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The extended family forms the basis for orphan care and education in sub-Saharan Africa. Initial absence followed by emergence of differentials in primary school enrolment between orphans and non-orphans have been attributed to the strength and subsequent HIV/AIDS-induced breakdown of extended family orphan care arrangements. Yet, few attempts have been made to describe how these arrangements are affected by HIV/AIDS or how they relate to observed patterns of childhood outcomes by sex and...

This qualitative interpretivist study analyses the perceptions of a stratified and purposive sample of university-based adult educators with a view to understanding how they perceive the effectiveness of adult education as a contributor to national development in southern Africa at the beginning of the 21st century. These perceptions of university-based adult educators are investigated against the background of the current global trend to project adult education as a component of the...

The results discussed in this report are part of a larger study conducted among the students of the University of Botswana regarding their knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors related to HIV/AIDS. The study triangulated survey methods and focus group discussions. Five main areas were investigated: knowledge and personal experiences of HIV/AIDS, sexual behavior and practices, perceptions about risky sexual behavior on campus, and factors that influence the spread of HIV. This article reports...

Children who are not enrolled in school are deprived of schistosomiasis treatments delivered through school health programmes. We explored perceptions of barriers to school enrolment and health and schistosomiasis knowledge, attitude and practices among 58 enrolled and 41 non-enrolled children and 80 adults in a village in El-Fayoum governate, Egypt. Economic factors, cultural factors and the school system were perceived as barriers. Maternal education had a significant role in enrolment....

This research quantified the barriers to condom use of a sample of university students in Nigeria. It further analyzed association between condom use at last intercourse and the barriers, in addition to HIV risk sexual practices. A total of 96 women and 128 men were randomly selected, and they completed a survey. Results indicated both men and women reported that condoms hindered their sexual satisfaction, caused health problems for them and reduced their sexual interest. The findings also...

This paper addresses the problem of post-Apartheid South African schools as ineffective learning environments, and the question whether there are strategies for enhancing learning that are more effective and that might be more easily and successfully implemented than an outcomes-based education. Because of historical and situational constraints, an outcomes-based education has limited potential for enhancing learning there. We argue that there are other factors, notably proximal variables...

Asthma is the most prevalent chronic illness, affecting more than 7 million children younger than 17 years. Asthma has become a leading public health concern because of the dramatic rise in the incidence of this disease during the past 15 years, particularly in minority populations. This study tested a two-part intervention on selected psychosocial and health outcomes of 8- to 13-year-old inner city minority students with asthma.The intervention consisted of participation in an asthma...

We investigate the time allocation decisions by South African learners using the South African Time Use Survey. We show that punctuality appears to be a problem with around 20% of all learners seeming to arrive late. Punctuality and absenteeism seem to be problems disproportionately among poor learners. Overall time devoted to schooling and homework does not show a consistent income gradient. Poor learners, however, spend considerable time each day on chores. The distribution of this...

The aim of this article is to describe and critically reflect on a research and development program called Productive Learning Cultures, which has the following aims. Firstly to strengthen research and supervisory capacity at doctoral level and secondly to develop research based knowledge in the areas of Indigenous Knowledge Systems and Information Communication Technologies and learning. The program involves an inter-country education collaboration between one developed country (Norway) and...

This article describes a project that developed collaborative relationships between science and mathematics education researchers in South Africa and the USA. Significant features of the collaboration included a Liaison Committee with members drawn from both countries, exchange visits for pre- and post-doctoral researchers between the two countries, and the establishment of Research Schools in South Africa. An historical overview of the project focuses on both its functioning and its...

In launching Education White Paper Six on Special Needs Education: Building an Inclusive Education and Training System, the Minister of Education, Professor Kader Asmal, in July 2001 committed the South African nation to an inclusive education and training system. The period from 1994, with the advent of democracy in South Africa, witnessed an exciting and challenging process of policy development. One of the key aims of the new policy was to address the inequalities of the apartheid...

This article describes several features of an in-service teacher training (INSET) project for science and mathematics teachers in basic education (grades 4 - 9) in Ghana. This project is an example of Japan’s initial experience with technical development cooperation in basic education. Some of the major features of the project are as follows. 1) As a new comer in technical cooperation in basic education Japan was very careful about where to intervene and finally chose science and mathematics...

The In-service training and assistance for Namibian teachers (INSTANT) project was established after the independence of Namibia with the aim to guide the educational reforms in science and mathematics in secondary education. The paper provides an overview of the project’s activities and reflects on the sustainability of project activities. It starts with a reflection on the political and educational context in Namibia after independence and the consequences for the design of the project. It...

Increased demand by the people and the limited resources available to the government have made it difficult for the government alone to finance education provision in the country. It has therefore become increasingly necessary for the private sector to get involved in the provision of educational facilities in the country. This study sought to capture the contribution that the private sector is making to supplement the efforts of the government to improve the basic education system in the...

In basanites of the Chyulu Hills volcanic field, Kenya, hibonite is found in two xenoliths of mafic meta-igneous granulites dominated by clinopyroxene and plagioclase. It occurs as small grains in the inner parts of complex corona textures where it forms intergrowths with spinel and sapphirine and shows reaction relationships with later mullite and sillimanite. Hibonite and whole-rock samples were analyzed for major and trace elements by electron microprobe, XRF and LA-ICPMS. Chemically, the...