Bridging the gap from an unequal past to a future of equal opportunities: in search of an effective curriculum for South Africa
Date: 23 June 2022
Time: 13:00 – 14:00
Platform: MS Teams
Click here to register: https://forms.office.com/r/0Q6gRt107X
The MS Teams link will be e-mailed to all registered participant
About the lecture:
Aristotle (384 – 322 BC) believed in the purposefulness of education. To him education was not only the attainment of knowledge but also the attainment of happiness in the lives of individuals. In this way, education can lead to a happy society. Meaning: goodness of intellect leads to goodness of character. The former can be achieved by teaching, training and experience and the latter is the result of a healthy lifestyle and the practice of good habits. In this lecture, I expand on Aristotle's theory that education must promote both knowledge and happiness. I argue that the current curriculum is focussed so much on the acquisition of knowledge that the happiness of learners is neglected. Hence the current South African curriculum is unsuccessful in what the schools are attempting. Not only does our education system fail to instil a value system with good habits and sound morals, but our schools also fail to enable learners to acquire the knowledge and skills needed for the 21st century.
This in a time that our world is and continues to be in a state of flux. Changing climates affect all sectors of society already in the present. The pace of change will likely accelerate in the future influencing lives in manifold ways. Our response to these challenges requires cutting edge innovations and interventions from all sectors of society. This also holds true for education. Through our research we must contribute to finding solutions in such rapidly changing settings. In this lecture I will elaborate on how the curriculum should be adapted to provide solutions for the challenges we are experiencing in our changing society. I will base my argument on William Pindar's (2012) theory that the curriculum is a strategy for self-study, enabling both individuals and groups to understand their situations by active and passionate participation in curriculum development.
