Faculty of Humanities, Social Sciences and Education

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The accessibilty to English as the Second Language of learning and teaching in selected Public Primary schools of Vhembe District
(2017-08-18) Madima, Shumani Eric; Phaswana, N. E.; Klu, E. K.
See the attached abstract below
Administrattion of school fund by the school management team in the secondary schools in Mvudi Circuit of the Vhembe District
(2015-01-22) Nyathela, Azwinndini Gilbert; Ravhudzulo, M. A.
Afro-centered heritage management approaches for Mapungubwe World Heritage Site along Vele Colliery Coal Mining Area in Limpopo Province in South Africa
(2022-07-15) Lithole, Donald Khathutshelo; Matshidze, P.; Dzimiri, P.; Cultural property -- South Africa -- Limpopo; World heritage areas -- South Africa -- Limpopo
This contribution reflects on the role of Mapungubwe World Heritage Site in the promotion of African Knowledge Systems. The study is aligned to the notion that Mapungubwe Kingdom is the epitome of civilization built on African Knowledge Systems. The problem that the study is investigating is that the approach to heritage conservation in Limpopo Province is still reflecting European dominance of Africa. This in turn limits the expression of African Knowledge Systems in the conservation of Mapungubwe World Heritage Site. The overarching aim of the study was to develop the Afro-centred heritage management tool that places Mapungubwe World Heritage Site as the custodian of African Knowledge Systems. The main questions that guided the study were the following: what is the role of Mapungubwe World Heritage Site in the development of African Knowledge Systems? what are the major challenges that Afro-centred heritage management tool should address in the conservation of Mapungubwe World Heritage Site? what are the interventions required to establish Mapungubwe World Heritage Site as the agent for promotion of African Knowledge Systems? what needs to be done to institutionalize African Knowledge Systems within the Mapungubwe World Heritage Site conservation program? Data was collected using in-depth interviews with the purposively sampled participants. Secondary data sources in the form of recorded audio-visuals, minutes of the meetings, newspaper articles and other cultural activities performed to mention but few were also utilized. Data was analysed using a content qualitative data analysis method. This was the qualitative case study designed research that focused on the Mapungubwe World Heritage Site conservation approach. Theoretically, the study utilized the cradle theory that claims that Africa is the cradle of humankind that birthed all ethnic groups in the world. Heritage theorists particularly palaeontologists attest to this sentiment. Insights were also drawn from the Afrocentric approach debate that advocates for location and promotion of African Knowledge Systems in any dialogue. The findings of the study show that there is underutilisation of African Knowledge Systems in the Mapungubwe World Heritage Site, Mapungubwe could be established into African Knowledge Systems University, and public institutions are not well supported to manage heritage matters to mention but few. The study recommends that future research should pay attention on the exploitation of the use of Mapungubwe World Heritage Site as the university for African Knowledge Systems.
An evaluation of the English Language component of the mature students' entrance examinations into selected Ghanaian Universities
(2021-06-23) Asafo - Adjei, Ramos; Klu, E. K.; Adika, G. S.K.; Maluleke, M. J.
In Ghana, there are two main ways of gaining admission to the undergraduate university system. These are the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) and the Mature Students’ Entrance Examinations. The latter examination is mainly conducted internally by the universities in order to select the successful applicants for enrolment. This is on condition that the test takers have prior working experience in the fields that they want to attain their respective certificates and aged twenty-five years and above. This study mainly sought to evaluate the nature and scope of the English language component of the Mature Students’ Entrance Examinations into selected Ghanaian universities. The present study adopted the multiple case study design as its primary technique. The sources of data used were responses from in-depth interviews and the past questions of the English language component of the Mature Students’ Entrance Examinations. Thematic content analysis and document analysis were employed to analyse the data. Berry’s (2018) test development model underpinned this study. The sample for the study (mainly the lecturers who set the English language component of the Mature Students’ Entrance Examinations questions and the past questions of the English language component of the Mature Students’ Entrance Examinations) were drawn from six universities. It was found that the English language component of the Mature Students’ Entrance Examinations fell short of both the WASSCE and the IELTS standards in areas such as the uniformity of the questions set, the basic language skills tested, the criteria used for setting the questions and the topical areas (competences) tested in the examination. It is recommended that a formal regulatory body be formed by Ghana’s Ministry of Education to control and coordinate the English language component of the Mature Students’ Entrance Examinations as WAEC does for the WASSCE in order to enhance the standards of the examination.
An Analysis of Current Healing Practices Based on Selected Mega-Churches in the Vhembe District of Limpopo Province
(2018-05-18) Mabuza, Lethabo Stanley; Masoga, M. A.; Shokane, A. L.
Healing practices and health related rituals play a vital role in most religious groups including African Traditional Religion, Christianity, Islamic and Hinduism. This phenomenon of healing has been a challenge to religious institutions as well as African based churches. This study examined and analysed the healing practices within mega-churches in relation to the health related aspects. It appears that healing practices performed in those churches make them popular and enhance their growth in membership numerically. The study focuses on the philosophy and theological understanding of both mega-churches and mainstream churches. It is ostensible that healing, as a phenomenon, cannot be separated from core African culture, values and practices. Current church healing practices seems to be a more practical and accessible alternative way to deal with sickness as medical facilities has become inexorably costly especially to poor community who have no access to efficient medical amenities. Underprivileged members of society are drawn to religious healing practices because healers such as prophets, pastors and apostles dangle the capacity to heal people from all kind of ailments. Poor communities become a target because they are victims of government and the department of health malfunctions which are depicted by the poor and below standard medical services in those underprivileged communities. Most people in those communities believe that the above-mentioned emerging prophets and apostles from mega-churches are anointed and possess special power to heal them as well as to redeem them from life’s harsh realities. In the context of current healing practices, the researcher discovered that there is a need to probe and analyse the aforesaid practices particularly whereby healing seekers seems to have not receive what they anticipated from those mega-churches. The study exposes inappropriate healing dynamics conceived in the selected mega-churches within African tradition context. This study followed a qualitative approach, in which participants from both mega-churches and mainline churches were interviewed. The study further points out some perceived challenges affecting current healing practices in the selected mega-churches of Vhembe district of Limpopo Province. The study employed Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis strategy to analyse the data for the study.
Analysis of English language errors in the writing of second year students in a Ghanaian university
(2021-06-23) Mandor, Evelyn Joyce; Klu, E. K.; Adika, G. S. K.; Lambani, M. N.
The writing of undergraduate students in universities across Ghana has been described as pitiable by many researchers. To be able to communicate effectively and succeed in an academic discourse community, a student requires sufficient competence in the use of the English language, which is the medium of instruction in universities across Ghana. However, it is observable that most of the students’ writing in the English language tends to be fraught with some recurrent errors. Data collected were in the form of written compositions. A mixed-method comprising both qualitative and quantitative procedures was used. The qualitative aspect looked at error taxonomies and the quantitative aspect employed statistics to obtain error frequencies. The errors in the writing of Second Year students of a Ghanaian university were analysed using Error Analysis procedures. The findings revealed that students demonstrated poor writing skills with inherent grammatical errors and a lack of cohesion and coherence. A total of 16 error categories were detected with 25% (expression, omission, spelling, capitalisation) of the total errors ranking very high in terms of frequency of occurrence. This was followed by plurality, addition, choice of words and concord making up another 25% of the total errors detected. Errors such as tense, punctuation, preposition, pronoun, faulty parallelism, fragment, wrong transition and article although ranked low, made up a total of 50%. Based on the findings, the study suggested a revision of the academic syllabus and the methods of learning and teaching English language, especially at the tertiary level to enable students to demonstrate competence concerning English language compositions.
An analysis of musanda as an institution within the Thulamela Local Municipality and the current South African public service delivery system
(2016-05) Madzivhandila, Muthuhadini Alfred; Masoga, M. A.; Makgopa, M. a.
The Thulamela Local Municipality is currently experiencing a plethora of public service delivery challenges. This often leads to court litigation and disputes with the institution of musanda. These public service delivery challenges, conflicts and court disputes in many cases leave the communities within the municipality deprived of basic services as a result of slow or a complete lack of service delivery. musanda is a Venda word that refers to the place where the thovhele (king), khosikhulu (paramountcies), khosi (chiefs), gota (headman), mukoma (petty headman), vhakoma (queen mother), vhatanuni (wives), vhakololo (princes/princesses), khadzi and makhadzi (royal aunts), ndumi (king/chiefs’ brother) and the rest of this royal structure resides. As such it also refers to the institution of royal governance. The proposed study aims to analyse the place of musanda as an institution within public service delivery and within the whole process of decentralization of services in the Thulamela Municipality. The study focuses mainly on the current public service delivery system of the government and the role of the institution of the musanda in that process. The basic service delivery system that receives direct attention falls under the Government Cluster, which covers Social Protection, and Community and Human Development. These divisions deal with Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Water and Sanitation, Human Settlements, Rural Development and Land Reform, Basic Education and Sports and Recreation. These are the services that are supposed to be rendered by municipalities. The analysis aims to determine musanda’s position in the whole process of providing the public services indicated above.
An analysis of service delivery protests and their implications on the economic stability of Musina Municipality: 2007-2014
(2018-05-18) Phaswana, Rofhiwa; Molapo, R. R.; Dzimiri, P.
The adoption of the constitution in 1996 has opened a new era of establishing a local government system that recommended that municipalities be established for the whole territory of the republic of South Africa. The white paper on “Local Government adopted by Cabinet in March 1998 outlined framework and programmes to guide municipalities to commit to work with citizens and groups within the communities to find sustainable ways to meet their social, economic and material needs to improve the quality of their lives”. Since 2007 epidemic service delivery protests started to be a national problem where 80 percentages of service delivery protests between the periods of 2007-2014 were violent. For instance, Musina Municipality experienced violent service delivery during the period of 2007-2014 where its properties, economy and people’s lives were in stake. Therefore, this study was driven by the need to analyse the implications of service delivery protests on the economy of Musina Municipality. A qualitative method approach to investigate the problem of service delivery protests implications on stability and economy in Musina Municipality will be used. A case study regarding service delivery effectiveness and violence used by people as a response and expression of a plea to be heard by their municipality will be investigated.
An analysis of the land issue as portrayed in selected novels by Ngugi wa Thiong'o
(2011-11) Mondo, Lysta
See the attached abstract below
An analysis of the role of culture in the tradition of Northern Sotho idiomatic expressions into English
(2023-10-05) Meso, Tlou Phestus; Baloyi, M. J.; Mphasha, L. E.
Human beings the world over benefit from sharing experiences and knowledge through language. African languages have now demonstrated that they also have capacity to transmit intellectualism that advances human progress and knowledge beyond human boarders. Words such as ubuntu, imbizo and lobola have broken bonds of linguistic superiority. But is it possible to translate the linguistic superiority into English without acculturation? This study adopts the qualitative research method to present a detailed descriptive analysis of the socio-cultural framework of the Northern Sotho idiomatic expressions. It adopts Nord’s (1997/2000) Functionalist Approach of translation within Descriptive Translation Studies to engage in a critical analysis of a clearly defined collection of Northern Sotho idiomatic expressions. Despite the fact that Northern Sotho idiomatic expressions can be rendered in the English language through translation, they may (still) remain foreign to the English culture. The study assumes that the translation of idiomatic expressions should be taken above the limits of narrow microtextual context analysis and consider the broader macrotextual context (Lindfors, 1978). The study distances itself from the notion of ‘equivalence’, between the source text and the target text, as propagated by linguistic-orientated theorists such as Cartford (1965), Nida and Taber (1969) and House (1977).
An analysis of written concord errors among Grade 12 First Additional Language learners in Vhembe District of Limpopo Province, South Africa
(2017-05) Nndwamato, Ndivhudzanyi Michael; Lambani, M. N.; Klu, E.;
Learning English as a second language by the South African learners of English First Additional Language (FAL) causes many challenges, such as committing errors in concord as there are differences between the learners’ mother tongue and the target language. Even at Grade 12 level, which is the exit point to institutions of higher learning or to the workplace, learners still display some deficiencies in the mastery of the English concord. This happens despite the fact that, in many South African schools, English is used as a medium of instruction and learnt as a First Additional Language (FAL) especially at high schools. Through the analysis of the written concord errors committed by the 72 of the 720 sampled Grade 12 English FAL learners in Vhembe District, the study answered to two questions which formed its cornerstone which are: what are the most common types of written concord/ subject-verb agreement errors which are committed by Grade 12 FAL learners and what are the causes thereof? The study employed both the quantitative and the qualitative methods to pursue the primary question. Learners responded to the questionnaires and the researcher also analysed their teacher-marked English FAL composition scripts with the focus on concord/subject-verb agreement usage. The findings were that concord/subject-verb agreement was a challenge to the majority of the participants. There was not even a single question which recorded a 100% correct entry. The question on collective nouns was found to be the hardest to the participants while comparatively, the singular indefinite pronoun question recorded the best results. The learners’ written compositions were also found to have been marred by concord/subject-verb agreement errors. In most instances, the learners had resorted to simple sentences avoiding the complex sentence construction as those would have required complicated application of concord/ subject-verb agreement usage. Based on the findings, the following recommendations were made: teaching of grammar should be intensified, and that teachers of English should be retrained even if it will be through the in-service programmes
The application of command responsibility in informal civilian relationships for international crimes - lessons from the ICTR
(2017-02) Tapiwa, Agripa Mhuru
See the attached abstract below
Aspects of Written English Language Errors Made by Level-One Students in a South African University
(2023-05-19) Demana, Vincent Ndishunwani; Klu, E. K.; Maluleke, M. J.; Kaburise, P.
Several researchers have raised concerns regarding the perpetual decline of the standard of English proficiency of South African university students in their written production. To be able to cope with university studies and everyday communication in English, a student must have the required proficiency in English language usage for tertiary education. Majority of them, however, still produce erroneous English utterances in their oral and written performances. As a result, this study was intended to investigate the errors in a corpus of essays written by level-one students at a South African university. To achieve the objectives of the study, fifty (50) essays written by level-one students who had registered for English Communication Skills (ECS1541) in the 2021 academic year were analysed. Cluster sampling was used to select the research participants. The study adopted document analysis technique in which data were collected by means of an essay task on a given topic. The study adopted a combination of the Linguistic category and the Surface structure taxonomies to allow a more comprehensive examination and description of errors from different analytical perspectives. The findings revealed that the students committed a total of 445 errors in their written productions. They were errors of omission (41.35%), addition (26.29%) and misformation (32.36%).These errors were further broken down to the following language aspects: copula ‘be’ and other auxiliaries 92 (21%), third person singular 81 (18%), pronoun 79 (18%), preposition 62 (14%), plural marker ‘-s/-es’ 59 (13%), article 32 (7.2%), coordinating conjunction ‘and’ 16 (3.6%), apostrophe ‘s and possessive ’s 14 (3.1%) and past tense markers 10 (2.2%). The possible causes of errors committed were ascribed to a variety of factors including cross- linguistic differences between English and the students’ L1, overgeneralisation, carelessness on the part of the student, insufficient mastery of the English language system and hypercorrection resulting from the students’ strict observance and over-caution regarding the English language structure. Based on the study findings, the study recommends strategies that may offer invaluable insights to English language teachers, module facilitators and curriculum designers operating in similar contexts.
Assessing the online sexual harassment experiences of female students at a South African institution of higher learning
(2019-05-18) Sehlule, Thambo; Tshifhumulo, R.; Mabale, D.
The use of social media has in the last decade become popular among students in Institutions of Higher Learning (IHL). Social relationships and communications among students mostly take place on social networks. However, because of their growing popularity abuse is also increasing on these social media platforms. Female students are particularly vulnerable to sexual harassment and other forms of abuse on these platforms. This study explored the experiences of online sexual harassment among female students at a selected Institution of Higher Learning (IHL) in South Africa. This was to gain insights into the extent to which female students in institutions of Higher Learning are affected by this phenomenon. In particular, the study sought to find out the different forms of online sexual harassment experienced by female students in IHL, the specific types of online platforms where this sexual harassment take place, and the coping strategies employed by these students to cope with online sexual harassment. To address these objectives, the study adopted a qualitative exploratory design which allowed understanding of these experiences through the eyes of the victims. Twenty female participants were used for the study, while semi structured interviews were employed to collect data from these individuals. Purposive and critical case sampling technique was used to identify female students who had experienced sexual harassment online in the IHL. Findings reveal that sexual harassment at the IHL has occurred mostly in the form soliciting and sending of inappropriate pictures and videos to the victims. The study also revealed that the two main platforms on which sexual harassment of female students took place were WhatsApp and Facebook. While the main strategies of coping with online sexual harassment were blocking of harassers and complete disregard of the harassers.
Assessment of information communication technology (ICT) competence of secondary school teachers in Luvuvhu Circuit
(2022-11-10) Amaigbo, Doris A.; Tshisikhawe, M. P.; Mafenya, N. P.
The main purpose of this study was to examine the ICT competency skills possessed by secondary school teachers in the Luvuvhu Circuit, Vhembe District, Limpopo Province. A quantitative research design was adopted to achieve the purpose of this study. Data was collected using a structured questionnaire guide and analysed using a statistical package of social science (SPSS), version 25.0. The population of this study were secondary school teachers in nine secondary schools, in Luvuvhu Circuit and the sample comprised of 90 participants. A simple random sampling method was applied to select a total of ninety (90) teachers in the nine secondary schools. This study used connectivism as its theoretical framework to explain how teachers and learners make connections between nodes of information to build knowledge and through this connected web, students can stay up to date. There are underlying factors that are obstructing the adoption rate of computer use for instructional purposes in schools. This study focused on those problems with a view to determining which critical success factors promote a higher adoption rate of computer usage in education. This study revealed that modern technology has the potential to strengthen teaching and learning, influence student-teacher and student-peer interaction, thereby bridging the isolation gap that normally exists between them.
Assessment of learner support agent on self-concept and academic learner performance at schools in Gert Sibande District of Mpumalanga, South Africa
(2022-11-10) Mazibuko, Ronald Patrick; Runhare, T.; Bere, A.; Ramabulana, L. P.
This study investigated the impact of the LSA programme on self-concept and academic performance of orphans and vulnerable learners. For quantitative strands, the sample comprised 80 Grade 9 orphans and vulnerable learners randomly selected from 8 schools. Two groups were formed, one experimental and one control. Each group consisted of 20 male learners and 20 female learners. For the experimental group, participants were drawn from schools which implemented the LSA programme. For the control group, participants were selected from non-LSA programme implementing schools. A multidimensional self-concept scale and academic school records were used to collect data for quantitative strand, measurement of learners’ self-concept and academic performance. Quantitative data on self-concept and academic performance of both groups were subjected to multiple linear regression modelling and independent sample t-tests for analysis. There were no significant differences between the experimental group and the control group on the self-concept dimensions, namely, self-regard, social confidence, academic self-concept, physical appearance and physical abilities. In Mathematics, the experimental group (mean 41.35, SD 23.83) outperformed the control group (mean 31.73, SD 14.03). For the qualitative strand, the sample consisted of 10 Grade 9 orphans and vulnerable learners who were purposively selected from four schools which implemented the LSA programme. In addition, one educator per school was selected due to their roles as co-ordinators. The main findings were that the LSA programme had a positive impact on self-confidence, attitudes towards schoolwork, and academic performance of participating OVC learners. However, the study revealed that the LSA programme implementation had inadequate resource provision, inconsistent participation by some OVC who were targeted beneficiaries, unexpected disruption of learning during Covid-19 pandemic, time constraint, and inconsistent guardian/parental support. To mitigate these challenges, the study recommends the training of duty bearers in the LSA programme, focus and regular involvement of guardians of learners who are orphans and vulnerable (OVC) and for LSAs to carry out awareness campaigns on the objectives, activities and expected benefits of the LSA programme in schools.
Assessment of social work services towards addressing barriers to learning in public schools in Sibasa Circuit, Vhembe District
(2023-10-05) Sikhitha, Tsireledzo; Mabasa, M. A.; Mamaleka, M. M.
This study assessed social work services in addressing barriers to learning in public schools in Sibasa Circuit in Vhembe District. The study was conducted in two public secondary schools, with a focus on Grade 11 and 12 learners of the said circuit. The study was qualitative in nature and used an exploratory research design. The purposive sampling method was used to draw a sample from learners, educators, and social workers. Semi-structured individual interviews and focus groups were used to collect data, which was analysed using thematic analysis. The findings revealed that learners encountered the following barriers to learning: teenage pregnancy, substance abuse, bullying, peer pressure and poverty. It was found that those barriers to learning disturb learners as they cannot focus on school activities. The findings also revealed that social workers should offer social work services such as casework and group work to provide psychosocial counselling, and educational support in addressing barriers to learning. The researcher recommends that the Department of Basic Education appoint school social workers permanently to prevent and address barriers to learning experienced by learners.
An Assessment of Teacher - Parent Collaboration in Promoting Quality Teaching and Learning in the Foundation Phase: A Case Study of Sibasa Circuit Primary Schools, Limpopo Province
(2020) Murunwa, Ndifelani Bridgette; Sikhwari, M. G.; Tshisikhawe, M. P.
The South African legislation through the constitution and the South African Schools Act (SASA) of 1996 allows for parents make meaningful contribution towards their children’s school activities. In many countries, including South Africa, one of the strongest trends in education reform has been to give parents and community members, an increased role in governing schools. Lack of parental involvement has been identified as an obstacle in many primary schools in South African, particularly among the lower socioeconomic groups. As an educator, the researcher noticed that many learners in the Foundation phase either fail to do their homework or partially complete them due to lack of assistance and supervision back home. The study assessed teacher-parent collaboration in the Foundation Phase in primary schools in Sibasa circuit of Limpopo Province. The researcher used a qualitative case study approach and employed semistructured interviews and observation checklist to obtain data. A total of 4 primary schools with Foundation phase were purposively selected for the study. A total of 4 principals, 13 educators and 21 parents were purposively selected and interviewed for the study. Content analysis was used as the main method of data analysis. It involved identifying, coding and categorizing the primary patterns of data. The data in this study consisted mainly of individual interview transcripts and observations checklist. The findings indicated that the involved schools are not well resourced in terms of infrastructure. Based on the interviews, the benefits of parental involvement at the Foundation phase are well appreciated by the principals, educators and parents and despite that appreciations, barriers to effective parental involvement were evident. These included parents low level education status, broken families, inadequate resources in schools, inadequately prepared teachers in terms of parental involvement and poor communication between schools and parents. It was thus recommended that all stakeholders put measures and programmes in place for successful and effective parental involvement particularly for learners in the Foundation phase for better educational outcomes.
Assessment of the Medium of Instruction on Pupils Academic Performance in Literacy: a Study of Selected Lower Primary Schools in Ghana
(2017-05-18) Ansre, Margaret Ama; Klu, E. K.; Kaburise, P. K.; Mulaudzi, L. M. P.
This research assesses how the choice of a particular medium of instruction supports Primary Class Three (P.3) pupils’ academic performance in literacy. The need for this research has been occasioned by the inconsistencies that exist in Ghana’s language-in-education policy. The current language-in-education policy allows for only the dominant language of the community, in which a school is situated, to be used as medium of instruction, even when pupils speak different languages in one P.3 classroom. The research adopts a mixed methodology approach and uses purposive sampling technique to select a total sample of 317 participants. This number comprises pupils, teachers, parents and other stakeholders in education from 8 schools within 3 municipalities in the Greater Accra region of Ghana. Five (5) of the schools use English medium of instruction and three (3) schools use Ghanaian language or mother-tongue. Data collection tools for the research are interviews, participant’s observations, video recordings and diagnostic tests. The main finding, based on the test results of the research, establishes that when mother-tongue and English are compared as mediums of instruction from Kindergarten One (KG1) up to P. 3, there is no significant difference pupils’ academic results in literacy. In view of this, the research advocates for further debate on other factors that support pupils academic performance in literacy, in addition to mother-tongue and English medium of instruction in lower primary schools.
Attitudes of high schools students towards the teaching profession
(2010-05) Ravhuhali, Fhatuwani; Mutshaeni, H. N.; Denhere, C.
See the attached abstract below

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