CLAW humanised education and transformative curriculum development and review guidelines

Abstract

Barring the work of a few exceptional departments and individuals here and there, universities are incapable of addressing precisely those problems that most preoccupy our societies today. Granted, universities rightly regard themselves as playing a key role in preserving intellectual, academic, and cultural traditions. This, however, should not be taken to be an acceptable excuse for not dealing with fundamental social injustices and discrepancies— problems often deemed to lie outside the scope of a university’s legitimate interests.1 The College of Law (CLAW) Humanized Legal Education and Transformative Curricullum Guidelines was developed to articulate the vision for the humanisation and transformation of legal education as articulated in the 2011 CLAW Curriculum Transformation Statement. The CLAW Curriculum Transformation Statement officially unveiled at a Stakeholder’s Lekgotla held at the Burgers Park Hotel, Pretoria, 15 August – 16 August 2011 Second, to implement Unisa’s policies regarding curriculum transformation. This vision was developed in accordance with a report compiled by a task team and an expert from another university who proposed guidelines for the inclusion of diversity in the curriculum (Du Preez et al., 2012). Third, the CLAW by this implementation guidelines takes cognizance of the recommendations of the 2015 Durban Curriculum Transformation Summit that resulted into the 2015 Durban Statement on Transformation in Higher Education. In terms of the Durban Statement on Transformation it was agreed, amongst others, that: that Higher Education is a public commodity; Universities’ role is to help the society address inequalities and other social ills that may prevail as a result of lack of education; Curriculum change is central and indispensable to the universities transformation agendas; Universities must take into account that transformation is multi-dimensional and complex. The Summit participants also acknowledged a number of faultlines and the painfully slow pace at which transformation is happening in the country, and therefore called for action to be taken to address many of the anomalies including sufficiently situating HEIs curricular and different knowledge forms within the African and the global South contexts.2 Fourth, to take into account and implement the relevant recommendations of the South African Human Right Commission Report : Transformation at Public Universities in South Africa relating to curriculum humanisation and transformation. The SAHRC has amongst others bemoaned: “The lack of institutional will to transform university cultures in some universities; poor integration of the transformation project at all levels of institutional life”; “The slow progress in changing the demographics of academic staff (particularly senior management staff) and university management in some universities toward more representivity and progression programs for identified staff”; “The persisting subcultures of discrimination and domination within universities”; and others.