Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
Previous Archive
08 January 2021 | Story Charlene Stanley | Photo Charlene Stanley
Dr Matteo Grilli with his first book in front of the North Block on the Bloemfontein Campus.
Dr Matteo Grilli from the International Studies Group (ISG) became the second ISG scholar in just four years to receive a coveted P-rating from the NRF.

A P-rating (Prestigious Awards) by the National Research Foundation (NRF) is the holy grail for all young researchers at all South African universities and across all disciplines. It is a valuable tool for benchmarking local researchers against the best in the world. But it is hard to come by. Only one or two researchers are normally granted this sought-after standing each year. 

Dr Matteo Grilli, a young Italian historian from the International Studies Group (ISG), says he was “pleasantly surprised” when he recently got the nod from the NRF, attributing his P-rating to the “excellent training and support” that he received from the UFS, and specifically the ISG and its head, Prof Ian Phimister.  

Unique achievement for ISG
What makes this achievement even more significant, is that the ISG produced another P-rated scholar a mere four years ago (Dr Daniel Spence in 2016).

“For Prof Phimister to produce two P-rated researchers in such a short time is really an unbelievable achievement. I am not aware of any other department at any South African university that could achieve this,” says Dr Glen Taylor, Senior Director: Research Development. 

P-rating requirements
The NRF’s P category honours young researchers (normally younger than 35 years) who have held a doctorate or equivalent qualification for less than five years. Researchers in this group are recognised by all or the vast majority of reviewers as having demonstrated the potential to become future international leaders in their field based on exceptional research performance and output from their doctoral and/or early postdoctoral research careers.

UFS becoming a mecca for African studies
Dr Grilli produced his first book, Nkrumaism and African Nationalism: Ghana's Pan-African Foreign Policy in the Age of Decolonisation around two years ago, after being accepted as a postdoc scholar by the ISG in 2015.

This unique research centre was established towards the end of 2012, with the aim of attracting and recruiting high-calibre postgraduate students and postdoctoral fellows from all over the world to the UFS. 

“Working at the ISG has undoubtedly been the best experience of my life and made me the solid scholar I am today. At the ISG, I found the best working environment you could possibly have in an academic setting, even compared to the Northern Hemisphere,” Dr Grilli says.

He believes the centre’s strength lies in the “exceptional exchange” that researchers have with their peers, allowing them to not only master their research subject but also to learn from other members’ research and methodologies.

“In my view, the ISG is concretely contributing to bringing the centre of African studies back to the African continent,” he enthuses.

Passion for Southern African politics
Dr Grilli specialises in the political history of Ghana and Southern Africa, focusing on transnational histories of African liberation movements, the history of Pan-Africanism, the Cold War and decolonisation in Africa, and the history of European migrations in sub-Saharan Africa (particularly Italian communities in Ghana and the Congo DRC). 

He is currently working on a book project about the history of Pan-Africanism, Socialism, and Nationalism in Southern Africa, particularly in Lesotho, eSwatini, and Botswana.

Asked what advice he had for young researchers, he echoes the counsel he received from Prof Phimister at the start of his tenure at the ISG: 

“Always aim high. Don’t be intimidated by the fact that there is a lot of competition in the academia, nor that you might be disadvantaged because you work in the Global South. If you work hard, your research will speak for itself and you will be able to publish solid works even in the most prestigious journals of the Northern Hemisphere.”

News Archive

An education system based on hope is what South Africa needs – Dr Beryl Botman
2016-05-26

Description: Hope revised Tags: Hope revised

Dr Beryl Botman, a postdoctoral research
fellow at the IRSJ, with Dr Willy Nel research associate
at the IRSJ and lecturer at the UFS
Faculty of Education.

HOPE is tangible and concrete construct that should be rooted in the learning and training of teachers,” said Dr Beryl Botman, a postdoctoral research fellow at the Institute for Reconciliation and Social Justice (IRSJ).

She presented her research paper Educators, praxis, and hope: A philosophical analysis of post-apartheid teacher education policy, based on the theoretical ideologies of Paulo Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed. She explores ways in which oppression has been justified, and how it has been overcome through a mutual process between the oppressor and the oppressed, drawing on Paolo Freire’s theories and practices. The presentation was held at the University of the Free State’s (UFS) Faculty of Education, on the Bloemfontein campus on 13 May 2016.

From oppression to hope

Hope should be an educational construct for teacher education in South Africa. Dr Botman asserts that epistemology and ontology should be inseparable, as they are pivotal to an education system that is transformational.

The recent country-wide student protests and demonstrations are an indicant that education institutions need to seek understanding of mechanisms that fuel social conflict. Dr Botman claims that vast social inequalities make the process of democratisation difficult thus hindering transformation. She states that a critical consciousness is important for all South Africans, but more so for educators; it can be used as a tool to understanding the mechanisms of social conflict.

“Self-reflection and self-critique is vital for educators, we need to understand that we do not have all the answers because we ever-evolving beings, working on understanding ourselves and the people around us,” said Dr Botman.

The notion of hope
“I am a farmer. I have no hope for a future that is different from today. This quotation comes from Paulo Freire’s work," said Dr Botman. She said that the South African context and environment is similar. She said that people cannot live for today; one should live for tomorrow if hope is to manifest itself.

South African education environment needs to adopt a progressive consciousness that is future orientated, “You need to be hopeful, if you are radical. You need to be able to envision a new society and a new world,” said Dr Botman.

“You cannot only denounce the present, you need to also announce your hopes for a new society. South Africa needs education systems built on understanding. Although change is difficult, it is necessary for transformation,” Dr Botman added.

What makes hope educational?
“Hope is a vision for a tomorrow that is different, and vital for a transformative education system. To get out of a state of despair, people need to educate their hope. Lately, the issue of white privilege has been brought to the fore. You need to educate your hope, so that you understand the reality of others but, more importantly, of yourself,” said Dr Botman.

Dr Botma added that teacher education needs to adopt a Freirean pedagogy with a strong philosophy based on hope. The agency of teachers can either be hopeful or without hope. It is vital that education promotes hope.

“Teachers need to rely on their existential experience, the experiences of others, and the experiences of the children or students they teach. An understanding of all these experience reinforces the idea that people are life-long learners, always learning and adapting to society’s needs,” said Dr Botman.

Teachers as agents of hope

Dr Botman stated that current South African education policy is directed towards transformation but it does not stipulate means to achieve this objective. Further, she argues that educators need to put greater emphasis on self-knowledge, self-reflection, and self-education. Connecting with teachers, parents, students and the community engages with their self-knowledge and reflection.

Reorientation of teacher education
Dr Botman concluded by mentioning that rethinking ontological and epistemological aspects of education is important, and should be a pivotal point of teacher education. A renewed vision of hope-orientated philosophy and pedagogy needs to be adopted by the education institutions. A praxis, which is an informed action, when a balance between theory and practice is achieved. There is a need for an inclusive exploration of education philosophies and education systems not only European and Western but also African and Eastern as well.

We use cookies to make interactions with our websites and services easy and meaningful. To better understand how they are used, read more about the UFS cookie policy. By continuing to use this site you are giving us your consent to do this.

Accept