A Study of Shelters for Street Children from an Organizational ...

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adaptable in addressing the concerns of shelters for children living and/or working on the streets (Henning, et at 2003: 129). The use of focus group interviews was to enhance the study's reliability and validity where the interaction between the researcher and subject formed the basis for reliability. Krueger (1988: 41) argues that validity is the degree to which the procedure really measures what it proposed to measure and continues to state that another way of testing the validity of focus groups is the interaction between participants; a good observer can notice when participants either are for or against any input of individual participants, and where the interviewer would pose a follow up question to clarify the position or issue. Krueger (1988: 42) further state that 'typically, focus groups have high face validity, which is due to large part to the believability of comments from participants'. 3.9.1 Pilot Study A pilot study was undertaken in shelter 'E' prior to undertaking the study. The pilot study provided the opportunity to test the reliability and validity of: • theoretical frame work • research methods and tools • time keeping and management, participants' punctuality and concentration in the interviews and focus group discussions • whether the interpret (one of the participants) kept to the role assigned or deviated thus translating word for word from the mother tongue (Zulu) into English as a second language. Participants would node as sign of agreement or swing their heads to disagree with the interpreter • the respondents' expectations, views, and experiences of the shelter service delivery and programs of interventions and reintegration. The pilot study revealed that: • Shelter manager together with the social worker were weary of the shelter having a large managerial and administrative structure. In their view, such a structure was not necessary because it would shift the focus from meeting the needs of children to the concentration on management and administration. • Time management was a constant challenge because children had not learned to be disciplined to keep time and shelter's routines. 45
• Staff morale was high when motivated to concentrate on serving the children and meeting their needs • After negotiating the participants consent to record their responses, staff and children were eager to be recorded. This came about when the researcher invited a volunteer among the participants to speak and say something short while testing the reliability of the tape recorder. The researcher replayed the recorded talk to the participants. As they listened to the talk of one of them, emotions of curiosity were evoked, they nodded, laughed and where the speaker was not audible the participants were dismayed and wanted the speaker to be loud and clear. That brief recording testing the tape recorder became an opportunity for the researcher to train participants how to project their voices and to speak clearly. The enthusiasm to be recorded provided impetus in the focus group discussions. • Staff and children participants were interested with the researcher because though black African, did not speak Zulu as they expected. The researcher became the researched, they wanted to know more about where he comes from, how far is his the country and is it in Africa, what language people speak, what food people eat, and whether there are children living on the streets etc? The process of allowing participants to ask the researcher questions and getting answers from the researcher made them feel recognized and equal in the construction of knowledge and changed their views on being subjects of interviews but participants. (Henning, 2003: 63-65). The researcher used the opportunity of answering the questions to communicate in a manner that built trust and rapport with the participants. This process took fifteen to twenty minutes. A time that the researcher found worth for the research project. The disadvantage of not knowing Zulu became the advantage and building block of trust and confidence. • The tape recorder and other research tools were reliable and valid in measuring what the research sought to measure. This approach was applied and followed in the study. 46
Page 1:
A Study of Shelters for Street Chil
Page 4 and 5: ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I extend my sincer
Page 6: TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 0 NE 1 IN
Page 9 and 10: LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Showing the
Page 11 and 12: children's homes. In 1996 the Europ
Page 13 and 14: specifically in its policies (http:
Page 15 and 16: Hosken, (2004) in an article titled
Page 17 and 18: 1.5 The Purpose and Objective of th
Page 19 and 20: names of the shelters have been ren
Page 21 and 22: 1.8.2 Organizationalll1eory Shelter
Page 23 and 24: Chapter Four: Data analysis. The ch
Page 25 and 26: communities posing enormous challen
Page 27 and 28: To perceive human social reality as
Page 29 and 30: Shelter's intervention/reintegratio
Page 32 and 33: 2.4 Definitions The focus of the re
Page 35: enforcement officers, outreach work
Page 40 and 41: 3.1 Introduction CHAPTER THREE RESE
Page 42 and 43: given to the demands of shelter pro
Page 44 and 45: views and perceptions over the topi
Page 46 and 47: 3.4 The Researcher in Qualitative I
Page 48 and 49: which means children there, are sta
Page 51 and 52: paid to the recording devices. The
Page 53: esearchers need to agree or disagre
Page 57 and 58: 3.11 Ethical Considerations Babbie
Page 59 and 60: 4.1 Introduction CHAPTER FOUR OATA
Page 61 and 62: 4.2. Shelters Services and Programs
Page 63 and 64: children with their families where
Page 65 and 66: y the shelter's philosophy, goals,
Page 67 and 68: 4.2.5 Shelter Routine and Regulatio
Page 69 and 70: 4.2.6 Policy on Visitors The four s
Page 71 and 72: children played; this was done depe
Page 73 and 74: living and/or working on the street
Page 75 and 76: 4.3.1 Structure and physical locati
Page 77 and 78: Apart from management of shelters,
Page 79 and 80: Regarding transparency, accountabil
Page 81 and 82: Staff expressed that children shoul
Page 83 and 84: was immediately reassuring to child
Page 85 and 86: will to choose whether to or not li
Page 87 and 88: Sangoma (traditional doctor) and I
Page 89 and 90: Look at this shelter look at the do
Page 91 and 92: preferable. Participants continued
Page 93 and 94: It is okay when one is going with a
Page 95 and 96: 5.1 Introduction CHAPTER FIVE DISCU
Page 100 and 101: The challenges of children living a
Page 102 and 103: differed greatly from the feelings
Page 104 and 105:
een on the streets for a very long
Page 106 and 107:
from the overseas. Some of the loca
Page 108 and 109:
programs to communities and familie
Page 110 and 111:
explained, was their priority. It i
Page 112 and 113:
streets, consequently, shelters int
Page 114 and 115:
perspectives, understanding, and ca
Page 116 and 117:
understand such discourses. Through
Page 118 and 119:
6.1.3 Conclusions Regarding Researc
Page 120 and 121:
and appreciation that the children
Page 122 and 123:
Shelters could endeavour to reinfor
Page 124 and 125:
The effort is to move the children
Page 126 and 127:
macroeconomic factors, the local mi
Page 128 and 129:
REFERENCES Acker, A. (1986). Childr
Page 130 and 131:
Brown, D. C. (1996). 'Why ask why:
Page 132 and 133:
Gronbjen, K. A. (1992). Nonprofit H
Page 134 and 135:
Mills C. W. (1971). The Sociologica
Page 136 and 137:
Swart, J. (1987). 'Street Children:
Page 138 and 139:
Street children in http://allafrica
Page 140 and 141:
3.1.5. Does the shelter have any re
Page 142 and 143:
4. Social and Recreation 4.1. How a
Page 144 and 145:
Follow-up questions What are the sh
Page 146 and 147:
APPENDIX 3 FOCUS GROUPS CHILDREN Pl
Page 148:
6. Shelter routine and Discipline:
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