The role of teachers' resource centres from the perspective of school managers and teachers

This study aimed to investigate the role played by the Teachers’ Resource Centre (TRC) in Namibia in helping schools to provide quality education. The TRC concept began in Britain in the 1960s, where it was introduced as a means of supporting the professional development of teachers and giving them access to a range of educational resources. From the 1970s, the concept was promoted further afield as an effective strategy for dealing with teachers’ needs. TRCs emerged in Namibia in the 1980s under the auspices of the then Department of Education of the South African government. By 1989, only four TRCs were in existence, namely, Katutura, Tsumeb, Otjiwarongo and Rundu, plus one in the whites-only training college in Windhoek. In September 1991, the Ministry of Education and Culture (MEC) in Namibia produced a five-year plan that led to the diversification of the TRC network in Namibia. Yet, despite the now widespread existence of TRCs, little is known of whether and to what extent their services are helping teachers to provide quality education. This constitutes a gap in the literature that this study hopes in part to fill. The study was conducted using a case study approach in three schools in the Kavango region of Namibia. It made use of questionnaires, interviews, focus group discussions and data analysis to gather and interpret data. The study’s finding is that TRCs are indeed beneficial to schools in their vicinity, despite their current limited capacities. However, TRCs should be better able to redress the poor quality of education in many schools due to a lack of resources, de-motivated teachers and other factors. This study therefore recommends that enough funds be made available for the TRCs to acquire the resources they need adequately to support quality educational processes. Furthermore, the study found that it is imperative for individuals in TRCs and schools to learn how to facilitate relevant transformation in their organisations’ efficiency and effectiveness. Thus the study recommends a transformational leadership approach as most appropriate for managing learning and bringing about successful change in these organisations. The significance of this research is that it sheds some light on the effectiveness of TRCs as a strategy for supporting teachers in the delivery of quality teaching. It also suggests potential areas in which stakeholders might usefully cooperate in their endeavours to realise quality education

Best practices for abandoned, lost or otherwise discarded fishing gear (aldfg) in Africa

Papers presented virtually at the 41st International Southern African Transport Conference on 10-13 July 2070Sustainable Seas Trust (SST) is a non-profit organisation based in Gqeberha, South Africa, with a vision where the people of Africa and their seas flourish together. One of SST’s projects focuses on sea-based sources of waste with the aim of reducing all plastic waste (both garbage and fishing gear) that originates from the fishing and maritime sectors. Garbage and fishing gear impacts on maritime transport as it can become entangled in ship rudders, thereby impeding movement, and is costly to remove. Activities of the project include fishing gear waste surveys to determine the presence of gear waste in the environment, engagements with recreational and commercial fishers, and collaboration with port waste management authorities, to develop interventions aimed to reduce fishing and maritime waste. Recommendations to reduce, prevent, and mitigate abandoned, lost or discarded fishing gear in the environment are already developed globally. The project is currently developing a guide that takes the global best practice recommendations and applies them to suit African countries. A draft of the best practice recommendations will be presented

Remarkable thermal conductivity enhancement in Ag—decorated graphene nanocomposites based nanofluid by laser liquid solid interaction in ethylene glycol

We report on the synthesis and enhanced thermal conductivity of stable Ag-decorated 2-D graphene nanocomposite in ethylene glycol based nanofluid by laser liquid solid interaction. A surfactant free nanofluid of Ag nanoparticles anchored onto the 2-D graphene sheets were synthesized using a two-step laser liquid solid interaction approach. In order to understand a pulsed Nd:YAG laser at the fundamental frequency (λ = 1,064 nm) to ablate Ag and graphite composite target submerged in ethylene glycol (EG) to form AgNPs decorated 2-D GNs-EG based nanofluid. From a heat transfer point of view, it was observed that the thermal conductivity of this stable Ag-graphene/EG is significantly enhanced by a factor of about 32.3%; this is highest reported value for a graphene based nanofluid

Reducing repeat pregnancies in adolescence: applying realist principles as part of a mixed-methods systematic review to explore what works, for whom, how and under what circumstances

BACKGROUND: Previous research has demonstrated emotional, psychological and educational harm to young mothers following unintended conceptions. The UK has one of the highest rates of pregnancies in adolescence in Western Europe with a high proportion of these being repeat pregnancies, making it a topic of interest for public health policy makers, and health and social care practitioners. As part of a wider mixed-methods systematic review, realist principles were applied to synthesise evidence about interventions aiming to reduce repeat pregnancies in adolescence.METHODS: A multi-streamed, mixed-methods systematic review was conducted searching 11 major electronic databases and 9 additional databases from 1995 onwards, using key terms such as pregnancy, teen or adolescent. The principles of realist synthesis were applied to all included literature to uncover theories about what works, for whom, how and in what context. Initial theory areas were developed through evidence scoping, group discussion by the authors and stakeholder engagement to uncover context + mechanism = outcome (CMO) configurations and related narratives.RESULTS: The searches identified 8,664 documents initially, and 403 in repeat searches, filtering to 81 included studies, including qualitative studies, randomised controlled trials, quantitative studies and grey literature. Three CMO configurations were developed. The individual experiences of young mothers' triggered self-efficacy, notions of perceived risks, susceptibility and benefits of pregnancy, resulting in the adolescent taking control of their fertility and sexual encounters. The choice between motherhood and other goals triggered notions of motivations, resulting in the adolescent managing their expectations of motherhood and controlling their fertility and sexual encounters. Barriers and facilitators to accessing services triggered notions of connectedness and self-determination; resulting in interventions that are tailored so they are relevant to young persons, and improve access to services and engagement with the issue of pregnancy in adolescence.CONCLUSIONS: Pregnancy in adolescence is a complex issue with many factors to consider. The conceptual platform described here could help guide policy makers and professionals towards a number of areas that need to be attended to in order to increase the likelihood of an intervention working to prevent rapid repeat pregnancy in adolescence.TRIAL REGISTRATION: PROSPERO CRD42012003168

Are we under-utilizing the talents of primary care personnel? A job analytic examination

BACKGROUND: Primary care staffing decisions are often made unsystematically, potentially leading to increased costs, dissatisfaction, turnover, and reduced quality of care. This article aims to (1) catalogue the domain of primary care tasks, (2) explore the complexity associated with these tasks, and (3) examine how tasks performed by different job titles differ in function and complexity, using Functional Job Analysis to develop a new tool for making evidence-based staffing decisions. METHODS: Seventy-seven primary care personnel from six US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Centers, representing six job titles, participated in two-day focus groups to generate 243 unique task statements describing the content of VA primary care. Certified job analysts rated tasks on ten dimensions representing task complexity, skills, autonomy, and error consequence. Two hundred and twenty-four primary care personnel from the same clinics then completed a survey indicating whether they performed each task. Tasks were catalogued using an adaptation of an existing classification scheme; complexity differences were tested via analysis of variance. RESULTS: Objective one: Task statements were categorized into four functions: service delivery (65%), administrative duties (15%), logistic support (9%), and workforce management (11%). Objective two: Consistent with expectations, 80% of tasks received ratings at or below the mid-scale value on all ten scales. Objective three: Service delivery and workforce management tasks received higher ratings on eight of ten scales (multiple functional complexity dimensions, autonomy, human error consequence) than administrative and logistic support tasks. Similarly, tasks performed by more highly trained job titles received higher ratings on six of ten scales than tasks performed by lower trained job titles. Contrary to expectations, the distribution of tasks across functions did not significantly vary by job title. CONCLUSION: Primary care personnel are not being utilized to the extent of their training; most personnel perform many tasks that could reasonably be performed by personnel with less training. Primary care clinics should use evidence-based information to optimize job-person fit, adjusting clinic staff mix and allocation of work across staff to enhance efficiency and effectiveness

Factors associated with physical activity amongst patients with hypertension in two community health centres in uMgungundlovu health district, KwaZulu-Natal, 2018

Background: Hypertension (HPT) is a global public health challenge. It predisposes to cardiovascular diseases, kidney diseases and disability as well as contributing to high death rates. HPT is increasing tremendously in sub-Saharan Africa with HPT-related mortality risk having increased by 25% in less than 10 years in South Africa. Physical activity is a cost-effective way of reducing, controlling and preventing hypertension. The aim of the study was to establish the level of physical activity, and factors associated with physical activity, amongst patients with hypertension, in two community health centres in uMgungundlovu Health District, KwaZulu-Natal, 2018.Methods: An observational, cross-sectional descriptive study with an analytic component was implemented. Data were collected utilising an interviewer-administered questionnaire. Frequency distribution tables and the chi-square test were used in the analysis of data. A p-value less than 0.05 was deemed statistically significant.Results: A total of 374 questionnaires were administered of which 373 were adequately completed, yielding a response rate of 99.7%. The results showed that 39.1% were highly physical active, 32.4% were moderately physical active and 28.4% had low physical activity. Age, marital status, employment status and level of education were significantly associated with physical activity. Major barriers to physical activity included health problems and having no time to exercise. Health-related reasons were reported to be the major motivator towards physical activity.Conclusion: Over a third of the participants presented with high levels of physical activity. Health education should focus on promoting physical activity for HPT clients

The influence of demographic, environmental and physical factors on functional independence post stroke

Purpose: The magnitude of disability observed in strokesurvivors is believed to be dependent in part, on the severity of neurological deficits incurred. A s important but less well understood, is thecontribution of demographic, physical and environmental factors. The objective of this study was to establish what demographic, environmentaland physical factors influence functional independence post stroke. Method: Convenience sampling was used in the selection of subjects from four stroke outpatient public health facilities in the Gauteng Province of South Africa. The data were collected using a structured questionnaire. The analytical tools used included descriptive statistics to measure percentages and cross tabulations to measure the level of associations between functional independence and some of the demographic factors. The Barthel Index was computed to establish the degree of functional independence. Finally the influence of factors on functional independence was investigated using bivariate logistic regressions.Results: The results showed that younger patients (18 - 34 yrs) may have a higher likelihood of functional independence compared to older patients at the time of discharge from hospital (18 - 34 years: Odds Ratio = 1). Patients without helpers were more likely to be functionally independent than those with a helper (p = 0.03). Involvement in household activities (p = 0.01), participation in community activities (p = 0.02) and bowel and bladder continence (p = 0.003 and p = 0.04) improved the likelihood of functional independence.Conclusion and im plications: Factors that influence functional independence post stroke are: age, bowel and bladder continence, the presence of a caregiver, participation in household and community activities. It is also of value to encourage patients to participate in household and community activities post stroke as well as being less dependent on helpers in an effort to attain functional independence post stroke