Page 100 - Transformation Indaba Report

xx). However, broader transformation toolkits are not commonly available in African
higher education institutions.

39. ‘Chief Diversity Officer’ is also nowadays a standard designation in universities in the
USA; usually appointed at very senior levels; and diversity scorecards are commonplace
(see Williams 2013; 2014). This development has been steered by three models: the
affirmative action and equity model (1950-1970s); the multicultural and inclusion
diversity model (1960s-1980s); and the learning, diversity and research model (1990s-
2000s). It also explains South Africa’s focus on equity and redress over the last 20 years,
and the seductive allure to reduce higher education transformation to these targets.

40. Indicators for education quality have also become a feature of the comparative work of
regional and international institutions (UNESCO, OECD, OSF and the World Bank).
Measuring the attainment of outcomes is central to the logic of these indicators. With
reference to the MDGs, there is already a frenzy of activities associated with the post-
2015 agenda, and the role of higher education. Captured in the NDP, South Africa
already has long-term targets in place associated with the performance of the higher
education sector.

41. As a consequence of processing national policy imperatives, expression within ITPs, and
feedback from transformation practitioners, the thematic areas for the barometer must
emerge from the concepts captured in the following table:

Mandates Principles Themes
• Research • Equity and redress • Institutional culture
• Teaching and • Democratisation • Curriculum and research
learning • Development • Teaching and learning
• Community • Quality • Equity and redress
engagement • Effectiveness and efficiency • Diversity
• Academic freedom • Social cohesion and social
• Institutional autonomy inclusion
• Public accountability • Community engagement

42. Emerging from these concepts and the preceding discussions, the following themes
should steer the higher education transformation project:

a. Institutional culture
i. Governance and Management
ii. Professionalisation of ‘Transformation’ work
iii. Social structure of the academy
iv. Social inclusion/cohesion
v. Language and Symbols

b. Equity and redress

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