The curriculum tracker: A tool to improve curriculum coverage or just a tick-box exercise?

Research on teacher professional development generally states that teachers do not take new innovations on board easily. The study reported on here focused on the uptake of a curriculum tracker tool designed to improve curriculum coverage by mathematics teachers. The tool formed part of the Jika iMfundo (JiM) programme launched by the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education and a partner organisation. The purpose of this study was to explore the extent to which secondary mathematics teachers and heads of department (HoDs) used the tools for their intended purposes. The study was carried out with teachers and department heads from 14 schools located in 2 districts of KwaZulu-Natal. Data were generated by 21 interviews, supplemented by secondary data sourced from responses to previous surveys conducted by JiM. The findings show that most teachers considered the tool as a tick-box activity, instead of using it to guide their planning in a meaningful manner. Furthermore, there was misalignment between planning undertaken by the provincial education department and JiM. It is crucial that teachers on the ground are consulted first in order to jointly identify how certain problems can be addressed before any professional development activity is implemented

Economic, social and demographic impacts of drought on treatment adherence among people living with HIV in rural South Africa: A qualitative analysis

The 2015 El Niño-triggered drought in Southern Africa caused widespread economic and livelihood disruption in South Africa, imposing multiple physical and health challenges for rural populations including people living with HIV (PLHIV). We examined the economic, social and demographic impacts of drought drawing on 27 in-depth interviews in two cohorts of PLHIV in Hlabisa, uMkhanyakude district, KwaZulu-Natal. Thematic analysis revealed how drought-enforced soil water depletion, dried-up rivers, and dams culminated in a continuum of events such as loss of livestock, reduced agricultural production, and insufficient access to water and food which was understood to indirectly have a negative impact on HIV treatment adherence. This was mediated through disruptions in incomes, livelihoods and food systems, increased risk to general health, forced mobility and exacerbation of contextual vulnerabilities linked to poverty and unemployment. The systems approach, drawn from interview themes, hypothesises the complex pathways of plausible networks of impacts from drought through varying socioeconomic factors, exacerbating longstanding contextual precarity, and ultimately challenging HIV care utilisation. Understanding the multidimensional relationships between climate change, especially drought, and poor HIV care outcomes through the prism of contextual vulnerabilities is vital for shaping policy interventions

Exploring linkages between drought and HIV treatment adherence in Africa: A Systematic Review

Climate change is directly and indirectly linked to human health, including through access to treatment and care. Our systematic review presents a ‘systems’ understanding of the nexus between drought and antiretroviral treatment (ART) adherence in HIV-positive individuals in the African setting. Narrative synthesis of 111 studies retrieved from Web of Science, PubMed/Medline, and PsycINFO suggests that economic and livelihoods conditions, comorbidities and ART regimens, human mobility, and psycho-behavioural dispositions and support systems interact in complex ways in the drought-ART adherence nexus in Africa. Economic and livelihood-related challenges appear to impose the strongest impact on human interactions, actions and systems that culminate in non-adherence. Indeed, the complex pathways identified by our systems approach emphasise the need for more integrated research approaches to understanding this phenomenon and develop interventions

Exploring linkages between drought and HIV treatment adherence in Africa: a systematic review

Climate change is directly and indirectly linked to human health, including through access to treatment and care. Our systematic review presents a systems understanding of the nexus between drought and antiretroviral therapy (ART) adherence in HIV-positive individuals in the African setting. Narrative synthesis of 111 studies retrieved from Web of Science, PubMed/MEDLINE, and PsycINFO suggests that livelihoods and economic conditions, comorbidities and ART regimens, human mobility, and psychobehavioural dispositions and support systems interact in complex ways in the drought–ART adherence nexus in Africa. Economic and livelihood-related challenges appear to impose the strongest impact on human interactions, actions, and systems that culminate in non-adherence. Indeed, the complex pathways identified by our systems approach emphasise the need for more integrated research approaches to understanding this phenomenon and developing interventions

Adoption of smart structures for prevention of health hazards in buildings

Abstract: The importance of building quality to the health and well-being of occupants and surrounding neighbors cannot be overemphasized. Smart structures were construed to proffer solution to various issues of sustainable development including social factors that is concerned with health and safety of people. Based on existing literature materials on building quality, smart structures and general aspect of sustainable developments, this study examined the benefits of smart structures in the prevention of various health issues in infrastructural buildings, which has been a concern for stakeholders in the architecture, engineering and construction industry. The criterion for indoor environmental quality was adopted and various health and bodily issues related to building quality were explained. The adoption of smart structure concept will help to manage physical, chemical, biological and psychological factors of building with a view to enhancing better quality of life of occupants

Data for: SYNTHESIS, CHARACTERISATION, AND APPLICATION OF POLYACRYLAMIDE GRAFTED BIOFLOCCULANT

Raw data for the article: "Synthesis, characterization, and application of polyacrylamide grafted bioflocculant

Benzene in eThekwini. Concentrations in air.

The report gives recommendation on the storage and the reporting of measurements from odd samples. It is important that the report contains the measurements and description of the measurements for later use. A recommendation for storing the measurements is making a simple database with a library function. The library function will give the path to samples with given key words and where to find them

Data for: SYNTHESIS, CHARACTERISATION, AND APPLICATION OF POLYACRYLAMIDE GRAFTED BIOFLOCCULANT

Raw data for the article: "Synthesis, characterization, and application of polyacrylamide grafted bioflocculant

Highlights of the Youth into Science and Science Engagement programmes 2015

Commissioned by the Department of Science and Technology, AugustThe DST commissioned the HSRC (Education and Skills Development programme) to undertake the tracking of participants in YiSS programmes, and to map out their educational and employment trajectories. We will assess the outcomes of YiSS interventions in improving knowledge, attitudes and career choices towards SET, and assisting unemployed graduates to acquire skills, capabilities and opportunities to enter the labour market or proceed with further studie