Faculty of Humanities

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Academic mobility and the experiences of foreign staff at South African higher education institutions
(Stellenbosch University, 2019) Sehoole, C.; Adeyemo, K.S.; Ojo, E.
This article analyses the patterns of international academic mobility in higher education with particular focus on academic staff. Using the â€˜pull and push factorsâ€™ as a conceptual framework, it argues that the patterns of international academic staff mobility follow the pattern of international cross-border migrants. These are driven mainly by the pull factors which include quest for better opportunities in life including education. The article uses three sources of data namely documentary analysis, statistical data from the Department of Educationâ€™s Higher Education Management Information System (HEMIS), and data from questionnaires that were distributed to international academic staff at the three South African universities; namely, the University of Pretoria, University of South Africa, and University of the Witwatersrand. Â For the international academic staff working in South Africa, it was demonstrated that they have both positive and negative experiences. The negative experiences seem to be related to the major nation building project to overcome racism and xenophobia. The principles of non-racialism and, non-discrimination need to be promoted in order to build an inclusive and socially coherent society
Addressing curriculum decolonisation and education for sustainable development through epistemically diverse curricula.
(2018) Padayachee, K.; Matimolane, N.; Ganas, L.
Transformation in Higher Education has been an ongoing concern in post-apartheid South Africa, especially in light of universities’ expected contribution to economic and socio-political transformation. In particular, curriculum transformation has proved challenging, as evidenced in actions and calls by students in recent years for decolonisation of the curriculum. This study, which formed part of an institutional response to the challenge of curriculum transformation and decolonisation, initially sought to examine perceptions of the term “decolonisation” amongst a group of early career lecturers at a leading university in South Africa. Highlighted in the outcomes of the study was the centrality of personal and contextual relevance in notions of decolonised curricula, the impact of curriculum conversations on lecturers’ well-being, and the broader implications of responsive and relevant curricula for institutional and societal well-being. In this respect, the findings of the study illustrated the similarities of curriculum decolonisation approaches and the concept of education for sustainable development which is underpinned by the goal of global well-being and the common good. Also highlighted was the need for greater balance between Mode 1 (theoretical) and Mode 2 (contextually relevant) knowledge in curricula, leading us to posit that both curriculum decolonisation and education for sustainable development are equally necessary for institutional and broader societal reform and well-being, and that both imperatives may potentially be achieved by focusing on the principles of epistemically diverse curricula
Advancing professional teaching in South Africa: Lessons learnt from policy frameworks that have regulated teachers' work.
(2018) Rusznyak, L.; Kimathi, F.
Teaching and teacher education in South Africa have emerged from a highly fragmented past. Teachers from diverse backgrounds, experiences and qualifications find themselves working together in schools where they do not necessarily have access to a common language of practice, nor a shared understanding of professional teaching practices. To address these challenges, the South African Council of Educators (SACE) has developed a set of professional teaching standards for use in the South African context. This is not the first time a policy framework has tried to articulate and direct teachersâ€™ work. This paper analyses four other frameworks that have been used to regulate, monitor and evaluate the work of South African teachers over the past two decades. These other frameworks are The Roles of the Educator and Their Associated Competences, the SACE Code of Professional Ethics, the Integrated Quality Management System (IQMS) and the Basic Competences of a Beginner Teacher. Our analysis shows how these frameworks present teaching in ways that constrain teacher professionalism in some ways. They address some aspects of professional teaching while ignoring others. In particular, none of them adequately acknowledge the relations between knowledge, skills, judgement and the ethical orientations that underpin professional teaching. The ways in which previous frameworks have constrained teacher professionalism has important implications for SACE if its set of professional teaching standards is to more successfully enhance teacher professionalism in the South African context.
Affordances for learning linear functions: A comparative study of two textbooks from South Africa and Germany.
(Publisher: AOSIS (pty) Ltd, 2018-09) Mellor, K; Clark, R; Essien, A
Textbook content has the ability to influence mathematical learning. This study compares how linear functions are presented in two textbooks, one of South African and the other of German origin. These two textbooks are used in different language-based streams in a school in Gauteng, South Africa. A qualitative content analysis on how the topic of linear functions is presented in these two textbooks was done. The interplay between procedural and conceptual knowledge, the integration of the multiple representations of functions, and the links created to other mathematical content areas and the real world were considered. It was found that the German textbook included a higher percentage of content that promoted the development of conceptual knowledge. This was especially due to the level of cognitive demand of tasks included in the analysed textbook chapters. Also, while the South African textbook presented a wider range of opportunities to interact with the different representations of functions, the German textbook, on the other hand, included more links to the real world. Both textbooks linked 'functions' to other mathematical content areas, although the German textbook included a wider range of linked topics. It was concluded that learners from the two streams are thus exposed to different affordances to learn mathematics by their textbooks.
An exploration of social challenges encountered by learners in Mohlakeng Schools in Rand-west municipality in Gauteng province of South Africa.
(2023) Mokoena, Prudence Onkarabile
There are countless social challenges in South African schools, such as poverty, violence, homeless, teen parenting, substance abuse, child abuse and youth suicide, which complicate learners’ efforts to learning. This study explored and described the social challenges that affect selected learners and their academic performance in Mohlakeng School in Rand-west municipality, Gauteng, South Africa. The study was positioned within an interpretivist paradigm using the qualitative research approach. The sample was fifteen (15) grade 11 and 12 learners from School in Mohlakeng and they were selected using non-probability purposive sampling. Data was collected using semi-structured telephonic interviews via an interview guide and analysed using the thematic data analysis method. Key findings in relation to the social challenges that learners experience that have an impact on their academic performance included academic challenges at school and unpleasant home circumstances. In terms of the coping strategies that learners adopted, the study found that learners did not have the necessary resources to cope, while others adopted various coping mechanisms. The key findings in terms of the support needs of learners were that 8 out of 15 learners needed extra academic support, 2 out of 15 learners thought about future prospects to deal with their social challenges, while for one participant it was important to mend family relationships and receive support from family. In terms of support, 9 out of 15 learners received support from families, while the other six participants did not receive support. These findings have implications for social work practice, the department of education, policy formation as well as future research.
Becoming mathematical: Designing a curriculum for a mathematics club.
(2020) Lampen, E.; Brodie, K.
Mathematics clubs are becoming increasingly researched in South Africa, yet what might constitute a curriculum for such clubs has not been discussed. We present and analyse a curriculum design for clubs that we set up and worked with over three years. The goals of the clubs were to foster strong mathematical proficiency, identities and agency among learners through supporting their enjoyment of mathematics as a useful way to make sense of the world. We therefore developed a curriculum where learners could become and be ‘mathematical’, through drawing on both their everyday reasoning and the mathematics that they learned in school. Our analysis suggests an emergent, responsive curriculum, with tasks that can be categorised as: (1) becoming mathematical with everyday tasks, (2) becoming mathematical about mathematics, (3) being mathematical and making mathematics, and (4) mathematics. We argue that through such a curriculum, we can develop mathematical reasoning on the basis of learners’ everyday reasoning in ways that support their mathematical proficiency, identities and agency.
Challenging gender hierarchies in narratives of the nation: representations of women in Zintgraff and the Battle of Mankon and Hard Choice
(2020) Nkealah, N.; Oluwasuji, O.G.
Abstract Ideas of nationalisms as masculine projects dominate literary texts by African male writers. The texts mirror the ways in which gender differentiation sanctions nationalist discourses and in turn how nationalist discourses reinforce gender hierarchies. This article draws on theoretical insights from the work of Anne McClintock and Elleke Boehmer to analyse two plays: Zintgraff and the Battle of Mankon by Bole Butake and Gilbert Doho and Hard Choice by Sunnie Ododo. The article argues that women are represented in these two plays as having an ambiguous relationship to nationalism. On the one hand, women are seen actively changing the face of politics in their societies, but on the other hand, the means by which they do so reduces them to stereotypes of their gender. Keywords: ambiguity; gender hierarchy; nationalism; feminism; masculinity; narratives of the nation
Choice shifts in school disciplinary decision making: Analysis of age differences of panel members
(2020) Aloka, P.
Background: Decision making is critical to each organization and it requires the ability to find a possible balance between risky and cautious decisions. The Kenyan secondary schools are mandated by the Ministry of Education to manage students’ misbehaviors by the disciplinary panels. Aim: The present study investigated the choice shifts in disciplinary decision making in Kenyan secondary schools based on age groups of the panel members. Methods: The Quasi-Experimental Pretest-Posttest Design was adopted. The study targeted 360 teachers- members of disciplinary panels in 45 secondary schools in the Rongo sub-county of Kenya. A sample size of 78 members of disciplinary panels in 10 secondary schools was involved. This was 22% of the target population of members of disciplinary panels in the Rongo district. The choice shift in decisions was ascertained using the Modified Choice Dilemma Questionnaire. The validity of the tools was ensured by the expert judgment by two Kenyan psychologists, while the reliability was determined using the internal consistency method and an alpha of 0.695 was reported. Results: The results of the Multivariate Analysis Of Variance indicated that there were differences in choice shifts from the pre to post-disciplinary hearing decisions among the members of selected school disciplinary panels on the basis of their age groups (Wilk’s Lambda (λ) test: F (12, 188) = 7.40, P = 0.000, P < 0.05). Conclusion: It was concluded that the age of the members of disciplinary panels influenced the nature of choice shifts in decisions. It was recommended that principals should ensure that the membership of school disciplinary panels is broad-based.
Colonial heritages, educational Incompartibilities and the challenges for a reunified Cameroon: 1961–2016
(2020) Ndille, R.
The reunification of British Southern Cameroons and La Republique du Cameroun 1961 required the adoption of new national policies which were to guarantee that none of the colonial identities were jeopardized.1 In doing this, the Federal Republic adopted harmonization as a policy framework for the establishment of a new national educational system that was to unequivocally represent both colonial heritages without feelings of marginalization by any side. Using archival evidence and some empirical literature, this paper has examined the landmark developments in the harmonization of education in the country. It has observed that although significant strides have been made there are still huge challenges. The paper concludes that until both sides are determined to put national interests above former colonial interests, harmonization and the ultimate establishment of a national educational system cannot be achieved.2
Community engagement: Barriers and drivers in South African higher education.
(2020) Johnson, B.J.
Community engagement professionals experience numerous barriers even though community engagement is the third mission of the university alongside first, teaching and learning, and second, research. Community engagement professionals often refer to community engagement as the “stepchild” of higher education. Yet there are also inter-related successful drivers. This article identifies the barrier–driver duality and makes a case for their systemic interconnectedness, an area that has thus far been underexplored. A prominent barrier for community engagement professionals is that there is a lack of substantive conceptualisation of community engagement, intensified by the contradictory placing of community engagement within community and university structures. Interconnected to such barriers, prominent drivers demonstrate the value of scholarly, reflective practice and to enhance the leadership role of the South African Higher Education Community Engagement Forum, inclusive of the views of pertinent members such as academic leaders, students and communities.
Comparison of students' understanding of functions in classes following English and Israeli national curricula
(Springer Netherlands, 2017-12-02) Watson, A; Ayalon, M; Lerman, S
This paper arises from a study of how concepts related to understanding functions develop for students across the years of secondary/high school, using small samples from two different curricula systems: England and Israel. We used a survey consisting of function tasks developed in collaboration with teachers from both curriculum systems. We report on 120 higher achieving students, 10 from each of English and Israeli, 12–18 years old. Iterative and comparative analysis identified similarities and differences in students’ responses and we conjecture links between curriculum, enactment, task design, and students’ responses. Towards the end of school, students from both curriculum backgrounds performed similarly on most tasks but approached these by different routes, such as intuitive or formal and with different understandings, including correspondence and covariational approaches to functions.
Conceptual and representational confusion: An analysis of three foundation phase teachers' descriptions of how they teach division.
(2020) Ramsingh, A.
Background: In the foundation phase, division is split along the lines of grouping (quotition) and sharing (partition). Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statements (CAPS) recommends that representations such as drawings, concrete apparatus, and symbols are used to teach all math concepts, including division. Aim: In this article, the author investigates how three foundation phase teachers describe teaching division and the representations they would use to do this. Setting: Grade 1 and Grade 2 teachers in one previously disadvantaged urban school were selected for this study. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were used to gather information about how the teachers say they teach division. They were invited to use or talk about any representations such as actions, apparatus, drawings or writings that they would use during their teaching. Results: Using a grounded theory approach, analysis of the data showed that all three teachers talked about how they would transform the mathematics in a division word problem into actions, drawings and symbols. However, none of them was able to use their representations to find the answer to the problem or to provide a division number sentence. The representations they used were relegated to end results and served no purpose in solving the mathematical problems. Conclusion: The results show areas in which teachers need support: Their own mathematical knowledge – specifically division in the case of this study How to teach division in the foundation phase. They lack both content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge.
Conversations in a professional learning community: An analysis of teacher learning opportunities in mathematics.
(2018-10) Chauraya, M; Brodie, K
The growing perception of professional learning communities as an effective professional development approach needs to be supported with knowledge of how such communities create learning opportunities for teachers. Activities in professional learning communities are underpinned by collegial conversations that foster learning, and in this article we analysed such conversations for learning opportunities in one professional learning community of mathematics teachers. Data consisted of audio-recorded community conversations. The focus of the conversations was to understand the thinking behind learners’ errors, and teachers engaged in a number of activities related to learner errors and learner reasoning. Our analyses show how opportunities for learning were created in identifying the origins of learners’ errors as well as learners’ thinking underlying their errors. Results also showed that the teachers had opportunities for learning how to identify learners’ learning needs and in turn the teachers’ own learning needs. The teachers also had opportunities for deepening their own understanding of the conceptual meaning of ratio. The learning opportunities were supported by the following: having a learning focus, patterns of engagement that were characterised by facilitator questioning, teacher responses and explanations, and sharing knowledge. Such mutual engagement practices in professional learning communities resulted in new and shared meanings about teachers’ classroom practices. Our findings also show the critical role of a facilitator for teacher learning in professional learning communities.
Corporatisation of universities deepens inequalities by ignoring social injustices and restricting access to higher education
(Stellenbosch University, 2019) Dlamini, R.
There has been an unprecedented demand for equitable access to post-secondary education post 1994, perhaps because of the change in policies broadening participation of black people in traditional universities in South Africa. The dramatic increase of people of colour attending institutions of higher learning coincided with shrinking government subsidies, which led to universities redesigning their identity according to corporate culture. Thus, they turned to double digit fee increases and persistent long-term outsourcing of services to overcome the problem of funding insecurities. However, it is not clear how corporatization of institutions of higher education enables equitable access and efficient delivery of higher education to the majority of blacks who were previously disadvantaged by apartheid policies. The primary objective of this article is to conduct a meta-synthesis of a systematically retrieved sample of empirical academic literature to present an argument on the systemic deficits in corporatization of higher education and the corporate identity which distort the ideal university. The PRISMA statement is followed to ensure transparent and complete synthesis of the literature reviewed to maintain the integrity of individual studies. Thereafter, the article presents a detailed account of how corporatization of universities deepens inequalities; ignores social injustices and restricts access to higher education. In addition, the article makes a claim that corporatization of universities impairs the academic quality and freedom of the university as well as portrays education as “private good” for self-actualization.
Corporatisation of universities deepens inequalities by ignoring social injustices and restricting access to higher education
(Copyright © 2021 South African Journal of Higher Education Hosted by Stellenbosch University Library and Information Service since 2016, 2018) Dlamini, R.
There has been an unprecedented demand for equitable access to post-secondary education post 1994, perhaps because of the change in policies broadening participation of black people in traditional universities in South Africa. The dramatic increase of people of colour attending institutions of higher learning coincided with shrinking government subsidies, which led to universities redesigning their identity according to corporate culture. Thus, they turned to double digit fee increases and persistent long-term outsourcing of services to overcome the problem of funding insecurities. However, it is not clear how corporatization of institutions of higher education enables equitable access and efficient delivery of higher education to the majority of blacks who were previously disadvantaged by apartheid policies. The primary objective of this article is to conduct a meta-synthesis of a systematically retrieved sample of empirical academic literature to present an argument on the systemic deficits in corporatization of higher education and the corporate identity which distort the ideal university. The PRISMA statement is followed to ensure transparent and complete synthesis of the literature reviewed to maintain the integrity of individual studies. Thereafter, the article presents a detailed account of how corporatization of universities deepens inequalities; ignores social injustices and restricts access to higher education. In addition, the article makes a claim that corporatization of universities impairs the academic quality and freedom of the university as well as portrays education as “private good” for self-actualization.
Could practicum placements in contrasting contexts support the preparation of pre-service teachers for an envisaged inclusive education system? A South African study
(2017) Rusznyak, L.; Walton, E.
In contexts where inclusive education is nascent, teacher educators face the challenge of preparing pre-service teachers for a system that does not yet exist. While this might be possible through universitybased coursework, difficulties arise when so few sites that model inclusive pedagogies are available for practicum placements. This article investigates whether practicum placements in contrasting contexts may prepare pre-service teachers for teaching in an envisaged inclusive education system. We analyse the reflections of South African pre-service teachers who have conducted practicum sessions in two contrasting contexts, neither of which offered ideal models of inclusion. We explore the extent to which moving between contexts enabled pre-service teachers to develop orientations towards teaching and learning that Black-Hawkins and Florian identify as essential for promoting and sustaining inclusive pedagogic practices. With reservations, we conclude that practicum placements over contrasting contexts potentially support the preparation of preservice teachers for inclusive education.
Countering linguistic imperialism with stories in the languages of Africa: The African storybook initiative as a model for enabling in and out of school literacies
(AOSIS Publishing, 2019) Reed, Y
BACKGROUND: In South Africa, and in many other African countries, official language-in-education policy supports the use of learners' primary language(s) in early schooling. In reality, texts in the language(s) of the former colonial power are dominant, with high-interest texts in languages familiar to young learners in short supply or non-existent. Where government education departments have begun to address this shortage, it is mainly by producing graded readers in the 'standard' variety of a language AIM: The main aim of this paper is to demonstrate how quality texts can be provided in a wide range of African languages to stimulate children's interest in reading, across the African continent and beyond SETTING: The African Storybook (ASb) initiative of the South African Institute of Distance Education (Saide) aims to provide illustrated texts in local languages and language varieties that enable children to read for pleasure and for learning. This is done through a publishing model that makes these texts available, cost-effectively, as needed, by teachers, librarians and caregivers METHODS: Internal reports, external evaluations, two interviews with the initiative's co-ordinator and a review of selected texts on the ASb website provided data for analysis RESULTS: The analysis enabled reflection on the challenges faced and the successes achieved, identification of factors that have enabled many of the challenges to be addressed and finally consideration of what the initiative offers as a model for supporting literacy development in local languages CONCLUSION: While the paper tells a story that includes elements of a cautionary tale, it is primarily a story that offers inspiration and guidance to other organisations already involved in, or wishing to embark on, the important project of providing texts for young readers in a wide range of languages
Creating conditions for working collaboratively in discipline-based writing at a South African university
(Stellenbosch University, 2019) Dison, L; Moore, J.
Students’ academic literacy practices frequently do not prepare them for, or articulate with, the ways of thinking and practising within their chosen academic disciplines (Boughey, 2010; Clarence, 2010; Wingate & Tribble, 2012). There has been much debate about who should be responsible for responding to this ‘articulation gap’ (Bitzer, 2009) and how this should be done. In this paper, we posit the importance of working with students in the disciplines and draw on Lillis and Scott’s (2007) notion of transformative writing spaces to engage critically with disciplinary culture, norms and practices. We critique ‘remedial’ approaches to tertiary writing development that treat the articulation gap as a skills deficit that can be overcome by teaching a set of requisite academic literacy skills. We also suggest that increased collaboration between writing centres and discipline-based academic staff has helped to shift the deficit conception to more socially constructed approaches to writing development. We explore conditions in two discipline-specific writing centres that show how writing can be used as a way of engaging all students with core course concepts and in which writing development has been embedded within mainstream, substantive modules in order to facilitate epistemological access (Morrow, 2007) to both disciplinary content and writing in the discourse.
Decolonial History teachers' charter: A praxis guide
(2020) Dollie, A.; Ramjain, A.; Varachia, T.; Maangoale, T.M.; Tshipugu, T.; Laurence, T.; Laher, Y.; Dabhelia, A.; Abba, M.; Karanie, A.; Mitha, A.; Mbuli, M.; Mogane, K.; Montshioa, T.; Mamogobo, A.; Sahula, M.
The below text is a practical charter which calls for history teachers, students, learners and then the provincial and national Departments of Basic and Higher Education to decolonise. Decolonisation is often talked about in the abstract, it is separated out into curricula, pedagogy, or university spaces. This charter takes the argument into schools and explores several aspects of decolonisation in a substantial and detailed way. The charter was developed as a collective exercise in a history methodology class by third and fourth year Bachelor of Education students training to be histori(an) teachers. The idea from the charter emanated from the students, and was initially, pre-Covid, guided by the lecturer (see footnote 1); however, once Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT) began, the students took complete ownership of the project. The lecturer's only role was to make the charter an assignment, to give students impetus to carry on with the task. Students could work collectively on the Decolonial History Teacher's Charter, or work on and submit individual assignments. This is important because the desire, the heart, the intellectual work, and the collectivity all emanated from the students. The below document can serve, in our collective view, as an important guide to new and serving history teachers, students, learners, and scholars.
Deconstructing South African Grade 1 learners' awareness of number in terms of cardinality, ordinality and relational understandings.
(2020) Askew, M.; Venkat, H.
The cardinal and ordinal aspects of number have been widely written about as key constructs that need to be brought together in children’s understanding in order for them to appreciate the idea of numerosity. In this paper, we discuss similarities and differences in the ways in which understandings not only of ordinality, cardinality but also additive and multiplicative relations have been theorized. We examine how the connections between these can be considered through a focus on number line representations and children positioning and comparing numbers. The responses of a cohort of South African Grade 1 learners’ (6- and 7-year-olds) to a numerical magnitude estimation task and to a numerical comparison task are analysed and the findings compared to those in the international literature, some of which argue that children’s early, informal, understandings of cardinality and ordinality are underpinned by an intuitive logarithmic model relating number order and size. A main finding presented here is that the responses from learners in this study exhibited a better fit with an exponential model of the relationship between cardinality and ordinality. These findings raise questions about whether some of the findings in previous research are as universal as sometimes claimed.

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