1,720,972 research outputs found
Academic resilience of engineering students: a case study
Full text linkExtensive research has been done and much knowledge exists about academic resilience among youth in school contexts, but there is a lack of data and literature on academic resilience at university level. This knowledge gap is especially critical in disciplines such as engineering, where student dropout rates have historically been high. In 2017, a redesigned engineering degree qualification, the Bachelor of Engineering Technology, was introduced at South African universities. This case study explored the academic resilience of the first cohort of final-year Bachelor of Engineering Technology students at Nelson Mandela University. Mixed methods and multiple theories were employed, which allowed for the generation of rich data for this exploratory case study. In the quantitative phase, 66 students from Industrial, Civil, Electrical, Marine and Mechanical Engineering courses participated by completing a series of standardised psychometric measurement tools. Descriptive and inferential statistical analysis was conducted on the quantitative data collected from the measurement items. In the qualitative phase, 13 engineering students, 6 engineering lecturers and 6 support staff members were interviewed individually, to explore their perceptions and experiences of academic resilience. Qualitative data generated through the semi-structured interviews were analysed using thematic analysis. The findings suggested that staff and students perceive academic resilience differently. It also seems that staff wellbeing impacts the academic resilience of students, and the relationship between staff wellness and student academic resilience is suggested as a next step for research on the topic of academic resilience at university level, especially among courses with high drop-out rates like engineering. Although not generalisable, it appears that a variety of extracurricular support structures and initiatives and strong relationships between the higher education sector and engineering industries can contribute significantly to students' academic resilience.Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Education, School of Post Graduate Education, 202
“They all offered different support”: Integrated support systems for academic resilience among engineering students
Full text linkA critical area of debate in an era of evolving university support systems is student support in challenging disciplines. This study examines the effectiveness of current frameworks in addressing the needs of engineering students. This research employs a mixed-methods approach to identify the experiences of final-year Bachelor of Engineering Technology students, lecturers and support staff at Nelson Mandela University. The study finds a direct relationship between students’ stress levels and their resilience, highlighting the importance of well-structured support systems, including orientation programmes and subject-specific tutoring. This article introduces a novel perspective on fostering academic resilience in engineering education, advocating a comprehensive approach that integrates personal, academic, and socio-ecological aspects of support. Challenging conventional views of interventions for student success, it proposes a new, holistic framework for higher education institutions. This approach could contribute to enhancing student resilience and success and provides a fresh lens to address student dropout in South African higher education and beyond
Academic resilience of engineering students: a case study
Full text linkExtensive research has been done and much knowledge exists about academic resilience among youth in school contexts, but there is a lack of data and literature on academic resilience at university level. This knowledge gap is especially critical in disciplines such as engineering, where student dropout rates have historically been high. In 2017, a redesigned engineering degree qualification, the Bachelor of Engineering Technology, was introduced at South African universities. This case study explored the academic resilience of the first cohort of final-year Bachelor of Engineering Technology students at Nelson Mandela University. Mixed methods and multiple theories were employed, which allowed for the generation of rich data for this exploratory case study. In the quantitative phase, 66 students from Industrial, Civil, Electrical, Marine and Mechanical Engineering courses participated by completing a series of standardised psychometric measurement tools. Descriptive and inferential statistical analysis was conducted on the quantitative data collected from the measurement items. In the qualitative phase, 13 engineering students, 6 engineering lecturers and 6 support staff members were interviewed individually, to explore their perceptions and experiences of academic resilience. Qualitative data generated through the semi-structured interviews were analysed using thematic analysis. The findings suggested that staff and students perceive academic resilience differently. It also seems that staff wellbeing impacts the academic resilience of students, and the relationship between staff wellness and student academic resilience is suggested as a next step for research on the topic of academic resilience at university level, especially among courses with high drop-out rates like engineering. Although not generalisable, it appears that a variety of extracurricular support structures and initiatives and strong relationships between the higher education sector and engineering industries can contribute significantly to students' academic resilience.Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Education, School of Post Graduate Education, 202
The Night Nurse: A reflection on On Being Sane in Insane Places by D. L. Rosenhan (1973)
No full textIn this poetic reflection, The Night Nurse draws inspiration from D.L. Rosenhan\u27s influential 1973 study to probe the complex relationship between personal identity and the structural confines of higher education (HE). The poem presents a rich tableau that contrasts indigenous knowledge with Western educational paradigms, shedding light on the friction and marginalisation that arise at the intersection of these worldviews. It embodies the struggle for self-definition amidst a backdrop that often favours uniformity and compliance. By examining the similarities between psychiatric labelling and academic evaluations, the narrative challenges the reader to consider the authenticity of understanding and the significance of diverse perspectives in scholarly environments
A qualitative study illustrating factors that enable and constrain academic advising practices in a Global South context
Full text linkDATA AVAILABITY STATEMENT: The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be
made available by the authors, without undue reservation.INTRODUCTION: Academic advising plays a crucial role in South African higher
education, especially considering the country’s diverse student population, historical
injustices, and socio-economic inequalities. However, there is a lack of research
supporting academic advising practices in this context.
METHODS: This study employs a qualitative methodology, using semi-structured
in-depth interviews with four academic advisors from the Engineering, Built
Environment, and Information Technology (EBIT) department at a South African
university. A socio-ecological lens is applied to explore the factors enabling and
constraining best practices in academic advising.
RESULTS: Key findings reveal that academic advisors face challenges such as
limited resources and institutional support. However, opportunities exist for
fostering student resilience and academic success. The study identifies enablers
and constraints across microsystemic (e.g., advisor passion and resilience),
mesosystemic (e.g., interdepartmental collaboration), and macrosystemic (e.g.,
institutional policies, socio-economic factors) levels.
DISCUSSION: As part of the Global South, South Africa shares many socioeconomic and educational challenges with other countries in the region.
The study’s findings offer insights that may be relevant to similar contexts. By
illuminating the mechanisms that empower the academic advising community,
this research seeks to inform the development of more effective student support
interventions. The socio-ecological framework provides a comprehensive
understanding of the interconnected influences contributing to the efficacy and
challenges faced by academic advisors in engineering departments.https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/educationGraduate School of Technology Management (GSTM)SDG-04:Quality Educatio
I’m not afraid of dying because I’ve got nothing to lose : young men in South Africa talk about nonfatal suicidal behavior
Full text linkCITATION: Bantjes, J. & Mapaling, C. 2021. I’m not afraid of dying because I’ve got nothing to lose : young men in South Africa talk about nonfatal suicidal behavior. American Journal of Men's Health, 15(2):1-11, doi:10.1177/1557988321996154.The original publication is available at https://journals.sagepub.comFirst-person narratives of suicidal behavior may provide novel insights into how individuals with lived experience of suicide understand and narrate their behavior. Our aim was to explore the narratives of young men hospitalized following nonfatal suicidal behavior (NFSB), in order to understand how young suicidal men construct and understand their actions. Data were collected via narrative interviews with 14 men (aged 18–34 years) admitted to hospital following an act of NFSB in Cape Town, South Africa. Narrative analysis was used to analyze the data. Two dominant narratives emerged in which participants drew on tropes of the “great escape” and “heroic resistance,” performing elements of hegemonic masculinity in the way they narrated their experiences. Participants position themselves as rational heroic agents and present their suicidal behavior as goal-directed action to solve problems, assert control, and enact resistance. This dominant narrative is incongruent with the mainstream biomedical account of suicide as a symptom of psychopathology. The young men also articulated two counter-narratives, in which they deny responsibility for their actions and position themselves as defeated, overpowered, wary, and unheroic. The findings lend support to the idea that there is not only one narrative of young men’s suicide, and that competing and contradictory narratives can be found even within a dominant hyper-masculine account of suicidal behavior. Gender-sensitive suicide prevention strategies should not assume that all men share a common understanding of suicide. Suicide can be enacted as both a performance of masculinity and as a resistance to hegemonic gender roles.https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1557988321996154Publisher's versio
Higher Education Hauntologies: Living with Ghosts for a Justice-to-Come, edited by Vivienne Bozalek, Michalinos Zembylas, Siddique Motala and Dorothee Hölscher
Full text linkIn this review of “Higher Education Hauntologies: Living with Ghosts for a Justice-to-Come,” we traverse an anthology that scrutinises the enduring systemic injustices in higher education. Drawing upon post-humanist theories, the book critiques the colonial legacies, Western-centric knowledge paradigms, and neoliberal ideologies that continue to influence these systems. Amid these critiques, it advocates for a future of justice-to-come, urging a transformative shift towards more inclusive and equitable educational models, thereby resonating with the realities and aspirations of the Global South. To imagine the future of justice-to-come, higher education in the Global South must excogitate the place of knowledge in developing a socially just curriculum to address epistemic in/justices
Resilience in Context: A Comparative Study of Engineering Students in the United Kingdom and South Africa
Full text linkThis qualitative study investigates the academic resilience of engineering students within the distinct cultural, social, and institutional landscapes of the United Kingdom and South Africa. Engaging with 36 participants through semi-structured interviews, the research aimed to discern the elements fostering academic resilience and gauge students’ preparedness for professional life. Two overarching themes were identified: similarities and differences in resilience experiences in these two contexts. Under similarities, individual resilience traits such as hard work, determination, and growth mindset emerged prominently, alongside the shared challenges of academic pressures and the transition to university life. The importance of support systems, including the role of peers, faculty, and university resources, was acknowledged across both contexts. Differences highlighted di stinct institutional and cultural influences on resilience: South Africa grappled with resource constraints, technological gaps, and historical educational disparities, while the UK experience revealed more detailed insights into the role of institutional support and introspective resilience. By contributing to the discourse on engineering education and student success, this research underscores the imperative for engineering programmes to focus on nurturing resilient, future-ready responsible engineers, and emphasises the value of cross-cultural insights and cooperation in fostering inclusive and supportive environments that respond to the unique needs of students in different educational contexts
“Contextualised critical reflections on academic development practices: Towards professional learning” (edited by Teboho Pitso)
Full text linkThis interdisciplinary book review delves into “Contextualised Critical Reflections on Academic Development Practices: Towards Professional Learning” (edited by Teboho Pitso), offering unique perspectives from a clinical psychologist and a PhD candidate in higher education studies. The review critically engages with the three central themes: Teaching and Technology Support, Student Support, and Prospects and Possible Future Trajectories in Academic Development. Drawing on personal experiences in academia, the review intertwines reflections on these themes with a closing examination of Pitso\u27s thought-provoking exploration of identity and alienation. This review offers a nuanced understanding of professional learning, bridging the gap between psychological and educational perspectives on academic development
Reflexivity on medicalisation of the mind and the biomedical invasion on being human
Full text linkClinical psychology practice is characterised by three core functions; assessment, diagnosis, and treatment. We challenge the biomedical imperative in clinical psychology through our shared personal experiences in training as clinical psychologists in South Africa. We pose that the training of clinical psychologists historically was and continues to be focused through a biomedical lens. Alluding to the perennial debate on the relevance of psychology and current arguments around the contemporary relevance of clinical psychologists’ training; we propose clinical-community psychology as the main way forward for psychology practice in South Africa. Our position is that in South Africa, clinical psychology training and services should be appropriate and equitable in response to the needs of individuals and communities. We highlight the lack of contextual relevance that has been perpetuated in most of the clinical psychology training programmes. This misplaced historical legacy does not serve the people within the South African context. Current and future clinical psychology training should be re-aligned toward the service of members of the South African communities and settings
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