Course Overview
In our day-to-day lives we are confronted with diverse social justice issues, with local and global development challenges informing our journeys as agents of social change. Not forgetting the many ways in which the covid-19 pandemic has changed how we participate in community, engage with activism, and enact social change.
In GC4: Dialogue and Deliberation (Dialogue and Active Citizenship in Unprecedented Times), a partnership between UCT and Wits University, we offer you a space centred around open dialogue about student activism and exploring your own conceptions of community engagement and activism.
GC4 offers a space to share projects that you are involved in and to broaden your understanding of student initiatives at other institutions and assists you in ways of framing your role and actions as an agent of social change, and steps going forward on your journey.
Course Aims and Objectives
- To examine and reflect on the spaces for student voices, dialogue, and social change within our institutional frameworks, and reimagine new forms of engagement and dialogue in line with the values of social justice.
- To encourage open and honest spaces for the difficult conversations in order to work towards a more inclusive ecosystem (especially in higher education spaces)
- To expose students to practical tools in dialogue skills and different forms of engagement, eg. online engagement, debates, and engage with learning to listen to a fellow student who might have a similar or a very different lived experience.
- To critically engage with the concepts of “social justice” and “active citizenship”, thinking about the role of power in shaping the citizen experience globally and in our institutions.
- To develop an awareness of ourselves in relation to broader social systems of power and privilege through a co-created, co-learning experience between the ongoing student community of Wits and UCT, where networks and student partnerships may flourish into impactful relationships that continue to inspire and motivate one another.
Course at a glance
Course Themes
Requirements for completion
How do I sign up for GC 4?
This year, GC4 will be offered in partnership with the Nobel Peace Centre’s Ignitor Fellowship Programme.
This means that students who sign-up for GC4 via the Ignitor Fellowship Platform will have access to many other social justice related offerings, resources, and activities - and an opportunity to be considered for the Ignitor Masters Scholarship. All while connecting with like-minded changemakers from universities around the world!
To sign up, follow these steps:
- Register and create a profile on the Ignitor Platform
- Sign-up for the GC4 course on the site, accessible here
- Get ready for the start of the course!
What our students have to say
