education - The African Mirror

Jul

2022

By DANI MADRID-MORALES and HERMAN WASSERMAN

Media literacy education in South Africa can help combat fake news – here’s what’s needed

Online platforms are replete with examples of false information – from WhatsApp messages punting some miraculous cure for COVID, to social media posts claiming a politician said something they didn’t. It’s increasingly common in South Africa. More than 75% of South Africans say they regularly come across political news they think is false. Eight out of 10 South Africans believe that disinformation (or “fake news”) is a problem or a serious problem in the country. Researchers and policy makers have been working on strategies to counter disinformation for years. Some policymakers have suggested new regulations or pressuring technology companies to…

Jun

2022

By The African Mirror

Rwandan researchers are finally being centred in scholarship about their own country

EDUCATION

IT is widely known that African researchers are dramatically underrepresented in academic journals. But it’s still astonishing to see this reality starkly represented in numbers. Authors FELIX MUKWIZA NDAHINDA, Honorary Associate Professor, College of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Rwanda JASON MOSLEY, Research Associate, African Studies Centre, University of Oxford NICOLA PALMER, Reader in Law, King's College London PHIL CLARK, Professor of International Politics, SOAS, University of London SANDRA SHENGE, Director of Programs, Aegis Trust For the past eight years we have run the Research, Policy and Higher Education (RPHE) programme, a research and peer-support scheme with Rwandan scholars,…

Jun

2022

By The African Mirror

Here’s how much learning South African children lost in the pandemic

COVID-19

WHEN a state of disaster was declared in South Africa in 2020 in response to the COVID pandemic, a hard lockdown was instituted and schools were shut. This was followed by varying periods of lockdowns, school closure and rotational timetables to maintain social distancing across different grades. Administrative data show that children in South Africa missed at least three-quarters of a year of school in the past two school years. This reduced their opportunities to learn and allowed more time to forget what they had learnt. Authors SERVAAS VAN DER BERG, Professor of Economics and South African Research Chair in…

May

2022

By The African Mirror

What school textbooks in South Africa say about the Cold War – and why it matters

EDUCATION

SOUTH AFRICA’S stance on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine isn’t that surprising in light of its treatment of the Cold War in the school history curriculum and textbooks. In these it’s reflected as having had a negative impact on Africa. The Cold War (1945-1990) ranged the United States and its allies against their rival nuclear superpower, the Soviet Union. What textbooks contain is significant for being the officially approved representation of the nation’s history. This “official knowledge” usually embeds social controversies in ways that favour ruling groups. Authors LINDA CHISHOLM, Professor of Education, University of Johannesburg DAVID FIG, Honorary Research Associate,…

Mar

2022

By The African Mirror

South African universities are training their gaze on the United States. Why it matters

EDUCATION

THREE academic institutions in Africa have established units dedicated to the study of the United States. They are the University of the Witwatersrand’s African Centre for the Study of the United States, the American Language Centre in Morocco, and most recently, the University of Pretoria’s African Centre for the Study of the United States. University of Pretoria Principal Tawana Kupe and Christopher Isike, the new Centre’s Director, explain why Africans need a better understanding of America. Authors TAWANA KUPE, Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the University, University of Pretoria CHRISTOPHER ISIKE, Professor of African Politics and International Relations, University of Pretoria…

Mar

2022

By The African Mirror

Elitism affects schools across the globe: it needs to be kept in check

EDUCATION

THERE is no shortage of themes to address in schools and universities: wellbeing; climate change; diversity; equity and social justice; assessment; 21st century learning; the list goes on. Author CONRAD HUGHES, Campus and Secondary Principal at the International School of Geneva's La Grande Boissière, Research Associate at the University of Geneva's department of Education and Psychology, Université de Genève But, are there some challenges that stand out above the others? The answer is yes, but yes on two fronts. The first relates to the teacher – the most important human influence on student learning. This has been shown through multiple…

Mar

2022

By The African Mirror

Journalism has changed. Education must reflect the reality

MEDIA FREEDOM

FOR more than a century, journalism education prepared young people for the role of full-time professionals employed by sizeable news organisations. But the advertising-based business model that sustained journalism is collapsing because of new technology, and jobs of the old kind are becoming scarce. The educational model, too, must change to accommodate the new realities. Author FRANZ KRÜGER, Adjunct Professor of Journalism and Director of the Wits Radio Academy, University of the Witwatersrand Traditional media – particularly print – are in decline as audiences move online and revenue streams follow them to platform giants like Google and Facebook. As a…

Feb

2022

By The African Mirror

Nigeria needs more social science research: how to boost output

EDUCATION

Authors ABIODUN EGBETOKUN, Assistant Director, Research, National Centre for Technology Management (NACETEM) ADEDAYO OLOFINYEHUN, Researcher, National Centre for Technology Management (NACETEM) SUB-SAHARAN Africa faces some of the biggest challenges to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. For instance, Nigeria has at least 87 million people in extreme poverty. The country’s unemployment rate was over 33.3%, the second highest in the world, at the end of 2020. These kinds of challenges are the business of social science — the branch of science concerned with society and human behaviours. Social science research helps in understanding and developing solutions to complex problems including climate…

Sep

2021

By The African Mirror

Rewarding academic achievement in schools creates barriers: a South African perspective

EDUCATION

MOST South African parents and learners are familiar with the school practice of rewarding learners for academic achievement visibly, tangibly and publicly. Schools tend to reward in ways that are both traditional and unique. Some rewards can be seen on the learners’ school uniform – like a special kind of tie or blazer. Other common forms are pins worn on the lapel bearing words such as “Mathematics” or “English”. These serve as a daily reminder of a learner’s achievement, lasting well beyond the ceremony in which they were presented. SAHAKIRA AKABOR, Postdoctoral Research Fellow , University of South Africa Schools…

Sep

2021

By The African Mirror

Children learn in class, and outside. But, over time, they learn more at school

EDUCATION

SCHOOL is a key component of our societies. In school, children learn to read and write. And being able to read is meant to help people of all ages to think at a higher level and make their lives better. SYMEN A. BROUWERS, Extraordinary Research Scientist, North-West University It is not surprising that literacy is thus an important goal for global development agencies. The “multiplier effect” of literacy is believed to empower people, enabling them to participate in society and improve their livelihoods. The truth is, learning basic skills such as solving arithmetic problems at school doesn’t necessarily make you…