Simon McGrath

Globalisation, Enterprise and Knowledge: education, training and development in Africa

This book examines the challenges facing education in African countries, within the context of globalisation. It is suggested that developing a notion of learning-led competitiveness is a crucial part of any response to globalisation, as well as allowing the performance of education and training institutions to be monitored. Three areas of concern are brought together in this book: debates about the impact of globalisation on development thinking and practice; responses to globalisation in educational development; and national experiences in Ghana, Kenya and South Africa. An analysis of the intersections between education, training and enterprise development is given, and possible future approaches for policy, practice and research are identified.

The role of education in development: an educationalist’s response to some recent work in development economics

This paper delves beneath the widespread belief that education (often repackaged as human capital) is important in development to consider the role that the discipline of education plays in shaping the wider discourses of development. In particular, it will explore recent texts by important figures in development economics (Collier, Easterly, Sachs and Stiglitz) to see what they say (and don’t say) about education’s role in development and to contrast this with educationalists’ accounts. This will lead on to a consideration of what the implications of such a reading are for the field of international and comparative education. The paper concludes that the relative marginalisation of educational accounts in mainstream development thinking is a major challenge to which international and comparative education needs to respond.

Research in a cold climate: towards a political economy of British international and comparative education

Abstract This paper seeks to begin a discussion of the importance of the material environment in which international and comparative educational research is done as a fundamental aspect of any methodological discussion of the activities of the field. It argues that the position of international and comparative education within universities and its relationship to potential funders act powerfully on the types of work that can be done. It also highlights ways in which the intensification and globalisation of market forces shapes not only the social reality being researched but the research environment itself. It is particularly concerned with the ways in which these forces impact upon the early career development of researchers and the long-term impact this will have on the health of international and comparative education.

Skills for development: a new approach to international cooperation in skills development?

Abstract Technical and vocational education and training (TVET) was a central tool of development cooperation from the 1950s through to the 1980s. However, with the rise of education for all in the 1990s, TVET ‘fell from grace ’. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, there is a growing interest among development cooperation agencies in the importance of skills development, a broader concept that has come to replace TVET in agency thinking. This article considers the ways in which work and employment have changed in the last decade or so across the South, and the challenges this brings for skills development. It then examines the nature of skills development in current agency formulations. Finally, it links these to the main elements of the changing overall trends in development cooperation and its implications for those involved in skills development work.

An Examination of the Vocational Education and Training Reform Debate in Southern Africa.

This paper explores the role that vocational education and training (VET) can play in Southern African responses to major socio‐economic challenges. It argues that this role will be most pronounced if it is articulated within a broader educational and economic vision that is shared by a range of stakeholders in society and supported by an adequate funding base, effective information systems and qualified and motivated planners and implementers. However, it cautions that it is also important to remember that VET reform will not in itself transform economies or societies. The paper argues that there is considerable convergence within Southern Africa around 10 themes of VET reform. It argues that there is much that is of merit in the current broad package for VET transformation but that it is essential that it is carefully critiqued and that elements are adapted to national circumstances and visions.

Reviewing the development of the South African further education and training college sector ten years after the end of apartheid

Abstract This article analyses the progress made in transforming the public further education and training college system in South Africa in the first decade of democracy. It charts the evolution of policy for the sector and how it relates to broader policy development in South Africa. It examines the extent to which policy has been implemented and highlights a series of remaining challenges for the sector. The article concludes that much has been done in transforming the college sector, most notably through the creation of 50 non-racialised, multi-site colleges. However, it also notes that many of the reforms envisaged by the Department of Education remain only partially implemented. Most crucially, and inevitably, the sector continues to struggle with the challenge of developing skills in a context of extremely high youth unemployment.

Assessing the Impact of Globalization on South African Education and Training: A Review of the Evidence so Far.

This article reviews the effects of globalization on South Africa a decade after the transition to a post-apartheid system. It brings together some of the recent literature of the performance of the economy and concomitant changes in education. It shows the pervasive force of globalization on South African education and training and explores in particular how this has affected the political imperative to establish a non-racial socio-political order. It argues that the twin processes of globalization and socio-political transformation have often contradicted stated goals of equity and redress.This article reviews the effects of globalization on South Africa a decade after the transition to a post-apartheid system. It brings together some of the recent literature of the performance of the economy and concomitant changes in education. It shows the pervasive force of globalization on South African education and training and explores in particular how this has affected the political imperative to establish a non-racial socio-political order. It argues that the twin processes of globalization and socio-political transformation have often contradicted stated goals of equity and redress.

Coming in from the Cold? Further Education and Training in South Africa.

As South Africa enters the Mbeki Presidency so the fortunes of the country are thrown into sharp relief. One of the central elements determining South Africas short- to medium-term future will be the success of educational transformation, particularly when it is directed to addressing issues of equity and economic development. This paper explores the 1998 reforms of the further education and training system in the context of broader questions of educational and economic transformation in South Africa.

Where to Now for Vocational Education and Training in Africa

Abstract Vocational education and training (VET) has returned to the list of policy priorities for education in Africa after an absence of a quarter of a century, yet there has been no new research that overturns the existing orthodox position that such provision, whether during or after schooling, is inefficient and ineffective. This paper addresses this apparent contradiction. It revisits the existing arguments against African VET to consider whether they have continued salience. It suggests that what is needed is a new approach to thinking about VET in Africa that takes account of innovations in theory, policy and practice about VET in other regions and in the wider field of African development theory. It offers a discussion of three areas in which a new approach might develop: reviewing the international evidence on VET reform; reimagining the purpose of VET; and revisiting the head-hand division and its implications for vocationalism in schools.

‘Skills for productive citizenship for all’: the place of skills development for micro and small enterprises in South Africa 1

Three important elements of a South African vision for high skills must be spreading skills improvements across the population in general, creating policy coherence and constructing new institutions. This article examines these issues through an investigation of the micro and small enterprise (MSE) sector and, in particular, through an analysis of the evolution of policies for this sector over the first decade of democracy. It considers policy development by the three most relevant government departments: Trade and Industry, Labour and Education. The article concludes that the impact of the South African state in promoting ‘skills for productive citizenship for all’ has not been as successful as hoped for. In particular, attempts to balance skills needs at all levels have not always been reflected in coherent cross‐sectoral policymaking or in effective implementation strategies, including the development of new institutions. Nonetheless, the vision continues to be deepened and reiterated in ways that suggest that there is an ever keener official appreciation that a coherent strategy and implementation approach for meeting the skills needs of MSEs is an essential prerequisite for achieving an inclusive upskilling vision.