Articulating the Complexities of African Higher Education The Intellectual Odyssey of Michael Cross

This paper aims to critically reflect on the contribution of the late Professor Michael Cross in his conception of the notion of decolonisation in the South African higher education system. It reviews and analyses his published discussions on the post-apartheid attempts at the transformation of apartheid legacies in the South African education system. The paper reflects on Professor Cross’s intellectual legacy addressing the fundamental questions raised in public debate: What challenges does the post-colonial and post-apartheid experience pose for the South African education system? What has gone wrong with the epistemological project of university transformation? How do we explain current anger, frustrations and disruptions in South African universities and schools? The purpose of this paper is not to address these questions per se but to explore the epistemological and theoretical implications of current developments for the future of South African scholarship by drawing on selected publications of Cross. Thus, the article offers a critical reflection on the contribution Cross has made to perceiving the coloniality embedded in institutional and academic practices in the post-apartheid university and education system. In so doing, it attempts to reimagine a post-colonial, post-apartheid education landscape relevant to South Africa in the 21st century.