The case for an adapted community college model for South Africa to address the problem of NEETS

Abstract

A serious problem in South Africa is the existence of 2.8 million people we can refer to as NEETs. This term refers to youths between the ages of 18 and 24 years who are neither in employment nor in education or training in South Africa (Cloete and Butler-Adams 2012). This article argues for the institution of community colleges to fill the niche between colleges for further education and training and universities. This niche represents a model of higher education that has already internationally proven its value for steering NEETs into worthwhile careers. After a conceptual clarification of the term 'Community College' and an overview of its track record, it is argued that the South African context dictates for the model to be adapted in two ways. Firstly: a South African community college should fully utilise ICT (Information and Communication Technology) and offer education of a blended type. Secondly, as a result of this, the concept of 'community' needs to be redefined more broadly than has traditionally been the case with community colleges abroad.