Perceptions of academic workload with particular reference to research : a cross sectional survey of lecturing staff at the Port Elizabeth Technikon

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT:Change characterises life in the early twenty first century and higher education is noexception. Higher education in South Africa is currently in a considerable state of flux whichultimately is actualised at institutional level. It is academic staff who encounter these changesfirst hand. Technikon lecturers, in particular, are faced with additional challenges not faced bytheir university counterparts - they have been called upon to change from a primarilyvocational to an academic alignment as a result of technikons being given the right to awarddegrees.This study conducts a cross sectional survey of academic staff at the Port ElizabethTechnikon to identify their academic workload, with particular reference to their researchfunction. It also seeks to establish whether lecturers consider themselves to be adequatelyprepared for their research function.A review of the literature reveals that lecturers in higher education are involved in a widevariety of activities, the main ones being teaching, research, service, and scholarship. Theliterature review also shows that in overseas institutions with missions similar to thetechnikons, lecturers experienced changes to their workload as a result of the restructuring ofhigher education.The empirical study shows that academic staff at the Port Elizabeth Technikon have much incommon with their international peers in terms of the changes and pressures that have beenexperienced. The work reality for lecturers at the named institution includes all the traditionalelements associated with being academic: teaching, research, service and scholarship.Although research is a new function, this has been positively embraced by most staff and thatin most cases lecturers consider themselves to be adequately prepared for this function. The empirical study also shows that more than one third of the respondents do not support theinstitutional vision of becoming the first choice technological university of South Africa.Further, the study shows that, in common with other studies, staff were of the opinion that theinstitution undervalues teaching and that research attracts more recognition and rewards.Finally, it shows that significant numbers of staff work in excess of 50 hours per week andcarry teaching loads that are greater than the institutional guidelines.Recommendations are made on the basis of these findings and a further avenue of research issuggested.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University