Mail & Guardian
Mail & Guardian
Mark Paterson

Creator

Mark Paterson

Mark Paterson is a communications and policy consultant, writer and editor.

(John McCann/M&G)

African universities are ‘diploma mills’

To fix this problem, clarity is required regarding the different purposes of education and therefore of educational institutions

  • Mark Paterson
  • Thierry M Luescher
8 min read
Through research and partnering with communities, universities can tackle the Southern African region’s problems, such as poverty, climate change and unemployment

Universities in Africa ‘don’t understand what they are’

No one is going to beat the African drum if we don’t do it. Universities must be wary of giving up their strengths for the sake of ‘radical transformation’

  • Mark Paterson
  • Thierry Luescher
7 min read
Academics say claims by politicians and on social media are fueling xenophobia and could compromise their safety. Photo: Julian Stratenschulte/picture alliance /Getty Images

‘Change the knowledge economy into a knowledge democracy’

Teaching students critical literacy, greater collaboration among institutions and datafication are crucial

  • Mark Paterson
  • Thierry M Luescher
8 min read
(John McCann/M&G)
CAPE PENINSULA UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY

‘White fragility’ is damaging SA universities

Academics at a recent meeting called for white liberals to acknowledge they ‘are the problem’

  • Mark Paterson
5 min read
Some schools, predominantly the better-resourced schools, have been able to carry on with teaching online whereas in many other schools, learners have had to make do with a couple of radio and television lessons. (Graphic: John McCann)
ADAM HABIB

Academics bemoan ‘toxic’ politics

Senior university managers say political parties should be banned from campuses, citing a climate of fear

  • Mark Paterson
8 min read
Universities in South Africa could promote an inclusive approach to integrating students into the cities where they are situated by working together with municipalities, which have clout as major owners of land and property. Photo: Madelene Cronjé
DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION

Shaping cities goes beyond student beds

Sustainable urban development requires the collaboration of municipalities and the universities to advance social integration

  • Mark Paterson
  • Leslie Bank
  • Jean Paul Addie
7 min read
The African Development Bank’s shareholders must decide whether the mandate will expand to crowd in private finance, derisk green investment and underwriter regional public goods, or retreat to classical project lending.
BOTSWANA

SADC trade deal with EU criticised for not promoting regional economic development

Supporters of the pact say its programmes provide assistance that facilitate trade

  • Mark Paterson
6 min read
Until South Africa’s higher education system produced African-centred knowledge that was internationally recognised
CAPE PENINSULA UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY

No tidy truths in the post-colony

Recent debate exposes both student activists’ and academics’ blind spots on decolonisation

  • Mark Paterson
6 min read
The African Development Bank’s shareholders must decide whether the mandate will expand to crowd in private finance, derisk green investment and underwriter regional public goods, or retreat to classical project lending.
CENTRE FOR CONFLICT RESOLUTION

​SADC must be more open about region-building

The bloc needs to adopt a more genuinely democratic approach to spreading the word about its work to win broader popular support

  • Mark Paterson
5 min read
(Graphic: John McCann)
ACCESS TO BASIC EDUCATION

Why mere knowledge transfer fails

States and academics must collaborate or risk foreign experts taking over policy making

  • Mark Paterson
6 min read