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REPORT
6TH ANNUAL HIV AND AIDS EDUCATION COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE
Closing the gap: Integrating HIV and AIDS in the Higher Education Curriculum
This year the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University hosted the 6th Annual HEAIDS HIV
and AIDS Education Community of Practice on 16 - 17 March 2015 at the North Campus
Conference centre. The theme for the 2015 colloquium was “Closing the Gap: Integrating
HIV and AIDS in the Higher Education Curriculum.”
The CoP Steering Committee under the leadership of Prof Naydene de Lange, with Profs
Lebo Moletsane, Claudia Mitchell, Lesley Wood, Peggy Siyakwazi, Drs Dipane Hlalele and
Misheck Ndebele, and Ms Managa Pillay, planned and organized the CoP meeting.
Prof Paul Webb, acting Education Dean, welcomed
the
CoP
members
(which
comprised
of
21
representatives from 17 of South Africa’s HEIs:
NMMU, DUT, University of Mpumalanga, UJ, CUT,
NWU, UNIZULU, CPUT, SUN, TUT, RHODES, UWC,
Figure 1: Prof Paul Webb (acting dean of
Education) doing the welcome address
UFS, UL, UKZN, UP, WITS), HEAIDS staff, guest speakers Pierre Brouard from UP, Maryla
Bialobrzeski from SAIDE, and Dr Edna Rooth from Life Skills Africa, and guests Dr Khumalo
from the Department of Basic Education and Dr Sandile Williams from Department of Higher
Education and Training, to NMMU. In his address he reminded all of the importance of
focusing on the students and preparing them for the world of work in the context of HIV and
AIDS.
The keynote speaker, Pierre Brouard, from the
Centre of the Study of AIDS (CSA) at the University
of Pretoria, presented a paper, The role of teacher
educators and teachers in using HIV as a
springboard to a broader conversation about
differences, diversity, inclusivity and a “national”
identity, which set the scene for rich and meaningful
discussion around ‘closing the gap’.
Figure 2: Mr Pierre Brouard doing the opening
keynote address
In the next session of the CoP, titled Cultures of
sexual violence on campus, the ‘Girls leading
Change’ under the leadership of Prof De Lange,
presented Dialogue to address sexual violence on
campus. The 15 girls explained how they were
exposed to visual participatory approaches in the
pilot work, Networks for Change and Well-being:
Figure 3: The girls leading Change, from NMMU,
doing their presentation
Girl-led 'from the ground up' policy-making to
address sexual violence in Canada and South
Africa, to explore their experiences of sexual violence on campus, but also how to create
policy posters and action briefs to take action in addressing sexual violence on campus.
They spoke of their engagement with policy makers and how that had empowered them to
become activists for rights of girls and young women. Their presentation was praised and
several CoP members hoped to take up similar work at their institutions.
In the next session, Plugging the gap: Mapping the DHET-NSF projects at HEIs, Ms Managa
Pillay from HEAIDS presented Mapping the HIV curriculum integration Landscape (DHET NSF
proposals), explaining how different institutions had taken up the call for proposals to
further curriculum integration. This was followed by a session on Seeing the gap: working
with the exhibition, which included an interactive engagement with the exhibition that was
created by CoP members in 2014. Prof Claudia Mitchell, the facilitator, reminded the
Figure 4 and 5: The CoP exhibition and Dr Mwangi addressing the delegates at the launch of the
exhibition.
audience of the need to exhibit the work “over and over again”, to ensure that the message
of the exhibition reaches as many academics and students as possible. This session created
the space for the launch of the Exhibition, Seeing, believing and acting for change –
Integrating HIV and AIDS in higher education curricula, with Dr Mumbi Mwangi, a visiting
Carnegie Fellow currently at NMMU, addressing the delegates and speaking eloquently
about research as activism.
The second day of the CoP started with a discussion facilitated by Prof Wood, and which led
into the session, Life orientation as filling a gap? Stories from HEIs and TVETS. In this part of
the CoP Ms Maryla Bialobrzeski from SAIDE and Dr Edna Rooth from Life Skills Africa, spoke
about what is being done at the TVETS in terms of curriculum integration.
Figure 5 and 6: Mr Maryla Bialobrzeski (left) and Dr Edna Rooth (Right) addressing members at the CoP
Teacher educators and teachers were given a platform in the next
session, Innovative pedagogies for Life Orientation, where they shared
their experiences of teaching LO at their institutions. The teacher
educators included Dr Julialet Rens from NWU, Dr Lungile Masinga
from UKZN and teacher, Ms Farah Hendricks from Gelvandale High
school. These presentations demonstrated the use of interesting and
Figure 7: Dr Julialet Rens
from NWU
innovative pedagogies and how they could contribute to making a
difference in the classroom and lecture hall.
The proceedings of CoP concluded with an Annual General Meeting to discuss aspects of
importance to the CoP. A vote of thanks from Ms Pillay to the CoP members, also to
Vimbiso Okafor (NMMU) and Ms Theodora Chauke (HEAIDS) who helped with the logistics,
were given.
Prof Naydene de Lange, in her concluding the 6th Annual CoP meeting,
indicated her appreciation to HEAIDS for contributing to funding the CoP, to the Education
Deans Forum for their interest and support, and to the Deans of Education for funding their
representatives.
The HIV and AIDS Education Research Chair at NMMU will again host the HEAIDS HIV and
AIDS Education Community of Practice at NMMU in March 2016.