Partnerships in Action explores, at multiple levels, a university–school–community partnership in action. The chapters provide rich and dynamic accounts of the activities that make up this partnership, within a context of extreme social inequality. The contributors share an enduring commitment to whole-school improvement. They describe how, through interdisciplinary collaboration, they negotiate the multiple political, social and structural complexities which arise in the coming together of the partners.
The book’s uniqueness lies in its combination of practical implementation and sound theoretical scholarship from a range of disciplines. Not only does the partnership strengthen the university’s commitment to community-engagement, but it offers new insights to all students, stakeholders, academic staff, and social researchers – in universities, education departments and NGOs – with an interest in improving schooling, and building social justice.
Endorsements
‘Compelling and thought-provoking, this book makes an enormous contribution to the literature on community engaged scholarship and school–university partnerships. In particular, their collaborative approach to engaged scholarship is one I have seldom seen articulated so clearly and with so much authenticity.’
– Janice McMillan
Director: UCT Global Citizenship programme
‘The book opens up a space of frank discussion about the often unsettling, messy realities of ethical decision-making in the thick of social research. It is unique in spanning a range of research scenarios across different disciplines working in conditions of inequality.’
–Judy Favish
Director: UCT Institutional Planning (2003–2016)
Product information
List of figures and tables v Editors’ note
Foreword
Abbreviations and acronyms xvi Acknowledgements
- Activating partnerships: The Schools Improvement Initiative at the
University of Cape Town
Patti Silbert, Jonathan Clark and Ferial Parker
1. Setting the scene: Schooling in Khayelitsha
Jonathan Clark
2. A snapshot of a partner primary school: Intshayelelo Primary
Jonathan Clark and Mxolisi Mbobo
3. A snapshot of a partner secondary school: Usasazo High
Patti Silbert and Patrick Barnes
4. Reimagining interdisciplinary collaboration through a university–school partnership
Patti Silbert and Roshan Galvaan
5. Policy ideas distilled through a university–district partnership: Lessons from the
iKwezi Lead Teacher Project
Susan Meyer, Kaashief Hassan, Diane Hendricks, Cally Kühne and Gary Powell
6. Building organisational capacity through a principals’ community of practice
Janis Wylie and Patti Silbert
7. Critical occupational therapy in the margins: Parent participation in under- resourced
schools
Liesl Peters and Roshan Galvaan
8. Introducing microteaching as a developmental tool for library assistants in under-
resourced school libraries
Patti Silbert and Constance Bitso
9. New possibilities for supporting homework practices through a university–
school partnership
Roshan Galvaan and Patti Silbert
10. Facilitating social inclusion through communication: How do speech- and language
therapy students negotiate their transition into community practice?
Kristen Abrahams, Harsha Kathard, Lizé Mostert, Freda Walters and Roshan Galvaan
11. Rethinking approaches to occupational therapy intervention: Learning in and from
an under-resourced school
Pam Gretschel, Shireen Damonse and Mellisa Francke
12. Partnerships in action: Establishing a model of collaborative support for student and
mentor teachers through a university–school partnership
Patti Silbert and Clare Verbeek
13. Reflections on community engagement through interdisciplinary collaboration for the
purpose of whole-school improvement
Patti Silbert, Roshan Galvaan and Jonathan Clark
14. Enlarged thinking and asymmetrical reciprocity in an ethics of engagement:
A reflection on university–school partnerships
Pam Christie
