Kagiso Trust says heavy investment is needed in continuous teacher development education

The Kagiso Trust Education Conversations webinar, held in partnership with the University of Johannesburg on this month, celebrated World Teachers Day by deliberating on the theme of “Teachers at the heart of learning recovery”.

Experts, teachers and academics from the University of Johannesburg, and public and private schools shared their experiences, research and plans regarding the future of teachers in South Africa. The conversation explored the topics: Impactful and adaptive school leadership, Notion of dominance or influence; Curriculum recovery is an act of healing; and Teaching Is a Prism of Possibilities.

“The Covid-19 pandemic has taught us to place more value into teachers and what they do every day to help support learners and lift up communities,” says Mandisa Tselane, Head of Communications & Marketing at Kagiso Trust. “If we have to transform the education system in the long run, it is important that we invest heavily in continuous teacher development.”

Dr Mumsie Naidoo, a Senior lecturer in the Faculty of Education at the University of Johannesburg, shared that in academia both locally and globally, teacher leadership is a neglected area of study compared to that of student leadership. It was also found that South Africa has an education system that is bureaucratic and hierarchical with teachers making up the lower part of this pyramid.

“We need a more consultative process when we conduct our curriculum instead of a dominance approach,” says Dr Naidoo. For our education system to recover post-Covid-19, we need to open up channels of communication with all education stakeholders, the teachers, learners, parents, the community and the Department of Education.

In valuing and investing in our teachers for the hope of learning and curriculum recovery, we also need to invest in their access to mental healthcare. A recent study exploring the impact of COVID-19 on teachers’ mental health shows that teachers are experiencing increased depression and mental health challenges with 41% seeking professional support. “Learning cannot be the end goal without healing being the first,” says Claudia Pienaar, the head of Nova Pioneer in Paulshof. “It is crucial to employ the services of a psychologist for teachers.”

Teachers offer a prism of possibilities for students. “Teaching is not just a job, it is a love and a profession that needs dedication, innovation, ambition, and communication. It involves ensuring we give learners the best that can be offered,” says Lindiwe Duma, an English higher learner educator. “In teaching, we need to ensure we are teaching for not only the present but also for the future.”

“Teachers ought to be celebrated everyday because they are the light that molds and prepares the future of our learners so they can choose different paths in life,” says Duma. “The transformation of education begins with teachers.”

To watch the webinar: https://www.facebook.com/kagisotrust/videos/496121168798561

About Education Conversations
Education Conversations is a Kagiso Trust initiative in partnership with the University of Johannesburg Faculty of Education which aims to provide a platform for education sector experts and like-minded professionals to exchange views and information, allowing them to find solutions together and to a large extent, influence policy towards the transformation of South Africa’s education ecosystem.

Kagiso Trust work to overcome poverty by developing and implementing scalable, replicable, sustainable development programme models in the areas of education development, institutional capacity building, socio-economic development and financial sustainability. For more information see www.kagiso.co.za

The University of Johannesburg (UJ) shares the pace and energy of cosmopolitan Johannesburg, the city whose name it carries. Proudly South African, the university is alive down to its African roots, and well-prepared for its role in actualising the potential that higher education holds for the continent’s development. For more information see https://www.uj.ac.za/

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