This book explores learning outcomes for low-income rural and township youth at five South African universities. The book is framed as a contribution to southern and Africa-centred scholarship, adapting Amartya Sen’s capability approach and a framework of key concepts: capabilities, functionings, context, conversion factors, poverty and agency to investigate opportunities and obstacles to achieved student outcomes. This approach allows a reimagining of ‘inclusive learning outcomes’ to encompass the multi-dimensional value of a university education and a plurality of valued cognitive and non-cognitive outcomes for students from low-income backgrounds whose experiences are strongly shaped by hardship. Based on capability theorising and student voices, the book proposes for policy and practice a set of contextual higher education capability domains and corresponding functionings orientated to more justice and more equality for each person to have the opportunities to be and to do what they have reason to value. The book concludes that sufficient material resources are necessary to get into university and flourish while there; the benefits of a university education should be rich and multi-dimensional so that they can result in functionings in all areas of life as well as work and future study; the inequalities and exclusion of the labour market and pathways to further study must be addressed by wider economic and social policies for ‘inclusive learning outcomes’ to be meaningful; and that universities ought to be doing more to enable black working-class students to participate and succeed. Low-Income Students, Human Development and Higher Education in South Africamakes an original contribution to capabilitarian scholarship: conceptually in theorising a South-based multi-dimensional student well-being higher education matrix and a rich reconceptualisation of learning outcomes, as well as empirically by conducting rigorous, longitudinal in-depth mixed-methods research on students’ lives and experiences in higher education in South Africa. The audience for the book includes higher education researchers, international capabilitarian scholars, practitioners and policy-makers.
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the debilitating socio-economic impact caused by the diamonds at Chiadzwa area in Zimbabwe on the illegal mining community that emerged and inhabited the hills of Chiadzwa between 2006 and the beginning of 2009. The research was carried out for academic proposes, as an advocacy strategy to expose the abuses and violent state operations perpetrated by the security forces. In addition, it intends to equip policy makers and implementers about the heavy handedness of Zimbabwe's security sector during its operations in the area in an effort to enable policy implementers to defend the rights of the affected people at Chiadzwa. Design/methodology/approach – The methodology engaged was chiefly qualitative and the study was a product of primary sources (especially in-depth interviews) and secondary sources (text books, journal articles, newspapers and the internet). Purposive and snowballing sampling techniques were used to collect the data between 2007 and 2009. Collected data were analysed and compiled between 2009 and 2013. Some of the names used in this study for our respondents are pseudo and this was done to ensure anonymity and secure the providers of information against possible retribution. On the other hand real names were used in particular where violent state driven operations were discussed. Findings – Initially the government of Zimbabwe was reluctant to intervene in the illegal extraction of diamonds in search of political leverage. Later it responded with violent manipulative strategies and operations with detrimental consequences on the illegal miners. The brutal strategies employed by individuals and the state led to injury, illness and death of people amid a harsh socio-economic environment. Research limitations/implications – A number of respondents preferred to use pseudonyms because they feared that information collected could be used against them. Practical implications – The study is a good example of conflict between the state machinery and its citizens over a natural resource. It reveals excessive use of force by the state which appears to be the norm in other countries where diamonds are dubbed “blood diamonds”. Social implications – In the midst of the diamond-related violence a new and vibrant social identity emerged commonly referred to as magweja. The area experienced challenges especially with regards to the provision of health services and the traditional use of herbs was endangered by the destruction of vegetation. Originality/value – It reveals a milieu, state regulation enforcement and security agents, magombiro (armed robbers or murderers) all who discharged violence on magweja the foremost victims of the violent systems and practices. In addition, it encourages policy markers and implementers to devise non-violent strategies when dealing with illegal exploitation of natural resources.
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