Response to national policy imperatives for nursing education : a Western Cape case study

Curationis 33(1): 42-48 Since South Africa became a democratic country in 1994, the higher education sector has been faced with the challenge of transformation and restructuring. The Minister of Education in the Education White Paper 3 stated that “the higher education sys­ tem must be transformed to redress the past inequities, to serve a new social order, to meet pressing national needs and to respond to realities and opportunities” (Depart­ ment of Education, 1997:2). Higher education institutions were faced with the realities of impending mergers and collaborations across programmes and between universi­ ties and technikons. The Council on Higher Education (CHE) submitted a report to the Minister of Education in February 2002 which proposed the establishment of new institutional and organizational forms within regions (Department of Education, 2002: 7-8). The Minister announced changes in higher education based on his assessment of the proposals submitted by the CHE which resulted in the reduction of the number of higher education institutions from 3 6 to 21 (Department of Education, 2002:11-20). There were specific implications for nursing education in the Western Cape. In De­ cember 2002 the Minister of Education, Kader Asmal announced that with effect from 2005, the University of the Western Cape (UWC) and a new institution, the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) would be the only enrolling institutions for undergraduate nursing education in the Western Cape. The Cape Higher Educa­ tion Consortium (CHEC) instead proposed the establishment of a common teaching platform for nursing education in the region to meet the objectives of national and provincial government and to make optimal use of the combined strengths of the three universities and the technikon. This proposal was accepted by the minister and the common teaching platform, a unique form of collaboration, was established in 2005. Correspondence address Mrs F.M Daniels School of Nursing University of the Western Cape Private Bag X I7 Bellville 7535 Tel: (021)959-2443 Fax:(021)959-1488 Email: fdaniels@uwc.ac.za Kev words Transformation, restructuring, nursing education, common teaching platform, undergraduate nursing, higher educa­ tion.

Since South Africa became a democratic country in 1994, the higher education sector has been faced with the challenge of transformation and restructuring.The Minister o f Education in the Education White Paper 3 stated that "the higher education sys tem must be transformed to redress the past inequities, to serve a new social order, to meet pressing national needs and to respond to realities and opportunities" (Depart ment of Education, 1997:2).Higher education institutions were faced with the realities o f impending mergers and collaborations across programmes and between universi ties and technikons.The Council on Higher Education (CHE) submitted a report to the Minister o f Education in February 2002 which proposed the establishment of new institutional and organizational forms within regions (Department of Education, 2002: 7-8).The Minister announced changes in higher education based on his assessment of the proposals submitted by the CHE which resulted in the reduction o f the number of higher education institutions from 3 6 to 21 (Department of Education, 2002:11-20).
There were specific implications for nursing education in the Western Cape.In De cember 2002 the Minister of Education, Kader Asmal announced that with effect from 2005, the University of the Western Cape (UWC) and a new institution, the Cape Peninsula University o f Technology (CPUT) would be the only enrolling institutions for undergraduate nursing education in the Western Cape.The Cape Higher Educa tion Consortium (CHEC) instead proposed the establishment o f a common teaching platform for nursing education in the region to meet the objectives o f national and provincial government and to make optimal use o f the combined strengths of the three universities and the technikon.This proposal was accepted by the minister and the common teaching platform, a unique form o f collaboration, was established in 2005.

Introduction and background
Policy articulation and policy contes tation regarding higher education was highly debated during South Africa's transition from apartheid to democracy.Thereafter, during the post apartheid period, there was evidence of extensive policy development and implementa tion affecting higher education.Rigor ous efforts were made by the newly elected political party, the African Na tional Congress, to unify and stream line the education system.Redress of inequities was high on the agenda of the government through the Depart ment o f Education.The highly conten tious higher education policies of the apartheid government were abandoned and new policies to ensure that the higher education system became more functional, relevant and responsive to societal needs were adopted.Consequently, since the beginning of the 21st century, the higher education sector throughout South Africa has been faced with the challenge of trans formation and restructuring.Institu tions were faced with the realities of impending mergers and collaborations across institutions and programmes, a phenomenon not unique to South Af rica but also to the rest of the world.
Jansen (2003:29-35) describes these mergers within the transitional context as a product o f the complex interplay between governmental macro politics and institutional micro politics.Jansen observed that all mergers in higher edu cation proceeded despite intense po litical resistance from constituencies, com pared to other state-m andated cases where institutions decided not to merge, merged and subsequently de linked or merged in unforeseen ways.The nursing education case study in the Western Cape highlighted in this article is one example of variation from the type o f collaborations originally planned for higher education institu tions.
T he p u rp o se o f this article is to contextualise and describe how nurs ing education in the Western Cape re sponded, in terms of its application, to the higher education policies o f trans formation and restructuring, against the backdrop of the impact o f apart heid on the education system o f South Africa.The article also explores the concepts of collaboration and mergers and highlights the international and national experiences o f these ap proaches in higher education.

South African education system during the period of apartheid
To contextualize and understand the current, changing educational system in South Africa in general and the higher education system in particular, it is essential to study the past socio political and economic climate o f this country and the specific impact it had on it's citizens.
The political ethos o f South Africa has been shaped by racism and segrega tion.The official policy o f apartheid began when the South African National Party won the 1948 General Election (Brown, 2004:169).According to Brown, the political regime which followed was based on "a p a rtn e s s" w hich in Afrikaans means "apartheid", a sepa ration of the people of South Africa into racial classifications o f White, Black, Coloured or Indian.Numerous laws which supported the dominance o f White over non-white people were passed, and these shaped the lives of South African citizens.This meant that Whites and non-whites (Coloureds, Blacks and Indians) lived separately, married only into their own racial groups, were schooled sepa rately, and had unequal and separate access to amenities.Consequently the development o f non-white people was restricted, leaving the population of South Africa divided into the white "haves", and non-white "have-nots." By denying basic human rights to some citizens, apartheid laws and homeland policies created a deeply entrenched system o f racial discrimination and in equity in S outh A frica (B row n, 2004:171).Furthermore, denying access to education at all levels contributed to poverty, crime and violence and in hibited societal development in gen eral.Lack of access to amenities meant lack o f resources to uplift the educa tional experience o f non-whites and thus the best paying jobs were at the feet of educated whites.In this way the cycle o f poverty, inequity, polarities, fragmentation, discrimination and sepa rateness was perpetuated.

Higher education post apartheid
In 1994, South Africa was declared a democratic country under the govern ance of the African National Congress.However, after more than a decade of democracy, South Africa is still plagued with severe socio-political and eco nomic challenges, including challenges in the education sector.Jansen (2003:29-31) puts forward the following transitional conditions and challenges faced by higher education at the end of the apartheid period:  , 2002:11 -20).This announcement had specific impli cations for nursing education in the Western Cape.

Transformation and restructuring of higher education through collaborations and mergers
Clarifying the concepts of collaboration and mergers Collaborations and mergers are not synonymous concepts.This section attempts to provide clarity in differen tiating between the two concepts, and uses concrete examples from the policy decisions around the transformation and restructuring o f the higher educa tion system in South Africa to illustrate their application.

Collaboration in higher education
Collaboration implies a partnership or team work.This refers to institutions in a region that remain separate, but combine their expertise, efforts and infrastructural resources in the deliv ery of higher education programmes.
The Minister o f Education envisaged that collaboration in programme devel opment, delivery and rationalisation would result in enhancing diversity in the provision o f higher education pro grammes and reducing costs within the region.Furthermore, the collaborative use of academic expertise and human resources w ould stren g th en p ro grammes.Infrastructural collaborations between higher education institutions would contribute to the efficient use of facilities and resources for teaching, learning and research.Such transfor mation would ensure the development of a coherent system and contribute to addressing the social, educational, eco nomic and political challenges within the higher education system (Depart ment of Education, 2001:68-71).
The implementation o f collaboration is however understood to be highly com plex.One or more institutions involved may feel that the collaboration will lead to a loss for their particular institution, which may lead to resistance.Leatt et al (2002:4-6) furthermore elabo rates on the argument noted in the Edu cation White Paper 3, that the transi tion from apartheid to democracy re quires a review of practices, institutions and values in terms of their fitness for the new democratic era.Higher educa tion must address the need for a re structured national system which re flects the ratio o f the general popula tion in terms of demography in its staff and students.It must further address the regional needs for economic and social development, and the need for a fully articulated education system which serves the needs o f learners.
ii) The second reason for collaboration is to increase operational efficiency and the effectiveness o f institutions.This includes the merger o f routine admin istrative and service functions that will result in lower costs and the pooling of resources for example libraries and in formation and communication technol ogy (Leatt et al 2002:4-6).
It was assumed that there was duplica tion of effort and resources in nursing programmes offered in the Western Cape as well as in other provinces re sulting in inefficiency.According to Hay, Fourie & Hay (2001:100-108) the Education Minister at the time alluded to the fact that all institutions were try ing to do the same thing.According to Leatt & Pretorius (2004:7) higher edu cation institutions "behave like autono mous, self-sufficient, and highly com petitive silos" which they argue are the remnants of apartheid.Instituting com mon teaching platforms is not only an attempt at overcoming the "silo-effect" but a response to the globalization of knowledge in the world of scholarship (Leatt & Pretorius, 2004:7).
Hay, Fourie & Hay (2001:102) cautioned that institutional collaborations and mergers are a thorny issue which cre ate uncertainties amongst staff because of possible downsizing and the need for staff to make paradigm shifts due to institutional change.They further ar gue that mergers may create a clash of institutional cultures in terms of their educational philosophies and institu tional priorities.Where there are qual ity differences, one partner might fear that their reputation might be tarnished.for a common teaching platform for undergraduate nursing education in the Western Cape was drawn up by a project team.This document was pre sented to the CHEC Board o f Directors to be approved and adopted, and ta bled for approval by the Senates and Councils o f each participating institu tion.This process however was only completed after several recommended revisions served at constituted meet ings and passed through all the afore m en tio n ed co m m ittees (C H EC , 2006:10).
Planning for the establishment of the common teaching platform required representation from all participating institutions.Several working groups were formed after the proposal for the collaboration was accepted.These working groups were tasked with pre paring the curriculum, planning for the clinical component o f the programme and for resources, amongst other.
The MOU is recognised as the binding mechanism for collaboration o f CHEC member institutions who, by virtue of their autonomy otherwise would not be obliged to make critical decisions that "limits their autonomy", but which are necessary for effective collaboration (Leatt et al, 2002:4-6).The MOU indi cates, directs, prescribes, defines and restricts by virtue o f agreement on policy, operational and contractual is sues pertaining to the collaboration.After it was signed by all member insti tutions, indicating their acceptance of the content o f the MOU, it became the basis and guide for the regional under graduate nursing platform and collabo ration (CHEC, 2006:10). The

Summary
It was imperative that the education system in South Africa be transformed, resized and reshaped, to redress past inequities, be applicable to the new social order post apartheid and to re spond to the financial state within the education sector and the country as a whole.The thread through the general history o f the education system in South Africa, higher education in gen eral and nursing education in particu lar, illustrates that change in the edu cation system was unavoidable.The challenge however is to evaluate the expanse and degree to which true trans formation has actually taken place.

Conclusion
Through this article, the author has at tempted to describe the context o f the policy changes in the higher education system and how the Western Cape re sponded to the decisions affecting nursing education in the region.It is clear that although the Minister o f Edu cation announced that one institution would be the enrolling institution for undergraduate nursing in the Western Cape, the CHEC proposal of a common teaching platform was viewed as a vari ant of the M inister's decision and was adopted as the Western C ape's re sponse to transformation and restruc turing of nursing education for the re gion.
The author also clarified the concepts of collaboration and mergers in higher education and shared some interna tional and national experiences of col laboration and mergers.This article is the first o f a series of articles planned for publication based on the author's PhD study which evaluates the effec tiveness o f the regional collaboration for the common teaching platform for undergraduate nurses in the Western Cape. SORTIUM (CHEC) 2006: (Unpub lished).Integrated Planning framework and Memorandum o f understanding: A common teaching Platform for Under graduate Nursing in the Western Cape.FU SI, MX 2004: The effects o f higher education mergers on the result ant curricular o f the combined institu tions.South African Journal o f Higher Education.18(1): 98-110.