An assessment of urban agriculture as a strategy for youth employment in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) : the case of Kisenso/Kinshasa
- Authors: Mubiala, Wivin Luwakunu
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Urban agriculture -- Congo (Democratic Republic) Youth -- Employment -- Congo (Democratic Republic)
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSoc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/14000 , vital:39759
- Description: In this study, urban agriculture was investigated as a strategy for youth employment and poverty alleviation in Kisenso / Kinshasa- DRC. The aim of the study was to identify the effect of urban agriculture on employment and job creation in the DRC. The specific objectives are to assess the sustainability of urban agriculture as an employment alternative for the youth in Kinshasa, to examine the extent of government support for the sector and evaluate the role urban agriculture plays in poverty reduction in the identified households. This study adopted a qualitative approach because of its strengths which facilitated a better understanding of the different data the study gathered. Indeed, by use of words such as why, when, how, and what, the study was able to explain many aspects that are not known on urban agriculture in Kinshasa. The quantitative approach has been used to present some results in the form of figures and graphs It was noted that income from urban agriculture is mainly used for needs such as: school fees (25percent), food (53percent), clothing (15percent), and health (7percent). Despite the fact that it does not satisfy all the needs of the workers, results from the study indicate that urban agriculture is making a contribution in the socio-economic development of Kisenso. It clearly appears that if the urban agriculture is funded and professionalised, it can significantly contribute towards creating jobs in Kinshasa. This study was focused only in Kisenso, meaning that more research should be conducted on the entire city of Kinshasa so that conclusions can be generalised on employment and poverty reduction. It will be interesting for the government to fund urban agriculture activity and make it profitable to the workers and the entire population of Kinshasa.
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- Date Issued: 2016
An investigation into how Grade 10 Physical Sciences learners make sense of resultant vectors
- Authors: Motsilili, Tshepo Elliot
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/1407 , vital:20054
- Description: The focus of this study was on how Grade 10 Physical Sciences learners make sense of resultant vectors. During my experience over more than 10 years as a Science teacher in Matatiele in the Eastern Cape Province I found that Grade 10 Physical Sciences learners consistently struggled to work with resultant vectors. Many studies have shown that learners in similar contexts are generally not doing well in Science. An interpretive paradigm was used in this study, focusing on the individual or a specific group in a qualitative case study approach and a social constructivist perspective. The unit of analysis was on how Grade 10 Physical Sciences learners make sense of resultant vectors. A diagnostic test, observation and videotaped lessons, learners’ workbooks, summative test and stimulated recall interviews were used to gather data. The data were analysed inductively using a thematic approach and in relation to the main research question: How do Grade 10 Physical Sciences learners make sense of resultant vectors? The data were validated through watching the videotaped lessons with the teacher who had been observed teaching vectors. Also, transcripts of the interviews and a summary of discussions were given back to the teacher whose learners had been observed to verify the learners’ responses and check for any misconceptions. It was found that linking scientific concepts to learners’ prior knowledge enabled them to learn in a relaxed and non-threatening environment. In doing so, sense making of resultant vectors was possible. The study thus recommends that teachers should be supported in their endeavours to help learners make sense of scientific concepts during teaching and learning situations. Some language related challenges that were also encountered warrant further research.
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- Date Issued: 2016
Exploring the use and relevance of narrative approaches to psycho-social interventions in the south African context : a mixed methods content analysis
- Authors: Smit, Christelle
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Narrative therapy
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSoc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/6432 , vital:29684
- Description: This study aims to explore the use and relevance of Narrative approaches to psycho-social interventions in the South African context. The profession of psychology in South Africa has been in a state of discontentment since the country’s turn to democracy in 1994 which has been voiced from both those within the profession and those it aims to assist. The loudest call is for a psychology that is relevant to the South African context – culturally, socially, and politically. Narrative approaches to psychotherapy and psycho-social intervention are grounded in post-modern and social-constructionist thought and offer an alternative to mainstream psychological theory. Narrative practice aims to promote social justice and views therapy as a political act. It is also an approach that values local knowledges and sees all therapeutic engagements as cross-cultural encounters which are approached with curiosity and a not-knowing stance, rather than an interpretive, analytical lens. This study has investigated what the existing literature has produced regarding the use and relevance of Narrative approaches in South Africa context. The research process was implemented using a mixed methods research methodology whereby a sample of 58 journal articles (n=58) were analysed using both quantitative and qualitative content analysis. The common themes that emerged from the articles were ‘viewing people in context’, ‘listening to the telling of stories’, ‘theoretical constructs of a narrative approach’, and ‘social phenomena’.
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- Date Issued: 2016
Managerial leadership in committees: a case study in a public rural combined school in the Ohangwena region, Namibia
- Authors: Vaeta, Simon
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/1220 , vital:20036
- Description: The existing education legislations in Namibia call for school principals to put in place appropriate support mechanisms and create necessary internal conditions for leaders, including teachers who do not hold formal leadership positions, to exert their sphere of influence beyond the classroom and into school-wide leadership activities. The establishment of various committees in the school is to enhance and improve the performance of the school and to create a pleasant work environment and spirit of collaboration and teamwork (Namibia Ministry of Education, [MoE], 2005). Leadership in committees is one of the expectations of new education policy. The aim of this study was to explore the leadership practices within a range of committees in a public rural combined school in the Ohangwena region of Namibia. It further unpacked the purpose, roles and membership of each of the four committees; how these committees were established; what leadership functions the teachers as committee members exercised and what challenges inhibited their leadership practices within committees. The study provided recommendations for future research in the area of leadership practices in committees. This research is a case study. The study is designed within the qualitative interpretive paradigm. It is rooted in a social constructivist tradition and employs a range of data collection tools, namely document analysis, semi-structured interviews, observations and questionnaires to enhance the validity of findings. The study found that committees were established in line with the Namibian education legislation. However, the study found the principal lacked the experience and skills to use the committee system more effectively, and maintained the status quo. This resulted in the committees practising pure management responsibilities rather than leadership interest. The study also found that only the leadership tasks were distributed to the committees but the power was not distributed. It was revealed that committees were dormant; while they were named in school documents, they functioned variously, intermittently or not at all. The significance of the contradiction was there were no regulations to guide the conduct of committee members.
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- Date Issued: 2016
Optimisation of clearcoat viscosity
- Authors: Bukula, Nwabisa Asanda
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Coating processes , Automobiles -- Bodies -- Maintenance and repair
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MTech
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/4814 , vital:20707
- Description: Modern automobiles are painted with basecoat, technology which is either metallic, solid colour or pearlescent. This requires protection from chemicals, scratching, weathering and UV light by applying a protective top coat (clearcoat) over the basecoat. For the clearcoat to cure into a hard protective shell it undergoes an irreversible crosslinking process. This usually takes place over the first four to five hours, depending on the formulation and weather conditions. The speed of crosslinking can be enhanced by temperature. Pot life is important as it can affect the overall quality of the painted surface. If crosslinking occurs too quickly, before the clearcoat is applied onto the surface, the clearcoat cannot be used to produce a good quality finish. The “expired” mixture is thus discarded. If used, the quality of the finished product cannot be guaranteed to last, and the paintwork may have to be redone. This often means removing the underlying paint and primer as well with the clearcoat film. Besides the time lost, the discarded clearcoat mixture often lands in the landfill, polluting ground water and the environment. It is thus important from the point of view of both the environment preservation and waste management, that as much clearcoat as possible is used without being wasted. It was proven in an earlier study (BSc Hon Formulation Science Treatise, 2011) that adding eugenol to a clearcoat mixture after crosslinking had started could reduce its viscosity, which is an indicator of crosslinking progress. Crosslinking subsequently resumed at a lower rate than in traditional blends. If stored away from oxygen and high temperatures, this blend could maintain optimum viscosity indefinitely. In this follow up study an optimum formulation was developed using D - optimal experimental design. It sought to extend the pot life to avoid waste to spray painters while saving the environment from pollution. The formulation that gave the desired viscosity after five hours of pot life was adopted. It was hypothesised that the optimum formulated clearcoat mixture would have a longer pot life than its traditional counterparts, and that it would perform just as well as the traditional clearcoat mixtures. To study the rate of crosslinking (disappearance of functional groups and appearance of the urethane bond), FTIR spectrometry was performed on a mixture produced from the optimized formula in comparison to that of a traditional mixture (the control). The rate of disappearance of functional groups was found to be lower in the eugenol mixture than in the control mixture. After six hours, eugenol was added into the control mixture, and this seemed to reduce the viscosity with the re-emergence of functional groups in the mixture. After 24 hours of crosslinking, an FTIR scan was done on the solid sample and this revealed that the eugenol mixture had crosslinked fully, with no detectable functional groups in the sample.
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- Date Issued: 2016