Re-visiting the decolonising of South African higher education question: A systematic literature review

During and soon after the #feesmustfall and decolonisation student protests in South Africa, the decolonisation topic invaded the academic world in the country. There seems to exist a heterogeneity of viewpoints regarding what decolonising higher education entails. A search for systematic reviews on this topic did not yield any results. Such reviews can reveal what we currently know, what we do not know, and guide the knowledge production process going forward. This article analyses published research articles on decolonising higher education in South Africa through the lenses of soft reform, radical reform and “beyond-reform”. Findings show that some papers dwell on decolonising isolated aspects of the university such as a programme or qualification, some on decolonising the entire university curriculum, and others on transforming the entire university. The article concludes that seeking to decolonise isolated aspects of the university constitute sub-soft reform strategies which leave the colonial pillars intact and therefore not contributing significantly to the decolonial project. Works that seek to decolonise the entire university curriculum are moving in the right direction towards radical reform, however, the article argues that to dismantle the colonial character of the present university requires the struggle to stretch beyond that. The South African university has a double-barrelled role to decolonise itself and to inform the societal decolonial project

Does participation in university governance add value to a student's academic experience?

During the Apartheid period in South Africa, students at Historically Black Universities were excluded from participating in institutional decision-making affecting their enrollment, fee allocation, academic challenges and general well-being. The Higher Education Act of 1997, changed this situation to a participatory inclusion of the Student Representative Council in university governance where they could influence and promote students’ academic interests. This article draws from a study that was conducted at selected Black universities, to explore the academic benefits derived by students who participated in governance since the change. Issues of free education that have been topical in South Africa and further pose scrutiny on how this achievement is beneficial to the SRC who are central to student development advocacy. Adopting a qualitative research approach, the study sought to understand the academic experiences of the SRC, as participants in the highest decision-making structures at these institutions. Findings from the study suggest that the academic benefit for the SRC as participants in governance is dependent on their level of study, political deployment, time commitments and academic aspirations. There ought to be a deeper interrogation on how best to ensure academic value for students who participate in governance

First year Master of Education (M.Ed.) students’ experiences of part-time study: A South African case study

This article reports on a study of how a group of first year M.Ed. students in the Faculty of Education of the University of KwaZulu-Natal experienced part-time study. Literature suggests that each year, South Africa suffers significant student departures from universities without completing their studies. Apart from the cost and manpower implications, student dropout also causes damage to the individual’s self-esteem and self-image. The author’s own experience of teaching part-time M.Ed. students suggested that they were faced with a plethora of hindrances whose nature and complexity could not be taken for granted. Thus, this study sought to understand how students experienced part-time study as organised by the faculty. The article contends that organisational factors within an institution are crucial to the success or failure, and the retention or dropout of the students. Therefore, student integration into the institution is highly necessary. Data were collected through a questionnaire that solicited both quantitative and qualitative responses. The findings suggest that while students found their studies worthwhile, their levels of integration with the institution were low, thus weakening their coping strategies. Greater efforts to help students integrate with the institution seem necessary

Assessing the impact of the 'skills revolution' among women in South Africa

Commissioned by the PWMSAThis study sought to examine the extent to which there is/has been a skills revolution in South Africa, the extent to which such a revolution targets/has targeted women and the extent to, and ways in which such skills revolution benefits/has benefitted women, particularly those who have been historically disadvantaged. In essence, the study examined the nature of opportunities available to South African women as a result of the skills revolution and the factors that impede their use of these opportunities

Creating functional and sustainable School–Community Partnerships: Lessons from three South African cases

Globally, there is agreement that school–community partnerships are one of the mechanisms to address challenges that schools cannot address alone. However, evidence suggests that where school–community partnerships have been initiated, their functionality and continuity is not always easy to achieve, and research locally and internationally has not sufficiently addressed this concern. To bridge this gap, guided by Epstein’s theory of overlapping spheres of influence, this paper examined what makes school–community partnerships functional and sustainable. The research used a qualitative case study and employed discursive oriented interviews (both individual and focus group), a researcher’s reflective journal, and document reviews to generate the data. Participants were principals, teachers, and academics from two universities. It was found that for partnerships to be functional and sustainable there is a need to ensure that there is collaborative planning and decision-making, effective two-way communication, eagerness to address power issues, and the creation of a culture that promotes participative leadership. From these findings, the paper concludes that principal’s leadership is only critical at the beginning stage of partnerships, and teacher leadership is central in the functionality and continuity of partnerships. In relation to the theoretical framework, it is further concluded that power is an important element to consider, which either brings partners together or pushes them apart.http://journals.sagepub.com/home/emahj2020Education Management and Policy Studie