An exploratory study of Heads of Departments' responses to student calls for decolonised higher education
- Grant, Carolyn, Quinn, Lynn, Vorster, Jo-Anne E
- Authors: Grant, Carolyn , Quinn, Lynn , Vorster, Jo-Anne E
- Date: 2018
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/123420 , vital:35436 , https://doi.org/10.17159/2520-9868/i72a05
- Description: Central to the tumultuous student protests of 2015 and 2016 was an urgent call for the decolonisation of South African universities. Existing curricula, including teaching and assessment practices, as well as institutional cultures and structures were challenged. Against this backdrop, in this article we focus on the academic leadership role of Heads of Departments (HoDs) at Rhodes University. In this small-scale project we interrogate how HoDs conceptualised their roles in this uncertain and complex context. From the data analysis a number of tensions emerged in the ways in which they articulated and enacted their roles. The findings indicate that the protests have contributed to the increasing complexity of the role of an HoD. Issues raised during the protests catalysed HoDs at Rhodes University, some for the first time, into considering the implications of the decolonising call from students and into exercising stronger transformative leadership roles.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Grant, Carolyn , Quinn, Lynn , Vorster, Jo-Anne E
- Date: 2018
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/123420 , vital:35436 , https://doi.org/10.17159/2520-9868/i72a05
- Description: Central to the tumultuous student protests of 2015 and 2016 was an urgent call for the decolonisation of South African universities. Existing curricula, including teaching and assessment practices, as well as institutional cultures and structures were challenged. Against this backdrop, in this article we focus on the academic leadership role of Heads of Departments (HoDs) at Rhodes University. In this small-scale project we interrogate how HoDs conceptualised their roles in this uncertain and complex context. From the data analysis a number of tensions emerged in the ways in which they articulated and enacted their roles. The findings indicate that the protests have contributed to the increasing complexity of the role of an HoD. Issues raised during the protests catalysed HoDs at Rhodes University, some for the first time, into considering the implications of the decolonising call from students and into exercising stronger transformative leadership roles.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Transforming teachers' conceptions of teaching and learning in a post graduate certificate in higher education and training course: the practice of higher education
- Quinn, Lynn, Vorster, Jo-Anne E
- Authors: Quinn, Lynn , Vorster, Jo-Anne E
- Date: 2004
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/123465 , vital:35440 , https://doi.org/10.4314/sajhe.v18i1.25449
- Description: The changing context of higher education and the challenges this presents to lecturers has led to the introduction of accredited professional development courses for academics in some institutions. Many lecturers in higher education are finding that teaching the way they were taught and using the traditional lecture format is no longer always appropriate. If graduates are to function effectively in today's world, lecturers need to create teaching and learning contexts which promote their ability for life-long learning. Research shows that in order to achieve this, students need to be actively engaged in the learning process. This may require shifts in the way lecturers perceive their role. A central theme of the Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education and Training (PGCHET) course discussed in this article is that of the critically reflective practitioner. From the research conducted it is clear that encouraging lecturers to reflect on their practices, to examine the epistemologies underpinning their disciplines along with what that means for teaching and learning, and then presenting them with a range of theoretical frameworks can lead to their developing or changing their conceptions of teaching. However, for the course developers it is also important to understand the factors that may militate against participants implementing new ideas and developing their practice.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2004
- Authors: Quinn, Lynn , Vorster, Jo-Anne E
- Date: 2004
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/123465 , vital:35440 , https://doi.org/10.4314/sajhe.v18i1.25449
- Description: The changing context of higher education and the challenges this presents to lecturers has led to the introduction of accredited professional development courses for academics in some institutions. Many lecturers in higher education are finding that teaching the way they were taught and using the traditional lecture format is no longer always appropriate. If graduates are to function effectively in today's world, lecturers need to create teaching and learning contexts which promote their ability for life-long learning. Research shows that in order to achieve this, students need to be actively engaged in the learning process. This may require shifts in the way lecturers perceive their role. A central theme of the Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education and Training (PGCHET) course discussed in this article is that of the critically reflective practitioner. From the research conducted it is clear that encouraging lecturers to reflect on their practices, to examine the epistemologies underpinning their disciplines along with what that means for teaching and learning, and then presenting them with a range of theoretical frameworks can lead to their developing or changing their conceptions of teaching. However, for the course developers it is also important to understand the factors that may militate against participants implementing new ideas and developing their practice.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2004
- «
- ‹
- 1
- ›
- »