teachers - The African Mirror

Apr

2024

South African study shows the power of sharing daily experiences for teachers to learn how to include all learners

GLOBALLY, more than 258 million children and young people between the ages of 6 and 17 are not in school. In South Africa, the figure stands at 232,000 for children aged between 7 and 17. The main reasons they’re not attending school are related to the quality of education, financial constraints, disability and child or teenage pregnancy. The notion of inclusive education focuses on ensuring that all children attend school and receive a good education. The first is a challenge for governments. The second is a challenge for teachers – but they don’t often get the support they need. Wacango…

Jan

2024

By The African Mirror

Gunmen in Nigeria kidnap six students, three teachers in southwest

NEWS

GUNMEN in Nigeria kidnapped six students and three teachers from a school in southwestern Ekiti state on Monday night, the state government said, in the country's first reported abduction involving school children this year. Armed gangs have been abducting villagers, road travellers and students in return for ransom, as Africa's most populous nation grapples with widespread insecurity, which also includes a long-running Islamist insurgency in the northeast. The Ekiti state government said in a statement the latest abduction took place when the students and teachers were returning from a local trip on Monday night. The school bus driver was also…

Sep

2023

By The African Mirror

How well you do at school depends on how much your teachers know: insights from 14 French-speaking countries in Africa

EDUCATION

COUNTRIES in sub-Saharan Africa have made remarkable progress towards reaching universal school enrolment in the past 25 years. Across the region, 8 in 10 children of primary school age are now enrolled in school, and in countries such as Benin and Madagascar, this figure stands at almost 10 in 10 children. JAN BIETENBECK, Associate Professor of Economics, Lund University However, it is becoming increasingly clear that many children in the region are learning very little in school. This “learning crisis” means that it will be difficult to reach the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal of quality education for all by…

Apr

2023

By The African Mirror

Kids and screen time – an expert offers advice for parents and teachers

EDUCATION

HOW much time did your child spend looking at a screen today? The answer likely depends on how old they are, what grade they’re in at school and what rules you have in place at home about screen time. But the reality is that for children and adolescents growing up as “digital natives”, it is almost impossible to imagine life without screens of some sort. Author CATHERINE DRAPER, Associate Professor, University of the Witwatersrand Devices like cellphones, laptops and tablets have become ubiquitous as tools for entertainment and education in most parts of the world. This has led parents, guardians,…

Mar

2023

By The African Mirror

Teachers change lives – but what makes a great teacher?

EDUCATION

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…

Apr

2022

By The African Mirror

Can we treat teachers better? A 12-year-old novelist thinks so

LITERATURE

HUMPHREY NJOKU, BIRD STORY AGENCY CHIMAMANDA Yvonne Anyagwa always wanted to be a teacher. Inspired by her mother, Carol Anyagwa, a lecturer in English Literature at the University of Lagos, Anyagwa grew up viewing the teaching profession as honourable and prestigious. But before Amanda, as she likes to be called, had finished primary school, that dream had come crashing down. From what she saw around her, teachers, despite their critical role in society, teachers were not accorded the respect they deserved. “I was observant. I usually observed teachers, how students treat them anyhow; and how parents just do anything they…

Oct

2020

By The African Mirror

Online and in the classroom, COVID-19 has put new demands on teachers

EDUCATION

NHLANHLA MPOFU, Associate Professor, Rhodes University AS a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, schools were on lockdown in South Africa from March 2020. They only partially reopened in June, despite teacher unions’ concerns about the timing and lack of adequate protection for teachers and learners. The unions’ objections about having to work in conditions that posed a risk to health were understandable. But they have been less vocal about the teachers’ need to be equipped with the skills and infrastructure to teach during a pandemic. The unpredictability of the pandemic and the restrictions on social interaction remain in place. No…

Aug

2020

By The African Mirror

COVID-19 disruption could be a chance to lay a firmer school maths foundation in South Africa

EDUCATION

CRAIG POURNARA, Associate Professor of Mathematics Education, University of the Witwatersrand LYNN BOWIE, Visiting associate, University of the Witwatersrand IN South Africa, when Grade 9 learners return to school after the COVID-19 closures, they will have a maximum of 76 teaching days left in 2020. But given the safety requirements and the limited infrastructure in most schools, it’s highly unlikely that they will be able to attend school every day. This means the average Grade 9 learner in 2020 is likely to have less than half of a normal year’s time in class. While learners in schools for the middle…