Start Date
7-6-2013 2:05 PM
End Date
7-6-2013 2:25 PM
Description
Until the early 1990s South Africa was largely isolated from the rest of the world. The end of the Apartheid era, marked by the first democratic elections in 1994, was followed by the adoption of a new South African Constitution (1996) hailed as one of the most advanced human rights manifests in the world. South Africa could reconnect with the rest of the world. The new dispensation required transformation from almost every sector of society. In higher education transformation meant broadening democratic participation, responsiveness to societal challenges and partnership-building. “Community engagement”, integrated with research and teaching–learning, became a primary vehicle for increasing universities’ “social responsibility”. The community-based pedagogical tool of Service-Learning was “imported” from the USA in 2001 as a curricular form of community engagement to equip students with an increased sense of social responsibility, while developing various other graduate attributes required for living and working in the “new” South Africa.
The first objective of my paper is to reflect on the following questions: To what extent does Service-Learning in South Africa correspond to its American roots (cf. Stanton & Erasmus, 2013)? What are its unique features and why? What is its current state? What role does it play in connecting South African students, higher education staff and external constituencies, locally and globally?
The second objective relates to the painful contradictions that become apparent when current conditions in South Africa are measured against the high standards of conduct set out in the Constitution. The country’s current Gini coefficient of 0,7 indicates that its gap between rich and poor is the largest worldwide. High levels of unemployment, poverty, corruption, worsening service delivery and labour unrest undermine the governing party’s promise of “A better life for all!”. For a response to this I shall draw inspiration from the compelling call for active citizenship proposed by a prominent South African, Mamphela Ramphele (2012), in her book Conversations with my Sons and Daughters. This also provides justification for arguing the case for pedagogies of hope, such as Service-Learning, as crucial components in preparing students for life as active citizens, both locally and globally.
Recommended Citation
Erasmus, M. (2013, June). Service-learning as a new approach to teaching and learning in South Africa. Paper presented at the 4th Asia-Pacific Regional Conference on Service-Learning: Service-Learning as a Bridge from Local to Global: Connected world, Connected future, Hong Kong and Guangzhou, China.
Included in
Service-learning as a new approach to teaching and learning in South Africa
Until the early 1990s South Africa was largely isolated from the rest of the world. The end of the Apartheid era, marked by the first democratic elections in 1994, was followed by the adoption of a new South African Constitution (1996) hailed as one of the most advanced human rights manifests in the world. South Africa could reconnect with the rest of the world. The new dispensation required transformation from almost every sector of society. In higher education transformation meant broadening democratic participation, responsiveness to societal challenges and partnership-building. “Community engagement”, integrated with research and teaching–learning, became a primary vehicle for increasing universities’ “social responsibility”. The community-based pedagogical tool of Service-Learning was “imported” from the USA in 2001 as a curricular form of community engagement to equip students with an increased sense of social responsibility, while developing various other graduate attributes required for living and working in the “new” South Africa.
The first objective of my paper is to reflect on the following questions: To what extent does Service-Learning in South Africa correspond to its American roots (cf. Stanton & Erasmus, 2013)? What are its unique features and why? What is its current state? What role does it play in connecting South African students, higher education staff and external constituencies, locally and globally?
The second objective relates to the painful contradictions that become apparent when current conditions in South Africa are measured against the high standards of conduct set out in the Constitution. The country’s current Gini coefficient of 0,7 indicates that its gap between rich and poor is the largest worldwide. High levels of unemployment, poverty, corruption, worsening service delivery and labour unrest undermine the governing party’s promise of “A better life for all!”. For a response to this I shall draw inspiration from the compelling call for active citizenship proposed by a prominent South African, Mamphela Ramphele (2012), in her book Conversations with my Sons and Daughters. This also provides justification for arguing the case for pedagogies of hope, such as Service-Learning, as crucial components in preparing students for life as active citizens, both locally and globally.