A bold new vision for Teaching and Learning
- Faculty Communications
The Wits Faculty of Health Sciences welcomes its newly appointed Assistant Dean: Teaching, Learning and Undergraduate Affairs.
Associate Professor Lindelani Mnguni recently took over the reigns of the Teaching, Learning and Undergraduate Affairs portfolio in the Faculty of Health Sciences.
Mnguni is an expert in the field of health and life sciences education with a special interest in curriculum and instructional design as well as development. His field of mastery is topical in the ongoing discussion around the alignment of curricula of South African higher education institutions to the modern demands of industries and workplaces.
In providing solutions that will address such challenges, Mnguni’s efforts will focus on supporting undergraduate students through extensive consultations to understand their issues in order to develop a teaching and learning strategy that is innovative, relevant and creates opportunities for academic excellence for all students.
“The global south is lagging behind both in R&I [research and innovation] as well as in the use of technologies for teaching and learning” says Mnguni. As the former Director of School of Teacher Education and Chair of the Department of Science & Education at the University of South Africa, he hopes to bring this valuable knowledge to his current appointment.
“We have to expedite human resource development so that our learning environments are on par with the rest of the world. We also need to intensify the integration of research into teaching and learning, so that the pedagogical methods we use are evidence-based” he adds.
When asked about what his key focus will be in the next five years, he states: “My key focus will be curriculum transformation in order to realize the Africanization of the curriculum without compromising academic excellence”. Mnguni also stresses the importance of drawing insights from stakeholders and local communities through intensified engagements. This is in order to ensure that the curriculum is relevant to the local context, while benchmarked against the best internationally.
Having risen from what he terms a ‘relatively disadvantaged background’, Mnguni is passionate about supporting the youth. “It is my firm belief that given a fair opportunity, our young people have a tremendous potential to succeed in life”, he says. Apart from this, he cheerfully states that his other passions are his family and Spanish football club, F.C Barcelona.