The impact of access to post-secondry education information on "rural origin" students' access to higher education: A case of three schools in Ntabamhlophe, Kwazule-Natal
Abstract
Inequalities in recruitment, enrolment, and throughput rates in higher education among different socio-economic classes in the democratic South Africa have remained challenging to reduce. Unpacking spatial differences in access to post-secondary education information can strengthen initiatives aimed at reducing such inequalities. Research on access to and success at post-secondary education has based the vulnerability of students from disadvantaged backgrounds heavily on financial constraints. Neglecting the issue of information or Higher Education knowledge which plays a very important role in decision making. It is a challenge for people from disadvantaged backgrounds to find their way through the inexplicable labyrinth of academic forms, financial aid applications, faculty handbooks and prospectuses. Even in Higher Education people have access to formal and informal resources of information. The formal resources which include guidance counsellors, college training in AP courses (in the case of USA), college handbooks and university open days are readily available at wealthier schools than the poorer ones. It is however the informal knowledge networks that really matter in preparing for Higher Education application and admission. This paper argues that the adoption of market-related strategies in student recruitment results in uninformed and underprepared learners about prospects and possibilities of educational options and opportunities. Hence later on they take longer to complete or even drop out.References
Altbach, P.G., Reisberg, L. & Rumbley, L.E. (2009). Trends in Global Higher Education: Tracking an Academic Revolution. Paris: UNESCO
Atuahene, F. & Owusu-Ansah, A. (2013). A Descriptive Assessment of Higher Education Access, Participation, Equity, and Disparity in Ghana. SAGE Open, 3(3).
Cai, H. & Wang, J.T. (2006). Over-communication in Strategic Information Transmission Games. Games and Economic Behavior, 56(1): 7-36.
Census 2011. (2011). A Profile of Education Enrolment, Attainment and Progression in South Africa. Pretoria: Statistics South Africa.
Council on Higher Education. (2010). Access and Throughput in South African Higher Education: Three Case Studies. Higher Education Monitor 9. Pretoria: Council on Higher Education.
Fataar, A. (2003). Higher education policy discourse in South Africa: A struggle for alignment with macro development policy. South African Journal of Higher Education, 172: 31–38.
Hemsley-Brown, J. & Oplatka, I. (2006). Universities in A Competitive Global Marketplace. International Journal of Public Sector Management, 19(4): 316 – 338.
Herman, H.D. (1995). School-leaving Examinations, Selection and Equity in Higher Education in South Africa. Comparative Education, 31(2): 261-274.
Higher Education South Africa (HESA). (2011). Insight, Issue 3. September, 2011.
Higher Education South Africa (HESA). (2014). South African Higher Education in the 20th Year of Democracy: Context, Achievements and Key Challenges. Cape Town: HESA.
Ivy, J. (2008). A New Higher Education Marketing Mix: The 7Ps for MBA Marketing. International Journal of Educational Management, 22(4): 288-299.
Jansen, J. (2003). On the state of South African universities. South African Journal of Higher Education, 17(3): 9–12.
Johnstone, D.B. (2004). Higher Education Finance and Accessibility: Tuition Fees and Student Loans in Sub-Saharan Africa. JHEA/RESA, 2(2):11–36.
Kumar, R. (2005). Research Methodology: A Step-by-Step Guide for Beginners. London: Sage Publications.
Kwong, J. (2000). Introduction: Marketization and Privatisation in Education. International Journal of Educational Development, 20: 87–92.
Marks, D. & Yardley, L. (2004). Research Methods for Clinical and Health Psychology. London: Sage Publications.
McMillan, W.J. & Barrie R.B. (2012). Recruiting and Retaining Rural Students: Evidence from A Faculty of Dentistry in South Africa. The International Electronic Journal of Rural and Remote Health Research and Education Practice and Policy, 12(1855). Accessed http://www.rrh.org.au on 02 June 2015.
Ntshoe, I. (2003). The Political Economy of Access and Equitable Allocation of Resources to Higher Education. International Journal of Educational Development, 24: 381-398.
Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development. (2012). Education at A Glance 2012: OECD Indicators. OECD Publishing
Scull, S. & Cuthill, M. (2010). Engaged Outreach: Using Community Engagement to Facilitate Access to Higher Education for People from Low Socio‐economic Backgrounds. Higher Education Research & Development, 29(1): 59-74.
Teffera, D. & Altbachl, P.G. (2004). African Higher Education: Challenges for 21st Century. Higher Education, 47(1): 21-50.
United Nations Development Programme. (2014). The Impacts of Social and Economic Inequality on Economic Development in South Africa. New York, USA: UNDP.
Vally, S. (2007). Higher Education in South Africa: Market Mill or Public Good? JHEA/RESA, 5(1):17-28.
Wiese, M., Van Heerden, C. H. & Jordaan, Y. (2010). The Role of Demographics in Students' Selection of Higher Education Institutions. Acta Commercii, 10: 150-163.
Ziderman, A. (2009). Promoting Access of Disadvantaged Groups Through Student Loans Prerequisites for Success. Higher Education in Europe, 34(2).
Copyright (c) 2018 Mnqobi Banele Njoko
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
This journal is an open access journal, and the authors and journal should be properly acknowledged, when works are cited.
Authors, copyright holders, may use the publishers version for teaching purposes, in books, theses, dissertations, conferences and conference papers.
A copy of the authors' publishers version may also be hosted on the following websites:
- Non-commercial personal homepage or blog.
- Institutional webpage.
- Authors Institutional Repository.
The following notice should accompany such a posting on the website: This is an electronic version of an article published in SAJHE, Volume XXX, number XXX, pages XXX “XXX", DOI. Authors should also supply a hyperlink to the original paper or indicate where the original paper (http://www.journals.ac.za/index.php/SAJHE) may be found.
Authors publishers version, affiliated with the Stellenbosch University will be automatically deposited in the University Institutional Repository SUNScholar.
Articles as a whole, may not be re-published with another journal.
The following license applies:
Attribution CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
