Applying a humanistic pedagogy to advance and integrate humane values in a medical school environment

Abstract

Sometimes universities in general are criticised because of impersonal campus environments, or "academic incivility". However, research Background and contextThe University of the Free State (UFS) in Bloemfontein, South Africa (SA), endeavours to be recognised as an excellent institution in two of its performance areas, namely (i) the academic project, which focuses on excellence in teaching, learning and research, and (ii) the human project, with its focus on reconciliation and social justice (UFS Integrated Report, 2013). This paper is situated within the human project, which is located mainly in the Institute for Reconciliation and Social Justice (IRSJ) at the UFS. The aim of the IRSJ is to "cultivate humanity as a counterstrategy to the disrespect and violence that pervade human relations and erode human dignity" (IRSJ, 2013).In particular, this paper focuses on the School of Medicine (SoM) at the UFS and is based on my 15 years of experience as a lecturer, student academic support and development practitioner, tutor programme coordinator in the in the SoM, researcher in the field of higher and medical education and head of one of the student residences at the UFS. Within the different roles and responsibilities in these positions, I have the opportunity to interact and engage with students from diverse backgrounds. During these interactions and engagements, I have gained rich information on the many challenges that students face in academic environments. In addition, being from a similar social and school background as some of the students, I have realised the significance of adopting a humanistic pedagogy to advance and integrate humane values in a medical school environment, which is sometimes perceived as being inhumane.

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“…This article's theoretical underpinnings align with the UFS's Integrated Transformation Plan (ITP), in which transformed pedagogies are seen as one of the goals for teaching and learning at the UFS. Transformed pedagogy is understood as a humanistic ( Jama, 2017) or humanizing (Zembylas, 2018) pedagogy which can be described as a form of critical pedagogy (Freire, 2003). Drawing on Freire's critical pedagogy, Salazar (2013) define humanization as a "process of becoming more fully human as social, historical, thinking, communicating, transformative, creative persons who participate in and with the world" (Salazar, 2013, p. 126).…”