Interdisciplinary Journal of Sociality Studies

Analysis of push and pull factors influencing the migration of Ugandan domestic workers to Saudi Arabia

2024-01-19T11:31:12+02:00

The study explored the push and pull factors driving Ugandan domestic workers to migrate to Saudi Arabia. The research paradigm employed was social constructivism, where individuals seek to understand their world and develop meanings based on their experiences. A qualitative approach using a phenomenological research design was utilised. Data was collected from a sample of eighteen (18) respondents through unstructured interviews to identify the factors contributing to the migration of Ugandan domestic workers to Saudi Arabia. Thematic analysis was conducted during data analysis. The migration factors were presented in concept maps created using Nvivo 10.0. The study uncovered that push factors varied from person to person, but major ones included poverty, unemployment, school dropout, family obligations, marital neglect, domestic violence, personal development goals, poor working conditions, work-related challenges, peer influence, and single parenting. Pull factors include the influence of Arabian family culture that promotes the demand for maids, bilateral labour agreements, adventure, attractive job prospects, free travel documents, cost-effective job processes, and an easy migration process. The study concluded that without effectively addressing push factors to provide long-term solutions, the migration of Ugandan domestic workers to Saudi Arabia will persist. It is recommended that the Government of Uganda take steps to create a conducive environment with satisfying employment opportunities for these young individuals to reduce the number of people seeking jobs outside Uganda. This involves generating employment opportunities to regulate internal domestic work and make it highly profitable, thereby encouraging young people to remain in Uganda.

Re-membering the dismembered in university 'politics of process': Strategies for women's empowerment and inclusivity in academic leadership

2024-01-12T15:59:51+02:00

In response to the legacy of Apartheid, South Africa has implemented gender equality policies to address the marginalisation of women in higher education institutions. Despite this liberation movement, the politics of university systems have continually marginalised previously disadvantaged black people, especially women. This is evident in the statistics of black women in positions of authority and academic development in South Africa. Observations and literature confirm that social, cultural, and institutional practices, often called the "politics of process," remain significant obstacles to women's full inclusion in the university leadership system. Therefore, this study aims to deconstruct gender supremacy within university systems from the perspectives of experienced women. It adopts a decoloniality approach, viewed through a transformative lens, which seeks to transform the perceived organisationally "dismembered" women by "re-membering" them into the sphere of equal recognition in university politics. Participatory research (PR) was employed to design the study, involving five women from a public university in South Africa, selected using a convenient sampling method. Unstructured interviews were conducted to gather information from the participants. Thematic Analysis (TA) was applied to analyse the data. The study found that institutionally induced challenges, women as impediments to themselves, and patriarchy and societal issues are major barriers preventing women from attaining positions of authority. In contrast, institutional support, self-empowerment, and mentoring initiatives represent strategies to re-member the dismembered, forming the basis of the study's recommendations.

Cultural significance of elderly guidance in shaping learner discipline management: A case of two secondary schools in Nigeria.

2024-02-25T05:25:11+02:00

: Learner indiscipline is a problem in schools worldwide, including Nigeria, which has caused uproar in school management. The problem of indiscipline in Nigerian secondary schools is examined through the lens of the Ubuntu, which is considered appropriate as it allows for an indigenous approach to addressing learner indiscipline. The study adopts an interpretive paradigm within a qualitative framework, focusing on the role of elderly advice in learner discipline management in selected secondary schools in Ado Ekiti, Nigeria. A case study research design was employed to gain an in-depth understanding of the phenomenon and management of learner discipline in two different secondary schools. The research involves six heads of department as participants, offering an in-depth exploration of their perspectives and experiences related to the guidance provided by elders in shaping disciplinary practices. The collected data is analysed using thematic analysis. The study reveals the cultural significance of teacher-elderly guidance on learner discipline, the impacts of such guidance on discipline strategies, and the challenges and opportunities in integrating teacher-elderly guidance into education. This study contributes to scholarship by contextualising the significance of teacher-elderly guidance as a unique way of managing learner discipline in secondary schools

Parental involvement as a convergence of understanding by teachers and parents

2024-03-06T15:23:58+02:00

This qualitative interpretative study aimed to investigate parents' and teachers' understanding of parental involvement and its implications for improving relations between schools and parents. The study employed the theoretical framework of Community Cultural Wealth, which emphasises the importance of listening to and including multiple educational stakeholders in order to leverage their expertise. This framework helped us analyse the existing literature on parental involvement and the responses we received from participants. For data collection, we conducted individual interviews with three parents and three teachers who were purposefully selected from three different schools in the Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality, Free State, South Africa. We prompted participants to articulate their understanding of parental involvement using an open-ended question. Through thematic analysis, we found that both teachers and parents perceive parental involvement as encompassing communication, parenting, participation in extracurricular activities, and assistance with learning activities. Based on our findings, we recommend that schools and parents engage in ongoing discussions to (re)negotiate and (re)formalise their understanding of parental involvement to enhance collaboration and efficiency between schools, teachers, learners, and parents.

Academics’ professional identity: Conflicting personal values of academics and institutional culture

2024-03-21T06:26:00+02:00

Higher education is driven by the objective of establishing an educational setting in which academics and students collaboratively construct and convey scientific knowledge and values that can be utilised in the future. Academics' professional identity focuses on their professional interests, values, and commitments to important work duties. Consequently, academics' professional identity may encounter obstacles when faced with conflicting misalignment between their values and university culture. This paper utilises a qualitative case study with an interpretive paradigm to investigate how academic identity is constructed through the conflicts that arise from the discrepancy between individual values and institutional culture. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine academics purposively selected from an English-speaking university in Cameroon to gain insight into the phenomenon. The gathered data were coded and analysed thematically. The findings reveal the existence of conflict between academics' personal values and institutional culture in the study context. It was found that there is a lack of integrity and ethics within the academic environment, particularly regarding financial transactions and the exploitation of educational practices by some leaders, academic staff, and students. Additionally, issues such as insufficient remuneration, delayed payment, and fear of physical and professional reprisal within the university impact academics' professional identity and self-worth. To address these challenges, it is crucial to tackle delayed wages, foster a supportive environment, align academic values with university beliefs, and promote political neutrality in the study context.