By Enock Sithole
The Rhodes University School of Journalism and Media Studies (SJMS) and the Binding Constraints Lab (BCL) have convened an education journalism think tank “to critically evaluate the current scope, quality, approach and impact of journalism and other forms of communication about education and develop some concrete and actionable plans for the future.”
BCL is a pioneering programme dedicated to enhancing education systems and improving learning outcomes in South Africa. Its mission is to support cross-sector actors in achieving impactful change at scale through innovative approaches, strategic partnerships, and policy advocacy.
The think tank champions said South Africa’s education crisis lacked effective media coverage due to two main factors, namely the decline of traditional media business models and problematic journalistic approaches. They said research Vanessa Malila had found that while education received coverage, the reporting tended to be “formulaic and episodic, normalizing problems rather than engaging citizens constructively.”
Image: Steven Lang
Current initiatives like Makhanda’s Revitalise Public Schooling partnership, they said, demonstrated potential for improvement, but citizen stakeholders remained largely invisible in both traditional and social media platforms. “This suggests a need for more engaged relationships between civil society and media organizations, going beyond traditional source-journalist relationships,” they added.
“The SJMS proposes a new model where universities and journalistic communities co-produce education coverage. This approach can facilitate innovation and provide intellectual resources to help journalism evolve beyond its traditional watchdog role toward a more facilitative ‘guide dog’ function.”
While global journalism has seen the emergence of reform movements (civic/public journalism, solutions journalism, constructive journalism, and engaged/relational journalism), these approaches remain relatively unexplored in South Africa. Similarly, participatory communication strategies involving learners, teachers, and parents need further development in the South African education landscape, they argued.
SJMS and the Binding Constraints Lab have convened an Education Journalism Think Tank, bringing together academics, media practitioners, education NPOs, activists, educators, and government communicators to evaluate existing education journalism and communication in South Africa and develop possible support programs including:
- An annual competition for education journalism
- Fellowships for young journalists and education communicators
- Postgraduate programs (diplomas, Honours, Masters, PhD)
- Professional short courses
- A potential SJMS centre for experimental practice and research (the centre could eventually expand to include an education news agency, following models like Bekhisisa and GroundUp, to:
- Commission and distribute open-source education news
- Host public discussion forums
- Produce multimedia content, including blogs and podcasts
- Create networks of education journalists, communicators, leaders, academics, and policymakers
- Provide training, research, resources and guidance for stakeholders
- Help create an education news and communication agency, following models like Bekhisisa, GroundUp and the Media Development Network (Africa)
The initiative would be implemented by means of a partnership between the media industry, NPOs, civil society organisations and national and international academics from Journalism and Media Studies, Communication Studies, Education, African Languages, and Sociology, developing comprehensive journalism and communication training programs.
Think tank breakaway. Image: Steven Lang
The participants will gain some of the following :
- Deep understanding of education history, sociology, and policy
- Skills in interpreting research and educational developments
- Ability to create compelling education-focused media content using innovative approaches
- Ability to use approaches and strategies for transformative forms of participatory communication.
These initiatives might aim to transform education journalism and communication by combining academic rigour with practical journalism and communication skills, fostering more effective coverage of South Africa’s education system, they said.
This cross-field collaboration model promises to strengthen education journalism while building bridges between academia, media, and education stakeholders, ultimately contributing to better public understanding and engagement with education issues.
The article, Rhodes University hosts an education journalism think tank, was originally published on December, 2 by Ajen Newsletter.