By: Nkosinathi Mkhungo

Nkosinathi Mkhungo — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 15:33:01 +0000

Great stuff! however, I am quite sure that those who prefer contact institution to those open distance education & FET as their first choice must be having their own reasons which may be valid upon close scrutiny such as, for instance, the fact that most students are not well informed how to handle the challenges attendant to the ODL system, and therefore feel more comfortable with contact institutions where they will be rescued immediately by their lecturers and support staff whenever they get or feel overpowered by the challenges attendant to higher education. I am a unisa student for instance and i do believe that more still need to be done interms of support given to the students to not only enable them to deal with these challenges triumphantly but also to make them aware of the existence of these challenges. This therefore speak to the question of not only the availability but also the awareness to students of the existence of and easy access to student advisers, students counselors, easy access to lecturers through various available medium or channels of communications etc. Loss of assignment remains a big issue that need urgent attention. Application and Registration facilities need to be enhanced made more user-friendly to avoid extremely long queues in an open arrears in excruciatingly hot weather or freezing cold and rain as we have seen in the recent past years including last year at unisa in Durban where (prospective) students had even had to sleep over outside the institution thereby risking their lives . The streamlining and upgrading need of application system also applies to NSFAS application system. How about, for instance, making it easy to apply for NSFAS, check status and receive application result online and even signing NSFAS agreement form online? current student ought not be expected to follow in the minutest details all the rigmarole of anual renewal of NSFAS application process. The system should be made to make it easy for student applying for the secend, third and forth time for instance as opposed to those who apply for the first time in respect of whom you may, understandably so, need all their relevant particulars. regards! STUDENT

By: Mathew E. Egu

Mathew E. Egu — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 11:23:17 +0000

Education utopia is really eldorado. There is no agreed definition to what a university’s quality should be. That in its very nature is academic. As for me, & many of your students, Unisa is indeed idyllic. Some months back I read one of your great speech, where you cited a writing problem in space. Americans spent billions of dollars to write this wrong, however, Russian cosmonauts solved the gravitational problem with ink fluids, by writing with pencils. Unisa has built futures without prejudice. Thanks.

Comments on: All education systems are critical to South Africa’s growth

By: Nkosinathi Mkhungo

By: Mathew E. Egu