AI can be a danger to students – 3 things universities must do: Generative artificial intelligence (AI) is trained on enormous bodies of text, video and images to identify patterns. It then creates new texts, videos and images on the basis of this pattern identification. Thanks to machine learning, it improves its ability to do …
Nigeria’s universities need to revamp their entrepreneurship courses – they’re not meeting student needs: Youth unemployment has been a problem in Nigeria for decades. This is why policymakers are increasingly turning to entrepreneurship education as a solution. It is hoped that entrepreneurship will reduce reliance on formal jobs and create more opportunities for self-employment. The …
Deaf and hard-of-hearing students need more support from their universities – South Africa study: Students who are Deaf or hard of hearing may feel isolated. Jorge Elizaquibel Adjusting to university life tends to be tough no matter who you are. But what happens when deafness makes the usual demands even more difficult? Deaf students or …
Three South African universities have new approaches to assessing students: why this is a good thing: South African higher education faces many complex challenges rooted in the legacy of apartheid. They include the fact that many students are unprepared for or excluded from higher education. Quality education is not available to all. It’s therefore difficult …
How universities can address the lack of Black scholars in academia: Drazen Zigic/Shutterstock In the UK, out of 164 university vice-chancellors, only two are Black. Professor David Mba was recently appointed as the first Black vice-chancellor at Birmingham City University. There are 165 Black professors in the UK – out of 23,515. The disparity becomes …
Pay gaps and less chance of a top degree: the unequal experience of ethnic minority staff and students at English universities: fizkes/Shutterstock A 2020 report on racial harassment published by industry body Universities UK drew attention to the “institutional racism and systemic issues that pervade the entire higher education sector”. In the same year, the …
American universities in the spotlight over reaction to Israel-Gaza war – podcast: Tensions have been running high at many universities around the world since the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7 and the subsequent Israeli assault on Gaza. In the US, protests and solidarity events have been met with varied responses from university administrations. …
South Africa’s universities aren’t training future civil servants for what the country needs: Many analysts blame state capture – the corruption of the management of public affairs – for the weakening of state capacity in South Africa. A judicial commission of inquiry into the problem laid it bare. They say the COVID pandemic worsened the …
Multimedia is key to distance education: I built a model South African universities can use: Open distance institutions need a comprehensive framework for multimedia teaching and learning. Moyo Studio Distance education first appeared in the United States in the 1800s. At the time, students received the relevant material through the post and then returned it …
Global university rankings now include social impact: African universities are off to a strong start: Universities across Africa can drive prosperity through innovation. Westend61 World university rankings are released towards the end of each year. Institutions globally scramble to see how they have fared. Have they risen or fallen? If so, by how much and …
Colonialism shaped modern universities in Africa – how they can become truly African: One of the roles of an African university is to produce critical and democratic thinkers. Vieriu Adrian/Getty Images Colonialism profoundly shaped modern universities in Africa. It implanted institutions on African soil that were largely replicas of European universities rather than organically African. …
Sexual harassment victims in Nigerian universities are being blamed – cyberspace study: Sexual harassment encompasses a wide range of inappropriate behaviour, from ogling, touching and commenting about body parts, to sexual proposition, coercion, assault and rape. In other words, it is any form of unsolicited and unwanted sexual attention. Within the academic environment, there is …
Universities and their students are vulnerable to money laundering – new research: Students are at risk of being exploited by financial and organised criminals. Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock Money laundering jeopardises the security of UK citizens and the integrity of its economy. Money launderers often target financial institutions, but they are also increasingly targeting lesser regulated …
The climate crisis leaves students feeling helpless – what universities can do to empower them: Rawpixel.com/Shutterstock Universities have the resources to help combat the climate crisis. What’s more, they have a responsibility to their students – who want to take action, but may lack the support they need to do so. One way universities can …
South African universities must do more to tackle staffs’ race and gender imbalances: There are more black African academic staff at South African universities than before. PeopleImages/Getty Images At the advent of South Africa’s democracy in 1994, an overwhelming majority of academics in the country’s public higher education institutions were white men. Black South Africans …
How universities could help whole communities tackle climate change: Shutterstock As centres of learning, universities have the potential to help whole communities learn about and address climate change. Education can lead us to change our attitudes and behaviour. It can also help us deal with the anxiety or fear of doom that can stun us …
South Africa’s dysfunctional universities: the consequences of corrupt decisions: The integrity of the academic project should underscore universities' work at all times. xtock/Shutterstock What happens when those responsible for managing universities cannot trust each other to act with integrity? In a nutshell, as I discuss in my new book, Corrupted: A study of chronic dysfunction …
Why UK universities are going on strike: University staff on strike in 2019. Lee Iveson/Shutterstock Universities in the UK are striking on 24, 25 and 30 November 2022, with action short of a strike beginning on 23 November. Around 70,000 university staff across 150 universities are taking industrial action, following a series of smaller strikes …