Community and Academic Perceptions of the University of Zambia Postgraduate Education As a Learning System for Local Community Sustainable Development in Zambia
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COMMUNITY AND ACADEMIC PERCEPTIONS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ZAMBIA POSTGRADUATE EDUCATION AS A LEARNING SYSTEM FOR LOCAL COMMUNITY SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN ZAMBIA BY SAMSON KANTINI Dissertation submitted to the University of Zambia in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the award of the Degree of Master of Education in Education and Development University of Zambia Lusaka 2012 a COPYRIGHT All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system or otherwise without prior written permission from the author or the University of Zambia. i DECLARATION I, Samson Kantini, do hereby declare that this piece of work is my own, and to the best of my knowledge was achieved through my own study and scientific research. Any published or unpublished work or materials of other person incorporated herein have been duly acknowledged, and that this work has not previously been presented at this or any other University in the World for similar or any other purposes. Name ............................................................................................................................. Signed ......................................................... Date .......................................................... ii CERTIFICATE OF APPROVAL This dissertation by Samson Kantini is approved as fulfilling partial requirements for the award of the Degree of Master of Education in Education and Development by the University of Zambia. Signed.................................................................Date........................................................................ Signed..................................................................Date....................................................................... Signed.................................................................Date........................................................................ iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Particular gratitude goes to my academic supervisors both in their personal and representative capacity sharing different political, institutional and racial borders, that is, Professor C.M Namafe from the University of Zambia and Professor Lynn Ilon from Seoul National University. In their infinite patience and passion for excellence, they took time to help me correct both my personal and academic faults and foibles that would otherwise have made this work not to make a grade. Further credit goes to each one of the individuals and organisations whose names I have not mentioned. Their names have not been itemised not because I forgot them. It is the best way of avoiding performing the common ritual of leaving out some names due to limitations of space. For their ethical, spiritual, material and intellectual support they rendered to me in various forms and functions which made this study possible, may the God(s) each one of them believe in richly bless them and enlarge their territory. iv DEDICATION This work is dedicated to my Kith and Kens, living and the living dead, as defenders and sources of the inspired expression that made this work complete. v ABSTRACT This study established whether or not the current postgraduate education as a learning system at the University of Zambia (UNZA) was seen by Zambian academics and local community members to be serving sustainable development needs of local communities in Zambia. This was achieved by firstly identifying sustainable development needs of local communities in Zambia. Secondly, the study established linkages between the then UNZA postgraduate education system and local community sustainable development needs. Thirdly, the study looked at how local knowledge and global knowledge was being interfaced in the UNZA postgraduate education system. In the context of the study, local knowledge was looked at as contextual and indigenous knowledge as well as understanding of oneself and the environment found in communities that are native to a particular geographical area. Global knowledge was viewed as expert knowledge attained through formalised study and exposure to knowledge systems beyond boundaries of a given community. Using both qualitative and quantitative research methods, data were collected using interview guides, observation checklist, Focus Group Discussions and document analysis. The target population was Zambian academics and community members at UNZA and Lusaka Province respectively. The sample size was sixty participants divided into groups of twenty across three categories: community members, lecturers and administrators, and students at postgraduate level across disciplines in different schools and departments of UNZA. In the analysis, these participants were categorised into three: community members, students and lecturers. The findings of the study revealed that postgraduate education as a learning system at the time of the study in the years 2011 to 2012 had linkages with local community development in Zambia. There were interfaces between local knowledge and global knowledge within the system. An in- depth analysis showed that while this was the case, these linkages were at that time very weak and the interfaces were malfunctioning. The malfunctioning of the interface between contextual and expert knowledge was a result of lacking a deliberate independent system that dealt with local and international networks. Such a system was necessary for ensuring that goals of local communities, the corporate world, governments and fellow learning institutions were taken care of by UNZA in the formulation and implementation of its curriculum. It was clear therefore that vi the absence of this kind of a system was posing serious challenges for UNZA postgraduate education as a learning system to meet sustainable development needs of local communities. Furthermore, a need for an innovation learning centre dubbed as Learnovation Center was identified and recommended. The Centre could help to strengthen the interface between local knowledge and global knowledge in the UNZA postgraduate learning system. This would be possible because UNZA would engage local communities and industries through this centre to develop, promote and patent indigenous knowledge systems to create products and systems that are locally relevant and have a global appeal. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Copyright ......................................................................................................................................... i Declaration ...................................................................................................................................... ii Certificate of Approval .................................................................................................................. iii Acknowledgement ........................................................................................................................ iv Dedication ..................................................................................................................................... iv Abstract ......................................................................................................................................... vi Table of Contents ………………………………………….………………………………...….viii List of Tables .................................................................................................................................. v List of Figures ................................................................................................................................. v Acronyms ..................................................................................................................................... xiii CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………. 1 1.1 Introduction ………………………….……………………………………………….........… 1 1.2 Background ..……………………………………………………………………........……… 1 1.3 Statement of the Problem ...…………………………………………………………......…… 6 1.4 Aim of the Study ........…………………………………………………………..................… 7 1.5 General Research Question ..…………………………………………...............…..........…... 8 1.6 Scope and Rationale of the Study ...........……………………………………………......…... 8 1.7 Operational Definitions of Concepts .…..………………………………………………...... 10 1.8 Structure of the Dissertation ...................…………………………………………….......… 19 1.9 Summary ...………………………………………………………………............................. 20 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW………….………………………………...….. 21 2.1 Introduction ………………………………………………………...……………..…..……. 21 2.2 Primary Education Vs Postgraduate Education in Development …………….…………..... 22 2.3 Foreign Knowledge Vs Local Knowledge in Education and Development ………….……. 24 2.4 State of Postgraduate Education and Development in Zambia ……………………….……. 31 2.5 Gap in Literature...........…..………………………………………………............................ 36 viii CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY ……………...………………………………...…. 37 3.1 Introduction............................................................................................................................. 37 3.2 Research Purpose.................................................................................................................... 37 3.3 Research Focus....................................................................................................................... 37 3.4 Research Design.....................................................................................................................