Black university students’ experiences of negotiating their social identity in a historically white university
- Authors: Mogotsi, Opelo Petunia
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Corporate culture -- South Africa , Social integration -- South Africa , Race discrimination -- South Africa , Segregation in higher education -- South Africa , Group identity -- South Africa , College students, Black -- South Africa , Biko, Steve, 1946-1977 , Fanon, Frantz, 1925-1961
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/62416 , vital:28174
- Description: This thesis seeks to explore the social identity of black students in a historically white university. Since 1994, South African government has been promulgating pieces of legislation aimed at ensuring racial integration, and indirectly enforcing acculturation in historically white universities. Studies have proven that institutional cultures in historically white universities alienate and exclude black students’ identities. These students’ sense of social identity, which includes amongst others; culture, heritage, language and traditions, and consequently self-esteem and self-concept is altered in these institutions. Research has been scant regarding the shape and form that black students’ identity assume when they get to these spaces. Face to face interviews were used to collect data and thematic analysis was used for data analysis. The Social Identity and the Acculturation models were used to explore the experiences of black students in negotiating their social identities in a historically white university. Evoking Steve Biko’s analysis of ‘artificial integration’, it was illustrated how the ‘integration’ narrative sought to discard the identity of black students and psychologically enforce a simulation of black students into white established identities. The main themes discussed indicated that black students in this study had social identity and identity challenges in a historically white university. This study has implications for policy development as I hope to theoretically sensitize historically white universities to (apart from mere opening of spaces of learning) understand the social identity challenges of black students.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Mogotsi, Opelo Petunia
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Corporate culture -- South Africa , Social integration -- South Africa , Race discrimination -- South Africa , Segregation in higher education -- South Africa , Group identity -- South Africa , College students, Black -- South Africa , Biko, Steve, 1946-1977 , Fanon, Frantz, 1925-1961
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/62416 , vital:28174
- Description: This thesis seeks to explore the social identity of black students in a historically white university. Since 1994, South African government has been promulgating pieces of legislation aimed at ensuring racial integration, and indirectly enforcing acculturation in historically white universities. Studies have proven that institutional cultures in historically white universities alienate and exclude black students’ identities. These students’ sense of social identity, which includes amongst others; culture, heritage, language and traditions, and consequently self-esteem and self-concept is altered in these institutions. Research has been scant regarding the shape and form that black students’ identity assume when they get to these spaces. Face to face interviews were used to collect data and thematic analysis was used for data analysis. The Social Identity and the Acculturation models were used to explore the experiences of black students in negotiating their social identities in a historically white university. Evoking Steve Biko’s analysis of ‘artificial integration’, it was illustrated how the ‘integration’ narrative sought to discard the identity of black students and psychologically enforce a simulation of black students into white established identities. The main themes discussed indicated that black students in this study had social identity and identity challenges in a historically white university. This study has implications for policy development as I hope to theoretically sensitize historically white universities to (apart from mere opening of spaces of learning) understand the social identity challenges of black students.
- Full Text:
The transition of Rhodes University graduates into the South African labour market : a case study of the 2010 cohort
- Authors: Ntikinca, Kanyiso Lungani
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Rhodes University -- Graduate students , Labor market -- South Africa , College graduates -- Employment -- South Africa , Labor supply -- Research -- South Africa , Market segmentation -- South Africa , Employability -- South Africa , Race discrimination -- South Africa , Sex discrimination -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: vital:3395 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1018198
- Description: Recent studies have shown that graduates from historically White universities (HWUs) experience better labour market outcomes than graduates from historically Black universities (HBUs). This is a result of the legacy of apartheid which promoted racial inequality in all spheres of South African society, more especially in higher education and the labour market. Post-1994, government dedicated large amounts for the restructuring of the higher education sector of South Africa in order to level out the playing field. However, graduates from HWUs still experience better labour market success than graduates from HBUs. That said, there is limited information about the labour market outcomes and experiences of graduates from a former White university (especially graduates from Rhodes University). Therefore, the central aim of this dissertation is to show that graduates from a historically White university (Rhodes University) experience varying and unequal outcomes in the South African labour market on account of (among other factors) their chosen fields of study, race and sex. This study is informed by the heterodox labour market approach, which is partly inspired by the critical realist account of the labour market. As a result, this theoretical framework allowed the researcher to use the Labour Market Segmentation (LMS) theory as a tool to inform this analysis. The study has adopted a quantitative survey design and has incorporated some of the key methodological lessons learned from the collection of international graduate tracer studies. The findings from this study indicated that ‘field of study’ is a strong determiner of the outcomes of Rhodes graduates in the labour market. This was visible in the persistence of a skills bias towards commerce and science graduates. Evidently, even when we controlled for race and sex, graduates from the commerce and science faculties experience better labour market outcomes than humanities graduates. This is a result of a skills biased South African economy, which has a higher demand for certain skills over others. However, the findings from this study also show evidence of pre-labour market discrimination and inequality (based on race and sex) in the supply-side institutions such as the family, schooling and university. The findings also show continuities and discontinuities of labour market discrimination (based on race and sex) in the outcomes of Rhodes graduates in the South African labour market. More importantly, this dissertation indicates that Rhodes graduates experience varying outcomes in the labour market as a result of (among other factors) their chosen fields of study, race and sex.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Ntikinca, Kanyiso Lungani
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Rhodes University -- Graduate students , Labor market -- South Africa , College graduates -- Employment -- South Africa , Labor supply -- Research -- South Africa , Market segmentation -- South Africa , Employability -- South Africa , Race discrimination -- South Africa , Sex discrimination -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: vital:3395 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1018198
- Description: Recent studies have shown that graduates from historically White universities (HWUs) experience better labour market outcomes than graduates from historically Black universities (HBUs). This is a result of the legacy of apartheid which promoted racial inequality in all spheres of South African society, more especially in higher education and the labour market. Post-1994, government dedicated large amounts for the restructuring of the higher education sector of South Africa in order to level out the playing field. However, graduates from HWUs still experience better labour market success than graduates from HBUs. That said, there is limited information about the labour market outcomes and experiences of graduates from a former White university (especially graduates from Rhodes University). Therefore, the central aim of this dissertation is to show that graduates from a historically White university (Rhodes University) experience varying and unequal outcomes in the South African labour market on account of (among other factors) their chosen fields of study, race and sex. This study is informed by the heterodox labour market approach, which is partly inspired by the critical realist account of the labour market. As a result, this theoretical framework allowed the researcher to use the Labour Market Segmentation (LMS) theory as a tool to inform this analysis. The study has adopted a quantitative survey design and has incorporated some of the key methodological lessons learned from the collection of international graduate tracer studies. The findings from this study indicated that ‘field of study’ is a strong determiner of the outcomes of Rhodes graduates in the labour market. This was visible in the persistence of a skills bias towards commerce and science graduates. Evidently, even when we controlled for race and sex, graduates from the commerce and science faculties experience better labour market outcomes than humanities graduates. This is a result of a skills biased South African economy, which has a higher demand for certain skills over others. However, the findings from this study also show evidence of pre-labour market discrimination and inequality (based on race and sex) in the supply-side institutions such as the family, schooling and university. The findings also show continuities and discontinuities of labour market discrimination (based on race and sex) in the outcomes of Rhodes graduates in the South African labour market. More importantly, this dissertation indicates that Rhodes graduates experience varying outcomes in the labour market as a result of (among other factors) their chosen fields of study, race and sex.
- Full Text:
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