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RESEARCH STATEMENT AND PHILOSOPHY

The Focus Area wants to contribute, through relevant high quality research, to the improvement of the general well-being of teaching-learning organizations – such as public schools in South Africa – in order to enhance the effectiveness and productivity of these organizations, especially in terms of teaching-learning experiences and results in certain key learning areas.

RESEARCH POLICY

The research policy of the Faculty of Education Sciences is in alligned with the mission of the North-West University to develop and sustain high quality, relevant and focussed research to supply innovative solutions to the educational challenges faced by the scholarly community, the country, the continent and the world. The Faculty realises this mission through her research focus on respectively teaching-learning organisations and educational technology for effective teaching, learning and facilitation.

RESEARCH IN THE FACULTY

Research in the Faculty are grouped under two research entities, viz a niche area and a research focus area.

The 2004 White Paper on e-Learning encourages the implementation and pedagogical use of Information Information Technology for teaching and learning in South Africa. Research within the niche area Educational Technology for Effective Teaching, Learning and Facilitation (under directive of prof Seugnet Blignaut, seugnet.blignaut@nwu.ac.za) supports social development within the growing Information Age and comprises three sub-programmes, viz.

•  Technology Enhanced Learning of Everyday Skills in Developing Contexts (Co-ordinator:  dr Illasha Kok, illasha.kok@nwu.ac.za)
• Information and Communication Technologies in Education (Co-ordinator:  dr. Christo van der Westhuizen, christo.vanderwesthuizen@nwu.ac.za)
• Dynamics of Digital Learning Environments (Co-ordinator:  ms Louise Postma, louise.postma@nwu.ac.za)

The research focus area Teaching-Learning Organisations intends to meaningfully and purposefully contribute through quality and relevant research towards the improvement of the quality of learning and teaching in educational institutions. To attain this goal ‘n number or research priorities were identified and structured into two programmes, each with a number of subprogrammes. These programmes are:

Programme 1   Creation of Sustainable Support and Working Environments in Diverse Educational Contexts  (Chairperson:  prof Sechaba Mahlomaholo, sechaba.mahlomaholo@nwu.ac.za)

•  Support Strategies for Learner and Teacher Support (Co-ordinator:  prof. Petrusa du Toit, petrusa.dutoit@nwu.ac.za)
• Effective Working Environments in Diverse Education Organisations (Co-ordinator: prof Philip van der Westhuizen, philip.vanderwesthuizen@nwu.ac.za)
• Policy implementation and evaluation as determinants for geborgenheit in education (Co-ordinator:  dr Marius Smit, marius.smit@nwu.ac.za)
• Quality Literacy within Diverse Teaching & Learning Educational Environments (Co-ordinator:  prof Carisma Nel, carisma.nel@nwu.ac.za)
• Health Promotion through Education Innovation, Development and Intervention (Co-ordinator:  dr Charles Viljoen, charles.viljoen@nwu.ac.za)
• Sustainable Empowering Learning Environments (Co-ordinator:  prof Sechaba Mahlomaholo, sechaba.mahlomaholo@nwu.ac.za)

Programme 2   Effective Teaching and Learning Strategies and Curriculum Development in Diverse Education Contexts  (Chairperson:  prof Cornelia Roux, cornelia.roux@nwu.ac.za)

• Development of Critical teaching and learning Skills (Co-ordinator:  prof Lukas Meyer, lukas.meyer@nwu.ac.za)
• Innovative and sustainable teaching and learning praxis in Mathematics, Technology, Natural and Computer Science Education (MTNCSE) (Co-ordinator:  prof Elsa Mentz, mailto:elsae.mentz@nwu.ac.za)
• Human Rights Education in Diverse Social Contexts (Co-ordinator:  prof Cornelia Roux, cornelia.roux@nwu.ac.za)