PLS1502/101/3/2023

Tutorial Letter 101/3/2023

Introduction to African Philosophy

PLS1502

Department of Philosophy, Practical and

Systematic Theology
Discipline of Philosophy

This tutorial letter contains important information about your module.

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CONTENTS

Page

1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................ 4
2 PURPOSE AND OUTCOMES ........................................................................................................ 6
2.1 Purpose .......................................................................................................................................... 6
2.2 Outcomes........................................................................................................................................ 6
3 CURRICULUM TRANSFORMATION ............................................................................................. 6
4 LECTURER(S) AND CONTACT DETAILS .................................................................................... 6
4.1 Lecturer(s)....................................................................................................................................... 6
4.2 Department ..................................................................................................................................... 7
4.3 University ........................................................................................................................................ 7
5 RESOURCES ................................................................................................................................. 7
5.1 Prescribed Reading(s) .................................................................................................................... 7
5.2 Recommended book(s) ................................................................................................................... 8
5.3 Electronic reserves (e-reserves) ..................................................................................................... 8
6 STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES .................................................................................................. 9
6.1 The Unisa First-Year Experience Programme................................................................................. 9
6.2 myUnisa/Moodle ........................................................................................................................... 10
6.3 Information on tutorial offerings at Unisa ....................................................................................... 10
6.4 Services offered by the Bureau for Student Counselling and Career Development ...................... 11
7 STUDY PLAN ............................................................................................................................... 11
7.1 Contents of the module: ............................................................................................................. 11
7.2 Suggested study plan ................................................................................................................. 12
8 PRACTICAL WORK ..................................................................................................................... 14
9 ASSESSMENT ............................................................................................................................. 14
9.1 Assessment criteria ....................................................................................................................... 14
9.2 General Comments on Assignment Writing .................................................................................. 15
9.3 Structure of assignments .............................................................................................................. 15
9.5 Assignment due dates................................................................................................................... 17
9.6 Submission of assignments ...................................................................................................... 18
9.7 The assignments ......................................................................................................................... 18
9.8 Other assessment methods ....................................................................................................... 18
9.9 The examination .......................................................................................................................... 18

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9.10 Other assessment methods .......................................................................................................... 19
9.11 The examination............................................................................................................................ 19
9.11.1 Invigilation/proctoring .................................................................................................................... 19
10 ACADEMIC DISHONESTY........................................................................................................... 20
10.1 Plagiarism ..................................................................................................................................... 20
10.2 Cheating....................................................................................................................................... 20
10.3 More information about plagiarism can be downloaded on the link below ........................... 20
11 STUDENTS LIVING WITH DISABILITIES .................................................................................... 20
12 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS .......................................................................................... 20
13 SOURCES CONSULTED ............................................................................................................. 21
14 IN CLOSING ................................................................................................................................. 21
15 ADDENDUM ................................................................................................................................. 22

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Dear Student

1 INTRODUCTION
Dear Student

Welcome to the module PLS1502, Introduction to African Philosophy. We are delighted to have
you as a student this year, and we wish you every success in your studies.

The tutorial letter you are reading is called Tutorial Letter 101. The tutorial letter sets out a
programme for the two academic semesters. Please focus on the readings of the semester for
which you are registered. This tutorial letter is a valuable document containing important
information. You should read through this document before doing anything else. This Tutorial
Letter 101 must be read in conjunction with the prescribed readings, and the Study guide.

The purpose of this Tutorial Letter, accordingly, is to guide you through your reading of the Study
guide and the prescribed readings. This entails that this tutorial letter facilitates a smoother
reading of the prescribed readings and the Study guide.

The content of this module stretches over ONE semester. Please be informed that the Discipline
of Philosophy operates according to the semester system. In other words, you register in the
beginning or shortly before the beginning of the year, and ideally, you should write the final
examination for this module in May/June (first semester students). Alternatively, you register in
June and ideally, you should write the final examination for this module then in October/November
(second semester students/or those granted an aegrotat/supplementary examination
opportunity). Second semester students who qualify for or are granted an aegrotat/
supplementary examination may write these in the May/June the following year. Once you have
passed the examination you have completed the module and have earned your credits for the
module.

Blended model of learning: It is important to note that this module is structured according to the
blended model of learning. This refers to the use of various technologies, pedagogies, and
platforms to create a strategic mix of learning context (Rooyen, 2007: 51). To gain the most of
your learning experiences from this module you are advised to make use of the module material
(Tutorial letters and prescribed readings) in conjunction to the various digital platforms like
myUnisa/myModules.

MyUnisa/myModule: The myUnisa teaching platform is a great way to interact with your lecturer
as well as other students registered for this module. Lecturers will communicate updates and
information about the module through the announcements page to the class. These messages
will be sent directly to your myLife email account. It is important that you keep up to date with the
announcements. Make sure to read all the all the announcements that were made before you
joined the module so as not to miss out on any of the previous changes to the module.

Through myUnisa/myModules your lecturers will also post extra readings and other learning
material, but you will not be assessed on them in the exam. These will be useful for your learning.

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Please, also make use of the online discussions with your fellow classmates on the module
content. Sharing and responding to the ideas of others is an excellent way to make sense of the
module material. It will enrich your learning experience. Your lecturers look forward to interacting
with you online so please introduce yourself in the discussions.

We should like to draw your attention to Tutorial Letter WYSALLB/301/4/2023. This is perhaps
the most important of all the tutorial letters that you will receive in the study of Philosophy. Many
of you will find meeting our requirement to write essay-type question quite foreign. It is for this
reason that you need to pay special attention to the second part of this tutorial letter so that you
are properly orientated concerning what it is that we expect of you.

You are about to embark on a study of philosophy arising from the African experience or focussed
upon it. We wish to emphasise that this is African Philosophy. In addition, it is philosophy proper
that you will be studying. The fact that you are a black African is neither a licence nor an exemption
for you to take lightly the fact that you have chosen to study African philosophy. You do not
become a qualified and competent African philosopher simply by virtue of your having been born
a black African. Yet, a systematic study of assignments and examinations shows unfortunately
that some black African students choose African philosophy on the illusion that their blackness
qualifies them automatically as competent philosophers. On the other hand, the same study has
revealed that other students who are not black by birth and who do not regard themselves as an
integral part of African tradition and culture appear to base their choice of African philosophy on
curiosity about the exotic. As a result, they condescend to African philosophy. They tend to take
African philosophy lightly. Instead of approaching it as a field of study like any other, they tend to
look for excitement and fun from it. We wish to emphasise that neither this attitude nor that of
black African students is acceptable. It helps neither yourselves nor us as your lecturers. It is
therefore important that you adopt the only correct attitude towards African philosophy, namely,
that it is a field of study that demands your serious intellectual attention and will demand
intellectual rigour from you.

Post-independent Africa has produced some very fine philosophy, particularly in countries like
Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda, Kenya, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Benin, Mali, the Democratic republic of
the Conngo, Malawi and South Africa - countries which obtained independence many years ago.
Independence produced a great impetus towards the reconstruction of Africa’s cultural life.
Philosophy was at the forefront of this revival, and so it is no accident that the best-known names
in African philosophy – Kwasi Wiredu, Kwame Gyekye, Paulin Hountondji, Anthony Appiah,
Cheikh Anta Diop, Valetine Mudimbe, Abiola Irele, Theophilus Obenga, Issa Laleye, Odera Oruka
and many others hail from post- independent Africa. Post-independent Africa includes the African
experience expressed by Africans in the diaspora. No wonder then that the voices of African
Americans, Latin Americans and the Caribbeans will be heard in this study. True to the meaning
of philosophy as reasoned dialogue our teaching of this module will reflect African philosophy in
dialogue with other world philosophies and, for historical reasons, especially in dialogue with
Western Philosophy.

We hope that you will enjoy every aspect of your study of this subject. Best wishes for a successful
academic year.

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2 PURPOSE AND OUTCOMES

2.1 Purpose

The aim of this module is to introduce students to African Philosophy, by way of exploring selected
themes and trends in this wide field of study. Through the study of this module students will be
enabled to critically discuss and assess philosophy texts in order to determine their merits or
demerits.

2.2 Outcomes

This module will be useful to students of all disciplines across all colleges. Those who complete
this module should be

- able to think critically and creatively about Africa and her experiences.

- introduced to a systematic reflection on the African experience of the world.

- exposed to the history of the emergence of African Philosophy.

- able to explore critically what it means to be human in the African culture and what constitutes
‘right’ or ‘wrong’ in the African experience.

3 CURRICULUM TRANSFORMATION
Unisa has implemented a transformation charter based on five pillars and eight dimensions. In
response to this charter, we have placed curriculum transformation high on the teaching and
learning agenda. Curriculum transformation includes the following pillars: student-centred
scholarship, the pedagogical renewal of teaching and assessment practices, the scholarship of
teaching and learning, and the infusion of African epistemologies and philosophies. These pillars
and their principles will be integrated at both programme and module levels as a phased-in
approach. You will notice a marked change in the teaching and learning strategy implemented by
Unisa, together with how the content is conceptualised in your modules. We encourage you to
embrace these changes during your studies at Unisa in a responsive way within the framework
of transformation.

4 LECTURER(S) AND CONTACT DETAILS

4.1 Lecturer(s)

Ms Gugu Ndlazi

Module Leader

email: PLS1502@unisa.ac.za

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Ms Tumelo Modiselle Mr Masilo Lepuru

Lecturer Lecturer

e-mail: PLS1502@unisa.ac.za e-mail: PLS1502@unisa.ac.za

4.2 Department

The contact details for the Discipline of Philosophy are:

Ms Petronela Sekhukhune

Discipline administrator

e-mail: sekhunp@unisa.ac.za

+27 12 429 6888

4.3 University

Contact addresses of the various administrative departments are included in the brochure Study
@ Unisa, which you received with your study package.

In line with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013, students are required to use their
myLife e-mail accounts to communicate with the university.

Always use your student number when you contact the university. If you are properly registered
you will then be provided with Unisa email address which begins with your student number
xxxxxxx@mylife.unisa.ac.za, you are therefore requested to use this email when you
communicate with us.

Contact addresses of the various administrative departments appear on the Unisa website:
http://www.unisa.ac.za/sites/corporate/default/Contact-us/Student-enquiries.

Please include the student number in all correspondence.

5 RESOURCES
5.1 Prescribed Reading(s)

Ramose, M.B. 2002. ‘The struggle for reason in Africa in P.H. Coetzee (ed) The struggle for
reason in Africa, from Philosophy from Africa: A Text with Readings, 2nd Ed, Oxford University
Press, pp 1 -8.

Oruka, H.O. 2002. ‘Four trends in current African philosophy’ in P.H. Coetzee (ed) The struggle
for reason in Africa, from Philosophy from Africa: A Text with Readings, 2nd Ed, Oxford
University Press, pp 120 -124.

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Imbo, S.O. 1998. ‘How is African philosophy to be defined?’ in An Introduction to African

Philosophy. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, pp 3-7; 43-50.

Gyekye, K. 2002. ‘Person and community in African thought.’ in P.H. Coetzee (ed) The struggle
for reason in Africa, from Philosophy from Africa: A Text with Readings, 2nd Ed, Oxford
University Press, pp 297 -312.

Biakolo. E. 2002. ‘Categories of cross-cultural cognition’ in P.H. Coetzee (ed) The struggle for
reason in Africa, from Philosophy from Africa: A Text with Readings, 2nd Ed, Oxford University
Press, pp 9 -19.

Bewaji, J. 2004. ‘Ethics and morality in Yoruba culture’ in K. Wiredu (ed) A Companion to
African Philosophy, Blackwell Publishing Ltd, pp396-403.

The prescribed readings can be downloaded from the myUnisa/myModules platform.

5.2 Recommended book(s)

We have no specific recommended books for this module. However, students are advised to
consult the back pages of their study guide where they will find a list of references for further
reading.

Recommended books can be requested online, via the Library catalogue.

The preferred way of requesting recommended or additional books is online via the library’s
catalogue. Go to http://oasis.unisa.ac.za or via myUnisa, go to http://my.unisa.ac.za > Login >
Library > Library catalogue, or for mobile access (AirPAC), go to http://oasis.unisa.ac.za/airpac

5.3 Electronic reserves (e-reserves)

There are no E-reserves for this module

5.4 Library services and resources information

The Unisa Library offers a range of information services and resources:

• For brief information, go to https://www.unisa.ac.za/library/libatglance

• For more detailed Library information, go to
http://www.unisa.ac.za/sites/corporate/default/Library
• For research support and services (e.g. Personal Librarians and literature search
services), go to http://www.unisa.ac.za/sites/corporate/default/Library/Library-
services/Research-support

• The library has created numerous Library guides: http://libguides.unisa.ac.za

Recommended guides:

• Request and find library material/download recommended material:

http://libguides.unisa.ac.za/request/request
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• Postgraduate information services: http://libguides.unisa.ac.za/request/postgrad
• Finding and using library resources and tools:
http://libguides.unisa.ac.za/Research_skills
• Frequently asked questions about the library:
http://libguides.unisa.ac.za/ask
• Services to students living with disabilities:
http://libguides.unisa.ac.za/disability

Important contact information:

• Ask a Librarian: https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/ask
• Technical problems accessing library online services: Lib-help@unisa.ac.za
• General library related queries: Library-enquiries@unisa.ac.za
• For queries related to library fines and payments: Library-fines@unisa.ac.za

6 STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES

The Study @ Unisa brochure is available on myUnisa: www.unisa.ac.za/brochures/studies

This brochure contains important information and guidelines for successful studies through Unisa.

If you need assistance with regard to the myModules system, you are welcome to use the
following contact details:

• Toll-free landline: 0800 00 1870 (Select option 07 for myModules)

• E-mail: mymodules22@unisa.ac.za or myUnisaHelp@unisa.ac.za

You can access and view short videos on topics such as how to view your calendar, how to
access module content, how to view announcements for modules, how to submit assessment
and how to participate in forum activities via the following link: https://dtls-
qa.unisa.ac.za/course/view.php?id=32130

Registered Unisa students get a free myLife e-mail account. Important information, notices and
updates are sent exclusively to this account. Please note that it can take up to 24 hours for
your account to be activated after you have claimed it. Please do this immediately after
registering at Unisa, by following this link: myLifeHelp@unisa.ac.za

Your myLife account is the only e-mail account recognised by Unisa for official correspondence
with the university and will remain the official primary e-mail address on record at Unisa. You
remain responsible for the management of this e-mail account.
mailto:

6.1 The Unisa First-Year Experience Programme

Many students find the transition from school education to tertiary education stressful. This is also true in
the case of students enrolling at Unisa for the first time. Unisa is a dedicated open distance and e-learning
institution, and it is very different from face-to-face/contact institutions. It is a mega university, and all our

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programmes are offered through either blended learning or fully online learning.

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It is for this reason that we thought it necessary to offer first-time students additional/extended support to
help them seamlessly navigate the Unisa teaching and learning journey with little difficulty and few barriers.
We therefore offer a specialised student support programme to students enrolling at Unisa for the first time
– this is Unisa’s First-Year Experience (FYE) Programme, designed to provide you with prompt and helpful
information about services that the institution offers and how you can access information. The following
FYE services are currently offered:

• FYE website: All the guides and resources you need in order to navigate through your first
year at Unisa can be accessed using the following link: www.unisa.ac.za/FYE

• FYE e-mails: You will receive regular e-mails to help you stay focused and motivated.

• FYE broadcasts: You will receive e-mails with links to broadcasts on various topics related
to your first-year studies (e.g., videos on how to submit assessments online).

• FYE mailbox: For assistance with queries related to your first year of study, send an e-mail
to fye@unisa.ac.za .

6.2 myUnisa/Moodle

If you have access to a computer that is linked to the internet, you can quickly access resources
and information at the university. The myUnisa learning management system (or Moodle) is
Unisa's online campus that will help you to communicate with your lecturers, with other students
and with the administrative departments of Unisa – all through the computer and the internet.

To go to the myUnisa website, start at the main Unisa website, http://www.unisa.ac.za, and then
click on the “Login to myUnisa” link on the right-hand side of the screen. This should take you to
the myUnisa website. You can also go there directly by typing in http://my.unisa.ac.za. Please
consult the brochure Study @ Unisa, which you received with your study material, for more
information on myUnisa.

6.3 Information on tutorial offerings at Unisa

Please be informed that, with effect from 2013, Unisa offers online tutorials (e-tutoring) to students
registered for modules at NQF level 5, 6 and 7, this means qualifying first year, second year and
third year modules. Please log on to myUnisa to find out if any of the modules that you have
registered for falls in this category. PLS1502 has be utilising e-tutors from 2018. We continue to
do so in 2022. Once you have been registered for a qualifying module, you will be allocated to a
group of students with whom you will be interacting during the tuition period as well as an e-tutor
who will be your tutorial facilitator. Thereafter, you will receive a sms informing you about your
group, the name of your e-tutor and instructions on how to log onto myUnisa in order to receive
further information on the e-tutoring process.

Online tutorials are conducted by qualified e-Tutors who are appointed by Unisa and are offered
free of charge. All you need to be able to participate in e-tutoring is a computer with internet
connection.

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If you live close to a Unisa regional Centre or a Telecentre contracted with Unisa, please feel free
to visit any of these to access the internet. E-tutoring takes place on myUnisa where you are
expected to connect with other students in your allocated group.
It is the role of the e-tutor to guide you through your study material during this interaction process.
For you to get the most out of online tutoring, you need to participate in the online discussions
that the e-tutor will be facilitating. Active participation in discussions gives you an added
advantage and confidence during examination time.

Due to the limited number of E-tutors not all students will be allocated a group. If you are not
added to a group upon registering, then this means you have not been allocated an e-tutor. You
will have to rely solely on the main group site for your online learning.

If you are notified of being connected to an E-tutor group but have not been added on myUnisa
then please contact myunisahelp@unisa.ac.za to rectify this. Lecturers do not have access to the
relevant systems to link tutors so please contact the correct address to be assisted.

6.4 Services offered by the Bureau for Student Counselling and Career Development

For a comprehensive description of the services offered at the Main Campus and at the Regional
Centres, you may consult the brochure Study @ Unisa.

7 STUDY PLAN

7.1 Contents of the module:

PART I: ON DEFINING AFRICAN PHILOSOPHY AND ITS SCOPE AND TRENDS

Chapter 1: Defining African Philosophy

- The Controversy of the term ‘Africa’

- Africanity of African Philosophy

- Philosophicality of African Philosophy

- Summary: African Philosophy

Prescribed Reading

• ‘How is African philosophy to be defined?’ by Samuel E. Imbo

Chapter 2: Discourses on Africa

- The term ‘discourse’

- Discourses on Africa

Prescribed Reading

▪ ‘Categories of Cross-cultural cognition and the African condition’ by E. Biakolo

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▪ ‘The Struggle for Reason in Africa’ by MB Ramose

Chapter 3: Trends in African Philosophy

- What is a trend?

- The most general classification of African Philosophy: Language

- Wiredu’s Classification

- Nkombe and Smet’s classification of African Philosophy

- H. Odera Oruka’s four trends in African Philosophy

Prescribed Reading

 ‘Four trends in current African philosophy’ by H. Odera Oruka

PART II: ISSUES AND THEMES IN AFRICAN PHILOSOPHY

Chapter 4: Philosophical Anthropology

- Context: African Cosmology

- Two poles of African Anthropology

Prescribed Reading

 ‘Person and community in African thought’ by Kwame Gyekye

Chapter 5: Morality in African Thought

- The distinction between morality and ethics

Prescribed Reading

 ‘Ethics and morality in Yoruba culture’ by J.A.I Bewaji

7.2 Suggested study plan

Study Guide Prescribed Book (Reader) Schedule

First Second
Semester Semester

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Learning Unit 1 Read
Defining African *‘How is African philosophy to be 6 – 10 Week 1
Philosophy defined?’ by Samuel E. Imbo February

Learning Unit 2 Read

Discourses on Africa *‘Categories of Cross-cultural cognition 13 – 17 Week 2
and the African condition’ by E. Biakolo February
*‘The Struggle for Reason in Africa’ by
MB Ramose

Learning Unit 3 Read

Trends in African *‘Four trends in current 20 – 24 Week 3
Philosophy African philosophy’ by H. Odera February
Oruka

Submit Assignment No. 1 Refer to Refer to

Calendar on Calendar on
myUnisa myUnisa

Unique Number
642315 TBC

Learning Unit 4 Read

Philosophical *‘Person and community in African 27 February – Week 4
Anthropology thought’ by Kwame Gyekye 3 March

Learning Unit 5
Morality in African “Ethics and Morality in the Yoruba 6 – 10 March Week 5
Thought culture” by JAI Bewaji.

Submit Assignment No. 2 Refer to Refer to

Calendar on Calendar on
myUnisa myUnisa

Unique Number
893631 TBC

Submit Assignment No. 3 Refer to Refer to

Calendar on Calendar on
myUnisa myUnisa

Unique Numbers
895364 TBC

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Revision Read
Learning Units 1-3 *How is African philosophy to be 10 – 14 April Week 6
defined?’ by Samuel E. Imbo

*‘Categories of Cross-cultural cognition

and the African condition’ by E. Biakolo

*‘The Struggle for Reason in Africa’ by

MB Ramose

*‘Four trends in current African

philosophy’ by H. Odera Oruka

Read

Learning Units 4 & 5 *‘Person and community in African 17 – 21 April Week 6

thought’ by Kwame Gyekye

*‘Ethics and morality in Yoruba culture’

byJ.A.I Bewaji

Exam Check your exam timetable

on myUnisa

8 PRACTICAL WORK
None for this module

9 ASSESSMENT
9.1 Assessment criteria

Students have an opportunity to assess themselves and will also be assessed by means of the
following:

Assignments:

Assignments are a very important part of your work in this module. They are an official tool through
which lecturers are able to give feedback to the students about their performance. Assignments
are also linked to exam admission as we shall explain in some detail below.

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You are therefore advised to send them all in and on time. There are three assignments to submit
each semester.

9.2 General Comments on Assignment Writing

It is necessary to keep in mind that the primary requirement in the writing of a philosophy essay
is always to present the reasoning underlying a particular philosophy. This means that it is
obligatory to focus your attention specifically upon the argumentation for or against a particular
position. Reasoning does not occur in a vacuum. It occurs within a context. It is therefore
important that you situate your reasoning in a context. Furthermore, you cannot present the
reasoning of a philosopher unless you know what the philosopher is arguing for or against. For
this reason, it is vital that you should provide evidence of knowledge of the study material.

9.3 Structure of assignments

It is important to keep in mind that when writing a philosophical essay, it needs to comprise of an
introduction, a body, and a conclusion. For your third assignment, you need to write an essay of
about 750 words. It is important to note that the length is a guideline. If you have (substantially)
more words, for instance, more than 900 words, you need to make sure that everything you say
is absolutely integral to the argument, otherwise you will be penalized. If you have (substantially)
less, for instance, less than 650 words, you need to ensure that you have covered all your bases
and left no stone unturned, otherwise you will be penalized.

In an introduction the following elements are important:

i) Context to the question – Use this section to show the relevance of the question or why it might
be important to take such a question seriously.

ii) Background to the question – Discuss the environment within which the essay question arose.
What was the setting against which the question is being asked?

iii) Thesis statement (what point are you defending) – Explain the claim that you will be defending
in the paper. If you are giving a summary of an author’s work, then provide the claim that the
author intended to argue for in their paper and explain which aspect of the argument that you
will be dealing with in your paper.

iv) Plan of the essay – Provide an outline of the essay. This will enable the reader to get a full
picture of what she can expect from your paper.

Your body needs to comprise of well written, logically constructed paragraphs. You should
attempt to keep to one point per paragraph. Make sure each section follows on the next and that
each sentence relates to those sentences before and after it. In terms of contents, you should
ensure that you answer the question by highlighting relevant themes and following the plan you
set out in the introduction. You will be given marks for both content and structure, so please keep
this in mind when writing an essay.

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Finally, in your conclusion, you should not introduce new information. You need to provide an
overview of what you have done (which includes an overview of the topic as well as your thesis
statement), as well as an answer to the ‘so what?’ question. Why is this topic important? Finally,
provide some suggestions for future enquiries.

You should also have a complete reference list. Please use the Harvard Method of Referencing
throughout the paper – this means you will have in text references as well as a reference list. This
will provide the reader with the information needed to identify and locate the exact readings you
have used. See the Addendum for a brief explanation on how to in-text reference your various study
material.

Skill in writing essays is both useful and necessary for your examination preparation: in the
examination you will be required to write your responses to the questions posed also in essay-
format.

Please take note that you will be penalized should you not adhere to these instructions.

Essays comprised of bullet entries are not acceptable.

Summary of the structure of your essay:

1. Introduction I. This is a roadmap. Inform your reader what you

want to do in your essay.
II. You may tell us how you wish to tackle your
topic.

I. It must made up of well-constructed

2. Body of the essay paragraphs, each of which comprises of one
single idea.
II. Your body must also have headings and sub-
headings which guide your discussion.
III. In the body of your essay, there should be in-
text references. Every idea borrowed from
someone must be properly acknowledged.
Example: According to Ramose (2002: 35),
where ‘2002’ refers to the year in which the
book or article of Ramose which you quote or
refer to is published, and ‘35’ refers to the
page number where the source is taken.
IV. In the body of your essay, you must also
indicate where you agree or disagree with the
author, and also provide reasons for
disagreeing.

3. Conclusion I. This is like a report. You briefly inform your

reader what you have done. You may also
point some way forward on the topic of your
discussion.

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4. List of References / Bibliography Every essay must bear a bibliography,

wherein you give a list of all the sources you
consulted in the writing of your essay,
including internet sources.
9.4 Assessment plan

• To complete this module, you will be required to submit 3 assignments.

• Submission of the first assignment is compulsory.

• All information on when and where to submit your assignments will be made available to you
via the myUnisa site for your module.

• Due dates for assignments, as well as the actual assignments are available on the myUnisa
site for this module.

• To gain admission to the examination, you will be required to submit the first assignment.

• Your assignments will comprise a combination of two multiple choice questions and one Essay
type question.

• The first assignment contributes thirty percent (30%) toward your year mark. The second
assignment carries forty percent (40%) of the year mark. The third assignment also carries
thirty percent (30%) of the year mark.

• All the assignments carry a combined weight of 40% towards the final module.

• The examination will be a combination of multiple-choice questions and Essay type Questions.
More information on the exam will be shared in the tutorial letter 203.

• The examination will count 60% towards the final module mark.

• You must obtain fifty percent (50%) to pass the examination.

9.5 Assignment due dates

• There are no assignment due dates included in this tutorial letter.

• Assignment due dates will be made available to you on the landing page of myUnisa for this
module. We envisage that the due dates will be available to you upon registration.

• Please start working on your assignments as soon as you register for the module.

Log on to the myUnisa site for this module to obtain more information on the due dates for the
submission of the assignments.

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9.6 Submission of assignments

• Modules offered by Unisa are either blended (meaning that we use a combination of printed
and online material to engage with you) or online (all information is available via the internet).
In all cases of online engagement, we use myUnisa as our virtual campus.

• From 2022, the myUnisa virtual campus will be offered via a new learning management
system. This is an online system that is used to administer, document and deliver educational
material to you and support engagement with you.

• Look out for information from your lecturer as well as other Unisa platforms to determine how
to access the virtual myUnisa module site.

• Information on the tools that will be available to engage with the lecturer and fellow students
to support your learning will also be communicated via various platforms.

• The University undertakes to communicate as clearly and as frequently as is necessary to

ensure optimum advantage in the use of the new learning management system.

• Additional information on the use of the myUnisa/myModules site for the module, as well as
features to engage and communicate with your lecturer and other students will also be made
available via the online site for the module.

• Therefore, log on to the myUnisa site for your module to gain more information on where to
complete and/or upload your assignments and how to communicate with your lecturer.

9.7 The assignments

As indicated in section 9.2, you need to complete 3 assignments for this module. Two are a
multiple-choice question that comprises of 25 questions. One is a question that must be answered
as an essay.

The assignment questions will be made available on myUnisa (Moodle) site for the module.

9.8 Other assessment methods

Self-test Exercises: We have provided self-test exercises in the study guide, in order to afford you
an opportunity to test yourself on how much you have understood and comprehended the matter
dealt with in different essays. Answers to the exercises need not be submitted to the university or
to lecturers.
9.9 The examination

Examination information and details on the format of the examination will be made available to
you online via the myUnisa site. Look out for information that will be shared with you by your
lecturer and e-tutors (where relevant) and for communication from the University.

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9.10 Other assessment methods

No other assessment methods

9.11 The examination

Examination information and details on the format of the examination will be made available to you
online via the myUnisa site. Look out for information that will be shared with you by your lecturer
and e-tutors (where relevant) and for communication from the university.

9.11.1 Invigilation/proctoring

Since 2020 Unisa conducts all its assessments online. Given stringent requirements from
professional bodies and increased solicitations of Unisa’s students by third parties to unlawfully
assist them with the completion of assignments and examinations, the University is obliged to
assure its assessment integrity through the utilisation of various proctoring tools: Turnitin, Moodle
Proctoring, the Invigilator App and IRIS. These tools will authenticate the student’s identity and flag
suspicious behaviour to assure credibility of students’ responses during assessments. The
description below is for your benefit as you may encounter any or all of these in your registered
modules:

Turnitin is a plagiarism software that facilitates checks for originality in students’ exam submissions
against internal and external sources. Turnitin assists in identifying academic fraud and ghost
writing. Students are expected to submit typed responses for utilisation of the Turnitin software.

The Moodle Proctoring tool is a facial recognition software that authenticates students’ identity
during their Quiz assessments. This tool requires access to a student’s mobile or laptop camera.
Students must ensure their camera is activated in their browser settings prior to their assessments.

The Invigilator “mobile application-based service does verification” of the identity of an

assessment participant. The Invigilator Mobile Application detects student dishonesty-by-proxy and
ensures that the assessment participant is the registered student. This invigilation tool requires
students to download the app from their Play Store (Google, Huawei and Apple) on their mobile
devices (camera enabled) prior to their assessment.

IRIS Invigilation software verifies the identity of a student during assessment and provides for
both manual and automated facial verification. It has the ability to record and review a student’s
assessment session. It flags suspicious behaviour by the students for review by an academic
administrator. IRIS software requires installation on students’ laptop devices that are enabled with
a webcam.

Students who are identified and flagged for suspicious dishonest behaviour arising from the
invigilation and proctoring reports are referred to the disciplinary office for formal proceeding.

Please note:

Students must refer to their module assessment information on their myModule sites to determine
which proctoring or invigilation tool will be utilised for their formative and summative assessments.

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 10 ACADEMIC DISHONESTY
10.1 Plagiarism
Plagiarism is the act of taking the words, ideas and thoughts of others and presenting them as your
own. It is a form of theft which involves several dishonest academic activities, such as the following:

• Cutting and pasting from any source without acknowledging the source.
• Not including or using incorrect references.
• Paraphrasing without acknowledging the original source of the information.

It is essential that you ensure that every idea used in your essays – which are not your own unique
thoughts – is referenced. All the ideas presented in your paper of the author must be the
paraphrased, meaning you must restate the ideas of others using your own words. In doing
this, you avoid plagiarism. Some students think that if they change the sentence structure or a
couple of words, then it is not plagiarism. This is false. Any IDEA (whether it is a direct quote, a
modified quote, or a summary in your own words) that is not your OWN IDEA, needs to be
referenced. For more details on how to cite sources consulted in the writing of your assignments,
consult our tutorial letter, WYSALLB/301/4/2023.
Depending on the extent of the plagiarism, a student will be heavily penalized for the offence. If the
majority of their work contains plagiarism, they will be awarded 0% for their submission. Plagiarism
found in exam submissions will result in the student being sent to student discipline and result in
them having to write the supplementary or repeat the entire module.
10.2 Cheating

• Cheating includes, but is not limited to, the following: Completing assessments on behalf of
another student, copying from another student during an assessment or allowing a student
to copy from you. Using social media (e.g., WhatsApp, Telegram) or other platforms to
disseminate assessment information. Submitting corrupt or irrelevant files. Buying
completed answers from “tutors” or internet sites (contract cheating).
10.3 More information about plagiarism can be downloaded on the link below.
https://www.unisa.ac.za/sites/myunisa/default/Study-@-Unisa/Student-values-and-rules

11 STUDENTS LIVING WITH DISABILITIES

The Advocacy and Resource Centre for Students with Disabilities (ARCSWiD) provides an
opportunity for staff to interact with first-time and returning students with disabilities.
If you are a student with a disability and would like additional support or need additional time for
assessments, you are invited to contact (Gugu Ndlazi – PLS1502@unisa.ac.za) to discuss the
assistance that you need.

12 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Where is the prescribed book?
Answer: There is no prescribed books. However, you do have prescribed readings that are made
available as e-resources. Please consult 5.1 above.

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Am I allowed to skip assignments and not submit them?

Answer: The first assignment in both semesters is a compulsory assignment. Not only is this
assignment compulsory, but it is also very unique and special. It is a “subsidy assignment” and as
such indicates to us at UNISA and to the National Department of Education in the country that you
are an active student. As a result, the Department of Education subsidises the university based on
the submission of this assignment. Failure to submit this assignment at all or to submit it timeously
will disable the university to get any financial assistance from government for enrolling you in this
module. It is for this reason that the university has decided to make this assignment a special
indicator of your enrolment in the module. You are therefore strongly urged to submit this
assignment. You are also advised to keep a copy of the completed assignment, so that in the event
that this assignment is lost on its way to or from the university, you will have the necessary proof
that you did work on it.

I have not received my assignment back. When will I get it?

Answer: Your assignments 1 and 3 are marked by the computer and you should expect them
within 2 weeks After the deadline. If there are extensions, then you should expect their release 2
weeks after that date. In regard to the essay type question, due to the sheer size of the module
you should expect delays. We have a team of markers working on the scripts, but you will be
notified on the announcement page when the marking will be complete.

I have not received my module material and prescribed readings in the post.
Answer: Please be aware that all the module material and prescribed readings must be
downloaded from the myUnisa/myModules platform.

Why am I not up to date on what is going on with the module? I am listening to other
students who are telling me what’s going on with the module, but I have no clue what going
on.
Answer: Please be aware that your first source of information on what is happening in the module
must come from your lecturers and then the module material. You run the risk of getting the wrong
information from your peers so make sure your information is coming from lecturers. They will keep
you updated through the announcements page on myUnisa for the module. The onus is on you to
keep up to date with the announcement every day. The announcements will be sent to the myLife
account so make sure you are up to date with your emails as well.

13 SOURCES CONSULTED
Prinsloo, P. & Rooyen, van AA; 2007. ‘Exploring a blended learning approach to improving student
success in the teaching of second year accounting’ Meditari Accountancy Research, vol. 15, no.
1, pp. 51-69

14 IN CLOSING
We hope you will enjoy studying this module. Please feel free to call or e-mail us whenever you need
help especially in matters relating to the content of this module.

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We urge you to cultivate a habit of logging into myUnisa in order to check for our posted messages in
the ‘Announcements,’ ‘Additional study material’ and ‘discussion forum.’ You may also want to chat
with your fellow students through the ‘discussion forum’ tool.

15 ADDENDUM
How to Reference the Study material in Harvard:

Type of resource Format Bibliography Example Referencing within

your main text
example
When making a Family/Surname, Thomas, L. & Howard, Neville (2010)
referencing from a Initials of the author J. 1998. AIDS and argues that...
Chapter in a book. writing the chapter. development planning, “Quotation”
Publication year. in Implications of AIDS (Neville, 2010,
Title of chapter. In: for demography and p.76)
Family/Surname, policy in Southern Africa.
Initials. of author or Edited by L. Thomas & J.
editor of book. Book Howard.
title - italicised. Pietermaritzburg:
Series title and University of Natal Press,
volume Place of 95-114.
publication: Publisher,
page numbers were
article can be foundin
book.

When referencing Family/Surname, Imbo, S.O. 1998. How is As noted by Imbo

information from Initials of the author African philosophy to be (1975) ....
the Study Guide writing the chapter. defined? Edited by “Quotation” (Imbo,
treat it as a chapter Publication year. P. Mungwini, MLJ. 1975, p.76)
in an edited book Title of chapter. In: Koenane & ESN.
Family/Surname, Mkhwanazi. in Re. In
Initials. of author or (eds.). Readings in When referencing
editor of book (ed.) or Contemporary African pages please refer
(eds.). Book title - Philosophy. Pretoria, to the pages of the
italicised. Series title University of South reader and not the
and volume if Africa. P1-13. actual page of the
applicable. Edition –if article.
not the first. Place of
publication: Publisher,
page
numbers of article
found in book.

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When referencing Family/Surname, UNISA. 2015. Chapter As noted by Unisa

information from the Initials of the author 1: Defining African (2015) ....
Tutorial Letter treat writing the chapter. Philosophy. In Tutorial “Quotation” (UNISA,
it as a chapter in an Publication year. letter 501: Introduction to 2015, p.76)
edited book Title of chapter. In: African Philosophy.
Series title and volume Pretoria, University of
if applicable. Place of South Africa. P7-20.
publication: Publisher,
page numbers of
article found in book,
Page numbers of
article.
found in book.

©
Unisa 2022

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