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Realistic Mathematics Education as a lens to explore teachers’ use of students’ out-of-school experiences in the teaching of transformation geometry in Zimbabwe’s rural secondary schoolsThe study explores Mathematics educators’ use of students’ out-of-school experiences in the teaching of Transformation Geometry. This thesis focuses on an analysis of the extent to which students’ out-of-school experiences are reflected in the actual teaching, textbook tasks and national examination items set and other resources used. Teachers’ teaching practices are expected to support students’ learning of concepts in mathematics. Freudenthal (1991) argues that students develop their mathematical understanding by working from contexts that make sense to them, contexts that are grounded in realistic settings.
 ZIMSEC Examiners Reports (2010; 2011) reveal a low student performance in the topic of Transformation Geometry in Zimbabwe, yet, the topic has a close relationship with the environment in which students live (Purpura, Baroody & Lonigan, 2013). Thus, the main purpose of the study is to explore Mathematics teachers’ use of students’ out-of-school experiences in the teaching of Transformation Geometry at secondary school level.
 The investigation encompassed; (a) teacher perceptions about transformation geometry concepts that have a close link with students’ out-of-school experiences, (b) how teachers are teaching transformation geometry in Zimbabwe’s rural secondary schools, (c) the extent to which students’ out-of-school experiences are incorporated in Transformation Geometry tasks, and (d) the extent to which transformation geometry, as reflected in the official textbooks and suggested teaching models, is linked to students’ out-of-school experiences.
 Consistent with the interpretive qualitative research paradigm the transcendental phenomenology was used as the research design. Semi-structured interviews, Lesson observations, document analysis and a test were used as data gathering instruments. Data analysis, mainly for qualitative data, involved coding and categorising emerging themes from the different data sources. The key epistemological assumption was derived from the notion that knowing reality is through understanding the experiences of others found in a phenomenon of interest (Yuksel & Yildirim, 2015). In this study, the phenomenon of interest was the teaching of Transformation Geometry in rural secondary schools. In the same light, it meant observing teachers teaching the topic of Transformation Geometry, listening to their perceptions about the topic during interviews, and considering how they plan for their teaching as well as how students are assessed in transformation geometry.
 The research site included 3 selected rural secondary schools; one Mission boarding high school, a Council run secondary school and a Government rural day secondary school. Purposive sampling technique was used carefully to come up with 3 different types of schools in a typical rural Zimbabwe. Purposive sampling technique was also used to choose the teacher participants, whereas learners who sat for the test were randomly selected from the ordinary level classes. The main criterion for including teacher participants was if they were currently teaching an Ordinary Level Mathematics class and had gained more experience in teaching Transformation Geometry. In total, six teachers and forty-five students were selected to participate in the study.
 Results from the study reveal that some teachers have limited knowledge on transformation geometry concepts embedded in students’ out-of-school experience. Using Freudenthal’s (1968) RME Model to judge their effectiveness in teaching, the implication is teaching and learning would fail to utilise contexts familiar with the students and hence can hardly promote mastery of transformation geometry concepts. Data results also reveal some disconnect between teaching practices as espoused in curriculum documents and actual teaching practice. Although policy stipulates that concepts must be developed starting from concrete situations and moving to the abstract concepts, teachers seem to prefer starting with the formal Mathematics, giving students definitions and procedures for carrying out the different geometric transformations.
 On the other hand, tasks in Transformation Geometry both at school level and the national examinations focus on testing learner’s ability to define and use procedures for performing specific transformations at the expense of testing for real understanding of concepts. In view of these findings the study recommends the revision of the school Mathematics curriculum emphasising pre-service programmes for teacher professional knowledge to be built on features of contemporary learning theory, such as RME theory. Such as a revision can include the need to plan instruction so that students build models and representations rather than apply already developed ones.
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Problem-solving therapy for depression and common mental disorders in Zimbabwe: piloting a task-shifting primary mental health care intervention in a population with a high prevalence of people living with HIV.BACKGROUND: There is limited evidence that interventions for depression and other common mental disorders (CMD) can be integrated sustainably into primary health care in Africa. We aimed to pilot a low-cost multi-component 'Friendship Bench Intervention' for CMD, locally adapted from problem-solving therapy and delivered by trained and supervised female lay workers to learn if was feasible and possibly effective as well as how best to implement it on a larger scale. METHOD: We trained lay workers for 8 days in screening and monitoring CMD and in delivering the intervention. Ten lay workers screened consecutive adult attenders who either were referred or self-referred to the Friendship Bench between July and December 2007. Those scoring above the validated cut-point of the Shona Symptom Questionnaire (SSQ) for CMD were potentially eligible. Exclusions were suicide risk or very severe depression. All others were offered 6 sessions of problem-solving therapy (PST) enhanced with a component of activity scheduling. Weekly nurse-led group supervision and monthly supervision from a mental health specialist were provided. Data on SSQ scores at 6 weeks after entering the study were collected by an independent research nurse. Lay workers completed a brief evaluation on their experiences of delivering the intervention. RESULTS: Of 395 potentially eligible, 33 (8%) were excluded due to high risk. Of the 362 left, 2% (7) declined and 10% (35) were lost to follow-up leaving an 88% response rate (n = 320). Over half (n = 166, 52%) had presented with an HIV-related problem. Mean SSQ score fell from 11.3 (sd 1.4) before treatment to 6.5 (sd 2.4) after 3-6 sessions. The drop in SSQ scores was proportional to the number of sessions attended. Nine of the ten lay workers rated themselves as very able to deliver the PST intervention. CONCLUSION: We have found preliminary evidence of a clinically meaningful improvement in CMD associated with locally adapted problem-solving therapy delivered by lay health workers through routine primary health care in an African setting. There is a need to test the effectiveness of this task-shifting mental health intervention in an appropriately powered randomised controlled trial. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN: ISRCTN25476759.
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Quality assurance in higher education in Southern Africa : the case of the universities of the Witwatersrand, Zimbabwe and Botswana.Quality assurance is increasingly becoming an important aspect of higher education institutions in developing countries, as expressed in the development of relevant policies, structures and systems at national and institutional levels. This thesis critically examines the nature of quality assurance policies and practices in selected universities in the Southern African Development Community (SADC), as well as the factors that shape these policies. Through a close examination of these policies and practices, the thesis explains why some universities realise better quality than others, even though they fall within the same geographical region and share relatively similar historical legacies. Although this study was largely qualitative, it did not preclude quantitative dimensions. Integrating the two approaches made it possible not only to triangulate data, but also to engage in multidimensional analysis of some of the phenomena under investigation. While debates in the literature locate quality assurance within internal and external discourses, this does not sufficiently explain the tensions that were observed amongst the various stakeholders within institutions, especially between management and academic staff. The manner in which institutional policies were developed, the role academic staff played in the process, and the reporting lines associated with institutional quality assurance arrangements, are reflected in staff perceptions on whether or not they regarded the policies as internal to the academic community and the extent to which they own the policies. The main contribution of this thesis to debates on quality assurance is its revelation of the complexities that arise in institutional policy making as a result of the highly differentiated nature of the academy. This aspect points at the need for institutions to pay particular care in adopting most appropriate strategies that privilege the organic development of policies within institutions. On the whole, institutions were mainly preoccupied with developing quality assurance policies and systems that are comparable to international standards, hence the heavy reliance on external/international expertise in doing so. Whilst this is not necessarily a iii bad thing, the quality assurance systems that were developed did not take into account the contextual peculiarities of the studied institutions. A direct consequence of this was the development of policies and mechanisms that are more concerned with standardisation of procedures than with enhancement of academic practice. Such quality assurance systems have not resulted in the self-improvement of institutions. The establishment of quality assurance policies and the putting in place of structures and procedures are necessary but not sufficient conditions for enhancing academic practice in universities.