18105 research outputs found
Sort by
Exploring grade 11 learners’ mathematical problem-solving skills using Polka’s model during the learning of Euclidean geometry
Get PDFThe skill of Problem-solving in Mathematics is very imperative. Poor performance by most South African learners in schools and international tests such as the Trends in International Mathematics and Science, calls for emphasis to be placed on problem-solving in the teaching and learning of Mathematics. Euclidean Geometry is perceived, especially by learners, to be one of the difficult components of Mathematics. Thus, the aim of this study was to explore and develop the mathematical problem-solving and geometric skills of Grade 11 learners in Euclidean Geometry. Polya’s model of problem-solving was employed in geometric skills development as a tool for intervention. The concepts Geometry and problem-solving formed the conceptual framework of the study, while the social cognitive theory constituted the theoretical framework. A case study was used as the main research method following a mixed method approach within an interpretivist paradigm. Purposive and convenience sampling methods were used in the selection of both the Mathematics class and the six learners whose work was further observed and analysed. Data about the geometric skills displayed by the learners was gathered using a moderated pre-intervention test; observations; document analysis; a moderated post-intervention test; and focus group interviews. Data was analysed quantitatively using descriptive statistics and qualitatively using thematic analysis. In the pre-intervention test, learners did not bring with them expected geometric skills to the classroom before they were introduced to grade11 Geometry content and when doing problem-solving during intervention, the four stages of model used were not necessarily following each other in a linear sequence with most of the learners not applying the fourth stage “look back”. In the post intervention test, the frequency of use and application of most geometric skills improved in comparison to the pre-intervention test; the frequency of correct and inappropriate application of the skills increased at the expense of incorrect application. Learners appreciated the four stages model and gave their views related to the challenged faced during the use of the four stages model and the challenges revealed include: practice related challenges, challenges specific to certain learners, concept related challenges, curriculum-related challenges, model application challenge, and context related challenges. The study concludes that the effective use of Polyas’ four stages model can yield great results in developing learners’ geometric and problem-solving skills. The study recommends that teachers give more attention to prior geometric knowledge, teaching of geometric theorems, teaching of geometric problem-solving, and the learning environment.Thesis (MEd) -- Faculty of Education, Secondary and Post School Education, 202
Genetic connectivity of the slinger Chrysoblephus puniceus among Marine Protected Areas and unprotected areas along the east coast of South Africa
Get PDFMarine Protected Areas (MPAs) are advocated worldwide for the conservation of biodiversity and fisheries management, as well as for adaptation and resilience in the face of climate change. Their effectiveness has been noted through increases in abundances, biomass, sizes and diversity of species, as well as the recovery of overexploited fisheries. For MPAs to realise their full potential, these benefits need to expand beyond their boundaries through larval dispersal and/or adult spillover. Connectivity between MPAs is critical for planning and placement of MPAs, as this promotes the persistence of metapopulations, their recovery from disturbance, as well as productivity in marine ecosystems. The effectiveness of MPAs in conserving biodiversity along the east coast of South Africa has been established; however, limited evidence is available on whether they offer benefits beyond their boundaries, enhancing biodiversity and fisheries in adjacent areas. The slinger Chrysoblephus puniceus, an endemic southern African sparid, is a major component of the commercial linefishery in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), South Africa and southern Mozambique, and is also caught in the recreational ski-boat fishery in these regions. The spawning of slinger occurs in shoals on offshore reefs from southern Mozambique to the north of KZN, and larvae are likely transported southwards, assisted by the southward-flowing Agulhas Current and promoted by a relatively long larval duration. Slinger are relatively resident, but occasional northward migrations have been observed. These life history characteristics suggested that slinger would be a suitable biological model to test connectivity along the east coast, and particularly connectivity between MPAs. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate connectivity of slinger between MPAs and the surrounding areas along the east coast of South Africa, using restriction-site-associated DNA (RAD) sequencing. This formed part of the larger CAPTOR project investigating east coast MPA connectivity across a range of taxa and habitat types. A temporal comparison of genetic diversity in slinger spanning two sampling events (2012 and 2018) revealed no substantial changes in genetic diversity, as well as a lack of genetic structure along the KZN coast. Similarly, no substantial changes in effective population size (Ne) were found between 2012 and 2018 for microsatellites and Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs). However, subtle, albeit non-significant, differences were observed both spatially and over time in the microsatellite data, indicating some instability along the KZN coast. A lack of genetic structure based on RAD sequencing was observed between east coast MPAs and the surrounding areas. This implies high connectivity along the coast - not only are east coast MPAs connected, the surrounding areas are also connected, and there is replenishment between all areas via larval dispersal and/or adult spillover. Analyses of multidirectional gene flow between MPAs, together with known spatial spawning patterns and prior particle dispersal modelling, identified the Richards Bay area as a key source of recruits. However, parentage analysis – a direct method to estimate connectivity – failed to match any parent-offspring pairs in this study; successful parentage assignments are highly dependent on intensive sampling of potential parents and are seldom feasible in marine systems, as most populations have large effective population sizes. Estimates of intergenerational effective population size for slinger in this study are considered large - >2 000 and infinite based on adults and juveniles, respectively. Population genetics revealed close genetic similarities between slinger adult and juvenile slinger sites, emphasizing genetic connectivity and the lack of structure between sites observed before. This was the first study on South African sparids to use RAD sequencing to assess genetic connectivity between MPAs along the east coast of South Africa. Overall, results provide evidence that MPAs along the east coast of South Africa are connected, and can readily replenish or be replenished by other sites along the east coast of South Africa, whether they are within MPAs or not. So too are the areas surrounding MPAs interconnected, and slinger forms a homogenous single population on the east coast of South Africa. This notwithstanding, it is important that east coast MPAs, particularly those that host spawning shoals of slinger, are well managed in order that they continue to provide recruits to sustain the population and support sustainable fisheries.Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Science, Ichthyology and Fisheries Science, 202
Graphene derivatives and electrocatalysts as composite electrodes for selective detection of catecholamine neurotransmitters
Get PDFIn this thesis, we investigated the development of electrochemical sensing electrodes based on graphene derivatives and the electrocatalyst composites of metallophthalocyanines and metal oxides towards the selective and sensitive detection of catecholamine neurotransmitters (NTs). The graphene and its derivatives offer excellent electron conductivity and hence their use as base electrode materials. Metallophthalocyanines are N4-macrocyclic metal organic complexes that have structural modification flexible and 18-π electrons with excellent electrocatalytic properties. They can incorporate transition metal ions at the centre of the macrocycle ring, and this further enhances their electrocatalytic activity. Transition metal oxides are of interest as these also offer excellent redox properties and pH sensitivity. A pH sensitive electrochemical sensor based on aminated graphene quantum dots (AmGQDs) and cobalt tetra carboxyphenoxy phthalocyanine (CoTCPhOPc) covalent conjugates onto the pre-grafted isophthalic acid (IPA) gold electrode was fabricated. It displayed excellent analytical performance towards the detection of dopamine (DA), norepinephrine (NOR) and epinephrine (EP). The electrochemical sensor exhibited good ability to suppress the background current due to ascorbic acid (AA), a major interference in the detection catecholamine NTs. The carboxylic acid functional group of cobalt phthalocyanine induced the pH sensitivity of the thin film and electrostatic repulsion of the negatively charged ascorbate (AA-) anion at physiological pH. In addition, the electrode could screen-off biological molecules in the newborn calf serum as a representative of a real sample. An electrochemically reduced graphene oxide–based cobalt phthalocyanine polymer (polyCoTAPc) composite electrochemical sensor was fabricated on glassy carbon electrode, GCE-ERGO/polyCoTAPc. The GCE-ERGO/polyCoTAPc could detect dopamine and paracetamol simultaneously as co-existing analytes in buffer and synthetic urine samples. We observed, (i) very strong absorption of the materials, (ii) increase in the electrode surface area, (iii) excellent conductivity, and (iv) electrocatalytic activity of the ERGO/polyCoTAPc composite surface. Furthermore, a simple ultrasensitive electrochemical sensor based on nickel hydroxide thin film electrodeposited onto reduced graphene oxide-molybdenum disulfide (RGO/MoS2) composite resulted in the electrochemical sensor that can selectively and simultaneously detect ascorbic acid, dopamine, and uric acid. A distinct peak potential separation was observed with excellent electrocatalytic oxidation currents. The electrochemical sensors developed in this work exhibited high sensitivity, selectivity, stability, and low detection limits suitable for the detection and determination of catecholamine NTs.Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Science, Chemistry, 202
Power to the minorities: Ndebele L1–speaking teachers in Tonga-speaking communities in Zimbabwe
No full textIn 2013, Zimbabwe adopted a new constitution that declared 16 officially recognised languages. In line with the new constitutional provision that all the official languages be treated with parity, the teaching of minority languages ceased to be optional. Yet there were neither trained teachers nor educational materials to implement their teaching. In this chapter, it is examined how Ndebele L1 teachers and learners in the Tonga-speaking community of Binga negotiate their identities by learning Tonga. Ndebele L1 learners learn Tonga as the new legitimate Indigenous language offered in their schools, which brings interesting dynamics in terms of language learning challenges and attitudes. Ndebele L1 teachers must reinvent themselves to assume the instructional responsibilities in the learning of the minority language and to retain their jobs. These teachers therefore learn the languages from the community including their own learners, thereby providing an exciting case of speakers of majority language speakers learning a minority language that they also must teach. This study therefore presents an interesting case where minority language–speaking learners and majority language–speaking teachers collaboratively and reciprocally participate in the teaching of the minority language
Towards a bacterial biofertiliser for the rehabilitation of disturbed and degraded land
Get PDFAgriculture, mining, industry, and human activity disturb, degrade, and pollute pristine environments and particularly the soil environment. Excessive land exploitation slows or disrupts the soil potential, rendering it incapable of playing its role leading to land degradation. In the mining sector, specifically coal mining, rehabilitation of disturbed and degraded land involves strategies that include importing topsoil and using fossil fuel-derived fertilisers. Both practices are unsustainable. To address the unsustainability, a myco-phytoremediation technology known as Fungcoal was developed to facilitate successful revegetation of mining-disturbed and degraded land following the bioconversion of waste coal into a soil-like humic-rich substrate. To offset the dependence on chemical-based fertilisers, efforts were/are focussed on finding mutualistic and cost-effective microbial resources with plant growth-promoting (PGP) activity as a bacterial biofertiliser. This study made use of 22 isolated bacteria and the three Fungcoal coal-degrading fungi viz., Aspergillus sp. ECCN 84, Aspergillus sp. ECCN 225 and Penicillium sp. ECCN 243 as the microbial resource. Initially, characterisation of the substrate waste coal and molecular identification of the selected bacterial isolates were carried out. Physicochemical analysis of the low-rank coal (LRC) substrate revealed a pH of 3.60 with background S content equivalent to 7.13 g L-1, N at 20 mg L-1, P at 7.8 mg L-1 and K at 3.3 mg L-1. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) analysis revealed a C and O content of 23.09 and 69.03 wt%, respectively. Metagenomic analysis of the microbial population associated with the LRC substrate showed that among the 96.32% of bacteria, 59.46 to 62.18% belonged to Bacillota (also called Firmicutes), a phylum of largely Gram-positive bacteria, and 33.01 to 35.74% to Pseudomonadota (synonymous with Proteobacteria), a phylum of mostly Gram-negative bacteria. Following purification of the selected bacterial isolates and molecular characterisation by PCR, phylogenetic relatedness to known plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) contained in the GenBank database showed that these bacterial isolates clustered with high bootstrap values to the reference PGPB strains. Only Pseudomonas sp. ECCN 10b (MW672582) was outside of the tree and shared significant similarity (100%) with Pseudomonas fluorescens (CP015638). A biochemical study revealed that the two Proteus sp. strains, Exiguobacterium sp., Enterobacter sp., and Ancylobacter, tolerated high salt and a wide range of temperatures. Bacterial isolates showed a high pH tolerance between 3 and 11, with the best growth at pH around 7. Nine of the identified strains, four Bacillus sp., Exiguobacterium sp., Enterobacter sp., Pseudomonas sp., Arthrobacter sp., and Aeromonas sp., were able to grow and increase in a medium containing either glucose, mannitol, sodium L-glutamate, sucrose, or fructose. Growth was highest in media containing either sodium L-glutamate, sucrose, or fructose. All the coal degrading strains and 83% of those isolated from municipal wastewater used more complex carbon sources such as high and LRC. The potential for PGP activity was quantified spectrophotometrically by measuring the production of auxins, as indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) equivalents; gibberellins, as gibberellic acid (GA3) equivalents, along with 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) deaminase and siderophore activity. Additionally, nutrient mobilisation was evaluated by monitoring an ability to mineralise NH4+, PO43−, and K+. Competent PGP strains for the coal degrading isolates included Proteus strain ECCN 20b, Proteus strain ECCN 23b, and Serratia strain ECCN 24b. In response to L-trp supplementation, the concentration of indolic compounds (measured as indole-3-acetic acid) increased. Production of ammonium and solubilisation of insoluble P by these strains was also apparent. Only Serratia strain ECCN 24b could solubilise insoluble K. Production of indoles increased following exposure to increasing aliquots of LRC, suggesting no negative effect of this material on indole production and that these bacteria may possess PGP potential. Of the twelve bacterial strains isolated from wastewater MaB-flocs, three produced indoles, nine mineralised NH4+, seven solubilised P, and one K. Potential of isolated strains for PGP activity according to a one-way ANOVA on ranks was: ECCN 7b > ECCN 4b > ECCN 6b > ECCN 3b = ECCN 10b > ECCN 1b = ECCN 5b > ECCN 8b > ECCN 2b > ECCN 12b > ECCN 9b = ECCN 11b. Further study revealed that cell-free filtrate from indole-producing cultures of Aeromonas strain ECCN 4b, Enterobacter strain ECCN 7b, and Arthrobacter strain ECCN 6b promoted mung bean adventitious root formation. Based on a biochemical study and the outcome of the ranking of bacterial strains according to PGP-like activities, three bacteria, Enterobacter sp., strain ECCN 7b, Proteus sp., strain ECCN 20b and Serratia sp., strain ECCN 24b that showed great mutualistic relationship with the most effective Fungcoal biocatalyst, A. fischeri ECCN 84, were used to prepare a bacterial bio-fertiliser. This consortium grew well in NB supplemented with L-tryptophan and produced indole compounds that could activate the adventitious rooting of mung bean (Vigna radiata L.) hypocotyls. Finally, the consortium showed no antibiotic resistance activity; however, they produced better biofertiliser with good responses to root/plant biomass production of the same Fabaceae, mung bean (Vigna radiata L.). The further development of this consortium into a cost-effective, environmentally friendly biofertiliser may help reduce dependence on chemical-based fertilisers and improve the sustainability of Fungcoal and other land rehabilitation strategies. Further studies are therefore underway to investigate in greater detail the PGP activity of these isolates individually and in consortium under field conditions to support the Fungcoal myco-phytoremediation strategy.Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Science, Institute for Environmental Biotechnology, 202
A conspiracy of silence: the authorial potential of full masks in performer training, dramaturgy and audience perception in South African visual theatre
Get PDFSilent Mask Theatre in South Africa has the potential to cut across linguistic divides and deliver a product that offers an intimate, unique experience for the audience as well as the actor. South Africa not only has a complicated history, but also 11 languages (12 if one counts South African Sign Language – SASL -, which still holds a curious position of being counted official or not), and the one that theatre-makers choose to present in gives a certain “authority” to the production. Silent masks remove the need for linguistic understanding, something necessary for more abstract thought, and focusses instead on the emotional relevance and interplay between characters. In doing so, it proves an important way to create relevance for an audience, creating a delicate dance between the Mask (character and thereby text), how the actor plays it, and then the closing of meaning through the audience experience. Thus, is created a trialogue between these elements that gives the production the opportunity to speak to the hearts and minds of the audience. Globally, the study of silent character masks is still relatively new, with proponents of it only coming to the fore in the past few years (Wilsher, 2007). Mask Theatre has grown exponentially in the UK and Europe with companies like Vamos Theatre, exploring PTSD in works like A Brave Face (2018) or death in Dead Good (2021), and Familie Flöz either on the more whimsical side like Hotel Paradiso (2011) or the more hard-hitting Infinito (2006), gaining popularity and exposure. In South Africa, there is strangely not an indigenous tradition of masks, as opposed to other parts of Africa. This is fascinating, and probably points towards a more “oral tradition” of South Africa/Africa. However, the author aims to point out the ways that the silent mask entered South African consciousness at a time where more attention was being paid to “performing objects” (Proschan, 1985), and particularly in Cape Town with the advent of the Out the Box Festival. This thesis aims to contextualise Visual Theatre and Mask Theatre in a South African context, seeing within it a movement towards a more global perspective of puppetry, material performances, and performing objects. Although “ghettoised” for a long time (Taylor, 2004), performing objects emerged and became a leading case for the primal “text” of a performance. Handspring Puppet Company, Janni Younge, and the author’s company, FTH:K, became primary grounds of contestation against more conventional, text-based theatre. Starting with a reflective account of the author’s journey towards masks, the thesis branches out into a reflection on its author’s pedagogical praxis, and how silent masks work, before critically reflecting on and analysing his key works, such as Pictures of You (2008-2013), which deals with home invasions and grief, and Benchmarks (2011), which deals with the wave of xenophobia that hit South Africa around that time. . This were built from the ground up, working with current issues both in the author’s, and the country’s, mileau. In the last two decades, performing object work in South Africa has begun to flourish. This is the first thesis to investigate mask work in the country during this period. Its possibilities for Screen and Stage Acting are still being explored.Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Humanities, Drama, 202
Photodynamic anticancer and antimicrobial activities of aza-BODIPY and porphyrinbased photosensitisers and their non-linear properties
Get PDFNew aza-BODIPY dyes and porphyrins were synthesised and characterised so that photodynamic therapy (PDT) and photodynamic antimicrobial chemotherapy (PACT) activity studies could be performed. Several strategies were explored to achieve targeted nanoplatforms or biocompatible nanoplatforms to enhance the suitability of these compounds for use in PDT. Following earlier MSc research on the encapsulation of halogenated boron dipyrromethene (BODIPY) dyes into Pluronic® micelles, similar nanomicelles were prepared to encapsulate halogenated boron aza-dipyrromethene (aza-BODPY) dyes to enhance their aqueous solubility. However, the 1,7-dimethylthiophenyl- 2,6-diiodo-3,5-diphenyl (1) and 1,7-di-methylthiophenyl-2,6-diiodo- 3,5-dithien-3-yl (2) aza-BODIPY dyes that were prepared in this context were found to degrade when encapsulated. A different strategy was then followed in which gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) were conjugated to 1 and 2 via Au-S interactions to form biocompatible aza-BODIPY-AuNP conjugates (1-AuNP and 2-AuNP). This strategy was successful, and favourable IC50 values of 3.60 and 10.0 μM for 1-AuNP and 2- AuNP were obtained during in vitro PDT activity studies against MCF-7 human breast cancer cells, respectively, while values of 11.0 and 12.8 μM were obtained for 1 and 2. To further explore the preparation of better-targeted aza-BODIPY photosensitiser dyes, folic acid (FA) was conjugated to 1,7-dihydroxyphenyl-2,6-diiodo-3,5-di-4- bromophenyl (3) and 1,7-di-4-bromo-2,6-diiodo-3,5-dihydroxyphenylphenyl (4) aza- BODIPYs via ester bonds. Not only was the conjugation to form 3-FA and 4-FA successful, but the conjugated dyes are water-soluble, which is advantageous for drug transport in the context of PDT. These conjugates were applied in vitro against MCF-7 cancer cells and were found to have relatively high activities with IC50 values of 0.91 and 7.48 μM for 3-FA and 4-FA, respectively, while values of 11.3 and 13.0 μM were obtained for the non-conjugated 3 and 4 dyes. In a similar manner, tin (IV) and indium (III) tetrapyridylporphyrins (5 and 6) were axially conjugated to folic acid via ester bonds (5-FA and 6-FA). The conjugation was successful and enhanced the PDT activities of the dyes MCF-7 cancer cells in vitro from 48.2 to 29.6 μM for 5 and 5-FA, and from 43.9 to 13.3 μM for 6 and 6-FA. Relatively high dark toxicity was observed for 6-FA of 26.1 μM. When the nitrogen atoms of the meso-pyridyl rings were quaternized (5-FAQ and 6-FAQ) to further enhance the aqueous solubility of the complexes, it was not possible to calculate an IC50 value. When octanol-water partition coefficients (Log P) were calculated by the shake flask method, values of −0.70 and −1.70 were obtained for 5-FAQ and 6-FAQ, respectively. This provides evidence that the dyes are too water-soluble and not sufficiently lipophilic. The PACT activity properties of the synthesised diiodinated aza-BODIPYs were studied against Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) through photoirradiation for 60 min with Thorlabs M660L4 (280 mW.cm−2) and M730L4 (160 mW.cm−2) light emitting diodes (LEDs) mounted on the illumination chamber of Modulight® 7710-680 medical laser system providing doses at the well-plate of 100 and 57 J.cm−2.min−1. Aza- BODIPYs 2, 3 and 4 all inhibited the growth of S. aureus but with relatively low Log10 reductions of 1.37, 1.20 and 0.20. In contrast, aza-BODIPY 1 was found to have a Log10 reduction of 7.82. The PACT activities of free base and Sn(IV) 5-[4-(3- bromoethylcarboxyamidyl)phenyl]-10,15,20-triphenylporphyrins (7 and 8) prepared by Dr Balaji Babu (New Journal of Chemistry 2022, 46, 5288-5295) were tested against S. aureus to determine whether adding a triphenylphosphonium moiety to form free base and Sn(IV) 5-[4-(triphenylphosphonium)ethylcarboxyamidyl)phenyl]-10,15,20- triphenylporphyrin (18 and 19) enhances the photo-induced antibacterial activity, in addition to optimising the PDT properties due to its mitochondria-targeting properties. The PACT activities obtained against S. aureus were not favourable, but 18 exhibited enhanced activity across the studied concentration range. The potential utility of aza-BODIPY dyes 1-4 and their non-iodinated analogues (1a- 4a) for optical limiting applications was analysed by carrying out a series of Z-scan measurements, since dyes of this type have large ground state dipole moments, and this can enhance the non-linear optical limiting response. All the aza-BODIPY dyes under investigation exhibited intense non-linear absorption (NLA) behaviour with Zscan profiles that contain significant reverse saturable absorption (RSA) responses. Aza-BODIPYs 1, 2a, 2, 3, 4a, and 4 decreased the transmitted intensity of the strong laser beam to less than 50% of the linear response in organic solutions with a fixed absorbance of 1.8 for the main aza-BODIPY spectral band and a laser pulse input energy of 42 μJ. Higher second-order hyperpolarizability (γ) values were obtained for iodinated dyes 1, 2, 3 and 4. The highest value of 3.15×10−29 esu was obtained for 1. A comparative study involving the four non-iodinated dyes 1, 2, 3 and 4 and seven 1,3,5,7-tetraaryl aza-BODIPY dyes reported previously in the PhD thesis of Gugu Kubheka at Rhodes University demonstrated that there was no clear trend correlation between the γ values calculated from the Z-scan measurements and calculated dipole moments.Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Science, Chemistry, 202
Togetherness, care and exclusion: adolescents’ experiences of living with a disabled sibling in a South African context
Get PDFThe importance of the sibling relationship in an individual’s life has been established, and various aspects of siblingship have been studied. Recently researchers have begun to explore what it means to be a sibling and how siblingship is embodied. Where disability is present in the siblingship, however, there is very little literature, particularly in the Global South. This cross-cultural, cross-language, Interpretative Phenomenological study explores how isiXhosa speaking adolescent non-disabled people, living in a socio-economically disadvantaged context in South Africa, experience their lives in relation to their disabled sibling. Through the use of semi-structured interviews and photo-production with 9 isi-xhosa speaking adolescents from a disadvantaged socio-economic context in South Africa, three master themes emerged. Firstly, non-disabled siblings (NDSs) experienced togetherness in their relationships with their disabled brothers/sisters. In their experiences of togetherness, where reciprocity was prominent, they felt a sense of we-ness. In these instances, disability did not play a central role in their relationships. Secondly, NDSs living in disadvantaged socio-economic contexts experienced care in different ways. Some experienced wanting to care and some experienced having to care for their disabled brother or sister. Where care was voluntary it was experienced as an act of love, contributing to their self-esteem or a family value. Where care was experienced as obligatory, NDSs felt lonely and unsupported, and this contributed to ambivalent feelings toward their disabled sibling. Finally, NDSs experienced themselves as outsiders. Experiences of being an outsider sometimes occurred because of their socio-economic status, and sometimes because of experienced stigma related to their sibling’s disability. In both instances this contributed to feelings of inadequacy and exclusion. To overcome these feelings, NDSs focused on becoming successful, wealthy or famous. These findings have important implications in terms of how NDSs may be supported. Furthermore, this study has important methodological implications for using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis in a cross-cultural, cross-language context.Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Humanities, Psychology, 202
(In)security communities in Africa: small arms and light weapons norm compliance by the economic community of West African states
Get PDFAccess restricted. Expected release in 2026.Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Humanities, Political and International Studies, 202
Protecting stateless children in South Africa through nationality: a children’s rights approach
Get PDFThis study investigates the role of nationality in protecting stateless children. Under interna-tional human rights law, all individuals, including stateless persons, are entitled to certain rights by virtue of being human. Consequently, stateless children should theoretically have access to fundamental rights such as education, healthcare, and social security, even without nationality. However, this study challenges the assumption that stateless children can access these rights merely because they are human. The study reveals that, in practice, stateless chil-dren struggle to access essential rights like education, healthcare, and social welfare without nationality. The study asserts that nationality is crucial for stateless children to access basic rights in South Africa. The study examines various treaties related to nationality and con-cludes that none impose a binding obligation on South Africa to confer nationality on state-less children. The study then draws on international children's rights principles such as the best interest of the child, the right to life, survival and development, and the right to non-discrimination to demonstrate that despite a clear obligation on South Africa in terms of trea-ty law to grant nationality to stateless, these principles, place limits on South Africa's exer-cise of sovereign power. This, in turn, makes way for granting nationality to stateless chil-dren.Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Law, Law, 202