Sense of belonging plays an essential role in the retention and success of distance learning students. This study investigated the influence of a sense of belonging on the intentions to drop out among black and white distance learning students at a university in South Africa. A total of 831 participants were surveyed and constituted the sample of…

Loneliness is a common concern among university students, as these individuals experience many of the risk factors associated with loneliness. This experience of loneliness tends to lead to numerous consequences such as negative self-evaluations, anxiety, and depression, which in turn lead to impaired concentration and a decline in academic…

Using a culturally relevant conceptual framework, we examined student outcomes from engagement in student activism for students (N = 1,238) at a South African university. Findings show participation in student activism differed by students of different genders, population groups, and academic disciplines. Students involved in activism reported…

Students bring their own unique stories, shaped by history, culture and language, to the higher education context. Developing a sense of place-belonging on a diverse university campus is intrinsically intertwined with the intersectionality between race, ethnicity, gender and language. This study uses narrative inquiry to understand one student's…

The use of social media platforms to facilitate teaching and learning requires resources (hardware and Internet access) to enable active student participation. Limited access to these resources may impair students' learning and, should the students consequently fail to graduate, tacitly contribute to their social exclusion. The results of a survey…

Every sector in the twenty-first century makes use of technology for its activities, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic and higher education institutions are not exceptional. However, the cohorts enrolled in the selected higher education institution are from technologically challenged backgrounds. This suggests that in their previous…

A significant amount of literature on the student movement in South Africa is characterised by two limitations. Firstly, a significant amount of this literature is found in un-academic and non-peer-reviewed sources, such as social media, online newspapers, blog posts and other platforms. Secondly, some of this literature is characterised by an…

We examined student engagement with respect to gender, race, and finance at 1 South African university using a culturally relevant conceptual framework. Data for 2,569 students were collected via a survey covering demographics, cocurricular involvement, and learning outcomes. Findings include differences in sense of connection, pride, and…

The purpose of this study was to explore the culture of choral singing among children and youth in Pretoria East, South Africa. The philosophical underpinnings of the choirs, the roles of choirs within local and national communities, and the perceived values and benefits of participation were examined. This collective case study required the…

This article argues that there are disjunctures between theory and practice related to the integration of refugee students in higher education. Using a theoretical approach, the article explores policy and approaches to refugee integration and identifies the causes of the theory-practice disjunctures. It suggests a framework that other researchers…

The paper considers citizenship formation at universities, drawing on the example of a student leadership project at the University of the Free State, a formerly White South African university, in a higher education context and society where racialised difference continues to influence peer relationships. The paper proposes a multi-dimensional…

The slogan "no education without representation" symbolised a belief in the anti-apartheid movement that without a democratic government, South Africa's people could not receive an inclusive education. Since the end of official apartheid in 1994, the education system has faced new transformative aims focused on ending racial separation…

In this article we respond to the perceived crisis in humanities education in South Africa which posits firstly that large numbers of students are leaving this field and that secondly, the value of a humanities education has declined. To do this we track the enrolments and graduation rates in humanities at both undergraduate and postgraduate…

The University of KwaZulu-Natal is now six years post merger--time to reflect as the institution is now well settled. Modules are offered on multiple campuses, at various levels, ranging from entry level modules through to Ph.D. studies. This article attempts to identify the factors that lead to the successful progression of students to higher…

The racial desegregation of the student bodies of historically white universities in South Africa has had significant political implications for student politics and university governance. I discuss two key moments in the governance history of the University of Cape Town (UCT) critically. The first involves the experience of racial parallelism in…