First Things First: Summoning History to the Mission of Healing South African Higher Education

The South African Higher Education landscape is fraught with incidents that require urgent attention, if Higher Education is to be restored to its rightful place in the reinvention and preservation of Africa’s last country to obtain liberation. This study, therefore, provides a bird’s eye view on th...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Motlalepula Grace Phalwane, Moagisi Edwin Kagiso Seleka
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Noyam Journals 2025-06-01
Series:E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://noyam.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/EHASS20256716.pdf
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850166877462986752
author Motlalepula Grace Phalwane
Moagisi Edwin Kagiso Seleka
author_facet Motlalepula Grace Phalwane
Moagisi Edwin Kagiso Seleka
author_sort Motlalepula Grace Phalwane
collection DOAJ
description The South African Higher Education landscape is fraught with incidents that require urgent attention, if Higher Education is to be restored to its rightful place in the reinvention and preservation of Africa’s last country to obtain liberation. This study, therefore, provides a bird’s eye view on the history pertinent to diagnosis and healing of this pivotal sector of the country’s educational system. Data for the study were generated through the library and search engines for literature on this field of study. While describing the reality about this sector of education, the authors are of the firm belief that the study will contribute to a deeper understanding of the aetiology necessary to ameliorating the effectiveness and relevance of the country’s higher education system. The findings revealed, among others, the disjuncture between the medieval origins of the modern university and the current state of the South African University with its inevitable neocolonial stage of social change, which is compounded by the historical and current societal problems. The study recommends a more existential and corporate solution to the ills of this education sector, with a renewed sense of patriotism and a conscious existential pursuit of knowledge. It proposes an altered perception and a deliberate reversal of the mental destruction that was cultivated to promote the socially stratified society, as well as a balance between neoliberalism and the love of knowledge for its sake. It is also hoped that the study will raise awareness towards the neglected aspects of social reconstruction caused by long-lasting social conflict.
format Article
id doaj-art-7420188892504b1c98d8bccc73f4817f
institution OA Journals
issn 2720-7722
language English
publishDate 2025-06-01
publisher Noyam Journals
record_format Article
series E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences
spelling doaj-art-7420188892504b1c98d8bccc73f4817f2025-08-20T02:21:20ZengNoyam JournalsE-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences2720-77222025-06-016711451159https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.20256716First Things First: Summoning History to the Mission of Healing South African Higher EducationMotlalepula Grace Phalwane0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2977-9092 Moagisi Edwin Kagiso Seleka1https://orcid.org/0009-0001-5156-1006Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University, South Africa, Pretoria.Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University, South Africa, Pretoria.The South African Higher Education landscape is fraught with incidents that require urgent attention, if Higher Education is to be restored to its rightful place in the reinvention and preservation of Africa’s last country to obtain liberation. This study, therefore, provides a bird’s eye view on the history pertinent to diagnosis and healing of this pivotal sector of the country’s educational system. Data for the study were generated through the library and search engines for literature on this field of study. While describing the reality about this sector of education, the authors are of the firm belief that the study will contribute to a deeper understanding of the aetiology necessary to ameliorating the effectiveness and relevance of the country’s higher education system. The findings revealed, among others, the disjuncture between the medieval origins of the modern university and the current state of the South African University with its inevitable neocolonial stage of social change, which is compounded by the historical and current societal problems. The study recommends a more existential and corporate solution to the ills of this education sector, with a renewed sense of patriotism and a conscious existential pursuit of knowledge. It proposes an altered perception and a deliberate reversal of the mental destruction that was cultivated to promote the socially stratified society, as well as a balance between neoliberalism and the love of knowledge for its sake. It is also hoped that the study will raise awareness towards the neglected aspects of social reconstruction caused by long-lasting social conflict.https://noyam.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/EHASS20256716.pdfneoliberalismstate ideological apparatusimperialismhigher education
spellingShingle Motlalepula Grace Phalwane
Moagisi Edwin Kagiso Seleka
First Things First: Summoning History to the Mission of Healing South African Higher Education
E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences
neoliberalism
state ideological apparatus
imperialism
higher education
title First Things First: Summoning History to the Mission of Healing South African Higher Education
title_full First Things First: Summoning History to the Mission of Healing South African Higher Education
title_fullStr First Things First: Summoning History to the Mission of Healing South African Higher Education
title_full_unstemmed First Things First: Summoning History to the Mission of Healing South African Higher Education
title_short First Things First: Summoning History to the Mission of Healing South African Higher Education
title_sort first things first summoning history to the mission of healing south african higher education
topic neoliberalism
state ideological apparatus
imperialism
higher education
url https://noyam.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/EHASS20256716.pdf
work_keys_str_mv AT motlalepulagracephalwane firstthingsfirstsummoninghistorytothemissionofhealingsouthafricanhighereducation
AT moagisiedwinkagisoseleka firstthingsfirstsummoninghistorytothemissionofhealingsouthafricanhighereducation