Doctoral Degrees (Educational Psychology)

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2020-12-31 The role of student feedback in university teaching at a research-led university
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2016-12) Petersen, Melanie; Bitzer, Eli; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. Educational Psychology
ENGLISH ABSTRACT : Student feedback is widely accepted as a useful source of information about the quality of teaching and as a potential professional learning tool to enhance university teachers’ teaching. A review of the literature, however, revealed a shortage of systematic research about how student feedback influences university teachers’ teaching practices. A similar gap in knowledge was identified at Stellenbosch University. Preliminary studies at this institution indicated dissonance between university teachers’ perceptions of the potential value of student feedback and how they actually made use of student feedback in their teaching. In researchled university contexts, teaching is often perceived to have lower status than research. This study therefore set out to explore how university teachers at this particular research-led institution experienced the role of student feedback in their teaching. A case-study research design was followed, with the potential relationship between student feedback and university teaching practice at a research-led university constituting the unit of analysis. Qualitative data was generated by way of semistructured interviews with 16 purposely selected university teachers. Institutional policies relating to student feedback, teaching and learning and human resource management were also included as secondary sources of data to ascertain how university teachers’ experiences of student feedback related to institutional policy directives. Activity theory was used as analytical framework to interrogate the data. The findings of the study indicate that the research-led context at Stellenbosch University plays a significant role in how university teachers experience and respond to student feedback. The perceptions of research being more valued than teaching in terms of recognition and rewards, limits the optimal use of student feedback for the purpose of improving teaching. Raising the stature of teaching would thus be a necessary requirement for promoting the use of student feedback to improve teaching. Furthermore, the potential role of student feedback in university teaching practice at Stellenbosch is influenced by other subsystems, in particular the performance appraisal system. A concerted effort should be made at institutional level to come to a common understanding of what good teaching is considered to be. In the absence of such a common understanding, the growing culture of performativity has led to student feedback being reduced to a mere quantitative measure of the quality of teaching in many cases. Since mid-level university management carries the biggest responsibility for managing the performance appraisal processes in academic departments, they also exert a significant influence on how university teachers would use student feedback for professional learning and the enhancement of their teaching. The diverse practices followed by mid-level managers in the various academic departments represented in this study further pointed to the possible need for a guiding framework to support an ethics of practice approach to the use of student feedback. Based on its findings, this study is considered to have made a contribution to the body of knowledge regarding the contextual and relational nature of student feedback, particularly within a research-led university context.
An analysis of critical thinking skills and democratic citizenship education in the South African higher education system and its implications for teaching and learning
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2022-12) Pullen, Elton; Waghid, Yusef; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Educational Psychology.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study aimed to determine the extent to which critical thinking (CT) skills are being developed in the accounting programmes accredited by the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) at South African universities. The study is situated within the South African Higher Education (SAHE) accounting landscape, which in recent years (2013 to 2020) has suffered declining student success rates despite increased access to higher education. Specifically, the study aimed to evaluate whether a pedagogy aimed at cultivating democratic values of equality within the SAHE accounting landscape can enhance the development of critical thinking skills in students. Secondary research questions focused on the related meanings of CT and democratic citizenship education (DCE), as well as on how the concept of CT has been advanced (or not) in the SAHE policies, the SAICA competency framework and the pedagogical practices within the accounting programmes at SAICA-accredited universities (SAUs). In particular, the focus was on evaluating the extent of CT development within the pedagogical activities conducted by SAICA-accredited programmes. These pedagogical activities were evaluated along a continuum, where activities regarded as more indicative of critical thinking were regarded as more critical thinking (MCT), and those less indicative of critical thinking were regarded as less critical thinking (LCT). The research approach used was a conceptual-deconstructive analysis approach, with an overarching eclectic paradigm incorporating interpretivism’s broad philosophical perspectives, critical theory, and deconstruction. This research approach evaluated the pedagogical activities at accounting programmes accredited by SAICA as LCT overall. This evaluation of LCT was due mainly to the focus on assessment which mimics the SAICA Initial Test of Competence (ITC) exam. This exam essentially assesses ‘what the student does on their own’ instead of ‘what the student co-constructs with their teachers and/or peers’, with the latter being indicative of MCT. Furthermore, the analyses revealed a lack of learner-centred pedagogical practices, deliberative encounters in the classroom, and pedagogical expertise by accounting academics. In response to the above-mentioned findings, the study proposes Foucault’s notion of rupturing in the dominant mimicked SAICA ITC assessment practices reminiscent of assessment of learning and instead argues for assessment within learning as coined by Waghid and Davids (2017). Furthermore, the study argues for the adoption of problem-based learning (PBL) within the pedagogy instead of the current prevalent instructional modes of teaching at SAUs. Furthermore, the study suggests pedagogical training and the practice of critical reflection for chartered accountant (CA) academics who tend to enter the academe as technically skilled accounting experts rather than as pedagogically trained teachers. In general, the study urges CA academics to continuously critically reflect on how notions of DCE and CT can be fostered within the pedagogy without ignoring the technical competencies.
The application of ancient Greek myth and music in personal, professional and transpersonal development
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2017-12) McMullin, Lindy; Lancaster, B. L.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Educational Psychology.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT : Self-actualization and self-transcendence are both areas of Maslow’s Hierarchy that remain elusive to the majority of humankind, largely due to the lack of education about the self. To know the self is also to care about the self, and this study aims at investigating how the use of myth in sacred text with music may contribute to this process of self-knowledge. The objective of the study is to investigate the effects that myth in sacred text may have on personal, professional and transpersonal development. To ensure maximum impact in terms of imagery-enhancing properties, Greek myth was read, accompanied by lyre music, in a therapeutic setting. The study included a focus on personal epiphanies that, it is argued, have the potential to change perceptions and contribute to a healing process. Seventeen participants were read Homer’s Hymn to Demeter over five sessions. Interviews before and after each session focused on participants’ imagery in dreams and waking fantasy, together with their reflections and interpretations. An Interpretive Interactionist methodology was used with a post structuralism critical approach, capturing the ways in which participants experienced the hymn and the relations with the epiphanies that have taken place in their lives. Results show that the Hymn facilitated participants in working through relationship issues and birth and death traumas, both major aspects of the myth. The extent to which the myth may have facilitated positive outcomes is discussed. Results also highlight the role dreams played in between sessions, in enriching reflection and understanding of problems that arose across the five sessions. It is concluded that the exposure to myth in the imagery-encouraging setting used in the study has the potential to impact poignantly on personal, professional and transpersonal development.
Aspects of the learning culture with reference to some high schools in Mitchell's Plain : a philosophical reflection
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 1998) Arendse, Paul; de Klerk, J.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Department of Educational Psychology.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Education in South Africa is at the crossroads. The culture of learning and teaching with reference to black and specifically coloured schools has collapsed. Since 1985 there has been a steady drop in the matric pass rate. In any nation at any given time the wellbeing of its people is measured against the intent and content of the education system. These intents should address the basic needs of the community it serves and at the same time satisfy the highest aspirations of its participants, setting standards as well as immediate and long-term goals in line with the ideals of an ever-developing nation. To maintain the integrity of its intent, the promoters of the system (all the role players) should be dedicated and committed to the spirit of this intent. Should any one of the above be found wanting, this could be expressed by indifference, frustration and possibly unrest. One manifestation of this will be a pupil corps with high expectations unfulfilled. Teachers themselves will be frustrated by the very legislators, promoters and planners and will have to implement this lack of vision. The purpose of this study is to analyse and describe the nature of the learning culture in coloured schools, in particular high schools in Mitchell's Plain. This purpose was realised by undertaking a theoretical investigation in the first place and secondly an empirical investigation into various aspects of the culture of learning. In order to obtain a clear overall picture of the learning culture in these schools, qualitative as well as quantitative methods of research were used. Interviews were also conducted with teachers, pupils and principals. Many of the problems found among the school-going population are deeply embedded in the historical past of South Africa. The result is a painstaking slow healing process to restore a learning culture to satisfy the ideals of an ever-developing nation. This research paper consists of five chapters. The introductory chapter holds as content the introductory orientation to the study. This is followed by the historical evolution of education in South Africa. Chapter 3 focuses on the erosion of the learning culture. This chapter reports on a survey which was conducted of various high schools. The aim of this exercise was to undertake an investigation into the learning culture that prevailed at these schools. Cultural-learning factors and its impact on academic achievement is discussed in chapter four. Chapter five delves into restoring of the learning culture and the roles of the pupil, family, community, teacher and principal are discussed.
Assessing learners' reading skills : a development of an in-service training programme for Junior Primary teachers
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 1999-09) Bunding, Mark Gordon; Engelbrecht, P.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Educational Psychology.
ENGLISH SUMMARY: Most learners in South Africa are only taught knowledge-based skills, and reading skills are assessed according to a prescribed curriculum. The emphasis seems to be on what the learner cannot do, instead of what the learner can do. South African educational system is currently in a transitional phase, where teachers are required to assess learners on their critical outcomes. This transitional phase demands that teachers make a mindshift from the old traditional, deductive teaching approaches to literacy to the more inductive, cognitive, social and sociopolitical constructions of literacy. Against this background, the study investigated first of all the beliefs of teachers concerning their teaching reading approaches and reading assessment. This information was then used as a point of departure in the development of a framework for an in-service training programme in order to provide teachers with the skills and confidence that will enable them not only to identify and assess reading problems in the Junior Primary phase, but also to teach reading effectively. To achieve the objectives, a qualitative research approach was used. Data collection methods included a literature review, a semi-structured questionnaire and three in-depth interviews with Junior Primary teachers at six primary schools (exHOR and ex-model C) in the Bellville area, near Cape Town. Although the results of the semi-structured questionnnaires provide a reasonably clear picture of the beliefs of teachers pertaining to learners reading skills, more information was gathered by means of the in-depth interviews. From the analysis of data, it became apparent that there is a need for further training and support regarding the implementation of Outcomes Based Education; teachers are currently focusing on reductionistic teaching approaches and are not knowledgeable about how to assess and rectify reading problems. In spite of these problems, most teachers expressed a willingness to learn new teaching reading approaches. The framework for an in-service training programme focused, as a result of the literature review and qualitative data analysis of the questionnaire and in-depth interviews, on a holistic teaching and assessment approach to reading within an ecosystemic framework. The active involvement of teachers and learners in the teaching and assessment of reading was stressed.
Die belewingswereld van oudleerlinge van skole vir serebraal gestremdes
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 1991-12) Du Plessis, Jean Marais; Malan, J. A.; Du Preez, J. J.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Educational Psychology.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Cerebral Palsy, a disability with world-wide distribution, affects not only the afflicted, but also the community at large. To date, most research in this area has focused on babies, children and adolescents. It has, however, become apparent that the emphasis should shift to adult cerebral palsied people to ensure that the efficacy and applicability of the years of specialized education and therapy remain relevant. The purpose of this investigation was to build up a composite picture of the world, as experienced by past pupils of schools for the disabled in South Africa. The informants had minimum academic qualifications of Standard 8. In addition to a study of current literature in this field, a questionnaire was administered nationwide. This was followed by interviews with a representative sample of the respondents. The investigation disclosed that the severity of the disability did not necessarily influence the respondents' academic achievements nor their satisfaction with their quality of life. Many severely disabled people had attained exceptional achievements and perceived their lives as meaningful. Although informants' responses reflected positive influences which specialized schools have had on their development, certain educational aspects need reevaluation. To prevent over-protection and the development of unrealistic expectations, pupils from these schools need more exposure to the demands of the non-disabled world. Training in life skills as well as bridging between school and the adult world could promote less stressful adjustments. Psychological problems were evident in most of the respondents. Although they expressed their appreciation of the therapeutic and psychological services which they had experienced, problem areas were evident. Psychologists should be approachable, displaying genuine concern, their honesty and integrity being irreproachable. Guidance, which in some schools is neglected, should receive priority. Pupils should be thoroughly informed about their disabilities and should be exposed to existential questions during Guidance sessions. Although the informants were generally satisfied with their living conditions, a need for greater independence was expressed. Those living in their own homes were happier than those living in homes for the disabled, who experienced a lack of privacy and self determination which severely affected their quality of life. Cerebral palsied workers do not always attain the same productivity level as nondisabled people but they are disciplined and display good interpersonal relationships with their colleagues. Disability grants shoulds be conceded with circumspection and the practice of subsidised salaries should receive more attention. Social isolation was prevalent among the respondents, the unfulfilling relationships leading to anxiety and despondency. A lack of self-confidence on a social level was often the crux of the problem. It is vital that as scholars the disabled learn to process negative reactions from the community and also how to put non-disabled people at ease when in their presence. Society, in return, needs to be educated regarding disability. This investigation has motivated various suggestions with regard to the education, therapy and psychological guidance of cerebral palsied children.
'n Beroepsgerigte opleidingsprogram vir adolessente leerders met intellektuele gestremdheid
(Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2011-03) Lackay, Joaline Merle; Newmark, R.; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Educational Psychology.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The aim of this study is to develop a vocational training programme for the adolescent learner with an intellectual disability. There is a need for these learners to be trained for work in the open labour market. From the literature it is apparent that American legislation is in place for these learners to gain access to schools, colleges and universities. The literature also makes it clear that parent involvement and community involvement are essential for the planning and implementation of a vocational training programme. To answer the research question, a qualitative participatory action research study was conducted from an interpretive research paradigm. The researcher implemented multiple sources to generate data, namely semistructured interviews, a literature review, personal documents and field notes. In the course of the study a number of steps were taken to ensure the credibility of the data and to pay attention to the ethical aspects that emerged during the research. The literature review extends over two chapters: Firstly the American legislation on vocational training programmes for the adolescent with intellectual disabilities was studied, as well as the South African Educational legislation after 1994. Secondly the three national curriculum programmes are described, namely Outcomes-based Education, Curriculum 2005 and the National Curriculum Statement. The vocational training programme was developed in accordance with the principles of the National Curriculum Statement, learning area Life orientation, Learning outcome 5: the world of work. The development of the learning programmes,work schedules and the lesson plans were adapted to suit the needs of the learners with intellectual disabilities. The findings concluded that schools can train learners to prepare them for entering the open labour market. The teachers cannot do the vocational training in school alone; they need the support of the parents and the community.
Boodskaptoepaslikheid in mediagebruik vir gesondheidsopvoeding binne 'n multikulturele ontwikkelende gemeenskap
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 1997-12) Hugo, Johann; Smit, M. J.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Educational Psychology.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Messages for health education is a dynamic phenomenon, because it effects the health and well-being of people at all levels. However, health education programmes often fail due to the inappropriateness of media messages. The aim of this research was to support or reject the following hypothesis, namely that messages for health education in a multi-cultural developing community show unique characteristics that depend on specific principles and practical guidelines for improved message appropriateness. The study was organised in three phases, namely a theoretical study, an empirical study, and the design of a model. The theoretical component covered fundamental concepts in health education, health promotion and community development; didactic principles for message appropriateness in health education; influencing factors in health education in a multi-cultural developing society; media applications in health education; as well as communication aspects of health education. Health education is a component of health promotion, and can be defined as any planned learning experience to facilitate informed decision- making about health and disease. An important finding is that messages for health education must aim a particular targets. Consequently, media messages must be based upon the health education needs of individuals, families , and communities. A number of factors determine successful health education, for example the principles of appropriate technology, and the visual literacy as well as socio-cultural background of the target audience. The range of appropriate media for health education includes various low tech audiovisual media and high tech electronic mass media, which can be applied to achieve learning objectives in terms of knowledge, attitudes, and skills, as well as changing health behaviour. In addition, traditional media such as folk songs and puppetry should not be ignored in developing countries. A prerequisite for message appropriateness is that media must be integrated with all teaching and learning activities. This implies that media selection is an important factor in successful health education. In this process the communication codes of each individual medium is a decisive factor, since successful learning is not determined by technology 'as such, but rather by the symbolic code into which a message is dressed. In the empirical study the most important principles for encoding appropriate health education messages were identified and prioritised. The study focused on graphic, photographic, text design and audiovisual program design guidelines, as well as guidelines for socio-cultural contextualisation of messages. The results indicate a general high correlation between the viewpoints of media specialists and dieticians regarding the most important encoding guidelines for the respective media categories. The theoretical and empirical phases, combined with an analysis of certain situational influencing factors produced a model for message appropriateness in health education in a multi-cultural developing community. The model firstly guidelines for effective health education, effective health communication, appropriate and effective media use, as well as for socio-cultural sensitivity. It also includes guidelines for practical issues such as appropriate message design and media acculturation. Due to the fact that appropriate health messages can be distinguished from inappropriate messages, the model also states guidelines for evaluating message appropriateness. A mechanism was designed to categorise the relative appropriateness of media for health education during the evaluation process. Following the model design, a theoretical application was made for health education messages on the Acquired Immuno-Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) and tuberculosis (TB) in two selected communities in the Western Cape. Possibilities for wider application of the model in other multicultural developing communities were indicated. The findings of this research support the initial hypothesis. Specific recommendations have been formulated and possibilities for further research were formulated.
Co-operative learning for learners with special educational needs
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2004-03) Paulsen, Magdalena Elizabeth; Engelbrecht, P.; Menkveld, H.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Educational Psychology.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: With current legislation focusing on the implementation of inclusive education, more learners with diverse needs are entering the regular classroom. In order to effectively address the needs of all learners, it is necessary for educators to implement effective teaching 'strategies in educating learners with diverse needs. Many educators have not been trained to address the needs of learners with special educational needs with the help of specific teaching strategies. Because of this, effective in-service training programmes for educators are necessary. The primary aim of this research study was to determine whether the following outcomes of an in-service programme on co-operative learning for educators have materialised in the academic achievement, social skills and motivation of learners with special educational needs have improved. The research design was evaluative in nature and specifically addressed the question of whether the participants (the learners with special educational needs) changed in the direction that the programme was planned. An integrated qualitative and quantitative methodology in evaluation research was followed and involved observations before, during and after the intervention. Research findings indicated that both learners with special educational needs and regular classroom learners benefited favourably from the co-operative learning lessons in terms of academic achievement, motivation and social skills.
Community counsellors' experiences of trauma and resilience in a low-income community
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2014-04) Benjamin, Arlene; Carolissen, Ronelle; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Educational Psychology.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Violence is considered a global mental health problem. The rate of violence in South Africa is amongst the highest in the world and much of this violence is disproportionately skewed towards the poorer and historically disadvantaged communities. Low-income communities continue to bear the brunt of historical legacies of violence which are perpetuated through current ongoing cycles of interpersonal and community violence. While much has been documented about trauma and resilience in environments where the violence or traumatic event has ceased, there is a dearth of literature conceptualising trauma and resilience in contexts where the violence persists. Furthermore, even fewer studies have captured how trauma and resilience are conceptualised from the perspectives of the voices who experience this violence daily. The social constructionist framework of this study aims to contribute to the knowledge of how trauma and resilience is constructed by those who experience ongoing violence, and whether resilience and healing does occur in an environment of continuous traumatic stress. The voices of the participants of the study provide an additional perspective from that of community-based counsellors. Their dual experience of living and working in a violent community gives a rich insight into the relationship between trauma and resilience. The study is located in Hanover Park, a low-income community, notorious for its high levels of community violence. The participants are community-based counsellors who volunteer at Organisation X, a community-based ecological intervention that has been developed in response to addressing the cyclical impacts of ongoing violence and continuous trauma. The research design is a purposive in-depth case study of eighteen counsellors, investigating the narratives of their lives within its real-life context. Follow-up focus groups held with the counsellors were guided by ideas and practices of narrative theory. The narratives were analysed using thematic content and experience-centred form analysis. Multi-level themes related to trauma and resilience were constructed by the participants. It was revealed that the trauma effects related to systemic ongoing violence are viewed as maladaptive features of negative resilience. At the same time positive resilience which promotes healing, empowerment and transformation is possible despite negative and violent environments. The perspectives of community counsellors which offer critically important insight into their experience of the context of violence, and the complex interconnecting of individual, interpersonal and social aspects of trauma and healing in disadvantaged communities, could also inform future evidence-based interventions, provide alternate paradigms within which mental health professionals could position themselves to engage in issues of social justice and psychosocial health.
Deliberative democratic theory in relation to private general and further education and training
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2022-12) Forster, Megan; Waghid, Yusef
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Quality equal education is not available to everyone in South Africa. Our country has a traumatic history that continues to have significant implications for the development and implementation of educational legislation. In addition, the perceived inadequacies of a contextualised approach to deliberative democratic engagement have resulted in poor policy development for private general and further education and training (GFET). This contributes to regulatory barriers that render it virtually impossible for private providers to contribute much needed resources where the state continues to fail. This dissertation, which is located within the discipline of education policy studies, provides a historical evaluation of education legislation enacted within the Southern African education sector. An evaluation of deliberative democratic engagement concerning private GFET required a critical educational theory approach. In addition, a qualitative evaluation of relevant literature, policies, regulations, Acts, and reports, was employed. The dissertation reviewed the theory that emerges from this literature in relation to a contextualisation of deliberative democracy for South Africa. This included a measure of critical realism required by deliberative democracy to acknowledge the historical injustices within the education sector. Unless we undertake this task, we may repeat aspects of past injustices. To begin with, the dissertation provides a historical overview of the successive sets of policy implementation that have negatively impacted upon the development of an equitable, quality, basic education system in South Africa. This overview provides an account of an education system that has a history of inequality, discrimination, neglect, and inferiority, that will take years to overcome. Two distinct historical periods that shaped our education sector are discussed. Firstly, the discussion includes a review of the colonial and apartheid eras. During this period education and religion were used to socially engineer a segregated, unequal society, based on race, gender and language. The dissertation argues that education was used as a tool for disenfranchisement. Secondly, the discussion provides a review of post-apartheid educational policies and legislation that continue to propagate the cycle of discrimination and inequality within the education sector. The dissertation then facilitates a critical engagement with the theory of deliberative democracy in relation to the pervasive problems with policy development and implementation in the private GFET sector in contemporary South Africa. Having conducted this critical conversation it is argued that to address the inadequacies in policy formation and implementation in contemporary GFET in South Africa, a contextually appropriate form of deliberative democracy is required that considers the complexity of our history and embraces the rich cultural diversity that makes South Africa unique. The dissertation presents the recommendations for a form of deliberative democracy that embraces the principles of ubuntu and encourages communities of care that are built on mutual trust. The recommendations include the need for a politics of reconciliation and unhindered communicative freedom for the achievement of liberty rights within the South African focus on communal identity. The study offers two unique and novel contributions to the field of educational policy studies. Firstly, it offers proposals for an amended approach to deliberative democracy for the South African context that focuses on the impact of policy studies in private GFET. Secondly, this study offers a thorough critical reflection on the ways in which policy development and implementation in the South African GFET sector were shaped and misshaped by political ideology and social actors (such as religious movements during the colonial era, politicians, political movements, and unions in the democratic era). This research adds a further necessary contribution towards research that seeks to understand the complexity of policy development and implementation within the private GFET. While it is not possible for a single dissertation to solve such a complex problem, it does offer some novel and unique insights that help us to understand the challenges we face, while offering some constructive proposals for how we can move forward.
The development of a vocational interest measuring instrument in an adult educational setting
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2002-03) Utete-Masango, Sylvia Janet; Engelbrecht, Petra; Meyer, Johann; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Educational Psychology.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The major concern in the world of work has been the mismatch between a person's vocational interests and job pursuits. The understanding has been that jobs make differing demands on people and that the abilities of the individual and demands of the job have a bearing on productivity hence the need for matching people to jobs. The most notable attempts to identify and organize vocational interests have been Holland's theory of vocational interests and personality types. Holland asserts that people can be categorized predominantly as one of six personality types, namely, realistic (R), investigative (I), artistic (A), social (S), enterprising (E), and conventional (C). The review of literature has shown that person-environment fit explains the degree of match between occupational pursuits and one's vocational interests and that before a measure can be used across cultures, its construct validity must be established in each culture. The current study was motivated by the Zimbabwe Public Service Commission's quest, in the absence of vocational interest measures tailored for Zimbabwe, for assessment tools that can assist in predicting suitability for recruitment or promotion. The study was therefore designed to (a) develop a measure of vocational interest validated on the Zimbabwe population, (b) build a model for predicting and classifying people into job sectors and (c) assess the adequacy of Holland's RIASEC structure for assessing person-job fit in the Zimbabwe Public Service. To achieve this, a correlational research design was used. The vocational interest measure and the MB-10 were the two instruments used for data collection. A sample of 500 public servants representing six occupational sectors in the Zimbabwe Public Service participated in the study. Statistical approaches to data analysis included reliability and validity analysis, factor analysis and multiple discriminant analysis. The results of the reliability coefficients were within acceptable levels. The subscale reliabilities of the vocational interest measure ranged from ra = 0.85 to ra = 0.89. Overall, the concurrent validity of the vocational interest measure was established. Factor analysis and correlation coefficients statistic assessed the adequacy of the hexagonal ordering of the RIASEC types. Factor analysis was computed resulting in 8 factors being extracted instead of the theoretically conceptualized 6 factors. The 8 extracted factors accounted for 65.88% of the total variance. Holland's theory affirms that occupational types that are more proximate on the hexagon are more similar than types that are more distant. Results of the RIASEC intercorrelations showed strong correlations between Realistic and Investigative (r = 0.69) and moderate correlations with four of the adjacent types. However, low and negative correlations were obtained between Conventional and Realistic (adjacent types) (r = -0.14) and between Investigative and Conventional (alternate types) (r = -0.11). On the other hand, there was strong correlation between Realistic and Social (opposite types) (r = 0.25.) The model for predicting and classifying people into appropriate job sectors was developed. The model's utility was confirmed using the scores from the sample data. The cross validation table obtained an error rate of 0.29, an indication of a relatively good model. Given the results of the present study, it appears the study hypotheses were generally supported. Further work in refining the model is recommended.
The development of an integrated problem-based learning (PBL) approach in a post-matriculation programme at the University of Stellenbosch
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2008-03) Malan, Sharon Brenda; Engelbrecht, P.; Michaels, D. W.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Educational Psychology.
It is evident that many students admitted to higher education in South Africa are ill-prepared for tertiary study. The predominantly behaviorist school system encourages learner dependency and superficial understanding and fails to encourage reflection and self-direction. Changing times and a more diverse student population have heightened the need for a broader range of teaching and learning approaches at tertiary level. As a result, many departments, faculties and institutes such as SciMathUS have explored the merits of problem-based learning (PBL) which supports students as self-directed, independent learners. Problem-based learning is a different philosophical approach to the whole notion of teaching and learning where problems drive the learning and is one of the best examples of a constructivist learning environment. Thus far, problem-based learning has mainly been implemented in long-term medical curricula, so research findings focus mainly on the development of PBL for longer programmes. The purpose of this study is to evaluate whether introducing a Hybrid PBL approach in a shorter one-year foundation programme can create conditions for learners to develop and sustain self-directed learning skills and gain more control of the learning process. This interpretive-constructivist study may be broadly termed evaluation research. A mixedmethod approach that involved collecting and analyzing both qualitative and quantitative data was chosen. Evaluation findings indicate that introducing students to a Hybrid PBL approach does promote more meaningful learning patterns, typified by processing the subject matter critically and self-regulating learning processes. However the sustainability of the meaningdirected learning activities is questionable if student beliefs do not support the activities employed. Findings also reveal that the Hybrid PBL approach contributes to overall programme improvement by promoting understanding in mathematics and science and improved staff relationships and subject knowledge. PBL helps to establish a learner-centered learning environment that emphasizes relations in mathematics and science, promotes deep approaches to learning which may lead to higher levels of achievement and success in Higher Education.
Die belewing en die vergestalting van veerkragtigheid van ouers van kinders met aandagtekort- en hiperaktiwiteitsversteuring in hul middelkinderjare
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2017-12) Du Toit, Susan; Swart, R. E.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Department of Educational Psychology
ENGLISH ABSTRACT : Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is characterised by an ongoing pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity that interferes with daily functioning and development. Statistics indicate that an increasing number of children are affected by this condition. Children with ADHD in their middle childhood years require special support with the mastering of various developmental tasks inherent in this phase. This may place extra pressure and stress on parents, in addition to the normal demands of parenthood. It could be beneficial for parents of children with ADHD to learn from the shared knowledge of other parents in similar situations. This enables them to acquire coping mechanisms and implement other processes to better handle the challenges along this path. In the same vein, educational psychologists and other key members of the community can use this research as a knowledge base from which to offer these parents more effective support. If we were to further pursue this strategy, it would be valuable to gather more information regarding (1) the experiences of parents of children with ADHD in their middle childhood years, as well as (2) the determiners of resilient parenthood in such circumstances. The goal of this study is to gain insight into the concerned phenomenon in order to develop a diagrammatical representation of the experience of parents of children with ADHD in their middle childhood years, as well as the actualisation of resilient parenthood in this context. A qualitative approach was used in this study and an exploratory narrative case study was chosen as a research plan to direct the interpretative research. The data was generated through semi-structured interviews and supplemented with close observations, field notes during interviews, participants’ diary entries, as well as reflective journal entries. The data was processed using thematic analysis and the intra-comparison of themes. This was followed by in-depth descriptions of the experiences of parents who have children with ADHD in their middle childhood years, as well as the actualisation of resilient parenthood in this context. These insights were summarized by a diagrammatical representation that illustrated some of the determiners and obstacles to resilience, as well as the causes, consequences, relationships and processes that were related therein. In this light, society’s ignorance is found to be the biggest obstacle to the actualisation of resilient parenthood. It is seen as the main cause of (1) people’s critique and prejudice against ADHD, (2) the exclusion of children with ADHD, as experienced in mainstream schools, and (3) the stigma associated with the use of medication for ADHD, as well as the placement of children with this condition in special needs schools. The determiners of resilience identified in this research, include: (1) a positive attitude and a strict routine at home, (2) time and experience in adapting to this condition, and (3) the support provided by family, the staff of special needs schools and other parents of children with ADHD in their middle childhood.
Digitale tegnologie in die bevordering van vaardigheidsontwikkeling vir leerders met erge intellektuele gestremdheid
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2021-12) Botha, Zelda; Dreyer, Lorna M.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Educational Psychology.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Digital technology has become an integral part of everyday life and is increasingly being used to enhance access to and quality of education. In South Africa, the Education White Paper 7 provided an impetus for the Smart-classroom project in which the WCED has equipped special schools with various learning technologies. While there is ample literature on the use of technology in mainstream schools, very limited literature is available on the value of technology in special schools. The central theme of this thesis is therefore the use of digital technology for skills development of learners with severe intellectual disabilities. This study was conducted within the framework of the explanatory-sequential-mixed-method research design with socio-constructivism as the philosophical framework. Data were collected and analysed according to the explanatory-sequential-mixed method. Quantitative data (digital online questionnaire) and qualitative data (group interviews and semi-structured interviews) were collected separately. This data was set against the background of an extensive literature study. The school was purposively selected as one of the pilot schools in the Smart-classroom project of the WCED. The participants were purposively selected to represent teachers and therapists at special schools for learners with severe intellectual disabilities. Aligned with the research design, data analysis was done statistically as well as thematically. Findings were then integrated and thematically discussed. Triangulation was used to verify the reliability and validity of the research findings. Three themes emerged from the findings. The findings indicated that initially, some participants were hesitant to use technology for skills development for learners with severe intellectual disability. However, with regular use, training and support they became more confident. Findings indicate the positive value of digital technology in skills development for learners with severe intellectual disabilities. By mapping the findings from the data against the literature review, the researcher made several recommendations to promote and improve the use of digital technology in special schools with specific reference to learners with severe intellectual disability. In conclusion, as an outflow of this research, the researcher has identified a need and subsequently created an application (app) for developing the packaging skills required within protective (sheltered) labour market environments for learners with severe intellectual disability after completing their school career. This application will be available on the Google Play Store as well as other virtual platforms in the near future.
Disruption of higher education policy through an ethics of care in South Africa
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2020-03) Ngwenya, Memoria Celiwe; Waghid, Yusef
ENGLISH ABSTRACT : The study on which this dissertation reports, argued that the newly reformed university policies and practices of the four public universities in the Western Cape still affect students from poor schools in a considerable way, as they still seem to struggle to gain access into higher education, even after the enactment of the White Paper for Post School Education of 2013. My argument is corroborated by findings and conclusions that ensued after the conceptual analysis of policy structures of the four public universities under study. The findings also exposed the university system in general as an elitist institution that is unable to change or be changed to recognise the poor. The argument is that the strategies the universities utilise to integrate students into the university system intensify this setback, as those strategies do not attempt to increase universities’ capacity to grant access to poor students, who are incidentally fatalities of the apartheid system. Instead, the universities want the students to bring the same capabilities as their private and former Model C-schooled counterparts. Because of this practice, the university system appears to favour affluent students, which then compounds the social inequity at universities. My contention in the study therefore was that the university system ought to embrace approaches such as an ethics of care to disrupt the alienating culture within their policy processes. The ethics of care as the disruption paradigm may achieve a reconceptualised notion of external inclusion by which lived experiences of the vast majority of poor students can be accommodated, and may also introduce a conciliatory paradigm to higher education, from which social justice can be attained. In the study, I have used ‘poor students’ interchangeably with ‘black students from poor schools’, as the colour of poverty in South Africa, even after 25 years of democracy, is still predominantly black.
Educational and psychosocial experiences of women university students who became teenage mothers whilst at school
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2023-03) Haufiku, Anneli Ndapandula; Carolissen, Ronelle; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Educational Psychology.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The Namibian education policy, emphasising inclusion, has enabled teenage mothers to return to school after giving birth and to complete their schooling. Despite the inclusion policy, there seem to be few studies on teenage parents who completed their schooling and continued their education at university. This qualitative case study focuses on women who became pregnant while at school and who are now university students. It specifically explores the factors that assist women to remain in and complete high school, as well as the factors that assisted them to access university. Through this study, a deeper understanding was sought of what motivates women to succeed despite challenges attached to school pregnancy. This study draws on the integration of three theoretical strands at various levels, namely metatheory (Bronfenbrenner's ecological theory), individual and interpersonal theories (possible selves), and political and social levels (feminist theory), with a focus on Iris Marion Young's five faces of oppression. Based on the pre-established selection criteria, a sample of 12 university students who became pregnant while at school was chosen carefully. Individual semi-structured interviews with the aid of an interview guide were used to gather data. This study adopted a strengths-based approach rather than the deficit approach that is frequently used when researching marginalised groups, in this case, African women who have had teenage pregnancies. The study revealed that changing the policy had a positive impact on women's educational pathways. The NAMCOL programme – the university’s mature-age entry scheme, and NSFAF funding enabled the research participants to access university. Women’s self-motivation and the holistic systemic support they received strengthened their ability to remain in school and access university. The findings contest deficit approaches to teenage pregnancy, which frequently contend that African women who become pregnant while still in their adolescence are doomed to failure in terms of educational success. This is one of the few studies conducted outside of South Africa on young women's educational pathways after having teenage pregnancies in African contexts.
Die effek van onderwystransformasie op die motivering en beroepsbelewing van onderwysers in die Wes-Kaapse Onderwysdepartement
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2002-03) Galant, Fernholdt Henry Michael; Ackermann, C. J.; Van Kradenburg, L. P.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education . Dept. of Educational Psychology.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The passing of the South African Schools Act in 1996 marked the beginning of the formal process of transformation in education in South Africa. The application of a new national education policy based on the principle of equity gave rise to a process of rationalization and re-deployment - a process guided by financial constraints. Many educators and principals took voluntary severance packages, resulting in the abolition of thousands of teaching posts. Hundreds of newly appointed principals were left in 1997 with the daunting task of running their schools efficiently and effectively with a reduced staff. In addition to the much less favourable educator-learner ratios the process of transformation is characterised by inter alia the abolition of corporal punishment, the institution of a new qualifications framework, the introduction of Curriculum 2005 and an inclusive education policy. The whole of this process implies a drastic and pervasive change in thinking and conduct, leaving many educators in a state of uncertainty. Transformation and paradigm shifts brought about changed and changing values, convictions, interests, needs and new role players. All these changes together with new and greater demands on educators, and employment uncertainty, raise the issue of their effect on the motivation and occupational experience of educators. Thus the aim of the present research was to examme the effect of the process of transformation on the motivation and occupational experience of educators. Educator motivation is dealt with in the literature study in terms of specific motivational and personality theories. It also focuses on the nature of transformation and change in education in South Africa, especially in the Western Cape. A mainly quantitative approach has been adopted in the present research. It was designed as an exploratory and descriptive study. The target population consisted of educators in the service of the Western Cape Education Department. The accessible population was confined to a selection from two of the nine areas in the Western Cape, namely Athlone and Worcester. For the purpose ot proportional representation of educators a stratified sampling of educators from: primary and secondary schools, from larger and smaller schools and from former education departments was used. Of the grand total of6186 educators 20% (1258) were selected. A questionnaire survey was done to examine the effect of a wide range of applicable aspects of education transformation on the motivation and occupational experience of educators. More than one-third of the respondents indicated that the process of transformation in education was negatively influencing their motivation and occupational experience. Educators in non-promotion posts reported a more negative influence than educators in promotion posts. Respondents from the former Department of Education and Training reflected a more positive perception in respect of the effect of transformation on their motivation and occupational experience than did respondents from the two other ex-departments. In both cases the most negative influences were reported by educators from the former Cape Education Department. Regarding educators' expenence of contentment approximately 30% of respondents indicated that they were not happy in their profession. The reasons for educators' desire to leave their posts revolved largely around the management of change. The vast majority of educators were also very unhappy at the prospect of having to contend with learners with special educational needs in their ordinary classes. It would appear that educators experience frustration and feelings of uncertainty as a result of inadequate preparation and training for the drastic change of approach to their task. Consequently serious attention will have to be devoted to the training of principals and circuit managers in the management of change. It was found that educators were very happy with various aspects of democratisation in education. The new structure of governing bodies (on which learners and educators may also serve), the application of the principle of gender equity, and multicultural education are but a few examples. The majority of respondents were satisfied with policy matters like that on admission of learners and school attendance by all races - an indication that most educators were in favour of multi-cultural education. Transformation bears important implications for education management, in-service and pre-service training. Since many educators do not enjoy financial and job security, their need for security is not satisfied. As a result their self-actualisation can be jeopardised. Their motivation and occupational experience is further hampered by a lack of a sense of physical safety and the presence of an unpleasant physical work environment. Because these basic and social needs are not met, self-actualisation cannot be realised. The majority of educators felt that at the time of the study (April 2000) they had less control over their own responsibilities than five years earlier. This finding holds serious implications for principals as managers and for education authorities. Management structures and systems should be designed in such a way as to pose ambitious, though attainable targets and challenges to enable educators to develop and assume responsibilities. One of the key reasons why educators experienced their profession as unpleasant and wanted to quit their profession is the state of discipline in schools. Although the vast majority of respondents are satisfied with the code of conduct for learners most educators were unhappy with the abolition of corporal punishment. The negative tendencies regarding educators' occupational experience were illustrated further by the disparity between their current perceptions (April 2000) and those of five years before. In the estimation of the vast majority of educators their job was no longer pleasant or meaningful. Transformation in education had a negative impact on the motivation and occupational experiences of a large percentage of educators. Education authorities will have to reflect carefully on those aspects of policy that make educators unhappy and lower their morale. Factors that demotivate educators or have no motivational value, will have to be eliminated or changed. However, change and innovation will always happen in education. Perspectives emanating from this research can be utilised for a better undersstanding and implementation of change and innovation.
Eksistensiele ontstigting as noodsaak vir die denkende psigoterapeut: literere teater as platform vir die estetiese disposisie
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2021-12) Conradie, Karlien; Swart, Estelle; Painter, Desmond William; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Educational Psychology.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Om tot stille nadenke gestem te word, is uniek aan die mens. In wysgerige konteks staan bepeinsing, nabetragting en bewussynsontwikkeling deur die eeue heen in die intiemste betrekking tot mekaar (Nietzsche, 1961; Jung, 2002; Heidegger, 1966; Fromm, 1994; De Beer, 2010 & 2018). Dit is deur middel van omvattende besinning oor die aard van sy bestaan midde-in dit wat is en steeds word, dat die mens probeer “bind aan die wêreld waarin hy hom bevind” (Van Niekerk, 2019, p. 14). Ingeborduur in hierdie potensiële vermoë tot selfontplooiing en betekenisskepping – die Nietzscheaanse wekroep – is die empatiese ingesteldheid. Dit is slegs wanneer die mens sensitief is vir en betrokke raak by die eie ontologiese problematiek dat hy die moontlike wesensaard van ŉ ander as’t ware kan invoel. Binne die konteks van die sielkunde, by name die psigoterapie, is hierdie sensitief-invoelende bewustheid, oftewel die empatiese ingesteldheid, onteenseglik deel van die repertoire van kwaliteite waaroor die terapeut behoort te beskik. Dikwels is die ingesteldheid van oningewyde psigoterapiestudente jeens dit wat hiér, nóú, tussen hulle en hul kliënte gebeur, beperk tot oormatige selfbewustheid ontdaan van ontologiese oorwegings. Die gevolg is meermale ŉ geykte vorm van empatie wat hoofsaaklik gebaseer is op sentimentele emosionaliteit. Dit blyk ook waar te wees dat, in die gedruis van ŉ denklose kuberkultuur wat selfingenomendheid en die opeenstapeling van enkelvoudige verklarings hoog aanslaan, die belang van sensitiewe invoelendheid, ingekeerde stilte, intuïtiewe denke en sake van die syn algaande geringskat word. Die aanwesigheid van ŉ eksistensieel-ontologiese ingesteldheid kan nie as blote gegewendheid aanvaar word of in die verbygaan gedoseer word as deel van die inleiding tot ŉ nagraadse module oor psigoterapeutiese vaardighede nie. Inteendeel, dit behoort doelbewus tydens die onderrig en opleiding van studente in opvoedkundige sielkunde en by wyse van spesifieke leeraktiwiteite gestimuleer en ontwikkel te word. Kuns, spesifiek literêre teater, beskik oor die inherente vermoë om die student of terapeut (toeskouer) te druk tot aan die soom van wat dit vereis om ŉ mens te wees, by implikasie dus ŉ appèl tot eksistensiële betrokkenheid (Dewey, 1958; Degenaar, in Van der Merwe & Duvenhage, 2008; Dalton, 2016). Meteens kan die toeskouer nie aan die inkanterende kring van ontroering ontkom nie en word hy in der waarheid ŉ deelnemer aan sy eie drome en verlangens. In hierdie studie word die bestaanselemente van literêre teater, insluitende liggaamlikheid (taal, beweging, handeling, klank), tyd, ruimtelikheid, verwikkeldheid en stoflikheid benut om sodanige eksistensiële betrokkenheid te deurgrond en ontologiese refleksie by veral opvoedkundige sielkunde studente aan te moedig. Die doel van hierdie studie – ŉ konseptuele uitpluising gebaseer op die Swedbergse teoretiseringsproses (2012, 2016, 2017) – is om ŉ filosofies-besinnende net te span in die deurgronding van die verband tussen die psigologiese funksie van literêre teater en die eksistensiële bewussyn van die opvoedkundige sielkunde student. Binne dié eksistensieel-ontologiese, oftewel bewussynsmatige ingesteldheid, is geleë ŉ tipe kunstenaarskap, vernaamlik die estetiese disposisie, gekenmerk deur die eienskappe van verskerpte intuïsie, sensitiewe invoelendheid, asook genuanseerde verbandlegging. Dit is ŉ kunstenaarskap wat die opvoedkundige sielkunde student toelaat om bestaans- en betekenislae eie aan die menslike wesensaard te ont-dek (ontbloot) en deur middel van komplekse denke singewend te artikuleer – te ver-taal. Hierdie studie het uiteindelik aanleiding gegee tot ŉ tentatiewe teoretiese raamwerk, sowel as heuristiek, vir die konseptualisering en inoefening van die estetiese disposisie as voorkeuringesteldheid by die opvoedkundige sielkunde student en psigoterapeut. ŉ Verdere uitvloeisel was die formulering van enkele leeraktiwiteite wat tydens psigoterapieonderrig en -opleiding van studente in opvoedkundige sielkunde aangewend kan word ten einde die estetiese disposisie te stimuleer en te verskerp. Hierdie teoretiese proefskrif poog om die estetiese disposisie as noodsaaklike ingesteldheid by die opvoedkundige sielkunde student en psigoterapeut te belig, veral in die konteks van ŉ dikwels denklose, meganistiese en nuttigheidsgeoriënteerde samelewing. Literêre teater, as platform vir die konseptualisering en bevordering van die estetiese disposisie, bied alternatiewe kurrikulummoontlikhede om veral die bewussynsopvoeding van studente in die veld van die opvoedkundige sielkunde, in die hand te werk.
Enhancing a sense of self in a group of socially marginalised adolescent boys through participatory action research
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2014-04) Damons, Lynne Nesta; Daniels, Doria; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Educational Psychology.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This dissertation sought to understand the experience of six participants as members of a cluster group of socially marginalised youth in a farmworker community. Through a collaborative process, the study sought to reframe the perceptions around the behavioural outcomes of membership to such an outcast group. Theories of empowerment through active participation underpinned the whole study. The study was qualitative in nature and used a Participatory Action research methodology which created the space for creative exploration with enabling methodologies such as the Youth Engagement Cycle and Activity Theory. Data were collected through focus group- and semi-structured interviews; participant observation and participant generated artefacts. Six adolescent males who were part of an already established cluster group of socially marginalised youth at a school were purposively selected into the study. The analysis of data was an ongoing and iterative process informed by the theories that underpinned the study and through content analysis of emerging themes. The study revealed that the cluster group was not formed with delinquent intent. Instead, it was created as a space that allowed its members to feel a sense of belonging, security and being valued. However, the group dynamic caused individual self-efficacy to become so enmeshed with collective agency that if left unchecked, it had the potential to propel its members along a trajectory to delinquency. The dissertation recommends understanding cluster groups as unique heterogeneous entities that show insight and empathy into the challenges their cohorts experience. Recognising that this elevates the peer group's influence above that of adults the study recommends a collaborative, well-structured and strategic intervention that allows individuals to experience success and self-influence in attaining mastery within the group dynamic.

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