Mampane is an Associate Professor, Head of Educational Psychology Department, University of Pretoria and a registered Educational Psychologist with the Health Profession Council of South Africa. Her research focus is on academic resilience, family and adolescent resilience. Her scholarly contributions are centred on the influences of context and developmental processes on academic resilience, adolescent and family resilience against multiple adversities that South African families are exposed to. Her research is unique in highlighting family resilience in resource-constrained context of South African townships and cultural influences to family resilience. On international scholarship, she received postdoctoral award to the University of Michigan (Ann-Abor), African Presidential Scholar (UMAPS) for the period August 2010 – February 2011. Mampane also received National Research Foundation of South Africa funding (2013-14/ 2018-2021) focusing on the Determinants of family resilience.
Family resilience
Academic resilience
Adolescent risk and adversity
Inclusive education
20
Scopus Publications
Scopus Publications
The Contribution of Educational Psychology to South African Preservice Teacher Training and Learner Support Motlalepule Ruth Mampane Education Sciences, 2023 Teacher education programmes are developed around the theoretical and practical understanding of child development, learning, assessment, behaviour management and motivation, which are areas of expertise in educational psychology. This paper aims to (a) critically investigate the contribution of educational psychology in the training of preservice teachers at South African universities and (b) understand the distribution of educational psychologists in public schools to support teaching and learning. A narrative literature review and email requests for unpublished documents from four educational psychologists were used as methods to collect literature in order to answer the following questions: What contribution does educational psychology make to training preservice teachers at public universities in South Africa? What contributions do educational psychologists make to support learners in South African public schools? Analysis was carried out by identifying recurring patterns in the literature reviewed. This study found that of the 26 public universities in South Africa, there are only 6 universities that offer educational psychology programmes. Educational psychology programmes in higher education institutions are in decline, leading to a decrease in the number of qualified educational psychologists. This decline negatively affects the involvement of educational psychologists in training preservice teachers in educational psychology modules or courses. Therefore, the inclusion of educational psychology as a core or fundamental module in the curriculum of preservice teachers to avoid dependence on the decreasing number of educational psychologists in higher education institutions is key. An increase in teacher training programmes in higher education should be merged with an equal increase in educational psychology core or fundamental courses in the curriculum of preservice teachers.
Perceptions of Academic Resilience by Senior Phase Learners and Teachers from Low Socioeconomic Schools Motlalepule Ruth Mampane Journal of Curriculum Studies Research, 2023 This article reports on the perceptions of academic resilience of Grade 8 and Grade 9 learners and their teachers in low socioeconomic township schools. Learners from township schools experience many risk factors that can impede their academic success and careers. A lack of resources is one of the risk factors experienced by the learners. During COVID-19, where an online or hybrid learning model was relied on for teaching and learning, most township schools relied on the rotational learning model instead. The study’s main aim is to evaluate and understand the learners’ perceptions of their academic strengths, future aspirations and motivation, and to compare their perceptions with those that emerged from their teachers’ blind evaluations. The participants were teachers (n = 8) and learners (n = 12) from two purposively sampled township secondary schools. Data-generation instruments included semi-structured interviews for learners and a self-constructed Likert-type-scale questionnaire for teachers. Content analysis was used to analyse the data. The findings suggest that risk factors to academic resilience exist within the family and the school environment. Lack of parental support and school security, poor teacher-learner relationship and unemployment were frequently mentioned. However, factors that can enhance academic resilience were also identified within the family, school and community. Risks and protective factors affecting learners’ immediate threats and needs were identified. Access to technology and the need for technological advances were not identified as resources or risks. Future research should examine the relationship between resilience, academic resilience, career aspirations and the role of technology in education.
Students with Disabilities’ Access to Distance Education: A Case for Transformational Leadership within the Ambit of Ubuntu Folake Ruth Aluko, Motlalepule Ruth Mampane International Journal of African Higher Education, 2022 There has been much debate on access and social justice, and the role ofdistance education in redressing social injustices. However, little is knownabout these issues in relation to students with disabilities. The South AfricanDepartment of Higher Education and Training’s Strategic Policy Frameworkon Disability for the Post-School Education and Training System aims to improvepeople with disabilities' access to and success in post-school education andtraining. The document notes that despite the ground gained in transforming the the country's higher education landscape, systematic, institutional and personal challenges persist in relation to integrating such students into postschool education and training. This article highlights the challenges typically encountered by students with disabilities despite policy responses and why these have not worked. It proposes transformational leadership nestled within Ubuntu to transform the issue of disability in post-school education and training and offers directions for further research directions.
 Key words: distance education; disability; access, social justice; Ubuntu;transformational leadership
Youth resilience to drought: Learning from a group of south african adolescents Linda Theron, Motlalepule Ruth Mampane, Liesel Ebersöhn, Angie Hart International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2020 Exposure to drought is on the increase, also in sub-Saharan Africa. Even so, little attention has been paid to what supports youth resilience to the stressors associated with drought. In response, this article reports a secondary analysis of qualitative data generated in a phenomenological study with 25 South African adolescents (average age 15.6; majority Sepedi-speaking) from a drought-impacted and structurally disadvantaged community. The thematic findings show the importance of personal, relational, and structural resources that fit with youths’ sociocultural context. Essentially, proactive collaboration between adolescents and their social ecologies is necessary to co-advance socially just responses to the challenges associated with drought.
The effect of a community-based social support programme on the resilience of children from vulnerable families Motlalepule Ruth Mampane Early Child Development and Care, 2020 This article reports on the effect of a community-based social support programme offered through a government-linked centre that works on the resilience of children of families from low socioeconomic backgrounds. Purposive sampling was used to select four parents (mothers) and nine school-going children (N = 13) who all benefit from and attend a community-based social support programme (drop-in centre) that targets vulnerable learners and their families. A case study design was implemented to construct data using biographical questionnaires, semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions. The findings revealed that the socioeconomic status of families and the degree of vulnerability of primary school children are key determinants and identification strategies that are used by schools to refer learners to social support programmes aimed at supporting their resilience. Moreover, the identification of vulnerable children through the school system enhances and facilitates their family’s access to social support programmes.
ASSESSMENT IN OPEN AND DISTANCE LEARNING Encyclopedia of Africa Volume 11 11 Volume Set, 2020
Negotiating Leadership in Interdisciplinary Co-Productive Research: A Case Study of An International Community-Based Project Between Collaborators From South Africa and the United Kingdom Angie Hart, Shahnaz Biggs, Stephen Scott-Bottoms, Lisa Buttery, Scott Dennis, et al. Sage Open, 2020 In the absence of empirical and conceptual considerations of the negotiation of leadership in teams doing community-based research, this article adds to the leadership literature by offering a critical reflection on positioning and collaborative teams in the context of one interdisciplinary, co-productive, cross-generational and international research project. The project focused on youth and community resilience to drought in South Africa. Fourteen co-researchers reflected on their experiences of leadership within the project, using a collectively developed questionnaire. Findings uniquely highlight wider ethical considerations when youth and novice researchers are included in research teams. A strong emphasis on cultural responsiveness was found; with local and culturally led leadership seen to positively influence both processes and outcomes. Reflections suggest collaboration may be approached as an “ethos” and aided by transformational leadership theories and methodologies. Findings may be especially relevant to research teams, funders, and ethical bodies.
Call for manuscripts by invitation: Special issue of the ecdc, 2019 promoting resilience in the early years of people’s lives by developing their communication skills and enhancing their narratability Jacobus Gideon (Kobus) Maree, Motlalepule Ruth Mampane, Margaret Funke Omidire Early Child Development and Care, 2018 This Call for Manuscripts concerns three closely connected aspects of early childhood education, namely the importance of promoting resilience in the early years of people’s lives, developing their communication skills, and improving their narratability. These aspects are discussed briefly below. To begin with: While the construct ‘resilience’ refers to healthy and successful development in the context of risk and adversity (Masten, 2001), resilience research covers people’s development over their entire lifespan as well as a number of related topics. Extensive research has been conducted on issues relating to the theories and methodologies of childhood development, learning, and education, yet little research has been done on theories and methodologies of resilience in the early years of people’s lives (Masten, Gewirtz, & Sapienza, 2013) and on the role of significant others in the development of children and childhood resilience in particular. The acquisition of resilience occurs within specific developmental and context-specific processes; for instance, it is generally accepted that children need a safe and nurturing environment to develop satisfactorily. They cannot achieve healthy development on their own – they need the help of significant others such as their primary caretakers (Masten et al., 2013). Adult social and emotional support is a key protective factor that promotes children’s experience of resilience (Mampane & Bouwer, 2011; Masten, 2001; Theron & Theron, 2010). Little attention has been given to how resilience can be strengthened in the early years of people’s lives by developing their communication skills, even though the importance of promoting communication as a key protective factor in enhancing resilience throughout people’s lifespan is generally accepted. It should also be borne in mind that earlier research on childhood resilience was conducted from a developmental psychopathology perspective (Garmezy & Masten 1986) and focused on promoting healthy developmental trajectories for children raised by parents with “mental illness or stress in the family, social disadvantages, or poverty” (Masten et al. 2013, p. 2). At the same time, research on resilience and language development tended to focus on the communication and academic performance of school-going children. Secondly, the close link between the acquisition of resilience and language development is generally acknowledged, where language development is seen as a process that helps children communicate their thoughts, opinions, and wishes to others. Language and, more specifically, articulacy supports children’s ability to express their ideas and emotions to others as well as their ability to process and understand information received from others. The key role of language in learning and in promoting resilience cannot be overstated. Early experiences in listening and talking provide the foundation for reading, writing, and expressing one’s innermost feelings. What children learn through oral language provides a knowledge base for their reading and writing skills, which, in turn, enhances their articulation competencies. Learners without a robust literacy foundation may struggle not only academically but also in terms of becoming more resilient. Inadequate language
An indigenous psychology perspective on psychosocial support in Southern Africa as collective, networking, and pragmatic support Liesel Ebersöhn, Tilda Loots, Ruth Mampane, Funke Omidire, Marlize Malan-Van Rooyen, et al. Journal of Community and Applied Social Psychology, 2018 This research paper and approach have emerged as a result of the work and thinking advanced by Kim Samuel in her collaboration with Oxford University's Poverty and Human Development Initiative and through her leadership as President of the Samuel Family Foundation.This research has also been done in partnership with Synergos, the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund (NMCF), and the Foundation for Community Development (FDC) in Mozambique, working to overcome isolation and deepen social connectedness for children and youth in Southern Africa. Nelson Mandela Children's Fund (NMCF) Researchers: Vuyani Patrick Ntanjana & Fezile July.Nelson Mandela Children's Fund Regional Partners: SADC Countries; South African Provinces: Lesotho—Red Cross‐Lesotho; Gauteng—Albertina Sisulu Special School; Swaziland—Save the Children, Swaziland; Eastern Cape—Diaz Primary School; Namibia—Church Alliance for Orphans; Limpopo—Sepanapudi Traditional Authority; North West—Emmang Basadi Advocacy and Lobby Organisation.
A CONSTRUCTION, DECONSTRUCTION, AND RECONSTRUCTION FRAMEWORK FOR EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY TRAINING IN A POSTCOLONIAL SETTING: The Case of South Africa Internationalizing the Teaching of Psychology, 2017
Assessment in open and distance learning Open Distance Learning Odl in South Africa, 2015
