The purpose of this study was to identify the transformation disclosures in the publicly available annual reports of South African public universities and to establish the extent…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to identify the transformation disclosures in the publicly available annual reports of South African public universities and to establish the extent to which universities account to their stakeholders about how they have discharged their transformation obligations.
Design/methodology/approach
This exploratory qualitative study involves a thematic content analysis of publicly available annual reports using ATLAS.ti software to identify and categorise transformation interventions disclosed by South African public universities.
Findings
This empirical study identifies several interventions that universities have introduced to facilitate access to and successful completion of tertiary studies by students. Some of the disclosed mechanisms include the provision of financial aid, student support and counselling, tutoring and mentoring and ICT enhancements and the introduction of language policies. The results also highlighted several challenges to sustainable transformation including funding, social and academic barriers and infrastructural challenges experienced by universities.
Originality/value
According to the authors’ knowledge, this study represents one of the first studies to use the public disclosures in the annual reports of public universities to identify interventions introduced to facilitate transformation of the student body. Despite its South African orientation, the observations have implications for universities worldwide experiencing similar challenges, especially in developing countries.
Details
Keywords
From time immemorial until about a generation ago, the UAE desert-roaming Bedouins were living in tents (hair houses) which they themselves had innovated, constructed and…
Abstract
From time immemorial until about a generation ago, the UAE desert-roaming Bedouins were living in tents (hair houses) which they themselves had innovated, constructed and elaborated. They had done this in such a way as to ensure that their practical need for accommodation was met, that the constraints of their physical environment were taken into account, and that their own social and religious obligations could be discharged. Then almost overnight the tents disappeared and with them the way of life they represented.
As a consequence of the UAE government's policy in the early urbanization and resettlement of the country's nomadic population, the previous occupants of the hair houses found themselves residents of the so-called “housing areas” on the outskirts of the UAE cities and towns. The problems arising from this sudden transformation are the focus of this study which aims to demonstrate that while the resettled Bedouins turned to embrace the modern life in their new homes, they were mentally and emotionally drawn to their past lifestyle in which the hair house, more than merely providing accommodation, was an expression of personality and culture.
To this end, this study documents and analyzes the southern version of the hair house (otherwise known as the “winter house”), previously the most common in the UAE desert. The study will consider not only that the hair house was a masterpiece of innovative construction suited to the Bedouin's environment and culture but also, as comparison at different levels shows, the inadequacy of the urban cement house as the Bedouin's current-day accommodation. Consequently, the study recommends that future housing projects targeted at the resettled Bedouins should be designed with a view to harmonizing the needs and requirements of contemporary life with the rich heritage of the Bedouins.
In carrying out this study, the researcher has utilized a combination of research tools, primarily theoretical, descriptive and analytical together with field visits and personal interviews with former residents of the hair houses and the curators of the Heritage Village in Abu Dhabi, the UAE capital. In contrast, as the “housing areas” are still in existence, the scope of the study is limited to the hair house which it tries to recover and reconstruct as a point of reference for the thesis of the study.