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17 December 2018 | Story Eugene Seegers | Photo IDEAS Lab
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Learners enjoy a lesson delivered through an All-in-One device at an IBP-served school.
“Everyone is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.” Eugene van Wyk, Project Coordinator of the Internet Broadcast Project (IBP) at the South Campus of the UFS, preaches a gospel along similar lines, a motto that belongs solely to the IBP: Taking quality education to where it matters.

Quality education accessible to all

Van Wyk believes that quality education should be accessible to all, especially as a tool to relieve poverty in disadvantaged communities. That is why he has made it his aim to extend the reach and exposure of the IBP. To that end, the IBP partnered with the Free State Department of Education (FSDoE) in presenting open days during August and September 2018 in each of the five Free State districts, emphasising innovation in education. At each of these days, the IBP presented their methods and successes, highlighting their use of innovation and technology in not only school education, but teacher development and upliftment as well.

Building on existing technology

The IBP lives up to its motto by building on existing technology, while thinking up new ways to use what is available. In addition, the IBP makes innovative use of emerging and new technologies. For instance, Van Wyk often quotes from a presentation by Ray Kurzweil, director of engineering at Google, author, and futurist, at the 2009 Handheld Learning conference: “Mobile phones are misnamed. They should be called gateways to human knowledge.” Therefore, plans are under way to develop a mobile app that will allow learners to download lesson content and even share it with learners who do not attend a Free State secondary school served by the IBP.

The value of the IBP can be seen in the tremendous upturn in matriculation success rates in the province, an impact that Van Wyk and the E-learning division at the FSDoE are keen to maintain and spread.

News Archive

Number of NRF-rated researchers increases in 2012
2012-10-29

29 October 2012

Three researchers at the University of the Free State received B-ratings for 2013 from the National Research Foundation (NRF). Prof. Johan Henning, Dean of Law, obtained the highest rating in his field of mercantile law in South Africa, a B1.

Prof. Jackie Naudé from Classical and Near Eastern Studies and Prof. Dingie Janse van Rensburg, Professor Extraordinary at the Centre for Health Systems Research and Development, also obtained B3-ratings. Prof. Naudé is the first B-rated researcher in the Faculty of Humanities.
Prof. Helene Strauss obtained the highest rating (Y1) for a UFS young scholar in the Humanities.
In total, the NRF rated researchers at the UFS grew from 95 in 2011 to 109 in 2012, a growth of almost 15 percent.
The NRF ratings committee consist of three reviewers from South Africa and three from abroad. A rating is valid for six years and researchers must reapply for rating before the end of that period.
For a B1-rating all reviewers must be firmly convinced that the applicant enjoys considerable international recognition for the high quality of the researcher’s recent output, with some indicating that the researcher is a leading international scholar in a field. For a B3-rating most of the reviewers must be convinced that the researcher enjoys international recognition for the high quality and impact of the research.
Prof. Jonathan Jansen, Vice-Chancellor and Rector, said in the UFS Research Report “The UFS now has among the highest number of NRF-rated scientists per size of the academic faculty and we have seen the productivity graph bear witness to a record growth in our funded research outputs; we have won our first-ever NRF/DST Research Chairs. In each of these achievements, the excellence we seek comes with and through the diversity we celebrate.”
More ratings and renewals were expected by the time of Bult went to print.. More than 35 researchers applied for ratings or renewal of ratings.
  • Colleagues who were admitted to the prestigious Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf) are Profs. Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela, Driekie Hay, Heidi Hudson, Lodewyk Kock, Odireleng Ntwaeaborwa, Hugh Patterton, Ian Phimister and Melanie Walker. ASSAf was established in 1996 with the mission of using science for the benefit of society. New members are elected after nomination by four existing members (at least two of whom do so from personal knowledge of the candidate). ASSAf has some 350 members and represents South Africa in the international community of science academies.
  • Dr Marieka Gryzenhout of Plant Sciences became a member of South African Young Academy of Science (SAYAS). SAYAS celebrated its first year in 2012. It was launched as a means to enable South Africa’s young scientists to fully participate in locally and internationally relevant research and development agendas. Prof. Aldo Stroebel, Director: Internationalisation, is also a member of SAYAS.

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