The perspectives of beginner principals on their new roles in school leadership and management: A South African case study

In the study reported on here we aimed to explore how beginner principals perceived their roles as new appointees. School principals are expected to demonstrate proficiency when performing leadership and management roles in schools. Based on the fact that no certificate for principalship exists, newly appointed principals rely on their teaching experience to fulfil the responsibilities of the position. Gronn’s theory advocating leadership as a career was used as a lens to analyse the data. In this qualitative study we used interviews and document verification to understand how new appointees perceived their new roles as school leaders and managers. The findings imply that beginner principals regard themselves as ill-prepared to lead and manage schools in their early years of appointment. Their perceptions were that they lacked leadership and management experience in the areas of curriculum, human resources, school finance, stakeholder relations and interpretation of legislation. Beginner principals viewed these as challenges for their leadership and management expertise. From the study we concluded that teachers needed to be exposed to leadership and management responsibilities and that newly appointed principals needed to be trained before they assumed their new positions. Keywords: aspiring principal; beginner principal; principal; principalship; school leadership; school managemen

Benefits of emotional intelligence to construction industry: a case of Gauteng region, South Africa

Abstract: Emotional intelligence (EI) is concerned with personal and behavioural attributes that enable individuals or organisations to performup to an acceptable standard. Construction industry is composed of stakeholders of individuals and organisations working towards a common purpose of providing value for clients' money.This study is designed to evaluate the benefit of EI to the performance of construction projects. Using survey approach, primary data was collected by the use of a well-structured questionnaire. Adopting convenience sampling method, copies of questionnaire were distributed to construction project managers (CPM), architects, quantity surveyors (QS), construction managers (CM), facility managers (FM) and engineers in the South African construction industry and the retrieved copies were analysed. From the findings, it can be concluded that EI does not only hold the key to overall improvement of the project, but will also improve communication among construction clients and the entire team members;this will result in improved relationships among construction professionals and other stakeholders for the achievement of better performance of construction projects. It is therefore necessary for professionals and other stakeholders in the construction industry to improve on their intelligence quota by taking intelligence test at various time. Materials such as books, articles andso on on EI shouldalso be consultedfor individual improvement

An assessment of factors influencing collaboration and impacts on organisational performance : a review

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Informal settlement upgrading in the current policy context: lessons from the Civic Movement in Lebowakgomo in Limpopo Province, 1990-2000

The national and provincial departments of housing and local authorities can draw incredible lessons from the integrated approach of the Civic Movement in Lebowakgomo which is similar in many respects with major tenets of Chapter 13 of the National Housing Code in their endeavours to upgrade informal settlements in this country. The approach employed in this study hinges on a desktop study of grey and secondary literature, audio material in the form of information dissemination cassette complimented by the living memory of the only two respondents that I interviewed as well as my personal experience derived from my tenure as the Chairperson of the local branch of SANCO, Councillor for Ward 3, Chairperson (all Mayors of rural Transitional Local Councils (TLCs) were referred to as Chairpersons) of Greater Lebowakgomo TLC and the TLC Rep in the Northern District Council (NDC). These methods and procedures revealed that the Civic Movement approach encompassed major tenets of Chapter 13 of the National Housing Code, centred on concepts of urban-rural linkages, secure tenure, community participation and eradication of informal settlements and the peoplecentred and people-driven processes

Internal Auditors and Service Delivery in South African Local Government : a Limpopo Province Perspective

Of late, when engaging with any form of media in South Africa, one is guaranteed to come across a story relating to service delivery protests in at least one, if not many parts of the country. Citizens throughout the country have resorted to protesting as a way of voicing their dissatisfaction and anger at the lack of service delivery by local government. Local government is the sphere geographically situated nearest to the communities it serves, consisting of municipalities. During the protests communities mainly complain about the lack of basic services such as water, electricity, housing delivery, unemployment and sanitation. Various studies relating to service delivery have focused on the causes of the protests, analysed reams of statistics and have even suggested various “solutions” to these country-wide problems. Some authors see the protests as evidence of deficient or absent internal controls and governance principles, or a lack of will to apply those controls that are in place. These protests are occurring despite the South African Government having brought into effect legislation such as the Municipal Finance Management Act (56/2003), to strengthen the governance landscape of local government. A key component of this legislation is that it prescribes the mandatory employment of internal auditors and performance/audit committees to reinforce the governance system. Various studies have investigated either the lack of service delivery or the functioning of internal audit in the public sector. However, none of the researchers appears to have comprehensively studied whether internal auditors can assist management in local government to achieve their service delivery targets and thereby minimise the occurrence of service delivery protests. The objective of this study therefore, is to determine whether the performance of internal auditors' roles and responsibilities can reduce or minimise service delivery protests in municipalities. In order to achieve this, the study will amongst other aspects of the objective, identify the roles internal auditors are expected to fulfil in local government, as recorded in various statutes prescribed and the International Professional Practices Framework (Institute of Internal Auditors, (2016) (the “Standards”). The study will further determine the extent to which these roles are being performed; as well as to identify obstacles (if any) encountered by internal auditors when carrying out their roles. Most importantly the study will also determine whether internal audit can assist management to address challenges which often leads to inadequate service delivery. Through a review of the published literature the study determines the statutory and prescribed roles and responsibilities of the internal audit units in local government as presented by the Institute of Internal Auditors’ “Standards” and various items of South African legislation and regulations. The literature review also investigates the contribution made by a lack of controls to management’s failure to achieve their service delivery objectives. A sample of ten municipalities was selected for the study, and semi-structured interviews were conducted with key personnel at each municipality’s internal audit unit. Data collected during these interviews was analysed and findings were noted. It emerged from the study that internal audit does have a role to play in assisting management to achieve their objective of providing services to their respective communities; and that they are already playing this role.Dissertation (MPhil)--University of Pretoria, 2017.AuditingMComUnrestricte

Understanding the spatial distribution of eroded areas in the former rural homelands of South Africa: Comparative evidence from two new non-commercial multispectral sensors

In this study, we determine the most suitable multispectral sensor that can accurately detect and map eroded areas from other land cover types in Sekhukhune rural district, Limpopo Province, South Africa. Specifically, the study tested the ability of multi-date (wet and dry season) Landsat 8 OLI and Sentinel-2 MSI images in detecting and mapping eroded areas. The implementation was done, using a robust non-parametric classification ensemble: Discriminant Analysis (DA). Three sets of analysis were applied (Analysis 1: Spectral bands as independent dataset; Analysis 2: Spectral vegetation indices as independent and Analysis 3: Combined spectral bands and spectral vegetation indices). Overall classification accuracies ranging between 80% to 81.90% for MSI and 75.71%–80.95% for OLI were derived for the wet and dry season, respectively. The integration of spectral bands and spectral vegetation indices showed that Sentinel-2 (OA = 83, 81%), slightly performed better than Landsat 8, with 82, 86%. The use of bands and vegetation indices as independent dataset resulted in slightly weaker results for both sensors. Sentinel-2 MSI bands located in the NIR (0.785–0.900 μm), red edge (0.698–0.785 μm) and SWIR (1.565–2.280 μm) regions were selected as the most optimal for discriminating degraded soils from other land cover types. However, for Landsat 8OLI, only the SWIR (1.560–2.300 μm), NIR (0.845–0.885 μm) region were selected as the best regions. Of the eighteen spectral vegetation indices computed, NDVI and SAVI and SAVI and Global Environmental Monitoring Index (GEMI) were ranked selected as the most suitable for detecting and mapping soil erosion. Additionally, SRTM DEM derived information illustrates that for both sensors eroded areas occur on sites that are 600 m and 900 m of altitude with similar trends observed in both dry and wet season maps. Findings of this work emphasize the importance of free and readily available new generation sensors in continuous landscape-scale soil erosion monitoring. Besides, such information can help to identify hotspots and potentially vulnerable areas, as well as aid in developing possible control and mitigation measures

Pinpointing areas of increased soil erosion risk following land cover change in the Lake Manyara catchment, Tanzania

publisher: Elsevier articletitle: Pinpointing areas of increased soil erosion risk following land cover change in the Lake Manyara catchment, Tanzania journaltitle: International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation articlelink: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jag.2018.05.008 content_type: article copyright: © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

The acquisition of jazz improvisation skills in South African jazz musicians : an IPA study

The study aimed to explore and understand how six South African jazz musicians acquire and practise the skill of jazz improvisation. Formative influences and practice methods were studied with the hope of identifying factors that are unique to the South African jazz context. The study followed a qualitative research paradigm, with a collective case study design. Data were gathered through semi-structured interviews which allowed the researcher to probe issues of interest that arose during the course of the interview. The interview questions focused on the musical background, formative and ongoing influences, practice techniques, and improvisation acquisition methods of jazz musicians. The sample consisted of six expert South African jazz musicians with national and international performance, as well as recording, experience. Following the collection of the data, the results were transcribed, thoroughly analysed and then triangulated to ensure a reliable result. The data revealed three superordinate themes: 1) early and later influences; 2) motivation; and 3) processes in acquiring improvisational skills. This set of South African jazz musicians revealed that early and later influences include a combination of being self-taught and formal lessons, the black South African church setting, family members, active listening, transcribing, imitation, working with various musicians, and, the limitations of the apartheid era on the development of black musicians. Intrinsic and extrinsic motivators shape the manner in which South African jazz musicians view and approach jazz improvisation. It was found that their attitudes and values play a significant role, pertaining to improvisation, factors that affect the transition from general to stylistic improvisation, and, the issue of musical integrity in relation to written or memorised solos. The study revealed that the processes in acquiring improvisational skills include and encompass organic versus structured methods of learning, which includes formal and informal practice, and the importance of issues such as understanding the fundamental jazz rudiments and techniques, developing an identity, authentic self-expression, using mistakes as an opportunity to learn, and the transference of knowledge from an aural to cognitive understanding. The research leads to the conclusion that although each musician has a unique musical journey, there are elements in the acquisition of jazz improvisation skills that are inescapable such as honing a good technique, intrinsic motivation, active listening, effective practice routines, formal and informal learning, formal and informal practicing, and the development of a unique ‘voice’. The research identifies unique self-theories, experiences and cultural components that guide the ways six South African jazz musicians acquire improvisation skills.Dissertation (MMus)--University of Pretoria, 2015.tm2015MusicMMusUnrestricte

Management of effective teams of teachers in secondary schools

M.Ed.(Education Management)The ushering in of a new education system in South Africa comes with its own challenges to educational authorities. The role that school principals should play will still be significant as they are an important link between the school and outside authorities. Despite this important part they play, principals should always involve their staff, students, and parents in educational matters. Drawing in various stakeholders in the school will ensure that there is widespread responsibility. The platform suitable for stakeholders' participation appears to be the creation of teams. Teams have been identified as a suitable forum for the application ofTotal Quality Management in schools This approach, of looking at the interests of students first, should be coupled with ensuring that societal values, norms, mores, and . ethics are takencare of in schools. The essential function of a school leader is to present to students and teachers their ownpersonal vision of where the school and society should be going. Participation in school matters by teachers, students and parents alike necessitates that mutual respect be prevalent in such an environment. Thecollaboration of teachers, students and parents will foster teams which will provide greater power, both with regard to ideas and the ability to act on them. This study hashighlighted the following: I. The team is the major, and sometimes, the only source of emotional support for colleagues in schools. 2. Effective teams co-ordinate the interaction of members of staff so that they arc able to deal with information from many different directions and sources. 3. Teams generate greater ideas and considerable benefit IS derived when all members stimulate each other's professional growth. The establishment and building of teams should also encourage professional -,development of the teachers, which is also a vital element in teaching and learning. Delegation of essential management decisions to teams should be a common practice by the principal. This will ensure that interested parties in school matters will be kept informed of new developments. It will also draw in the participation of stakeholders, which create a pooling of ideas. Changing realities in the South African education system should not catch education authorities, principals, teachers. students and parents unawares. They need to keep abreast of developments through an imperative communication network. Teachers. students and parents should be empowered so that they not only play a vital role in education but a meaningful one as well

Implementation of a time of flight detection sysytem for elastically recoiled ions at the Ithemba laboratory for accelerator based science (Ithemba labs).

MSc (Applied Radiation Science and Technology), North-West University, Mahikeng CampusThe characterization of materials is an important feature in the development of technologically important materials. The aim of this study was to contribute to the implementation of Elastic Recoil Detection (ERD), using a time of flight versus energy (TOF-E) detection system, as a tool to be used in the analysis of elastically recoiled ions from thin films. Energetic heavy ions from the Second Single Pole injector Cyclotron (SPC2) at iThemba Laboratory for Accelerator Based Sciences are used as the bombarding particles. The focus of this study was to construct the time of flight detector and to demonstrate that useful signals can be detected. The TOF-E detector is described and the time of flight for the alpha particles of energy 5 .4 Me V was successfully measured to be 30 ns.Master