Die uitvoering van die universiteitstaak in die vak geskiedenis

Abstract

The present crisis which universities are facing emphasizes the need for a true perspective on the purpose of t he university and its place in society, and shows that it is of the utmost importance that the teaching and research activities of the university are effectively guided by this purpose. This work is an attempt to give such a perspective on the purpose of the university and to ascertain its implications for the teaching· and the research-work at the university in the discipline of history, This discipline is selected especially because it also is facing a crisis today; its relevance for everyday life and for present society being questioned by many people, among others , leaders of society, A correct view of the ·aims of historical study is called for, as also for the pursuit of these aims in the best possible manner by historians and history teachers. In this work · it is hoped, ·therefore, to contributs towards the solution of some important contemporary problems of the university as well as of the -discipline of history. In· order to ·get· a clear view of the· fanction· of the ·un1versity, asbort historical survey of the different views· held about the purpose and function of the university in the past is made, Four dominant ideas about the university are discerned.