University Stellenbosch Business School
Associate Professor
Transitions in an era of globalisation and universal change impact on postgraduate training of students at higher education institutions. This study aimed to determine completion rates for postgraduate programmes in Education at one... more
Transitions in an era of globalisation and universal change impact on postgraduate training of students at higher education institutions. This study aimed to determine completion rates for postgraduate programmes in Education at one higher education institution, to identify the students' needs and to investigate their experiences of postgraduate studies. Questionnaires were administered to students who had graduated and who suspended their studies between 2000 and 2006 (n=78). In this cohort, more Ph.D. students completed their studies and in a shorter time than M.Phil. students. The research component was regarded as the most difficult aspect of postgraduate studies. The need for supervision support in research skills was noted by more M.Phil. students than Ph.D. students. Academic input of assessing progress and evaluating quality were regarded as the most important supervision need for students. Personal attributes, support from supervisors and institutional support are noted as factors contributing to success. Addressing the postgraduate students' needs is essential in an era characterised by transition to ensure accountability and quality within higher education.
Increased demands on academics due to the changing work and higher educational environments challenge traditional approaches to postgraduate supervision. Supervisors often tend to follow the apprenticeship approach uncritically.... more
Increased demands on academics due to the changing work and higher educational environments challenge traditional approaches to postgraduate supervision. Supervisors often tend to follow the apprenticeship approach uncritically. Supervisors therefore need to be aware of alternative approaches to supervision and of the need for structured planning for the postgraduate supervisory process. A framework for planning for complementary approaches to postgraduate supervision was designed based on the characteristics and benefits of alternative approaches to supervision identified in the literature. This framework or grid helps to plot the roles of supervisors and the processes and activities for students during the course of their postgraduate studies. Application of this grid in planning and the identification of various role players in the supervision process may help to alleviate the pressure placed on individual supervisors. Structured planning within a specific context will contribute to quality, efficiency and sustainability of supervision in the postgraduate process.
- by Eli Bitzer and +1
- •
- Postgraduate research supervision
Professional development of generic black academic staff in South African higher education is viewed against the background of increased emphasis on open dialogue and concern for upward mobility in academe. Open dialogue and liberation... more
Professional development of generic black academic staff in South African higher education is viewed against the background of increased emphasis on open dialogue and concern for upward mobility in academe. Open dialogue and liberation create new expectations and challenges for staff. This article describes professional development of academics that embarked on advanced studies in the field of higher education. Using in-depth e-mail conversations with academic staff participating in M.Phil. and Ph.D. programmes, qualitative research was employed to explore developmental experiences. A conceptual framework emerged which reflects the context, process and outcomes of programme participation in formal higher education qualifications. The framework could be the basis for developmental strategies of academic staff -particularly in researchoriented universities with late entrants from a variety of non-traditional backgrounds. Benefits will impact on delivery of quality higher education to the student body and thus contribute to the broader transforming education context in South Africa.
Calls for global relevance and accountability are prevalent in private-public partnerships. Current community engagement projects in higher educational institutions reflect this focus. The academic partner can play a boundary spanning... more
Calls for global relevance and accountability are prevalent in private-public partnerships. Current community engagement projects in higher educational institutions reflect this focus. The academic partner can play a boundary spanning (bridge building) role in a community-university partnership. The university partner often enters the partnership without full realisation of the challenges of its role. The Siyazama Craft Project, an entrepreneurial development intervention for poverty alleviation in Stellenbosch is an example of the boundary spanning role of the academic partner in the Faculty of Theology. This intervention is in line with the community interaction policy of the faculty and the university. The Siyazama entrepreneurship project is described, and challenges experienced during the course of planning, implementation and evaluation are presented. Identification of challenges in projects of this nature could provide insight for university partners in development projects. Findings could be applied to the broader context of publicprivate partnerships, which form part of corporate social responsibility projects in response to needs for relevance, accountability and responsible sustainable development.
The role of education in the development of communities has been receiving increasing attention from the South African Government. The purpose of this study was to determine how community developers could contribute to transformative... more
The role of education in the development of communities has been receiving increasing attention from the South African Government. The purpose of this study was to determine how community developers could contribute to transformative learning in community groups. Using an emancipatory teaching approach, a housing education programme was presented to a group of women who had recently been allocated subsidized housing in a rural Northern Cape town in South Africa. During the implementation of the housing intervention, the emancipatory method encouraged participants to question and alter their distorted assumptions. Guidelines are provided for community developers for applying the emancipatory teaching method to facilitate transformative learning.
Our purpose in this paper is to contribute to the field of systemic practice by sharing a process of professional learning based on meta-action research. The process emerged as we engaged with evaluation data from a leadership development... more
Our purpose in this paper is to contribute to the field of systemic practice by sharing a process of professional learning based on meta-action research. The process emerged as we engaged with evaluation data from a leadership development program (LDP). The aim of this LDP had been to help leaders design their team projects on poverty reduction through action research methods in six African countries. As facilitators of the program we discuss our experiential learning based on critical reflection. We explain how meta-action research can transform understandings of ways to improve professional practice in future applications. We present three process models: (1) a model of reflection on action, (2) a meta-action research model, and (3) a model for lifelong learning through meta-action research. These models may be of benefit and interest to readers who facilitate systemic practice and action research in education, higher education, communities, industry and government.
- by Ruth Albertyn and +1
- •
- Action Resaerch
Recognition of prior learning (RPL) is an issue within the context of lifelong learning, given the (South African) issues of equity and redress, the international demands on adults to contribute to the knowledge economy, qualification... more
Recognition of prior learning (RPL) is an issue within the context of lifelong learning, given the (South African) issues of equity and redress, the international demands on adults to contribute to the knowledge economy, qualification inflation and increased competitiveness for knowledge workers. In the process of conscientisation and in an attempt to provide a pedagogy of hope, education could be seen by some as the panacea of all ills and RPL clearly needs to be handled with circumspection. RPL needs to be implemented ethically for it to be sustainable and to make a contribution to the individual perceptions and attainment of the Pedagogy of Hope. Integrating RPL has resulted in varied approaches: RPL can be aimed at the selection of individuals and the recognition of existing knowledge; or the transformation of individuals or knowledge in the process of assessment. This differentiation provides a useful distinction between the various functions that RPL can fulfill. In this chapter we intend to explore the potential that RPL holds as a pedagogy of hope specifically within the field of lifelong learning. We argue that the practice of RPL may facilitate or inhibit hope for adult learners in higher education.
Postgraduate students need to explore their research question(s) from different angles, take ownership of the research process, and develop their own scholarly voice. Supervisors are often ill-equipped to guide students in a strategic and... more
Postgraduate students need to explore their research question(s) from different angles, take ownership of the research process, and develop their own scholarly voice. Supervisors are often ill-equipped to guide students in a strategic and learner-centred manner. The Socratic method draws on strategies to elicit learning through uncertainty in the question-and-answer technique employed. Based on a qualitative study, various adult education theories are used to formulate a rationale for the application of the Socratic method as a tool to facilitate learning in the supervisor-student relationship. Theoretical perspectives which emerged as themes through this study include experiential learning, ontological coaching and empowerment. This article provides a conceptual framework for postgraduate supervisors which could act as a guide to enhance their supervisory practice and facilitate independent student learning. Die Sokratiese metode: volwasseneleerteorieë Nagraadse studente behoort hulle navorsingsvrae vanuit verskillende invalshoeke te ondersoek, eienaarskap van die navorsingsproses te neem en hulle eie akademiese stem te ontwikkel. Studieleiers is dikwels nie volkome toegerus om studente op 'n strategiese en leerdergesentreerde manier te lei nie. Die Sokratiese metode gebruik verskeie strategieë om 'n leerproses deur die onsekerheid van die vraag-enantwoordtegniek wat gebruik word uit te lok. Gebaseer op 'n kwalitatiewe studie, word verskeie volwasseneleerteorieë gebruik om 'n rasionaal vir die toepassing van die Sokratiese metode te formuleer. Laasgenoemde dien as 'n hulpmiddel om die leerproses binne die student-studieleierverhouding te fasiliteer. Teoretiese perspektiewe wat deur die loop van die studie as tema's geïdentifiseer is, sluit leer deur ondervinding, ontologiese opleiding en bemagtiging in. Die artikel verskaf 'n konseptuele raamwerk wat studieleiers van nagraadse studente kan lei om hul studieleiding kan bevorder en om onafhanklike studenteleer te fasiliteer.
Gender-related vulnerability is described as a crucial factor contributing to increased susceptibility of women to HIV, accounting for more women than men being infected. At the same time, empowerment interventions are being promoted as... more
Gender-related vulnerability is described as a crucial factor contributing to increased susceptibility of women to HIV, accounting for more women than men being infected. At the same time, empowerment interventions are being promoted as effective strategies for increasing the ability of women to adopt protective behaviours. The aim of the review was to identify, collate and categorise the factors determining the gender-related vulnerability of women to sexually transmitted HIV. A review of literature from theoretical and empirical studies using diverse methodologies was undertaken. Reports included those identified through electronic and manual searching. Twenty factors, forming five clusters, were identified as influencing the ability of women to adopt protective behaviours. Each factor was analysed to describe its component parts and the relationship between a factor, gender-related vulnerability, HIV risk level and empowerment status. Further analysis provided a description of markers named predictors and indicators. The literature portrays markers that can be identified and used to describe gender equality status, HIV risk level and related empowerment. This provides the potential to identify factors in gender equality status and HIV risk level to address in programmes designed to empower women in order to lower their risk to sexually transmitted HIV. OPSOMMING Geslagsverwante kwesbaarheid word beskryf as 'n kritieke faktor wat tot verhoogde vatbaarheid van vroue vir MIV bydra, wat die verhoogde besmetting van vroue teenoor mans verklaar. Terselfdertyd word bemagtigingsintervensies aangemoedig as geskikte strategieë om vroue se vermoë om beskermende gedragspatrone aan te neem, te verhoog. Die doel van hierdie oorsig was om die faktore wat geslagsverwante vatbaarheid van vroue vir seksueel oordraagbare MIV bepaal, te identifiseer, vergelyk en kategoriseer. 'n Literatuurstudie van teoretiese en empiriese studies wat 'n verskeidenheid metodologieë gebruik het, is onderneem. Verslae bekom deur elektroniese en handsoektogte is ingesluit. Twintig faktore, wat in vyf groepe verdeel is, is geïdentifiseer as dié wat die vermoë van vroue om beskermende gedragspatrone aan te neem, beïnvloed. Elke faktor is ontleed om die samestellende dele 70 HEALTH SA GESONDHEID Vol.13 No.3 -2008 en die verband tussen 'n faktor, geslagsverwante kwesbaarheid, MIV-risikovlak en bemagtigingstatus te beskryf. Verdere analise het 'n beskrywing van merkers, genoem voorspellers en aanwysers, opgelewer. Die literatuur beskryf merkers wat geïdentifiseer en gebruik kan word om geslagsgelykheidstatus, MIV-risikostatus en verwante bemagtiging te beskryf. Dit bied die moontlikheid om faktore in geslagsgelykheidstatus en MIV-risikostatus te identifiseer wat aandag moet geniet in programme wat ontwerp is om vroue te bemagtig om hul risiko van seksueel oordraagbare MIV te verlaag.
- by Pat Mayers and +1
- •
The role of assessment and evaluation in postgraduate research is problematic due to varying perceptions of standards and criteria regarding expectations of a postgraduate research thesis. To improve the standard of evaluation of theses... more
The role of assessment and evaluation in postgraduate research is problematic due to varying perceptions of standards and criteria regarding expectations of a postgraduate research thesis. To improve the standard of evaluation of theses and dissertations, a set of criteria, as well as rating scales for each criterion, was developed. These criteria and rating scales were applied to the evaluation of theses by over 150 academics in six workshops on the assessment and evaluation of theses and dissertations at different South African universities. The outcomes of each participant's evaluations were compared to the formally appointed examiner's evaluation of that thesis. The findings from applications in workshops reflect a greater consistency in the use of criteria, more comprehensive holistic coverage of all criteria, greater accountability by the examiner and an easier process in writing an examiner's report. The rating scale provided a standardised approach across disciplines, but proved to be less lenient to the candidate.
- by Ruth Albertyn
- •
Our purpose in this paper is to contribute to the field of systemic practice by sharing a process of professional learning based on meta-action research. The process emerged as we engaged with evaluation data from a leadership development... more
Our purpose in this paper is to contribute to the field of systemic practice by sharing a process of professional learning based on meta-action research. The process emerged as we engaged with evaluation data from a leadership development program (LDP). The aim of this LDP had been to help leaders design their team projects on poverty reduction through action research methods in six African countries. As facilitators of the program we discuss our experiential learning based on critical reflection. We explain how meta-action research can transform understandings of ways to improve professional practice in future applications. We present three process models: (1) a model of reflection on action, (2) a meta-action research model, and (3) a model for lifelong learning through meta-action research. These models may be of benefit and interest to readers who facilitate systemic practice and action research in education, higher education, communities, industry and government.
Gender-related vulnerability is described as a crucial factor contributing to increased susceptibility of women to HIV, accounting for more women than men being infected. At the same time, empowerment interventions are being promoted as... more
Gender-related vulnerability is described as a crucial factor contributing to increased susceptibility of women to HIV, accounting for more women than men being infected. At the same time, empowerment interventions are being promoted as effective strategies for increasing the ability of women to adopt protective behaviours. The aim of the review was to identify, collate and categorise the factors determining the gender-related vulnerability of women to sexually transmitted HIV. A review of literature from theoretical and empirical studies using diverse methodologies was undertaken. Reports included those identified through electronic and manual searching. Twenty factors, forming five clusters, were identified as influencing the ability of women to adopt protective behaviours. Each factor was analysed to describe its component parts and the relationship between a factor, gender-related vulnerability, HIV risk level and empowerment status. Further analysis provided a description of markers named predictors and indicators. The literature portrays markers that can be identified and used to describe gender equality status, HIV risk level and related empowerment. This provides the potential to identify factors in gender equality status and HIV risk level to address in programmes designed to empower women in order to lower their risk to sexually transmitted HIV. OPSOMMING Geslagsverwante kwesbaarheid word beskryf as 'n kritieke faktor wat tot verhoogde vatbaarheid van vroue vir MIV bydra, wat die verhoogde besmetting van vroue teenoor mans verklaar. Terselfdertyd word bemagtigingsintervensies aangemoedig as geskikte strategieë om vroue se vermoë om beskermende gedragspatrone aan te neem, te verhoog. Die doel van hierdie oorsig was om die faktore wat geslagsverwante vatbaarheid van vroue vir seksueel oordraagbare MIV bepaal, te identifiseer, vergelyk en kategoriseer. 'n Literatuurstudie van teoretiese en empiriese studies wat 'n verskeidenheid metodologieë gebruik het, is onderneem. Verslae bekom deur elektroniese en handsoektogte is ingesluit. Twintig faktore, wat in vyf groepe verdeel is, is geïdentifiseer as dié wat die vermoë van vroue om beskermende gedragspatrone aan te neem, beïnvloed. Elke faktor is ontleed om die samestellende dele 70 HEALTH SA GESONDHEID Vol.13 No.3 -2008 en die verband tussen 'n faktor, geslagsverwante kwesbaarheid, MIV-risikovlak en bemagtigingstatus te beskryf. Verdere analise het 'n beskrywing van merkers, genoem voorspellers en aanwysers, opgelewer. Die literatuur beskryf merkers wat geïdentifiseer en gebruik kan word om geslagsgelykheidstatus, MIV-risikostatus en verwante bemagtiging te beskryf. Dit bied die moontlikheid om faktore in geslagsgelykheidstatus en MIV-risikostatus te identifiseer wat aandag moet geniet in programme wat ontwerp is om vroue te bemagtig om hul risiko van seksueel oordraagbare MIV te verlaag.
- by Pat Mayers and +1
- •
The increase in numbers of students entering South African universities results in the challenge of effectively managing large groups of students in classrooms. Previous research has focused on resourcing and the manner in which knowledge... more
The increase in numbers of students entering South African universities results in the challenge of effectively managing large groups of students in classrooms. Previous research has focused on resourcing and the manner in which knowledge can be conveyed in large classes. To date not much research has been conducted on the student experience within a large class setting at South African higher education institutions. To make provision for responsible massification of higher education that does not affect the quality of student learning negatively, it is necessary to identify the perspective of students on teaching and learning in large classes. A descriptive exploratory study was undertaken using quantitative data derived from a questionnaire. Undergraduate students were asked to provide information related to their experiences of various aspects in the largest class they attend, such as physical environmental, teaching in class, methods/activities, learning and assessment. The results indicate that the students' level of academic independence determines how well they cope in a large class and the competence and enthusiasm of the lecturer influences whether they attend these classes regularly. It is recommended that teaching and learning methods that can develop students' ability for independent learning be gradually introduced in large classes.
- by Ruth Albertyn and +1
- •