FUNDANI CENTRE FOR HIGHER EDUCATION DEVELOPMENT - CPUT
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FUNDANI
CENTRE FOR HIGHER EDUCATION DEVELOPMENT
creat ing f ut uresCONTENTS
Keynote Adress
Societal Relevance in Teaching and Learning
Prof. Kwesi Kwaa Prah......................................................................................4
Presentations
Longitudinal and latitudinal Jigsaw Cooperative learning PBL in a Power
Electronics Systems Simulations Module
Atanda K Raji…………………………………………………………………………5
Student-driven Learning Environment Conceptualization and Design for an
Exit-Level Module in a UoT
Atanda K Raji………………………………………………………………….……...6
Support for lecturers in Community Engagement
Benita Jansen…………………………………………………………………………7
Student developed OERs: Fostering the scholarship of teaching and learning
Bronwyn Schwartz……………………………………………………………………8
Transplanting the fairy tale: An Afrocentric perspective
Candice Livingston………………………………………………………………..…9
Extending knowledge boundaries: The challenges of developing
Postgraduate Diplomas within a University of Technology (UoT) context
Desiree Scholtz…………....………………………….........................................10
Programme Articulation between University Types in South Africa:
In search of common curriculum elements.
Eugene Fester……………..............…………………………………………..11-12
Student perceptions on Community Engagement initiatives
Johan Pienaar, Megan Carstens……………………….....……………………….13
Tutor programmes in Education Faculties across Western Cape Universities
Lawrence Meda, Hanlie Dippenaar, Najwa Norodien-Fataar,
Subethra Pather, Rajendran Govender…….…………………...........………….14
Engaging debate for critical thinking and argument as a learning tool
Marco Adonis…………………………................……………..…………………..15
Mapping the students’ journey: Academic literacy and research skills
development
Misiwe Katiya,Thembinkosi Mtonjeni……….......…………………………….....16
1CONTENTS Making sense of Architectural ‘language’: Implications for success in Teaching and Learning for ECP students at Cape Peninsula University of Technology Monwabisi Ralarala, Linda Manashe, Rudolf Perold, Ernest Pineteh, Theo Rodrigues, Nomxolisi Jantjies…..........……………………………………17 Retention officers’ experiences with academics in supporting first year students Nosisana Mkonto, Emmanuel Esambe……………………………………....18-19 Undergraduate curriculum design for public sector optometry: A critical social theory approach. Prasidh Ramson………………………………………………………………...20-21 A description of learner diversity as a catalyst for transformative educative practice. Ryan Matthews, Navindhra Naidoo, Thomas Farrar...………......……....…22-23 The experiences of NQT (newly qualified teachers) when teaching reading in diverse contexts in the Foundation Phase. Shelley Aronstam……………………………………………………………..…24-25 Can the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning drive a decolonial agenda in the ‘post’ colonial university? Siya Sabata………………………………………………………………………….26 A Model for Mainstreaming Transformation-Decolonisation in Teaching and Learning. Trunette Joseph…………………………………………………….……………….27 Students perceptions of blended learning and collaborative learning in food science and technology practicals: A case study of Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT). Vusi Vincent Mshayisa………………..……………………………………………28 The Teaching Advancement at University (TAU) Programme: Creating communities of best practice towards an ethics of care Xena Cupido, Hanlie Dippenaar, Muhammad Nakhooda…………..………29-30 2
CONTENTS
Workshops
Towards ethical guidelines for digital storytelling in Higher Education
Daniela Gachago, Candice Livingston, Jacquie Scheepers.........…………….31
Change laboratories
James Garraway, Hanlie Dippenaar, Mpo Mathews, Janet Van Graan,
Xena Cupido……………………………………………………………….………..32
Tackling the digital divide and graduate employability in Africa: An influence
of Digital transformation
Jerry Ansen, A. Darkwa…….......………………………………………………….33
Facilitating English Language Development and Communication Skills in
a Large Classroom
Steve Pachan……………………………………………………………………….34
Poster presentations
Narratives of disruption: exploring our identities as Design teachers
Amanda Morris….……………………………………………………………..35-36
Using student-selected precedent and guiding themes in landscape
architectural
meaning-making trajectories
Christine Price………………………………………………………………………37
Exploring the flipped classroom in the context of educational reform: A case
study in legal education
Conrad Potberg…………………………………………………………………..…38
Critical voices in a multicultural classrooms: a call for culturally inclusive
Graphic Design curriculum
Lindie Bhebhe, Monwabisi K. Ralarala, Alettia Chisin……………………….…39
Mathematics Centre for Research and Staff Development
Mark Jacobs………..……………………………………………………………40-41
3Keynote Address
Prof. Kwesi Kwaa Prah
Societal Relevance in Teaching and
Learning
Teaching and learning are component parts of socialization, education and
the efforts at developing the societal requirements of any given society. They
are interwoven, but directed towards achieving goals which are implicit in
the purposes of government and the social order. African societies today are
faced with peculiar challenges which derive from the historical conditions
from which they emerged. The most glaring of these, in this post-colonial era,
include issues of poverty, relative deprivation, disease, poor governance,
economic and infrastructural inadequacies and the marginalization of
sizeable proportions of the citizenry. These challenges must inform the way
in which in our institutions of teaching and learning organize education and
the processes of educational implementation. This paper addresses the
issues and factors that need attention in the construction and execution of
educational policies and processes. What should be the guiding principles
in teaching and learning? How should they be directed? What are the key
principles and objectives to which attention should be paid? What are the
benchmarks for assessing the social relevance of teaching and learning?
4Presentations
A.K. Raji
Longitudinal and latitudinal Jigsaw
Cooperative learning PBL in a Power
Electronics Systems Simulations Module
A three-phase grid-connected renewable energy system is used in this
educational research to enhance students learning and success by designing
a well-thought through learning instructions, learning environment and
evaluation instruments. This approach is envisaged to improve the student
learning experience by using the module content to teach the student how to
learn in preparation for a lifelong learning aptitude.
The final project is divided into five different power conversion stages:
energy source type, DC-DC converter, DC-AC converter, AC power filter
and the electricity grid. The longitudinal group consists of five students each
dealing with learning tasks of each sub-division. The learning tasks consist
of writing a technical report on the system design, modelling, simulation,
results presentation and interpretation, and conclusions drawn from the
system performance. The latitudinal group is termed the expertise group as
it consists of students that are allocated the same power conversion stage.
This group is to meet and share idea; a king of brainstorming exercise to
return to their longitudinal group as an expertise of their sub-division.
Cooperative and collaborative learning environment is implemented using
two different but cohesive platforms. The first platform is the in-class
participation wherein compulsory hands-on practical exercises are given
and evaluated before a summative exercise is to be completed in class and
submitted before the class ends. The second platform consists of two parts:
a WhatsApp group was created and administered by the class representative
and the other is a Google Drive wherein collaborative engagement is easier
as the module is a part-time one. All the module resources that are available
on the departmental O-Drive is duplicated on the module dedicated Google
Drive. Both the longitudinal and latitudinal groups are also created on the
Google Drive.
This project is on-going and each facet will be evaluated as the educational
research progresses.
5A.K. Raji Student-driven Learning Environment Conceptualization and Design for an Exit-Level Module in a UoT Attrition rate and poor throughput pass rate are problems facing engineering education worldwide. The disparity in the level of basic education amongst engineering students is woefully dismal. Large proportion of students entering universities are inadequately prepared for higher education. B.Tech students are expected to deal with broadly defined problems as prescribed by ECSA. Designing a student-driven learning instructional that will enhance their learning experience is envisaged to mitigate high attrition rate and consequently improve throughput rate. A survey was handed out to students in an exit-level electrical engineering module (SYN400S). Three questions were posed to the students during the first contact session: (1) why are you doing this subject apart from it being compulsory? (2) what do you expect from this class? And (3) how do you expect the lecturer (Dr. Atanda Raji) to help you with in your learning experience? In order to ensure that all the students are able to complete the survey it was decided that student names or number are not required on the survey. It was also mentioned to the students that their honest responses to the questions will enable the instructor to design a learning instructional method that will enhance their learning experiences. A thematic analysis method was used to analyse the collected data. In response to question one, the recurring sounds is their expectations to learn and understand the module content. The permeated voice in response to question two is their expectation of teamwork, lecturer’s interaction, and industrial applications as examples. The answer to the last question revolves around the request for the lecturer availability, short term tests and exercises, quick feedback, adequate study material, in-class problem solving tasks, creation of a WhatsApp group for real-time communication amongst others. This project is on-going and each facet will be evaluated as the educational research progresses. 6
B. Jansen
Support for lecturers in Community
Engagement
This paper is on an explorative study which was done to determine the
status of the practice and support of community engagement in South
African higher education institutions. The context is narrowed down to the
support available to lecturers implementing community engagement at one
institution. The paper will elaborate on how lecturers implement community
engagement in teaching and learning and research at this institution and how
they are supported. For the purpose of this paper I will refer to Community
Engagement (CE) as the over-arching term that includes service learning,
volunteering and conventional work place learning. Service learning is
defined as a method to implement Community Engagement through a series
of scholarly-based actions by staff members and/or students of a Higher
Education Institution in collaboration with representatives of communities
which relate to the staff and student knowledge base in the form of
community-based experiential learning which is curriculum-based, and
credit-bearing. The study followed a mixed methods research approach. The
results from the quantitative survey were triangulated against the results of
the qualitative interviews and focus group discussions. Results show that
lecturers often feel alienated in their journey when implementing community
engagement, but that the support which is available and provided by the
institution is essential and very valuable.
7B. Schwartz
Student developed OERs: Fostering the
scholarship of teaching and learning
Data science and the use of analytics is a fundamental function of quality
management practitioners in every industry. Consequently, all quality
management practitioners need to have a sound foundation of basic statistics
to be able to develop, implement and sustain quality improvement programs
in organisations. Thelheimer (2014) reports that if the data analysis skills
are not used or refreshed often they are not retained. Quality management
students at a large University of Technology (UoT) in the Western Cape
embarked on a process of developing Open Educational Resources (OER)
material to support industry professionals with refresher training and thereby
close a gap in industry. They developed a quick guide to help industry
professionals refresh some of the concepts that data science utilizes.
This qualitative study reflects on student perceptions of their own
development during the process of OER production in four areas:
(1) Their explicit awareness of the role they played in fostering the scholarship
of teaching and learning in this project
(2) Their development as academics.
(3) The transition in their academic identity and
(4) Tensions experienced due to conflict resolution during the academic
project.
Findings illustrate how persistence influences competence. In turn, this
imparts academic confidence and enhances self-realization which supports
the formation of their academic identity and their identity as industry
practitioners.
Ultimately the study illustrates how quality management students are able
to support quality management practitioners in industry with OERs while
simultaneously undergoing personal growth. The paper concludes with
implications and limitations of the study and recommendations for future
research.
8C. Livingston Transplanting the fairy tale: An Afrocentric perspective In the light of #FeesMustFall, decolonisation has come to the fore in the South African Higher Education landscape. Decolonisation proposes the overthrow of entrenched European power relations in higher education and the study of fairy tales within a pre-service teaching degree in a University English curriculum provides an ideal opportunity for lecturers to challenge this dominance. All too often, cultural fairy tales are analysed and studied within the European trajectory of the structuralist/formalist classification tradition, often rendering the tale to an oversimplified outline which has been reduced to archetypes, motifs and memes which are universalised across cultures and texts. Epistemic awareness of Afrikology has been suggested as a way of facilitating the inclusion of Afrocentric thinking in the English curriculum and giving preservice teachers a voice in their own learning. The purpose of this paper is to track the creation of context-relevant cultural capital in the writing of fairy tales. An analysis of the results shows that deep critical engagement with the cultural metaphors presented in fairy tales, leads to the development of Afrocentric cultural capital that is highly contextualised and rooted in the language and customs of the cultural identity of the writers who the transcoded fairy tales. Key words: Decolonisation, Afrikology, Fairy tales, Transculturation 9
D. Scholtz Extending knowledge boundaries: The challenges of developing Postgraduate Diplomas within a University of Technology (UoT) context Curriculum development at universities of technology has become a matter of urgency given the revised HEQSF (2013) that required large- scale curriculum revision of existing diploma qualifications and curriculum development of Advanced Diplomas and Postgraduate Diplomas (PGDips). Postgraduate Diplomas are new qualifications representing a new level (Level 8) on the HEQSF (2013) required for articulation to the Master’s and Doctoral qualifications. This presentation seeks to foreground the kinds of challenges encountered in developing PGDip qualifications in business and management studies, which would respond appropriately to the knowledge and technological demands of the future. The challenges of developing relevant, responsive curricula for new qualifications in rapidly changing business environments need to be navigated within the context of extending knowledge boundaries from the Advanced Diploma to the PGDip. The focus of this presentation is on the challenges experienced with developing PG Dips in five departments with regard to the difficulties encountered in arriving at an academic structure and planning curriculum implementation. Data generation by means of interviews with lecturers tasked with curriculum development in these five departments and an online questionnaire to lecturers tasked with curriculum development at institutional level, provided insights into the challenges of developing new qualifications. The data were subjected to content analysis from which two main themes emerged, namely, curriculum development and implementation. The literature that formed the backdrop to the analysis and discussion of data was drawn from curriculum development approaches used institutionally. The findings show that the development of the PGDip presents an iterative work in progress that requires collaborative efforts between faculty, alumni and industry to present a qualification that meets all stakeholders’ expectations. The significance of this study relates to the readiness of UoTs to develop and offer a qualification of this kind and at this level given that curriculum development is peripheral to lecturers’ responsibilities. 10
E. Fester Programme Articulation between University Types in South Africa. In search of common curriculum elements. The merging of higher education institutions by government decree in 2005 included the conversion of all technikons to universities. This new university type was re-named University of Technology, as opposed to the original “traditional university” and the resultant, hybridized “comprehensive university”. Thus, in one fell swoop, the South African University of Technology was born, to co-exist with traditional universities on the South African higher education landscape. As a consequence, the architecture of the national Higher Education Qualifications sub-Framework (HEQsF) was re-designed to accommodate a wider variety of qualification types - vocational, professional and academic – depending on the mission trajectories of the universities. Against this backdrop of competing mission trajectories within a single qualifications framework, the newly-conceived family of universities commenced (and are currently feverishly engaged in) curriculum renewal and reform. Popular discourses on knowledge structures position knowledge types along a continuum, ranging from the contextual to the conceptual – the former representing the delivery of applied knowledge in industry-focussed UoT programmes, while conceptual knowledge, characterized by intense interrogation and integration of theoretical knowledge (powerful knowledge) is the self-proclaimed domain of traditional universities. This dichotomy – the distinction between applied and theoretical knowledge - hampers articulation between vocational and general academic programmes. It is captured in the problem statement of this qualitative research study, 11
Cont... Programme Articulation between University Types in South Africa. In search of common curriculum elements. which seeks to discover, through a research method of discourse analysis, the essential brief of university education. Once this has been established, the objective of the study is to use the findings to underpin an investigation that will identify common elements across university programmes that could increase the porosity of knowledge-type barriers, thus promoting articulation between South African programme- and university-types Keywords: contextual knowledge; conceptual knowledge; applied knowledge; powerful knowledge; articulation; educational elements 12
J. Pienaar, M. Carstens Student perceptions on Community Engagement initiatives This paper, presented by undergraduate students from the Faculty of Education, investigates and analyses collaboration between all parties in the successful implementation of service-learning initiatives, and specifically looks at the perceptions of undergraduate students on their experiences of service-learning projects. The projects in the study aim to develop the cultural competence and English proficiency and reading skills of all participants in the initiatives. The projects involved intermediate phase learners (grade 4-7) from four primary schools in a rural town in the Western Cape, a local children’s home, inmates from a local prison and English pre-service teachers. This paper describes the development of these projects and how challenges were addressed. The students’ perceptions of these experiences in relation to their professional development and academic curriculum will be illustrated. Although it was anticipated that the pre-service teachers would act as agents of change, preliminary perceptions and findings indicate that the integrated nature of these interactions has an immediate effect on all participants involved. The learners as well as the pre-service teachers become ‘agents’ in their own development. The paper reinforces the important role of community interactions in the academic development of our students. Community engagement is a reciprocal opportunity for growth and development which affects students, staff, and communities. It addresses the graduate attributes of students and develop social responsibility and global citizenship. Keywords: Community engagement, service-learning, student engagement, community collaboration 13
L. Meda, H. Dippenaar, N. Norodien-Fataar, S. Pather, R. Govender Tutor programmes in Education Faculties Across Western Cape Universities As a result of student drop out due to poor academic performance, universities across the globe have embarked on utilising tutor programmes as one of structured intervention strategies for improving results. The implementation of tutoring programmes is one of the teaching and learning interventions aimed at minimising the deteriorating academic performance of students and to promote active learning in South African universities. The purpose of this study is to investigate tutor practices in education faculties across selected Western Cape Universities. The study will be guided by two critical questions: i) How are tutor programmes implemented in education faculties across Western Cape Universities, and ii) what are the best practices in tutor programmes implemented in education faculties across Western Cape Universities? Engeström’s activity theory will be used as a theoretical framework. Six tutor coordinators and one teaching and learning coordinator in faculties of education among three universities in the Western Cape will be purposively selected to participate in the study. Data will be analysed using document analysis, semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions. Results will be analysed using content analysis and shared with all participants. Keywords: Tutor, University, Higher Education, Faculty of Education 14
M. Adonis Engaging debate for critical thinking and argument as a learning tool It has become a challenge to effectively engage students to actively participate in their own learning (Hansen et al, 2018). Students have become passive learners, unwilling to meet the learning facilitator half way (Hamilton, 2018). There may be many reasons for this trend emerging in engineering students (Entwistle, 2018). In an effort to address this current status quo, this facilitator has begun to try new methods that students may not have been exposed to yet, as a measure to engage students to take an active role in their learning (Hart, 2018). One of these methods has been the use of debate as a learning tool (Voinohovska & Goranova 2017). Master’s level students attending the coursework programme have been encouraged to embrace this method. The debate is used not only as a means of assessment but as a knowledge generation tool as well. The facilitator has designed a structured template for conducting the debates. This template has been matched with an assessment rubric. Learners are given a short workshop on how the debate is to be conducted and also given ample time to prepare their arguments and anticipated rebuttals. Based on student feedback, the exercise proved to be exciting, engaging, stimulating, encouraging scholarship, philosophical and rewarding. It showed that learners not only gained in their technical skills, but also experienced growth in their soft-skills such as improved self-confidence, being a team player, being adaptable, improved problem-solving, creativity, interpersonal skills, work ethic, time management and leadership. (Keywords: debate, critical thinking, argument, active learning, knowledge generation) 15
M. Katiya and T. Mtonjeni Mapping the students’ journey: Academic literacy and research skills development Since knowledge comes from a diverse pool of sources, universities are confronted with a challenge of increasing their students’ capacity to absorb, internalise and produce new knowledge diligently. Constructivist notions of teaching and learning acknowledge that students ought to become active producers rather than passive consumers of knowledge. However, that is difficult to achieve in the context where only in the third or fourth year students are introduced to research methodology. Practically, this make students struggle with research because it was not foregrounded or explicitly taught in their first year undergraduate level. The question is, how can we enable academic teaching (pedagogy) and researching (inquiry based learning) trajectories to converge so as to explicitly and incrementally develop undergraduate research skills? This paper explored the phenomenological reactions and pre-theoretical reflections of first year entrepreneurship students at CPUT on research skills development. Data collected by means of written interviews maps the students’ journey from academic literacy development to understanding content knowledge to research based knowledge acquisition and production. Key words: research skills development, undergraduate research, students’ journey, phenomenological reaction, academic literacy 16
M. Ralarala, L. Manashe, R. Perold, E. Pineteh, T. Rodrigues, and N. Jantjies Making sense of Architectural ‘language’: Implications for success in Teaching and Learning for ECP students at Cape Peninsula University of Technology Architectural technology is taught to extended curriculum programme (ECP) students through the medium of English at South African university of technology, and the majority of these students are Second Language (L2) speakers of English, thus have limited English proficiency (LEP). If architectural concepts are perceived as complex and not easy to comprehend as a result of students’ experiences – a situation claimed to be exacerbated by the medium of instruction (English)- it goes without saying that their ability to rationalise and unlock the academic discourse is partly depended on the language literacy that they are comfortable with, that is, their First Language (L1). Apart from justifying the use an integration of isiXhosa and Afrikaans in pedagogical practices for scientific development, the purpose of this paper is specifically to explore ECP students’ understanding of (i) descriptions, (ii) ‘architectural visual language’ (iii) coined and translated architectural terminology in order to develop better understanding and comprehension of the discipline, and thus access and success insofar as Teaching and Learning. Data for this study were collected through extracting complex terminology, based on assessment performance, from prescribed textbooks. A cohort of 25 students was subjected to the developed multilingual materials in terms of their learning - over a specific period of time (a semester). Subsequently, assessment and task based interviews were used to establish students’ understanding of the subject – based on the interventions that have been used. From a theoretical perspective, this study is rooted in Cummins’ (1991) theoretical framework. The application of such a framework has proven its relevance and usefulness in fleshing out issues related to language and content, and thus the unlocking of academic discourse. Key words: Extended Curriculum Programme (ECP), Architectural technology, multilingualism, language, 17
N. Mkonto and E. Esambe Retention officers’ experiences with academics in supporting first year students High attrition and dropout rates in the first year of university study in higher education institutions demonstrate the need for support for first year students. The first year of study is critical in setting the foundation for students’ overall success in the university (Scott, 2009). Transition pedagogy approach to first year experience (FYE) requires a paradigmatic shift that includes an institution-wide approach (Kift & Clarke, 2012). Transition pedagogy strives for the deliverance of an integrated and holistic first year experience. Senior students (Masters and doctoral candidates) have been identified to play an important role in supporting first year students to persist in the university and succeed (Mkonto, 2018). In this regard, these senior students often take up roles as tutors, mentors, teaching assistants, or retention officers. Retention officers are senior students who are recruited to monitor and flag early alerts of first year student’s disengagements with their studies and to direct these students to access relevant support (Coll & Draves, 2008). The ROs therefore work closely with lecturers and other academics in the faculties in supporting first year students. While there is extensive literature on the role of ROs in contributing towards first year students’ retention, there is not enough study on the ROs’ perceptions of lecturers’ support to them towards achieving their tasks. The research question guiding this study is: ‘to what extent does faculty academics’ feedback to- and support of- ROs contribute towards improving the quality of support provided by ROs to first year students. A qualitative approach was adopted in this study in order to explore ROs perceptions and interpretation of feedback from lecturers to them while supporting first year students in the faculty. Qualitative data was collected from ROs reports submitted during the course of one academic year, and individual interviews with purposively sampled ROs. Key findings in 18
Cont... Retention officers’ experiences with academics in supporting first year students the study suggest that the relation between the ROs and faculty academics and lecturers influences the quality of the RO’s work in supporting first year students. Using the concept of transition pedagogy to interpret the findings therefore leads one to question the levels of lecturers’ and academics’ awareness of support structures for first year students in the faculty. Keywords: first year students support, first year experience, retention, transition. 19
P. Ramson Undergraduate curriculum design for public sector optometry: A critical social theory approach. The purpose of this paper is to describe a research investigation into what changes should be made to the undergraduate curriculum to better serve those optometrists choosing to work in the public sector of South Africa. In South Africa, an inequitable provision of eyecare in private and public sectors exists. This is further exacerbated by a maldistribution of optometrists in these sectors with a disproportionate number of eye health professionals practicing in the former category. Despite limited exposure to rural/public health clinical experiences in undergraduate training and a lack of compulsory community service following graduation, some optometrists choose to work in Government-led public health settings. To this end, not much is known about the appropriateness of the current optometry curriculum for those who wish to serve in the public sector. A critical theory approach will be used to explore how the current curriculum optometry perpetuates power relations in its design, implementation, assessment and evaluation. A qualitative investigation using case study methodology, involving multiple stakeholders, will be used to explore various facets of curriculum design. A variety of stakeholders will offer their perspectives on multiple curriculum design components: patients will provide a clinical service perspective, currently serving public sector optoms will offer retrospective reflections on their training. Professional associations will suggest an industry viewpoint of graduate competencies while from University educators context and 20
Cont... Undergraduate curriculum design for public sector optometry: A critical social theory approach. understanding to undergraduate training will be obtained. A critical theory approach to health science education can explore the roles played by schools, educators and curriculum contributors in constructing power relations in an inequitable society (Hodges, 2014). Multiple stakeholder engagements can provide a holistic view into components of curriculum design thereby improving on education delivered to undergraduates better preparing them for public service. 21
R. Matthews, N. Naidoo and T. Farrar A description of learner diversity as a catalyst for transformative educative practice. This paper explores the diversity of characteristics and academic needs of the learner body within the Bachelor of Emergency Medical Care degree. The characteristics of the learner body have not been explicitly described, though the learner body appears to be diverse and have differing life experiences and academic needs. This poses challenges for student selection and departmental transformation, curriculum design and teaching, learning and assessment, as it is not known who the student body really is, who departmental activities are being designed for, and what learner needs and subjective preferences are. We distributed an electronic questionnaire containing closed ended and Likert Scale questions exploring demographic characteristics, personal circumstances and educational preferences. Demographic, registration and learner progression data was obtained from the Higher Education Management Information System (HEMIS). These data sets were analysed and results were reported using descriptive statistics and standard measures of association and correlation. The mean age of students was 25.2 years and males make up 56.45% of the population. The ethnic breakdown is 32.26% Black African, 31.72% Coloured, 1.6% Indian, and 34.41% White. The most common home language reported was English (46.1%) followed by Afrikaans (27.0%) and isiXhosa (19.1%). A reported 46.7% of respondents have work commitments while studying. The predominant mode of transport is private 22
Cont... A description of learner diversity as a catalyst for transformative educative practice. transport (63.5%). Most (66.1%) respondents did not begin the programme immediately after high school and most have some work experience. Reliable internet access at home was the only variable significantly associated with learner throughput. Most students prefer to use online platforms for studying. Most described the programme as worthwhile. Learners on the BEMC degree are mostly diverse and have access to resources. Internet access and online platforms are an important preference for learning and their limited access prejudices learner success. This has implications for pedagogic risk, learner need, and programme responsiveness in teaching and learning design. 23
S. Aronstam The experiences of NQT (newly qualified teachers) when teaching reading in diverse contexts in the Foundation Phase. The aim of this study is to understand NQTs’ difficulties when teaching reading in their first year. Beginning teachers frequently encounter substantial challenges in applying their pedagogical knowledge in the classroom, especially in diverse contexts as is mostly the case in South African schools. For the purpose of this study diversity refers to both social and linguistic forms of differences which impacts on how teachers teach reading. South Africa is a country where multiple languages and cultures exist but English continues to carry social and economic power (Chikovore, Makusha, Muzvidziwa & Richter, 2012). This study is located in a variety of primary schools across the Cape Peninsula in both well-resourced and under-resourced environments. The sample consists of twelve recently qualified teachers who graduated in 2017 from different universities in the Western Cape. This is a qualitative study in the interpretivist paradigm and two methods of data collection was used namely; interviews and observations. The literature that underpins this study is influenced by the theories of Vygotsky and Shulman. In the area of literacy a teacher needs to have extensive pedagogical content knowledge (Shulman, 1986) and engage with a range of methods when teaching reading. While, Vygotsky (1978, 1981) maintained that children learn through social interaction and depend on others with more knowledge and experience. 24
Cont... The experiences of NQT (newly qualified teachers) when teaching reading in diverse contexts in the Foundation Phase. In a South African context, of disparities in communities and learner diversity in the classrooms, teachers are often challenged to select appropriate approaches to reading instruction to meet the needs of all learners. Therefore NQTs need to have a clear understanding of the contexts within which they teach as this will inform and influence their teaching practices. 25
S. Sabata Can the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning drive a decolonial agenda in the ‘post’ colonial university? This paper interrogates the extent to which Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (henceforth, SOTL) might enable or constrain decolonisation of the post-colonial university. The paper is theoretical in nature and engages with various conceptions (literature and/ theories) related to SOTL in order to understand basis of legitimation as evident in claims of leading interlocutors in this field globally. I moved on and examined ways in which SOTL is taken up in our South African Higher Education (henceforth, HE) contexts as evident in claims, theories and models of actors grappling with continuing racialised education inequalities. This also entailed looking at various Department of Higher Education and Training’s teaching and learning interventions and proposals which seek to address challenges related to student learning and success. This paper interrogates veracity of these legitimation claims through Bhaskar’s transcendental realism which presents us with a three stage process of scientific discovery. The analysis shows unequivocally that SOTL possess potential to help us engage with the ‘real’ causal mechanisms conditioning the current realities in South African HE. However, it is argued that to realise such potential SOTL might need to be strengthened through three stage process of scientific discovery as presented in Bhaskar’s depth ontology. In conclusion, I demonstrate how a newly developed theoretical framework, Racial-Contract-Code Theory (R-C-C-T) (Sabata, forthcoming) which integrates and extends Maton’s (2014) Legitimation Code Theory (LCT) with Mills’ (1997) The Racial Contract (RC) seeks to achieve this goal. 26
T. Joseph A Model for Mainstreaming Transformation-Decolonisation in Teaching and Learning. Since 2017 I have been coordinating a transformation-decolonisation project for the faculty in which I work at CPUT. I work with a task team of about 10 academic staff volunteers. Progress has been slow as this work is an add-on for all of us besides our full time jobs. It has also been particularly challenging because the work remains in the margins of the faculty. No intellectual activism has emerged, there is no opposition scholarship and hardly any discussion of embedding indigenous knowledges in curricula. This theoretical oral paper is a critical reflection on mainstreaming transformation-decolonisation. It wants to raise questions such as: How is change mainstreamed in a university? Can it come from the bottom up with a small volunteer task team doing transformation-decoloniality as add- on? Does one follow a technocratic route of formulating a transformation- decoloniality strategic objective, and mainstream change within the university’s strategic plan? Or should the institutional Transformation and Social Cohesion Office (TSCO) drive the mainstreaming process with the faculty working under its banner? Using critical pedagogy as theory to reflect on these questions, and a literature review methodology, I endeavour to develop a model for change that could hopefully assist in mainstreaming transformation-decolonisation from the bottom up in the faculty. This model will be piloted in the faculty in 2019 as a follow up research project of the transformation-decolonisation task team, once approved by the faculty management team. Key words: Mainstreaming; transformation-decolonisation model; critical pedagogy 27
V. Mshayisa Student’s perceptions of blended learning and collaborative learning in Food Science and Technology: A case study of Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT). Blended learning refers to combining traditional face-to-face learning environments with online education tools and approaches. Integrating online and face-to face learning with blended learning, can influence students’ perceptions of the learning environment and, subsequently, their study experiences, learning outcomes, collaboration and ultimate academic achievement. An increase in enrolments and more diverse student population at the Department of Food Science and Technology (DFST) at Cape Peninsula university of Technology has resulted in a greater impetus for improving teaching and learning pedagogies for first year students. It is imperative that food science and technology instructors promote active learning in food science and technology course to enhance student skills such as critical thinking, collaboration and self-directed learning. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of student-cantered learning practices on student’s perception on collaboration and blended learning, specifically in a large enrolment, food technology first year course. Students were exposed to various technology enhanced-learning tools such as academic journal reflections, video screencasts, discussion boards, group peer-evaluation and group puzzles. A survey consisting of a 5-point Likert scale and open-ended qualitative questions was administered via blackboard (learning management system). The findings showed positive perceptions in the blended learning. This approach will continue to be used and further evaluated as an approach to incorporate active learning and provide food science and technology undergraduates with an opportunity to cultivate self-directed learning and collaboration skills. Key words: Food Science and Technology, Collaboration, Blended Learning, Active Learning. 28
X. Cupido, H. Dippenaar, M. Nakhooda The Teaching Advancement at University (TAU) Programme: Creating communities of best practice towards an ethics of care Student success at undergraduate and postgraduate level has been a cause for concern in higher education. Complex and multi-layered the draft Framework for Enhancing Academics as University Teacher (Department of Higher Education and Training, 2018, p. 4) highlighted the importance of university teachers’ ability to be “responsive to the learning needs of their students... In the context of high levels of student dropout and low throughput, responsive pedagogical practice is a necessity, not a choice.” This presentation showcases the collaborative, multidisciplinary research links between three lecturers from CPUT, who are involved in the South African national initiative, Teaching Advancement at University (TAU) Fellowship programme 2018 - 2019. The focus of all three projects is on enhancing and advancing teaching practice in higher education, responding to the current needs of South Africa. The projects are multidisciplinary, spanning the Faculties of Applied Sciences and Education, as well as the Fundani Centre for Higher Education Development at CPUT. Common among the projects is the aim of improving teaching practice in higher education through fostering ethics of care, nurturing students towards achieving envisaged attributes, engaging students more authentically, and striving for social justice. Each of the three projects will be showcased by the respective TAU participant and researcher, namely, investigations into the effectiveness of a multilingual pedagogical model for access to threshold concepts in science; student feedback as a means of advancing teaching practice and addressing social justice; and an iterative approach to curriculum development by driving graduate attributes to meet the needs of society. Research methodologies, preliminary results and longitudinal impacts locally and nationally will be 29
X. Cupido, H. Dippenaar, M. Nakhooda The Teaching Advancement at University (TAU) Programme: Creating communities of best practice towards an ethics of care discussed. Such multidisciplinary research strategies to address multiple challenges in higher education is key in creating communities of best practice, developing a responsive approach to new opportunities, and driving excellence in teaching and learning. Recommendations will also be presented on ways to promote such practices at both the local institutional, and the national level. 30
Workshops
D. Gachago, C. Livingston and J. Scheepers
Towards ethical guidelines for digital
storytelling in Higher Education
Digital storytelling has been embraced in community engagement and
educational settings because of its potential to empower participants through
personal reflection, growth, and the development of new literacies. At CPUT it
has increased digital literacies and student engagement, provided a space for
reflection and improved management of multicultural classrooms. However,
adopting this emotional and process-oriented practice into an educational
context, with its constraints of course objectives, assessment regimes,
timetables and large classes, raises ethical concerns. What support and
follow-up mechanisms exist to help students cope with any emotional fallout?
Is it ethical to mark these stories? How would one go about writing about the
digital stories collected? This is an area that is under-researched.
We use Joan Tronto’s ethics of care (1993), which she developed with her
colleague Berenice Fisher in the early 1990s, as a tool for thinking through
these dilemmas more deeply and for exploring how they might be solved.
Tronto positions care as a political project and argues that care is not just
a disposition but an active ethical practice—not something we ‘are’ but
something we ‘do’. Rather than seeing ethical dilemmas as big—and often
unsolvable—questions, it is in our everyday practices of caring for ourselves
and others that we most need to consider and practice ethical behaviour.
We take it as axiomatic that ethics is not contained in codes of conduct and
cannot simply be signed off on by institutional review boards, but is rather a
matter of daily personal, professional and political practice.
In this workshop we will introduce the project and share the current guidelines
we developed based on narratives collected during 2018 to elicit feedback
from the CPUT community. We will use a world cafe methodology to engage
with the three aspects of practice: teaching and learning, research and
community engagement.
Keywords: digital storytelling, ethical practices, ethics of care, Higher
Education
31J. Garraway H. Dippenaar, M. Mathews A. Pinto, X. Cupido, N. Ndlovu, N. Monyaki, M. Barnes and J. Van Graan Change laboratories Change labs are a methodology to work on identifying and better understanding problems in workplaces (e.g. a university) and in society and then taking steps towards finding and trying out solutions to the problem, both in the imagination and in practice. The process is reiterative in that solutions come with their own problems that have to be addressed. It relies on the wisdom of those at the coalface, those who actually deal with the problems on a daily basis, rather than on expert opinion, and the workshops are characterised by continual movement between lived experiences and theorisations of these. The methodology is based on a theory of organisational change and development called Activity Theory which is itself based on the Russian learning theorist Vygotsky’s work, and is used to structure the theorisations. In the work of this group the problem or difficulty we wish to understand is twofold. Firstly, we wish to know how we could better re-imagine a university of technology; what should its focus, character, teaching and research involve? This is a challenge originally raised by the SATN Chair Prof Van Staden when he stated that the UoT sector seems to have lost its way and is struggling to find an identity. The second and related problem we seek to deal with is how to better articulate university knowledge and practices with those of workplaces; what sorts of articulating devices would help here? The workshop will be of interest to those interested in the futures of a UoT, professional education and WIL workers. Our belief is that it also provides a way of thinking about the world that could benefit all staff and students. We will describe the set up. Processes and initial developments in the abovementioned work. 32
J. Ansen and A. Darkwa Tackling digital divide and graduate employability in Africa: An influence of digital transformation This paper is a literature review carried out to determine the influence of digital transformation on graduate employability in Africa. The rational is digital economic transformation being key enabler of today’s economic development. Human Capital investment especially in digital business systems is essential in tackling the digital divide and graduate employability in Africa. For Africa, digital economic development growth is imperative to uplift graduate employability and advance economic growth in poverty elevation. Quantitative method (survey questionnaires) was used to collect data from different graduates from South Africa and Botswana to examine the influence of digital business systems in graduate employability. The findings were used to recommend possible upskilling programs to improve the existing divides of digital transformation and advance graduate employability in Africa. Keywords: Digital, Transformation, Employability, Graduates, Economy development 33
S. Pachan Facilitating English Language Development and Communication Skills in a Large Classroom Facilitating large classroom environments can be a difficult task to manage. Student accountability, group dynamics and classroom space tend to persuade teachers away from cooperative learning. Through careful planning and preparation, there is a solution. By creating a communicative language classroom, the students are immersed in the four skills of the language through a variety of activities that promote both group and individual learning. The teacher acts as a guide and facilitator towards a language goal as well as honing communication skills in a small group format. Giving students a chance to express and create with their second language will allow them to find a deeper connection in the target language. The students are able to critically think, discuss and solve problems that result in both a strengthening of 2nd language skills as well as communication strategies discussed. Through a combination of classroom management, technology, development of language rubrics and use of active language games and activities, the seminar aims to show strategies that implement Communicative Language Teaching in a large classroom. Using the workshop as a platform we will look at strategies to maximize classroom time, effective ways to hold students accountable and how to use technology in a way that displays students’ communication skills as well as improves their technological competence. 34
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