The complexity of human rights in global times: The case of the right to education in South Africa

The right to education has an established legacy in international agreements and debates, but has nonetheless proved difficult to achieve across the countries of the world. This paper explores why this might be so. It begins by locating the current architecture of rights in Enlightenment philosophy and the political and legal formations of modernity, exploring the paradoxical legacy this brings. It then looks more specifically at the right to education, and why it cannot be assumed that statements of rights deliver what they promise. Finally, it looks at education in South Africa to explore both the limits and the possibilities of using a framework of rights to achieve greater social justice in global times.     

Opportunities for a democratic pedagogy: a comparative study of South African and Swedish teachers' attitudes to inclusive education

This paper is based upon the collaboration between two research groups from Stockholm University and the University of South Africa. The main objective is to compare attitudes between South African (SA) and Swedish teachers regarding inclusive education (IE). IE in this paper is examined as a distinct part of the Swedish welfare system. The method used can be characterised as a combined, quantitative and qualitative research design with a purposive sampling. A similar adapted questionnaire was distributed in the two countries. The Swedish teachers in our data are more pro‐inclusion and more hesitating to accommodate learners with barriers in special schools. However, both the Swedish and the SA teachers in the study are hesitating towards the feasibility to implement IE practically. A team approach is concluded to be an adequate pedagogy for supporting IE both in South Africa and Sweden.     

Changing the course: equity effects and institutional risk amid policy shift in higher education financing in Kenya

Reform in higher education financing in Kenya has been occasioned by both endogenous and exogenous variables. Internal pressures of a declining economy, rapid demographic growth and increased inter-and intra-sectoral competition for scare financial resources, couple with external neo-liberal doctrine championed by global donors like the World Bank have resulted in a new market-competitive policy of financing higher education. This paper analyzes the equity and risk effects of the new policy for the main stakeholders, namely students, academics and institutions themselves. The paper contends that the policy shift has had a significant effect on equity just as it has introduced universities to risks through engagement in academic capitalism with its emphasis on marketization of university programs and services. The paper concludes with suggestions on some policy options that could help to mitigate the negative consequences of this new policy.

Dilemmas in crossing the boundaries: From K-12 to higher education and back again

For the purpose of reflective analysis, this article, which employs narrative inquiry as a research methodology, combines two “crossing the boundaries” dilemmas I experienced over the course of a decade. While the dilemmas relate to different issues that emerged in my career (standardized testing as a K-12 teacher and the formal evaluation of a reform program as a tenured, full professor), I trace the roots of the dilemmas to the same source: the hegemonic relationship between theory and practice which, despite the passage of time, continues to persist in the field of education and to shape the professional experiences of educators, some of which are miseducative. I argue that until the relationship between educational practices in schools and educational practices in universities are addressed, school reform that benefits children cannot be fully realized.     

Choosing a major in higher education: Profiles of students’ decision-making process

This study identified decision-making profiles of students who make a choice of a major in higher education. These profiles were examined in a sample of Belgian students at the end of Grade 12, when the educational system expects that these adolescents choose a specific major. Using latent class cluster analysis on adolescents’ scores for coping with career decisional tasks (i.e., orientation, exploration, decisional status, and commitment), four clusters were identified. As expected, these profiles paralleled Marcia’s (1966) identity statuses (i.e., the achievement, moratorium, foreclosure, and diffusion status). Results provided support for the external validity of the identified clusters through differential associations with several person variables (i.e., career decision-making self-efficacy, career choice anxiety, and decision-making style) and with academic functioning in higher education (i.e., commitment, academic and social adjustment). Implications for current educational research and research on career decision-making are discussed.     

Taking stock of sustainability in higher education: a review of the policy literature

Abstract

This paper provides a review of the current literature that examines the uptake of sustainability policies in higher education. Articles were retrieved from both ERIC and Scopus databases and then manually reviewed to ensure that they focused on each of: higher education; sustainability; and policy. A total of 91 articles were analysed using a multi-stage process that involved sorting data according to typologies (i.e. temporal, terminology, methodology, geography), coding the text of the articles based on topical content, and an indexing method used to label data for further analysis and the development of broader code categories. Results suggest that drivers and barriers associated with the integration of sustainability policy in higher education are well known; yet increased research is needed to understand best practices and processes by which sustainability can be furthered through higher education policy. In addition, findings demonstrate the need for future research to focus on various aspects of the policy process, including policy development and enactment, and on implications of policy for practice. While there have been some reviews of sustainability policy in higher education research to date, this review contributes to this literature by highlighting research primarily focused on sustainability policy within higher education.     

Shifting selves: The emergence of new identities in South African schools

This is an exploratory study on the nature and extent of racial integration in South African schools in the post-apartheid period. While there is vigilant media attention to occasional, dramatic incidents of racial conflict in white schools, there is very little research on the ways in which student identities are framed, challenged, asserted and negotiated within the dominant institutional cultures of former white schools. The research findings suggest that student identities are shaped and framed within stable institutional cultures that remain impervious to change despite the changing demographics of the student body; but that even under these conditions student identities are constantly being questioned and recast as black and white students begin to engage each other in the daily routines of institutional life.     

Language,culture and identity in the transition to primary school: Challenges to indigenous children's rights to education in Peru

This paper analyses a ‘critical moment’ in the educational trajectories of young indigenous children in Peru: the transition to primary school. It addresses the inequalities in educational services that affect indigenous children, before looking at the micro-level processes that take place in school settings, through a focus on two selected case studies from the Young Lives study of childhood poverty. Using longitudinal information collected in two consecutive years, the case studies show how the children's language and culture are excluded from school premises and their very identity as children and indigenous people is disregarded, negatively affecting their educational performance.     

To be or not to be an academic: South African graduate students’ vocational choices

In the post-apartheid era, South African universities are striving to attract and retain diverse faculty, as mandated by the 1998 Employment Equity Act (EEA). While the focus on faculty is critical to the transformation agenda, it is informative to step back and consider the factors that influence graduate students’ decisions regarding joining the academy. This qualitative study explores the educational experiences and vocational decisions of 50 masters and doctoral students from the EEA's “designated groups,” who are poised to become academics. Factors influencing graduate students’ vocational choices should be taken into consideration as universities strive to attract more diverse faculty.     

A case study of a merger in Chinese higher education: The motives, processes, and outcomes

This paper examines an institutional merger taking place in Chinese higher education beginning from 1994. Using the case study method, the paper examines the pre-merger planning, the post-merger integration process, and the outcomes of the merger. The paper argues that a number of major external and internal factors have led to the decision to merge. The planning and implementation of the merger was largely a top-down process and subject to political intervention. One of the most prominent issues identified in this case is the difficulty of building a unified identity for the new institution as was reflected in the controversies and fights about the name of the new institution. The case studied provides a good example and valuable lessons to higher education institutions considering merger or other forms of organizational change.     

Education collaboration to promote school participation in northern Ghana: A case study of a complementary education program

This study explores the perceived benefits and challenges of the collaboration model of a complementary education program which operates in marginalized communities in northern Ghana. The scope of the paper includes the background, collaboration as a transformative process, research methodology, findings, and discussion. The study revealed that: (a) the collaborative partners’ “shared values” were a major drive of the collaboration; (b) the collaboration model was fluid, contextual, and an unstructured process; (c) the process provided new strategies promoting school participation in northern Ghana; and (d) the collaborative partners’ idiosyncrasies posed a major challenge to the collaboration.     

An ambiguous, contested terrain: governance models for a new South African education system

This paper reviews the development of education governance in South Africa during the 1990s. It outlines ambiguities within and between competing policies, tracing the historical trajectory and explaining its outcome. Apartheid governance, the attempts to reform it, policy options originating within the anti-apartheid movement, and the law passed in 1996 by the new Parliament, are discussed. Trends in South Africa during this decade have been consistent with trends in international education: decentralization, ‘rolling back the state’, privatization, increased class and/or regional disparities, and greater parental governance responsibilities.     

Chronicling educator practices and experiences in the context of democratic schooling and quality education in South Africa

An interview-based qualitative study was undertaken to explore the experiences and practices of educators in providing democratic schooling as a way of delivering quality education for learners in schools. The exploration looked at educators’ understandings of the concept of democracy in schools, their understanding of the concept quality education and whether there is any link between democratic schooling and quality education. The findings suggest that there is a perceived link between democracy in schools and the delivery of quality education for learners, even though there are tensions and contradictions in democratising schools.     

Institutional imperatives versus emergent dynamics: a case study on continuous change in higher education

This qualitative case study examines continuous change in a higher education organization (HEO). Both real time and retrospective data covering a 6-year period of the case were collected. The findings suggest that, in order to meet institutional imperatives the HEO defined several managerial and academic domains when the internationalization process was launched. When organizational members activate these domains they confronted with local needs, problems, and opportunities, which enable them to modify, update or extend the defined domains. In addition, throughout time the members constantly realize the missing parts and incorporate them into the process. These findings suggest several insights on the adaptability of higher education organizations.     

韩国、马来西亚、菲律宾三国私立高等教育经费政策研究

韩国、马来西亚和菲律宾等国的私立高等院校所占比例均在85%以上,在校生数占一半以上,高者达74%。这与所在国的高等教育发展政策、经费政策和管理政策是分不开的,其政府实施的经费资助政策更是私立高等教育发展、稳定与否的"晴雨表"。三国私立高等教育发展变化显示,私立高等教育发展与政府的经费政策,尤其是多元化教育投入有着很强的联系。     

Quality management in Hungarian higher education: organisational responses to governmental policy

This article focuses on responses of higher education institutions to governmental policy. We investigate the influence of organisational characteristics on the implementation of quality management in Hungarian higher education institutions. Our theoretical framework is based on organisational theories (resource dependency and neo-institutionalism), Allison’s models on organisational decision-making processes, and also addresses some of the more specific characteristics of higher education institutions. Our empirical investigation shows that organisational characteristics matter in policy implementation of quality management in Hungarian higher education. Certain organisational variables, viz. leaders’ commitment to the implementation process, the involvement of external consultants, institutional reputation, and bureaucratic and political decision-making processes have strong effects on the implementation of quality management. Characteristics particular to higher education institutions were much less influential.

Fostering educational participation in pastoral communities through non-formal education: the Ghanaian perspective

This paper is an investigation of the impact of the Shepherd School Program, a non-formal basic education program implemented in seven pastoral communities in northern Ghana. The paper argues that non-formal basic education programs can have an important impact on the educational development of a community. However, for this to be possible, the context of such programs must answer to communities’ social, cultural, economic and other immediate needs.     

Credits, curriculum, and control in higher education: Cross-national perspectives

Through an examination of the higher education systems in threecountries (Indonesia, Nicaragua, and Vietnam), the authors explore howthe use of academic credits for monitoring student progress has been andcontinues to be linked to policies and institutions associated withcapitalist, market-driven economic systems. The recent histories ofthese countries and their current social and political contexts areanalyzed in relation to three interrelated themes that have emerged fromthe analysis of the three cases. These themes are: (1) Linkages topolitical and economic systems: higher education as vocationaltraining, (2) Standardization, efficiency, andtechnocracy, and (3) Who controls the curriculum? Inconclusion, the authors suggest that the academic credit system,embedded within a network of other educational practices, hastransformed the university into an institution focused on relativelynarrow, utilitarian aims rather than a more universal pursuit ofknowledge.     

Institutionalising campus diversity in South African higher education: Review of diversity scholarship and diversity education

Increasingly the social, educational, cultural,linguistic, religious and racial diversity ofSouth African society is finding expressionwithin South African institutions of highereducation. Consequently, ``diversity'',``diversity issues'' and ``diversification'', havebecome part of the education debate and policy,and pose new challenges to South Africantertiary institutions. Most institutions areattempting to respond to these challengeswithin the context of a transformation processwhich impacts on every aspect of academic lifefrom student access and support, outreachprogrammes, staff recruitment and retention, toacademic programme development, research,scholarship and the social and learningenvironment on campus. This paper looks at howSouth African higher education institutionshave met these challenges. It highlights howthe ideas, initiatives or practices arounddiversity have been appropriated and made partof the mainstream intellectual and academicdiscourses. It also investigates the social andepistemological conditions of possibility formeaningful scholarship and curriculum practicesin addressing the challenges posed by socialdiversity on campuses. More specific questionsin this regard include: What counts asknowledge in diversity scholarship? Whoproduces and disseminates it? Who accesses itor utilises it? What is its space in thecurricula?