Sutherland, G. (2009-12)
Thesis (PhD (Curriculum Studies))-- University of Stellenbosch, 2009
The South African government is attempting to redress the social inequalities which
prevailed in the education sector during the apartheid era. One of their efforts has
involved the widening of access to diverse groups in society in order to increase
participation within the higher education sector. However, many students attempting
their higher education studies are academically under prepared. This is mainly due
to insufficient life skills, communication skills, numeric skills and literacy skills. The
lack of these skills has inspired various international and national higher education
institutions to develop academic programmes aimed at bridging the gap that exists
between secondary schooling and higher education. Introduction programmes for
prospective engineering students have to ensure high-quality curriculum
development procedures in order to secure these students’ academic success
throughout their engineering studies. This, in turn, leads to quality graduates and
addresses the huge shortage experienced by the industry.
An overview of the contextual and conceptual views on curriculum development is
given against the backdrop of the current higher education legislation in South Africa.
The overview regarding curriculum development links the introduction programme
curriculum to generic learning outcomes specifically set at the National Qualification
Framework Level 4. It suggests the application of continuous assessments, in line
with outcomes-based education criteria, together with quality assurance in order to fit
the Higher Education Quality Committee and the Engineering Council of South
Africa’s accreditation criteria applicable to higher education institutions.
During the design and methodological stages, it was established, by means of a
theoretical investigation, that the first phase of this study determines whether
students that successfully completed the introduction programme perform
academically better than students entering the diploma programmes directly. The
theoretical investigation also established that the second phase of this study
determines if the diploma students dropped out of the programme for reasons other
than academic performance.
A triangulation approach was used to increase the validity of the empirical part of the
study and to enhance the rigorous use of both quantitative and qualitative data. The
study results shed light on the need for introduction programmes. In addition, it
proposed a curriculum framework for improved engineering introduction programmes
at the Vaal University of Technology.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die doel van hierdie studie was om kurrikulumraamwerk vir oorbruggingsprogram vir ingenieurswese-studente in hoër onderwys te ontwikkel.
Die kurrikulumraamwerk is ontwikkel deur middel van gevallestudie wat die
implementering van oorbruggingskursusse in die ingenieurswese indringend
Die huidige Suid-Afrikaanse regering poog om die sosio-politieke wanbalanse as
nalatenskap van apartheid, uit te wis. Dit word gedoen deur middel van inisiatiewe
waarin onder meer hoër onderwys prominente vennoot is wat aan diverse
samelewing gelyke geleenthede bied. Die huidige, meer toeganklike bedeling in hoër
onderwys in Suid-Afrika het groot toename van studente uit histories agtergeblewe
gemeenskappe tot gevolg gehad. Die meeste studente wat in hierdie konteks die
hoëronderwyssektor betree, blyk in groot mate onvoorbereid te wees vir hoër
onderwys vanweë hul gebrek aan lewens-, kommunikasie-, numeriese en
taalvaardighede. Hierdie tendens kom ook op internasionale vlak voor. Dit het
inisiatiewe ten opsigte van akademiese ontwikkeling op nasionale sowel as
internasionale vlak genoodsaak. Die doel van akademiese ontwikkeling is primêr om
die gaping tussen die skool en hoër onderwys te oorbrug.
Oorbruggingskursusse moet van hoë gehalte wees om sodoende te kan verseker
dat voornemende studente vir hoër onderwys, en vir die doel van hierdie studie meer
spesifiek ingenieurstudente, van groter akademiese sukses verseker kan wees. Die
suksesvolle implementering van oorbruggingskursusse vir ingenieurswese-studente
behoort in groot mate tot beter gehalte gegradueerde te lei en bydrae te lewer
tot die vraag na ingenieurswese-studente vir die nywerheidswêreld.
Kontekstuele en konsepsuele beskouings ten opsigte van kurrikulumontwikkeling in
die hoër onderwys in Suid-Afrika word deur generiese leeruitkomste bepaal. Hierdie
uitkomste is op vlak 4 van die land se Nasionale Kwalifikasieraamwerk vasgepen. Dit
het ook tot gevolg dat alle programme volgens amptelike Departement van
Onderwys-dokumente aan deurlopende assessering onderwerp moet word, dat die
gehalte van die kursus onderworpe is aan die gehalteversekeringskriteria van die
Hoëronderwys se Gehaltekomitee (‘HEQC’) en dat dit moet voldoen aan die
vereistes van die Ingenieursraad van Suid-Afrika.
Teoretiese raamwerk is tydens die ontwerp- en metodiekstadium van die studie
daargestel. Die doel van hierdie eerste fase van die studie was om te bepaal of
diplomastudente wat die oorbruggingskursusse suksesvol voltooi het, akademies
beter gepresteer het as daardie studente wat nie die oorbruggingskursus gevolg het
nie. Die tweede studiefase het bepaal of die diplomastudente hul studies vir redes
gestaak het wat moontlik nie met akademiese sukses verband hou nie.
Die navorsing het van triangulasie gebruik gemaak, ten einde die doeltreffende
gebruik van sowel kwantitatiewe as kwalitatiewe data te verhoog. Die resultate van
die studie werp lig op en onderstreep die behoefte aan oorbruggingskursusse. Die
navorsing beveel kurrikulumraamwerk aan vir die ontwerp van verbeterde
oorbruggingskursusse in die ingenieurswese aan die Vaal Universiteit van
Please refer to this item in SUNScholar by using the following persistent URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/1368
This item appears in the following collections: Doctoral Degrees (Curriculum Studies)93
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