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04 February 2020 | Story Michelle Nöthling | Photo Johan Roux
Fragility read more
The colloquium brought together students, staff and administration to work together on resolving ongoing problems within the higher education sector.
Where does resilience – or the lack thereof – in higher education come from? What does resilience and fragility even mean? These were some of the core issues examined during a recent symposium titled ‘Fragility and Resilience: Facets, Features and (Trans) Formations in Higher Education’. The Unit for Institutional Change and Social Justice hosted the event from 28 to 31 January 2020 on the University of the Free State (UFS) Bloemfontein Campus. The symposium – now in its seventh year – is a collaborative endeavour between the UFS, the University of California, Los Angeless (UCLA), and the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VUA) to learn and share knowledge. “The real aim of the symposium is to address diversity and transformation issues from different contexts so that we can compare and contrast and learn best practices,” said Dr Dionne van Reenen, Senior Researcher in the Unit for Institutional Change and Social Justice, and convener of the event. 

Against the Psychologisation of Resilience

In a keynote address, Prof Michalinos Zembylas from the Open University of Cyprus argued against the potential psychologisation of resilience. According to Prof Zembylas, the concept of resilience is often framed as the psychological capacity of the individual to thrive through vulnerability and change. Such a view inevitably places the responsibility for success or failure on the shoulders of the individual and ignores the collusion between systems of oppression and structural inequalities. “The concept of resilience has become part and parcel of neoliberal governmentality – a growing emphasis on autonomous and reflexive individuals who have the capacity to conduct their own risk assessments and pursue their own life opportunities,” Prof Zembylas said. Therefore, within this neoliberalist ideology with its emphasis on the individual, people are led to believe that they need to continually adapt to threats that are essentially out of their control. A resilient person is, in other words, someone who permanently transforms themselves to accommodate the world without the possibility of actually changing that world. 

What impact does this have on higher education? Prof Zembylas noted that a neoliberalist perception of resilience discourages students “from imagining themselves as political agents who could collectively work to challenge harmful or unjust working and life practices”. Although universities use a great variety of tools and interventions to address students’ fragility, these approaches often focus on the vulnerability of the individual. Instead, Prof Zembylas proposed a shift towards an ontology that regards vulnerability as produced by conditions of oppression. A pedagogy of oppression is different from a pedagogy of vulnerability, since “instead of focusing on vulnerabilities, you would rather instil confidence in subjects to say no to abuse of power”.

The nature and role of student hope and meaning in goal setting and life satisfaction

Prof Itumeleng Khumalo, Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at the UFS, delivered the following day’s keynote address. “Many studies concerned with youth have focused on their fears, worries and anxieties, instead of positive functioning and satisfaction with life,” Prof Khumalo remarked. In contrast, he opted to look at how hope and meaning shape students’ goals for higher education. Focusing on hope and meaning, however, does not deny the fact that South African students, in particular, are faced with substantial challenges. The majority of students enrolling in higher education in South Africa are first-generation entrants. Seventy percent of students do not have a graduate parent, and 45% do not have any family members who graduated. Most of these students are burdened with fears of failing, financial problems, difficulties with accommodation, worries about family members, inadequate knowledge regarding digital technology, and lack of support. 

Despite the above, a study by Prof Khumalo and Dr Angelina Wilson Fadiji showed that 85% of their student sample expected life would get better as a result of their education. The vast majority of students indicated that their main goal was to attain employment and build a career as a result of tertiary education. Students believe that getting an education will afford them opportunities to get ahead in life and enable them to become financially independent. “The perceived linear pathway from education to a better and successful life remains the dominant belief among these students, rendering education an undisputed panacea,” Prof Khumalo said. Ultimately, hope and meaning are sources of direction and motivation, and institutions of higher learning play a crucial role in human capacity development.

The colloquium was a platform to share and collaborate on complex issues in higher education.
The colloquium was a platform to share and collaborate on complex issues in higher education.
Prof Ruad Ganzevoort, Diversity Officer and Dean of Theology and Religion at VUA
Prof Ruad Ganzevoort, Diversity Officer and Dean of Theology and Religion at VUA
Prof Cindy Fan, Vice-Provost: International Studies and Global Engagement and Dr Gene Block, UCLA Chancellor
Prof Cindy Fan, Vice-Provost: International Studies and Global Engagement and Dr Gene Block, UCLA Chancellor
Prof Michalinos Zembylas, delivered the Keynote address on Tuesday 28 January 2020.
Prof Michalinos Zembylas, delivered the Keynote address on Tuesday 28 January 2020.
Prof Abel Valenzuela, director of the UCLA Institute for Research on Labor and Employment.
Prof Abel Valenzuela, director of the UCLA Institute for Research on Labor and Employment.
Fragility and Resilience Colloquium meet-and-greet on Tuesday 28 January 2020
Fragility and Resilience Colloquium meet-and-greet on Tuesday 28 January 2020
At the meet-and-greet on Monday are from left; Prof Ruad Ganzevoort, Prof Francis Pietersen and Dr Gene Block
At the meet-and-greet on Monday are from left; Prof Ruad Ganzevoort, Prof Francis Pietersen and Dr Gene Block
Prof Puleng LenkaBula, Vice-Rector: Institutional Change, Student Affairs and Community Engagement opened the colloquium on Tuesday 28 January 2020.
Prof Puleng LenkaBula, Vice-Rector: Institutional Change, Student Affairs and Community Engagement opened the colloquium on Tuesday 28 January 2020.

News Archive

Access to the Bloemfontein Campus
2015-04-02

Access Control Made Easy

The first phase of access control at the University of the Free State (UFS) was implemented in August 2014. The aim of this initiative is to tighten security measures on the Bloemfontein Campus.
 
Since November 2014, access control has been implemented at all five gates on the Bloemfontein Campus. These are:

  • The Main gate in Nelson Mandela Drive (Gate 1)
  • The gate in DF Malherbe Drive (Gate 5)
  • The gate in Wynand Mouton Drive (Gate 3) 
  • The gate in Furstenburg Street (Gate 4)
  • The gate in Badenhorst Street (Gate 2)

Here is some useful information about the access control system:

1. Remember your access card when you enter the campus

Dual-function cards (with distance reader compatibility) will make your movement through the gates more convenient. The university’s access system works automatically with remote or swipe action. Please make sure that you drive close to the reader or, better still, get the dual-frequency card to manage the distance between your vehicle and the remote card reader.

As of 23 March 2015, the extra security staff, who have been assisting at the gates since the implementation of access control on the Bloemfontein Campus, are no longer manning the card readers at the gates. Therefore, persons without cards will be able to enter the campus only at the one gate in DF Malherbe Drive where the Visitors Centre is situated. They will be referred to the Visitors Centre, where a day visitor’s card will be issued to them. You will need to produce a formal identification document (e.g. ID book, driver's licence).

Security will continue their normal duties at the guardhouses for the various gates on the campus.

2. Where do I get an access card?

You can apply at the university’s Visitors Centre front desk by producing your positive identification (ID book/passport/driver’s licence) and proof of payment for your access card.

You will then be directed to the Thakaneng Bridge where you will be able to collect your access card.

  • Go to the Cashier on the Thakaneng Bridge and pay your R65 for the dual-frequency card
  • Take your receipt, together with your existing card (if you have one), to the Card Division on the Thakaneng Bridge (next to Mellins Optometrists)
  • A new photo will be taken of you at the Card Office for your new card. Your new card will then be issued immediately.

Currently, there is a sufficient stock of the dual-frequency cards available at the Card Division on the Thakaneng Bridge.
 
Alternatively, you can apply online for your access card: http://apps.ufs.ac.za/cardapplication/application.aspx

Make sure you have the following documents ready to attach when completing the online form:

  • Copy of positive identification: ID/Driver's Licence/Passport
  • Signed declaration (http://supportservices.ufs.ac.za/dl/Userfiles/Documents/00007/4668_eng.pdf) by your service provider/employer (if you are a service provider) or a letter of confirmation from your spouse/partner/relative/coach/relevant UFS staff member or student in cases where you have to visit, pick-up or drop off your spouse/partner/relative frequently on the UFS Bloemfontein Campus.

Cost: R65 for a long-term card and free of charge for short-term visits and conference delegates. Pay at the Cashier on the Thakaneng Bridge or at Absa Bank, Account Number: 1 570 8500 71, Ref: 1 413 07670 0198.

3. Cutoff Date: 7 April 2015

After 7 April 2015, no pedestrian or motorist will be able to enter the campus without a valid access card. Persons without access cards will have to enter the campus at the gate in DF Malherbe Drive where the Visitors Centre is situated. You will then be referred to the Visitors Centre where you will have to apply for a day visitor’s card. It is important to note that no one will be able to enter the campus at the Visitors Centre without a formal identification document (e.g. ID book, driver's licence).

4. Dual-frequency card simplifies access to the campus

It is important to have your card ready on entering the campus.

This card will simplify access to the campus considerably, as the card reader will read the card when it is held in a vertical position at the driver’s side window in the direction of the distance reader. Please do not place the card on the dashboard. There is an antenna wire in the card. If the card is placed on the dashboard, you are not exposing the card surface to the reader, and that might influence the antenna’s response to the reader.

Remember, the distance between the reader and the boom is only a few metres.  If you approach the reader at a ’high’ speed, you are not allowing the system to identify your card, match it to the entry in the database, check if you are ‘legal’, and then send a signal to open the boom. 

All five gates are equipped with distance readers. Within the next three weeks, two extra distance readers will also be installed at the Main Gate in Nelson Mandela Drive.
 
Please note that the dual-frequency card is needed only when you enter the campus with a vehicle and you want to activate the distance reader. All the older cards will continue to work at the tag readers. 

5. Use alternative gates

At times, some of the gates carry more traffic than others, especially with the peak morning and afternoon traffic. Gates with less traffic include:

  • The gate in Badenhorst Street
  • The gate in DF Malherbe Drive
  • The gate in Nelson Mandela Drive

You are welcome to make use of one of these alternative gates.

6. Pedestrians

No pedestrian will be able to enter the Bloemfontein Campus without a valid access card. If you have left your card at home or have lost it, you should enter the campus at the gate in DF Malherbe Drive where the Visitors Centre is situated. You will be referred to the Visitors Centre where you can apply for a day visitor’s card. You will still need to produce a formal identification document (e.g. ID book, driver's licence).

7. More information

Email: visitorscentre@ufs.ac.za
Visitors Centre front desk: Tel: +27 51 401 7766 (Mondays-Fridays 07:45-16:30)
Card Division: Tel: +27 51 401 2799 (Mondays-Fridays 07:45-16:30)
Protection Services duty room: +27 51 401 2634 (24 hours)

 

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