I.M. Ntshoe

The political economy of access and equitable allocation of resources to higher education

Abstract Accelerated expansion of and increased access to higher education (HE) have been widely supported as a response to the social, political and economic imperatives in many countries. Increased access to and equitable allocation of resources to HE in developing countries have been advocated to accommodate the new kind of student entering HE, to increase access for previously under-represented groups, and to make HE responsive to the changing conditions affected by globalisation. This paper examines demands to accelerate expansion of and increase access to HE for blacks and to make the HE sector competitive, cost-effective and efficient in the changing conditions in post-apartheid South Africa. It argues that the popularised, accelerated expansion of and increased access to HE have not significantly improved the achievement of social equity, social justice and social development because of the external influence of global competitiveness. It argues further that the current policy of institutional mergers and incorporations is driven by demands to make the HE sector efficient and does not seem to sufficiently address historical inequities in higher education. It concludes that the participation rate in HE in South Africa has not improved as was hoped, because of internal factors including the scourge of HIV/AIDS, the declining number of matriculants enrolling into higher education and the lack of effective governance and management in some Higher Learning Institutions (HLIs).

South Africa: Recklessly Incapacitated by a Fifth Column – The Academic Profession Facing Institutional Governance

The South African academic profession currently has to negotiate a battery of changes foisted down upon them. These changes relate to the education reform project of government, the societal reconstruction which also assigns a big role for universities, and the neo-liberal economic revolution. The sum total of all these changes is a serious erosion of the autonomy of the academic profession. Academic freedom is being drastically curtailed as academics have to put up with prescriptions and control from both government and institutional managers and bureaucrats. The CAP survey shows the extent of this control and the pernicious influence it is having on the academic profession. If it is accepted that academics can fulfill their mission optimally only in an atmosphere of academic freedom and when they are satisfied with their jobs, then this issue of managerialism needs to be addressed urgently.

Key challenges facing the South African academic profession at the interfaces of management, interaction with the international academic community and service for society

Abstract The international Changing Academic Profession (CAP) research project is currently surveying the academic profession in 22 countries. At the planning conference of this study, three emphases in the contemporary professional environment of academics have become particularly persuasive: relevance, internationalisation and management. As part of the international research team of the CAP research project, the authors have applied the questionnaire of the CAP survey (which measures academics’ experiences and responses to these three trends) to a sample of the South African academic profession. The results show that while the South African academic profession has made the mind-shift from the traditional conceptualisation of the university as an “ivory tower institution”, rather detached from society in its pursuit of truth, to an institution relevant to the concrete and immediate needs of society, the profession could thus far not succeed in giving practical effect to this changed concept. While the South African academic profession has internationalised rapidly during the first decade after the repeal of the international academic boycott against South Africa, to the point where it has become more internationalised than its colleagues abroad, it has been losing ground again during the past few years. It is in its relationship with management that the biggest cause of concern for the South African academic profession lies. This research indicates that the South African academic profession finds itself in a highly prescriptive environment, over which it has little influence, and which it does not find very supportive of its teaching and research activities. In conclusion, follow-up research aiming at addressing these problems is recommended.