oa Alternation - Rejoinder Mthembu & Naidoo's (2002) Position Paper on Post Secondary Education Research Evaluation in South Africa: A Rejoinder

Abstract

The paper published by Thandwa Mthembu and Prem Naidoo (2002: 176-203) in Alternation should be lauded for providing a comprehensive review and analysis of criteria and directives used to appraise research activity in institutions of higher education. From their analysis of institutional research output it transpires that a benchmark of one SAPSE (South African Post Secondary Education Funding System) accredited publication per permanent academic staff member per year at universities is unrealistic and should perhaps be regarded as a rarely reached goal rather than a benchmark. This is especially true in the case of social science research where even with comprehensive funding and resource support a properly composed study can take up to three years from conceptualisation to publication.