The Quality Assurance section of Unisa’s College of Accounting Sciences (CAS) hosted the 2021 virtual Teaching and Learning (T&L) Festival on 15 July 2021, to honour and celebrate staff members who have been nominated to represent the college at the institution’s T&L 2021 festival. The theme for this year is Academically resilient.

In his welcome address, CAS Acting Deputy Executive Dean, Dr Moses Hlongoane, took his cue from the Principal and Vice-Chancellor (VC) Professor Puleng LenkaBula’s visit to the college on 24 June 2021, in which she highlighted concerns around issues of staff morale since the implementation of the lockdown measures. Hlongoane said: “It is important that we take care of each other in the college. Staff members need to take care of themselves or take leave when needs be to ensure that we are all at our best. Many staff members have had loved ones and friends pass away and as such we need to look after ourselves.”

“Excellence in teaching and learning must be celebrated. We need to appreciate and reward excellence in our college.”

Hlongoane congratulated Professor Bienkie Shuttleworth and Janelle Verster, who have been nominated in the college to represent it at the institution’s 2021 festival. He thanked them for being ambassadors for the college and wished them well in their representation journey.

2021 ITC results are a clear indication of academic resilience

Vincent Mohau Motholo CA(SA), RA (Guest speaker, Partner and Director: SNG Grant Thornton, and Chairman: SAICA Board)

The guest speaker at the festival held by CAS was Vincent Mohau Motholo, CA(SA), RA, Partner and Director of SNG Grant Thornton and Chairman of the SAICA Board. Motholo was a senior lecturer at CAS, where he also served on the executive committee of the college. He spoke firmly on resilience.

“Resilience is a very powerful human quality, it is found in a person who will stop at nothing to realise their goals,” said Motholo. He continued: “As Unisa and as a college, you should be proud of your achievements. As you celebrate your achievements, continue to challenge yourselves not to become complacent, but to remain committed to improving the service that you provide to your students as well as improving your working environment.”

Motholo remarked that at SAICA they are encouraged by Unisa, and particularly CAS, with the performance of their students in the 2021 Initial Test of Competence (ITC) exam sitting. “Your student performance was impressive, as from the 983 African candidates that passed the ITC exams, 315 were from Unisa. This is by far the highest contribution by a university and shows Unisa’s commitment to the transformation of the accounting profession,” he asserted.

According to Motholo, the performance that CAS students demonstrated at the 2021 ITC exam sitting is a testament that the staff and students are indeed academically resilient, and the 2021 theme is fitting. Motholo stated: “Amidst the challenges that the Covid-19 pandemic has exposed us to, your students and lecturers refused to accept the status quo and stopped at nothing to reach their goals. I can only imagine the challenges that the class of 2020 and lecturers faced in their quest to achieve academic excellence.” He concluded: “It is for this reason that I say Unisa’s mission and vision of being the African university in the service of humanity becomes relevant during such a time.”

Delighted about their nominations

Janelle Verster Category: Excellence Award in Student Support

Prof Bienkie Shuttleworth Category: Excellence Award for Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

Verster, who has been nominated in the category of Excellence Award in Student Support, expressed her gratitude on her nomination. “Thank you to the colleagues who believed in me and supported me along the way. It is a privilege to be nominated for and take part in the CAS T&L awards event,” she said. For her, the process of completing the portfolio and presentation is also an opportunity to learn.

She maintained: “Sometimes, one must go ahead and do something that one has never done before in order to learn new skills. Furthermore, it may feel like a risk to put your ideas out in the open due to fear of failure, but feedback from colleagues on these ideas can really be encouraging and inspire one to not give up.” Verster said that she has also learnt that if they collaborate as scholars, they can together make a difference in the world. “Thank you to all my teammates at Unisa; I learn from you every day.”

For Shuttleworth, who has been nominated in the category of Excellence Award for Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, the nomination means that CAS academics are not only graduating the next generation of potential chartered accountants, but are also delivering master’s and doctoral students who address current social and economic problems in the country and continentally. She said: “I want to encourage departments to nominate the many prolific scholars that we have in the college for next year’s awards.”

She added: “On a personal level, I was encouraged by many staff members in the college, which again made me realise how we all stand together for the greater good of our college and university.”

Messages of support and encouragement poured in for the nominees, college and its management from staff members. They further acknowledged them for their dedication, contribution and passion in moving the college and institution forward.

*By Ntsako Mdhluli, Communication and Marketing Specialist, College of Accounting Sciences