education - The African Mirror

Mar

2023

Teachers change lives – but what makes a great teacher?

EXCELLENT teachers can change our lives. Researchers have shown that good teachers encourage us to think critically, reflect and learn across disciplines. These are all skills that can set us up for life. Author ZAYD WAGHID, Associate professor, Cape Peninsula University of Technology I have had the privilege of being taught by a few brilliant teachers in my life, and I have also observed teaching excellence at the numerous schools I have visited over the years as an education academic. Those who stand out are devoted, imaginative, motivated and motivating, and eager to overcome challenging conditions to make a positive…

Feb

2023

By The African Mirror

Tanzania has ditched school rankings. It should replace them with something more useful

EDUCATION

WHILE announcing the results of the 2022 Certificate of Secondary School Examination, Tanzania’s National Examination Council did not provide school rankings for the first time in decades. School rankings have been announced for national primary and secondary school exams every year since the early 1990s. The rankings have become the main national talking point and students and parents often use them to determine school choices. Author SIMON NGALOMBA, Post-Doctoral Research Fellow, SARChI in Higher Education and Human Development Research Group, University of the Free State Explaining the decision, education minister Professor Adolf Mkenda said the examination council had decided in…

Jan

2023

By The African Mirror

Kenya’s school reform is entering a new phase in 2023 – but the country isn’t ready

EDUCATION

THE start of the 2023 school year in Kenya marks an important occasion: the first cohort of pupils to adopt a new curriculum in 2017 are entering junior secondary school. The competence-based curriculum, as it is known, was launched in 2017 to replace the 8-4-4 system that had been in place for 32 years. The older system was criticised for its emphasis on teachers instructing students and on examinations. An evaluation in 1998, 13 years after it was introduced, detailed numerous shortcomings. These include subjecting students to a heavy workload. Author JANEROSE MUTEGI KIBAARA, Lecturer of Education Management and Policy,…

Jan

2023

By The African Mirror

6 priorities to get Kenya’s curriculum back on track – or risk excluding many children from education

EDUCATION

KENYA’S education curriculum was reformed in 2017 to improve its quality – but now many Kenyans are calling for change again. Public disillusionment with the competency-based curriculum has forced a government review. Frustrations with the curriculum centre around the complexity of learning activities and its sustainability given the high costs involved in its delivery. Authors ELISHEBA KIRU, Postdoctoral Research Scientist, African Population and Health Research Center BRENDA WAWIRE, Associate Research Scientist, African Population and Health Research Center The previous 8-4-4 curriculum, launched in 1985, required eight years of primary schooling and four years each of secondary and tertiary education. Critics…

Nov

2022

By The African Mirror

Education in Kenya’s informal settlements can work better if parents get involved – here’s how

EDUCATION

EDUCATION is a public good. All children should have access to education as a human right, irrespective of their gender, socioeconomic or disability status. This is reinforced and validated by countries’ commitment to Sustainable Development Goal 4. Its promise is inclusive and equitable education and lifelong learning for all children. This right is not assured, however. About 303 million children and adolescents aged between five and 17 are out of school. Author BENTA A. ABUYA, Research Scientist, African Population and Health Research Center Research studies have underscored that parental involvement and empowerment make a difference in student educational outcomes and…

Aug

2022

By The African Mirror

Academic freedom and democracy in African countries: the first study to track the connection

EDUCATION

THERE is growing interest in the state of academic freedom worldwide. A 1997 Unesco document defines it as the right of scholars to teach, discuss, research, publish, express opinions about systems and participate in academic bodies. Academic freedom is a cornerstone of education and knowledge. Yet there is surprisingly little empirical research on the actual impact of academic freedom. Comparable measurements have also been scarce. It was only in 2020 that a worldwide index of academic freedom was launched by the Varieties of Democracy database, V-Dem, in collaboration with the Scholars at Risk Network. Author LIISA LAAKSO, Senior Researcher, The…

Jul

2022

By The African Mirror

School feeding programmes are great value for money

EDUCATION

HUNDREDS of millions of children worldwide attend class every day. With such a wide reach, schools can effectively deliver a vast array of interventions such as immunisations and hygiene education. They can greatly improve the health of the students, who will learn better as a result. School feeding programmes are among these interventions. They take a variety of forms, either targeting the poorest and most marginalised communities or universally covering all public schools in a given country. They are deployed daily, often within broader school health and nutrition programmes, and reach hundreds of millions of children every day. STÉPHANE VERGUET,…

Jul

2022

By The African Mirror

Why the hijab controversy persists in Nigeria’s public schools

EDUCATION

HIJAB use in Nigeria’s public schools has become highly controversial, in some cases leading to riots, fatalities, the destruction of school property and the closure of schools. Adeyemi Balogun, a PhD holder in the history of religion with research interests in Muslim culture and Muslim/ Christian relations, sets out why the issue is so contentious, and what can be done to ease tensions. What is the hijab? The hijab has become a term used for all types of veiling among Muslim women. Some take it to mean a scarf or any piece of clothing that covers the woman’s head, face…

Jul

2022

By The African Mirror

Mobile phones can enable learning during school disruptions. Here’s how

EDUCATION

THE COVID-19 pandemic placed enormous pressure on education systems worldwide. At the peak of the crisis, school closures forced over 1.6 billion learners out of classrooms. This exacerbated a learning crisis that existed before the pandemic, with many children in school but learning very little. Widespread school closures are not unique to COVID-19. Teacher strikes, natural disasters, other disease outbreaks and extreme weather conditions all result in lengthy school closures. The cost of school closures has proved to be substantial, in particular for lower socioeconomic status households. When schools are closed, remote learning is rarely as effective as in-school instruction,…

Jul

2022

By The African Mirror

Education takes flight under Ghanaian artist’s repurposed planes

NEWS

FRANCIS KOKOROKO and COOPER INVEEN HUNDREDS of meters above the village of Jenakpeng in northern Ghana, a small drone locked its sights on six aeroplanes parked in the middle of a verdant field miles away from the nearest runway. The drone's 16-year-old pilot, Jenakpeng native Abdul-Latif Zakaria, stood with his father Danaa in the shadow of a vintage Antonov cropduster, one of six planes that world-renowned artist Ibrahim Mahama has transformed into a community learning space. In 2021, Mahama bought the planes using proceeds from $1 million worth of sales to add to his Red Clay Studio, a multi-acre compound…