UBUNTU EMERGES AS THE HEART OF SUPERVISION FOR WALTER SISULU ACADEMICS

The principle of Ubuntu is set to be at the centre of supervisors’ relationship with postgraduate students, after a week-long Supervisor Boot Camp hosted by the institution’s directorate for postgraduate studies from 20 to 24 July 2026.

Facilitated by Chicago State University's Professor Byung-In Seo, the programme involved intensive supervisor training on attitudes towards students, effective supervision practices, as well as how to guide postgraduate students through each stage of the research process.

Seo challenged academics from across the university’s seven faculties to rethink their relationships with postgraduate students by placing empathy and guidance at the centre of supervision.

School of Law academic Dr Sithembele Madala said one of the strongest messages from the bootcamp was the need to implement Ubuntu in supervision.

"The overall theme of this workshop was the concept of implementing Ubuntu in our supervision. That means learning more about our students, their background, where they come from, and the challenges that they are facing," said Madala.

Echoing Madala’s sentiments, lecturer and first time supervisor Lelethu Mantangayi said supervisors had to create environments where students felt comfortable discussing both academic and personal challenges.

 "You need to understand your students. It's not only academics. Their social life and personal life can affect their academics. You need to understand their background, whether they are working, whether they have children, so that when you set timeframes, you know what they are dealing with," said Mantangayi said.

School of Public Health supervisor, Nomfuneko Sithole said the training inspired her to rethink how much time supervisors should dedicate to students.

"What I found out from this training is that if you identify that the student does not know something, take time, sit down with the student, make a schedule and share the information they need. Not to spoon-feed them, but to help them make sense of the work,” Sithole stipulated.

Social Work lecturer, Dr Asanda Boboyi said the week’s engagements highlighted the need for universities to better prepare academics for their teaching responsibilities.

"The biggest takeaway is that our postgraduate students are students who need to be taught. The university needs to put more effort into training lecturers to become teachers. We need training so that we know how to teach. I don't teach because I don't know how to teach. I was never trained as a teacher," Boboyi emphasised.

Boboyi added that academics who aspired to becoming supervisors also had to take it upon themselves to pursue further studies that would equip them with teaching abilities, such as Walter Sisulu’s Postgraduate Certificates in Education.

By Yanga Ziwele