In 2008 the Ministerial Committee under the leadership of Crain Soudien in 2008 had, amongst other tasks, to investigate the promotion of social cohesion at higher education institutions. Numerous studies revealed that the institutional culture of a university or faculty plays a major role in transformation. In transforming the prevailing culture,…

Apartheid-designed higher education institutions continue to have a major influence on students and higher educators in South Africa. There is a need for innovative approaches for engaging with difference in higher education. One means of doing this could be through innovative pedagogical approaches. The Community, Self and Identity project…

This article explores the question of the purpose of education within the context of performance and cosmopolitanism in South Africa. The publication of Jean-Francois Lyotard's classic text, The postmodern condition of knowledge in 1984 spawned much debate and controversy about postmodern framings for education, the most significant of which have…

The current state of career counselling in South African institutions of higher education in the 21st century is explored in this article in an attempt to locate current work in the field of career counselling in South Africa in the light of global trends (academic and economic) and in terms of local history and current economic climate. The…

South African institutions of higher education seek to innovate their practices to more inclusively, effectively, and justly serve the needs of a diverse student population. Career counselling shares in this aim in an age of ever-widening globalization and burgeoning information technology. Counsellors around the globe must increasingly move to…

In the context of a rapidly transforming society, the present article discusses issues facing career counselling in higher education in South Africa. Using the Systems Theory Framework of career development, the article considers the multi-levelled and multi-layered national and international context in which the challenges facing career…

The significance of both higher education and career counselling is outlined. The predominant matching paradigm for career development service delivery is described. Its implications for reinforcing the status quo in the South African community are identified and questioned. The Chaos Theory of Careers (CTC) is suggested as an alternative…

This exploratory and descriptive study investigated the use of the asset-based approach in career facilitation in South Africa. Five adolescents (3 females and 2 males) aged 16 to 18 years participated. An intervention study following a qualitative approach was conducted. We developed and implemented an asset-based career facilitation intervention…

The pressure to perform has migrated from the corporate world into academe. Academics across the globe feel this pressure to perform, often expressed as "publish or perish". I reflect on the rising culture of performativity in recent decades and how it has penetrated South African universities. In doing so, I specifically look at the…

Entry into a successful academic career is often an arduous process. From career preparation through to doctoral studies and beyond, the journey can be fraught with trials. Why do many academics find difficulty in completing their studies in the minimum time and publishing afterwards? As the University of the Witwatersrand has a strategic goal of…

Recent South African meditations on the complex nature of post graduate supervision and teaching by Fataar (2005) and Waghid (2005; 2007) provide excellent accounts of the dialogic space between lecturer/supervisor and student. However, these accounts need to be supplemented by an explicit discussion of the broader academic communities of practice…

This article offers a critical reflection upon underlying theoretical and philosophical inclinations which manifest themselves through the type of courses introduced in higher education institutions to meet what is perceived to be students' educational needs. Given the fact that this article seeks to promote an understanding of the nature of…

Becoming a professional teacher is falsely understood to be a simple process: usually consisting of a transference of skills to execute classroom pedagogy or classroom management. This article begins by exploring the many forces which influence the curriculum of teacher education in higher education, signaling the complexity of the practice of…

In this article I offer a defence of cosmopolitanism as an enabling condition for university education in Africa. Recent xenophobic outbursts in South Africa suggests that the enactment of defensible virtues in societies remain distant from the practices of many people. My contention is that university education ought to take seriously the…

Mentor development in higher education in Vocational Education and Training (VET) in Botswana is explored in this article. Changes in education policy require mentors to engage in individual as well as organisational change and transformation. Most studies focus on mentee development and the resulting organisational change but there is very little…