Khadija Magardie
Educationists from across South Africa attended a three-day conference organised by the Council on Higher Education (CHE), which has told the government that there is no common vision on the future of higher education.
There are severe problems related to availability of financial and human resources, inadequate higher education policy expertise and a weak knowledge and information base, the council said in its first report.
The CHE, a statutory body that advises the minister of education on issues relating to tertiary education, held its inaugural consultative conference this week. It is required by law to convene an annual meeting of all stakeholders in the industry.
Although the challenges facing higher education were firmly on the agenda, the nature of the CHE itself was a major discussion point.
Ensuring “equity, quality, effectiveness and responsibility”- these were the words used to sum up the mission statement of the CHE.
CHE chair Professor Wiseman Nkuhlu said it was “not the intention of this conference to arrive at any decisions or resolutions of any kind”. This, he elaborated, “would not be in keeping with the mandate of the CHE, which is to function as an independent body and provide independent, considered and informed expert advice to the minister”.
Because it is an advisory body, the minister is not under obligation to act on policy advice given to him by the CHE. He is, however, obliged to give a written explanation to the education portfolio committee in Parliament, to which the CHE also makes submissions, should he decide not to act on the advice of the council.
The CHE places emphasis on the dissemination of information. However, concerns were raised at the conference about its independence, as it receives funding from donor organisations, the government and services rendered. A number of delegates said the funding can, in future, compromise the independence of the council and the advice given to the minister.
Representation on the council was a major concern raised. Despite a CHE executive decision to invite as well as finance their attendance, student organisations were absent – only two representatives were present to make submissions.
The annual report, which deals with issues relating to higher education, was the discussion point. The first day of the conference had delegates raising questions about the report’s content.
The report was mainly concerned with the bridging of the gap between historically disadvantaged universities (HDUs) and historically white universities (HWUs).
Data in the report reflects the numerous crises in South African tertiary education, such as funding, declines in student enrolments at HDUs, and the assumed “deracialisation” in faculty enrolments. For instance, the numbers of black and female students enrolled in faculties like engineering and medicine remain low, despite “higher enrolments”.
The CHE found that, despite equal opportunity policies and initiatives at a number of institutions, the participation of black and female academic staff has increased very little during the past five years. A constraint highlighted in the report was the difficulty tertiary institutions faced in offering competitive remuneration packages to staff.
The role of the distance and the private education sectors in the CHE is one yet to be clearly defined. With the massive proliferation of private local colleges, and the satellites of overseas universities, this sector is often a more attractive and cheaper option for students. Recently, there have been several controversies surrounding the academic value of the qualifications offered by some private colleges and universities.
A number of delegates emphasised the need for a committee to introduce “protection regulations” for students, to ensure that qualifications are in keeping with local and international standards.
In his opening address, CHE chief executive officer Dr Saleem Badat alluded to this problem when he warned of “the danger of a rampant commodification of higher education”. He called for a reminder of “the moral basis of higher education” that the CHE both endorses and seeks to promote.