Institute of Distance Education

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    Exploring the pedagogy of civic education in social studies at junior secondary school in Masaiti district : a hermeneutic phenomenological approach.
    (The University of Zambia, 2022) Mufalo, Setwin Mutau
    The current study was conducted to explore the pedagogy of Civic Education in Social Studies at junior secondary school in Masaiti district. The study was purely qualitative in nature, which integrated constructivist and interpretivist paradigms. A hermeneutic phenomenological design also guided the study. In addition, homogenous selective (purposive) sampling technique was employed to elicit the lived experiences of twelve (12) participants using semi-structured questionnaires, semi-structured interviews guides and observation schedules. The study revealed that Civic Education through Social Studies enabled learners to acquire relevant competences as well as knowledge on governance and corruption. Further, the study established that the component was taught using traditional mode of delivery (lecture method) by teachers mostly not trained in Civic Education. In addition, the study identified many challenges associated with the teaching of the subject namely: shortage of qualified Civic Education teachers and a dearth of teaching/learning materials, school infrastructure and financial resources. Others were inadequate contact time, low literacy levels among learners, substandard textbooks and integration of Civic Education into Social Studies. These highlighted challenges according to participants contributed to poor academic performance of learners in Social Studies during school based assessments and the final examination. In order to ameliorate the highlighted challenges associated with the teaching of Civic Education through Social Studies at junior level, the following recommendations were made: (i) Ministry of Education (MoE) should employ adequate qualified Civic Education teachers in schools; (ii) Teachers should teach the subject using 21stcentury teaching approaches (learner-centred activities); (iii) MoE should fund schools to enable them procure enough and quality teaching/learning materials and fund educational tours; (iv) MoE through DEBS office and school administrators should enhance teacher monitoring and Continuous Professional Development (CPD) programmes in schools; (v) MoE should adopt the use of the suggested CEPCK framework in schools; (vi) MoE and Curriculum Development Centre (CDC) should collaborate and disintegrate Social Studies into standalone subjects; (vii) MoE should first conduct a feasibility study before any curriculum review; and (viii) MoE should first implement curriculum reforms in universities and colleges before rolling them out in schools. In conclusion, the study revealed that Civic Education enabled learners to acquire relevant competence, it was taught using lecture method and its delivery was associated with many challenges, which contributed to poor academic performance of learners in Social Studies.
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    An investigation on the effects of youth unemployment on increased crime in Lusaka district of Zambia: a case study of Chibolya compound.
    (The University of Zambia, 2024) Banguna, Barbara Zyambo
    This study explored how Zambia's high youth unemployment rate affected the rising crime rate of Lusaka Province's Chibolya Compound in Lusaka District. The research employed a case study design. Both quantitative and qualitative data were gathered using structured and semistructured questionnaires. The secondary goals were to assess the major causes of youth unemployment on increased crime in Chibolya Compound, discover the impact of unemployment among youths in Chibolya Compound, understand how these youths survive without employment, and identify government programs that could mitigate youth unemployment. Sixty (60) purposefully chosen adolescents were given questionnaires and guides with which to gather data. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS), Microsoft Word, and Excel were used for analysis. This study was motivated by the realization that until the root causes of the high unemployment rate for youth were found, no meaningful solution to this issue can be implemented. The unemployed adolescents participated in the study's survey because we believed that they were in a better position to provide important primary data because they were the ones who knew their circumstances and the reasons behind them the best. The findings indicated that economic recession, a lack of life skills, and little exposure to the job market were the major contributory factors to youth unemployment in the district of Lusaka. Other indicated causes include a lack of opportunities to access some industries, a lack of skills, low education levels, corruption and nepotism, and low entrepreneurship levels combined with financial challenges. However, this results in criminal activities, prostitution, excessive alcohol consumption, and poverty due to low or no income. To address the challenge of high unemployment among youths, the country must first attend to these causes. This study recommended that to improve the livelihoods of Kanyama's youths, they should be given priority when there are employment opportunities within their communities, such as road or drainage construction. Youths would also address underlying cause of unemployment by building affordable schools at all levels and ensuring that life skills and high-quality education are provided. The government should create jobs to reduce the consequences of high youth unemployment. Additionally, the government and all stakeholders should confront this matter before it degenerates into an uncontrollable situation. This study also recommended encouraging youths to stop selling cannabis and form cooperatives to access Community Development Fund (CDF) to venture into business. The study also recommends that awareness campaigns about the National Youth policy should be occur.
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    Perceptions of employees regarding performance management systems in the private sector: a case study of First National Bank Zambia (FNBZ).
    (The University of Zambia, 2024) Simanela, Memory
    BSTRACT This study explored the perception of employees regarding Performance Management System (PMS) at FNB Zambia. A mixed-methods approach was employed, including survey data from 130 respondents and key informant interviews with departmental managers. The demographic characteristics of the respondents were analysed, revealing a balanced representation across gender, diverse age-groups, education levels, marital status, and tenure lengths. Findings indicate that a significant portion of employees perceive the PMS as lacking in clarity regarding performance expectations and goals, fairness in implementation, and timely feedback provision. Job satisfaction levels were found to be relatively low, with mixed perceptions regarding the effectiveness of the PMS. Factors influencing the mixed perception referred to above, include communication from managers, training and development opportunities, rewards and recognition and peer feedback. Key informant interviews underscored the importance of clear goals, regular feedback, fairness, development opportunities, and alignment with organizational values in shaping employee perceptions of the PMS. Challenges such as lack of clarity, bias, insufficient feedback, limited development opportunities, and lack of recognition were identified. Recommendations include improving communication, goal clarity, fairness, feedback mechanisms, and development opportunities within the PMS to enhance employee satisfaction and performance. Addressing these factors can contribute to a more effective and impactful performance management system aligned with organizational goals and employee needs. Key words: Performance Management, Rewards, Recognition, Appraisal, Feedback
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    Reasons for failure to graduate from the farmer input support programme by small scale farmers: the case of Ilume, Mkushi district.
    (The University of Zambia, 2018) Laki, Claremont
    Since 2002, the Government of Zambia has been funding a farmer input support programme (FISP) in order to increase household food security and incomes. The program specifies that beneficiaries will collect subsidised inputs from the program for three (3) farming seasons only and graduate thereafter but however, no beneficiary has ever graduated to date. The purpose of this study was to establish the reasons for failure to graduate from the FISP by small scale famers of Ilume agriculture camp of Mkushi district. The specific objectives of this study are to establish the farmer‟s awareness of FISP graduation pathways; to establish the farm management practices among beneficiaries that would lead to self-sufficiency and surplus production and finally to investigate the sufficiency of inputs received by each FISP beneficiary. A qualitative approach was used and a purposive sampling procedure was used to select three (3) Ministry of Agriculture camp officers, while a snow bow technique was used to identify 40 small scale farmers who have benefited from the input programme for four years and above since there is was no sampling frame. Interview guides were used for MoA officials while three (3) Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) were held with farmers. Semi- structured questionnaires were also administered to individual farmers. Thematic content analysis was used to analyse the data, while Microsoft excel was also used to come up with tables and charts for data presentation. The results of the study show that FISP beneficiaries were not aware of any graduation pathways and conventional farming methods were the most popular among which was in contradiction to the highly recommended conservation farming methods. The results also showed that each FISP beneficiary receive one pack consisting of 2 x 50kgs of basal fertilizer, 2 x 50kgs of urea fertilizer and 1 x 10kgs of hybrid maize seed which are not sufficient. The study concluded that the possible reasons FISP beneficiaries do not graduate are that they are not aware of any graduation pathways; the lack of use of best farming methods have led to perpetual low yields and the insufficient quantities of inputs each farmer receive was only enough for food security, but not enough to lead farmers to increased incomes and poverty reduction. This led the FISP not to achieve the objective of household food security, improved incomes and poverty reduction in full. The study recommended that beneficiaries should be made aware of graduation pathways while the use of conservation farming techniques should not only be recommended, but should be made mandatory to all benefiting farmers. The study also recommended that the government should consider increasing the inputs for each farmer to 2 times the current quantities. This will make farmers achieve the FISP objectives thereby leading to graduation.
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    Factors affecting financial sustainability of non-governmental organizations in Luapula province, Zambia.
    (The University of Zambia, 2024) Simuchembu, Zengeni
    Amidst the challenging economic conditions, numerous Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in Zambia have faced severe financial distress, leading to closures and diminishing financial sustainability. This issue has been exacerbated over the past decade as external support directed towards NGOs in Zambia has notably declined. Unfortunately, there is a lack of comprehensive and well-documented studies focusing on the financial sustainability of NGOs in Zambia, further limiting our understanding of this critical matter. This study focused on the factors that influence the financial sustainability of NGOs in Luapula Province, Zambia. The study explored the impact of key factors which are; financial management, revenue diversification, and donor relationship management on the financial sustainability of NGOs in Luapula Province. It utilized a mixed-methods research approach, involving both qualitative and quantitative methods, to gather data from sampled NGOs. The study population comprised local NGOs operating in Luapula Province, and a sample was selected based on those actively operating within the province. A total of 32 respondents participated in the study. The study tested three hypotheses related to the financial sustainability of NGOs in Luapula Province, Zambia. The results showed that there was an insignificant relationship between revenue diversification and the financial sustainability of NGOs in Luapula Province. On the other hand, financial management was found to significantly influence the financial sustainability of NGOs, while donor relationship management did not have a significant impact on financial sustainability. Nonetheless, correlation test shows that financial management and donor relationship have a strongly positive relationship. Based on this evidence, the study recommends that NGOs in Luapula prioritize building core financial management systems, examining the institutional conditions that enable them to meet donor compliance conditions and prioritizing revenue concentration before creating portfolios with multiple revenue streams. These recommendations will help improve NGO financial sustainability.