Research

Snail Day raises awareness of schistosomiasis and river health

The North-West University (NWU) Water Research Group (WRG) and the University of Limpopo (UL) recently hosted a Snail Day community workshop, sponsored by the Water Research Commission (WRC).

According to Dr Lizaan de Necker, principal investigator from the NWU, this formed part of their project that focuses on the distribution of schistosomiasis in South Africa, how it may have changed over the past 40 years, and to model how the distribution may change in the future because of climate change.

Submitted on Wed, 05/03/2023 - 12:28

GIFT students and staff off to Hungary in May

Several lecturers from the Global, Innovative, Forefront, Talent (GIFT) Management research niche area in the North-West University’s (NWU’s) Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences (FEMS) will soon depart for Hungary, courtesy of funding received from the European Union’s Erasmus funding programme.

According to Prof Anna-Marie Pelser, associate research professor and GIFT director, funding was sourced in January 2020, but unfortunately, the war between Russia and Ukraine delayed the finalisation of the funding grant.

Submitted on Tue, 05/02/2023 - 16:13

Support and guidance from the NWU community eased rating journey

The subject group Information Systems at the North-West University (NWU) has its first National Research Foundation (NRF) Y2-rated researcher in Prof Joshua Chukwuere.

He is an NWU-grown scholar in information systems, specifically emerging and digital technologies. Prof Chukwuere is an associate professor in the research focus area known as Emerging Technologies/Digital Technologies in the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences (FEMS).

Submitted on Fri, 04/28/2023 - 10:59

Study looks at the health benefits of plant-based nutrition

North-West University (NWU) researchers are investigating the role of whole-food plant-based nutrition in South Africa.

Prof Andrew Robinson and Dr Nanine Wyma, currently a master’s-degree student at the NWU, are co-founders of the Physicians Association for Nutrition (PAN) South Africa. They are conducting research with the help of the Africa Unit for Transdisciplinary Health Research (AUTHeR) at the NWU.

Submitted on Fri, 04/28/2023 - 10:53

From ideation to commercialisation – that is impactful NWU research

The Technology Transfer and Innovation Support (TTIS) office at the North-West University (NWU) is helping innovators and entrepreneurs to realise their dreams.

When a third-year BCom student, Irene Nompini Tsele, conceived her idea for a cosmetics business, little did she know that partnering with the university’s TTIS office would one day make her business flourish.

Submitted on Fri, 04/28/2023 - 10:40

MASARA focuses on music and the conservation of indigenous music

Aristotle said that music has the power to form the character and should therefore be introduced into the education of the young. This quote is befitting of the Musical Arts in South Africa: Resources and Applications (MASARA) research niche area at the North-West University (NWU).

MASARA is part of the NWU’s School of Music and Conservatory, and their focus is music and music well-being. The research niche area also focuses on the conservation and use of indigenous music and was established in November 2008.

Submitted on Fri, 04/28/2023 - 10:35

The ins and outs of developing online multimedia learning platforms

Offering an enhanced learning experience using multimedia online learning platforms is the key to encouraging participation among Generation Z students – people born between 1997 and the early 2010s.

This is one of the findings of a North-West University (NWU) research team after they investigated both the ins and the outs of the development of student pages on learning management systems (LMSs).

Submitted on Fri, 04/28/2023 - 10:27

Study explores experiences of the nursing curriculum

A master’s-degree study conducted by North-West University (NWU) student Katlego Botlhoko from the School of Nursing explores the experiences of nurse educators with regard to the new diploma in general nursing (R171) curriculum in North West.

The diploma in general nursing is a three-year programme, leading to registration with the South African Nursing Council as a general nurse. The programme consists of a theoretical and a clinical component, which must be completed in each academic year.

Submitted on Wed, 04/26/2023 - 10:39

NWU academics on a collaboration mission to improve early childhood education in Africa

Dr Marinda Neethling and Dr Susan Greyling, both academics from the North-West University’s (NWU's) research focus area Community-based Educational Research (COMBER), recently travelled to Namibia and Zimbabwe to collaborate and build relationships in the field of early childhood development.

Dr Neethling's research focuses on providing comprehensive training to caregivers in African early childhood development centres, where many caregivers are unqualified grandmothers or mothers.

Submitted on Tue, 04/25/2023 - 09:32

Best paper award for NWU academic

North-West University academic Dr Ankit Katrodia’s paper – titled “Generation Y’s perception towards and actual usage of African language radio Stations in South Africa” – recently earned him the Best Paper Award at the 3rd International Conference on Leveraging Industry 5.0: Sustainability, Innovation and Disruption that took place in Mumbai, India.

In the paper, co-authored by Dr Katrodia and his master’s student, Nkosinathi Ntuli, Dr Katrodia said that radio broadcasting is the most consumed form of broadcast media in the world.

Submitted on Fri, 04/14/2023 - 11:38