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This theoretical paper looked at the possibility of incorporating the social learning concept of achievement-oriented behaviour in promoting children's public participation in policy-making in the educational system. The paper highlighted how the concepts of public participation and achievement-oriented education could be used in the governance of the educational system in South Africa. The paper explored concepts such as goal-directed behaviour, achievement standards, achievement beliefs, and how the educational system could use the concepts in the promotion of children's public participation. Future studies could focus on the empirical relationship between achievement-oriented behaviour and child involvement in participatory democracy in the governance of the educational system in South Africa.

This paper employs a stochastic production frontier model to assess the efficiency of the senior secondary schools in the Gambia. It examines their efficiency in using and mixing the educational inputs of average teacher salary, average teacher education, average teacher experience and students-to-teacher ratio in producing the number of students scoring credit and above in English and Mathematics. The schools are categorized into three types: the Government schools, the subsidized schools, and the private schools. The paper finds no evidence that the private schools are different from the subsidized schools, but there is robust evidence that the private schools are significantly different from the Government schools. The average teacher salary is found to be irrelevant to the student performance, whereas high average teacher experience significantly improves student performance, and high student-to-teacher ratio significantly negates the student performance. Private schools appear to be the most efficient in 2006, but from 2007 to 2008, the performance of the schools in general is found to be highly volatile and unpredictable. Only one school emerges to consistently maintain a superior efficient performance throughout the three years studied.

This paper examines the relationship between the use of online learning resources and academic performance in an Accounting 1 course conducted at a South African Higher Education Institution. The study employed a quantitative analysis over three academic years comparing the collection of end of year marks and the time spent online. The results provide preliminary empirical evidence to show that students who spent more time online significantly improved their course mark. Although much accounting-based educational research exists on the use of computers, there is a dearth of research testing any relationship between the use of online learning material and performance. While the results are preliminary and have some limitations, they are useful to students, teaching instructors and administrators, and provide a platform for future research into the value of using online learning in accounting.

Poor learner performance in South African schools raises concerns related to lack of commitment and accountability from school leaders and teachers with no common vision to promote a culture of high learner performance. This paper provides a literature overview of research available on the impact of professional learning communities (PLC) on effective teaching and practices to promote higher levels of learning amongst students; the nature of PLCs; their essential characteristics, developmental stages and challenges; and an assessment of the benefits of PLC in schools and the challenges of PLC from other researchers' observations. PLCs are necessary to encourage collaborative teamwork on essential outcomes and intervention activities in learning. Finally, I conclude by exploring how South African schools can benefit from the practices of professional learning communities which endeavour to improve teaching practices and poor learner achievement.

This paper examines the cost effectiveness of educating boarding and day secondary students in Kisumu district in Kenya. The research designs used in this study were descriptive survey and casual comparative designs. The population consisted of five head teachers, 140 form four teachers and 609 form four students. Saturated and systematic random sampling techniques were used in the study. The sample size was as follows: five head teachers, 46 form four teachers and 201 students which are 33% of the population for the teachers and the students. The main findings were as follows, the total direct social cost of educating a day and a boarding student per year was Ksh 62, 193 and Ksh74, 140 respectively. The day student performed better than the boarding student with a mean of 8.12 and 7.27 respectively. The boys performed better than the girls with a mean of 8.01 and 7.27 respectively. The cost effectiveness ratio (CER) for the day and boarding student was Ksh7, 748 and Ksh10, 005 respectively. This means that to improve the performance of a day student by one point requires Ksh 7,748 compared to Ksh10, 005 required by a boarder. It can be concluded that educating a student in day secondary school is more cost effective and more efficient way of using scarce resources.

This paper emanates from a case study which focussed on 15 Managerial Accounting and Financial Management (MAFM) students’enjoymentof learning MAFM in an 18-week Writing Intensive Tutorial (WIT) programme. Interactive Qualitative Analysis (IQA) was used for the research design and as a data analysis tool. Following IQA protocols participants articulate their experiences of the programme and develop emergent categories of meaning, or affinities, and the relationship between the affinities. Of the nine affinities that were confirmed as describing students’ experiences of learning in the WIT programme, this paper reports on the students’ experiences of one of these affinities,enjoyment.Participants said that they found the WIT programme enjoyable which made learning fun. MAFM tutorials were no longer perceived as dull and boring, but rather exciting and enjoyable. The awareness that higher education can be a fun learning environment impacted positively on students’ experiences of learning MAFM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assessments are important to academic institutions because they help in evaluating students’ knowledge. The conduct of assessments nowadays has been influenced by the continuous evolution of information technology. Hence, academic institutions now use computers for assessments, often known as Computer-Based Assessments (CBAs), in tandem with Paper-Based Assessments (PBAs). The literature, however, shows that the use of CBAs has received controversial reactions, and also shows that students face challenges when undertaking CBAs. This study was conducted to understand the perceptions of students and the challenges they face when undertaking CBAs. The study employed a descriptive research approach and data was collected through questionnaires. A total of 210 questionnaires were distributed to students. Findings show that students find it easy to undertake CBA and hence prefer it to PBA. However, the findings also show that students experience challenges that include Internet connectivity and mode of presentation of items, when undertaking CBA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This theoretical paper looked at the possibility of incorporating the social learning concept of achievement-oriented behaviour in promoting children's public participation in policy-making in the educational system. The paper highlighted how the concepts of public participation and achievement-oriented education could be used in the governance of the educational system in South Africa. The paper explored concepts such as goal-directed behaviour, achievement standards, achievement beliefs, and how the educational system could use the concepts in the promotion of children's public participation. Future studies could focus on the empirical relationship between achievement-oriented behaviour and child involvement in participatory democracy in the governance of the educational system in South Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Despite many positive developments in South Africa (SA), the education system and educational outcome face many challenges and require further improvement. This is reflected by elevated school dropout rates and suboptimal annual pass rates in various grades (Grades 7–12). Over the years, a plethora of studies has identified methods through which academic performance/educational outcome can be improved. However, from a practical point of view it might be difficult to implement these methods in for example a classroom or school, particularly because these methods are mainly discovered upon thorough online literature searches, and therefore published methods to improve educational outcomes are not always within reach of schools or teachers. Our aim is thus to provide a review paper that contains a collation and overview of the possible methods that can be used by various education stakeholders in order to contribute to better educational outcome. Essentially, we are attempting to answer the questions, “What does decades of research tell us about possible ways in which educational outcome can be improved in SA? Can we use these methods in the classroom or school?” This review therefore demonstrates (1) demonstrates various ways education stakeholders/influencers (teachers, learners, parents, government, non-governmental organisations and school governing bodies) can contribute to improved educational outcome, and (2) provides a useful overview of these methods that can be used within or without the classroom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The idea of students participating in decisions that affect them as individuals, organisations and/or communities is recent and urgent. The participation of students in decision making has gained global support, yet it does not seem to be regarded as a main vehicle for promoting democracy in educational institutions. This conceptual paper aims at demonstrating the difficulties perceived to hinder student participation in educational institutions. It further proposes strategies that may favour the increased and improved involvement of students in decision making processes. The reviewed literature on student participation informing this article highlights positive outcomes from engaging students as decision makers in education. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Summative assessment qualifies the achievement of a student in a particular field of specialization at a given time. Questions should include a range of cognitive levels from Bloom's taxonomy and be consistent with the learning outcomes of the module in question. Furthermore, a holistic approach to assessment, such as the application of the principles of the Herrmann Whole Brain Model, needs to be used to accommodate learning style diversity. The purpose of this study was to analyse, assess and compare the summative assessment of two third year level modules in the Bachelor of Science degree programme, namely Biochemistry and Zoology as part of action research with a view to enhancing the professional development of the lecturers involved. The questions posed in summative assessments were classified in terms of Bloom's differentiation of cognitive levels and the four different learning styles determined by Herrmann. Spearman's non-parametric analysis indicated that no correlation existed in this study between cognitive level and student performance based on achievement. In addition, there was not much difference between the cognitive levels and student performance between the two disciplines. Although the students seemed to do better at application level questions, the authors need to reflect on whether the assessments were valid with respect to the learning outcomes, methods of facilitating learning, and the assessments based on cognitive levels and learning style preferences. We conclude that continuous action research must be taken to improve the formulation of learning outcomes and students' achievement of these outcomes and quality of student learning – the main aim being the successful completion of the modules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Education is the basic tool for empowering women, and this is particularly striking among women from deprived economic and social backgrounds. Narratives of women's lives indicate different statuses of self-development, which are further complicated by issues of race, class and socioeconomic position. This paper presents the stories of four black midlife women with a view to examining how women from a background of extreme deprivation construct and give meaning to the story of their educational history and its contribution to their self-identity. Data was collected through written life histories and interviews and analysed according to two narrative models. The findings illustrate how the women made sense of trauma and difficult life transitions, describe their ultimate empowerment through educational and professional achievement, and illustrate the use and value of narrative enquiry in research in education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Students' academic performance is determined by certain intrinsic and extrinsic attributes, which are shrouded in their stages of development. The focus of this study was, therefore, to analyse factors influencing students' performance in two randomly selected junior secondary schools in Maun, Botswana. Guided by McClelland's motivational theory, a multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select a sample of 124 students. Demographic/socioeconomic data were obtained from the students in the study area through the use of questionnaires. Data were analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Descriptive statistics (including mean and standard deviation) were used to summarise the data while Cramer's V, Pearson product-moment correlation, multiple linear regression, and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) were employed to determine the relationships between explanatory variables and students' academic performance. Results revealed that students' academic performance is affected by both home background (e.g. family size) as well as the school environment (e.g. class size), including their study habits. The study recommends that teachers' self-efficacy, more parental involvement, and improved government policies in educational development are critical for the attainment of high-quality education in Botswana. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last two decades, the rapid growth of learner enrolments in schools in most countries, including South Africa, has brought many challenges, such as a high learner-educator ratio (LER). The purpose of the study reported on was to explore an LER policy that can enhance learner academic achievement in physical sciences. Effective learning demands opportunities for learners to become actively involved in their physical sciences education. Thus, the physical sciences educator should not only act as a lecturer and transmitter of knowledge, but also as a facilitator, an enabler and an empowerer. The research used qualitative research and cultural-historical activity theory as the theoretical framework, viewing learning and teaching as a social process in which the interaction between the learners is the focus and smaller class size is transformative for both learners and educators. Data was collected from physical sciences teachers, principals and curriculum advisers through face-to-face interviews. The study concluded that large class sizes affect the implementation of practical activities and discipline may be adversely affected. Based on the findings of the study the following recommendation was made: the Department of Basic Education should reduce the LER to 30:1 or fewer learners in a class to allow for group activities and learner-centred science. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports on a study of which the purpose was to understand the role of principals in changing underperforming schools towards sustainable improvement in one circuit area of North-West, South Africa. School principals play a crucial role in guiding schools towards sustainable improvement by shaping a vision of academic success for all learners. Managing teaching is one of the core modules in South Africa's new national qualification for school principals, and that being the case, principals should play a central role in effecting the educational transformation of all learners. The quality of principals' leadership is the key factor driving the transformational turnaround and improvement required in schools. They perform a highly complex and dynamic role in enhancing and sustaining school improvement. It was the goal of this qualitative study to explore cultural, structural, and agential challenges faced by principals in their effort to provide for change and improvement in their schools. Six schools were purposefully selected to participate in the study and semi-structured interviews were used to gather data from the principals. The study established that paying attention to cultural, structural and agential factors in schools increases their ability to sustain learner improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports on a study of which the main aim was to provide insight into whether increasing the enrolment of large classes influences student academic achievement at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), City, South Africa. The massification of higher education has led to greater numbers of students being enrolled in contact programmes. there is a widely accepted inverse relationship between class size and academic achievement for small class sizes and it would be speculative to extend the same understanding to larger class sizes. It is within this context that a cross-sectional study was conducted during which student achievement was analysed against increasing the enrolment of already large classes, in selected undergraduate modules at UKZN over a period of four years. convenience sampling and judgemental sampling were used to select modules in the discipline of Supply Chain Management (SCM). The findings revealed that while the average class size increased significantly, the pass rates remained constant. Based on the study findings, it was concluded that an increase in the enrolment of already large classes does not influence student academic achievement. It is recommended that the study be replicated in other schools and faculties where disciplines have experienced similar increases in the enrolment of large classes, thereby presenting an opportunity to either validate or dispute the study results. It is further recommended that the role of peer effects be subjected to further study to establish whether they have any influence on academic achievement. These results are expected to encourage future debate on how faculties manage increasing student enrolments at higher education institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

South African higher education is plagued by low academic success rates. Academic development and support units can play an important role in addressing low academic success rates by assisting students in developing appropriate learning and study strategies. Limited information is available on students’ learning and study strategy profiles and their needs regarding intervention programmes. This article reports on a mixed methods study that investigated learning and study strategies among a sample of first-year students enrolled at a South African university. Quantitative data, collected using the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI) from a sample of first-year students, pointed to an urgent need for learning and study strategy intervention programmes to be provided. The qualitative data offered a more in-depth understanding of participants’ needs regarding learning and study strategy intervention programmes. Implications for practice and avenues for further research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This exploratory research focused on describing Setswana-speaking early adolescents’ perceptions of respect in educator-learner relationships in the South African context. A lack of mutual respect obstructs adolescents’ freedom to pursue personal goals in South Africa’s school communities. Adding to this incongruity is the isolating of relational well-being and academic excellence. A qualitative research paradigm, using a single exploratory case study design in an English primary public school in Johannesburg, Gauteng, was used. Ten learners, black Setswana-speaking South Africans, participated. Findings indicate that: (1) the need to belong is paramount to respect; (2) early adolescents need a “parent figure” modelling respect; (3) positive emotions facilitate respect when learners feel valued, and cared for; and (4) an educator who shows respect, ignites reciprocity, thus demonstrating respectful communication within a secure structure and encourages academic excellence. These experiences are indicative of a positive spiral toward flourishing educator-learner relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports on a study that examined the readiness levels of students in the South African context. Particularly, the study explored the differences between various students’ academic proficiency, support mechanisms, motivational levels and overall integration with the university. A quantitative approach was used and 117 full-time first-year National Diploma in Human Resource Management students from the Nelson Mandela University (formerly known as Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University) participated in the study. This study therefore focused on one student cohort at a particular higher education institution (HEI). The findings revealed that a combination of cognitive and non-cognitive variables influences student readiness and success. Even though HEIs have implemented interventions, the level of student readiness remains low. It was noted, however, that students who scored high on the variables were more likely to succeed in higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

South Africa’s esteem is low with regard to current learner achievement in mathematics. Results from international studies, such as TIMMS and SACMEQ, continuously indicate that South African learners perform below international benchmarks in mathematics. Research and evaluation studies assert that teacher practices and poor early mathematics stimulation influence this state of affairs. Hence, this article reports on a study that explored the developmental progression of Grade R teachers’ mathematics knowledge and general knowledge of teaching participating in a professional development intervention. In this article I report on data collected after a two-day workshop conducted with the teachers. The video recordings of 14 teachers’ self-selected lessons were collected and transcribed, using a lesson observation tool, and analysed by means of thematic analysis. The findings indicated that teachers’ knowledge of number sense forms a strong foundation for improving the quality instruction of number knowledge. The first step seen to be taken by these teachers to engage the learners was the question and answer approach. The lessons of those who tried to let learners engage lacked structure and resulted in chaos. Demonstration and drill were used to develop the learners’ content knowledge. The teachers’ practices were inadequate as far as developing conceptual understanding is concerned; and their classroom management skills were not sufficiently developed to include all learners in their mediation. In instances where all the learners participated, the teacher directed the participation and did not allow for learner-to-learner engagement. It is crucial to note that they showed potential for growth and willingness to learn despite the limited or minimal the training they received. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although South Africa is a multilingual country with 11 official languages, English dominates as the language of teaching and instruction in almost all schools. In addition to this, the Natural Sciences teachers at the school of study were cautioned not to use code-switching because the school policy states that the medium of instruction should be exclusively English. Recently, students at this school complained about teachers who had been code-switching between one or more indigenous languages and English. The objectives of this investigation, therefore, were to explore the perceptions of Grade 8 students regarding code-switching in Natural Sciences classrooms, their perceptions of the effect of code-switching on their academic achievement and also how the use of this teaching strategy influenced their respect for their teacher. Data were collected by means of a questionnaire and the findings revealed that students believed that the use of code-switching confused many students, resulting in underachievement in Natural Sciences and that they respected teachers more when they taught in English only. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Science teaching and learning require knowledge about how learning takes place (cognition) and how learners interact with their surroundings (affective and sociocultural factors). The study reported on focussed on learning for understanding of Newton’s second law of motion from a cognitive perspective that takes social factors into account. A cognitive refinement instructional approach (CRIA) was used to organise and sequence learning activities, while students were engaged through inquiry and group work. Students’ real-life experiences were used as starting point of the learning sequence. The efficiency of the sequence was determined with the aid of the Force Concept Inventory (FCI) and complemented with the students’ reflections on the sequence, showing their epistemological preferences. The results indicated that a CRIA aided in constructing more coherent scientific knowledge and enhanced understanding, while reducing misconceptions on the topic. In their reflections, the students acknowledged that experiential and experimental evidence, as well as guided formation of a scientific explanatory framework, are foundational for a deeper understanding of the challenging topic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The qualitative study reported on was, undertaken from a distributed leadership perspective, and was an attempt to provide understanding of how heads of department (HoDs) develop educators within the organisational context of different schools and subject departments. The findings are related to the current policy framework for professional development in South African schools. Two fee-paying and two non-fee-paying schools were selected and interviews were conducted with HoDs from single subject (unitary) and multi-subject (federal or confederate) departments in each school. The data was transcribed, coded, analysed and related to the research question. The findings confirmed that HoDs are a key link between principals and the educators in their classrooms. This supports the view that HoDs have formal responsibilities and accountabilities and they wield a horizontal and a vertical influence. Recommendations are made to improve professional development practice by HoDs in particular and in the education system in general. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports on a study of six Grade 11 learners’ levels of understanding of concepts related to the function definition and representation. Task-based clinical interviews were used to elicit the learners’ interpretations and reasoning when working with these function-related concepts. Indicators for Action–Process–Object–Schema (APOS) theory conception levels were formulated and used to categorise learners’ written and interview responses into conception levels of understanding of the function concept. According to the South African Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) curriculum, Grade 11 learners are expected to be operating at the object and schema levels after instruction. however, the results indicated that learners were operating at the action and process levels as their understanding was characterised by vague definitions of function-related concepts and memorisation of procedures for translating between symbolic and graphical representations. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The study establishes whether government spending on private universal secondary education (USE) schools is equitable across quintiles disaggregated by gender and by region in Uganda. The study employs benefit incidence analysis tool on the Uganda National Panel Survey (UNPS 2009/10) data to establish the welfare impact of public subsidy on different households. The results reveal that the richer households benefit more from the subsidy than the poor. Similar patterns are evident across gender and regions. However, the subsidy as a share of total household spending is higher (49%) for poor households than the richer (6%). The contrast in the findings could be because the richer seem to have more school going children and thus spend more on each student. The concentration curves reveal that there are minimal achievements by the state funding to redistribute incomes to the poor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Student academic success is an important issue in South African (SA) higher education (HE). The transition from school to HE is a critical time that a student must successfully negotiate in order ultimately to succeed at university. Tinto (1993) identified the first phase of the transition process as the separation phase during which the student starts the move away from the originating environment toward becoming integrated into the institutional community. Orientation programmes have traditionally been one way in which institutions have tried to assist students in adapting to the new environment. Orientation sessions have however not always had the practical effect of improving student success. This article reports back on a newly designed “true to life” extended orientation programme that was implemented during January 2008. The success of the programme was evaluated using student feedback and by tracking the academic performance of the students. After tracking student academic performance the performance of the students who took part in the orientation programme was compared with the academic results of those who did not attend. The extended orientation programme seemed to have positively contributed towards student success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the effect of two family factors (financial, social capital) and school factors on students’ achievement. One hundred eighty two, seventh-grade female students from nine schools in Muranga district, Kenya, were studied. The statistical procedures included logit regression, cross-tabulations, frequency counting and chi-square analyses. These procedures were used to look at the effects of variables on each other and their effects on students’ study habits and achievement. The researcher found that each of the two family factors (financial and social capital), and the school factors had an independent and significant effect on student achievement and study habits. The results indicated that a student's academic achievement is positively influenced by the education level of both parents. The researcher also found that the father's education had more positive influence to the study habits of the females. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]