Browsing by Subject "Global Studies"

Now showing 1 - 7 of 7
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    An analysis of study-abroad students: how the 'self' articulates experiences and encounters in different cultural settings
    (2016) Chingore, Tatenda Millicent Nichole; Sitas, Ari
    Twenty-first century globalisation has brought with it, distinction among students through the Internationalisation of Higher Education (IHE). The effects of globalization and the IHE has been categorised as "preparing students for the globalizing world, suggesting new pedagogies and institutional settings that nurture 'global consciousness'" (Mansilla & Gardner, 2007: 56.) With the increase in mobility and hyper-connectivity, an education has become more than what is taught within the confines of a classroom or university. Studying abroad has become a significant component within the academic arena that allows students the privilege and opportunity to develop intercultural competence through first-hand experience This study seeks to explore the articulation of experiences and encounters from the perspective of the study abroad student exposed to cultural settings different from their own. This dissertation will place particular emphasis on the articulation of the responses and approaches taken by individuals of their respective encounters and experiences, using the Circuit of Culture as a link drawing together the themes (Re)Construction of Self Identity; 'Fitting In' and Adaptation; Developing Intercultural Competence and Society as we now know it, to give a holistic, interpretive understanding into the meanings and outcomes produced by the relationship between the constructions and perceived ideologies of both the study abroad student and the hosts collective. The study is amalgamation of responses from personal narrations given by eight participants, as well as a discussion with four individuals in a focus group from different countries. They reveal the importance of the self, from both the personal and social viewpoint to be able to comprehend the actions and reactions taken to construct, adapt, assimilate and learn from the experience. Discoveries uncover difference as a component that exists between the self and the other in a number of ways through how they classify and identify each other. As a result, slight but significant changes in perceptions can be noted.
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    Change & continuity in the value-priorities of school-leavers in Rundu (Namibia): a comparative study of hybridization and its development implications
    (2017) Field, Michael; De Wet, Jacques
    In Southern Africa, burgeoning intercultural contact results in the emergence of (bicultural) sociocultural contexts which emphasize African traditional and Western industrial values to different degrees. In transitioning between these contexts, Southern Africans may experience feelings of dissonance which potentially threaten identity. In managing these transitions, individuals arguably employ various hybridization strategies in order to navigate socio-cultural contexts whilst maintaining a coherent sense of self. Though part of a broader Southern African study initiated by Cumpsty in 1998, this dissertation represents a stand-alone inquiry into how the value-priorities of school-leaving respondents in Rundu, northern Namibia, have changed or stayed the same between 1998 and 2017. What is more, it seeks to ascertain if/how these respondents have hybridized their value-systems confronted with increasingly bicultural experiences. Cumpsty's quantitative instrument for measuring values was administered to the entire school-leaving cohort in two schools in Rundu in 1998 and in 2017. This data was comparatively analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics in order to measure the extent to which change/continuity had occurred over the nearly 20 year period. Profiles were generated from the two sets of quantitative data, which revealed how respondents hybridized African traditional and Western industrial values, and the results were analyzed comparatively. This dissertation's central finding has been an unexpected pattern of general continuity in the value-priorities of respondents between 1998 and 2017, which is also demonstrated in the patterns found in the dominant profiles. These results indicate the use of distinct strategies which allow respondents to integrate African traditional and Western industrial values into hybrid value-systems - which in turn allow them to navigate bicultural experiences whilst maintaining a coherent sense of identity - and therefore repudiates the notion of globalisation resulting in increasing socio-cultural uniformity. This finding indicates that if the definition of development is broadened to encompass the satisfaction of fundamental human needs, then an account of identity is crucial, which in turn renders an account of values indispensable to the development debate in Southern Africa. Lastly, this dissertation uses Cumpsty's instrument, which is fundamentally flawed, and ends with a critique of the instrument.
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    Contesting 'xenophobia' through civic education: explorations with ARESTA in Khayelitsha
    (2016) Kraak, Shaun; Sitas, Ari; Pande, Amrita
    This thesis suggests that out of the work of ARESTA, a new notion of citizenship and belonging was developed, as a result of their workshops. This notion is furthermore articulated in various communities. In this notion, citizenship is no longer linked to indigeneity, but rather escaping war and hardship, the need to work, and place of work. It is further justified by the concept of Pan-Africanism and a common humanity. Contradictions in the findings of the thesis point to the limitations of this workshop and the importance of broader societal issues. This thesis concludes that ARESTA's intervention makes a significant contribution in opposing xenophobia, in the light of what is possible in South Africa today. However, its work is ameliorative rather than radical structural change, what may be needed is far more elusive at present.
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    Corporate social responsibility: the way forward for development
    (2014) Abrahams, Merlinda-Joy; Lincoln, David
    With Corporate Social Responsibility coming to prominence over the last few decades, business has become a central player in the sphere of development. The business case for CSR, by far the most dominant argument for CSR, suggests that CSR is the answer to social ills, injustice and poverty, but seeks ways to get a return on their investment and gain a competitive advantage through CSR/CSI activities. Critics have argued that business cannot be counted on to voluntarily contribute to social good - citing the nature of business as the greatest deterrent to positive behaviour. A third stream recognises the potential of CSR but identifies constraints in the present manifestations of CSR and CSI in South Africa, and calls for a more critical engagement of business in society. A fourth approach recognises that due the nature of CSR and the politics that surrounds its practice, CSR can be seen as a type of imperialism, holding the notions of dominance and superiority over their beneficiaries in the South, and not taking into consideration their experiences or feedback. Using the critical case of a large South African petroleum company, this thesis seeks to answer the central research question, “What approach to C SR does Company X take? What underpins this approach? ” This thesis furthermore subscribes to the need for more critical, Southern perspectives that needs to be acknowledged in the CSR rhetoric and argues that political and economic rather than social considerations currently dominate the sphere of CSR. This is further emphasised through the political environment in which CSR takes place. Finally, this paper, argues that the language of CSR in South Africa needs to be rethought. In South Africa, CSR more often than not is interpreted to mean companies’ CSI activities. Using authors such as Fig (2005) and Fig et al, 2007, this thesis argues that wrapped up in the notion of CSI are inherent political considerations that thwart the developmental potential of CSI.
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    Examining Institutional Practices and their effects on Student Success
    (2017) Adebulehin, Aderinsola Michelle; Luckett, Kathy; Morreira, Shannon
    Given South Africa’s racialized history of access to education, redress efforts targeted at achieving equity in access to universities for students from across racial backgrounds have been well underway for over two decades now. More recently, within the higher education sector, ensuring that access translates into success has become a priority. Drawing on this concern, this research study looks into what constitutes success for previously excluded students at a historically white university. In addition, this research study examines the experiences of these students to uncover factors which contribute to either enabling or constraining their abilities to achieve this much sought after success. The analysis presented in this study arrived at the conclusion that institutional practices continue to entrench various forms of systematic exclusion which in turn significantly affect black students’ abilities to achieve success at a historically white university.
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    Shining a Light: A Single Case Study of Shine Literacy and the Implementation of their Literacy Interventions During the COVID-19 Pandemic
    (2023) Houliston, Kate; Tame, Bianca
    This qualitative empirical study is a single case study which considers how the implementation of literacy programmes run by Shine Literacy were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020-2021. The pandemic necessitated a rapid re-imagining of Shine Literacy's programmes and presented the opportunity for Shine to critically reflect on their interventions. The findings show that the disruption challenged Shine to implement literacy learning in more inclusive and equitable ways, particularly in their recognition of South Africa's stark digital divide. This research incorporated documentary analysis with semi-structured interviews to better comprehend the nuances of the role played by NGOs during the pandemic. The theoretical framework incorporates a socio-cultural approach to literacy and Epstein's (2009) framework which speaks to the overlapping nature of the three spheres of influence in children's education: schools, families, and communities. This study highlights the integral role played by caregivers in literacy learning and accounts for the heterogenous learning experiences of learners during school closures. The implementation of Shine's altered literacy interventions positioned the home as a pedagogical site and caregivers as co-educators. This shift in approach to literacy is both crucial and significant in light of school closures during the pandemic, where a departure from exclusively valuing school-based education was necessary. Based on the findings of how Shine continued to facilitate Foundation Phase literacy learning in households during the pandemic, this study presents a framework of reflection, adaptation, and collaboration (RAC). When framed through the lens of the RAC framework, Shine's model of literacy during the pandemic, which not only increased in scope but generated a model of intervention that was better aligned with the needs of their beneficiaries, shows immense transformative potential as an organisation. This study presents the optimistic perspective that Shine Literacy's transformative potential could serve as an encouraging example to other stakeholders in education. Thinking of literacy in more inclusive and equitable ways has the potential to extend beyond Shine and the pandemic, perhaps even to the low literacy levels and long-standing educational inequalities in South Africa.
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    The spatial mismatch hypothesis and the use of social networks for job search in Site C, Khayelitsha, Cape Town
    (2012) Gqada, Ichumile; Crankshaw, Owen
    This is a study on the spatial mismatch hypothesis, unemployment and the use of social networks for job search in Site C, Khayelitsha. The spatial mismatch hypothesis proposes that where employment centres are located a significant distance from low-income residential areas, the result is unemployment, low wages and limited access to information for people residing in these peripheral residential areas.