AN EVALUATION OF A CAREER GUIDANCE PROGRAMME IN RURAL SCHOOLS IN MPUMALANGA

by

FRANCOIS GERHARDUS DU TOIT

DISSERTATION submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree

MAGISTER EDUCATIONIS

in

LIFE AND CAREER ORIENTATION

in the

FACULTY OF EDUCATION

at the

UNIVERSITY OF JOHANNESBURG

SUPERVISOR: Dr AW BEEKMAN

September 2010

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to take this opportunity to thank my Heavenly Father for the energy and sanity that He has granted me, to start and complete this dissertation, and for sending many people on my way to help me to accomplish it. It all started with an idea that I had which led to a meeting with Mindmuzik, where I met Dr Litha Beekman. She inspired me to start with this research project and she became my supervisor. I also want to thank her for her invaluable patience, understanding and support and for giving me a new goal in life. I would also like to thank the rest of my support team, starting with my wife, Marié, for her constant support and understanding, especially through the long and cold winter nights also my children, Maleen, Nicky, Chrisna and Malan who inspired me to be a life-long learner and a learner for life. My colleagues and friends:

Dr Martin Esterhuizen who inspired and assisted me from the beginning Marie Nel and Lesley Pretorius for proofreading the dissertation

Arie Lombard for indispensable technical support Berna Beekman for all the work that she did with the interpretation of the statistics Frikkie du Plessis from EBM computers for his technical assistance.

The principals, Life Orientation educators and the learners from the four schools in the Mpuluzi area, who were always very co-operative and who accepted me as a colleague, played a leading role in the research project. I dedicate this dissertation to all these people who had an influence on my life and to all the learners who will, hopefully, benefit from the outcomes of this research.

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ABSTRACT With the introduction of Curriculum 2005, which was followed by the National Curriculum Statement and later on by the Revised National Curriculum Statement, a whole new world was opened for all the learners in the RSA. Life Orientation became a compulsory subject up to Grade 12. One of the focus areas of Life Orientation is careers and career guidance. Unfortunately very few educators are properly trained to handle this very important educational domain. Learners in the rural areas have a bigger drawback than their peers in the urban areas, seeing that they very often don’t have access to electricity and therefore the electronic media and facilities, such as computers and internet to improve their career knowledge and their knowledge of the world of work. The challenge to open the world of work and tertiary education to these learners is a very real one. This study focused on the evaluation of the implementation of a career guidance programme in a rural area of Mpumalanga. A qual-quan mixed method methodology was used to gather raw data from various sources. The quantitative raw data was gathered through a pre- and post-test of Grade 10 learners from four rural schools with the Career Development Questionnaire. The statistical analysis of these data had limitations, such as the small number of control school participants as well as the problem of English language proficiency. The qualitative data was derived from feedback from Life Orientation educators after they had been trained, semi-structured interviews with open ended questions with Life Orientation educators and Grade 10 learners, observation and field notes and a reflective journal from the researcher. The findings from the results reflected firstly on the outcomes of the career programme in terms of achievement of career maturity as measured according to the sub-scales identified by Langley. The conclusion was that the experimental group did increase their scores from the pre- to the post-test. The increase was however very small and all the participants still ended on the scale where they still needed to improve their knowledge and skills on all the sub-scales. A number of themes referring to LO educators, the school community environment and English language proficiency provided information about the implementation of the programme. Although the results of the outcomes in terms of career maturity were not substantial, the qualitative data provided findings about the positive impact of the training of LO educators for career guidance teaching, their experience of empowerment, the creation of a positive attitude and the positive impact of the CPAWs to learners and educators. Barriers that were identified through the emerging themes were the lack of English language proficiency and a school community environment that was not conducive to career exploration and career decision-making and planning. In reflection, the general consensus among the Life Orientation educators was that the continuation of the program should get the highest priority. They believe that if it can continue, it will have a positive impact on the Grade 12 results and through this a positive impact on the lives of many learners, especially in the rural areas. Recommendations were made about the improvement of aspects of career maturity through exposure to career information and the improvement of conditions at schools to facilitate the implementation of career guidance and effective LO teaching.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Acknowledgements ……………………………………………………………………… i Abstract …………………………………………………………………………………...ii Table of Contents ……………………………………………………………………….. iii List of Tables .........................................................................................................viii

Addendums ………………………………………………………………………………..ix

Chapter 1: Orientation to the study ….....................................................................1 1.1 Introduction ……………………………………………………………………………….…1 1.2 Clarification of Terminology ………………………………………………… ……………2 1.2.1 Career ………………………………………………………………………... ……………2 1.2.2 Career development ………………………………………………………………………4 1.2.3 Career maturity …………………………………………………………………………….5 1.2.4 Career adaptability………………………………………………………………………… 5 1.2.5 Career management………………………………………………………………………..6 1.2.6 Career education …………………………………………………………….. ……………8 1.2.7 Career counselling ………………………………………………………….....................9 1.2.8 Career guidance ……………………………………………………………………………9 1.2.9 Rural area ……………………………………………………………………………….. 10 1.3 Background to the problem ……………………………………………………………..10

1.4 Problem statement …………………………………………………………………….…16 1.5 Aim and objectives ……………………………………………………………………….17 1.6 Research methodology ………………………………………………………………….17 1.7 Role of the researcher ……………………………………………………………………18 1.8 Research approach …………………………………………………………….…………19

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1.8.1 Qualitative research ……………………………………………………….....................20 1.8.2 Quantitative research ……….……………………………………………………………21 1.9 Sample ………………………………………………………………………….………….21 1.10 Data collection ……………………………………………………………………………..21 1.10.1 Qualitative data …………………………………………………………………………….22 1.10.2 Quantitative data …………………………………………………………………………..23 1.11 Trustworthiness ……………………………………………………………………………23 1.12 Ethical measures …………………………………………………………………………..24 1.13 Lay-out of chapters..……………………………………………………….………………25 1.14 Summary ……………………………………………………………………………………26

Chapter 2: Theoretical foundation of career guidance and career guidance evaluation ………………………………………………………………….…27 2.1 Introduction………………………………………………………………………………... 27 2.2 Philosophy of work..………………………………………………………………………..27 2.3 Conceptual framework .……………………………………………………………………28 2.3.1 Developmental-contextual encapsulates the systems theory framework (STF) of

Patton and McMahon………………………………………………………………………...28 2.3.2 Constructivism……………………….. ……………………………………………………29 2.4 Career theories …………………………………………………………………………….30 2.4.1 Holland’s theory…… ………………………………………………………………………31 2.4.2 Super’s theory… …………………………………………………………………………...34 2.4.3 Savickas’ career construction theory ….………………………………………………...36 2.5 The construct of career maturity and career adaptability….…………………………..38 2.6 The construct of career development and career management...…………………….40 2.7 Career counselling……………………….. ……………………………………………….44

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2.8 Career education…………………………….. ……………………………………………46 2.9 National Curriculum Statement career domain………………………………………….49 2.9.1 Life Orientation as a fundamental subject ………………………………………………...50 2.9.2 Developmental outcomes of Life Orientation…………………………………………….50 2.9.3 Learning outcome 4 of the National Curriculum Statement……………………………..51 2.10 Summary……………………………………………………………………………………. 52

Chapter 3: Research methodologies…………………………………………...……....54 3.1 Introduction …………………………………………………………………………………..54 3.2 Career guidance programme evaluation …………………………………………………54

3.3 Sample ……………………………………………………………………………………….58 3.3.1 Population………… …………………………………………………………………………58 3.3.2 Selection of learners... ………………………………………………………………………59 3.3.3 Selection of the Life Orientation educators.……………………………………………….61 3.4 Data collection and analysis………………………………………………………………...61 3.4.1 Implementation ………………………………………………………………………………62 3.4.2 Priority.. ……………………………………………………………………………………….62 3.4.3 Integration ………………………………………………………………………………….…63 3.4.4 A theoretical perspective ……………………………………………………………………63 3.5 Mixed methods procedures. ………………………………………………………………..64 3.5.1 Sequential explanatory strategy..…………………………………………….……………..64 3.5.1.1 Background ...………………………………………………………………………………..64 3.5.1.2Reason for using this method ………………………………………………………………65 3.6 Data collection methods …….……………………………………………………………...67

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3.6.1 Quantitative data …………………………………………………………………………….68 3.6.2 Qualitative data ……………………………………………………………………………...68 3.6.2.1 Interviews………………….………………………………………………………………….68 3.6.2.2 Observation…………………………………………………………………………………..69 3.6.2.3 Document analysis……………….………………………………………………………….70 3.6.2.4 Reflective journal…………………………………………………………………………….71 3.6.3 Project phases ………………………………………………………………………………72 3.7 Data analysis …………………………………………………………………………………73 3.7.1 Qualitative data……………………………………………………………………………….74 3.7.2 Quantitative data …………………………………………………………………………….74 3.8 Trustworthiness ………………………………………………………………………………75 3.8.1 Qualitative data ………………………………………………………………………………75 3.8.2 Quantitative data …………………………………………………………………………….78 3.9 Summary ……………………………………………………………………………………..79

Chapter 4: Data presentation and analysis ………………...………………………....80 4.1 Introduction …………………………………………………………………………………80 4.2 Presentation and analysis of the quantitative data …………………………….………80 4.2.1 Pre-test scores………….……………………………………………………………….....82 4.2.2 Post-test scores……………….……………………………………………………………83 4.2.3 Pre-test scores compared to post-test scores………………………………………….84 4.2.4 Summary of quantitative data……………………………………………………………..87 4.3 Presentation and analysis of the qualitative data..… ………………………………….88 4.3.1 Data: Feedback from LO educators after they had been trained …………………….88 4.3.2 Data: Interview with LO educators after they had implemented the programme …..90

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4.3.3 Data: Interview with learners ……………………………………………………………..92 4.3.4 Data: From the researcher’s observations and field notes …………………..……….94 4.3.5 Data: From the researcher’s reflective journal …..……………………………………...95 4.4 Discussion of the themes ……………………...………………………………………….96 4.4.1 Theme 1 Career development ………….....................................................................97 4.4.2 Theme 2 Career resources ……………………..…………………………………….…..99 4.4.2.1 Library…………………………………………………………………………………….….99 4.4.2.2 CPAW………………………………………………………………………………………..99 4.4.3 Theme 3 LO educator attitude ……………………………………………………...…...100 4.4.4 Theme 4 LO educator knowledge and skills…………………………..…………….....100 4.4.5 Theme 5 Life Career guidance and counselling ………………………………………101 4.4.6 Theme 6 School community environment ……………………………….…………….101 4.4.7 Theme 7 English language proficiency………………………………………………….102 4.5 Summary of findings from the quantitative and qualitative data …………………….102

Chapter 5: Conclusions and recommendations…..………..……………………...103 5.1 Introduction.. ………………………………………………………………………………103 5.2 Conclusions.. ……………………………………………………………………………....104 5.2.1 Career development..….….……………………………………………………...……….104 5.2.2 Career resources………………….……………….………………………………….…..105 5.2.3 LO educator attitude ………………………………………………………………….……106 5.2.4 LO educator knowledge and skills and career guidance and counselling…………....106 5.2.5 School community environment …………………………………………………………..107 5.2.6 English language proficiency ……………………………………………………….…….107 5.3 Recommendations for career guidance in rural, and other, schools….………………108

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5.3.1 Improvement of career maturity………………………………………………………...…108 5.3.2. Implementation of career guidance in schools……………………………………..……108 5.4 Limitations of this study……………………………………………………………………109 5.5 Recommendations for further research ……………………………………………….....110 5.6 Conclusive summary………………………………………………………………………..110 Bibliography ………………..………………………………………..……………………………111 Addendums………………………..……………………………………………………………….123 List of figures Page Figure 2.1 Conceptual and theoretical framework…………………………….………………… 30 Figure 3.1 Model of mixed-methods sequential explanatory design procedures ………...... 67 Figure 3.2 Project phases………………………………………………………………………… 72 Figure 3.3 Illustration of qualitative data analysis…………………………………………….,,, 74 Figure 3.4 Illustration of quantitative data comparison………………………………………… 75 Figure 3.5 Lincoln and Guba’s (1985) model for trustworthiness of qualitative research …..76 List of tables Table 2.1 Dimensions/facets of career guidance ……………………………………..……....... 52 Table 3.1 Profile of population……………………………………………………………………. 59 Table 3.2 Sample of learners…………………………………………………………………….. 60 Table 3.3 Teaching experience of LO educators ……………………………………………...... 61 Table 3.4 Reliability coefficients of the CDQ for language groups (1998)…………….……...78 Table 4.1 Average CDQ scores for the experimental schools for the pre-test.….…….……. 81 Table 4.2 Average CDQ scores for the experimental schools for the post-tests....………… 81 Table 4.3 Average CDQ scores for the control school for the pre- and post-test……….. ….81 Table 4.4 Qualitative score interpretation: pre-test experimental versus control groups….... 83

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Table 4.5 Qualitative score interpretation: Post-test experimental versus control groups… 84 Table 4.6 Qualitative score interpretation: pre- versus post-test for control group………… 85 Table 4.7 Qualitative score interpretation: pre- versus post-test experimental group………. 86 Table 4.8 An example of data analysis of LO educator training report back.. ………………. 89 Table 4.9 Summary of themes and categories from the training programme evaluation........90 Table 4.10 Example of data analysis from interview transcripts……………………………..... 91 Table 4.11 Summary of the categories and themes from LO educators interview transcripts………………………………………………………………………………………..… .. 92 Table 4.12 Example of the analysis of the data as it was collected for each question during the interviews with the learners. The data of the interviews are in the addendum ………...... 93 Table 4.13 Summary of feedback from the learners ……………………………………………. 94 Table 4.14 Summary of the themes and categories from the researcher’s observations and field notes……………………………………………………. …………………………..….……….94 Table 4.15 Integrated themes from all data ….……………………………………………..........96 List of graphs Graph 4.1 Pre- and post scores for experimental and control group………………………… 82 Graph 4.2 Post-test scores: experimental versus control school…………………………..... 83 Graph 4.3 Pre-test versus post-test score control school…………………………………….. 85 Graph 4.4 Pre-test versus post-test score: experimental group schools……………..…….. 86 Addendums

1 Ethical clearance……………………………………………………………………………122 2 Consent letter for schools…………………………………………………..………….…..123

3 Verbatim feedback from LO educators after their training……………………….….. ...125

4 Verbatim interview transcription: LO educators……….………………..…………..…...127

5 Verbatim interview transcription: Learners at ESE…………………..…………………..134 6 F- and student T-test statistical analysis…….…………………………..…………….. 137

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CHAPTER 1

ORIENTATION TO THE STUDY

1.1 Introduction

Career choices are among the most important decisions a young person has to make.

Young people today are becoming more aware of the world of work as they see their

parents, friends and/or siblings struggling to find employment or experiencing work as

stressful. They also develop particular views of the working world through television

programmes (Ngesi cited in Stead & Watson, 2006). The rapidly changing world of

work provides great challenges for career educators.

The current career education scenario is further complicated by the suspension of

guidance as an auxiliary service. Specialists appointed by the Department of

Education no longer directly assess and evaluate individual learners. Due to the vast

number of learners involved in the schooling system these specialists now train

educators to assist learners in an informal way to make career choices (Roux, 2002 in

Ebersöhn & Mbetse, 2003). Schools with the necessary financial resources have

outsourced career guidance to private practitioners. This practice is unfortunately not

possible in rural schools due to a lack of funds and an absence of practitioners in the

rural areas.

Career education practice in South Africa still reflects the marked inequalities that

characterised apartheid education structures. In the Gert Sibande sub-region in

Mpumalanga one of the challenges is that very few educators have any training as Life

Orientation educators. Furthermore, in the rural areas there is, very often, a total lack

of role models. Career education is therefore not accessible to the majority of the

population.

This study focused on the evaluation of a programme initiated by the Mpumalanga

Department of Education in the Gert Sibande sub-region. A mixed-method research

approach was applied and data were collected from four selected schools.

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Chapter 1 will provide an overview of the whole research project and introduce the

reader to the context of the problem, problem question and the aim and objectives of

the enquiry. Terminology will be clarified as well as the research methodology and

ethical measures. Chapter 2 will be a discussion of the theoretical foundation that

guided the enquiry. Chapter 3 will be devoted to an in-depth explanation of the

research methodology that was followed, while Chapter 4 will be the presentation of

data and the analyses of it. Chapter 5 will follow with conclusions drawn from the

findings, ending with recommendations for career guidance in schools and for further

research.

1.2 Clarification of terminology

The following descriptions and definitions will clarify the terminology frequently used in

this study.

1.2.1 Career

The 21st century world of work has moved away from an era of the one-life one-career

perspective, where one series of career stages (entrance into the world of work,

establishing oneself in one’s job, mastering and maintaining one’s job, retiring from the

workplace) covered the whole of a person’s work life. In its place is a new form of

career, which consists of a series of learning cycles across multi-directional career

pathways. Schreuder and Coetzee (2007, p. 57) define “career” in the contemporary

perspective as: “any sequence of employment-related experiences. As organisations

are changing, becoming virtual, more flexible, introducing fewer structures, contracting

out services and using more freelance workers, careers are rather to be viewed in

terms of lifelong learning than in terms of upward movements”. Hall, as quoted by

Schreuder and Coetzee (2007, p. 56) indicates that there are four distinct meanings

assigned to the concept “career”, namely:

• career as advancement

• career as profession

• career as a lifelong sequence of work experiences, and

• career as a lifelong sequence of role-related experiences.

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Over the years the most popular definition has been the first one where a career has

been evaluated by the number of promotions a person obtained during his career life.

The 21st century world of work has moved away from an era of the one-life-one-career

perspective, where a person started at the bottom and worked his way to the top, to a

new form of career which consists of a series of cycles in different career pathways.

Contemporary definitions therefore look at a career as a process of development of

the employee along a path of experiences and jobs in one or more organisations

(Baruch & Rosenstein, 1992 as quoted by Schreuder & Coetzee, 2007). The authors

conclude that as organizations are changing, becoming more flexible and contracting

out services, careers are rather to be viewed in terms of lifelong learning than in terms

of upward movements. Therefore careers can be defined as any sequence of

employment-related experiences.

Greenhaus, Callanan and Godshalk (2000) are of the opinion that there are, in broad

terms, two ways of viewing a career:

• A career seen as a structural property of an occupation or an organisation

e.g. a career in law can be seen as a sequence of positions held by a typical

practitioner of the occupation: law student, law clerk, junior member until he

/she reaches the top and ultimately retirement.

• The other approach views a career as a property of an individual rather than

an occupation or an organisation. This view acknowledges that each person

pursues a unique career.

Thrift and Amundson (2007) say that many career theorists and counsellors focus on

the individual person and minimal regard is given to the social, cultural and historical

milieu in which this “self” exists. In contrast, hermeneutic philosophy recognises that

career development is inseparable from one’s socio-cultural context. Although

individuals are agentic, a hermeneutic-narrative approach considers the available

options to be defined by their environment. Even the beliefs that people have about

career, e.g. evaluations about different career options, the proper compensation for

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work, motivations for working, values that pertain to career, are constituted by history

and culture.

For the purpose of this study, “career” will be interpreted as “the pattern of work-related

experiences that span the course of a person’s life” (Greenhaus, Callanan &

Godschalk, 2000, p. 9). The learners in the rural areas which will be part of this study

have very few role models, therefore a whole new career-world must be opened up to

them.

1.2.2 Career development

The terms “career development”, “vocational development” and “occupational

development” are used synonymously. Career development involves the total

individual, including education, work and leisure time (Malan, 1999, p. 16). The

developmental nature of career behaviour has been a critical theoretical contribution to

the field of career psychology. The movement away from conceptualising career

choice as a once-off event towards viewing it as an ongoing process is regarded as

“Super’s single most important idea” (Super, Savickas & Super, quoted in Stead &

Watson, 2006, p. 51). Super’s theory is based on two principles, i.e. fitting work roles

into individuals’ lives, with the developmental nature of this process reflecting general

human development principles. The second principle is the central role of the self-

concept. Super declared that “until you know who you are, you won’t know what you

can become” (Stead & Watson, 2006, p. 53).

Schreuder and Coetzee (2007, p. 346) define career development as the ongoing

process by which individuals progress through a series of stages, each of which is

characterised by a fresh set of issues, themes or tasks.

The theoretical assumption of career development is that the acquisition of the

cornerstones of career maturity (self-knowledge, career knowledge and decision-

making capacity) equips one with the capacity to make sound career choices,

(Ebersöhn & Mbetse, 2003). Through the introduction of the Career Activity Portfolio

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Workbooks and the training of the educators the above mentioned skills of the learners

will be improved.

1.2.3 Career maturity

Career maturity is a concept that has been defined largely in terms of adolescents’

readiness to make educational and career choices. The readiness requires that the

individual completes the following developmental tasks:

• Gain an appropriate knowledge of self

• Demonstrate effective decision-making skills

• Gain an appropriate knowledge of careers

• Be able to integrate the knowledge of self and careers

• Be able to plan for a career (Stead & Watson, 2006).

The ability to make career decisions that reflect decisiveness, self-reliance,

independence and willingness to compromise between one’s personal needs and the

requirements of one’s career situation is the meaning given to career maturity by

Schreuder and Coetzee (2007). Through the introduction and usage of the CPAWs

this study will also enhance the learner’s ability to make informed career decisions.

1.2.4 Career adaptability

The definition of career readiness in adulthood was originally termed “career

adaptability” (Super & Knasel, 1979 cited in Stead & Watson, 2006, p.57). This term

operationalised readiness in terms of an individual’s ability to cope with the changing

nature of his/her work commitments. Therefore, career maturity in adulthood would

imply ongoing adaptability in individuals in terms of their career transitions. The term

“career adaptability” implies that an individual is able to change to meet change, that

there is an ongoing need to respond to one’s changing circumstances (Watson &

Stead, 2006). The life theme component of career construction theory addresses the

subject matter of work life and focuses on the why of vocational behaviour. By dealing

with the why of life themes along with the what of personality types and the how of

career adaptability, career construction seeks to be comprehensive in its purview

(Savickas, 2005).

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In the post-industrial economies people no longer start at a certain job and retire in the

same job after 30 to 40 years. New technology, globalisation and job redesign require

workers to more actively construct their careers. Career construction is a series of

adaptations, from school to work, from job to job and occupation to occupation.

Savickas (2005) with his career construction theory, views adaptation to these

transitions as fostered by five principle types of behaviour: orientation, exploration,

establishment, management and disengagement. These constructive activities form a

cycle of adaptation that is periodically repeated every time a person begins a new job.

Savickas (2005) in his career construction theory, views adaptive individuals as

becoming concerned about their future as workers, increasing their control over their

vocational futures, being curious by exploring their possible selves and future

scenarios and becoming more confident in pursuing their aspirations. This study will

also focus on the learners to improve their self-esteem and self-confidence so that

they can explore the world of work confidently.

1.2.5 Career Management

Career management can be described as an ongoing process whereby the

individual:

• Obtains self-knowledge (interests, values, abilities, personality, career

patterns, and career anchors)

• Obtains a knowledge of employment opportunities (jobs, work roles, skills

demand, skills acquisition opportunities, venture creation possibilities, work

places)

• Develops career goals

• Develops a strategy

• Implements the strategy and experiments with various employment possibilities

• Obtains feedback on the effectiveness of the strategy and the relevance of the

goals (Coetzee, 2005b; Greenhaus et al., 2000 in Schreuder & Coetzee, 2007,

p. 60).

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Armstrong and Crombie (2000) describe career management as a process which

involves making realistic choices which include greater attention to one’s own skills

and the demand for those skills in the labour market. This implies moving away from

an exclusive focus on interests to examine realistic choices within a zone of preferred

and possible choices (Armstrong & Crombie, 2000 as quoted by Schreuder &

Coetzee, 2007, p. 61). Career management support should therefore include guidance

and counselling regarding not only interest assessment, but also facilitating decision

making, enhancing the fit between the individual’s ability and the demand for those

skills and how the individual could acquire the required skills. Skills acquisition plays a

critical role in occupational goal attainment (Ostroff, Shin & Feinberg, 2002 in

Schreuder & Coetzee, 2007, p. 61).

They continue to say that performance experience continually provides opportunities

for revisiting one’s perceived talents, abilities, interests and altering one’s career

goals. They also emphasise career management training for particularly new entrants

to the world of work. Such training should include self-knowledge, occupational

knowledge, technical skills and general employability skills due to the growing

awareness that individuals need to prepare for several different types of jobs rather

than a single job.

Greenhaus, et al., (2000, pp.12-13) state that career management can briefly be

described as an ongoing process in which an individual:

• Gathers relevant information about himself and the world of work

• Develops an accurate picture of his talents, interests, values, and preferred life-

style as well as alternative occupations, jobs, and organizations

• Develops realistic career goals based on this information

• Develops and implements a strategy designed to achieve the goals

• Obtains feedback on the effectiveness of the strategy and the relevance of the

goals.

From an individual’s perspective, effective career management is particularly

important in the light of the economic, technological, and cultural environment. In

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rapidly changing and uncertain times, career success and satisfaction will most likely

be achieved by individuals who understand themselves, know how to detect changes

in the environment, create opportunities for themselves, and learn from their mistakes,

all elements of effective career management.

In an era of rightsizing, outsourcing, and corporate reorganisation, individuals who

have insight into themselves and their options should be more able to overcome

obstacles to their career growth. Moreover, careers will become less structured, less

automatic, and more unpredictable. Established career paths may be replaced by

more innovative, idiosyncratic routes to success. As organisations become more

responsive to rapidly changing business priorities, greater flexibility will be required on

the part of the employee. Flexibility and adaptability are hallmarks of career

management.

Career management applies also to learners in schools. Learners need to be aware of

the changes in the labour market and what careers, skills and knowledge are required.

Learners need to set goals for their own achievement and manage their own

opportunities by ensuring that they have the recommended subjects for specific

careers; the best possible symbols; and skills through volunteer or vacation work.

They need to plan their careers through goal setting and action plans in order to make

the transition from school to the world of work or higher education.

1.2.6 Career education

A review of the South African career literature reveals the use of the terms “career

guidance”, “career education” and “career counselling” as interchangeable concepts.

However, “education” implies a far wider range of activities than “guidance”. Ngesi

(2003) says that today young people are becoming more aware of the world of work as

they see their parents and friends struggling to find and keep employment. Career

choices are therefore among the most important decisions any learner can make.

Schreuder and Coetzee (2007) see career education as a career service focused on

assisting individuals who encounter difficulties in enacting their subjective career

intentions and goals through their objective vocational behaviour.

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Ebersöhn and Mbetse (2003) conceptualise career education as formal and informal

opportunities for people to acquire skills, attitudes and competencies with regard to

career development. The outcome of career education would be career maturity and

preparedness to enter the world of work.

1.2.7 Career counselling.

Brooks and Brown (1986) in Brown and Srebalus (2003, p.130) define career

counselling as “an interpersonal process designed to assist individuals with career

development problems”. Schreuder and Coetzee (2007, p. 135) state that the career

counselling service facilitates self-reflection and cognitive restructuring in clients who

need to develop career competency, career maturity and career self-efficacy.

Counselling helps clients to elaborate their self-concepts by introspection and

discussion of their subjective careers. Career counsellors who provide the counselling

service use self-reflection techniques developed by, for example, person-centred

counsellors (such as Carl Rogers) and the post-modern approaches (such as Narrative

therapy and Logo therapy) to clarify choices through meaning-making activities and

life-script-analysis.

1.2.8 Career guidance

The word “guide” originates from the Greek eidenai , meaning “to know”, otherwise it

means to “proceed with light”. An analysis of the various definitions of guidance

indicates that guidance involves a treatment wherein one person (the career

practitioner) undertakes to guide another. The De Lange Report of Education defined

guidance as “a practice, a process of bringing the person into contact with the world of

reality in such a way that they acquire life-skills and techniques which will allow them to

direct themselves competently within the educational, personal and social spheres

and the world-of -work in order to process and survive effectively” (Malan 1991, p. 12).

The career guidance service helps individuals who are undecided to articulate their

behavioural repertoire and then translate it into vocational choices. This service

emphasises vocational guidance provided by the trait-and-factor theories such as

Holland and the use of tests and inventories. Educational and vocational information is

provided, occupational and matching choices are encouraged. The counsellor helps

10

clients to crystallise a vocational identity and to envision a subjective career

(Schreuder & Coetzee 2007, p. 135).

1.2.9 Rural area

Skomolo (2007) stated that the concept “rurality” is used in a uniform way. She

questioned whether a community in a village in KwaZulu-Natal or in Transkei is rural in

the same way as a community in a trust area in Mpumalanga. All the mutual factors

e.g. long distances, poor service delivery, lack of reliable transport, absence of

electricity and running water, are present, the main difference being the difference in

culture.

Rural areas are typified by what they do not have, rather than by what they do have. In

rural communities there is normally a lack of, or a total absence of, what is viewed as

“normal” in urban areas, e.g. running water, electricity, tarred or even fairly good roads,

reliable transport services, a sewerage system, community health services and other

government departments. Housing is normally spread out over a vast area so that

distances that have to be travelled on foot become a problem, especially when

learners have to walk a number of kilometres daily. There is also a lack of vibrant

economic activities, sometimes due to the high incidence of illiteracy (Skomolo &

Mlotshwa, 2005). Teaching in these underdeveloped areas is very difficult. Due to poor

transport facilities, learners sometimes have to travel long distances to get to school.

So they arrive late and exhaustion causes them to sometimes fall asleep in class

(Mhlongo, 2006).

1.3 Background to the problem

Kunene (2007, p. 92) states that the new education and training system must be

designed to put a stop to the “paper qualification syndrome” which has contributed to

the high number of unemployed graduates who hold qualifications that are not relevant

to the needs of the labour market and hence render them unemployable. One aspect

of educational reform is aimed at refocusing attention on vocational education and

training. There is a concerted effort by governments worldwide to bring education and

training closer to the world of work. Education and training must be geared towards

11

appropriately addressing the needs of employers. The dominant trend in this education

and training challenge is the re-emergence of “hand learning” which has been

embraced by governments worldwide as the panacea that will provide for the current

and future socio-economic demands on education and training. ”Hand-learning” is

seen as the opposite of “head-learning”. Hand learning is now given the upper hand

and most education and training reforms across the globe are taking this direction.

Kunene (2007) continues to say that this new trend also gives power to employers or

the corporate sector in terms of deciding what appropriate qualifications and training

mechanisms to develop and implement in order to address their skills requirements.

He believes that all qualifications must have the capacity to satisfy both social and

economic efficacy requirements. He also believes universities should focus on

producing critical thinkers, but the ultimate objective of the critical thinkers should be to

be employed, so that they can practise their critical thinking skills. It does not make

sense for a learner to do a BA degree for social efficacy or social status per se. The

degree must be linked to a particular occupation. Keevy cited in Kunene (2007, p. 93)

describes the different types of vehicles used to get qualifications, as follows:

• Professional qualification: service to people or organisations; competencies

have an academic knowledge base; afforded autonomy by virtue of ethical

behaviour; regulated by a profession;

• Occupational: a qualification that is needed for, or facilitates the practice of a

profession; carrying on a trade or business; or engaging in any other

occupation or form of employment; and

• Vocational: performing some function such as making, repairing, servicing,

etc, ; competencies have a predominantly practical knowledge base; work in

a “managed” environment; regulated by employment

environments/conditions.

He concludes that he believes that the current obsession with theoretical debates

about the different types of vehicles used to achieve qualifications, as well as

definitional precision, will not help us win the battle against skill shortages in the

country. What we should be emphasising is actually the intended outcome of all

qualifications, which is gaining employment.

12

The problem of the lack of career guidance problem originated from the previous

political and educational dispensation where career guidance was neglected in many

schools, especially in disadvantaged and rural schools (Akhurst & Mkize, 2006).

Historically, the provision of career education in South Africa has been riddled with

inequality (Akhurst & Mkize, 1999; Cross, Mkhwanazi-Twala & Klein, 1998; De Bruin &

Nel, 1996; Stead & Watson, 1998 cited in Ebersöhn & Mbetse, 2003). Career guidance

was introduced to White schools in 1967 and in Black schools in 1981, after the

Soweto uprisings of 1976. During this time, multiple Non-Governmental Organisations

(NGOs) implemented various programmes to address the dearth of education

provision (Akhurst & Mkize, 1999).

It has, however, been compromised from the beginning by a limited number of trained

educators and the allocation of school guidance to educators whose timetables

needed a few extra periods. The perception was that school guidance was not as

important as other subjects (Akhurst & Mkize, 2006). The situation has changed with

the introduction of Life Orientation as a Learning Area, which is a compulsory subject

up to Grade 12. The teaching of career guidance is, however, still not effective. This is

due to insufficiently trained educators for this new learning area. Life Orientation

educators are still being allocated on a non-continuous basis to fill gaps in their

timetables (Mnisi, 2007). Educators in the Limpopo rural community that Mbetse

(Ebersöhn & Mbetse, 2003) studied, feel they lack expertise in presenting career

education content. The limited number of trained educators and the allocation of Life

Orientation to any educators with time slots to be filled, further compromised career

education. Stakeholders mentioned that their community schools are understaffed and

available staff overstretched in providing career education. They say: “We are

experiencing problems at the moment because we are too few staffed with few

teachers and we cannot give career guidance to all grades any longer because we are

too full” (Ibid, p.324). Ebersohn and Mbetse (2003) cited similar findings in studies

located in other regions of South Africa.

Officials, of which the researcher is one, who are responsible for the domain “career

guidance” in the Life Orientation learning area, and Life Orientation as a subject for the

13

senior phase, in the Gert Sibande Region in Mpumalanga, identified the problem of a

lack of career guidance in many of the schools in the region, one of the reasons being

that Life Orientation educators are very seldom selected for their expertise. When the

school’s time-table is drawn up for the following year, the compulsory subject, Life

Orientation, is left until last. When the whole time-table has been worked out, those

educators with gaps in their time-tables are awarded a few Life Orientation periods

here and there. For this reason there is very seldom continuity, and different educators

are used to teach this important subject every year. Therefore, in most of the cases,

educators do not really care to empower themselves with the relevant knowledge,

because they know that the following year they will most probably have a different

grade to teach, or if they are lucky, no Life Orientation at all.

Another reason why career guidance is neglected in many rural schools is a total lack

of resources, no opportunity for learners from rural schools to be exposed to different

careers and a lack of parental involvement due to the high incidence of parental

illiteracy. In many cases learners are not interested in career guidance because they

have no hope for the future. At the end of a motivational session by an official, a

learner enquired why he needed to pass Grade 12 when his brother who had passed

Grade 12 two years earlier, was still unemployed.

With the systematic change in the educational system since 1990, the learning area

Life Orientation (LO) has replaced former subjects such as guidance, family guidance

and Biblical Studies. LO is one of the four fundamental subjects that have to be passed

as a prerequisite to obtain the National Senior Certificate. It is, therefore, a compulsory

subject from Grade 10 to Grade 12.

In the National Curriculum Statement for Life Orientation, four focus areas are

stressed, namely 1) Personal well-being, 2) Citizenship education, 3) Recreation and

physical well-being, 4) Careers and career guidance. Each of the four learning

outcomes for LO is a combination of the four focus areas. However, the amount of time

that must be spent on the different areas differs considerably. For recreation and

physical well-being, 36 hours per year is allocated, for personal well-being 16 hours

14

and for citizenship and career guidance 10 hours each. This can leave the impression

that career guidance is less important than the other two focus areas (Fraser, 2009).

There is also a problem in disadvantaged schools where certain educational streams,

e.g. commerce and science, are unavailable, especially due to the lack of educators

for these subjects (Mtolo, 1996). The substantial urban-rural divide complicates the

situation, because most rural schools are poorly resourced and educators are often

under-qualified (Akhurst & Mkize, 2006). Many of the schools in these rural areas have

talented learners who underachieve, because family responsibilities interfere with

schoolwork. There is also limited career exposure and access to career experiences

and often little support for further study because of economic pressures (Ngesi, 2003).

The learners’ vision of the future is being hampered by the fact that they have a very

limited variation of role models in the rural areas.

Mpumalanga is a province with a population of nearly four million people. About 60%

of this population comes from rural areas where 70% of communities live on

commercial farms, of which 43% live on trust land. In these communities, there is a

preponderance of illiteracy, poverty, lack of access to resources, and poorly developed

infrastructure. There are also extensive distances between settlements with poor

transport facilities, thus resulting in longer travelling time from one area to another, as

well as poorly researched or a scarcity of data in all areas of social research (Skomolo,

2007).

The Mpumalanga rural population lives in a diversity of circumstances, unlike some

parts of the world where agricultural activity is used as sole determining factor of

rurality. A significant part of the population resides in traditional authority villages,

situated on the eastern and western boundaries of the province. These areas are

marginalised and are characterised by high population density and poor access to

basic services.

There are also small, dispersed rural settlements on farms throughout the province,

normally consisting of between two and fifty households. These settlements often

15

consist of homesteads on farms as well as the houses of farm workers. According to a

study conducted by TRAC-MP into human rights violations in the farming community

(2003), as quoted by Skomolo and Mlotshwa (2005), Mpumalanga has the second

lowest education levels of all the nine provinces, with 29,4% of the population having

no schooling whatsoever. The majority of this category resides in the rural areas where

educational facilities are sparse. Long travelling distances, poor public transport and

unfavourable labour conditions, especially in the farm settlements, make access to

educational institutions more difficult. The following are some common features of rural

areas in Mpumalanga:

• Preponderance of illiteracy

• Preponderance of poverty

• Poor access to resources

• Poorly developed infrastructure

• Long distances between settlements

• Long travelling times from one area to another; and

• Poor transport facilities (Skomolo & Mlothswa, 2005, p. 92).

The Mpuluzi circuit in the Gert Sibande region, where this research was done,

complies with the above description of rurality. Furthermore there are a number of

child-headed families. In some cases learners stay alone while both parents are

employed elsewhere and only visit their children once a month to provide them with

food. According to the LO educators who were interviewed, quite a number of the

parents and grandparents are illiterate.

The conceptual framework for this study will be developmental-contextual as

underpinned by the systems theory framework of McMahon and Patton (2003). This

implies an approach where career guidance is seen as a process over time that takes

place within the context of the learners. The framework is further constructivist,

because a post-modern approach to career guidance is used where learners explore

through information seeking in groups. Specific theories that underpin the study are the

person-environment typology of Holland to facilitate self and career exploration and

integration; the theory of Super, which is developmental in nature with specific career

16

maturity tasks for different life stages; and the career construction theory of Savickas

where the focus is on individuals who construct their career development through their

physical environment, culture, race and ethnicity, their family and neighbourhood.

The need for effective career education models and techniques prompted the inquiry

of this study. The officials from the Gert Sibande Regional Office have decided to

embark on a career guidance project to address the problem of a lack of career

guidance in rural schools. The project included the training of educators in career

guidance and the introduction of newly designed Career Portfolio Activity Workbooks,

which have been developed according to the National Curriculum Learning Outcomes

and Assessment Standards for the domain. Support to educators was rendered by

career guidance officials from the Inclusive education section of the Gert Sibande

Regional Office.

An evaluation of the effectiveness of the project with regard to the implementation

process and achievement of outcomes is vitally important for the Mpumalanga

Department of Education in order to make future decisions concerning the expansion

of this programme to the remaining of Mpumalanga schools.

1.4 Problem statement

Research needs to be seen as something done by everyone involved in programmes.

This is because research is important for planning since it should provide the

knowledge base on which operations function. Clear knowledge requirements and

standards for planning would improve the quality of programme and implementation

plans and would ensure they are realistic. It should be noted that implementation often

falters because reality does not match expectations (Levin, 2006, p. 40). The problems

of everyday life are difficulties that should be avoided, if possible. Research problems,

on the other hand, are eagerly sought after. The difference is that research problems

represent opportunities as well as trouble spots. Since scientific knowledge is

provisional, all empirical findings and theories are in principle problematic and are

therefore subject to further investigation. In addition to seeking exact confirmation of

existing claims to knowledge, research has the equally important purpose of

17

generating new claims. Problem formulation is the logical first step towards this goal

(Brewer & Hunter, 2006, p. 39).

The issue of inquiry in this study was an evaluation of a career guidance programme in

rural schools in Mpumalanga in order to find answers to the effort of addressing the

problem of a lack of career guidance in the rural schools.

The research question to be answered was: What was the impact of the career

guidance programme with regards to achievement of the outcomes measured in terms

of career development and the implementation of the process?

1.5 Aim and objectives

Evaluation is a form of applied social research that focuses on how a programme

works and what it accomplishes. Evaluators attempt to answer such questions as: is a

programme accomplishing its goals? Is the programme operating as planned? Is the

programme more effective in ameliorating the target problem than other programmes

or doing nothing? How can the programme be improved? Should it be continued?

(Chen, 1994).

The aim of this research was to evaluate the implementation and outcomes of a career

guidance programme in schools in the Mpuluzi area in Mpumalanga. Findings will

enable conclusions and recommendations to be made with regard to the

implementation process and impact of the programme for decisions on the future

expansion of the programme in the province.

The objectives were:

• To monitor the implementation of the programme.

• To evaluate the impact of the programme through assessment of the outcomes.

• To draw conclusions and make recommendations regarding improvement of the

intervention and expansion to other schools.

1.6 Research methodology

18

The purpose of the research was programme monitoring and evaluation. Monitoring of

programmes provides important facts about the progress of the programme for

stakeholders (Chen, 2005). Obtaining data on a continuous basis is called programme

monitoring. Evaluators or researchers play an important role in data collection, the

writing of progress reports and the provision of feedback. Chen (2005) refers to

programme monitoring as the best area to demonstrate the usefulness of

empowerment evaluation. This is because evaluators capacitate both the programme

and its stakeholders with regard to data collection and the correct and meaningful

interpretation and application thereof. This will be an additional benefit for educators

who are involved in the programme delivery, since it introduces them to action

research in the school, for possible future use.

1.7 The role of the researcher

Skomolo and Mlotswa (2005) regard the role of the development researcher as a

person who acts as a catalyst to support service delivery, assisting disadvantaged

communities in defining their problem clearly and supporting them as they work

towards effective solutions to the issues that concern them. This is in contrast with the

role of an academic researcher, whose preoccupation with formal research principles

such as objectivity/subjectivity has his/her interaction with the participants restricted by

conventional scientific research procedures and practices. Skomolo and Mlotswa

(2005) continue to say that to an academic researcher this view might sound

unscientific, but their experience has shown that community-based research

techniques such as focus groups, informal community meetings, in-depth interviews,

etc. normally yield more authentic and detailed information.

Chambers (2003) in Skomolo and Mlotswa (2005, p. 93) sees the role of the

development researcher as the one who “enables others to do their own appraisal,

analysis, presentations, planning and action, to own the outcome, and to teach, learn

and share knowledge”. The product of the research exercise (research report) is

therefore a record of the knowledge and the experiences shared during a mutual or

partnership interaction between the researcher and the researched.

19

In this study, monitoring focused on process monitoring which included the needs of

the participants and their context, the logistics in the school with regard to scheduling

of the career guidance sessions, the delivery of the sessions, classroom issues, the

number of sessions completed and problems experienced as well as the feedback of

learners during the sessions. Planning for the evaluation of outcomes included the

formulation of the outcomes and the identification of methods and data collection

instruments that responded to the research question.

Chen (2005) says that outcome evaluation must employ rigorous design in order to

produce evidence of the programme’s impact or effect. Chen (2005, p.197) refers to

the fact that efficacy evaluation closely follows the traditional scientific approach, but

that it is often difficult in the real world setting and evaluators are often forced to use

quasi-experimental designs. According to Chen (2005), a “before and after”

programme measurement with precise instruments is often needed. Athanasou (2007)

specifically refers to career guidance programme evaluation when he says that there is

a trade-off between designing a study that will provide the answer the researcher

wants and ensuring that the results have external application.

1.8 Research approach There are different ways to categorise the various ways in which research can be

conducted e.g. empirical and desk research, personal interviews and telephonic

interviews, interviewing individuals or interviewing groups. Most often, though,

researchers distinguish between quantitative and qualitative research (Government

Communications, 2009). In this investigation, where a programme was evaluated, the

researcher used qualitative and quantitative data. Athanasou (2007) says that the

evaluation of career programmes is not simply a matter of collecting one piece of

evidence and then deciding that a programme has merit or worth. The evaluation

involves a range of information and includes aspects such as ethics, coverage, costs,

objectives, effects and stakeholders. In this study the focus was only on the outcomes

and the implementation process as stated in the aim and objectives. Qualitative and

quantitative data were used to complement each other and for triangulation.

20

Henning, Van Rensburg and Smit (2004, p. 47) cite Paton and Fetterman and write

the following: “The field of evaluation studies has become an important focus of

qualitative researchers, as programme evaluation especially has come to rely on

qualitative methods.” In this study the qualitative approach was dominant as most of

the data were collected and analysed through the use of qualitative methods, such as

interviews and document analysis. Mcleod (2003) and Henning et al. (2004) refer to

qualitative data as mainly gathered linguistically to get a rich description of experience.

Mcleod (2003) also emphasises that the key area for qualitative research is that of

“meaning”, which people employ to make sense of their experience and guide their

actions. Interviews, document analysis and the collection of qualitative data were

important parts of the monitoring of the implementation of the programme, which was

done by the researcher.

1.8.1 Qualitative research

Hittleman and Simon (1990) in Mulibana (2008, p. 29) posit that qualitative research is

a term used for a broad range of research strategies that has roots in the research of

the social sciences, especially the field research of anthropology and sociology.

Qualitative research makes little or no use of numbers, but focuses on “thick

descriptions” of social settings. This kind of research is characterised by the use of

text, written words to document variables and inductive analysis of the collected

information.

Thick rich description provides the foundation for qualitative analysis and reporting.

This research method is often more challenging and time-consuming than quantitative

research. It is concerned with collecting and analysing information in various forms,

mainly non-numeric. Qualitative research also tends to focus on exploring, in as much

detail as possible, smaller numbers of instances or examples which are seen to be

interesting or illuminating, and aims to achieve “depth” rather than breadth.

“Qualitative” implies a direct concern with experiences they are “lived” or “felt” or

“undergone”. Qualitative research aims at understanding experiences as nearly as

possible as its participants feel or live it (Baxter et al. 1996) in Government

Communications, 2009. Qualitative research aims at getting beneath the surface of

21

verbal responses to explore the real dimension of a problem and the range of attitude

to it. “The qualitative research…is likely to be searching for understanding, rather than

knowledge; for interpretations rather than measurements; for values rather than

facts;…you move away from the analysis given, measurable and objective facts,

verifiable facts, to analysis of thoughts, feelings, expressions and opinions which are

open to debate” (Watling, 2002 cited in Government Communications, 2009, p. 3).

1.8.2. Quantitative research

Quantitative research involves the collection of data in a valid and reliable manner.

Statistical procedures are used in the design, conduct and analysis of that research.

Quantitative research is appropriate when we want to answer questions such as: How

many? How much? How often? When? By whom? Questions like these require precise

and quantifiable answers. Quantitative research can also be defined as research that

aims to measure or put a number to a response. Quantitative research tends to

emphasise relatively large scale and representative sets of data. It is research that is

indirect and abstract and treats experiences as similar, adding or multiplying them

together, or quantifying them (Baxter et al. cited in Government Communications

2009). Quantitative assessment in this study was only used in pre- and post-tests to

compare whether the outcomes of the programme had been achieved. Quantitative

data were collected from a single standardised test, the Career Development

Questionnaire. The pre-test was done in April and the post-test in October.

1.9 Sample

Four schools in one cluster in the Gert Sibande Region formed the population for the

study. From this population a random sample of one Grade 10 class from every school

was selected for the quantitative data collection through a standardised test. Focus

groups of learners from this sample, in each school, had been purposely selected to

collect qualitative data through interviews. The selection of the schools for this

research was approved by the Mpumalanga Department of Education

1.10 Data collection

22

De Vos (1998) identifies data collection as a detailed description of the data gathering

procedure for planned investigation. Description covers the specific techniques to be

employed, the specific measuring instruments to be utilised and a specific series of

activities to be conducted in making the measurement.

1.10.1 Qualitative data

Qualitative data were collected throughout the project, to find out how the programme

was implemented by educators and what the impact of the project was on learners’

career maturity. A programme evaluation research approach was used to collect data.

Qualitative data were collected in different stages during the research project and from

different sources and through different methods. The following is a list of data

collection methods that will be described in detail in Chapter 3:

• Educator training course evaluation

• Semi-structured interviews with LO educators

• Semi-structured interviews with learners in September/October

• Observation and field notes during interviews and school visits

• Reflective journal of the researcher.

The researcher is a senior education specialist responsible for career guidance in the

Gert Sibande region in Mpumalanga. His research included the following:

• Visiting the LO educators after they had been trained

• Obtaining quantitative data through pre- and post-testing, with the Career

Development Questionnaire (CDQ) from the learners involved

• Obtaining qualitative data through:

o Semi-structured interviews with learners

o Semi-structured interviews with LO educators

o Observation and keeping of field notes during interviews and school visits

• Monitoring the application of the activity workbooks and the career guidance

done at the school

• Collecting qualitative and quantitative data to answer the research problem

• Writing a research report which will be presented to the regional director for

decisions about implementation of the programme in schools in the region.

23

1.10.2 Quantitative data

Data were collected quantitatively from a single test – specifically from the South

African standardised CDQ which was administered in April 2008 (pre-test) and in

October 2008 (post-test). The CDQ was developed to determine the readiness of

adolescents and young adults to make decisions on their careers. It examines the five

dimensions of career development, namely:

1. Self-information. This scale concerns the testee’s knowledge of the importance of

life roles, work values and occupational interests.

2. Decision making. This scale concerns the testee’s ability to make effective

decisions.

3. Career information. This scale evaluates the testee’s knowledge of the world of

work.

4. Integration of self-information and career information. This scale concerns the

testee’s ability to integrate relevant information about himself/herself with information

on the world of work.

5. Career planning. This scale evaluates the testee’s ability to make a career decision

and to implement a career plan (Langley, Du Toit & Herbst, 1996).

These dimensions form the core of career guidance and directly correlate with the

outcomes of career guidance in the National Curriculum. The National Curriculum is

the basis of the Career Portfolio Activity Workbooks that were used to facilitate career

guidance as part of Life Orientation, as a subject, in this project. The CDQ is also one

of the measurement instruments linked to the career development and career decision-

making theories that form the theoretical framework for this study.

A quasi-experimental design was used to compare results from one experimental

group in each of the three schools with a control group of a school in the same circuit

that is not involved in the project. Hypothesis (0 and alternative) was formulated for

each individual subscale and the total score.

1.11 Trustworthiness

24

The CDQ has been standardised for secondary school learners in South Africa

(African languages included). Satisfactory reliability coefficients and validity indexes

were established (Langley, Du Toit & Herbst, 1996). It is still the preferred test as there

is no other applicable test and no other applicable test is on the list of the Health

Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA).

Trustworthiness of the whole research was achieved through the rigorous planning,

implementation and recording of the research design and process in order to allow

other researchers to repeat and confirm the research. Trustworthiness was established

through the audio-taping of interviews, the transcription thereof and the qualitative

content data analysis method that was used. A second coder was used to do member

validation. Participants were asked to verify whether the data were correct. This is a

valuable method to validate and triangulate data according to Shaw (1999).

Triangulation refers to the comparison of the data collected through different methods

and from different sources, in this case the CDQ scores, the interview data, document

analysis, observation and reflective journal. Trustworthiness will be discussed in detail

in Chapter 3.

1.12 Ethical measures

Creswell (2003) says that all ethical principles are based on reverence for human

beings and their experiences. It serves to safeguard the dignity, rights, safety and well-

being of each research participant. It also guides the conduct of high-quality research

that will offer benefits and advantages to the research participants and the wider

community.

Consent has been granted by the Mpumalanga Department of Education and the

circuit who are funding the project and research. Consent was also requested from

and granted by the University of Johannesburg. Informed consent was requested from

the schools and the learners and their parents. All participants were informed about

the aim of the project, the method of implementation and what was expected of them.

They were informed that their participation in the research was voluntary and that they

could withdraw at any stage without penalty. Participants were assured that their

25

participation would remain anonymous and that the tape recordings would be in

safekeeping at the UJ by the supervisor, and destroyed after two years. The

researcher respected the dignity of the participants and handled all information with

sensitivity. The researcher ensured that data were collected and reported in a

trustworthy and ethically responsible way. Feedback will be given to all stakeholders

after completion of the project. In following the above guidelines, the researcher

adhered to, and will adhere to guidelines as provided by Henning, et al., (2004) and

Groenewald (2004).

1.13 Lay-out of the chapters

Chapter 1: Orientation to the study.

Chapter 1 consists of the introduction and background to the study. This is followed by

terminology clarification, problem statement, aim and objectives; followed by a

discussion of the research methodology paradigm design, research sample and data

collection. It also includes trustworthiness, ethical measures, lay-out of the chapters

and a summary.

Chapter 2: Theoretical foundation of career guidance and career guidance evaluation.

Chapter 2 is a literature study and consists of an introduction, background of career

guidance, National Curriculum Statement career domain and career maturity. The

discussion of the Career Development Questionnaire is followed by a discussion of

career guidance evaluation and a summary.

Chapter 3: Research methodology

Chapter 3 deals with an introduction, problem statement, aims and objectives and

research paradigm design. The sample schools, their location, size and performance

are discussed, as well as the Life Orientation educators, their qualifications and

experience as LO educators. The chapter ends with data collection, data analysis,

trustworthiness and a summary.

Chapter 4: Data presentation and analysis

26

Chapter 4 deals with the quantitative and qualitative data presentation and analysis as

well as the monitoring of the project and the learner and Life Orientation educator

feedback.

Chapter 5: Conclusions and recommendations

Chapter 5 presents conclusions and recommendations as well as a discussion of the

limitations. Finally, sources of reference and other relevant documentation will be

included.

1.14 Summary

In this chapter the background of the project was sketched and terminology clarified.

The research methodology and paradigm design was also in focus, as well as the

ethical measures and standards the researcher adhered to. To ensure that a

systematic process was followed, the outline of the entire study was presented.

Chapter 2 will focus on a literature study relevant to the project.

27

CHAPTER 2 THEORETICAL FOUNDATION OF CAREER GUIDANCE AND CAREER GUIDANCE EVALUATION

2.1 Introduction.

This chapter is devoted to the theoretical foundation that underpins this study, which

focuses on a programme for career guidance at selected schools in the Mpuluzi circuit

of Mpumalanga. The first part of the chapter will focus on the discussion of theories

that explain career guidance and career behaviour. This is done to provide the

researcher with a broad literature overview and specific theoretical knowledge needed

to understand the concepts of the research topic. The second part of the chapter will

provide information about the outcome for career guidance in the National Curriculum

Statement. The researcher’s data collection and programme evaluation focused on

Grade 10, because career guidance, according to the National Curriculum Statement,

is very intense in this grade. Information will also include references to the

implementation of the outcome to provide criteria for the document analyses that were

done.

2.2 Philosophy of work

The Greeks and Romans of antiquity viewed work as a burden that contaminated the

mind. Manual labour was the domain of slaves while, as Cicero proclaimed, the only

forms of work worthy of free men were big business and agriculture and living the life

of a retired country gentleman. The Hebrews also saw work as drudgery, but

additionally as providing expiation of sin and regaining of spiritual dignity. According to

Protestant views, work was a duty and no activity was superior to another. In Eastern

views, work was seen as instrumental in spiritual and character development. During

the Renaissance the focus was more on the value of a person’s mental rather than his

physical powers (Tilgher, 1962 in Schreuder & Coetzee, 2007, p. 2).

In post-industrialism, the focus is on information rather than on industry. Production is

associated with producing ideas in offices in addition to manufacturing objects in

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factories. The characteristics of the 21st century workplace focus on the changing

meaning of work. Shifts from national to global markets and from technology to

information and service-based economies signal dramatic changes that are also

reflected in the nature of work and the way work is performed (Weiss, 2001 in

Schreuder & Coetzee, 2007, p. 3).

The development of career theories has been influenced by the changes in the world

of work. McDaniels and Gysbers (1992) quoted in Stead and Watson (2006, p.14)

state that the concept of career has been challenged by changes on three levels:

• On the broadest level, there are significant and ongoing changes in the social and

economic environments around us.

• These changes impact, in turn, on individuals’ values and belief systems about

themselves, about others, and about the world of work in general.

• Finally, work is no longer viewed as the only life role in which individuals can

attempt to find personal meaning.

• The changes from industrialism to modernism to post-modernism brought about

by changes in the world of work on the different levels influence career theory

development and the conceptualisation of “career development” and “career

guidance”. This, in turn, determine how the practitioner, in the case of this study,

the Life Orientation educator, will approach career guidance in the school and how

career guidance programmes are designed and implemented.

2.3 Conceptual framework

The developmental-contextual approach captures the process of career development

throughout the school curriculum, focusing in particular on the adolescent stage. This

approach is underpinned by the developmental theory constructs.

2.3.1 Developmental-contextual encapsulates the systems theory framework (STF) of Patton and McMahon

In the STF the individual is the central focus, constructing his or her own meaning of

career. Intrapersonal influences such as gender, interests, age, abilities, personality,

ethnicity and disabilities are depicted at the heart of the STF as part of the individual

29

system. In the STF the individual is both a system in his or her own right and a

subsystem of a broader environmental/social system. This system interacts with the

individual and has an influence on the decision making of the individual. In rural areas

job variety and job opportunities are less varied than in an urban setting. The

influence of older and in some cases illiterate, people and peers on career decision

making can be substantial, especially in the far rural areas. (Patton, McMahon &

Watson, 2006).

A post-modern counselling approach significantly restructures the roles of the

counsellor, the client and assessment and moves counselling towards co-constructing

preferred career stories, narrative and life stories for clients through dialogue. The

emphasis in a narrative or life story counselling approach suggests autobiographical

material rather than formalised tests. The role of the counsellor shifts from tester to co-

author, from interpreting test scores to content theming or editing clients’ narratives.

The goal of assessment changes from seeking absolute measurable truths to seeking

contextual meaning, from quantitative labels to qualitative understanding that is

perceived as useful by the client. Postmodernists generally call for narrative or life

story counselling approach to career counselling in which the responsibility for

narration lies more with the client than with the counsellor or quantified assessment. It

is evident that along with the paradigm shift towards postmodernism has re-emerged

the privileging, in career counselling, of individuals’ subjective understanding of work

(Watson & Kuit, 2007, p. 78).

2.3.2 Constructivism

The world of work and career landscape change to postmodernism reflects a shift from

the objective positivist to the subjective-constructivist paradigm. Savickas has been

revising, expanding and reconstructing Super’s career development theory into what

he has termed career construction theory. According to Savickas careers do not

unfold; they are constructed and individuals are required to continually adapt to meet

the changes they face. He also states that people are affected by the environments

they live in. This means that individuals construct their career development in contexts

that include their physical environment, culture, race and ethnicity, family,

30

neighbourhood and even the historical era they live in (Watson & Stead, 2006, p. 60).

Career education programmes therefore need to take into account the relationship

between career and community if they are to be relevant in the South African context.

2.4 Career theories

There are many theories that attempt to explain career behaviour and choice, with

each theory reflecting the perspectives and philosophical assumptions on which it

chooses to focus. Career theories provide the parameters within which we can

understand and hypothesise about career behaviour and choice (Watson & Stead,

2006, p.13). The conceptual framework that determines the approach to this study is

developmental-contextual and constructivist. The theories that underpin this particular

study include the career development theory of Super; the person-environment

typology of Holland; and the career construction theory of Savickas.

Figure 2.1: Conceptual and theoretical framework

The framework of this study is applicable to the context of the study which is career

guidance in schools in a rural area.

Super’s Develop- mental Theory

Savickas’s Career Construction Theory

Holland’s Personality-EnvironmentalTypology

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2.4.1 Holland’s theory

Holland’s theory emphasises the importance that one’s self-knowledge, especially the

knowledge of one’s personality, must concur with the characteristics of the world of

work to assure job satisfaction. He distinguishes six personality types and six matching

occupational environments. His basic assumption is that most people can be

categorised in one of the six personality types and that they seek environments in

which their personality type can be expressed. These characteristics are based on

preferences for as well as aversions to particular activities. Preferences and aversions

develop from experience involving personal, social, cultural and physical

environmental factors. Preferences become interests and competencies, which

together come to constitute a personal disposition according to which the person

perceives, thinks and acts (Schreuder & Coetzee, 2007, p.100).

The personality types are as follows:

• Realistic. This type is shy, conformist, frank, genuine, masculine, materialistic,

natural, stable, persistent, uninvolved, practical, thrifty and shows lack of self-

insight.

Preferences include well-ordered, systematic handling of tools, machinery and

animals and importance is attached to the concrete, such as money, power and

status.

Aversions include educational activities and social occupations and situations.

Dispositions lead to the acquisition of hand, mechanical, agricultural, electrical

and technical skills.

• Investigative. This type is analytical, cautious, critical, curious, introspective,

independent, passive, rational, methodical, reserved and unassuming.

o Preferences include observation and the systematic, symbolic and

creative examination of physical, biological and cultural phenomena, with

the object of understanding and controlling them, and importance is

attached to science.

o Aversions include persuasive, social and repetitive activities.

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o Dispositions lead to the acquisition of scientific and mathematical skills

and lack of persuasive abilities.

• Artistic. This type is complex, emotional, disorderly, feminine, imaginative,

idealistic, impractical, impulsive, introspective, independent, intuitive,

nonconformist and original.

o Preferences include ambiguous, free, unsystematic activities that involve

manipulating human, physical and verbal material so as to create art

forms or art products; importance is attached to the aesthetic.

o Aversions include explicit, systematic and ordered activities.

o Dispositions lead to skills in the musical, entertainment and fashion

worlds, public relations, journalism, architecture and photography.

• Social. This type is friendly, generous, co-operative, persuasive, idealistic,

kind, tactful, understanding, sociable, responsible, feminine, helpful and shows

insight.

o Preferences include informing, developing and helping others and

importance is attached to social and ethical activities and problems.

o Aversions include ordered, systematic activities that involve using

materials, tools or machines.

o Dispositions lead to skills in human relations such as interpersonal and

educational competencies and lack of manual and technical skills.

• Enterprising. This type is adventurous, acquisitive, ambitious, dependent,

domineering, exhibitionist, impulsive, optimistic, energetic, self-confident and

pleasure-seeking.

o Preferences include manipulating others in order to reach organisational

or economic goals and significance is attached to political and economic

gains.

o Aversions include observational, symbolical or systematic activities.

o Dispositions lead to the acquisition of leadership, interpersonal and

persuasive skills.

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• Conventional. This type is conformist, defensive, conscientious, efficient,

inflexible, inhibited, orderly, practical, persistent, and prudish and lacks

imagination.

o Preferences include explicit, orderly, systematic handling of data, such

as keeping of records and numerical data and processing machines to

achieve organisational or economic goals.

o Aversions include the ambiguous, free, investigative and unsystematic.

o Dispositions lead to clerical, business and computer skills and a lack of

artistic skills.

This type of career guidance was very much centred on the knowledge that was

gained and had the view that once a person found a career, this was for life. In other

words, career decision making was seen as a once-in-a-lifetime experience. This

matching of a person to a career puts great emphasis on testing in order to determine

personal and job characteristics without taking personal growth and self-improvement

into account.

The Holland (1997) system is a popular explanatory and predictive model of career

behaviour. It is not only intended for psychologists. The theory may be applied just as

meaningfully by LO educators, personnel workers, human resources managers and

even career exhibition organisers. It is indeed a very useful system for guidance work

in schools and community centres. This theory is not limited to one-on-one counselling

only. Holland (1997) sees career assistance actions in broader context and therefore

also speaks of career support, which includes not only career counselling, but also

group sessions, the use of workbooks and computerised versions of his system (Nel,

2006).

The six personalities and environment types provide a pattern with which those who

have been tested can identify. An almost similar format is seen in the Career Portfolio

Activity Workbook (CPAW) that was used in this study to do career guidance for the

Grade 10 learners. Frazer (2009) mentioned in a study on the CPAW that learners

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experienced the pattern recognition as positive, because it complemented the picture

they formed about themselves.

2.4.2 Super’s theory

Super’s theory is in essence a developmental theory with constructs, such as life

space, life roles, career maturity and self-concept. The movement away from

conceptualising career choice as a once-off event towards viewing it as an ongoing

process is regarded as “Super’s single most important idea” (Super, Savickas, &

Super, quoted in Watson & Stead, 2006, p. 51). Super’s catch phrase of “until you

know who you are, you won’t know what you can become” has been conceptually

unpacked and repackaged by many authors, including Super. His theory moved the

field towards a psychology of careers, i.e. fitting work roles into individuals’ lives, with

the developmental nature of this process reflecting general human development

principles. The sequence here is: it is through knowing who one is that one

establishes what one can become. Work satisfaction is therefore largely dependent on

the extent to which individuals have been able to implement their self-concepts in a

chosen work situation (Stead & Watson, 2006, pp. 51-59). After visiting South Africa,

and realising the cultural context, Super stated in an interview that career

development in some of the African and South Eastern countries is really a matter of

fitting into what the family wants and what the family needs (Freeman, quoted in Stead

& Watson, 2006).

Super formulated his theory of career development as a process over five life stages

from childhood to old age. Fundamentally, career development is seen as comprising

the formation and implementation of self-concepts in occupational contexts. It is a

process that involves a synthesis or compromise between the individual’s self-

concepts and aspects of reality such as social, economic and cultural factors (Super &

Bohn, 1971 in Schreuder & Coetzee, 2007).

The life stages, as defined by Super quoted in Schreuder & Coetzee (2007), are:

• Growth (birth to age ± 12-14)

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Children develop concepts of themselves through contact with adults who

become role models. Pleasant experiences lead to the development of

interests, which, together with the development of self-esteem, autonomy and

future perspective, provides the capacity for forward planning. If these

characteristics do not develop, feelings of alienation, of being helpless in a

world dominated by other people may result.

• Exploration (adolescence, age ± 14-25)

Adolescents at first make tentative career choices, which may be tried out in the

exploration of part-time or holiday work. Tentative choices are usually followed

by exploration of a chosen field in greater depth. If an individual pursues a

career as a result of the inspiration or expectations of parents or other adults, it

may at a later stage result in a career crisis.

• Establishment (early adulthood, age ± 25-45)

Generally, establishment involves a period of trial in the late twenties and a

period of stabilisation in the thirties and early forties. Trial includes a succession

of job changes before a final choice is made or before it becomes clear that the

career will consist of changes. During stabilisation, security and advancement

become priorities. Frustration due to unsuccessful stabilisation may lead to

either stagnation or change. Most people stabilise, but some thrive on change

and see their careers as a series of trial periods.

• Maintenance (middle adulthood, age ± 45-65)

At this stage, there is generally continuation along established lines in one’s

work. Some individuals, who have not achieved what they wanted to, may

stagnate in the status quo and avoid actively acquiring new knowledge and

skills. Others may focus on reaching further goals, for example, by means of

further studies, while still others become innovators of change, akin to some

individuals in the establishment stage.

• Decline (old age from ± 65)

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As people enter old age, they first tend to decelerate work activities by, for

example, seeking less responsibility or selectively changing work roles.

Depending on the person and the situation, retirement may result in a sense of

loss, or it may be stimulating in that new choices can be made.

As Super’s theory developed and gained acknowledgement, there was a greater

understanding of lifespan career development. One of the important influences was

the idea of readiness for career work, in other words the idea of career maturity

(Akhurst & Mkhize, 2006).

Super’s aim was never to produce an integrated theory, but rather a theory that was

made up of loosely unified segments. Since Super’s death there has been a concerted

effort to cement the different segments of his theory. Savickas, a major proponent of

such attempts, has stated that Super’s theory will advance in the present millennium if

attempts continue to “interdigitate the discrete segments into a single, comprehensive

theory that meets the tenets of modern theory construction” (Savickas, 1997, p. 251 in

Stead & Watson, 2006, p. 62). Further, Savickas (2001) argues that the future benefit

of Super’s theory relies on us adapting his global constructs to our local contexts and

our changing circumstances. Therein lays the future goal for Super’s theory. It is a

goal that South African career practitioners and researchers need to become more

involved in if they are to effectively and relevantly assist in the career development of

all South Africans. It will require us all to become more career “adaptable” (Watson &

Stead, 2006, p. 62).

2.4.3 Savickas’ career construction theory

Savickas has been revising, expanding and reconstructing Super’s career

development theory into what he has termed “career construction theory” (Watson &

Stead, 2006). Career construction theory provides a way of thinking about how

individuals choose and use work. The theory presents a model for comprehending

vocational behaviour across the lifecycle as well as methods and materials that career

counsellors can use to help clients make vocational choices and maintain successful

and satisfying work lives. It seeks to be comprehensive in its purview by taking three

37

perspectives on vocational behaviour: the differential, developmental and dynamic.

From the perspective of individual differences psychology, it examines the content of

vocational personality types and what different people prefer to do. From the

perspective of developmental psychology, it examines the process of psychosocial

adaptation and how individuals cope with vocational development tasks, occupational

transitions and work traumas. From the perspective of narrative psychology, it

examines the dynamics by which life themes impose meaning on vocational behaviour

and why individuals fit work into their lives in distinct ways. In coordination, the three

perspectives enable counsellors and researchers to survey how individuals construct

their careers by using life themes to integrate the self-organisation of personality and

the self-extension of career adaptability into a self-defining whole that animates work,

directs occupational choice and shapes vocational adjustment (Savickas, 2005, pp. 42-

70).

In part, career construction theory builds on Super’s earlier concept of thematic

extrapolation. Savickas has differentiated the social constructionist and constructivist

roots of his theory as epistemological rather than ontological, that is, individuals

construct their representation of reality, but they do not construct reality itself (Watson

& Stead, 2006). There is a critical focus in career construction theory on contextualist

worldview. This implies that individual career development is more the result of

ongoing adaptation to the individual’s changing contexts, than of maturation of

prescribed career behaviours. In this sense, “careers do not unfold, they are

constructed” (Savickas, 2002, p. 154) and individuals are required to continually adapt

to meet the changes they face.

As understandings of career development have evolved and the notion of life-span

career development has become more widely accepted, the appropriateness of the

traditional approach to career counselling has been challenged. Savickas urged that

career counselling needs to move from “seeking truth to participation in conversations;

from objectivity to perspectivity”. As constructivism represents an epistemological

position that emphasises self-organising and proactive knowing, it provides a

38

perspective from which to conceptualise changing notions of career (Savickas, quoted

by Patton, 2007, p.124).

Of relevance for South African career psychology is the notion that “people are

embedded in environments that affect them” (Savickas, 2002, p. 157). This means that

individuals construct their career development in multi-layered macro- and micro-

contexts that include their physical environment, their culture, race, ethnicity, their

family and neighbourhood, their school, and even the historical era they are living in.

Given South Africa’s past and present history, career construction theory seems

particularly appropriate in our multi-cultural society (Watson & Stead, 2006, pp. 59-60).

2.5 The construct of career maturity and career adaptability

Career maturity is a concept that is linked to career resilience. Individuals who make

career decisions that reflect decisiveness, involvement, independence, task

orientation and willingness to compromise between needs and reality have usually

achieved a high degree of career maturity (London, 1993 in Schreuder & Coetzee,

2007, p. 66). The concept “career maturity” is also closely related to career self-

efficacy. Career self-efficacy refers to the degree of difficulty of career tasks, which

individuals believe they are to attempt, and the degree to which their beliefs will

persist, despite obstacles. Furthermore, career self-efficacy refers to the degree to

which individuals’ beliefs can be transferred to other tasks necessary for making

career decisions. While low career decision-making self-efficacy facilitates avoidance

of career decision tasks and prolongs career indecision, high career decision-making

self-efficacy leads to a higher level of participation in career decision-making

behaviours and tasks (Watson, Foxcroft & Eaton, quoted in Schreuder & Coetzee,

2007).

Career maturity is described by Super (1984) as the extent to which a person is able

to master those career developmental tasks that are applicable to his particular stage

of life. Determining the individual’s state of career maturity is therefore important in the

process of career guidance. This information can be used to determine which of the

individual’s career development tasks require further attention, and by giving attention

39

to these matters, the individual’s readiness to deal with career planning requirements

can be enhanced.

Maree (2002, p.10) states that a more open-ended approach has steadily grown, so

much so that, with regards to adults, the concept of “career maturity” has been

rejected in favour of the concept of “career development”. Collins and Young (1968)

emphasise the need to see individuals as self-determining and self-defining, to

acknowledge not only their subjective experiences, but to understand these traits and

experiences against the backdrop of the individuals’ own frames of reference.

Langley et al. (1996) summarises five common dimensions that can be regarded as

essential stages of development leading to career maturity, as follows:

• Obtaining information by the person himself and converting this information to

self-knowledge

• Acquiring decision-making skills and applying them in effective decision

making

• Gathering career information and converting it into knowledge of the

occupational world

• Integration of self-knowledge and knowledge of the occupational world

• Implementation of knowledge in career planning.

Savickas (2005) has led the way in reinterpreting and reconstructing Super’s theory.

Critical in his construction of career development theory (Savickas, 2002, 2005) has

been his reuse of the term of adaptation. He argues that the first step towards bridging

the segments of Super’s theory is to replace career maturity with career adaptability as

the central construct in career development theory. This would imply that the term

“career maturity” would no longer apply to the specific stage of Exploration, nor would

the term “career adaptability” apply specifically to the Establishment stage. For

instance, Savickas argues that the transition from school to work calls more for

adaptation than it does for completing a maturational task.

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Career adaptability takes on a more holistic meaning that is equally applicable across

all stages of the life span. The term implies that an individual is able to change to meet

change, that there is an ongoing need to respond to one’s changing circumstances.

The suggestion that career adaptability should replace career maturity as central

career developmental concept has been well received (Watson & Stead, 2006).

The career construction theory concentrates on what individuals can become in doing

work, not what they are before they go to work. Work, as a context for human

development, provides the outer form of something intensely private; it is the bridge

between public and private. Crossing the bridge between self and society is called

adaptation. Life themes guide the expression of personality in work, while the

expression itself is managed by the process of career adaptation. Viewing career

construction as a series of attempts to implement a self-concept in social roles focuses

attention on adaptation to a series of transitions, from school to work, from job to job,

and from occupation to occupation. Career construction theory views adaptation to

these transitions as fostered by five principal types of behaviours: orientation,

exploration, establishment, management and disengagement (Savickas, 2005).

2.6 The construct career development and career management

The terminology for career practice refers to career education, career guidance and

career counselling and these terms are often used interchangeably. In this study, the

term “career education” will be used in reference to the broader perspective. The terms

“career counselling” and “career guidance” will be integrated and the term used in this

study will be “career guidance” because it is the term used in the NCS in South Africa

when referring to the facilitation of career development of learners as part of the formal

curriculum in the subject Life Orientation. The person who facilitates career guidance is

the Life Orientation educator.

Career guidance is necessary to ensure that learners choose careers which firstly suit

their personal profiles and which are secondly in demand so that they are employable.

Akhurst and Mkize (2006) say that large numbers of South Africa’s youth and adults fit

into categories such as: limited exposure to the world of work; little access to career

41

services; no knowledge of higher education institutions; and a narrow range of social

contacts. This emphasises the extent of the need for career guidance in South Africa.

Akhurst and Mkize (2006) add and say that the challenge is to find models of career

education that are able to respond to the enormous challenges for effective career

guidance in the South African context. According to Stead and Subich (2006), career

counselling in South Africa is in need of research that provides supporting evidence for

workable counselling models and techniques.

The career development approach to career guidance refers firstly to career

development as a process, and secondly to the importance of applicable information in

career guidance practice. It boils down to the career guidance counsellor being able to

obtain the necessary information by making use of various aids.

Career guidance involves the following:

• The acceptance that individuals go through various stages of development,

also in the development of their careers

• Determining the particular stage of development in which the individual finds

himself/herself

• The identification of suitable aids to obtain the required and relevant information

on the individual

• The development of a method that can be used to collect this information in

order to clarify the individual’s career planning situation.

Based on a literature study conducted by Langley (1989) eleven steps with reference

to career guidance were identified, namely:

• Identify the needs in career development

• Evaluate the relative importance of various roles

• Evaluate the values strived after in each role in life

• Identify vocational interest

• Evaluate other relevant factors (personality, intelligence, school/university

subjects, aptitude, self-image, family functioning)

• Reach an appropriate level of career maturity

• Acquire decision-making skills

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• Obtain information on careers

• Integrate one’s own information with career information

• Make career decisions

• Plan a career and implement the plans.

This approach involves the aim of regarding the individual as a whole as far as

mastering career development tasks are concerned. A further aim is to determine with

regard to what relevant developmental area the individual’s achievement is

inadequate, so that remedial steps can be taken to bring the individual up to the same

level of career development as that which can generally be expected of the life stage

group to which he belongs (Langley, 1996).

With reference to the above listed aspects and career guidance steps, Beekman

(2009) highlighted the changing discourse in career psychology and career education ,

which is the shift from assessment or collection of information to the stimulation of

exploration and insight into own career development and career management. This

encapsulates post-modern career counselling and guidance within a constructivist

paradigm. The steps listed by Langley stay the same, but the paradigm shifts from the

counsellor as an expert to the client, in this case the learner, as active agent.

This shift is important and should be taken into account when LO educators plan

career guidance for learners. The first reality is that LO educators work with big groups

of learners (50-70 is not uncommon), and in extreme cases even up to 100 learners.

Learning activities for career guidance have to be planned in a creative way to

maximise exploration through a mixture of individual and group work. Beekman

(2009a) mentions that the reality of career guidance or counselling South Africa is

group work, because there will never be enough counsellors to do this in spite of the

ideal of and need for individual career counselling. Fraser (2009) found in a case

study for group counselling that a group of five learners experienced career guidance

in a group as positive, especially because learners could use one another as a sound

board to integrate knowledge and gain insight.

Career management can be described as an ongoing process whereby the individual:

43

• Obtains self-knowledge (interests, values, abilities, personality, career patterns

and career anchors)

• Obtains a knowledge of employment opportunities (jobs, work roles, skills

demand, skills acquisition opportunities, venture creation possibilities, work

places

• Develops career goals

• Develops a strategy

• Implements the strategy and experiments with various employment

possibilities,

• Obtains feedback on the effectiveness of the strategy and the relevance of the

goals (Coetzee, 2005b; Greenhaus et al., 2000 in Schreuder & Coetzee, 2007,

p. 60).

Armstrong and Crombie, (2000) describe career management as a process which

involves making realistic choices which include greater attention to one’s own skills

and the demand for those skills in the labour market. This implies moving away from

an exclusive focus on interests to examine realistic choices within a zone of preferred

and possible choices (Schreuder & Coetzee, 2007, p. 61). Career management

support should therefore include guidance and counselling regarding not only interest

assessment but also facilitating decision making, enhancing the fit between the

individual’s ability and the demand for those skills and how the individual could acquire

the required skills. Skills acquisition plays a critical role in occupational goal attainment

(Ostroff, Shin & Feinberg, 2002 in Schreuder & Coetzee, 2007, p. 61).

They continue to say that performance experience continually provides opportunities

for revisiting one’s perceived talents, abilities, interests and altering one’s career

goals. They also emphasise career management training for particularly new entrants

to the world of work. Such training should include self-knowledge, occupational

knowledge, technical skills and general employability skills due to the growing

awareness that individuals need to prepare for several different types of jobs rather

than a single job.

44

Greenhaus et al., (2000, pp.12-13) state that career management can briefly be

described as an ongoing process in which an individual:

• Gathers relevant information about himself and the world of work

• Develops an accurate picture of his talents, interests, values, and preferred life-

style as well as alternative occupations, jobs, and organisations

• Develops realistic career goals based on this information

• Develops and implements a strategy designed to achieve the goals

• Obtains feedback on the effectiveness of the strategy and the relevance of the

goals.

From an individual’s perspective, effective career management is particularly

important in the light of the economic, technological, and cultural environment. In

rapidly changing and uncertain times, career success and satisfaction will most likely

be achieved by individuals who understand themselves, know how to detect changes

in the environment, create opportunities for themselves, and learn from their mistakes,

all elements of effective career management.

In an era of rightsizing, outsourcing, and corporate reorganisation, individuals who

have insight into themselves and their options should be more able to overcome

obstacles to their career growth. Moreover, careers will become less structured, less

automatic and more unpredictable. Established career paths may be replaced by more

innovative, idiosyncratic routes to success. As organisations become more responsive

to rapidly changing business priorities, greater flexibility will be required on the part of

the employee. Flexibility and adaptability are hallmarks of career management.

2.7 Career counselling

Career counselling is all about choice, and choice implies the making of decisions

(Watson & Nqweni, 2006). Choice is best made based on sufficient and relevant

information. Thus career counselling involves information: self-information about the

individual who must make a decision and career information about the options the

individual is considering. There has been little attempt to differentiate career

counselling as a distinct form of career intervention. Similarly, South African research

45

in the field of career counselling has focused, in reality, to a greater extent on the more

holistic concept of career education. In the South African context, especially in rural

schools where the number of learners per class is high (sometimes fifty or more

learners), there needs to be a greater focus on group-based career intervention. Most

rural students have limited understanding and knowledge of the world of work as well

as very few role models. The ideal remains that career counselling should be an

individualised process (Watson & Nqweni, 2006).

Career counselling and career choice are functions of agreement between the

individual and the job, and the more agreement there is, the more likely productivity

and satisfaction in a given occupation can be predicted for a given individual. In the

application of this approach, the nature and requirements of the occupation determine

which individual characteristics (traits and factors) that are measured for vocational

guidance purposes are mental abilities, personality characteristics and, to a lesser

extent, values:

• Mental abilities include intelligence and aptitude. Intelligence consists of a

combination of various factors that represent judgement, reasoning, problem

solving and learning ability, while aptitude refers to the potential to acquire skills

through training and experience - that is, skills related to intelligence or specific

aptitudes such as artistic, musical or mechanical aptitudes.

• Personality characteristics include factors such as dominance, emotional

stability, shrewdness, introversion, and extraversion. Such factors can be

combined in a personality profile of the individual, which can be matched with

occupational requirements.

• Interests concern likes and dislikes, for example, the individual’s preferences for

certain occupations or fields of study. These may involve social, practical,

commercial, aesthetic, outdoor or intellectual/scientific activities. Measuring

interests provides information from which needs and motives can be inferred.

• Values concern intentional behaviour and influence preferences as they involve

interests, needs and motives. Values are measured in terms of general values

such as economic, political, religious, aesthetic and theoretical and in terms of

46

work-related values, such as financial security, authority, altruism, autonomy,

risk, variety and creativity (Schreuder & Coetzee, 2007, pp. 95-96).

The assumptions of life career counselling (Brown & Srebalus, 2003, pp.130-131) are

as follows:

• All life roles are interconnected

• Individuals strive to attain homeostasis among their life roles

• Difficulty in one life role (e.g. career) will have a negative impact on the other life

roles

• Harmony and congruence in one life role will positively affect other life roles

• Positive functioning in one life role can attenuate stress brought about by

negative aspects of another life role

• All life roles offer the possibility of satisfaction and dissatisfaction, although they

do not hold the same potential at any given time

• Personal perceptions of the importance of a particular life role will be directly

related to its potential for satisfaction or dissatisfaction

• Intervention in one life role may be made directly in that life role or indirectly in

other life roles. Thus, all problems have multiple solutions

• Interventions that bring positive changes in one life role may break the dynamic

homeostasis that has developed among various life roles and thus have a

negative impact on another.

According to Savickas (1993), career counselling in the post-modern era is

characterised by a number of innovations, one of which is the assumption that the

client is the soul expert or authority on himself or herself. This leads one to accept that

clients need to be empowered rather than made to conform to the “normal” curve of

average characteristics. A career counsellor who believes this would thus help a client

to rewrite his or her individual narrative (Maree, 2007).

2.8 Career education

Career education is concerned with preparing the person for the choices and

transitions that life presents (Akhurst & Mhize, 2006). Kileen (1996) notes that “the

47

new career realities are uncertainty, unpredictability, insecurity, reduced likelihood of

promotion, increased likelihood of mobility out of one’s initial occupational field, non-

standard employment contracts, and other non-standard working”. He states, in Stead

and Watson (2006, p.142), that career education will need to prepare the learners of

today for “insecure underemployment”.

Akhurst and Mkize (2006, p.139) believe that career education in South Africa has the

potential to make a positive contribution to the upliftment and development of

especially the rural community and thus to the economic development of the country.

This may seem to be an ambitious claim, but if a developmental perspective is to be

followed, career education should begin in schools and then proceed to tertiary

institutions, the workplace and into the broader community. In this way it will support

the idea of lifelong learning.

Gibson and Mitchell (1999, p. 312) define career education as: “…those planned for

educational experiences that facilitate a person’s career development and preparation

for the world of work, the totality of experiences through which one learns about and

prepares for engaging in work as part of a way of living. It is a primary responsibility of

the school with emphasis on learning about, planning for and preparing to enter a

career”.

This definition highlights a number of key aspects of career education:

• The experiences are “planned for”. This emphasises the role of educators in

focusing on, thinking about and facilitating activities with the purpose of career

education in mind. It raises questions about the levels of conscious planning for

career education in the South African educational context, especially when the

large number of rural schools is taken into account.

• Career education is focused on the “person”. Career education is, of necessity,

responsive to the individuals for whom it is designed, and must take their

contexts into account. There is a strong developmental perspective. Career

education is particularly relevant in the exploration stage of an individual’s

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career development. This occurs initially in adolescence, prior to an individual’s

first career choice, but this does not mean that exploration does not continue

during the process of engaging in the world of work as a young adult. It may

also continue when other career decision making occurs, for example when

voluntarily changing jobs or career directions, or when the individual is forced

into exploration owing to retrenchment or the need for retraining. In many cases

it also becomes relevant when a person nears retirement and plans to do

something new in his golden years.

• The world of work is emphasised “as part of a way of living”. This is not limited

to a list of occupations, but is concerned with the many skills and attitudes that

are required for adjustment to the working world. Individuals vary greatly

regarding their concepts of the world of work. Some may have limited

knowledge owing to their experiential backgrounds. Others may have expanded

ideas because of the exposure to the media, although their self-concepts, their

perceptions of others’ opinions of them, and the demands of their family

situations may constrain their career choices.

• The phrase “totality of experiences” also needs to be highlighted. Career

education must take into account and integrate all the life experiences of the

learner if it is to be relevant and responsive to contextual issues. In schools,

much career education was previously conducted in a didactic, teacher-centred

way, with little consideration of the life experiences of the learners. If there is a

mismatch between what is presented and the world of the learners, career

education is likely to have little impact, or will lead to unrealistic ideas about

careers and the world of work.

• Career education is initially located in the formal education sector, even though

this is by no means the only place for such activities. The foundations of career

knowledge and the skills of planning and decision making need to be laid in

school. Educators need to acknowledge that one of their primary

49

responsibilities is that of preparing learners for the working world (Akhurst &

Mkhize, 2006).

This definition is broad, but it paints a picture of career education which is far more

integral to many educational activities than is apparent in South Africa at present. It

emphasises “the meaning and meaningfulness of work in the total lifestyle of the

individual” according to Hoyt (1970) in Stead and Watson (2006, p.141).

2.9 National Curriculum Statement career domain

Avent (1988) notes four major thrusts of careers work in secondary schools in the

United Kingdom:

• Fostering knowledge about courses in tertiary institutions, their links to career

choices and the entry requirements.

• Providing information on the whole spectrum of possible occupations, the

lifestyle associated with different work contexts and the opportunities available.

• Developing self awareness through understanding individual abilities, interests,

ideals and values, as well as developing personality characteristics which may

lead to success in achieving career aspirations.

• Practising decision making and developing life skills for coping with transitions

(e.g. school work, work employment, continued education, changes in work,

and re-entry into the job market).

When one considers these four facets of career education, it becomes clear why the

subject has been incorporated into Life Orientation and why it is a compulsory subject

in South African schools. Career education should, ideally, also be incorporated into

all the other learning areas and subjects. Every educator should be a career educator

and promoter of careers in his field of expertise. Career education may thus be

regarded as an umbrella term for a variety of different experiences that contribute to

the expansion of the learner’s repertoire of knowledge, attitudes and skills related to

the world of work.

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In 1995 the South African government began the process of developing a new

curriculum for the school system. There were two imperatives for this. First, the scale

of change in the world, the growth and development of knowledge and technology and

the demands of the 21st century required learners to be exposed to different and

higher level skills and knowledge than those required by the existing South African

curricula. Secondly, South Africa had changed after democracy was accepted in 1994.

The curricula for schools therefore required revision to reflect new values and

principles, especially those of the Constitution of South Africa. The first version of the

new curriculum was known as Curriculum 2005, which led to the basis for the

development of the Revised National Curriculum Statement for General Education and

Training Grades (R-9) and the National Curriculum Statement (Grades 10-12). The

National Curriculum Statement consists of 29 subjects of which Life Orientation is one.

2.9.1 Life Orientation as a fundamental subject

Life Orientation is one of the four fundamental subjects required for the National

Senior Certificate, which means that it is compulsory for all learners in Grades 10 to

12. Life Orientation is the study of the self in relation to others and to society. It is a

unique subject in the Further Education and Training Band in that it applies a holistic

approach to the personal, social, intellectual, emotional, spiritual, motor and physical

growth and development of learners. It also prepares learners to respond positively to

the demands of the world and the world of work, to assume responsibilities and to

make the most of life’s opportunities. In Grade 10 to 12 Life Orientation has the

following four learning outcomes:

• Learning Outcome 1: Personal well-being

• Learning Outcome 2: Citizenship education

• Learning Outcome 3: Physical education

• Learning Outcome 4: Careers and career choices.

2.9.2 Developmental outcomes of Life Orientation

There are five cross-curricular developmental outcomes of which three are directly

linked with career guidance:

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• Developmental outcome 1: Learning strategies. Learners are guided to explore,

apply, reflect and refine study, assessment and exam-writing skills.

• Developmental outcome 4: Education and Career. This addresses study skills

and the diversity of jobs and how to link career choices to own personality. This

gives learners clear direction for the careers they should consider and helps

them to make informed study and career choices. Careers linked to the

recreation, fitness and sport industries are highlighted to make learners aware

of job opportunities in these industries.

• Developmental outcome 5: Entrepreneurial. It must be emphasised that while

all the skills and knowledge acquired by learners in Life Orientation could

contribute to the pursuit of an economically viable career, some individuals may

find it to their advantage to look at self-employment opportunities as a way in

which to ensure a regular income (DoE, 2007).

2.9.3 Learning outcome 4 of the National Curriculum Statement

This learning outcome focuses on career and career choices. The learner must be able

to demonstrate self-knowledge and the ability to make informed decisions regarding

further study, career fields and career pathing.

Demonstrating self-awareness and exploring socio-economic factors as

considerations in own subject, career and study choices:

• Knowledge about life domains:

Being (physical, psychological, spiritual)

Becoming (practical, leisure, growth)

Community (social, physical, community)

• Difference between career fields and careers

• Assessing information

• Steps in choosing and the decision-making process

• Investigating the diversity of jobs according to economic sectors, as well as

work settings and forms of activities in each sectors in relation to self

• Primary sector (raw materials), secondary sector (finished products/goods),

and tertiary sector (infrastructure, providing services)

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• Workplace environment and conditions

• Forms of activity

• Skills and competencies

• Various facets of self and integration into the world of work.

Displaying an awareness of trends and demands in the job market and the need for

life-long learning (National Curriculum Statement Grades 10-12, Life Orientation, DoE, 2003).

Table 2.1: Dimensions/facets of career guidance

Identified facets Subjects on which information is required NCS 1 Self-information 1 Career guidance needs

2 Importance of life roles 3 Work values 4 Occupational interest 5 State of career development 6 Other: personality aptitudes family functioning

Gr 8 Gr 9 Gr 10 Gr 10 Gr 10 Gr 11 & 12 Gr 11 & 12 Gr 11 & 12

2 Decision making Ability to make effective decisions All grades 3 Information on the occupational world

1 Different occupations 2 Training facilities 3 Financial support for studies

Gr 9 & 10

4 Integration of self-information with information on the occupational world

Ability to integrate relevant information and use it in decision making

All grades-specifically Gr 11

5 Planning a career Ability to plan one’s own career and to implement one’s decisions

Gr 11 & 12

(Adapted from Langley, 1996, p. 6).

2.10 Summary

The conceptual framework discussed in this study is in line with the contemporary

developments in career psychology, which is developmental-contextual and

constructivist in nature. The theories selected for the study are aligned with the

conceptual framework and within the context of the study. The theories underpin the

approach to career education and career guidance as envisaged in the NCS and

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inform the career guidance programme that was implemented and evaluated in this

study. Chapter 3 will provide an in-depth explanation of the research approach and

methodology applied to this investigation.

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CHAPTER 3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGIES 3.1 Introduction

The focus of this enquiry was to evaluate aspects of a career guidance programme in

selected rural schools. This chapter will provide a detailed discussion and explanation

of the research methodology that was followed in doing the research to ensure rigour

and to increase trustworthiness. The essence of career programme evaluation will be

discussed where after the specific methodology, as applied to this inquiry, will be

detailed.

3.2 Career guidance programme evaluation

The question which had to be answered in this enquiry was: What was the impact of

the career guidance programme with regards to the achievement of learners on the

career development questionnaire and effectiveness of the implementation process of

the career guidance programme in the selected rural schools?

The aim of this research was to evaluate the implementation and outcomes of a career

guidance programme in the Mpuluzi area in Mpumalanga, to make recommendations

with regard to the implementation process and impact of the programme for decisions

on the future expansion of the programme in the province. Outcomes referred to the

achievement of learners on the scales of the CDQ, while the process referred to what

happened during the implementation of the career guidance programme and how the

educators experienced the implementation.

According to Chen (1994), programme evaluation is a form of applied social research

that focuses on how a programme works and what it accomplishes. He continues to

say that evaluators attempt to answer such questions as: is a programme

accomplishing its goals? Is the programme operating as planned? Is the programme

more effective in ameliorating the target problem than other programmes not

accomplishing anything? How can the programme be improved and should it be

continued?

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Athanasou (2007) states that evaluation is an important part of managing that has a

place in every field of human activity. It is especially relevant in career guidance in

order to ensure the following:

• The career guidance needs of the participants (learners and educators) must

be satisfied

• There must be benefits from the programme to the community

• The guidance approach and application must be efficient

• The most ethical methods must be used

• The rights of all stakeholders must be maintained.

Evaluation is one step to improving career guidance. Its purpose is to provide the

information that will help researchers to make judgements about the appropriateness,

effectiveness and efficiency of a programme. Evaluation encompasses the word

“value”. The greatest benefit of evaluation is that it helps one to think critically about

what one is doing and to look more objectively at the programmes or services that

one is running.

Furthermore, evaluation is a natural response to improving any initiative. While

informal evaluations occur frequently in the lives of individuals, evaluation as a

discipline has achieved prominence as a formal exercise in the area of examining the

impact of public programmes, policies and initiatives. It is an example of the deeply

held view that “the methodology of science can be harnessed for the improvement

and effective management of social affairs” (Norris, 1990 in Athanasou, 2007).

Athanasou (2007) continues and says that the evaluation of career guidance comes

under the broad umbrella of educational evaluation. When he refers to career

guidance, he includes group counselling, one-to-one counselling, career advisory

services, telephone career information and advice, career information and vocational

guidance.

Athanasou (2007) describes six steps in the evaluation process and the questions

that are relevant in each step.

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Step 1: Is the programme or service ethical?

This question should be asked before any programme evaluation takes place, and the

following questions should be taken into account:

• Ethics/morality

• Trust

• Conflicts of interest

• Social and political interests

• Any impact on privacy or confidentiality

• Any abuse of privilege

• Whether human ethical guidelines have been satisfied.

Step 2: To what extent do the programmes or services cover those who are most

in need?

While it is important to establish that large numbers of people are capable of being

served, it is also important to relate it to questions of:

• The incidence of the career need

• The prevalence of the educational or career need

• The sensitivity of the programme

• The specificity of the career education or career guidance

• The attendance and completion rates of any course.

Step 3: What are the costs, benefits and utilities of the programme or service?

The cost involved in the Mpuluzi project is relatively low. It consists only of the

remuneration for the training of the Life Orientation educators and R20 per learner per

year. The rest of the project is handled by officials of the Department of Education. The

beneficiaries in this case are the Life Orientation educators, the learners and the whole

school environment, and eventually the community and the country will benefit.

Step 4: Did the programme or service achieve its key objective?

The focus of this question is to focus attention on the key objectives of the programme.

To what extent were the outcomes achieved? A peculiar difficulty in evaluations is

separating the short- and long-term effects of career education. Kirkpatrick (1996) in

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Athanasou (2007, p. 26) gives a multi-dimensional approach that offers a

straightforward basis for educational evaluation, Kirkpatrick’s hierarchy of evaluation. It

consists of four levels:

• Level 1 Reaction- programme participants’ estimates of satisfaction provide

an immediate level of evaluation

• Level 2 Learning- the extent of learning (i.e. skill acquisition, attitude change)

that has been achieved is also of interest

• Level 3 Behaviour- did skills development, e.g. self- and career exploration

take place?

• Level 4 Results- the wider impact of the programme in the communities

observed at this level in the hierarchy.

Step 5: What is the net effect of the programme or service?

To determine the effectiveness of a programme is a challenge. The significance of any

learning effect must be described. To be able to do this it must be contrasted with

comparable programmes or, in the case of the Mpuluzi project the effect of the

programme on the learners in the project must be compared with learners in the

control school.

Step 6: To what extent have the perspectives or interests of all stakeholders been considered and met?

The interests and needs of the users must always be met. Consulting clients and

obtaining feedback may bring factors previously not considered as important, to the

fore. Stakeholder perspectives are many and varied and some questions that may be

considered are:

• Does the programme meet the needs of the learners?

• Are intended outcomes useful?

• How do learners and educators feel about the programme?

• Have all the key stakeholders been consulted?

• What are the perceived costs and benefits of the programme?

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This approach is holistic and these issues synthesise the educational evaluation

process and provides a concise but comprehensive framework within which one can

operate. The results form the basis for a decision about the value of the programme.

Programme evaluation as discussed above includes a variety of questions, which can

be investigated through a variety of methods within the quantitative or qualitative

paradigm, or in a mixed method paradigm where the strengths of both qualitative and

quantitative paradigms can be used to get the most trustworthy research results.

Creswell (2003) says that with the development and perceived legitimacy of both

qualitative and quantitative research in the social and human sciences, mixed methods

research, employing the data collection associated with both forms of data, is

expanding. Averweg (n.d.) adds that pragmatism allows the mixed methods researcher

multiple methods, different worldviews, different assumptions and different forms of

data collection and analysis in the mixed methods study (Averweg, [n.d.] p.1).

3.3 Sample

Sampling included the selection of participant individuals and groups. Quantitative

research often involves random sampling, so that each individual has an equal

probability to be selected and the sample can be generalised to the larger population.

In qualitative data collection, however, purposeful sampling is used so that individuals

are selected because they experienced the central phenomenon (Creswell, 2003) and

can provide a “thick description” of their experience. Sampling for the quantitative data

collection and the selection of participants for the qualitative data collection were done

as follows:

3.3.1 Population

The career guidance programme that was evaluated in this study was only

implemented in three schools in the Mpuluzi sub-region of the Gert Sibande region.

These schools were located in the same cluster and the nearest school to these

schools was included to form the population for this study. The schools thus have the

59

same context and are defined as “rural schools” (see definition in chapter 1, paragraph

1.2.9).

The three sample schools, as well as the control school, are located on the eastern

border of Mpumalanga, not far from Swaziland. The schools are situated within fifteen

kilometres of each other. The closest town, Piet Retief, is about seventy kilometres

away. The schools are in a forestry area and many parents are employed by big

companies. Learners make use of either scholar transport or they walk to school, from

which their homes vary in distance. This makes extramural activities or extra classes

very difficult.

The following codes were used to identify the three experimental and one control

school: ESR, ESE and ESL and CSP. The following is an illustration of the profile of

the schools.

Table 3.1 Profile of population

Code Gr 12 end of year performance Gr 12 pass rate 2007

Failure rate English Gr 10 2008

ESR Showed slight increase in the Gr 12 performance in 2007

66.3% 15.5%

ESE Underperforming school 48% 26% ESL Underperforming school 37% 66% CSP Underperforming school 0% 83.3%

The above table provides contextual information on the four schools in the research

population. One school is an average performing school (ESR) while the others were

all classified as underperforming schools. This means that according to the

Mpumalanga DoE an underperforming school is a school with a pass rate of less than

50% for Gr 12 learners in the final exams.

3.3.2 Selection of learners

All the learners in the Grade 10 classes of the four schools formed the population from

which one class of each school was selected for the quantitative test and interviews

with learners. The class was selected by random sampling, which means that all

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Grade 10 classes had an equal and independent chance of being selected, as

described by McBurney (2001). The control group, namely one Grade 10 class from

the same rural area and circuit, was randomly selected. The procedure used to do the

random sampling was to put all the names of classes in a hat. The first name pulled

out of the hat was accepted as the experimental group. The population in each school

and the sample is presented in table 3.2.

The reason for the inclusion of Grade 10 learners was that career guidance, according

to the National Curriculum Statement, is very intensive in this grade and would provide

a good indication of the effectiveness of career guidance and the impact on the

learners.

Learning outcome 4: Careers and career choices of the Life Orientation programme for

Grade 10 focuses on;

• Self-knowledge and the ability to make informed decisions regarding further

study, career fields and career pathing

• Investigating the diversity of jobs according to economic sectors, as well as

work settings and forms of activities in each of these sectors in relation to self

• Displaying awareness of trends and demands in the job market, and the need

for lifelong learning (NCS Life Orientation, 2003).

Table 3.2: Sample of learners

School Population Pre-test Post-test ESR 163 46 46 ESL 116 42 42 ESE 90 34 34 CSP 50 (28) 24 24

Comparisons were done between the experimental group (122) and the control group

(24) and between the individual schools. The original group that was selected for the

control school changed dramatically when 22 learners left the school just before the

testing because of the school’s poor performance, where after only 24 turned up for

school during the days of the pre- and post-test.

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3.3.3 Selection of LO educators

All the Life Education educators for Grade 10 formed the educator population. These

educators were purposely included in the study and interviewed to give “rich” data on

the implementation of the career guidance programme.

The thirteen Life Orientation educators in the four sample schools have a total of 184

years teaching experience or an average of 12, 27 years per educator. In Life

Orientation they have a total of 48 years experience or an average of 3, 2 years per

educator. For five educators it was their first experience in Life Orientation. For all four

Life Orientation educators in school ESL it was their first year as Life Orientation

educators. The training that they received for this project was their first training in Life

Orientation.

Table 3.3: Teaching experience of LO educators

School Educators Teaching experience LO experience

ESE 5 educators 61 years 19 years

ESL 4 educators 39 years 4 years

ESR 4 Educators 58 years 19 years

CSP 2 Educators 26 years 6 years

3.4 Data collection and analysis

The data collected during the monitoring and evaluation of the career guidance project

as part of LO teaching were of a qualitative and quantitative nature in order to answer

the research question. The quantitative data focused on the scores of the CDQ to

measure the achievement of the learning outcomes. The qualitative data focused on

data collected during the monitoring and final evaluation to establish aspects of the

implementation process and also to collect data from learners through interviews about

their career development.

When a researcher uses both qualitative and quantitative data, it falls within the mixed-

method approach, which is often applied in programme evaluation. In recent years,

62

more social and health sciences researchers have been using mixed-method designs

for their studies. By definition, mixed methods is a procedure for collecting, analysing,

and “mixing” or integrating quantitative and qualitative data at some stage of the

research process within a single study for the purpose of gaining a better

understanding of the research problem (Tashakkori & Teddlie 2003; Creswell 2005, in

Ivankova, Creswell & Stick, 2006). The rationale for mixing both types of data within

one study is grounded on the fact that neither quantitative nor qualitative methods are

sufficient, by themselves, to capture the trends and details of a situation.

Creswell (2003) says that with the development and perceived legitimacy of both

qualitative and quantitative research in the social and human sciences, mixed methods

research, employing the data collection associated with both forms of data, is

expanding. The different factors that influence the choice of a mixed-method research

approach according to Creswell (2003) are explained in the following paragraphs.

3.4.1 Implementation

Creswell (2003) explains that implementation of mixed methods means that the

researchers either collect both the qualitative and quantitative data in phases

(sequentially) or that they gather it at the same time (concurrently). When the data are

collected in phases, either the qualitative or the quantitative data can come first. It

depends on the initial intent of the researcher. When the qualitative data are collected

first, the intent is to explore the topic with the participants at sites. Then the researcher,

expands the understanding through a second phase in which the data are collected

from a large number of people (typically representative). When data are collected

concurrently, both quantitative and qualitative data are collected at the same time in

the project and the implementation is simultaneous. This study collected data

sequentially in phases from April to October.

3.4.2 Priority

A second factor which determines the choice of strategy is whether greater priority or

weight is given to the quantitative or qualitative approach, especially the use of

quantitative data and analysis. The priority might be equal, or it might lean more

towards either qualitative or quantitative data. The priority of the researcher will

63

determine which strategy will be “dominant” or “less dominant”. Priority refers to which

approach, quantitative or qualitative (or both), a researcher gives more weight or

attention to throughout the data collection and analysis process in the study (Morgan,

1998; Creswell, 2003). Reportedly, it is a difficult issue to make a decision about

(Creswell et al., 2003) and might depend on the interest of the researcher, the

audience for the study, and/or what a researcher seeks to emphasise in this study

(Creswell, 2003). This study gave priority to the qualitative data to enrich the findings

from the quantitative data. Rich data were received from interviews with the LO

educators and Grade 10 learners, field notes observations and reflections from the

researcher.

3.4.3 Integration

Integration of the two types of data might occur at several stages in the process of

research: data collection, data analysis, interpretation, or some combination of phases.

Integration means that the researcher “mixes” the data. For example, in data

collection, this “mixing” might involve combining open-ended questions and closed-

ended questions in the survey. The place in the process for integration seems related

to whether phases (a sequence) or a single phase (concurrent) of data collection

occurs.

Integration in this study took place at the end of the project when all the qualitative and

quantitative data was available. The perspective of career guidance as a

developmental process formed an underpinning of this study and data collection over

the span of a year to allow for career development due to the implementation of the

career guidance programme.

3.4.4 A theoretical perspective

A final factor to consider is whether a larger, theoretical perspective guides the entire

design. The perspective may be one from the social sciences or from an advocacy

lens (e.g. gender, race, class). Although all designs have implicit theories, mixed

methods researchers can make the theory explicit as a guiding framework for the

study. This framework would operate regardless of the implementation, priority and

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integrative features of the strategy of inquiry. The perspective of career guidance as a

developmental process formed the underpinning of this study and data collection took

place over the span of a year to allow for career development due to the

implementation of the career guidance programme (See Fig 3.1).

3.5 Mixed-methods procedures

Mixed methods researchers can make decisions about these four factors:

implementation, priority, integration and theoretical perspective to select a particular

research strategy. There are about forty mixed-methods research designs reported in

the literature (Tashakkori & Teddlie, 2003). Creswell et al., (2003) identified the six

most frequently used designs, which include three concurrent and three sequential

designs.

The six major strategies are the: (a) concurrent triangulation, nested and

transformative strategies, and (b) the sequential exploratory, transformative and

explanatory strategy. The strategy applicable to this study is the sequential explanatory

design where the first phase of data collection is quantitative followed by qualitative.

The quantitative results from the CDQ were analysed to gain insight into the learners’

level of career development, which was the outcome of part of the enquiry.

The mixed-methods sequential explanatory design is highly popular among

researchers and implies collecting and analysing first quantitative and then qualitative

data in two consecutive phases within one study.

3.5.1 Sequential Explanatory Strategy 3.5.1.1 Background

The mixed-methods paradigm is still in its adolescence, and, thus, is still unknown and

confusing to many researchers. In general, mixed-methods research represents

research that involves collecting, analysing, and interpreting quantitative and

qualitative data in a single study or a series of studies that investigate the same

underlying phenomenon (Leech & Onwuegbuzie, 2009, p. 265).

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In the sequential explanatory design, priority, typically, is given to the quantitative

approach, because the quantitative data collection comes first in the sequence and

often represents the major aspect of the mixed-method data collection process. The

smaller qualitative component follows in the second phase of the research. However,

depending on the study goals, the scope of quantitative and qualitative research

questions, and the particular design of each phase, a researcher may give the priority

to the qualitative data collection and analysis (Morgan, 1998), or both. Such decisions

could be made either at the study design stage before the data collection begins or

later during the data collection and analysis process (Ivankova et al., 2006).

The sequential explanatory strategy is the most straightforward of the six major mixed-

method approaches. It is characterised by the collection and analysis of quantitative

data followed by the collection and analysis of qualitative data. The priority typically is

given to the quantitative data, and the two methods are integrated during the

interpretation phase of the study. The purpose of this method is typically to use

qualitative results to assist in explaining and interpreting the findings of a primarily

quantitative study. It can be especially useful when unexpected results arise from a

quantitative study (Morse, 1991 quoted in Creswell, 2003). In this case, the qualitative

data collection that follows can be used to examine these surprising results in more

detail. The straightforward nature of this design is one of its main strengths. It is easy

to implement since the steps fall into clear, separate stages. In addition, this design

feature makes it easy to describe and report.

The main weakness of this design is the length of time involved in data collection, with

the two separate phases. This is especially a drawback if the two phases are given

equal priority. Despite its popularity and straightforwardness, this design is not easy to

implement. When choosing this design, the researcher must consider certain

methodological issues. Such issues include the priority or weight given to the

quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis in the study, the sequence of

the data collection and analysis, and the stage/stages in the research process at which

the quantitative and qualitative phases are connected, and the results are integrated.

66

3.5.1.2 Reason for using this model

As in any mixed-method design, the researcher had to deal with the issues of priority,

implementation and integration of the qualitative and quantitative approaches. He had

to consider which approach, quantitative or qualitative (or both), had more emphasis in

the study design; establish the sequence of the quantitative and qualitative data

collection and analysis; and decide where mixing or integration of the quantitative and

qualitative approaches actually occurred in the study. He also had to find an efficient

way to visually represent all the nuances of the study design for his own conceptual

purposes and to provide for its better comprehension by both the potential readers and

reviewers. In solving those issues, the decision-making process was guided by the

purpose of the study and its research questions, as well as by the methodological

discussions in the literature (Morse, 1991; Morgan, 1998; Tashakkori & Teddlie, 1998;

Creswell et al., 2003, in Ivankova, et al., 2006).

In this study, where programme implementation was evaluated, quantitative data were

collected (pre-test of learners with CDQ). This was followed by qualitative data

collection (interviews with LO educators and learners, compiling of field notes) and

ended with the collection of quantitative data (post-testing of learners with CDQ).

The outcomes of the quantitative data were enriched with outcomes of the qualitative

data. This study, where a mixed-method research approach was applied, can be

classified as a sequential explanatory design. The most basic purpose of the

sequential explanatory design is to use the quantitative data to help interpret the

results of the qualitative phase. The visual model of Creswell (2003) was used as

example to illustrate the mixed-method data collections, analysis interpretation and

integration applied to this study (Figure 3.1).

67

Figure 3.1: Model of mixed-methods sequential explanatory design

Adapted from Creswell (2003) in Ivankova et al., (2006, p.16).

3.6 Data collection methods

In recent years, more social and health sciences researchers have been using mixed-

method designs for their studies. By definition, mixed methods is a procedure for

collecting, analysing, and “mixing” or integrating quantitative and qualitative data at

some stage of the research process within a single study for the purpose of gaining a

better understanding of the research problem (Tashakkori & Teddlie, 2003; and

Creswell 2005 in Ivankova, Creswell & Stick (2006). The rationale for mixing both

types of data within one study is grounded on the fact that neither quantitative nor

qualitative methods are sufficient, by themselves, to capture the trends and details of a

situation.

Quantitative Qualitative Quantitative Integration Quantitative Quantitative Qualitative Qualitative Quantitative Quantitative Integration Data collection

Data analysis interpreta-tion

Data collection

Coding and thematic analysis and interpretation

Data collection

Data analysis

Integration and interpretation of quantitative and qualitative results

CDQ pre-test

Interviews: LO educators Learners Field notes Observation Reflective journal

CDQ post-test

• Qualitative data/results assist in the interpretation of quantitative findings • Primary focus is to explain a phenomenon • Can assist in exploring certain results in more detail • Can assist in explaining and interpreting unexpected results

68

In the data collection process it is important to discuss the specific types of data to be

collected and the approaches used to establish validity of the data. Identify and be

specific about the type of data, both qualitative and quantitative, that will be collected

during the proposed study. Some forms of data, such as interviews and observations,

can be either qualitative or quantitative. Although reducing information to numbers is

the approach used in quantitative research, it is also used in qualitative research

(Creswell, 2003).

3.6.1 Quantitative data

Data were collected quantitatively from a single test – specifically from the South

African standardised Career Development Questionnaire (CDQ) which was

administered in April 2008 (pre-test) and in October 2008 (post-test). The test was

administered by a senior education specialist. A comparative study of the pre- and

post-test results to evaluate how much knowledge about aspects of career

development learners had acquired was done. The questionnaire examines five

dimensions of career development, namely 1) Self-information, 2) Decision making, 3)

Career information, 4) Integration of information on the self with career information,

and 5) Career planning.

3.6.2 Qualitative data

Different methods were used to collect qualitative data, such as interviews,

observation, document analysis and the reflective journal of the researcher.

3.6.2.1 Interviews

According to Best and Kahn (1986) an interview is in a sense an oral questionnaire.

Instead of writing the response, the interviewee gives the needed information orally

and face-to-face (Corbin & Strauss, 1990). They contend that interview is often

superior to other data-gathering devices, one of the reasons being that usually people

are more willing to talk than to write (Mulibana, 2008).

Interviews were used as a method to collect data from learners and educators. Semi-

structured interviews, with open-ended questions, were conducted with learners in

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September/October to establish the impact of the career guidance given to them by the

educators as well as their experience of the Career Portfolio Activity Workbook. Data

were collected for the two sections of the Career Portfolio Activity Workbook (CPAW

Gr. 10-12 and the Educator Manual). Focus groups of 8 to10 learners were

interviewed.

Interviews are regarded as a conversation with a purpose by Mason (2001). De Vos

(1998) defines an interview as a face-to-face interaction between the researcher and

the person to be interviewed with the purpose of collecting information and to

understand the interviewee’s life experience and experience as described in his or her

own words. During the interview process, the researcher must remain objective and

not make any assumptions but must gather as much information as possible in order to

give a true reflection of the learner’s and educator’s responses.

The raw data of interviews are the actual words spoken by the interviewees. Data

interpretation and analysis involve making sense of what people have said, looking for

patterns, putting together what was said in one place with what was said in another

place, and integrating what different people had said.

Semi-structured interviews were held with educators in June and again in

September/October 2008 to identify problems encountered during the implementation

and whether they provided guidance and used the Career Portfolio Activity Workbook

as well as how they experienced the workbook activities. Individual interviews were

used since only the Grade 10 Life Orientation educators in each school were

interviewed.

3.6.2.2 Observation

Observation during the interviews and field notes is made of circumstances, responses

and behaviour. Henning, et al., (2004, p. 73) say that the notes made

during the interview are intended to “harness some of the contextual factors that

are not in the talk, such as gestures, facial expression, tone of voice, change in

tempo of speech and general body language”. Immediately after the interview it is

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important to record observations about the interview- where it took place, under what

conditions, how the respondents reacted to questions, how well the interviewer asked

the questions, what the rapport was like. This will provide a context for interpreting the

interview later (Voce, 2005).

While observing people and events, researchers create field notes. These notes are

written descriptions of people, objects, places, events, activities and interviews

(Hittleman & Simon, 1997 in Mulibana, 2008) The notes taken during the interview

leave the interviewer with some permanent record of his interpretation of what was

said and he can refer back to this at various later stages to refresh the memory. The

notes act as some form of permanent record (Mulibana, 2008).

The researcher recorded his observations immediately after he had interviewed the

learners and educators.

3.6.2.3 Document analysis

Qualitative analysis requires some creativity, for the challenge is to place the raw data

into logical, meaningful categories; to examine them in a holistic fashion; and to find a

way to communicate this interpretation to others (Hoepfl, 1997).

A course evaluation was done in May to establish how participating educators had

experienced the training and what they had learned from it, as well as what

improvements they recommended for future training. The interviews with LO educators

and Gr. 10 learners were audio-taped and later transcribed verbatim for analysis. The

researcher analysed the data from the field notes, interviews with learners and LO

educators, and observations into codes and categories to make meaning from the

different sources. This helped the researcher to organise and structure the data and

derive comparisons and contrasts. A document analysis of schedules and lesson plans

was done to establish whether educators implemented the project and had taught

career guidance according to the National Curriculum Statement which was followed in

the Career Portfolio Activity Workbook.

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The raw data were coded, categorised and then grouped together into themes (see

Fig. 4.3.1 as an example).

3.6.2.4 Reflective journal

Reflection is the ability to step back and ponder one’s own experience in order to

abstract from it some meaning of knowledge relevant to other experiences (Hutchings

& Wutzorff, 1988, in Smith-Tolken, 2009, slide 5).

The purpose of data collection, which includes field notes and analysis, is to enable the

researcher to understand the phenomena under study (Morse & Field in Botha, 2008).

Field notes are a written account of the things the researcher hears, sees, experiences

and thinks, in the process of collecting or reflecting on data in the qualitative study (De

Vos, et al., 2004, Morse & Field, 1985, Wadsworth, 1997 in Botha, 2008).

.

Many options exist for recording observational data. What is not optional, is taking field

notes. Field notes contain descriptions of what has been observed. They should

contain everything that the researcher regards as worth noting. Nothing should be left

for future recall. First and foremost, field notes are descriptive. Field notes should

contain the descriptive information that will enable the researcher to return to an

observation during analysis (Voce, 2005).

Field notes can be divided into four categories:

• Observation notes: the written account of what the researcher hears, sees,

experiences and thinks about the course of interviewing

• Theoretical notes: the deliberate, controlled efforts of the researcher to extract

meaning from observation notes

• Methodical notes: the researchers instructions, reminders and critical notes

during data collection

• Personal notes: The reflections of the researcher’s feelings and experiences

during interviews (Lincoln & Guba, in Botha, 2008).

72

Tindall (1994) in Van der Merwe (2007) suggests that reflection is best done by

keeping a detailed journal or reflective diary which explores who you are, why you

chose the particular topic, your initial purpose and intention, procedural notes, what

you did when and in what context, field notes and diagrams, interpretations, in fact

anything that you believe has affected the research. According to Voce (2005) the

period immediately after the interview is a critical time of reflection and elaboration. It is

a time of quality control, to ensure that the data obtained are useful, reliable and

authentic.

A reflective journal was kept by the researcher who visited the schools to monitor the

project implementation. Particular attention was given to the atmosphere and the

rapport between the researcher and the interviewees.

3.6.3 Project phases

The project was implemented in three phases as outlined and discussed.

Fig 3.2 Phase 1

April-May Educator training New CPAW Pre-test Gr 10 learners CDQ Course evaluation Educator feedback

Phase 2

June-September Monitoring of implementation CPAW Interviews LO educators and learners Observations Noted Field notes Noted

Phase 3

October Interviews LO educators and learners Document analysis CPAW & LO educator files Post-test CDQ

73

Phase 1 and 2: April – September 2008

1. Pre-test with the Career Development Questionnaire and evaluation of the career

guidance programme presentation.

2. Monitoring of the project in June, July, August and September with regard to the

implementation of the programme, the applicability of the knowledge and skills the

educators acquired and possible obstacles or logistical problems. This was done

through individual interviews with the Grade 10 LO educators during follow-up visits

by the researcher.

3. Reflective journal and observation notes kept by the researcher.

Phase 3: October 2008

1. Post-career guidance assessment during October with the CDQ to find out how

much career knowledge the learners had acquired during the year. The Grade 10

learners were evaluated to see what the impact of the career guidance during the

Grade 10 year had on career maturity.

2. Follow-up evaluation in October with individual interviews of educators involved in

teaching career guidance to Grade 10. The data were for programme evaluation

and an indication of the success of the process.

3. Document analysis to establish whether schedules and lesson plans reflected the

implementation of the project in classes.

4. Focus group interviews with learners to establish the impact and experience of the

project with regard to career development as reflected in knowledge, skills and

values regarding career choice and study skills.

3.7 Data analysis

Data analysis in mixed methods research relates to the type of research strategy

chosen for the procedures. Thus, in a proposal, the procedures need to be identified

within the design. However, analysis occurs both within the quantitative approach and

the qualitative approach and often between the two approaches (Tashakkori & Teddlie,

1998, in Creswell, 2003). Qualitative data analysis takes place throughout the data

collection process. As such, the researcher will constantly reflect on impressions,

74

relationships and connections while collecting the data. The search for similarities,

differences, categories, themes, concepts and ideas forms part of the continuous

process (Henning et al., 2004).

Data analysis was done throughout the data collection process as outlined in figure

3.2. The researcher will present the data separately, first the quantitative and then the

qualitative. The researcher will then in the interpretation and conclusion phase,

comment on how the findings of one method elaborate and extend the other. Brannen

(2005) describes qualitative and quantitative results as complementary; they are

treated as different beasts. Each type of data analysis enhances the other. Together

the data analyses from the two methods are juxtaposed and generate complementary

insights that together create a bigger picture. The methods of analyses were the

following:

3.7.1 Qualitative data

The method of content analysis was used according to the process described by

Henning et al (2004). The interviews, field notes and reflective journal of the

researcher were analysed by coding the units of meaning in the raw data into codes,

categories and themes.

Fig 3.3 Illustration of qualitative data analysis

Step 1: Data collection

Step 2: Data transcription

Step 3: Coding

Step 4: Categorisation

Step 5: Themes

• Interviews • Observation • Field notes • Reflective journal

Raw data transcriptions

Codes of units of meaning

Categories and patterns

Emerging themes

3.7.2 Quantitative data

The scores of the CDQ, marked according to the manual, were reflected in the tables.

Microsoft Excel’s program was used to analyse the scores of the individual subtests as

well as the total score of all the subscales. Comparative analyses were done between

75

the individual experimental schools and the experimental schools and the control

school.

Fig 3.4 Illustration of quantitative data comparison

ESR Pre-test Post-test

ESL Pre-test Post-test

ESE Pre-test Post-test

CSP Pre-test Post-test

3.8 Trustworthiness

In this study, which is a mixed-method study, trustworthiness of data will be discussed

for qualitative and quantitative data.

3.8.1 Qualitative data

Qualitative researchers are concerned with data quality and reflecting the true state of

human experiences. Polit and Beck, 2004, p. 430 in Mookeng, 2004, p. 32, refer to

Lincoln and Guba’s (1985) four criteria for establishing the trustworthiness of

qualitative data, namely true value, consistency, neutrality and applicability. The table

below represents the four criteria.

The data will be presented in such a way that it leaves an audit trail. Transcripts in

addenda can be compared with the data presented in the chapters and the

conclusions that flowed from the findings.

76

Fig 3.5 Lincoln and Guba’s (1985) model for trustworthiness of qualitative research

CRITERION QUALITATIVE APPROACH True value Credibility

Consistency Dependability

Neutrality Confirmability

Applicability Transferability

(Polit & Beck, 2004, p. 430)

Credibility (True value)

Confidence in the truth of the data and interpretations thereof, involves two aspects:

the study must be carried out in such a way that it enhances believability and steps

must be taken to demonstrate credibility. Lincoln and Guba (1985) cited in Mookeng

(2004) maintain that credibility involves two aspects: first, carrying out the study in a

way that enhances the believability of the findings, and second, taking steps to

demonstrate credibility to consumers. In this study the raw data as well as the

interpretation is available for further research.

Dependability (Consistency)

Polit and Beck cited in Mookeng (2004) and Leech (2009), state that the dependability

of data refers to stability over time and conditions. They describe dependability as the

consistency of the findings in case the enquiry is replicated with the same subjects or

in a similar context. The question that must be answered is: would the findings of the

research be repeated if it were replicated with the same/similar participants in the

same/similar context? Credibility cannot be attained without dependability.

For consistency the research methodology of this study has been described in detail.

The tape recordings, transcriptions, field notes, reflective journal, photographs, letters

of consent, CDQ forms have been preserved for future use.

Confirmability (Neutrality)

77

Confirmability refers to the potential of congruence between two or more independent

people about the data’s accuracy, relevance or meaning. The data must represent the

information the participants provided and the interpretation may not be figments of the

researcher’s imagination (Leech, 2009, pp. 4-6). According to Polit and Beck (2004) in

Mookeng (2004, p. 35), confirmability refers to the objectivity or neutrality of the data,

that is, the potential for congruence between two or more independent people about

the data’s accuracy, relevance or meaning. They define an audit trail as a systematic

collection of materials and documentation that allows an independent auditor to come

to conclusions about the data and point out six classes of records of special interest in

creating an adequate audit trail:

• The raw data (for example field notes, interview transcripts)

• Data reduction

• Process notes

• Materials relating to researchers’ intentions (for example reflective notes)

• Instrument development information (for example CDQ forms)

• Data reconstruction products (for example drafts of the final report).

All the abovementioned for this study is available for future/further research.

Transferability (Applicability)

Transferability refers to the degree to which the findings can be applied to other

contexts and settings or groups, thus generalising the findings to a different or larger

population Lincoln and Guba (1985) in Mookeng (2004, p. 34). According to Polit and

Beck (2004) in Mookeng (2004, p. 34), researchers can only provide thick description,

but it remains the responsibility of those wanting to transfer the findings to another

situation to locate transferability. They describe thick description as a rich and

thorough description of the research setting or context and processes observed during

the study.

Transferability also refers to generalisability, in other words the extent to which findings

can be transferred or have application in other settings or groups. Researchers must

therefore provide sufficient descriptive data in research reports to allow consumers to

evaluate the applicability of the data to other contexts (Leech, 2009, pp. 4-6).

78

Triangulation

Because Boyd (2001) regards two to ten participants or research subjects as sufficient

to reach saturation, LO educators and learners were interviewed. This information

together with the field notes, reflective journal and feedback from the educators after

their training, is a form of triangulation. The purpose of collecting data from three

different kinds of informants is a form of triangulation- “data triangulation” to contrast

the data and “validate” the data if it yields similar findings (Arksey & Knight, 1999;

Bloor, 1997; Holloway, 1997 in Groenewald, 2004).

3.8.2 Quantitative data

Predictive Index South Africa (Venter, 2009) defines reliability as the consistency or

stability of measure. If the concept being measured is assumed to be consistent, such

as a personality trait, then the measure should yield similar results if the same person

responds to it a number of times. While reliability refers to the consistency of a

measure, validity refers to the accuracy of a measure. A measure is valid if it actually

measures what it purports to measure. Whatever the approach, the research process

should have the important characteristics of validity, which means that it must

represent a true picture of what is studied, and reliability, which means that it must be

consistent and possible to replicate (Lemon, 1997, p. 31) in Marais (2009, p. 3).

Table 3.4 Reliability coefficients of the CDQ for language groups (1998)

Scale English (N=1843)

Afrikaans (N=1721)

African Languages (N=1795)

Self-information (SI) Decision Making (DM) Career Information (CI) Integration of Self-information with Career Information (I) Career Planning (CP)

0,76 0,79 0,82 0,77

0,82

0,78 0,79 0,82 0,79

0,79

0,71 0,74 0,66 0,73

0,79

The results indicate that the reliability coefficients of the scales for the three groups are

satisfactory if they are used for guidance purposes (Langley, 1996).

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Only the content validity of the CDQ was addressed and the following steps were

taken in this regard:

• The items were carefully examined for face validity

• The wording (formulation) of items was examined by experts

• The item scale correlations were examined

• A literature study on career development and career maturity was undertaken

• A framework of existing theories on career development and career maturity

was developed

• Each item was entered into the framework according to the underlying

dimension that was identified by an expert committee

• Independent raters familiar with the theoretical models of career development

and who also had practical experience of career guidance, determined which

one of the two possible answers per item, namely TRUE or FALSE, gave the

best indication of career development for each particular item, and

• The item selection process included item scale correlations (Langley, 1996).

3.9 Summary

This chapter provided a detailed discussion of the programme evaluation approach

and the mixed-methods that were applied to collect and analyse data in order to

answer the research question. The approach as well as the methodology was

illustrated graphically while the components and stages were explained in detail as

applied to this particular study. The chapter concluded with an explanation how

trustworthiness of data would be established.

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CHAPTER 4 DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS

4.1 Introduction

In this chapter qualitative and quantitative data that were collected will be presented

and analysed. The qualitative and quantitative data will be analysed and interpreted to

supplement each other. The aim of this enquiry was to evaluate the implementation

and outcomes of a career guidance programme in rural schools in Mpumalanga, to

make recommendations with regard to the implementation process and impact of the

programme for decisions on the future expansion of the programme in the province.

The responses from LO educators and learners will be analysed into codes, categories

and themes. The findings from the quantitative and qualitative data will be used to

come to conclusions and to make recommendations in the next chapter.

.

4.2 Presentation and analysis of the quantitative data

Quantitative data were collected in a pre- and post test with the CDQ to determine

whether the scores of learners had changed as an indication of the achievement of the

learning outcomes for career development from April to October. The original selected

group of 50 learners from the control school has changed because learners left the

school after selection just before the test conduction. Only 24 were present during

testing, which was too small for reliable statistical analysis. The original planned

analysis with the F-test followed by the student t-test was done but not used because

the F-test results indicated that the variances for the scores of the CDQ test for

experimental and control group were not equal for all the sub-scales and the overall

score. Evidence of the analysis was presented in addendum 6. This analysis was

replaced with a descriptive analysis of the average scores out of a total of 20 points of

the groups as presented in tables 4.1 to 4.3 according to the interpretation tables

developed by Langley et al., (1996, p.12-13). Scores were weighted according to the

number of participants for each school. This was important because the school with

the largest number of participants had consistently achieved the highest scores. That,

together with the difference in number of participants in the experimental schools

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would have influenced the average scores, which were used in the descriptive

analysis.

Table 4.1: Average CDQ scores for the experimental schools for the pre-test

The scores of ESL and ESE differed with 1.1 point, while ESR is much higher.

Table 4.2: Average CDQ scores for the experimental schools for the post-test

The scores are closer distributed than for the pre-test.

Table 4.3: Average CDQ scores for the control school for the pre- and post-test

CPS

Sub-scale 1

Self-knowledge

Sub-scale 2

Decision-making

Sub-scale 3

Career information

Sub-scale 4

Integration of 1 & 3

Sub-scale 5

Career planning

Average of subscales

Pre-test 12.1 11.4 11.8 12.2 11.0 58.4 (11.7)

Post-test 12.7 11.3 12.4 11.5 11.8 59.6 (11.9)

The scores are within one point of difference.

Pre-test scores

Sub-scale 1

Self-knowledge

Sub-scale 2

Decision-making

Sub-scale 3

Career information

Sub-scale 4

Integration of 1 & 3

Sub-scale 5

Career planning

Weighted Averages

of subscales

ESR 13.1 13.5 13.1 13.4 12.8 65.8 (13.2) ESL 12.3 11.9 11.9 11.5 10.8 58.4 (11.7) ESE 11.4 12.6 11.9 12.0 11.5 59.5 (11.9) Average of all schools 12.4 12.7 12.4 12.4 11.8 61.5 (12.3)

Post-test scores

Sub-scale 1

Self-knowledge

Sub-scale 2

Decision-making

Sub-scale 3

Career information

Sub-scale 4

Integration of 1 & 3

Sub-scale 5

Career planning

Weighted Averages of subscales

ESR 13.3 13.6 13.6 13.5 12.6 66.6 (13.3) ESL 12.8 12.5 12.8 12.0 11.6 61.8 (12.4) ESE 12.4 11.9 13.2 13.2 13.2 63.9 (12.8) Average of all schools 12.9 12.7 13.2 12.9 12.4 64.2 (12.8)

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The findings from tables 4.1 to 4.3 were analysed and interpreted. The following:

4.2.1 Pre-test scores

The following is an illustration of the pre-test scores for the experimental and the

control group.

Graph 4.1: Pre-test scores for experimental and control group

10

10.5

11

11.5

12

12.5

13

Sub-scale 1 Sub-scale 2 Sub-scale 3 Sub-scale 4 Subscale 5 Mean ofsub-scales

Scores

Experimental group Control group

The above scores are out of a total of 20. The experimental group performed slightly

better in the pre-test than the control group. The difference is less than 1 point for all

the scores except for sub-scale 2, which is 1.3. This profile correlated with the

Student t-test scores as presented in the quantitative analysis in addendum 6 in table

2, where only the score on sub-scale 2 was significantly different between the two

groups. The other sub-scales that were equal on the F-test, namely 4, 5 and the

overall score showed t-test results that were not statistically significant, which

correlates with the small difference of less than 1 point on the average scale in table

4.1. All the scores for both groups fall within the same scale range and the

qualitative interpretation was the following:

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Table 4.4: Qualitative score interpretation: Pre-test experimental versus control groups

Sub-scale Score Interpretation

Sub-scale 1 11-14 The participants’ self-knowledge can be improved

Sub-scale 2 11-14 The participants’ ability to make decisions can be improved

Sub-scale 3 8-11 The participants’ knowledge of careers can be improved

Sub-scale 4 11-14 The integration of self-information and career information

can be improved

Sub-scale 5 9-12 The ability to plan a career can be improved

(Langley et al., 1996).

It must be noted that the scores for ESL and ESE is more or less the same as the

control school, while the score for ESR is much higher. This might be explained by

the profile of the schools outlined in table 3.1 where ESR is a better performing

school than the other, with better results in English language proficiency.

4.2.2 Post-test scores

Graph 4.2: Post-test scores: experimental versus control school

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

Sub-scale1

Sub-scale2

Sub-scale3

Sub-scale4

Sub-scale5

Mean ofsub-

scales

Scores

Experimental group Control group

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The post-test scores of the experimental group were slightly higher than the control

group. The difference was less than 1 point for sub-scales 1, 3 and 5 and more than

a point for sub-scales 2 and 4. The mean for the averages indicated a large

difference of 2.9. These scores were not correlated with the data in Addendum 6

because the F-test indicated that variances for sub-scales 2, 4 and the overall score

were not equal. Comparison between the control and experimental group would not

be reliable. Sub-scales 1, 3 and 5, where the variances were equal indicated a very

small difference.

Table 4.5: Qualitative score interpretation: Post-test experimental versus

control groups

Sub-scale Score Interpretation

Sub-scale 1 11-14 The participants’ self-knowledge can be improved

Sub-scale 2 11-14 The participants’ ability to make decisions can be improved

8-11 The participants’ knowledge of careers can be improved Sub-scale 3

12-20 The participants’ have adequate career information

Sub-scale 4 11-14 The integration of self-information and career information

can be improved

Sub-scale 5 9-12 The ability to plan a career can be improved

(Langley et al., 1996).

The participants of all the schools can improve in all the sub-scales. The participants

of the experimental schools have adequate career information, while the control

school participants can improve. The mean of all the sub-scales were 2.9 points

higher, which indicated that the experimental school participants did better in all the

aspects of career maturity than those of the control school.

4.2.3 Pre-test scores compared to post-test scores

A comparison between the pre- and post-test scores should indicate whether the

participants have improved in terms of career maturity between the pre-test in April

and the post-test in October.

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Graph 4.3: Pre-test versus post-test score – control school

10

10.5

11

11.5

12

12.5

13

Sub-scale 1 Sub-scale 2 Sub-scale 3 Sub-scale 4 Sub-scale 5 Mean of allsub-scales

Pre-test Post-test

The difference between the pre- and the post-test was less than one point for sub-

scales 1, 3, 5 and the mean score, which means that there were almost no

improvement between April and October. Sub-scales 2 and 4 indicated that the

participants did worse in the post-test. The t-test in table 9 and 10 of Addendum 6 only

indicated a significant difference for sub-scale 1. The difference between all the sub-

scales and the mean were, however very small as indicated in the above table. The

qualitative interpretation of the data was as follows:

Table 4.6: Qualitative score interpretation: Pre- versus Post-test for control group

Sub-scale Score Interpretation

Sub-scale 1 11-14 The participants’ self-knowledge can be improved

Sub-scale 2 11-14 The participants’ ability to make decisions can be improved

8-11 The participants’ knowledge of careers can be improved Sub-scale 3

12-20 The participants’ have adequate career information

Sub-scale 4 11-14 The integration of self-information and career information

can be improved

Sub-scale 5 9-12 The ability to plan a career can be improved

(Langley et al., 1996).

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Participants can improve on all sub-scales. Sub-scale 3 in the post-test indicated that

participants fell within the scale for adequate career information, but it must be noted

that the score is on the lower end of the scale. It can therefore be asserted that their

knowledge can improve substantially.

Graph 4.4: Pre-test versus post-test score: experimental group schools

11

11.5

12

12.5

13

13.5

Sub-scale 1 Sub-scale 2 Sub-scale 3 Sub-scale 4 Sub-scale 5 Mean of allsub-scales

Pre-test Post-test

There were an increase of between 0.5 and 0.8 for all the sub-scales except for

subscale 2 from the pre- tot the post-test.

Table 4.7: Qualitative score interpretation: Pre- versus Post-test experimental

group

Sub-scale Score Interpretation

Sub-scale 1 11-14 The participants’ self-knowledge can be improved

Sub-scale 2 11-14 The participants’ ability to make decisions can be improved

Sub-scale 3 12-20 The participants’ have adequate career information

Sub-scale 4 11-14 The integration of self-information and career information

can be improved

Sub-scale 5 9-12 The ability to plan a career can be improved

(Langley et al., 1996).

The participants can improve on all sub-scales. Although individual schools’ data

indicated significant differences between the pre-and post-test scores as presented in

table 4.1 and in table 6, 7, 8 and 10 in Addendum 6, the differences were very small,

referring to less than 1 point (table 4.1 and graph 4.4).

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4.2.4 Summary of quantitative data

The quantitative data analysis was done to establish whether there was a difference

between the pre- and the post-test results of the CDQ. The findings would shed light

on the outcomes of the career programme that were introduced to the experimental

schools. The following findings were summarised from the above discussion:

• The statistical analysis of the F-scores of the pre- and post-test indicated that

variances for some sub-scales and the mean were equal, but for others not.

The data were deemed not reliable as the participant group, especially for the

control group was too small due to experimental mortality (Vockell & Asher,

1995). The data of the student t-tests were therefore only referred to during

discussions of qualitative data analysis of CDQ scores.

• The pre-test scores of the experimental school group were slightly better for all

the sub-scales and the mean score than the scores of the control school.

• The post-test scores of the experimental school group were slightly higher than

the scores of the control school.

• The control school did improve slightly on sub-scale 1, 3, 5 and the mean score,

but did worse in sub-scale 2 and 4.

• The experimental schools did slightly better in sub-scales 1, 3, 4, 5 and the

mean, but the same on sub-scale 2.

• On the descriptive analysis tables 4.4 to 4.7, all the schools (experimental and

control) fell within the same scales where participants still needed to improve

their knowledge and skills on aspects of career maturity.

Reasons for the improvement on aspects of career maturity as presented in the sub-

scales of the CDQ data, might have been as explained by Vockell and Asher (1995, p.

242-243) because of interactions, such as the following:

• Maturation, which means that the participants’ knowledge on aspects of career

maturity has increase as a result of natural acquisition during the time-lapse

between April and October.

• Pre-testing, which means that the experience of taking the pre-test might have

sensitize participants to perform better in the post-test.

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• Expectancy effects, which means that outcomes occurred because of the

researcher’s and LO educators’ expectations of those outcomes.

• The post-test results of the control group and experimental groups might be

because of the normal LO teaching of career guidance as part of the LO

subject.

• The post-test results of the experimental groups that were in general slightly

better than those of the control group, might have been as a result of the career

program intervention.

All the above were threats to the internal validity of the study and would be taken into

account in coming to a conclusion about the outcomes of the career programme.

Another important threat was the problem of English language proficiency.

4.3 Presentation and analysis of the qualitative data

One of the difficulties in analysing qualitative data is the decoding of the messages in

the written information. Once information has been collected, it is worthless until sense

can be made of what was collected. Data are summarised and analysed with the

express purpose of exploring the research question or hypothesis and it is therefore

essential that the analysis of the data be done without losing sight of the original

research question (Heppner, Kivlighan & Wampold, 1999, p. 41 in Chrighton, 2006).

Qualitative data were collected through feedback from the LO educators after they had

been trained, interviews with LO educators after implementing the programme and

Grade 10 learners, observation and field notes, and the researcher’s reflective journal.

The collected data will be presented and analysed for each method as explained in

chapter 3, paragraph 3.7.1.

4.3.1 Data: Feedback from the LO educators after they had been trained

The LO educators from the three experimental schools were trained for career

guidance in a one and a half day session. The training was evaluated by educators

who completed a questionnaire with open-ended questions. See addendum.

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The question that the LO educators had to answer was: What have you learned during

the training that you can apply as an LO educator?

Table 4.8: An example of data analysis of LO educator training report back

Raw data Codes Categories Themes

Ed 1 I have learned about motivating learners Ed 2 I have learnt a different ways of motivating learners Ed 3 The simple way of motivating learners without preaching Ed 4 How to motivate learners ED 5 Motivation for learners Ed 6 I will also learned about how to motivate learners and encourage them to do pure maths if they want to study at university Ed 7 Learners need to be motivated

Motivating learners Different ways of motivating Motivating without preaching How to motivate Encourage them Learned to motivate Need to be motivated

Motivating learners Ways of motivation Ways of motivation Ways of motivation Encouragement Motivating learners Need for motivation

Learner motivation

Table 4.9 is a summary of the categories and themes of the feedback from LO

educators after they had been trained. After analysing the categories for a pattern,

eight themes were identified which were descriptive of how they experienced the

training. These themes will be integrated and discussed together with themes identified

from interviews, observation and reflection.

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Table 4.9: Summary of themes and categories from the training programme evaluation

Themes Categories

1 Learner motivation • Different ways of motivation • Learned to motivate learners

2 Hope creation • There are opportunities for everybody • Every individual has a purpose

3 Subject and career choice • Facilitate subject and career choice • Learners need right subjects for right career choice • Different ways of career counselling

4 Career information • There is an institution for everyone • Requirements for tertiary institutions • Career and study requirements • Many career choices in different study fields

5 Study methods • Study methods, time management and exam preparation

6 Resources • How to use few available resources

7 Learner support • How to guide learners

8 Skills development • Learned new skills: problem solving, counselling, supporting

4.3.2 Data Interview with LO educators after they had implemented the

programme

For the analysis of the data, coding was used to categorise the data. Initially open

coding was done while developing categories and later on themes. Memoing was also

used. In this process the researcher recorded his thoughts and ideas as they evolved

throughout the study. Extensive use was also made of marginal notes and comments

as discussed by Gerber (2009, slide 13).

A semi structured interview schedule was used to collect the data from LO educators

(see addendum). Table 4.10 is an example of the analysis of the data as collected for

each question. The data of the interviews are in the addendum.

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Table 4.10: Example of data analysis from educator interview transcripts

Questions and responses Codes Categories Themes Question 1: Was this project worthwhile? Educator 1: I think it’s worthwhile because you know, in previous we did not have enough facilities and then you gave us books, they help us a lot, for careers and so on.

• it’s worthwhile • not enough

facilities • gave us books • help us a lot, for

careers

• Project worthwhile

• Books provided

1 LTSM provisioning

Question 2: Did the training help? Educator 1: Ja, the training, it was very good to us. Educator 2: Ja, the training is very much helping to us, because now, before we didn’t know anything about careers, how we going to start when we are teaching learners in terms of careers, but after attending the training now we can see where we are going to start. Even now the learners are ready to write an application, an application bursaries and so on. Before we used to help them maybe here in the staffroom without having any resources and then we used to wait for the exhibitions which are conducted by the department, so that we can at least have something. The resources that you gave us, together with the training, empowered us a lot. So it’s very very much effective to us. And then we are hoping that we are not the only ones who’ll have the training. Other people should be trained also.

• Training was

very good

• Training helping to us.

• Before we didn’t know anything about careers,

• See where to start

• Need resources

• Were empowered

• Training very

good helped the educators

• Career guidance knowledge acquisition

• Know how to start career guidance

• Need for resources

• .Were empowered

2) LO educator training 3) Career resources 4) Training empowers

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After analysing the categories from the LO educator interview transcripts for patterns,

sixteen themes emerged which were descriptive of the experiences the educators had

when the career guidance programme had been implemented by them.

Table 4.11: Summary of the categories and themes from LO educator interview transcripts

Themes Categories

1. CPAW provisioning • Helped for career guidance 2. LO educator training • The training was very good and helped the educators

who did not know anything about career guidance 3. Career resources • There is a need for career libraries and career

exhibitions • Learned how to use newspapers and magazines in

career guidance 4. Learner future focus • Learners are focused on the future 5. Importance of LO • LO is the umbrella of all learning areas 6. The school community

environment • Lack of parental support • Lack of role models

7. Learner motivation • Learned to motivate and is self-motivated 8. Vision for the future • There is hope for the learners 9. Subject choice • Importance of correct subject choice 10. Different careers • Minimum requirements for study fields and careers 11. Study skills • Important part of LO 12. Career counselling • Learned counselling skills 13. All learners are important • There are opportunities for all learners 14. Finances • Learned about bursaries and loans 15. Career guidance • Learned about career pathing and career management 16. Time • Learned importance of time management.

4.3.3 Data Interview with learners

After the learners had received career guidance and had used the Career Portfolio

Activity Workbooks, they were interviewed by the researcher. Open-ended questions

were used during a semi-structured interview.

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Table 4.12: Example of the analysis of the data as it was collected for each question during interviews with learners. The data of the interviews

are in the addendum

Questions and responses Codes Categories Themes Question1: After you have had career guidance now, do you know yourselves better now, than you did before? Learner 2: Yes I know I know myself. Question: Why do you say so? Learner 2: I want to be a career, I want to be a columnist(?) Researcher: OK, thank you very much Learner 2: and I go to GS college and I write their contest and I pass it and on 7 January I go there and continue with my studies. Researcher: Thank you, anyone else? Learner 1: Yes of course I know I know my my career, I want to be a teacher and I’m just waiting for my my my results on Januar I go to university when they call me. Researcher: Thank you very much.

• I know myself

• I want to be a columnist (?)

• GS college and I write their contest

• Continue with my studies.

• I know my career

• On Januar I go

to university

• Knowledge of self

• Chosen a career

• Action plan

• Career plan

• Know my career

• Action plan

• Self-knowledge

• Career

choice • Career

choice • Self and

career knowledge

• Career

choice • Career

planning

Question 2: Do you have…can you make better decisions now after you have had career guidance? Can you make better decisions? Do you know how to make a decision about your future? Learner 4: Yes a I want to improve in my career and I want to be a traffic controller. If I, if I pass my matric in December I’ll start in January. I, I want to study at a Nelspruit university.

• I want to be a traffic controller

• I want to study

at a Nelspruit university.

• Know my career

• Career plan

• Career choice

• Career planning

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A summary of the categories and themes from the feedback of learners at ESE after

they had career education. After analysing the categories for a pattern, six themes

were identified which were descriptive of the experiences the learners had.

Table 4.13: Summary of feedback from learners Themes Categories

1. Self-and career knowledge • I know myself and the career I want to follow • I know where to study

2. Decision making skills • Learners know how to make decisions

3. Career guidance subject • Career guidance is important • Career guidance gives information • It prepares learners to make decisions

4. The CPAW • The learners liked the CPAW • Learners should not share books • It guided the learners • Learners in all schools in Mpumalanga must

get a CPAW 5. Career guidance periods • Not enough time for career guidance

• Learners want more LO periods • Learners need more time to learn

4.3.4 Data from the researcher’s observations and field notes

Table 4.14: Summary of the themes and categories from the researcher’s observations and field notes

Themes Categories 1. English as medium of

instruction • Many learners do not speak or understand English • Many learners stay with grandparents who are illiterate

and do not speak English • Learners reported that their English was inferior to that of

neighbouring schools • They want English magazines to help improve their

English

2. Discipline • Lack of discipline in schools hampers performance 3. Career guidance

library • Principals consider starting libraries in two schools • A library was started in one staffroom

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4. Educator training was a success

• LO educators are very positive about their training • Training had a positive influence on educators • Positive educators influenced learners positively

5. Career Portfolio Activity Workbooks (CPAW)

• CPAWs are being used and they help a lot • CPAWs are user friendly in spite of the difficulty with

English • The CPAWs have lifted the educators’ spirits • It makes it easier for educators to do their work thoroughly • Educators are now enjoying their work • Learners now have self-knowledge • Learners know a little bit more about careers

6. Learners’ attitude • Now the learners have a vision • The learners are more positive about the future • Learners are starting to believe that there is a future for

them • Learners want to change their behaviour because of the

programme 7. Study methods • Educators are unsure about study methods 8. Emphasis on maths

and science • Learners without these subjects feel worthless • NGOs focus on top performers • Average learners are discouraged

4.3.5 Data from the researcher’s reflective journal

Summary of the data from the researcher’s reflective journal.

1. Many learners find it very difficult, sometimes even impossible, to communicate through medium of English.

2. English is one of the greatest barriers for further studies and interviews.

3. Job interviews must be practised in class.

4. The urgent need to make CPAWs available to all schools is of the utmost

importance. One does not train soldiers (educators) and send them to the battlefield (schools) without weapons (CPAWs).

5. Many learners have totally unrealistic ideals about further studies, compared to

their level of academic performance at a specific stage.

6. The majority of learners in the four rural schools have never been to a city and/or tertiary institution.

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7. The learners’ knowledge of the requirements of a specific course or career is almost non-existent as well as their knowledge about the cost of studies. An example is the learner in table 4.16 who wants to be traffic controller and plans to study at a university.

8. The great emphasis placed on maths and science, especially by large companies,

makes many learners despondent. Especially if the school where they are, does not have a trained maths educator and they can only take (not choose) mathematical literacy. The word “worthless” was used by some learners to describe themselves.

9. The training of the learners on study skills was neglected because the educators

feel unsure themselves.

10. Because of the quick turnover of LO educators, they must be trained annually, also on study skills.

11. Because of the cultural (language) difference, it takes a while to establish and

strengthen rapport with the learners.

12. The positive attitude of the LO educators and their enthusiasm after their training was heart-warming.

4.4 Discussion of the themes

The qualitative data presented from the different sources presented a pattern that

reflected on aspects related to careers, LO educators, the school environment, English

language proficiency and the school environment. The quantitative data from the

CDQ questionnaire together with the qualitative data of theme 1 provided insight into

the achievement of the outcomes of the programme, while the other themes provided

findings about the implementation of the career programme. The themes from all the

data sources integrated into themes for discussion were the following. The points of

discussion from each source (the different tables) were the following:

Table 4.15: Integrated themes from all data Theme Training

programme evaluation (table 4.9)

LO Educator interviews (table 4.11)

Interviews with learners (table 4.13)

Observation and field notes (table 4.14)

Reflective journal

1. Learner career development

- 4, 8 (attitude)

3, 5 (attitude) 1 (knowledge) 2 (decision-making)

6 8 (knowledge) 8 (maths & science

8 3, 5, 6, 7 (knowledge) 8 (maths & science

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emphasis) emphasis)

2. Career resources

6 3 (library) 1 (CPAW)

4 (CPAW) 3 (library) 5 (CPAW)

4

3. LO educator attitude

2 5, 7, 13 - - 12

4. LO educator knowledge & skills (including training)

- 4 7 (study skills)

5

5. Career guidance & counselling

3, 4, 7 9, 10, 12, 14, 15 - - -

6. School community environment

- 6 - 2 10

7. English language proficiency

- - - 1 12

4.4.1 Theme 1: Career development

The qualitative data from the interview with LO educators, the training programme

feedback, the researcher’s observations and reflective journal all provided information

about aspects of career development and career maturity. These data provided insight

into the data of the CDQ as discussed in paragraph 4.2.4 in the summary of the

quantitative data. The combined findings from the above sources would answer the

question about the outcomes of the career guidance programme that were

implemented in selected schools. The data were as follows:

• Many learners now have a positive attitude toward their careers and career

guidance – this was confirmed by statements made during interviews.

o There is a positive change in the learners’ attitude – they say LO is now

interesting and they want more LO periods. “Yes I think we must put

more periods in LO”. Learner 3

o Some learners are doing their best now. “Yes I want to improve in my

career.” Learner 4

o There is a positive change in the learners’ attitude towards their

schoolwork and they are starting to perform better. They have a goal to

work for. They are focused on what to do after Grade 12. Most of the

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learners are now disciplined, focussed and motivated. “I agree with

increasing the time because we we playing on the ground and we need

time of learning”. Learner 4

o Many learners have changed their behaviour- they respect themselves,

others and the educators. “There is a change and lots of change there

they are doing their best and they are focussed”. Educator 1

o The learners seek more information on careers. “

o Because of poverty learners want more knowledge about bursaries and

loans. “The bursary is there the financial aid again for you”. Educator 2

o Some learners still do not take LO seriously as it is not an examination

subject.

o Previously the learners only had some knowledge about teaching,

nursing and the SAPS, now they want to know more about other careers.

“I was also surprised to find that there are so many career choices in

different fields of studying…”. Educator 12

• Learners think career guidance is important because it gives them information

and prepares them to make decisions. “Yes it is important because it guided us

in careers”. Learner 1

• Knowledge about the self and careers - the quantitative data indicated that all

participants could still improve on acquiring self-knowledge.

• Career decision-making - the quantitative data indicated that all participants

could still improve on their career decision-making skills.

• Integration of self- and career information - the quantitative sub-scale on the

integration of self- and career information indicated that the participants should

still improve by integrating the knowledge about themselves and the information

they have about careers.

• Career planning - the quantitative data on this sub-scale indicated that

participants should improve their career planning.

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4.4.2 Theme 2: Career resources

4.4.2.1 Library

The lack of space (any suitable room) and books as well as a librarian or educator who

can run a library is a major obstacle.

There is a need for a career library and career exhibitions. “Before we used to help

them maybe here in the staffroom without having any resources and then we used to

wait for the exhibitions which are conducted by the department, so that we can at least

have something.” Educator 2

“I have learned how to use old magazines for full participation all learners” Educator 3

Two schools are considering starting a career library and another school has started

one in their staffroom.

4.4.2.2 CPAW

Portfolios helped with career guidance. The following comments:

• The CPAWs helped in career guidance and have lifted the educators’ spirits.

The portfolios are very good and easy to follow for the learners and educators. “The portfolio is very good and simple to the learners, very simple and even to

the teacher.” Educator 2

• The portfolios should include Grade 7. “And then, but the programme should at

least start with the Grade sevens because we do have Grade sevens, so when

they arrive in Grade eight they know something about careers.” Educator 2

• The learners can work at their own pace. Educator 2 “…it’s easy to understand,

easy to be followed and so on. We are working with them in their own pace. It’s

very very much simple to them. They understand each and everything.

Sometimes when I say we are going to do this activity, they have already done it

on their own. So it’s very simple.”

• CPAW are user friendly in spite of the learners’ difficulty with English.

• The learners find the portfolios very interesting. “Ja, it’s very interesting. And if

they are not doing anything in the classroom, you’ll find them busy with the

portfolio. Ja, it keeps them focused on something, ja.” Educator 2

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• The learners now have self-knowledge and know more about careers because

of the portfolios.

• There is an urgent need to make CPAWs available to all schools as noted in the

reflective notes of the researcher.

• One of the reasons why the educators rated the programme as successful was

the fact that they received CPAWs that are easy for the learners to understand.

The CPAWs helped the educators to teach career guidance. “..they help us a lot

for careers and so on.” Educator 1

4.4.3 Theme 3: LO educator attitude

The LO educators are of the opinion that it is the school’s responsibility to take care of

LO because of its importance for the learners and educators. If the learners view LO as

important they will also do better in other subjects.

• LO is viewed as the umbrella of all the subjects. “..life orientation is the umbrella

of all learning areas.” Educator 1

• The LO educators are positive about their training and it had a positive influence

on them. They feel they can now also have a positive influence on the learners.

The training was also of a high standard and greatly helped the educators who

did not know anything about career guidance. “…I have learned how to motivate

learners…how to make career choices…I am also motivated myself”. Educator

9

• The project was worthwhile, because previously the educators did not have

enough facilities. “I think it’s worthwhile, because you know, in previous we did

not have enough facilities and then you gave us books.” Educator 1

• Many schools underestimate the importance of LO and career guidance. “So if

the school can see that Life Orientation is the umbrella of all learning areas, I

think that will help us a lot. These learners are going to pass because most of

them are going to take Life Orientation as very important.” Educator 1

4.4.4 Theme 4: LO educator knowledge and skills

• All LO educators should be trained on a regular basis because of the quick

turnover of LO educators. “I learned a lot from career choices using activities,

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cards and cut and pasting. It was quite interesting to me as I was not aware of

it”. Educator 6

• The training must also include study methods. The training of learners on study

skills was neglected because the educators felt unsure themselves. “…I know

now how to teach my learners to apply various study skills…” Educator 12.

“…to prepare them for exam study methods and skills, how to manage their

time. The most interesting part was that there is an institution for everyone- TO

GIVE THEM HOPE”. Educator 1

• LO educators now share ideas on how to overcome difficulties. “…how to use

old magazines for full participation” Educator 3

4.4.5 Theme 5: Career guidance and counselling

• Many educators are not trained to teach Life Orientation and therefore have

very little or no knowledge about career guidance and career counselling. “Ja,

the training is very much helping us, because now, before we didn’t know

anything about careers…” Educator 2

“I have learned how to motivate learners on how to make career choices and

how to correctly deal with learning outcome no 4- career and career choices.

Educator10

• The training they received was very good. “The resources that you gave us,

together with the training, empowered us a lot.” Educator 2

• The LO training the educators received, was a first experience for some. “It is

for the first time I teach LO. I did not have the skill, knowledge and strategies…”

Educator 8

4.4.6 Theme 6: School community environment

• The environment plays an important role in the education of the learners. In the

rural areas, many learners have to cope not only with the lack of electricity,

running water, regular meals and having to walk long distances to school, but

they also lack a support system at home.

• Many parents are illiterate. Many learners stay with grandparents who are

illiterate and can not speak English.

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• Because of this, there is nobody at home to assist and support the learners with

their homework and other school tasks. They very often leave it until the next

day and then copy it at school. There is a lack of parental support.

• The learners do not have positive role models. Their role models are those

learners who underachieved at school the previous years and who are still

unemployed.

• The learners must realise that to be able to get a bursary, loan or to be

employed they have to perform well at school.

4.4.7 Theme 7: English language proficiency

• Many of the learners in the four participating schools find it difficult, sometimes

even impossible, to communicate through medium of English.

• Learners in one school reported that their English was inferior to that of

neighbouring schools.

• English is one of the greatest barriers between further studies and a successful

job interview.

• Because of the cultural (language) difference, in some cases it took the

researcher longer to establish and strengthen rapport with learners.

• Job interviews through medium of English must be practised in class.

4.5 Summary of findings from quantitative and qualitative data

The questions that had to be answered were what the impact of the career guidance

programme was with regard to achievement of the outcomes measured in terms of

career development and the implementation of the process. Data presented in this

chapter provided findings from the quantitative data complemented by the qualitative

data about the achievement of the outcomes of the career programme in terms of the

aspects of career maturity represented in the sub-scales of the CDQ.

Data from the interviews, observations, training programme evaluation and the

reflective journal provided findings about the implementation of the programme.

Aspects regarding the school environment, LO educators and the influence of

language emerged as themes.

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CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

5.1 Introduction

Without an elegant research report any research is incomplete. An effective report

requires accuracy, consistency, clarity, conciseness, relevance and objectivity. If the

execution of a project was warranted in the first place, it should also be reported

adequately. Without the completed report there is no indication that any research was

done. Writing the report is possibly the most difficult part of any project (De Vos, 1998).

This report was presented in five chapters. Chapter 1 orientated the reader about the

research. The problem of a lack of career guidance in rural schools in the Mpuluzi

circuit in Mpumalanga was discussed with reference to the specific context of rural

schools. The influence of the rural context on career exposure and career development

was highlighted. This problem led to the implementation of a career guidance

programme in selected schools and the evaluation of this programme, which was the

focus of this study.

Chapter 2 was a discussion of the theoretical concepts and theories that underpinned

the study. A literature study was done in order to provide a theoretical framework that

guided the researcher in his understanding of career guidance within the South African

rural school context. The literature also served the purpose of highlighting and

increasing an understanding of the findings and guiding conclusions and

recommendations

In Chapter 3 the aim of this research was stated, namely to evaluate the

implementation of a career guidance programme in selected rural schools. The

selection of the schools, the context of the participanting schools and the selection of

the learners were discussed. A detailed discussion and explanation of the research

methodology that was followed, was given. A framework for the collection of

quantitative and qualitative data, as well as the project phases, was laid down to guide

the researcher throughout the study.

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In Chapter 4 the quantitative and qualitative data that were collected, were presented

and analysed. The pre- and post-test results of the CDQ of the participanting schools

were presented. The qualitative data collected through interviews with LO educators

and learners, as well as field notes that were kept by the researcher and a reflective

journal were also analysed and presented.

Chapter 5 was the culmination of the research report where conclusions were drawn

from the findings and where recommendations for improvement and further research

were made.

5.2 Conclusions

This final chapter provided an overview of the research, a discussion of the findings as

well as the limitations of the research and recommendations for further research in the

field of career guidance in South Africa. The qualitative data produced themes which

emerged from the feedback by LO educators and learners, field notes, observations

and reflective journal of the researcher. These themes will now be presented in a

summarised form.

5.2.1 Career development

• The attitude of learners was positive and future oriented.

• Aspects of career maturity as implied by the sub-scales of the CDQ still needed

to improve substantially before participants would be able to make rational

career decisions. This included self-knowledge, decision-making skills, career

information, integration of self- and career information, and career planning.

• The lack of substantial improvement of the aspects of career maturity from the

pre- to the post-test might be ascribed to the influence of some of the emerged

themes, such as the lack of more career information resources and exposure

opportunities, the isolation of rural schools, the negative school community

environment and the lack of English language proficiency.

• According to the LO educators, there was a marked positive change in some of

the learners’ attitude towards their schoolwork and towards their future. They

now seemed to perform better in Grade 10 and 11 and some of them were not

105

going to wait for Grade 12 to try to put in a final effort. Because of this

programme, they were starting to believe that there was a bright future for them

and because of this vision, they were more positive. They realised that they did

not need to spend the rest of their lives in a rural area. Many of the learners,

unfortunately, still have totally unrealistic ideals, compared to their level of

academic performance at a specific stage.

• The great emphasis placed on mathematics and science, especially by large

companies, made many learners despondent, especially if the school where

they were, did not have a trained maths educator and they could only take (not

choose) mathematical literacy. The NGOs mainly focused on top performers

and the average learners were discouraged. Some learners even used the word

“worthless” to describe themselves. Many schools also did not have the luxury

of a well-trained science educator. If they did get the services of such an

educator, they normally did not last long in the rural areas. They were either

absorbed in the private sector or they moved to urban areas.

5.2.2 Career resources

• The Career Portfolio Activity Workbook (CPAW) and Educators’ Manual

developed for and used in this study proved to be an invaluable tool for

educators and learners alike. One of the reasons why the educators, who were

involved in this study, rated the programme as successful was the fact that they

received CPAWs. This lifted their spirits and made it easier for them to do their

work thoroughly. The educators also reported that, because of this, they now

know what to do in class and that they now enjoy their work. In spite of the

difficulty with English, the CPAW is user friendly so that the learners can work at

their own pace. It was suggested that the Grade 7 syllabus should also be

included in the CPAW. The learners found the portfolios very interesting and

now have more self-knowledge, career knowledge and decision-making skills.

• Library facilities were lacking and need to be addressed by the Department of

Education. There is a total lack of career guidance resource material, especially

in many rural schools. Due to the lack of electricity in some of these schools,

106

electronic programmes, such as “PACE” and “Mentor” cannot be used. There is

also a lack of space for a luxury like a career library. The fact that the educators

rotate and do not have a class of his/her own causes another problem.

Educators in one of the experimental schools used one corner of the staffroom

to create a career corner. They also brought used newspapers and magazines

to school to help learners with career information about vacancies and jobs that

are in demand. This is not the ideal situation, but it shows their positive attitude

and initiative. This is an initiative that can be rolled over to other schools.

5.2.3 LO Educator attitude

Some of the LO educators are of the opinion that it is the schools’ responsibility to take

care of LO because of its importance for the learners and the educators. They believe

that if learners view LO as important, they will also do better in their other subjects. The

interviewed learners also think that career guidance is important, because it gives them

information and prepares them to make informed decisions. Unfortunately, this

viewpoint is not reflected in reality. In most schools, LO is awarded to an educator just

to fill gaps in his/her timetable, hence the outcry that training must take place annually The general consensus by the LO educators was that in order for the learners to

perform better, the schools need the training and support from the regional staff as well

as support material (CPAW). They believe that if the programme is continued, in the

long run it will have a positive impact on the Grade 12 results. They also feel that the

programme should be rolled out to all other schools in the province.

5.2.4 LO educator knowledge and skills and career guidance and counselling

Many educators are not trained to teach Life Orientation and therefore have very little

or no knowledge about career guidance and career counselling. The training they

received as part of this study was rated as very good. The training had a positive

influence on them and the positive educators influenced the learners positively. Due to

the high turnover of educators in the LO department, it is essential that LO educators

should be trained annually. The positive attitude of the educators after the training was

noticeable.

107

Although study skills are incorporated into the CPAW they were neglected, or did not

get the attention they deserve from the LO educators, because many educators felt

unsure about study methods themselves. Study skills are skills that have to be

practised from an early age and need continual practice. The theory of study skills

alone will not have a positive effect on the academic achievement of the learners; they

must first change their attitude towards life and towards their studies. Educators

themselves should be trained on study skills.

5.2.5 School community environment

The negative school community environment in the rural areas influenced learner

attendance, learner exposure to careers and role-models, parental illiteracy led to non-

involvement in career planning of children. The environment plays an important role in

the education of learners. In this rural area, many learners have to cope not only with

the lack of electricity and running water, regular meals and having to walk long

distances to school, but they also lack a support system at home. Many learners stay

with grandparents who are illiterate and can not speak English. Because of this, there

is nobody at home who can assist and support the learners with their homework and

other school tasks. They usually leave it until the next day and then copy it at school, if

they do anything at all. The learners also do not have positive role models. Quite often

their role models are those learners who underachieved at school the previous years

and who are still unemployed.

5.2.6 English language proficiency

Many of the learners in the four participating schools find it difficult, sometimes even

impossible, to communicate through medium of English. One of the reasons for this is

that learners come from the feeder schools with a lack of language skills. Because of

this cultural (language) difference, in some cases it took the researcher longer to

establish and build rapport with the learners. Educators in the feeder schools do not

always realise that English is essential for further studies and job interviews.

108

5.3 Recommendations for career guidance in rural, and other, schools

It is evident from this study that there is a total lack of career guidance in most of the

rural schools due to many reasons already mentioned. To name but a few again and

propose possible solutions:

5.3.1 Improvement of career maturity

• The CPAW was highly recommended by the LO educators, learners and the

researcher. Without it, meaningful career guidance did not seem possible.

• LO educators should organise annual trips to a tertiary institution to familiarise

the top performers with tertiary institutions.

• Visits to the Mondi Career and Science Centre in Piet Retief (Mkondo) are also

recommended.

5.3.2 Implementation of career guidance in schools

• Principals should have a core of reliable educators who can be used as LO

educators. Educators should not be appointed as LO educators just to fill gaps

in their timetables.

• These educators should be trained annually on different aspects of career

guidance, e.g. study skills, interview skills, counselling skills, minimum

requirements of different tertiary institutions, etc.

• The regional office should assist schools to form clusters and attend regular

meetings to share information.

• The principal and staff should make a concerted effort to enhance the academic

achievement of the learners in the school, not only in Grade 12 but starting from

Grade 8.

• The abovementioned goal will not be achieved if lack of discipline in a school is

not addressed.

• This will only be achieved if the absenteeism of the educators and the learners

is addressed.

• Schools should keep track of their ex-students, especially those who excel in

their different careers or studies. These ex-students should be invited to

address the learners on special occasions, e.g. prize-giving ceremonies or

109

beginning of the year functions. They will then become the positive role models

that learners need so urgently.

• The regional staff should support the schools in starting a career library or

career corner.

5.4 Limitations of this study

The limitations of this study were in essence the same as the limitations that Crighton

(2006, p. 73) found in his study on peer-counselling. It was generally agreed that one

of the most important limitations of qualitative research was the fact that the findings

cannot be directly generalised to the larger population being studied or for whom the

findings will be of interest. The apparent limitation of this study existed in the fact that

focus groups or interviews with just a few members of a target audience, the

population of which numbers in the thousands or more, can or cannot meet the

statistical assumptions to project the results accurately or reliably to the total audience.

This was, however, not directly applicable to this study as the aim of this study was to

evaluate the implementation and outcomes of a career guidance programme in

schools in a rural area.

There were also a few other limitations to this study. Not all the learners were available

during the post-testing with the CDQ. This led to a smaller sample than was anticipated

which influenced the results and the fact that the statistical analysis could not be

accepted as absolute reliable. Another limitation was that the schools did not have

classrooms large enough to accommodate bigger groups; the 50 learners had to be

squeezed into a classroom built for 30 for the testing with the CDQ.

The greatest limitation in school ESL was the language barrier as was mentioned.

Although it was not such a great problem in the other schools, it had an influence,

especially during the interview the researcher tried to have with the learners in ESL.

From a selected group of ten Grade 10 learners only three were able to communicate,

in a very modest way, through the medium of English.

110

5.5 Recommendations for further research

It is recommended that this research should also be undertaken with a larger sample

and a variety of schools in rural and urban areas.

5.6 Conclusive summary

This study was undertaken to evaluate a career guidance programme in rural schools

in Mpumalanga. In summary, it was clear that not only was the research question

answered. The research was conducted as described in Chapter 3 and conclusions,

recommendations and findings were validated. The findings that led to conclusions and

recommendations answered the research question.

I want to close with the words of Du Plessis (2004): “May this not be a dead end street,

but a cross-road contributing to theory building and knowledge creation to feed the

‘hungry mind’ of the human’s quest for success or continuous business (education)

improvement.” “IACTA ALEA EST”- Past the point of return. Manage the future not the

present.

111

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Addendum 1 ETHICAL CLEARANCE

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Addendum 2

CONSENT FORM

MPUMALANGA PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT

Uitkomst Building 2 De Jager Street ERMELO 2351 Republic of South Africa

Private Bag X9029 ERMELO

2350 South Africa

Telephone number: (017) 801

5000 Facsimile number: (017) 801

5808

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION GERT SIBANDE REGION

Litiko LeTemfundvo Umnyango weFundo Departement van Onderwys

Umnyango weze Mfundo

MEMORANDUM ENQUIRIES :FG DU TOIT 017 801 5238 f.dutoit@education.mpu.gov.za TO: The Principal: ESL, ESR, ESE, CSP LO Educator FROM: F G du Toit DATE: 25 July 2008 SUBJECT: REQUESTING PERMISSION TO DO RESEARCH AT YOUR SCHOOL I am a master’s degree student at the University of Johannesburg and has to do a research project to fulfil the conditions of the degree. The title of the research is AN EVALUATION OF A CAREER GUIDANCE PROGRAMME IN RURAL SCHOOLS IN MPUMALANGA. The project has been commissioned by Mpumalanga Department of Education in order to evaluate a career guidance project that has been introduced by Mr FG du Toit in three schools, which are ESL, ESR, ESE and CSP as the control school. .

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I wish to request permission to do research at your school. The data will be collected during school hours that are convenient to the learners and the educators. Participation is voluntarily and any participant may withdraw without penalty. All information will be treated with sensitivity and confidentiality and no names of your school or participants will be mentioned in any report. Feedback will be given to the department in a report and all other stakeholders on request. Please complete the following consent. ________________________________ Principal Date _______________________ Give permission for the research to be done by Mr FG du Toit _______________________________ LO Educator Date _________________________ Give permission for the research to be done by Mr FG du Toit

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Addendum 3 VERBATIM FEEDBACK FROM LO EDUCATORS AFTER THEIR TRAINING

EDUCATOR 1 I have learned about motivating learners, to create hope for the hopeless, subject choice that will help learners in choicing right careers without blaming anyone. To encourage learners to know the requirements of their choices, and to impact knowledge about careers and skills. How to prepare them for exam-study methods and skills. How to help them to manage their time. How to help them to do study plan and time-table. The most interesting part was ”THERE IS AN INSTITUTION FOR EVERY ONE” To GIVE THEM HOPE

EDUCATOR 2 -I have learnt a different ways of motivating learners -I will be able to help (facilitate) them in choosing their careers , what is required in the tertiary institutions.(Finances) and how to choose a good subjects for their careers -I will be able to help them to organised their time for study

EDUCATOR 3 -The simple way of motivating learners without preaching and making learners to make the choice of careers. -How to use old magazines for full participation all learners. -How to guide the learners after they have taken the decision about their future careers.

EDUCATOR 4 I learned more about difference types of careers How to motivate learners in subject choice opportunities of job descriptions. I even got more information about what I suppose to do in class, treat learners with difficulties to accept them the way they are. Not to choose subject for learner.

EDUCATOR 5 -Motivation for learners -Problem solving skills -Study skills for myself mainly -Career knowledge and career demand -Subject choice linking to career path -Career management and career path

EDUCATOR 6 I learned a lot from career choices using activities, Cards and Cut and Pasting. It was quite interesting to me as I was not aware of it.

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I also learned about different subject choice especially grade 9 learners. I will also learned about how to motivate learners and encourage them to do pure maths if they want to study at university Important( fields which are in demand) Technology. Learners should be encourage that Engineers there a lot of loan to study further Artisans their studies so that they cannot be IT helpless

EDUCATOR 7 That there are opportunities for every learner, For the intelligent and less intelligent. Learners need to be motivated towards a career choice. Only the teacher can help the learner through the journey.

EDUCATOR 8 It is for the first time I teach Life Orientation. I did not have the skill, knowledge and strategies, but I after Dr. Litha’s lecture, I know how to motivate and to teach my learners effectively I, also hope they are going to enjoy my lessons from Monday the 19th May 2008.

EDUCATOR 9 I have learn how to motivate my learners to plan for their future, and how to identify their personality, how to choise their future careers How are they will be able to use study skills in order to achieve their future goals. I will be able to make them know their requirements of different careers and institution: to apply to.

EDUCATOR 10 I have learned how to motivate learners on how to make career choices and how to correctly deal with learning outcome no 4- career and career choices. I have also learned how to use the little resource available for other benefit of our learners. I have learned some counselling skills to help assist and give hope to our learners.

EDUCATOR 11 As a life Orientation teacher I have learnt how to help, guide my learners to choose their careers for future. How to motivate them about future and giving hope to them that even if they see that they are worthless, they can do something about their life cause every individual is born for a reason- there is something that you can make. I am also motivated myself. Thank You a lot.

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EDUCATOR 12

I learned a lot during this 2 days session especially on how to motivate learners in my class, teach them how to make subject choices and the requirements needed for each career choice. I was also surprised to find that there are so many career choices in different fields of studying, and last I know now how to teach my learners to apply various study skills in their learning/studying.

EDUCATOR 13 I learned a lot because I now know how to motivate by giving them hope of any career. My learners in choicing their careers Learned how to make them choice/make subjects and the requirements in choicing a career Learned that I had to support them and encourage them to make Maths as their subjects because Maths is needed anywhere,

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Addendum 4 AN EXAMPLE OF A VERBATIM INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPTION: LO EDUCATORS Questions and responses Codes Categories Themes Question 1: Was this project worthwhile? Educator 1: I think it’s worthwhile because you know, in previous we did not have enough facilities and then you gave us books, they help us a lot, for careers and so on.

it’s worthwhile previous we did not have enough facilities you gave us books help us a lot, for careers

Portfolios helped for career guidance.

1 LTSM provisioning

Question 2: Did the training help? Educator 1: Ja, the training, it was very good to us. Educator 2: Ja, the training is very much helping to us, because now, before we didn’t know anything about careers, how we going to start when we are teaching learners in terms of careers, but after attending the training now we can see where we are going to start. Even now the learners are ready to write an application, an application bursaries and so on. Before we used to help them maybe here in the staffroom without having any resources and then we used to wait for the exhibitions which are conducted by the department, so that we can at least have something. The resources that you gave us, together with the training, empowered us a lot. So it’s very very much effective to us. And then we are hoping that we are not the only ones who’ll have the training. Other people should be trained also.

The training was very good The training is very much helping to us. Before we didn’t know anything about careers, Now the learners are ready to write an application. Before we used to help them in the staffroom without any resources. Wait for the exhibitions. The resources together with the training, empowered us a lot. Very very effective Other people should be

The training was very good and helped the educators who didn’t know anything about career guidance. Need for resources. The resources and training empowered educators and follow-up training

2) LO educators training 3) Career resources

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Educator 1: And also mister, this training must not be done once. We must be (indistinct) because if we don’t have this knowledge, it’s difficult. Here at school we have only three periods per week. You know too little. So if you have more knowledge now you have more time. Ja, because you know to plan ahead what you’re going to do.

trained also This training must not be done once We only have three periods per week More knowledge, more time to plan ahead.

should be done. All LO educators should be trained. The training was very effective. Not enough LO periods

Question 3: Have you noticed a change in the learner’s attitude towards their academy? Educator 1: I’m going to talk about the experience that I had with my grade tens. There is an improvement, they are doing better than the other learners especially in grade twelve. They are better now. Ja, promising that we are going, to do something ja, when we arrive in grade twelve. There is a change and lots of change there, they are doing their best. And they are focused. Before they were not like that. Now they are focussed. And now they know what am I going to do when completing my matric, they know that.

There is an improvement they are doing better now They are better now There is a change and lots of change. They are doing their best. And they are focussed. Before they were not like that. Now they are focussed on what to do after completing matric.

. Learners are doing better now. Learners are focussed on the future.

4) Learners future focus

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Question 4: Do you think that, if we run this program for three years, there is going to be a positive change in the grade twelve results of the school and the rest of the school? Educator 1: I think we can predict that, if the school has to take the responsibility, full responsibility in life orientation. That life orientation is very important to all learners and also to all educators. You know that life orientation is just given to any educator that just to fill gaps in most of the schools. So if the schools can see that life orientation is the umbrella of all learning areas, I think this will help us a lot. These learners are going to pass because most of them they are going to take life orientation as very important. As we know that life orientation is non-examinable, you know they don’t take it seriously. Even all the schools they don’t take it seriously. This is a non-examinable learning area, which is very important to all learning areas.

We can predict that. School has to take responsibility in L.O. L.O. is very important to all learners and educators L.O. is given to any educator to fill gaps L.O. is the umbrella of all learning areas. These learners are going to pass they are going to take L.O. as very important L.O. is non-examinable All the schools don’t take it seriously.

The school has to take responsibility for LO because of it’s importance for the learners and educators LO is the umbrella of all learning areas. Learners don’t take LO seriously, as it isn’t an examination subject.

. 5) Importance of LO

Question 5: Are you satisfied with the portfolio as it is or should anything be added or scraped? Educator: 2 The portfolio is very good and simple to the learners, very simple and even to the teacher. And then, but the program should at least start with the grade sevens, because we do have grade sevens, so that when they arrive in grade eight they know something about careers. It’s very important. It’s a very good program,

Portfolio is very good and simple to the learners Simple even to the teacher Program should start with the grade sevens. When they arrive in grade eight they know something about careers

The portfolios are good and easy to follow for learners and educators alike. It should start in grade seven.

1.1) LTSM

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especially to the side of the learners because it’s very easy to understand, easy to be followed and so on. We are working with them in their own pace. It’s very very much simple to them. They understand each and everything sometimes when I say we are going to do this activity, they have already done it on their own. So it’s very simple. Educator 1: And it’s interesting. Educator 2: Ja, very interesting. And if they are not doing anything in the classroom, you’ll find them busy with the portfolio. Ja, it keeps them focussed on something, ja.

It’s very important, it’s a very good program Very easy to understand, easy to be followed We are working in their own pace They understand everything when I say we are going to do this activity, they have already done it on their own. So it’s very simple Very interesting If they are not doing anything you’ll find them busy with the portfolio. It keeps them focussed on something

The portfolios are very interesting and keep the learners focussed on something.

Researcher: What are the biggest barriers that the learners have, not to work according to their full potential? Educator 1: First of all I can say that it’s their environment that has a mental input. You know here, here, most of our parents, of their parents, are illiterate. When they have to sign something, some of them they just put crosses. Question 6: Just crosses? Educator 2: Yes. So when you give them homework, no one can help them at home. And most of them, they live with their grannies, old ones, so its very difficult for them. They are just

Their environment has a mental input Most parents are illiterate No one can help them at home

Lack of parental support

6) Parental support

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learning alone, without any assistance from their older people, because most of them they, they are not there. So it’s very difficult, that’s why you find them coming here at school start to writing the work of yesterday at school.

They are learning alone without any assistance from older people

Question 7: Do they have any role models in the community? Educator 2: Aaa, unfortunately their role models are those who passed grade twelve with not good results and they are staying here. They are in the forests, they are the fire-fighters, when the bushes are catching fire. So it’s very very very much discouraging when they see it and then it gives them mind that what’s the use of completing school where as I’m going to sit at home doing nothing. Here is my brother, he has finished grade twelve. But I try to explain the matter to them, if you not doing well in your results at grade twelve, then you are going to stay at home because you won’t be able to get a bursary to go to a tertiary institution. You won’t find a job. The only job that you are going to get is a forest job. So you must work very very hard. The bursary is there the financial aid again for you. Just for you is to learn get your best results in matric and then grab the money and go to school, that is it.

Unfortunately their role models are those who passed grade twelve with not good results, they are staying here. They are staying in the forests the fire-fighters. It’s very very much discouraging, it gives them mind that what’s the use of completing school where as I’m going to sit at home doing nothing If you not doing well you won’t be able to get a bursary to go to a tertiary institution. You won’t find a job. The only job that you are going to get is a forest job. The bursary is there. Just learn to get your best results in matric.

No positive role models in the village A future outside the villages depends on a good performance at school.

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Researcher : Ladies, any last comments you want to make. Educator 1: What I can say is this, in order for the achievement of these learners, we do need the regional support a lot for you for to come here helping us with the promoting this career thing in our school. It’s the very best thing that we are able to say. And I also want you to one day to come and motivate the grade twelve’s. Although it’s late now just to motivate them, it helps a lot. Educator 2: Thank you, you helped us a lot, we appreciate it,

In order for the achievement of these learners we do need the regional support. I also want you one day to come and motivate the grade twelve’s You helped us a lot, we appreciate it

In order to achieve good results continuous regional support is essential. The help from the research team is appreciated.

7) The continuation of the program is essential.

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Addendum 5 VERBATIM INTERVIEW WITH LEARNERS AT ESE

Question1: After you have had career guidance now, do you know yourselves better now than you did before? Learner 2: Yes I know I know myself. Question: Why do you say so? Learner 2: I want to be a career, I want to be a columnist(?) Researcher: OK, thank you very much Learner 2: and I go to GS college and I write their contest and I pass it and on 7 January I go there and continue with my studies. Researcher: Thank you, anyone else? Learner 1: Yes of course I know I know my my career, I want to be a teacher and I’m just waiting for my my my results on Januar I go to university when they call me. Researcher: Thank you very much.

I know myself I want to be a columnist(?) GS college and I write their contest continue with my studies. Yes of course I know I know my my career, I want to be a teacher just waiting for my my my results on Januar I go to university

I know myself and the career I want to follow. I know where to study

Career guidance improved self- and career knowledge

Question 2: Do you have…can you make better decisions now after you have had career guidance? Can you make better decisions? Do you know how make a decision about your future? Learner 4: Yes a I want to improve in my career and I want to be a traffic controller. If I, if I pass my matric in December I’ll start in January. I, I want to study at a Nelspruit university. Researcher: OK, thank you very much.

Yes a I want to improve in my career and I want to be a traffic controller I want to study at a Nelspruit university.

Learners know how to make decisions

Career guidance improved decision making skills

Question 3: Aa how important do you think is it that we must have career guidance for learners in school? How important is career guidance? Do you think it is important that learners must have career guidance?

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Learner 1: Yes it is important because guided us in careers. Researcher: Thank you Learner 4: Yes I think it is important because it’s help us when we go to university we go with some of information. Researcher: Thank you Learner 5: It’s important because the if if you feel this calling you know how to do you go. Researcher: Thank you very much.

Yes it is important because guided us in careers. it is important help us when we go to university we go with some of information It’s important you feel this calling you know how to do you go.

Career guidance is important It gives information Prepare learners to make decisions

Career guidance is an important subject

Question 4: Aa do you think that we must add anything to the books that you had, the career portfolio books, or did you like it as it was? Learner 2: Yes we like it as it was. Learner 1: Yes Researcher: Yes, what. (Laughter) Learner 1: Yes, we like it. Maybe I think they must put more in our school. Researcher: They must do what? Learner 1: They must put more books, career books. Researcher: OK .Thank you. Anyone else? Learner 4: It is important because it is guiding our learners. Researcher: Thank you very much.

Yes we like it as it was we like it they must put more in our school They must put more books, career books. It is important guiding our learners

The learners liked the portfolio books Learners shouldn’t share books It guided the learners

The learners approved the CPAW

Question 5: Career guidance, do you think there is enough time in the year that you have career guidance? Because in life orientation you have physical education, and other things, you played sport. Was there enough time for career guidance itself? Learner 3: No, we want some more time so that we can continue with that. Question: You wanted more time for career

No, we want some more time so that we can continue with that.

Not enough time for career guidance

More LO periods

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guidance itself? Learner 1: Yes, I think they must put more periods in LO. Researcher: More periods in LO? Learner 3: Yes I think it’s important. Researcher: Thank you. Learner 4: I agree with increasing the time because we we playing on the ground and we need time of learning

more periods in LO. Yes I think it’s important I agree with increasing the time we playing on the ground and we need time of learning

Want more LO periods Need more time for learning

and more time for career guidance is needed

Question 6: Thank you. Is there anything you want to add before we finish or are you satisfied? Have you answered all the questions? Are you satisfied? Do you want to add anything else? Do you think that what we did here, we must take to all the schools in Mpumalanga? Must we give all the schools the portfolios that you had? What do you think? Learner 1: Can you repeat the question? Can you repeat? Question: I’ll repeat the question. You had portfolios, those career guidance books. Must we give those books to all the schools in Mpumalanga? Do you think it’s necessary that all the learners get those books? Learner 1: Yes, it’s necessary (in a choir). Researcher: You all think it’s necessary? Learner 4: Yes. I think all one of the one of us in the school get one one not to share it. Researcher: OK, you must all get one, your own, so that you don’t have to share it. Learners: Yes (in a choir) Researcher: Thank you very much ladies.

Yes, it’s necessary Yes. I think all one of the one of us in the school get one one not to share

Learners in all schools in Mpumalanga must get a Career Portfolio Activity Workbooks (CPAW)

The programme should be implemented in all schools

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ADDENDUM 6: F- AND STUDENT T-TEST STATISTICAL ANALYSIS

Quantitative data

The f-test was done first to determine whether variances were equal or unequal between the

experimental groups and the control group (H1 and H3). This was followed with the unpaired

student t-test to determine whether there was a difference between the averages of the

experimental schools and control school (H2 and H4). This was done for the group as well as

individual schools. (H5). The analysis were as presented in the following paragraphs where

the hypotheses were formulated and the findings and interpretations presented in tables and

histogram’s The Ho represents the nought hypothesis and the Ha the alternative hypothesis.

Quantitative data were collected by using the Career Development Questionnaire (CDQ) at

random samples of 50 grade 10 learners from each of the 3 participating experimental

schools as well as from the control school.

The participants who turned up on the test day were the following as explained in chapter 3:

Experimental schools • ESR 46 learners • ESL 42 learners • ESE 34 learners

Control school CSP 24 learners

The unpaired t-test (Student’s t-test) was applied to determine whether there was a difference

between the averages of the experimental schools and control school based on the pre-and

post-test results of the CDQ. Before we could conduct an unpaired t-test we had to determine

whether the variances were equal/unequal between the two samples/groups. This was done

by using the f-test.

• GROUP RESULTS

Group results were calculated for pre- and post-tests on the control and experimental schools.

1.1 Pre-test: F-TEST (Experimental versus control group)

The hypotheses were as follows:

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Ho1: The variances were equal for the experimental schools and the control school’s pre-test

results.

Ha1: The variances were not equal for the experimental schools and the control school’s pre-

test results

• A confidence interval of 95% was applied.

• A two-tailed distribution was applied.

Table 1: F-test results for group (Control school versus experimental schools) Sub-scales F-value P-value

P(F>=f) Reject Ho if P(F>=f)<0.05

Sub-scale 1 Sub-scale 2 Sub-scale 3 Sub-scale 4 Sub-scale 5 All sub-scales

1.9956 1.1450 2.1555 0.9288 1.2863 1.8538

0.03471 0.37533 0.02232 0.61793 0.25836 0.05172

Yes No Yes No No No

The Ho1 hypothesis was only rejected for sub-scales 1 and 3, which means that the variances

were equal for experimental schools and the control school based on the pre-test results,

except for sub-scale 1 and 3.

To compare the averages between the experimental schools and the control school, based on

the pre-test results, the unpaired t-test (Student’s t-test) with equal variances for all sub-

scales except for sub-scales 1 and 3 were applied.

1.2 Pre-test STUDENT t-TEST (experimental versus control group)

The hypotheses were as follows:

Ho2 ; The average of the pre-test results is statistically not significantly different between the

control school and the experimental schools.

Ha2 : The average of the pre-test is statistically significantly different between experimental

schools for the pre-test.

• Reject hypothesis if P (T>=t) < 0.05

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• A 95% confidence interval was applied.

• The unpaired t-test (Student’s t-test) was applied.

• The one-tailed distribution was applied.

Table 2: T-test results for Group (experimental schools versus control school) Sub-scales T-value P-value

P(T>=t) Reject if Ho P(T>=t)<0.05

Sub-scale 1 Sub-scale 2 Sub-scale 3 Sub-scale 4 Sub-scale 5 All sub-scales

1.1500 2.2035 1.4747 0.8929 1.5974 1.6516

0.25204 0.02915 0.14248 0.37338 0.11236 0.10080

No Yes No No No No

The hypothesis was only rejected for sub-scale 2, which is decision-making. This means that

there was a statistical difference between the control and experimental school performances

for sub-scale 2, but that there were no statistical differences between the performances of the

other scales.

Sub-scales 2, 4, 5 and the overall score were taken into account as the F-test indicated equal

variances. This interpretation was still made with full recognition of the fact that the sample

was not large enough to ensure reliability of the results. This interpretation was triangulated

with the descriptive qualitative analysis in chapter 4 and the qualitative content analysis

regarding feedback about career maturity aspects.

1.3 Post-test: F-TEST (Experimental versus control group)

The hypotheses under the F-test were as follows:

Ho3: The variances were equal for the experimental schools and the control school’s post-test

results.

Ha3: The variances were not equal for the experimental schools and the control school’s post-

test results.

• A confidence interval of 95% was applied.

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Table 3: F-test results for Group (Control school vs experimental schools) Sub-scales F-value P-value

P(F>=f) Reject Ho if P(F>=f)<0.05

Sub-scale 1 Sub-scale 2 Sub-scale 3 Sub-scale 4 Sub-scale 5 All sub-scales

1.0556 1.3990 1.3941 0.9576 0.9785 2.1991

0.46761 0.18907 0.19165 0.58242 0.55699 0.01982

No No No No No Yes

The Ho3 hypothesis was not rejected for any of the sub-scales individually, but was rejected

on an overall basis. This means that the variances for the post-test results were similar for all

sub-scales between the experimental schools and the control school, but not for the overall

score.

To compare the averages of the post-test results between the experimental schools and the

control school, we used the unpaired test (Student’s t-test) with equal variances for all sub-

scales (except for the overall result).

1.4 Post-test: STUDENT t-TEST (Experimental versus control group)

The hypotheses were the following:

Ho4: The averages of the post-test results were not significantly different between the control

and the experimental schools.

Ha4: The averages of the post-test were statistically significant different between the

experimental schools and the control school.

• Reject hypothesis if P(T>=t)<0.05

• A 95% confidence interval was applied.

• Used the unpaired t-test (Student’s t-test).

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Table 4: T-test results for Group (Control school versus experimental schools) Sub-scales T-value P-value

P(T>=t) Reject Ho if P(T>=t)<0.05

Sub-scale 1 Sub-scale 2 Sub-scale 3 Sub-scale 4 Sub-scale 5 All sub-scales

0.9655 2.3270 1.6783 2.1039 1.5239 2.6781

0.33592 0.02136 0.09546 0.03713 0.12973 0.00827

No Yes No Yes No Yes

The Ho4 hypothesis was rejected for sub-scale 2, 4 and on an overall basis. This means that

there were a statistical significant difference between the control and the experimental

schools. There were no statistical significant difference for sub-scales 1, 3 and 5. These

results may be distorted due to the small population sizes. There were a

A summary of the F- and T-test results is presented in table 5 indicating acceptance or

rejection of hypothesis for the subscales.

Table 5: Summary of Ho rejection for the comparison of the CDQ results of the

control and experimental groups

Sub-scales

1 2 3 4 5 Total of all sub-

scales Pre-test √ x √ x x x F-test Post-test x x x x x √ Pre-test x √ x x x x T-test Post-test x √ x √ x √

The above findings indicate a profile of statistically significant changes between CDQ pre-

and post-tests that is inconsistent

• INDIVIDUAL SCHOOL RESULTS

The student t-test was used to determine whether there was an improvement from the pre-

test (conducted on 4/3/2008) to the post-test (conducted on 20/10/2008) for the four schools

individually.

The following hypothesis was formulated:

H05: There was no statistical significant difference from the average CDQ scores of the pre-

and the post-test.

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Ha5: There was a statistical significant difference from the average CDQ scores of the pre-

and the post-test.

• Used a 95% confidence interval (i.e. reject hypothesis if P(T>=t)<0.05.

• Used the paired t-test for the hypothesis on the individual test results.

• Used one-tailed distribution.

2.1 ESR Table 6: T-test results for ESR

Sub-scales T-value P-value P(T>=t) Reject Ho if P(T>=t)<0.05 Sub-scale 1 Sub-scale 2 Sub-scale 3 Sub-scale 4 Sub-scale 5 All sub-scales

0.9652 0.8828 1.3078 0.8386 1.0422 1.0328

0.33959 o.38206 0.19760 0.40613 0.30287 0.30721

No No No No No No

The hypothesis was not rejected for any of the sub-scales and also not on an overall basis.

This means that there was a statistical difference between the pre-to the post-test at this

school.

2.2 ESL Table 7: T-test results for ESL

Sub-scales T-value P-value P(T>=t) Reject Ho if P(T>=t)<0.05 Sub-scale 1 Sub-scale 2 Sub-scale 3 Sub-scale 4 Sub-scale 5 All sub-scales

1.9082 1.8636 2.9440 1.5473 2.2228 4.0280

0.06338 0.06955 0.00532 0.12947 0.03181 0.00024

No No Yes No Yes Yes

The Ho hypothesis is rejected for sub-scale 3, 5 and on the overall result. This means there

has been a statistical significant difference for these sub-scales, but no statistical significant

difference for sub-scales 1, 2, and 5.

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• ESE

Table 8: T-test results for ESE

Sub-scales T-value P-value P(T>=t) Reject Ho if P(T>=t)<0.05 Sub-scale 1 Sub-scale 2 Sub-scale 3 Sub-scale 4 Sub-scale 5 All sub-scales

2.7315 1.7819 2.9215 2.6526 4.2591 3.0796

0.01004 0.08398 0.00624 0.01218 0.00016 0.00416

Yes No Yes Yes Yes yes

The Ho hypothesis is rejected for all the sub-scales except for sub-scale 2, which is decision

making. This means that there has been a statistical significant difference between the pre-

and the post-test for all sub-scales except for sub-scale 2.

2.4 CSP Table 9 T-test results for CSP

Sub-scales T-value P-value P(T>=t) Reject Ho if P(T>=t)<0.05 Sub-scale 1 Sub-scale 2 Sub-scale 3 Sub-scale 4 Sub-scale 5 All sub-scales

2.0700 0.7954 1.4473 1-3073 1.6322 1.2190

0.04986 0.43451 0.16131 0.20403 0.11626 0.23518

Yes No No No No No

The Ho hypothesis was rejected for sub-scale 1 (self- information). This means that there was

a significant difference between the pre- and post-test results for CSP learners for sub-scale

1, but that there were no statistical difference for the other sub-scales and the overall score.

4.5 Summary of CDQ pre- and post-test statistically significant results for individual schools. Table 10: Summary of rejection of the Ho hypothesis for individual schools Schools Self –

information Sub-scale 1

Decision making Sub-scale 2

Career information Sub-scale 3

Integration of SI & CI Sub-scale 4

Career planning Sub-scale 5

Average of all the sub-scales

ESR x x x x x x ESL x x √ x √ √ ESE √ x √ √ √ √ CSP √ x x x x x

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The findings in the above table indicate a profile where the results of one school did not

improve statistically significant while the other schools had statistically significant

improvements on some sub-scales and the total average of all sub-scales.