Journal Articles

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Adolescents' gender stereotypes, differences and other aspects of behaviour in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa.
(2013) Mwamwenda, Tuntufye
While in metropolitan countries gender stereotypes has been a topic of extensive research, this has not been the case in African countries including South Africa. Such a deficit served as a motivation for investigating the extent to which gender stereotypes among adolescents prevail in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The sample was based on 599 Junior Secondary School students in grades 7-9 in Mthatha Eastern Province, South Africa. A questionnaire on gender stereotypes consisting of ten statements was administered to 239 girls and 360 boys drawn from five Junior Secondary Schools participating in the study. A chi square was used for statistical analysis. Based on the entire sample, the responses for each one of the ten statements in the questionnaire, early adolescents scored statistically significant on gender stereotypes. Further analysis based on gender showed statistically significant differences in gender stereotypes. The findings confirmed the findings of researchers in gender stereotypes in metropolitan countries. As reported in the literature, South African early adolescents experience gender stereotypes as observed in other cultures. Such results have implications for children, parents, teachers, educational institutions and society at large.
Analysis of errors due to deficient mastery of prerequisite skills, facts and concepts: A case of financial mathematics
(The IIE, 2015) Khalo, Xolani; Bayaga, Anass
The main aim of the study was (1) to identify errors committed by learners in financial mathematics, and, (2) to understand why learners continue to make such errors so that mechanisms to avoid them could be devised. It has been hypothesised that errors committed by learners in financial mathematics are not due to a lack of prerequisite skills, facts and concepts. Using Newman’s Error Analysis as a theoretical framework,a four-point Likert scale and a content-based structured-interview questionnaire was developed to identify the errors committed. The study was conducted by means of a case study guided by the positivists’ paradigm where the research sample comprised of 105 Grade10 Mathematics Literacy learners as respondents. A structured-interview questionnaire was used for collecting data, aimed at addressing the main objective of the study. In order to test the reliability and consistency of the items in the questionnaire, Cronbach’s Alpha was calculated for standardised items (α = 0.705). Data analysis through content analysis and correlation analysis revealed that learners tend to forget to read the instructions (A) and rounding off incorrectly (C), was weakly significant, as p<.01 (r = +.31). The hypothesis was tested through Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) revealed that errors committed by learners in financial mathematics are not due to the lack of prerequisite skills, facts and concepts, as the variables showed non-significance.
An analysis of secondary school heads’ perception of their supervisory role in Nyanga District: Zimbabwe
(The IIE, 2016) Chigudu, Daniel
The main focus of this paper is an analysis of heads’ perception of their supervisory roles in the context of rural day secondary schools. A survey research design was used to describe the variables. Heads are seen as head teachers, heads of departments, deputy head teachers and senior teachers who are involved in supervision. The paper argues that supervisors in day secondary schools are usually relatively young and overburdened with work. There is role conflict between teaching and supervision and as a result there is a low pass rate. There is a need for establishing other causes of ineffective supervision which are crippling the supervisory system. The investigation seeks to provide solutions to facilitate supervision and improve pass rates. The paper views the concept of supervision from a more recent perspective - the human resources approach. The study reveals that most supervisors are overburdened with administrative work. Nevertheless, they have a positive perception of their roles despite the confounding constraints at a rural day secondary school.
Are teachers facilitators or are they mediators? Piaget, Vygotsky and the wisdom of the teacher
(The IIE, 2016) Selepe, Cecilia
There is an ongoing debate about whether teaching is better understood as ‘facilitation’ or ‘mediation’. The debate can be framed in relation to three different theoretical accounts of these concepts: (i) teaching as facilitation, as rooted in the genetic epistemology of Jean Piaget; (ii) teaching as mediation, as rooted in the cultural historical psychology of Lev Vygotsky; and (iii) teaching as the seamless incorporation of both facilitation and mediation in the deliberative practice of teachers. The first two frames, as formal theories of cognitive development and learning, suggest a clear analytic distinction between facilitation and mediation as teaching strategies. The last frame foregrounds the pragmatic sense that teachers have of facilitation and mediation as shifting moments in pedagogy. In debating the various framings, it becomes clear that both formal and pragmatic theories make sense of teachers’ classroom pedagogy.
The assessment of environmental education concepts and skills in Grade 10 Geography
(The IIE, 2017) Ferreira, Johanna, G; Molala, Khosi.N.I
Sustainable development and environmental crises have been recognised globally as relevant to education and teaching. This research explores opportunities and challenges to assess environmental education content, skills and values in the latest Grade 10 Geography curriculum policy document in South Africa. Geography has been lauded as the ideal vehicle to raise awareness and to sensitise learners to environmental issues. The subject’s curriculum contains the best opportunities to address environmental and sustainability issues. However, it is unclear whether teachers develop and assess the skills and values needed by learners to identify environmental issues and to solve them. Qualitative research was undertaken with data collected through document analysis and interviews were held with purposively selected participants. The findings reveal that though there are ideal opportunities to develop environmental skills and competences through assessment, these are not realised in practice. The teachers involved in the research have inadequate knowledge of the concept ‘environment’ and limited familiarity with appropriate pedagogical approaches. Recommendations are made to address the identified shortcomings.
Challenges of academic literacy for in-service teachers
(The IIE, 2016) Roy, Irene, J.; Van Wyk, Jaqueline, M.
The teaching and facilitation of academic literacy skills in English second language for in-service teachers presents a challenge in the light of the increased enrolment of un- and under-qualified teachers on the National Professional Diploma in Education (NPDE). The course aimed to up-skill teachers to meet the minimum standards as required for the profession. Fundamental Literacy, a core module on the NPDE course, was designed to support and equip in-service teachers as students, with sufficient academic literacy skills to complete the teaching qualification successfully. This qualitative study explored the academic experiences of part-time in-service teachers in the fundamental literacy module. The collected data was analysed thematically to understand in-service teachers’ experiences of the module and the support needed to ensure academic success. Findings suggest that adult learners experience anxiety upon entering the higher education environment. Factors outside the educational sphere (i.e. home and work) presented major obstacles to their success as students. In-service teachers are oriented to more social ways of learning as opposed to an individualised and autonomous method of studying. Teamwork and scaffolding techniques accommodated the unique linguistic and cultural needs of this mature learner cohort. It is recommended that a more innovative and collaborative approach to learning is considered with in-service teachers.
Changing mental models and developing global mind-sets of business students through international study modules
(The IIE, 2016) Human, Cailin; Ungerer, Marius
The fast-changing interdependent global context and the accompanying need to teach capabilities required in the global marketplace led to the implementation of international global modules for business management students. The study explored students’ perceptions about their learning experiences on international modules to BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China) countries abroad. The findings suggest that a module abroad encouraged a broader vision outside of their own mental representations and contributed to the development of students’ mental models and global mind-sets. The module exposed them to foreign ways of thinking and behaving in diverse contexts and in so-doing disturbed current thinking. The global educational experience enhanced experiential learning, stimulated reflection, and contributed to the development and transfer of deep knowledge. This article provides insight into the experienced value of international global modules, and it proposes a reflection framework on improving the learning outcomes of such modules abroad.
The classrooms as learning communities
(The IIE, 2017) Maphalala, Mnecidisi Christian
Classrooms are sites in which learning takes place through interactions with others and learners are given opportunities to construct knowledge, and to acquire skills, values and attitudes. Classrooms in which learners and teachers learn together and contribute to knowledge construction are called ‘learning communities’. Learning communities as an area of study have been under researched despite the fact that there is a body of research that indicates that learning is a collaborative activity rather than an individual exercise, which brings with it significant benefits. This paper argues that effective learning takes place in a collaborative learning environment in which both teachers and learners work together to construct knowledge, and proposes ways in which classrooms as learning communities can function.
Collaborative learning of mathematics by educationally disadvantaged students at a university.
(The IIE, 2014) Pillay, Shan; Maharaj, Aneshkumar
This paper reports on a qualitative study of how collaborative learning as a pedagogic intervention was implemented in the Centre for Science Access (CSA) in a South African university. Students in the CSA are from educationally disadvantaged backgrounds. Collaborative learning was implemented to improve the mathematics knowledge and skills of these students. Collaborative learning involves organising students to work in pairs or in small groups to achieve shared goals or learning outcomes.
Complexity of Stakeholder Interaction in Applied Research
(2013) Ntshinga, Wonga
Applied research in complex integrated settings should be recognized as an endeavour that requires transdisciplinary and multi-sectorial stakeholder interactions. The problems faced in society are quite complex, requiring participation and knowledge from diverse aspects of society, including different disciplines (academia), communities, civil society, and government. Successful applied research relies on nurturing these key stakeholder relationships and interactions. This paper explores the key challenges of stakeholder interaction in applied research in three disciplines in the South African context, based on literature and the experience of authors in their disciplines. The three disciplines include information and communication technology for development, town and regional planning, and natural resource management. We attempt to also compare and contrast these challenges across the disciplines, to identify any commonalities and differences. After considering the mutual challenges and adaptive solutions to address these challenges in the different disciplines, we identify that all three areas in relation to stakeholder interaction appear to exhibit characteristics of complex systems, hence motivating to view applied research as a complex system. In this sense, complexity theory may provide a common language between the different disciplines examining trans-disciplinary stakeholder interaction in applied research from a shared perspective
Continuous assessment in Expressive Arts in Malawian primary schools
(The IIE, 2015) Chirwa, Grames Wellington; Naidoo, Devika
The new Curriculum in Malawi: the Primary Curriculum and Assessment Reform (PCAR) designed on the principles of integrated learning areas; outcomes; learner-centred pedagogies and continuous assessment (CA) was implemented in 2007. The purpose of this study was to investigate Expressive Arts teachers’ understandings, experiences and practices of continuous assessment in a selection of six state primary schools. Within a qualitative research design, and using the concepts of ‘instructional system’ and ‘learning milieu’ of Illuminative evaluation as postulated by Parlett and Hamilton (1976), data were collected through observations, interviews and document analyses. Teachers’ practices were characterised by an informal, technical form of assessment that privileged rote recall of facts and meeting bureaucratic requirements. The teachers cited large classes, lack of material resources and insufficient time as constraints. This study recommends that attention be given towards developing teachers’ understanding of CA principles and practice both at pre-service and in-service levels.
A developmental approach to an acceleration programme: an analysis of students' performance.
(The IIE., 2012) Douglas, Julie
Acceleration was a course first offered in 2005 through the Vega School of Brand Leadership, a division of The Independent Institute of Education, in South Africa to undergraduate marketing and advertising students who were identified as weak writers or at risk of failing their first year of study. This paper describes the pilot process in Durban of a change in delivery for the Acceleration Programme (AP) in Semester 1, 2010, and compares the results of AP students with those of others in their year. Analysis showed the AP group performed best which prompted further analysis and comparison of marks within the first-year cohort. Qualitative data were collected from students and lecturers to deepen understanding of the AP process and to assist future decisions about the programme.
Driving lessons - supporting academic development in a private higher education space.
(The IIE., 2012) Ballam, John
At Varsity College (VC) and throughout the divisions of The Independent Institute of Education, academic developers are known by the title of ‘Academic Development Coordinators’. This paper reflects critically on the development of this role. Some of the critical insights gained in this role are examined, from the author’s initial appointment as an academic development coordinator based at one of the regional campuses, and then subsequently as the national academic development coordinator in which academic leadership is provided for the regional campus academic development coordinators. Thereafter three pertinent issues are explored with which the newly evolved role still grapples. Firstly, the unconscious ignorance of the complexity embedded within this role. Secondly, there is the profound shift in awareness that occurs in academic identity, from that of subject expert to a teaching and learning professional managing an academic culture. Finally, there exists the issue of how to manage sensitively an academic developer within the context of the institution’s performative education agenda.
Educators’ perceptions about implementing a road safety education programme in the context of curriculum change
(The IIE, 2017) Combrinck, Martin; Govender, Jeannie
This study’s aim was to explore the perceptions of the teachers to the implementation of the road safety education programme in five primary schools in the Pietermaritzburg Region, South Africa. The Department of Transport in collaboration with the Department of Basic Education implemented a road safety programme in primary schools. The study was done by using a qualitative research methodology framed by an interpretive paradigm. Through semi-structured teacher interviews, the researchers were able to answer the two critical questions of the study. Five teachers from five different schools were selected for the study. The data were qualitatively analysed and six themes identified. The findings indicated that teachers were positive about the road safety education programme but that they did not always have the necessary support from colleagues and resources necessary for implementing the programme successfully. They also did not have any feedback/reflections on the programme from management, colleagues or learners to help them improve the implementation process. It is recommended that schools provide resources for the implementation of the programme. The Principals must also provide an environment where discussion and reflection on the implementation process is encouraged.
Email messages: towards a pedagogy of caring.
(The IIE, 2014) Aungamuthu, Yougan
A lecturer in mathematics undertook a study of his students’ perceptions of the various new technologies he was embedding in their extended curriculum programme. This paper is not about that study; this paper is about something seemingly simple and yet profound that happened along the way. The lecturer, aware of the alienation students may feel in their new university environment, used emails to encourage his students to invest time in their university studies. Unexpectedly, the impact of this personal correspondence, which was initially just seen to be a means to an end, turned out to be something worthy of consideration in its own right. This paper examines what that was and how emails can be one way of demonstrating care for our students within the South African higher education context.
An evaluative study on the effect of entrepreneurial education curriculum on students at the University of Venda, South Africa
(The IIE, 2017) Musetsho, Takalani Radson; Lethoko, Mankolo Xaverine
This study was conducted amid wider recognition and adoption of the idea of entrepreneurship education within the broader school curriculum. Policymakers, economists and academics’ agendas across the globe emphasise entrepreneurial culture and foster entrepreneurial intentions and attributes as mechanisms that provide self-employment which helps re-educate unemployment particularly for vulnerable youth graduates. A survey was conducted amongst 46 out of 69 final year entrepreneurship students from the University of Venda whose data were captured through self-administered questionnaires and interviews. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and content analysis. Findings thereof revealed that the majority of the respondents had a significantly high entrepreneurial intention and attributes to start their own business within two years from their graduation. In addition, the majority of the students indicated that the course delivery should be practical and be learnt through business activities or application of practical cases instead of learning ‘about’ business. In order to strengthen the delivery of the curriculum, it is recommended that the content, teaching approaches, assessment, etc., be better adjusted to the original intention of entrepreneurship education. Furthermore, a tracing system is recommended in order to follow students’ progress over two successive years from their graduation.
Exercising democratic rights and obligations as a mechanism for improved service delivery: The case of Kampala City, Uganada.
(2014) Lubinga., S. Nambalirwa
Empirical research exploring how the exercise of democratic rights and obligations of citizens impacts on service delivery remains limited and fragmented, leaving little scope for methodical analysis or policy endorsement. Likewise, comparative studies of the factors that account for the deviation in service delivery outcomes at the local level of governance are also somewhat rare and not reflecting the true nature of what is happening in reality. As an example, irrespective of a two decade-plus long prevalence of several democratic participatory frameworks, and the excellent legal and policy frameworks for citizen participation in Kampala, the services rendered to the citizens are still poor. This is not only attesting the statement that participatory initiatives in Uganda are more like wish lists than substantive statements that are guaranteed in practice, but also raising the question: to what extent does the exercise of democratic rights and obligations of citizens by citizen’s impact on public service delivery in Uganda? So, to try and answer this question, this paper applies a quantitative research method were a self-administered questionnaire was distributed to a representative sample of 100 participants. Thereafter, using the ordered logistic regression model of analysis, constructed on the findings the paper divulges that the exercise of democratic rights and obligations of citizens by citizens has a positive implication towards quality service delivery.
Fairness in using negative marking for assessing true/false questions.
(The IIE, 2014) Haffejee, Firoza; Sommerville, Thomas, E.
Multiple choice questions are a popular method of testing as they are easy to mark. However, they also lend themselves to guessing. True/False questions are particularly prone to guessing. This can be alleviated by deduction of marks for incorrect answers. The University of KwaZulu-Natal currently uses true/false questions in its assessments, which are answered by means of pencil-and-paper sheets that are optically scanned, marks being calculated according to a standard formula. A trial of a proposed new computer program revealed mark discrepancies compared to the current scheme. This study evaluates the program’s marking scheme ‘internal negative marking’ – whereby an overall negative mark for an item consisting of a stem and several true/false questions is ‘rounded up’ to zero. We enumerate the cause of the discrepancies, demonstrate that the latter scheme diminishes the penalty for guessing and may encourage strategic students to leave out parts of the curriculum when studying.
From 'Matie' to citizen - graduate attributes as signature learning at Stellenbosch University.
(The IIE, 2014) Jacobs, Cecilia; Strydom, Sonja
Graduateness is generally understood to mean the generic qualities that might be expected of any graduate. The issue of graduateness is explored in this article through an initiative at Stellenbosch University which took the form of a Signature Learning Experience (SLE) entitled: ‘Being a Matie, being a citizen’. This initiative was designed as a common learning experience for first-year students through which the graduate attributes could be embedded. The article draws on Barrie’s research into graduate attributes, to analyse the development and implementation of the initiative. The article maps the SLE initiative against Barrie’s conceptualisations of how graduate attributes are understood by academics, as well as understandings of how students acquire generic graduate attributes. Multi-method approaches were used to gather data about the initiative, which was piloted as a semester-long programme in the co-curriculum, with a group of first-year students. The themes emerging from the findings relate to the competing demands of the formal and co-curriculum and the challenges of embedding graduate attributes in the curriculum. The conclusions point to the need for a broader conversation around approaches towards embedding graduate attributes.
Good policy, bad results: an investigation into the implementation of a plagiarism policy in a faculty at a South African university.
(2013) Magaisa, Esrina
This paper reports on an investigation into the implementation of a plagiarism policy and the perceptions of plagiarism among lecturers in the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities at a university in South Africa. A questionnaire was administered to explore these perceptions and a total of 52 completed questionnaires were collected. Unstructured interviews were also conducted in a faculty board meeting and a total of 16 written responses were collected, bringing the total number of responses to 68. The findings indicate that despite the existence of a plagiarism policy there is no comprehensive and integrated approach to addressing plagiarism. Although many lecturers admitted to being familiar with the policy, most did not implement the actions and processes suggested in the policy. To be more effective in addressing plagiarism, the author makes a number of recommendations.

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