"Here, then, awaiting our study, lies man's authentic "being"--stretching the whole length of his past. Man is what has happened to him, what he has done. Other things might have happened to him or have been done by him, but what did in fact happen to him and was done by him, this constitutes a relentless trajectory of experiences that he carries on his back as the vagabond his bundle of all he possesses. Man is a substantial emigrant on a pilgrimage of being, and it is accordingly meaningless to set limits to what he is capable of being."

In a recent article Lewis-Williams and Smith (1998:13) said: "The past is not an epiphenomenon, something that we can afford to ignore: it lives in and gives meaning to the present." It is impossible to separate people from their past, from their connectivity to history. Likewise, education is a human condition, and thus also not free from its own history. Recent events in the transformation of education in South Africa, as referred to in this paper, in themselves could not escape a reference to the past. Scrutiny of the government document, A programme for higher education transformation (White Paper 1997), is ample evidence of this. The initial impression is that future education must be focussed on science, engineering and technology. This seems to be endorsed in the twelve fields identified by SAQA in which the discipline History, is not specifically identified. The result of this interpretation was that History per se was no longer seen as being relevant to education.

In the next section the error of such a judgement will be exposed. It is in fact also contrary to the broader intention of the new policy. To this end we wish to refer to section 2.25 of the White Paper (1997:14):

The focus on science, engineering and technology programmes is necessary to correct present imbalances, in particular, the shortage of trained personnel in these fields. However, this will not diminish the importance of programmes in the social sciences and humanities which contribute to knowledge production, in particular, to the understanding of social and human development, including social transformation ...

The question to be asked is how people will understand development and transformation without an understanding of what prior situations were and how change came about? If this is not History, then what is? We would, in fact, like to argue that history is intrinsic to human existence, and therefore, must be retained as a field of study, albeit in a transformed curriculum.

History and human existence Man views his past with infinite fascination, with its victories, failures, follies and drama. Man is always probing the past for clues to the meaning of human endeavour. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission, as a recent example, probed South Africa’s turbulent past and gave us answers to so many questions.   Every use of the past tense ("She did it…", "I was there") is a small part of history. Through newspapers we study the previous day’s history, we keep diaries to preserve our memories, we correspond with friends to tell them what happened to us since we last saw them and to hear their story in return. We delve into our family history to discover where we came from to enhance our feeling of "belonging". Our family doctor arrives at a diagnosis after he has consulted our medical file or asked for more information such as when we started to feel ill or even the previous illnesses our parents had. Every institution, club, and committee keeps minutes, documents and records as stores of experience and achievements. Lawyers and judges also use precedents on which they base their decisions and, ultimately define the laws that govern our society. The popular novel apes the form of genuine history in order to bestow an air of reality on imaginary events.   Theoretically everything we can think of has its history and belongs to History. History is not only about great men, wars and economic forces. It is about men, women, everyday life, township music, past recollections, family history and oral history passed on from generation to generation. The broken pottery and excavated shards of utensils used long ago, as well as the cave painting tell us of vanished people; the modern novel and daily paper the temper of the age. Information derived from the scientific study of the physical remains of past civilizations, such as architecture, arts and crafts, burial grounds, and cultivated land all constitute part of our history.

Postmodernistic world trends.

As with all the examples quoted above, education has also been part of everyday life. The way in which it was practised depended on the way people thought and on the values and beliefs they treasured. And so, education has, throughout the ages, always been embedded in a certain philosophical frame of reference. To quote Ozmon and Craver (1995:xv): "It can be said that the philosophy of education began when people first became conscious of education as a distinct human activity". Historical evidence perforce proves how education moved through numerous schools of thought, from Platonic idealism right up to the current trend, popularly known as postmodernism.

The emergence of postmodernism has occurred in the last three decades. Significant of this philosophy is that there is still wide divergence of opinion on what the basic tenets of it are. It is however, evident that postmodernism rejected perspectives such as behaviourism, existentialism, phenomenology and hermeneutics.

For the purpose of this discourse we wish to present a specific perspective of postmodernism, containing four main elements:

• The relativity of knowledge versus universality
• Inclusiveness and accommodation of diversity
• Globalization, group identity and an interdisciplinary approach, and
• Search for meaning and empowerment.

In Section Five of this paper a proposed new History curriculum will be presented. It is the firm belief of the authors that close scrutiny of the new, modularized, and outcomes-based History curriculum answers to these four perspectives.

The structure and content of the new curriculum are much more closely linked to issues of culture and gender than was acknowledged in the long practised curricula followed in this country. It is envisaged that, by dividing learning content into elective modules Vista University will be able to add or adapt modules as dictated by need and new insights. In this way the need for relativity of knowledge will be accommodated.

A major departure from the traditional, and now discredited History curriculum, as is discussed in the next section, is the inclusiveness of a far wider choice of topics which enables the individual student to compose a tailor-made study route.

The new curriculum also promotes active participation in the construction of history, and the inclusion of community inputs in the History experience.

The investigation of History curricula in other countries, provides evidence of the more dynamic global approach to knowledge. These insights have been applied to the South African environment, while the new modules have been adjusted to very specific local contexts. As will also be demonstrated, the new curriculum has been constructed in such a way that there are numerous examples of a more interdisciplinary approach.

Many examples from the new curriculum can be quoted to prove that the issues of personal meaning construction and empowerment are amply provided for. One example is the module Reconstruction of African History. Empowerment is also strongly advanced in the new curriculum in the promotion of personal involvement in historical research.

The above arguments prove conclusively that this new curriculum is in the spirit of modern thinking in education. However, it will be valuable to reflect briefly on the historical process of how this construct was arrived at.

The Process of the New History Curriculum

Vista University was created in 1982 and the history curriculum was broadly based on the then Department of Education and Training’s (DET) secondary education history syllabus. On a few issues the Vista University curriculum differed from the DET one. For example, there was an innovative course in the first year that introduced students immediately to the theory, method and philosophy of History as a science. The remaining syllabus, with the exception of the Honours Curriculum, was still based on what the students were studying in secondary schools. Over time the need was expressed by members of the History Department that the syllabus was outdated and had to change, due to changing circumstances.

In the latter part of 1995 a Departmental Syllabus Committee was established and, after a series of meetings early in 1996, a new syllabus was created and submitted to the Senate of the University for approval. Once approved the new syllabus came into effect in January 1997. This new syllabus was not a radical change from the original syllabus, but a re-organization and renaming of the various topics.

Although the revised syllabus was more streamlined, some members of the Departmental Syllabus Committee received a massive shock when they attended a workshop in August 1998 at the Soweto Campus of Vista University, organised by the Dean of the Faculty of Arts. The Director of Higher Education of the Department of Education, Mr. Ahmed Essop, in no uncertain terms informed us that Outcomes Based Education for Tertiary Education is a reality and must be fully operational by the year 2003. It was with a feeling of apprehension that we, as historians left the conference hall with many questions: Where will history fit in? It was, for example, not one of the twelve learning areas. What are we going to do? Will we have nothing to teach in future and was the prospect of losing our jobs now a definite reality, notwithstanding the supposedly impenetrable castle of South African academia. For the first time in Vista University’s short history, the History Department had to make creative plans to motivate our existence within the Faculty of Arts in particular and within the University in general.

The first step our Head of Department Prof. JS Mohlamme took, was to reconvene the Departmental Syllabus Committee, which instructed its members to investigate and explore ideas on a possible new syllabus. The task of a fellow colleague and myself was to look on the Internet for other universities who offer History as a subject in the Outcomes Based Education mode. Here a wealth of information was discovered in Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States of America, although not fully applicable to the South African environment. In the meantime two members of the Departmental Syllabus Committee were sent to a South African Institute for Distance Education (SAIDE) workshop in October 1998, entitled Integrating and Developing Generic Skills in the Curriculum. In December 1998 another meeting was convened where draft proposals were presented and discussed.

A few weeks ago this process was completed when the Qualification and Module Catalogues were handed to the Dean of the Faculty of Arts. The authors do not claim that this is the ultimate, best and final History syllabus within the Outcomes Based Education mode that could readily be accepted in its entirety by SAQA. However, it is a fresh new approach, bearing in mind the context in which we traditionally operated at Vista University.

The proposed New History Curriculum

It was not only the content but also the method employed in the planning of the syllabus that changed with the new History curriculum. The first major difference with previous History syllabi at Vista University concerns a break with the traditional thinking of the undergraduate degree and the honours degree as being two separate degrees.

According to the National Qualification Framework, Levels 5 and 6, in the old language, represent the first to third year undergraduate levels as well as honours. The Department’s Syllabus Committee decided to follow the model of several universities abroad and incorporate Honours studies in a new programme, since Level 7 represents study at Master’s level. The syllabus was thus divided into four years representing the NQF Levels 5 and 6 and further refined by dividing up each of the levels. Thus the first year of study in History will be defined as NQF Level 5, the second year as NQF Level 5.5, the third year as NQF Level 6 and finally the fourth year as NQF Level 6.5.

It was specifically the new direction, concerning the contents of the new curriculum that created the biggest resistance and controversy within the Department. It was important for the Department to establish its niche in the South African context, a fact which the Vice Chancellor of Vista University, Prof. Hugh Africa emphasised to the Vista University community. As a syllabus committee we decided to give a distinct African emphasis to our syllabus being a university in Africa, of Africa and catering for all the people of Africa. If students wish to study European, American or Asian history, they can then look around and enrol at another institution’s History Department in South Africa that offers such courses.

The new proposed History curriculum follows a thematic as well as a chronological pattern. It starts off at first year level with four compulsory Fundamental Modules of nine credits each, making a total of 36 credits. These modules form part of a foundation that must first successfully be passed in order to carry on with further study in History. The modules: Why History?; The researcher as detective; Oral tradition: Historical Perspective; and the Reconstruction of African History provide the necessary foundation for further study in the curriculum.

From the second to fourth years, students must complete two compulsory Core Modules each year. These Core Modules emphasise two aspects, namely general African history and South African history. Students must complete modules on: Early African Societies; Early Kingdoms and City-States; Colonisation in Africa; and The struggle for independence in Africa. On South African history the slant is more contemporary and learners must complete the modules: South Africa under apartheid, 1948 to 1976; and South Africa, 1976 to1994.

The learners are also offered a wide range of elective or optional modules of which two modules per year must be completed in order to advance to the next level. In the second year Elective Modules such as: Economic aspects of History; Urbanisation in Africa; The Mineral Revolution, 1867-1899; and Migrant experience in Southern Africa, 1867-1913; will be offered. The third year Elective Modules will consist of: History of Economic doctrines; Role of the UN, OAU, the Commonwealth and SADC in Southern Africa; South Africa and the land issue; History of Science and Technology; History, constitutional and political aspects of the system of Local Authorities in SA; and the History of the transformation of SA schooling in the 20^th century. The Elective Modules in the fourth and final year will consist of: Colonisation in Africa (Africa since Independence); International relations since WWII; History of Sport in South Africa in the 19^th and 20^th Centuries; Impact of Legislation on Urbanisation in SA in the 20^th century; and Industrialisation in South Africa in the 20^th century, 1886-1948.

This curriculum, albeit primarily focussed on students in the Faculty of Arts, also aims at providing academic inputs into other faculties. The strong inherent interdisciplinary character of the curriculum is couched herein. It reaches across Faculties of Vista University and offers them what they may have perceived as the "dry and boring" parts of their science, a historical perspective on their sciences from the scientists who are supposed to provide them with their expertise.

In the curriculum various examples in the category of elective modules exist. In Economic Sciences the History curriculum can offer modules such as: History of Economic doctrines; Economic aspects of History; International relations since WWII and Industrialisation in South Africa in the 20^th century, 1886-1948. The Faculty of Science students, as a general background to their programme, could study the module History of Science and Technology. In Geographical Sciences the module Urbanisation in Africa can give a valuable historical insight to students and in Public Administration the modules History, constitutional and political aspects of the system of Local Authorities in SA; and Role of the UN, OAU, the Commonwealth and SADC in Southern Africa can be very valuable. In the Faculty of Education the module History of the transformation of SA schooling in the 20^th century; in Sport Studies the module History of Sport in South Africa in the 19^th and 20^th Centuries; in Law studies the module Impact of Legislation on Urbanisation in SA in the 20^th century and in Sociology Migrant experience in Southern Africa, 1867-1913 can also be of value.

But does this new curriculum serve the purpose for which it was so intensively revised? To answer this it is necessary to consider what the official requirements are. This will be addressed in the next section.

The Process of the New History Curriculum

Vista University was created in 1982 and the history curriculum was broadly based on the then Department of Education and Training’s (DET) secondary education history syllabus. On a few issues the Vista University curriculum differed from the DET one. For example, there was an innovative course in the first year that introduced students immediately to the theory, method and philosophy of History as a science. The remaining syllabus, with the exception of the Honours Curriculum, was still based on what the students were studying in secondary schools. Over time the need was expressed by members of the History Department that the syllabus was outdated and had to change, due to changing circumstances.

In the latter part of 1995 a Departmental Syllabus Committee was established and, after a series of meetings early in 1996, a new syllabus was created and submitted to the Senate of the University for approval. Once approved the new syllabus came into effect in January 1997. This new syllabus was not a radical change from the original syllabus, but a re-organization and renaming of the various topics.

Although the revised syllabus was more streamlined, some members of the Departmental Syllabus Committee received a massive shock when they attended a workshop in August 1998 at the Soweto Campus of Vista University, organised by the Dean of the Faculty of Arts. The Director of Higher Education of the Department of Education, Mr. Ahmed Essop, in no uncertain terms informed us that Outcomes Based Education for Tertiary Education is a reality and must be fully operational by the year 2003. It was with a feeling of apprehension that we, as historians left the conference hall with many questions: Where will history fit in? It was, for example, not one of the twelve learning areas. What are we going to do? Will we have nothing to teach in future and was the prospect of losing our jobs now a definite reality, notwithstanding the supposedly impenetrable castle of South African academia. For the first time in Vista University’s short history, the History Department had to make creative plans to motivate our existence within the Faculty of Arts in particular and within the University in general.

The first step our Head of Department Prof. JS Mohlamme took, was to reconvene the Departmental Syllabus Committee, which instructed its members to investigate and explore ideas on a possible new syllabus. The task of a fellow colleague and myself was to look on the Internet for other universities who offer History as a subject in the Outcomes Based Education mode. Here a wealth of information was discovered in Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States of America, although not fully applicable to the South African environment. In the meantime two members of the Departmental Syllabus Committee were sent to a South African Institute for Distance Education (SAIDE) workshop in October 1998, entitled Integrating and Developing Generic Skills in the Curriculum. In December 1998 another meeting was convened where draft proposals were presented and discussed.

A few weeks ago this process was completed when the Qualification and Module Catalogues were handed to the Dean of the Faculty of Arts. The authors do not claim that this is the ultimate, best and final History syllabus within the Outcomes Based Education mode that could readily be accepted in its entirety by SAQA. However, it is a fresh new approach, bearing in mind the context in which we traditionally operated at Vista University.

The proposed New History Curriculum

It was not only the content but also the method employed in the planning of the syllabus that changed with the new History curriculum. The first major difference with previous History syllabi at Vista University concerns a break with the traditional thinking of the undergraduate degree and the honours degree as being two separate degrees.

According to the National Qualification Framework, Levels 5 and 6, in the old language, represent the first to third year undergraduate levels as well as honours. The Department’s Syllabus Committee decided to follow the model of several universities abroad and incorporate Honours studies in a new programme, since Level 7 represents study at Master’s level. The syllabus was thus divided into four years representing the NQF Levels 5 and 6 and further refined by dividing up each of the levels. Thus the first year of study in History will be defined as NQF Level 5, the second year as NQF Level 5.5, the third year as NQF Level 6 and finally the fourth year as NQF Level 6.5.

It was specifically the new direction, concerning the contents of the new curriculum that created the biggest resistance and controversy within the Department. It was important for the Department to establish its niche in the South African context, a fact which the Vice Chancellor of Vista University, Prof. Hugh Africa emphasised to the Vista University community. As a syllabus committee we decided to give a distinct African emphasis to our syllabus being a university in Africa, of Africa and catering for all the people of Africa. If students wish to study European, American or Asian history, they can then look around and enrol at another institution’s History Department in South Africa that offers such courses.

The new proposed History curriculum follows a thematic as well as a chronological pattern. It starts off at first year level with four compulsory Fundamental Modules of nine credits each, making a total of 36 credits. These modules form part of a foundation that must first successfully be passed in order to carry on with further study in History. The modules: Why History?; The researcher as detective; Oral tradition: Historical Perspective; and the Reconstruction of African History provide the necessary foundation for further study in the curriculum.

From the second to fourth years, students must complete two compulsory Core Modules each year. These Core Modules emphasise two aspects, namely general African history and South African history. Students must complete modules on: Early African Societies; Early Kingdoms and City-States; Colonisation in Africa; and The struggle for independence in Africa. On South African history the slant is more contemporary and learners must complete the modules: South Africa under apartheid, 1948 to 1976; and South Africa, 1976 to1994.

The learners are also offered a wide range of elective or optional modules of which two modules per year must be completed in order to advance to the next level. In the second year Elective Modules such as: Economic aspects of History; Urbanisation in Africa; The Mineral Revolution, 1867-1899; and Migrant experience in Southern Africa, 1867-1913; will be offered. The third year Elective Modules will consist of: History of Economic doctrines; Role of the UN, OAU, the Commonwealth and SADC in Southern Africa; South Africa and the land issue; History of Science and Technology; History, constitutional and political aspects of the system of Local Authorities in SA; and the History of the transformation of SA schooling in the 20^th century. The Elective Modules in the fourth and final year will consist of: Colonisation in Africa (Africa since Independence); International relations since WWII; History of Sport in South Africa in the 19^th and 20^th Centuries; Impact of Legislation on Urbanisation in SA in the 20^th century; and Industrialisation in South Africa in the 20^th century, 1886-1948.

This curriculum, albeit primarily focussed on students in the Faculty of Arts, also aims at providing academic inputs into other faculties. The strong inherent interdisciplinary character of the curriculum is couched herein. It reaches across Faculties of Vista University and offers them what they may have perceived as the "dry and boring" parts of their science, a historical perspective on their sciences from the scientists who are supposed to provide them with their expertise.

In the curriculum various examples in the category of elective modules exist. In Economic Sciences the History curriculum can offer modules such as: History of Economic doctrines; Economic aspects of History; International relations since WWII and Industrialisation in South Africa in the 20^th century, 1886-1948. The Faculty of Science students, as a general background to their programme, could study the module History of Science and Technology. In Geographical Sciences the module Urbanisation in Africa can give a valuable historical insight to students and in Public Administration the modules History, constitutional and political aspects of the system of Local Authorities in SA; and Role of the UN, OAU, the Commonwealth and SADC in Southern Africa can be very valuable. In the Faculty of Education the module History of the transformation of SA schooling in the 20^th century; in Sport Studies the module History of Sport in South Africa in the 19^th and 20^th Centuries; in Law studies the module Impact of Legislation on Urbanisation in SA in the 20^th century and in Sociology Migrant experience in Southern Africa, 1867-1913 can also be of value.

But does this new curriculum serve the purpose for which it was so intensively revised? To answer this it is necessary to consider what the official requirements are. This will be addressed in the next section.

SAQA requirements and the new Vista University History Curriculum

To ensure that the Government’s new approach to education is implemented, and quality standards are improved and/or maintained, the South African Quality Authority (SAQA) was established by the SAQA Act of 1995. The first responsibility of SAQA was to establish a National Qualifications Framework (NQF). With these structures in place a whole number of principles could be introduced at all levels of education, such as coherence, articulation, transfer and mobility, progression, flexibility, multiple entry and exit points, recognition of prior learning, outcomes-based education with integrated assessment, the incorporation of critical cross-field as well as specific outcomes, and bridging requirements. Stated in more formal terms, the requirements of the SAQA regulations could be listed as follows:

• A planned combination of learning outcomes
• Adding value, employability and access
• Provision of benefits to society and redressing inequities
• Compliance with the NQF objectives
• Promotion of lifelong learning
• International comparability
• Incorporation of a range of integrated assessments, and
• Recognition of Prior Learning.

As mentioned in Section 4, a Qualification and Module Catalogue was prepared in which every module was set out according to the nine interim registration requirements. One such module will be demonstrated. It reflects the institutional code, the module title, a brief description as a statement of purpose, the NQF level, the total credits awarded, the entry level requirements, the concurrent modules, the integrated assessment, the specific and critical cross-field outcomes and the articulation possibilities within the twelve fields. The assessor and moderation requirements will be defined across the entire new curriculum. Based on the above example, the new History curriculum can be fully defended in terms of meeting the SAQA requirements.

Each module reflects a range of both specific and critical outcomes. Regarding the adding of value, the knowledge, skills and values identified in each module are clearly stipulated in the catalogue. In the next section some examples of increased employability will also be demonstrated. The list of newly defined modules is ample evidence of the benefits it will provide to South African society. Being very strongly focussed on History in the African context, it will be more meaningful to students in so far as it addresses the inequities represented in an Apartheid History Curriculum. The SAQA objectives referred to in the preceding paragraph are all clearly adhered to in the new modular curriculum. There is a natural coherence of themes, distinct possibilities of articulation across disciplines, as well as institutions which will promote transferability. With the inclusion of elective modules, flexibility is ensured and, as already demonstrated, each module provides for a range of integrated assessment procedures. The clearly stipulated generic skills as well as the knowledge, skills and values ensconced in each module, will provide a firm foundation and criteria on which a prospective student’s prior learning can be judged.

Central to the new educational policy and its focus on the needs of the labour market, the next section provides some examples of how the new Vista University History Curriculum will prepare students in a relevant manner for future employment.

History and career opportunities

The most common question, which is now becoming extremely irritating and monotonous to any historian, is: "What will I do with History?" Coupled with the South African Educational authorities’ extreme fascination with science and technology as the only solution to all our political, social and economic problems, one tends to think of long philosophical answers to put these views in complete disrepute.

One example could actually answer this burning question. In a study made by the Institute for Employment Research of Warwick University and published at the beginning of this year, the very interesting conclusions were reached. In this study 1011 directors of the top 100 companies in the United Kingdom were interviewed. Of the more than 30 types of university qualifications which they held, History was fourth after Engineering, Mathematics and Science and Economics (Manchester Guardian Higher Education Supplement, 26 February 1999.).

The training of historians, if not only to be employed as historians, is thus very important for South Africa. South Africa needs divergent thinkers. Although History as a formal subject in the Curriculum 2005 environment does not exist any more, South Africa still needs teachers with a History background at tertiary level. On all levels of society we still need the journalist (for printed and television media), the writers (for formal history, the recording of the wealth of oral tradition in our country, novels, documentaries, screenplays and autobiographies), the politicians (such as Local Councillors, Provincial and National representatives), the heritage workers and managers (for museums and cultural villages), the archivist (for the national, provincial, local and private archives), the Information Officers (as envisaged by the Open Democracy Bill) and workers in the tourism industry (for example those holding Vista University’s National Certificate in Historical and Cultural Tourism).

Conclusion

The Vista University Distance Education Campus (VUDEC) introduced degree programmes in 1998, with studies in History as one of the options. Within the mandate laid down by Senate, these distance learning opportunities must be congruent with the programmes offered at the contact campuses. The implications of this are that the new curriculum will be accessible to any student in South Africa, and indeed globally. This represents a fine example of articulation across institutional and geographic borders.

Accreditation, when granted by SAQA, and based on the compliance with prescribed requirements, will enhance transferability and integration with other programmes, which is one of the main aims of the new educational dispensation.

The pro-active approach adopted by Vista University should be seen within the following context: "The suspended implementation of the NQF does in fact represent particular opportunities to the humanities which should, in turn, assume the critical point of intrusion (Nel & van der Westhuizen 1998:7). The authors believe that they have substantiated their argument that the new Vista University History curriculum has every chance of being accredited by SAQA. Should this come to pass, we would indeed be justified to in maintaining that there is a future for our past.

"Human history becomes more and more a race between education and catastrophe." H G Wells

LEWIS-WILLIAMS, J D & SMITH, B W. 1998. Ancient Art in South Africa History and national resolve in a period of change. In Bulletin Vol 5 No 1:13-16 HSRC, Pretoria, October 1998

MANCHESTER GUARDIAN HIGHER EDUCATION SUPPLEMENT, 26 February 1999.

NEL, J E & Van der WESTHUIZEN, P C. 1998. Programme-based education within the humanities: Ostranenie revisited? In Bulletin Vol 5 No 1:6-8 HSRC, Pretoria, October 1998.

OZMON, H & CRAVER, S. 1995. Philosophical Foundations of Education