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Maringe ought to be commended for putting together an invaluable contribution to our understanding of research into a complex education system in South Africa. This volume provides a useful foundation to the current state of education quality in South Africa including the impact of interventions. It also brings to the fore challenges still facing education transformation. The evidence presented which, taken together, lays out a coherent view of how improvements could be made. Albert Chanee Head of Planning, Gauteng Department of Education For too long the weight of educational scholarship produced in South Africa has been limited to that simple and standard form called the literature review. Now, for the first time, education researchers are provided with an African-based text on the concepts and methods of conducting systematic reviews. In this exceptional work of editorship, Felix Maringe brings together some of the leading researchers on South African education to model and demonstrate how to review a significant body of research on a chosen topic which is adjudicated strictly on the basis of the quality and efficacy of the evidence in hand. I have no doubt that this remarkable book will become a standard reference for educational researchers in and beyond the African continent. It will also lift the quality of educational inquiry by equipping a new generation of scholars with the capacity for doing evidence-based research that compels the attention of policymakers, planners and practitioners alike. Prof Jonathan Jansen Stellenbosch University

\"The book is a must read for policy makers, academics, university administrators and post graduate research students in the broad field of education and in higher education studies in particular. The book brings together a wealth of information regarding the imperatives of transformation in Africa's higher education systems. Not only do some of the chapters provide critical discussion about the conceptualisation of transformation, the majority of the chapters reflect on empirical evidence for transformation in diverse fields of mathematics, science, gender, the training of doctoral students and the governance and management of universities. This central theme of sustainable change and reform runs across the chapters of the book. For students, the book provides exemplars of practical research in higher education. For scholars in higher education and policy makers, specific issues for reform are identified and discussed.+-- Provided by publisher.

Marketisation, increased student mobility, the massification of Higher Education (HE) and stagnating staff numbers in universities have combined to cause a ripple effect of change both in the demography and size of university classes across the world. This has implications for the quality and equity of learning and the need to examine and to transform pedagogical practices. Despite the growing attention of literature on teaching large classes, there is a scarcity of research addressing the twin issues of large classes in an increasingly internationalised context. This paper seeks to contribute towards filling this gap. The paper provides a theoretical exploration of the causes of such classes in HE, reviews the empirical evidence against large class teaching and examines the difficulties associated with teaching demographically diverse classes in HE. The paper identifies eight pedagogical strategies to address the issues of class size and diversity, which relate to increasing student participation and engagement; increasing curricula access and the language of instruction; increasing staff intercultural understanding; increasing opportunities for deep learning for all; on-going monitoring of student satisfaction; increasing opportunities to achieve; diversification of assessment; and the merit of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCS). It calls for new research on global learning cultures; reviews of global assessment and promising pedagogical practices and processes.

The book is a must read for policy makers, academics, university administrators and post graduate research students in the broad field of education and in higher education studies in particular. The book brings together a wealth of information regarding the imperatives of transformation in Africa's higher education systems. Not only do some of the chapters provide critical discussion about the conceptualisation of transformation, the majority of the chapters reflect on empirical evidence for transformation in diverse fields of mathematics, science, gender, the training of doctoral students and the governance and management of universities. This central theme of sustainable change and reform runs across the chapters of the book. For students, the book provides exemplars of practical research in higher education. For scholars in higher education and policy makers, specific issues for reform are identified and discussed.

Purpose: Higher education environments have become increasingly competitive and institutions have to compete for students in the recruitment markets. With the introduction of student fees, it is hypothesised that potential applicants to HE will increasingly become consumerist. The research upon which this paper was based was aimed at finding out the factors students consider important in their decision making related to choice of university and courses of study. Design/methodology/approach: Five sixth form schools and colleges in the Southampton University Partnership Scheme participated in the study. Three hundred and eighty seven students (186 male and 201 female) voluntarily participated. The study involved a survey questionnaire based on a 10 point Likert scale and included 35 university choice factors which students were to rank accordingly. It also included 10 items similarly ranked to identify factors influencing university subject or course choice. Simple descriptive statistics were used to identify the factors students consider most important in their choice and decision making. Findings: Two key signals have been identified. First is that, students seem to be adopting a consumerist approach to their HE decision making. The importance attached to labour market motives in terms of employment and career prospects significantly outweigh those related to pursuing HE on the basis of subject interest and a love for the subject. Second is that as a result of this, students consider programme and price related issues as more important than other elements of universities marketing mix. Research limitations/implications: There are no claims for generalisability of findings from this research on account of the small sample of participants and the use of convenience sampling employed in the study. However, the findings generally support what is already known about factors influencing university choice and go beyond to show signals of change within the undergraduate recruitment market. Practical implications: The findings have implications for university positioning in a diversifying recruitment market, and for a reconsideration of marketing and recruitment strategy at institutional levels. Originality/value: The paper identifies signals of a changing undergraduate recruitment market and notes the implication this has on recruitment and marketing activities for institutions intending to position or reposition themselves in the highly competitive markets. (Contains 4 tables and 2 figures.)

In South Africa, rural education and development are issues of social justice, especially in places that were previously established as homelands. This article presents some of the tensions that are inherent in the conceptions of rurality, rural education and the possibility of sustainable rural education and development. We propose the notion of education for rural development as a useful concept for its potential for transforming and sustaining rural education. We describe the implications of education for rural development on teacher education change by focusing on the teaching experience (TE) programme.

Universities all over the world are increasingly recognising the challenges of globalization and the pressures towards internationalization. This collection draws together a wealth of international experience to explore the emerging patterns of strategy and practice in internationalizing Higher Education. Questions considered include: How is the concept of globalization in the context of higher education understood by those who lead universities across the world? What new challenges are being created as universities seek to become more international? Which forms of leadership are needed and will be needed in the future in these transforming institutions and how are they going about preparing for and achieving this?

Purpose: International students' HE decision making is a high stakes process. There is an insufficient evidence base that would aid university level strategic planning in areas of recruitment from the African continent and in supporting its students to maximise the benefits from a UK HE experience. This paper aims to explore the decision making and experience of African students in UK HE and provides hypothesis for re-conceptualising these processes. Design/methodology/approach: The research was exploratory and part of a bigger project on international students' experience of UK HE. It employed focus group interviews with 28 students studying in two universities in the South of England together with semi structured discussion with staff in those institutions with a specific remit for recruiting from Africa. Findings: A six element model of decision making was developed from the data which identifies a range of push and pull factors operating within constraints of fears and anxieties about studying in UK HE. The data suggest that African students come to study in England on the promise of getting a truly international HE experience. Questions are however raised about whether this promise is delivered in full. Research limitations/implications: The sample size and use of focus groups as a single data gathering strategy does not allow broad generalisation of findings. However, the evidence obtained enabled the generation of useful hypothesis to stimulate further research in this area. The research identifies implications for strategic decisions for recruitment, student support and curriculum and for future research in this area. Originality/value: This is an area with patchy research and the research reported here provides a good basis for developing a broader research agenda in Africa to support decision making on a wider scale. (Contains 4 tables and 1 figure.)

Twenty Years of Education Transformation in Gauteng 1994 to 2014: An Independent Review presents a collection of 15 important essays on different aspects of education in Gauteng since the advent of democracy in 1994. These essays talk to what a provincial education department does and how and why it does these things whether it be about policy, resourcing or implementing projects. Each essay is written by one or more specialist in the relevant focus area. The book is written to be accessible to the general reader as well as being informative and an essential resource for the specialist reader. It sheds light on aspects of how a provincial department operates and why and with what consequences certain decisions have been made in education over the last 20 turbulent years, both nationally and provincially. There has been no attempt to fi t the book's chapters into a particular ideological or educational paradigm, and as a result the reader will find differing views on various aspects of the Gauteng Department of Education's present and past. We leave the reader to decide to what extent the GDE has fulfilled its educational mandate over the last 20 years.