An interactive computer program for South African urban primary school children to learn about traffic signs and rules

Road accidents significantly contribute to severe injury and death of young children. Knowledge of road safety signs and traffic rules are regarded as necessary basic knowledge to improve the safety of children in traffic situations. Resources available for the education and learning of road signs and road safety rules for learners are limited. This study assessed the effectiveness of an interactive computer program as a teaching tool to contribute to the improvement of the knowledge base of young children on road safety in South Africa. A quasiexperimental approach was employed to conduct this study. Primary school learners (n= 75) aged 11 - 12 years participated in the pilot study. Findings indicated that there was a meaningful change in the learner’s knowledge of road signs and road safety rules after participation in the program.Keywords: pedestrians, road safety rules, traffic signs, education and learning of road safety rule

Die houding van onderwysers in Transvaal teenoor die omgewing en omgewingsopvoeding

D. Phil. (Education)Please refer to full text to view abstrac

Omgewingsopvoeding as deel van die omgewingsbestuursplan van Centurion stadsraad

M.A.In the seventies and eighties many countries in the world realised that uncontrolled development cannot continue without taking the life-sustaining natural base of the ecosystem into consideration. Many world conferences where held on this topic of which the Rio Conference in 1992 was most probably the most important. At this conference the Agenda 21 document was approved. The Agenda 21 document, regarded as the blue print for sustainable development, made proposal which where to be followed by countries on international, national and local levels, to move nearer towards sustainable development. The South African government committed itself to the implementation of this document. Several local documents where developed out of this document and action plans where put into place to implement the principles of Agenda 21. The South African government went through a process, which included a Green paper, a White paper and a Bill. The vision and policy principles in the National Environmental Act determined the choice of strategic goals to be followed to achieve sustainable integrated environmental management. These strategic principles will then determine policy implementation. The question arose with the researcher whether effective environmental management is at all possible without sufficient training and 6ducation on the philosophy, structures and procedure to be followed to achieve sustainable environmental management. It was then decided to focus a research on the officials and inhabitants of the local government and community of Centurion. The purpose being to determine in which way integrated environmental management is already taking place in this local government area, where shortcomings existed, and what the contribution of environmental education could be to improve effective environmental management. Because of the limited scope of the study the strategic goals where not all addressed, reference was only made to them and areas of further research where indicated. The study has been done to formulate guidelines, which can be used in the integration of environmental education actions in the formulation and implementation of environmental management policy. The methods used in the study include quantitative, qualitative including interviews and document analysis, research methods. In the broader literature research the development and institutionalisation of environmental concerns on world-wide scale, national and local scale were shown. The quantitative and qualitative research took the form of a semi-structured questionnaire and interviews. Officials and inhabitants of Centurion who took part in the integrated developing planning process where included in the survey. The research indicated the critical importance of environmental education in the implementation of an environmental policy for sustainable development. The role of the process of environmental education in environmental management should be spelled out in policy with reference to responsibilities in institutional structures with the objective of effective implementation and monitoring

From a concentration camp to a post-apartheid South African school: a historical-environmental perspective in developing a new identity.

The overall goal of the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development 2005-2014, as proclaimed by the United Nations, is to integrate the principles, values and practices of sustainable development into all aspects of education and learning. This integrated and multi-dimensional approach is supported in South Africa by the White Paper for Education and Training and the National Curriculum Statement (NCS) for History as part of the Social Science learning area. The aim of this article is to report on how a historical-environmental approach to education had been realised in the context of Eenheid primary school in Nylstroom (Modimolle) located on grounds used for a concentration camp during the South African War (October 1899 to May 1902).1 In particular, the researchers wanted to establish how a diverse group of learners experienced and internalised their historical-environmental events in creating their present identity. The findings of the school’s learners (n=51) who participated in a case study suggest that the historical memory which developed from the unique location of the school not only expanded the learners perspectives on intercultural understanding, but also contributed to a better appreciation and responsibility of environmental and socio-cultural issues in a post-apartheid South Africa. In the process an ethic of sustainable living and the creation of a “new” South African identity developed

Self-efficacy: A South African case study on teachers’ commitment to integrate climate change resilience into their teaching practices

A strong sense of self-efficacy in teachers has in many studies been consistently related to positive teaching behaviours and learner outcomes. This research reports on the differences among teachers regarding their self-efficacy and how this relates to their confidence and commitment to integrate climate change in their teaching practice. A questionnaire with the standardised scale of the Woolfolk “Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy Scale” was used to measure self-efficacy beliefs of participating teachers (n = 25). The quantitative data generated with the questionnaire were analysed using the SPSS statistical package and the Atlas-ti program was used to analyse the qualitative data. The findings showed that teachers with beliefs of greater self-efficacy were more willing and resilient to engage in a climate change project. It is recommended that besides the knowledge and skills component of teaching, teachers must be supported to reinforce their belief that they can contribute meaningfully to teaching and developing climate change resilience

Sustainable Environmental Management Indicators in South African Primary Schools

This research explores sustainable environmental management indicators in South African primary schools. Of key interest is the comparison of a township, farm and urban primary school that identify indicators that promote education for sustainable development in schools that implement an environmental management system. Data are drawn from one-on-one interviews, focus group interviews, observations and document analysis from 35 participants in three schools. A comparison of the three schools was done by content and thematic analysis of a within-case analysis. Data from the township school revealed that socioeconomic factors and organisational structure promote education for sustainable development. The farm school data revealed that health promotion can be managed within an environmental management system within a hierarchical school structure. The urban school data revealed that an economic inducement brings a school to realise that it can reduce its carbon footprint, gain financially and utilize its resources with innovation. A case is made that the four pillars of sustainable development (environment, society, economy, and governance) endorse education for sustainable development. Furthermore, the objectives of environmental education ought to remain nested in an environmental management system to ensure that the global goal of quality education is achieved

The role of transformation in learning and education for sustainability

Education research has acknowledged the value of transformation, which offers an opportunity for researching and rethinking how appropriate and successful educational practices may be. However, despite the role of transformation in higher education and particularly in sustainability learning, there is a paucity of studies which examine the extent to which transformation and learning on matters related to sustainable development may be integrated. Based on this perceived research need, the purpose of this article is to present how transformation in learning in education for sustainability requires the commitment of Faculty and the engament of students. To do this, a set of qualitative case studies were used in higher education institutions across seven countries (Brazil, Serbia, Latvia, South Africa, Spain, Syria, UK). The findings revealed that the concept of education for sustainable development has not been sufficiently integrated into the concept of transformation in higher education institutions. It also found that to enhance sustainability in the curricula, academics should develop collaborative approaches, and discuss how to redesign their own disciplines, and how to appreciate the epistemology and multicultural vision of sustainability, both as a topic, and as a field of education research. It was further found that reflections of the academics on their own values are crucial for developing the transformative potential of students as agents of a sustainable future. It is necessary that universities should transform to serve as models of social justice and environmental stewardship, and to foster sustainability learning.Peer Reviewe