Towards the development of African psychometric tests

A research paper on the development of Psychometric Tests for Africa.Test development and psychometric principles are among the more difficult topics for Psychology students in Africa. In this article, a look at how psychometric tests designed in Western countries and used in African countries is made. Thirty six masters degree students from past educational psychology programmes were given an assignment to develop a psychometric test to replace the WISC-R using African cultural norms. The students were asked to conceptualise tests, write items, administer the tests, perform item analysis on the data, and calculate the instruments' reliability and validity. At the end they came up with a draft psychometric instrument to replace the WISC-R which was to be finalized and pilot-tested on a sample of2000pupils aged between 12 and 13 years which is in keeping with international best practices. The success of the adapted WISC-R, which was named the ZIPE lest, would determine further adaptations of other psychometric instruments such as Personality, Aptitude and Interest Inventories

Pupil Assessment Techniques in Zimbabwe's secondary schools (1984-1987)

A ZJER article on pupil assessment techniques/methods in Zimbabwe's secondary schools in the period 1984-1987.Interview and questionnaire data from 334 teachers and 100 school and department heads in 48 Zimbabwean secondary schools were used to determine current assessment practices, attitudes toward assessment alternatives and the impact of staff training in pupil assessment. The research was organized in three phases: 1. interviews and questionnaires to determine existing assessment practice in schools; 2. a training and evaluation programme for teachers and heads in schools identified as showing poor practice; and 3. another survey in both ‘good practice’ and 'bad practice’ schools to establish present thinking and attitudes towards psychometric testing with a view to disseminating useful information to other schools

A Comparison In Performance Between Mature Entry Students And Traditional (A-Level) Entry Students At The University Of Zimbabwe

A ZJER article on the comparison between mature students and youthful students.The degree results of Business Studies and Law students who had entered the University of Zimbabwe through ‘mature entry' between 1990 and 1999 were compared with those of students who had entered university through the traditional A-level entry route. These students were matched for sex and the subjects studied. No significant differences were found for age or sex. The conclusion drawn from these results is that since there was no interaction between the two variables of mature entry and traditional entry there is no difference in performance between mature entry students and (traditional) A-level entry students at the University of Zimbabwe

Education For All: Towards Inclusive Education Policy Development In Zimbabwe

A ZJER article on inclusive education.In this paper, the author discusses his understanding of inclusive education and suggests various ways in which it may be demystified. It is argued that the inclusive education policy in Zimbabwe should take into account the needs of all marginalized, socially disadvantaged and oppressed pupils. Furthermore, the author argues that the Zimbabwe education system should-take heed, of the Salamanca Statement, and enroll all the children in mainstream classrooms, while providing appropriate teacher-training for would-be-teachers

Does Mobile Phone Usage Boost Productivity in Developing Countries?

The aim of this study is to assess the impact of mobile phone proliferation on productivity, using data from 73 low-income countries, from the period 2000-2016. The sample includes countries from Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and Caribbean. The author\u27s findings show that holding all else constant, a 1 percent increase in mobile penetration rate boosts output per capita by 2.6 percent. These findings confirm there are increasing returns (network effects) to productivity associated with an increase in penetration rate. Results also show that the ease of doing business matters in low-income countries in that it influences the speed at which higher productivity is achieved

AFIKSASI DALAM PENINGKATAN VALENSI VERBA BAHASA JAWA DAN BAHASA BANJAR

Abstrak Penelitian ini merupakan penelitian kualitatif yang bertujuan untuk untuk mengetahui proses afiksasi yang berperan terhadap peningkatan valensi verba dalam bahasa Jawa dan bahasa Banjar. Data dalam penelitian ini diperoleh dari penutur asli bahasa Jawa, bahasa Banjar. Peneliti juga menggunakan data yang berasal dari buku yang ditulis oleh Wedhawati dan kamus bahasa Banjar. Data yang diperoleh dianalisa menggunakan teori valensi menurut Haspelmath dan Wedhawati. Hasil analisis menunjukkan bahwa dalam bahasa Jawa, proses afiksasi yang mempengaruhi perubahan valensi yaitu imbuhan prefiks n- dan sufiks –ake, prefiks di- dan sufiks –i, prefiks di dan sufiks –ake serta prefiks n- dan sufiks –ake, prefiks ng-, prefiks n- dan sufiks -i, sufiks -an dan prefiks ng-. Sedangkan dalam bahasa Banjar, proses afiksasi yang mempengaruhi peningkatan valensi yaitu prefiks maN- dan sufiks -akan, prefiks m- dan sufiks -akan, prefiks ba- dan suffiks -an, prefiks maN- dan suffiks -i, prefiks di- dan suffiks -akan, prefiks ma-, prefiks di- dan prefiks -ta. Kata kunci: Afiksasi, Bahasa Banjar, Bahasa Jawa, Valensi verba   Abstract This research is qualitative research and the aim of this research is to find the affixation process which increase the verb valence in Javanese and Banjarese. The data in this study were obtained from native speakers of Javanese, Banjarese. Researcher also used data from a book written by Wedhawati and Banjarese dictionary. The data obtained were analyzed using the valence theory of verbs according to Haspelmath and Wedhawati. The results of the analysis show that in Javanese, the affixation process that affects changes in valence is the insertion of prefix n- and suffix -ake, prefix di- and suffix -i, prefix di and suffix -ake and prefix n- and suffix -ake, prefix ng-, prefix n- and suffix -i, suffix -an and prefix ng-. Meanwhile in Banjarese, the affixation process that affects the increase in valence is prefix maN- and suffix -akan, prefix m- and suffix -akan, prefix ba- and suffix -an, prefix maN- and suffix -i, prefix di- and suffix -akan, prefix ma-, prefix di- and prefix -ta. Keywords: Affixation, Banjarese, Javanese, Verb valenc

Celebrating 60 years of university expansion in Zimbabwe

A research paper on university education expansion in Zimbabwe during the period 1956 to 2016.In the spirit of celebrating Zimbabwe’s higher education and the inspiration coming from the University of Zimbabwe, the country's first university, which is currently enjoying 60 years of existence since its inception, this article focuses on the history of university expansion throughout Zimbabwe. In recent years, expansion of university education has been widespread throughout Africa despite the significant economic demands and constraints such expansion places upon government budgets. Both cases for and against university expansion are compelling. This paper examines the rising tide of university expansion, giving the argument supporting and opposing such a move from economic, social, and political points of view. The need for a national dialogue on the future of tertiary education is suggested in the conclusion