NRF Funding for Social Inclusion

Date Released: Mon, 22 November 2010 08:05 +0200

CHERTL are thrilled to have been awarded just over R1 million for a project to be undertaken under the leadership of Professor Chrissie Boughey and in collaboration with researchers from 6 other South
African Universities into social inclusion in Higher Education.

Higher Education holds the promise of contributing to intellectual, cultural, social, economic and political development, and to equity, democracy and social justice. Institutions of higher learning have the potential to offer powerful opportunities for fostering the economic and social advancement of members of disadvantaged and marginalised social classes and groups, for promoting understanding of, and respect for, difference and diversity and forging social cohesion. This promise only holds true, however, if the members of these social groups can both access and succeed in tertiary study.

While we have, as a sector, had some limited success in ensuring equity of access to higher education, our success in ensuring equity of outcomes has been negligible. Attempts to understand and theorise this problem have largely comprised small scale, qualitative studies. This project will bring a large scale, multi-method approach to the issue. The boundaries of the study are a concern with undergraduate teaching and learning at public universities of all institutional types in South Africa.

Nine academics from various South African universities have now begun a structured PhD study within this project.