Assessment Criteria
Criteria 2: The intellectual endeavours contributed by the engagement
activity
The knowledge applied stemmed from previous experience and research gained from earlier projects and from
literature on the various aspects of the intervention. The project approach is both open-ended (the action research
components) and underpinned by research and experience (language, science, mathematics, financial management,
IT in schools, etc.). The technological expertise required to connect schools to the internet and train the participating
teachers was provided by academics in the Faculty of Education and members of the IT services department at the
NMMU. The project also allowed the developers of SLPs and non-formal programmes to test the efficacy of their
programmes and research theoretical aspects of their programmes (particularly in terms of scientific literacy,
mathematical reasoning and the challenges of digital immigrants into the world of IT).
As noted earlier, contributions were made to the body of knowledge in terms of PhD studies on scientific literacy (M
Villanueva), reasoning in mathematics (L Webb), integration of technology in schools (A du Plessis), language and
mathematics (P Sepeng), and education for sustainable development (S Leonard). Master degree studies include
promoting scientific literacy in a museum context, scientific literacy and general literacy (N Mayaba), and using action
research as a tool to address issues negatively impacting on schools (B Govender). The Financial Management SLP
stemmed from an earlier PhD study of an academic in the Faculty of Education at the NMMU (I Badenhorst). The
papers that were published in accredited journals focused on scientific literacy (3) and IT in schools (4), while six
published conference proceedings were on promoting mathematical and scientific literacy, and one on IT in schools.
The project is creative and innovative in that it draws together management and literacy development (including
science, mathematics, financial and ICT) in schools; it enables the development of teachers, principals and
departmental officials; the strategies can be developed to higher and lower levels in the school system (e.g. language
experience strategy up, scientific land mathematical literacy up and down, etc.); has a mentoring component; the
strategies are replicable and can be taken over by departments of education for their own CPD programmes; it has a
university accredited certificate component (the SLPs); has an effect on teacher in- and pre-service development
(aspects of the scientific literacy strategy that have evolved are used in the BEd curriculum in the School of Initial
Teacher Development at the NMMU); and has clearly testable components via teacher and learner achievement
(literacy, numeracy, science and mathematics) and school efficiency measures (action research project presentations,
financial management, effects of strategic planning).
The project aims at being sustainable by the number of teachers who will continue with the new strategies, by
proposing sustaining links with the Centre for the Community School, by the greater efficacy and efficiency of school
leadership (both informal leaders and those in office), by adoption by Departments of Education for their own CPD
programmes, by envisaged adoption of other service providers in the country (e.g. the READ organization has
implemented the NMMU scientific Literacy strategy in Rally to Read schools in seven provinces), and by the influence
the development strategies have on the NMMU and other universities pre- and in-service programmes (the scientific
literacy book produced is used extensively by Embury Teacher Training College in Durban and, to a lesser extent, by
the Schools Unit at the University of Cape Town).