Restructuring and mergers of the South African post-apartheid tertiary system (1994-2011): a critical analysis
Abstract
Socio-economic and vocational needs of communities, governments and individuals change over
the years and these discourses served as a compass for restructuring of higher institutions in
South Africa from 1994. Before 1994, the claim to legitimacy for government policies in higher
education rested on meeting primarily the interests of the white minority. From 1996 onwards,
the newly established government considered education a major vehicle of societal
transformation. The main objective had been to focus on reducing inequality and fostering
internationalisation. Therefore, the rationale for the restructuring of South African universities
included a shift from science systems to global science networks. Various challenges are
associated with restructuring and include access, diversity, equity and equality. Thus, the
restructuring and mergers between former technikons and traditional universities were probably
the most difficult to achieve in terms of establishing a common academic platform, as transitional
conditions also had to be taken into account and had a twin logic: It was not only the legacy of
apartheid that had to be overcome but the incorporation of South Africa into the globalised world
was equally important as globalisation transforms the economic, political, social and
environmental dimensions of countries and their place in the world. Initially, the post-apartheid
higher education transformation started with the founding policy document on higher education,
the Report of the National Commission on Higher Education and this report laid the foundation
for the 1997 Education White Paper 3 on Higher Education in which a transformed higher
education system is described. Restructuring and mergers also had a far-reaching impact,
positive and negative, on the various tertiary institutions. This article also reflects on the impact
of restructuring and mergers of higher education and reaches the conclusion that higher
education faces many more challenges than initially anticipated prior to transformation.
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/10394/14008http://www.cluteinstitute.com/ojs/index.php/IBER/article/view/7628
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