A Critical Perspective on Equity and Access in Higher Education in South Africa

• In Event: 53.043 - Comparative Higher Education: Critical and Global Approaches

Abstract

This paper explores how equity and access are achieved in the post-apartheid South African higher education landscape. I argue that access should refer to both physical (access as a student to an institution) and epistemological access (skills to understand, interpret academic work). I use conceptual analysis in this study to analyse relevant policies to gain a critical understanding of the concepts of equity and access. The aim of conceptual analysis is to construct meanings of equity and access, and then to use these as a theoretical tool to analyse relevant policy documents. This paper report on findings of the under preparedness of students entering higher education, the issue of language, and epistemological access.

Author

• Berte Van Wyk, Stellenbosch University