Prof Rory Ryan: First student cohor t of fully online, accredited qualifications become UJ graduates
rather than wealth, nepotism or patronage. In other words, we hire and reward those who are the most competent rather than the most connected. For instance, in the United States, following the assassination of President James A. Garfield, the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act was passed, which requires government jobs to be awarded on merit based on competitive exams rather than political ties. In China, for example, the emphasis is placed on education, examinations and political experience at lower levels of government, which is then carried into higher levels of government. These are solutions that can be posited if we are to restore the legitimacy of the state in South Africa. For Rousseau, the survival of the country is the only guarantee of liberty, but this requires the people to guard that liberty and not relinquish their freedoms. As Rousseau put it, "As soon as any man says of the affairs of the State 'What does it matter to me?'" the state may be given up for lost." Prof Marwala is the author of the book: Closing the Gap: The Fourth Industrial Revolution in Africa. Follow him on twitter at @txm1971. The views expressed in this article are that of the author/s and do not necessarily reflect that of the University of Johannesburg.
We need a new social contract. Our people must play their par t.
Dir ty streets so ubiquitous in our streets indicate that state-owned companies might not be effective in picking up the garbage. However, it also means that our people are also not taking their duty of keeping our environment clean seriously.
or audio files. The technology is premised on its ability to recognise patterns and thus to identify anomalies. It also
Hawks provide us with an insight into the billions looted from the public purse. With 4IR technology, for instance, it is possible to have iron-clad systems. For example, we can deploy AI systems to analyse data from multiple sources and identify irregular activities associated with third parties, employees, and customers. AI is much more proficient in wading through emails, text messages
can predict future risks and identify fault lines where corruption is possible.
Finally, to achieve this, we need to create a culture of meritocracy. In a meritocracy, political power is a consolidation of individuals who exhibit talent and achievement
About three years ago, the University of Johannesburg (UJ) ventured into new territory by introducing fully online and accredited qualifications to professionals and students who opted to study from home. Now the first group of these students have acquired their qualifications, without setting foot on campus. The University congratulates all its first fully online graduates. The students enrolled in programmes such as Master of Public Health (three graduates), Master of Education in ICT (two graduates)
Management (eight) and Logistics (three), with more graduations to emerge in the first half of 2021. “These first graduations of our fully online students put UJ at the forefront of online teaching and learning,” says Prof Rory Ryan, Former Executive Director of Academic Development and Support, retired in 2020. Prof Ryan has been leading the fully online programmes project since its inception. "It highlights our university's energy and drive to offer quality education in a moving- with-the-times mode of delivery. Well done to our first graduates!" says Prof Ryan.
In these programmes, everything is done online: from the application, registration and onboarding process, to weekly lectures, access to resources, participation
in activities, completion of assignments, continuous
assessments and the final phase of completion and qualifying. Like the traditional on-campus qualifications, these qualifications are fully accredited and recognised. There are six start dates per year, with no travel required, and all the qualifications have the pay-per-module approach. This gives a working professional or first-time student a convenient and accelerated opportunity to
and the following Advanced Diplomas: Financial Markets (eighteen), Transportation
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