Joseph Seabi

Experiences of university students regarding transformation in South Africa

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate students’ perceptions of the challenges that they face and the factors that facilitate and impede teaching and learning within the context of transformation at the University of the Witwatersrand. The paper also explores students’ perceptions of transformation directly and their ideas related to facilitating this process. The authors reflect briefly on colonialism and apartheid in South Africa and the state of higher education after 18 years of democracy. Design/methodology/approach – A qualitative, explorative, descriptive survey research design was employed to gain a deeper understanding of how students experience living, learning and teaching in higher education. A sample of 194 students with a mean age of 22.40 participated in the study. Findings – The results revealed positive facilitative factors such as quality of teaching, social support, material resources and practical/clinical training; as well as negative hindering factors that included hig...

Does Aircraft Noise Impair Learners' Reading Comprehension, Attention and Working Memory? A Pilot Study

The study sought to determine whether the cognitive performance of learners is affected by exposure to aircraft noise. The cognitive performance (reading comprehension, attention and memory) of 174 learners aged 9–13 years (males = 69, females = 68; Unidentified = 37), attending a public school in a high aircraft noise areas was compared with that of learners attending a matched public school with typical noise for a school setting. Cognitive performance was assessed by means of a reading comprehension test, as well as tests of attention, intelligence, working memory, and episodic memory. Significant between group differences were observed in reading comprehension and sustained visual attention.

Relating Identity Processing Styles to Commitment and Self-esteem among College Students

The role that identity processing styles may play in commitment and self-esteem were investigated. Measures of identity processing styles, commitment and self-esteem were administered to 112 psychology students (mean age = 18.77 years, SD = 1.3 years, males = 33, females = 79). Results revealed a statistically significant difference between Informational and Diffuse-avoidant identity processing styles on commitment. There was also a significant difference between Normative and Diffuse-avoidant processing styles on commitment. Students with Informational and Normative identity styles may be better adjusted to higher education learning than those with a different profile.

Efficacy of a Post-modern Group Career Assessment Intervention of Disadvantaged High School Learners

The study used a post-modern group assessment procedure to explore career perceptions of 11 Grade 11 learners (6= males; 5= females; mean age = 17 years) from disadvantaged communities. A qualitative process of thematic content analysis was used to analyse the data. The results suggest that narrative career assessment in a group setting may provide a viable alternative to career counselling and assessment with disadvantaged learners.

An Epidemiological Prospective Study of Children’s Health and Annoyance Reactions to Aircraft Noise Exposure in South Africa

The purpose of this study was to investigate health and annoyance reactions to change in chronic exposure to aircraft noise on a sample of South African children. It was the intention of this study to examine if effects of noise on health and annoyance can be demonstrated. If so, whether such effects persist over time, or whether such effects are reversible after the cessation of exposure to noise. A cohort of 732 children with a mean age of 11.1 (range = 8–14) participated at baseline measurements in Wave 1 (2009), and 649 (mean age = 12.3; range = 9–15) and 174 (mean age = 13.3; range = 10–16) children were reassessed in Wave 2 (2010) and Wave 3 (2011) after the relocation of the airport, respectively. The findings revealed that the children who were exposed to chronic aircraft noise continued to experience significantly higher annoyance than their counterparts in all the waves at school, and only in Wave 1 and Wave 2 at home. Aircraft noise exposure did not have adverse effects on the children’s self-reported health outcomes. Taken together, these findings suggest that chronic exposure to aircraft noise may have a lasting impact on children’s annoyance, but not on their subjective health rating. This is one of the first longitudinal studies of this nature in the African continent to make use of an opportunity resulting from the relocation of airport.

Effects of Identity Processing Styles on Academic Achievement of First Year University Students.

Purpose – Academic achievement of first year university students in the international arena, as well as in South Africa, has been a point of concern for all stakeholders because of high failure and dropout rates. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of identity processing styles on academic achievement in first year university students. This study also explored the composition of students according to their identity processing styles, to determine the predominant identity style.Design/methodology/approach – A non‐experimental ex post facto research design was employed. A non‐probability purposive sampling was used to select 430 first‐year university students with an average age of 18.94.Findings – The findings generally revealed a non‐significant relationship between identity processing styles (normative, diffuse‐avoidant, informational) and academic achievement. However, the informational‐oriented students performed significantly better than diffuse‐avoidant group on academic achieveme...

Career Identity Related Decision Making among IsiXhosa-Speaking Adolescents

This study investigated career identity development among IsiXhosa speaking adolescents in South Africa. A sample of 40 Grade 12 learners, comprising 20 females and 20 males participated in the study (Age range 17 to—24 years). The Identity Status Interview of Grotevant and Cooper (1981), which is based on Marcias Identity Status (1964) was used to investigate identity development. Marked gender differences were found, with about 75 percent of the males classified into the achievement status, as opposed to only 35 percent of the females. In addition, 55 percent of the females were more foreclosed in their career decision making as compared to only 15 percent of the males. Relatively more females than males tended to make career decisions without thoroughly exploring career possibilities. This tendency may be related to traditional stereotyping and perceptions regarding family obligations and community expectations, which may limit career options for women.

Siblings’ Perceptions of Their ADHD-Diagnosed Sibling’s Impact on the Family System

This qualitative study explored siblings’ perceptions of the impact a sibling diagnosed with ADHD has within the family system. Specific focus was placed on the different ways these different sibling cohorts were parented. Participants constituted eight adult females with a mean age of 20 years from different cultural and socio-economic backgrounds in the province of Gauteng, South Africa. Data was collected using semi-structured interviews and was analysed thematically. The four themes that emerged from the interviews include differential parental treatment, rejection, discrepancy with discipline, and the parentified child. Specifically, the results of this study revealed feelings of differential parental treatment and discipline that took place in the home and rejection experienced by the non-ADHD sibling. There was also a common theme of a parentified child, who had to carry a burden of caring for their sibling with ADHD. The non-diagnosed siblings perceive themselves to be particularly negatively impacted. The results are discussed in light of the previous empirical studies, and recommendations are made.

A prospective follow-up study of the effects of chronic aircraft noise exposure on learners' reading comprehension in South Africa.

The purpose of this epidemiological study was to investigate the long-term effects of exposure to aircraft noise on reading comprehension on a sample of South African children. Given the impairment of reading comprehension found within the noised-exposed group before the relocation of the airport, it was the intention of this study to determine whether the effects of aircraft noise on reading comprehension remained after the relocation of the airport or whether they disappeared. A cohort of 732 learners with a mean age of 11.1 years participated at baseline measurements in 2009 and 650 (mean age=12.3) and 178 (mean age=13.1) learners were reassessed after the relocation of the airport in 2010 and 2011, respectively. The results revealed no significant effect of the groups on reading comprehension across the testing periods, but significant effects of home language were demonstrated on reading comprehension. These findings suggest that exposure to chronic aircraft noise may have a lasting impact on children’s reading comprehension functioning.

Educators' Perceptions of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: An Exploratory Study

The study investigated the perceptions of educators about Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, specifically their views on its incidence, causes and appropriate interventions in school settings. Five purposively selected educators from a private school participated in the study. Ethnographic interview was used to collect and analyze the data. The results revealed that the educators considered ADHD mainly a physiological disorder with primarily genetic and environmental causes. Regardless the educators preferred medication as the intervention method despite being aware of additional intervention methods.