Higher Education Sector’s Response to Ministerial Report on “Transformation”

Higher Education Sector’s Response to Ministerial Report on “Transformation” Higher Education and Training Parliamentary Portfolio Committee Cape Town, Tuesday, 23 February 2010 Delegation: Prof Errol Tyobeka (Board Chairperson) Prof Irene Moutlana (Deputy Board Chairperson) Prof Barney Pityana (Chair: Transformation Strategy Group) Dr Max Price (Ordinary Member of Exco) Prof Gordon Zide (Chair: Transformation Managers’ Forum) Prof Duma Malaza (CEO)

Presentation Outline • HESA’s mandate and role (Prof Tyobeka) • Challenges facing Higher Education (Prof Tyobeka) • HESA’s general response to the Report (Prof Tyobeka) • HESA’s approach to transformation (Prof Pityana) • Practices for the Advancement of Transformation (Prof Zide) • Way forward: Towards a Transformation Sector Plan (Prof Tyobeka) • Questions and Answers (All)

HESA’s mandate and role • HESA is a voluntary organisation which represents the public higher education sector in South Africa • An independent body • All 23 public Higher Education Institutions in the country are members of HESA • The Vice-Chancellors of these universities are Directors of the HESA Board • The HESA Executive Office is led by the CEO with just over 40 staff members • The Executive Office facilitates the design, planning and implementation of programmes and projects to advance the sector’s interests

Challenges facing HE sector • Increasing the gross HE participation rate (our participation rate increased by only 1% from 15% in 2001 to 16% in 2007 – far from the goal of 20% in the NPHE (2001) to be reached by about 2011 – 2016. • The proportion of students enrolled in SET has remained fairly constant at 28% or 29% during the period 2000 to 2007 due to increase in enrolments in Business/ Management • Graduation rates are skewed in favour of White and Indian students – while more African and Coloured have gained access to HE, relatively fewer of them complete their undergraduate studies. • Graduates in human and social sciences above target and those in business, commerce and management and in science, engineering and technology below target. • Meeting the needs of high-level professional and research skills • Transformation

HESA’s general response to the Report 1. HESA welcomes the Ministerial Report 2. The Report: • provides a platform for the Sector to debate and engage on issues of transformation • provides important sign-posts for the Sector to work towards and assess the journey travelled since 1994 • is like a mirror through which we view our achievements and weaknesses (blind-spots) • gives HESA the requisite impetus to forge a common approach and an action plan to address the challenges 3. However, individual HEIs’ implementation of the 40 recommendations in the Report is uneven given the historical contexts (both pre-and post-1994) from which these HEIs evolved.

Sector’s approach to transformation • HESA’s approach to transformation is informed by founding preamble of the Constitution of the Republic (1996): • Heal the divisions of the past and establish a society based on democratic values, social justice and fundamental human rights; • Lay the foundations for a democratic and open society in which government is based on the will of the people and every citizen is equally protected by law; • Improve the quality of life of all citizens and free the potential of each person; and • Build a united and democratic South Africa able to take its rightful place as a sovereign state in the family of nations 2. Values in the Founding Provisions of the Constitution: • Human dignity, the achievement of equality and the advancement of human rights and freedoms. • Non-racialism and non-sexism. • Supremacy of the constitution and the rule of law. • Universal adult suffrage, a national common voters roll, regular elections and a multi-party system of democratic government, to ensure accountability, responsiveness and openness.

Sector’s approach to transformation 3. Education White Paper 3: A Programme for the Transformation of Higher Education (1997) contemplates a single national coordinated system that is democratic, non-racial and non-sexist, able to: • Promote equity of access and fair chances of success for all; • Eradicate all forms of unfair discrimination; • Advance redress of past inequities; • Meet, through its teaching, learning and research programmes, national development needs including the economy’s high skilled employment needs; • Support a democratic ethos and a culture of human rights through education programmes and practices conducive to critical discourse and creative thinking, cultural tolerance and a common commitment to a humane, non-racist and non-sexist social order; and • Contribute to the advancement of all forms of knowledge and scholarships and upholds rigorous standards of academic quality.

Sector’s approach to transformation 4. The real measure of equity is not only the colour of the student population on campus but: • The participation rate of the different population groups South African population (2007) 48,5m HE enrolments 761 090 Population with HE attainments 8.9% Participation rates in HE (2007): 15.88% National plan participation target: 20% National Senior Certificate passes: 344 797 Average annual intake into HE: 80 000 Participation by race African: 12% Coloured 12% Indian 43% White 54% b. Addressing the inequity in pass rates – a challenge of both unequal school system and the universities (Source: Higher Education Monitor (2009), CHE)

Sector’s approach to transformation c. Epistemological transformation and access by: • Facilitating not just physical access of students into HE, but also support them to gain access to knowledge to succeed and graduate within reasonable timelines; • Strengthening curriculum reform initiatives to include other forms and hierarchies of knowledge and worldviews to advance disciplinary knowledge and scholarship and challenge existing stereotypes about racial groups, the African continent; • Promoting induction, integration and retention of previously disadvantaged groups into the academic profession; • Producing graduates with a worldview informed by the values of the Constitution of the Republic; • Fostering a culture of critical and constructive engagement on socio-economic challenges facing SA nation, continent and the world; • Improving the overall student experience(s) in the sector to participate actively in the core business of HE: teaching and learning, research and community engagement. • Increasing the number of Africans and female in research productive activities of HE to contribute to the production of knowledge

Existing practices for the advancement of Transformation in the Sector • HESA collated HEIs’ submissions to the Ministry • Analysed the submissions of 11 universities with a view to highlighting good practices in the sector • The submissions critically engaged with the recommendations from the Report • The responses varied greatly in their nature, length and framing given the diversity of the HEIs • Since about 12 universities’ submissions were not available at the time of preparing this presentation, and the HESA Board is still to finalise a sector position on the Report, the input remains a “work in progress”

Existing practices for the advancement of Transformation in the Sector General overview • Many HEIs have put in place initiatives to address questions of staff equity, transformation and discrimination • However, cross-pollination of ideas amongst HEIs so that effective practices employed in one context might be adapted to other contexts, remains a challenge • There in no quick fix solution to the challenge, as it depends both on the commitment of the university’s collective leadership to drive change and the willingness and commitment of government to make funding commitments (new money) • Universities have initiatives to build a culture and practice of anti-racism

WHAT THE CONTINUED TRANSFORMATION ENGAGEMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION SHOULD DELIVER? • The Continued Transformation Engagement will be expected to steer the process towards achieving the following tangible and palpable Institutional Transformational deliverables: • Institutions should draw up and display their Transformation charters which should be navigators of transformation • A set of Core Values for Institutions should be drawn up and be embraced by all; • Identifying Key Strategic Pillars of Transformation; • Promoting the principle of Corporate Governance as contemplated in the King III Report; • Developing an Integrated Strategic Document that would hold all stakeholders accountable to the agreed upon transformational goals of the Institutions. • Promoting the idea of a Transformational Peer-Review Structure as a means of supporting one another but at the same time identifying barriers to transformation and providing ameliorative strategic intervention solutions • Deepening the spirit of Transformation throughout the Sector. • The abovementioned deliverables will inevitably promote sound and effective governance from a transformation point of view.

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE MINISTERIAL REPORT The HESA Transformation Managers’ Forum is currently collating all the Institutional responses with a view to compiling a Sectoral Document to be sent to the HESA Board. However, there is a cursory acquiescence on the following:

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE MINIRTERIAL REPORT

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE MINISTERIAL REPORT

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE MINISTERIAL REPORT • The above is a general response to the recommendations of the Ministerial Report. • Many Institutions are in the consultation process by way of having a common understanding of what Transformation means. • As soon as the Researcher (employed by HESA Transformation Managers’ Forum) has collated all institutional responses, a collective Sector response will be made available. • The above is simply a cursory overview of the sentiments of the Sector, vis-à-vis the Report.

SUMMARY Brief synopsis of the genesis of my presentation: • Transformation requires that new values are shared and assimilated so as to provide inspiration and guidance for the change process; • Transformation encompasses changing the culture of a University as a perceived ivory tower serving the elite towards engagement with all our communities and being responsive to their needs; • Transformation means ensuring the demographic change in staff profile occurs progressively to reflect the demographic realities of the South African Society; This equally applies to the demographic profile of students. • Transformation commits to increasing student access to all who have the potential to succeed, especially in the fields of Business, Science, Engineering and Technology – this being in line with the Government’s call in promoting SET subjects; • Transformation nurtures and values social, epistemological and intellectual diversity. Diversity is central to the achievement of the institution’s goals. The creation of an affirming environment promotes effective teaching and learning. • Transformation thrives on innovation and demand a break with past structures and practices that are stumbling blocks to change

SUMMARY • Transformation for Tertiary Institutions means embracing the new trajectory brought about by the merger process of having created Universities of Technology, Comprehensive Universities and Traditional Universities. This scenario saw the emergence of defined “Entrepreneural Universities” and “New Generation Universities”. • Transformation is about Human Capital Management that ensures that all employees are valued as key assets of the University. Employees must be treated equitably and fairly. Current and future wellness of staff are a prerequisite to success. Tertiary Institutions should strive towards empowering and building capacity of its staff to realize their full potential. • Transformation is about willingness towards embracing a New World Order

Key issues emerging from practices • Most of the recommendations from the Report are being implemented, but more work needs to be done • The report challenges the HEIs to be more critical and proactive and purposeful in their actions on Transformation • Collaboration between the HE sector, DoHE&T & society • The role of Institutional Forums to purposefully drive transformation is critical • Monitoring and reviewing the implementation policies to measure the extent to which goals, objectives and targets are being met to be strengthened • A Transformation Sector Strategy and Plan informed by inputs from HEIs has become necessary

Way-forward: Towards a Sector Plan • HESA Board established a Transformation Strategy Group to develop and implement plan to advance transformation in the sector • The Group will also advise the Board on initiatives advancing and/or undermining transformation in the sector • It is envisaged that such a Sector Plan will assist the HESA Board to reinforce good transformation practices in the sector • HESA looks forward to engaging with other stakeholders on this issue, in the planned Higher Education Summit of the Ministry of H&T.

Higher Education Sector’s Response to Ministerial Report on “Transformation”