3. Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) - All submissions
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Item The role of social dialogue (civil society participation) in policy decision-making in South Africa: the case study of NEDLAC(2016-04-06) Ngxabi, SiziphiweSouth Africa enshrines itself as a democratic developing country that adheres to the principles of good governance and acknowledges the role that civil society participation in state affairs can have. The purpose of this study was to establish the role and effectiveness of NEDLAC’s social dialogue process through evaluating the contribution of civil society participation in the Development Chamber; and to understand the relationship between NEDLAC’s social dialogue model and the World Bank ideology on civil society participation in policy making. The study highlights that NEDLAC remains one of the key vehicles for social dialogue in South Africa and there have been positive contributions by civil society participation in the NEDLAC process. It takes its premise from the ILO model of social dialogue, whilst it also adapts from the World Bank ideology of civil society participation by including civil society in the process, through the Development Chamber. However, the effectiveness of civil society participation in policy making through NEDLAC is at risk due to the impact of the changing socioeconomic environment. In many ways this study highlights contradictions in South Africa’s social dialogue process. The Development Chamber is not being optimally used for its intended purposes as representativity and accountability of the community organisations are a concern; whilst there is an increasingly active civil society, demonstrated by civil unrest, which is not part of this social dialogue process.Item The development of elementary science teacher identity.(2012-09-20) Thorne, BarbaraAlthough the literature reveals that primary school teachers in general are reluctant to teach science, little research has been conducted into the histories and identities of such primary school teachers, particularly in South Africa. South African society at present is in the process of great socio-political change; therefore the study has particular relevance to science education in the country. This study uses a socio-historical-cultural framework to investigate the science learning and teaching identities of a small group of pre service primary school teachers. The study is situated in science methods courses at a South African university where students from a wide variety of social and cultural clusters are registered. I argue that primary school student teachers belong to a community of practice and that primary science student teachers form part of that community. Therefore, I use Wenger’s (1998) model of practice in a community. The model relies on i.a. the concepts of participation and non-participation within the community. With reference to these concepts, the changing and contested nature of student teacher identities within the primary science teaching community of practice forms the focus of this study. A mixed methods approach to obtaining and analysing data was employed where case studies provided much of the information obtained. Study findings suggest that a number of factors contribute to science teacher identities. These include primary and secondary school experiences with particular reference to critical incidents; the ‘race’ and gender of the students in question; students’ cultural and family backgrounds as well as the personal relationships with which the students engage. For historical reasons, ‘race’ is of particular significance in South Africa, therefore at this critical conjuncture, this aspect of students’ identities was examined. The study also refers to the dialectical interplay between agency and structure. Findings suggest that although students are bound to some extent by power structures, agency or subjectivity comes into play to various degrees in terms both of participating in the community and not participating therein. I suggest that methods courses, such as those which provided the empirical field for this study, could also provide sites for transformation of science identities in terms of content knowledge, self efficacy or confidence and pedagogy. Student teachers and their mentors are in ideal positions to act as agents of change in a transforming society. Their roles as positive significant narrators enable them to provide alternative trajectories which were once unimaginable. Such transformation resonates with Wenger’s (ibid) notions of identity as being and becoming.Item What is the relationship between state sponsored worker co-operatives, local markets and the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality?(2012-09-05) Nathan, OliverThis research report examines the relationship between state-sponsored worker co-operatives, local markets and the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality (EMM, on the East Rand, South Africa) in the 2000s, to examine how state support impacts upon democracy in worker co-operatives (“co-ops”) more generally. Worker co-ops are democratic and voluntary organisations, simultaneously owned and managed by their members (“co-operators”), have a substantial history in South Africa and elsewhere, and have often been seen as a potential alternative to capitalism. But are they? An extensive literature demonstrates market pressures erode co-op democracy (e.g. Philips): to survive, worker co-ops develop increasingly into capitalist enterprises, which fundamentally challenges notions that co-ops can challenge capitalism. Several commentators (e.g. Satgar) admit this problem, but see the solution in state support, which can purportedly shield worker co-ops from the market, so enabling their democratic content and socialist potential to be maintained. This pro-state approach is tested by examining actually-existing worker co-ops in the EMM, where a number of state-sponsored worker co-ops were established from the 2000s; the two most successful co-ops are the subject of this case study. It is shown that, on the contrary, state sponsorship fostered dependency and subtle (and less subtle) forms of state control over the co-ops. Most of the co-operatives failed to survive, as state control foisted upon them impractical goals (e.g. competition in poor community markets with overwhelming rivals,) while creating additional problems (e.g. failing to allocate marketing budgets) and also undermining co-op democracy (e.g. through imposing external priorities on the co-ops). The co-ops that survived remain trapped between state patronage and the capitalist market: unable to ensure accumulation, they remain dependent on the state, but as a result, are continually pushed by the state back into the market. It is not the South African state’s push to constitute the co-ops as black-run capitalist firms that is crucial to this story, but what this push reveals: state sponsorship was irredeemably linked to state control, and it was state control that enabled the state to force its agenda on iii the co-ops in the first place; an alternative state policy framework would simply change the goals imposed. The hierarchical and elitist class logic of the state is fundamentally incompatible with the popular, self-managed logic of worker co-ops. In short, the findings on the interaction of internal co-op dynamics with the state and open market pressures suggest that democratic worker co-ops are basically fundamentally incompatible with both markets and states. They are also fundamentally incapable of transcending either, as their survival requires either emulating capitalism or embracing the state. Lastly, this research report argues that the erosion of democracy in worker co-ops cannot simply be reduced to external forces (the state, the market), although these play a central role in such erosion. Of the two co-ops examined as case studies, one is characterised by authoritarian decision-making, the other by a fairly democratic practice. A key factor in such divergence were the co-operators’ own political and work cultures. Argued Bakunin: while worker co-ops can play a demonstrative role, challenging authoritarian politics by showing the possibility of workers’ self-management, they cannot provide a transformative role, overcoming capitalism or the state. A state-sponsored worker co-ops movement cannot form the heart of a radical, democratic and working class strategy for fundamental change. To answer the research question, the research asks which factors are important in determining the internal democratic or authoritarian form of the co-ops under study. Two state-sponsored worker co-ops are taken as case studies. The first co-op is characterised by authoritarian decision-making, while the other is characterised experiences democratic decision-making. The findings of the research agree with Philip’s (2006) argument that market factors are important in determining the internal form of a co-op. However, this research clearly shows that while market factors are important, they are by no means the sole determinant of the internal dynamics of a co-op. Non-market factors are equally important in determining the internal form of a co-op.Item Urban food gardens and community development : a case study of the Siyakhana initiative, Johannesburg.(2012-01-18) Nicolle, Trixie-BelleThe aim of this study is to explore the links which exist between community development and urban food gardens. South Africa has experienced a twenty five percent growth in the urban population from 2005-2010. It is further predicted that this will increase by a further thirty six percent to thirteen million inhabitants by 2015. The practice of urban agriculture is one of the strategies that can assist in addressing development challenges in an urban setting in South Africa and around the world. Urban agriculture has the potential to provide a survival strategy for the poor and thus contribute to poverty alleviation, employment, food security, social integration and skills transfer. This research explores the economic, social and ecological benefits of the activity, questioning the ways in which the Siyakhana food garden (and larger initiative) contributes to the Siyakhana community. For the purpose of the research the Siyakhana community refers to the Siyakhana group (eight women in the inner city of Johannesburg who run Early Childhood Development Centres (ECDCs)) and the gardeners who work in the food garden. Data was collected by means of semi-structured interviews, in-depth questionnaires, participant observation and informal conversation, as well as primary and secondary sources. The data was collected for a twelve month period from June 2010 to June 2011. In total the food garden was visited thirty times during the field work and the ECDCs twelve to fifteen times each. Because of the initiatives potential in community development, the focus of the research gives in-depth insights into the Siyakhana group, their history with the initiative, details about their ECDCs and their expectations and their perceived benefits of being involved with the Siyakhana initiative. The key findings of the study are that there are two primary ways in which the Siyakhana group benefit from being involved in the Siyakhana initiative. The benefits relate to the supplementary food which the Siyakhana group receive on a weekly basis and the practical learning environment of the Siyakhana food garden. This research shows that through their connection with the Siyakhana initiative the Siyakhana group act as a conduit for inner city community development. The healthy and nutritious food from the food garden and the knowledge obtained from being involved with the initiative is shared with a range of stakeholders within the inner city. The Siyakhana food garden is a unique example of a community project which embraces the concepts of ecological health promotion in a multiplicity of ways – through the distribution of food, training, conscientisation and mobilisation. Finally the study shows that when exploring the links between urban food gardens and community development it is not a pre-requisite for the community to physically engage in the production activities of the garden for empowerment and skills transfer to take place.Item Citizenship education in South Africa : a critique of post-apartheid citizenship education policy.(2010-03-04T06:09:45Z) Mathebula, Philemon ThokozaniIt is widely agreed that effective citizenship, whether in well-established democracies or in those in transition to democracy, require some educational preparation. In post-apartheid South Africa, education policy and subsequent curriculum development placed participatory democracy and active citizenship at its centre. Although South African education policy documents have a maximalist tone in places, they collectively reflect a minimalist conception of citizenship and of citizenship education. The focus of my critique of citizenship education policy is the tendency manifest in the state policy documents to undermine democratic participation and active citizenry, conceptions first developed and put into practice in the Greek city-state of Athens. The conception of education for citizenship does not guide the practice in terms accessible to the school’s democratic community. State policy’s concept of students’ democratic participation and representation does not reflect a representative model of democracy in South African schools. Furthermore, extant policy does not envisage democratic citizenship education that is enjoyed by a significant proportion of the South African learners. This minimalist conception of citizenship and of citizenship education is not appropriate for the South African context. This thesis, further, mounts a defence of compulsion, arguing that within the theoretical framework of current theories of the Athenian prototype of democracy, deliberative and representative democracy, compulsory schooling and compulsory citizenship education can be justified on the grounds that they promote individual autonomy and build social cohesion ― towards the common good in South Africa. The recently proposed compulsory citizenship education programmes are not compatible with compulsory citizenship education that is designed to promote active, critical and inquiring South African citizens. These value-based education documents promote obedience, if not unquestioning loyalty, to the South African government. Moreover, neither the Bill of Responsibilities nor the School Pledge offer possible strategies for getting from where we are to where we ought to be. In the final analysis, post-apartheid citizenship education policy’s lack of conceptual clarity, coherence and consistency can be attributed in large part to the conflicting forms and conceptions of citizenship in South Africa. The goals of citizenship education in South Africa would be better served by cosmopolitan ideals, that is, preparing South African learners to act in a local, national and global scale.Item An analysis of community participation, in income generating projects at the Tembisa/Kempton Park Development Center.(2009-09-10T09:17:23Z) Chikadzi, VictorIn South Africa, citizen participation is regarded as an integral part of all social, economic and political activity. There is always an attempt to either involve citizens/communities in different programmes or at least to pretend to have involved people. Community participation is a constitutional prerogative that the broader masses should meaningfully participate in issues affecting their lives. Thus overgrowing concern by development practitioners to utilize participatory methods has become notable in recent years and participation has become an established orthodoxy within the development discourse in South Africa. The practice of participation has become embodied in what is popularly known to be people-centered development in which it is favored that community needs take precedence over those of other stakeholders when designing and implementing development projects. This study explores community participation in income generating projects at the Tembisa / Kempton Park Development Center. Using a case study as a qualitative inquiry method, the researcher sought to establish the evidence of community participation and the extent to which participants in income generating projects were involved as the main role players. The research sample constituted of 15 participants; ten were beneficiaries of income generating projects, three were staff members at the Tembisa / Kempton Park Development Center and two participants where drawn from the main funders of the Tembisa / Kempton Park Development Center. The different categories of the participants drawn into the sample enabled the researcher to holistically capture how the development process unfolded. The findings of the research indicated that the development model used at Tembisa / Kempton Park Development Center is largely participatory. The model allowed community members to have more say and control in the initiation, design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the projects. However this model has challenges that are institutional, social and structural of nature and barriers which hinder effective and meaningful community participation. Government intervention was recommended to address some of the challenges to community participation on a macro level.Item Are civil society organisations effective agents of mobilisation for development in 21st century South Africa? case study of the people's budget campaign.(2009-01-30T12:26:02Z) Egoh, Modi A.ABSTRACT From the 18th century, a considerable element of legislative democracy has been that of national budgeting. This has been substantially critical in assuring legislative statute over the government which has been controlled by kings. Predictably, the notion of public participation in budgetary processes has been disparate by governments in Africa. Due to its technocratic and elitist design, it is mostly a complex issue to recognise the making of national budgets by ordinary citizens in South Africa. However, topical developments have shown that the processes of creating national budgets should consider civil society’s role particularly in evaluating the impact of budgets on the poor. It is against this technocratic and elitist architectural backdrop of the state, regarding public budgeting and implementation, which this study employs the People’s Budget Campaign as a unique civil society organisation advocating for an alternative budget process in South Africa. This research has used a qualitative method in analysing data collected from primary and secondary sources, semi-structured interviews, as well as direct and participant observation of PBC activities.Item Education decentralisation in Malawi : current trends and developments.(2009-01-07T05:55:14Z) Kufaine, Noel DrakeThe government of Malawi has embarked on a decentralisation program, whose primary objective is to improve service delivery. The program is implemented by transferring responsibility and authority from central office to the district assemblies. The study aimed at assessing the implementation situation of education decentralisation and its effects on the district education office operations and the primary school support. The study uses qualitative research method and undertook a case study of two districts. Data was collected by using in-depth individual interviews and document analysis. The results show that decentralisation is a complex phenomenon with problems at all stages from design to implementation. On the one hand the government appears committed to transferring responsibilities and authority gradually to district assembly level while on the other hand it is not prepared to compensate for the disparities existing in the districts by increasing resources. There is an acute shortage of material and human resources in terms of numbers as well as competency levels. This has affected the pace and smooth implementation of decentralisation. Because decentralisation is not a ‘once and for all’ act but a complex process, it is recommended to intensify advocacy, capacity building and support with relevant resources at all levels.Item Citizenship Education in Malawi: A critique in defence of maximal citizenship(2006-11-03T08:00:06Z) Divala, Joseph JinjaThis dissertation analyses assumptions about citizenship education in Malawi since the reintroduction of multiparty democracy in 1993 and reveals a minimalist conception of citizenship. It asserts that Malawi’s historical and traditional context require concerted efforts towards participatory citizenship if democracy is to be strengthened and protected. Central to the discussion are conceptual distinctions between minimal and maximal citizenship alongside a discussion of concepts of freedom, human rights and development, which can be attributed to minimal and maximal conceptions of citizenship. The dissertation argues that deliberative and participatory forms of democracy, with their parallel notions of contestatory and republican freedoms and rights, are more attuned to creating an active and strong citizenship while at the same time developing a positive relationship between democratic participation and participation in local and national development, a relationship which representative approaches in Malawi seemingly disavow.