AA 2011 Volume 43 Issue 2

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http://hdl.handle.net/11660/2484

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    Analogical grounding of figurative language: narrative and metaphor and the rhetoric of inquiry
    (University of the Free State, 2011) Botha, M. Elaine
    English: Storytelling requires clear qualification of context if it is to provide solid knowledge. Combining storytelling or narrative with scientific discourse is to some extent incongruous. Stories and narratives thrive on the concrete and often particular experiences of human beings whereas theorising is characterised by abstraction aimed at identifying the laws underlying the regularities observed in reality. Although stories often deal with the individual and particular, the knowledge contained in them refers to classes of phenomena, not to unique individuals. The secret to understanding the prevalence of metaphor in narrative and storytelling is located in the fact that metaphor discloses par excellence the ontic and ontological classifications in reality. It lies at the root of descriptive classification, meaning change and meaning transfer and is grounded in the analogies revealed by the metaphor.
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    Challenges associated with ethics review of educational research at a South African university
    (University of the Free State, 2011) Human-Vogel, Salome; Coetzee, Sonja
    English: This article analyses the decisions and feedback from reviewers of a decentralised ethics committee to applicants in a two-year period. Results indicate that the review of research protocols by an ethics committee are complicated by challenges related to factors such as the formal requirements for review, process of informed consent, research design, how power relationships are addressed, and sample selection. These challenges are put into perspective by discussing organisational factors that lead to ethical divide rather than ethical synergy between ethics committee members and applicants.
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    Challenges to parental involvement in school governance
    (University of the Free State, 2011) Naong, Matsidiso; Morolong, Itumeleng
    English: Many parents find it difficult to embrace their governance role within public schools, with the exception of those within elementary schools. Despite the intention of the South African Schools Act of 1996 to change this situation, some primary schools reported a mixed-bag of responses regarding parental involvement in school governance. This article reveals that “young to middle-aged” parents display immense energy, inquisitiveness, and a desire to lead and be involved, while their older counterparts still accept and respect the unfolding of events at school without question.
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    ‘Dulle Griet’ in seventeenth-century Flemish painting: a risible image of popular peasant culture
    (University of the Free State, 2011) Van Haute, Bernadette
    English: This article investigates the representation of “dulle Griet” by the seventeenth-century artists David II Teniers and David III Ryckaert in the context of Catholic Flanders. In a society preoccupied with hierarchical order both the state and church aimed to root out archaic beliefs and customs, and to save society from witchcraft. The representations of mad Meg are interpreted as comic archaisms satirising the magical culture of the peasants to confirm the superiority of the urban elite. While these imaginative inventions heightened their artistic prestige and social standing, it is argued that the painters also contributed to the efforts to demystify the ideology of witch hunting.
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    The elaboration of a demarcation criterion in reformational philosophy
    (University of the Free State, 2011) Coletto, Renato
    English: Contemporary philosophy of science has struggled considerably over an apparently simple question: how does one distinguish between scientific and non-scientific knowledge? The search for a criterion of demarcation between science and non-science has been laborious but not very rewarding. This article presents the contribution provided by Reformational philosophy, a relatively small Christian school in which, it is argued, a plausible solution to the demarcation problem was offered. The views of the relevant authors are sketched, with the conclusion that (since its beginnings in the 1930s) the discussion on the demarcation criterion among Reformational philosophers shows considerable consensus.
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    Parent-child relationship and adolescent egocentrism
    (University of the Free State, 2011) Bester, Garfield
    English: This article aims to establish how different categories of parent-child relationships are associated with certain manifestations of egocentrism. An empirical investigation was carried out, and questionnaires were used to measure egocentrism and parent-child relationships. The results of the investigation showed that the adapted egocentrism questionnaire can be considered reliable and construct valid. Significant negative correlations were obtained between parent-child relationships and egocentrism, in particular between personal fable and the relationship of knowing. Results from the regression analysis showed that 39% of the variance in parent-child relationship can jointly be explained by imaginary audience, personal fable and overestimation of responsibilities.
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    Self-directed learning and career decision-making
    (University of the Free State, 2011) De Bruin, Karina; Cornelius, Eleanor
    English: This article explores the relationships between self-directed learning and aspects of career decision-making. First-year students in access programmes at a South African university participated in the study. Having entered higher education via an alternative route, it was expected that these students would find it difficult to make career decisions. Students who measure high on self-directed learning find it easier to make career decisions. The results indicate that self-directed learning has significant correlations with career decision self-efficacy, career decision certainty and indecision. Multiple regression analyses showed that self-directed learning explained approximately 4% of the variance in career decision certainty besides what is explained by career decision self-efficacy.
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    “Sunny side and/or shady side?”: the living conditions and resilience of elderly Sunnyside residents
    (University of the Free State, 2011) Alpaslan, Assim
    English: This article describes the experiences relating to the living conditions of a sample of older people residing in Sunnyside, Tshwane. Based on their narratives and the meanings they attach to their living conditions in Sunnyside, this article concludes that this suburb has both a sunny and a shady side for the elderly. Their view of and approach to life, as well as their resilience enable the elderly to deal with the shady side of Sunnyside. Contrary to what might have been expected, the advantages relating to the sunny side of their suburb appear to transcend the disadvantages of its shady side.
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    Teaching about social justice: black lecturer, white students
    (University of the Free State, 2011) Nel, Willy
    English: This article reports an analysis of white students’ reflections on the teaching of social justice issues by their black lecturer. These reflections follow their seemingly resistant behaviour in respect of the social justice-laden content, and the conscious effort by their lecturer at disrupting their silencing behaviour. At face value the reflections contradict the resistance initially displayed in class, with their journals reflecting an overwhelmingly accepting tone towards the social justice issues taught. This article aims to contribute to discussions regarding teaching about social justice.
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    Timelessness, Trinity and temporality
    (University of the Free State, 2011) Verhoef, Anné
    English: In philosophy and theology there exists a complex relation between timelessness, Trinity and temporality. Timelessness is an age-old attribute given to God in philosophical and theological traditions, but within the last century’s development of trinitarian theology new emphasis has been placed on God’s temporality. This article discusses the trinitarian theologian Robert W Jenson’s understanding of God’s “temporal infinity” as well as the theologian Antje Jackelén’s theology of time. Their proposed concepts of God’s time/eternity is analysed in terms of the contemporary philosophical and scientific debates on the nature of time. Although Jenson’s and Jackelén’s conceptions of God’s time/eternity might, to a great extent, be philosophically sound, they still have some unresolved – perhaps more theological than philosophical – implications.