Equity and Quality in the Revitalisation of African Higher Education: trends and challenges

MALA SINGH Centre for Public Leadership and Enterprise, The Open University, Milton Keynes, United Kingdom

http://dx.doi.org/10.2304/rcie.2011.6.4.348

The revitalisation of African higher education has been a policy imperative on the agenda of many international and African organisations in the last decade, as well as a focus for research and debate. Revitalisation is a theme which is itself framed by a larger set of current discourses about the powerful role of knowledge in society and in the economy, and about the possibilities and conditions for knowledge-based development. Central to the success of both the revitalisation and knowledge-based development agenda is a systematic and sustained approach to a package of issues relating to access, equity and quality in African higher education. This article examines trends and developments relating to these three issues in higher education in sub-Saharan Africa and reflects on their implications for a successful revitalisation strategy, as well as for knowledge-based development.

Higher Education as an Instrument of Social Integration in Tanzania: challenges and prospects

DANIEL MKUDE Institute of Swahili Studies, University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

http://dx.doi.org/10.2304/rcie.2011.6.4.366

In developing countries, higher education is a powerful instrument for social mobility and economic prosperity. An in-depth study of the relationship between higher education and certain equity issues has revealed that in Ghana and Tanzania there is inadequate effort to widen higher education participation to include traditionally disadvantaged groups. The article argues that provided they have strong and visionary leadership, universities can spearhead efforts to make higher education accessible to such disadvantaged groups through the judicious use of their admissions and selection criteria, and the mounting of special make-up and support programmes.

A Ghanaian Response to the Study on ‘Widening Participation in Higher Education in Ghana and Tanzania: developing an Equity Scorecard’

PAUL EFFAH School of Governance and Leadership, Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration, Achimota, Accra, Ghana

http://dx.doi.org/10.2304/rcie.2011.6.4.374

The study on ‘Widening Participation in Higher Education in Ghana and Tanzania: developing an Equity Scorecard’ is a contribution to making higher education more socially inclusive in sub-Saharan Africa. The findings reinforce some of the policy initiatives taken in Ghana and Tanzania, and underscore the importance of widening participation in higher education, as well as addressing associated issues of equity and quality. Although the higher education sector has expanded tremendously during the past two to three decades, enrolment at the tertiary level falls behind levels obtained in most developed countries. Access and equity continue to be issues, particularly in rural areas. This article responds to some of the findings in the research study. It identifies some of the policy initiatives by government and interventions taken by the tertiary education institutions to address the issue of access and equity in the provision of tertiary education. As a result of these initiatives, some students in rural areas have not only had the opportunity to enrol in competitive professional programmes like medicine and engineering, but have also been provided with avenues for upward social mobility. A number of recommendations are made towards canvassing support for broader involvement of all stakeholders in the process of promoting access and addressing inequalities.

Agency and Advocacy: disabled students in higher education in Ghana and Tanzania

LOUISE MORLEY Centre for Higher Education and Equity Research, School of Education and Social Work, University of Sussex, Brighton, United Kingdom
ALISON CROFT Centre for International Education, School of Education and Social Work, University of Sussex, Brighton, United Kingdom

http://dx.doi.org/10.2304/rcie.2011.6.4.383

Between 10% and 15% of the world’s population are thought to be disabled. The 2006 United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is an example of emerging global policy architecture for human rights for disabled people. Article 24 states that disabled people should receive the support required to facilitate their effective education. In research, links between higher education access, equalities and disability are being explored by scholars of the sociology of higher education. However, with the exception of some small-scale studies from Zimbabwe, South Africa, Rwanda, Namibia, Uganda and Pakistan, literature tends to come from the global North. Yet there is a toxic correlation between disability and poverty – especially in the global South. This article is based on a review of the global literature on disability in higher education and interview findings from the project ‘Widening Participation in Higher Education in Ghana and Tanzania: developing an Equity Scorecard’, funded by the Economic and Social Research Council and the Department for International Development. A central finding was that while disability was associated with constraints, misrecognition, frustration, exclusion and even danger, students’ agency, advocacy and achievement in higher education offered opportunities for transforming spoiled identities.

Returning to Study in Higher Education in Ghana: experiences of mature undergraduate women

CHRISTINE ADU-YEBOAH & LINDA DZAMA FORDE Institute of Education, University of Cape Coast, Ghana

http://dx.doi.org/10.2304/rcie.2011.6.4.400

This study was based on the assumption that in Ghana, women who return late to higher education combine domestic and academic work and, in the process, experience tensions and difficulties in the face of cultural and academic prejudice. It employed an interpretive qualitative research approach via narrative interviews with eight mature undergraduate women from different socio-economic backgrounds in one public university. The intention was to explore their experiences and use the findings to make suggestions for institutional development and learning. The data was collected in May 2009 from a sample of first- and final-year women from the Departments of Sociology and Basic Education in one of the oldest public universities in the southern part of Ghana. The women students found academic work difficult and made reference to gaps in terms of their knowledge deficit, unfamiliar courses and teaching methods. Recommendations from the study include the formulation of an institutional policy on mature women students in particular, and non-traditional students in higher education generally, and the regular provision of professional development programmes for higher education practitioners.

Equity and Equality in Access to Higher Education: the experiences of students with disabilities in Tanzania

ROSEMARIE NYIGULILA MWAIPOPO Department of Sociology and Anthropology, University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
AMANDINA LIHAMBA University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
DELPHINE COSMAS NJEWELE Department of Fine and Performing Arts, College of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

http://dx.doi.org/10.2304/rcie.2011.6.4.415

Social development policies in Tanzania are exemplary in terms of their recognition of the rights of access to higher education institutions by specific demographic groups. Policy documents such as the 2005 National Strategy for Growth and Reduction of Poverty (known as the MKUKUTA) and the 2004 National Policy on Disability emphasise this necessity and outline the government’s commitment to ensure that people who are socially disadvantaged, including those with disabilities, can equally access higher education. The process through which this is achieved is, however, less explicit and is therefore difficult to measure in relation to what students with disabilities actually experience as they not only pursue, but also experience higher education. Using both qualitative and quantitative data, this article analyses the process of access into higher education institutions and outcomes in terms of representation in higher education institutions by students with disabilities. In doing so, it seeks to explore the meaning and outcomes of policies related to higher education institutions in Tanzania in terms of their stated equality ideals and achievements in practice.

Learning from Innovative International Research on Higher Education: how to conceptualise equity for policy, practice and pedagogies in higher education

MIRIAM E. DAVID Institute of Education, University of London & Centre for Higher Education and Equity Research, School of Education and Social Work, University of Sussex, Brighton, United Kingdom

http://dx.doi.org/10.2304/rcie.2011.6.4.430

In this article, the author draws together the diverse approaches to equity and widening participation found in the innovative international research conducted in Ghana and Tanzania by contrast with those in the ‘global North’, using the United Kingdom as a case study. In particular, the author considers the utility of equity scorecards around the theme of the three Rs – recruitment, retention and results – in the context of very diverse national and international cultures and contexts. The focus of these scorecards is on equity in terms of gender, age and socio-economic backgrounds. Using research evidence from the United Kingdom’s Teaching and Learning Research Programme on fair access and widening participation in higher education, the author also draws out further conceptual considerations about equity and diversity as key to developing policies, practices and pedagogies for the future of global universities in the twenty-first century. What are the obstacles and opportunities for envisioning equitable and fair policies, practices and pedagogies for the three Rs to enable and enhance higher education for women and other socio-economically disadvantaged groups?