HIGHER EDUCATION NEWS

Rhodes Must Fall supporter wins Rhodes Scholarship

 

Four students from the University of Cape Town (UCT) have been granted Rhodes Scholarship to pursue their careers at Oxford University in 2016. The four UCT graduates - Kgaugelo Sebidi, Diederick Ferrandi, Mary Jiyani and Sakhe Mkosi - will be pursuing careers in Civil Law, Economics, and Development Studies.

Rhodes Memorial in Cape Town © Eric Reisenberger – 123RF.com

A supporter of the Rhodes Must Fall Movement (RMF), Sebidi says he does not feel any ambiguity in accepting this scholarship. He believes RMF and the Rhodes Scholarships both seek transformation. "The Rhodes Scholarship seeks transformation through investing in young individuals who have the instincts to lead and also possess the potential to contribute greatly to society. RMF on the other hand, seeks transformation through being critical of the status quo in matters of higher education and colonialism. We need to appreciate that both entities are good for humanity and thus they can coexist because transformation is at the core of both their aspirations." 

Mkosi says he feels an ethical tension in accepting a Rhodes Scholarship. "Once I am at Rhodes House [in Oxford] I will get involved in initiatives such as Redress Rhodes, which seek to address the remnants of [Rhodes'] sordid colonial history, particularly insofar as it lingers within the scholarships themselves."

Pursuing loftier goals

Economist Ferrandi looks forward to emerging from the experience a better person and better able to grapple with the problems facing South Africans. He views Oxford University as a personal challenge. "It is a challenging place, and I'm sure at times it will feel like a very harsh and demanding environment. I hope to learn from this experience and return to South Africa a better person for it - as opposed to simply being a better thinker or having better skills." 

He plans to study towards an MPhil in economics. He regards the scholarship as a responsibility, as creating an obligation to serve South Africans humbly, especially those most in need. "I hope that this is enough to justify the opportunity, and I hope I'm able to live up to this lofty goal," he concludes.

Law graduate Jiyani became the first female Malawian recipient of a Rhodes Scholarship. She was also awarded the Mandela Rhodes Scholarship, which she will use to pursue a master's in Private Law and Human Rights at UCT in 2016. Among her many achievements is winning the Ionnan Scholarship for Criminal Justice, an International Bar Association bursary and a class medal. She has also made the dean's merit list in every year of her undergraduate studies. She plans to study towards a Bachelor in Civil Law at Oxford University.

"The scholarship programme emphasises social responsibility. Recipients are urged to 'fight the world's fight' and indeed many Rhodes scholars, such as Bram Fischer and Edwin Cameron, have gone on to lead lives that have had a great positive impact on their societies. This is what newly elected Rhodes scholars should aspire to do too."

Benefiting from one of the oldest universities in the world

The Rhodes Scholarships to Oxford were founded by the will of Cecil John Rhodes and have been operating since 1903. Rhodes had himself been to Oxford, and had such a high regard for the university that he wanted people from what was then the British Empire, and from the US and Germany, to benefit from the intellectual, cultural, social and sporting opportunities Oxford offers. He therefore expected Rhodes Scholars to be sufficiently intellectually and academically able to achieve a good degree while enjoying the additional benefits of Oxford life.

Posted on 14 Jan 2016 10:20

YOUTH MARKETING NEWS

New portal for youth advice

 

Corporate Fundamentals owner and founder, Jill Young and her business partner, Russel Brand have opened a new portal, offering advice and tips on career and entrepreneurship.

EvenMe! a portal for career and entrepreneur tips and advice for South Africa's youth, takes career support to a new level, equipping youth with the tools and know-how to become entrepreneurial power-houses, creating their own opportunities and streams of income.

It offers informative sections on:

• Free online learning in everything from history to computer sciences
• Links to every major online jobs portal that South Africa has to offer
• Motivational talks on entrepreneurship
• Essential tips and advice to help make the best career choices 
• Links to all Varsity Sports pages and the Varsity Sports app
• Music from music ambassador A.C.E 
• Free downloads of Microsoft products to compile CVs, portfolios and business plans
• Links to competitions

"When I was retrenched a few years back, I decided to go out and do something on my own," explains Young. "I realised how hard it is to get guidance and information as an entrepreneur and how difficult it is to find the right information that is of relevance and presented in a simple, exciting and meaningful format to assist entrepreneurs."

Brand brings his own experience and business acumen into the mix. "We want to give the youth - or in fact anyone - the tools to help them be whatever and whoever they want to be, to give them a platform to talk and share, and to find the opportunities that exist - all in one place." 

Strong partners

Industry players Microsoft and Edcon have come on board, along with Khan Academy, Edgars Connect and Varsity Sport. "There is no doubt that the backing of our partners has provided us with both the reputability and functional capacity that we needed in order to get the project off the ground," continues Young. "Each partner has brought vital resources into the project, helping to create a multi-functional and comprehensive online portal and mobile app."

Having only just launched, the site has already become a strong presence on social media through the support of communications strategists ListenUp and the dynamic charity activist Silver Boomerang. From the #Win-a-Scooter initiative at malls around South Africa and the videos that were shot at Microsoft's studios, it seems the site is set to dominate over the coming months, as it motivates, energises and inspires school-leavers towards achieving their dreams and ambitions.

Ambassadors

Representing the youth are five talented and driven young people who are the site's ambassadors. Logan Meintjies, AKA A.C.E, is the rapper and sound technician responsible for the EvenMe theme song, which can be heard on the website and who represents the platform's music section. Ryan Rae is the quiet, serious professional soccer player, who offers his experience to the sports category.

The business ambassador is Kyle Jones, whose ambition and age-defying maturity mark him out as a future leader, while Wernando Stoltz, who already has two businesses under his belt, heads entrepreneurship up. Finally, Zylvah Makola offers her experience and insight into recruitment and job-hunting.

For more information, go to www.evenme.co.za.

EDUCATION TRENDS

What's new in education?

 BY: SANDY GEORGE

Technology, learning in reverse and following methods best suited to the student are just a few of the developments to be found in education for 2016.

© Wavebreak Media Ltd – 123RF.com

1. Monitoring

Tracking students' progress through accurate assessment, often with the help of web-connected technologies. It is important to note that a teacher's tracking of progress is not an end in itself, but a means of monitoring and promoting positive learning outcomes.

2. Touch, sight, sound

Allowing students to follow a method that helps them learn to the best of their abilities. One such model of learning style is to divide students into three modalities: visual, auditory and kinesthetic (tactile).

3. Keeping ahead, in reverse

Learning in reverse, where students read up on the next day's topics and watch YouTube clips about them, only to head into the classroom to complete traditional assignments, which would in the past have taken the form of homework. This reverse-learning technique also assists the student to become familiar with personal research.

4. Altogether now

Students of different abilities being accommodated in the same classroom, by means of assistive technology that supports those with learning disabilities. New terms refocus attention from an overall deficiency to a narrow developmental disorder that affects how the student learns. Two terms, specific learning disorder (SLD) and specific developmental disorder (SDD), emphasise that these disorders are highly specific in nature, suggesting unique coping strategies for the individual disorders. This change in terminology highlights that a student may have difficulty in one particular aspect of learning, while at the same time mastering and excelling in others. Therefore, many SLD students may not need major modifications to succeed, but rather minor accommodations to meet their specific and differing learning needs.

5. Safety first

Safety to be improved in schools, using video surveillance and security guards. It is a fact of life: bad things can happen in schools. Each child and their parents needs the security of knowing that a network of experts is committed to making schools safer through an education-based, all-hazards approach.

6. Describing difficulties

The way we label children who struggle at school is finally changing. However, there is still a long way to go. In the past, those who did not perform well were labelled 'lazy', 'disobedient', 'slow' or just plain 'stupid'. Many were shamed, punished or written off as hopeless. Today, improved labels take the form of diagnoses such as LD (learning disabled), ADHD (attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder, which can cover a multitude of difficulties) and many others. Of course, we cannot ignore the identified difficulty, but can rather move towards using a more specific description ie. "He has as a short attention span; is always moving; learns better by 'doing' than by 'reading'."

POLITICS

• Home
• The Times
• Article

Mbeki looks back in anger at 'plot' claims

KINGDOM MABUZA | 12 January, 2016 06:57

Thabo Mbeki. File photo
Image by: Tyrone Arthur

Former president Thabo Mbeki wants to "correct" history and will publish a series of essays in which he will set the record straight.

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The first essay came out yesterday. In it, Mbeki decries the fact that people directly involved in the liberation struggle had not taken the time to write about their experiences.

He will later "correct some distortion" about his leadership in the ANC and as head of state.

"Much of this was written with no facts to substantiate the accusations or is, in some instances, based on deliberate misinformation."

Mbeki says some writers erred in their attempts to define his character and actions as ANC president and as head of state.

"Among others, these observers have said that Mbeki was aloof, intellectual, out of touch with the ANC membership and the people, autocratic, intolerant of different views, sensitive to criticism, paranoid, abused state power to promote his personal political ambitions, marginalised the ANC from discharging its responsibilities as the ruling party by centralising power in the state presidency, and so on."

Mbeki's spokesman, Mukoni Ratshitanga, yesterday said the former president would not focus on specific issues, but would write on various topics.

In the first essay Mbeki comments on the alleged plot by ANC leaders Mathews Phosa, Tokyo Sexwale and Cyril Ramaphosa to oust him from the presidency.

Mbeki says that the plot allegation, made by former ANC Youth league member in Mpumalanga James Nkambule, was reviewed by him and other party leaders.

"The necessary decisions were taken to assess what were, after all, very serious charges, which bore on state security.

"At no point did this leadership, including the president, take any position that there was any truth to the allegations, insistent that their veracity had to be established through thorough intelligence investigations and assessments,"

Mbeki adds that the alleged plot, which falsely implicated Phosa, Sexwale and Ramaphosa, had "nothing whatsoever" to do with his alleged paranoia.

He says that the domestic and international media had continuously trumpeted for almost 15 years accounts of his presidency based on false deductions and self-serving speculation.

Political analyst Professor Tinyiko Maluleke said that although he was looking forward to reading Mbeki's essays he was not certain that a man of Mbeki's talent should spend time correcting perceptions about his presidency.

"Mbeki is an intelligent and persuasive man and I would like to read from him about his vision of South Africa and the continent. Mbeki's talent could help us to look forward.

"I am not sure whether someone with his talent and experience should be spending time on perceptions about his presidency."

SOURCE: TIMES LIVE

HIGHER EDUCATION NEWS

Why you should consider studying at college

 ISSUED BY: FALSE BAY COLLEGE

Message from the Principal/CEO: 
Unemployment in the Western Cape 
• Is estimated at 17.2%. 
• 80% of the unemployed are youth. 
Don't be another statistic.

False Bay TVET College (FBC) programmes are strategically positioned to address scarce and critical skills to ensure that college graduates are trained in fields where there are good prospects of employment. This means that, with your qualification as your springboard, you can pursue a viable career that is both satisfying and lucrative. 

False Bay TVET College is a gateway to employment, self-employment and higher education through accessible, relevant, quality training programmes as part of lifelong learning.

• We have a dedicated Job Placement Unit to assist graduates to enter the world of work. 
• The college has formal agreements with 13 SETAs and funding for training and job placement agreements with a number of government and state-owned enterprises. We have placement agreements with over 200 companies. 
• The college has signed agreements with two universities (CPUT and UNISA) to offer L5 Higher Certificates. The college is collaborating with the four universities in the province to ensure improved access and articulation between TVET colleges and universities. 
• The college has recently established a Centre for Entrepreneurship in partnership with the Department of Small Business Development.

We aim to keep learning relevant and you, our student, engaged by incorporating state-of-the-art facilities with the benefit of competent lecturers who are there to partner you on your learning programme. 

FBC has Open Learning Centres (OLC) at each campus with internet access to harness the collective power of technology and ideas to inspire learning. Our newly built campus cafeterias will provide a meeting point for you to socialise and a hub for academic knowledge sharing in a relaxed and informal environment. 

At False Bay TVET College we are firmly committed to the development of you as an individual and we always encourage you to be the best you can be and to have the courage to believe in yourself and your dreams. This is the context for our youth training and development programme known as MOT, a Norwegian word that translates into courage. It is offered as a platform to help you develop your social and life skills such as communication, decision-making, leadership, problem-solving and crisis management tools, all invaluable assets in life that offer a way to negotiate healthy relationships and develop positive self-esteem. 

At FBC we strive for excellence and encourage you to excel at your studies and urge you to participate in our on-going events and activities. If at any time you have questions that need answering or you are looking to advice or support, you can speak to our qualified and professional Student Support Officer situated at each of our campuses. 

We invite you to apply for 2016. Share in our vision: to be the most successful, prestigious and respected Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) College in South Africa. I look forward to seeing you on campus and wish you every success with your studies. 


Yours sincerely,
C. Kruger

Posted on 19 Jan 2016 11:52

HIGHER EDUCATION NEWS

Allan Gray Orbis Foundation Fellowship applications open

 

The Allan Gray Orbis Foundation offers Fellowship opportunity to exceptional students who show entrepreneurial potential. The Foundation gives them the opportunity to develop into Southern Africa's future high impact entrepreneurs.

Applications are now open to current Grade 12 learners, which close on 29 April 2016 and to first year university students, in certain faculties, which close on 31 August 2016.

The Foundation supports degrees in the following fields:

• Commerce
• Engineering 
• Science (excluding medicine)
• Law
• Humanities (majoring in politics, philosophy or economics)

Partner universities

Only applicants furthering their education at the following partner universities can apply:

Western Cape

• University of Cape Town
• University of the Western Cape
• TSiBA 
• Stellenbosch University

Gauteng

• University of Johannesburg
• University of Pretoria
• WITS University

Eastern Cape

• Rhodes University
• Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University

Free State

• University of the Free State

Anthony Farr, CEO of the Allan Gray Orbis Foundation, says, "We cultivate an association of high impact entrepreneurs by inspiring and developing individuals who are capable of shaping and transforming the future of Southern Africa."

The Fellowship includes a full university scholarship, mentorship, entrepreneurial mindset development and exposure to thought leaders. Access to postgraduate funding is available to those who excel in the Fellowship Programme and their undergraduate studies. 

Applications

• Visit www.allangrayorbis.org to download an application form, or 
• SMS "Gr12 and your fax number or email address" to 36777 or 
• SMS "1st Year and your fax number or email address" to 36777 to have an application form faxed or emailed to you (SMS is free)

For more information, go to www.allangrayorbis.org.

EDUCATION TRENDS

Five future developments in education

 BY: NICCI BOTHA

There is no doubt that there was an 'education spring' in South Africa with #feesmustfall dominating the headlines and social media in 2015, while - in response - the government and universities scrambled to open up access to tertiary education.

© bimdeedee – 123RF.com

But this doesn't address the massive void in education at school level, and as one of the country's most progressive educators, Professor Jonathan Jansen, Vice-Chancellor: University of the Free State says, "Unfortunately six year olds can't picket Parliament."

Could e-learning hold the key? Here are five trends for digital learning in 2016.

1. Personalised learning

E-learning takes on a learner-centred approach in 2016 with online courses providing individual learning paths based on a learner's need, abilities and preferences. 

"A one-size-fits-all approach to learning is no longer necessary or desirable when technology allows for a more engaged learning experience, providing unique content based on the learner's interest and learning style," says Niall McNulty, digital publishing manager for the African branch of Cambridge University Press.

2. Big data

He goes on to explain that the assessment for learning approach, which takes advantage of the growing influence of big data to use assessment to inform teaching and learning, is closely tied to the personalised learning trend. 

This is a process by which teachers use data collected through online assessment and interactive exercises to adjust their teaching strategies to support weaker learners and challenge stronger learners.

3. m-learning

A study by education publishers, Pearson, shows that 80% of learners have access to smartphones, says m-learning specialist, Steve Vosloo on his website.

"The potential that mobile devices offer for learning that happens throughout the day in formal and informal contexts, is available just-in-time, is personal, trackable and complementary of other learning formats, is increasingly evident."

"No wonder large-scale tablet implementations are on the rise across the country: from the Gauteng Department of Education's Classroom of the Future initiative that aims to replace printed textbooks with tablets and transform all its schools into digital learning institutions by 2018, to the ICT4RED tablet initiative at 26 high schools in Cofimvaba, a deep rural district in the Eastern Cape," he explains.

But due to limited processing power and limited screen sizes, mobile phones will not be used to deliver core material but will serve to provide assessment and social support through both apps and messaging, says McNulty. Local start-ups such as Rethink Education are an example of what can be done. 

4. Gamification

According to an article on elearningindustry.com learners become more engaged with material through gamification. 

"Some experts claim that the technique can boost learner's motivation to a smashing 90% recall rate. Once learners assume an active role in knowledge reception, they will automatically improve their chances at remembering," it states. 

"As a trend, gamification has entered all aspects of our lives, from health care to banking. In e-learning it is also gaining traction with badges, leader boards and rewards encouraging learners to commit to a task or programme and compete against their peers," says McNulty.

5. 3D-Printing

Gone are the days of the tired old skeleton in the corner of a biology class, or tatty models that have passed through the hands of generations of learners. And although it may take some time to reach South African schools, 3D-printing offers a whole new realm of teaching aids. 

Take the recent discovery of the Naledi skull, which puts a completely new spin on the origins of mankind, for example. Forbes.com writer and anthropologist, Kristina Killgrove, explains in herblog how she was able print parts of skull within hours of the announcement of the discovery being made, thanks to the growing affordability and accessibility of 3D-printing.

"This will allow some schools to incorporate this technology into their teaching strategies. 3D-printed 'surrogate' artefacts allow learners to interact in the physical world with items which may otherwise be inaccessible," says McNulty.

Whatever the futures holds, e-learning provides tremendous potential in meeting expectations of delivering quality education to a greater segment of the South African population.