Abstract:
The post-apartheid South African education landscape gave impetus to national
debates on the higher education system with emphasis on skills needed in the
knowledge-based economy. Higher education has re-defined its role in the
transformation of South Africa’s agenda regarding socio-economic needs. The
focal point is: How best do institutions of higher learning, as engines of research
and development, feed into the knowledge society and economy? Furthermore,
the world of work is informed by changing environments that rely on research to
inform new approaches, strategies and models. The article highlights that while
research contributes to the knowledge management paradigm, it also enhances
service delivery and benefits society at large. There are growing demands
on higher education to produce more research. It is argued whether higher
education is producing research to meet performance quotas or translating them
into workplace learning amongst graduates, thus making a valid contribution to
socio-economic development? This interconnectedness between research and
knowledge management then supports the conclusion that a context of application
of postgraduate research is central to address gaps in service delivery.
