Philosophy of education in a new key: Cultivating a living philosophy of education to overcome coloniality and violence in African Universities

In this conversational article, we consider cultivating decoloniality in university education by drawing upon Jacques Ranci ere’s (2010) notion of a living philosophy. Ranci ere’s (2010) living philosophy holds the possibility of both a medium and a space for a re-thinking and a re-contemplation of what life is in relation to what it might be. Through engaging and sharing real human experiences from and within African societies and universities, we (re)imagine decoloniality as a fiction brought to life through a living philosophy of education. In this regard, we proffer eight points of departure and reflection

Disruption of higher education policy through an ethics of care in South Africa

Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2020.ENGLISH ABSTRACT : The study on which this dissertation reports, argued that the newly reformed university policies and practices of the four public universities in the Western Cape still affect students from poor schools in a considerable way, as they still seem to struggle to gain access into higher education, even after the enactment of the White Paper for Post School Education of 2013. My argument is corroborated by findings and conclusions that ensued after the conceptual analysis of policy structures of the four public universities under study. The findings also exposed the university system in general as an elitist institution that is unable to change or be changed to recognise the poor. The argument is that the strategies the universities utilise to integrate students into the university system intensify this setback, as those strategies do not attempt to increase universities’ capacity to grant access to poor students, who are incidentally fatalities of the apartheid system. Instead, the universities want the students to bring the same capabilities as their private and former Model C-schooled counterparts. Because of this practice, the university system appears to favour affluent students, which then compounds the social inequity at universities. My contention in the study therefore was that the university system ought to embrace approaches such as an ethics of care to disrupt the alienating culture within their policy processes. The ethics of care as the disruption paradigm may achieve a reconceptualised notion of external inclusion by which lived experiences of the vast majority of poor students can be accommodated, and may also introduce a conciliatory paradigm to higher education, from which social justice can be attained. In the study, I have used ‘poor students’ interchangeably with ‘black students from poor schools’, as the colour of poverty in South Africa, even after 25 years of democracy, is still predominantly black.AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING : Die navorsing waaroor hierdie proefskrif verslag doen, het van die standpunt uitgegaan dat die nuut hervormde universiteitsbeleide en -praktyke van die vier openbare universiteite in die Wes- Kaap steeds studente afkomstig arm skole nadelig beïnvloed, aangesien dit lyk asof hulle steeds sukkel om toegang tot hoër onderwys te kry, selfs ná die Witskrif oor Naskoolse Onderwys en Opleiding. My argument word bevestig deur bevindings en gevolgtrekkings wat gevolg het ná die konseptuele ontleding van beleidstrukture van die vier openbare universiteite in die studie. Die bevindings dui ook op die universiteitstelsel in die algemeen as ’n elitistiese instelling wat nie kan verander of verander kan word om die armes te erken nie. Die argument is dat die strategieë wat die universiteite gebruik om studente in die universiteitstelsel te integreer hierdie agterstand versterk, aangesien die strategieë nie poog om die vermoë van universiteite om toegang aan arm studente te verleen, wat toevallig oorblyfsels van die apartheidstelsel is, te vergemaklik nie. In plaas daarvan wil die universiteite hê dat die studente dieselfde vermoëns as hulle eweknieë uit privaat en voormalige Model C-skole sal hê. As gevolg van hierdie praktyk blyk dit dat die universiteitstelsel gegoede studente bevoordeel, wat dan die maatskaplike ongelykheid by universiteite vererger. My standpunt in die navorsing was dus dat die universiteitstelsel benaderings soos ’n etiek van omgee moet gebruik om die vervreemdende kultuur in hulle beleidsprosesse te ontwrig. Die etiek van omgee as die ontwrigtingsparadigma kan ’n herkonseptualiseerde opvatting van eksterne insluiting bewerkstellig waardeur die deurleefde ervarings van die oorgrote meerderheid arme studente geakkommodeer kan word en wat ook ’n versoenende paradigma na hoër onderwys kan bring, waardeur maatskaplike geregtigheid bereik kan word. In dié navorsing het ek ‘arm studente’ afwisselend met ‘swart studente uit arm skole’ gebruik, aangesien die kleur van armoede in Suid-Afrika, selfs na 25 jaar van demokrasie, steeds oorwegend swart is.Doctora

External and internal exclusion of black undergraduate students from impoverished township schools in historically advantaged universities in the Western Cape

Thesis (MEd)--Stellenbosch University, 2014.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The notion of inclusion refers to one of the normative ideals that may be used as a means to promote justice in a democracy. Equally so, the norm of inclusion is capable of exploring the legitimacy of the democratic processes set up for the promotion of equity and redress. The implication thereof is that the notion of inclusion is also an adequate measure for monitoring whether processes practised by polities do embrace the norms of recognition, redistribution, empowerment and justice as we come to understand them within the broader concept of inclusion. Grounded in the theory of inclusion and democracy, this study is set against the backdrop of momentous political changes in South Africa that set the tone for transformation in higher education, amongst other democratic changes. Higher education institutions, alongside all other South African polities, introduced new open policies chock-full of democratic ideals to promote equity so as to ensure that those who previously suffered the injustice of being excluded from gaining entry to higher education are able to access it. Based on this understanding, this study has been conducted from a conceptual point of view to investigate the approach by which two historically advantaged institutions in the Western Cape have conceptualised the inclusion of black students from impoverished schools into their institutions. I have also examined how these institutions articulate their support programmes to keep these students in the higher education system. University policy documents such as admissions policies, financial aid policies, student diversity and equity policies, and student retention and throughput rate provided information for interpretation and data analysis.AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die idee van insluiting verwys na een van die normatiewe ideale wat gebruik kan word om geregtigheid in ‟n demokrasie te bevorder. Net so het die norm van insluiting die vermoë om die regmatigheid van die demokratiese prosesse wat ingestel is vir die bevordering van regverdigheid en herstel (redress) te ondersoek. Die implikasie hiervan is dat die idee van insluiting ook ‟n voldoende maatstaf is om te kontroleer of die prosesse wat deur politieke eenhede uitgevoer word, die norme van herkenning, herverdeling, bemagtiging en geregtigheid omhels soos ons hulle binne die breër konsep van insluiting verstaan. Begrond in die teorie van insluiting en demokrasie staan hierdie studie teen die agtergrond van gewigtige politieke verandering in Suid-Afrika wat die toon gestel het vir transformasie in hoër onderwys, onder ander demokratiese veranderinge. Hoëronderwysinstellings, tesame met alle ander Suid-Afrikaanse staatsbestel, het nuwe, oop beleide propvol demokratiese ideale bekend gestel om regverdigheid te bevorder om sodoende te verseker dat die wat voorheen onder die ongeregtigheid van uit hoër onderwys uitgesluit te wees, gelei het, nou toegang daartoe kan kry. Gebaseer op dié verstandhouding is hierdie studie vanuit ‟n konseptuele oogpunt onderneem om ondersoek in te stel na die benadering van twee histories bevoordeelde instellings in die Wes-Kaap tot hulle konseptualisering van die insluiting van swart studente uit arm skole in hulle instellings. Ek het ook ondersoek hoe hierdie instellings hulle ondersteuningsprogramme verwoord om hierdie studente in die hoëronderwysstelsel te behou. Die universiteite se beleidsdokumente, soos toelatingsbeleide, finansiële hulp beleide, studentediversiteits- en regverdigheidsbeleide, en studentebehoud- en deursetkoerse, het inligting verskaf vir die doeleindes van interpretasie en analise