http://hdl.handle.net/10500/6418 2013-05-19T02:05:49Z 2013-05-19T02:05:49Z Makgopa, Masiye Ephraim http://hdl.handle.net/10500/9352 2013-05-18T22:01:58Z 2012-12-01T00:00:00Z

Teacher expectations of parental involvement : a case study of two primary schools Makgopa, Masiye Ephraim The importance of a collaborative engagement between parents and teachers in order to enhance learning in the classroom is so great that the two parties seem inseparable. In this study the teachers indicated that they need the assistance of the parents of the learners whom they teach for them to do well. On the other hand, the parents are also keen to lend a helping hand, since it is the future of their children which is at stake. The challenge that emerges from this situation is that, more often, there is a breakdown in communication. The teachers and parents blame each other, especially when the learners do not perform well at the end of a year. The teachers will say the parents did not do anything to help their children with their schoolwork, while the parents will insist that the teachers failed to do their work. It is of utmost importance to stop the blame-game, but rather to seek ways in which both groups can help the learners to do well in the classroom. The teachers need to inform the parents how they (the teachers) expect them to play their part in helping their learners with their schoolwork. Informing parents about their roles and how they may play them is very important, because then the parents will be able to meet the teachers’ expectations, whereby teaching and learning will be facilitated. The ultimate beneficiaries will be the learners, because they will receive education which is well-coordinated by both the teachers and the parents. The collaboration between teachers and the parents will be guided because the kind of parental involvement will be an informed one. The engagement between teachers and parents will yield good results, because in the process they will help each other to find strategies that will assist the learners in the classroom. This study intends to ascertain from the teachers how they expect the parents to help their children with their schoolwork. It seeks to establish what the teachers’ perceptions are regarding parental involvement, that is, what they think it is, and how they think it should be. Two teachers from two primary schools in the Mogalakwena District of Limpopo Province were used in order to collect the data. These teachers clearly indicated that, indeed, the parents can be of great help, because they can touch some aspects that the teachers cannot reach in the lives of the learners. x They, however, also suggested ways in which the parents are supposed to help their children with schoolwork. The study also explored ways how the roles that the parents must play are communicated to the parents. The researcher’s aim was to explore the teachers’ expectations of parental involvement, and also possible ways in which it can be communicated to the parents.Recommendations were made to the policymakers to refer to when they draw up policies for the governance of schools.

2012-12-01T00:00:00Z Demessew Alemu Woldetsadik http://hdl.handle.net/10500/8973 2013-04-27T22:02:08Z 2012-11-01T00:00:00Z

The implementation of an apprenticeship training programme in the Addis Ababa technical vocational education and training (TVET) colleges and enterprises Demessew Alemu Woldetsadik This qualitative research investigated the implementation problems of apprenticeship training program in the Addis Ababa TVET colleges and enterprises. The research looked into the training program conducted by TVET Colleges and enterprises. Relevant literature on the nature of apprenticeship training and the factors that could affect its implementation were also reviewed. The research applied the theoretical statement of Bandura’s (1977) theory of observation /imitation/, Vygotsky’s theory of ZPD, contextual or the situated learning (Lave and Wenger, 1991), the constructivist view of learning and career theory as the main theoretical frameworks to describe the apprenticeship training process. The theories, however, do not mention the factors that can hamper the implementation of apprenticeship training in a specific social context. The theory of observation was preferred since it can describe the apprentice’s effort to master the skill of an occupation by observing the craftsman at the enterprises. The situated learning was preferred as it gives value to practice as a condition for the effectiveness of learning. Similarly, the research considered Vygotsky’s theory of the ZPD. The application of ZPD indicates the difference between what the apprentice can accomplish independently and what he/she can do with the close assistance of supervisor on a given task. Holland’s career theory (as cited in De lary, Duncan & Swarth, 2006) is also considered to describe the apprenticeship training in relation with an occupation. The current research has enabled to consider context specific conditions by focusing on the investigation of the causes of the implementation challenges of the apprenticeship training. The researcher collected data from Addis Ababa TVET Agency experts, deans of one private and another public TVET Colleges, college apprenticeship training coordinators, trainers, trainees, supervisors and enterprises by employing unstructured and structured interviews, observation and Focus Group Discussion tools. The analysis was made by making the data pass through three successive steps: data reduction, data display and interpretation, and conclusion. The findings showed that the implementation of the apprenticeship training program had challenges that could be shared among its actors; Trade Unions had no involvement in the implementation of the apprenticeship training program; the selected colleges and enterprises addressed their challenges by using limited strategies and without regular and systematic way; the presence of some less motivating factors for the participation of the apprentices in the apprenticeship training was reported; the presence of conditions that could adversely affect the apprentices’ acquisition of occupational skills was reported; the provision of apprenticeship training at the enterprises lack, either facilities or training services, in order to arrange the apprenticeship training program for TVET college trainees; and there were some indications for the presence of some weak professional qualities of supervisors that have implications for the apprentices’ training. Eventually, it was concluded that the implementation of apprenticeship training program in the Addis Ababa TVET Colleges and enterprises had challenges that require the consideration of both institutional and human conditions.

2012-11-01T00:00:00Z Mbhalati, Nkhensani Brenda http://hdl.handle.net/10500/8754 2013-03-09T22:00:19Z 2012-06-01T00:00:00Z

The influence of policy on classroom literacy instruction : the case of the Foundations for Learning Campaign in the Mopani District in Limpopo, South Africa Mbhalati, Nkhensani Brenda In response to local and international findings which reflected over a number of years that South African learners cannot read and write at their expected levels, the Department of Education (DoE) launched the Foundations for Learning Campaign (FFLC) in March 2008 as an intervention strategy. It is against this background that a research project was initiated to investigate the impact of the FFLC on teachers’ classroom instruction and the reading culture of foundation phase learners. Qualitative interviews and observations were used to collect data from the participants. While many of the participating teachers had found creative ways to make the new policy work in their own literacy classrooms, the study found that there was no sufficient training of teachers and other stakeholders prior to the launch of the FFLC. The lack of monitoring and support by the DoE was also seen as a hindrance to the success of the initiative. I concluded the study by recommending that the time is ripe for a more detailed and introspective reflection and review of the FFLC policy.

2012-06-01T00:00:00Z Ovbiebo, Osaigbovo Matthew http://hdl.handle.net/10500/8743 2013-04-09T08:20:32Z 2012-11-01T00:00:00Z

Film : a supplementary aid in teaching adults about HIV/AIDS in Igueben (Nigeria) Ovbiebo, Osaigbovo Matthew This study explored film as a supplementary aid in teaching adults about HIV/AIDS in the Igueben area of Edo State (Nigeria). It drew on the theory and practice of film to enhance the awareness of HIV/AIDS campaign strategies in ways that are not possible with other teaching aids. The findings of the study supported the literature, which indicates that unlike film,reading materials are not accessible to illiterate adults in rural communities. Two hundred (200) participants were used in the first approach (quantitative), while fifteen (15) illiterate adults were purposively selected from the area to participate in the second approach (qualitative). The research was undertaken within an interpretivist framwork in the sense that it was a communal process informed by participating illiterate adults, and was sensitive to the role of context (Alvermann, D.E., & Mallozzi, C.A. 2010). The study confirmed the role of film, particularly Nigerian movies, in promoting information and education on HIV/AIDS. The findings highlighted the need for on-going education about HIV/AIDS and its treatment, especially among the rural illiterate. The study, in summary established that the programmes offered by HIV/AIDS organisers (governmental and nongovernmental) would be more effective if film is included in the campaign against the disease.

2012-11-01T00:00:00Z