1,720,965 research outputs found
Decolonisation of higher education: Dismantling epistemic violence and Eurocentrism in South Africa
Full text linkSince the end of the oppressive and racist apartheid system in 1994, epistemologies and knowledge systems at most South African universities have not considerably changed; they remain rooted in colonial, apartheid and Western worldviews and epistemological traditions. The curriculum remains largely Eurocentric and continues to reinforce white and Western dominance and privilege. This article traces the roots of Eurocentrism and epistemic violence at universities. The author argues that South Africa must tackle and dismantle the epistemic violence and hegemony of Eurocentrism, completely rethink, reframe and reconstruct the curriculum and place South Africa, Southern Africa and Africa at the centre of teaching, learning and research. However, this will not be easy as opposition to change is entrenched in the university structures. The movement to radically transform and decolonise higher education must find ways to hold institutions accountable and maintain the non-violent and intellectual struggle until epistemic violence and Eurocentrism are dismantled
Coloniality, knowledge production, and racialized socio-economic inequality in South Africa
No full textOn education during a war and displacement and the importance of rebuilding the sector after violent conflict: A personal reflection
Full text linkMany countries around the world have in the past experienced or are currently experiencing violent conflict, war, destruction and displacement. In all these settings, education is often one of the casualties of war and fighting. War in most cases leads to closure of schools and universities. In many settings, educational institutions end up as collateral damage in fighting; in other places schools and universities are deliberately targeted and destroyed. In warzones, pupils, students, teachers, academics and administrators are frequently killed or injured, and many end up being displaced (GCPEA, 2024). All this has a negative impact on societies and educational institutions. The destruction, instability and displacement also negatively impact access to education for millions, preventing them from attending schools or universities for months – and in many cases for years – and making a normal educational progress. Children and young people who are able to continue with education in conflict settings often learn in very difficult circumstances that prevent them from getting the most from education. This can have a lasting negative impact, affecting their life and work prospects for the decades to come.
Foreign aid commitments vs disbursements to higher education in Palestine: an analysis of donors’ intentions and deliveries over two decades
No full textFragile and conflict-affected countries are often negatively affected when it comes to foreign aid volatility and significant discrepancies between donor commitments and disbursements of aid. In this research, we focus on aid to higher education in Palestine – a fragile, conflict-affected, occupied and aid-dependent country with a history of aid volatility and unpredictability and an underfunded higher education sector. Using the aid flows data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, we critically analyze foreign aid commitments and disbursements to higher education in Palestine during 2002–2022. Our aim is to understand donors’ intentions in the commitment stage, and the implementation of their intentions and priorities through the delivery of aid. Our findings show that the local higher education in Palestine has been neglected by donors during the commitment stage of aid provision over the past two decades. This suggests that donors have not seen the sector as a strategic priority worth supporting, even after large-scale destruction of institutions in Gaza in the past. Given the complete destruction of higher education in Gaza since October 2023, our findings provide a bleak indication for rebuilding the sector in the future
Decolonisation is not even a footnote: On the dominant ideologies and smokescreens in South African higher education
Full text linkThe turn to democracy in South Africa brought hope for a higher education sector that would play a key role in tackling racial inequalities and injustices. However, transformation promises ended up being largely smokescreens for maintaining entrenched racist and capitalist logics rooted in colonialism and apartheid. Instead of focusing on epistemic decolonisation, universities became commodified and commercialised neoliberal enterprises focused on the maintenance of Eurocentric epistemic hegemony. In this conceptual article framed within the decolonial theoretical framework, we critically interrogate how two dominant ideologies – the Rainbow Nation and neoliberalism – have sidelined fundamental transformation and epistemic decolonisation in South Africa. Focusing on the Department of Higher Education and Training’s Strategic Plan 2020–2025, we illustrate that decolonisation is not government’s priority and that neoliberal visions continue to dominate strategic planning for higher education. We argue that the lack of political will and policy alignment from the government will contribute to the further entrenchment of coloniality, Eurocentricity and neoliberal logics at universities. We conclude with the call for critical engagement with the history of universities and their role in propagating and supporting colonialism and apartheid and argue that progressive scholars and students must continue to organise within South Africa and beyond and work on the radical dismantling of the Eurocentric and neoliberal universities.
Contribution: While other scholars have engaged separately with neoliberalism and the Rainbow Nation and their impact on higher education in South Africa, in this article, we bring these two ideologies together to show how they have combined to prevent decolonisation of higher education
International research collaboration between South Africa and rest of the world: An analysis of 2012–2021 trends
Full text linkSouth African higher education policies have since 1997 called for the expansion of research collaboration with the African continent and Global South. In this article, the authors’ analysed South Africa’s international research collaboration trends and patterns during the 2012–2021 period. Focusing on co-authored scholarly publications, the authors’ analysed bibliometric data from Scopus, highlighting the countries South African public universities have collaborated and produced knowledge with, and the parts of the world they have neglected in the past decade. The findings highlight the growth of South Africa’s international research collaboration and the expansion of the number of countries universities collaborate with. While the past decade has seen a growth in research collaboration with Brazil, Russia, India, China and Nigeria, South African universities continue to be largely Eurocentric and prioritise collaboration with the Global North while sidelining research collaboration with the African continent and Global South.
Contribution: The findings presented in this article contribute to an understanding of South Africa’s international research collaboration footprint during 2012–2021 and highlight which parts of the world should be prioritised by universities in the expansion of research collaboration in the future
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