This exploratory study was conducted in the Metro North Education District in Cape Town.Methods: Five focus group interviews were conducted with a snowball sample of 35 stakeholders including parents (n = 9) and professionals from education (n = 17) and health (n = 9) systems. Transcriptions were thematically analysed. Resultant themes were summarised to reflect stakeholders' perceptions. Results:The results showed four major groups of factors that affect school readiness: community, adverse experiences, educational and familial factors. Firstly, community factors thematically identified were unemployment, socio-economic status (SES) and culture as impacting school readiness. Secondly, adverse experiences included violence, trauma and substance abuse that affect school readiness. Thirdly, educational factors identified are lack of stimulation, barriers to learning, teacher support and cooperation between stakeholders that influence readiness. Fourthly, familial factors such as parental support, variation in child-rearing practices and caregiver literacy exert influence on school readiness. Conclusion:Acknowledgement of and engagement with the above-mentioned four factors could result in a nuanced and contextual understanding of school readiness and might foster cooperation between stakeholders.

Background: Higher education is a high stress occupation or environment. Academics in health professions are engaged in professional training that adds clinical or profession-specific competencies to general academic and research outcomes. Academics in health professions assume many roles and must remain current in the practise of their professions that increases stress. Studies on occupational stress amongst health professions academics are lacking in the South African context. Objectives: To assess occupational stress in a sample of Health profession academics at aHistorically Disadvantaged Institution (HDI).Methods: An online survey was conducted with a randomly selected sample of 51 permanent academics. The response rate was 55 per cent after incentives and reminders. Instruments included a demographic questionnaire, Assessing emotions scale and the Sources of Work Stress Inventory. Descriptive statistics, correlation and regression were used to analyse the data. Instruments were reliable with this sample. Ethics clearance was obtained (Reg. No.: 15/4/42) and all ethics principles were upheld. Simons, Munnik, Frantz and Smith The profile of occupational stress in a sample of health profession academics 133Results: The sample was mostly female, and the composition was consistent with the profiles of the faculty, health professions and HDIs. Small effects were reported for associations between demographics, EI and Occupational stress. Mixed results were reported for predictive relationships. EI and level of education were predictive of certain sources of occupational stress.Conclusion: Transformations and the work environment contributed to academics experiencing occupational stress. The historical apartheid legacies still manifest in patterned ways along gender, race and professional status in the occupational stress academics experience. Health professionals constitute a legitimate subgroup that impacts the experience and management of occupational stress. EI is an important factor to consider in the experience and management of occupational stress.

The need for a contextually relevant and empirically grounded measure of emotional social competence in Grade R children was identified in the literature. The aim of this study was to develop a contextually relevant instrument for emotional social competence in preschool children. The study adopted a four-phase approach with each phase using distinct methodological approaches. This article reports on the use of multiple research methods to achieve methodological rigour and coherence in the construction. Phase 1 used systematic review methodology to establish a theoretical foundation for the instrument. The results identified two domains and nine subdomains that formed the theoretical model for the instrument. In phase 2 stakeholder perceptions of emotional and social competence were identified through concept mapping to increase contextual relevance and sensitivity. The results highlighted that early stimulation and contextual factors impacted school readiness and needed to be included. The construction of the instrument incorporated the findings from the first two stages. The draft instrument was presented to a panel of experts, using the Delphi technique, for validation of content and scalar decisions in phase 3. The results supported the proposed format and content of the screening tool. The resulting instrument was piloted in phase 4 with survey research. Good internal consistency was reported and the factor structure supported. The multiphase methodology provided an overarching framework with methodological rigour and coherence. The grounding in the literature, stakeholder consultation and rigorous validation processes enhanced the resultant instrument. The articulation of one phase into the next ensured methodological coherence.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) crisis posed new challenges in higher education, which compounded the existing challenges. The South African higher education sector responded with plans to secure the learning and teaching mandates and bolster support services for students. An emergency remote learning and teaching plan was launched to mitigate the impact of the pandemic in the 2020 academic year. This article reports on the reflections of lecturers who were teaching psychometric assessment and supervising student psychologists on the clinical master’s programme during the pandemic. The Master’s Clinical Psychology Programme at the University of the Western Cape was the case study. The focus on the psychological assessment module was the unit of analysis. Course documents and reflective notes, generated during the adaptation of psychological assessment training, were used as the data source. Thematic analysis generated five themes, namely, (1) the importance of statutory guidelines for clinical training, (2) adapting content, (3) pedagogy and modalities, (4) management of test libraries and (5) lecturer experience. The management of changes to the module in response to the COVID-19 crisis was challenging. Lecturers had to balance competency training and assessment with revised work and adapted teaching conditions. Emergency teaching interventions took place in the framework of ethics and professional requirement, and the learning outcomes articulated within the scope of practice for clinical psychologists.

The need for contextually appropriate and accessible school readiness assessment instruments in South Africa is well documented. The Emotional Social Screening tool for School Readiness (E3SR) screens for emotional and social competencies as a component of school readiness. This competency-based screening instrument was developed as a nine-factor model consisting of 54 items. This research study reports on the psychometric properties and factor structure of the E3SR by exploratory factor analysis. Ten preschool centres registered under the Social Welfare Act in the Cape Town Metropolitan region situated in the high-, middle- and low-socio-economic status (SES) areas constituted the research setting. A pilot study using a survey design was conducted. The E3SR protocols were completed by teachers on Grade R children during the fourth term of the academic year. The data set of 330 protocols satisfied the assumptions for inferential statistics, except for normal distribution. Normality was violated statistically; however, given the time frame, learners were expected to have mastered the competencies measured. Therefore, the violation of normal distribution was supported theoretically. Exploratory factor analysis yielded a six-factor structure, including Emotional maturity, Emotional management, Sense of self, Social skills, Readiness to learn and Communication. All the extracted factors displayed an adequate internal consistency, with a good reliability (α = 0.97). The E3SR can be shortened from 56 to 36 items without losing any important content. The E3SR can supplement formative assessments and enhance communication between role players to build children’s emotional and social competencies.