An audit of sport-related post-schooling training programmes in South Africa

Overview

The sports sector is a key contributor to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in South Africa, with the potential to contribute further economically and to promote social interactions and cohesion. For the sports sector to meet its full potential to address socio-economic challenges facing South Africa, it is important to understand the skills and training as well as the research landscape in the country. To ensure that training and research for the sports sector within the higher education sector is fit-for-purpose and responsive to the needs of the sports sector, understanding current training and research in higher education is an important first step to inform programme and curricula review and redesign. It is in this context that a landscape audit of training and research in the higher education sector (post-schooling focus) for the sports sector is undertaken. Given the current and potential of sports to contribute to socioeconomic development, more needs to be done in terms of training and research in order for the sector to capitalise on existing opportunities and advancements to reach its full potential.

A desktop study approach was adopted to examine policy documents, research reports and academic sources. The key component of the research was a website audit of training qualifications/ programmes at all 26 public universities as well as selected TVET colleges (6) that examined sports-related qualifications and programmes (including modules and module content) in university and TVET College prospectus and handbooks sourced from the internet. There were no programmes and/ or information available on the TVET websites and for 8 of the universities on sports-related offerings. Additionally, a bibliometric scan of South African research in sport, leisure and recreation was conducted to identify output trends using SciVal.

The main themes emanating from the literature review are that current research on sports education focuses on skills and training in schools or relatedly training of physical sports educators at higher education institutions, including examining teaching and learning styles. Sport management is a key focus in the literature. Experiential and work integrated learning opportunities are also regarded as important. There is an increasing recognition of the importance of the sports sector to contribute to economic growth and job creation (especially given high levels of self-employability) as well as the need to focus training on career and business management skills as well as the development of personal skills and attributes. Graduate employability and skills development are also noted in the literature. An emerging theme is that of technology impacts. The limited published research that specifically looks at skills and training that focuses on the sports sector in the context of post-schooling qualifications/ programmes in South Africa reinforces the need for the landscape audit.

The audit reveals that there is a range of qualifications and modules offered, mostly linked to undergraduate and masters degrees. The limited number of certificate and diploma courses on offer are of concern, since these types of qualifications are important to address the professional and technical training needs of the sports sector. There was substantial differentiation among universities in relation to the number of qualifications, ranging from 1 to 20. There was a strong correlation between the number of degrees and the number of modules on offer. The levels of the modules on offer ranged from NQF4 to NQF10 (from certificate to doctoral level). The main themes covered in the modules are sport management, development and administration; coaching; sport participation; exercise science; marketing and business considerations; performance management; physical education; leisure and recreation; health and medical aspects; sport injuries; and anatomy and physiology. Additionally, broader aspects in relation to aspects such as professionalism, community engagement, human
resource management, communication and business administration are covered. Very few programmes required WIL or internship exposure. Most of the Masters and doctoral programmes are by research. There are very few instances of research training at undergraduate levels.

The SciVal analysis revealed that the number of scholarly outputs in relation to sport, leisure and recreation have been steadily increasing in South Africa. However, of concern, is that despite the increase in the number of publications, the citation count has declined. This could be indicative of broader concerns in South Africa about academics/ researchers focusing on quantity rather than the quality of the research outputs. The country is doing well in related to the most cited research in the world and the top publishing journals, many of which are international. Academic research on sport, leisure and recreation traverse diverse subject areas, with the main areas being Medicine and Social Sciences. Sports science/ studies should be a disciplinary field. International and national collaboration characterises research in sport, leisure and recreation in South Africa.

Inadequate sports-related training and skills development in South Africa will undermine efforts to unlock the economic potential of this sector, and contribute to social cohesion and wellbeing. In terms of research, while the increase in the number of scholarly outputs is increasing, the decline in citations suggest that there is a need to shift from the quantity of research generated to assessing the quality of the research that should impact on policy and programme development, curricula development and revision, value to practitioners and professionals in the sports sector, driving innovation and technology development, and informing future research in the field. Future research should assess the number of students enrolled in programmes and whether the tertiary education sector (including TVET colleges and private institutions) is meeting the needs of the sports sector. The lack of research training and WIL integrated learning should also be addressed. In this regard, it is recommended that higher education institutions engage with sports sector stakeholders to develop opportunities for work integrated learning/ internships and to be responsive to the changing needs and demands of a highly variable sports sector.