Exploring teachers’ understanding of pedagogic practices in teaching mathematical concepts in grade 1: a case study in South African primary schools.

Doctor of Philosophy. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 2016.The study examines teachers’ understanding of their learning theories on pedagogic practices in teaching mathematical concepts in Grade 1. The study emanates from the findings of the National Education Evaluation and Development Unit (NEEDU) Report and also from research which indicates that the teaching and learning of Mathematics in primary schools in South Africa are considered to be in crisis. Mathematics teachers remain critical role players in ensuring quality teaching and learning, as they are the curriculum implementers, but they seem to lack the crucial support that underpins improved learner performance. Forming a solid and a broad mathematical foundation on Mathematics concepts like numbers and operations, geometry and spatial sense, and measurement, with algebra and data analysis playing supporting roles, is one of the goals to unpack how teachers teach Mathematics to achieve their goals when teaching Mathematics. It is evident from research that learners in Grade 1 find mathematical concepts challenging and hence many perform poorly. The objective of this study was to understand pedagogic choices Mathematics teachers make to teach mathematical concepts, and to understand ways in which these pedagogical choices affect the learners’ acquisition of such concepts. Theoretically, the study draws on both Constructivism and Bernstein’s Pedagogic Device Theory. The study adopts a qualitative approach and uses a case study methodology. The selection of different schools in different context was not for comparison purposes but for understanding how teachers understand their pedagogic practices in teaching Mathematics in Grade 1. All ethical issues were observed to ensure trustworthiness of findings. Multiple data generation tools such as semi-structured interviews, classroom observations and documents analysis were utilised. Data was analysed through content analysis. Data were first summarised and then categorised to themes. The conclusions arrived at indicate that even though primary school teachers understand officially sanctioned pedagogical practices for Mathematics, like learner-centeredness and collaborative learning, they were faced with multiple challenges in their efforts to implement their understating of pedagogical practices as there were challenges with the shortage of resources. Therefore, it is impossible for them to implement the rationale, aims and objectives, in the content for Mathematics teaching. Vigorous innovation on teachers understanding would keep them well-informed about pedagogic theories and content knowledge to enable them to attain the required level of knowledge and understanding of their practice

Validation of Parkinson\u27s disease-related questionnaires in South Africa

Background: There are very few epidemiological studies investigating Parkinson\u27s disease (PD) in Africa. The hundreds of local languages and dialects make traditional screening and clinical evaluation tools difficult to use. Objective: The objective of the study was to validate two commonly used PD questionnaires in an African population. Methods: The PD Screening Questionnaire (PDSQ) and Parkinson\u27s Disease Questionnaire (PDQ-39) were modified and translated into Afrikaans, Setswana, and isiZulu and administered to a sample of healthy local residents. We assessed the internal consistencies and cluster characteristics of the questionnaires, using a Cronbach\u27s alpha test and exploratory factor analysis. The questionnaires were then administered to a population-based sample of 416 research participants. We evaluated the correlations between the questionnaires and both a timed motor task and the Unified Parkinson\u27s Disease Rating Scale motor subsection 3 (UPDRS3), using locally weighted scatterplot smoothing (LOWESS) regression analysis and Spearman\u27s rank correlation. Results: Both questionnaires had high overall internal consistency (Cronbach\u27s alpha = 0.86 and 0.95, respectively). The modified PDQ-39 had evidence of five subscales, with Factor 1 explaining 57% and Factor 2 explaining 14%, of the variance in responses. The PDSQ and PDQ-39 scores were correlated with the UPDRS3 score ( Conclusion: The translated PDSQ and PDQ-39 questionnaires demonstrated high internal consistency and correlations with clinical severity of parkinsonism and a timed motor task, suggesting that they are valid tools for field-based epidemiological studies

Four decades of pulmonary tuberculosis in deceased South African miners : trends and determinants

OBJECTIVE : We investigated trends and determinants of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) in deceased South African miners. METHODS : Statutory autopsies are performed on miners for occupational lung disease compensation, irrespective of cause of death. Data were extracted from the PATHAUT (Pathology Automation System) autopsy database. PTB trends were analysed and explanatory variables (year of autopsy, age at death, gold employment duration, silicosis and HIV) were evaluated using binary logistic regression modelling. Analyses were stratified by population group because of racial differences in socioeconomic status, employment patterns and access to facilities for autopsies. The analyses were segmented to represent the pre-HIV (1975–1989), rapid HIV spread (1990–2004) and antiretroviral therapy (2005–2014) periods. RESULTS : The proportions of men with PTB at autopsy increased from 4.62% in 1975 to 27.18% in 2014 in black miners, and from 2.07% to 5.19% in white miners, with peaks in 2007 (43.12% and 9.51%, respectively). The magnitude and significance of adjusted ORs of determinants differed by population group and calendar period. PTB was largely associated with silicosis, increasing gold employment duration and year of autopsy (a surrogate for unmeasured confounders, such as unknown HIV status and tuberculosis transmission). CONCLUSIONS : Changes in PTB time trends and determinants reflect the complex social and political environment in which mining occurs. Silica dust reduction remains a key intervention for tuberculosis reduction, together with tuberculosis and HIV treatment and management. The autopsy data provide reliable information to monitor progress towards the achievement of industry and national targets to reduce tuberculosis.Award Number D43ES018744 from the US National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.http://oem.bmj.comhj2018School of Health Systems and Public Health (SHSPH

Exploring Grade R teachers’ perceptions of their professional identity: Who am I?

Understanding Grade R teachers’ professional identities seems to be quite bleak because they are not sure where they feature in Primary schools or pre-primary schools. Their professional identities are in sport light due to the issue mentioned above.  This study explores Grade R teachers’ perceptions of their professional identity and qualifications. Grade R teachers’ professional identities are based on the collaboration between teacher education institutions and schools. However, this thinking tampers with what teaching practice is an essential prerequisite for what good teacher education requires. The study was underpinned by decoloniality theory and qualitative research within the interpretive paradigm. All the Grade R teachers participated in this study. Data was generated through semi-structured interviews. We divided the time into two hours per interview to generate data in two days to allow the teachers enough time to respond to the questions. Thematically the teachers’ voices were analyzed. The findings suggest that creating multifaceted images, community values, self-beliefs, and motivation can influence how teachers interpret their personal experiences in the program. Prominent among the results regarding the motivational aspects of teaching is a perception of the profession as granting intrinsic rewards. Teaching is perceived as, according to self-realization, providing a sense of purpose and mission and enabling lifelong development. The personal investment that is interwoven with their lived experiences before they enter the program is coupled with the three different forms of engagement, which are: participation, alignment, and imagination can translate to who they are as people that develop their identities in their career path and interactions in a teacher community at large

Three decades of silicosis : disease trends at autopsy in South African gold miners

BACKGROUND: Eliminating silicosis is a priority of the International Labour Organization and the World Health Organization. Prevalence is particularly high in developing countries. OBJECTIVES: We describe trends in silicosis among South African gold miners who had had an autopsy between 1975 and 2007 and quantify the contributions of age at autopsy and employment duration to these trends. METHODS: South African miners and ex-miners are eligible for autopsy examination for occupational lung disease, regardless of the clinical cause of death, and the families of deceased mine workers may receive compensation from the government of South Africa. Miners who died from external causes and who had been employed in the gold mines for > 1 year were stratified by population group because of differences in exposure, patterns of employment, and autopsy referral patterns. We extracted data from PATHAUT (Pathology Automation System) and used Stata 10 to estimate trends in relative proportions of silicosis that were standardized for age and employment duration. RESULTS: The crude proportion of silicosis for white miners was six times that of black miners in 1975. By 2007, it was 1.5 times higher for black miners. The proportion of miners with silicosis increased from 0.03 to 0.32 for black miners and from 0.18 to 0.22 for white miners. The increase can be explained by increasing age and employment duration for white miners. For black miners, it can be only partly explained by these two factors. CONCLUSION: As miners continue to age and work for longer periods, the burden of silicosis will continue to rise. South Africa is committed to global efforts to eliminate silicosis by 2030. The autopsy database allows for disease surveillance, which is necessary to monitor the success of this initiative.This study was funded by the Mine Health and Safety Council

Asbestos-related diseases in mineworkers: a clinicopathological study

The accurate diagnosis of asbestos-related diseases is important because of past and current asbestos exposures. This study evaluated the reliability of clinical diagnoses of asbestos-related diseases in former mineworkers using autopsies as the reference standard. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value were calculated. The 149 cases identified had clinical examinations 0.3–7.4 years before death. More asbestos-related diseases were diagnosed at autopsy rather than clinically: 77 versus 52 for asbestosis, 27 versus 14 for mesothelioma and 22 versus 3 for lung cancer. Sensitivity and specificity values for clinical diagnoses were 50.6% and 81.9% for asbestosis, 40.7% and 97.5% for mesothelioma, and 13.6% and 100.0% for lung cancer. False-negative diagnoses of asbestosis were more likely using radiographs of acceptable (versus good) quality and in cases with pulmonary tuberculosis at autopsy. The low sensitivity values are indicative of the high proportion of false-negative diagnoses. It is unlikely that these were the result of disease manifestation between the last clinical assessment and autopsy. Where clinical features suggest asbestos-related diseases but the chest radiograph is negative, more sophisticated imaging techniques or immunohistochemistry for asbestos-related cancers should be used. Autopsies are useful for the detection of previously undiagnosed and misdiagnosed asbestos-related diseases, and for monitoring clinical practice and delivery of compensation

Validation of Parkinson’s Disease-Related Questionnaires in South Africa

Background. There are very few epidemiological studies investigating Parkinson’s disease (PD) in Africa. The hundreds of local languages and dialects make traditional screening and clinical evaluation tools difficult to use. Objective. The objective of the study was to validate two commonly used PD questionnaires in an African population. Methods. The PD Screening Questionnaire (PDSQ) and Parkinson’s Disease Questionnaire (PDQ-39) were modified and translated into Afrikaans, Setswana, and isiZulu and administered to a sample of healthy local residents. We assessed the internal consistencies and cluster characteristics of the questionnaires, using a Cronbach’s alpha test and exploratory factor analysis. The questionnaires were then administered to a population-based sample of 416 research participants. We evaluated the correlations between the questionnaires and both a timed motor task and the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale motor subsection 3 (UPDRS3), using locally weighted scatterplot smoothing (LOWESS) regression analysis and Spearman’s rank correlation. Results. Both questionnaires had high overall internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.86 and 0.95, respectively). The modified PDQ-39 had evidence of five subscales, with Factor 1 explaining 57% and Factor 2 explaining 14%, of the variance in responses. The PDSQ and PDQ-39 scores were correlated with the UPDRS3 score (ρ = 0.35, P<0.001; and ρ = 0.28, P<0.001, respectively). Conclusion. The translated PDSQ and PDQ-39 questionnaires demonstrated high internal consistency and correlations with clinical severity of parkinsonism and a timed motor task, suggesting that they are valid tools for field-based epidemiological studies

Three Decades of Silicosis: Disease Trends at Autopsy in South African Gold Miners

BACKGROUND: Eliminating silicosis is a priority of the International Labour Organization and the World Health Organization. Prevalence is particularly high in developing countries. OBJECTIVES: We describe trends in silicosis among South African gold miners who had had an autopsy between 1975 and 2007 and quantify the contributions of age at autopsy and employment duration to these trends. METHODS: South African miners and ex-miners are eligible for autopsy examination for occupational lung disease, regardless of the clinical cause of death, and the families of deceased mine workers may receive compensation from the government of South Africa. Miners who died from external causes and who had been employed in the gold mines for > 1 year were stratified by population group because of differences in exposure, patterns of employment, and autopsy referral patterns. We extracted data from PATHAUT (Pathology Automation System) and used Stata 10 to estimate trends in relative proportions of silicosis that were standardized for age and employment duration. RESULTS: The crude proportion of silicosis for white miners was six times that of black miners in 1975. By 2007, it was 1.5 times higher for black miners. The proportion of miners with silicosis increased from 0.03 to 0.32 for black miners and from 0.18 to 0.22 for white miners. The increase can be explained by increasing age and employment duration for white miners. For black miners, it can be only partly explained by these two factors. CONCLUSION: As miners continue to age and work for longer periods, the burden of silicosis will continue to rise. South Africa is committed to global efforts to eliminate silicosis by 2030. The autopsy database allows for disease surveillance, which is necessary to monitor the success of this initiative