Browsing by Author "Van Zyl, Benita"

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    Addressing the needs of commuter students : an evaluation of the amamaties hub at Stellenbosch University
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2018-03) Van Zyl, Benita; Fourie-Malherbe, M.; Dunn-Coetzee, M.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Curriculum Studies.
    ENGLISH SUMMARY : Massification of higher education has led to increasing numbers of a diversity of students entering universities. At the same time financial constraints prohibit higher education institutions from providing sufficient student accommodation on campus. This results in growing numbers of commuter students with different needs and challenges. The residential education (ResEd) and cluster initiative at Stellenbosch University (SU) aim to address the needs of commuter students by providing a physical on-campus space (hub) for commuter students and by granting access for them to common areas in residence dining halls and study areas. The hub and cluster initiative aims to promote commuter student success and to enhance the social interaction among residential and commuter students in the co-curricular environment. It further seeks to create integrated learning communities that are commuter-friendly and promote active and collaborative academic and social activities outside the classroom. This initiative was implemented in 2008, and has not been evaluated before. This study used program evaluation to gain a better understanding of the cluster initiative and hub, and the extent to which it actually addresses the needs of commuter students. The following outcomes of the Logic Model were evaluated: to create spaces which would address the basic needs of commuter students (in terms of safety, meals, rest and relaxation); to create opportunities within the cluster for commuter and residence students to participate in learning communities (i.e. attend mentor and/or tutor sessions and form study groups); to make campus life more welcoming by creating spaces and opportunities where diverse commuter and residence students can socialize in the same community; to enhance the academic experience and academic success, especially that of commuter students. All the commuter and residential students in the amaMaties cluster during 2014 and 2015 were asked to participate in the study. A self-generated questionnaire was used for an electronic survey among the research participants. The questionnaire was completed by 331 students, of whom 126 were commuter students and 205 were residential students. Some of the findings of the study included that significant interaction between commuter and residential respondents occurred in the learning community of the hub, and although a gradual improvement of average percentages of commuter students occurred, graduation rates of residential students still exceeded those of commuter students, especially in the case of black and coloured students who live in residences. This study found that the hub and cluster contributed firstly to the positive experience and sense of belonging of commuter students. Secondly, it contributed to the spontaneous interaction across race and gender differences among commuter and residential students. Thirdly, an unexpected change in behaviour of residential students to open up previously exclusive spaces in residences occurred. Fourthly, both commuter and residential students experienced the space as a learning community that enhanced their student experience, and lastly the study provides guidelines to student affairs practitioners at other South African universities on how to better integrate commuter and residential students, leading to a stronger sense of belonging among commuter students.