This paper reports on the findings of a baseline study that fed on to a broader investigation exploring ICT integration in the teaching of functions. The baseline study was premised on the observation that the notion of function, despite being a fundamental and central idea in the mathematics school curriculum, presents pedagogical challenges to…

With this study we investigated strategies to support rural-based schools in teaching and learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research was conducted in 6 secondary schools in the Maune circuit, Capricorn North district of the Limpopo province, South Africa. A qualitative research approach using a case study research design was followed in…

The use of digital technologies is a fundamental part of being a university student. Hence, there is a growing interest in equipping students with the skills they need to thrive in a world that is full of technology and constantly changing. Moreover, the need to provide university students with the skills they need to succeed in a rapidly…

This study explored the relationship between principals' servant leadership practices and teacher motivation in selected rural schools in South Africa. It adopted a qualitative research design, collecting data through semi-structured interviews with six principals and six teachers from rural schools in South Africa. The data were analyzed using…

The nature of the relationship between parents, teachers, and the school are continuously important because of teachers' changing social expectations. While formal education is traditionally viewed as the job of teachers, they cannot be expected to address all educational issues that are influenced by multifaceted social issues. We explore…

Students based in higher education institutions in rural settings are faced with various challenges. This literature study offers insights into the implication of "rurality" in terms of Higher Education in a rural context, considering student well-being and social work training challenges. It stresses that the University of Zululand has…

Problem-solving and enquiry-based learning are integral in the Mathematics and Science curriculum in South Africa through online-based assessment. Online assessment has rapidly gained recognition because of technology. In this paper, the authors explored the views of online baseline assessment among Senior Phase First-year Mathematics Student…

Over several years, first-year pre-service education students regularly experienced difficulty with engineering graphics activities. Research has already established that these activities require the use of well-developed spatial visualisation which is, for the most part, determined by a persons' spatial experience. The importance of this study…

In this paper, we suggest strength-based approaches for the creation of sustainable rural learning ecologies. We have framed the creation of rural learning ecologies with appreciative inquiry (AI) as a framework and argue that it begins from understanding rurality from positive psychology. The premise within AI has been seen to be the shift from…

Classroom practitioners are expected to facilitate effective learning under the "Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement" (CAPS) in South Africa. During this facilitation process, educators are required to become more resourceful in terms of their learning and teaching strategies. This article is based on a case study -- within the…

In this qualitative study, we examine the experiences of South African multilingual learners and one local teacher after participating in a community-based, digital storytelling project on career dreams. A secondary purpose was to uncover the skills, knowledge, and abilities learners used as they created digital stories that reflected their future…

In South Africa, rural education and development are issues of social justice, especially in places that were previously established as homelands. This article presents some of the tensions that are inherent in the conceptions of rurality, rural education and the possibility of sustainable rural education and development. We propose the notion of…

This article attends to rural school leadership in two South African schools through the lens of the concepts of relational leadership and emotional labour. The inquiry draws on five years of guided conversations and observations that speak to leadership experiences of hope and anticipation as well as despair and disillusionment. I worked with one…

Being hearing impaired does not only affect a child's academic performance, but can also influence a child's overall development and ability to succeed academically. Children with hearing impairment often experience delays in other areas of their development and an understanding of the inter-relatedness of these delays are important in order to…

After more than three decades of development, transformative learning theory is currently a major theory of adult learning. It has also attracted substantial critique, leading to further development, application and differentiation. Recent contributions to this vast scholarship show a quest for a more unified theory. This article examines…