The Human Side Of Post Graduate Supervision
Editors note - coming soon
topic 1 - navigating doctoral challenges
topic 2 - Why do math?
Balancing Acts: Navigating Doctoral Challenges as a Multitasking Scholar
From juggling roles as a mother, wife, and professional to overcoming social stress and isolation, Dr. Mmabaledi K. Seeletso shares her remarkable experience as a multitasking Ph.D. candidate. Her narrative offers valuable insights for both supervisors and doctoral students, emphasizing the importance of understanding and supporting the multifaceted lives of scholars. Read more
Reversing the curse of math trauma
Summary: Traore Maïmouna unveils the undocumented struggles of women navigating the demands of childbirth and parenting while pursuing their doctoral studies. From the absence of maternity leave policies to the strategies employed by these resilient women, the narrative sheds light on the humanization of doctoral supervision and calls for institutional changes to support the holistic well-being of doctoral candidates. Read more
Embracing Humanity for Stronger Supervision
In this article, Dr Kati reflects on how the high drop-out rate of PhD students in Kenya prompted him to re-evaluate his role as a research supervisor. Dr Kati writes about the importance of mentorship, empathy and nurturing professional development during a student’s journey Read more
The Well-being of PhD Students in Academia and Beyond
Dr. Sophie Marques shares her inspiring academic journey, rising from a family of illiterate parents to earning a PhD and later a post-PhD at UCT, eventually becoming a Senior Lecturer at the University of Stellenbosch. She reflects on the challenges of being the only woman in the mathematics department and how she navigated them. Dr. Marques also discusses her experiences in supervising students, addressing their challenges, and guiding them towards success.. Read more
topic 2 - Crafting a Compassionate Doctoral Journey
Crafting a Compassionate Doctoral Journey: Humanizing Supervision in African Academia
From demystifying supervisor-student interactions to encouraging work-life balance, this insightful article by Anastasiah Ngigi explores key practices to humanize doctoral supervision. Read more
A Holistic Approach to Humane Doctoral Supervision for Growth and Inclusivity
Dr Macharia from Kenya reflects on their experience as a doctoral candidate in Germany and how this experience shaped their approach to supervision. Dr Macharia advocates for a human approach in supervision, that foster growth and inclusivity. These are vital considerations when thinking about the future of academia. Read more
When Ph.D. students compare notes…Is it the supervisor’s or the student’s fault?
Dr. Tlou Raphela shares her inspiring journey from humble beginnings to academic success, emphasizing the importance of a supportive supervisor and a dedicated student. She highlights the negative impact of toxicity and unethical practices on PhD outcomes and institutional reputation, urging both students and supervisors to uphold ethical standards. Concluding with a call for prioritizing mental health, Dr. Raphela offers valuable insights for anyone pursuing a PhD. Read more
Embracing Humanity in Doctoral Students’ Supervision
Embracing the human side of life in the doctoral student supervision process is a crucial matter to take on board as it is highly spoken by the author, Doreen Nkala. This provides a sense of camaraderie, incorporates empathy, exercises patience, authenticity, and inclusivity, and hence empowers the next generation of scholars to reach their utmost potential and provide substantial contributions in their domain of study. Read more
topic 3 - inspirational stories
Inspirations from Within: A Supervisor’s Journey of Encouragement and Vision
Dr. Winnie Waiyaki’s captivating narrative describes her journey from a modest background to doctoral success, entwined with her mother’s unwavering encouragement. As she traces her path from mentee to mentor, Waiyaki shares invaluable insights into the transformative power of inspiration in academic supervision. Read more
A wholesome approach to a life of research and teaching
Dr Selline Atieno Oketch shares her life experiences starting from her childhood in rural Kenya to earning a doctorate and becoming a faculty at CUEA. Her journey exemplifies the pitfalls and hurdles one encounters in higher education. Through this column, she tells an inspiring story of her transition from being a young student who found a good mentor to a struggling but persevering PhD scholar to an understanding and caring supervisor. Read more
My Journey of Faith and Academic Excellence: Understanding and Responding to the Impact of Trauma on Doctoral Candidates through Pastoral Supervision
Anne Aguessy’s journey blends faith and academic excellence, highlighting the transformative power of pastoral supervision in doctoral education. Faith provided resilience during her doctoral challenges, deeply impacting her academic and spiritual paths. Read more
Empowering Through Lifelong Learning: From Hardship to Humanized Supervision
Dr Belle Louis Jinot reflects on his journey into academia and how humanism and altruism can help supervisors to better serve their students. Read more
My journey to academic
Cornelius Nwoga was born into a family that valued education and overcame significant challenges to become a doctoral graduate. Now, he dedicates himself to fostering a supportive and inclusive academic environment, ensuring his students receive the mentorship they need. Read more
topic 4 - Doctoral Inteligence
The X-factor for Quality Research: Research Intelligence for Humanising Supervision
Ruth Albertyn highlights the need to broaden research education and support. She proposes conceptualizing doctoral intelligence and developing higher levels of thinking to produce quality research. Read more
Humanizing doctoral supervision: supervisor-student shared responsibilities in the completion of PhD studies
In this article, Berthilde reflects on her PhD journey, highlighting the challenges she faced, particularly studying in English as a French speaker, and how a supportive supervisor helped her overcome them. She emphasizes the critical role of a supervisor in guiding students through their academic journey. Despite the isolation often felt during PhD studies, she argues that a dedicated supervisor and committed student can ensure successful and timely completion.Read more
Lessons in teaching: student supervision and quality research
T. Mwamburi Mcharo talks about six important lessons that encompass what to do and what not to do while supervising students. Drawing from his vast experience and pedagogical understanding, he gives all future teachers a blueprint for effective and compassionate supervision of students. Read more
Supervising PhD students: the journey ahead and the journey within
Shepherd Mpofu recounts his experiences during his PhD journey and poses important questions and dilemmas involved in supervising a varied bunch of students. While it is important to have certain essential training, he warns us against spoon feeding and taking a “one size fits all” attitude towards teaching and supervision. As Oprah Winfrey once said “A mentor is someone who allows you to see the hope inside yourself”. Read more
The Power of Humanization Pedagogy in Doctoral Student Guidance for Enhancing Research Development
Dr. Justine Mbukwa believes that doctoral supervision requires a structured pedagogical approach to effectively develop competent researchers. Supervisors must balance academic rigor with sensitivity to students’ emotional and cognitive needs, fostering an inclusive and supportive learning environment. Read more
Doctoral Supervision: From Uncertainty to the Best Practice – Advancing from my Humble Beginnings to Academic Achievement
Prof. Sammy Kipkemboi Chumba writes on the importance of supportive supervision in doctoral education, emphasizing understanding diverse student backgrounds and integrating best practices from global training programs to foster effective and humane academic mentorship. He draws on his own upbringing and challenges to show the importance of these issues in hopes to pave a better way forward. Read more
Editor's Note
WISAARKHU aims to provide a diversity, not necessarily a jointly exhaustive collection, of perspectives on a chosen theme related to the learning and teaching of Mathematics. It is a magazine for inspiring, for creating awareness, for sharing experiences, for communicating, for connecting, and for reflecting.
It is not a research journal. It does not purport to endorse any particular opinion or approach to the learning and teaching of mathematics. Its readership is intended for all from across the globe with an interest in mathematics.
Each perspective expressed in the content of WISAARKHU is that of the author. It does not purport to reflect the opinions of the editor or Stellenbosch University or the affiliations of the authors.
Each theme aligned with one of the quarterly Psychology of Abstract Mathematics discussions. The choice of each discussion theme is inspired by a challenge encountered in the learning and teaching of mathematics;
In this way the theme ‘Competition or Collaboration in Mathematics’ evolved for the first volume of WISAARKHU. There are four topics each speaking to a sub-theme of the overall theme that evolved from the contributions, namely, perspectives within and beyond mathematics, voices of students, impact on the self, influence on learning and teaching of mathematics. Throughout the magazine you will meet students, mathematicians, teachers, psychologists, educationalists, and others interested in mathematics.
No matter your interest in or experience of Mathematics, I hope you will read this magazine acknowledging the intention with which it has been written.
Prof. Ingrid Rewitzky
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
