Centre for Education Policy Development (CEPD)

About

CEPD is a leading research body and think-tank in education, contributing to policy development and knowledge-building both locally and across international boarders.

Description

The Centre for Education Policy Development (CEPD) is a professionally autonomous, independent trust, governed by a Board of Trustees. It was established in 1993 during the dying days of apartheid, in order to develop alternative education and training policies that would serve a future democratic South Africa.

These policies were aimed at promoting the principles of non-racism, equity, democracy, quality education and lifelong learning. These efforts culminated in the ANC’s Policy Framework for Education and Training published in its first edition in early 1994, just months before the first democratic elections. Produced by the CEPD under its first director, Dr Trevor Coombe, this important document drew on the work of over 300 researchers, academics and practitioners, and fed largely into the new government’s first White Paper on Education and Training.

Many of the new South Africa’s education and training policies are based on this framework. Now, fourteen years later, the CEPD continues to serve the same goals, albeit in a way that is more in keeping with the changed circumstances in the country and in the Centre itself. It remains one of the leading non-governmental educational organisations in South Africa, working in partnership not only with government, but also with a wide range of other NGO’s and private sector consultancies.
In particular, it maintains a close strategic relationship with the five Education Policy Units at the universities of KwaZulu-Natal, Fort Hare, Western Cape and the Witwatersrand.

Mission

The CEPD works with and supports government departments, particularly the departments of education; legislative structures; democratic organisations; and other institutions supporting our core values in order to contribute to a common vision of high quality education and training for all.

The CEPD acts, either alone or in partnership with others, to fulfill this mission by:

- Undertaking research, policy analysis, monitoring and evaluation
- Providing advice on the development and implementation of policy
- Promoting and facilitating public policy dialogue and debate
- Contributing towards capacity building in the education system
- Advocacy in support of our vision
- Managing grants on behalf of government or other organisations
- Organising and managing conferences, seminars and meetings

Products

CEPD had produced several publications over the years of which can viewed and downloaded from our website. Some of our publications include the following:

ARTICLES:
- Bullying: The Monster in the Dark by Rakal Govender and Khombisile Dlamini (2010).

BOOKS:
- Emerging voices: A report on education in South African rural communities
(2005).
- Foundations of the new South Africa (1991)
- Education & equity: The impact of state policies on South African education (2001).
- The history of education under apartheid 1948 to 1994: The doors of learning and culture shall be opened (2002).
- Dilemmas of implementing education reforms: Explorations from South Africa and Sweden (2007).
- Democracy and human rights in education and society: Explorations from South Africa and Sweden (2007).

CONFERENCE AND SEMINAR PROCEEDINGS:
- Solomon Mahlangu Education Lecture 2007: Higher education transformation in South Africa post 1994: Towards a critical assessment
- Solomon Mahlangu Education Lecture 2008: The quest for free education in South Africa: How close is the dream to reality?
- Democracy, human rights and social justice in education (2008).
- Proceedings of a conference hosted by the Education Policy Consortium (2007)
- Universities in Southern Africa as catalysts for sustainable rural development
(2008).
- Proceedings of a conference hosted by the Centre for Education Policy Development (CEPD), and funded by the CWCI Fund, an EU-SA Partnership Programme (2008)
- Conference on the institutionalisation of democracy and human rights in education for the Southern African Development Community (SADC) (2009).
- Proceedings of a conference organised by the Centre for Education Policy Development (CEPD), and funded by the the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA) (2009).

PUBLICATIONS - CONFERENCE PAPERS:
- South African Research on Education Management: An Exercise in Futility?
This is the final of three papers looking at the work of the NRF-funded review of education research output in South Africa. It focuses specifically on one theme within the research field: education management. The report finds thht 9% of all education research was education management related. The paper explores the analysis that the report made of this body of research. It particularly examines the finding that most of these studies, over 90%, are small scale studies which could not be classified as case studies...
- SASA functions are proving too much for poorer, less educated school governing bodies
The process of reviewing the functioning of school governing bodies is a necessary and crucial one. It is believed that this review will contribute towards strengthening our democracy as well as towards transformation in the education system as a whole.
- Changing school ethos
Amongst the different instruments that the government is using to transform the education system to accommodate people of all races and sexes are the SGBs. SGBs are entrusted, amongst other things, with the task of writing up the mission and vision statement of the school as well as policies relating to admissions, language and religion.
- Teacher Education Conference 2007 and 2008
A conference of the Teacher Education Programme, funded by the Royal Netherlands Embassy. Programme consortium members include the Centre for Education Policy Development (CEPD), the Centre for Evaluation and Assessment (CEA) at the University of Pretoria, the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), and the South African Institute for Distance Education (SAIDE).
- The Nature of Educational Decentralisation in South Africa
In the eight years since 1994, there has been a profound restructuring of the South African education system, including a significant element of decentralisation. The process of change away from the apartheid education model has resulted in a very different structure for the schooling system at all levels, from the national Department of Education to the individual school

EDUCATION MONITOR (The Education Monitor series consists of briefings on topical issues or summaries of completed research studies, written in accessible language. The Education Monitor was previously published by the Education Policy Unit (Natal)):
- Researh Methodology for Rural Education in South Africa: The Experience of CEPD and its associates: 2000 - 2007 (Volume 15, number 1).
- Stradding the Knowledge Divide in the New Comprehensive Univeristies (Volume 16, Number 1).

ISSUES IN EDUCATION POLICY SERIES (The series Issues in Education Policy consists of a number of booklets on key issues in education and training policy in South Africa):
- The National Qualifications Framework by Richard Jewison
- School Governance by Tsakani Chaka
- School Fees by John Pampalis
- Education in Rural Areas by Michael Gardiner
- Quality Assurance in Education by Stephanie Matseleng Allais
- Restructing Teacher Education by Adele Gordon
- Education Portfolio Committees and Public Participation by Tsakani Chaka, Nadya Bhagwan and Rakal Govender

REPORTS AND OCCASIONAL PAPERS:
- Selected macro-indicators of education transformation, 1991-2001 by Monica Bot.
- Teacher professionalism and education transformation by Julie Douglas.
- Districts: Looking for a place in the education system by Hersheela Narsee.
- The fault-lines in South African school governance: Policy or people? by Veerle Dieltiens
- Policy change and the experiences of learners in post-apartheid schooling by John Pampallis and Princess Tabata.
- Prospects and challenges of doing social justice research: Experiences from the Education 2000 Plus study by Madumetja Kgobe and George Moyo.
- The impact of post-1994 education policies on the ethos of schools by Jenni Karlsson and Sandile Mbokazi.
- Transformation in the school environment: An analysis of photographs from one rural secondary school by Jenni Karlsson.
- "Transformation" revisited by Enver Motala
- Change agents in the South African schooling system: Challenges and prospects
by George Moyo.
- Theory and practice: South African teacher educators on teacher education (Occasional Paper No. 6) by Ben Parker and Roger Deacon (2005).
- Culture, indigenous knowledge and development: The role of the university (Occasional Paper No. 5) by Catherine A Odora Hoppers (2005).
- Transforming South African education: The role of the ANC Education Study Group, 1994-1999 (Occasional Paper No. 3) by Blade Nzimande and Sue Mathieson
(2004).
- Public policy dialogue: Its role in the policy process (Occasional Paper No. 2) by Catherine A Odora Hoppers (1997).
- Governance and finance in the South African schooling system: The first decade of democracy by Shireen Motala and John Pampallis (2005).
- Choices in the design, delivery and management of initial professional teacher education in South Africa: Increasing diversity, quality and success
- Curriculum transformation in South African schools by Njabuliso Nsibande (2002).
- Developing a new ethos in schools by Console Tleane (2002).
- Teacher development and support by Hersheela Narsee (2002).
- Governing schools in an era of democracy by Gregory McPherson & Santha Naicker (2002).
- School finance by Godwin Khosa (2002).
- School management: Ethos and practices by Nontobeko Mabude (2002).
- A report from the FOURTH year of Education 2000 Plus (2003).
- A report from the THIRD year of Education 2000 Plus (2002).
- A report from the SECOND year of Education 2000 Plus (2001)
- A report from the FIRST year of Education 2000 Plus, a longitudinal study to monitor education policy implementation and change (2000).
- Successful educational research: Guidelines for getting going, getting funded and getting published by Roger Deacon and Ben Parker (2009).
- Will things or will knowledge be the basis of South Africa's development? (Occasional Paper No. 1) by Luis Crouch (1997).

Access more information or download publications on www.cepd.org.za. Hard copies of publications may be ordered by contacting the CEPD resource officer on [email protected].