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The role of traditional leaders in community development: a case of Mbhashe Local Municipality

  • Authors: Tsoko, Nokuzola Lulekwa
  • Date: 2014
  • Subjects: Rural development -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Tribal government -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Chiefdoms -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MPA
  • Identifier: vital:8330 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1020400
  • Description: The aim of the study is to establish the challenges that are experienced by traditional leadership that are prohibiting them from performing their roles. The reality is that despite the fact that there are guidelines on roles of traditional leaders, policies that are in place that entail the roles of traditional leaders, there are always problems such as disputes, grievances and complaints of unfair treatment by traditional leaders. The study seeks to explore the community of Mbhashe Local Municipality that has been hailed in developing its communities through the traditional leadership. This study shows the lessons learnt in this municipality that could be utilised as a model for other areas and thus assist in the improvement of other communities through similar relationships. The objectives of the study are based on the above introduction and problem statement namely: those traditional leaders, who have a role to play in the development of their communities, they have a potential to contribute towards the development by involving government departments and other relevant stakeholders with potential to develop the rural communities. The reality is that government has not succeeded in empowering the traditional leadership institutions in terms of development, their roles and functions. The study seeks to establish the meaningful roles and functions of the traditional leaders in their communities with reference to the local governments of municipalities. The study is conducted within the qualitative and quantitative paradigm, based on a literature review, personal visits and interviews with traditional leaders and elected municipal councillors of municipalities and community members. The study concluded by arguing that traditional leaders do have a role to play in the development of their rural communities also government has a big role to ensure that the Traditional Leaders are capacitated. The study therefore seeks to explore the reasons as to why some traditional leaders are not playing their roles as expected, what can be done to improve their understanding of their role in terms of development. The conclusion of the study is based on the fact that the institution of traditional leadership in South Africa dates back to the pre-colonial era. The power and influence of traditional leaders in South African societies has been weakened over the years due to the adoption of Western style political systems. However at the dawn of democracy in 1994, a lot of effort includes legislative and other regulatory steps aimed towards the empowerment of traditional leaders in areas where there is customary law system. Traditional Leaders have served as the spokesperson of the people as well as bringing the gap between the government and the people. The results of the study found that traditional leaders are pivotal in the community development programmes in the Mbhashe Local Municipality. Traditional leaders need empowerment in local government through a vivid policy framework aimed at establishing how they can actively partake in the affairs of the municipality. Also the study found that at present, traditional leaders appear to be operationally parallel with councillors, a situation which creates tension and damage to their morale. Such a policy framework would do a lot to give traditional leaders an engagement model, roles and responsibilities at municipal level. More importantly the manner in which they can cooperate with councillors towards sustainable community development needs more attention and intervention from local government.
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  • Date Issued: 2014

The role of traditional leaders in the Amathole District local Municipality councils (with special reference to Mbhashe and Amahlathi local municipalities)

  • Authors: Tsipa, Simpiwe
  • Date: 2014
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MPA
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/1227 , vital:26538
  • Description: The advent of democracy in South Africa brought about a new era of leadership at local sphere of government. According to the Constitution Act, No.108 of 1996 municipalities must be established throughout the country, including rural areas which were ruled by traditional leaders. The introduction of Councillors in the rural areas which were predominantly ruled by traditional leaders created uncertainty, tensions and insecurity. Roles of Councillors overlapped with those of traditional leaders. The roles and powers of Councillors became clearly defined unlike those of traditional leaders which were not clearly outlined. A need, therefore, arose for the clarification and confirming the roles and relevance of traditional leaders. The objective of this study was, therefore, to look at the role of traditional leaders in service delivery, their relevance in a democratic dispensation and evaluate the impact of poor relations between traditional leaders and Councillors. In doing the study, questionnaires and interviews were conducted to traditional leaders, municipal officials and some veterans such as Mda Mda. Municipal officials included Mayors, Municipal Managers, Senior Managers and Councillors. Traditional leaders included the King of Amaxhosa, Chiefs and Headman. It transpired that current legislation is not clear and precise as to what are the roles and responsibilities of traditional leaders are in service delivery. There is some serious overlapping in the roles of traditional leaders and those of Councillors. Traditional leaders have a great influence in rural areas and for effective delivery to happen they cannot be ignored or left outside the process. Legislation must therefore be reviewed to be precise, clear and be committing when it comes to roles of traditional leaders.
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  • Date Issued: 2014

The rooting system of Leptophloeum Dawson: New material from the upper Devonian, Famennian Witpoort Formation of South Africa

  • Authors: Prestianni, Cyrille , Gess, Robert W
  • Date: 2014
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/72732 , vital:30104 , https://doi.org/10.1016/j.revpalbo.2014.05.007
  • Description: The rhizomorphs of Early (Devonian and Early Carboniferous) arborescent lycopsids are known from only a handful of taxa. That of Leptophloeum is previously described from a single fragmentary specimen from China that, in our opinion, has been incorrectly interpreted. Here we describe several relatively well-preserved examples of Leptophloeumrhizomorphs from the Famennian aged Waterloo Farm Lägerstatte of South Africa. We demonstrate an unlobed cormose morphology separated from the microphyll bearing axis by a smooth transition zone. This provides one of the few known examples of a cormose lycopsid rhizomorph dating back to the Devonian. We assign this material and all previously published South African Leptophloeum material to Leptophloeum rhombicum.
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  • Date Issued: 2014

The Seduction of Ash: " Mia Couto's" The Day Mabata-bata Exploded" and" The Bird-Dreaming Baobab

  • Authors: Njovane, Thandokazi
  • Date: 2014
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/142702 , vital:38103 , 10.4314/eia.v41i2.2
  • Description: Chesca Long-Innes argues that Mia Couto's installation of the fantastic in his short story collection, Voices Made Night, may best be understood "not so much as a product of any 'magical realist' poetics, but as 'naturalised,' or motivated as a function of the collective neurosis of a [Mozambican] society traumatised by its continuing history of poverty and extreme violence". Couto's use of the fantastic, she adds, encompasses both empirical and psychic reality, and both are characterised by instability and elusiveness. The collection, she then maintains, constitutes a reinvention or reimagining of subjective realities constructed and perpetuated by the social trauma underpinning what she terms the "psycho-pathology of post-colonial Mozambique, in which the society as a whole is [. . .] caught in the grip of a profound depression or melancholia".
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  • Date Issued: 2014

The struggle for authority in George McCall Theal's Kaffir Folklore

  • Authors: Naidu, Samantha
  • Date: 2014
  • Language: English
  • Type: Article
  • Identifier: vital:26362 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/53942 , https://www.upjournals.co.za/index.php/SAJFS/article/view/1674 , https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9456-8657
  • Description: This article focuses specifically on George McCall Theal’s collection of folktale texts, Kaffir Folklore (1882), as an example of an early South African ethnographic publication, and argues that the folktale transcriptions contained therein, although a part of Theal’s general colonialist project, are hybrid, containing the voices of both coloniser and colonised. The key argument is that the presence of the African voices in this text reveals simultaneously that Theal’s editorial aspirations were never absolutely imposed, and that agency and influence (albeit limited) of the colonised Xhosa co-authors were present. The article offers an analysis of the paratext (the preface, the introduction and the explanatory notes) of Kaffir Folkore, rather than a close reading of the tales themselves. To facilitate an understanding of Theal’s editorial practice, Kaffir Folkore is compared to Harold Scheub’s The Xhosa Ntsomi (1975). More generally, drawing on postcolonial folklore and book-history scholarship, the article explores how folklore texts of the colonial era, although contributing to the establishment of a literary and cultural orthodoxy in modern South Africa, constitute a telling hybrid genre, which invites a re-evaluation of colonial relations, and of individual texts themselves. In short, these texts synthesise different literary traditions (European and African), different mediums (the oral and the written), different disciplinary approaches (ethnography, folklore, literature), and most significantly, the voices of different subjects. Kaffir Folklore (1882) epitomises this synthesis
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  • Date Issued: 2014

The study of the levels of patriotism and nationalism of the employees of a developmental local government: the case of Buffalo city Metropolitan Municipality

  • Authors: Mxunyelwa, Sweetness Xolisa
  • Date: 2014
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MPA
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/1158 , vital:26531
  • Description: The failure to deliver on basic services has strained relationship between the metropolitan and the community. This study therefore aimed to establish the levels of patriotism and nationalism of the employees of Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality in order to create a framework that can be used to address the low productivity levels and service delivery backlogs. The study was carried out by means of questionnaire survey method and data analysed using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). All differences in opinion were considered to be significant at α (hereafter referred to as P) < 0.05. Except for questions 3, 6, 19 and 22 for which responses were influenced by the educational status of the respondents; their opinions for all other questions were not significantly affected by their educational qualifications. In considering question 6, the post-matric certificate holders indicated that they enjoy coaching people on new tasks and procedures (and so are the grade 12 certificate holders) while the post-graduate degree holders (and the degree holders also) were of a neutral disposition to that notion. Interestingly however, is the fact that despite their different places of residence, no statistically significant differences in opinion were recorded in the way respondents’ answered questions asked. The main difference (P = 0.05) was observed between those aged below 30 (who agreed) and those whose age was 50+ (who were neutral) to question 4 (the more challenging a task is, the more I enjoy it). The results of this study therefore indicated that the younger employees enjoy taking on a new or difficult task and that the improvement in the working conditions, remuneration, welfare packages and in training of the employees can improve service delivery in the study area.
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  • Date Issued: 2014

The survival of Cuanhama San communities in Angola

  • Authors: Hamuse, Tiberia Ndanyakukwa Iilonga
  • Date: 2014
  • Subjects: Indigenous peoples -- Angola -- Economic conditions Indigenous peoples -- Angola -- Social conditions Indigenous peoples -- Education -- Angola , San (African people) -- Angola
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/11202 , vital:26895
  • Description: This study investigated the survival strategies adopted by the San in Cunene Province in Southern Angola. The study intended first to gain understanding of the economic activities that the San in Cuanhama municipality districts of Kafima Centre and Etale La Mulovi employ to sustain their livelihoods. Secondly, the study explored how accessible the basic social services of education and health were to the San in these communities. Utilising qualitative research methods, face-to-face interviews and focus group research were conducted. From the data collected on education the study findings show that none of the children from both communities were enrolled at any school. To this end, at Kafima Centre the main hindering factors that contributed inter alia included hunger at school, stigmatization by the neighbouring community and poverty among San communities. At Etale La Mulavi San community there was lack of educational facilities near the San habitations, constituting a key hindering factor to accessing education. On health, the closer the public health centre was to the San community the more the San utilised the health services for treatment and management of common diseases like Malaria and cough as well as other diseases. On survival strategies both San communities “okunhanga” ‘go.. and look for..’ (fending for food) was the primary survival strategy the San were involved in for the sustenance of their livelihoods. The findings informed the recommendations in chapter five of this study.
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  • Date Issued: 2014

The sustainability of cooperatives in peri-urban areas of Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality

  • Authors: Mabaleka, Mntuwekhaya
  • Date: 2014
  • Subjects: Sustainable development -- South Africa -- Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality , Business enterprises -- South Africa -- Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/3366 , vital:20426
  • Description: This research study focuses on investigating the sustainability of cooperatives in the peri urban areas of Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality. The researcher described a cooperative concept, identified and explained a research problem. Research study addressed literature extensively on the local and international scenes; looking at cooperative case studies of India, California, United Kingdom, Ghana, Bangladesh and South Africa. The researcher used a qualitative research methodology using structured and semi structured questionnaires that were distributed to thirty identified cooperatives in Walmer Location and external stakeholders supporting cooperatives. Face to face and telephonic interviews were used during research in three identified funded cooperative members, registered cooperative members and external stakeholders supporting cooperatives. Research findings confirmed unequitable age distribution in cooperatives. Young people constituted 10% of cooperatives’ membership which led to non-transference of knowledge and experience from the elderly to the young; dominance of women in cooperatives who joined or registered cooperatives with the intention of receiving a sustainable income so that they could support their families; poor governance in cooperatives caused cooperatives to fail. Eighty percent of registered cooperative members during research confirmed that they do not have access to the markets, while 2% confirmed that they have access to the markets although they are unable to secure contracts; research confirmed that the majority (59%) of Walmer Location registered cooperative members do not have matric (grade 12) while 25% of cooperative members have matric and 16% have a post-matric qualification; research findings confirmed a decrease in the survival rate of cooperatives after registration without receiving financial support; research findings confirmed that cooperative members do not receive all training programmes that would ensure cooperatives’ sustainability; other cooperative challenges include lack of cooperation among cooperatives, lack of monitoring and evaluation systems, high crime rate and continuous service delivery protests and lack of integration among stakeholders supporting cooperatives.
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  • Date Issued: 2014

The sustainability of health committees in Nelson Mandela Bay

  • Authors: Zhakata, Chikomborero
  • Date: 2014
  • Subjects: Health services administration , Community health services
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:9151 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1019704
  • Description: Primary health care is pivotal to the growth of a country’s economy by improving the health and social well-being of its people. Several efforts and structures have been put in place to ensure that all South Africans have access to health facilities as well as representation in the health facilities, just as community members are represented in schools and other boards. Health committees play an important and integral role to the community and health facilities by being mediators between the community and the health facility (Padarath &Friedman, 2008). The Eastern Cape is one of the provinces that has health committees that are fully functional and a number of factors including the collaboration of key stakeholders (facility managers, community members, clinic staff and ward councillors) contribute to why health committees have been operational in the Eastern Cape(Padarath &Friedman , 2008). It becomes critical to investigate factors that sustain health committees in Nelson Mandela Bay. This chapter introduces the research topic, purpose, rationale and background as well as the objectives of the study. The research focuses on investigating the sustainability of health committees in Nelson Mandela Bay therefore making it critical to define the term sustainability. Conceptualizing sustainability has been ongoing with various definitions from learners from different backgrounds. Sustainability as a concept emanates from different dimensions namely, scientific, political economic and indigenous dimension. Sustainability has been described by scholars as a state of well-being and as an evolutionary process (Dimitrov, 2010). Sustainability is regarded as a state of well being whereby humans can live in co-exist with the natural world, this definition takes into account issues to do with good health , cultural identity, personal security and freedom of choice. Sustainability- well being brings out a lot of questions and problems in identifying the fundamentals values of sustainability. It is continuously debated amoung scholars if sustainability of well being pertains only to the health conditions of human beings or it should be extended to others (Dimitrov, 2010) “Sustainability that is restricted to the well being of humans is related to Notions about security of individual/community health together with financial security together with financial security; the planet is regarded as a resource to further this end (Dimitrov, 2010:4) If however well-being definitions of sustainability are construed to preserving and protecting the environment as well as biodiversity of other species (plant and animals) then the normative definitions of sustainability from this viewpoint are tendered with notions of global Environmental stability, ecological considerations and security of ecosystems” (Dimitrov, 2010:4).
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  • Date Issued: 2014

The taxation of Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT) in South Africa

  • Authors: Breetzke, Michael
  • Date: 2014
  • Subjects: Real estate investment trusts -- South Africa , Real estate investment trusts -- Taxation -- South Africa
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MCom
  • Identifier: vital:8963 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1020001
  • Description: Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT’s) provide certain benefits for investors as opposed to them directly investing in property. Many countries worldwide have already established tax systems for REIT’s which give natural persons and companies the benefit of not outlaying substantial capital, and provide certain tax dispensations to them. The concept of a REIT is new to South Africa. The vehicles that have been used by investors in the past to invest indirectly in property have been Property Unit Trusts (PUTs) and Property Loan Stock Companies (PLS). These different types of entities have had different taxation rules applied to them, as they differed in legal entity, i.e. a trust versus a company. The different types of entity were historically a deterrent to foreign investors who preferred to invest in countries that had the REIT structure and certain tax dispensations. The National Treasury and the South African Revenue Service (SARS) decided to collaborate in this matter so as to encourage foreign property investment, and launched with effect from 1 April 2013, a new REIT tax dispensation for investors in property portfolios. The REIT created a unified regime in South Africa. All portfolios wanting to call themselves REITs had to qualify under certain requirements, and then they would be eligible for the new section 25BB tax dispensation. The South African REIT market is relatively new when compared to the Australian REIT market, which is the second largest in the world. The Australian REIT market has been around for approximately forty three years more than the South African REIT market. The Australian REIT regime is analysed in terms of how REITs are taxed in that country. The final chapter provides a comparison between the South African and Australian REIT regimes. The major differences are identified as to how each country taxes the REITs and the respective shareholders, and from these a few proposals are made which could improve the South African REIT regime in order for it to stand up to worldwide scrutiny.
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  • Date Issued: 2014

The teachers’ perceptions of female principal leadership: a case study of two primary schools in the East London district

  • Authors: Webu, Kiki Corrina
  • Date: 2014
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , M Ed
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/1399 , vital:26552
  • Description: In the South African context, the leadership positions in both public and private sectors are dominated by males. After 1994, there was an improvement in the employment of females in leadership positions, particularly in the Department of Education. But the female principals are still facing challenges that emanate from them, as well as extrinsic challenges. Studies highlighted leadership traits, leadership styles, the teachers‟ attitudes, prejudice and gender stereotypes that contribute towards female principalship challenges.This study focused on the perceptions of teachers of female principal leadership in two primary schools. Furthermore, it highlighted limitations as well as successes of female principal leader as perceived by the teachers. The qualitative research approach was used to investigate the perceptions of teachers in terms of the limitations and successes of female principal leaders. A case study of two primary schools with six Post Level One teachers across the phases and two Heads of Department (HODs) was conducted. One-to-one semi-structured interviews were used as qualitative research tools to collect data from the teachers. The findings of this study revealed that the female principals demonstrated two sides in their leadership, the positive side and the negative side. The respondents had expectations that the female principals would be more nurturing in character when they encountered personal problems. The respondents became happy when the female principals demonstrate the motherly traits such as warmth, care and love to them when they had personal problems. The female principal demonstrates sympathy and humanity by being there when the teacher is experiencing personal problems and shows interest in how the teacher is feeling. On the other hand, the respondents claimed that they did not feel that quality of motherhood when the female principal was not protecting them against angry parents. The respondents also perceived the female principals as being competent in solving the personal problems of teachers while, on the other hand, they were not able to solve the school problems. The respondents felt that the female principals showed little interest in the learners‟ wellbeing with regard to issues such as bursaries and involvement of social workers.
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  • Date Issued: 2014

The training of artisans for house building projects in South Western Nigeria

  • Authors: Oni, Oluwole Joseph
  • Date: 2014
  • Subjects: Skilled labor -- Nigeria , Artisans -- Training of -- Nigeria , Construction industry -- Employees -- Training of -- Nigeria , Training needs -- Nigeria
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
  • Identifier: vital:9726 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1020625
  • Description: The current shortage of artisans in the Nigerian house construction sector has constrained the productivity of the sector and exacerbated the nation‟s housing problem. The persistent neglect of the artisan training system has negatively impacted on the stock of artisans available for house construction projects. Nigeria‟s large and fast-growing population of over 140 million with an estimated growth rate of 3.2 percent has engendered increased investment in shelter provision; especially by individuals and families due to fast rising housing rentals- mainly in the urban centres. Past policies have not adequately addressed the realities of the skills crisis occasioned by inadequate and neglected apprenticeship training and poorly developed vocational education and training systems. The fallout of this is manifested in the difficulties faced by developers in sourcing suitably qualified and experienced artisans for house construction projects. In response to this challenge, an upsurge of migrant artisans and craftsmen from neighbouring West African nations like Togo, Benin Republic and Ghana to Nigeria has occurred in the recent times. They were attracted by building contracting firms to fill the gap created by inadequate artisan supply that is currently being experienced locally. This development is totally unacceptable as it exacerbates the overarching socio-economic problems in Nigeria, especially the already high unemployment rate which is estimated to be 23.9 percent. This study has consequently investigated the inadequate training of house construction artisans in South Western Nigeria; evolving interventions and developing a strategic model for improving the artisan training system to ensure an adequate and sustainable artisan supply in the house construction sector. The model incorporates best practices, rethinking strategies and integrated approaches in mitigating the identified challenges. The model is underpinned by reviewed literature and empirical findings. Quantitative surveys and interviews were utilised as the data sources. The research findings show that the factors which negatively impact on the artisan training system in the house construction sector include: the poor image of artisans in society; lack of recruitment strategies for attracting potential artisans; inadequate policy framework for training and employment; a faulty and rigid National Qualification Framework (NQF); the non-participation of employers in training; a poor funding mechanism; a weak regulatory framework and corrupt practices in training administration. Recommendations for addressing the inadequate training of artisans include education policy reforms to give priority to vocational education; a new regime of funding for vocational education and training; a review of the National Qualification Framework to integrate the vocational colleges with the university system; a reform of the regulatory framework; public re-orientation on the societal image of the artisans; adoption of a new approach of public- private partnership in artisan training; the provision of incentives schemes to attract potential artisans and the appropriation of the proposed model for an integrated approach to addressing the challenges.
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  • Date Issued: 2014

The transformers : journalism education

  • Authors: Priscilla Boshoff
  • Date: 2014
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/70688 , vital:29689
  • Description: Universities are strange places. People come in as one kind of being, and leave quite different. They are places of transformation. One way in which they effect this transformation is to challenge our preconceived notions of the world, and our relationship to it. However, at the same time, universities are also places of privilege and so can be conservative – in the sense of conserving and fostering particular interests in their favour.
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  • Date Issued: 2014

The transformers: journalism education

  • Authors: Boshoff, Priscilla A
  • Date: 2014
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141911 , vital:38015 , http://journals.co.za/content/rujr/2014/34/EJC159497
  • Description: Universities are strange places. People come in as one kind of being, and leave quite different. They are places of transformation. One way in which they effect this transformation is to challenge our preconceived notions of the world, and our relationship to it. However, at the same time, universities are also places of privilege and so can be conservative – in the sense of conserving and fostering particular interests in their favour.
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  • Date Issued: 2014

The use of contextually appropriate analogies to teach direct current electric circuit concepts to isiXhosa speaking learners

  • Authors: Simayi, Ayanda
  • Date: 2014
  • Subjects: Analogy in science education , Career development , Xhosa language -- Analogy
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
  • Identifier: vital:9570 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1016161
  • Description: The study investigates the effects of a professional development strategy which focuses on the use of a contextually appropriate analogy on the development of isiXhosa speaking learners‟ conceptual understanding in direct current electric circuits, where the language of instruction is English. An action research design was implemented, using three data collection cycles to document the research journey. The sample comprised of two Grade 8 and 9 classes drawn (with their respective Natural Sciences teachers) from two neighbouring, township schools in Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Municipal area. Qualitative data were generated from interviews and classroom observation of the two science teachers (a qualified and an unqualified teacher) and learners, over a span of two years. Thematic data analysis revealed that ESL learners have alternative conceptions in simple circuits and teachers have no knowledge about analogies that can be used to teach simple circuits. A professional development was designed as a strategy, targeting the development of the Science Content Knowledge (SCK) and Topic Specific Content Pedagogic Content Knowledge (TPSCK) of the teachers. Data analysis of the professional development initiative (PDI) suggests that the teachers developed increased knowledge of concepts and teaching strategies used in teaching simple circuits, selected a contextually appropriate analogy and taught a lesson in simple circuits using the selected analogy. Analysis of learners‟ post-test results suggests that the implementation of the selected analogy developed their conceptual understanding as more learners developed the correct, scientific model of reasoning. The results of the study suggest that when teachers are given support by being exposed to professional development; their scientific reasoning, confidence and classroom climate become more positive and learners‟ conceptual understanding improves.
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  • Date Issued: 2014

The use of performance information in the department of transport, Eastern Cape

  • Authors: Mrawusi, Lindelwa Theodorah
  • Date: 2014
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MPA
  • Identifier: vital:11729 , http://hdl.handle.net/10353/d1018183
  • Description: In a global sphere where public management performance has to be monitored and governments held accountable for their performance, performance information use has been advocated to be stratagem to promote accountability and efficient public sector performance. The South African government has also in a bid to ensure accountable, responsive, transparent, participatory, effective and efficient service delivery promoted the use of performance information use. It is in this regard that the current study sought to It is this argument and scholarly contradictions that have given rise to the current study, which sought to investigate the usage of performance information systems (PIs) by managers and public sector officials in promoting good governance, decision making, transparency, accountability and reporting in the transport department in King Williams’ town. It was established from the current study that there is interplay of various factors for the proper utilization of PIs within the public sector and the findings of the study also indicated that PIs are mainly utilized by the top management for making decisions, planning and evaluation. In order to order to carry out the study, deductive logic was used using a quantitative survey methodology. Data was collected through the use of self administered Likert‐styled questionnaires within the King Williams Town Transport Department. The study utilized stratified sampling in selecting the respondents of the study.
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  • Date Issued: 2014

The water and nutrient potential of brewery effluent for hydroponic tomato production

  • Authors: Power, Sean Duncan
  • Date: 2014
  • Subjects: Hydroponics , Tomatoes -- Breeding , Brewery waste , Water -- Purification , Algae culture , Algae -- Biotechnology , Nitric acid , Phosphoric acid
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
  • Identifier: vital:5358 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1011604 , Hydroponics , Tomatoes -- Breeding , Brewery waste , Water -- Purification , Algae culture , Algae -- Biotechnology , Nitric acid , Phosphoric acid
  • Description: Brewery effluent that had undergone treatment in an anaerobic digester (AD) was used as an alternative water and nutrient source for hydroponic crop production. Brewery effluent was demonstrated to contain sufficient nutrients to support the growth, flowering and fruiting of Lycopersicum escolentum "Moneymaker" tomato crops. The adjustment of the effluent pH with phosphoric acid to between pH 6.0 and 6.5 increased the development of the crops by around 100% compared to crops grown in unaltered effluent. The pH adjusted effluent-grown plants grew to a mean height of 831.4 ± 21.1 mm and a dry biomass weight of 42.34 ± 2.76 g compared to the unaltered pH effluent plants which grew to a height of 410.6 ± 20.5 mm and a weight of 7.65 ± 0.68 g after 49 days. Effluent treatment in high-rate algal ponds (HRAP) was determined to have no positive effect on the nutritional potential of the effluent for Moneymaker production. The effluent-grown plants did not perform as well as plants grown in inorganic-fertilizer and municipal water. Plants grown in effluent grew taller but did not produce significantly more fruit when phosphoric acid (height: 1573.3 ± 50.4 mm, 19.4 ± 1.4 fruit per plant) was compared to nitric acid (height: 1254.1 ± 25.4 mm, 15.6 ± 1.5 fruit per plant) as the pH adjustment over 72 days. Direct and secondary plant stresses from effluent alkalinity, ammonium nutrition, nitrogen limitation, sodium concentrations and heat stress among other factors were probably confounding variables in these trials and require further investigation. Considering the raw effluent composition and manipulating the AD operation is a potential opportunity to improve overall AD performance, reduce chemical inputs in the effluent treatment process, reduce the final effluent alkalinity, and increase available nitrogen content in the final effluent. The anaerobic digester discharging >1000 m³ of nutrient enriched effluent every day is a resource with considerable potential. The benefits of developing this resource can contribute to cost-reduction at the brewery, more efficient water, nutrient and energy management at the brewery, and offer opportunities for job creation and potentially benefit local food security.
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  • Date Issued: 2014

Therapists' perceptions of altruistic patient behaviour upon the treatment outcomes of borderline personality disorder

  • Authors: Kotton, Vikki
  • Date: 2014
  • Subjects: Borderline personality disorder -- Treatment , Altruism
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/8013 , vital:24450
  • Description: Professionals in the mental health industry often attach a stigma to Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). It is commonly thought of as a frustrating disorder to treat. As a result many professionals avoid dealing with BPD individuals. In an attempt to promote positive treatment outcomes, the aim of the study is to explore how the introduction of altruistic behaviours would affect the outcome of the overall treatment of individuals with BPD. Snowball sampling procedures were implemented. Data were collected through the use of semi-structured interviews with six mental health professionals and analysed through qualitative data processing and thematic analysis procedures. To the researcher’s knowledge, no research has been conducted specifically exploring the relationship between altruistic behaviour and BPD to date. The following superordinate themes emerged: treatment challenges, treatment context, treatment approach, diagnostic challenges, altruism/prosocial influences, and altruism/prosocial behaviour. It is the researcher’s hope that the findings of this study will increase awareness of this possible avenue in the treatment of BPD, so that the results of this study can then be taken to the next level of exploration in research and in clinical practice.
  • Full Text:
  • Date Issued: 2014

Thermoluminescence characteristics of synthetic quartz

  • Authors: Niyonzima, Pontien
  • Date: 2014
  • Subjects: Thermoluminescence , Quartz , Emission spectroscopy
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
  • Identifier: vital:5538 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1013190
  • Description: Quartz is one of the most abundant natural minerals in the crust of the earth. Due to its dosimetric luminescence properties, it is employed in retrospective dosimetry, archaeological and geological dating. The intensity and the structure of the TL glow curves of quartz are strongly dependent upon the origin, impurity content, formation condition and pre-irradiation heat treatment. The aim of this project is to study the mechanisms of thermoluminescence (TL), Phototranssferred thermoluminescence (PTTL) and radioluminescence (RL) in synthetic quartz and to discuss the results in terms of physical characteristics of point defects involved. Thermoluminescence measurements were made on a sample of synthetic quartz in its as-received state (unannealed) synthetic quartz annealed at 500˚C for 10 minutes. The unannealed sample shows six TL glow peaks located at 94, 116, 176, 212, 280 and 348˚C at a heating rate of 5˚Cs⁻¹. The annealed sample shows seven TL peaks at 115, 148, 214, 246, 300, 348 and 412˚C at a heating rate of 5˚Cs⁻¹. The intensity of peak I, at 94 and 115˚C for the unannealed and annealed samples respectively, increases with irradiation. Peak I has an activation energy of approximately 0.90 eV and a frequency factor of the order of 10¹¹ s⁻¹. The order of kinetics is between 0.9 and 1.2. The unannealed synthetic quartz shows phototransferred thermoluminescence (PTTL) at the position of peak I after removal of the first three peaks followed by illumination. The PTTL intensities show peak shaped behaviour when plotted against illumination time. The PTTL showed a quadratic increase with dose. The material exhibits fading of PTTL intensity with delay time. Radioluminescence was measured on synthetic quartz unannealed and annealed annealed at 500, 600, 700, 800, 900 and 1000˚C for 10 to 60 min. The emission spectra of synthetic quartz show seven emission bands. The effect of irradiation on the RL spectra is to increase the intensity of all emission bands for samples annealed at temperatures less than or equal to 700˚C. The effect of annealing time is to increase the RL amplitude for the samples annealed at temperatures greater than 700˚C. The annealing temperature increases the RL amplitude of all emission bands of the spectrum for all samples.
  • Full Text:
  • Date Issued: 2014

Thermoluminescence of natural quartz

  • Authors: Lontsi Sob, Aaron Joel
  • Date: 2014
  • Subjects: Thermoluminescence , Quartz , Thermoluminescence dosimetry
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
  • Identifier: vital:5543 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1013358
  • Description: The kinetic and dosimetric features of the main thermoluminescence peak of quartz have been investigated in unannealed as well in quartz annealed at 500˚C for 10 minutes. The main peak is found at 92 and 86˚C respectively for aliquots of unannealed and annealed samples irradiated to 10 Gy and heated at 5.0˚C/s. For each sample, the intensity of the main peak is enhanced with repetitive measurement whereas its maximum temperature is unaffected. The peak position of the main peak in each sample is independent of the irradiation dose and this, together with its fading characteristics are consistent with first-order kinetics. For low doses, typically between 2 and 10 Gy, the dose response of the main peak in each sample is linear. In the intermediate dose range from 10 to 60 Gy, the growth of the main peak in each sample is sub-linear and for greater doses, in the range from 60 Gy to 151 Gy, it is linear again. The half-life of the main peak of the unannealed sample is about 1.3 h whereas that of the annealed sample is about 1.2 h. The main peak in each sample can be approximated to a first-order glow peak. As the heating rate increases, the intensity of the main peak in each sample decreases. This is evidence of thermal quenching. The main peak in each sample is the only peak regenerated by phototransfer. The resulting phototransferred peak occurs at the same temperature as the original peak and has similar kinetic and dosimetric features. For a preheat temperature of 120˚C, the intensity of the phototransferred peak in each sample increases with illumination time up to a maximum and decreases afterwards. At longer illumination times (such as 30 min up to 1 h), no further decrease in the intensity of the phototransferred peak is observed. The traps associated with the 325˚C peak are the main source of the electrons responsible for the regenerated peak. Radioluminescence emission spectra were also measured for quartz annealed at various temperatures. Emission bands in quartz are affected by annealing and irradiation. A strong enhancement of the 3.4 eV (~366 nm) emission band is observed in quartz annealed at 500˚C. A new emission band which grows with annealing up to 1000˚C is observed at 3.7 eV (~330 nm) for quartz annealed at 600˚C. An attempt has been made to correlate the changes in radioluminescence emission spectra due to annealing with the influence of annealing on luminescence lifetimes in quartz.
  • Full Text:
  • Date Issued: 2014
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