This study was carried out between October and December 1999. It looks at the nature of the literacy activities, successes and problems faced by the Adult Literacy Organization of Zimbabwe (ALOZ) in its efforts to spread literacy activities in the country. Data was collected by means of interviews and consultation of literature at the ALOZ offices. The study established that, while some successes have been scored, the organization faces various problems. This study makes recommendations that could redress these difficulties.

Citizenship education in Zimbabwe is based on the claim that young people lack citizenship virtues. This study set out to investigate these assumptions by assessing high school students' knowledge of, attitudes towards and participation levels in citizenship issues. Findings show that while students are knowledgeable about citizenship issues they are however, hesitant about involvement in political activities. The study concludes that the reported claims are partly not valid. In a politically sensitive environment students are unwilling to engage in political activities. They accurately assess the situation and adopt a position which other citizens in similar circumstances might take.

The Final Report aims to provide: a) a review of how Arts as a Tool for Learning Across the Curriculum (ATLAC) was incorporated into the Initial Teacher Education Programmes at Aberdeen University; b) insights into the strengths and weaknesses of the approach based on a series of case studies (of B.Ed and PGDE students); and c) a closer look at how ATLAC may have contributed to developing the four capacities of Curriculum for Excellence as well as creativity within the pupils. Working definition of the ATLAC approach: For the purpose of this project, seven different forms of expressive arts - dance, visual art, drama, music, film-making, story-telling, art and design - were used to devise cross-curricular teaching methods in combination with seven specific subject areas (in the case of B Ed Year 3) - mathematics, language, religious and moral education, science, social subjects, technology and health and well being. Similarly, for the PGDE ATLAC elective module, dance, art and design and visual art were used in combination with the topics - enterprise, confident individuals and health and well being. This cross-curricular approach to developing a teaching method is referred to as the 'ATLAC approach' in this report. The philosophy behind this approach is to promote a systematic way of exploring a learning context which encourages curiosity and imagination while keeping a focus on curricular areas.

It is generally recognised that practical activities are an essential part of meaningful science learning. Scientific concepts and processes, cognitive skills such as problem-solving analysis and application, psychomotor skills such as observation, measurement and dexterity, may all be developed through practical experiences. Furthermore, positive attitudes to science and technology as subjects and to science orientated careers are often promoted through such practical activities in schools. Regrettably, large class sizes, limited resources, and other pressures on teachers, militate against practical laboratory or field work in many schools in the developing countries. In the past, formal practical examinations which were set and marked externally provided an incentive for pupils and teachers to do practical work during their lessons. Unfortunately, overseas practical examination requirements, and even local ones, are difficult to meet, in terms of equipment, materials and secure supervision. The new 'O' level syllabus for Zimbabwe, for instance, illustrates this problem, since it was originally intended to be examined by a practical as well as theory papers. This has never been implemented due to difficulties of financial and manpower resources, and supervision. Many other African countries are also faced with this problem. As a result practical examinations are very rare. ... The purpose of this study was to develop and try out some examples of low-cost practical experiments in biology, chemistry and physics with children from a local school. It was also intended to find out whether or not such low-cost experiments could be used as alternatives to more elaborate traditional 'O' level practical examinations, but still be appropriate tests of the requisite knowledge and skills.

In chapter 5 of her book Southern Theory: The global dynamics of knowledge in social science Connell (2007) demonstrates how African indigenous knowledge can be a useful component of 'Southern Theory', an alternative to Northern Theory, in understanding social life. In addition to the cases that Connell cites, a number of African states in their post-colonial era have attempted to incorporate indigenous knowledge(s) from their societies as part of educational policy reforms to counter what has been regarded as colonial pro-western ideologies. In Southern African states 'Ubuntu/hunhu' (literally meaning 'being human') became a central philosophy for education in society. This paper traces this notion of Ubuntu/hunhu as it has appeared in Zimbabwean curriculum reform from the time of political independence in 1980 when the notion was invoked to strengthen the country's new socialist ideology. In so doing, it takes a self-reflective approach to the discussion of Ubuntu/hunhu. As an indigenous person of Zimbabwe who went through the education systems both during and after the colonial period, this topic is of considerable personal significance to me. Discussing the topic based on my experience invalidates the usually scholarly discussion where the researcher aims for emotional 'detachment'. Ubuntu/hunhu is a philosophy that shaped who I was as a child in Zimbabwe and continues to underpin how I see myself in Australia, the country of my current residence. Weaving my personal narratives of village socialisation and formal western schooling throughout the discussion, I explore the following questions: How successful have post-colonial governments been in implementing aspects of Southern Theory; and can we do without Northern Theory, especially in this age of globalisation?

While policy documents often portray a 'maximal tone' about proposed government programmes this may not be the case at the specific points where these programmes are to be implemented. This article reports on a study on civics and citizenship education at one South African education institution. Through a critical analysis of policy documents, teacher education modules and high school textbooks, the study aimed at enhancing an understanding of the extent to which civics and citizenship education documents at the teacher education and high school levels reflect and respond to national policy directives. Findings from the study indicate that while in some areas there are positive links between policy recommendations and institutional documents on civics and citizenship education issues, in others there are some gaps between what policy documents say and what institutional documents say. The study recommends that, to empower the learner in attempts to resolve social, political and economic problems at the local, national and global levels through citizenship education, policy directives need to be reflected in documents used at institutional levels.

In most developing countries education, and in particular literacy, is viewed as a major vehicle in the process of development. Development itself is viewed as involving changes in structures, attitudes, institutions, acceleration of economic growth, reduction of inequalities and the eradication of absolute poverty. The problem which prompted this study was that, in spite of efforts by government and non governmental organisations to raise farm worker conditions through adult literacy programmes in Mashonaland Central Province, the response of farm workers to these programmes has been low. This study thus set out to investigate critical issues that negatively impacted on the acceptability of adult literacy programmes in commercial farming communities in Mashonaland Central Province of Zimbabwe. A qualitative case study approach using in depth face to face interviews was adopted in the collection and analysis of data. A total of 102 people were interviewed. These included 48 literacy participants, 48 non-participants, 3 tutors and 3 Programme Area Coordinators. The study established that while farm communities held positive views about the role of literacy programmes in their lives, participation in the programmes was constrained by the fact that programmes did not seem to meet the daily socio-cultural, economic and political needs of the communities. Thus, it was recommended that efforts be directed towards making literacy programmes functional so that they become relevant to the daily needs of the people.

Students all over the world learn linear equations, which is a universal topic in junior secondary mathematics curriculum. In relation to learning linear equations, the balance method is usually preferred in Western countries. Apparently, the balance method highlights the concept of "balance" on both sides ·of a linear equation, which is critical in understanding the equal (i.e.,- '=') sign concept in equation solving. In contrast, the inverse method is popular in many Asian countries. The inverse method conceptualizes, for example, addition as an inverse operation to subtraction in equation solving. Asian mathematics teachers tend L view the balance method as complicated, error prone, and inefficient for effective learning. Western mathematics teachers, in contrast, regard the inverse method, which emphasizes the importance of procedural manipulation (change sign, change side), a being limited in addressing the equal sign concept. The main difference between the inverse method and the balance method lie in the critical procedural step (e.g., + 2 on both side versus- 2 becomes + 2). For the balance operation (e.g., + 2 on both side. ), the interaction between elements occurs on both sides of the equation. ln contrast, for the inverse operation (- 2 becomes+ 2), interaction between elements occurs on one side of the equation only. Research has indicated that the balance method imposes higher cognitive load than the inverse method, and therefore is inferior in learning linear equations. The present study, cross-cultural in nature, intends to shed light on the ongoing debate between Asian countries and Western countries in regard to the effectiveness of instructional practices (i.e., balance method versus inverse method) for learning linear equations . .Drawing from our previous research inquiries, we implemented an intervention design by which secondary school students in Australia and Malaysia (N = 147) who had no prior knowledge of linear equations were randomly assigned to the balance method or the inverse method lo learn how to solve one-step equations (e.g., x - 3 = - 7). Both the balance group and the inverse group completed a pre-test, studied an instruction sheet completed multiple example-equation pairs, and a post-test. Each example-equation pair comprised of a worked example paired with an equation. For both Australian and Malaysian students, the inverse group outperformed the balance groups for the practice equations not but the post-test. Malaysian students outperformed Australian students on practice problems irrespective of the balance group or the inverse group, whereas Malaysian student outperformed Australian students on post-test for the inverse group only. The present study, in line with the scope of this edited book, is significant for its inquiries into comparative instructional approaches for effective mathematics learning from the perspective of cognitive load imposition. Om examination of an in-class intervention has clarified the myth concerning cross-cultural differences in perceptions, appreciation and understanding of different instructional approaches ( i.e., balance method versus inverse method). The findings have indicated an advantage of the inverse method over the balance method in facilitating learning of one-step equations irrespective of cultural context.