South African Higher Education Context Research Articles

Leaving no one behind: Leveraging support to promote access with success in post-graduate studies

Postgraduate student enrolment at South African universities has increased significantly. While this is commendable, it has raised concerns about low success rates. Various scholars have identified under-preparedness, supervision challenges, mental health issues and funding, among other factors, that contribute to the post-graduate success crisis. We believe that post-graduate support services have a significant role to play in dealing with this success crisis. Therefore, in this article, we present a two-fold argument about post-graduate support in South African universities. Firstly, we argue that universities have prioritised support services aimed primarily at undergraduate students, with insufficient support at the post-graduate level, and this has negative implications for post-graduate students’ well-being, success and, ultimately, the knowledge-creating project in the South African higher education context. In so doing, we also highlight some of the gaps as potential areas of improvement in existing postgraduate support services. Secondly, we argue that improved support for postgraduate students requires well-coordinated and collaborative efforts between multiple stakeholders: supervisors, students and university support services, among others. In this way, this article contributes to the body of knowledge on access with success, illuminating the value of support in, and the intricacies of, post-graduate studies.

Enhancing a Quality Teaching and Learning Environment in Large Classes in South African Universities: a Theoretical Exposition

The perpetual increase in students’ enrolment in higher education institutions, worldwide, has recently emerged as a key concern for both students, educators, parents, policy makers and educational policy analysts alike. This phenomenon has been borne out of a global trend of massification of higher education as many countries begin to consider the importance of education and skills development in economic growth and social development. On the other hand, it has been triggered by the perceived pattern of commodification of higher education services in which student intake and teaching outputs are intricately linked to the financial sustainability of higher education institutions. In this paper, a critical examination of literature pertaining to Large Class Pedagogy and Learning Theories is undertaken with a view to determine how one could teach and ensure quality learning in large classes within a South African higher education context. Anchored within a critical qualitative frame of analysis, the assessment draws from existing literature on Large Class Pedagogy (LCP), learning theories, teaching approaches and learning styles to provide a conceptual lens in which the challenges associated with large class environments can be mitigated to offer an educational experience of acceptable quality. The paper provides a synthesis of pertinent issues that have arose in the critical examination of LCP and appropriate Learning Theories in a developing country context as that of South Africa. It appears that government funding to higher education institutions should be increased through adoption of large class size reduction policies, equitable allocation of resources to faculties and academic departments by universities, rigorous assessment of staff-student ratios and infrastructure when new academic programs are introduced, monitoring of adherence to approved yearly student enrolment targets in academic programme, adoption of collaborative learning methods by academic staff in which self-directed learning styles in students are encouraged and supported, optimal use of educational technologies through systematic integration of digitization in the learning and teaching environment, enhanced administrative psycho-social support to students and lecturers are some of the macro, mesa and micro level strategies required to enhance quality teaching and learning with increasing class sizes.

The psychological contract and staff retention among South African higher education employees: The influence of socio-demographics

Orientation: The global skills crisis, ‘the great resignation’, and technological advancements have impacted the higher education (HE) sector in South Africa. Staff retention is at risk because of the specialised skills sought by institutions, making employment relationships and skill retention top priorities.Research purpose: The aim of this study was to explore the influence of socio-demographic differences on the relationship between psychological contract preferences and staff retention among South African HE employees.Motivation for the study: High staff turnover in South African HE sector and inability to retain crucial skilled employees pose challenges for HE institutions (HEIs) in a complex and diverse environment.Research approach/design and method: A cross-sectional quantitative survey was conducted on a purposively selected population of full-time employees, both academic and administrative, with a final random sample of participants (N = 493) employed in an open-distance HEI in South Africa. Inferential statistics, specifically tests for significant mean differences, were performed.Main findings: Higher education employees from different race, gender, age, job level and tenure groups differ considerably in terms of their psychological contract preferences and their satisfaction with organisational retention practices.Practical/managerial implications: Interventions for HE staff retention should prioritise strengthening diverse employees’ psychological contracts, meeting their needs, and ensuring fulfilment of promises and commitments in the employment relationship.Contribution/value-add: This paper’s unique contribution lies in the new insight it provides into the psychological contract and retention-related preferences of diverse employees in the South African HE context.

“Academic-Mothers” in Higher Education with Adult Children: Navigating Social Isolation, Shifting Households, and Professional Challenges During the Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic led to the daily loss of lives, changing people’s mobility and relatedness, as well as bringing about disruption and transformation of health, education, economic, and cultural systems globally. The pandemic mitigation strategies, which encompassed domestic isolation, intensified household interactions and activities. Recent global studies indicate that the pandemic exposed long-standing inequities and vulnerabilities of systematically marginalized groups. It has also been argued that in academia the professional disenfranchisement and rights conflict between genders encompass differences in workload and professional support. In the South African higher education context, the pandemic created uncertainties for academic mothers who not only navigated these roles but who had diverse lived experiences of fluctuating COVID-19 infection rates and lockdown restrictions, changing household spatial arrangements, financial constraints, mental health challenges and the impact of civil unrest at the time. The disparate toll of the pandemic on academics, specifically those parenting children, performing gender-based household roles while simultaneously engaging in multiple academic duties, requires more attention in the South African context. This research article presents two autoethnographic accounts of the professional and social challenges experienced during various phases of the lockdown.

Barriers to the measurement of return on investment (ROI) for training interventions in the South African higher education context

This article aimed to investigate the barriers to the measurement of return on investment (ROI) for training and development interventions provided to academic staff in the South African public higher education context. The study adopted an interpretivist philosophical stance, and it was grounded on qualitative approach. Purposive sampling was used to select 14 participants who were interviewed. The participants represented various cases (institutions) and these included six universities, and government institutions comprising the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET), the Department of Science and Innovation (DSI), and the Education, Training and Development Practices Sector Education and Training Authority (ETDPSETA). Thematic analysis was applied via ATLAS.ti to analyse the interview data. The complexity of the process, lack of capacity, lag between training and improved performance, lack of will, financial constraints, lack of processes, fragmentation of training and development interventions, interventions yielding non-financial benefits, and lack of adequate data were found to be the factors that are barriers to the measurement of ROI. The study contributed to the body of knowledge of Human Resource Development and practice by highlighting the barriers to the measurement of ROI and it also provided recommendations for practice and future studies. Keywords: Return on investment; Training and development; Higher education sector; Public universities; Academic staff; Training evaluation.

Complex legacies and future prospects: Conceptualising changes in South African doctoral education

ABSTRACT A number of key drivers are responsible for the major shifts taking place in doctoral education globally, including massification, globalisation, digitalisation and the knowledge economy. While each of these drivers permeates the South African higher education context to some extent, we argue that the country’s complex historical legacies provide a unique background and lens through which key drivers of doctoral education can be framed. Thus, our focus is first to outline the complex legacy of apartheid and its implications for the country’s transformation agenda and resulting shifts taking place in the South African higher and doctoral education landscape. Secondly, to account for some future prospects, we draw on the outcomes of the recent (2020/21) national review of doctoral programmes in South Africa. We highlight some recommendations that universities need to attend to via their respective doctoral improvement plans as a possible future agenda for driving and improving doctoral education.

Harnessing student agency for easier transition and success: The role of life coaching

The use of life coaching as an intervention to support students in higher education has been explored in other contexts in the global north and evidence points to its possible benefits in improving student success and well-being. Although there is new emerging research on the use of life coaching in the South African higher education context, there is a lack of empirical evidence pointing to its benefits. We report some results from a longitudinal study that investigated the use of small group life coaching intervention to support students. The objective of the intervention was to harness first-year chemical engineering students’ agency by proactively equipping them with knowledge and skills that improve their studies and lives. Four years after the intervention, using Archer’s social realist concepts of structure and agency, we evaluated how the life coaching intervention influenced students’ agency during their studies. Data was gathered through one-on-one semi-structured interviews with ten students who had participated in the intervention during their first year and were currently in the fourth year of their studies. The results indicate that the life coaching intervention enabled students to mediate academic and non-academic constraints. Concerning academic constraints, the life coaching intervention helped students manage the transition from high school, including adjusting to a new workload, time management, learning to collaborate with their peers and dealing with experiences of failure. Concerning non-academic constraints, the life coaching intervention helped students clarify their goals, increased their self-awareness, deal with negative emotions, boosted their self-confidence, and become more resilient during the Covid-19 pandemic. We recommend more empirical research to be carried out in different contexts across higher education institutions in South Africa to explore further the possible role that life coaching may play in empowering students with life-long skills, reducing dropout rates and improving chances of success.

The psychological and health benefits of using a continuous glucose monitor for a person with type 1 diabetes: A South African higher education context

Background: There has been an increasing focus on the unique health needs and experiences of people with chronic health problems, given health disparities between these groups and the wider population. The focus of this study is on understanding the psychological and health benefits of using continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) by people with type 1 diabetes (T1D) and to present findings from interviews on their experiences. All interviewees were subsequently invited for intervention at an Open Distance Learning institution in South Africa. Methods: Data were collected using an online semi-structured questionnaire to gather information influencing the study participant’s decision to use CGM during the context of COVID-19. An invitation was sent via Facebook group ‘Type 1 Diabetics South Africa’ and attracted 30 responses. The final study comprised of 10 respondents whose returned questionnaires met the inclusion criteria and took part in the in-depth interviews for analysis using Atlas.ti9 software. Results: The results suggest that T1D participants benefited from using CGM in combating chronic medical and psychological (psychosocial) conditions. Many reported improvements in health and psychological factors; in time monitoring of glucose levels, low events of hypoglycaemia, improved self-confidence, improved concentration span, diminished numbers of hospitalization. Some reported improved socialization, relief from finger pricking pains and better control of life. Graphical representations of the different results will be depicted in tables and figures. Conclusions: The 4th industrial revolution is technology-based and continuous glucose monitoring is a form of artificial intelligence enabling people living with T1 diabetes to make smarter choices more often and at a faster pace with more information. If people with diabetes are unable to access this intelligent technology, they will be at increased risk of complications, hypoglycaemia, reducing their quality of life. The use of CGM by T1D, with complementary psychotherapy, indicated improved health related quality of life.

Challenges of the implementation of the divisional governance and management model: A comprehensive university case study

This article explored challenges experienced in merged higher education institutions during restructuring using a selected comprehensive university (CU). As part of its restructuring, the CU abandoned the unitary governance model it had adopted when it merged and opted for a new governance model — the divisional governance and management (DGM) model. This was to consolidate the problematic merger and expedite the achievement of the objectives of the National Plan for Higher Education (NPHE). The governance model being investigated here is important because it is unique in the South African higher education context (Stumpf, 2008). It has been adopted in only one merged South African university, the North West University; it has not been attempted anywhere else in the merged South African universities (Mantashe, 2013). Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 39 respondents, purposively selected for data collection. The findings revealed the following challenges: resistance to change, lack of clear reporting lines, inadequate financial resources and high costs of implementing the new governance model, unequal treatment of the different campuses or sites of the merged university, inconsistent application of institutional policies across the different campuses of the merged institution, the institutional culture, highly unionised institution, leadership instability, and inadequate communication. Based on the findings of the research, the study provided some recommendations to address the challenges identified by the study.

Demystifying the Work of South African Academic Advisors: An Exploration of Students’ Structural and Material Constraints

The structural and material factors affecting the lived realities and prospects of tertiary success for South African students are complex and manifold. Inexorably, these lived realities impact the work of academic advisors who guide and support students throughout their higher education journeys. The purpose of this article is to contribute to the growing body of literature about academic advising in and for South African higher education contexts, and in particular the daily work of academic advisors in the country. This is achieved by first drawing on literature to elucidate the various structural and material constraints affecting the lives of many South African students, before reconciling what emerges from the literature with quantitative data collected by an academic advisor working at a South African university about his engagements with students over a three-year period. This phenomenological study is underpinned by social realist principles as proposed by Margaret Archer and draws in particular on the notion of structure to advance its argument. Additionally, the work of Boughey and McKenna on the decontextualized learner is incorporated to demonstrate why students in this country cannot be decontextualized from their lived realities. The article concludes by highlighting how the complex structural and material constraints that influence students’ higher education experiences manifest in the day-to-day work of academic advisors. The authors propose that these insights be used to enhance responsiveness to student needs, while informing how the sector makes meaning of advising for the South African higher education context

Enablements and Constraints in the Uptake of Digital Technologies for Teaching and Learning

In South African higher education, institutions are exploring pedagogical practices of dealing with a multiple number of emerging technologies. Though the use of educational technologies is an established practice in higher education institutions, its uptake seems to be varied. This chapter draws on a study of educational technologies (EdTechs) in different institutions within the South African higher education context to identify how various academic staff development units (for example, instructional designers in e-learning units) empower academics to integrate technologies in teaching and learning practices. In this chapter, the author analysed data by drawing on Archer's (1995) social realist framework. Data was obtained from an online survey (open-ended questionnaire) and interviews The findings from both data phases reveal a strong call for more theorised approaches in the use of EdTechs to promote digital literacies. In addition, academic development activities were valued as a driver to the uptake of these technologies.

What does decolonising education mean to us? Educator reflections

The #FeesMustFall and #RhodesMustFall student protests accelerated the call for a decolonised higher education space. Much complexity and debate exists around the notion of a decolonised curriculum, how to frame it, describe it and/or enact it. Within this debate, the positionality and identity of individuals who design, implement, and evaluate curricula are important. The purpose of this article is to reflect on how theory-informed pedagogical reflections can assist in our understanding of decolonisation. The four educator reflections include our personal accounts of pedagogical philosophies, methodologies, and practices. A major focus is social work, which aims to enhance the well-being of all persons especially the disadvantaged, the marginalised and the voiceless. Through belonging to a community of practice, we embarked on the process of articulating our voice, positionality, and identity and how this informs our teaching, which is both personal and political within a South African higher education context. We provide our ways of knowing regarding how we (try) to contribute to social justice and equity ideals. We conclude with our consolidated view on an envisioned, decolonised education in the global South context. We recommend an approach that values ongoing, collective reflection, critical questioning, and agitation of how a decolonised curriculum can be envisaged. The contribution that this article makes is in the value of collective reflection, coupled with embracing personal stories/biographies to theorise decolonisation.

Hyflex Teaching and Learning: An Alternative Modality for Meaningful Engagement and Epistemological Access in South African Higher Education

Hyflex teaching and learning is relatively a new concept within the South African higher education context. This teaching and learning approach brings to the fore the possibility of combining the existing teaching platforms for maximizing not only physical access to knowledge, but epistemological access, the latter is also described in this paper as meaningful access. The argument in this paper is that access cannot be meaningful until there is room for student engagement in the teaching and learning process, otherwise, all efforts to ensuring access in educational institutions will remain a mere paper fantasy. This paper, therefore, brings to the fore the need for higher education in South Africa to maximize the possibilities being offered by the Hyflex teaching and learning, not only for student engagement but meeting the need and respecting the democratic choices of students in terms of the modalities that work for them the most. Hence, it is argued in this paper that Hyflex learning is not a mere fad, but a choice for effective engagement with an emphasis on the needs of students at the center of all the pedagogic and curriculum choices in higher education. Keywords: Hyflex teaching and learning, epistemology access, student engagement, higher education, modalities, etc.

South African Female Academics’ Work from Home Experiences during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Challenges and Opportunities

The COVID-19 pandemic has triggered pedagogical ramifications in many higher education institutions. The Work from Home (WFH) phenomenon as an offshoot of this development has not been adequately investigated in so far as female academics experienced it. This paper reports on ten female academics’ WFH instructional experiences with blended learning during the COVID-19 pandemic era. The WFH concept has necessitated the ‘virtualisation of pedagogy’ through blended teaching and learning of academics. The sample was purposively extracted from some higher education institutions in Gauteng, Free State and Eastern Cape Provinces of South Africa. The sample for this study was purposively selected irrespective of geographical location or ‘status’ of the institution. Each female academic responded to an open-ended structured questionnaire whose questions broadly focused on: their understanding of the Working From Home (WFH) phenomenon; the influence of home environment on their academic activities and the place of blended learning in a South African Higher education context. The data were collated and analysed for its content with supporting excerpts to discern and support themes. The female academics viewed WFH as relocating offices to their homes with the attendant plethora of academic challenges this entailed. The WFH constrained their abilities to complete academic activities particularly instructional related ones. Be that as it may, the pandemic has presented female academics with opportunities for professional growth through the blended mode of learning and newer perspectives on the apparently shifting gender roles. Such opportunities promote female academics’ quest for the reconfiguration of education pedagogy and gender autonomy in higher education post COVID-19.

Making Known the Real: An Exploration of Academic Advising Practices in a South African Higher Education Context

This is the first in a series of papers that emanate from the author’s doctoral research. This research explores academic advising as a profession and academic advisors as practitioners in the South African Higher Education sector; it focuses on advising within the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management (FCLM) at a research-intensive public university in South Africa. During the period of investigation, academic advising engagements between students and the author were logged, thus forming a baseline dataset for the doctoral study. In phase one of the data analysis, baseline data were coded and clustered into overarching and subsidiary categories. The baseline dataset consists of 34 subsidiary categories, which form part of seven overarching categories; it contains 2240 entries based on 1023 consultations with 614 individual students during the three-year period under investigation. Using Archer’s (1995, 2000, 2005) notions about Social Realism as a theoretical framework, the author critically scrutinises the complex nature of the work that academic advisors do in a layered analysis of the baseline data. The author posits that it is through these layers of interpretation that one moves from the layer of the Empirical (experiences), through the layer of the Actual (events), to what Archer calls “the Real”, that is, the layer of mechanisms or underlying driving forces that brings about what happens in the layers of the Empirical and the Actual. This paper focuses specifically on the role of the academic advisor; it postulates inferential observations about academic advising by using the baseline dataset as a way in, while keeping the academic advisor central to the discussion.

Implementation of a Multimodal Academic Literacy Resource at a South African University

As a lecturer at a higher education institution in South Africa, the author is conscious of an emphasis placed on multimodal resources as part of the globally experienced shift to teach remotely due to the COVID-19 epidemic. In this autoethnographic study, she critically reflects on her experience in planning and executing the implementation of a custom-made multimodal resource called WIReD. WIReD is an acronym for writing, information literacy and reading development. She situates academic literacy and WIReD within the theoretical framework of multiliteracies, and thereafter provides background in terms of the study context and gives a brief description of WIReD. The methodology section includes the data used, a brief discussion on validity, reliability, and the reflexive process. The data analysis led to two broad categories of implementation inhibitors, namely inadequate resources and collaboration. These hindrances highlight broader issues with regard to institutional management, lecturers, and the needs of students in the South African higher education context.

Towards a Blended Programme for Arabic and Other Less Commonly Taught Languages (LCTLs) in the South African Higher Education Context

Disruptive technologies are widely used in education today. They aim to develop the knowledge, skills, and competencies of students. The field of applied linguistics, in general, and foreign language teaching, in particular, have benefited immensely from the developments taking place in computer-assisted language learning (CALL) and mobile-assisted language learning (MALL). However, meaningful learning cannot be achieved by using technology indiscriminately; an understanding of educational theories and key instructional design models is urgently required. The present study argues that the adoption of established instructional design models will yield effective learning materials not only for the less commonly taught languages (LCTLs) but also for language classrooms in general. It investigates the use of ADDIE instructional design model for designing and developing a blended syllabus for teaching Arabic as a foreign language in South African institutions of higher learning. The study also deals with the attitudes of the students towards the designed blended syllabus. The proposed syllabus is based on a wide range of web-based tools and e-learning specifications such as Learning Tools Interoperability (LTI) and Shareable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM). This study serves as a guideline for developing instructional materials for teaching Arabic, as well as other languages.

Intersection of Ubuntu pedagogy and social justice: Transforming South African higher education

Background: Universities, globally, and in South Africa, continue to be confronted with demands for transformation, humanisation of pedagogical practices and to embrace social justice.Aim: In this article, we bring to the surface possibilities of Ubuntu pedagogy within a social justice framework. We intersect Collective Fingers Theory and Social Justice Theory to propose the notion of Ubuntu pedagogy, which draws from African philosophy of Ubuntu. We argue that Ubuntu pedagogy provides an alternation to the current pedagogies that draw from European theories for teaching and learning in the South African higher education context. We put forward that, Ubuntu pedagogy, when embraced with understanding and dignity it deserves, has the potential, firstly, of initiating students from other cultures other than African cultures to the values of Ubuntu and, secondly, of reconnecting students with their values and cultures, but it has a capacity to cultivate social justice values of equity, recognition and fair participation amongst students from diverse social backgrounds.Setting: South African Higher Education.Methodology: The authors draw from literature to position the article within Ubuntu philosophical framework and social justice lenses. Themes emerging from literature are as follows: Intersection of Ubuntu philosophy and social justice, Ubuntu pedagogy and transformation in higher education and guiding principles for possible implementation of Ubuntu pedagogy.Results: At the intersection of Ubuntu pedagogy and social justice, classroom practices are designed to respond to students’ cultural competencies and to embrace all linguistic repertoires that students bring to the classroom for learning. Students are treated equally and with dignity and respect regardless of their social backgrounds.Conclusion: We argue that higher education classrooms in post-apartheid South Africa should enable equal access, equity and inclusivity for all students. We therefore recommend Ubuntu pedagogy as a culturally and socially just pedagogy for transformative higher education classrooms. This article contributes to the continuing dialogues about transformative pedagogies, decolonisation and social justice in South African higher education.

Is isiZulu a ‘problem or a ‘resource’? Engineering students’ perceptions of teaching and learning in a multilingual context

Research and praxis in the field teaching and learning in the South African higher education context has been characterised by calls to expand the languages of teaching and learning through the inclusive use of African languages in higher education. Such calls are based on the realisation of the critical role that students’ home language can play in cognitive and linguistic development, among other things, in education. The focus of this paper is to ascertain the perceptions of students about the inclusive use of isiZulu, an African language, as a language of teaching and learning. Data were gathered through a survey which employed a questionnaire targeting 120 students from a Faculty of Engineering at a South African university of technology. The study found that students’ understanding of the use of isiZulu for teaching and learning conflated issues of language as ‘problem’ and ‘resource’. The study also discovered elements of language ambivalence. The paper argues that helping students to shift their perceptions from a ‘problem’ viewof language to a view of language as a ‘resource’ could enhance their learning.
 Keywords: African languages; IsiZulu; Teaching and learning; Higher education; South Africa

Student-faculty partnership in design: Evaluating a co-creation practice and sharing of findings within the South African higher education context

Creation of content in the higher education context has long been considered as a faculty responsibility. However, a drive towards inclusive curriculum transformation was requested by both students and professional accreditation bodies. Teamwork, as part of partnerships and co-creation, is seen as a critical skill for socio-economic development throughout the world, with the industry expecting competent team players. Faculty has long been incorporating teamwork into modules; however, teaching teamwork and tracking these skills remain challenging. Thus, leaving a gap where students form groups and work in teams without the cognisance to improve their teamwork skills or increase the reliability and validity of evaluating team members’ participation and contributions. In the absence of a comprehensive institutional resource on teamwork fundamentals, this study explores the co-creation of such a resource by post-graduate students at a higher education institution in South Africa. As higher education institutions, we assess students on teamwork skills, but we never specifically teach this to students, this resource is addressing this specific need. This will enable higher education institutions to report on assurance of learning where students can demonstrate the competency to effectively work in teams. A project approach was followed in the design of the teamwork resource based on Mayer’s Principles for designing multimedia for e-learning. Tuckman’s five stage development process informed the content design. The project ran over three weeks with weekly scrum meetings monitored by faculty. The study found that co-creating content with students is possible. However, student partnerships can enable quality improvement of teaching and assessing teamwork skills. Finally, the researchers will outline how the practical strategies for enacting partnership, as suggested in the literature, were considered in their practice.