Pathways to change: an analysis of institutional restructuring at North-West University

Abstract

The purpose of this report is to present one of the case studies of the broader project: that of North-West University. The report seeks to understand the distinct pathways to change for teacher education in the creation of the new institution of North-West University. Crucially, the interest is in how these processes and the resulting new forms of institutional governance have impacted on the nature of initial teacher education approaches and programmes at the institution. The research captured the process of restructuring in mid-stride. The merger (the main form of restructuring at North-West University discussed here) was far from complete at the time of the research. The research is therefore unable to paint a complete picture of a finalized process. Rather it attempts to capture in detail the complexities of change. Institutional restructuring is not a neat process, and the interviews upon which this case study is primarily based, took place at a time of complex policy and political change, and changing dynamics within teaching and teacher education more generally. The report attempts to capture these aspects.