Understanding skills development in South African higher education institutions

Abstract

As part of a critical interpretive research project on skills development in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), the authors attended to the perceptions of Skills Development Facilitators (SDFs) regarding the challenges that HEIs encounter with the implementation of the Skills Development Act (SDA). We contend that apart from any explanations that have thus far been offered for the challenges, the challenges can be blamed on the lack of social capital between the Education Training and Development Practices Sector Education and Training Authority (ETDP SETA) and HEIs. We defend our claim by firstly developing a conceptual-theoretical framework with respect to the rationale for and meaning of staff development in HEIs and that of the SDA. We then present the results of a critical interpretive, qualitative inquiry into the perceptions of seven participating HEIs SDFs regarding the challenges that HEIs encounter with the implementation of the Skills Development Act (SDA).