Tracking Enrolments and Graduations in Humanities Education in South Africa: Are We in Crisis?

Autor/inn/en	Yu, K.; Pillay, V.
Titel	Tracking Enrolments and Graduations in Humanities Education in South Africa: Are We in Crisis?
Quelle	In: South African Journal of Higher Education, 25 (2011) 6, S.1218-1231 (14 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1011-3487
Schlagwörter	Higher Education; Graduation Rate; Disadvantaged; Foreign Countries; Humanities; Humanities Instruction; Enrollment Rate; Enrollment Trends; Racial Differences; Citizen Role; Citizenship Responsibility; College Students; Interdisciplinary Approach; South Africa + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Hochschulbildung; Hochschulsystem; Hochschulwesen; Ausland; Geisteswissenschaften; Humanwissenschaften; Geisteswissenschaftlicher Unterricht; Rassenunterschied; Bürgerinitiative; Collegestudent; Fächerübergreifender Unterricht; Fächerverbindender Unterricht; Interdisziplinarität; Südafrika; Süd-Afrika; Republik Südafrika; Südafrikanische Republik
Abstract	In this article we respond to the perceived crisis in humanities education in South Africa which posits firstly that large numbers of students are leaving this field and that secondly, the value of a humanities education has declined. To do this we track the enrolments and graduation rates in humanities at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels between 1999-2007. We disaggregate the data using the racial quantifiers identified in the HEMIS data base. We show that the small overall numeric decline of students in humanities education does not constitute a crisis in itself. Instead, it is disturbing that humanities education does not parallel the patterns of growth evident in higher education as a whole, particularly for historically disadvantaged groups. We use Waghid's ideas on the civic role and responsible citizenship roles of higher education to comment on the numeric trends we observe with respect to humanities education and argue that the second perceived crisis, namely that of the declining value of humanities education deserves national attention. (Contains 1 note and 12 figures.) (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	Unisa Press. Preller Street, P.O. Box 392, Muckleneuk, Pretoria 0003, South Africa. Tel: +27-24-298960; Fax: +27-24-293449; e-mail: sajhe@vodamail.co.za; Web site: http://www.sajhe.org.za
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2017/4/10