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Papers by Makabongwe Khanyile
South African journal of higher education, Dec 1, 2020
It is incontestable that universities assumed the so-called "third mission" which means that they... more It is incontestable that universities assumed the so-called "third mission" which means that they include community engagement in their activities in order to be financially viable. This paradigm shift begs the question: In terms of whose interest does community engagement serve? It has been difficult to separate community engagement from traditional research as community engagement projects can emerge from new research ideas. As an emerging property, community engagement should be holistic rather than reductionist, in order to afford universities opportunities to function as sites of citizenship, as well as to contribute to the knowledge society and knowledge economy, and generate mutual benefits. However, there are no instruments used to gauge the benefits for communities, while the benefits for academics and universities are outputs, promotions and revenue. The epistemologies and methodologies used in community engagement activities are often foreign to the communities and neither appreciate nor understand their problems. Instead of universities being communities of scholars, they have become workplaces. The communities are often pawns and objects in the hidden agendas of researchers and institutions. Some of these agendas include but are not limited to, university entrepreneurialism, dispossession of indigenous knowledge of local communities, advancement of commercialisation and capitalism, and meeting academic key performance areas to be eligible for promotion. This conceptual article argues that community engagement is a complex phenomenon that requires a systemic non-linear approach.
Africa is my own work. All the sources that I have used and quoted have been acknowledged by mean... more Africa is my own work. All the sources that I have used and quoted have been acknowledged by means of references, except where otherwise indicated or unless specifically acknowledged as being sourced from other researchers. Where their exact words have been used, the writing has been put inside quotation marks and referenced. It is important to declare that the dissertation has not been submitted for any degree or examination at any other university. This dissertation is submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL SCIENCES, 2016
South African Journal of Higher Education, Aug 1, 2018
Universities are struggling to identify and analyse who their stakeholders are, what stake(s) the... more Universities are struggling to identify and analyse who their stakeholders are, what stake(s) they claim; what threats or opportunities stakeholders present; what responsibility they have towards stakeholders; and to conflate the terms "publics" and "stakeholders". Management of stakeholders entails a symbiotic and epistemological relationship between system-in-focus, stakeholders and the environment. The reductionist approach cannot assist in gaining an understanding of what stakes stakeholders claim. The identification of stakeholders, as well as their needs, must be done by a university before the priorities and relational strategies are determined for each stakeholder. As a complex adaptive system operating in complex, ever-changing, diverse and shifting environments, a university needs strong stakeholder management strategies to adapt to its own changing needs and expectations, as well as those of its stakeholders. Stakeholder salience and identification could enable universities to understand the typology of stakeholder attributes, as well as assist in defining taxonomies relevant to each scenario. In order to enable universities to respond to stakeholders' competing needs, "strong management" is required, and should include a paradigm shift to the concept of "economic rationalism" in educational service delivery. This article seeks to highlight the vital role played by stakeholder management in the long-term survival of universities.
South African journal of higher education, Dec 1, 2020
It is incontestable that universities assumed the so-called "third mission" which means that they... more It is incontestable that universities assumed the so-called "third mission" which means that they include community engagement in their activities in order to be financially viable. This paradigm shift begs the question: In terms of whose interest does community engagement serve? It has been difficult to separate community engagement from traditional research as community engagement projects can emerge from new research ideas. As an emerging property, community engagement should be holistic rather than reductionist, in order to afford universities opportunities to function as sites of citizenship, as well as to contribute to the knowledge society and knowledge economy, and generate mutual benefits. However, there are no instruments used to gauge the benefits for communities, while the benefits for academics and universities are outputs, promotions and revenue. The epistemologies and methodologies used in community engagement activities are often foreign to the communities and neither appreciate nor understand their problems. Instead of universities being communities of scholars, they have become workplaces. The communities are often pawns and objects in the hidden agendas of researchers and institutions. Some of these agendas include but are not limited to, university entrepreneurialism, dispossession of indigenous knowledge of local communities, advancement of commercialisation and capitalism, and meeting academic key performance areas to be eligible for promotion. This conceptual article argues that community engagement is a complex phenomenon that requires a systemic non-linear approach.
Africa is my own work. All the sources that I have used and quoted have been acknowledged by mean... more Africa is my own work. All the sources that I have used and quoted have been acknowledged by means of references, except where otherwise indicated or unless specifically acknowledged as being sourced from other researchers. Where their exact words have been used, the writing has been put inside quotation marks and referenced. It is important to declare that the dissertation has not been submitted for any degree or examination at any other university. This dissertation is submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL SCIENCES, 2016
South African Journal of Higher Education, Aug 1, 2018
Universities are struggling to identify and analyse who their stakeholders are, what stake(s) the... more Universities are struggling to identify and analyse who their stakeholders are, what stake(s) they claim; what threats or opportunities stakeholders present; what responsibility they have towards stakeholders; and to conflate the terms "publics" and "stakeholders". Management of stakeholders entails a symbiotic and epistemological relationship between system-in-focus, stakeholders and the environment. The reductionist approach cannot assist in gaining an understanding of what stakes stakeholders claim. The identification of stakeholders, as well as their needs, must be done by a university before the priorities and relational strategies are determined for each stakeholder. As a complex adaptive system operating in complex, ever-changing, diverse and shifting environments, a university needs strong stakeholder management strategies to adapt to its own changing needs and expectations, as well as those of its stakeholders. Stakeholder salience and identification could enable universities to understand the typology of stakeholder attributes, as well as assist in defining taxonomies relevant to each scenario. In order to enable universities to respond to stakeholders' competing needs, "strong management" is required, and should include a paradigm shift to the concept of "economic rationalism" in educational service delivery. This article seeks to highlight the vital role played by stakeholder management in the long-term survival of universities.