Given the widely accepted need for scientifically literate individuals and the paucity of relevant data on scientific literacy and formal education in South Africa, it is desirable to assess and to provide baseline data on the ability of the secondary education system to generate scientifically literate matriculants. Reported here are the results…

A study investigated the effect of scholastic level, teacher orientation on a control/autonomy continuum, and pupil gender on 459 elementary school students' intrinsic motivation to engage in school work. Results indicated that teacher orientation toward autonomy enhanced the intrinsic motivation of girls on two of three dimensions, and that of…

Study examines age and gender variations in the multiple areas of self-concept and relations between these dimensions of self-concept and scholastic measures among high school students in South Africa. Results revealed a few statistically significant effects of age and gender on global and domain-specific self-concepts. The size and pattern of…

Literacy data were collected on a 5 percent sample of the Republic of South Africa's 1980 population census. Approximately 5 million persons aged 20 or older were found to be illiterate. The racial breakdown of the literacy rate among the different population groups was as follows: Asians, 79.84 percent; whites, 97.18 percent; racially mixed…

Examined attitudes toward death and dying among 163 Xhosa-speaking children and adults in South Africa. Found age, gender, belief in life after death, educational level, and exposure to death and dying were critical factors in formation of attitudes. Findings were similar to those from previous studies in African and western societies. (Author/NB)

Assessed Indian children's perception of control in the cognitive, social, and physical domains of school functioning by using the multidimensional measure of children's perception of control. Data analyses indicated a significant developmental difference in children's perception of the source of control, and this varied with their success or…

Examined secondary school students' (n=364) attitudes toward time use. Three constructs of time-use attitudes were identified: passive fatalistic, egoistic, and conscientious. Several significant developmental patterns of time-use attitudes were found for males and females in grades 8, 10, and 12. (Author/NB)

This study sought to understand how South African Sotho and Zulu children learn and communicate at home. Data were collected from 80 homes of 5-year-olds through observation and supplemented by audiotaped sessions. The analysis sought to identify the social rules and constraints governing the amount, style, and content of the information…