This study aimed to identify whether gender differences exist related to the motives, expectations and preparedness of students entering accounting studies at a South African university. A questionnaire was used to gather the data from a sample of first-year students and t-tests were employed to identify differences in findings between gender…

University success is impacted largely by the successful transition of students in their first year. This study's objective is to identify the motives, expectations and preparedness of first-year accounting students enrolled for an accounting degree at the University Of the Western Cape (UWC) for higher education. Students' motives, expectations…

Foundation programmes provide an alternate access route for prospective students whose prior academic results exclude direct entry to undergraduate studies. Bridging courses within foundation programmes address gaps in prior knowledge while developing content knowledge and requisite skills to equip students for the rigour of undergraduate degree…

The use of e-gadgets for instructional practices, learning processes, and bridging transactional distance between higher-educational institutions and students remain complex and contested phenomena in educational research. However, studies that were grounded on the mixture of the Replace-Amplify-Transform (RAT) model and Acceptance and Use of…

A growing concern is the low number of learners who choose to participate in music during their high school years. Extending previous research by McPherson and O'Neill, this study explored South African high school learners' motivation and value perceptions to continue with music as an elective in grade 10. A further objective was to understand…

South African initial teacher education institutes are currently experiencing an annual increase in admissions of first-year students. In addition, the increasing attrition rate of newly qualified teachers is of concern globally. This begs the question of why students are opting for teaching as a profession. This study focuses on reasons why…

Student life is marked by substantial growth in areas such as self-regulation abilities. In this article, the experiences of first-year Psychology students are explored through the lenses of the self-determination theory. Both content and thematic analyses were done with 79 students' reflections on the aspects they regarded as…

Based on a survey of 4,393 journalism students in Australia, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, and the United States, this study provides much-needed comparative evidence about students' motivations for becoming journalists, their future job plans, and expectations. Findings show not only an almost universal decline in…

Learners' self-regulation, which includes motivational variables, is influenced by personal variables within learners themselves, as well as by contextual factors. A great deal of research has focused on personal variables in learners that influence their self-regulated behaviours; yet contextual influences that operate outside of formal schooling…

We report on research carried out to improve teaching and student engagement in the introductory astronomy course at the University of Cape Town. This course is taken by a diverse range of students, including many from educationally disadvantaged backgrounds. We describe the development of an instrument, the Introductory Astronomy Questionnaire…

Under-performance in mathematics is a challenge in South African schools. The purpose of this study is to advance views expressed by teachers and learners on factors that facilitate learners' performance in mathematics. The participants in this research were educators and learners from historically disadvantaged schools from similar socio-economic…