An investigation of participative management in a museum in the Eastern Cape, South Africa
- Authors: Madinda, Nozipho
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Museums -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Management , Management -- Employee participation , Albany Museum (Grahamstown, South Africa)
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:2068 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1020847
- Description: The purpose of my research was to investigate participative management at the Albany Museum with a view to generating knowledge and insights that can be used to support senior management’s engagement with participative management at mid-management level. My interest was to investigate participative management with regards to five HODs of the Albany Museum with a view to generating knowledge and insights that can be used to support senior management’s engagement with participative management at mid-management level. The research was informed by the interpretive paradigm. The interpretive paradigm does not concern itself with the search for broadly applicable laws and rules but rather seeks to produce descriptive analyses that emphasise deep interpretation and understanding of social phenomena through the meaning that the people assign to them. This study is mostly descriptive and presents the reality of participants from their own experience. Semi-structured interviews and observation capture ‘insider’ knowledge that is part of an interpretive methodology. The study found that participative management was both understood and generally accepted as a good way to manage an organisation, and even members who were critical of it could see its benefits. However, the fractured and diversified structure of the organisation calls for a particularly skillful application of this management approach, one which would also demand leadership and a greater sense of working towards what are called collegial models of management. Whether this is in fact desirable for a museum is debatable.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
- Authors: Madinda, Nozipho
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Museums -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Management , Management -- Employee participation , Albany Museum (Grahamstown, South Africa)
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:2068 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1020847
- Description: The purpose of my research was to investigate participative management at the Albany Museum with a view to generating knowledge and insights that can be used to support senior management’s engagement with participative management at mid-management level. My interest was to investigate participative management with regards to five HODs of the Albany Museum with a view to generating knowledge and insights that can be used to support senior management’s engagement with participative management at mid-management level. The research was informed by the interpretive paradigm. The interpretive paradigm does not concern itself with the search for broadly applicable laws and rules but rather seeks to produce descriptive analyses that emphasise deep interpretation and understanding of social phenomena through the meaning that the people assign to them. This study is mostly descriptive and presents the reality of participants from their own experience. Semi-structured interviews and observation capture ‘insider’ knowledge that is part of an interpretive methodology. The study found that participative management was both understood and generally accepted as a good way to manage an organisation, and even members who were critical of it could see its benefits. However, the fractured and diversified structure of the organisation calls for a particularly skillful application of this management approach, one which would also demand leadership and a greater sense of working towards what are called collegial models of management. Whether this is in fact desirable for a museum is debatable.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
Action competence and waste management: a case study of learner agency in two Grahamstown eco-schools
- Chiphwanya, Nellie Chimwemwe
- Authors: Chiphwanya, Nellie Chimwemwe
- Date: 2011
- Subjects: Environmental education -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies Environmental education -- Study and teaching (Primary) -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies Student-centered learning -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies Refuse and refuse disposal -- Environmental aspects -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies Recycling (Waste, etc) -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies Active learning -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies Competency based education -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1956 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008308
- Description: There has been a growing need in environmental education to develop students' ability and will to take part in democratic processes that enable them take environmental action in their local environment. This study examined learner action competence in waste management practices in two primary school contexts in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. An interpretive case study design is used to probe how learner participation in Eco-School waste management practices enabled the acquisition of knowledge in purposeful learning and action experiences that developed the vision and agency of informed action. The research was centred on two guiding questions: 1. How informed, purposeful and action-orientated is learner participation in Eco-School waste management activities? 2. What Eco-School waste management activities are fostering active participation towards a learner-led agency? Educators in the two schools were interviewed and Eco-School portfolios were examined for evidence of the learning activities and learner achievement. This provided the contextual data for reviewing focus group interviews to probe what was significant to learners, what they came to know and how they had contributed to the process of developing better waste management in the Eco-School context. The evidence generated in the study was used to identify the roles of the various players, the significant activities and processes that enabled and constrained the emergence of learner-led agency. The main findings in the study were that teacher intentionality and school management ethos were significant in engaging learners in meaningful waste management activities in both cases. The study also revealed that although most of the waste management activities in both cases were teacher-initiated, there were spaces open for learner initiatives. However, it appeared that the activity based waste management practices mostly allowed learners to learn how to do waste management more than allowing them to find out more about the scope and nature of ii the problem of waste. This then resulted in learners talking more about what they were doing with waste than talking about what they knew about waste. There were differences in the way in which learners approached waste in the two cases. In the one case, Kingswood Junior School learners used waste artistically and carried out activities that allowed for better use of waste resources like paper while in the other School, Grahamstown SDA School, learners approached waste as a resource for making money. However, in both cases, learners appeared to enjoy the positive experiences of doing things that contributed to a cleaner environment and were of benefit to others and this gave them a sense of pride to share their experiences with others. This study was significant as it allowed me to probe learner participation and examine the development of their action competence through listening to the voices of the learners themselves and understanding what was important to them about the knowledge they gained and their vision of better waste management.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2011
- Authors: Chiphwanya, Nellie Chimwemwe
- Date: 2011
- Subjects: Environmental education -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies Environmental education -- Study and teaching (Primary) -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies Student-centered learning -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies Refuse and refuse disposal -- Environmental aspects -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies Recycling (Waste, etc) -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies Active learning -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies Competency based education -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1956 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008308
- Description: There has been a growing need in environmental education to develop students' ability and will to take part in democratic processes that enable them take environmental action in their local environment. This study examined learner action competence in waste management practices in two primary school contexts in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. An interpretive case study design is used to probe how learner participation in Eco-School waste management practices enabled the acquisition of knowledge in purposeful learning and action experiences that developed the vision and agency of informed action. The research was centred on two guiding questions: 1. How informed, purposeful and action-orientated is learner participation in Eco-School waste management activities? 2. What Eco-School waste management activities are fostering active participation towards a learner-led agency? Educators in the two schools were interviewed and Eco-School portfolios were examined for evidence of the learning activities and learner achievement. This provided the contextual data for reviewing focus group interviews to probe what was significant to learners, what they came to know and how they had contributed to the process of developing better waste management in the Eco-School context. The evidence generated in the study was used to identify the roles of the various players, the significant activities and processes that enabled and constrained the emergence of learner-led agency. The main findings in the study were that teacher intentionality and school management ethos were significant in engaging learners in meaningful waste management activities in both cases. The study also revealed that although most of the waste management activities in both cases were teacher-initiated, there were spaces open for learner initiatives. However, it appeared that the activity based waste management practices mostly allowed learners to learn how to do waste management more than allowing them to find out more about the scope and nature of ii the problem of waste. This then resulted in learners talking more about what they were doing with waste than talking about what they knew about waste. There were differences in the way in which learners approached waste in the two cases. In the one case, Kingswood Junior School learners used waste artistically and carried out activities that allowed for better use of waste resources like paper while in the other School, Grahamstown SDA School, learners approached waste as a resource for making money. However, in both cases, learners appeared to enjoy the positive experiences of doing things that contributed to a cleaner environment and were of benefit to others and this gave them a sense of pride to share their experiences with others. This study was significant as it allowed me to probe learner participation and examine the development of their action competence through listening to the voices of the learners themselves and understanding what was important to them about the knowledge they gained and their vision of better waste management.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2011
An investigation into the organisational culture at an academically successful secondary school in Namibia
- Authors: Awarab, Erwin Ronald
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Corporate culture -- Namibia -- Case studies Organizational behavior -- Namibia -- Case studies School management and organization -- Namibia -- Case studies Educational leadership -- Namibia -- Case studies Education, Secondary -- Namibia -- Case studies Educational change -- Namibia -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1612 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003494
- Description: The appreciation by leadership of the culture of an organisation plays an important role in the success of that organisation. Leadership and organisation culture are an inextricable part of the life of an organisation. The shared assumptions and beliefs of the individual within an organisation shape its culture. My study investigates the aspects of school culture and, further, looks at its link to the success of an organisation, and at the leadership style that influences such an organisation. My research, conducted in the interpretive paradigm, is a case study which was carried out at a public secondary school in the capital city of Windhoek, in Namibia. Since the school was built during South African rule, it was intended mainly for white children. Since independence, it has undergone transformation and is currently integrated, accommodating learners from different cultural backgrounds. It is a successful school, with a good reputation for its discipline and academic excellence. I chose this school deliberately, for those reasons. My findings are that there are aspects of culture which maintain its creation and perpetuate the existence of a particular culture at the school. This school’s culture is embedded within the Christian faith, and there are deliberate rituals and ceremonies put in place to enhance the creation and maintenance of the values that inform its culture, and the school leadership, management, teachers and student council members have a central role in this regard. My study shows that the creation, understanding and appreciation of beliefs and values of the individual within the organisation enable the consequent creation of the shared vision and values that ultimately lead to the foundation and maintenance of a strong culture.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2010
- Authors: Awarab, Erwin Ronald
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Corporate culture -- Namibia -- Case studies Organizational behavior -- Namibia -- Case studies School management and organization -- Namibia -- Case studies Educational leadership -- Namibia -- Case studies Education, Secondary -- Namibia -- Case studies Educational change -- Namibia -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1612 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003494
- Description: The appreciation by leadership of the culture of an organisation plays an important role in the success of that organisation. Leadership and organisation culture are an inextricable part of the life of an organisation. The shared assumptions and beliefs of the individual within an organisation shape its culture. My study investigates the aspects of school culture and, further, looks at its link to the success of an organisation, and at the leadership style that influences such an organisation. My research, conducted in the interpretive paradigm, is a case study which was carried out at a public secondary school in the capital city of Windhoek, in Namibia. Since the school was built during South African rule, it was intended mainly for white children. Since independence, it has undergone transformation and is currently integrated, accommodating learners from different cultural backgrounds. It is a successful school, with a good reputation for its discipline and academic excellence. I chose this school deliberately, for those reasons. My findings are that there are aspects of culture which maintain its creation and perpetuate the existence of a particular culture at the school. This school’s culture is embedded within the Christian faith, and there are deliberate rituals and ceremonies put in place to enhance the creation and maintenance of the values that inform its culture, and the school leadership, management, teachers and student council members have a central role in this regard. My study shows that the creation, understanding and appreciation of beliefs and values of the individual within the organisation enable the consequent creation of the shared vision and values that ultimately lead to the foundation and maintenance of a strong culture.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2010
The principal's leadership role in a successful rural school in Namibia
- Authors: Kawana, Joseph Jost
- Date: 2007
- Subjects: Rural schools -- Namibia School principals -- Namibia Educational leadership -- Namibia School management and organization -- Namibia
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1713 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003596
- Description: Rural schools generally find it hard to function effectively for a variety of reasons, and managing and leading these schools brings additional challenges. This study explored the role of the principal in an academically successful rural school in Namibia. It drew on leadership theory and findings from related studies to make sense of this particular case of leadership against the odds. Using the interpretive orientation, the research explored selected organisation members’ perceptions of the principal’s leadership through semi-structured interviews. The study found that the actions and attitudes of the leader had a significant influence on the school’s performance. The manner in which the principal conducted himself, the shared vision he encouraged and his insistence on associating with all stakeholders involved in education, were instrumental in the organization’s positive achievements. The principal was shown as committed and a leader with good interpersonal working relationships. The study also revealed that this principal was both a person- and taskoriented leader, and closely resembled the ideals of transformational leadership. This study further found that, through the principal’s instructional leadership, teaching and learning are seen as the core of the school’s activities. Finally, the principal’s leadership role opens the school to the community and results in strong and mutually beneficial relationships between the school and its community.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2007
- Authors: Kawana, Joseph Jost
- Date: 2007
- Subjects: Rural schools -- Namibia School principals -- Namibia Educational leadership -- Namibia School management and organization -- Namibia
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1713 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003596
- Description: Rural schools generally find it hard to function effectively for a variety of reasons, and managing and leading these schools brings additional challenges. This study explored the role of the principal in an academically successful rural school in Namibia. It drew on leadership theory and findings from related studies to make sense of this particular case of leadership against the odds. Using the interpretive orientation, the research explored selected organisation members’ perceptions of the principal’s leadership through semi-structured interviews. The study found that the actions and attitudes of the leader had a significant influence on the school’s performance. The manner in which the principal conducted himself, the shared vision he encouraged and his insistence on associating with all stakeholders involved in education, were instrumental in the organization’s positive achievements. The principal was shown as committed and a leader with good interpersonal working relationships. The study also revealed that this principal was both a person- and taskoriented leader, and closely resembled the ideals of transformational leadership. This study further found that, through the principal’s instructional leadership, teaching and learning are seen as the core of the school’s activities. Finally, the principal’s leadership role opens the school to the community and results in strong and mutually beneficial relationships between the school and its community.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2007
Research portfolio
- Authors: Muituti, J M
- Date: 2004
- Subjects: Education -- Namibia Educational change -- Namibia Curriculum planning -- Namibia Home economics -- Study and teaching -- Namibia
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1736 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003619
- Description: In Namibia, as in many other countries, curriculum changes have resulted from a “highly complex mix of ideological, political, social, philosophical, economic and other influences” (McGee, 1995, cited by Swarts). Over time some influences become stronger while others lose ground. Different conceptions exist as to what school curricula should be. These conceptions are sometimes referred to as “theories of curricular” or ideologies (ibid). Ideologies in general are “belief systems that provide value premises from which decisions about practical educational matters are made” (Eisner, 1994:47). They derive from broad, international perspectives and views. Some views are unproblematic in that they are generally agreed, such as all children should learn to read and write. Others are more controversial and problematic, e.g. whether sex education should be taught in school. As a result of exposure to other views and perspectives, there is overlap between ideologies and no ideology represents a clear-cut concise school of thought. Nevertheless they provide a theoretical basis for the Home Ecology syllabus. This paper will attempt to provide a critical analysis of the Home Ecology syllabus, the socio-historic and economic analysis of the learners for whom the curriculum has been designed and the analysis of the learning environment in which this curriculum is presented. The synthesis, which will link the sections together, and conclusion will draw the threads together. In providing this analysis it is imperative to provide a definition of what a curriculum is. In the broader sense, a curriculum is the offering of socially valued knowledge, skills and attitudes made available to learners through a variety of programmes. Forquin (1995) cited in Swarts (1996:23) has the following to say about curriculum: ‘The concept of curriculum, indeed, implies taking into consideration the whole of the course of studies and not just one aspect or one stage considered separately’. In examining official educational documents, especially curricular documents written after independence, there are signs of continuing traditional emphasis however, this is expected, as Fullan (1991) contends that change does not take place just because it has been decreed and written down in the book of reforms. Change takes time to work its way in.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2004
- Authors: Muituti, J M
- Date: 2004
- Subjects: Education -- Namibia Educational change -- Namibia Curriculum planning -- Namibia Home economics -- Study and teaching -- Namibia
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1736 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003619
- Description: In Namibia, as in many other countries, curriculum changes have resulted from a “highly complex mix of ideological, political, social, philosophical, economic and other influences” (McGee, 1995, cited by Swarts). Over time some influences become stronger while others lose ground. Different conceptions exist as to what school curricula should be. These conceptions are sometimes referred to as “theories of curricular” or ideologies (ibid). Ideologies in general are “belief systems that provide value premises from which decisions about practical educational matters are made” (Eisner, 1994:47). They derive from broad, international perspectives and views. Some views are unproblematic in that they are generally agreed, such as all children should learn to read and write. Others are more controversial and problematic, e.g. whether sex education should be taught in school. As a result of exposure to other views and perspectives, there is overlap between ideologies and no ideology represents a clear-cut concise school of thought. Nevertheless they provide a theoretical basis for the Home Ecology syllabus. This paper will attempt to provide a critical analysis of the Home Ecology syllabus, the socio-historic and economic analysis of the learners for whom the curriculum has been designed and the analysis of the learning environment in which this curriculum is presented. The synthesis, which will link the sections together, and conclusion will draw the threads together. In providing this analysis it is imperative to provide a definition of what a curriculum is. In the broader sense, a curriculum is the offering of socially valued knowledge, skills and attitudes made available to learners through a variety of programmes. Forquin (1995) cited in Swarts (1996:23) has the following to say about curriculum: ‘The concept of curriculum, indeed, implies taking into consideration the whole of the course of studies and not just one aspect or one stage considered separately’. In examining official educational documents, especially curricular documents written after independence, there are signs of continuing traditional emphasis however, this is expected, as Fullan (1991) contends that change does not take place just because it has been decreed and written down in the book of reforms. Change takes time to work its way in.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2004
Research portfolio
- Authors: Garosas, Elfriede S
- Date: 2004
- Subjects: Education -- Namibia , Curriculum planning -- Namibia , Home economics -- Study and teaching -- Namibia , Teaching -- Namibia , College teachers -- Training of -- Namibia , Universities and colleges -- Curricula -- Namibia
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:2010 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1015966
- Description: [From Introduction]. The study involved student teachers and teacher educators providing me with information concerning their perception and understanding of the BETD broad curriculum and needlework and clothing syllabus. The above mentioned are the people who are involved in teacher education thus I found it relevant to have their opinions and understanding of the documents. The contextual analysis has engaged me in exploring a possible area of research specialisation for the two years during the course of studies with Rhodes University; this will serve as an introduction to the particular research to be done through the course of my studies. The focus of this report includes the following: • A critical analysis of (BETD) needlework and clothing syllabus in relation to the BETD broad curriculum; • A socio-historic and economic analysis of the context for which the syllabus has been designed; • An analysis of the learners for whom the syllabus is designed. In this case students provided their autobiography; • An analysis ofthe learning environment in which the syllabus operates; the physical structure and resources. Together with the critical analysis of the curriculum a small scale survey intending to find out the following information from the student teachers and teacher educators was conducted. • The extent to which the broad curriculum differs from the previous teacher education on issues related to democracy, quality, access, cultural bias, racial discrimination and classes (level of economic status); • How the needlework and clothing syllabus addresses the needs of student teachers; • Whether the needlework and clothing syllabus has enough content; • The challenges facing teacher education and how they can be addressed; • Whether the needlework and clothing syllabus is learner-centred; • Whether the syllabus is gender oriented or biased. This evaluation framework provides a foundation for later investigation
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2004
- Authors: Garosas, Elfriede S
- Date: 2004
- Subjects: Education -- Namibia , Curriculum planning -- Namibia , Home economics -- Study and teaching -- Namibia , Teaching -- Namibia , College teachers -- Training of -- Namibia , Universities and colleges -- Curricula -- Namibia
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:2010 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1015966
- Description: [From Introduction]. The study involved student teachers and teacher educators providing me with information concerning their perception and understanding of the BETD broad curriculum and needlework and clothing syllabus. The above mentioned are the people who are involved in teacher education thus I found it relevant to have their opinions and understanding of the documents. The contextual analysis has engaged me in exploring a possible area of research specialisation for the two years during the course of studies with Rhodes University; this will serve as an introduction to the particular research to be done through the course of my studies. The focus of this report includes the following: • A critical analysis of (BETD) needlework and clothing syllabus in relation to the BETD broad curriculum; • A socio-historic and economic analysis of the context for which the syllabus has been designed; • An analysis of the learners for whom the syllabus is designed. In this case students provided their autobiography; • An analysis ofthe learning environment in which the syllabus operates; the physical structure and resources. Together with the critical analysis of the curriculum a small scale survey intending to find out the following information from the student teachers and teacher educators was conducted. • The extent to which the broad curriculum differs from the previous teacher education on issues related to democracy, quality, access, cultural bias, racial discrimination and classes (level of economic status); • How the needlework and clothing syllabus addresses the needs of student teachers; • Whether the needlework and clothing syllabus has enough content; • The challenges facing teacher education and how they can be addressed; • Whether the needlework and clothing syllabus is learner-centred; • Whether the syllabus is gender oriented or biased. This evaluation framework provides a foundation for later investigation
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2004
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