Higher Education Research in African Contexts: Reflections from Fieldwork in Flagship Universities in South Africa, Mozambique and Ethiopia

Autor/inn/en	Yallew, Addisalem Tebikew; Dipitso, Paul Othusitse
Titel	Higher Education Research in African Contexts: Reflections from Fieldwork in Flagship Universities in South Africa, Mozambique and Ethiopia
Quelle	In: Higher Education Research and Development, 41 (2022) 3, S.967-980 (14 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Zusatzinformation	ORCID (Yallew, Addisalem Tebikew) ORCID (Dipitso, Paul Othusitse)
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0729-4360
DOI	10.1080/07294360.2021.1877626
Schlagwörter	Foreign Countries; Higher Education; Educational Research; Field Studies; Ethics; Data Collection; Doctoral Students; Research Projects; South Africa; Mozambique; Ethiopia + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Ausland; Hochschulbildung; Hochschulsystem; Hochschulwesen; Bildungsforschung; Pädagogische Forschung; Praxisforschung; Ethik; Data capture; Datensammlung; Doctoral studies; Doctorate studies; Student; Students; Doctoral candidate; Doktorandenprogramm; Schüler; Schülerin; Studentin; Doktorand; Doktorandin; Forschungsvorhaben; Südafrika; Süd-Afrika; Republik Südafrika; Südafrikanische Republik; Mosambik; Äthiopien
Abstract	This article is written with the recognition that, as higher education studies evolve as a multidisciplinary area of inquiry, there is a need to reflect on the theoretical and practical concerns emerging from conducting higher education research. This is especially the case for early-career researchers who enter this relatively new field of study. This article attempts to explore the fieldwork component of the research process considering our experiences as early-career researchers conducting PhD studies in four universities in southern and eastern Africa. The article focuses on issues related to ethics, gaining and negotiating access to the field, and dealing with positionality during fieldwork. While reflecting on these experiences, we also attempted to explore if there are any fieldwork dynamics that are peculiar to the African higher education context that may be considered during data collection. Reflecting on our experiences, we have argued that, in some institutions, necessary procedures for researching higher education need to be in place, while with the ones that have institutionalised mechanisms the procedures adopted need to be aligned with contextual realities and should focus on ethical considerations rather than protecting the reputation of universities. Our fieldwork experience has also made us realise that the advice given to early-career researchers both in the literature, seminars and courses they attend may not adequately prepare them for the unpredictable fieldwork dynamics. In that regard, we have suggested that there is a need to prepare emerging researchers to be open-minded, flexible, reflexive, innovative and adaptable when going out to the field. (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2024/1/01