An academic in the Faculty of Education, Prof Hanlie Dippenaar, is one of the editors of a recently launched book while Jacqui Scheepers, Manager: Service-Learning and Civic Engagement is one of the authors.

Another lecturer, Dr Rolene Liebenberg, a very experienced community engagement pioneer in the institution, is author of a chapter on “The transformative pedagogical potential of preservice teacher professional learning communities embedded in a mathematics service-learning course”.

The book is titled: Community Engagement Research in South Africa – Methods, Theories, Histories and Practice.

It is published by Van Schaik Publishers and emphasises the importance of community engagement in Higher Education.

“It showcases the value of partnering with communities, including community engagement and service-learning initiatives in the curriculum. It foregrounds students and academics as change agents in higher education,” said Dippenaar.

Dippenaar, who also authored a chapter in the book (“Collaboration embedded in service-learning through the lenses of a network of activity systems and a Change laboratory”), has been involved in Community Engagement and Service-learning since 2004, as a lecturer at the University of Pretoria (UP).

“When I joined CPUT in 2012, I continued this journey under the leadership of Mrs Jacqui Scheepers. Prof Irma Eloff, Dean of the Faculty of Education at UP at the time I was there, is one of the editors of the book, and invited me onto the project.”

She said the project was a lengthy one which took several years to complete, especially when the Covid-19 pandemic slowed things down.

“The authors who participated, however, are all experts in their fields and it was a privilege to work with them. Prof Elize van Eeden (editor) and Prof Irma Eloff are both experienced academics and I learned much from their leadership and guidance. We were all very passionate about the project as community engagement is an essential part of higher education and enhances the professional development of our students and lecturers,” Dippenaar said.

She added that working with colleagues collaboratively in community projects is very rewarding as it develops critical thinking, problem-solving and social responsibility.

“When we partner with our communities and learn from their skills and expertise, we prepare our students for a better society”. The cross-disciplinary engagement with community partnership has potential to provide a holistic view of education for students. Several chapters in this publication showcases examples of collaborative research.

At the book launch held at North West University, Beatrix Bouwman, former chairperson of the South African Higher Education Community Engagement Forum (SAHECEF), said universities can contribute to community development by applying the basic principles of community engagement such as engaged research that is relevant and addressing community needs, and by engaged teaching and learning such as service-learning.

“I am confident that the scholarly contributions that the book brings, will impact this field of studies and those who are serious about its development in South Africa, Africa and beyond.”

Scheepers said her units strive to support the scholarship of engagement, which benefits students, staff and external university partners.

“As one of the authors, I want to express my gratitude for being able to contribute to this book, and am proud that one of our own, Prof. Hanlie Dippenaar, is one of the editors. We will continue to celebrate the engaged research achievements of CPUT as we grow our research footprint for SL and CE.”

Dippenaar said all their community engagement initiatives at CPUT are guided by Scheepers and the Centre for Community Engagement and Work Integrated Learning.

“They support us in all our projects, which was difficult during Covid. However, when we read the reflections and final reports by our students, we see the difference it made in their lives and how much they learned. The chapter I wrote in the book reflects some of our projects and was written in collaboration with Prof Marianne Teras from Stockholm University and Prof Eloff from UP. “

She said the project had been “most rewarding” and will contribute to the scholarship of service-learning and community engagement in Higher Education.

“I would like to thank all the authors for sharing their research and my co-editors for the privilege of working with them. I would also like to thank my Dean and colleagues from the Faculty of Education for opportunities to implement CE in our curriculum and look forward to taking this further in our new projects with colleagues and communities in and around CPUT as well as collaborating with partners overseas in a new project in India.”

Written by Ilse Fredericks
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CPUT offers a wide range of opportunities for students to ready themselves for the world of work as well as contribute towards uplifting communities.

Service-Learning

Service-Learning (SL) is a course-based, credit-bearing experience in which students participate in an organized service activity that meets identified community needs and furthers their understanding of the course content.

•          CPUT’s SL Unit coordinates SL projects and assist academics to integrate community service into mainstream academic programmes and research.
•          The unit develops s and nurtures mutually beneficial partnerships between communities, higher education institutions and the service sector.
•          SL has a triad partnership model that consists of staff and students, community partners and service providers (government departments and agencies) and the projects aim to benefit all the affected parties.

Work Integrated Learning  

Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) presents students with the opportunity to integrate their academic theoretical knowledge with real-life work situations. WIL entails the following:

•          Students are placed in a workplace as interns for up to 12 months, depending on the requirements of the discipline.
•         During the WIL period interns are required to record their progress in logbooks that are signed by their supervisors or mentors, as well as submit regular assignments and projects to the co-operative educators.

Written by Kwanele Butana
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The Department of Emergency Medical Sciences has received a donation of food items and toiletries from the Gift of the Givers Foundation to assist students who may be in need of support.

The Department has a long-standing relationship with the organisation. Staff from the department have assisted with disaster relief responses, both locally and abroad, while Gift of the Givers has supported some of the Department’s Service-Learning Projects.

Students pursuing a career in emergency care are required to undertake 12-hour clinical shifts in hospital wards and on ambulances. They are also required to engage in off-campus rescue-related training exercises that can sometimes last for several days.

“The department approached Gift of the Givers for support to ensure that students do not go hungry and have access to nutritional supplements during these clinical shifts and physical rescue exercises,” said Lloyd Christopher, Head of the EMS Department

The donation from Gift of the Givers is being distributed to the neediest students in the department.

Written by CPUT News
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The Service-Learning and Civic Engagement Units, Centre for Community Engagement and Work Integrated Learning, in collaboration with the Faculty of Education, hosted seven students from HAN University of Applied Sciences from the Netherlands.

Twice a year HAN students travel to CPUT and collaborate with various departments under the banner of Service-Learning and Civic Engagement. The HAN student student or students currently forms part of the Theewaterskloof Programme with a particular focus on various community engagement projects. Organisations such as Home Based Care, South African Red Cross Society, schools, Theewaterskloof Municipality, museum and Mind over Matter within Theewaterskloof district, benefit from the students’ hard work and dedication. HAN students reside in the rural towns of Grabouw and Caledon for the duration of the project.

An orientation weekend funded by HAN university was held in August. Seven CPUT students from the faculties of Health and Wellness Sciences, Business and Management Sciences, Education, Engineering and the Built Environment and Informatics and Design were afforded the opportunity to engage with the HAN students at the orientation. “Our first activity was to collaborate and do Intercultural consciousness and cross-cultural communication. We shared info about the various cultures in South Africa and the HAN students shared information about the Dutch culture. There were discussions and debates involved because we had to gather information about the Dutch culture, and they had to do the same with the South African culture. After the collaboration we had to do some outdoor activities as a competition in mixed groups of CPUT and HAN students,” said Nursing Science student, Yandisa Maqetuka.

Extramural activities included a hike which allowed students to engage across international cultures in a more informal setting. Yandisa said: “I had a great experience in the HAN project, and I am grateful for the opportunity that was given to me.” HAN Global mobility has become increasingly imperative for student self-development, intercultural integration and development of international leaders. CPUT students were grateful for the opportunity to engage with the HAN students.

At the CPUT intercultural and international engagement session at the South African Renewable Energy Technology Centre, CPUT afforded the HAN students a space to showcase their respective community projects. The passion exuded during the presentations displayed a sense of commitment and seriousness in respect of global citizenship. During the presentations HAN students provided a detailed report of their respective projects, expressed their challenges, opportunities and possible solutions to various issues experienced within communities.

According to Jacqui Scheepers, Manager: Service-Learning and Civic Engagement, “Internationalisation can be achieved through collaborative community engagement activities with students and staff from various international partner universities. This project serves as an opportunity to achieve our institutional goals as per our Vision 2030 for Focus areas: 5: SMART Internationalisation; 6: SMART Engagement and strong links with quintuple helix partners; and 7: SMART Student Engagement and Learning Experience.”

David Haarhoff, Project lead for Civic Engagement alluded to the importance of student involvement in such critical engagements. “Vice-Chancellor, Prof Chris Nhlapo, often makes reference to CPUT becoming Africa’s MIT. This would require a different level of thinking, continued international exposure not only for academics, but for students as well. My heart is happy when our students integrate and present our university when hosting international guests. Our students really made me proud.” Scheepers said that projects like these put CPUT on a global platform and: “We will continue to explore further collaborations with international partners for community engagement”.

Written by Aphiwe Boyce
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The Service-Learning (SL) and Civic Engagement (CE) Units, in partnership with the organisations Lovafriworx and Yes We Can Sports and Jazz Foundation, joined hands in celebration of women recently.

The project was made possible with donations from the Gift of the Givers and sponsorship from the University Capacity Development Grant, Department of Higher Education and Training. Thandekile Ndlovu, student group leader of Nuwe Lewe, said violence against women had increased alarmingly over the last decade. “The urge to address this crucial matter has become imperative at local, provincial and national government levels.” About 30 women from various communities across the Cape Metropole were invited to attend this auspicious event held at the Yes We Can Sports and Jazz Foundation, Oude Molen, Eco Village, Pinelands.

The main theme outlined by Thandekile was: Taking Charge of your own narrative. He encouraged the attendees to stand firm and take charge of their respective journeys.

The various guest speakers included Faye Macheke, Co-Executive Director at the Association for Women’s Rights in Development (AWID). Macheke kick-started the proceedings with her presentation on “Quality care of survivors of gender discrimination and violence”. She re-iterated the sad reality of women on the African continent being at risk “with an intimate-partner and family-related homicide rate of 3.1 per 100 000 female population, Africa is the region in which women run the greatest risk of being killed by their intimate partner or family members” this according to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime’s (Global Study on Homicide – Gender-related killing of women and girls, 2018). In her closing remarks she promoted and encouraged women to speak up and seek needed help and support.

Lolwethu Luthuli, a lecturer in the Faculty of Business and Management Sciences, spoke passionately about empowering resilience by navigating life with strength and purpose after trauma. The focal point of her presentation dealt with resilience and rising above your circumstances. Luthuli highlighted that "you should never count yourself out".

Phelekwa Mfuyo, Programming Specialist at Parliament, a CPUT alumna, inspired the women with her speech titled “My worth starts with self-worth”, sharing her personal journey and experiences. She emphasised that "your worth starts with you as an individual and you need to take accountability".

Thandekile also introduced the Sip and Paint activity, which is used globally as a means of therapy.

David Haarhoff, project lead, said: “We cannot work in silos if we intend to conquer such a great mountain. Community Engagement programmes of this nature must be prioritised by our Institution in alignment with National Imperatives. Our obligation is to reach out to those placed in this position by selfish partners or family members. We have to fight on behalf of our girls and women.”

Haarhoff urged everyone to do their part by reaching out to at least one battered girl or woman. “I am ecstatic that our external partners could hold hands and partner with SLCE, making the event a success for 30 special women who were hosted at the event,” he said. Jacqui Scheepers, SLCE Manager reflected that: "The Student Leadership Community Engagement projects are meaningful projects where students are provided with a platform to grow their competencies, their sense of citizenship and servant leadership."

The programme ended with each attendee receiving a care pack and food parcels sponsored by Gift of the Givers.

Written by Aphiwe Boyce

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