In his latest op-ed for The Conversation GovInn deputy director Dr Chris Nshimbi considers the ramifications of politicising academia amid the ongoing student protests across South African Universities. The article explores Nigeria’s experiences with similar problems and the resultant decline in universities administrative, academic and financial autonomy while contributing to the departure of many academics. The full article can be read here.
In his latest op-ed for Business Day GovInn director Lorenzo Fioramonti considers the possibilities of affordable education in the wake of recent flare ups of student protests across South African universities. You can read the full article here.
The University of Pretoria is proud to host a joint initiative by the European Commission and the United Nations Development Programme in the form of the Kapuscinski Development Lecture 2016.
Prof Norman Duncan, Vice-Principal (Academic), cordially invites you to attend the Kapuscinski Development Lecture on the theme: Education: fundamental to a country’s future. The focus will be on education and employability and how this is fundamental to all aspects of a country’s development.
Top global thinkers use this platform to discuss development. Since 2009, more than 80 lectures have been held at partner universities and think tanks reaching over 25 000 people.
Date: Tuesday 31 May 2016
Time: 18:00
Cocktail after the lecture 19:30-20:30
Venue: Senate Hall, Hatfeld Campus, Lynnwood Road, Pretoria
GPS: S25° 45’ 21” E28° 13’ 51”
Dress: Day Wear
Enquiries: Neo Maseko, 012 420 2631
RSVP: here by 27 May 2016
#KAPTalks
“In June 1976, SA’s youth led one of the most extraordinary protests against a discriminatory approach to education. Their rebellion reverberated across the world to become the symbol of the struggle for freedom in our country. Yet, almost 40 years later, our education system remains exclusionary and fragmented,” writes Lorenzo Fioramonti in his latest column for Business Day.
“Our national debate on education tacitly assumes that SA is divided into a majority of poorly resourced (public) schools and a few, mostly urban, very well-developed (private) schools. This may be true if we limit our observation to the physical infrastructure of the “good” schools. I have indeed never seen as many rugby fields, Olympic pools, beautiful halls and playgrounds as I have in private schools and some of the best-resourced public schools (most of which are public-private hybrids previously known as Model C).
But if we scratch beneath this flashy surface, we find serious problems with the education model there. First, many of them reinforce pre-existing racial and class patterns. This is not only because of high tuition fees but also because of the values they project. It is common for these schools to expect students to wear expensive uniforms, glorify conspicuous consumption (for instance, by allowing companies to advertise to pupils) and teach children that excellence is the result of competition.”
Read the full article “Drop classification of pupils to treat ‘academic autism’” on Business Day
