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eHealth as a Core Lever in the Evolution of the Insurance Sector: From “Payer” to “Player”, the Opportunity is Here
Get PDFThe health insurance sector is getting a considerable amount of attention all around the world and in particular in developed countries. This is partly because of the ever growing costs related to certain health issues like ageing and chronic disease and, on the other hand, due to the reshaping of Public Welfare. Insurers play a crucial role in the health sector worldwide but their current (traditional) role is extremely different according to country specific health and welfare policy. The common factor at an international level is that the Insurers are trying to move from a simple “Payer role” to become a reference point (a “Player”) for all the health-related needs of their customers
Introduction – Part I Curriculum stasis, funding and the ‘decolonial turn’ in universities – inclusion and exclusion in higher education in South Africa
Get PDFStudent-teachers’ understanding of the role of theory in their practice
Get PDFIn the current educational context there are calls worldwide for a shift from the perspective which treats theory separately from practice, to a more organically evolving, more grounded conception of theory which integrates campus-based courses with school teaching and learning. This study adopts a guided reflection conceptual framework in making sense of student teachers’ understanding of the role of theory in their practice. A qualitative design is employed. The aim was to establish how student teachers think about theory in their teaching. Following a survey aimed at identifying a relevant sample for a guided reflection, a focus group interview was conducted with a sample of twelve 4th-year student teachers. Data analysis involved transcribing, coding and classification of the codes into themes. Findings indicate that contrary to popular notions of student-teachers not being sure of what is meant by ‘theory’ in the practice of teaching, they have very particular and nuanced understandings of the position and role of theory
The Guptas, the Public Protector’s Report and Capital Accumulation in South Africa
Get PDFThe relationship between South African President Jacob Zuma and his family, and the Guptas, possibly the richest family of Indian origin at present in South Africa, has made persistent national and increasingly international headlines in the media over the past few years. The Gupta family, who arrived in South Africa from India just prior to the country’s first non-racial democratic elec-tions in 1994, are accused of colluding with Zuma in the removal and appoint-ment of government ministers, as well as the directors of State-Owned Enter-prises (SOEs) in order to secure lucrative state contracts. This article examines the allegedly corrupt relationship between the Zumas and the Guptas to probe key issues in post-apartheid South African society: corruption, state capture, inequality, class formation, Black Economic Empowerment, and White Mono-poly Capital. It argues that corruption has negative consequences such as creat-ing despondency amongst the populace leading to capital flight and creating the possibilities for state capture as well as further deepening inequality
Confronting the Exclusive Dominance of Christianity in Zimbabwe’s Advanced Level Divinity Syllabus through Africanisation
Get PDFIn the light of the Christian religion’s exclusive dominance of the Advanced Level Divinity syllabus (9154) in present day Zimbabwe, what could be a more attractive way to also incorporate the religion of the indigenous people of Zimbabwe? In answer to this question, we will first situate the exclusion of the indigenous religion from the syllabus in the context of the colonial experience that demeaned and considered it as unqualified to be part of the syllabus. This has given rise to the exclusive dominance of the Christian religion in the syllabus. Second, the current Advanced Level Divinity Syllabus is critiqued with the objective of highlighting that its exclusive dominance by the Christian religion ought to be contested. Third, we argue that it is necessary for the government to Africanise the curriculum so that it genuinely accommodates both the indigenous people of Zimbabwe’s religion and other religions including Christianity. This is a matter of justice that seeks not only to establish parity between the religion of the indigenous people of Zimbabwe and others, but also to reject the contestable position that there are some religions that are more superior to others. Though some have attempted to critique the domi-nance of the Christian religion in the so-called ‘Religious Studies’ syllabus, no one has pointedly and systematically undertook to propose the Africanisation of the Advanced Level Divinity syllabus in present day Zimbabwe in the manner that we intend to do. The novelty of this article thus resides in its attempt to employ the Africanisation discourse in order to democratise the Advanced Level Divinity syllabus in present day Zimbabwe
Theorising Steve Biko’s ‘Human Face’ Challenge alongside Gabriel Marcel’s Embodied Hermeneutics
Get PDFWithin a context of globalisation and multiculturalism –spaces of disjuncture and identity fissures, what role could religion (Christianity) play? Steve Biko’s statement concerning religion having a human public face shall be contextualised and put into dialogue with Gabriel Marcel’s concepts of embodiment. The paper concludes that a religion that has a public human face promotes empathy or interconnectedness, providing an alternative con-ceptualisation of anthropology anchored on empathy, participation and inter-subjectivity
Power, Knowledge and Learning: Dehegomonising Colonial Knowledge
Get PDFThis article contributes to the debate on the decolonisation of knowledge by discussing the varieties of harm generated by Western enlightenment knowledge, which affects the colonised and oppressed, as well as the colonisers and privileged. The harm is discussed in relation to five points: it is interwoven with violence and imposition; it generates inequality; it leads to alienation; it lacks a foil to counter its own excesses; and it fails to answer the pressing challenges of our time. Several dehegemonising approaches are considered, including centring knowledge in relation to place; an ecology of knowledges; decolonisation from the outside; hybridisation; and comparison. These approaches all have value, although some contain challenges inherent to their conceptualisation. Most of these approaches are influenced by societal conditions of quality and inequality. The influence of broader conditions limits the potential impact of these dehegemonising approaches. The implications for the responsibilities of academics are delineated at the macro, meso and micro levels
Curriculum Responsiveness in Teacher Professional Development Programmes: A Case Study of Language Education in Mauritius
Get PDFThis article examines the way in which the Mauritian tertiary education sector is responding to the island’s current socioeconomic and political context in an era of globalisation. We begin with a reflection on international trends in higher education and discuss how reduced state funding has led to the ‘commodification’ of education. In line with studies that stress the need for small island developing states (SIDS) to devise their own approaches rather than emulate bigger states, the imperative for more collaboration and concerted effort to optimise existing resources is emphasised. To support this stance, the paper leans on a study that examines the extent to which curriculum transitions between an academic undergraduate and a postgraduate teacher professional development programme, in the field of languages, are responsive to the needs of the country. The findings reveal that the high degree of duplication in both programmes and the lack of collaboration between the institutions concerned are impassive to the economic efficiency being targeted in the public tertiary education sector
Linguistic Rights and Conceptual Incarceration in African Education1
Get PDFIn 2014 the cultural agency of the United Nations issued a dismal assessment of education in Africa. The report noted that while, globally, a quarter of a billion children are failing to learn basic reading and math skills, resulting in an education crisis that costs governments $129 billion per year, the situation in Africa could only be described as catastrophic. Education on this continent had failed so miserably in its mission that ‘four in 10 African children “cannot read a sentence”’ (cited in Daily Nation 2014: 1). This equates to 40% of children, compared to 25% in other poor countries. The report attributed this situation to the fact that ‘fewer than three-quarters of existing primary school teachers were trained to national standards, while 120 million primary age1 This paper was prepared as an invited keynote presentation in the Language Panel at the 10th Annual Conference on Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, 20-22 September, 2016. I thank Zehlia Babaci-Wilhite, Herman Batibo, Hatem A. Bazian, Langa Khumalo, Patricia Kwok, and David Kyeu, for comments. I am grateful to Jarvis Givens, Jessie Kabwila, Monica Kahumburu, William Kamkwamba, Pascal Kishindo, Wokomaatani Malunga, Francis Moto, Thoko Mtchona, Al Mtenje, John Mugane, Deo Ngonyani, and Matthews Sapemba Tisatayane, for discussions. Thanks to Judith Khaya and Renée Khaya for comments on education in Malawi. All views expressed are my own. In American Canyon, California, Flora Suya provided emotional support; Collin Domingo, José Flores, Savannah Garcia, Carole Lonzanida, Nicolas Rapacon, Scott Turnnidge, Teri Urrutia, and Vilma Wakin have always offered cheer when I needed friends.children across the world had little or no experience of school.’ It concluded that the African education system does not equip the children with the desired literacy and math skills or scientific knowledge. However, it is silent on the role that language might play in attaining these goals and a well-rounded education. The operative assumption is that African education is delivered in ex-colonial languages due to their centrality to math, science, and technology. This article focuses on the fallacies behind such an assumption and argues that the retention and entrenchment of European languages as languages of instruction serve to solidify the ‘conceptual-cum-linguistic incarceration’ of African education
The Centrality of the Language Question in the Decolonization of Education in Africa1
Get PDFThis paper draws attention to the relevance of decolonization as a notion and process for education in our times. It points to specific instances of Eurocentric biases which affect the structure and content of contemporary education in Africa. These include the historical periodization scheme which is utilized across the board in the social sciences and humanities in African education and also the notion of ‘African Studies’ in African universities. It is argued that societal relevance is a crucial factor for education to be meaningful. The author argues that the language question; the need to use local languages that are shared by the masses of specific societies is essential for development and emancipation. It provides better bases for the upliftment of people; the requirements for knowledge production and the development of human capital. The paper points to historical and contemporary examples from Europe and Asia to explain how and why language is central to all attempts to create knowledge-based and knowledge-producing societies