In search of deep change : a study of the implementation of assessment policy in South African schools

Why has teachers’ classroom work remained relatively stable despite an enormous amount of change in educational policy? In 1998 the national Department of Education of South Africa introduced a new policy on assessment to complement its new curriculum policy introduced in 1997. With its emphasis on performance–based outcomes, the assessment policy constituted a decisive and significant break from the past assessment policy. This research focuses on the implementation of the new assessment policy by classroom teachers. The study is guided by the following three research questions: 1: What are teacher understandings and beliefs with regard to assessment policy? 2: In the context of official policy, how do teachers practice assessment in their classrooms? 3: How can the continuities and the discontinuities between official policy on assessment and teachers’ assessment practice be explained? After reviewing the literature on policy implementation, the study articulated a broader conceptual framework drawing on the construct of ‘deep change’. This perspective supplements rather than supplants dominant approaches to policy implementation. The ‘deep change’ framework suggests a more incisive approach to understanding the relationship between policy and practice. This study presents and tests three propositions about change, namely: Proposition One: That teachers may not have a deep, sophisticated understanding of a new assessment policy even if there is evidence of strong rhetorical commitment to the policy. Proposition Two: That teachers may not be able to reconcile their own assessment beliefs and capacities with the stated goals of a new assessment policy. Proposition Three: That teachers may find traditional assessment practices (that is, examinations and testing) to hold greater efficacy in the classroom than the alternatives required by a new assessment policy. A case study approach was undertaken with two Grade 8 science teachers from two different contexts, one from an under-resourced township school, and the other from a well-resourced urban school. Using evidence from questionnaires, free-writing schedules, extensive pre-lesson and post-lesson interviews, prolonged non-participant classroom observations, teacher records and documents, and student records and examinations, the study found that the two teachers had a surface understanding of the new assessment policy; the teacher from the well-resourced, urban school was able to implement some of the new assessment methods, while the teacher from the under-resourced, township school did not implement any of the new methods of assessment required by the new assessment policy; both teachers were unable to reconcile their own assessment beliefs and capacities with the stated goals of a new assessment policy; and both teachers found the traditional assessment practices (that is, examinations and testing) to hold greater efficacy in the classroom than the alternatives required by a new assessment policy. In other words, the study found that teachers did not have a deep understanding of the assessment policy and did not change their assessment practices deeply as required by the assessment policy. The study argues that educational policies will do little to achieve deep changes in teachers’ pedagogical practices without concurrent attention to a strong theory of change. The study concludes with implications for teacher learning, professional development of teachers, theory and research.Thesis (PhD (Education Management and Policy Studies))--University of Pretoria, 2004.Education Management and Policy Studiesunrestricte

The valuation and calibration of convertible bonds

A convertible bond (CB) is a hybrid security possessing the characteristics of both debt and equity. It gives the holder the right to convert the bond into a pre-specified number of shares (usually by the same issuer of the CB) until maturity of the bond, and may also contain additional features such as callability and putability. CB’s along with all hybrid securities are difficult to value due to their uncertain income stream. In this dissertation several convertible bond valuation models are suggested, but with particular attention to the calibration of the underlying inputs into the model and also by taking default risk into account, which is extremely important given the subordination of convertibles. The models range from the basic component models that decompose the CB into a straight bond and an exchange/call option; to more sophisticated ones consisting of stochastic interest rates, default risk, volatility structures, and even some exotics such as exchangeable and inflation-linked convertibles. An important aspect often missed by CB valuation models is the presence of negative convexity for extremely low share prices. As such a credit spread function dependent upon the underlying share price is introduced into the Tsiveriotis and Fernandes, and Hung and Wang models which improve upon the accuracy of the original models. Once a reliable model has been developed it becomes necessary to take advantage of convertible arbitrage trading strategies if they exist. The typical delta hedge, gamma hedge and option strategies that many convertible hedge funds employ are explained including the underlying risks with respect to the “Greeks”. CopyrightDissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2009.Mathematics and Applied Mathematicsunrestricte

Importance of long-term monitoring of patients with breast reconstructions: a case of 10-year cancer recurrence

We report a case of breast cancer recurrence in a 41 -year old female ten years post mastectomy, and two years post tertiary DIEP flap reconstruction. Reconstructed patients, especially those with aggressive cancers, must be informed of long term risk of recurrence and monitored long term following mastectomy and reconstruction

Post-infection immunocomplex glomerulonephritis and Legionnaires' disease in a patient with adult Still's disease during treatment with interleukin 1 receptor antagonist anakinra: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Legionellosis is a systemic disease that primarily affects the lungs. However, dysfunction in many organ systems, including the kidneys, has also been described. There are only a few reported cases of renal dysfunction in patients with legionellosis.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>A 27-year-old Caucasian woman with known adult Still's disease was admitted to our hospital for community-acquired pneumonia, due to <it>Legionella </it>infection, with acute renal failure. Although her respiratory symptoms responded well to antibiotic treatment, her renal function worsened, with severe proteinuria and edema. A renal biopsy showed extracapillary and endocapillary proliferative glomerulonephritis with accompanying chronic and acute interstitial nephritis. This was consistent with a post-infection immunocomplex glomerulonephritis. After initiation of steroid therapy, her renal function improved. Additionally, therapy with diuretics and an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor was initiated because of persistent proteinuria. Under this treatment regimen, her severe edema and proteinuria disappeared.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>To the best of our knowledge, there is only a handful of reported cases of post-infection glomerulonephritis with a nephrotic syndrome in a patient with legionellosis. Our findings suggest that, in patients with Legionnaires' disease with renal failure, post-infection immunocomplex glomerulonephritis should be considered and steroid therapy may be an effective modality to treat the renal complication.</p

The application of physiologically based pharmacokinetic modelling to assess the impact of antiretroviral-mediated drug-drug interactions on piperaquine antimalarial therapy during pregnancy

Antimalarial therapy during pregnancy poses important safety concerns due to potential teratogenicity and maternal physiological and biochemical changes during gestation. Piperaquine (PQ) has gained interest for use in pregnancy in response to increasing resistance towards sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine in sub-Saharan Africa. Coinfection with HIV is common in many developing countries, however, little is known about the impact of antiretroviral (ARV) mediated drug-drug interaction (DDI) on piperaquine pharmacokinetics during pregnancy. This study applied mechanistic pharmacokinetic modelling to predict pharmacokinetics in non-pregnant and pregnant patients, which was validated in distinct customised population groups from Thailand, Sudan and Papua New Guinea. In each population group, no significant differences in day 7 concentrations were observed during different gestational weeks (GW) (weeks 10-40), supporting the notion that piperaquine is safe throughout pregnancy with consistent pharmacokinetics, although possible teratogenicity may limit this. Antiretroviral-mediated DDIs (efavirenz and ritonavir) had moderate effects on piperaquine during different gestational weeks with a predicted AUCratioin the range 0.56-0.8 and 1.64-1.79 for efavirenz and ritonavir, respectively, over GW 10-40, with a reduction in circulating human serum albumin significantly reducing the number of subjects attaining the day 7 (post-dose) therapeutic efficacy concentrations under both efavirenz and ritonavir DDIs. This present model successfully mechanistically predicted the pharmacokinetics of piperaquine in pregnancy to be unchanged with respect to non-pregnant women, in the light of factors such as malaria/HIV co-infection. However, antiretroviral-mediated DDIs could significantly alter piperaquine pharmacokinetics. Further model refinement will include collation of relevant physiological and biochemical alterations common to HIV/malaria patients

Biological activity of Sinularia notanda

In 1963 the study of marine natural products was just beginning and there were only a handful of public records with only one of these publications reporting a new compound. There has since been 9220 papers published, reporting on 24 662 new compounds. Annually a variety of cembrane diterpenoids with a range of biological activities are reportedly isolated from marine soft coral, and most notably these compounds possess anticancer properties. The investigation of a marine soft coral, Sinularia notanda, for novel bioactive compounds is presented here. The aim was to identify compounds active against key HIV enzymes as well as against cervical cancer, an opportunistic malignancy affecting many HIV positive women in Sub-Saharan Africa. A methanol extract of S. notanda was prepared and the cytotoxicity of the crude extract tested against a cervical cancer (HeLa) cell line using sodium 2,3-bis-(2-methoxy-4-nitro- 5-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium- 5-carboxanilide (XTT). The crude extract was also tested for HIV-1 protease inhibition using a direct enzyme assay, and antioxidant activity determined using 1,1-diphenyl-2picrylhydrazyl (DPPH). Bioassay guided fractionation, column chromatography and thin layer chromatography were used to identify active fractions from the total extract as well as to isolate biologically active compounds. The isolated compounds were tested for cytotoxic activity against four different cell lines. Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and x-ray crystallography were used for structure determination. The crude ethyl acetate fraction of S. notanda had a 50% cytotoxic concentration (CC50) of 33.82 ?g/ml, exhibited moderate inhibition of HIV-1 protease (between 40 and 60% inhibition), was unable to inhibit reverse transcriptase and showed antioxidant activity at a concentration (IC50) of 76.15 ?g/ml. In comparison, the crude methanol fraction had a CC50 of 145.80 ?g/ml, showed significantly lower protease inhibition (p < 0.05), and showed antioxidant activity at an IC50 of 27.16 ?g/ml. Extracts from natural sources including soft coral are routinely screened for free radical scavenging ability and the DPPH assay is one of the fastest methods to do so. Free radicals are known to induce oxidative damage to biomolecules which can eventually lead to diseases such as cancer. Oxidative damage can also be caused by HIV infection and oxidative stress levels may be exacerbated by antiretroviral treatment. Free radical scavenging antioxidants can provide protection against the damage caused by reactive oxygen species and are therefore considered as important nutraceuticals. Structural elucidation of a crystal isolated from S. notanda using NMR and x-ray crystallography confirmed a unique cembrane diterpenoid structure. The identified compound [(1R,3R,5S,12R,13S,E)-12-hydroxy-5,9,13-trimethyl-16-methylene-4,14-dioxatricyclo[11.3.2.03,5]octadec-8-en-15-one] showed moderate HIV-1 protease inhibition. This compound was abbreviated as CPD1. A second isolated compound designated E7 was found to be toxic to human leukemic monocyte lymphoma (U937) cells at 25 ?g/ml resulting in cell viability of less than 10%. Structure elucidation of E7 by 1D and 2D NMR as well as mass spectrometric analysis confirmed this compound to be structurally identical to the one isolated as a crystal and it also exhibited similar cytotoxic behaviour. Although this is not the first time CPD1 has been isolated from a coral of the Sinularia genus, data presented in this dissertation represents the first time that the compound was isolated from S. notanda. In Sinularia flexiblis CPD1 was isolated as a ketone (carbon-oxygen double bond at C12) while in the current study it was isolated from S. notanda as an alcohol (hydroxyl group at C12). Ketones are produced from the oxidation of secondary alcohols and the change in functional groups at C12 of CPD1 could be attributed to different organic solvents being used for initial extraction. A third compound was isolated and showed 90% inhibition of U937 cell growth at 50 ?g/ml. Structure elucidation data identified the compound as 3-caffeoylquinic acid. This compound is not synthesised by the coral itself but is produced by algae that the coral ingested. The cembrane diterpenoid isolated from S. notanda in this study showed moderate inhibition of HIV-1 protease and selective cytotoxicity towards the U937 lymphoma cell line (selectivity index > 2). These responses are not unusual as cembrane diterpenoids with anti-cancer potential are increasingly being isolated from soft corals.Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2015.BiochemistryMScUnrestricte

Values as an aspect of order and discipline : implication for the management of teacher competence

M.Ed.The problem that this mini-dissertation explores can be summarised by the questions that follow. What is the nature of teacher competence? How does teacher competence relate to order and discipline in schools ? What is the nature of order and discipline relative to teacher competence ? To what extent do values as an aspect of order and discipline play a role in teacher competence and what is the opinion of teachers regarding this ? Is it possible to formulate a strategy regarding the use of values which will enhance order and discipline and improve teacher effectiveness, resulting in a more competent teacher ? In the light of the problem questions formulated above the general aim of this research project is to : Investigate the components of teacher competence and to show how these aspects can enhance teacher effectiveness. In order to achieve the general aim, the group dealing with order and discipline will : Investigate the composition of order and discipline show how this can enhance teacher competence. As a member of the group dealing with order and discipline it is the specific aim of this mini dissertation to : Determine the contribution of values towards maintaining order and discipline Obtain teacher opinion as to the extent to which teachers use values to enhance order and discipline Devise a strategy whereby values can serve as an aid to enhance teacher competence and improve teacher effectiveness

The work ethic of the principal as an aspect of management.

The inception of democracy in South Africa required that all the people of the nation be integrated into a single society. This implies that people brought with them their individual, cultural and normative values into the integrative process. The education system is one such area that has felt the impact of this diversity. In his State of the Nation address to parliament on 25 June 1999, President Mbeki outlined the critical priorities for the nation (Dept of Education, 2000: 6) and questioned whether our education system was fulfilling the purpose of preparing people for citizenship and nationhood. The success of society, according to President Mbeki is dependent upon people working together to build the success of the nation. The Minister of Education in his attempt to ensure that education aligns itself with meeting the national agenda, presented the strategic plan for the Department of education, embraced symbolically in the word “Tirisano”– meaning to work together to build a better nation. The critical factor for success seems to be the need to take action together towards an agreed upon purpose. When formal state structures had to undergo change, symbols (such as Tirisano) were often adopted to rally people around the ideal of a traditional society. People could be unified through pure and solid values (Rose, 1985). It appears that to a large extent, the success of the nation depends upon all people engaging themselves in purposeful labour (or work). Unemployment, or the lack of work, has been cited as a depleting agent in society. Whenever we work, our central life values infiltrate our actions, inextricably colouring our behaviours. The values we associate with work represents a large part of who we are as individuals (Furnham,1990). It would appear that people tend to group together when similar values pertaining to work can be identified as common to all. By the same token one could find people grouping because the characteristic feature is the lack of work.Prof. B.R. Groble