Developing a framework for the effective structuring and implementation of entrepreneurship education in Consumer Studies

Abstract

Entrepreneurship education can contribute beneficially to learners’ schooling and should be structured and implemented (within programmes or curricula) to facilitate these benefits. In the South African secondary school curriculum, only Consumer Studies includes significant entrepreneurship education. Despite this potential of Consumer Studies, entrepreneurship education benefits do not always reach learners, due to underprepared teachers and the ineffective implementation of the curriculum. The study aimed to explore how and to what extent entrepreneurship education is embedded in the intended and enacted curriculum for Consumer Studies, with the purpose of proposing a framework to provide guidance to teachers for the effective structuring and implementation of entrepreneurship education in Consumer Studies. A multi-phase sequential exploratory and descriptive mixed-methods research design, rooted in constructivism, was used. Document analysis, an online survey and focus group interviews were used for data collection. Initially, entrepreneurship education in the overall South African secondary school curriculum was explored. Subsequently, entrepreneurship education in the Consumer Studies curriculum was focused on, investigating (a) the potential value it contributes to the subject, (b) the extent to which the curriculum is structured to support trepreneurship education, and (c) how teachers implement it in practice. Phase 3 identified best practice for entrepreneurship education internationally, which was compared to the findings from the previous two phases. Based on the previous findings, a framework for the effective structuring and implementation of entrepreneurship education in Consumer Studies, was ultimately proposed. It was apparent from the findings that entrepreneurship education only appears infrequently, unstructured and in isolated subjects in South Africa. Furthermore, even though Consumer Studies has great potential to contribute value to learners’ lives and is well structured to support constructivist entrepreneurship education, it transpired that this potential does not always reach learners, owing to the ineffective structuring and implementation of the curriculum. This study revealed the dearth of well-structured entrepreneurship education as part of the South African secondary school curriculum, with the exception of Consumer Studies. We anticipate that the framework will enhance teachers’ implementation of entrepreneurship education in Consumer Studies, which should augment the benefits thereof for learners.

Summary in English, Xhosa and Zulu

Thuto ya bogwebi e ka tshwaela ka tsela e e mosola mo go ithuteng ga morutwana mme e tshwanetse go rulaganngwa le go diragadiwa (mo mananeong gongwe kharikhulamo) go gokaganya dipoelo tseno. Mo kharikhulamong ya dikolo tsa sekontari tsa Aforikaborwa, ke fela Dithuto tsa Badirisi tse di akaretsang thuto e e botlhokwa ya bogwebi. Le fa go ntse go na le bokgoni jono mo Dithutong tsa Badirisi, dipoelo tsa thuto ya bogwebi ga di fitlhelele barutwana ka gale ka ntlha ya barutabana ba ba sa ipaakanyang mo go lekaneng le tiragatso e e seng mosola ya kharikhulamo. Maikaelelo a thutopatlisiso e ne e le go sekaseka gore thuto ya bogwebi e tseneletse go le kana kang le gone jang mo kharikhulamong e e lebeletsweng le e e fetisitsweng ya Dithuto tsa Badirisi, ka maikaelelo a go tshitshinya letlhomeso la go tlamela barutabana ka kaedi ya go rulaganya le go diragatsa thuto ya bogwebi mo Dithutong tsa Badirisi ka tsela e e mosola. Go dirisitswe mokgwa wa patlisiso wa magatomantsi le o o kopaneng mme o theilwe mo go lebeleleng maitemogelo. Go dirisitswe tshekatsheko ya dikwalo, tshekatsheko ya mo inthaneteng mmogo le dipotsolotso tsa ditlhopha tse di rileng go kokoanya data. Kwa tshimologong go ne ga sekasekiwa thuto ya bogwebi mo kharikhulamong ya dikolo tsa sekontari tsa Aforikaborwa ka kakaretso. Morago ga moo, go ne ga lebelelwa thuto ya bogwebi mo kharikhulamong ya Dithuto tsa Badirisi, go sekasekiwa (a) boleng jwa bokgoni jo e bo tshwaelang mo serutweng, (b) gore kharikhulamo e rulagantswe go tshegetsa thuto ya bogwebi go fitlha fa kae, le (c) ka moo barutabana ba e diragatsang ka gona. Legato la 3 le supile ditiragatso tse di gaisang tsa thuto ya bogwebi boditšhabatšhaba, tse di neng tsa bapisiwa le diphitlhelelo go tswa kwa magatong a mabedi a a fetileng. Go ikaegilwe ka phitlhelelo tse di fetileng, go ne ga felelediwa go tshitshintswe letlhomeso la go rulaganya le go diragatsa thuto ya bogwebi ka bokgoni mo Dithutong tsa Badirisi. Go ne go bonala go tswa mo diphitlhelelong gore thuto ya bogwebi e tlhagelela fale le fale, e sa rulagana mme gape e le mo dirutweng tsele le tsele mo Aforikaborwa. Mo godimo ga moo, le fa Dithuto tsa Badirisi di na le bokgoni jo bogolo jwa go oketsa boleng mo matshelong a barutwana mme di rulagane sentle go ka tshegetsa thuto ya bogwebi e e ikaegang ka maitemogelo, go tlhageletse gore ga se gantsi bokgoni jono bo fitlhelelang barutwana, ka ntlha ya thulaganyo le tiragatso e e seng mosola ya kharikhulamo. Thutopatlisiso eno e senotse tlhaelo ya thuto ya bogwebi e e rulaganeng sentle jaaka karolo ya kharikhulamo ya dikolo tsa sekontari tsa Aforikaborwa, kwa ntle fela ga Dithuto tsa Badirisi. Re solofela gore letlhomeso le tlaa tokafatsa tiragatso ya barutabana ya thuto ya bogwebi mo Dithutong tsa Badirisi, tse di tshwanetseng go oketsa mesola mo barutwaneng.

Imfundo yezamabhizinisi (intrepreneurship education) ingalekelela kakhulu impela, ihlomulise umfundi emfundweni yakhe, futhi kumele ihleleke futhi iqaliswe (ngaphakathi ezinhlelweni zokufunda noma amakharikhulamu) ngendlela ezohlinzeka umfundi ngale mihlomulo. Kwikharikhulamu yezikole zamabanga aphezulu (amasekhondari) zaseNingizimu Afrika, yisiFundo Sezabathengi (Consumer Studies) kuphela esiqukethe ingxenye enkundlwana impela yemfundo yezamabhizinisi. Nakuba isiFundo Sezabathengi sihlinzeka ngalolu sizo, imfundo yezamabhizinisi ayivamisile ukufinyelela kubafundi, ngenxa yothisha abangavuthiwe kahle noma abangazilungiselele ngokwanele, kanye nokuqaliswa nokuqhutshwa kwekharikhulamu ngendlela engagculisi neze futhi engakhiqizi izithelo ezinhle. Lolu cwaningo kuhloswe ngalo ukuhlola nokuhlaziya ukuthi imfundo yezamabhizinisi ifakwe kanjani futhi kangakanani kwikharikhulamu ehlosiwe futhi esiphasisiwe yesiFundo Sezabathengi, ngenhloso yokwenza isiphakamiso sohlaka oluzolekelela futhi lube ngumhlahlandlela wothisha ekuhleleni kahle nokuqhuba imfundo yezamabhizinisi esiFundweni Sezabathengi. Kulolu cwaningo kwasetshenziswa idizayini yocwaningo ehlolayo ezigaba-ziningi ezilandelanayo kanye nedizayini yocwaningo esebenzisa izindlela ezixubile ezichazayo, ezigxile ku-constructivism. Ukuhlaziywa kwemibhalo, ucwaningokuhlola (isaveyi) lweinthanethi kanye nezimposamibuzo (interviews) ezigxile emaqenjini athile, kwasetshenziselwa ukuqoqa idatha. Ekuqaleni, kwahlolwa futhi kwahlaziywa imfundo yezamabhizinisi kwikharikhulamu yonkana yezikole zamabanga aphezulu zaseNingizimu Afrika. Emva kwalokho, kwagxilwa kwimfundo yezamabhizinisi esiFundweni Sezabathengi, kuphenywa (a) ubugugu nokubaluleka kwemfundo yezamabhizinisi kulesi sifundo, (b) izinga lokuhleleka kwekharikhulamu ukuze ikwazi ukweseka imfundo yezamabhizinisi, kanye (c) nokuthi othisha bangayiqalisa futhi bayiqhube kanjani ngokoqobo futhi ngendlela ephathekayo imfundo yezamabhizinisi. Isigaba 3 sahlonza inkambiso yemfundo yezamabhizinizi ephuma phambili emhlabeni wonke jikelele, eyaqhathaniswa nalokho okwatholwa ezigabeni ezimbili ezedlule. Ngokususela kulokho okwatholwa ezigabeni ezedlule, kwahlongozwa uhlaka lokuhlelwa nokuqaliswa kahle kwemfundo yezamabhizinisi esiFundweni Sezabathengi. Uma kubhekwa izinto ezatholakala ocwaningweni, kwabonakala ngokucacile ukuthi imfundo yezamabhizinisi yayithe gqwa gqwa laphaya nalaphaya, futhi itholakala ngendlela engahlelekile, ezifundweni ezithile, ezimbalwa eNingizimu Afrika. Ngaphezu kwalokho, nakuba isiFundo Sezabathengi singaba nomthelela omuhle kakhulu ezimpilweni zabafundi futhi sikulungele noma sihleleke kahle ukuze sikwazi ukweseka i-constructivist entrepreneurship education, kwahlaluka ukuthi lo mthelela omuhle awuvamisile nezeukufinyelela kubafundi, ngenxa yokungahlelwa kahle kanye nokungaqaliswa ngendlela efanele kwekharikhulamu. Lolu cwaningo lwabonisa ukuntuleka kwemfundo yezamabhizinisi ehleleke kahle, njengengxenye yekharikhulamu yezikole zamabanga aphezulu zaseNingizimu Afrika, ngaphandle kwesiFundo Sezabathengi. Sibheke ukuthi lolu hlaka lwenze ngcono ukuqaliswa nokuqhutshwa kwemfundo yezamabhizinisi ngaphansi kwesiFundo Sezabathengi, futhi lokho kuyokhulisa imihlomulo yemfundo yezamabhizinisi kubafundi.