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"But what story?": a narrative-discursive analysis of "white" Afrikaners' accounts of male involvement in parenthood decision-making

  • Authors: Morison, Tracy
  • Date: 2011
  • Subjects: Family planning -- South Africa -- Psychological aspects Family size Birth intervals Men -- South Africa -- Attitudes Men -- South Africa -- Psychology Couples -- South Africa -- Psychology Afrikaners -- Attitudes
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
  • Identifier: vital:3025 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002534
  • Description: Despite the increased focus on men in reproductive research, little is known about male involvement in the initial decision/s regarding parenthood (i.e., to become a parent or not) and the subsequent decision-making that may ensue (e.g., choices about timing or spacing of births). In particular, the parenthood decision-making of “White”, heterosexual men from the middle class has been understudied, as indicated in the existing literature. In South Africa, this oversight has been exacerbated by the tendency for researchers to concentrate on “problematic” men, to the exclusion of the “boring, normal case”. I argue that this silence in the literature is a result of the taken for granted nature of parenthood in the “normal” heterosexual life course. In this study, I have turned the spotlight onto the norm of “Whiteness” and heterosexuality by studying those who have previously been overlooked by researchers. I focus on “White” Afrikaans men’s involvement in parenthood decision-making. My aim was to explore how constructions of gender inform male involvement in decision-making, especially within the South African context where social transformation has challenged traditional conceptions of male selfhood giving rise to new and contested masculine identities and new discourses of manhood and fatherhood. In an effort to ensure that women’s voices are not marginalised in the research, as is often the case in studies of men and masculinity, I conducted in-depth, semi-structured interviews about male involvement in decision-making with both “White” Afrikaans women and men. There were 23 participants in total, who all identified as heterosexual and middle-class. The participants were divided into two age cohorts (21 – 30 years and >40 years), which were then differentiated according to gender, reproductive status, and relationship status. Treating the interviews as jointly produced narratives, I analysed them by means of a performativity/performance lens. This dual analytic lens focuses on how particular narrative performances are simultaneously shaped by the interview setting and the broader discursive context. The lens was fashioned by synthesising Butler’s theory of performativity with Taylor’s narrative-discursive method. This synthesis (1) allows for Butler’s notion of “performativity” to be supplemented with that of “performance”; (2) provides a concrete analytical strategy in the form of positioning analysis; and (3) draws attention to both the micro politics of the interview conversation and the operation of power on the macro level, including the possibility of making “gender trouble”. The findings of the study suggest that the participants experienced difficulty narrating about male involvement in parenthood decision-making, owing to the taken for granted nature of parenthood for heterosexual adults. This was evident in participants’ sidelining of issues of “deciding” and “planning” and their alternate construal of childbearing as a non-choice, which, significantly served to bolster hetero-patriarchal norms. A central rhetorical tool for accomplishing these purposes was found in the construction of the “sacralised” child. In discursively manoeuvring around the central problematic, the participants ultimately produced a “silence” in the data that repeats the one in the research literature.
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  • Date Issued: 2011

"On se Débrouille": Congolese migrants' search for survival and success in Muizenberg, Cape Town

  • Authors: Owen, Joy N
  • Date: 2011
  • Subjects: Foreign workers, Congolese -- Social aspects -- South Africa -- Muizenberg Social capital (Sociology) Immigrants -- Social networks -- South Africa -- Muizenberg South Africa -- Emigration and immigration -- Social aspects
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
  • Identifier: vital:2094 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002657
  • Description: Situated in a Congolese transnational 'community' in Muizenberg, a suburb of Cape Town, South Africa, the thesis focuses on the lives of three middle class Congolese male informants. Their contingent acquaintance with a South African white Christian man gave them access to valuable social capital; social capital that positioned them advantageously to date and eventually marry European white women and thereby further their culturally-defmed economic/material career goals. To demonstrate the socio-economic trajectory of the three, I compare their social positioning with other Congolese men and women resident in Muizenberg. I show how these men and women, like my three main informants, activate their Congolese 'habitus' to secure access to social networks and the social capital therein. The difference between these Congolese men and women and my three main informants, however, is their strategic use of contingency, and the instrumental capitalisation of their cultural capital through the creation of a client-patron relationship with a South African in order to further their life goals. The thesis reorientates the migration literature on African migration from a focus on the implications of migrant remittances to the home country, to a focus on individual migrants' agency in the host country and the cultural influence of the society of origin. While I acknowledge that my research participants are part of a transnational social field, the focus on one locality and the relatively longitudinal approach of the study grounds the analysis both in the day-to-day lives of these migrants and in their migrant careers in and beyond Muizenberg and South Africa. With this orientation, the thesis is able to reveal that some Congolese migrants are comfortable to create a holding place for themselves in South Africa, while others - ever aware of the Congolese ambition to travel overseas - migrate beyond South African borders. For these Congolese migrants, South Africa is then a transit space. Fundamentally, all of my research participants give expression to Mobutu's edict of on se debrouille (literally, 'one fends for oneself), but some are more able to achieve the ultimate aspiration of settling in the First World -lola.
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  • Date Issued: 2011

"Too tired to speak?": investigating the reception of Radio Grahamstown's Lunchtime Live show as a means of linking local communities to power

  • Authors: Tsarwe, Stanley Zvinaiye
  • Date: 2011
  • Subjects: Community radio -- South Africa -- Grahamstown Radio broadcasting -- South Africa -- Grahamstown Radio journalism -- South Africa -- Grahamstown Mass media -- Political aspects -- South Africa -- Grahamstown Grahamstown (South Africa) -- Economic conditions -- 21st century Grahamstown (South Africa) -- Social conditions -- 21st century Civil society -- South Africa -- Grahamstown Political participation -- South Africa -- Grahamstown
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:3488 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002943
  • Description: This study sets out to investigate Lunchtime Live, a twice-weekly, one-hour long current affairs show broadcast on a small community radio station, Radio Grahamstown, to understand its role in the local public sphere, and its value in helping civil society’s understanding of and involvement in the power structures and political activities in Grahamstown. Lunchtime Live seeks to cultivate a collective identity and promote public participation in the public affairs of Grahamstown. As a key avenue of investigation, this study seeks to test theory against practice, by evaluating Lunchtime Live’s aspirations against the audiences’ perception of it. This investigation uses qualitative content analysis of selected episodes of recorded transcripts of the shows that aired between August 2010 and March 2011, together with the audiences’ verbalised experiences of this programme through focus group discussions. The study principally uses qualitative research informed by reception theory. The research reveals three key findings. First, that resonance rather than resistance is the more dominant ‘stance’ or ‘attitude’ towards the content of Lunchtime Live. Residents interviewed agreed that the programme is able to give a “realistic” representation of their worldview, and thus is able to articulate issues that affect their lives. Second, that whilst the programme is helping establish links between members of the civil society as well as between civil society and their political representatives, residents feel that local democracy is failing to bring qualitative improvements to their everyday lives and that more ‘participation’ is unlikely to change this. Most respondents blame this on a lack of political will, incompetence, corruption and populist rhetoric by politicians who fail to deliver on the mantra of ‘a better life for all’ in the socioeconomic sphere. The study finds a scepticism and even cynicism that participatory media seems to be able to do little to dilute. Thirdly, in spite of the largely positive view about Lunchtime Live’s capacity to be a platform for public engagement, its participatory potential is structurally constrained by the material privations of most of its listeners. Given that in order to participate in talk shows and discussions audience members have to phone in, economic deprivation often precludes this. It is clear from this research that despite shows such as Lunchtime Live that are exploring new techniques of popular involvement, the voice of the ordinary people still struggles to be heard.
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  • Date Issued: 2011

'Amanuensis' and 'Steatopygia': the complexity of 'Telling the Tale 'in Zoë Wicomb's David's Story

  • Authors: Dass, Minesh
  • Date: 2011
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/142599 , vital:38094 , http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/eia.v38i2.3
  • Description: Two words, 'amanuensis' and 'steatopygia,' each burdened with its own history, appear in Zoë Wicomb's David's Story with a frequency that commands further consideration. This study shows that these two words are in fact narratives which reveal the tension, inherent in all historical narratives, between that which is denotative or factual and that which is connotative or fictional. Similarly, the words also form the shifting horizon from which we may see history as a narrative of the past that is always also a narrative of the present. The link between these words will ultimately show the complex, compromised role of the narrator and, perhaps, of all historians.
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  • Date Issued: 2011

'Carrying the fire' : Cormac McCarthy's moral philosophy

  • Authors: Davies, Christopher
  • Date: 2011
  • Subjects: McCarthy, Cormac, 1933- -- Criticism and interpretation American fiction -- 20th century -- Moral and ethical aspects American fiction -- 20th century -- History and criticism
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:2217 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002260
  • Description: In this thesis, I argue that the question of ethics, despite claims to the contrary, is a central concern in Cormac McCarthy’s fiction. My principal contention, in this regard, is that an approach that is not reliant on conventional systems of meaning is needed if one is to engage effectively with the moral value of this writer’s oeuvre. In devising such an approach, I draw heavily on the ‘immoralist’ writings of Friedrich Nietzsche. The first chapter of the study contends that good and evil, terms central to conventional morality, do not occupy easily definable positions in McCarthy’s work. In the second chapter, the emphasis falls on the way in which language and myth’s mediation of reality informs choice. The final chapter focuses on the post-apocalyptic setting of The Road, in which normative systems of value are completely absent. It argues that, despite this absence, McCarthy presents a compassionate ethic that is able to find purchase in the harsh world depicted in the novel. Finally, then, this study argues that McCarthy’s latest novel, The Road, requires a reconsideration of the critical claim that his work is nihilistic and that it negates moral value.
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  • Date Issued: 2011

'I want to tell the story again': re-telling in selected novels by Jeanette Winterson and Alan Warner

  • Authors: Collett, Jenna Lara
  • Date: 2011
  • Subjects: Warner, Alan Criticism and interpretation Winterson, Jeanette, 1959- -- Criticism and interpretation English fiction -- 20th century -- History and criticism
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:2248 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002291
  • Description: This thesis investigates acts of ‘re-telling’ in four selected novels by Jeanette Winterson and Alan Warner.Re-telling, as I have defined it, refers to the re-imagining and re-writing of existing narratives from mythology, fairy tale, and folktale, as well as the re-visioning of scientific discourses and historiography. I argue that this re-telling is representative of a contemporary cultural phenomenon, and is evidence of a postmodern genre that some literary theorists have termed re-visionary fiction. Despite the prevalent re-telling of canonical stories throughout literary history, there is much evidence for the emergence of a specifically contemporary trend of re-visionary literature. Part One of this thesis comprises two chapters which deal with Winterson’s Sexing the Cherry (1989) and Weight (2005) respectively. In these chapters, I argue that, although the feminist and historiographic elements of her work are significant, there exist further motivations for Winterson’s acts of re-telling in both Sexing the Cherry and Weight. In Chapter One, I analyse Winterson’s subversion and re-imagining of historiography, as well as her re-telling of fairy tale, in Sexing the Cherry. Chapter Two provides a discussion of Winterson’s re-telling of the myth of Atlas from Greek mythology, in which she draws on the discourses of science, technology, and autobiography, in Weight. Part Two focuses on Warner’s first two novels, Morvern Callar (1995) and These Demented Lands (1997). In both novels, Warner re-imagines aspects of Christian, Celtic and pagan mythology in order to debunk the validity of biblical archetypes and narratives in a contemporary working-class setting, as well as to endow his protagonist with goddess-like or mythical sensibilities. Chapter Three deals predominantly with Warner’s use of language, which I argue is central to his blending of mythological and contemporary content, while Chapter Four analyses his use of myth in these two novels. This thesis argues that while both Winterson and Warner share many of the aims associated with contemporary re-visionary fiction, their novels also exceed the boundaries of the genre in various ways. Winterson and Warner may, therefore, represent a new class of re-visionary writers, whose aim is not solely to subvert the pre-text but to draw on its generic discourses and thematic conventions in order to demonstrate the generic and discursive possibilities inherent in the act of re-telling.
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  • Date Issued: 2011

'Iron on iron': modernism engaging apartheid in some South African railway poems

  • Authors: Wright, Laurence
  • Date: 2011
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: vital:7068 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007459 , https://doi.org/10.1080/00138398.2011.626177
  • Description: preprint , Modernism tends to be criticised, internationally, as politically conservative. The objection is often valid, although the charge says little about the quality of artistic achievement involved. This article argues that the alliance between Modernism and political conservatism is by no means a necessary one, and that there are instances where modernist vision has been used to convey substantive political insight, effective social critique and solid resistance. To illustrate the contrast,the article juxtaposes the abstract Modernism associated with Ben Nicholson and World War 2, with a neglected strain of South African railway poetry which uses modernist techniques to effect a powerful critique of South Africa’s apartheid dispensation. The article sustains a distinction between universalising modernist art that requires ethical work from its audiences to achieve artistic completion, and art in which modernist vision performs the requisite ethical work within its own formal constraints. Four very different South African railway poems, by Dennis Brutus, John Hendrickse, Alan Paton, and Leonard Koza, are examined and contextualised to demonstrate ways in which a modernist vision has been used to portray the social disruptions caused by apartheid. Modernist techniques are used to turn railway experience into a metonym for massive social disruption,without betraying the social reality of the transport technology involved.
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  • Date Issued: 2011

'n Analise van die gebruik van satire in enkele tekste van Marlene van Niekerk

  • Authors: Stoltz, Wessel
  • Date: 2011
  • Subjects: Van Niekerk, Marlene -- Criticism and interpretation , Satire
  • Language: Afrikaans
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:8477 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1018804
  • Description: Through the ages satirists have exposed and ridiculed certain malpractices in society in their texts. They have often done so in a language filled with irony and exaggeration. For the purpose of this dissertation I wish to focus on three texts by Marlene van Niekerk, the eminent Afrikaans author, and analyse the way in which she uses satire to comment particularly on contemporary South African society and address issues such as violence, the 2010 World Cup, corruption and violence against women and children. The three texts under discussion are the two lengthy poems, ―Suid Afrika and ―Brief aan president Motlanthe [―Letter to President Motlanthe] and her play Die kortstondige raklewe van Anastacia W [The brief shelf-life of Anastacia W]. She bases her writings on real life incidents and events written about in the newspapers and these clippings serve as intertexts for her critique of society.
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  • Date Issued: 2011

'n Ontleding van die reisgedigte van Joan Hambidge in 'Visums by verstek'

  • Authors: Koen, Dewald
  • Date: 2011
  • Subjects: African literature , Authors, African , Travel writing
  • Language: Afrikaans
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:8462 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1010652 , African literature , Authors, African , Travel writing
  • Description: Reisbeskrywings, en veral die reispoësie as genre, het met die aanbreek van die twintigste eeu „n opbloei binne die Afrikaanse letterkunde beleef. Talle Afrikaanse skrywers en digters het na verskillende kontinente gereis en hul ondervindinge in roman, dagboek of joernaalvorm aangeteken. Die Afrikaanse skrywers sluit hulself gevolglik aan by die tradisie van die reisbeskrywing wat reeds eeue lank deel vorm van die globale literêre kanon. Reispoësie kom veral voor in die werk van digters soos C. Louis Leipoldt, Uys Krige, W.E.G. Louw, N.P. van Wyk Louw, D.J. Opperman, Breyten Breytenbach, Lina Spies, Petra Muller, Joan Hambidge en meer onlangs Melt Myburgh. Dit is veral Hambidge wat oor reis in haar poësie skryf. In 2011 verskyn „n versameling van Hambidge se reisgedigte wat sedert 1985-2010 in van haar bundels verskyn het onder die titel Visums by verstek – ‘n Keur uit die reisgedigte van Joan Hambidge. Hambidge bespreek sekere deurlopende temas in haar gedigte. Die temas sluit in: die poësie en die verhouding tussen die liefde en die poësie, die mens as alleenreisiger deur die wêreld, die dood en die huldiging van gestorwenes asook die beskrywing van sekere gebeurtenisse in die wêreldgeskiedenis. In hierdie skripsie word gefokus op die ontleding van Hambidge se reisgedigte wat onder drie verwante temas bespreek word naamlik die stad as vreemde rumite, reis as metafoor vir ontvlugting van die geliefde en reis as kreatiewe stimulus. Hierdie ondersoek geskied aan die hand van onder meer Pratt se konsep van “kontaksones”. Reispoësie word binne die konteks van globalisasie as „n belangrike bron van inligting en inspirasie beskou aangesien dit tot „n nuwe geslag wêreldreisigers spreek wat opnuut die literêre waarde van die reisbeskrywing- en poësie ontdek het.
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  • Date Issued: 2011

'Technic' practices of the computer game Lanner: identity development through the LAN-gameplay experience

  • Authors: Khunyeli, Ramotsamai Itumeleng
  • Date: 2011
  • Subjects: Computer games -- Social aspects , Computer games -- Psychological aspects , Computer games -- Sex differences , Information technology -- Social aspects , Social interaction -- Computer network resources , Local area networks (Computer networks) -- Social aspects , Race discrimination -- Education (Higher) -- Computer network resources
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:3534 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1013405
  • Description: This thesis is a reception analysis using qualitative interviews to investigate the formation of cultural groups around computer-game LANs present in Rhodes University. It also looks at how issues of social inequalities evident on the university's campus impact on the participation of students in these LANs. The findings of this study are that the participants have established a community around the practice of computer LAN-gameplay based on values developed through the combination of the material and gameworlds. It serves as a home-on-campus for them; where they can fully explore their passion for games thus reaffirming their identity as gamers on a campus where being a gamer is viewed negatively. In this light, computer-game playing is not just a practice these participants perform, but a culture they live out every day. This is a culture predominantly lived out by men. One of the reasons for this is because most women have been raised to believe to have negative predispositions about digital gaming e.g. that it is childish, addictive and anti-social, but also that computer are meant to be used by men - women use them only when it is absolutely necessary, for example, that it is childish, for academic-related purposes. As a result, not many of them will use computers for any otherreason for fear of being socially criticised. In addition, the gaming culture being dominated by whites is due to the fact that admittance in to this community is still unaffordable for the majority of black students on the Rhodes University campus as a result of their social backgrounds.
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  • Date Issued: 2011

(In)visibility and the exercise of power: a genealogy of the politics of drag spectacles in a small city in South Africa

  • Authors: Marx, Jacqueline Greer
  • Date: 2011
  • Subjects: Female impersonators -- Research -- South Africa Male impersonators -- Research -- South Africa Apartheid -- South Africa -- Psychological aspects
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
  • Identifier: vital:3013 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002522
  • Description: This study investigates the politics of homosexual visibility in dressing-up, cross-dressing and drag performances that take place in a small city in South Africa over a period of sixty years, beginning in the 1950s and the inception of apartheid policy, through the socio-political changes in the 1990s to the 21st century post-apartheid context. The study draws on Butler’s notion of performative resistance and adopts a Foucauldian genealogy to examine the conditions that make visibility possible and through which particular representations of homosexuality are articulated and read, or remain unread or misread. Information about dressing-up, cross-dressing and drag performance was obtained in interviews, from documentary evidence, and from audio-visual recordings of drag shows and gay and lesbian beauty pageant competitions. Semiotics and a Foucauldian approach to analysing discourse were used to interpret the written, spoken, and visual texts. In this study I argue that the state prohibition of homosexuality during apartheid meant that people could not admit to knowing about it, and this ‘not knowing’ provided a cover for homosexual behaviour in public. At this time, the threat of being identified was associated with police raids on private parties. In the 1990s, homosexual visibility was more viable than it had been in the past. However, the strategies that were adopted to negotiate public visibility at this time were tailored to appease normative sentiments rather than challenge them. I argue that, historically, race and gender have played a role in diminishing and exacerbating homosexual visibility and its politics. Addressing the potential for harm that is associated with homosexual visibility in the 21st century post-apartheid context, this study considers the circumstances in which invisibility is desirable.
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  • Date Issued: 2011

3000 miles from home: a new Gastrosericus baobabicus Pulawski, 1995 (Hymenoptera, Larridae) distribution record highlights that the Sahel has a distinct entomofaunal signature

  • Authors: Clitheroe, C-L , Villet, Martin H
  • Date: 2011
  • Language: English
  • Type: Article
  • Identifier: vital:6846 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1011099
  • Description: [from introduction] On October 30, 1953, an unidentified female wasp (Fig. 1) was collected from ‘Belet Uen, Somaliland’ (= Beledweyne, 4°44’N 45°12’E), situated in the valley of the Shebelle River, HiraanProvince,Somalia. It was deposited in the aculeate Hymenoptera collection of the Albany Museum, Grahamstown by D. Greathead prior to 1968. Apart from the words ‘Somaliland’ and ‘Desert Locust Survey’ the label is handwritten and the collector’snameis not recorded. Greathead’s sister, S. Gess (Albany Museum), deciphered the label and stated that he had worked for the Desert Locust Survey, investigating the natural enemies of locusts and had been in Somalia (then Somaliland) at that time (Murphy & Cock 2007). The specimen was sent in 2004 by F. Gess to W. Pulawski, who determined it as Gastrosericus baobabicus Pulawski, 1995. Gastrosericus species prey on spiders and a variety of small insects (Pulawski 1995), including Orthoptera (Krombein & Pulawski 1986), so it is likely that Greathead collected the specimen in connection with his interest in the insect enemies of Acridoidea (Orthoptera) (Greathead 1962).
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  • Date Issued: 2011

A case study investigation into drama in education as an effective teaching methodology to support the goals of outcome based education

  • Authors: Elliott, Terri Anne
  • Date: 2011
  • Subjects: Drama in education -- South Africa Competency based education -- South Africa Curriculum planning -- South Africa Student centered learning -- South Africa Critical thinking -- Study and teaching -- South Africa
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:2160 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008306
  • Description: The introduction of outcomes based education (OBE) in the form of Curriculum 2005 (C2005), the National Curriculum Statement (NCS) and the Revised National Curriculum Statement (RNCS) in post-apartheid South Africa resulted in a shift from a content-centred to a learner-centred view on education. This transition took place rapidly as the new government wanted to introduce a democratic education system after the divisive Bantu education system from Apartheid. However, after the changes were implemented, education in South Africa was theoretically outcomes based but practically many educators were still teaching in a content-centred manner. The research puts forward the proposal that drama-in-education (D-i-E) is a useful means by which to align the practical and theoretical goals of OBE within the context of South Africa's current RNCS. This hypothesis drives the main research question: "Can D-i-E be an effective teaching methodology to realise the goals of the RNCS and generate OBE learning environments in a South African high school?" D-i-E is a learner-centred teaching methodology and in practise it meets many of the goals and Critical Cross-Field Outcomes (CCFOs) of OBE. Some of these include the fact that learners can: • Practice problem-solving skills; • Engage with critical and creative thinking; • Grow cultural and aesthetic sensitivity; • Work effectively in groups; and ii. • Learn in inclusive environments that cater for different learning styles and levels. The research examines the use of D-i-E as an outcomes based methodology by which the RNCS could be implemented in the classroom. This is explored through the use of qualitative research in the form of a case study investigation at a South African high school. The case study was conducted with Grade 11 and Grade 12 Dramatic Arts learners and involves an analysis of a D-i-E approach to learning. The conclusion that D-i-E is an effective outcomes based teaching methodology which could assist educators in realising the RNCS was largely reached through participant observation of D-i-E classes and by analysing the learners' journals in which they reflected on D-i-E experiences. The learners' feedback about the experience was generally positive and they reflected that they found D-i-E beneficial because of the fact that it engaged them experientially. They also reflected that D-i-E provided them with a more meaningful and exciting way of learning. These findings are however only generalisable to the type of context (Dramatic Arts learners from a well-resourced girls' high school) in which the research was conducted. The findings provide detailed insight into a specific case study and may be beneficial to educators in South Africa who aim to make use of the same or similar methodologies in their classroom practice. D-i-E also supports many of the underlying tenants of OBE such as learner-centredness, learner diversity and inclusive learning, and can effectively aid educators in implementing the RNCS in an outcomes based way.
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  • Date Issued: 2011

A case study of corporate social investment: employing people with intellectual disabilities

  • Authors: Pillay, Jayalakshmi
  • Date: 2011
  • Subjects: Kuyasa Special School (Grahamstown, South Africa) , Rhodes University -- Employees , Social responsibility of business -- South Africa , People with mental disabilities -- Employment -- South Africa , Employee retention -- South Africa , Industrial relations -- South Africa , Vocational guidance -- South Africa
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
  • Identifier: vital:733 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003853 , Kuyasa Special School (Grahamstown, South Africa) , Rhodes University -- Employees , Social responsibility of business -- South Africa , People with mental disabilities -- Employment -- South Africa , Employee retention -- South Africa , Industrial relations -- South Africa , Vocational guidance -- South Africa
  • Description: This research was undertaken within the broader concept of Corporate Social Investments and how this concept is integrated within the context of staff retention and what this means for business and creating employment opportunities for people with disabilities. Illustrated through the description of CSI literature and intending to explain the link between CSI and employee retention, research questions presented as part of the outcomes for the research examines notion that there is a relationship between Corporate Social Investment and Employee Retention. Reference to the case study "Rhodes / Kuyasa Partnership" illustrates how such partnerships attempt to create opportunities for the community, the organisation, people with disabilities and employees at large. The case study was written to be used as a teaching case study in the context of Human Resources, Business Sustainability and Corporate Social Investment. The effectiveness and viability of the Kuyasa / Rhodes partnership will highlight acceptance and or non acceptance of people with disability by the non-disabled workforce. This case study will highlight CSI linkages that lead to staff retention, higher job satisfaction, lower turnover of staff, enhanced community engagement, creating opportunities that accommodate people with special needs, developing models that can be replicated in other organisations, creating additional opportunities for existing staff. Metcalf (2008:61) suggests that organisations need to ensure that the leadership and organisation culture within organisations is appropriate to engage staff with disabilities and non-disabled staff, and that their most senior managers demonstrate their commitment to develop, and help others develop, in the same way. The Kuyasa Rhodes Partnership may have started off as a Retention Strategy, however has given rise to a social initiative that can be replicated in other enabling organisations. The case study material was acquired through one on one interviews, and a focus group session on the effectiveness with the retention of such employees with intellectual disabilities, internship and mentoring issues, and as well as issues such as affirmative action, and the benefits and shortcomings of staff retention to the organisation. Key stakeholders interviewed for this case study expressed differing view -points, and in particular the benefits and shortcomings of this initiative. The Rhodes Kuyasa initiative appears to have achieved some success in enabling young adults / learners to work in a mainstream working environment by developing employment skills and life skills, and by improving their employment opportunities. Factors critical to the continuation of such initiatives included: the close involvement with both partners (Rhodes and the Kuyasa Special School), the sensitive treatment of the learners, and creating internal departmental partnerships within the Rhodes environment. A selected group of ten learners were mentored and provided with full time employment within the industrial Campus Food Services facility. Discussion that was highlighted in the case study must give consideration to a more investigative approach into overcoming the barriers of discrimination in the workplace and the major barriers to skills development. These have highlighted a number of relatively consistent themes around what were the successful and unsuccessful strategies. Integration of people with disabilities within the Rhodes University service areas has had positive effects for the disabled learner and employee workplace. People with disabilities indicated on how having mainstream employment allowed them to be independent, have a purpose in life and enhance their self worth in their communities and place of employment. Furthermore, being employed had positive repercussions on the person‘s co-workers. By demonstrating their competence, people with disabilities have had significant impact on other people‘s attitudes to disabled persons. Discussions held with the Principal of the Kuyasa Specialised School highlighted the need for crucial planning within special schools for disabled people in the area of transition from school to skills development and work. Skills development guidance is important in ensuring a choice of relevant interventions and obtaining the necessary information. Some staff expressed frustration at being with co-workers who questioned their presence and placement in the kitchen environment. Even though the disabled person was suitably placed they faced stereotypical behaviour and attitudes from their co-workers on what people with disabilities can or cannot do. Staff with intellectual disabilities commented that their co-workers see them as needing constant attention and care and not being capable of working. Some of the staff with disabilities had to work much harder to be recognised by their co-workers and supervisors. Currently few people with disabilities seem to be receiving career guidance while at school, as reflected in the case studies. One person with an intellectual disability described how the intervention of developing a comprehensive school leaving plan, which was then implemented by the school, allowed for good transition from school to Rhodes University. The role of personal factors such as life skills, personal motivation, the desire for personal achievement and a positive attitude were common themes that came out of the focus group. Initiatives to ensure that people accept themselves, their circumstances and are able to express their desires and realise their dreams are important factors. In addressing the barriers, co-worker attitudes make a big difference to how effectively the disabled person is able to participate in the training and employment. The future focus must be enabling and in line with successes and failures in the areas of employee integration in the workplace, life-skills development for people with disabilities. A clear career guidance plan should be developed for all disabled children before they leave school. This plan should include provision of adequate information on different career options and training. The negative attitudes of co-workers and supervisors should be changed by providing training support to ensure that they feel confident to meet the needs of disabled staff. Employers should be providing support and information on how to meet the needs of disabled employees. People with intellectual disabilities are an integral part of the South African population. Business and social enterprises need to have a focused inclusive strategy to integrate people with intellectual disabilities within the South African society to ensure equity and diversity awareness. Working with people with intellectual disabilities has been the focus of this research to ensure long term sustainable employment, CSI and Employment equity. Integrating Corporate Social Investment policies with Human Resources Equity policies are important factors in ensuring that people with intellectual disabilities are a fundamental focus in recruitment and retention strategies within business and social enterprises. Initiatives such as the Kuyasa / Rhodes Partnership are attempting to align to the overall objectives of incorporating people with intellectual disabilities into mainstream work, in particular, with the objective of incorporating people with disabilities in some accessible sections within the organisation. This contributes to the Rhodes University Campus Food Services becoming an example of excellence in the CSI and employee retention field. It is hoped that this teaching case study will make an important contribution to students learning about sustainable business practices, and for business focusing on employment recruitment and retention strategies to integrate people with intellectual disabilities within their organisations.
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  • Date Issued: 2011

A case study of the implementation of science process skills for grades 4 to 7 learners in natural sciences in a South African primary school

  • Authors: Ambross, Johannes Nikolaas
  • Date: 2011
  • Subjects: Science -- Study and teaching (Primary) , Science -- Study and teaching -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth -- Evaluation , Education -- Evaluation
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
  • Identifier: vital:9501 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1411 , Science -- Study and teaching (Primary) , Science -- Study and teaching -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth -- Evaluation , Education -- Evaluation
  • Description: With the publication of the National Curriculum Statement (2002) (NCS) the use and development of science process skills have become a critical part of the teaching and learning of the Natural Sciences in South Africa. This study sought to evaluate the implementation and development of these basic skills by four grade 4-7 educators at classroom level at a primary school in the northern areas of Port Elizabeth. Qualitative data for this evaluation were collected through educator interviews, classroom observation as well as a focus-group interview. Quantitative data were gathered by means of a Science Process Skills Observation Scale and through examining the learners' assessment activities. An Assessment Activity Science Process Skill Rating-Scale was used to evaluate assessment activities. Data generated from this study were carefully analysed and on the basis of their interpretation it was concluded that the implementation and development of science process skills were strongly influenced by the educators' understanding of these basic concepts, the belief held by each educator about their role and how their learners learn, the presence of quality support and effective training programmes as well continuous professional development.
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  • Date Issued: 2011

A case study of the strategic leadership displayed by Kevin Hedderwick at Famous Brands between 2004-2009

  • Authors: Tom, Lubabalo Alexander
  • Date: 2011
  • Subjects: Hedderwick, Kevin Famous Brands Leadership -- South Africa Case studies Strategic planning -- South Africa Case studies Corporate culture -- South Africa Case studies Organizational behavior -- South Africa Case studies Financial management -- South Africa Case studies Food industry and trade -- South Africa Case studies
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
  • Identifier: vital:772 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003893
  • Description: Research studies and the review of academic literature has found that strategic leadership had a direct impact on organisational climate, and that climate in turn accounted for nearly one third of the financial results of organisations (Goleman, 2000). The conclusion from research conducted across 13 industries established that over a 20 year period, leadership accounted for more variations in performance than any other variable (Northouse, 2006). This thesis confines its research to a case study on Famous Brands. Famous Brands is currently one of Africa’s leading Quick Service Restaurant and Casual Dining franchisors and is also represented in the United Kingdom. The Group also has a manufacturing arm and supplies its franchisees, the retail trade and the broader hospitality industry with a wide range of meat, sauce, bakery, ice cream, fruit juice and mineral water products. At the time when the company’s name changed from Steers Holdings to Famous Brand in 2004, Kevin Hedderwick was appointed as Chief Operating Officer. The research examines how Kevin Hedderwick has exercised strategic leadership and thereby influenced Famous Brands’ performance. Hedderwick displays qualities, attributes and behaviours that are characterized by the phenomenon of “strategic leadership”. A quantitative analysis of Famous Brands financial performance (between 2005 and 2009) was undertaken. Further qualitative descriptions were used to further give meaning to the financial results. The success experienced by Famous Brands since Hedderwick’s appointment, seem to suggest that strategic choices and initiatives have been met with great success. The research is presented in the form of a case study that can be developed into a teaching case to be used in the classroom to illustrate the exercise of strategic leadership. The researcher explored a qualitative research framework by collecting and assimilating data from available documentation, and from a formal interview that was conducted with Mr Hedderwick. Information was also obtained from interviews that were conducted with other senior executives and influential personnel. This research concludes that the success of organisations is dependent on the interventions of a strategic leader who displays a specialist set of skills and behaviours. These strategic leaders have the ability to successfully influence their employees, thereby creating an enabling environment for the implementation of their strategic choices.
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  • Date Issued: 2011

A comparative analysis of the development of performers' rights in the United Kingdom and South Africa

  • Authors: Wagenaar, Tanya
  • Date: 2011
  • Subjects: Copyright -- Performing rights -- Great Britain , Copyright -- Performing rights -- South Africa
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , LLM
  • Identifier: vital:10215 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1442 , Copyright -- Performing rights -- Great Britain , Copyright -- Performing rights -- South Africa
  • Description: Although performers have been rife for centuries, no legal regime was required for their protection owing to the fact that the nature of their performances was transitory. It was not until the invention of the phonogram in 1877, that the need to provide performers with the means to protect the unauthorised uses of their performances became an issue. The subsequent development of performers' rights has been fuelled by the rapid technological developments of the modern age which has prompted the international community to respond through various international instruments. Performers initially sought protection in terms of the Berne Convention in 1886, but it was not until the Rome Convention in 1961 that performers were first accorded international recognition. This was followed by the TRIPs Agreement in 1994 and the WPPT in 1996. This work involves an investigation into the historical development of performers' rights in the United Kingdom and South Africa. This is followed by a comparative analysis of the current state of performers' rights as between the United Kingdom and South Africa with a view to proposing recommendations for improving the level of protection accorded performers in South Africa. Arguments in favour of a regime of performers' rights as well as possible counter-arguments have been advanced. The general development of performers' rights as a related or neighbouring right to copyright is focussed on. The development of performers' rights in the United Kingdom is discussed with reference to the first English legislative form of protection, namely the Dramatic and Musical Performers' Protection Act, 1925. This Act only provided performers with criminal remedies, a view that prevailed through several subsequent enactments designed to protect performers as a result of ratification of the Rome Convention. It was not until 1988 when the decision in Rickless v United Artists Corp prompted the legislature to grant performers with enforceable civil remedies through the enactment of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988. Several European Union Council Directives aimed at harmonising the law relating to performers' rights throughout the Union were issued, mainly in response to the TRIPS Agreement. In order to comply with these Directives, the United Kingdom passed Regulations to bring about the necessary amendments to the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act. Performers in the United Kingdom were granted moral rights in 2006 as a result of the United Kingdom's ratification of the WPPT. The development of performers' rights in South Africa has been slow when compared to that of the United Kingdom. It was not until 1967 that performers were first legally recognised in South Africa. Although South Africa has yet to ratify the Rome Convention, it was stated in South African Broadcasting Corporation v Pollecutt that the Act was clearly passed with a view to complying with the Convention. South Africa's ratification of the TRIPs Agreement brought about amendments to the Act, particularly regarding the duration of protection which was increased from 20 to 50 years. Although South Africa played an active role in the conclusion of the WPPT, it has yet to ratify it. However, amendments were made to the Act in line with this Treaty, such as the incorporation of “expressions of folklore” within the ambit of protection, and the granting of a right to receive royalties whenever a performer's performances are broadcast. This is commonly known as needletime. South Africa's reluctance to grant performers with moral rights as provided for by the Treaty is noteworthy. The introduction of needletime into South African law has resulted in a fierce debate between collecting societies (who represent authors and performers) and the NAB (who represent users of performances). Mainly as a result of this dispute, performers in South Africa have, to date, not received any royalties due to them. The protection of traditional knowledge has also received attention of late with the Intellectual Property Laws Amendment Bill, 2010 which aims to bring traditional knowledge inter alia within the ambit of the Performers' Protection Act. The current state of performers' rights in the United Kingdom and South Africa are compared in order to identify ways in which the level of protection accorded performers in South Africa could be improved. The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act is compared with the Performers' Protection Act through emphasis being placed on the definition of a “performer”; the definition of a “performance”; the nature of performers' rights; exceptions to infringement; the term of protection; the retrospectivity of the legislation; and the enforcement measures in place. Upon analysis, it was found that the Performers' Protection Act can be amended in several ways in order to increase the level of protection accorded performers in South Africa.
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  • Date Issued: 2011

A comparative analysis of the intermediary systems in South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Ethiopia

  • Authors: Wilkerson, Tendai Marowa
  • Date: 2011
  • Subjects: Juvenile courts -- South Africa , Juvenile courts -- Namibia , Juveline courts -- Zimbabwe , Juvenile courts -- Ethiopia , Children -- Legal status, laws, etc. -- South Africa , Children -- Legal status, laws, etc. -- Namibia , Children -- Legal status, laws, etc. -- Zimbabwe , Children -- Legal status, laws, etc. -- Ethiopia , Child witnesses -- South Africa , Child witnesses -- Namibia , Child witnesses -- Zimbabwe , Child witnesses -- Ethiopia , Mediation -- Law and legislation -- South Africa , Mediation -- Law and legislation -- Namibia , Mediation -- Law and legislation -- Zimbabwe , Mediation -- Law and legislation -- Ethiopia , Children's rights -- South Africa , Children's rights -- Namibia , Children's rights -- Zimbabwe , Children's rights -- Ethiopia
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , LLM
  • Identifier: vital:3698 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003213 , Juvenile courts -- South Africa , Juvenile courts -- Namibia , Juveline courts -- Zimbabwe , Juvenile courts -- Ethiopia , Children -- Legal status, laws, etc. -- South Africa , Children -- Legal status, laws, etc. -- Namibia , Children -- Legal status, laws, etc. -- Zimbabwe , Children -- Legal status, laws, etc. -- Ethiopia , Child witnesses -- South Africa , Child witnesses -- Namibia , Child witnesses -- Zimbabwe , Child witnesses -- Ethiopia , Mediation -- Law and legislation -- South Africa , Mediation -- Law and legislation -- Namibia , Mediation -- Law and legislation -- Zimbabwe , Mediation -- Law and legislation -- Ethiopia , Children's rights -- South Africa , Children's rights -- Namibia , Children's rights -- Zimbabwe , Children's rights -- Ethiopia
  • Description: Prior to 1990, very few countries in the world offered special protection to child witnesses interfacing with the justice system. There were no legal provisions permitting testimonial accommodations for children in court. The courtroom experience was significantly traumatic for the children. With the international focus shifting from protecting and upholding the rights of the accused in the courtroom towards a more victim-centred approach, various international and regional instruments have strongly dvocated that children deserve special protection because of their vulnerability. In order for the courts to be able to elicit accurate evidence from the child without further traumatizing the child, research has shown that the child needs assistance. An intermediary may be defined as a person who facilitates communication between the child and the courtroom in a manner that takes into account the child‟s cognitive and developmental limitations. The thesis was prompted by the need to make a contribution to the currently limited body of literature on the intermediary systems in South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Ethiopia by investigating how the systems can be improved and sustained in a way that helps to protect the child witness in court. Despite the problems the South African courts have had in identifying the appropriate interpretation of its intermediary legislation, the country emerges as a clear leader for the steps it took by creating a positive legal framework within which child protection issues are addressed and introducing the concept of the intermediary. This concept proved to be an inspiration to its neighbours, Namibia and Zimbabwe. The influence of the South African intermediary legislation is evident in the Namibian and Zimbabwean legislation. Although Namibian legislators have drafted laws that permit intermediary assistance in court, there are as yet no intermediaries appointed. In Ethiopia, although there is no discernible intermediary legislation, the country has managed to establish an intermediary system. As a result of the analysis conducted, it is evident that the efficacy of the intermediary system is dependent on the presence of an enabling legislation, its clarity and ease of interpretation, the sensitisation of court role players on child vulnerabilities, the significance of intermediary assistance, and finally a government's commitment towards the implementation process.
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  • Date Issued: 2011

A comparison of the Botswana and South African labour dispute: resolution systems

  • Authors: Koorapetse, Michael Moemedi Sean
  • Date: 2011
  • Subjects: Labor disputes , Labor relations , Conflict management , Dispute resolution (Law)
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:9429 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1010556 , Labor disputes , Labor relations , Conflict management , Dispute resolution (Law)
  • Description: The purpose of this study was to compare the dispute resolution systems of Botswana and South Africa. As far as the South Africa dispute resolution system is concerned extensive literature on the system was carried out to describe its functioning. As for the Botswana dispute resolution system there was not much written about it in the literature, so in order to find out more about this system semi-structured interviews with labour relations experts which include mediators, arbitrators, lecturers, labour lawyers, trade unionists, employers and government officials held. The framework of comparison was developed to compare the elements of dispute resolution systems against each other and secondly to compare each system against the criteria of performance to the system. The two labour relations systems were compared in terms of elements of the system and the performance of the two systems. In the comparisons of the elements of the systems it was found out that in both systems the nature of disputes was collective and individual disputes both of which can be referred to the initial process of mediation or conciliation. However, in Botswana collective disputes can only be referred to arbitration if they remain unresolved in mediation while in South Africa only collective disputes on essential services go to arbitration while others lead to a strike or lockout if unresolved at conciliation. As for coverage both systems have incorporated public service sector employees in the systems after being excluded from the system for a very long time. The only difference is that in Botswana the Police force is not included while in South Africa they are included in the system. Differences in the avenues of disputes in the two countries were noted, in Botswana the rights/individual disputes go to either arbitration or Industrial Court if unresolved at mediation, inter-est/collective disputes can only go to arbitration while in South Africa the route of disputes is specified in the legislation. As for the human resources of the two countries it was found that the South African system has more qualified, trained and sufficiently experienced staff than the Botswana system. As for the processes it was found that for South Africa the initial process is conciliation while in Botswana it is mediation but these two processes were similar in many ways, from mediation/conciliation the next step in both systems is arbitration and just like the conciliation/mediation, arbitration in both countries was found to be similar except that in South Africa it is a public hearing. The two systems were also compared in terms of their performances and the research has established that between the two systems the South African system proved to be more superior on three of the criteria; efficiency, accessibility and legitimacy than the Botswana system. Therefore, the research proposes a number of recommendations for Botswana to implement namely; establishment of a legislated mixed process of mediation-arbitration, making the dispute resolution system independent from government, recruitment of high qualified and experienced staff for mediation and arbitration, accreditation to private agencies, effective case management system and proper routing of disputes.
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  • Date Issued: 2011

A comparison of three techniques for fluorochrome marking of juvenile Clarias gariepinus otoliths

  • Authors: Wartenberg, Reece , Booth, Anthony J , Weyl, Olaf L F
  • Date: 2011
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/123520 , vital:35450 , https://doi.10.3377/004.046.0119
  • Description: African sharptooth catfish, Clarias gariepinus (Burchell 1822), is widely distributed with a natural range that extends from southern Turkey to the Orange River, South Africa (Skelton 2001). In addition to translocations within its southerly range (Cambray 2003), Cambray (2005) noted that as a result of poor aquaculture practices and introductions from a number of unknown sources, C. gariepinus has now invaded South America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. Its life history characteristics include a fast growth rate to a maximum length of 1300mmtotal length (TL) (Bruton 1976), a high fecundity, an omnivorous diet and the ability to breathe air (de Moor & Bruton 1988; Cambray 2003). Understanding the biology and population dynamics of this invader would assist in its management and possibly eradication.
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  • Date Issued: 2011
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