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Research-informed development of comprehensible isiXhosa teaching material: the Department of Basic Education Mental Starters doubling and halving unit
Get PDFOne of the challenges faced by schools that teach in isiXhosa in the Foundation Phase is the impact of nature of language used in the early-grade mathematics classroom. This is the focus of this research study. Despite numerous programs addressing the poor performance in mathematics, a significant majority of interventions are presented in English, creating barriers for learners and teachers using their native languages. While the Language in Education Policy allows for home language instruction in isiXhosa, the translation of materials often contains distortion in meaning and unfamiliar terms, complicating comprehension for indigenous language learners. Motivated by concerns over low mathematics performance, as highlighted in TIMSS (2019), and my personal experiences in teaching Foundation Phase mathematics in isiXhosa at a rural primary school, this study explores the challenges arising from using translated materials. The use of mediating materials in isiXhosa can be hindered by unfamiliar terms and distortion in meaning. For this reason, I adopted a translanguaging approach, incorporating transliteration between English and isiXhosa, especially in mathematics teaching. Grounded in the pragmatism paradigm, this qualitative design research unfolds in an isiXhosa medium primary school in Makhanda. The investigation centers first on document analysis of the Doubling and Halving unit in the Mental Starters Assessment Programme (MSAP) Teacher Guide (in English and isiXhosa), and then focuses on the teaching of two grade 3 classes, in isiXhosa, using the MSAP Doubling and Halving teaching sequence. Two grade 3 teachers and their principal participate as critical friends. The key research questions are: (1) What are the enablers and constraints that are experienced by the teacher during the mediation of the doubling and halving calculating strategies in isiXhosa?; (2) What are the key terms and phrases (vocabulary) needed to teach doubling and halving in isiXhosa?; (3) What are the perspectives and pedagogical insights of the critical friends on the isiXhosa vocabulary that was developed? The research unfolds in multiple stages, beginning with a document analysis of the MSAP using Toury’s Descriptive Translation Studies. Subsequently, I adapt eight lesson starters for doubling and halving, implementing them across two grade 3 classes in a double action research cycle. Focus group discussions with critical friends, aided by video recordings for stimulated recall, provide valuable insights. Data collected throughout these stages are analyzed through the lens of Vygotsky’s Socio-Cultural theory, contributing to a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and potential solutions in this educational context.Thesis (MEd) -- Faculty of Education, Primary and Early Childhood Education, 202
An investigation of geospatial technologies in precision agriculture: a case study on a citrus orchard in the Eastern Cape
Get PDFCitrus production is an input-intensive farming practice that carries a high cost of production. A multitude of both local and global factors continue to put pressure on farmers to produce enough food for local consumption as well as international exports. Despite these challenges production and exports continue to increase, fighting to meet the growing rise in global demand for citrus (Genis, 2018). Growers are continuously in search of anything that may provide them with the ‘edge’ or an advantage to overcoming some of these challenges (Jupp, 2018). One way in which these issues could be addressed is the use of precision agriculture (PA). Precision agriculture, particularly that of commercial, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) based PA, provides growers with solutions to these issues in the form of high quality, near real-time data, and provides access and benefits from technology driven agriculture to growers at all levels (Sishodia et al. 2020). The aim of this research therefore was to investigate the potential of high resolution, multi-spectral UAV, and satellite imagery to help citrus farmers manage their inputs better, save costs and increase their yields in a sustainable manner. Supervised image classification using a support vector machine (SVM) was applied to map and classify a citrus farm in the Eastern Cape. The approach aided the identification of Phytophthora spp in the section of interest and implies that remotely sensed data can be used to detect changes in citrus health. Guidelines for applying geospatial technologies at farm level were developed to provide a framework for enabling growers to enhance data driven farm management strategies.Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Geography, 202
Characterisation, and remote sensing exploration potential, of a hydrothermally mineralised Diorite, Chris Hani district, Eastern Cape, South Africa
Get PDFAccess restricted. Expected release in 2026.Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Geology, 202
Photodynamic anticancer and antimicrobial activities of novel bacteriochlorins
Get PDFThe World Health Organization cautioned that the major contributing factors of cancer amongst people are the excessive usage of alcohol, smoking, lack of exercise and low intake of fruits, vegetables, and high-fibre foods. Furthermore, cancer by far is reported to be the most common and leading cause of death worldwide (1 in 6 deaths is due to cancer). Moreover, it is reported that cancer kills more people than tuberculosis, malaria and AIDS combined every year. Chemotherapy has been utilised as a mode of rehabilitation for complete being used in conjunction with surgery or to improve the state of well-being of patients until their point of death. However, it is well known for its adverse effects, such as loss of hair, altered gastric metabolism, vomiting and nausea, dehydration, weight loss, and loss of appetite. For this reason, photodynamic therapy (PDT) was developed as an alternative. A molecular dye (photosensitiser/PS) and light of a specific wavelength produce cytotoxic singlet oxygen species, which induce cell death. The aim of this project is to prepare novel structurally modified porphyrin-type dyes that absorb far into the near-infrared region. Identifying suitable dyes that absorb significantly in the 700−800 nm region is particularly important from an African perspective, since melanin significantly limits the penetration of laser light into human tissue in the 600−700 nm region, where first- and second-generation photosensitiser dyes usually absorb. The porphyrin analogues that will be investigated in this regard are bacteriochlorins (BChls), which are known to have suitable optical properties that are potentially suitable in this regard. The first step of the study would be to synthesise tetraarylporphyrins with electron- withdrawing meso-aryl rings because their reduction to BChls is more readily attainable than is the case with electron-donating rings. However, these contrasting properties can be combined to tailor the BChls for effective photodynamic therapy, so the type of porphyrins synthesised will be tetraarylBChls with different meso-aryl groups to first analyze the induction of different chemical properties in this case, the impact of introducing electron donating (4- and 3-quinoline substituents) or electron-withdrawing (pentafluorophenyl substituents) groups on the meso-positions of the dyes and more specifically whether the position of the quinoline nitrogen atom relative to the core of the BChl has any significant impact on the reactivity of the dye (the 4- or 3-position of the quinoline). The next factor to be considered is the induction of the heavy atom effect by introducing a metal in the centre of the dye in order to try to increase the singlet oxygen quantum yields for high production of reactive oxygen species and singlet oxygen and further red shift the lowest energy absorption band of the BChls in the therapeutic window for deep tissue penetration for effective. Lastly, the goal will be to explore whether the delivery of bacteriochlorin photosensitisers to cancer cells can be enhanced by introducing quaternised nitrogen atoms to the meso-aryl ligands.Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Chemistry, 202
Synthesis and biological evaluation of simple carboxylated chalcone and aurone derivatives
No full textRestricted access. Expected release in 2026.Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Chemistry, 202
The impact of Fintech firms on bank performance: analysing the South African case (2009-2021)
Get PDFThe growth of the Fintech Firm sector globally was inevitable, given the changes in consumer behaviour, expectations, and the ever-changing and evolving nature of technology. The sector saw a sharp increase during the 2008 Global Financial Crisis and was driven by digital payments, government policy, less stringent regulation, and technological innovation. Unsurprisingly, South Africa was home to a mature and developing Fintech sector primarily driven by money transfers and mobile payments putting Fintech firms in the same market segment as traditional banks but with a more extensive potential customer base through offering easily accessible and lower-cost services. The relationship between the growth of the Fintech firm sector and Bank performance was widely researched within the literature with varying results. The study aimed to add to the body of literature and determine the nature of this relationship in the South African context. The study primarily aimed to determine the relationship and impact of the growth of the Fintech firm payments segment on the performance of the South African Banking sector. Additionally, the study aimed to measure the sector's growth by creating a Fintech Growth Index. Using the Ordinary Least Squares, Fixed Effect and the Generalized Method of Moments estimation techniques, estimations between Bank performance variables and the Fintech growth Index were analysed between 2009 and 2021. Firstly, the study found the growth of the Fintech payments segment to be positive. Secondly, the study found that the growth of the payment segment had a negative relationship and impact on the financial performance of South African banks. The findings of this study have implications for the development and regulatory framework of the South African Fintech sector as well as its interaction with the South African banking sector. Furthermore, policymakers may find that the growth of the Fintech Firm sector has overall positive benefits for financial inclusion for South African consumers. The study recommended that future research be taken to address the gap in the literature regarding the growth of the South African Fintech sector.Thesis (MCom) -- Faculty of Commerce, Economics and Economic History, 202
The relationship between REITS and stock market prices during periods of volatility: a Bivariate GARCH analysis
Get PDFThe relationship between real estate and the stock market is essential because they are the two most highly invested assets. In addition, examining the volatility of any asset is important for risk management and investor portfolio returns. The general motivation for analysing the relationship is that it can provide insight to policymakers and investors about the behaviour of stocks and real estate assets. The purpose of this research is to examine the relationship between Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITS) and stock prices in South Africa using daily data from 2 January 2013 to 31 May 2023. The wealth and credit effects are the two mechanisms used to interpret the relationship. The wealth effect is a mechanism that states that the causal relationship between the two markets runs from increasing stock prices which tends to increase real estate. The credit effect claims that real estate prices influence stock prices. Most of the existing literature has examined the relationship between the two markets but less attention has been given to the volatility spillover effects. Therefore, the analysis presented in this thesis extends the existing research by examining the relationship and the spillover effects between the REITs and stock markets. The study employs quantitative research methodology using the following econometric methods i)Vector Autoregression model, ii) Granger Causality Tests and Bivariate GARCH models. The study found that there is no long-run relationship between REITS and stock prices. In addition, the Granger Causality results showed a unidirectional relationship between REITs and stock prices. The results indicate the presence of a wealth effect in South Africa, meaning that changes in stock prices influence the real estate market. Moreover, the GARCH analysis found volatility spillover effects from the stock to the REITs markets. These results are helpful for policymakers and investors interested in the portfolio and risk management of the two markets.Thesis (MCom) -- Faculty of Commerce, Economics and Economic History, 202
Value created for small-scale farmers in an agroecology movement in the Eastern cape region of South Africa: an application of the value creation framework
No full textThe paper reports on an evaluative study of an agroecology movement that has been running in South Africa for over 20 years. The study applied a Value Creation Framework to gather value creation stories from key movement members, farmers, trainers, and the involved organizations. Data was generated through storytelling interviews, document analysis and participant observations. The findings show that the functions of the movement are enabled by support from tertiary institutions, government departments, NGOs, international networks and the private sector. In the initial stages, the movement’s growth as measured by the uptake of agroecology faced resistance because the associated labor intensity, especially in the early stages and farmers considered it to be very slow compared to conventional methods. However, the movement’s mobilization through open dialogs, co-creation and farmer-centered learning approaches has seen a gradual and wide adoption of agroecology practices by over 2700 new and existing farmers in the Eastern Cape alone, thereby widening the learning and seed-sharing network. In the communities it has reached, the movement has registered transformational gains in biodiversity preservation, social cohesion, market power, gender equality and food security
Bringing river health into being with citizen science: River commons co-learning and practice
Get PDFHuman health and well-being are directly and indirectly dependent on the life of river systems. Life in river systems is increasingly dependent on human actions that bring river health into being. Rather than describing river health as thing, problem or management challenge, this paper explores how river health is brought into being, through the citizen science practices of the Amanzi Ethu Nobuntu project in the upper uMngeni catchment in South Africa. The study draws on focal data produced by citizen science practitioners, as interpreted by them in collaboration with par tners in the catchment, and their reflections on the meaning(s) of river health and how it came into being. Drawing on the concepts of citizen science as a co-learning process, integrative views of One Health, and commoning as activity, the study offers a rich interpretation on how river health comes into being. The study shows the complex interrelated practices involved, including practices of resolving leaks and pollution challenges, social and community engagement, and the co-learning involved in citizen science practices itself. It offers insight into the socialecological and ethical-political ontological dynamics of river health commoning activity, thus offering alternatives to reductionist approaches to bringing river health into being, potentially also enriching tools for river health reporting
Understanding the Benefits of Deep Learning in Drug Discovery: A Scoping Review
Get PDFThe use of the traditional drug discovery method was seen to be inaccurate, time-consuming, and costly. As a result, deep learning was argued to be the accurate method of discovering drugs. Deep learning is a subset of machine learning and focuses on data fed into the algorithm to learn and make automated decisions. This review seeks to understand the benefits of using deep learning in drug discovery. A scoping review based on the PRISMA-ScR diagram was adopted. Four databases were selected, and a single search string was applied across all four chosen databases. The study only considered 17 articles to be relevant for this review. Of the 17 selected articles, the majority of the studies were quantitative (76%), and 24% of the studies were qualitative in nature. Deep learning in drug discovery is conceptualised as automatically detecting drugs using an artificial neural network-based approach. Human intervention is eliminated as the model makes inferences and decisions unsupervised. In this review, six benefits of using deep learning in drug discovery emerged: reduced cost and time, accurate diagnosis, unbiasedness, data-driven insights, virtual screening, and drug repurposing. Reduced time and cost emerged among the top benefits, and the benefit of virtual screening appeared to be the least