About the Chair
The South African Research Chair Initiative (SARChI) in Teaching and Learning (Post-School Education and Training – PSET), hosted by the University of Johannesburg, is a national research initiative chaired by Professor Shireen Motala. The Chair is funded by the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET), the National Research Foundation (NRF), and the Department of Science and Innovation (DSI), under the Tier 1 SARChI designation.
The Chair is dedicated to advancing equity, transformation, and excellence in teaching and learning in higher education in South Africa. Established as a platform for knowledge creation, critical inquiry, and academic transformation, the work at the Chair addresses deep-seated systemic inequalities in higher education that continue to reflect the legacy of apartheid. Cutting-edge research is conducted to challenge marginalisation, discrimination, and exclusion by foregrounding social justice, epistemic access, and inclusive pedagogies.
Vision and Purpose
The Chair envisions a higher education system that is responsive to South Africa’s diverse socio-economic and cultural realities. It pursues this through:
- Innovative and socially engaged research
- Policy-informing outputs
- Capacity-building initiatives
- Development of inclusive and decolonised curricula
The Chair acts as a national and international hub for scholarly collaboration, with strong networks of academics, postdoctoral fellows, students, and advisors. These networks span local institutions and extend globally, connecting South African scholars with peers in countries such as the United Kingdom, Kenya, India, Australia, and the United States.
Research Agenda
The Chair’s interdisciplinary research programme is anchored in four thematic areas:
- Teaching Excellence in Undergraduate Education
- Equity, Access, and Success in Higher Education
- Supervision and Quality in Postgraduate Education
- Socially Just Pedagogies and Curriculum Decolonisation