Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items

Department of Architecture celebrates international recognition

22 December 2023 | Story Leonie Bolleurs | Photo Supplied

3D-Printed Sculptural Artefact — The 3D-printed sculptural artefact entered by a group of third-years from the UFS.

A group of third-year students from the UFS Department of Architecture exhibited their work at the 2023 Venice Biennale, an international architecture exhibition showcasing ground-breaking architectural work from various countries around the world.

The contributions of world-class architects, researchers, and institutions in architecture are exhibited at this exhibition. “To be featured in this exhibition means that we are recognised by the international community as one of the leading architectural learning sites in South Africa and the work being produced at the institution deserves international acclaim,” says Phadi Mabe, Lecturer in the department.

The students representing the university with Mabe and participating in this event are Anya Strydom, Yamkelwa Simelane, Jan Truter, and Khalipha Radebe.

Mabe says the artefact produced from this project is a 3D-printed sculptural device that shows the translation between sound and object and illustrates the sound data through 3D-printed forms. “The sound structures of South Africa’s languages are mapped three-dimensionally to create a visual and spatial record of language. This unique artefact demonstrates that there are uncharted terrains in architecture, suggesting alternative dimensions that can be extrapolated to show that architecture can represent the intangible” he explains.

The UFS artefact was one of six design artefacts selected for the 18th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, which opened to the public in May and closes on 26 November 2023.

Hosted by the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture, the competition involved an emphasis on students incorporating African traditional architecture into their design models.

News Archive

South Campus delivers out-of-the-box solutions

2017-11-07

The AIO device as deployed in an IBP school.
Photo: Elrieka van Dalen

The IDEAS Lab on our South Campus supports learners in 83 schools by means of academic videos transmitted via the Internet Broadcast Project (IBP) and its own custom-built All-in-One (AIO) device. The project is a collaboration between UFS and the Department of Education in the Free State. It includes support for Mathematics, Physical Science, Life Science, Economics, Accounting, and Geography.

The AIO was purpose-built by the team at IDEAS Lab to facilitate the delivery of video lectures from highly-qualified teachers to identified schools. It comprises a projector, speakers, and a computer, which are housed in a custom-made, hard-wearing frame. The AIO is then set up at each school to which lessons are broadcast.

On-the-job training for educators

Educators have not been overlooked, either. UFS was the very first university to provide an Advanced Certificate in Teaching in a fully digital format, the ACT Online programme. It is designed for practicing teachers to upskill themselves in order to better address the needs in the classroom, not only advancing their career, but strengthening their knowledge, competencies, and subject specialisation as well. Ultimately, this leads to an improved quality of education, which has a profound impact on multitudes of students around South Africa.

CSIR joint initiative

Coupled with these projects is a new joint initiative termed ICT For Education. This project sees the CSIR collaborating with the national Department of Education, the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform, and the UFS. For this project, 24 primary and secondary schools in South Africa were identified to promote technological advancement in the education sector. Tablet computers have been allocated and already deployed at these schools, to learners as well as nearly 400 teachers.

South Campus is involved in the training of the teachers and learners in the use of the tablets in the classroom and other educational opportunities. In addition, training for 48 unemployed young people who will be providing first-line support began in March at a school in Thaba Nchu. The course on IT support is structured in such a way that anyone in the community can take it, starting out with topics such as My role in the community.

Back

Economic and Management Sciences

Education

Health Sciences

The Humanities

Law

Natural and Agricultural Sciences

Theology and Religion

Open Distance Learning

Business School

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