIVERSITIES: LESSONS TO BE LEARNT FRO
Educators’ perceptions of learners with challenging behaviour in secondary schools in King Cetshwayo District
Get PDFA dissertation submitted in fulfilment of the requirement for the Degree of Master of Education in the Department of Educational Psychology & Special Needs Education, Faculty of Education at the University of Zululand, 2022.The aim of the study was to investigate educators’ perceptions of learners’ challenging behaviour in secondary schools in King Cetshwayo district, South Africa. This study was guided by objectives which are to explore educators’ perceptions of learners’ challenging behaviour; to establish which strategies educators use to manage learners’ challenging behaviour; and to determine the type of support needed by educators to manage learners’ challenging behaviour in the said district.
The study adopted qualitative research that used an interpretive paradigm. The study was underpinned by the social learning theory. The participants of this study were selected from secondary schools in the King Cetshwayo District. The research participants were school based support team educators. Purposive sampling was used to select educators from schools. Semi-structured interviews and an open-ended questionnaire were used to collect data. The collected data were analysed using thematic content analyses.
The problem of learner deviancy has taken over the educational arena, afflicting many educational systems around the world. The current situation has become so terrifying that educators and other stakeholders who come into direct contact with challenging behaviour of learners’ fear interacting with them, and that causes psychological harm to all parties involved. Local and international literature shows that challenging behaviour damages a school’s image. When destructive behaviour dominates a classroom, it becomes impossible for teaching and learning to run smoothly, and that leads to a school becoming dysfunctional. This also poses a challenge to school management as they are supposed to have strategies on how to deal with learners with challenging behaviour, so that the school can achieve its goals and objectives.
The research findings revealed that educators experience several challenges which seem to be a disturbance of teaching and learning when dealing with learners' challenging behaviour. Examples of the serious issues of misbehaviour of learners or negative class participation in the classroom may be disruptive talking, continuous avoidance of work, clowning, interfering with teaching activities, harassing classmates, verbal insults, rudeness to educator, defiance, and hostility, especially in secondary schools.
Misbehaviour often interrupts the smooth functioning of learning process in the classroom. This can unsettle the educators or other learners in the class. The findings show that school misbehaviour not only intensify with time but also lowers academic achievements and increases unruly behaviour. Misbehaviour is closely associated with disciplinary issues and warrants careful action from educators.
The following recommendations were made that learners should be trained on managing their behaviour. This could include awareness of the effect of such behaviour to themselves and others. DOE should provide continuous support to educators by training them through workshops. They should also consider employing more professionals who will assist educators in supporting learners such as, social workers, psychologists and other
Effectof feed rations on livestock performance and impact of effective microorganisms on litter odour and other gases emissions.
No full textA thesis submitted to the Faculty of Science and Agriculture in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in the department of Agriculture (Animal Science) at the University of Zululand, South Africa, 2022.The increase in demand for animal protein has increased the demand for pork and beef by humans to supply this dietary protein. The short gestation period as well as the high number of piglets renders pig production relatively viable, hence increasing the number of farms. Feedlot farming has increased this production but not without high waste and odour emission which may be hazardous to animals, workers and the surrounding community members. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of feed rations on livestock (cattle and swine) performance and the impact of effective microorganisms(EM) on litter type odour and other gaseous emissions. It was hypothesized that diet type and EM would not livestock litter odour and gaseous emissions. Experimental chapter one and two investigate the effect of feed type and effective microorganisms on performance and litter odour emission from feedlot cattle and swine, respectively. The EM was applied on litter at different treatment levels (10% EM, 20% EM, and 30% EM) to mitigate odour emissions. The results showed that different diets (starter, growerand finisher) fed to both cattle and swine improved (P0.05) among all litter treatment levels (10% EM, 20% EM, and 30% EM) but for the control. There were significant differences in the odour emitted between the different weeks (P<0.05) when compared to the control. P-Cresol, phenol, indole and skatole were reduced by EM to undetectable amounts in week 3 compared to the controls. However, dimethyl sulphide and dimethyltrisulphide were not mitigated by the use of EM hence further methods on how to mitigate these sulphurcompounds need to be explored. A 10% dose of EM for cattle litter treatment was preferred, sincethe effect of higher doses was minimal. However, for swine, a 30% EM dose treatment was recommended since most of the odorous compounds (Indole, skatole, phenol, and dimethylsulphide and dimethyl trisulphide) were reduced to undetectable amounts. It was also concluded that EM does not depend on concentrations to reduce odour from livestock manure, but time for the microbes to adapt, grow and multiply to mitigate odour. Keywords: Effective microorganisms, odour, volatile organic compounds, diet,P-Cresol, phenol, indole, skatole, dimethyl sulphide, dimethyl trisulphide, boar taint.National Research Foundation (NRF