4 research outputs found

    An exploratory study of Heads of Departments' responses to student calls for decolonised higher education

    Get PDF
    Central to the tumultuous student protests of 2015 and 2016 was an urgent call for the decolonisation of South African universities. Existing curricula, including teaching and assessment practices, as well as institutional cultures and structures were challenged. Against this backdrop, in this article we focus on the academic leadership role of Heads of Departments (HoDs) at Rhodes University. In this small-scale project we interrogate how HoDs conceptualised their roles in this uncertain and complex context. From the data analysis a number of tensions emerged in the ways in which they articulated and enacted their roles. The findings indicate that the protests have contributed to the increasing complexity of the role of an HoD. Issues raised during the protests catalysed HoDs at Rhodes University, some for the first time, into considering the implications of the decolonising call from students and into exercising stronger transformative leadership roles

    How to be or not to be? A critical dialogue on the limitations and opportunities of academic development in the current higher education context

    Get PDF
    In the tumultuous time we find ourselves, debates about pedagogy have taken centre stage once again. Concerns raised by the student protests of 2015 and 2016 have highlighted the urgent need to re-think traditional teaching, learning and assessment practices, as well as the development of decolonised and transformative curricula.Traditional notions of academic and professional development are now being tested and contested, insofar as they are able to respond to student challenges in appropriate, responsive, legitimate and relevant ways. As a professional organisation dedicated to supporting learning and teaching, the executive team of HELTASA responded to the challenge in this article by engaging with perspectives on the purpose, role and conceptualisation of academic development in the current decolonial moment in the South African Higher Education landscape. Critical processes that enable academics to engage, share thoughts and debate epistemological, pedagogical and methodological options to support students and academics are much needed. And the context and spirit in which these debates occur may be as important as the debates themselves.At its annual conference, the executive team facilitated a critical dialogue with conference delegates on the limitations and opportunities of AD in our current context. Given the diverse teaching and learning contexts and institutional differentiation in the sector, this article explores individual and collective theorised observations, reflections and experiences of the seven facilitators who led the CD. These reflections were analysed and discussed against the backdrop of AD as well as the affordances of CD as a participatory learning and engagement methodology. The findings showed that there is dire need to re-imagine, not only AD’s role but alternative forms of critical engagement in the sector

    Transforming teachers' conceptions of teaching and learning in a post graduate certificate in higher education and training course: the practice of higher education

    No full text
    The changing context of higher education and the challenges this presents to lecturers has led to the introduction of accredited professional development courses for academics in some institutions. Many lecturers in higher education are finding that teaching the way they were taught and using the traditional lecture format is no longer always appropriate. If graduates are to function effectively in today's world, lecturers need to create teaching and learning contexts which promote their ability for life-long learning. Research shows that in order to achieve this, students need to be actively engaged in the learning process. This may require shifts in the way lecturers perceive their role. A central theme of the Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education and Training (PGCHET) course discussed in this article is that of the critically reflective practitioner. From the research conducted it is clear that encouraging lecturers to reflect on their practices, to examine the epistemologies underpinning their disciplines along with what that means for teaching and learning, and then presenting them with a range of theoretical frameworks can lead to their developing or changing their conceptions of teaching. However, for the course developers it is also important to understand the factors that may militate against participants implementing new ideas and developing their practice

    Analysis of Outcomes in Ischemic vs Nonischemic Cardiomyopathy in Patients With Atrial Fibrillation A Report From the GARFIELD-AF Registry

    No full text
    IMPORTANCE Congestive heart failure (CHF) is commonly associated with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (AF), and their combination may affect treatment strategies and outcomes
    corecore