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An exploration of learning difficulties experienced by grade 12 learners in euclidean geometry : a case of Ngaka Modiri Molema district
No full textThe purpose of this study was to investigate the learning difficulties experienced by Grade 12 learners in Euclidean geometry. Despite the efforts exerted in terms of time, material and human resources in the teaching and learning of Euclidean geometry, learners’ performance in Euclidean geometry remains unsatisfactory. As a result, this study sought to answer the research question: What are the learning difficulties that the Grade 12 learners experience in the learning of Euclidean geometry? Van Hiele levels of geometric thinking were a used as a framework to explore Grade 12 learners’ learning difficulties. The study adopted a sequential exploratory mixed method design. The participants in the study were mathematics educators, learners, head of departments (HOD) from a sample of six schools in Ngaka Modiri Molema district, North West Province. As part of data collection procedure, Euclidean Geometry test developed in accordance with Van Hiele levels was administered to 60 Grade 12 learners who were randomly sampled from six schools which were purposively sampled. In addition, two HODs’, four educators and 12 learners completed questionnaires. Furthermore, semi-structured interviews were purposively conducted with 12 learners and four educators based on learners’ test results.
Data analysis involved the identification of misconceptions and errors committed at each Van Hiele level and were interpreted as learners learning difficulties. The test analysis involved categorising learner performance in the test by frequency distributions of those who achieved and those who did not achieve 50% and above in the question(s) set at each Van Hiele level. In addition, questionnaires were analysed by determining the frequency distribution of respondents’ levels of agreement and disagreement to sets of predetermined questions at different Van Hiele levels. The findings of the study revealed that Grade 12 learners experience difficulties across Van Hiele levels of geometric thinking. These included amongst others learners’ difficulties in identifying and naming angles between parallel lines and a transversal (Visualisation level); using analytical skills and correct geometry terminology to describe components of a circle (Analysis level); completing proofs of circle theorems and problem solving involving short deductions and multistep geometric riders (Informal deductive level); presenting a series of deductive steps leading to the desired geometric solution (Formal deductive level).
Based on these findings of the study, the recommendations were that educators should give learners the opportunity to discover geometry concepts through hands-on activities with geometric shapes to ground their understanding of geometry concepts. Furthermore, it was recommended that educators should use the Van Hiele model as a framework for teaching Euclidean geometry by introducing learners to geometry concepts in a hierarchical manner from first developing among learners’ visualisation skills up to formal deductive reasoning.M. Ed. (Mathematics Education)Mathematics Educatio
Investigating integration of entrepreneurship education into teacher education curriculum framework in Zambia
No full textThis research focused on investigating how entrepreneurship education (EE) was integrated
in Zambia's teacher education (TE) curriculum framework. Simply put, the study investigated
the aspects of leadership used by Zambian TE institutions (TEIs) to implement and oversee the
2013 policy framework for the curriculum for EE. A descriptive research design and mixedmethods
research were both used to achieve the study's goals. This study argues that teaching
of EE can promote sustainable development by developing students' leadership, entrepreneurial
and opportunity-seeking mindsets in the corporate, social, civic, and technology spheres,
thereby reshaping society. In Zambia's universities and teacher colleges of education, the
systematic implementation, management, and integration of entrepreneurial education into the
curricular framework for TE were found to be inconsistent. According to the poor results of the
competency test, trainee teachers had a poor conceptualisation of EE in TE. The basic
theoretical and practical pedagogical foundations of EE were found to be poorly understood by
EE educators. The study offers policymakers and practitioners in teacher education insight into
how to create policies, programmes, and leadership that support the growth of entrepreneurship
and increased innovation through the development of human capital and the most effective use of the opportunity-based approach. I therefore, concluded that EE courses should be integrated
into all teacher training programmes to produce active industrious teachers and educators who
will then produce entrepreneurial learners and citizens for active citizenship and selfsustaining
development at all levels of education.D. Phil. (Education)Educational Leadership and Managemen
Nexus disrupted: Lived realities and the water-energy-food nexus from an infrastructure perspective
No full textIn recent years, the water-energy-food nexus gained traction in science and policy debates to address the relationships
between water, energy and food sectors. Inspired by Political Ecology thinking, we advocate for a
nexus understanding that acknowledges the political nature of the concept and points to lived and experienced
nexus realities. We draw on literature from heterogeneous infrastructures, giving attention to the socio-material
entanglements that configure a nexus dynamically over time and space. We substantiate our conceptual arguments
based on three different cases from Sub-Saharan Africa, that reveal the ways in which people access,
maintain or disrupt infrastructure that links water, energy, and food systems. This may occur through practice
forms of tinkering or improvisation of infrastructural components, intermediate (decentralised) technologies,
through theft, or through some form of self-empowerment. Methodologically, the role of practices is emphasized
as they help to understand Nexus heterogeneity and disparate forms of agency to (re-)configure a nexus.
The findings demonstrate that the nexus is not just there but is constantly in-the-making. Practices stabilise,
build, or alter differentiated nexus configurations within uneven nexus in/securities. Moreover, this article
disrupts a “one-size-fits-all” nexus concept by offering a nuanced understanding of nexus realities that are more
complex, heterogeneous, and plural than commonly described. Our analysis shows that re-thinking the nexus by
focusing on people and practices draws the attention towards agency and change – and thus enables to identify
leverage themes rendering a more just nexus.Political Science
Decolonising management education? a multi-stakeholder analysis
No full textCalls to decolonise the curriculum in South Africa became screams during the #FeesMustFall and #RhodesMustFall movements in 2015 and 2016. Universities superficially scrambled to respond to these screams. However, five years later, many universities, especially in management education1, seem unable to make head or tail of what it means to decolonise the curriculum.
The main aim of this research study was to construct theory regarding decolonising management education and thereby contribute to the broader discourse on decolonising higher education in general. Three main objectives were formulated in this study: to conduct qualitative interviews with a range of direct stakeholders of management education; to formulate provisional theories grounded in these inductive interviews; and to critically evaluate and build on existing theories to construct a conceptual framework on decolonising management education.
Using Charmaz’s (2006) “constructivist grounded theory” research design, 31 unstructured interviews were conducted with various management education stakeholders. These stakeholders included master’s students, management academics, academic managers, recruitment specialists and three outliers. The following research question was posed to participants: “how might the call to decolonise higher education apply to management education?”
Other sub-questions that evolved from the main question revolved around the meaning of decolonisation, how to decolonise, barriers to decolonisation, race, collaboration, globalisation, Africanisation, Western standards and African inferiority. All 31 interviews were conducted using online platforms and they were transcribed thereafter.
1 In this thesis, “management education” is seen as the teaching of management as a particular discipline of higher education. This teaching predominantly takes place in business schools and management faculties. It should not be confused with the management of education or education management.
The data analysis and interpretation were informed by Charmaz’s (2006) three-step process of data coding, which involves initial open coding, focused coding and theoretical coding. Five main themes emerged regarding decolonising management education. These were the meaning of and rationale for decolonising management education; approaches to decolonise management education; impediments of decolonisation; Western standards versus African inferiority; and globalisation versus Africanisation. From these main themes, six key topics were discussed extensively in the following order: globalisation and Africanisation, race, meaning of and rationale for decolonisation, capitalism, Lekgotla, as well as critical pedagogy.
The study concluded by constructing a conceptual framework to present substantive theory on how to decolonise management education. Reynolds’s (1999b) definition of critical pedagogy underpinned the development of the conceptual framework, and five steps were proposed to decolonise management. The first step involves questioning assumptions in management education, and the second addresses ‘surfacing’ coloniality and capitalism. Step 3 is related to confronting and revealing the effect of coloniality and capitalism on society, while Step 4 involves conducting Lekgotla to generate solutions. The final step, Step 5, is to Africanise. This framework provides a starting point for management scholars to respond to the call to decolonise the curriculum.D. Phil. (Business Management)Business Managemen
Ondersoek werknemer se ervarings van die betaal-vir -prestasie stelsel binne die bank sektor in Limpopo
No full textAbstracts in English, Northern Sotho and AfrikaansThis study aimed to explore the employee’s experiences with the pay-for-performance system within a banking institution in Polokwane, Limpopo province branches.
The study was a qualitative research study and was based on the interpretive research paradigm. The literature review aimed to conceptualise compensation and reward, performance management and measurement, performance appraisal, and goal setting. The specific empirical study was to explore the effectiveness of pay-for-performance in the banking sector, to understand the perceptions and experiences of employees towards pay-for-performance and lastly, to make recommendations for improving the pay-for-performance system.
Participants were selected using convenience sampling, guided by the participants' availability and willingness to participate in the research. An interview guideline and semi-structured interview questions were compiled to guide the interview process and ensure consistency during data gathering. A total of 10 participants were interviewed on an online Microsoft Teams platform to ensure compliance with COVID-19 regulations in curbing the spread of coronavirus. Data were collected through recording and note-taking and analysed using content analysis. The following themes emerged from the data analysis: employee experiences, employee perceptions of performance bonuses, the influence of pay-for-performance, pay-for-performance barriers, pay-for-performance efficacy, and recommendations to enhance pay-for-performance. Generally, the findings revealed that pay-for-performance was perceived as a great initiative as it motivates employees to perform, and it is a great compensation strategy aimed at rewarding high performance. It was also found to be biased by employees due to managers being subjective when deciding whom to reward for high performance. The study made recommendations to the banking institution to reduce the level of perceived biases or managers’ subjectivity and promote pay-for-performance as a motivational and retention strategy.Nepokgolo ya dinyakisiso tse e be e le go lekodisisa maitemogelo a basomi ka mokgwa wa go lefelwa go ya le ka moo a somilego ka gona Makaleng a dipanka ka Polokwane, porofenseng ya Limpopo.
Dinyakisisiso di shomishitse qualitative method go kwa ka moo batsea karolo ba di bonago ka gona.Dingwalwa tseo di shomishitswego di be di leka go utulla mekgwa ya ditefo, mekgwa ya go lekola ka moo basomi ba somilego ka gona, mokgwa wa go ba hlahloba go ya ka moshomo wa bona le go loga maano a go fihlelela dilo tse dingwe, kudu dinyakisiso di be di nyaka go lekola go shoma ga mokgwa wa go lefela bashomi,go ya le ka mo ba shomilego ka gona go mafapa a go shoma ka maseleng, le go dira ditshishinyo tsa go kaonafatsa mekgwa ya go lefela bashomi go ya le ka moo ba shomilego ka gona.
Bakgatha tema ba kgethilwe go ya ka convenience sampling, e lego mokgwa wa go kgetha bakgatha tema bao ba lego gona le go rata go ka kgatha tema.
Lenaneo la dipotsiso le ngwadilwe ka mokgwa wa go botsisha potsisho le go dumelela bakgatha tema go bolela ka ba lokologile, go kgonthisisa gore dipotsisho di a swana. Bakgatha tema ba lesome ba tseere karolo ka Microsoft Teams go okamela melawana ya leoba la Covid-19 go thibela dipheteletsano tsa bolwetsi bjo. Go dirisitswe setsea mantsu le go ngwala dintlha tse bohlokwa go kgoboketsa dintlha le go sekaseka dintlha tse bohlokwa.
Go tsweletsa dintlhakgolo tse di latelago go tswa go ditshekatsheko: maitemogelo a bashomi,kwisiso ya basomi ka meputso ya go ya leka mo motho a shomilego ka gona, khuetso ya mokgwa wa go putsa go ya le ka mo motho a shomilego ka gona, ditshitisho tsa go tlisa mokgwa wa go putsa go ya ka mo motho a shomilego ka gona,nolofalo ya mokgwa wa go putsa go ya ka mo motho a shomilego ka gona, le ditshishinyo tsa go kaonafatsa mokgwa wa go putsa go ya ka mo motho a shomilego ka gona.
Ka kakaretso,dinyakisiso di tsweleditse gore mokgwa wa go putsa go ya ka mo motho a shomilego ka gona ke tswelopele e botse ka ge e hlohleletsa bashomi go shoma ka maatla, e bile ke mokgwa o mokaone wa go leboga bao ba shomago ka maatla. Empa mokgwa wo o laetsa o sekametse ka lehlakoreng le lengwe ka ge baetapele bana le go tsea lehlakore ge ba kgetha bao ba shomago ka maatla.
Dinyakisiso di dirile ditshitshinyo go bo ra dipanka go fokotsa mokgwa wa dikgopolo tsa go tsea lehlakore go ba baetapele e le go kwalakwatsa le go thekga mokgwa wa go putsa go ya ka moshomo woo o dirilwego e lego mokgwa wa go hlohleletsa bashomi le go dira gore bashomi ba se tlogele mong moshomo.Die doel van hierdie studie was om die werknemer se ervarings met betrekking tot betaal-vir-prestasie-stelsel binne 'n bankinstelling in Polokwane, Limpopo provinsie takke, te verken.
Die studie was 'n kwalitatiewe navorsingstudie gebaseer op die interpretatiewe navorsingsparadigma. Die literatuuroorsig het ten doel gehad om vergoeding en beloning, prestasiebestuur en -meting, prestasiebeoordeling, sowel as doelwitstellings te konseptualiseer. Die spesifieke empiriese studie was om die doeltreffendheid van betaal-vir-prestasie in die finansiële sektor te ondersoek, die persepsies en ervarings van werknemers ten opsigte van betaal-vir-prestasie te verstaan, en laastens om aanbevelings te maak vir die verbetering van betaal-vir-prestasie-stelsels.
Deelnemers is geselekteer deur middel van geriefsteekproefneming wat gelei is deur die beskikbaarheid en gewilligheid van deelnemers om aan die navorsing deel te neem. 'n Onderhoudsriglyn en semi-gestruktureerde onderhoudsvrae is saamgestel om die onderhoudproses te lei en konsekwentheid te verseker tydens die data-insamelingsproses. Altesaam 10 deelnemers is op 'n aanlyn Microsoft Teams-platform gevoer om nakoming van COVID-19-regulasies te verseker en die verspreiding van koronavirus te bekamp. Data is ingesamel deur middel van optekening en aantekeninge en ontleed met behulp van inhoudsanalise. Die volgende temas het uit die data-analise na vore gekom: werknemerervarings, werknemerpersepsies oor prestasiebonusse, invloed van betaal-vir-prestasie, betaal-vir-prestasie-hindernisse, betaal-vir-prestasie-doeltreffendheid en aanbevelings om betaal-vir-prestasie te verbeter. Oor die algemeen het die bevindinge aan die lig gebring dat betaal-vir-prestasie as 'n wonderlike inisiatief beskou is aangesien dit werknemers motiveer om te presteer. Dit is 'n uitstekende vergoedingstrategie wat daarop gemik is om hoe prestasie te beloon. Daar is ook gevind dat dit bevooroordeeld is omdat bestuurders subjektief is wanneer hulle besluit oor wie om te beloon vir hoë prestasie. Die studie het aanbevelings aan die bankinstelling gemaak om die vlak van waargenome partydigheid of bestuurder se subjektiwiteit te verminder en betaal-vir-prestasie as 'n motiverings- en behoudstrategie te bevorder.M. Com. (Industrial and Organisational Psychology)Industrial and Organisational Psycholog
Effective management of district-level malaria control and elimination: implementing quality and participative process improvements
No full textAbstract
Although it is widely recognized that strong program management is essential to achieving better health outcomes, this priority is not recognized in malaria programmatic practices. Increased management precision offers the opportunity to improve the effectiveness of malaria interventions, overcoming operational barriers to intervention coverage and accelerating the path to elimination. Here we propose a combined approach involving quality improvement, quality management, and participative process improvement, which we refer to as Combined Quality and Process Improvement (CQPI), to improve upon malaria program management. We draw on evidence from other areas of public health, as well as pilot implementation studies in Eswatini, Namibia and Zimbabwe to support the proposal. Summaries of the methodological approaches employed in the pilot studies, overview of activities and an outline of lessons learned from the implementation of CQPI are provided. Our findings suggest that a malaria management strategy that prioritizes quality and participative process improvements at the district-level can strengthen teamwork and communication while enabling the empowerment of subnational staff to solve service delivery challenges. Despite the promise of CQPI, however, policy makers and donors are not aware of its potential. Investments are therefore needed to allow CQPI to come to fruition
Successful school leadership : narratives of women secondary principals in rural schools
No full textThis study explores the narrated experiences of two women principals in their roles as leaders and managers of rural secondary schools in South Africa. Several studies have shown how women principals experience both leadership and management challenges in their roles. This study was conducted in rural public schools in Limpopo Province, South Africa. Despite such challenges, this study finds it important to mention that there are some women principals who successfully lead and manage their schools. Although a number of studies have examined women principals’ experiences at primary schools, not much has been done on women principals leading secondary schools. Moreover, too little is known about how they develop as school principals and what capabilities they need in order to perform their roles. This study seeks to do this by understanding how women principals develop capabilities in a changing social context in order to function as successful leaders, of secondary schools.
The study used qualitative narrative inquiry research as a basis for the study. The aim of this study was to focus on women secondary school principals who are and continue to lead their schools successfully in order to bring a positive narrative of women secondary schools principals’ successful school leadership. The Capability Approach (CA) was employed as analytical framework based on Sen, Nussbaum and some educational scholars who expanded Sen’ Capability Approach. To generate data, the study conducted narrative interviews with two women secondary school principals from South African public schools, as well as journaling and letter writing.
The study focused on elicit accounts of two women secondary school principals’ experiences from childhood to adulthood in order to understand how they developed their capabilities and how they came to take up leadership and management roles successfully. Findings link family relationships and educational experiences to the development of capabilities that prepared and influence them for leadership and management position. Based on key findings, this study concludes that the attributes and behaviours of successful women principals align with the development of foundational leadership and management capabilities which is termed, the Successful School Leadership Capabilities Theory.D. Ed. (Leadership and Management)Educational Leadership and Managemen
The protection of the national labour force against foreign competition under labour migration laws and policies : a comparative analysis between the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Africa
No full textAbstracts in English and FrenchLabour migration, which involves both labour immigration and labour emigration,
refers to ‘the cross-border movement of people from a homeland to a location
outside that homeland, with the purpose of taking up employment’.1 Labour
migration has become an ever more important feature of the globalising world as it
plays an important role and has a direct impact on African countries’ economies
and societies.2 Recognising the significant benefits of labour migration to countries
of origin and destination, the African Union urges African States to enact labour
migration laws, regulations, and policies in a regular, transparent, and
comprehensive manner at both continental and country levels.3 In this regard,
many African countries have exercised their prerogative to regulate labour
migration, which falls within each state’s sovereign discretion.
By way of illustration, this thesis focuses on two specific countries, namely the
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and South Africa, which have regulated the
employment of foreign-born workers. The two countries have established a legal
and regulatory framework aimed at protecting the national labour force against
foreign competition. The two countries have been selected for this study because
they are comparable in many ways while differing as much as possible in terms of
the institutional set-up of their migration systems and labour markets. In fact, this
study seeks to compare the DRC’s and South Africa’s labour migration laws,
regulations and policies, particularly how these legal and regulatory instruments
effectively protect the national labour force against foreign competition. In this
sense, the study explores the overall successes and challenges of these
legislative and regulatory endeavours, while identifying the shortcomings and
merits of the implementation of the laws and policies in the two countries.La migration de main-d’oeuvre, qui implique à la fois l’immigration et l’émigration
de main-d’oeuvre, désigne les mouvements transfrontaliers de personnes pour des
raisons professionnelles. Ce type de migration est devenu une caractéristique de
plus en plus importante de la mondialisation, car il joue un rôle important et affecte
directement l’économie et la société des pays africains.4 Reconnaissant les
avantages considérables de la migration de main-d’oeuvre pour les pays d’origine
et de destination, l’Union africaine exhorte les États africains à « établir des
politiques, des législations et des structures de migration de main-d’oeuvre
régulières, transparentes et globales à l’échelle nationale et régionale ».5 À cet
égard, de nombreux pays africains ont exercé leur prérogative de réglementer la
migration de main-d'oeuvre, qui relève de la discrétion souveraine de chaque État.
À titre d'illustration, la présente thèse se penche sur deux pays spécifiques, à
savoir la République démocratique du Congo (RDC) et l’Afrique du Sud, qui ont
respectivement réglementé l’emploi des ressortissants étrangers. En particulier,
les deux pays ont établi un cadre légal et réglementaire visant à protéger la maind’oeuvre
nationale contre la concurrence étrangère. Les deux pays ont été choisis
dans le cadre de cette étude parce qu’ils sont comparables à bien des égards, à la
fois pour ce qui est de la mise en place institutionnelle de leurs systèmes
migratoires et pour ce qui touche à leurs marchés du travail. En fait, la présente étude vise à comparer les lois, les règlements et les politiques
de la RDC et ceux de l’Afrique du Sud en matière de migration de main-d’oeuvre.
Un accent particulier est mis sur la manière dont ces instruments juridiques et
réglementaires protègent la main-d'oeuvre nationale contre la concurrence
étrangère. Dans cette optique, la présente étude explore les réalisations et les
défis globaux de ces efforts législatifs et réglementaires, tout en identifiant les avantages et les inconvénients de la mise en oeuvre des lois et des politiques
dans les deux pays.LL.D.Mercantile La
The revisionary jurisdiction of the higher courts of Botswana and England in the review of decisions of private bodies
No full textBotswana has a peculiar legal system. It is a former British protectorate, yet the British
never introduced their own laws into the country. Instead Botswana was made to apply
the law of the Colony of the Cape of Good Hope. Notwithstanding this development,
that law indirectly incorporated English law, and this made the applicable law a hybrid
of English law and Roman-Dutch law. This simultaneous application of two legal
systems still causes a few problems of ascertainment of the law, especially in
administrative law, and in particular in the process of judicial review.
Judicial review is generally recognised as a remedy against wrongful decisions of
authorities or bodies that exercise public powers or functions. These are bodies that
were described compendiously as public bodies. This excluded private bodies from the
ambit of judicial review as they were said not to exercise public powers. This resulted
in injustice in many circumstances. The scope of judicial review had to expand.
This thesis sets out to establish how this expansion occurred. It is a survey of the law
governing the process of judicial review of acts and decisions of private bodies. It does
so in a comparative manner, by focusing principally on two jurisdictions, Botswana and
England. It looks at the manner in which this extension came about and the principles
that underpinned the expansion of the scope for review. This reviewability of decisions
of private bodies is central to this thesis.
The thesis establishes that in both jurisdictions there has been some extension of the
process of judicial review to decisions of private bodies. However, in both jurisdictions
there is evidence of some resistance to the expansion of the scope of judicial review.
The position in both jurisdictions remains in a state of flux, requiring settlement by the
highest courts.LL.D.Criminal and Procedural La
Examining the Dynamics of Belonging and Alienation in Higher Education Through Photovoice
No full textThe higher education system globally is inherently inequitable. Discriminatory practices and oppressive power dynamics are particularly prevalent in the South African higher education landscape, which is characterized by a legacy of colonialism and apartheid. As a result, although students from a wide range of backgrounds are increasingly participating in higher education, many students who do not fit the dominant status quo question their belonging within these spaces. Students’ experiences of alienation within higher education can have profoundly negative physical, psychosocial, and education outcomes. However, students also display agency in negotiating the exclusionary institutional cultures within their universities and succeed despite these experiences. Photovoice methodology can be a useful tool for critiquing and highlighting such agentic practices, and for foregrounding the voices of students. In this research brief, we reflect on two photovoice projects that sought to examine the complexity of students’ experiences of belonging and alienation in higher education in South Africa. Our findings illustrate that although students may experience alienation on campus, they may also create spaces of belonging, “speak back” to, and challenge the exclusions inherent to campus life.Institute for Social and Health Studies (ISHS)South Africa’s National Research Foundation (NRF)
The Humanities Faculty
The Hub for Decolonial Feminist Psychology in Africa at the University of Cape Town