Ndebele won the international Canon Collins Scholarship for the 2013 and 2014 academic years, worth R50 000 a year.
This is a prestigious scholarship which involves a competitive process – Ndebele was one of only 25 successful recipients from 1 200 applications.
The Canon Collins Trust was founded in 1981 by Canon John Collins with the major objective of equipping South African and Namibian exiles with the skills and education denied them by apartheid.
The scholarship programme was later extended to include the Southern African region, focusing on developing future leaders by funding post-graduate study.
Ndebele has also been awarded the UKZN Doctoral Research scholarship which is based solely on academic performance in previous degrees. It is a highly prestigious scholarship available to only one student per College in the entire University.
Ndebele is currently a PhD second year full time registered student in the School of Arts, African languages Cluster. He graduated with a Master of Arts Summa Cum Laude last year.
‘I have a strong passion for research, most particularly in the field of African languages, language policy and planning and socio-linguistics. I also hold an uncompromising belief in language as a basic human right which must be protected and embraced just like any other human right,’ he said.
‘It is upon such a basis that I am conducting my PhD research on the role of information and communication technology in the promotion and intellectualisation of African languages in Higher Education under the supervision of Professor Nobuhle Hlongwa and Dr Gugulethu Mazibuko.’
He has also presented research papers at several local conferences and co-authored papers with his academic supervisors for publication in accredited journals.
He is looking forward to presenting research papers, based on his PhD research, at the African Languages Association of Southern Africa Conference in July, the 7th Annual Teaching and Learning Higher Education Conference in September and the UKZN Annual Postgraduate Conference in October.
‘I believe that with the assistance and guidance of my academic supervisors, the scholarship support and the support of fellow students and staff in the School of Arts, I will be able to complete my studies in the minimum stipulated time and grow as an academic’.
Article source: University of Kwazulu-Natal