Positive psychology interventions in a student counselling centre: an exploratory study
- Authors: Miano, Pamela Wanjiru
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Positive psychology College students Counseling psychology
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/11702 , vital:26958
- Description: University students in South Africa today face a variety of issues with academic and relationship problems, career development issues, depression and anxiety being the most common. This negatively impacts their pass rates and personal success. Research into positive psychology has increased considerably over the past few years. Seligman‟s PERMA model has played a pivotal role in assisting in the understanding of what constitutes a flourishing life. The proposed study aimed to explore and describe the impact of five interventions, based on each of the aspects of the PERMA model, on Student Counselling clients. The research sample consisted of 10 participants seeking Student Counselling, Career and Development Centre Services at NMMU. Purposive sampling was uses to source participants. The researcher facilitated a six-week group programme which was developed by the researcher. In this programme, the participants were introduced to the aspects of the PERMA model. The participants implemented interventions in between sessions and journals of their experiences provided qualitative data on their experiences. The Beck Depression Inventory II and the Satisfaction With Life Scale were utilized as pre and post intervention measure. ATLAS.ti software programme and descriptive statistics were utilized for qualitative and quantitative data analysis respectively. Key findings included benefits such as an overall decrease in depressive symptoms and an increase in life satisfaction following the interventions. The negative impact of academic concerns on life satisfaction was also noted. Moreover, participants reported that they enjoyed both the content and the interactive nature of the group sessions. In conclusion, implementing positive psychology group interventions on students is promoted as a result of the emerging benefits.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
- Authors: Miano, Pamela Wanjiru
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Positive psychology College students Counseling psychology
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/11702 , vital:26958
- Description: University students in South Africa today face a variety of issues with academic and relationship problems, career development issues, depression and anxiety being the most common. This negatively impacts their pass rates and personal success. Research into positive psychology has increased considerably over the past few years. Seligman‟s PERMA model has played a pivotal role in assisting in the understanding of what constitutes a flourishing life. The proposed study aimed to explore and describe the impact of five interventions, based on each of the aspects of the PERMA model, on Student Counselling clients. The research sample consisted of 10 participants seeking Student Counselling, Career and Development Centre Services at NMMU. Purposive sampling was uses to source participants. The researcher facilitated a six-week group programme which was developed by the researcher. In this programme, the participants were introduced to the aspects of the PERMA model. The participants implemented interventions in between sessions and journals of their experiences provided qualitative data on their experiences. The Beck Depression Inventory II and the Satisfaction With Life Scale were utilized as pre and post intervention measure. ATLAS.ti software programme and descriptive statistics were utilized for qualitative and quantitative data analysis respectively. Key findings included benefits such as an overall decrease in depressive symptoms and an increase in life satisfaction following the interventions. The negative impact of academic concerns on life satisfaction was also noted. Moreover, participants reported that they enjoyed both the content and the interactive nature of the group sessions. In conclusion, implementing positive psychology group interventions on students is promoted as a result of the emerging benefits.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
The contributions of phonological awareness and naming speed to the reading fluency, accuracy, comprehension and spelling of Grade 3 IsiXhosa readers
- Authors: Diemer, Maxine Nichole
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/3245 , vital:20404
- Description: This thesis contributes to reading research in isiXhosa, where the role of various cognitive skills in reading has not yet been examined. One of the current debates in reading research centers on the contribution of cognitive skills, namely phonological awareness and naming speed, to reading. The exact relation between phonological awareness and naming speed, and their relation to literacy in different languages are also disputed. In this study, the contribution of phonological awareness and naming speed to literacy is examined in 52 Grade 3 isiXhosa speaking children. Measures for literacy included oral reading fluency, silent reading, comprehension and spelling. Phonological awareness was the biggest contributor to reading fluency, accuracy, comprehension and spelling, confirming that phonological processing is important for reading in all languages studied to date. The role of naming speed was narrower, contributing to the fluency and accuracy of reading only in the group with poor phonological awareness. The results can inform the teaching of reading isiXhosa where an approach that explicitly emphasises orthography-phonology relations at the phoneme level may be well suited especially since there are many letter groups to learn. This would enable higher accuracy in orthography-phonology correspondences and should also improve automaticity, which was lacking in the group with low levels of phonological awareness. The Psycholinguistic Grain Size Theory of reading can adequately inform the understanding of reading in isiXhosa, and findings from other languages with similar requirements can inform the teaching of reading in isiXhosa.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
- Authors: Diemer, Maxine Nichole
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/3245 , vital:20404
- Description: This thesis contributes to reading research in isiXhosa, where the role of various cognitive skills in reading has not yet been examined. One of the current debates in reading research centers on the contribution of cognitive skills, namely phonological awareness and naming speed, to reading. The exact relation between phonological awareness and naming speed, and their relation to literacy in different languages are also disputed. In this study, the contribution of phonological awareness and naming speed to literacy is examined in 52 Grade 3 isiXhosa speaking children. Measures for literacy included oral reading fluency, silent reading, comprehension and spelling. Phonological awareness was the biggest contributor to reading fluency, accuracy, comprehension and spelling, confirming that phonological processing is important for reading in all languages studied to date. The role of naming speed was narrower, contributing to the fluency and accuracy of reading only in the group with poor phonological awareness. The results can inform the teaching of reading isiXhosa where an approach that explicitly emphasises orthography-phonology relations at the phoneme level may be well suited especially since there are many letter groups to learn. This would enable higher accuracy in orthography-phonology correspondences and should also improve automaticity, which was lacking in the group with low levels of phonological awareness. The Psycholinguistic Grain Size Theory of reading can adequately inform the understanding of reading in isiXhosa, and findings from other languages with similar requirements can inform the teaching of reading in isiXhosa.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
Investigating the manufacturing of consent and democratic resistance through legacy and new media, in relation to fracking
- Authors: Roodt, Jean-Pierre
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Press and propaganda , Press and politics , Mass media
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/3665 , vital:20451
- Description: This dissertation concerns the extent to which the propaganda model advanced by Noam Chomsky and Edward Herman in their Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media is still applicable to the current media ecosystem, where both legacy and new media converge, especially given the emergence of global democratic resistance both to the excesses of neoliberalism in general, and to the problems associated with shale gas mining through hydraulic fracturing (or fracking) in particular. In this regard, firstly, the tensions between the views of seminal propaganda theorists and of critical theorists opposed to propaganda will be thematized in relation to Chomsky and Herman’s propaganda model, through which they sought to account for the negative impact of neoliberalism on journalistic freedom. Secondly, the primary features of neoliberalism will be considered in relation to the advent of the Internet, which has helped spread laissez-faire capitalism globally, both through integrating financial markets and augmenting consumerism, and through facilitating new practises of consent engineering via digital forms of censorship and surveillance. Thirdly, the correlative emergence around the world of digital democratic resistance on the part of new social movements and through both new and legacy media means, to the excesses of neoliberalism in general, will be investigated. Fourthly, the corporate underpinning of fracking in the United States will be explored, along with the media strategy by which anti-fracking groups – following Vera Scroggins’s activism – have contested government endorsement of such resource extraction. Fifthly, the resonances/dissonances between the media strategies of the American anti-fracking movement and the South African anti-fracking movement – most notably the Treasure the Karoo Action Group (TKAG) – along with the different contexts out of which they emerged and their respective efficacy, will be examined. Finally, some potential deficits in the TKAG media strategy will be identified, and appropriate recommendations will be made.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
- Authors: Roodt, Jean-Pierre
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Press and propaganda , Press and politics , Mass media
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/3665 , vital:20451
- Description: This dissertation concerns the extent to which the propaganda model advanced by Noam Chomsky and Edward Herman in their Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media is still applicable to the current media ecosystem, where both legacy and new media converge, especially given the emergence of global democratic resistance both to the excesses of neoliberalism in general, and to the problems associated with shale gas mining through hydraulic fracturing (or fracking) in particular. In this regard, firstly, the tensions between the views of seminal propaganda theorists and of critical theorists opposed to propaganda will be thematized in relation to Chomsky and Herman’s propaganda model, through which they sought to account for the negative impact of neoliberalism on journalistic freedom. Secondly, the primary features of neoliberalism will be considered in relation to the advent of the Internet, which has helped spread laissez-faire capitalism globally, both through integrating financial markets and augmenting consumerism, and through facilitating new practises of consent engineering via digital forms of censorship and surveillance. Thirdly, the correlative emergence around the world of digital democratic resistance on the part of new social movements and through both new and legacy media means, to the excesses of neoliberalism in general, will be investigated. Fourthly, the corporate underpinning of fracking in the United States will be explored, along with the media strategy by which anti-fracking groups – following Vera Scroggins’s activism – have contested government endorsement of such resource extraction. Fifthly, the resonances/dissonances between the media strategies of the American anti-fracking movement and the South African anti-fracking movement – most notably the Treasure the Karoo Action Group (TKAG) – along with the different contexts out of which they emerged and their respective efficacy, will be examined. Finally, some potential deficits in the TKAG media strategy will be identified, and appropriate recommendations will be made.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
Agreement and coordination in XiTsonga, SeSotho and IsiXhosa: an optimality theoretic perspective
- Authors: Mitchley, Hazel
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/3423 , vital:20491
- Description: This thesis provides a unified Optimality Theoretic analysis of subject-verb agreement with coordinated preverbal subjects in three Southern Bantu languages: Xitsonga (S53), Sesotho (S33), and isiXhosa (S41). This analysis is then used to formulate a typology of agreement resolution strategies and the contexts which trigger them. Although some accounts in the Bantu literature suggest that agreement with coordinate structures is avoided by speakers (e.g. Schadeberg 1992, Voeltz 1971) especially when conjuncts are from different noun classes, I show that there is ample evidence to the contrary, and that the subject marker used is dependent on several factors, including (i) the [-HUMAN] specification on the conjuncts, (ii) whether the conjuncts are singular or plural, (iii) whether or not the conjuncts both carry the same noun class feature, and (iv) the order of the conjuncts. This thesis shows that there are various agreement resolution strategies which can beused: 1) agreement with the [+HUMAN] feature on the conjuncts, 2) agreement with the[-HUMAN] feature on the conjuncts, 3) agreement with the noun class feature on both conjuncts, 4) agreement with the noun class feature on the conjunct closest to the verb, and 5) agreement with the noun class feature on the conjunct furthest from the verb. Not all of these strategies are used by all languages, nor are these strategies interchangeable in the languages which do use them – instead, multiple factors conspire to trigger the use of a specific agreement strategy within a specific agreement featural context. I show that these effects can be captured using Optimality Theory (Prince and Smolensky 2004). The analysis makes use of seven constraints: RES#, MAX[+H], MAX[-H], DEP[-H], MAXNC, DEPNC, and AGREECLOSEST. The hierarchical ranking of these constraints not only accounts for the confinement of particular strategies to specific agreement featural contexts within a language, but also accounts for the cross-linguistic differences in the use of these strategies. I end off by examining the typological implications which follow from the OT analysis provided in this thesis.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
- Authors: Mitchley, Hazel
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/3423 , vital:20491
- Description: This thesis provides a unified Optimality Theoretic analysis of subject-verb agreement with coordinated preverbal subjects in three Southern Bantu languages: Xitsonga (S53), Sesotho (S33), and isiXhosa (S41). This analysis is then used to formulate a typology of agreement resolution strategies and the contexts which trigger them. Although some accounts in the Bantu literature suggest that agreement with coordinate structures is avoided by speakers (e.g. Schadeberg 1992, Voeltz 1971) especially when conjuncts are from different noun classes, I show that there is ample evidence to the contrary, and that the subject marker used is dependent on several factors, including (i) the [-HUMAN] specification on the conjuncts, (ii) whether the conjuncts are singular or plural, (iii) whether or not the conjuncts both carry the same noun class feature, and (iv) the order of the conjuncts. This thesis shows that there are various agreement resolution strategies which can beused: 1) agreement with the [+HUMAN] feature on the conjuncts, 2) agreement with the[-HUMAN] feature on the conjuncts, 3) agreement with the noun class feature on both conjuncts, 4) agreement with the noun class feature on the conjunct closest to the verb, and 5) agreement with the noun class feature on the conjunct furthest from the verb. Not all of these strategies are used by all languages, nor are these strategies interchangeable in the languages which do use them – instead, multiple factors conspire to trigger the use of a specific agreement strategy within a specific agreement featural context. I show that these effects can be captured using Optimality Theory (Prince and Smolensky 2004). The analysis makes use of seven constraints: RES#, MAX[+H], MAX[-H], DEP[-H], MAXNC, DEPNC, and AGREECLOSEST. The hierarchical ranking of these constraints not only accounts for the confinement of particular strategies to specific agreement featural contexts within a language, but also accounts for the cross-linguistic differences in the use of these strategies. I end off by examining the typological implications which follow from the OT analysis provided in this thesis.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
The design of an airport terminal in Somerset East, province of the Eastern Cape
- Authors: Karihindi, Kounikui
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Aeronautical museums -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Designs and plans , Airport buildings -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Airports -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Designs and plans
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/18886 , vital:28743
- Description: In addressing the stunted growth of the town of Somerset East, the treatise suggests that the model of an aerotropolis be used as means to spur economic growth an development of the town. The treatise proposes the design of an air terminal facility, to act as a catalyst, for which growth of a mini-Aerotropolis will happen around as well as a northern gateway for tourism to two of South Africa's popular national parks; Addo Elephant National Park and Mountain Zebra National park. The challenge being the creation of a building type that incorporates several would be segregated activities into one hybrid that generates public space within an interface or transcient space.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
- Authors: Karihindi, Kounikui
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Aeronautical museums -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Designs and plans , Airport buildings -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Airports -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Designs and plans
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/18886 , vital:28743
- Description: In addressing the stunted growth of the town of Somerset East, the treatise suggests that the model of an aerotropolis be used as means to spur economic growth an development of the town. The treatise proposes the design of an air terminal facility, to act as a catalyst, for which growth of a mini-Aerotropolis will happen around as well as a northern gateway for tourism to two of South Africa's popular national parks; Addo Elephant National Park and Mountain Zebra National park. The challenge being the creation of a building type that incorporates several would be segregated activities into one hybrid that generates public space within an interface or transcient space.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
Metaheuristic design: the parametric blueprint of a processing plant
- Authors: Ley, Braddin
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Architectural design -- Data processing
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/38819 , vital:34985
- Description: Architectural design “folds” deeply into associative logic, which is used to create a system of grammar responsive to a dialect. Within traditional design practices, these associations create themselves through additive logic, thereby making them laborious in their response to any change in the language. The implementation of computers in architectural design was initially considered a mode to overcome this - to automate the design process. Until now, it has primarily only afforded the designer the opportunity to perform repetitive tasks faster than traditional drawing methods, without enhancing any depth to associative parameters. The current state of the architectural discourse has opened itself up to advanced computation and is beginning to use this capacity fully. Using algorithmic logic to instantaneously process and compare multiple conditions, the designer now holds the power to determine which grammars he desires to engage with, which solutions he is required to review and which outcomes he wishes to find. He no longer labours over repetitive and additive tasks; rather, he focuses on reviewing iterative changes in dialect in order to produce a highly responsive and technically comprehensive architectural solution. It is important to note that these changes in dialect can refer to any field of qualitative or quantitative data, such as quantified climatic or census data, or qualities of light and volume, so long as the designer transposes quality into a scaled matrix of values. The author is captivated by both digital technologies and sensory experiences in architecture, guiding this treatise to understand natural phenomena and their complexities - expressly, environmental responses to field conditions. The design response to this research is formulated from an algorithm that devises a fl oor plan layout; the methodology used is from a close-packed perimeter cell network, most notably found in floor plans of industrial architectures, henceforth the design articulates as industrial architecture in a context reactive to this typology. The agrarian town of Patensie lies in a rich valley of agriculture, climate and field conditions, and provides the opportunity for this treatise to develop.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
- Authors: Ley, Braddin
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Architectural design -- Data processing
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/38819 , vital:34985
- Description: Architectural design “folds” deeply into associative logic, which is used to create a system of grammar responsive to a dialect. Within traditional design practices, these associations create themselves through additive logic, thereby making them laborious in their response to any change in the language. The implementation of computers in architectural design was initially considered a mode to overcome this - to automate the design process. Until now, it has primarily only afforded the designer the opportunity to perform repetitive tasks faster than traditional drawing methods, without enhancing any depth to associative parameters. The current state of the architectural discourse has opened itself up to advanced computation and is beginning to use this capacity fully. Using algorithmic logic to instantaneously process and compare multiple conditions, the designer now holds the power to determine which grammars he desires to engage with, which solutions he is required to review and which outcomes he wishes to find. He no longer labours over repetitive and additive tasks; rather, he focuses on reviewing iterative changes in dialect in order to produce a highly responsive and technically comprehensive architectural solution. It is important to note that these changes in dialect can refer to any field of qualitative or quantitative data, such as quantified climatic or census data, or qualities of light and volume, so long as the designer transposes quality into a scaled matrix of values. The author is captivated by both digital technologies and sensory experiences in architecture, guiding this treatise to understand natural phenomena and their complexities - expressly, environmental responses to field conditions. The design response to this research is formulated from an algorithm that devises a fl oor plan layout; the methodology used is from a close-packed perimeter cell network, most notably found in floor plans of industrial architectures, henceforth the design articulates as industrial architecture in a context reactive to this typology. The agrarian town of Patensie lies in a rich valley of agriculture, climate and field conditions, and provides the opportunity for this treatise to develop.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
The design of a research centre for the study of indigenous medical plants, Walter Sisulu University, Mthatha
- Authors: Dabula, Xola
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: College buildings , Research institutes -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Designs and plans , Architecture -- Technological innovations -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Architecture, Modern
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/18718 , vital:28710
- Description: This treatise is preoccupied with the design of an Indigenous Medicine Research Institute within the region of (the former) underdeveloped Transkei. The interest in the matter developed out of a concern for a medical system which finds itself in jeopardy of depletion due to over-harvesting which is endangering the ecosystem and its dependents. This is as a resultant lack of development due to its informal nature, and loss of impact of traditional knowledge. Indigenous medicine forms part of the cultural, religious, medical and socio-economical back bone of the region, research will create opportunities for the discovery of new medicinal plants and exploring the applications of age-old remedies in contemporary times. Thus developing and promoting indigenous medicine of the region to a wider user group, in a sustainable method which will protect the environment. Architecturally, the design seeks to respond to an in-depth quest to identify the appropriate nurturing of the relationship between learning and the natural environment, while accommodating the necessary programmatic components which will satisfy the needs of the Institute; namely education, conservation and research. Central to the design is the development of an architecture that addresses the fundamental challenges of education, conservation and the research of plants, in a manner that provides opportunities for collaborative learning practices and an interchange between the user-groups and the plants to be studied, resulting in a building that is at harmony with nature. Through this collaboration of the diverse components, an effective scheme has evolved which offers a singular co-operative environment for the indigenous medical system, in a particular effort to transform the learning environment and extend of the knowledge, as a catalyst for further development and reconciliation with nature. Set in the academic context of the Walter Sisulu University Campus, a once major university in Transkei renowned for its medical department, the Research Institute facility re-establishes the University's medical status in a manner that truly represents its region. The built form will integrate itself into the existing campus conditions in a contemporary way that sets up a response which is conducive to the discovery, preservation and sharing of knowledge pertaining to indigenous medicine.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
- Authors: Dabula, Xola
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: College buildings , Research institutes -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Designs and plans , Architecture -- Technological innovations -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Architecture, Modern
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/18718 , vital:28710
- Description: This treatise is preoccupied with the design of an Indigenous Medicine Research Institute within the region of (the former) underdeveloped Transkei. The interest in the matter developed out of a concern for a medical system which finds itself in jeopardy of depletion due to over-harvesting which is endangering the ecosystem and its dependents. This is as a resultant lack of development due to its informal nature, and loss of impact of traditional knowledge. Indigenous medicine forms part of the cultural, religious, medical and socio-economical back bone of the region, research will create opportunities for the discovery of new medicinal plants and exploring the applications of age-old remedies in contemporary times. Thus developing and promoting indigenous medicine of the region to a wider user group, in a sustainable method which will protect the environment. Architecturally, the design seeks to respond to an in-depth quest to identify the appropriate nurturing of the relationship between learning and the natural environment, while accommodating the necessary programmatic components which will satisfy the needs of the Institute; namely education, conservation and research. Central to the design is the development of an architecture that addresses the fundamental challenges of education, conservation and the research of plants, in a manner that provides opportunities for collaborative learning practices and an interchange between the user-groups and the plants to be studied, resulting in a building that is at harmony with nature. Through this collaboration of the diverse components, an effective scheme has evolved which offers a singular co-operative environment for the indigenous medical system, in a particular effort to transform the learning environment and extend of the knowledge, as a catalyst for further development and reconciliation with nature. Set in the academic context of the Walter Sisulu University Campus, a once major university in Transkei renowned for its medical department, the Research Institute facility re-establishes the University's medical status in a manner that truly represents its region. The built form will integrate itself into the existing campus conditions in a contemporary way that sets up a response which is conducive to the discovery, preservation and sharing of knowledge pertaining to indigenous medicine.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
Recapitalisation and development programme for cattle producing farmers in the Eastern Cape
- Authors: Sontundu, Qaqamba
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Agriculture -- Economic aspects -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Rural development -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Land reform -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/12790 , vital:27121
- Description: This thesis examines the impact of the recapitalisation and development programme on cattle producing farmers in Joe Gqabi and Chris Hani Districts. This research is based on the insight that most of the Eastern Cape cattle producing farmers are facing financial problems and their farms are dilapidated even though there are interventions from the Department of Rural Development and Agrarian Reform and Rural Development and Land Reform through programmes such as CASP and RADP for rescuing the cattle producing farmers. The major challenges faced by the cattle producing farmers into getting the funding will be established in this study. The main focus is on the farms that have already got the funding and also on the ones that are still in the pipeline for being funded by the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform. To a lesser extent, the thesis draws on findings from careful considerations of case studies comprising ten farms, thus five farms from Joe Gqabi and five from Chris Hani Districts. The research methods under this research design yielded data that was descriptive and exploratory based on human experiences and are associated with discovering changes in situations. The research findings show that delays in releasing recapitalisation and development funds for land reform beneficiaries have been recognised as one of the main reasons for the collapse of land reform projects. In most cases the funds are arriving long after they were needed for important faming activities. The delays are also leading to permanent closure of the farms. Therefore, it is essential for the success of land reform programmes to ensure that the production model is designed so as to generate benefits for land reform beneficiaries. This thesis is concluded by making recommendations to the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform in order to address the identified Recapitalisation and Development Funding challenges as well as to identify what can be considered as effective financial support to the land reform projects.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
- Authors: Sontundu, Qaqamba
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Agriculture -- Economic aspects -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Rural development -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Land reform -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/12790 , vital:27121
- Description: This thesis examines the impact of the recapitalisation and development programme on cattle producing farmers in Joe Gqabi and Chris Hani Districts. This research is based on the insight that most of the Eastern Cape cattle producing farmers are facing financial problems and their farms are dilapidated even though there are interventions from the Department of Rural Development and Agrarian Reform and Rural Development and Land Reform through programmes such as CASP and RADP for rescuing the cattle producing farmers. The major challenges faced by the cattle producing farmers into getting the funding will be established in this study. The main focus is on the farms that have already got the funding and also on the ones that are still in the pipeline for being funded by the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform. To a lesser extent, the thesis draws on findings from careful considerations of case studies comprising ten farms, thus five farms from Joe Gqabi and five from Chris Hani Districts. The research methods under this research design yielded data that was descriptive and exploratory based on human experiences and are associated with discovering changes in situations. The research findings show that delays in releasing recapitalisation and development funds for land reform beneficiaries have been recognised as one of the main reasons for the collapse of land reform projects. In most cases the funds are arriving long after they were needed for important faming activities. The delays are also leading to permanent closure of the farms. Therefore, it is essential for the success of land reform programmes to ensure that the production model is designed so as to generate benefits for land reform beneficiaries. This thesis is concluded by making recommendations to the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform in order to address the identified Recapitalisation and Development Funding challenges as well as to identify what can be considered as effective financial support to the land reform projects.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
The design of a Kaolin processing facility in Grahamstown, province of the Eastern Cape
- Authors: Bowles, Brendon Jerome
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Architecture, Modern -- 21st century -- Designs and plans , Architecture -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Designs and plans , Industrial buildings -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Design and construction
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/15433 , vital:28245
- Description: The Story of clay in the Grahamstown area can be dated as far back as 1812. In 1823 there was conflict between the Xhosa and the British Settlers over clay pits at Coombs valley, an area outside Grahamstown towards East London (Holleman, 1997, p. 50). Since the initial conflict, the mining of the resource has become a commercial activity. Pottery industries, brick making facilities and a kaolin mill were opened, with brick making being the only economically sustained activity which continues to present day. With the largest known deposits of quality kaolin in South Africa, the economic condition of the context of Grahamstown is not benefitting from the abundance of the raw-clay material (Malatji, 2010). The material is currently being mined at Strowan mine, the most active mine in the area, approximately 4km from Grahamstown and is transported to Johannesburg for milling. The transport costs involved in moving the material from the mine to the mill has impeded potential production. In 1988 the production of Kaolin from the Grahamstown area accounted for 55% of total local production in South Africa, but that figure had dropped to 27% by 2008 (Horan, 2008, p.1). The high waste factor and the cost implication involved in the erecting of the required infrastructure and equipment for a mill, become the main impediment to erecting a new Kaolin mill in Grahamstown. The raw material which is milled has a waste factor of approximately 90 percent, meaning that; of the material mined in the open cast mining method, less than 10 percent is transported to be milled (Burchell, 2015). Capital gain from production of kaolin in relation to the cost of the mill is inadequate to financially sustain the costs of erecting a kaolin mill for Grahamstown. A need for a by-product to utilize the high waste content of the mined product in a waste resourceful manner will potentially sustain a new mill economically. With the problem of transport and foreign provincial exploitation of local resources, a kaolin mill for Grahamstown will increase production and potentially become a catalyst for future development around kaolin supporting industries such as ceramics, paper industries, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. This treatise is a strategic approach towards the design of a Kaolin mill with a brick making factory as a by-product of the waste of the high quality kaolin.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
- Authors: Bowles, Brendon Jerome
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Architecture, Modern -- 21st century -- Designs and plans , Architecture -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Designs and plans , Industrial buildings -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Design and construction
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/15433 , vital:28245
- Description: The Story of clay in the Grahamstown area can be dated as far back as 1812. In 1823 there was conflict between the Xhosa and the British Settlers over clay pits at Coombs valley, an area outside Grahamstown towards East London (Holleman, 1997, p. 50). Since the initial conflict, the mining of the resource has become a commercial activity. Pottery industries, brick making facilities and a kaolin mill were opened, with brick making being the only economically sustained activity which continues to present day. With the largest known deposits of quality kaolin in South Africa, the economic condition of the context of Grahamstown is not benefitting from the abundance of the raw-clay material (Malatji, 2010). The material is currently being mined at Strowan mine, the most active mine in the area, approximately 4km from Grahamstown and is transported to Johannesburg for milling. The transport costs involved in moving the material from the mine to the mill has impeded potential production. In 1988 the production of Kaolin from the Grahamstown area accounted for 55% of total local production in South Africa, but that figure had dropped to 27% by 2008 (Horan, 2008, p.1). The high waste factor and the cost implication involved in the erecting of the required infrastructure and equipment for a mill, become the main impediment to erecting a new Kaolin mill in Grahamstown. The raw material which is milled has a waste factor of approximately 90 percent, meaning that; of the material mined in the open cast mining method, less than 10 percent is transported to be milled (Burchell, 2015). Capital gain from production of kaolin in relation to the cost of the mill is inadequate to financially sustain the costs of erecting a kaolin mill for Grahamstown. A need for a by-product to utilize the high waste content of the mined product in a waste resourceful manner will potentially sustain a new mill economically. With the problem of transport and foreign provincial exploitation of local resources, a kaolin mill for Grahamstown will increase production and potentially become a catalyst for future development around kaolin supporting industries such as ceramics, paper industries, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. This treatise is a strategic approach towards the design of a Kaolin mill with a brick making factory as a by-product of the waste of the high quality kaolin.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
The design of an aquaculture plant for the lower Swartkops valley, Eastern Cape
- Authors: Skein, Philip Jacobus
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Architecture -- Conservation and restoration -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Landscape architecture -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Aquaculture -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Fishes -- Conservation
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/15389 , vital:28237
- Description: This treatise originated as a response to the current environmental issue that is currently threatening the existence of biodiversities within the Swartkops Estuarine region. The increasing amount of illegal and negligent human-related activities within the Estuary has seen to an rise in degradation and destruction of our natural ecosystems with the issue of water pollution recently acquiring crisis stage. Being brought up in Uitenhage, the close proximity of the Swartkops River naturally served as an endless resource of outdoor activities over the years. Witnessing the current degraded state of my beloved river served as motivation for this treatise which is an attempt to address and reconcile our relationship with the natural environment. The issues facing the natural environment of Swartkops will be looked at in depth and sets of integrated interventions will be proposed in order to minimise further anthropocentric effects on nature. The project will attempt to develop a restorative design framework that will achieve ecological-, economical-, and social sustainability whilst voicing conservation awareness through the promotion of sustainable industry in the region. The project will address issues of natural degradation on various scales in order to develop an holistic approach that will restore and sustain the local- and national value of the Swartkops Estuary. The series of interventions will eventually lead to the design of a building located in Swartkops Village.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
- Authors: Skein, Philip Jacobus
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Architecture -- Conservation and restoration -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Landscape architecture -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Aquaculture -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Fishes -- Conservation
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/15389 , vital:28237
- Description: This treatise originated as a response to the current environmental issue that is currently threatening the existence of biodiversities within the Swartkops Estuarine region. The increasing amount of illegal and negligent human-related activities within the Estuary has seen to an rise in degradation and destruction of our natural ecosystems with the issue of water pollution recently acquiring crisis stage. Being brought up in Uitenhage, the close proximity of the Swartkops River naturally served as an endless resource of outdoor activities over the years. Witnessing the current degraded state of my beloved river served as motivation for this treatise which is an attempt to address and reconcile our relationship with the natural environment. The issues facing the natural environment of Swartkops will be looked at in depth and sets of integrated interventions will be proposed in order to minimise further anthropocentric effects on nature. The project will attempt to develop a restorative design framework that will achieve ecological-, economical-, and social sustainability whilst voicing conservation awareness through the promotion of sustainable industry in the region. The project will address issues of natural degradation on various scales in order to develop an holistic approach that will restore and sustain the local- and national value of the Swartkops Estuary. The series of interventions will eventually lead to the design of a building located in Swartkops Village.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
Systemic influences on the career development of a sample of black South African adolescent females: adolescent and parental perspectives
- Stolarczyk, Elizabeth Maria, McMahon, Mary
- Authors: Stolarczyk, Elizabeth Maria , McMahon, Mary
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Career development -- Women -- South Africa , Counseling -- Women -- South Africa , Vocational guidance -- Women -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/12865 , vital:27128
- Description: Career counselling in South Africa is yet fully support the transformation process taking place nationally. More specifically, the discipline of career psychology requires the emergence of a career development theory commensurate with its diverse population. historically, extensive use was made of western career theories which were not applicable to the majority of South Africa's culturally and ethically diverse population groups consisting predominantly of black individuals of low socioeconomic status. In addition, since 1994 a black middle class has emerged in South Africa that has become increasingly prominent. Familial and parental influence on the career development of adolescents is acknowledge as pivotal; however, little South Afriucan research exists on this topic. The aim of the present study is to investigate the systematic influence on adolescent career development from the perspectives of black South African middle class grade 11 females and their parents.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
- Authors: Stolarczyk, Elizabeth Maria , McMahon, Mary
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Career development -- Women -- South Africa , Counseling -- Women -- South Africa , Vocational guidance -- Women -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/12865 , vital:27128
- Description: Career counselling in South Africa is yet fully support the transformation process taking place nationally. More specifically, the discipline of career psychology requires the emergence of a career development theory commensurate with its diverse population. historically, extensive use was made of western career theories which were not applicable to the majority of South Africa's culturally and ethically diverse population groups consisting predominantly of black individuals of low socioeconomic status. In addition, since 1994 a black middle class has emerged in South Africa that has become increasingly prominent. Familial and parental influence on the career development of adolescents is acknowledge as pivotal; however, little South Afriucan research exists on this topic. The aim of the present study is to investigate the systematic influence on adolescent career development from the perspectives of black South African middle class grade 11 females and their parents.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
The design of a yacht manufacturing facility for Robertson & Caine in the East London harbour
- Authors: Tobbell, Kay-leigh
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Factories -- South Africa -- East London -- Designs and plans , Architecture -- South Africa -- East London -- Designs and plans , Architecture, Industrial -- South Africa -- East London -- Designs and plans , Architecture, Modern -- 21st century
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/18729 , vital:28713
- Description: This treatise deals with the design of a new yacht manufacturing facility for Robertson and Caine in the East London harbour. It arose from issues with the degradation of the precinct and social and economic issues relating to this. This treatise investigates the issues and process involved in the design of a Yacht manufacturing Facility in the East London Harbour. The purpose of this treatise is to better understand the contextual, spatial, physical and theoretical nature of a Yacht Manufacturing Facility. This identifies a set of architectural issues to which an appropriate architectural design is proposed. Conclusions based on the research findings and analysis of a selected site will be drawn and translated to formulate a vision for the proposed yacht manufacturing facility.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
- Authors: Tobbell, Kay-leigh
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Factories -- South Africa -- East London -- Designs and plans , Architecture -- South Africa -- East London -- Designs and plans , Architecture, Industrial -- South Africa -- East London -- Designs and plans , Architecture, Modern -- 21st century
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/18729 , vital:28713
- Description: This treatise deals with the design of a new yacht manufacturing facility for Robertson and Caine in the East London harbour. It arose from issues with the degradation of the precinct and social and economic issues relating to this. This treatise investigates the issues and process involved in the design of a Yacht manufacturing Facility in the East London Harbour. The purpose of this treatise is to better understand the contextual, spatial, physical and theoretical nature of a Yacht Manufacturing Facility. This identifies a set of architectural issues to which an appropriate architectural design is proposed. Conclusions based on the research findings and analysis of a selected site will be drawn and translated to formulate a vision for the proposed yacht manufacturing facility.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
A text-critical analysis of potentially conflict-provoking genres of the Christian bible
- Authors: Grigor, Pierre
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Church history , Transformation groups , Conflict management
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/11289 , vital:26906
- Description: This dissertation wants to understand the church history regarding the divide which resulted in the so called fundamentalist and the liberal movements in the church being birthed in identifying the reasons for the conflict between the aforementioned groups. It then presents principles of conflict transformation and management in order to understand and to help transform and manage potential confrontational situations between the aforementioned groups effectively. It further propose alternative interpretations to potential conflict-generating Bible texts by extrapolating new information from those texts in order to stir the potential of birthing a second naïve love for the discredited texts by offering new meanings to those same texts. Unfortunately, this objective can’t effectively be measured within the scope of this dissertation, but will nevertheless remain as an objective of hope.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016
- Authors: Grigor, Pierre
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Church history , Transformation groups , Conflict management
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/11289 , vital:26906
- Description: This dissertation wants to understand the church history regarding the divide which resulted in the so called fundamentalist and the liberal movements in the church being birthed in identifying the reasons for the conflict between the aforementioned groups. It then presents principles of conflict transformation and management in order to understand and to help transform and manage potential confrontational situations between the aforementioned groups effectively. It further propose alternative interpretations to potential conflict-generating Bible texts by extrapolating new information from those texts in order to stir the potential of birthing a second naïve love for the discredited texts by offering new meanings to those same texts. Unfortunately, this objective can’t effectively be measured within the scope of this dissertation, but will nevertheless remain as an objective of hope.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016