A New Dawn

BRICS is a significant player in the international arena. Thus, it is important for South Africa as a member of BRICS to explore the implications of the external and internal influences of BRICS. This includes comprehensive understanding of the international and national involvement of BRICS in education provision and introducing discovered influences in South African educational planning. The size of BRICS as international player, in different areas and on different levels, necessitates the research of its functioning and in this case the role of BRICS regarding education provisioning. Therefore, this research and analysis of the contribution of BRICS in education provision are an important addition to the field of effective Education. Through the preliminary literature reviews, we noticed that current studies often are quantitative in nature and lack comparative qualitative exploration about education development in BRICS countries. For this reason, the book titled BRICS Education: A new dawn, will contribute to the flourishment of quality education in South Africa and all BRICS nations. The book will also aim to encourage researchers to join efforts with other researchers of the five member states in order to learn from each other and to address common challenges. To that end, this research will generate scientific knowledge meant to maximize the readers, understanding of the current realities of the education aims at the national (each member state) and collective (BRICS organization) level. The authors of the book are interested in comparing the educational aims across the BRICS countries and explore how successfully these aims are being implemented on-the-ground. Through the discovering of similarities and differences in the educational aims of the five member states and the educational objectives of the BRICS-organization the readers of the book will be able to identify best practices that will allow member states to fulfill the education aims of the BRICS organization at large

Ervarings van departementshoofde as onderrigleiers in parallelmedium-laerskole

Legislation regarding education in South Africa has changed significantly since 1994. One aspect that has changed is language policy and language of learning and teaching at schools. The number of schools that have changed their language policy from single medium to parallel- and dual medium has increased significantly. This change had an impact on the management of schools. The head of department as an instructional leader in his or her department plays an important role in managing this change. The research aims to investigate and describe the instructional leadership role of heads of departments at parallel medium primary schools. Furthermore, this study would also focus on the impact of the leadership role of department heads when the language policy at their respective schools has changed. With the focus on instructional leadership of the heads of departments this case study investigated the challenges experienced by this department heads. The study was conducted at three parallel medium primary schools in Pretoria. This is a qualitative study which interprets data collected by three techniques. The three data collection instruments were observations, interviews and document analysis. The data were analyzed using content analysis. My findings indicate the following: First, a school's language policy has a significant influence on the instructional leadership of heads of departments at parallel medium schools. Second, more specifically, the heads of departments must do tasks and duties in both languages of learning and teaching. This implies a tremendous increase in their workload that includes planning, meetings and communication. Finally, legislation and case law forms the framework within which the heads of departments as instructional leader has to fulfill their tasks. It seems that the participants' have a limited knowledge of the legal framework.Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2011.Education Management and Policy Studiesunrestricte

A New Dawn

BRICS is a significant player in the international arena. Thus, it is important for South Africa as a member of BRICS to explore the implications of the external and internal influences of BRICS. This includes comprehensive understanding of the international and national involvement of BRICS in education provision and introducing discovered influences in South African educational planning. The size of BRICS as international player, in different areas and on different levels, necessitates the research of its functioning and in this case the role of BRICS regarding education provisioning. Therefore, this research and analysis of the contribution of BRICS in education provision are an important addition to the field of effective Education. Through the preliminary literature reviews, we noticed that current studies often are quantitative in nature and lack comparative qualitative exploration about education development in BRICS countries. For this reason, the book titled BRICS Education: A new dawn, will contribute to the flourishment of quality education in South Africa and all BRICS nations. The book will also aim to encourage researchers to join efforts with other researchers of the five member states in order to learn from each other and to address common challenges. To that end, this research will generate scientific knowledge meant to maximize the readers, understanding of the current realities of the education aims at the national (each member state) and collective (BRICS organization) level. The authors of the book are interested in comparing the educational aims across the BRICS countries and explore how successfully these aims are being implemented on-the-ground. Through the discovering of similarities and differences in the educational aims of the five member states and the educational objectives of the BRICS-organization the readers of the book will be able to identify best practices that will allow member states to fulfill the education aims of the BRICS organization at large

Critical Issues in South African Education

The main thesis of this book is that, given that South African education faces major challenges, the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) constellation of states offers — thus far overlooked — a valuable tertium comparationis, a source of international comparative perspectives, to inform the domestic scholarly discourse on education. This book first investigates the national contexts and development of education in the BRICS countries, arguing that this grouping represents a valuable but yet overlooked field for illuminating South African education issues with international perspectives. The book consists of chapters arguing for and illustrating this thesis from a variety of angles. Common to all chapters is that authors used the comparative method in education, that is comparing the national education system, in their education societal context interrelationships, of the BRICS countries. The chapters focus on a number of critical issues in South African education, including the language of learning and teaching issue, the alignment of the world of education with the world of work, early childhood education, and the development of world-class universities. Regarding the last, for example, China has been the terrain of the most intensive national projects of establishing world-class universities, with Project 985, Project 211, and the “Double First Class University” project. The chapters demonstrate what South Africa, in approaching her education issues, can learn from the experience of the BRICS countries

Critical Issues in South African Education

The main thesis of this book is that, given that South African education faces major challenges, the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) constellation of states offers — thus far overlooked — a valuable tertium comparationis, a source of international comparative perspectives, to inform the domestic scholarly discourse on education. This book first investigates the national contexts and development of education in the BRICS countries, arguing that this grouping represents a valuable but yet overlooked field for illuminating South African education issues with international perspectives. The book consists of chapters arguing for and illustrating this thesis from a variety of angles. Common to all chapters is that authors used the comparative method in education, that is comparing the national education system, in their education societal context interrelationships, of the BRICS countries. The chapters focus on a number of critical issues in South African education, including the language of learning and teaching issue, the alignment of the world of education with the world of work, early childhood education, and the development of world-class universities. Regarding the last, for example, China has been the terrain of the most intensive national projects of establishing world-class universities, with Project 985, Project 211, and the “Double First Class University” project. The chapters demonstrate what South Africa, in approaching her education issues, can learn from the experience of the BRICS countries