Abstract:

The end of apartheid in 1994 and the ongoing student protests since 2015 have caused renewed interest in the decolonisation of higher education in South Africa. Since this time, the model of academic organisation which underlies many South African universities has not considerably changed. These institutions tend to remain colonial outposts, rooted in Western disciplinary knowledge. The decolonisation of the curriculum is an important question that warrants attention, given that epistemic and hegemonic systems at most South African universities were entrenched during apartheid. This article examines a view of decolonisation that is based on transforming the South African higher education curriculum, a curriculum that is generally designated as westernised and Eurocentric. The research question is: Which challenges are faced in the attempt to decolonise the South African higher education curriculum? Because a qualitative research design accounts for experience and perception, it was deemed most suitable for the purpose of this article. A review of relevant literature provided a foundation for an interpretation of the challenges encountered. One-on-one, semi-structured interviews were conducted with academics within a higher education environment to determine whether the different challenges or themes as propounded by the literature align with those articulated by the interviewees. The researchers found that the call for the decolonisation of institutions and curricula presents challenges to the academic project as well as to academics. There is not sufficiently-developed African content to jettison Western education without leaving a void. Yet decolonisation is feasible and does not have to be a protracted process. For this reason South African institutions of higher learning should provide research solutions for the nation by developing curricula based on the best knowledge, skills, morals, beliefs and traditions from Africa, as well as Europe. Such a curriculum will relate to the needs of students; in other words, it will be fit for purpose.

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