2.3. Senior Executive Team

from Wits University Integrated Report 2020

by witsmarketing

7. THE WAY FORWARD

providingnewandinnovativewaysofengagingstudents and staff in academic activities.

Thisincludesmaking theUniversity accessiblethrough mobiletechnologiesirrespectiveoftimeandplace.While remaining committed to the tutorial-based approach to learning, teaching and learning processes will be reinforcedthroughtheapplicationoftechnology-enhanced pedagogy to address some of the key challenges that we face as a predominantly contact institution. Wits researchers will be supported by technology to enablethemtocarryoutcutting-edgeresearchasbefits a research-intensive university environment, including working in virtual interdisciplinary teams. Research, teaching and learning will benefit from open-access approaches, including institutional repositories, open educationalresourcesandopenpublication,allofwhich use creative commons licensing, together with traditional copyright-maintenance where appropriate. Administrative support for our core academic activities will take advantage of the latest technology and approaches, and all IT implementations will consider people, process and technology to ensure success. Where appropriate, innovation will be encouraged and supported in our approach to technology. 7) Wealthy and well-resourced Abundance of resources is often viewed as the second elementthatcharacterisesnearlyallworld-classuniversities - in terms of the substantial costs involved in sustaining a complex, research-intensive institution. It is commonly accepted that (with certain notable exceptions)governmentalfundingofuniversitysystems around the world has been dwindling over the past two decades. Further, the challenge of pursuing global competitiveness from an African context is rendered more demanding by the reality of inadequate financial resources. Wits will therefore need to put in place mechanisms and programmes designed to generate the means necessary to ensure its long-term financial sustainability as an institution, as well as the proper resourcing of its scholarly and business activities.