official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. i editorial – volume 2, special edition issn: 2788-6298 doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v2i1.85 editor folake ruth aluko university of pretoria, south africa associate editor oyeyemi ololade aitokuhehi university of lagos, nigeria this special issue of tetfle (volume 2) focuses on the theme of the 2019 deta conference, the education of the african learner in an era of crises: imperatives for teacher education, hosted by the university of pretoria, south africa, the south african institute for distance education in conjunction with the university of lagos, nigeria. the volume consists of seven research articles and one note from the field. the african continent has made major strides forward towards attaining education for all at the schooling level and has expanded opportunities at the tertiary level. however, political, religious and economic crises continue to threaten our future development and, in some parts of the continent have even eroded the gains that have been made. at the same time, the education system must prepare learners for a world of employment that is increasingly global and knowledge-based and a social and workplace environment that is increasingly connected. how do we best prepare teachers for such an increasingly complex and even chaotic environment? the editors sincerely appreciate the authors' efforts and reviewers' and critical readers' assistance to ensure the quality of the papers in this volume. this was amidst the current covid-19 world pandemic that has exacerbated the crises being experienced by the african child on the continent. the first research article "competency-based education in africa: exploring teachers' perceptions, understanding, and practices", co-authored by akinrinola, ogegbo, emmanuel and adewusi explored teachers' knowledge and integration of competencybased practices in schools. their findings stressed the need for teachers and education stakeholders in africa to move beyond the traditional level of assessment and integrate good proxies of academic skills that support learners' acquisition of 21st-century skills such as problem-solving, creativity and critical thinking in assessing learners' competencies. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. ii in the second article, babalola's research, "a two-prong approach for enhancing teaching and learning for 21st century skills development in oyo state, nigeria", recommended the provision of infrastructure and continuous professional development of teachers as a panacea to enhance teaching and learning for the 21st century skills. the "level of incorporation of environmental awareness into skill acquisition programmes in lagos, nigeria" was investigated by bakare using a mixed-methods approach. her findings highlighted the need for proper training for facilitators and adults to tackle 21st-century problems effectively. in order to combat rural teachers' slow uptake of professional development opportunities, ememe recommended "open distance learning" as "an alternative strategy for rural teachers' professional development in lagos state, nigeria." the mode will allow teachers to learn whatever, wherever, whenever, and however they want to learn through information communication technology. in the fifth research article, oladele and adeniyi probed the socio-economic, personal and cultural "factors influencing female enrolment in science education programmes in distance learning institutions in south-west, nigeria". their recommendations would boost student enrolment in this sparse field. the "derived knowledge and lived experiences of teachers working in resourceconstrained multilingual classrooms" were studied by omidire. her findings should be of interest to teacher trainers and other stakeholders. ahimie, ikuburuju-orola and oizimende's review article entitled “professional guidance and counselling services for open and distance learning students in nigeria” brought to the fore the lack of counselling services in distance education programmes that are common features in conventional school settings. their recommendations would be of interest to stakeholders in the field. in their field note, niyibizi, niyomugabo, ngarukiye, uwizeyemariya, yanzigiye, tabaro, mukamana and mutarutinya share their research on the "eclectic traditional value hub model or 4-in-1: an innovative booster of community quadriliteracy among adults in rwandan rural communities". the innovation filled part of the paucity in the field of adult literacy from the perspectives of traditional african values. be motivated as you read! official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. editorial editor folake ruth aluko – university of pretoria, south africa associate editor wenceslas nzabalirwa, college of education-university of rwanda, rwanda vol 1 no 1 2019 issn: 2788-6298 doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v1i1.61 the aim of the distance education and teachers’ training (deta) biennial conference is to create a platform for african educationists and all those collaboratively working with them on the continent to share knowledge and deliberate on educational issues. the 2017 conference held in rwanda was no exception as participants met to deliberate on how africa could get practical about achieving sdg 4 in teacher education in africa. since 2011, the conference has been publishing its proceedings. participants to each conference are invited to submit their papers for blind peer review, and reviewers are drawn from beyond africa. over the years and with four biennial editions, participants have come to look forward to the proceedings due to the rigorous process it goes through and the robust debates it generates. thus, the conference committee decided to turn the proceedings into an oer journal. it was thus renamed teacher education through flexible learning in africa (tetfle) with a focus on the developing contexts. this is the maiden edition of the journal. the theme of the 2017 conference was getting practical about sustainable development goal (sdg) 4 in teacher education in africa. the term sustainable development was introduced to the united nations some 30 years ago through the “brundtland commission” (world commission on environment and development (wced), 1987). according to the agreement reached, sustainable development is the “development that meets the needs of the present without teacher education through flexible learning compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (wced, 2017). morton, pencheon and squires (2017) described the 17 sdg goals as being intimately interwoven. the sustainable goal 4 (sdg4) which the conference focused on aims at ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all (united nations, 2018). according to the organisation, “obtaining a quality education is the foundation to creating sustainable development”. barbier and burgess (2017) suggest that sustainable development is “the intersection of all the goals” which the authors “attributed to three interlinked systems: environmental (or ecological), economic and social”. however, citing holmberg and sandbrook (1992), the authors agree that “attempting to maximize the goals for just one system does not achieve sustainability, because the impacts on the other systems are ignored”. for example, although the authors attempted to classify sdg#4 “quality education” as essentially a social system goal, they were quick to point out that “given the importance of schooling to human capital formation and thus long-run economic development”, it could also fall under an economic system goal. the reasons for poor quality education are multi-faceted highlighting the need for adequately trained teachers, improved quality of schools and equity matters (united nations, 2018). however, it is not enough to have the goals and their targets beautifully stated. in tandem with the education 2030 agenda (united nations, 2015), africa as one of the countries that fall within the global south needs to develop its own roadmap to attaining the goals. africa needs to be involved by “getting its hands dirty”, hence, the conference’s 2017 theme. according to morton, pencheon and squires (2017), “in contrast to the mdgs, the sdgs are both broader in scope, more collective in action, and more detailed in content, including a clear message that every nation must act if success is to be realized”. the conference sub-themes were i. promoting inclusive education for access ii. implementing strategies to address disability issues in education iii. ensuring quality education for development iv. enacting competency-based and africa-centric curricula and classroom practices v. modelling information communication technology (ict) and open distance and e-learning (odel) modes of provision for education and teacher development in africa f.r. aluko and w. nzabalirwa vi. developing professional learning communities. in exploring these issues, the nine papers in this edition touch on most of the seven outcome targets and the three means of implementation of the sdg 4. in the first article, kisirkoi, kariuki and kadenyi (2019) citing the example of kenya, probe the need to constantly reconstruct the philosophy of education and the role, which philosophers have to play in the process. this becomes necessary if the country hopes to achieve its vision 2030 in line with the sdgs. the authors recommend dewey’s philosophy of pragmatism to expedite the process. ndiku’s (2019) paper titled “teacher empowerment strategies for conflict transformation and peace building in kenya” highlights the massive impact of violent conflict on the quality of education. he argues that teachers through distance education need to be adequately trained for empowerment in conflict transformation and peacebuilding strategies. guided by the conflict transformation theory and a cross-sectional mixed methods research design, the study emphasises the value of life skills curriculum and peace education. in the following article, banja (2019) reports on research work concerning the perceptions of newly qualified teachers and heads of department (hods) regarding the roles of formal mentors in helping newly qualified teachers in selected secondary schools in zambia. the purpose of his study is to identify what the teachers and the hods believed to be the key areas in which such teachers should be mentored. a quantitative study guided by kram’s mentor role theory shows a considerable inconsistency in what both groups believed. in order to address the situation, banja puts forward a policy and a mentorship framework to aid the understanding of mentorship and its effective implementation. from south africa, in their work, du preez, hannaway, joubert and masola (2019) draw attention to the value of role modelling as a teaching approach and a teaching resource due to its ability to promote acceptable social and academic behaviour in young children. the authors reiterate this through a community project tagged the “reading, rugby and responsibility project”. the findings of their qualitative study teacher education through flexible learning nestled in the community of inquiry framework shows that children yearn to engage with role models and be part of a community. the authors, therefore, recommend the approach as a hybrid pedagogy and as a resource. the south african institute of distance education – saide, (an ngo that acts as an advocate, catalyst, and facilitator to bring about change in existing educational practices https://www.saide.org.za/), launched its african storybook initiative to create a platform for digital storybooks in diverse african languages (saide, 2019). research generally indicates the lack of online reading materials written in african languages and reflecting african contexts. niyibizi, sibomana, uwizeyemariya, ntabajyana and niyomugabo (2019) in their qualitative paper, share rwanda teachers’ experience with online translation of reading material in the kinyarwanda language. their findings show “differences in story reading levels between the original kinyarwanda folktales and english translated versions”. they thus advise teacher educators and translators to be mindful of maintaining the “meaning and moral lesson of the original tale in order to make it enjoyable for children.” according to ocansey and gyimah (2019), pupils with special educational needs require guidance and counselling services to overcome their social and psychological challenges. the authors through a concurrent triangulation mixed-method research design, explore available guidance and counselling services in three special schools in ghana. their findings reiterate the value of guidance services, which would necessitate the supervision of regional education offices to ensure widened service access and effective implementation. in the following paper, sibomana (2019), due to the importance of learning activities in distance education materials, focuses on the design by the university of rwanda’s college of education of one of its distance education materials. findings from his qualitative study showed the encouragement of assessment of learning which tends towards a surface approach to learning. rather distance education materials need to focus more on deep learning that encourages application of learning. wambua (2019) in her work titled “learner support system and academic performance of distance learning students in selected kenyan public universities”, highlights the f.r. aluko and w. nzabalirwa age-old concern of the quality of distance education in comparison to campus-based programmes. the focus of her study is the significant role learner support systems could play in ensuring the quality of distance education programmes. her findings suggest that “a learner support system statistically, significantly and positively influences academic performance of distance learning students, although at a low level”. she recommends “remotely accessible guidance and counselling services” for distance education students due to their diverse contexts. country report kisalama and kibedi (2019) report on how video-based self-reflection and collegebased mentorship system has been used to strengthen the adoption of learner-centred pedagogies in teacher education in uganda. using the mixed-methods research design, their exemplary report reiterates the value of college-based mentors to teacher-trainers, irrespective of the latter’s years of experience; “the opportunity for self-reflection and collegial critique afforded students by video”; and the yearning of teacher-trainers for mentorship activities to include subject-specific pedagogical support. in summary, the papers in this themed edition have shared how african countries can get practical with the sdg# 4. given the african context from which they have emanated, all the studies can be replicated (with varying degrees). we, the editors of this volume appreciate the quality that the reviewers have brought to the papers by their rigorous evaluation. we also thank dr tony mays for his constant support throughout the “move from conference proceedings to an online journal”, and mr hendri kruger for his technical support. teacher education through flexible learning references banja. 2019. the perceptions of teachers and heads of department on the roles of a formal mentor in a zambian secondary school. teacher education through flexible learning in africa (tetfle), 1(1). http://www.tetfle.up.ac.za/ barbier, e. b. & burgess, j. c. 2017. the sustainable development goals and the systems approach to sustainability. economics, vol. 11, 2017-28. [online] available from: http://dx.doi.org/10.5018/economics-ejournal.ja.2017-28 distance education and teachers’ training in africa (deta). 2017. deta conference 2017. http://www.deta.up.ac.za/ du preez, hannaway, joubert and masola. 2019. reaching out with rugby role models to inspire literacy in young children: informing hybrid pedagogy. teacher education through flexible learning in africa (tetfle), 1(1). http://www.tetfle.up.ac.za/ holmberg, j. and r. sandbrook. 1992. sustainable development: what is to be done? chapter 1 in j. holmberg, ed. policies for a small planet: from the international institute for environment and development. earthscan publications, london, pp. 19–38. kisalama and kibedi. 2019. strengthening the adoption of learner-centred pedagogies in teacher education in uganda through video-based self reflection & college-based mentorship system. teacher education through flexible learning in africa (tetfle), 1(1). http://www.tetfle.up.ac.za/ kisirkoi, kariuki and kadenyi. 2019. reconstructing kenya’s educational philosophy to steer attainment of the sustainable development goals and kenya’s vision 2030 plan. teacher education through flexible learning in africa (tetfle), 1(1). http://www.tetfle.up.ac.za/ morton, s., pencheon, d. & squires, n. 2017. sustainable development goals (sdgs), and their implementation: a national global framework for health, development and equity needs a systems approach at every level. british medical bulletin, volume 124, issue 1, 1 december 2017, pages 81–90. [online] available from: https://doi.org/10.1093/bmb/ldx031 ndiku, j. 2019. teacher empowerment strategies for conflict transformation and peace building in kenya. teacher education through flexible learning in africa (tetfle), 1(1). http://www.tetfle.up.ac.za/ f.r. aluko and w. nzabalirwa niyibizi, sibomana, uwizeyemariya, ntabajyana and niyomugabo. 2019. from an african oral tale to an english picture book: rwandan teachers’ experience with online translation of south african institute of distance education’s african storybooks. teacher education through flexible learning in africa (tetfle), 1(1). http://www.tetfle.up.ac.za/ ocansey and gyimah. 2019. guidance and counselling for pupils with special educational needs in accra, ghana: implications for inclusive education. teacher education through flexible learning in africa (tetfle), 1(1). http://www.tetfle.up.ac.za/ sibomana. 2019. learning activities in the university of rwanda’s distance teacher education materials: some lessons for designers. teacher education through flexible learning in africa (tetfle), 1(1). http://www.tetfle.up.ac.za/ south african institute of distance education (saide). about us. https://www. saide.org.za/ united nations. 2015. transforming our world: the 2030 agenda for sustainable development. https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/post2015/transformingourworld. united nations. 2018. about the sustainable development goals. https://www.un.org/ sustainabledevelopment/sustainable-development-goals/ wambua, r. 2019. learner support system and academic performance of distance learning students in selected kenyan public universities. teacher education through flexible learning in africa (tetfle), 1(1). http://www.tetfle.up.ac.za/ world commission on environment and development (wced). 1987. our common future. oxford university press, oxford and new york. 6_book_review_tetfle_template_14_07_2022.pdf book review technology-enabled learning: policy, pedagogy and practice vol 3, 2022 contact: makoe mpine qakisme@unisa.ac.za & tony mays tmays@col.org this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 2 3tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, 2022 issn 2788-6298 book review technology-enabled learning: policy, pedagogy and practice sanjaya mishra and santosh panda (eds.) commonwealth of learning, 2020, pp. 264 isbn 978-1-894975-98-8 tel: policy, pedagogy, practice doi: 10.35293/tetfle.v3i1.4151 official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za 4 contact: tony mays tmays@col.org this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. even before the covid-19 pandemic,many learners,teachers and other stakeholders who wanted to see greater use of technology and advocated options for flippedclassroom, blended and/or online forms of instruction challenged the traditional bricks and mortar, face-to-face model of provision. the pandemic accelerated this shift. in the wake of the pandemic, there is no way we can close pandora’s box, and neither should we seek to do so. technology-enabled learning: policy, pedagogy and practice explores three facets of technology-enabled learning (tel) and was published just at the right time to help us reflect on and shape the ‘new normal’ for education provision.the book draws on practical experiences of implementing tel projects in diverse contexts and identifies both successes and challenges. the book comprises five parts, with part 1 comprising a prologue that sets the scene and part 5 an epilogue in which the editors reflect on what has been learned. the core of the book is divided into three main sections that each contains multiple chapters: • part 2. ict in education policy and national development (two chapters) • part 3. technology-enabled learning strategy and implementation: case studies (five chapters) • part 4.research and evaluatingtechnology-enabled learning (eight chapters) as santosh panda observes in his prologue in chapter 1, “[t]oday, it is no longer valid to ask whether we need the assistance of technology for teaching, learning and development.what is more important is to applytel in the context of specific needs and ask questions about how to improve its effect/impact” (p. 12). in chapter 2,sanjaya mishra explores the use of technology from three perspectives: “learning from technology, learning in technology and learning with technology” (p. 27).the chapter briefly explores several common forms of technology use such as video learning, mobile learning, learning management systems, social media, open educational resources, massive open online courses (moocs), learning analytics and emerging technologies.the chapter reminds readers that the field is constantly evolving and therefore new possibilities for practice continue to arise. in chapter 3, shafika isaacs discusses covid-19 education responses, as well as the nexus between open educational resources (oer) and open educational practices tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 5 (oep) in commonwealth member countries. the chapter is organised around a useful policy-as-practice framework that explores practice from above and below,and from preand current covid-19-related perspectives (p. 36). discourse analysis was applied to analyse 20 selected policy documents. the chapter reminds readers that there is always a lag – and sometimes a gap – between the good intentions set out in policy and the implementation of those policy intents in practice. it also cautions readers about the need to address and actively seek to disrupt “growing education inequality and exclusion” (p. 41). indira koneru presents the first of five case studies in part 3 of the book. in chapter 4, the author explores how to design blended learning in ways that improve student learning in a rural area in the province of andhra pradesh in india. it is observed that blended learning requires an extensive upfront design phase and this may be a steep learning curve for teachers who are used to traditional classroom-based provision only. the author used a mixed methods research process to engage with teachers and students on their experiences of blended learning implementation in 18 courses.as might have been expected, well-designed blended courses had a positive impact on student satisfaction and learning gains, while other courses had little or no impact because of design weaknesses. jayashree shinde presents a second case study from india, this time focused on the department of educational technology of sndt women’s university. chapter 5 also explores a blended learning approach and explains how the approach was developed, implemented and evaluated.the study emphasises the importance of proactive leadership, capacity building and mentoring, the need for commitment from all stakeholders, and systematic planning,monitoring and reporting.to this,we might add the need for systematic processes for closing the feedback loop – from monitoring and evaluation, back to continually improving practice. in chapter 6, ioana chan mow, agnes wong soon,tara patu, mose mose and oloa lipine present a case study from the national university of samoa.the authors adopted a mixed methods research approach which included a pre-course survey, lecturer interviews and a post-course survey.while teachers as well as students were positive about the move to blended learning provision and valued the support they had received, infrastructure challenges related to internet access and access to appropriate digital devices remained a problem.these potential challenges need to be pre-empted and addressed in the initial stages of planning a blended learning initiative. 6 contact: tony mays tmays@col.org this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. in chapter 7, silvance o. abeka and joseph bosire present a case study from jaramogi oginga odinga university of science and technology (jooust) in kenya. their discussion centres on flow theory, which involves finding an appropriate fit between current skills and expected levels of challenge,as well as between engagementbased learning and teaching. the authors make the following recommendations (pp. 102-3) that will likely resonate with other providers: • maximise feedback in student-to-student and student-to-faculty communication • adopt active and collaborative pedagogical approaches • remove the walls of the classroom (by extending into a virtual space) the authors reach the following conclusion, namely that “to engage students in deeper understanding, blended learning must be designed specifically to encourage autonomy through interactions, collaborations and participation in challenging activities” (p. 106). in chapter 8, sanjaya mishra and manas ranjan panigrahi discuss “developing institutional capacities for oer-based elearning” based on a partnership between the commonwealth educational media centre for asia (cemca) and the wawasan open university (wou) in malaysia. central to the initiative was the development and deployment of an oer-based elearning course to build capacity. some 40 participants from ten institutions in the region engaged with the course and although only eight participants completed the whole course (due in part to the heavy workload involved), the digital badging system meant that participants could receive recognition for the parts of the capacity development they had managed to complete. kaushal kumar bhagat and fong soon fook present in chapter 9 the first of the discussions in the research-focused part of the book.they explore some of the challenges involved in researching the impact of tel at the universiti malaysia sabah.they also note the challenge in tel research of trying to identify appropriate dependent, independent and extraneous variables, as well as appropriate sampling and data analysis strategies. in chapter 10, martha cleveland-innes, nathaniel ostashewski and dan wilton investigate the impact that practice of the fourth iteration of a mooc has on tel. approaching the study from a community-of-inquiry perspective, the authors tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 7 investigated participant responses to a targeted in-course discussion forum, as well as through a post-course survey.analysis of the feedback encouraged the authors to conclude,“[i]t is clear that programmes like the telmooc that can reach educators when they have time,on their own digital devices,and that engage them in meaningful discussions situated in their own contexts, have considerable value” (p. 138). leigh-anne perryman then uses a theory-of-change model in chapter 11 to evaluate the long-term impact of professional development on moocs.the author notes the inherent limitations in relying only on quantitative data, and suggests that a quantitative investigation should ideally be followed by a more qualitative engagement to evaluate the impact on the professional lives of individual participants. in chapter 12, shironica p. karunanayaka presents 21 stories about digital education leadership from teachers in secondary schools in sri lanka. following an action research approach, the author notes the need for teachers first to develop digital literacy, then to successfully integrate this digital literacy into their own practice, and then to provide digital education leadership for others.the author observes that the teachers involved in the study found the discussion of the concepts “digital footprint” and “digital identity” a useful part of the process. the author of chapter 13, cheryl brown, agrees on the importance of digital education leadership. she observes that col’s digital education leadership training in action (c-delta) programme, which is the focus of the entire book, aims to develop: • participants’ digital literacy, knowledge of digital education; and • ability to lead and implement digital education initiatives in their various contexts. she notes that the openly licensed nature of the initiative (all resources are available as cc-by-sa) has allowed diffusion beyond particular projects and project partners, and that there is evidence about its impact on a wider community of learners and educators. in chapter 14, michael paskevicius explores student access to appropriate study materials across ten of col’s tel partner countries – bangladesh, fiji, india, kenya, malaysia, papua new guinea, samoa, saint lucia and uganda. based on analysis of feedback received in response to a 32-question survey, the author observes that 8 contact: tony mays tmays@col.org this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. learners are accessing both prescribed and unprescribed learning resources.teachers therefore need not only to ensure the quality of the oer they prescribe, but also to skill learners/students to evaluate the quality of the resources that they find for themselves. in chapter 15, santosh panda changes tack somewhat by exploring the notion of return on investment from an open online course on oer. the author looks at the relationship between the inputs in the form of course design, development and implementation and the short-term outcomes in relation to immediate reactions, satisfaction and planned actions. attention is also given to reported changes in knowledge, attitudes and skills and how these manifested in the longer term in implementation and behavioural impact, both in workplaces and in individual/ institutional operations. data was collected through an online survey instrument sent to the 1419 participants who completed the course (of the 4079 who had initially registered). based on analysis of the 127 responses received, the author reaches the following conclusion (p. 208): with an roi of 212.42% from the viewpoint of benefits accrued to the participants and an roi of 254.1% based on the cost involved for the organisation, […] the online course on oer is good value for money and justifies col’s investment. in chapter 16, michael d. sankey discusses benchmarking in relation to tel provision. he identifies ten tel domains of practice (i.e. policy; strategic plan; it support;technology applications;content development;documentation;organisational culture; leadership;human resource training; technology-enabled learning champions) and provides some illustrative performance indicators (p.217).the author reckons that tel has become “mission critical” for most higher education institutions and use of an appropriate benchmarking tool can help improve practice.tel has indeed become mission critical for all institutions in the wake of the pandemic, climate change and other widespread disruptions of traditional campus-based education provision. in the final chapter, the editors santosh panda and sanjaya mishra, provide an epilogue in which they reflect on the three key focus areas – policy, pedagogy and practice (p. 237): while on the one hand we accelerate policy–capacity–technology as a theory-ofchange model for the effective implementation of tel, we also need to engage in capacity building in institutions and focus on our collective understanding of tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 9 “learning” in a “networked”society, making use of resource-based learning within and beyond the commonwealth in the broader sense as well as in the contexts of socio-cultural and educational ecologies. tel has become a necessity, and building resilient education systems should address the complexities and adopt the solutions identified in this book. summary and commendation this book focuses on the work of col’stel initiative which is primarily centred on higher education provision within selected commonwealth countries. only one of the chapters focuses on feedback from schoolteachers, hence we need to look to other publications for further insight into tel integration into schooling,tvet and adult education contexts. however, many of the issues explored in the book will resonate across these other sectors and the inter-related nature of policy,pedagogy and practice is key in all educational contexts. in summary, i recommend this book as a basis for reflection for teachers and educational administrators who are emerging from the covid pandemic to a new normal that requires greater use oftel.there is always something to be learned from those who have made the journey before us. reviewed by: tony john mays (ded.), education specialist: open schooling, commonwealth of learning. 10 contact: tony mays tmays@col.org this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. editorial reimagining african teacher education through distance education for a post-pandemic future vol 3, 2022 contact: makoe mpine qakisme@unisa.ac.za & tony mays tmays@col.org this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 2 3tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, 2022 issn 2788-6298 editorial reimagining african teacher education through distance education for a post-pandemic future makoe mpine university of south africa, south africa orcid identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4192-1781 tony mays commonwealth of learning, canada orcid identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3506-8497 doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v3i1.4150 official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za 4 tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 contact: makoe mpine qakisme@unisa.ac.za & tony mays tmays@col.org this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. although the covid-19 pandemic disrupted education systems, especially at the schooling level, it is important that we now begin to look ahead to determine what we have learned from the pandemic that will help us to rebuild and move away from an emergency response to future-directed resilience (kanwar & daniel, 2020; hodges et al., 2020). several compilations have been made of our lessons of experience. a good example is an e-book edited by ferdig et al. (2020), which comprises 133 chapters with over 850 pages of examples and reflections by diverse education stakeholders. in similar vein, a study undertaken by bozkurt et al. (2020) draws information from across 31 countries to reflect on the ways in which the pandemic exacerbated issues of social injustice, inequity and the digital divide. their study also highlighted the importance of openness in education, the need to think about more flexible forms of assessment and evaluation, as well as the ethical implications of increased access to student data because of the move online. a grounded theory study of publications related to the impact of school closures in lowand middle-income countries and the emerging increased role of technology by jordan (2020) also identified five recurring themes related to access, response, support, quality and implications for the future. the current issue of tetfle can be seen as a modest contribution to this ongoing process of reflection –however from an african contextual perspective – and it is hoped to contribute to the important agenda of continuous quality improvement in teacher education (anietor, 2019). as in most other countries across the world, the immediate response to the closure of school and university campuses in africa was to try to move learning online. this reaction now gives rise to questions about teacher preparedness for such a move. there is general consensus that teachers remain central to learning provision, even in the online environment, but they need appropriate training and support to develop strategies that are not confined by the limitations of working in the physical classroom only (mays, 2021). such initial and continuing professional development will include, among other things, training and modelling related to using appropriate pedagogies and technologies (such as social media) to support online learning (adelakun, 2018; anumula et al., 2020; chaka et al., 2020); making ethical and sound use of the increased data about learners that becomes available in the online environment (bart et al., 2020; herodotou et al., 2020; prinsloo et al., 2022); and rethinking models of learning design and assessment for increasingly diverse contexts (gil-jaurena et al., 4 tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 5 2020; mittelmeier et al., 2018). all of the foregoing will inevitably also mean making informed decisions about what technologies to deploy, in what contexts and in what ways, and the impact this will have on how blended and online teaching is designed, implemented and reviewed (njoki, 2021; makoe & shandu, 2018; von lindeinerstráský et al. 2020; weidlich et al. 2018). the first article in this issue, contributed by leonorah t. nyaruwata (teacher development during and beyond covid-19: perspectives from zimbabwe), observes that in response to the pandemic much teaching and learning moved online, despite the fact that most teachers were inadequately prepared and often under-resourced. it is speculated that blended learning – involving the use of both face-to-face and online learning – will become the norm in the post-pandemic era, making use of the best of both worlds. this implies the need for a change in how teachers are prepared. teacher educators will need to model appropriate blended learning practice for preparing well-equipped teachers in future. modelling appropriate e-learning practice is also the focus of the paper by oyeyemi o. aitokhuehi (how well are student teachers prepared for e-learning and teaching? a case study from the university of lagos). the author refers to the community of inquiry model to reflect on practice at the university of lagos during the pandemic. she observes that while there was evidence from the faculty of education that elements of social, cognitive and teaching presence had to some extent been addressed, there was scope for improvement. chinengundu tawanda and hondonga jerald (teaching practicum assessment procedures adopted by primary teachers’ colleges during the covid-19 pandemic era in zimbabwe) noted in their article that while much of the theoretical learning involved in teacher education could be moved online, the assessment of teaching practice was severely restricted due to school closures. although practice can (to some extent at least) be modelled online and through analysis of video-recorded lessons, ministries (as teacher employers) and university/college staff (as teacher trainers) prefer the direct observation of practice in authentic settings. this meant that for many student teachers, completion of their studies had been postponed until schools could re-open and direct observation of their teaching practice could resume. the article by omidire m. funke and manyaku maroga (e-learning for student support, inclusion and equity in diverse post-pandemic teaching contexts) observes that at least some elements of e-learning are here to stay. hence, there is need to 6 tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 contact: makoe mpine qakisme@unisa.ac.za & tony mays tmays@col.org this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. conceptualise and operationalise strategies to promote inclusion and equity in diverse post-pandemic teaching contexts. this qualitative study, based on affordance theory, suggests that when content experts work collaboratively with learning design experts, and they have the necessary technical support, they can design in multiple modes of engagement to mitigate at least some of the challenges inherent in working with a diverse student population. in an interesting phenomenological reflection on practice, jean antunes and mariam farooq (reimagining online and blended provision of english for academic purposes: practices and reflections from a distributed network in east africa) argue the need for “more critical and contextually relevant approaches to the integration of technology” – especially in relation to language development in the rich multilingual environments that are characteristic of most countries in africa. while the other articles in this issue were research based, antunes and farooq’s submission reported on blended teaching practices in the teacher education programme. the authors reported on how to make online and blended teaching practices of english for academic purposes more contextually relevant. to conclude, the editors of this special issue of teacher education through flexible learning in africa (tetfle) would like to thank the following colleagues who assisted with the review process and contributed to the community of practice in this way: dr tony lelliott dr ephraim mhlanga dr fatimah akinrinade prof. karen ferreira-meyers dr deborah ali prof. lynette jacobs prof. geesje van der berg prof. funke omidire prof. gezani baloyi prof. bernadette geduld dr kris stutchbury dr florence kamonjo dr rexwhite enakrire prof charlene du toit 6 tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 7 prof leonorah nyaruwata dr lydia mbati dr lebo patience mudau dr kris stutchbury dr kris stutchbury hendri kruger nelia oosthuysen references adelakun, l. a. (2018). trends in using social media as substitute for class interaction in open & distance learning (odl) education in nigeria. international journal of pedagogy, policy and ict in education, 6(1), 33-42. https://www.researchgate. net/profile/lateef-adelakun/publication/336345760_trends_in_using_ social_media_as_substitute_for_class_interaction_in_open_distance_ learning_odl_education_in_nigeria/links/5d9c91ae458515c1d39fd8b9/ trends-in-using-social-media-as-substitute-for-class-interaction-in-opendistance-learning-odl-education-in-nigeria.pdf anietor, g. o. (2019). approaches to promoting the quality of open and distance learning (odl) in resource poor nations. international journal of educational research, 6(1), 127-133. anumula, v. k. r., abdul-al, c. f., wang, w., kovacs, p., & powell, l. m. (2020). social networking for a learning management system – should facebook be used to supplement blackboard? issues in information systems, 21(1), 131-140. https://iacis. org/iis/2020/1_iis_2020_131-140.pdf bart, r., olney, t., nichols, m., & herodotou, c. (2020). effective usage of learning analytics: what do practitioners want and where should distance learning institutions be going? open learning: the journal of open, distance and e-learning, 35(2), 178-195. https://doi.org/10.1080/02680513.2019.1690441 bozkurt, a., jung, i., xiao, j., vladimirschi, v., schuwer, r., egorov, g., lambert, s. r., al-freih, m., pete, j., olcott, jr., d., rodes, v., aranciaga, i., bali, m., alvarez, jr., a. v., roberts, j., pazurek, a., raffaghelli, j. e., panagiotou, n., de coëtlogon, . . . paskevicius, m. (2020). a global outlook to the interruption of education due to covid-19 pandemic: navigating in a time of uncertainty and crisis. asian journal 8 tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 contact: makoe mpine qakisme@unisa.ac.za & tony mays tmays@col.org this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. of distance education, 15(1), 1-126.  chaka, c., nkhobo, t., & lephalala, m. (2020). leveraging moyama, whatsapp and online discussion forum to support students at an open and distance e-learning university. the electronic journal of e-learning, 18(6), 494-515. https:// doi.org/10.34190/jel.18.6.003 ferdig, r. e., baumgartner, e., hartshorne, r., kaplan-rakowski, r., & mouza, c. (eds.). (2020). teaching, technology, and teacher education during the covid-19 pandemic: stories from the field. association for the advancement of computing in education (aace). https://www.learntechlib.org/p/216903/ gil-jaurena, i., domínguez-figaredo, d., & ballesteros-velázquez, b. (2020). learning outcomes-based assessment in distance higher education. a case study. open learning: the journal of open, distance and e-learning. https://doi.org/10.1080/026 80513.2020.1757419 herodotou, c., rienties, b., hlosta, m., boroowa, a., mangafa, c., & zdrahal, z. (2020). the scalable implementation of predictive learning analytics at a distance learning university: insights from a longitudinal case study. the internet and higher education, 45. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iheduc.2020.100725 hodges, c. b., moore, s., lockee, b. b., trust, t., & bond, m. a. (2020). the difference between emergency remote teaching and online learning. scholarly works, school of education, virginia tech. https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/handle/10919/104648 jordan, k. (2020). covid-19 school closures in lowand middle-income countries: emergent perspectives on the role of educational technology. journal of learning for development, 7(3), 399-415. https://jl4d.org/index.php/ejl4d/article/view/433 kanwar, a., & daniel, j. (2020). report to commonwealth education ministers: from response to resilience. commonwealth of learning. makoe, m., & shandu, t. (2018). developing a mobile app for learning english vocabulary in an open distance learning context. the international review of research in open and distributed learning (irrodl), 19(4). https://doi.org/10.19173/ irrodl.v19i4.3746 mays, t. j. (2021). teaching the teachers. in d. burgos, a. tlili, & a. tabacco (eds.), radical solutions for education in a crisis context. lecture notes in educational technology. springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-7869-4_11 mittelmeier, j., long, d., cin, f. m., reedy, k., gunter, a., raghuram, p., & rienties, b. (2018). learning design in diverse institutional and cultural contexts: suggestions 8 tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 9 from a participatory workshop with higher education professionals in africa. open learning: the journal of open, distance and e-learning, 33(3), 250-266. https://doi.or g/10.1080/02680513.2018.1486185 njoki, h. (2021). influence of technology type on development of instructional materials for distance education. journal of online and distance learning, 1(1), 60-74. https://doi.org/10.47941/jodl.638 prinsloo, p., slade, s., & khalil, m. (eds.) (2022). introduction. learning analytics in open and distributed learning (1-13). springerbriefs in education series. springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-0786-9_1 von lindeiner-stráský, k., stickler, u., & winchester, s. (2020). flipping the flipped. the concept of flipped learning in an online teaching environment. open learning: the journal of open, distance and e-learning. https://doi.org/10.1080/02680513.2 020.1769584 weidlich, j., & bastiaens, t. j. (2018). technology matters – the impact of transactional distance on satisfaction in online distance learning. international review of research in open and distributed learning, 19(3). http://www.irrodl.org/index.php/irrodl/ article/view/3417/4646#:~:text=transactional%20distance%20(td)%2c%20 the,in%20research%20on%20distance%20education. 10 tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 contact: makoe mpine qakisme@unisa.ac.za & tony mays tmays@col.org this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za contact robert kisalama @ robert.kisalama@enabel.be this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. strengthening the adoption of learner-centred pedagogies in teacher education in uganda through video-based self reflection & college-based mentorship system kisalama roberta and abdul-majid kibedib uganda-belgium teacher training education projecta ministry of education and sports, ugandab vol 1 no 1 2019 issn: 2788-6298 doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v1i1.70 abstract the intermittent pedagogical support received by teacher-trainers from the central level makes it difficult to implement new practices in teacher training institutions in uganda. this mixed-methods study investigated teacher-trainers’ perceptions of a pilot pedagogical support system implemented by college-based mentors. qualitative and quantitative data were elicited using an online questionnaire completed by teachertrainers (n=100) and video-records of interviews with selected college-based mentors (n=6) who reflected on their own experiences to propose ways of improving the system. the findings revealed that irrespective of years of experience, teachertrainers appreciate the contribution of college-based mentors towards the adoption of learnercentred pedagogy. it also revealed that the opportunity for self-reflection and collegial critique afforded by video enhanced the practices of the mentees and greatly enriched the mentorship process. nonetheless, the teacher-trainers expressed the need to broaden mentorship activities to include subject-specific pedagogical support. keywords: learner-centred pedagogy, college–based mentorship, reflective practice mixed-methods study, teacher-trainers, video-records, self-reflection, collegial critique teacher education through flexible learning introduction for quite some time, training of teacher educators was treated as a once-off process with only minimal support being provided for continuous professional development (cpd). teaching methods of teacher educators therefore largely facilitated learning by rote (i.e. memorization) and were rooted in what is often referred to as chalk-and-talk with little, meaningful teacher-student interaction or other student activity. recognising the importance of secondary teacher training, the government of uganda, in collaboration with the belgian government through the teacher training education (tte) project, agreed to support interventions geared towards the improvement of teacher training provided by the national teachers’ colleges (ntc) (moes, 2011). one of the major objectives of the teacher training education (tte) project, is to improve the quality of teaching and learning in the teacher training institutions by changing the paradigm from teacher-centred to learner-centred pedagogies (lcp) during teacher preparation. to promote more lcps in teacher education, the ugandan ministry of education and sports, in partnership with the belgian technical cooperation, initiated a capacity building program in nine teacher training institutions through the teacher training education (tte) project, (moes, 2011). aware of the significant role that pre-service teachers have to play in the sustained application of lcp in schools, the project deemed it important to expose these pre-service teachers to effective application of lcp during their training. therefore, the strategy was to use teacher educators as role models. it was further argued that the driving force for change and improvement must come from the teacher educators and training colleges. the approach of improving the quality of teaching and learning in teacher training institutions is essentially a college-based one. it involves bringing about change and improvement in the teaching and learning process with on-site support provided in all partner colleges. in the next sections we discuss college–based mentorship as a form of community of practice; the use of video in teacher education and how the tte project has harnessed video as a tool to support a college-based mentorship system. k. robert and a-m. kibedi college-based mentorship as a community of practice: mathisen (as cited in kerstin & gunilla, 2017) defines mentorship as being a two-pronged process, where one part is career-oriented, to develop professional knowledge, and the other part deals with support in psychosocial development. recent definitions of mentorship, further emphasise the process of deepening thoughts, reflections and knowledge by the members in the community of practice (kerstin & gunilla, 2017). wenger, mcdermott & snyder (2002) define community of practice (cop) as “groups of people who share a concern, a set of problems or a passion about a topic, and who deepen their knowledge and expertise in this area by interacting on an ongoing basis” (2002,p. 7). college-based peer mentoring as a form of a cop, therefore, seeks to pursue teacher change and development through peer review and collegial interaction as a way to improve practice. a central part of these interactions, is to reflect on practical work, professional identity, artefacts and theoretical understanding (lave & wenger, 1991). moreover, the constructive feedback, emotional support, professional socialisation and pedagogical guidance which are inherently part of quality mentorship can be catalysts for sustainable continuous professional development of teachers. institutional-based professional development has been credited for its direct linkage with the daily activities of teachers and learners (darling-hammond, 2006). it is in acknowledgement of the above arguments that the tte project opted to pilot a college-based mentorship system to support teacher trainers in implementing lcp. next, we briefly discuss the use of video in teacher education. use of video in teacher education: the potential use of video to enhance reflective practice is well documented in the literature (schön, 1987). the ability to digitize video has contributed even further to the way in which video is being utilized by teacher educators. as pointed out by sherin (2004), the possibility to explore a video in a non-linear fashion, thus enabling viewers to move through time, rewind actions, and jump to different segments, makes it such a powerful reflection tool hence its use in college-based mentorship. in the next section, we discuss how tte has utilised videos to support a college-based mentorship system. teacher education through flexible learning how the tte project is utilising videos in teacher education: as part of the training on lcp, all teacher trainers who participated in the training were requested to develop a portfolio across a period of one year. among the artefacts in this portfolio, were at least two videos showing how the teacher trainer was implementing lcps and progressive mentorship reports which were based on class observations and video analysis of both the teacher trainers and their respective college–based mentors. in addition, the tte project would organise two one-day workshops per year, for the teacher trainers within the college to critique sample videos, purposefully selected based on a given theme related to lcp. in such workshops, participants would reflect upon what occurred, from their own standpoints, with the explicit intention of considering ways to improve pedagogical practices. consequently, based on the critique from the teacher trainers, the areas of improvement as pointed out from the video would constitute the topics/areas to be included in the subsequent continuous professional development training. relatedly, the videos were also used for purposes of preserving best practice without neglecting the less perfect examples; as these were seen as opportunities for discussion and reflection on realities that are context specific. statement of the problem: whereas teacher trainers demand that teacher-trainees apply learner-centred methods during their school placements, most of the lessons conducted in teacher training colleges by the teacher trainers remain largely teacher-centred (moes, 2011). moreover, whereas teacher trainers in national teachers’ colleges report many years of teaching experience, much of it is at the level of secondary school teaching with only a few reporting more than ten years’ experience in a teacher training institution. generally, many of the teacher trainers lack the requisite skills of teacher educators (including the ability to model lcp), hence the need for pedagogical support. unfortunately, owing to several constraints, the pedagogical support from the mandated stakeholders at the central level is always intermittent. k. robert and a-m. kibedi purpose: this study was to investigate teacher trainers’ perceptions of pedagogical support provided by college-based mentors especially in the implementation of learner–centred pedagogies in four national teachers’ colleges supported by the project. specific objectives: 1) to identify what the teacher trainers perceive as the usefulness of a college–based mentorship system on the implementation of learner-centred pedagogies 2) to determine the experiences of the college-based mentors in supporting teacher trainers in the implementation of learner-centred pedagogies. methodology: mixed methods studies as a methodology, has been credited for its ability to make sense of the world, help readers better understand the study, increase confidence in findings, improve accuracy and completeness, and inform and contribute to overall validity (mckim, 2017). equally, as a project with sufficient resources and focused on adoption of new practices, use of mixed methods methodology offered a balanced perspective (morse & chung, 2003); in terms of tracking numbers of teacher trainers that were adopting the new practices in addition to how well they were applying the new skills, as a means of evaluating the intervention. this mixed-methods study, surveyed teacher-trainers’ perceptions on pedagogical support provided by college-based mentors in the implementation of lcp in four project-supported colleges. examining the ways in which these teacher educators implemented lcp, the study drew on data generated from class observations, semi-structured interviews with mentor teachers and responses to an online questionnaire of all the teacher trainers who participated in the lcp training. both quantitative data from close-ended question and qualitative data from open-ended questions were gathered using this questionnaire. whereas uganda has mainly three categories of teacher training; this study was carried out in four purposefully selected national teachers’ colleges that train grade v teachers for lower secondary, aware that they were all direct beneficiaries of the project intervention on the implementation of lcp. teacher education through flexible learning sample: in total, 100 participants responded to the online questionnaire. six mentors whose contacts were readily available; having been trained for the role of mentors by the project, were also purposefully sampled to participate in the focus group interviews. purposeful sampling has been credited for the opportunity it avails to select information-rich cases for in-depth study (patton, 2002). having been at the core of the college-based mentorship system, the mentors were a critical source of experiences that were of central importance to the purpose of this study. this paper draws on data collected in 2016, particularly focusing on the perceptions of teacher educators towards a college-based mentorship system. findings: the research results are contextually situated in four national teachers’ colleges spread in various regions of uganda. table 1. responses to teacher trainers’ perception on the mentorship system strongly disagree disagree agree strongly agree (a) i am satisfied with the amount of supervision / mentoring provided. 2%(2) 3%(3) 79%(79) 16%(16) (b) i am satisfied with the quality of supervision / mentoring provided 3%(3) 7%(7) 74%(74) 16%(1) (c) my classroom instruction has improved as a result of supervision/mentoring 2%(2) 5%(5) 65%(65) 28%(28) (d) video-based lesson analysis has contributed to the quality of my teaching 46%(35) 54%(54) (e) i feel comfortable with receiving feedback from peers during the video-based lesson analysis sessions 71%(71) 29%(29) (f) video-based lesson analysis has increased my level of confidence in the classroom 50%(50) 50%(50) k. robert and a-m. kibedi from table 1 above, over 90% of the teacher trainers sampled are satisfied with the amount of pedagogic mentorship received during the period of intervention with less than 10% expressing dissatisfaction. the trend remained consistent with 90% indicating they were satisfied with the quality of pedagogic support offered by the mentors. it is, however, important to note that 10% of the respondents were not satisfied with the quality. unfortunately, in this analysis, it was not possible to establish whether respondents not satisfied with the amount of support were equally not satisfied with the quality. 83% of the respondents also agreed that their classroom instruction had improved as a result of supervision/mentoring. all the respondents who participated in the video-based lesson analysis sessions indicated their satisfaction level at either agree or strongly agree to the fact that these sessions had increased their level of confidence in the classroom, they felt comfortable with receiving feedback from peers during these sessions and indeed it had contributed to the quality of their teaching. the respondents were also asked to rate the usefulness of feedback received from the peers and the mentors. 77% of the respondents indicated that the feedback was very useful for most of the aspects, 12 % indicated it was somehow or partially useful with only 2% percent indicating the feedback as not useful or of limited relevance. the respondents were further asked to suggest ways of improving the mentorship system. some of the suggestions given by different participants include: “it is important to train a mentor for each subject so that the staff teaching the subject can be guided on how the difficult topics can be taught effectively.” “mentors should also become more confident” “i would like to suggest that; mentors should be more committed to mentoring their mentees” “incorporate mentorship in the school programme and facilitate mentors” some critical themes from the above suggestions that clearly came out and may further be explored include: the need for additional training of mentor teachers, facilitation teacher education through flexible learning (motivation) of mentor teachers, the institutionalisation of mentorship as part of the college programme and scaling up mentorship to include subject content. on the other hand, during the focus group interview for the mentors; the mentors expressed some of the challenges they face. for instance, the workload for mentorship was like an extra assignment in addition to their normal job description. they also expressed the lack of cooperation of some of the mentees, making it difficult to fully support them. during the interview, one mentor remarked that, “..there is need to continue following up on the mentees. there is a tendency to revert to the old traditional teacher-centred methods which appear less cumbersome in terms of lesson preparation time.” the mentors, however, felt that mentorship was more of a symbiotic process where their own practices had also improved through mentoring others. mentors also acknowledged how video recordings had simplified their work of supporting the mentees since all the discussion points were based on evidence from practice. the mentors indicated it was now possible to evaluate the progress of the mentees in the implementation of lcp since videos shot at different intervals of support constituted part of the portfolio. conclusion: the above presentation and discussion indicate that teacher-trainers appreciate the contribution of college-based mentors towards the improvement of their pedagogical practices. this study has also revealed the essence of harnessing low-cost technology to enhance evidence-based mentorship. the need for a sustainable college-based pedagogical support system cannot be over-emphasised. the need for mentorship at subject level is also very evident. it remains a responsibility of all relevant stakeholders to explore how college-based mentorship systems can be strengthened in the future. k. robert and a-m. kibedi recommendations: in this study, we were able to show that even teacher-trainers require some form of pedagogical support to enable them to adopt new pedagogical innovations. with the proliferation of low-cost tools that are capable of shooting videos, teacher training institutions ought to harness the capabilities of video in enhancing the reflective practices of the teacher trainers in their quest to improve pedagogical practices. finally a sustainable pedagogical support mechanism such as the college–based mentorship system ought to be explored to support the adoption of innovations in practice. references: darling-hammond, l. 2006. constructing 21st-century teacher education. journal of teacher education, 57(3), 300–314 kerstin arnesson & gunilla albinsson 2017. mentorship – a pedagogical method for integration of theory and practice in higher education. nordic journal of studies in educational policy, 3:3, 202-217 lave, j. & wenger, e. 1991. situated learning. legitimate peripheral participation. cambridge: cambridge university press. mckim, c. 2017. the value of mixed methods research: a mixed methods study. journal of mixed methods research, 11(2), 202-222. moes 2011. needs assessment report, improving the training of btvet technical teachers/instructors and health tutors, and secondary teachers in uganda. kampala: author morse, j. m., & chung, s. e. 2003. toward holism: the significance of methodological pluralism. international journal of qualitative methods, 2(3), 1-12. patton m.q. 2002. qualitative research and evaluation methods. 3rd. thousand oaks: sage publications. schön, d. 1987. educating the reflective practitioner: toward a new design for teaching and learning in the professions. san francisco: jossey-bass sherin, m. g. 2004. new perspectives on the role of video in teacher education. in j.brophy (ed.). using video in teacher education (pp. 1 28). new york: elsevier wenger, e., mcdermott, r. a., & snyder, w. 2002. cultivating communities of practice: a guide to managing knowledge. boston: harvard business school press. official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za contact rebecca mwikali wambua @ rebeccawambua2015@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. learner support system and academic performance of distance learning students in selected kenyan public universities rebecca mwikali wambuaa, christopher gakuub, harriet kidombob, and speranza ndegec aafrica nazarene university, kenya, buniversity of nairobi kenya, ckenyatta university, kenya vol 1 no 1 2019 issn: 2788-6298 doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v1i1.69 abstract distance learning is a mode of study globally accepted as a tool for enhancing access, equity and quality in education. the kenyan government has put in place mechanisms to promote open and distance learning practices in educational institutions. however, there is doubt in kenya, regarding the quality of academic performance attained by distance learning students. the objective of this study was to determine the influence of learner support systems on the academic performance of distance learning students in selected kenyan public universities. the study is based on pragmatism due to its focus on objectivity and the use of scientific methods. mixed-methods research methodology was adopted for the study. the sample consisted of 847 bachelor of education (arts) distance learning students, 149 lecturers teaching distance learning students, and two (2) administrators in charge of distance learning programmes. the research instruments consisted of questionnaires, interview guides, document analysis and the instrument for measuring academic performance. the findings indicated that a learner support system statistically, significantly and positively influences academic performance of distance learning students, although at a low level (4.9%). however, the findings revealed that guidance and counselling support, which is part of the learner support system, did not significantly influence the academic performance of distance learning students. the study recommends that particular focus should be on the provision of remotely accessible guidance and counselling services since most distance learning students cannot physically access the services which are on campuses. keywords: distance learning, learner support system, academic performance teacher education through flexible learning introduction distance learning is a mode of study globally accepted as a tool for enhancing access, equity and quality in education (muchiri, 2012; wambugu 2012; aluko, 2007). it is a mode of study in which the lecturer is separated by distance and time or both from the student. it involves extensive preparation of the media of delivery of content and the learner support system required to ensure distance learning students achieve the expected learning outcomes. learners study as individuals with occasional face to face or virtual meetings with lecturers. the mode of study mainly attracts learners who are 25 years and above, who are working with family responsibilities, mainly with an intention of upgrading academic qualification to reach higher social economic status (owusu-boampong & holmberg, 2015; muchiri, 2012). the rapid growth in technology, the flexibility offered by this mode of study, and the benefits which accrue to both individuals and governments as a result of investment in education have resulted in a rapid adoption of this mode of study (hwang, yang & kim, 2010). literature review studies have been conducted since the early 1920s to compare the academic performance of students pursuing studies through various modes. russell (2002) came up with no significance difference (nsd) phenomenon. he collated a bibliography of 355 pieces of research for the period 1927-1977 in the united states of america alone. the results of the researchers indicated that there is no significant difference in the academic performance of distance learning and conventional students. recent studies reveal that distance learning students perform better than their conventional counterparts (bailey, et.al. (2018). the academic performance of distance learning students directly impacts their career choice, social economic status and participation in community life (benford & gess-newsome, 2006). different variables which contribute to the academic performance of students have been the subject of study by researchers, bandura, 2001; rugendo, 2014). according to bandura’s (2001) socio-cognitive theory, human behaviour is influenced by environmental factors and personal factors. in institutions of higher learning, factors within the institutions constitute environmental factors which affect the academic performance of distance learning students. r. wambua et al. one of the key institutional factors affecting the academic performance of distance learning students is the learner support system. the learner support system constitutes the holistic non-subject assistance provided to every student by an institution other than generic teaching materials. it includes services such as academic advisory, informational and ict support, guidance and counselling services and, administrative support to students (saide, 2003; muchiri, 2012; usun, 2004; du vivier, 2010). the learner support system not only determines the quality of the distance learning mode of study but also provides the competitive edge of an institution (hwang, yang & kim, 2010; global watch missions, 2006). the learner support system should be an integral part of the teaching and learning process of distance learning programmes and it should focus on learners’ needs. (mays, 2017; mills, 2003). an effective learner support system increases retention of students and reduces dropout rates (tinto 2006-2007; bojuwoye et.al., 2014; simpson, 2015). the government of kenya has put mechanisms in place to reduce the challenges of access, equity and quality faced at the institutions of higher learning. one of the plans is the establishment of the open university of kenya (education policy in kenya, 2012; sessional paper no.1 of 2012 on a policy framework for education, training in kenya; sessional paper no.1 of 2005 on a policy framework for education, training and research (open university of kenya: blueprint for the establishment of the open university of kenya, 2010). one of the main goals in education highlighted in the kenya vision 2030 is to reduce illiteracy, increase access, improve transition rates, achieve an 80% adult literacy rate and to increase the school enrolment rate to 95%. it also aims at increasing the transition rates to technical institutions and universities from 3% to 8% by 2012. in the vision, public and private universities are encouraged to expand enrolment. an effective strategy of increasing access, transition and literacy is through encouraging distance learning mode of study, since more students can enrol with minimum strain on educational institutions. kenya has 22 chartered public universities and 14 chartered private universities. one of the critical roles of university education in kenya is to provide equity, access and quality teacher education through flexible learning in education (the universities act, 2012). in this study, kenyatta university and the university of nairobi have been purposively selected. these two universities have been charted for more than 10 years and they have offered distance learning programmes for more than 10 years. they have well-established directorates of the distance learning mode of study, with elaborate policies on learner support systems. it is worth noting that most of the studies that have been carried out in the area of academic performance of distance learning students were mainly based in developed countries (russell, 2002; gallagher, et.al, 2005; crowley et.al, 1999) and therefore the findings are not necessarily applicable to a developing country like kenya. the majority of the studies in relation to the distance learning mode of study in kenya have focused on issues other than academic performance namely; course delivery methods, readiness to adopt e-learning, factors influencing effective use of ict in teaching and learning, effectiveness of a needs-based learner support system, and, the preparedness of students for ict based learning (njagi, 2012; mulwa, 2012; keiyoro, 2010; muchiri 2012; wambua et.al., 2012). the limited research in the area of academic performance of distance learning students in kenyan universities has resulted in scepticism regarding the quality of learning achieved through this mode of study (wambugu, 2012). the enrolment of distance learning students in kenya is quite low (19, 038) compared to overall university enrolment (536,000), nyerere, 2016). this study investigated the influence of the learner support system on academic performance of distance learning students. the purpose of this study was to establish the influence of learner support systems on the academic performance of distance learning students in selected kenyan public universities. the objective of the study was to determine the influence of learner support systems on the academic performance of distance learning students in selected kenyan public universities. the research question for this study was, ‘how does the learner support system influence the academic performance of distance learning students in selected kenyan public universities?” r. wambua et al. this study is based on an overlap of three schools of thought; constructivism, social cognitive and system’s theories. according to constructivists such as john dewey, bruner, piaget and vygotsky, knowledge is constructed by learners based on their experiences. therefore, in this study, the leaner support system has to be carefully designed to enable learners to construct knowledge out of the experience. social cognitive theory is mainly associated with albert bandura who explains that both personal and environmental factors influence human behaviour. in this study, the academic support, administrative support and the guidance and counselling support put in place in the selected kenyan public universities, constitute the environment which influences the academic performance of distance learning students. the system’s theorists such as luhman, wiener, churchman, parsons and bertalanffy, argue that institutions consist of elements which interact with each other to produce outputs. in this study, the distance learning students interact with the learner support system in order to achieve the learning outcomes. research paradigm the research paradigm of this study is pragmatism due to its emphasis on the need for objectivity and use of scientific methods in research (onwuegbuzie & leech, 2006). the experiences of distance learners, lecturers teaching distance learning students and administrators in charge of distance learning programmes were critical and were expressed through carefully selected and constructed research instruments. a realistic ontology has been adopted in this study due to the assumption of the existence of cause and effect (crotty, 2003). in this regard, therefore, the researcher adopted an ex post facto design which investigates the relationship and effects, between a dependent variable (learner support system) and an independent variable (academic performance of distance learning students). the epistemological assumptions in this study are from both positivist perspective (which assumes that knowledge is certain, objective, and unchanging) and from an interpretive perspective (which assumes that knowledge is uncertain, fluid, and dynamic) (burke & onwuegbuziee, 2004). the use of both positivist and interpretive perspective influenced the use of mixed-method of research techniques. teacher education through flexible learning research design and methodology this study adopted ex post facto design (orodho 2005). in this study, the independent variables were academic support, guidance and counselling support, and administrative support. the dependent variable was the cumulative mean score of bachelor of education (arts) third-year distance learning students. the study was conducted at the university of nairobi and kenyatta university. the study further adopted a combination of qualitative and quantitative techniques (mixed-method research techniques) which supplement each other (kothari, 2004). the techniques included interviews, document analysis, the use of questionnaires and the instrument of measuring academic performance. to determine the sample size, krecie and morgan’s (1970) statistical table for determining the sample sizes was used. the sample consisted of 847 bachelor of education (arts) third-year distance learning students, 149 lecturers who teach bachelor of education (arts) third-year distance learning students and two (2) administrators in charge of distance learning programmes from the selected kenyan public universities. the sample size from the selected kenyan public universities consisted of 475 bachelor of education (arts) third-year distance learning students, 125 lecturers teaching bachelor of education (arts) third-year distance learning students and two (2) administrators in charge of distance learning programmes. a sequential sampling technique was used in selecting respondents. in the first phase, respondents from the university of nairobi were selected, and in the second phase, the respondents from kenyatta university were selected. in each phase, a stratified simple random sampling procedure was used (orodho, 2005). the sub-samples from the two universities were joined to form a complete stratified sample. in this study, questionnaires, interview guides, document analysis and the document for measuring academic performance were used to collect data. before collecting data, the researcher sought permission from the national commission for science, technology and innovation, the university of nairobi, and kenyatta university. the respondents were elucidated on the objectives of the study and they were requested to give their consent regarding r. wambua et al. participation in the study. confidentiality was guaranteed. data collected was reported without distortion. results as shown in table 1, the response rate was above 50% in all the categories of respondents which was considered significant for the study table 1: response rate item category of respondents frequency percentage filled questionnaires and returnedquestionnaires not returned filled questionnaires and returned lecturers 73 58.4% lecturers 52 41.6% total 125 100 bachelor of education (arts) third year distance learning students 305 64.2% questionnaires not returned bachelor of education (arts) third year distance learning students 170 35.8% total 475 100 interviews conducted administrators 2 100% table 2 shows the descriptive statistics for the learner support system teacher education through flexible learning table 2: descriptive statistics for learner support system learner support system specific support category of respondents satisfaction percentage satisfaction mean out of 5 academic support students lecturers 72% 62% 3.6 3.1 guidance and counselling students lecturers 62% 54% 3.1 2.7 administrative support students lecturers 72% 72% 3.6 3.6 overall rating of learner support system students lecturers 68.7% 62.7% 3.4 3.1 composite mean for lecturers and students 65% 3.25 the descriptive statistics for a learner support system shown in table 2, indicates that the composite mean was 3.25 which was equivalent 65%. this meant that regarding a learner support system, the selected kenyan public universities needed to do much more to enhance the satisfaction of this support because 35% of lecturers and students were dissatisfied. this was supported by the fact that the dropout rate based on students enrolled by the first semester of the first year was 13.26%. quantitative statistics for a learner support system the objective of this study was to determine the influence of a learner support system on academic performance of distance learning students in selected kenyan public universities. the hypothesis predicted that there is no relationship between a learner support system and academic performance. to test this hypothesis, a bivariate regression analysis for each of the sub-items under a learner support system was carried out to determine how each affected the academic performance of distance learning students in selected kenyan public universities. r. wambua et al. table 3: bivariate regression results for learner support system and academic performance item β* r2 p t-value f academic support 0.546 0.020 0.013 2.490 6.21 guidance and counselling 0.159 0.002 0.417 1.812 2.660 administrative support 0.713 0.024 0.007 2.736 7.486 learner support 0.421 0.049 0.043 2.560 17.16 the outcome of the bivariate regression presented in table 3 above shows that academic support explains 2.0% of the variance in the distance learning students’ academic performance and it statistically and significantly influences academic performance (r2 = 0.020, p-value =0.013). specifically, a unit change in academic support is associated with 0.546 change in academic performance. the unstandardized beta coefficient, therefore, reveals that academic support substantially contributes to the academic performance of distance learning students in selected universities in kenya (β= 0.546; p=0.013). the high calculated f-ratio of 6.21 which is greater than the critical f ratio of 3.92 and t values of 2.490 implies that the effect of academic support on academic performance is statistically significant at less than the 0.05 level of significance. guidance and counselling explain only 0.2% of the variance in academic performance and it is statistically not significant (r2=0.002, p=0.480) thus it is concluded that guidance and counselling support on its own does not influence academic performance of distance learning students from selected kenyan public universities. the findings further revealed that a unit change in guidance and counselling explains a 0.159 change in academic performance. the un-standardised beta coefficient of β= 0.159 confirms that guidance and counselling support on its own does not significantly affect the academic performance of learners in selected kenyan public universities. the low calculated f-ratio of 2.66 and t values of 1.812 implies that the guidance and counselling support on its own does not statistically and significantly (p=0.417) influence the academic performance of distance learners in selected kenyan public universities. teacher education through flexible learning administrative support explains only 2.4% of the variance in the distance learning students’ academic performance. this implies that although the model is significant (r2=0.020, p=0.000) only a very small proportion of academic performance is influenced by administrative support. the findings further revealed that a unit change in administrative support explains a 0.713 change in academic performance. the unstandardised beta coefficient of β= 0.713 confirms that administrative support significantly influences the academic performance of learners in selected kenyan public universities. the high calculated f-ratio of 7.486 and t values of 2.736 implies that the administrative support statistically and significantly influences the academic performance of distance learners in selected kenyan public universities (p=0.024). finally, the entire learner support explains 4.9% of the variance in distance learners’ academic performance (r2=0.049, p=0.043). this outcome indicates that there is a positive relation between learner support and academic performance of distance learning students from selected kenyan public universities. a unit change in the composite learner support system explains a 0.421 change in academic performance. the un-standardised beta coefficient of β= 0.421 reveals that learner support significantly affects the academic performance of learners in selected kenyan public universities. the high calculated fratio of 17.16 and t values of 2.560 implies that the learner support system statistically and significantly influences the academic performance of distance learners in selected kenyan public universities (p=0.049). discussion the findings of this study do not agree with some of the results of a study by bowa (2008) which revealed that most of the cognitive, affective, and systemic learner support services did not contribute significantly to the academic performance of learners because the services were either not adequately provided or because learners lacked access to the services. the current study revealed that academic support statistically and significantly influences academic performance (r2 = 0.020, p-value =0.013) although at a low level, (2.0%), and, administrative support significantly influences academic performance (r2=0.024, p=0.007) although at a low level, (2.4%). the entire learner support system explains 4.9% of the variance in distance learners’ academic performance (r2=0.049, r. wambua et al. p=0.043). this implies that the selected kenyan public universities had improved slightly in their services in relation to academic support and administrative support. these findings are consistent with the study by nyerere (2016) who discovered that universities in kenya had put in place strategies to improve the learner support system of distance learning programmes the findings in the study by bowa (2008) further indicated that social services did not have a significant influence on academic performance because the services were low and ineffective. he established this through his study on the influence of the learner support services and learner characteristics on academic performance of bachelor of education (arts) learners in the school of continuing and distance education at the university of nairobi. these findings are consistent with the current study which found that guidance and counselling do not significantly influence academic performance of distance learning students from selected kenyan public universities. the study revealed that guidance and counselling explain only 0.2% of the variance in academic performance and it is statistically insignificant (r2=0.002, p=0.417). these findings were consistent with the observation from the administrators who explained that although counselling services were available, the students, being distance learners, did not access the services adequately. this is despite clear information in the student information handbooks that pastoral and guidance services were offered through the chaplaincy. these findings imply that the provision of guidance and counselling services did not adequately serve the needs of distance learning students because they rarely came on campus. these findings support the recommendations by muchiri (2012) who explained that there was a need for the guidance and counselling services to be reconceived to ensure access by distance learners, irrespective of their location. the findings are further supported by kamau (2012) whose study revealed that there was a need to enhance the accessibility of the learner support system by distance learners. a study by nyerere (2016) revealed that although universities in kenya had implemented strategies to improve the learner support system, none of the 12 universities studied, indicated that they had social and career guidance services. anyona (2009) found that teacher education through flexible learning there was a need to enhance the accessibility of guidance and counselling services because the learners were required to travel to the centres or campuses, to access these services. regarding accessibility, bailey, et.al. (2018) observed that one of the practices which lead to success in online learning is the provision of remotely accessible learner support structures. the need to use modern technology in supporting learner needs was also emphasized by different scholars (chatpakkarattana & khlaisang, 2012; baloyi, 2014). conclusion the objective of this study was to determine the influence of a learner support system on academic performance of distance learning students in selected kenyan public universities. the results indicated that the independent variable (learner support system) explains 4.9% of the academic performance (r2 =0.049, f= 17.16, p=0.043). it was therefore concluded that learner support, though only to a small percentage statistically, significantly, and positively determines the academic performance of distance learning students in selected kenyan public universities. however, among the variables in the learner support system (academic support, guidance and counselling and administrative support), guidance and counselling support was the only variable which did not significantly influence academic performance of distance learning students. these findings imply that although the provision of academic support, guidance and counselling, and administrative support would result in higher levels of academic performance of distance learning students, more emphasis should be geared towards enhancing guidance and counselling support. universities should ensure that policies are implemented so as to continuously improve the academic performance of distance learning students. particular focus should be on the provision of remotely accessible guidance and counselling services since most distance learning students cannot physically access the services which are on campuses. r. wambua et al. references aluko f.r. 2007. a comparative study of distance and conventional education programmes assessed in terms of access, delivery and output at the university of pretoria. pretoria, university of pretoria. bailey a., vaduganathan n., henry t., laverdiere r., & pugliese l. 2018. making digital learning work: success strategies from six leading universities and community colleges. boston: the boston consulting group. 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nairobi. an unpublished doctoral thesis. catholic university of east africa. official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za contact: oladele esther oluwasayo eoladele@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 113 factors influencing female enrolment in science education programmes in distance learning institutions in south-west, nigeria oladele esther oluwasayo and adeniyi comfort olawumi science education department, distance learning institute, university of lagos, nigeria issn: 2788-6298 doi : https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v2i1.90 abstract this study investigated the factors influencing enrolment of female learners in science education programmes of three distance learning institutes in south-west, nigeria. the objectives of the study were to explore socioeconomic, personal and cultural factors that influence the enrolment of women into distance learning institute. the target population was all female learners in the departments of science education. this study was guided by the facilitation theory using a questionnaire as the research instrument. the researchers sampled 280 female learners in science education programmes of these distance learning institutes. three research questions were raised and analysed. the data obtained were analysed using mean, standard deviation and also presented in percentages. findings revealed that socioeconomic factors such as finance as well as personal factors, including attaining social and academic satisfaction could influence the enrolment of women in science education programmes. the study revealed that majority of the women are employed, though faced with several challenges that hinder their studies. the study recommended ways of overcoming these challenges and urged the government and stakeholders to implement these recommendations for the development of distance education. keywords: cultural factor, personal factor, socioeconomic factor, distance education, female student enrolment. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: oladele esther oluwasayo eoladele@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 114 introduction distance education is seen as an alternative to regular university education. according to osipita (2016), distance education has been seen as a major advancement in nigeria, as it refers to the mode of teaching and learning which deals with learner and teacher being separated from each other in time and space, with focus on distance teaching and learning. according to gensler (2014), the main feature of distance education is the physical distance between the learner and the teacher. the learners, therefore, are responsible for their own learning. apart from the use of printed instructional materials developed for distance learning, distance learning also focuses on learners and their response to instructions by their e-tutors and facilitators (leslie & elizabeth, 2010). all over the world, distance education is seen as a means for a large number of learners to access quality education wherever they are at any time and space (gensler, 2014). through distance education, many people with family and work commitment can have access to quality education (stephanie, 2013). despite the various benefits of distance education, it is faced with some challenges, among which include lack of information for course of study, delayed feedback on assignment and release of results and poor lecturers' remuneration (chawinga & zozie, 2016). markova, glazkova and zaborova (2017), also found that distance learners face many challenges, especially with regards to effective communication patterns and teaching practices. again, musingafi et al., (2015) have shown that distance learners face challenges such as insufficient time of study, ineffective feedback, difficulty in access and use of ict and lack of study materials. females (women) are held responsible for raising children and taking care of their homes and families. when girls and women receive support along with mentorships, learning through smart technology from boys and men, respectively, their leadership skills and capabilities are built (o'neil, plank & domingo, 2015). on the other hand, sahni (2015) emphasised that it is inherently valuable and a girl's right to be educated. education helps females claim their rights and realise their potential in the economic, political and social areas (sahni, 2015). it is also the single most powerful way to lift people out of poverty. agwi, amadike & ejimaji (2016) asserted that another notable strategy for improving female interest to enrol for scienceand technology-related courses, is for teachers to ensure that their female learners are encouraged, especially those that excel in science-related subjects. unfortunately, in nigeria today, much has not been achieved in terms of women education. women and girls have continued to suffer various forms of discrimination, deprivation and marginalisation in terms of receiving and attaining formal education at all levels. all of these compared with the male counterparts; due to unequal access to education opportunity resulting in high level of illiteracy among the female, especially in scienceand technology-related areas. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: oladele esther oluwasayo eoladele@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 115 education for all understood in terms of equal access to education is not enough. equality and future development of societies are, therefore, dependent on providing high-quality science education for all (ekine & abay, 2013). it should be an intrinsic part of any strategy to address the gender-based discrimination against females that remains prevalent in many societies. the various distance learning institutes considered have about 60% of the distant learners as females who are employed or in business. they are enrolled in various science education courses offered in the distance learning institutes. in order to contribute to the scarce empirical research in this area in nigeria, and with a focus on the barriers to education and economic participation that girls and women face such as early marriage, distance to school, cultural values, security concerns and cost of schooling among others; this research, therefore, explores the various factors influencing enrolment of females in science education programs of the university of lagos (dli), university of ibadan (dlc) and national open university of nigeria (noun). to this end, the study will specifically: 1. investigate the socioeconomic factors that influence enrolment of females into science education programmes of the distance learning institutes. 2. identify cultural factors that influence female enrolment into science education programmes of the distance learning institutes. 3. determine the personal factors that influence enrolment of females into science education programmes of the distance learning institutes. problem statement female learners' enrolment into distance learning institute has consistently been comparatively low, and there is the need to investigate how female learners make their science subject enrolment decisions. among all the main departments in distance learning institute, the science education department receives one of the least, if not the least female student admissions every year. this consequently affects the number of female learners opting for science-oriented courses. a review of a number of research studies on learners' subject choice and learners' attitudes towards sciences was completed. some of these research works were about young learners whose courses and subject choices could be heavily influenced by their parents because they were still under the care and control of their parents. however, most of the respondents (learners) in the present study are relatively mature and, in most cases, independent individuals who may not be necessarily influenced in their choices of subject by their parents and family. therefore, there is the need to establish the factors affecting the interest of female learners in science-oriented courses in the current context, hence the need for this study. it is against this background that the researcher sought to establish the factors that influence the enrolment of female learners into science education courses of the distance learning institutes. the study will then provide answers to the following questions: teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: oladele esther oluwasayo eoladele@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 116 1. what socioeconomic factors influence the enrolment of females into science education programmes? 2. what cultural factors influence enrolment of females into science education programmes? 3. what personal factors influence enrolment of females into science education? theoretical framework this study was guided by the facilitation theory. the facilitation theory developed by davis and francis (2019) was adopted because of its emphasis on "natural eagerness to learn" and 'person-centred learning'. it actually started with the assertion that someone cannot teach the other person directly. hence, the focus is on the role of positive learner-teacher relationship in enabling learning. one of the basic premises of this theory is that learning is possible because human beings have a "natural eagerness to learn" and they (human beings) are responsible for, and at the centre of the learning process (person-centred learning). e-learning is possible only because individuals who opt for it are self-driven and eager to learn despite their location in relation to learning institutions. the role of the teacher is to act as a facilitator, no amount of effort on the part of the teacher can guarantee success unless the learner has a desire and predisposition to learn. the facilitation theory over the years is of the notion that learning involves changing one's selfconcept. such changes may involve discovering one's strengths or weaknesses. however, davis and francis (2019), opine that the facilitation theory also implies that, learners must blend themselves to the mode of education in which they choose for knowledge acquisition. a freshly perceived self-concept has a consolidating impact on learning in that it allows the learner to attack a target skill with confidence. hidden in the non-direct facilitative approach is the assumption that learners can find the information by themselves (teachers merely facilitate that process), an assumption which downplays the role of information transmission and underestimates the contribution of teaching. teacher–student contact is the moderating variable that provides the interaction effect. teachers who are able to establish and maintain positive and personal relationships with learners tend to experience better achievement and results, higher-order thinking and improvements in self-regard. methodology this study adopted a descriptive survey design. the target population for the study comprises all females in science education departments; distance learning institute (dli), university of teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: oladele esther oluwasayo eoladele@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 117 lagos, distance learning centre (dlc), ibadan and national open university of nigeria (noun). an 18-item, self-structured modified four-point likert scale questionnaire titled 'factors influencing female enrolment in science programmes' (fifeisp) was used to elicit information from the sample. three hundred (300) copies of questionnaire were distributed and two hundred and eighty (280) were retrieved. this instrument was validated by two tests and measurement experts from the faculty of education, university of lagos. a pilot test was conducted using 25 female distance learners from a university outside the sampled institutions to ascertain the reliability of the instrument and a cronbach alpha value of 0.78 was obtained. the data obtained were analysed using mean, standard deviation and also presented in percentages. mean score was used to answer the research questions stated, the criterion mean was taken as 2.50 (the average 1+2+3+4 divided by 4 is 2.5; where 4 stand for strongly agree, 3 for agree, 2 for disagree and 1 for strongly disagree) being the reference point), therefore any mean score below 2.50 was taken as disagree, while mean score of 2.50 and above was taken as agree. the cut-off point for accepting or rejecting an item was fixed at 2.50 (criterion). also, the combined percentages of agree/strongly agree were combined and seen as agreed and the percentages of disagree/strongly disagree were seen as disagree. results and discussion analysis of respondents based on the research questions: research question 1: what socioeconomic factors influence the enrolment of female learners into science education programmes? teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: oladele esther oluwasayo eoladele@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 118 table 1 influence of socioeconomic factors on the enrolment of female learners into science education programmes. criterion: mean sn variables strongly agree agree disagree strongly agree mean sd remarks 1 i could not go through the conventional institution because of financial constrain 120 (42.86%) 80 (28.57%) 30 (10.71%) 50 (17.85%) 2.9643 1.11946 agreed 2 my parents do not believe in sending female children to higher institutions. 85 (30.36%) 105 (37.5%) 55 (19.64%) 35 (12.5%) 2.8571 .99152 agreed 3 i do not receive support from parents/husband 122 (43.57%) 80 (28.57%) 48 (17.14%) 30 (10.71%) 3.0500 1.01829 agreed 4 my society believed that female education ends in the kitchen 37 (13.21%) 22 (07.86%) 135 (43.57%) 86 (30.71%) 1.2429 .46237 disagreed 5 in my society male child education is given priority compared to female child education 105 (37.50%) 77 (27.50%) 50 (17.85%) 48 (17.14%) 2.8750 1.07867 agreed 6 my family background is responsible for my inability to pursue my university education through conventional method 140 (50.00%) 66 (23.57%) 55 (19.64%) 19 (06.78%) 3.1750 .96614 agreed teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: oladele esther oluwasayo eoladele@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 119 table 1 shows only one statement was disagreed with mean value less than 2.5, which means that the society no longer believes that female education ends in the kitchen. the remaining statements were agreed because their mean values were above 2.50. also, the sums of percentages for strongly agree and agree were greater than 50% for all variables identified in table 1 except for item 4 which indicate that socioeconomic factors, influence enrolment of female learners into science education programmes. research question 2: what cultural factors influence enrolment of females into science education programmes? table 2 influence of cultural factors on the enrolment of females into science education programmes sn variables strongly agree agree disagree strongly agree mean sd remarks 7 some cultures in nigeria still believed that a girl child should get married early, therefore going to university will make them too old for marriage 125 (44.64%) 85 (30.35%) 44 (15.71%) 26 (09.29%) 3.1000 .98955 agreed 8 marrying a university graduate is very expensive in some cultures in nigeria. 130 (46.23%) 55 (19.64%) 56 (20.00%) 39 (13.93%) 3.0036 1.08260 agreed 9 to reduce 102 100 55 23 2.9929 .96903 agreed teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: oladele esther oluwasayo eoladele@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 120 criterion: mean the cost of dowry, men in some cultures in nigeria prefer to marry and send the girl to higher institutions thereafter. (36.43%) (35.71%) (19.64%) (08.21%) 10 some men prefer sending their wives to a school, e.g. open distance education where she can attend to home and academic work at the same time. 145 (51.79%) 55 (19.64%) 42 (15.00%) 38 (13.57%) 3.1000 1.09282 agreed teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: oladele esther oluwasayo eoladele@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 121 table 2 shows all statements were agreed because their mean values were above 2.50 and the sum of percentages for strongly agree and agree were greater than 50% which implies that the cultural factors identified above, influence the enrolment of female learners into science education programmes and distance learning institutes. research question 3: what personal factors influence enrolment of females into science education? table 3 influence of personal factors on enrolment of female learners into science education programmes. sn variables strongly agree agree disagree strongly agree mean sd remarks 11 i could not go through the conventional institution because i could not pass jamb/other entrance examination 110 (39.29%) 55 (19.64%) 80 (28.57%) 35 (12.50%) 2.9643 1.11946 agreed 12 getting admission into nigerian conventional university involves a lot of processes and stress 110 (25.14%) 80 (28.57%) 50 (17.85%) 40 (14.28%) 2.8571 .99152 agreed 13 i have tried getting admission into some conventional university before now 122 (43.57%) 80 (28.56%) 40 (14.28%) 38 (13.57%) 3.0500 1.01829 agreed teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: oladele esther oluwasayo eoladele@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 122 criterion: mean 14 i need to work to sustain myself in school 130 (46.43%) 70 (25.00%) 30 (10.71%) 50 (17.85%) 3.2429 .86237 agreed 15 ode system of education is more flexible, one can combine work, marriage and academic work 145 (51.78%) 70 (25.00%) 50 (17.85%) 15 (05.36%) 2.8750 1.07867 agreed 16 i opted for ode programmes since i could not secure admission into conventional university 120 (42.86%) 85 (30.36%) 45 (16.07%) 30 (10.71%) 3.1750 .96614 agreed 17 my job will not allow me to study through conventional university system 89 (31.79%) 80 (28.57%) 60 (21.43%) 51 (18.21%) 2.9964 1.14064 agreed 18 to achieve my goal and desire in life, i need to find an alternative to get education which i could not get through conventional institutions 102 (36.43%) 90 (32.14%) 58 (20.71%) 30 (10.71%) 3.2393 .91379 agreed teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: oladele esther oluwasayo eoladele@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 123 table 3 shows all statements were agreed because their mean values were above 2.50 and the sum of percentages for strongly agree and agree were greater than 50% which implies that all the itemised personal factors above, influence enrolment of female learners into science education programmes. discussion responses on the influence of socioeconomic factors affecting the enrolment of female learners into science education programmes, reveals that personal, cultural and socioeconomic factor such as finance can influence the enrolment of female in science programmes. in this study, learners also agreed that their parents do not believe in sending female children to higher institutions. these findings, therefore, corroborate the work done by nfor (2020) on the socioeconomic status and female enrolment in engineering and technology programmes in anglosaxon state universities of cameroun, where the socioeconomic status of parents was observed to correlate significantly to female learners' enrolment in engineering and technology. it was therefore recommended that parents should feature in their wards' academic activities. however, ndirika and agommuoh (2017) and ekine and abay, (2013), have recommended that it is paramount to ensure access to and improve quality of education for girls and women as well as to remove every obstacle that hampers their active participation. this is in line with the report by the united nations children's fund new york (2018), that "girl education is a key priority for sustainable development, fundamental to ensuring their rights and essential to delivery on the promise to leave no one behind". however, in order to improve girl education, as well as education for all, bashir and usma (2018) in their work have submitted that there is an urgent need for improving the overall skills of personnel involved in distance learning, so that they can become productive in educating distance learners and hereafter enhance the economy. also, it was observed that all respondents in this study agreed that cultural factors influence female learners' enrolment into distance education programmes. this is reflected in the 'agreed' response from respondents about statements such as 'the belief that a girl child should get married early', 'going to university will make them too old for marriage',' marrying a university graduate is very expensive in some culture in nigeria', 'to reduce the cost of dowry, men in some culture in nigeria prefer to marry and send the girl to higher institutions thereafter'. also, some men prefer sending their wives to open and distance learning institutions where they can attend to home and academic work at the same time. in view of these, pozdnyakova and pozdnyakov (2017) discovered that conditions at home can have a very great impact on the academic performance of distance learners as much learning is required at home in distance learning programmes. also, findings from this study are supported by the observations made by idris (2012) that socio-cultural religious affinities and practices/values, as well as parental teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: oladele esther oluwasayo eoladele@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 124 influence, have a significant effect on female enrolment into technology-based programmes in federal polytechnics in northern states of nigeria. findings from this study, also show that personal factors including attaining social and academic satisfaction can influence the enrolment of women in science programme which is in line with the literature that reports that most women in leadership have started participating early in leadership activities and education since adolescents (o'neil, plank and domingo, 2015). these, therefore, improve self-efficacy and self-confidence. although, zaborova and markova (2016), have reported that students in online environments tend to be isolated and confused, thereby having reduced learning effectiveness and satisfaction. therefore, it can be said that a woman (female) with a high level of self-efficacy and self-confidence will show an optimal positive attitude when facing the challenges of studying among other responsibilities at home and work. stephanie (2013) however, observed that women are hit hard with family responsibilities just when they need to meet research goals. the facilitation theory developed by davis and francis (2019) was adopted in this study, because it accentuates "natural eagerness to learn" and 'person-centred learning'. hence, learners are said to be responsible for their own learning. this study has, therefore, revealed various factors influencing female enrolment into science education programmes in distance learning institutes, south-west, nigeria. most importantly, the personal factors which are substantiated by the facilitation theory that emphasises that every learner, is eager to learn and should show the ability for personalised learning, as this was specifically revealed (table 3, questions 15 and 18) by how the learners are eager and enthusiastic to learn by self-motivation and person-centred form of learning. they encouraged themselves by not giving up acquiring tertiary education, in the face of various challenges, which includes the inability to secure admission into conventional universities and having to combine work, marriage and academic work. conclusion and recommendations from the study, it can be deduced that all factors studied; socioeconomic, cultural and personal factors have a great influence on enrolment of females into science education programmes of the distance learning institutes in south-west, nigeria. most females enrolled in distance education programs are working-class adults who are influenced by socioeconomic, cultural and personal factors. the driving force behind enrolment of these females in distance learning institutes is the desire to gain more knowledge to enhance professionalism in their field of practice as well as finance; hence the need for a good job to sustain them while going to school. substantiating the essence of adopting the facilitation teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: oladele esther oluwasayo eoladele@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 125 theory, is the fact that, findings from the study has shown that women from the sampled institutes are ready to study through distance learning institute programs, to catch up with their male counterparts. even though they are faced with financial constraints, they are determined to complete the program. hence, eliminate gender inequalities and promote equity. based on these findings, the following recommendations are made: • further research into other related factors posing as barriers to female learners' enrolment into science education programmes should be done. • distance learning institutions should reduce the price of their school fees as finance is a major socioeconomic factor found in this study as a challenge to female student enrolment. • the government should implement a lending financial policy which is learner-friendly to distance learners who are self-sponsored. for instance, women should be offered more time to pay-back their loans from academic financial institutions. as a result, every obstacle to the enrolment of female learners into science programmes should be looked into and removed, so that more women would be encouraged to acquire education through the distance learning mode. disclosure statement no potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors. references agwi, v. i. a., amadike, o. & ejimaji, e. e. 2016. critical appraisal and evaluation of teaching and learning effects in technical colleges in rivers state. am demit stholarjhip journal 11 (1), 179-198. bashir, m. & usma, i.a. 2018. role of open and distance learning (odl) in technical vocational education and training in nigeria. atbu journal of science, technology and education. 6 (3). chawinga, w.d & zozie, p.a. 2016. increasing access to higher education through open and distance learning: empirical findings from mzuzu university, malawi. international review of research in open and distributed learning, 17:1-20. davis, b. & francis, k. 2019. 'facilitation theory' in discourses on learning in education. available at http://www.learningdiscourses.com. accessed on 15 october 2019. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: oladele esther oluwasayo eoladele@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 126 ekine, a.o., & abay, n.a. 2013. enhancing girls' participation in science in nigeria. a driver for national development and social equality. accessed january 14, 2017. available at http://www.cssia.org/pdf/20000193. accessed on 15 october 2019. gensler, l. 2014. from correspondence courses to moocs: the highlights of distance learning over the ages. forbes. forbes magazine. idris, a. 2012. effects of multi-dimensional variables on female enrolment in technology programmes in federal polytechnics in the northern geo-political zones of nigeria: implication for curriculum review (ph.d. thesis) submitted to ahmadu bello university, zaria. available at www.kubanni.abu.edu.ng. accessed on 20 october 2019. leslie, s., & elizabeth, e. 2010. perceptions of disability and access to inclusive education in west africa; a comparative case study in dakar. senegal inclusive communities: inclusive education. available at http://www.internationaljournalofspecialeducation.com. accessed on 28 october 2019. markova, t., glazkova, i., & zaborova, e. 2017. education, health and ict for a transcultural world. 7th international conference on intercultural education eduhem 2016, 15-17 june 2016. almeria, spain quality issues of online distance learning. procedia social and behavioral sciences 237: 685 – 691. musingafi, m. c. c., mapuranga, b., chiwanza, k., zebron, s. 2015. challenges for open and distance learning (odl) students: experiences from students of the zimbabwe open university journal of education and practice, 6 (18) pp 59-66. available at http://iiste.org/journals. accessed on 14 october 2019. ndirika, m. c., & agommuoh, p. c. 2017. investigating factors influencing girls participation in science and technology education in nigeria. journal of research and methods in education, 7(30): 2320-7388pp. nfor j. c. 2020. socioeconomic status and female enrollment in engineering and technology programmes in anglo-saxon state universities of cameroon. international journal of trend in teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: oladele esther oluwasayo eoladele@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 127 scientific research and development (ijtsrd), issn: 2456-6470, volume-4 | issue-3, pp.10151020. available at https://www.ijtsrd.com/papers/ijtsrd30789.pdf. accessed on 28 october 2019. o'neil, t., plank, g, and domingo, p. 2015. support to women and girls' leadership: a rapid review of the evidence. london: overseas development institute. osipita, o. 2016. towards improving distance education in nigeria with virtual technology. interlink continental journal of educational research and general studies, 2(1), 1-6. pozdnyakova, o., & pozdnyakov,a. 2017. adult students’ problems in the distance learning. procedia eng.178, 243-248. http:// doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2017.01.105.) pozdnyakova, o., & pozdnyakov,a. 2020. distance learning as an option to overcome the learning barriers of adult female students. in: kabashkin i., yatskiv i., prentkovskis o. (eds) reliability and statistics in transportation and communication. relstat 2019. lecture notes in networks and systems, (17), springer cham. sahni, u. 2015. personal communication. in: today's challenges for girls’ education. available at www.ungei.org/todays-challenges-girlseducationv5.pdf. accessed on 30 october 2019. stephanie, s. p. 2013. science gender gap: five reasons women trail men in science live science. available at https:// www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/07/science-gender-gap-fivereasons-men_n-2827567.html. accessed on 17 october 2019. united nations children's fund new york. 2018. evaluation of unicef girl's education portfolio (2009-2015). available at https://www.unicef.org/evaldatabase/files/unicef. accessed on 14 october 2019. zaborova, e. n., & markova, t. l. 2016. students as social actors of virtual educational environment. actual issues of sociology of culture, education, youth and management: materials of the all-russian scientific conference with international participation. yekaterinburg, russia. 392–397. official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za contact kisirkoi florence @ kisirkoiflorence@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. reconstructing kenya’s educational philosophy to steer attainment of the sustainable development goals and kenya’s vision 2030 plan kisirkoi florencea, kariuki michaelb, kadenyi misia annea amaasai mara university kenya, bmoi university, kenya vol 1 no 1 2019 issn: 2788-6298 doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v1i1.64 abstract philosophy of education in kenya needs to be constantly reconstructed given the emerging needs of society and in light of global trends. changes in the education system over time have not eradicated education challenges that result in unemployment and social evils in kenya. there are also global and national goals to be met. the objective of this study was to examine the role of philosophers and suggest whether professional philosophers could reconstruct philosophy of education in kenya to guide the achievement of sustainable development goals (sdgs) and the kenya vision 2030 plan. the sdgs and kenya’s vision 2030 work in tandem, and if effectively and efficiently implemented, guided by a sound philosophy of education, lives of all kenyans would be raised to international standards. this study was conducted as desk research that employed critical conceptual philosophical literature review. a recommendation was made that experts in philosophy of education could use dewey’s philosophy of pragmatism to facilitate the reconstruction of kenya’s national philosophy of education as a tool to steer attainment of the sustainable development goals and the kenya vision 2030. keywords: sustainable development goals (sdgs), kenya vision 2030, philosophy, dewey’s pragmatism, philosophy of education teacher education through flexible learning introduction due to societal dynamism and global trends, philosophy of education in kenya needs to be constantly reconstructed to remain relevant. education in kenya has not solved many societal problems in spite of many changes over time. in addition there are international and national development goals to be achieved through education which is viewed as the tool through which kenya will achieve vision 2030 (republic of kenya, 2007), the country’s development blueprint constructed to steer the achievement of the millennium development goals (mdgs) and the later sustainable development goals (sdgs). statement of the problem education in kenya since independence has been undergoing changes, but there are similarities in the inadequacies of the outcome soon after implementation each time. there has been a number of commissions looking into the education agenda for kenya, which came up with laudable reports such as the ominde report (ominde,1964); republic of kenya (1982) and (koech,1999) leading to the changes of the education system from seven years primary education, four years secondary education, two years higher secondary education and three years university education referred to as 7.4.2.3. it was changed to the outgoing eight years primary education, four years secondary education and four years university education referred to as 8.4.4 and currently it is changing to the incoming two years pre-school education, six years lower primary, three years upper primary, three years secondary and three years tertiary education referred to as 2-6-3-3-3 education system which is competency-based. all the commissions of education were constituted to provide the best education system for the country but unemployment and “evils” such as corruption, inequalities, impunity, tribalism and greed practised by even educated people persist. the first goal of education in kenya states that “education should promote national unity” (moest, 2002) yet schools do not reflect national unity. they are in categories such as national, county, boarding, and day schools with varied infrastructures, financial and teacher provision, climatic conditions, and school k. florence et al. 3 facilities. yet all children take the same national examination and compete for the same job opportunities. the 7-4-2-3 system of education was introduced in 1964 soon after independence in 1963 but was found to lead to white collar jobs and joblessness. it was changed to 8-4-4 which also led to joblessness and was blamed for societal ills. it is changing to 2-6-3-3-3. some educated people end up unemployed and unemployable and do not utilise the knowledge acquired and developed over a long time. examinations have been used as a selection and elimination criteria with no regard to those who do not get selected anywhere. are the philosophers playing their role in guiding development of a holistic democratic curriculum in kenya where the society’s real problem of life is addressed as advised by dewey (1916, p.115) and later njoroge and bennaars (1986); who stipulated that in a holistic education the learner should acquire the cognitive skills which entail knowledge acquisition and utilization? the objective of this study the objective of this study was to examine the role of philosophers and suggest how professional philosophers could reconstruct philosophy of education in kenya to enable education to guide achievement of the sustainable development goals and the kenya vision 2030. methodology this study was qualitative desk research, which employed critical conceptual philosophical review of literature of philosophy of education and detailed description and explanation of philosophical issues in relation to education in kenya. it explored the role of philosophers, dewey’s pragmatic philosophy, education commissions in kenya, the kenya vision 2030 and the sdgs. national philosophy of education a country’s philosophy of education is an ideology that controls education policy-making and organisational procedures, hence it requires constant redefining and detailed scrutiny teacher education through flexible learning of its diverse meanings. writing on philosophy of education as a theoretical framework, wainaina (2006, p. 133) defines ‘philosophy of education’ as ‘a general principle, a theoretical framework, which is expected to guide and inform educational practices’. this definition is akin to dewey’s definition of philosophy as ‘the general theory of education’ (dewey, 1916, pp.328, 331) or better still ‘philosophy is the theory of education as a deliberately conducted practice’ (dewey 1916, p.332). wainaina relates philosophy of education to a national system of education: “in every country, an educational system is usually based on a conceptual framework that is more general than one that guides activities at a particular educational institution. within that framework, the main educational goals, the methods of achieving those goals and the methods of determining whether or not the goals have been achieved are specifically defined” (2006, p.133). in addition, dewey’s states that “if we are willing to conceive education as the process of forming fundamental dispositions, intellectual and emotional, towards nature and fellow men, philosophy may even be defined as the general theory of education” (1916, p. 334); it captures the essence of philosophy of education as an ideology. ‘an appropriate education system of a country is founded on an appropriate philosophy which targets goals pursued through clearly stated objectives’ (republic of kenya, 2012, par.2.1). while discussing philosophy of education as a sub-discipline of knowledge wainaina, states: “in actual sense, philosophy of education is an area of study which attempts to specialise at addressing philosophical issues and problems within the field of education. this means that although the issues addressed are philosophical in nature, they occur in a specific social sector, we identify with the activities of teaching and learning” (2006, p.134). this assertion concurs with dewey’s view that ‘philosophical problems arise because of widely felt difficulties in social practice’ such as in education. dewey (1916, p.334) is k. florence et al. 5 emphatic that an ‘educational point of view enables one to envisage the philosophic problems where they arise and thrive in practice.’ by referring to ‘activities of teaching and learning’ as the context from which ‘philosophical issues and problems’ are addressed in philosophy of education; that view is consistent with dewey’s perspective on the point at which ‘the intimate connection between philosophy and education appears’ (dewey 1916, p.328). there is a distinction between philosophy of education as an academic activity and philosophy of education as an ideology that guides education. the koech (1999) report calls for construction of a national philosophy of education in kenya rather than just have a set of ideas of national philosophy of education “as the nation enters the new millennium, it is imperative that a coherent afrocentric philosophy of education be formulated to guide both the content and methods of the entire curriculum design and practice. time has now come for us to define ourselves in our own kenyan way. to understand and accept ourselves as kenyans demand that we revisit our historical and philosophical roots with a new vision” (republic of kenya, 1999, 1.3.5). njoroge and bennaars (1986) state that after independence, african leaders advocated for ‘authenticity in african educational thought’ (p.70). the leaders articulated various national philosophies of education either directly as in tanzania or indirectly as was the case in kenya. these philosophies of education are ‘clearly evident from the numerous reports and policy papers on education’ (1986, p. 71). for instance, ‘the ominde report (republic of kenya,1964) as well as subsequent reports’ are said to stress ‘respect for african traditional values in reaction to colonial brainwashing that everything from african tradition was evil.’ this is regarded as conservative educational thought yet it is paradoxical when put along with progressive thought which requires ‘change and progress.’ the ominde report asserted that education is a function of the nation and it does not have its own goals. other conservative educational principles are the idea of african socialism based on the traditional values of mutual social responsibility and political democracy (njoroge & bennaars, 1986, p.70-71). the conservative philosophy of education is concerned with african traditional values and traditional social ethics in teacher education through flexible learning the area of education. the progressive philosophy of education is expressed directly or indirectly by scholars and national leaders in africa who advocated for educational reform for purposes of ‘rapid social, economic and political development’ (1986, p. 72). exploration of philosophy of education philosophy of education is analysed by distinguishing its various meanings. for instance, it is distinguished as general and technical, and further technical philosophy of education is distinguished as a process and as a product (njoroge & bennaars 1986; akinpelu 1981; brauner. & burns, 1965). griffiths (2010) distinguishes philosophy of education as either methods or systems of education. soltis (1998) distinguishes three dimensions of philosophy of education namely personal, public and professional. philosophy of education as a process is an activity of scholarly study which employs what griffiths (2010) calls the four functions of philosophy namely the analytic, the evaluative, the speculative and the integrative functions in the study of education (as cited by brauner & burns, 1965, p.23). njoroge and bennaars (1986, p.23, 100) also identified four functions of technical philosophy used in philosophy of education; namely, the rational, critical, existential and speculative functions. the four functions of technical philosophy become four approaches in technical philosophy of education; these are analytical, critical, phenomenological and implication approaches. technical philosophy of education is, therefore, an area of academic, professional and scholarly specialisation (njoroge & bennaars, 1986, p. 41). in this sense technical philosophy of education is a technical activity undertaken by professional philosophers of education; it is ‘the process of philosophising about education’ (brauner & burns, 1965, p.23). scheffler (1966) illustrates the analytical function of the technical philosopher of education and argues that ‘educational activity is articulated, organised, and executed with the aid of clusters of concepts’ (p.15). some concepts which explain the philosophy of education are specialised others are general. without elaborating on his reasons, scheffler (1966) states that it is ‘the general concepts that attract the philosopher’s attention.’ these general concepts feature ‘widely in description of fundamental processes, institutions, or ideologies; in formulation of basic k. florence et al. 7 goals and programs; in inference and argumentation underlying important decisions.’ they are ‘intimately related to the quality and direction of educational activity’ (p.15). the general concepts as described by scheffler (1966) seem to denote what soltis (1998) calls the ‘public dimension of philosophy of education’ or what commissions of education in kenya and sessional papers on education formulate as ideological national philosophy of education for the country. scheffler (1966) therefore helps to clarify what this study proposes to do regarding the formulation of a philosophy of education; to guide education towards the realisation of sdgs and vision 2030 in kenya. this is because the role of the professional philosopher of education in relation to general concepts of education is to try ‘to see if and how philosophies make sense when subjected to systematic and impartial scrutiny conducted far from the heat of action. such analysis is significant in education; it may facilitate the discovery of weak assumptions and control analogies usually suppressed in practice and expose normally unnoticed confusions. it may suggest fruitful comparisons and improved ways of thinking about education’ (1966, 15). technical philosophy of education greatly differs from general philosophy of education. general philosophy of education unlike technical philosophy of education, general philosophy of education is expressed by non-experts and non-specialists in technical philosophy of education, and it is as old as when people started to express their general ideas and thoughts about education, its nature, purpose and goal for the society. it includes comments, beliefs, statements and ideas about education, views of opinion leaders like politicians, journalists, civil society, religious leaders and other advocacy bodies. others include sets of ideas on education by political parties such as harambee and nyayoism in kenya. general philosophy of education also includes educational ideas of theorists and researchers who are not technical philosophers of education such as john locke, kant and hegel (phillip & siegel, 2013). it may also include activities of ‘philosophers who sometimes illustrate some general theme by reference to educational concept’ (hirst & peters, 1998, p.37). other general philosophies are statements of vision, mission and mottos of institution of learning teacher education through flexible learning like universities, secondary or primary schools (akinpelu, 1981) such as the motto of starehe boys secondary school in kenya – natulengejuu which means ‘let’s aim high!’ in addition, there are general statements purported to be philosophy of education by international bodies on education, for instance, the united nations and its agencies. thus, the sdgs constitute general philosophy of education particularly for those goals which relate to education. the proponent of general philosophy of education does not intend their ‘philosophies of education’ to be subject of scrutiny or to contribute to academic discourse on philosophy of education. dimensions of philosophy of education philosophy of education is distinguished along three dimensions, namely personal, public and professional dimensions of philosophy of education (soltis, 1998). the personal dimension of philosophy of education connotes a set of individual’s beliefs about what is good, right and worthwhile in education. the public dimension of philosophy of education refers to an educational proposal meant as a normative prescription to guide and direct the practice of education for the nation. this is the pragmatic philosophy of education found in plato’s republic or dewey’s philosophy of education. it avails opportunity for thoughtful participation in the direction education should take; a concern by all who care seriously about education. the public dimension of philosophy of education is akin to what commissions of education and sessional papers in kenya formulate as philosophy of education for the country. the public dimension of philosophy of education includes educational proposals, debates, critiques, programmes and policy-making meant to influence the entire system of education. the professional dimension of philosophy of education refers to activities and output by scholar-teachers trained in philosophical skills. they adhere to professional canons of scholarship and use the ‘technical tools of the professional philosophers in dealing with conceptual and normative issues relevant to education’ (soltis,1998, p.198). their activities include analysing, reflecting, evaluating and seeking a clearer understanding of k. florence et al. 9 educational matters. they attempt to ascertain the logical soundness of arguments, explicating the meaning of ideas, justifying value claims, constructing reasonable arguments and providing ways to think about educational tasks and problems. this is educational philosophising which additionally includes providing illumination and perspectives for educators to ‘think with’ (1998, p. 199). the aim of educational philosophising is “to make the educational enterprise as rationally self-reflective as possible by providing philosophically rigorous examinations, critiques, justifications, analyses and syntheses of aspects of the educators’ conceptual and normative domain’ (soltis, 1998, p. 199). professional philosophers are expected to provide ‘coherent and comprehensive statements of a public philosophy of education’ (soltis, 1998, p.197). soltis (1998, p.199) advises that professional philosophers of education have ‘a moral obligation to use their skills in the public sphere’ of philosophy of education. there are three senses in which a professional philosopher of education can ‘go public’ in philosophy of education. these are firstly by attempting ‘to put a philosophical point, argument or message before a ‘public’ (soltis, 1998, p.199). this can either be by (a) presenting or publishing a scholarly paper to be heard by a small audience or by (b) using mass media to reach ‘the public at large’ for example through the use of television, newspapers or other popular media. the second sense of going public is by ‘public policy.’ this is whereby professional philosophers of education co-operate with others ‘on explicit policies emanating from official commissions, committees and agencies.’ such public policies are ‘official’ by being ‘authorised or legitimated by socially sanctioned institutional devices’ (soltis, 1998, p.200). soltis believes that professional philosophers should increasingly serve as ‘co-workers on this policy-making level: “they need to put themselves forward in this capacity more vigorously and the public need to more clearly see what they distinctively have to offer as professionals with special skills. mismatched expectations do not help here at all” (1998 p.200). teacher education through flexible learning professional philosophers should, therefore, move beyond the academics to engage with policy-makers in educational ministries and other relevant government agencies. on the other hand, the government as public agency should match the professional specialised skills and expertise of philosophers of education with public needs in order for them to contribute to ‘an educational system that fulfils desirable purposes’ (soltis, 1998, p. 200). the other sense of a professional philosopher of education going public is by ‘public ideology,’ which refers to conscious and unconscious beliefs, values or purposes of education and schooling. the professional philosopher of education is required to ‘unearth, examine, critique or attempt to justify public ideological commitments or to put it like dewey articulate a new form of public ideology’ (soltis, 1998, p.200). the public dimension of philosophy of education provides an additional view of general philosophy of education. speaking of himself and other professional philosophers of education soltis (1998, p.200) asserts that ‘relevance of what we do to education must be the prerequisite of our commitment.’ this includes substantive interaction and contact with educational researchers, professional educators and practitioners. however, this requires that professional philosophers of education ‘keep their minds open to potentially relevant philosophical problems, issues or ideas’ in public philosophy of education (soltis, 1998, p.200). soltis (1998) provides a provocative perspective of how professional philosophers of education can ‘go public.’ professional philosophers of education in kenya can go public in the sense of analysing, reflecting, evaluating and seeking clearer understanding of philosophy of education as formulated in official policy documents on education such as reports by commissions of education in kenya. the professional philosopher of education can attempt to ascertain the logical soundness of arguments, explicating the meaning of ideas, justifying value claims, constructing reasonable arguments and providing ways to think about educational philosophy in kenya. k. florence et al. 11 formulations of philosophy of education by commissioners in national reports on education in kenya are interpreted as philosophical ideologies on education based on the wisdom of the commissioners. the critical philosophy is second order activity of reason that reflectively and critically analyses first order ideologies and wisdom. it appraises them by examining their justification and rational grounds. their limitations and strengths are objectively made explicit. philosophy of education in public sense is ideological, or it is an expression of the wisdom of those who produce it, but the professional philosopher of education must engage in a critical sense of philosophy, evaluative analysis of wisdom and ideology as they relate to education. john dewey explains that when in the course of doing something one encounters a difficulty which becomes an obstacle to be overcome before behaviour can be unified into a successful ongoing: “the experienced difficulty is a perplexity, shock, confusion, perturbation, uncertainty and puzzlement. but a new impulse is stirred which becomes the starting point of an investigation, a looking into things, a trying to see them, to find out what is going on. habits which were interfered with begin to get new direction as they cluster about the impulse to look and see” (dewey, 1930, p. 181-182). the search for a solution to an educational problem involves reflective thought captured by dewey in the statement that: ‘the problem fixes the end of thought and the end controls the process of thinking’ (dewey, 1933, p. 12). reflective thinking begins in ‘a forked-road situation’ which is ambiguous and uncertain. in this case, one is awakened from dogmatic slumber of ordinary habitual behaviour. the problem evokes a person to reflective thought. in this case, dewey (1933, p.11) asserts: “demand for the solution of a perplexity is the steadying and guiding factor in the entire process of reflection.” reflective thinking aims at solving a practical or real problem. it is thinking which is ‘occasioned by an indeterminate situation. its primary goal is to define the problem and teacher education through flexible learning to suggest methods for dealing with it. for dewey, reflective thought is the essence of philosophy. dewey defines philosophy as ‘a form of thinking, which finds its origin in what is uncertain in the subject matter of experience, which aims to locate the nature of the perplexity and to frame hypotheses for its clearing up to be tested in action’ (dewey 1916, p. 331). sustainable development goals, the kenya vision 2030 and dewey’s pragmatic philosophy of education to reform education, it requires fundamental rethinking to avoid mere veneer reforms and dewey’s philosophy of pragmatism tends to shed light. according to dewey (1917, 5), ‘pragmatic philosophy means that philosophy shall develop ideas relevant to the actual crises of life, ideas influential in dealing with them and tested by the assistance they afford.’ philosophy of pragmatism focuses on learning by doing as an alternative to rote learning and strict teaching. the philosophy of pragmatism is based on what is a good society, and the right way of life and teachers need to know that what works for one child may not work for another, emphasising individualised teaching and learning (khasawneh, miqdad, & hijaz, 2014). education in kenya needs the guidance of pragmatic philosophy to address the actual crises of life faced by the country where there are social evils and joblessness regardless of changes made in the education system. the united nation’s assembly developed the seventeen sgds built on earlier mdgs as a blueprint. the goals are for the global transformational vision of human existence to redress the maladies that continue to afflict the human race and the environment (un, 2015, art. 7). the goals seek to achieve what the mdgs failed to realise (un, 2015, art. 5), thus sdgs are a recommitment to the realisation of mdgs (un, 2015, art. 16). this suggests a philosophy of pragmatic reconstruction and expansion of experience which increases capacity to control subsequent experiences to realise sdgs as part of vision 2030. k. florence et al. 13 the sdgs are supposed to guide as a reference point for development agenda of nations of the world for the next fifteen years (un, 2015, preamble). education is a tool to achieve all the goals which are stated as follows (un, 2015, p. 14): goal 1. end poverty in all its forms everywhere; 2. end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture; goal 3. ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages; goal 4. ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote; lifelong learning opportunities for all; goal 5. achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls; goal 6. ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all; goal 7 ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all; goal 8. promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all; goal 9. build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation; goal 10. reduce inequality within and among countries; goal 11. make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable; goal 12. ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns; goal 13. take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts; goal 14. conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development; goal 15. protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial; ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss; goal 16. promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels; goal 17. strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the global partnership for sustainable development. the kenya government launched its development agenda, the kenya vision 2030 in 2007 (republic of kenya, 2007) which meant to be a vehicle for accelerating transformation of kenya into a rapidly industrialising middle-income nation by the year 2030. in achieving kenya vision 2030, all 17 sdgs would be accomplished. the education sub-sector, positioned under the social pillar, is a primary instrument in vision 2030. for instance, by producing citizens with requisite knowledge, skills, competences, values, principles and teacher education through flexible learning attitudes instrumental for vision 2030. article 1.3 of sessional paper no. 1 of july, 2012 states: “kenya vision 2030 places great emphasis on the link between education and the labour market, the need to create entrepreneurial skills and competences…. it articulates the development of a middle-income country in which all citizens will: have embraced entrepreneurship, be able to engage in lifelong learning, perform more non-routine tasks, be capable of more complex problem-solving, be able to take more decisions, understand more about what they are working on, require less supervision, assume more responsibility, and as vital tools towards these ends, have better reading, quantitative reasoning and expository skills. this has considerable importance for the kind of education and training system required to deliver the requisite skills, competencies and attitudes. as such there will be need to address issues related to quality, service delivery, curriculum, relevance, teacher development and management at all levels as well as trainers in the areas of technology and entrepreneurial skill development”. the reformation of education is a continuation of a process which started after independence with the first education commission of 1964. articles 1.17 to 1.20 sessional paper no 1 of 2012 outlines education policy evolution which has transformed education in kenya since independence from british colonial imperialism. this policy evolution on education in kenya is mainly under the impetus of government-appointed recommendations of education commissions which can be thought of as attempts to reconstruct national philosophy of education in independent kenya. this is in tandem with dewey’s idea that pragmatically formulated philosophy of education be applied in the system of education through government intervention and machinery. the appointment of national education commissions or committees is a normative practice of national governments. commissions of education are appointed to enquire into educational problems and search for solutions. k. florence et al. 15 thus, commission reports that are inquiring into problems in education and making recommendations thereto presuppose a pragmatic working philosophy. this is because according to dewey philosophy is defined ‘in terms of the problems with which it deals’. such ‘problems originate in the conflicts and difficulties of social life’ (dewey, 1916, p.348). thus, educational philosophy constructed by an education commission must emanate from educational problems which an education commission is appointed to address. dewey further elucidates on how a philosophy of education ought to be formulated when he wrote: “the philosophical systems which formulate these problems record the main lineaments and difficulties of contemporary social practice. they bring to explicit consciousness what men have come to think, in virtue of the quality of their current experience, about nature, themselves, and the reality they conceive to include or to govern themselves (dewey,1916, p.349).’’ sdgs and kenya vision 2030 reflect what people have come to think in virtue of their current experience about problems that need to be addressed for transformation and improvement of life in contemporary society. there is a need to reconstruct the experience of life in order to formulate an educational philosophy effective in guiding education to serve its role in both sdgs and kenya’s vision 2030. dewey’s pragmatism philosophy point to learner-centred and teaching-learning strategies which are in tandem with the basic education curriculum framework which is competency based, learner-centred in nature and emphasis learner active involvement in their own learning. conclusion and recommendation to ensure comprehensive thinking about the realisation of both sdgs and vision 2030, kenya requires an education system that is reformed to fit this purpose. kenya has also embarked on the implementation of the basic education curriculum framework which is competency based and needs guidance. this paper has argued for pragmatic, teacher education through flexible learning reconstructivist and integrationist philosophy of dewey to serve as a guide in reconstructing a national philosophy of education in kenya to further guide implementation of vision 2030 and the sdgs. references akinpelu j.a. 1981. an introduction to philosophy of education. london: macmillan. brauner c. j. and burns h. w. 1965. problems in education and philosophy. n.j.: prentice hall. dewey, j. 1916. democracy and education. an introduction to the philosophy of education. n.y.: the free press. dewey, j. 1930. experience and nature. 2nd ed. chicago: the open court publishing. griffiths, m. 2012. is it possible to live a philosophical, educational life in education? nowadays? journal of philosophy of education society of great britain. vol.46, no. 3. hirst, p. h and peters, r.s. 1998. education and philosophy in philosophy of education: major themes in analytical tradition. i. edited by hirst p. h and white patricia. london: routledge. hirst, p. h. 1996. the demands of professional practice and preparation for teaching, in: j. furlong and r. smith (eds) the role of higher education in initial teacher training. london: kogan. hirst, p. & peters, r. s. 1970. the logic of education. london: routledge and kegan paul. republic of kenya. 2012. a policy framework on education and training: reforming education and training in kenya. sessional paper no.1 of july 2012 accessed 18/3/2019 http://planipolis.iiep.unesco.org/en/2012/policy-framework-educatio andtraining-reforming-education-and-training-kenya-sessional-paper republic of kenya. 2007 kenya vision 2030 com. a globally competitive and prosperous kenya. nairobi: government printer. k. florence et al. 17 republic of kenya.1982. report of the presidential working party on the second university [mackay report]. nairobi: government printer. koech, d. k.1999 totally integrated quality education and training (tiqet): report of the commission of inquiry into the education system of kenya (koech report) nairobi: government printer. njoroge r.j. & bennaars g.a. 1986. philosophy and education in africa. an introductory text for students of education. nairobi: university press. ominde, s. h. 1964. kenya education commission report (ominde report) nairobi: government printer. passmore, j.a.1980. the philosophy of teaching. duckworth: university of michigan. scheffler, i. (ed) 1966. philosophy and education. modern readings. 2nd ed. boston: allyn and bacon. soltis, f. 1998. perspectives on philosophy of education in philosophy of education: major themes in analytical tradition. ii. edited by hirst paul h and white patricia. london: routledge. un 2015. transforming our world: the 2030 agenda for sustainable development. resolution adopted by general assembly on 25 september. wainaina, p. 2006. introduction to philosophy of education in themes in the study of the foundations of education. sifuna daniel (ed). nairobi: the jomo kenyatta foundation. 4_omidire & maroga_tetfle_template_14_07_2022 e-learning for student support, inclusion and equity in diverse post-pandemic teaching contexts vol 3, 2022 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za & manyaku maroga jaqouline.maroga@up.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 2 3tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, 2022 issn 2788-6298 e-learning for student support, inclusion and equity in diverse post-pandemic teaching contexts margaret funke omidire university of pretoria orcid identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5784-7734 email: funke.omidire@up.ac.za manyaku maroga university of pretoria email: jaqouline.maroga@up.ac.za doi: 10.35293/tetfle.v3i1.4109 official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za 4 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za & manyaku maroga jaqouline.maroga@up.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. abstract prior to the onset of the global lockdown, some educators used strategies such as a flipped classroom, blended learning and hybrid learning to integrate technology into the delivery of their modules.this all changed in 2020 when,due to the spread of the covid-19 virus, contact sessions were no longer an option.both educators who partially used e-learning avenues and those who usedonly contact teaching had to convert to full online teaching.the pandemic alerted us not only to the progress we have made,but also to how far we still need to go to equitably address access and inclusion among students in higher education institutions. the purpose of the study was to explore the extent to which the partnership betweene-learning specialists andeducators could foster student support for inclusion, access and equity in higher education – thereby enriching teacher education.this qualitative study with an action research design involved one educator and one e-learning specialist who worked with 110 students across two modules.affordance theory served as the theoretical framework for the study.thematic analysis was used to arrive at the salient points and learn lessons from the partnership. the study revealed that educators’ access to information and technical support allowed them to create supportive learning environments for students. furthermore, using multiple modes of engagementdiminished the probability of diversitybeing an aggravating factor.academics must create awareness among students on the support interventions available in institutions. keywords: e-learning, support, access,equity tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 5 introduction the call by the world health organization (who) for urgent action to curb the spread of the covid-19 pandemic (who, 2020), and the consequent lockdown changed the mode of operation of most higher education institutions (heis) from full contact or hybrid to fully online.heis attempted to ensure minimal disruption to teachingand learning,and no interruption in students’progression.continuity was vital for student success, but this came with its own challenges. support was needed for both educators and students. for educators who already operated the flexible hybrid learning mode, the transition to full online teaching was an exciting learning curve as they could build on existing knowledge.educators who still operated in the full contact mode had more difficulty adjusting to the demands of the fully online platform (mishra et al., 2020).they required support with the intricate operations of the learning management system (lms) and in keeping up with the new trends and applications introduced regularly. educators were not the only ones affected – students also had to adjust to online learning.heis had to introduce rapid response initiatives to support educators and students. students had to be accommodated and supported,and in some instances, their individual needs (based on background, social context and financial status) had to be considered. this paper reports on the partnership and collaborationbetween an educator and an e-learning specialist /instructional designer at an hei tomaximise the offeringsof the lms to optimally support the diverse students and ensure equity and inclusion. the study explored the extent to which this partnership between an e-learning specialist and an educator managed to foster student support and facilitated inclusion, access and equity in higher education. literature review student support, inclusion, and equity the impact that the covid-19 pandemic and the different stages of lockdown had on the education sector has been enormous.according to the united nations educational, scientific and cultural organization (unesco), about 1.5 billion students in165countrieswere affected (unitednations,2020).toaddress thephysical 6 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za & manyaku maroga jaqouline.maroga@up.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. challenges of the lockdown,heis moved to online teaching and learning.however, other challenges such as integrity, equity, inclusiveness, fairness, ethics and safety all had to be factored into their response. students’ access to content was compromised by their contexts, such as their location and the availabilityof basic infrastructure such as computers, internet connectivity and data.this reality reinforced the assertion by roulstone (2016) that although technology couldcreate meaningful engagement and participation in the teaching and learning process, students could well be alienated where there is inequality. khalid and pederson (2016) concurred and further state that the issue of accessibility also extends to acceptable internet connectivity and bandwidth.the latter services are often lacking when students are located in remote environments. universal learning design (udl) focuses on the student support system that can bridge the gap created by transactional distance due to physical separation of the educator and students (zeff, 2007). the guidelines of udl emphasise inclusivity, equity and support toensure access to all students,without compromising thequality of learning (behera,2021).while the extraordinary growth in the use of technology in education has provided many opportunities, it also poses challenges that are still evolving in the face of the realities created by the covid-19 pandemic. modise (2020) argues that the diverse natureof the studentpopulation and theneed to satisfy their demands and support them require further research. teaching and learning model educators,on their part,are confrontedby challengesof their own, such as embracing institutional teachingand learningmodels,mastering the useof learningmanagement systems, and ensuring quality and inclusivity (farhana et al., 2020).the process of guiding students to successfully complete modules and programmes has become quite daunting with the total shift to e-learning. institutional infrastructure came under scrutiny and, in some cases, had to be upgraded to meet the new demands. educators’professional development so as to fully grasp newskills became paramount for students’ success, and many new training opportunities had to be provided.novel assessment andaccommodation options also had to beexplored ona continuingbasis. educators were expected to make additional effort to ensure that students would embrace learning experiences as varied,exciting and engaging. tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 7 the findings that emerged from the study by el firdoussi et al. (2020) resonated with those in many other studies.their research,which involved 3 037 students and 231 professors in morocco, explored the limitations of e-learning platforms during the covid-19 pandemic.they found that educators (and students) grappled with technical issues, they had limited skills to operate effectively on digital platforms, electronic devices were very expensive, and these devices took a toll on students’ overall wellbeing. the training workshops provided byheis through online means alloweducators to upskill themselves. though time-consuming in most instances, the alternative to engagement has been too dire to contemplate.the united nations’ sustainable development goal 4 (sdg 4) calls for inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong learning opportunities for all by 2030. it is crucial that students feel included in the education system and that education institutions support this goal to allow more people access to education. set graduation requirements guide educators in aligning the content they intend to teach with what the training institution expects of them. the training for educators ranges from an overview of the learning management systemtoassessmentsandgrading,andvarious tools andmodalities areusedtoaugment student participation.the training workshops provided for educators and offered by e-education staff include training for the administration of lms, as well as creating digital lectures,assessment,modalities for participation,grading and feedback.student support plays a significant role in enhancing students’success, and therefore educators are encouraged to set high expectations for the students,but also to support them to meet those expectations and the outcomes set in the study guide.academic support is most effective when it is connected to and/or contextualised within the specific course for which support is required. harris et al. (2016) feel strongly that students should be supported in learning trajectories so they can finish the programmes, and yukselturk et al. (2014) agree that attrition should be mitigated in higher education to stimulate success and retention. finally, e-learning for student support, inclusion and equity requires the parties involved to be awareof the opportunities available, the necessity to engage and the potential inherent challenges. 8 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za & manyaku maroga jaqouline.maroga@up.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. theoretical framework affordancetheory was the framework adopted for the current study. according to james j. gibson (1977, 1986) founder of the theory,affordance theory is defined as the possibilities for action. within any particular environment, the affordances are referred to as what that environment offers to those that exist there, irrespective of whether or not the observer recognises these opportunities. affordances exist independently of people’s perceptions, and they can be an indication of the range of functions and constraints anobject provides which are available to the subjects (davis & chouinard,2017).despitehaving its roots in the fieldof ecological psychology, the affordance theory has hitherto been applied to scholarly analysis in various other fields (davis & chouinard, 2017; sarkis, 2021).a further definition of affordances by norman (1999) regarding human-computer interaction and technology design describes affordances as “the perceived and actual properties of the thing, primarily those fundamental properties that determine just how the thing could possibly be used”(wang et al.,2018,p.60). hammond (2010) noted the value of the affordance theory for the use of information and communications technology (ict) in the education field. he emphasised the prospects for action that are provided for the user of a device.an insightful relationship is createdbetween thedevice andthe user,although oneshould be mindful of the dynamics that could be a hindrance to the latter.these dynamics could include “ease of use, access/availability/free, effectiveness, convenience, attractiveness andinnovativeness” (bankole&venter,2017,p.11). inaddition,policies, procedures,culture,rules,and regulations could alsoconstitutehindrances (alshawmar, 2021,p. 3598).the defining factors for affordances are the users’ acuity,deftness, and the social conditions in which users find themselves, compounded by institutional legitimacy (davis & chouinard,2017). according to wang et al. (2018), researchers have recently been focusing on actualisation and the fact that this cannot be taken for granted. it was previously assumed that users can easily actualise an affordance, but this assumption has been disproven. strong et al. (2014, p. 70) define actualisation as “the actions taken by actors as they take advantage of one or more affordances through their use of technology to achieve immediate concrete outcomes in support of organizational goals”. in response,wanget al.(2018,p.68) suggest that actualisationhas tobe viewed tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 9 from an individual perspective that is dependent on goals and intentions. in the same vein, affordances represent the potentials for action, which are relational and include enabling and constraining properties.such potentials exist irrespective of the individual’s actualisation. social affordances– suchas socialmediaplatforms that allowindividuals to interact – are created and facilitated by technological materials.they involve entanglement between human action and technological capabilities shaped by social environments and their use,both historically and institutionally (faraj &azad,2012;lankton et al., 2015;mckenna,2020). dlamini and nkambule (2020) mapped ict affordances onto four principles of learning, namely autonomy, connectedness, diversity and openness.they suggest that affordances of ict should lend themselves to technology-driven pedagogy that supports students’ interactions and fosters student-centred classroom environments. in terms of connectedness, digital fluency, and the ability to reformulate knowledge and express oneself,using the ict platforms is crucial.whereas technology provides access and an opportunity for collaboration, the inequality in the system, such as a lack of adequate resources, cannot be ignored.a concerted effort must be made to seek measures to address these challenges continuously.openness implies that there is a reciprocal relationship at play.the development of new technologies will affect the teaching practices that are available, and the demands of the teaching will ultimately feed back into further advances in technology (dlamini & nkambule,2020,p. 6). action plan and implementation the purpose of this study was to reflect on the working relationship between an educator in the faculty of education and an institutional instructional designer assigned to the faculty to explore the use of various tools/methods and ensure equity and access for all students.additionally, the study investigated the educational technologies used to support students, as well as the challenges encountered. the question guiding the study was: to what extent does the relationship and partnership between an e-learning specialist and an educator foster student support for inclusion, access and equity in higher education? the studyemployed anaction researchdesign,which is definedas any“systematic inquiry conducted by teachers, administrators, counsellors, or others with a vested 10 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za & manyaku maroga jaqouline.maroga@up.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. interest in the teaching and learning process or environment to gather information about how their particular schools operate, how they teach, and how their students learn”(mertler,2017,p.3).this implies studying and reflectingon one’s own practice to increaseutility,qualityof actions andeffectiveness foroptimal educationaloutcomes (mertler,2017). as stated earlier, the participants were an educator and an e-learning specialist. they have been working together on an honours and a master’s level module comprising 110 students for two years – 53 students in the first year (2020) and 57 in the second year (2021).the pair met virtually fortnightly during the initial stages of the lockdown in 2020.the steps involved in this cyclical process included initial meetings to identify the potential problem areas for which students would require support, followed by a recap of the functions and uses of the lms, and additional training on newfeatures.reflections on these interactions wereduly noted.thenext steps involved practical use of the knowledge acquired by the educators and their documentation of positive and negative feedback – in some instances unforeseen issues were detected during the observation of student behaviour and their response to support.the e-learning specialist and the educator further engaged to reflect on the feedback that they received and to resolve the issues identified.their meetings became more regular during assignment submissions, online tests and examinations. the data that they gathered comprised documented interactions, reflections on practices, interventionsand professionaldevelopment,observationsand peer feedback. theauthorsconductedreflexive thematicanalysis,which involves an interpretative approach towards the analysis of qualitative data. constant analysis of activities, information and outcomes resulted in the identification of solutions integrated into practice. they initially familiarised themselves with the data, thereafter proceeded with data coding and identification of preliminary themes, and concluded with a review of such themes (braun & clarke,2021;bryne,2021). findings four themes were identified: collaboration and support; training workshops; student support; and challenges encountered. tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 11 theme 1: collaboration and support for educator over a period of two years, the e-learning specialist and the structures of the hei accorded extensive support to the educator. access to information and technical support for educators generally allowed them to provide supportive learning environments for students.this included providing information on updates to the lms and guidance in instances where specific challenges arose – sometimes due to the educator’s limited experience in utilising certain aspects of the lms.the endof-semester main examination was conducted for the first time on the lms and constituted amajor learningcurve for the educator.the e-learning specialist provided guidance on any unclarities on the help pages, thus allowing the educator to learn, practise and self-regulate. the fact that the e-learning specialist was accessible for consultation was a major factor in strengthening the collaboration and working relationship between the two study participants.this accessibility ensured both parties’mastery of the synchronous videoconferencing tools for teaching and resulted in the educator employingnarrated powerpoint presentations, pre-recording sections of lectures for students who had bandwidth issues, and recording whole lectures for students to access later.the lms allowed educators and students to communicate and clarify anyquestions they had in real time – either in the chat or by using a microphone. the class representatives played an important role during this two-year period. they servedas the link between the educator and the students.quiteoften, itwas the class representativewhoalerted the educator to the challenges facedby thegroup,thus setting in motion a cycle of support in which the educator engaged the e-learning specialist to ensure theequitable inclusionof all students.theclass representatives also served as awindow into the students’minds by facilitating an in-depthunderstanding of their support needs and how best to meet those needs. other tools such as emails and whatsapp groups enabled interactions between the educator and e-learning specialist; educator and student, and student and student. even though there were opportunities to engage on the lms through discussion boards and breakaway sessions during online lectures, thewhatsapp groups provided a popular avenue for social interaction between the students and access to the educator.the discussion boards are asynchronous tools that were used to promote academic discourse among the students by creating discussion forums and threads for 12 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za & manyaku maroga jaqouline.maroga@up.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. the students’ responses and engagement.these provided some semblance of balance between teaching,academicdevelopment and social interaction, forming a structured community of inquiry. theme 2: training workshops for educators e-learning specialists provided regular training workshops across the institution and covered the scope of teaching and learning across lms.all academic staff were encouraged to attend training sessions – already before the pandemic, but even more so during the pandemic – when workshops were offered on virtual platforms. reminderswere sent toall staffmembers toensure thatallmodulesoffered in2020and 2021 would be presented online without difficulty. self-paced training modules and lunch hour sessions todiscuss specific topics afforded theeducator theopportunity to participate and this alleviated the pressure to a certainextent.however, the realisation that these offerings were important and added value did not diminish the fact that there was limited time to participate in and engage with the contents of the session. workshop attendance actually became a stressor during this period. theme 3: student support the institution as a whole, invested huge resources in student support, ranging from providing computers with various options for access to data to offering access to helplines for those who required it. online tutorials were provided to enable the functional use of the lms, while pre-recorded sessions were made available to students so that they could access learning content at own their pace. furthermore, synchronous sessions were offered to deal with problems, explain difficult concepts and reinforcewhatwas learned.theadaptive release functionwas furthermoreutilised to make content available for specific students. accommodations such as allowing handwritten/scanned assignments and assisting with technical problems were also given to students with specific needs or identifiable challenges. theme 4: challenges encountered during the period the challenges experienced during this period were the study time required, tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 13 respecting mutual boundaries, technical errors, systemic challenges and the constant need to keep up with changes. it was clear very early in the first semester of the lockdown (2020) that a timeconsuming process would be needed to ensure a support cycle in which the diverse students were properly supported for inclusion and equity.the students had skill sets that ranged from limited to averageand thenadvanced.associated social issues such as access to suitable devices,cost of data, lack of funds to purchase computer and phone accessories, lack of infrastructure in rural and remote locations and living conditions with limited privacy for full focus during lectures exacerbated the situation,because the institution that would have provided access to these facilities was closed, and students had to return home.the educator thus had to engage the students, explore the nature of the challenges that they faced and then attempt to find appropriate solutions. this process often involved contacting other colleagues and e-learning specialists todeliberate onhow tosolve theproblem athand.dueto thevaried nature of the support requiredby the students, the educator’s feelings of beingoverwhelmed were a constant reality.exploring avenues for proper support took the educator away from other important tasks.however, there was no option if all students were to be included equitably. anotherchallengeexperiencedduring theperiodwas thedifficultyofmaintaining mutual boundaries.the boundaries were between students and educator as well as between the educator and e-learning specialist.there were multiple instances where students required support to access studymaterials, submit assignments withdeadlines seton thelmsorcomplete a test.panic-stricken students thencontacted theeducator after hours to findout what to do in the face of the emergency.on several occasions, the educator also had to contact the e-learning specialist, albeit apologetically, tohelp resolve the issues.the fact these wereafter hoursduring theweek andsometimes over weekends meant that usual office-type boundaries had to be ignored to ensure that students would not feel left out due to their circumstances. technical errors also occurred.on one particular occasion, the whole lms went offline for everyone during a lecture. it came back online after about anhour,but the reconnection had not been anticipated.once it was confirmed that the connection break was a systems error, a whatsapp message was sent to the group (some were already calling individually) to say the problem affected everyone,and that a plan was being put in place to cover the lost time.a similar problem occurred due to system 14 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za & manyaku maroga jaqouline.maroga@up.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. challenges such as load shedding.the educator,e-learning specialist and students had no controlover thepower cut-offs.the educatoradvised students to access their areas’ load shedding schedules so that theycould be alertedahead of timeand could inform the educator accordingly. one of the challenges that could not be avoided, involved the fact that life-long learning has become a reality in the 21st century. educators quite understand that changes and improvements have to be made regularly to stay abreast of the demands of e-learning. besides a perpetual need for updates and keeping up with new developments and trends, it was difficult to cope with the rate at which updates and upgrades occurred during the pandemic.the entire situation was a stressor. reflections and implications thefindings revealed that,owing to their effective access to information and technical support, educators managed to create supportive learning environments for students. according to hammond (2010), theaffordancetheory provides special insights into the relationship between the technology available and our potential for action. not all individuals can actualise an affordance, that is, they are unable to take advantage of affordances throughtechnology inorder toachieve desired tangible outcomes (strong et al., 2014).the present study showed that collaboration between the educator and e-learning specialist enhanced their ability to take advantage of the affordances to achieve concrete outcomes for students.these included being supported, included and treated fairly. furthermore, the use of multiple modes of engagement reduced the probability of diversity being an aggravating factor. social media platforms permitted not only an avenue for social affordances to be maximised, but also the opportunity for the educator and e-learning specialist to interact. this greatly facilitated the ease with which student support couldbe provided,as was found inprevious studies in thefield (faraj &azad,2012;lankton et al.,2015;mckenna,2020). the current studyexemplifies the importanceof relationships andpartnerships to support students properly in the academic environment.the e-learning specialist and educator had to collaborate closely to ensure equitable access to learning contents, assignments and assessments, as well as other forms of support.the various training tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 15 workshops for professional development were tailored to develop the acumen and proficiency of educators so as to enable them to give adequate support to their students.the lecturer, in collaboration with the instructional designer of the faculty, also supported students in using the learning management system. before the pandemic, educators were encouraged to attend training workshops offered in-house.these sessions,which focused on curriculummatters and the useof technologies for teaching,were adapted to meet the current needs of the educators. self-paced modules allowed lecturers to complete activities at their own pace,whilst conveniently consulting with e-learning specialists and instructional designers.the onset of the covid-19pandemic introduceda senseof urgencyand createda nervewracking situation that stakeholders at higher institutions had never expected or encountered before.the commitment of the heis to continue teaching and learning resulted in added pressure on the educators to develop new skills or to update their existingknowledgeon theuseof technology-enabled teachingand learningplatforms. the sudden implementation of the lockdown regulations insouthafrica and the decision to move to fully online teaching and learning resulted in educators playing “catch-up”. progressing from a hybrid to a fully online learning environment was less cumbersome for the educator because it was a questionof up-skilling rather than outright learning fromscratch.however, it still resulted in extensive hours of training and collaboration with an e-learning specialist. it was important to align teaching, curriculum content, learning outcomes and assessment criteria, and great effort had to be made as this contributed to providing quality education for all. a challenge that stood out prominently involved the boundaries that were inevitably eroded. these boundary issues are still a great concern that need to be researched and addressed.the initial planning of online learning, subsequent action and reflection,followed by further trainingand planning,resulted incollaboration and interaction among our two study participants outside office hours.the study shows that if the educator or e-learning specialist had insisted on maintaining strict time boundaries, it would not have been possible to provide the full e-learning support required by students. a sense of mutual commitment to the support of students was developed by the educator and e-learning specialist.the aims and objectives of their partnership relationship revolved around a solution-focused approach towards student support to 16 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za & manyaku maroga jaqouline.maroga@up.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. ensure that all students were included in the teachingand learning and that they were accommodated in line with their individual needs. recommendations higher education institutions should have backup strategies in place all the time. core training workshops should be compulsory for educators and they should be allowed ample opportunity to attend.this includes the scheduling of such training at the beginning or end of the recess period to ensure that all educators have the time to attend. updates and systems enhancements should be factored in gradually and planned for the end of a semester, when there is expected to be minimal (or at least fewer) disruptions. educators should not have to deal with competing work requirements that prevent them from engaging with and understanding the full functionalities of technology updates. tangible measures have to be put in place to ensure the health and wellbeing of staff in the drive to support diverse student needs and to ensure that students are all included and accommodated. finally, institutions need to encourageflexibility and preparedness for a change in the modeof operation.an enabling environment shouldbe provided for educators to proactively develop the required skill sets, in collaboration with e-learning specialists. it is equally important for academics to create a greater awareness among students with regard to the support interventions that are available in institutions. references 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(2020). director-general’s opening remarks at the media briefing on covid-19 – 11 march 2020. https://www.who.int/ tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 19 director-general/speeches/detail/who-director-general-s-opening-remarks-atthe-media-briefing-on-covid-19---11-march-2020 yukselturk, e., ozekes, s., & turel, y. k. (2014). predicting dropout student: an application of data mining methods in an online education program. european journal of open, distance and e-learning, 17(1),118-133. zeff, r. (2007). universal design across the curriculum. new directions for higher education, 137,27-44.https://doi.org/10.1002/he official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za contact hannelie du preez @ hannelie.dupreez@up.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. reaching out with rugby role models to inspire literacy in young children: informing hybrid pedagogy hannelie du preeza, donna hannawayb, ina joubertb and francinah masolac adepartment of early childhood education, faculty of education, university of pretoria, pretoria, south africa; bdepartment of early childhood education, school of teacher education, university of south africa, south africa; cstudent, department of early childhood education, faculty of education, university of pretoria, pretoria, south africa vol 1 no 1 2019 issn: 2788-6298 doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v1i1.63 abstract children are exposed to influential role models, such as parents, peers, teachers, fictional characters and humans in virtual and physical environments. utilising role modelling as a teaching approach or rich teaching resource not only appeals to the social learning preference of a young child but also supports teachers in reaching out to virtual and physical communities to enrich literacy learning experiences. the perspective of role models to promote acceptable social and academic behaviour in young children has progressively introduced scholarly views on the achievability and importance thereof in education and its applicability as a hybrid pedagogy. with rapid technological advancements and increased access to the internet, an integrated platform is provided which teachers can benefit from when incorporating role models to help cultivate responsible social and academic behaviour. in this study, we implemented a literacy programme – the reading, rugby and responsibility project – as a community project to improve our understanding of how rugby students, as role models, can intentionally inculcate responsible social and reading behaviour in grade 3 children. we aligned the outcomes of the project with the community of inquiry framework to hypothesise the value and feasibility of using role models as a hybrid pedagogy and resource in early childhood education. we utilised a qualitative case study design and purposefully selected five rugby students to interact with 35 grade 3 children at an inner-city primary school in pretoria. the data generated from informal discussions with the rugby students and reflections of their experiences, as well as the children’s narrative accounts and drawings, were thematically analysed. the findings revealed that children yearn to engage with role models and be part of a community. further investigation on how the community of inquiry framework can inform and utilise role modelling as a hybrid pedagogy and resource is beckoned and recommended. keywords: role modelling, responsible reading behaviour, responsible social behaviour, rugby, sports students, young children, community of inquiry, hybrid pedagogy teacher education through flexible learning introduction and background mindful role models can be a powerful form of education, and with the expansion of social media, young children are more likely to observe behaviour, norms, values and knowledge of real-life and virtual characters who might become influential and potential role models. children are susceptible to imitation, and zirkel (2002) emphasises the important impact that role models make on the development and education of the youth. international scholars have advanced our understanding of the importance of sports and sports role models in inspiring socially acceptable behaviour (allenders, cowburn & forster, 2006; gould, collins, lauer & chunghave, 2007; gordon, 2010; camiré, trudel & forneris, 2012). utilising role models as a teaching approach and mindful sport role models as resources can potentially transmute young children’s views on acquiring responsible social and academic behaviour and actualise their potential and cultivate citizenship (allenders et al., 2006; gould & carson, 2008). as significant resources, they can purposefully intercede and cultivate responsible social and educational behaviour to the benefit of young children and the society in which they function (allenders et al., 2006; gould & carson, 2007). we argue that collaboration with role models when constructing a learning experience not only benefits the teacher but also introduces the child to rich and diversified learning experiences. the holistic development of the young child in the 21st-century warrants teachers who can creatively collaborate with communities, utilise computer software and technological devices and introduce physical and virtual role models to the classroom. sensitising young children to recognise appropriate and positive real-life and virtual role models has become a 21st-century life skill. it is vital for young children to apply their knowledge about role models and sustain their responsible social and educational behaviour, especially when confronted with destructive or harmful media and social situations. we introduced the reading, rugby and responsibility (rrr) project, firstly to enquire how the intentional and physical participation of children in sports, under the counselling of a mindful sports role model, can potentially cultivate social and academic responsibility. h. du preez et al. 3 moreover, we contemplated how the rrr project could potentially characterise a hybrid community of inquiry (coi) framework, to be utilised by teachers to invite real-life as well as virtual role models into the classroom to promote responsible social and educational behaviour. early childhood development and education according to zirkel (2002), children grow up accepting their ethnic backgrounds, religion, socioeconomic status, family structures and communities, which they are cultivated in by means of observing and imitating role models. this is especially necessary for a democratic society, where a sense of nationhood needs to be cultured for the democratic state to function (department of basic education, 2011). becoming socially and academically responsible is not only a life skill but also a medium through which one can reach expression, providing the young child with the opportunity to evolve into a responsible and valued citizen who can demonstrate a deep-seated sense of fairness and a value-based moral code (laker, 2000). the intended curriculum envisions young children (grade r to grade 3) to acquire specific knowledge, skills and values that will shape them in becoming social, moral and educated citizens for the benefit of a democratic south africa (department of education, 2011). social and moral responsibility often use physical activity as a vehicle for encouraging responsible behaviour in young children (laker, 2000). kavussanu (2006) studied the behaviour of young children’s participation in rugby-learning experiences and found that such physical activities enhanced pro-social behaviour, helped to build character and instilled a sense of responsibility within young children (i.e. helping an opponent in a lineout or kick). kavussanu (2006) further explains that high levels of morality during sports activities can be associated with a high frequency of pro-social behaviour and a low frequency of antisocial behaviour (i.e. deliberately avoiding a high tackle or injuring an opponent). hellison (2011) found that children who participated in sports, started behaving more responsibly, became more caring and demonstrated sensitivity and responsiveness to the wellbeing of others. clarke, osborne and dugdale (2009) found that children who enjoy reading have a wide range of people who inspire reading, teacher education through flexible learning including family members, celebrities and sportspersons. the children were of the opinion that their role models could promote reading engagement by recommending material or explaining why reading is important (clarke et al., 2009). according to hellison (2011), young children acquire personal and social responsibility by being introduced to a learning experience where life skills, language and values are integrated with real-life physical activities in the presence of mindful role models. there is a common understanding among scholars that young children best acquire knowledge, skills and values by being actively and physically engaged in their learning experience (eley & krik, 2002; laker, 2000). the holistic development of the young child warrants a holistic learning experience, such as integrating physical experiences, language for communication and thinking, and social opportunities to help acquire and shape responsible behaviour (bee & boyd, 2004; owens, 2002). in south africa, the curriculum for the young child adopts an integrative pedagogical approach that encourages and guides teachers to construct learning experiences that fuse knowledge bases of language, mathematics and life skills to promote young children’s holistic development and desire to become lifelong learners (department of education, 2011). the nature of role models role models, otherwise described as heroes or mentors, form part of humans’ daily lives, and having a significant impact on the beliefs, views and actions of individuals, are often invited to convey a message to the target group(s) to encourage change in behaviour (payne, reynolds, brown & fleming, 2014). the role model concept refers to someone being exemplary, who has laudable values and is worthy of imitation. role models are likely to be perceived as socialising agents; their presence is significant in the early years for shaping the observers’ behaviour and thinking processes (bee & boyd, 2004; payne et al., 2014). role models (e.g. teachers, spouses, parents, peers, mentors, movie stars, pop stars, animated characters and sports heroes) inspire individuals and groups by sharing knowledge, experiences and advice for future endeavours that rely on personal contact and building a relationship (french & pena, 1991; payne et al., 2014). h. du preez et al. 5 socio-cognitive theory the socio-cognitive theory (sct) originated from the work of edwin b. holt and harold c. brown, who hypothesised the value of imitation, using animals. the value of utilising role modelling as a teaching approach has been theorised by psychologist albert bandura (1977, 1986), who proved a direct correlation between a person’s perceived self-efficacy and behavioural change. he further explicated that the task of learning is dreary if it depends solely on children’s own actions. according to sanderse’s (2013) interpretation of bandura’s work, a considerable amount of learning about behaviour, attitudes, values and beliefs takes place when children observe others and the consequences of the actions of others. according to their understanding of sct, payne et al. (2014) and sanderse (2013) claim that children pay attention to role models, rely extensively on their encouragement and can encode, imitate or mimic observed behaviour. payne et al. (2014) further explicate that the child’s succeeding involvement in physical activity should rely on symbolic representations of words and images, the precise processes of interpreting and observing cues, as well as the factors that motivate the desired behaviour. the counselling of mindful sports role models can serve as a motivator to young children through guiding, advising and coaching responsible social and academic behaviour (bee & boyd, 2004; payne et al., 2014). as the children adopt the new behaviour, the guidance of the role model is gradually reduced until the children can demonstrate responsibility for their proactive social and educational behaviour. according to eley and krik (2002), hellison (2011) and laker (2000), it is through interactions with sports role models that young children develop a sense of morality and pro-social behaviour, and internalise norms and values that inspire them to consider some acts as forbidden or undesirable and others as highly commendable. examples of these are power sharing and decisionmaking, taking care of others, leadership, teamwork, fair play and physical and verbal conflict resolution. teacher education through flexible learning conceptual framework the community of inquiry (coi) is a framework that has attracted considerable attention at institutions of higher education that embark on a hybrid pedagogy. this framework not only serves the purpose of pursuing the value of collaborative learning but also assimilates communities in learning experiences (garrison, 2007). based on the work of garrison, anderson and archer (2000), the coi framework accounts for three aspects crucial to learning, namely a social, a teaching and a cognitive presence. according to garrison (2007) and garrison et al. (2000), “social presence” refers to the establishment of a personal and purposeful relationship between the teacher and the children, considering aspects such as effective communication and group cohesion. these authors maintain that within this presence, a sense of community is achieved when the children are working towards a collaborative goal through collaborative activities, benefitting from the perspectives of others. “cognitive presence” pertains to the collaborative and reflective effort initiated by the teacher with the children to explore, construct, resolve and conform to understanding as a community of inquiry (garrison, 2007; garrison et al., 2000). thus it is a cycle of practical inquiry where the children progress from understanding the problem to being able to explore, integrate and apply, which signifies educational, behavioural change (garrison, 2007; garrison et al., 2000). the focus of the “teaching presence” is to assure that the teaching construct is properly designed, facilitated and directly instructed, making the teaching presence a noteworthy contributor to children’s satisfaction with the perceived learning by establishing and maintaining a sense of community (garrison, 2007; garrison et al., 2000). the following illustration demonstrates how the coi framework has been applied to the rrr project. h. du preez et al. 7 figure 1: community of inquiry framework integrated with the reading, rugby and responsibility project (adapted from garrison et al., 2000) as discussed earlier, the advancement of technology and easier access to the internet unlock the possibility for teachers to incorporate a hybrid pedagogy such as the coi. this framework morphs social, cognitive and teaching presences into a rich environment full of educational experiences without sacrificing pedagogy and quality. the potential for teachers to reconnect with various communities of inquiry is, therefore, beckoned. the rrr project shaped our understanding of how rugby students, as mindful role models, can intentionally inculcate responsible social and reading behaviour in grade 3 children. by implementing the rrr project, we were then able to align the rrr project outcomes with the coi framework and hypothesise the value and feasibility of using role models as a hybrid pedagogy and resource in early childhood education. within the depicted illustration, we briefly refer to the interrogative sestet (e.g., what, when, where, why, who and how) which is discussed in more detail in the section to follow. teacher education through flexible learning methodological framework research design a research design guides researchers on how to conceptualise their research inquiry by considering aspects such as design, data generation, data analysis and inferences, thereby becoming a framework for developing an understanding of the phenomenon, the participants and the context (denzin & lincoln, 2008). a qualitative research design, as a mode of inquiry, along with a case study design, was used to implement the rrr project. a case study design enabled researchers to explore a contemporary phenomenon within its real-life context when the peripheries between the phenomenon and the context are not obviously evident, and multiple sources of evidence are used (denzin & lincoln, 2008). the designed case study was aligned with the coi framework to serve as a hypothesis of how the rrr project could be utilised as a hybrid pedagogy. research site, population and sampling the context of the research environment represents multifaceted information. firstly, the child participants primarily live in sunnyside, pretoria, which can be described as an inner-city neighbourhood, predominantly consisting of apartment blocks with limited physical space. apartments in this neighbourhood can be described as self-contained housing units that occupy only part of a building, called an apartment building, an apartment complex, a flat complex, a block of flats or a tower block. secondly, the research setting commenced at the child participants’ school premises, which contain ample space for classrooms, administrative buildings and sports or recreational spaces. the population for this research inquiry comprises adult participants who are students at an institution of higher education and child participants from an inner-city school. a small sample of adult and child participants who adhered to specific characteristics were identified from this particular population group, using purposive and convenience sampling techniques. this sample consisted of five university sports students who acted as rugby role models to 25 grade 3 children, approximately nine years of age. due to the nature and size of the sample, we acknowledge that the findings cannot be generalised; instead, we put forth the value the rrr project holds to illustrate the importance of role h. du preez et al. 9 modelling as a hybrid pedagogy in the early years. similarly, whether or not other sports role models would have had the same influence needs to be further examined. ethical considerations regarding the constitution of conducting just research on humans, we strictly adhered to the guidelines and principles of the ethics committee. we ensured the voluntary participation of all participants as permitted by the educational district, the school principal and the consent of the parents. to resonate the importance of developing a sense of community, the role models established rapport with the children by engaging with them over a period of eight weeks and progressively gained their trust and respect. precaution was taken to assure the safety of the children by utilising role models who were competent in rugby coaching and had been trained in role modelling and conducting reading activities to young children. trustworthiness trustworthiness signals efforts taken by the researchers to ensure that the entire research process is conducted in a valid, credible and believable manner (denzin & lincoln, 2008). in this study, trustworthiness was sought through conceptualising a detailed project and aligning it with the coi framework. prolonged engagement, persistent observation and commitment to the success of the rrr project guided our effort to understand the congruence between the construction and the interpretation of the data. we also constructed a historic record of the entire rrr proceedings, which served as a way to control the quality of the findings. concerning the data generation, various strategies were utilised as safeguards against bias in the findings. the researchers were indirectly involved but refrained from interfering with the learning experience. as a team, we regularly collaborated to serve as an objective soundboard for one another’s interpretation of the data. the constructed themes were peer-examined, and the participants’ interpretations were considered. teacher education through flexible learning data generation we were motivated to obtain an in-depth understanding of the phenomena. engendering such data required rigorous and creative data generation ideas as the involvement of the adult participants had to appeal to the child participants’ interests. to illustrate how we empirically generated the rrr data sets and aligned the generated outcomes to the coi framework (see figure 1), we will outline this section against the backdrop of the three presences, namely social, cognitive and teaching. constructing a “social presence” necessitated that the child participants should feel secure with the adult participants and that the envisioned activities should establish effective and open communication channels (garrison, 2007). social bonds had been shaped and developed over a period of eight weeks while striving towards a common purpose. the adult participants engaged with the child participants in sports and reading activities that were developmentally appropriate and interesting to young children. generating a social presence enabled us to provide the child participants with a social setting and a mindful role model who modelled responsible social and academic behaviour to the children to emulate and potentially internalise the concept of responsibility with their value systems. creating a “cognitive presence” required discourse and sustained reflection in a critical coi (garrison, 2007). we utilised rugby and reading activities to introduce the concept of social and academic responsibility and paired it with reflection and critical thinking activities in which the participants engaged. the adult participants took part in written and verbal reflections of their experiences of acting as the mindful role models of the grade 3 children. the child participants created written and visual artefacts on their understanding of responsible behaviour, after the rugby and reading activities. to capture the setting of the rrr learning experiences, field notes of every rugby activity were recorded, and photographs were taken. garrison (2007) also emphasises the importance of sustaining a “teaching presence” by appraising the quality of the guidance to support learning. interaction and discourse play h. du preez et al. 11 a key role in higher-order learning; however, this is neither without a teaching design nor facilitation, instruction or leadership (garrison, 2007). every week a social and educational outcome was designed by the researchers and implemented by the adult participants at the school. some of the respective activities were reading, listening to and role-playing stories, asking higher-order questions, learning about rugby positions, as well as scrumming, hooking, ball-handling, line-out throwing and passing activities. illustration 1: sports role models reading to and discoursing with the grade 3 children illustration 2: sports role models teaching scrumming to the grade 3 children the two illustrations capture two respective activities. the first photograph depicts two male role models reading to the child participants using a “big storybook” and allowing for interactive discourse. the second photograph depicts the introduction on how to take part in a scrum, as demonstrated by two role models. teacher education through flexible learning data analysis the purpose of analysing data qualitatively is to describe and make sense of the phenomenon and to answer the research problem that drives such an investigation (denzin & lincoln, 2008). the data analysis implicates an iterative process of labelling, coding and grouping data to document the similarities and differences therein and summarising the message in the content (denzin & lincoln, 2008). we systematically analysed the vast amount of data by familiarising ourselves with the different data sets, coding the data sets, identifying patterns, reviewing the identified patterns, defining and labelling each theme and constructing a report of our findings, using the derived and verified themes. given the nature and purpose of the rrr project, the interpreted data yielded five overarching themes, namely teaching rugby, developing values, facilitating verbal and written language, enacting citizenship and becoming a role model, with respective sub-themes as indicated in figure 2. figure 2: overview of the themes and subthemes h. du preez et al. 13 the first theme, teaching rugby, contributed evidence of the love of the sport that provides enjoyment for both the sports role models and the grade 3 children. the adult participants noted an opportunity and a responsibility to teach rugby, sharing their knowledge and skills with the children. in the second theme, dealing with developing values such as respect, care and responsibility, the child and adult participants highlighted taking care of one another, as expressed in the following statements: “yes, i learnt to look after others and take care of each other” (rmb; 30) and “i am willing to go out of my way to do a good deed at least once a day. i was always there for them, taking care of them” (rmd; 2526). this notion was also reciprocally expressed and actioned during the child and adult participants’ sessions. “they learn through rugby to take responsibility for their action. to be able to play a good and fair game. yes, be responsible for every player” (rmb; 5356), “in rugby, we don’t fight. we don’t push... we are a team” (c2; 2) and “my responsibility is to learn how to play together with my team” (c20; 2), as well as “my responsibility is to do the right thing and to be good to others” (c23; 3). the facilitation of language comprised the third theme, which provided empirical evidence of the importance of making reading enjoyable through the novel facilitation of reading activities and rugby coaching. the adult participants expressed this as follows: “they [the children] seem to enjoy the stories and pictures which would make them want to read and enjoy reading” (rmb; 35), “…the stories tie well with responsibility teaching and teamwork” (rma; 14) and “…the stories teaches [sic] the children discipline and respect” (rmd; 17). the child participants mentioned that a love for reading was developed, for example, “i love reading because rugby students bring nice books for us to read. they made me love reading very much” (c16; 3). the fourth theme, enactment of citizenship, and the empirical data generated the finding that the participation in the rrr project contributed to how the children could improve society: “…do your best to help others grow and become better to make society better” (rmd; 21-23) and “working together with other teammates towards a common goal” (rmc; 79). the final theme provided evidence of the positive impact of role modelling, particularly through emulation. the adult participants voiced their experiences, as outlined in the following examples: “i am a better person than i thought i am. i have learnt to put myself into other people’s shoes to understand how the outside world can be” (rmb 59; 68-70) and “i did not realise we would have such an effect on the teacher education through flexible learning children… the one girl told me i am her role model which made me want to be a better person” (rma; 71). the extracts of the participants shed valuable insight on respective experiences by the children and adults of the rrr project, as outlined in the following two examples. illustration 3: example of reflections of the adult participants h. du preez et al. 15 illustration 4: example of the accounts of the child participants. interpretation of results and discussion role models provide a framework for the growth of a child, and participation in sport helps children show responsible behaviour and demonstrate maximum sensitivity and responsiveness to the wellbeing of others (hellison, 2011). marshalling and aligning the rrr project with the coi framework, we developed an improved understanding of the importance of introducing a mindful role model to a learning experience to promote social, cognitive and teaching presences. the adult participants felt that it was important for young children to have role models whom they can look up to for guidance while developing a sense of citizenship and responsibility through playing rugby and reading books. the importance of creating a social presence is evident in the adults’ feedback in theme four, seeing that the learning experience is shared with other mindful role models, and as a coi, they collaborated to attain the communal goal of teaching social and academic responsibility to the children. being vested in the presence of a role model while playing rugby and reading books links with pro-social behaviour (kavussanu, 2006). it also emulates responsible behaviour that extends beyond the sports fields (hellison, 2011) and encourages children to read because they value the input of role models (clare et al., 2009). teacher education through flexible learning our study provided additional support for the importance of a “cognitive presence”. zirkel (2002) states that young children pursue only that which they can imagine possible. thus, it is the modelling of responsible behaviour and goal attainment that motivates children’s sense of opportunity. the empirical data in theme two attests that the sports students inspired the young children to develop values and responsibility through role modelling. being exposed to a mindful role model not only imbues other children with the belief that they too can achieve that excellence but also reveals how to transfer and sustain life skills and recognise role model qualities in others and themselves (camiré et al., 2012; eley & kirk, 2002). the quotations of the child participants in theme three concurred with the notion of clare et al. (2009) that children need role models to enhance their reading and comprehension skills (clarke et al., 2009), while also developing a sense of citizenship and values (gordon, 2010). the children benefitted from mindful role models who helped them to read and conversed with them to improve their understanding and fluency (see illustration 1). therefore, a change in educational practices is needed to give the role models the opportunity to integrate physical activities with reading activities to construct respect and responsibility progressively in our young citizens in a democratic society. the contribution of bandura’s work to early childhood pedagogies is significant for creating a “teaching presence”. bandura (1977, 1986) emphasises that children learn from role models and indicates how the observed behaviour can be imitated or emulated. the latter was evident in theme two and three of the narratives of the children and the reflections of the adult participants from theme five. it is significant to have role models in the continuum of child development (bee & boyd, 2004), beckoning their value to be utilised as a teaching approach or resource. children being confronted with diverse social and educational environments and interaction with a mindful role model signals a possible learning experience. we also argue that there is not only one overriding influence in the life of a child but rather, the sum of the interactions with role models is integral in developing the self-concept and self-efficacy beliefs of the child (bandura, 1977, 1986; bee & boyd, 2004). this we have demonstrated by implementing the rrr project over eight weeks. h. du preez et al. 17 conclusion the evidence from the rrr project points towards the notion that the child participants were able to display acceptable social and academic behaviour when they were exposed to mindful and responsible role models whom they could emulate. the findings add to the growing body of scholarship on the notion that engaging in a team sport, such as rugby, under the guidance of a mindful role model, coupled with educational outcomes, plays a vital role in early childhood development and education. taken together, the results seem to suggest that interacting with the rugby role models, and their peers enhanced the children’s realisation of values, such as respect, responsibility and becoming responsible citizens. the insight we have gained from the rrr project has also enhanced our understanding of how role modelling can be effectively utilised as a hybrid pedagogy and a rich resource. the coi framework, which characterises a social, cognitive and teaching presence, warrants a learning experience where the child can come to understand what quality, knowledge or skill is possessed by the role model, which is worthy of being valued and emulated. although this study highlighted results that had been achieved through contact role modelling, the social, cognitive and teaching presences of the coi framework can also be achieved at a distance and need to be further examined in early childhood teaching education pedagogies. our data suggest that the rrr project, aligned with the coi framework, can guide teachers in creatively constructing future learning experiences that draw on communities of real-life and virtual role models. acknowledgements this article is based on the med dissertation of francinah masola entitled “sport students’ experiences of role modelling when teaching responsibility to grade 3 learners”, under the supervision of prof ina joubert and dr donna hannaway, university of pretoria. disclosure statement no potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors. teacher education through flexible learning notes on contributors hannelie du preez, is lecturer in the department of early childhood education faculty of education university of pretoria. donna hannaway, is senior lecturer in the department of early childhood education, school of teacher education, university of south africa. ina joubert serves at present as executive academic director of sants; a private higher education institution. francinah masola, is a student in the department of early childhood education, faculty of education university of pretoria. orcid hannelie du preez http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1194-427x donna hannaway https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6517-0607 references allenders, s, cowburn, g & foster, c. 2006. understanding participation in sport and physical activity among children and adults. journal of health education research, 21(6):826-835. doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/her/cyl063 bandura, a. 1977. social learning theory. englewood cliffs, nj: prentice hall. bandura, a. 1986. social foundations of thought and action: a social cognitive theory. englewood cliffs, nj: prentice hall. bee, h & boyd, d. 2004. the developing child (11th ed.). boston, ma: allan & bacon. camiré, m, trudel, p & forneris, t. 2012. coaching and transferring life skills: philosophies and 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responsibility through physical activity (3rd ed.). champaign, il: human kinetics. kavussanu, m. 2006. motivational predictors of prosocial and antisocial behaviour in football. journal of sports sciences, 24(6):575-588. doi: https://doi.org/10.1080 /02640410500190825 laker, a. 2000. beyond the boundaries of physical education. educating young people for citizenship and social responsibility. london: routledge. sanderse, w. 2013. the meaning of role modelling in moral and character education. journal of moral education, 42(1):28-42. doi: https://doi.org/10.1080 /03057240.2012.690727 owens, k. 2002. child and adolescent development. an integrated approach. london: belmont. teacher education through flexible learning payne, w, reynolds, m, brown, s & fleming, a. 2014. sports role models and their impact on participation in physical activity: a literature review. university of ballarat, australia. zirkel, s. 2002. is there a place for me? role models and academic identity among white students and students of color. teachers college record, 104(2):357-376. official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za contact madalitso khulupirika banja @ chilusbanja@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. the perceptions of teachers and heads of department on the roles of a formal mentor in a zambian secondary school madalitso khulupirika banja department of educational psychology, sociology and special education, university of zambia, zambia vol 1 no 1 2019 issn: 2788-6298 doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v1i1.62 abstract this paper reports on research work concerning the perceptions of newly qualified teachers (nqts) and heads of department (hods) regarding the roles of formal mentors in helping newly qualified teachers in selected secondary schools in zambia. these nqts could be products of a conventional teacher preparation programme through fulltime study, part-time or parallel study, or an open and distance learning programme. the purpose of the study was to establish what nqts and hods believed to be key areas in which nqts needed to be mentored in order to help them adapt to the requirements of their teaching roles in schools. it uses quantitative data that were collected from the nqts and hods using self-administered questionnaires guided by kram’s mentor role theory. data were collected from a sample of 191 participants that comprised 92 nqts and 99 hods. quantitative data were analysed using the chi square test. quantitative results suggest that there was a huge discrepancy in the perceptions of nqts and hods regarding the roles of a formal mentor in helping nqts in their work. the paper proposes the development of a policy on mentorship of nqts and a mentorship framework to ensure harmonization of understanding of mentorship and its effective implementation. keywords: perceptions, newly qualified teachers, formal mentor, mentoring, school-based support, initial teacher education. teacher education through flexible learning introduction this paper discusses the perceptions of nqts (newly qualified teachers) and hods (heads of departments) on the roles of formal mentors in helping nqts in their work. for the purposes of this discussion, a nqt is defined as a certified teacher who has worked post-qualification for a period ranging between 6-24 months. the notion of mentoring is a concept that has its roots in greek mythology and is anchored on a more experienced adult offering help and guidance to a younger person (ragins and kram, 2007). mentoring is defined by bartell (2005:90) as: professional practice that occurs in the context of teaching whenever an experienced teacher supports, challenges and guides novice teachers in their teaching practice. while definitions of mentoring remain fluid, my choice of definition is deliberately meant to galvanise interest in the mentor-mentee relationship. with specific reference to education, lankau and scandura, (2007: 95) have attributed the need for mentoring of nqts to the limitations of tertiary level training, and propose school-based mentoring as a possible solution: learning from training programmes and books will not be sufficient to keep pace with required competencies for success in today’s fast-paced work environments. individuals often must look to others to learn new skills and keep up with the demands of their jobs and professions. mentoring relationships can serve as a forum for such personal learning in organisations. interesting too, and corroborating with lankau and scandura (2007), bolam (1984) when discussing the circumstances of nqts in britain, argues that no matter how good teacher courses were, they were intrinsically general and therefore peripheral to the nqt’s major professional concerns which revolved around their particular pupils, classrooms and schools. as powers (2012: 24) has stated ‘new teachers generally do not have the content m. k. banja 3 knowledge, instructional and management strategies, or ability to perform at the same level as experienced teachers.’ newly qualified teachers’ main source of practical help was in the school. one way of supporting new teachers towards success is through mentoring (lortie, 2002). the first year in teaching is recognised as an important segment that has a tremendous impact on a teacher’s professional career and personal life (greiman, 2002), and it is believed to have long term implications for achieving effective teaching, job satisfaction, and career length. from the literature on nqts in zambia, there is ample evidence that most teachers have not received mentorship because mentorship programmes for nqts in zambian schools were isolated and unsystematic (malasha, 2009). problem statement a global review of literature on mentoring of nqts points to the immeasurable value of mentorship in facilitating preparation for and smooth transition into the teaching profession. in addition, mentoring has been found to increase job satisfaction, reduce the stress level of nqts and assist their professional growth (galvez-hjornevik, 1985). in zambia, very little is known about the practice of mentorship as a strategy for supporting nqts and the potential it holds for their personal and professional growth. as malasha (2009) found, mentorship programmes for nqts in zambian secondary schools were isolated and unco-ordinated. this is so inspite of widespread findings which suggest, as greiman (2002) reports, that without mentorship, new teachers learn through time consuming and stressful trial and error and yet are given a wide range of responsibilities which they are expected to execute in the same manner as veteran teachers. little (1990) found that mentoring has become the preferred method of dealing with teacher induction, and takes precedence over reduced workload, peer group support, and formally structured continuous professional development. the capacity to develop professional competence in nqts early in their practice has profound implications for teacher education through flexible learning learner achievement. there is substantial evidence in the literature from western and asian countries in support of the benefits of mentorship of nqts as an effective tool for ensuring quality teachers (dougherty and dreher, 2007). despite mentoring of nqts having been in academic discourse over many decades, there is no known study in zambia about the perceptions of teachers and hods towards the roles of a formal mentor in helping newly qualified teachers. against this background, this paper explored the perspectives of teachers and head teachers on the roles of formal mentors in helping newly qualified teachers. based on this lack of research and the need to understand what key stakeholders perceive to be the roles of a formal mentor in helping nqts, the researcher phrased the research question: what are the perceptions of newly qualified teachers and heads of department of the roles of a formal mentor in helping newly qualified teachers in selected secondary schools in zambia? theoretical framework this study was guided by mentor role theory (kram, 1985) which suggests that mentoring is a developmental relationship that enhances professional growth and advancement in an individual. however, kram’s’ theory focuses solely on what cochransmith and paris (2005) cited in (richter et al., 2013: 168), refer to as knowledge transmission: according to the knowledge transmission model, mentors perceive their role as expert teachers and transmit their knowledge within a hierarchically structured relationship. in this learning environment, novices are socialised into the prevailing culture of schooling, which manifests the status quo. also known as conventional mentoring (richter et al., 2013), kram’s model of mentorship focuses on ‘situational adjustment to the new school environment, technical advice, and emotional support. as richter et al. have argued, this approach to mentoring by kram has a leaning towards behaviorist theories of learning ‘which conceptualise learning as m. k. banja 5 the accumulation of knowledge provided by experts. this mentoring style is what richter et al. have labelled transmission-oriented mentoring. by recognising the knowledge and experience of veteran teachers and in addressing the needs of nqts, kram’s theory renders itself extremely suitable for this study as it helps the researcher explain amongst others, the nature of professional interaction between veteran teachers and novice teachers, the necessity for professional collegiality, the environment under which such professional collegiality should take place and most significantly, the expected outcomes, namely, equipping nqts with appropriate knowledge and skills that they require to competently discharge their duties as classroom teachers. the role of the mentor the need for a mentor in the school system has been highlighted by numerous empirical studies across the world. wildman, niles, maglario & mclaughlin (1987) cited in (bash and turner, 1999) have alluded to how critical this support is during the first year of teaching when while learning how to teach, nqts have to be in the classroom teaching. the mentor as a more experienced teacher is expected to provide professional guidance and support to the newly qualified teacher for a given duration. a review of literature conducted by huling-austin (1990) cited in greiman et al., 2007) of teacher induction programmes reveals that the most consistent finding across studies is the importance of the mentor teacher. several scholars (verasai, 2016; jyoti & sharma, 2015; dougherty and dreher, 2007; powell, 1997; kram, 1985) have advanced that mentors can help an individual’s career advancement in an organisation. mentors not only provide content in the form of skills and valued behaviours, but also provide social related mentoring through offering emotional attachment through support and encouragement and providing networking opportunities to the mentee (kram, 1985). similarly, powell (1997) says that the role of the psychosocial mentor aims at changing the social circumstances of the mentee, influencing the mentee personally and serving as a role model by way of encouraging, counselling and supporting the mentee. in teacher education through flexible learning agreeing with powell (1997), ismail·and arokiasamy (2007) further state that mentoring provides support as a mentor acts as a role model. the role of the mentor is to pass on knowledge through teaching and coaching, experience and judgment, and/or to provide guidance and support so that he/she (the mentee) progresses in his/her career. in particular, the mentor has the responsibility to provide guidance and assistance on lesson preparation, teaching methodology, integration of the nqts into the school environment. the mentor is also a valuable aid pedagogically and socially. he/she is a role model and provides moral and social direction to the nqt for him or her to discharge his/her duties satisfactorily. similarly, other studies on mentorship have established that integral to mentoring are the related notions of the formation of trust, emotional attachment and confidence-building by the mentor morton-cooper and palmer (2000) and surtees (2008) cited in lennox, skinner and foureur (2008). the goal of counselling in mentorship is to equip the novice to handle personal anxieties, fears and ambivalence effectively to the extent that they do not adversely affect their work. it is clear from the literature that the role of a mentor is critical in the career progression of a newly qualified teacher. mentors draw upon their own experiences as effective classroom instructors to quickly guide nqts toward best practices that help them to discover what is working in their classrooms as well as identifying, facing and whenever possible resolving the challenges. a strong teacher mentoring programme also facilitates the sharing of information with the novice teachers about both the professional work of a teacher and the daily job of classroom teaching to assist them in being adequately prepared and engaged in the educational process (clutterbuck, 2007; renwick, 2007; wayne, youngs, & fleischman, 2005; wong, 2004). another study of an existing mentoring programme by mccollum (2014) revealed that being assigned a mentor was greatly appreciated by beginning teachers who valued the emotional and physical support, and positive guidance that came with having a mentor. m. k. banja 7 similarly, brading (1999) found that nqts appreciated psychosocial support in their first year of teaching. in transformation mentoring, also coined educative mentoring by feiman-nemser (2003) as cited by richter (2013), mentors provide opportunities that foster growth and development. they interact with their novices in a way that supports inquiry and that enables them to learn in and from their practice. methodology perceptions may be determined by a variety of contextual circumstances which include but is not limited to age, sex, education level, and so on (gwaa-uugwanga, 2015). as mccollum (2014: 37) has further argued, ‘to effectively support beginning teachers, it is important to listen to their voices and observe their experiences’ hence the choice of the research to address the problem using the perceptions and insight of participants, hence this author’s decision to obtain the views of the people directly involved. this study used a descriptive survey to investigate the perceptions of nqts and hods of the roles of a formal mentor in helping nqts. the survey used self-administered questionnaires (completed by the participants in their own time) to collect numerical data from nqts and hods in the schools in the sample. these questionnaires were distributed and later collected in person by the researcher. purposive sampling was used to select eighteen (18) secondary schools, three in each of six districts spread in 3 provinces of zambia. it was also used to select the 99 hods while probability sampling procedures, specifically stratified and simple random sampling, were used to select the 92 newly qualified teachers. the list of the population for the nqts was segmented into strata to represent the various sub-groups in the population from which the sample was selected. the stratification included specific characteristics of nqts to ensure that both female and male, and both diploma and degree holding nqts were represented in the sample and thereby ensure that the sample reflected the true proportion in the population of the nqts (fowler, 2002) teacher education through flexible learning in creswell (2009). using probability sampling, the population of nqts was stratified based on gender and level of education in order to ensure proportionate representation as the population had more males than females and more degree holders than it had diploma holders. the above consideration took into account the fact that when randomly selecting people from a population, these characteristics may or may not be present in the sample in the same proportions as in the population. stratification therefore ensured that representation. simple random sampling was used to select respondents from each stratum. in this study, quantitative methods of data analysis were used. to facilitate statistical analysis, the statistical packages for social sciences (spss) version 20.0. computer programme for windows, was used to obtain descriptive statistics which include frequencies and percentages. the pearson's chi-square test was used to determine the relationship among the different phenomena under investigation. regarding ethical issues, the study took into account all measures to ensure compliance with all possible and potential ethical issues of concern. permission was obtained from all relevant authorities in the ministry of general education to conduct this study in secondary schools. before the respondents were asked to participate they were informed about the purpose and focus of the study and oral informed consent was thus obtained from all the respondents. this served as a basis for establishing trust between the researcher and the respondents. the questionnaires were all anonymous. therefore, participants remained anonymous in order to maintain confidentiality and ensure that no harm comes the way of a participant as a result of the research. the data processing was accordingly guarded from exposure to unauthorised persons. once data was analysed, the questionnaires and the data were safely stored away until such time that they would be discarded so that they do not fall into the hands of other people [researchers] who might misappropriate them. this study therefore adhered to ethical issues as expected in order to ensure the anonymity, protection and dignity of participants (creswell, 2009). m. k. banja 9 limitations of the study one limitation of the study was the lack of generalisability of the findings because of the non-probability sampling procedures. however, the results are still generalisable to schools with a similar context. in addition, the nqts cannot be assumed to be objective as they were personally involved in the process that is being investigated. the latter limitation was minimised through triangulation and through obtaining the data from different sub-populations. results and discussion the findings and discussion has been done in line with the single research question that this paper was attempting to resolve; what are the perceptions of newly qualified teachers and heads of department of the roles of a formal mentor in helping newly qualified teachers in selected secondary schools in zambia? general and demographic information the profiles of nqts and hods are presented in tables 1 and 2 respectively. the perceived roles of a formal mentor in helping newly qualified teachers participants were asked to indicate what they thought the roles of a formal mentor should be in helping newly qualified teachers. the responses are given in table 3. from the responses they gave, the participants perceived the role of a formal mentor in helping nqts to be multifaceted as indicated in table 3. this finding agrees with the findings of other researchers on the topic (powers, 2012; lankau and scandura, 2007; greiman, 2002; little, 1990; bolam, 1984). in particular, the findings of this study agree with (brading, 1999) who found a similarity with regard to a mentor being expected to help a nqt to be oriented to a new school and develop competence in curriculum subject knowledge. table 3 shows that with the exception of one item ‘understand labour matters’ more hods than nqts had higher ratings of the listed items as perceived roles of a formal mentor in teacher education through flexible learning helping a newly qualified teacher. among the hods, understand work ethics, improve teaching skills, develop understanding of subject area and prepare lesson plans and schemes of work had the highest ratings. the researcher wanted to determine if there were any statistically significant differences between the perceptions of the nqts and the hods on the roles of a formal mentor in helping nqts in secondary schools in zambia by making comparisons between the two groups. to make this comparison a non-parametric test, the chi-square was conducted; the null hypothesis (h0) being that there is no significant difference in the perceptions of nqts and hods regarding the roles of a formal mentor in helping newly qualified teachers. the alternative hypothesis (h1) was that there is a significant difference in the perceptions of nqts and hods regarding the roles of a formal mentor in helping newly qualified teachers. the statistical tests were run at significance level of 0.05. significant levels (p values) which were less than or equal to 0.05 were significant. scores of the nqts and the hods were compared on the variables listed in table 3. table 4 shows a summary of the chi square test results obtained for the perceived roles of a formal mentor in helping newly qualified teachers. as can be seen from table 4, the results indicate statistical significance on the following items: ‘understanding labour matters (ᵡ2=5.433; p=0.028), improving teaching skills (ᵡ2=12.175; p=0.001), developing understanding of subject area (ᵡ2=13.272; p=0.001), managing personal finances (ᵡ2=4.982; p=0.026), preparing lesson plans and schemes of work (ᵡ2=15.055; p=0.001), and developing interpersonal relationships (ᵡ2=7.984; p=0.005). the null hypothesis that the two groups did not significantly differ is therefore rejected. it was expected that the views of the two groups would be similar in many respects. however, what these results imply is that the views of the nqts and the hods on the roles of the formal mentor in helping nqts with regard to understanding labour matters, improving teaching skills, developing understanding of subject area, managing personal finances, preparing lesson plans and schemes of work, and developing interpersonal relationships differed significantly. these results imply that nqts and hods expressed significantly different views on what the role of a formal mentor should be in m. k. banja 11 helping a newly qualified teacher. this type of disagreement between nqts and their mentors regarding the roles of a mentor was also reported by (greiman, 2002) who found that the order of the importance of nqt’s needs with regard to professional roles differed from that of mentors. a similar mismatch was also reported by (brading, 1999) who found differing priorities by nqts and mentors on areas where mentorship should be focussed. this raises issues of common perceptions of mentor roles. on the other hand, the results indicate that they were not statistically significant in the following items: in understanding work ethics (ᵡ2=2.383; p=0.123), managing personal stress (ᵡ2=.694; p=0.405) and protection from job related dangers (ᵡ2=.810; p=0.368). the null hypothesis that both groups did not significantly differ is therefore accepted relative to the three items above. these results therefore, were suggesting that both groups held similar perceptions in terms of understanding work ethics, managing personal stress and protection from job related dangers being part of the roles of a formal mentor. this was as expected. this agreement on same aspects of mentor roles is in agreement with the findings of (greiman, 2002). although improving teaching skills, developing understanding of subject area and preparing lesson plans and schemes of work were mentioned by the nqts, compared to hods, nqts leaned more towards roles of a mentor that reflected non-teaching roles such as induction, orientation and work ethics. the argument is that the focus of nqts seemed to be on matters related to their own personal well-being such as matters to do with salary, conditions of service and other such related issues as opposed to matters likely to improve their teaching proficiency. in other words, it appeared that their views focused on what they stood to benefit as individuals. these could be classified as ‘understand labour matters.’ in contrast to the nqts, hods felt that ‘understanding labour matters’ should be the least important role of a formal mentor, perceiving matters to do with nqts competence in teaching-related matters as more important. heads of department therefore demonstrated a leaning towards instructional needs and abilities of the newly qualified teacher education through flexible learning teachers. it appears that hods were preoccupied with sharpening the skills of nqts to help them improve their teaching performance relative to the following key professional areas of a teacher’s work: improving teaching skills, developing understanding of subject area, and preparing lesson plans and schemes of work. academic support in these areas would help the teacher develop competence and help a teacher to teach effectively and thereby demonstrate an acceptable level of understanding of the subject content that one is teaching. these findings are consistent with the findings of (malambo, 2012), who has argued that, teacher preparation such as knowledge of writing schemes, records of work and lesson planning is a professional requirement for teachers in zambia. in the context of the current study being reported here, the perceived roles of a formal mentor in helping nqts reported by the participants included improving teaching skills, preparing lesson plans and schemes of work as well as developing understanding of subject area. according to the theory of mentoring by (kram, 1985), the nqts focused on psychosocial functions as constituting the roles of a formal mentor while hods perceived both psychosocial and career functions sets as constituting the roles of a formal mentor. the position of the hods on this matter therefore reflects dissatisfaction with the performance of nqts in the stated areas as indicated already, hence the need to provide help to enhance their competence. at the same time however, the hods perceived understanding work ethics, protection from job related dangers, managing personal stress, developing interpersonal relationships, and managing personal finances, although not directly related to improvement of efficacy of classroom teaching, as aspects that had the potential to impact on actual classroom teaching and therefore also needed to be addressed by a formal mentor. this agrees with (little, 1990) who stated that the roles of a mentor included helping nqts transition from the lecture theatre at university or college to the school classroom. it is likely that these different understandings of mentoring affected the sorts of support hods provided to nqts and also the attitude of nqts towards such support/mentorship. the implication is that nqts will only seek help from veteran teachers in those areas they think they need help. newly qualified teachers may underestimate the importance of m. k. banja 13 certain areas of their practice and consequently not see the need to seek mentoring in those areas. when help is suggested, they may feel that their privacy is intruded. on the other hand, hods will provide mentoring in those areas where they perceive that nqts needed help. this sets out the more substantive argument that if hods do not perceive certain areas as important to nqts, such as helping them to understand labour matters, they are likely to ignore providing mentoring in such areas, even upon request. these different results in the perceptions of nqts and hods of the roles of formal mentors in helping nqts, suggest the necessity of concerted efforts to arrive at a common understanding of mentoring. this is important because the needs that a nqt considers important to their successful start to their teaching career will affect the type of help they desire from others. comparison by gender of the perceived role of a formal mentor in helping nqts in addition to comparing the perceptions of nqts and hods regarding the role of a formal mentor in helping nqts, the study tested whether there were any associations between gender of nqts and their perceived roles of a formal mentor using the chi-square; the null hypothesis (h0) being that there is no significant association between gender and the roles of a formal mentor in helping newly qualified teachers. the alternative hypothesis (h1) was that there is significant association between gender and the roles of a formal mentor in helping newly qualified teachers. the statistical tests were conducted at a significance level of 0.05. significant levels (p values) which were less than or equal to 0.05 were significant. table 5 shows the results of these tests. table 5 shows that when the perceived role of a formal mentor was gendered the tests revealed statistically significant associations between managing personal finances and gender (ᵡ2 =3.928; p=.047). more male participants (75%) than female participants (25%) agreed that the role of a formal mentor ought to include managing their personal finances. this indicates that there was a relationship between gender and managing personal finances. in this regard therefore, the null hypothesis that there was no significant association between gender and perceived role of a formal mentor in helping nqts is teacher education through flexible learning therefore rejected. this agrees with the findings of mckeen and bujaki (2007) who studied cross-gender and same gender relationships in mentoring and found differences in the focus of mentors during mentoring relationships based on gender. the relationship between gender and managing personal finances in the zambian context could be explained by the fact that females were trained to manage the affairs of a home that included budgeting, at an early or tender age compared to their male counterparts. this gave them a perceived sense of maturity and responsibility in handling matters of the home which included finances. however, gender was not associated with the perceived role of a formal mentor in terms of understanding labour matters, understanding work ethics, managing personal stress, improving teaching skills, developing understanding of subject area, preparing lesson plans and schemes of work, developing interpersonal relationships, and protection from job related dangers, all tested at (p value > 0.05). these results imply that male and female nqts expressed similar views regarding the perceived role of a formal mentor in helping nqts on all but one item; managing personal finances. the null hypothesis that there was no significant association between gender and the perceived role of a formal mentor in helping nqts is therefore accepted. comparison by level of education of the perceived role of a formal mentor in helping nqts similar analyses were conducted to determine further whether there were any associations between educational level of nqts and perceived roles of a formal mentor in helping newly qualified teachers. chi square tests were conducted; the null hypothesis (h0) being that there is no significant association between the educational level of nqts and the perceived roles of a formal mentor in helping nqts. the alternative hypothesis (h1) was that there is significant association between the educational level of nqts and the perceived roles of a formal mentor in helping nqts. the statistical tests were run at significance level of 0.05. significant levels (p values) which were less than or equal to 0.05 were significant. the results are shown in table 6. m. k. banja 15 table 6 shows that there was no significant association between educational level and perceived roles of a formal mentor (p >.05). these results imply that in spite of the differences in the duration of training, each group of nqts expressed similar views about the roles of a formal mentor in helping newly qualified teachers. therefore, the null hypothesis that there is no significant association between the educational level of nqts and the perceived roles of a formal mentor in helping nqts, is accepted. this disagrees with the views of greiman (2002) who established a clear difference in perception of the roles of a mentor based on level of qualification. conclusion and recommendations it is clear from the findings of the study that both nqts and hods appreciated the role of mentors in the professional development of newly qualified teachers. however, although there was some agreement on some aspects of the roles of a mentor, the findings indicate that nqts and hods reported a great disparity in their understanding of what should constitute the mentorship provided by veteran teachers. in view of this, it is not only important but necessary that whatever mentorship programme is to be developed; and whatever the nature of the collaboration between the mentor and mentee should respond to the identified needs of the nqt within a given context, and not to a general mentorship programme. it is clear from the foregoing that nqts must be comprehensively supported if the potential in them is to be fully tapped and developed. on the basis of these findings, the following recommendations are made: • the differences in understanding the roles of mentoring by nqts and hods reflects the need by the ministry of general education for a policy on mentorship so as to provide institutionalised guidance and create a synchronised understanding and practice of mentoring in schools that responds to the needs of nqts. • schools should create structures that provide opportunities for experienced teachers to work with nqts for the benefit of the nqts, learners and the school as an organisation. teacher education through flexible learning • the ministry of general education should conduct a needs assessment anchored on a bottom-up approach in order to avoid prescribing to stakeholders programmes that do not reflect the needs of the newly qualified teachers. • teacher educators should develop interest in the challenges faced by nqts in the first few years of their practice in order to forestall some of these challenges during initial teacher training. disclosure statement no potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors. notes on contributor madalitso k. banja is lecturer with the department of educational psychology, sociology and special education, university of zambia, zambia references bartell, c.a. 2005. cultivating high quality teaching through induction and mentoring. california: corwin press. bolam, r. 1984. induction of beginning teachers. in: husen, t. & postlewaite, n. 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the roots and meaning of mentoring. in: b.r. ragins and k.e. kram (eds.). the handbook of mentoring at work: theory, research and practice. thousand oaks: sage publications. renwick, l. 2007. keeping new teachers happy. district administration, 43: 26. m. k. banja 19 richter, d, kunter, m., ludtke, o., klusmann, u., anders, y., & baumert, j. 2013. how different mentoring approaches affect beginning teachers’ development in the first years of practice. teaching and teacher education, 36: 166-177. simon, s. and wardlow, g. 1989. surtees, r. 2008. inductions of labour’: on becoming an experienced midwifery practitioner in aotearoa/new zealand. nursing inquiry, 15: 11-20. turner, m. and bash, l. 1999. sharing expertise in teacher education. london. cassell. verasai, a. 2016. role of mentoring in career development. las vegas. the hr digest. https://www.thehrdigest.com/role-of-mentoring-in-career-development/ wayne, a., youngs, p., & fleischman, s. 2005. improving teacher induction. educational leadership, 62: 76-78. wildman, t. m., niles, j., maglario, s. & mclaughlin, r. 1987. teaching and learning to teach: the two roles of the elementary school teacher. the elementary school journal, 89: 4. wong, h. 2004. induction programs that keep new teachers teaching and improving. nassp bulletin, 88: 41-58. . 1_nyaruwata_tetfle_template_14_07_2022 (1) teacher development during and beyond covid-19: perspectives from zimbabwe vol 3, 2022 contact: leonorah t. nyaruwata lenya54do@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 2 3tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, 2022 issn 2788-6298 teacher development during and beyond covid-19: perspectives from zimbabwe leonorah t. nyaruwata orcid identifier: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9637-1329?lang=en email: lenya54do@gmail.com doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v3i1.3716 official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za 4 contact: leonorah t. nyaruwata lenya54do@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. abstract the purpose of the study was to examine how zimbabwean teacher educators can develop pre-service and in-service teachers to teach effectively during the covid-19 pandemic and beyond. this qualitative study, guided by the case study method, gathered the perspectives of experienced teachers and teacher educators in schools, teacher colleges and universities in harare. data was generated by means of face-to-face interviews, zoom meetings, whatsapp and google talk, and it was analysed using the content analysis technique. my study found that pre-service and in-service teachers should acquire pedagogical and technological skills in addition to what they have been taught. teacher educators as well as pre-service and in-service teachers also need information communication technology (ict) knowledge and skills to implement blended teaching and learning, use the on-demand examination system, and develop and implement formative and summative assessment. beyond the pandemic, the traditional 3-3-3 model of teacher development (i.e. 1 year, 3 school terms in college; 1 year’s teaching practice; 1 year in college) will likely continue to be based on blended learning and open and distance elearning (odel). it is recommended that technology infrastructure in zimbabwe be upgraded to allow teacher educators, practising teachers and student teachers easy access to the internet, while also training them in ict skills and knowledge. keywords: teacher development, teacher educator, blended learning, covid-19 pandemic tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 5 introduction the covid-19pandemic hascaused the largest everdisruption toeducation systems in history, affecting nearly 1.6billion learners in more than 190 countries and on all continents (united nations, 2020). this disruption has not spared teachers’ initial and professional development around the globe. primary school teachers who had been trained to teach children in physical classrooms before the advent of covid-19 were not equipped to teach in virtual or online classrooms. thus, while we socially distanced ourselves to keep one another safe, education sectors all over the world were debilitated by the enforced distancing and teachers’ lack of knowledge and experience of online teaching. the researcher observed a distinct dichotomy during the 2020 lockdown: some schools and children had access to technology, reliable internet, social support and private tutors, and they continued learning, while others did not. those children and schools that did not have access to technology fell behind. furthermore, some educators’ workload doubled as they taught virtually and in person,while many parents became teachers overnight. against the background of the need for teacher competencies to teach online, the purpose of my research was to explore how experienced teachers and teacher educators perceived teacher development – both during the covid-19 era and beyond. the paper also explored development practices and accompanying teacher competencies, and investigated whether experienced teachers and teacher educators could reach consensus on these items. this paper therefore presents the background to the problem, the problem statement, objectives to be achieved, a brief literature review, the theories underpinning the study, the methodology used, a discussion of the findings reached, as well as conclusions and recommendations. background to the study the covid-19 pandemic has threatened not only the health and lives of people, but also affected teacher development, teaching and learning systems all over the world. it jeopardised the continuity of conventional learning and teaching practices, and compelled the transformation of education from traditional learning to online learning at all levels of the education sector. this left policymakers no other option but to fast-track the implementation of e-learning and distance learning mechanisms. 6 contact: leonorah t. nyaruwata lenya54do@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. open and distance elearning (odel) implies that all or most of the teaching is conductedbysomeonewhois inadifferent spaceand/or timethanthestudent,andthat content and interaction are increasingly digital in nature.odel also aims to include the dimensions of openness and flexibility,whether in terms of access, curriculum or other elements.odel systemscan bedescribed asmade upof a range of components such as the following: the mission or goal of a particular system; programmes and curricula; teaching/learning strategies and techniques; learning materials and resources; communication and interaction; support and delivery systems; individuals such as students, tutors, staff and other experts; management; housing and equipment; and performance evaluation (moore & kearsley, 2012). the student engages in independent self-study guidedby the tutor and this promotes a highdegree of openness.there is freedomin this typeof education as it takes into account special learning situations, learners’ unique characteristics, appropriate theories and models for teaching,psycho-social aspects, as well as instructional design. in zimbabwe, odel has played a major role in teacher development. it shaped initial training for formal qualifications, in-service supplementary training for formal upgrading, and continuing in-service training in respect of particular subjects and topics. since 1980, the zimbabwean teacher education system has used the zimbabwe integratednational teachereducationcourse (zintec),anodelmode and conventional four-year (nowthree-year) programme.according to the zintec stipulations, student teachers were allocated a class under their sole responsibility with the school’s head or deputy head playing a mentoring role (kanyongo, 2005). the use of odel for teacher education therefore presented a crucial strategy for expanding teacher training, improving the quality of teaching, and preventing the spread of covid-19. the basic purpose of odel has been to enable a flexible reponse to the need for working adults to obtain teacher training and to provide opportunities for those who have been most deprived by the existing provision. by using odel it was possible to help student teachers to continue learning during lockdowns. initial teacher training or teacher development programmes across the globe are similar in respect of their overall design features. student teachers generally follow courses that teach them foundational knowledge pertaining to education, such as psychology or sociology, subject knowledge of particular study disciplines, and general and specific pedagogical knowledge. despite these similarities in overall structure,actual curriculum content and activities of teacher tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 7 development may differ considerably from country to country and region to region. the unexpected change of learning and teaching mode due to covid-19 has forced teacher educators to embrace blended teaching and learning to conform to who protocols, especially that of maintaining a physical distance. ten years before the advent of the covid-19 pandemic, pape (2010) defined blended learning as a mode of learning that uses online communication, collaboration and publication tools to extend the school day or year and to develop the 21st-century skills students need. garrison andvaughan (2008) as well as tselios et al.(2011) define blended learning as the integration of teacher-student interaction that can take place with or without the use of technology. scholars such aswu et al. (2010) and lim et al. (2014) posit that blended learning is a method that combines different techniques of learning such as face-to-face and online systems to create different ways of learning. in blended teaching and learning, the in-person and online elements work together to create a richer learning experience and do not simply duplicate course content in varying formats. thus, with blended learning, teacher trainers or developers can use online tools and resources as part of their daily training instruction.besides employing many of the online tools and resources,many teacher trainees already use social networking. blended teaching helps trainers find an approach that ismore engaging for the current generation of teacher trainees. the benefits of blended teaching and learning include giving trainees a varietyof ways to demonstrate their knowledge,while appealing to diverse learning styles and fostering independent and self-directed learning skills in trainees.the latter is a critical capacity for lifelong learners. garrison and vaughan (2008) are of the opinion that blended learning increases the quality and quantity of interaction among students and teachers. this finding is supported by dangwal (2017,p. 133) who lists the following advantages of blended learning: • because part of learning is done through ict – whether in online or offline mode – teachers and students get more time in the classroom for creative and cooperative exercise. • students reap thebenefitsofonline learning andcomputer-assisted instruction (cai) without losing the social interaction element and human touch of traditional teaching. • blended learning provides more scope for communication as it completes the 8 contact: leonorah t. nyaruwata lenya54do@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. cycle – which is not possible if we adopt only the traditional approach. • students become more ‘techno savvy’and they gain enhanced digital fluency. • students’ professionalism is strengthened as they develop qualities like selfmotivation, self-responsibility and discipline. • blended learning updates course content and so gives new life to established courses. this then introduces the concept of a flipped classroom.bergmannand sams (2012, p. 13) explain that,in a flipped classroom,work that is normally done in class is flipped or switched with work normally done as homework. surbramaniam and miniandy (2016) suggest that a flipped classroom is a model of learning and teaching in which students read materials and view videos on the topic assigned before coming to class. they are then expected to engage in class in active learning, using games, simulations, discussions or experiments,with the assistance of the teacher. blended teaching and learning incorporates online tools into trainees’ toolkits, which in the past consisted mainly of notebooks, paper assignments, and face-toface classroom presentations (kumar, 2012; namyssova et al., 2019).this expanded toolkit helps trainees improve their higher education and better develop their teaching skills. blended learning extends teaching and learning beyond the classroom walls by developing students’ critical thinking, problem solving, communication, collaboration,and global awareness. technologies already in use in teacher training institutions that apply blended learning include learning management systems, in-class response systems, adaptive learning platforms, tablets, smartphones, and learning analytics.my study found that the landscapeof blended teaching and learning tools and technologies is notonly vast, but continuously evolving.however, the most common technology used in blended learning has been,and remains, the video. the current research, which took place in the context of zimbabwean teacher educationcollegesanduniversity facultiesofeducation, public/governmentandprivate primary schools in harare and chitungwiza, was conducted from july to september 2021. in harare and chitungwiza there are three teachers’colleges and five universities that have faculties of education. zimbabwean teachers’ colleges, universities and primary schools have a mandate to shape their education programmes in line with the key objectives set by government. hence, teachers’ colleges and primary schools tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 9 follow the conventional teacher development and primary school learning model, where there is physical contact with teachers and children in the classroom.however, as mentioned above, the onset of covid-19 radically changed traditional schooling to online or distance education. problem statement as covid-19 unprecedently transformed the landscape of learning in zimbabwe, teachers were forced to do what they do best: figure out how to effectively respond and support their students using onlineplatforms.however,creating digital networks of school and family partnerships poses challenges to both teachers and parents, due to their limited skills and knowledge of online teaching and learning.the pandemic has amplified the need to examine the skills and knowledge that teachers will require for effective teaching during times of disaster. it is therefore critical to understand how teacher educators can provide the necessary support, systems and strategies to equip zimbabwean initial teachers to teach effectively – now and in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic. research questions • what are the critical skills that primary school teachers in zimbabwe need in order to teach effectively during the covid-19 pandemic and beyond? • how are zimbabwean teachers’ colleges and universities, training teachers to teach effectively during the covid-19 era and beyond? • what are the challenges faced in zimbabwe teacher development during the covid-19 pandemic? theoretical framework the study is underpinned by two theories – the framework of technology,pedagogy, and content knowledge (tpack) and the constructivism theory. according to harris and hofer (2011, p. 212) tpack is a specialised, highly applied knowledge that supports content-based knowledge integration.thus, tpack comprises three knowledge types, namely pedagogy, content and technology. when these three 10 contact: leonorah t. nyaruwata lenya54do@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. knowledge types are applied in the classroom appropriately, they blend together and create four intersections: pedagogical content knowledge (pck); technological content knowledge (tck); technological pedagogical knowledge (tpk); and technological pedagogical content knowledge (tpack). in addition, koehler et al. (2013) posit that the development oftpack teachers is critical for effective teaching with technology. as a framework of learning,tpack is relevant in this study as the researcher wished to establish how teacher trainees learn and teacher educators teach technology integration in the zimbabweteacher education system. this study is alsounderpinned bythe constructivismtheory whichwas developed by piaget (1964) and has influenced various learning theories and teaching methods in education.the theory of constructivist learning explains how people can acquire knowledge and learn,and it suggests first of all that “humansconstruct knowledge and meaning from their experiences” (bada, 2015, p. 66). a study on the constructivist approach in teacher preparation conducted in uganda by gusango et al. (2021) supports this theory of learning in teacher development. they concluded that the informed teaching of constructivists supports teaching effectiveness and promotes student learning, thus amplifying the need for reflective practice in instruction. constructivism is a theory of knowledge creation that argues that humans generate knowledge and meaning froman interaction between their experiences and their ideas. as a theory of learning, constructivism is therefore also relevant in this study as the researcherwished toestablish howteacher trainees learn andhow teacher educators teach technology integration. methodology used methodology comprises the paradigm, design, population, sampling techniques, data generation and analysis techniques used by the researcher in the study (burns &grove, 2003). this study was guided by constructivism as a qualitative research paradigm. the selection of the qualitative methodology is consistent with the view of creswell (2003) who posits that qualitative methodology is a suitable methodology for a study that is linked to attitudes, perceptions, meanings and descriptions of social reality. the present study sought to examine how the teacher educators taught teachers to integrate technology in teaching and learning during the covid-19 era and beyond. since a case study can be of a person, family or social group in their natural setting tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 11 (denzin & lincoln, 2000;cresswell, 2003), this research was a multiple case study of teachers’colleges and faculties of education in universities around harare. this study furthermore used the purposive sampling technique to sample information-rich participants who would be able to give an in-depth view (shaheen et al., 2016) of the training practices suitable for use in the covid-19era and beyond. information-rich cases contain issues that are important for this research, therefore, purposeful sampling was relevant. the category that was used for sampling the institution was the functional role of teacher training,while the categories for sampling participants were work experience and functional role.thus, schools, teachers’ colleges, and faculties of education were conveniently sampled.convenience sampling is a non-probability sampling technique that selects easy-to-reach institutions or participants with rich information about the phenomena (sedgwick, 2013). in addition, the target population for this study included experienced teachers (with ten years’ or more teaching experience), teacher educators (also with ten years’ experience in a teachers’ college) and faculty of education lecturers. i did not include deans, principals and heads of schools, mainly because they are not involved in the actual teaching. data was generated through an interview instrument. due to the covid-19 pandemic, a mixture of research tools was used,namely face-to-face interviews,email, zoom, whatsapp and google talk to generate the data. i made an appointment with the administrators of the faculty of education of three universities, two teachers’ colleges, three government schools and three private schools and subsequently visited the selected institutions to get contact details (e.g. telephone number and email address) of the educators and teachers who had ten years’ or more experience in their functional role. in the case of the teacher educators, i managed to get 30 names, contacted them and invited them to join the study. the educators who responded positively to this invitation were contacted again to arrange interviews. some opted for face-to-face interviews,while some preferred to have the questions posted by their email and two educators from one university faculty preferred to have a zoom meeting. after having interviewed16 of the educators, i concluded that a saturation point had been reached as there was no more new information from the participants. the 18teachers fromthree government schools andthree private schools thathad been suggestedby theeducation faculty administrators werecontacted next.it proved 12 contact: leonorah t. nyaruwata lenya54do@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. to be quite a challenge to arrange appointments with these teachers because most of them did not have email addresses – only whatsapp facilities. despite network challenges and lack of mobile data, i managed to secure 12 appointments. however, after having interviewed six of the teachers, i realised that they were now repeating what the others had said and therefore stopped the interviewing process. she did not confirm appointments with the last four teachers since, in my opinion, the study data had already been generated until saturation point. data was analysed through content analysis, which,according to hsieh and shannon (2016),is an analysis of what was said, written and recorded. the message or answers provided by the participants constitute the content that is analysed to deduct its meaning. after i conducted each face-to-face interview or read each email containing the interview answers or zoom meeting discussions, i wrote a script reflecting each participant’s information. i read the scripts of the educators over and over so as to understand the answers, and subsequently identified and categorised the similar answers to identify a theme emanating from such answers. the same was done with the data that had been generated from the teachers’ interviews. having reading all 24 scripts and coded and categorised the issues that emanated from the scripts,i identified the following themes: • pedagogies with a special emphasis on the use of technology • blended teaching and learning • challenges faced by teachers during the covid-19 pandemic • challenges faced by teacher educators during the covid-19 pandemic findings and discussion altogether 24 participants – ten teacher educators (te) from two teachers’ colleges and six from the faculty of education of three universities; as well as eight experienced teachers (et) (three from three government schools and five from three private schools) – took part in the study. pedagogieswith aspecialemphasisontheuseoftechnology all ten teacher educators stressed the need for pre-service and in-service teachers to tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 13 acquire pedagogical content knowledge.te4 and te7 made the following remark1: the pre-service and the in-service teachers, to be effective in the covid-19 pandemic era and beyond, need pedagogical knowledge with a special emphasis on the use of technology. this findingregarding pedagogicalknowledge needs further clarification in terms of what the teacher educators are advocating for. it is therefore critical to understand the meaning of pedagogy. siraj-blatchford et al. (2002, p. 10) defined pedagogy as follows: “… the instructional techniques and strategies that allow learning to take place. it refers to the interactive process between teacher/practitioner and learner and it is also applied to include the provision of some aspects of the learning environment (including the concrete learning, and the actions of the family and the community).” whatte4 andte7 meant is that,while the teachers are taught learning theories and principles of teaching, the covid-19 pandemic has shown that they will need to be taught principles and practices for integrating technology into online learning and teaching. while teachers were taught computer literacy as early as in the 1990s, they have not been taught how to function in a virtual classroom. it is therefore critical that teachers are equipped to prepare teaching materials and methods suitable for online teaching and learning. probably the best way to do this, is if teacher educators proactively model good e-learning practices in the way they prepare student teachers. te3 added that to be effective in the covid-19 pandemic era and beyond,teachers will need pedagogical knowledge and skills that are, broad principles and strategies of physical and virtual classroom management and organisation that is beyond subject matter. the need for pedagogical skills to work in the virtual classroom was echoed by the experienced teachers, and et2 said: for us to be able to operate successfully in the virtual classroom we need additional knowledge and skills of online teaching pedagogical skills, online content skills, online design skills, online technological skills, online management and institutional skills, and online social and communication skills. we also need to have internet research skills. skills to prerecord videos that are short and effective as well as preparing learning material suitable for online teaching and learning. 1 note that all participant remarks have been quoted verbatim. 14 contact: leonorah t. nyaruwata lenya54do@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. this finding is supported by the literature. for example, farquhar (2003, p. 3) posits that “quality teaching is defined as pedagogical practices that facilitate for diverse children, their access to knowledge, activities and opportunities to advance their skills in ways that build on previous learning, assist in learning how to learn and provide a strong foundation for further learning”. therefore, it is critical that teachers develop skills to integrate online pedagogical skills and knowledge so as to be functional professionals in the covid-19 pandemic era and beyond. et5 agreed: if we are to be effective teachers in the covid-19 pandemic era and beyond as teachers, we need to be competent in using: microsoft office (typing speed very essential), microsoft word, excel, powerpoint, adobe reader, outlook, teams, planning a weekly timetable, planning a weekly load,white board. et4 added: while we were taught how to prepare schemes of work and lesson plans, in this era and beyond, teachers need more skills and knowledge in using media technology, identifying websites with suitable content and all work to be converted into a suitable format e.g. pdf. i mean teachers need skills and knowledge to research on the world wide web. what et4 and et5 are saying is that, to be effective in teaching online, teachers need skills and knowledge that are beyond basic computer literacy. since teachers have not been trained to master modern technology that helps them to easily implement computer-assisted instruction (cai), they need to be equipped with the skills to use the computer effectively in teaching and learning.this finding is strongly supported in a study by albrahim (2020, p. 15) who lists six categories of skills required by teachers to effectively teach online: pedagogical skills; content skills; design skills; technological skills; management skills; institutional skills. in developing the teacher education curriculum during the covid-19 pandemic and beyond, teachers’ colleges and faculties of education will need to teach these skills as a priority. teacher educators put forward the concept of assessment. they argued that, in addition to the assessment skills that teachers need for the traditional classroom, they must understand the concept of on-demand examination (ode). te6 said: both in-service and pre-service teachers as they teach online, they need to understand and implement ode, where assessment takes place when the learner considers himself/herself ready to take an examination on one or more courses. the concept of ode is supported by okonkwo (2011) who posits that the on-demand examination system (odes) is an information, communication and tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 15 technology (ict-based innovation that enables the assessment of students as and when they feel ready.te9 andte10 added that teachers will need to • monitor pupils’ progress as they learn online; • record and report comparative information about pupils’ learning progress • select the most appropriate procedures and instruments for assessing pupils’ performance as they learn online, and • carry out continuous assessment of practical work online such as reading. this finding is supported by scholars as an important online activity.baht and bhat (2019) posit that formative assessment is performed through formal and informal tasks aimed at modifying teaching and learning activities so as to improve student attainment. on the other hand, summative assessments are used to evaluate student learning, skill acquisition and academic achievement at the end of a term or semester. thus, teacher educators need to add these skills to the curriculum to deliver teachers who are competent in the blended learning system that has been compelled by the onset of covid 19. blendedteachingandlearning all teacher educators agreed that teachers should continue to be developed through blended teaching and learning.the current model of one year in college, one year on teaching practice (augmented with assignments) and another year in college will continue to be applied in zimbabwe. this means that all teachers’ colleges in the country currently offer a component of open and distance elearning (odel) when the teachers are on teachingpractice.however, the prticipantsall alluded to the challenge ofassessing students’ teachingpractice.the covid-19rules andregulations made it difficult for teachers tophysically teachchildrenduring the lockdownperiods, and thus they have missed out on teaching practice and its assessment. te7 said:those student teachers attached to private schools have been able to have teacher educators attend their google virtual classrooms as they observed them teach. however,these are just a small number attached to few harare and bulawayo private schoolsthat have the facilities. blended learningcombines different methods of instructional technology and 16 contact: leonorah t. nyaruwata lenya54do@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. classroom teaching. at the zimbabwe open university (zou), blended learning has been carried out in several ways including (but not limited to) the following: traditional classrooms; cd-roms; tv; radio; managed learning environments (mle); microsoftteams; google talk. the blend has often involved a combination of any of the above learning methods, depending on their ability. while blended learning has traditionally been used at zou due to its adoption of the distance mode of teaching and learning, the level of technology use in blending learning has inevitably been increased by covid-19. the pandemic caused a far greater increase in the use of microsoft teams for lectures and tutorials than it did for face-to-face lectures and tutorials. all the teachereducatorscommentedonthe futuremodel for teacherdevelopment during and beyond the covid-19 pandemic and agreed that teacher training will be driven by the use of technology.te8 argued: to develop the teachers, teacher educators will need to create digital networks, create new educational landscape and be experts in the use of online learning and teaching tools. te3 added: teacher educators and the teachers already in the schools being asked to teach online will need to understand the concepts of synchronous and asynchronous learning. they also need to understand how to develop instructional materials specific for online teaching and learning. the covid-19 pandemic has literally forced the global village to teach not only children at all levels of schooling, but also pre-service and in-service teachers, through the model of open distance elearning (odel). the irony of this development is that the majority of teacher educators and teachers were never trained to use the odl or odel modes of teaching and learning. open and distance learning (odl) is the teaching and learning mode where the students may not always be physically present at the school/college/university campus. as a teaching and learning model it can comprise full-blown distance learning, or a combination of distance learning and traditional classroom instruction. traditionally, odl involves correspondence courses where the student is separated from the teacher and correspondence occurs via landmail. open and distance e-learning (odel) is different from odl because it has appropriated the modern technology of computers, the worldwide web, smartphones, tablets, conferencing, zoom and google meet, which has culminated in virtual learning or e-learning. with odel, the teachers and students can be either at a distance or meet in the classroom,and they can use the model of computer-assisted tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 17 instruction. to summarise, both teacher educators and experienced teachers noted the enormity of the challenges to be faced in using the odel teaching and learning mode in zimbabwean schools. challengesfacedbyteachersduringthecovid-19 pandemic the major challenge exposed by covid-19 and mentioned by all participants was the lack of access to the internet.as et1 said: connectivity is a major challenge at schools and in the community. most households do not have money to be connected, let alone having smart phones. et6 added that the unplanned move to online classroom platform resulted in a poor user experience due to lack of training, and little preparation. teachers do not have the online teaching skills. et2wentonand rated the situation in somegovernment schools aspatheticwhen it comes to online teaching and learning:some students were without reliable internet access and computers to use for their schoolwork. some struggled to participate in online learning. students from a privileged background had a computer to work on; those from disadvantaged backgrounds did not. challengesfacedbyteachereducatorsduringthecovid-19 pandemic the lack of technological resources was echoed by the teacher educators. te1 remarked that in our college there is a lack of resources (computers, wifi, data bundles) for both lecturers and student teachers.there is also lack of computer skills by lecturers and students. this is a common finding, especially in developing countries (edtech hub & e-learningafrica,2020;kilfoil,2015). conclusion it is concluded that the currentmodel for developingboth pre-service and in-service teachers inzimbabwe will need tobe adjusted to emphasise the equippingof trainees with technological and pedagogical skills for teaching online.teachers will need tobe equipped with additional skills relating to virtual classroom teaching strategies,while colleges and schools need to be equipped with modern technology and resources. 18 contact: leonorah t. nyaruwata lenya54do@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. furthermore, teacher educators as well as teacher trainees will need to acquire the skills for using the odel model of teaching and learning – during the pandemic and beyond. that is, they will have to master the necessaryknowledge and skills to integrate ict in blended learning and teaching. recommendations it is recommended that the experienced teachers and teacher educators attend staff development activities so as to acquire the skills for developing virtual classroom teaching and learning strategies. also, the technological infrastructure in zimbabwe should be upgraded to allow lecturers, teachers and students easy access to internet services. references albrahim, f. a. 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(2017). blended learning:an innovative approach.universal journal of educationalresearch, 5(1),129-136.https://doi.org/10.13189/ujer edtechhub&e-learningafrica.(2020).the effect of covid-19 on education inafrica and its implications for the use oftechnology:a survey of the experience and opinions of tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 19 educators andtechnology specialists.https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4018774 harris, j. b. & hofer m. j. (2011). technological pedagogical content knowledge (tpack) in action:a descriptive study of secondary teachers’ curriculum-based, technology-related instructional planning. journal of research on technology in education, 43(3),211-229. farquhar, s.e. (2003). quality teaching early foundations: best evidence synthesis. new zealand. ministry of education. https://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/ publications garrison, d.r., & vaughan, n.d. 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(2019). challenges and benefits of blended learning in higher education. international journal of technology in education, 2(1), 22-31.https://files.eric.ed.gov/ fulltext/ej1264247.pdf okonkwo,c.a. (2011).adapting on demand examination system in national open universityofnigeria endof semester examination.turkish online journal of distance education,12(4),167-178.https://www.researchgate.net/publication/292433732 pape, l. (2010). blended teaching and learning. education digest: essential readings condensed for quick review, 76(2),22-27.www.eddigest.com piaget, j.(1964).development and learning. in r.e.ripple& v.e.rockcastle (eds.), piaget rediscovered (pp.7-20).reprinted in readings on the development of children, by m.gauvainand & m.cole(eds.).w.h.freeman. sedgwick, p. (2013). convenience sampling. british medical journal, 347. https://doi. org/10.1136/bmj.f6304 siraj-blatchford, i., sylva, k., muttock, s., gilden, r.,&bell, d. (2002). researching effective pedagogy in the earlyyears.http://dera.ioe.ac.uk/id/eprint/4650 surbramaniam, s.r.,& muniandy, b. (2016). concept and characteristics of flipped classroom. international journal of emerging trends in science and technology, 3, 46684670.https://dx.doi.org/10.18535/ijetst/v3i10.01 tselios, n., daskalakis, s., & papadopoulou, m. (2011).assessing the acceptance of a blended learning university course. educational technology &society,14, 224-235. http://www.ifets.info/journals/14_2/19.pdf united nations. (2020). policy brief: education during covid-19and beyond https:// www.un.org/development/desa/dspd/wp wu, j.h., tennyson, r.d., & hsia, t.l. (2010). a study of student satisfaction in a blended e-learning system environment. computers & education,15,155-164. https://openriver.winona.edu/cgi/viewcontent tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 21 official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za contact: samuel o. babalola so.babalola@mail.ui.edu.ng https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4423-3936 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 30 a two-prong approach for enhancing teaching and learning for 21st century skills development in oyo state, nigeria samuel o babalola department of arts and social science education, university of ibadan, nigeria issn: 2788-6298 doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v2i1.87 abstract formal education in the 21st century is focused on the development of learners’ skills and competencies essential to navigate the complexities and uncertainties of the age. effective acquisition of these skills in the school is predicated on adequate provision of technological resources, adequate school infrastructure and continuous professional development of teachers for innovative instructional delivery. therefore, this study was carried out to investigate the extent to which infrastructural provisions and continuous professional development of teachers in secondary schools in nigeria support the development and acquisition of 21st century teaching and learning skills. the study which adopted the impact of school infrastructure on learning by barrett et al.as a conceptual framework, used descriptive survey design. two self-constructed instruments were used to collect data from (20) selected secondary schools, (50) teachers and (200) students. data were analysed using frequency count, percentage score, mean, and standard deviation. findings showed that the schools visited lack infrastructural provisions, the teachers do not have the requisite skills and the students are not aware of any other means of learning different from the conventional styles offered by their teachers. therefore, this study offered a two-prong approach of immediate provision of technological infrastructure for schools and the development of teachers’ professional skills through focused training targeted at enhancing their technological instructional delivery skills. keywords: 21st century, teaching skills, learning skills, 21st century classrooms, teachers and learners. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: samuel o. babalola so.babalola@mail.ui.edu.ng https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4423-3936 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 31 introduction technological advancement has changed the traditional narratives of every sector known to man. it has brought meaningful changes and alteration to the traditional organisation of every sector. significantly, the education sector has witnessed tremendous revolution since the turn of the century in the areas of school enrolment, curricular provisions, school administration, teachinglearning processes and societal expectations of students’ learning outcomes. coping with current challenges requires certain skills and competencies which are expected to be fostered through formal education. makuma (2016) explained that surviving in the 21st century requires a sound education which offers a wide perspective on issues of global awareness, environmental literacy, digital literacy, and civic competence. through acquisition of formal education, individuals are expected to develop skills and capabilities to meaningfully contribute to the development of their societies. as explained by tan, choo, kang and liem (2017) formal education should promote the acquisition of competencies in the areas of: creative thinking, creativity, collaboration, communication, socio-emotional and lifelong learning aptitudes, resilience, and positive self-concept. in the same vein, makuma (2016) highlighted 21st century competencies to include critical thinking, problem solving, digital literacy, communication skills, social and cultural skills. each of these highlighted skills is essential in navigating the structural complexities of daily life. 21st century teaching skills teaching in the 21st century has assumed a sophisticated dimension which is driven by technology. boholano (2017) explained that if the process of teaching will stimulate the necessary skills development of leaners, teachers are expected to possess sound and up to date instructional delivery strategies to aid their professional practice. in the past, the use of technology and flipped, blended and flexible educational provision was associated to open and distance education instructional delivery as open and distance instructors were expected to have these skills. however, the professional demands of the age require all teachers to focus on real-world problems and processes, support child centred and inquiry-based learning approaches, engage collaborative learning strategies and focus on guiding learners on how they can learn ahead of what to learn to promote the development of 21st century skills in their classrooms (pacific policy research center, 2010). furthermore, tsisana (2015) maintained that a 21st century teacher should be able to offer personalised instruction by creating classroom environments where learners can make their own learning choices which produce intrinsic motivation. as such the 21st century teacher needs to develop expertise in handling new technologies (hard and soft), collaborate with students in creating digital resources and projects, innovate and maintain a positive disposition to life-long learning. charalambidis (2014) while explaining the 21st century demands of teaching pointed teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: samuel o. babalola so.babalola@mail.ui.edu.ng https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4423-3936 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 32 out that teachers have to understand the creative use of ict tools, utilise up-to-date teaching strategies, intuitive assessment methods and lead and teach by example in order to assist learners to develop proficiency in critical thinking, effective communicate, collaboration and creativity. however, the pacific policy research center (2010) maintained that for meaningful transformation to occur there is need to provide teachers with strong support systems and opportunities for professional development. it is when professional development is in place that teachers will be able to acquire skills and competencies to teach for the development of 21st century skills development. bybee & starkweather (2006); may (2018) and bicaj, & treska, t. 2014 explained that professional development of teachers must of a necessity focus on how to use technology to improve students’ achievements and how to instruct using standard-based lesson infused with technology. this implies that professional development programmes for teachers should be intentional with the aim of reshaping their classroom practice to be 21st century compliant. as suggested by guskey (2002), the professional development of teachers is not expected to end in a workshop or symposium but that there should be a follow up to the classroom level where the practice of the teacher can be observed and required assistance can be provided in form of support or mentoring. this helps teachers to translate knowledge acquired through professional development into actual classroom practice. guskey (2002) also corroborated the fact that teaching 21st century skills is mandated on providing teachers with continuous professional development that is supportive and allows them to question, practice, and explore emerging technologies. guskey states that before a teacher can effectively teach and encourage 21st century learning, they must have the interest, motivation, and support to do so. 21st century learning skills learning in the 21st century has taken a paradigm shift from the past century which was dominated by ‘talk and chalk’ method of instruction otherwise referred to as the teacher-centred method. the education of the past century is no longer sufficient for preparing learners in this century for the complex challenges of the global market. darling-hammond (2010) confirms that the skills needed for the 21st century global economy cannot be learnt in traditional educational systems. there is need for higher order cognitive engagement in the areas of critical and analytical thinking, problem solving, effective communication, digital literacy and global citizenship, (mbaka, 2014). the success of learners lies in their ability to connect, share and utilise information to solve complex problems, their capability to adapt and demonstrate innovative skills based on the demands of their environments, and the know-how to utilise the technological skills to expand the frontiers of knowledge. charalambidis (2014) maintains that the 21st century skills do not have specific descriptions, but that they are aimed at communicating the fact that technology has brought about changes in the teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: samuel o. babalola so.babalola@mail.ui.edu.ng https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4423-3936 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 33 way things are being done and that the skills used in the past are no longer sufficient to cope with the demands of work in the present time. a review of related literature on what constitutes the 21st century learning skills shows that there is a uniform understanding about the 4cs which are: critical thinking and problem solving, collaboration, communication and creativity. the 4cs are the higher-order thinking, cognitive and social competencies considered as requirements for success in the future (organisation of economic cooperation and development, 2005). in the words of grose (2014), the 4cs enable 21st century learners to think in innovative ways with the ability to ask meaningful and interrogating questions of ‘why’, ‘what’, and ‘how’ so as to find profound answers that could serve as solutions to their curiosity. similarly, pacific policy research center, (2010), charalambidis (2014) and tan, choo, kang and liem (2017) amongst others have identified the followings as additional skills 21st century learners need to include: digital and information literacy, innovation and lifelong learning skills, meta-cognition, teamwork, flexibility, adaptability, global awareness, learning to learn, personal and social responsibility, environmental awareness, financial literacy, leadership, social-cultural skills, self-direction, etc. these highlighted skills in the explanation of grose (2014), cover the three important domains of learning which are: the cognitive, the intra-personal and the interpersonal. it has been argued that the 21st century skills are not new, that they are skills that have been from time immemorial, but the mastery of these skills by learners in this century and their ability to maximise technology-driven learning paradigms to develop their potentials and expertise is the great advantage of the 21st century learner and learning in this age. 21st century school and classrooms the school plays a significant role in the life of a learner. the school in the 21st century is expected to provide the learner with new skills that must support their development in the society together their readiness to take up the world of work. never before has the social development and economic organisation placed such an enormous demand on the school. the future reality requires more of today’s learners to have 21st century compliant skills along with their qualifications to be able to cope with the demands of this century in handling uncertainties, taking risks, working independently and with others; create solutions and make positive contributions to their societies which have become culturally diverse. a 21st century school has to respond to these demands by putting structures in place to ensure that the expectations of the society are met. thus, the on-going discussion among scholars, researchers and developmental agencies about what should constitute the 21st century learning environments in terms of infrastructural provisions, pedagogical approaches, technological application, classroom atmosphere, etc. 21st century schools according to the pacific policy research center (2010) is that learning environment where support systems are provided to organise the condition where learners can learn best. it is such an environment where the learning needs of an individual are catered for and where support is provided for positive human interaction for effective learning. it is also an teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: samuel o. babalola so.babalola@mail.ui.edu.ng https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4423-3936 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 34 environment where physical spaces (school atmosphere and classrooms), course contents, learning materials, learning activities, technology infrastructure, community involvements, etc. support the acquisition of skills and competencies that the 21st century requires. for a school to be 21st century compliant, the pacific policy research center (2010) states further that, such schools should: a. enhance the creation of learning practices, human support and physical environments that will aid teaching-learning of 21st century skills. b. aid professional learning groups that will promote the collaboration of teachers to share experiences and infuse 21st century relevant skills into their instructional delivery. c. promote real-world experiences among learners through the use of personalised instructions and constructivist approaches. d. provide equal access to learning materials, technologies, resources, etc. e. create classroom atmosphere (furniture, interior design, sitting arrangements) that allow for student collaboration, group work and individual learning. f. promote continuous learning through virtual and face-to-face interaction. black (2007) and sack-min (2007) argue that the quality of the learning environment (where students learn) affects the quality of how students learn and the quality of how students learn will undoubtedly affect the quality of what they learn. cornell (2002) submitted that 21st century learning needs to take place in an environment that fosters deep interaction and a sense of community that promotes organised and informal type of learning. saxena (2013) while listing the characteristics of a 21st century classroom maintained that the focus of a 21st century classroom should be to provide learning experiences for students in an environment that is similar to what they will enter as modern day workers, stimulate their higher order thinking skills through skilful utilisation of technology and computer devices. in the area of pedagogy, he maintained that teachers must engage learners through new teaching strategies and effective instructional methods aided with technology to stimulate learners to take control of their learning and become knowledge producers. saxena (2013) listed the characteristics of a 21st century classroom to include: a. a student-centred classroom where students’ interests, needs, abilities and learning styles take priority and learners play active role in their learning. b. an organised learning environment that is well planned and organised with flexible sitting arrangement. c. a furnished classroom with computer devices, interactive whiteboards, lcd screens, projector, and internet provisions for online research and engaging instruction. using teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: samuel o. babalola so.babalola@mail.ui.edu.ng https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4423-3936 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 35 these devices is effective in stimulating active participation and engagement of learners in meaningful learning. d. an adaptive learning environment that gives freedom to learners to learn at their pace using specific software to enhance learning. furthermore, goertz (2015) listing the characteristics of a 21st century classroom highlighted the integration of technology, collaborative environment, hands-on learning, teacher as facilitator, transparent assessment amongst others as the characteristics of a 21st century classroom. canez (2018) explaining the importance of technology in the 21st century classroom submitted that through technology students can personalise their learning and that through technological programs and software students can use devices to create new things, collaborate, explore contents and widen their exposure and knowledge. statement of the problem education in the 21st century is geared towards the development of learners’ competencies in the areas of critical thinking, problem solving, effective communication and collaboration skills, socio-emotional intelligence, global awareness, aptitude for lifelong learning amongst others. to achieve this, scholars have agreed that purposeful and continuous professional development of teachers enabling them to offer personalised instruction, develop expertise in handling digital resources and utilise relevant assessment techniques is vital. furthermore, the provision of technological resources to cater for learners needs and stimulate their learning capabilities coupled with adequate infrastructural provision in the school are indispensable to effective teaching and learning for 21st century skills development. previous studies have focused on the lack of adequate provision of school infrastructures and professional development of teachers without examining their implications for 21st century skills acquisition in teaching and learning in secondary schools. therefore, this study was carried out to investigate the extent to which infrastructural provisions and continuous professional development of teachers in secondary schools in nigeria supports the development and acquisition of 21st century teaching and learning skills. research questions 1. what are the existing infrastructural provisions in nigerian secondary school classrooms that can aid teaching-learning for 21st century skills development? 2. is there provision for teachers’ continuous professional development? 3. to what extent do secondary school teachers demonstrate 21st century teaching skills in their classrooms? 4. what is the profile of the 21st century learning skills of secondary school students in nigeria? teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: samuel o. babalola so.babalola@mail.ui.edu.ng https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4423-3936 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 36 conceptual framework in an elaborate study carried out in developed, developing and under-developed educational systems, barrett, treves, shmis, ambasz and ustinova (2019), concluded that irrespective of the nature of educational systems, infrastructural provisions in schools directly impact school learning and directly affect students’ learning outcomes. they maintained that the nature of school buildings and layouts of learning spaces (classrooms), technology-based content and devices, innovative learning classrooms, and highly skilled teaching personnel who are attuned to learners’ characteristics contributes significantly to desirable outcomes in learning and education. in their submission, they revealed that education does not and cannot happen in a vacuum, decent school infrastructure serves as motivation for meaningful teaching and learning. on the other hand, they submitted that when schools are dirty, ugly and are ill-equipped, students learn the diminished value that their schools place on them and their future. asaaju (2012), summarised that availability of quality school infrastructure and adequacy of this infrastructure is one of the ways to guarantee quality output in any educational system. by concluding on the importance of infrastructural provision in schools as a significant factor that directly impacts students learning outcomes, the submission of barrett, treves, shmis, ambasz and ustinova (2019), is unique to this study in that it assists the researcher to explain amongst others, the pivotal role of human and non-human infrastructural schools provision as two most critical factors that are required in teaching and preparing secondary school students for the acquisition of 21st century learning skills. it is also useful in explaining that irrespective of the region or nature of the educational system, the output of any educational system cannot be better than the quality of investment in infrastructural schools provision and continuous professional development of its teachers. methodology the study adopted descriptive survey design. simple random sampling technique was used to select twenty (20) public secondary schools in ibadan metropolis, oyo state, nigeria. ten (10) senior secondary school ii (penultimate year) students were randomly selected from each school, a total of 200 students participated in the study. this was after approval and permission had been given by the school authority. fifty (50) teachers that participated in the study were randomly selected from the twenty (20) schools. teachers participated based on interest/willingness after they had been assured of confidentiality and that the purpose is strictly for research. two selfconstructed likert instruments on a four-point scale (not at all = 1, a little extent = 2, some extent = 3 and great extent = 4) titled “teachers’ 21st century teaching skill questionnaire (t2ctsq)” with reliability coefficient of .950 and “students’ 21st century learning skill questionnaire (s2clsq)” with reliability coefficient of .945 were used to collect data from the teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: samuel o. babalola so.babalola@mail.ui.edu.ng https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4423-3936 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 37 teachers and students. explanation was given to the students to assist them in completing the questionnaire. the sections b of the two self-constructed instruments were used to collect data on infrastructural provisions in all the selected schools. data collected were analysed using frequency count, percentage score, mean, (the weighted mean average of 2.50 being the mean value of the 4-point likert scale was used as decision rule) and standard deviation. the statistical package for the social sciences, version 21 was used to analyse the data. results research question 1: what are the existing infrastructural provisions in nigerian school classrooms that can aid teaching-learning for 21st century skills development? teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: samuel o. babalola so.babalola@mail.ui.edu.ng https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4423-3936 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 38 table 1 21st century infrastructural classroom provisions in nigerian secondary schools s/n items which of the following are present in the classrooms where you teach? available not available 1 white boards 2 (4%) 47 (96%) 2 interactive boards 1 (2%) 47 (96%) 3 functional computer systems 50 (100%) 4 computer software or applications for teaching 50 (100%) 5 projectors, video players, smart screens, etc. 50 (100%) 6 internet provision/connectivity 50 (100%) 7 conducive learning environment (furniture, interior design, sitting arrangements in groups, classroom lighting, etc.) 5 (10%) 45 (90%) 8 electricity supply 2 (4%) 48 (96%) teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: samuel o. babalola so.babalola@mail.ui.edu.ng https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4423-3936 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 39 table 1 presents the results of 21st century infrastructural classroom provisions in nigerian schools. it shows that the classrooms lack minimum 21st century infrastructural provisions such as electricity supply as many of the schools are not connected to electricity. all of the selected schools do not have computers, internet connectivity, projectors, video players, smart screens, interactive boards etc. however, the table shows that few of the respondents identified interactive boards, whiteboards and electricity supply as available in their schools. research question 2: is there provision for teachers’ continuous professional development? table 2 teachers’ continuous professional development s/n when was the last time you participated in the following? yes no 1 workshops/seminars on the creative use of ict for effective instructional delivery 44 (100%) 2 a workshop/seminar for teachers on innovative instructional or teaching strategies 49 (100%) 3 a seminar/training on 21st century teaching skills and assessment techniques 49 (100%) 4 professional development programme sponsored by your employer 6 (12.5%) 42 87.5%) teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: samuel o. babalola so.babalola@mail.ui.edu.ng https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4423-3936 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 40 table 2 shows the provision for teachers’ continuous professional development available to improve their teaching skills in line with 21st century practices. it showed that item 1, 2, and 3 were ranked negatively by 100% of the participants, respectively, while item 4 was positively ranked by 12.% of the participants and ranked negatively by 87.5%. this implies that there was no adequate provision for continuous teachers’ professional development in secondary schools. research question 3: to what extent do school teachers in nigeria demonstrate 21st century teaching skills in their classrooms? table 3 nigerian teachers’ practice of 21st century teaching skills in the classroom s/n items to what extent do you do the following while teaching in the classroom: not at all (f) (%) a little extent (f) (%) some extent (f) (%) great exten t (f) (%) mean std. 1 offer personalized instruction(s) to students 34 (70.8%) 14 29.2% ) 1.29 .459 2 utilise child-centred strategies in teaching. 31 (64.6%) 11 (22.9 %) 6 (12.5%) 1.48 .714 3 allow students to provide solutions to real-world problems. 23 (47.9%) 17 (35.4 %) 8 (16.7%) 1.69 .748 4 teach students by creatively engaging technological devices. 36 (85.7%) 6 (14.3 %) 1.14 .354 5 allow students to work together or in groups. 13 (28.9%) 19 (42.2 %) 13 (28.9%) 2.00 .769 6 practice classroom-based assessment for learning. 33 (67.3) 16 (32.7) 1.33 .474 7 provide students with real-world experiences. 24 (48.0%) 16 (32.0 %) 10 (20.0%) 1.72 .784 8 play relevant videos to illustrate a lesson to students. 34 (70.8%) 14 (29.2 %) 1.29 .459 9 take students out to important places relevant to building real-world experiences. 41 (87.2%) 6 (12.8 %) 1.13 .337 teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: samuel o. babalola so.babalola@mail.ui.edu.ng https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4423-3936 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 41 s/n items to what extent do you do the following while teaching in the classroom: not at all (f) (%) a little extent (f) (%) some extent (f) (%) great exten t (f) (%) mean std. 10 allow students to use the internet to carry out research on a topic of interest. 38 (88.4%) 3 (7.0%) 2 (4.7%) 1.16 .485 11 collaborate with students to provide a solution to an identified problem in your school or community. 31 (66.0%) 13 (27.7 %) 3 (6.4%) 1.40 .614 12 collaborate with other teachers to improve your pedagogical skills. 22 (45.8%) 16 (33.3 %) 10 (20.8%) 1.75 .786 key: not at all = 1, a little extent = 2, some extent = 3 and great extent = 4 weighted mean = 1.47 table 3 presents nigerian teachers’ demonstration of 21st century teaching skills in the classroom. even though fifty (50) teachers participated in the study, some items were left unchecked by the respondents. this explains why many of the items have frequency values that are less than fifty (50). table 3 shows that • item 1 was ranked positively by 29.2% of the respondents, while 70.8% ranked negatively. • item 2 was ranked positively by 29.2% of the respondents, while 64.6% ranked negatively. • item 3 was ranked positively by 16.7% of the respondents, while 83.3% ranked negatively. • item 4 was ranked negatively by 100% of the respondents. • item 5 was ranked positively by 28.9% of the respondents, while 71.1% ranked negatively. • item 6 was ranked negatively by 100% of the respondents. • item 7 was ranked positively by 20% of the respondents, while 80% ranked negatively. • item 8 and 9 was ranked negatively by 100% of the respondents, while • item 10 was ranked positively by 4.7% of the respondents and negatively by 95.7%. • item 11 and 12 were ranked positively by 6.4% and 20.8% of the respondents, while 94.6% and 79.2% ranked negatively. therefore, the extent of teachers’ demonstration of 21st century teaching skills in their classrooms is critically low as shown by the weighted mean (1.47) which is far below the established criterion norm of 2.5. the statistical package for the social science (spss) version 21 was used to obtain the frequency and the mean values. research question 4: what is the profile of the 21st century learning skills of secondary school students in nigeria? teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: samuel o. babalola so.babalola@mail.ui.edu.ng https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4423-3936 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 42 table 4 profile of 21st century learning skills of students in secondary schools in nigeria s/n items do you manifest these skills in learning important concepts in and out of the classroom? not at all f (%) a little f (%) someti mes f (%) alwa ys f (%) mean std. 1 discover/stumble on new facts as a result of deep thinking about a specific problem? 121 (64.4%) 38 (20.2%) 29 (15.4%) 1.51 .749 2 engage in critical thinking together with your classmates to provide answers to difficult problems given to you as group work or project? 136 (74.4% & 26 (14.3%) 16 (8.8%) 4 (2.2% ) 1.38 .740 3 collaborate with your teachers and students to solve identified problems in your school or community? 127 (67.9%) 26 (13.9%) 24 (12.8%) 10 (5.3% ) 1.56 .910 4 participate in classroom activities by asking questions from your teachers? 93 (50.3%) 23 (12.4%) 37 (20.0%) 31 (16.8 %) 2.14 1.88 0 5 have you ever been taught by your teachers with computers, phones, videos, etc.? 148 (74.7%) 28 (14.1%) 17 (8.6%) 5 (2.5% ) 1.39 .751 6 can you relate well with students who are not from your ethnic or religious group? 31 (15.5%) 63 (31.5%) 106 (53.0 %) 3.38 .740 7 utilise devices such as computers, phones, tablets etc. to complete your class activities or assignments? 162 (83.5%) 13 (6.7%) 12 (6.2%) 7 (3.6% ) 1.30 .743 8 solve problems relating to your schoolwork through searching the internet for solutions or answers? 174 (95.6%) 7 (3.8%) 1 (.5%) 1.05 .241 9 participate in internet or online learning activities with your classmates or people who are in separate locations? 143 (79.0%) 20 (11.0%) 10 (5.5%) 8 (4.4% ) 1.35 .779 10 can speak with confidence among your peers in the class without feeling afraid? 78 (39.2%) 42 (21.1%) 46 (23.1%) 33 (16.6 %) 2.17 1.12 4 key: not at all = 1, a little extent = 2, some extent = 3 and great extent = 4 weighted mean = 1.72 teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: samuel o. babalola so.babalola@mail.ui.edu.ng https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4423-3936 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 43 table 4 presents the profile of 21st century learning skills of students in nigeria. even though two hundred students were selected to participate in the study, some of these students did not respond to some items in the questionnaire. this is the reason why many of the items on the table have frequency values less than two hundred 200. the table shows that • item 1 was ranked positively by 15.4% of the participants, while 84.6% ranked negatively. • item 2 was ranked positively by 11% of the participants, while 89% ranked negatively. • item 3 was ranked positively by 18.1% of the participants, while 81.9 ranked negatively. • item 4 was ranked positively by 36.8% of the participants, while 62.7% ranked negatively. • item 5 was ranked positively by 11.1% of the participants, while 88.8% ranked negatively. • item 6 was positively ranked by 84.5% of the participants, while 15.5 ranked negatively. • item 7 was ranked positively by 9.8% of the participants, while 90.2% ranked negatively. • item 8 was ranked positively by .5% of the participants, while 99.5 ranked negatively. • item 9 was ranked positively by 9.9% of the participants, while 90% ranked negatively. • item 10 was ranked positively by 39.7% of the participants, while 40.3% ranked negatively. therefore, the 21st century learning skills of students are critically low and inadequate as shown by the weighted mean (1.72), which is far below the established criterion norm of 2.5. discussion of findings infrastructural provisions in secondary schools classrooms and 21st century skills development in oyo state, nigeria findings from the data analysed show that public secondary school classrooms in ibadan, oyo state, nigeria lacks 21st century infrastructural provisions. in its present condition, the standard of the public secondary school classrooms in ibadan, oyo state, falls short of what is expected in the 21st century. the poor state of infrastructural provisions in secondary schools in different parts of nigeria have been decried in separate studies carried out by oladunni, oladipo and ayovaughan (2014); amadi and ohaka (2018); asaaju, (2012) and ojeje and adodo, (2018). in most states in nigeria, public secondary school classrooms lack basic infrastructural provisions in an era when developed nations like the united kingdom and others are investing heavily in projects aimed at exploring the nature of future classrooms and exemplar designs for schools. this why mbaka (2014), established that investing in 21st century infrastructural provisions for education is not optional since it is at the forefront of driving knowledge economy, reducing digital divide among countries and growing the economy. quite significantly, the submissions of barrett, treves, shmis, ambasz and ustinova (2019), which formed the conceptual framework of this study corroborates that decent school infrastructure serve as motivation for meaningful teaching and learning. no educational system can fully realise its educational potential without heavy investment in infrastructural provisions in schools and by extension the classroom. by implication, if oyo state intends to prepare students with 21st century skills for the global economy which is teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: samuel o. babalola so.babalola@mail.ui.edu.ng https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4423-3936 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 44 driven largely by human capital development, technology and the internet, there must be a radical attempt to change the current state of infrastructural provisions in schools. as observed by canez (2018) and barrett et al. (2019), irrespective of the region or nature of the educational system, when there is 21st century infrastructural provision which is central to 21st century skills acquisition in the classroom, students are able to interact, collaborate and provide solutions to a wide range of problems. it gives them a sense of independence to learn at their pace and also affords them the ability to explore, analyse, create and communicate facts from their personal or collective projects. nigerian teachers’ continuous professional development and demonstration of 21st century teaching skills findings from the data analysed show that the 21st century teaching skills of teachers is very poor. these results really cannot be separated from the poor continuous professional training of teachers and the dearth of 21st century infrastructural provisions currently witnessed in many secondary schools in nigeria. barett et al. (2019), attributed highly skilled teaching personnel to positive students learning outcomes. they argued that effective learning outcomes does not and cannot happen in a vacuum and insisted that only skilled personnel equipped with decent school infrastructure can facilitate gainful teaching and learning. it is practically difficult for teachers to develop 21st century teaching competencies when they are not exposed to innovative and personalised teaching strategies through workshops, seminars and specialised training sessions. it is disturbing that many of these teachers have not gone through any form of professional development in line with 21st century teaching strategies and assessment techniques. several scholars have established that students may not be able to acquire 21st century competencies without teachers who have been trained specifically to provide instructions that will support the acquisition of these skills. such training is expected to cover curriculum modelling, digital instruction, up-to-date instructional strategies, relevant classroom-based assessment techniques, and creative use of ict. (pacific policy research center, 2010; charalambidis, 2014; and tsisana 2015). 21st century learning skills of students in schools in nigeria the findings show that the profile of 21st century learning skills of students is critically low. many of the students do not have learning skills in areas critical to 21st century learning such as critical thinking, technological applications, etc. in this study, what is attributed to teachers’ lack of 21st century teaching skills cannot be separated from students’ lack of 21st century learning skills since these skills and competencies cannot be acquired in isolation. for students to acquire 21st century skills, they must be guided and imparted by a teacher who has acquired these skills. as explained by pacific policy research center (2010), charalambidis (2014) and tan, choo, kang and liem (2017) technological skills, information literacy, metacognition, etc. are essential skills teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: samuel o. babalola so.babalola@mail.ui.edu.ng https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4423-3936 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 45 that 21st century learners should possess to contribute effectively to the society and stay competitive in the future. summary and recommendation the results of this study have established a relationship between adequate provision of school infrastructures, continuous professional development of teachers and the acquisition of 21st century teaching and learning skills in secondary schools. it has shown that teachers in public secondary schools in ibadan, oyo state, nigeria lack continuous professional development which is taking its toll on their inability to demonstrate 21st century teaching skills such as delivering personalised instruction amongst others. furthermore, the study reported a dearth in the infrastructural/technological provision in the classrooms and this have been linked to the inability of students to acquire skills such as problem-solving, metacognition, collaboration and teamwork which are germane to 21st century learning. it has been explained that with this trend of findings it will be difficult for nigeria education system to prepare students with skills and competencies required to meaningfully participate in 21st century knowledge economy. therefore, this study recommends that government (at all levels) and all stakeholders who are saddled with the responsibility of controlling secondary education sector, particularly the oyo state government of nigeria, should as a matter of urgency accelerate the provision of technological and physical infrastructures for public secondary schools in oyo state. this also applies to other state governments in nigeria. it is also recommended that deliberate effort should be made to provide continuous professional skills development for teachers of public secondary schools, so they could be exposed to innovative and technological instructional strategies. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: samuel o. babalola so.babalola@mail.ui.edu.ng https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4423-3936 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 46 references amadi, n. s. & ohaka, a. o. 2018. influence of poor infrastructure on vocational teacher education in rivers state universities. international journal of innovative social & science education research. vol. 6:1, 54-62. www.seahipaj.org asaaju, o. a. 2012. reconstruction of infrastructure for quality assurance in nigeria public secondary schools. procedia – socialand behavioural sciences 69. 924 – 932. www.sciencedirect.com barrett, p., treves, a., shmis, t., ambasz, d., & ustinova, m. 2019. the impact of school infrastructure on learning: a synthesis of the evidence. world bank group. doi: 10.1596/978-14648-1378-8 bicaj, a. & treska, t. 2014. the effect of teacher professional development in raising the quality of teaching. academic journal of interdisciplinary studies. vol. 3:(6) boholano h. b. 2017. smart social networking: 21st century teaching and learning skills. research in pedagogy, vol. 7:1, 21-29. bybee, r. w., & starkweather, k. n. 2006. the twenty-first century workforce: a contemporary challenge for technology education. the technology teacher (may/june 2006), 27-32. canez, d. 2018. 21st century learning practices: a case study of student response and motivation in the classroom. m. a. dissertation in education. san marcos: california state university. charalambidis, d. 2014. ict in the future classrooms and teaching: preparing the knowledge workers of the 21st century. international federation for information processing workshop. ifip aict 437, 56–62. darling-hammond, l. 2010. the flat world and education: how america’s commitment to equity will determine our future. new york, ny: teachers college press. goertz, p. 2015. 10 signs of a 21st century classroom. 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international license. 156 derived knowledge and lived experiences of teachers working in resourceconstrained multilingual classrooms margaret funke omidire department of educational psychology, faculty of education, university of pretoria, south africa issn: 2788-6298 doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v2i1.92 abstract due to global migration, multilingual classrooms are currently a common feature not just in postcolonial contexts but also in developed economies. the perceived challenges created by multiple languages in single classrooms have been well documented, and all stakeholders have to be involved in finding strategies to overcome these challenges and change perceptions. using a case study design and sociocultural theory as lens, this study explored the perspectives and experiences of teachers with teaching and learning in resourceconstrained multilingual classrooms. the participants were teachers (n=67; female n=51; male n=16) from nine schools in gauteng province of south africa. the findings suggest that the participants were divided in their perceptions and experiences of multilingual classrooms. while some viewed multilingualism as a constraint to effective teaching and learning; others wanted more to be done to accommodate learners. it is evident that teachers prioritise the necessity for pre-service teacher education that focus on teaching pedagogy appropriate for the multilingual context they work in every day. in addition, the teachers emphasised a range of support strategies they currently use. it is argued that structured variations of the teachers' strategies be developed and distance education employed for the professional development of in-service teachers working in multilingual contexts. keywords: multilingualism; language, teaching, learning, teachers' experience, distance education teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5784-7734 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 157 introduction the role of teachers in facilitating learning is an important one that cannot be dismissed even with the current advancement of technology and the internet. the derived knowledge and lived experiences of teachers working in multilingual classrooms and the methods used to navigate the challenges in these spaces, whether perceived or real, become pertinent. the narrative of viewing multilingualism as a barrier to learning could be redefined by exploring the wealth of knowledge teachers have in facilitating learning in these environments (omidire, 2019). teaching and learning in many sub-saharan african countries occur within multilingual contexts. multilingual contexts and policies governing them create complexities in the systems that result in the majority of students striving to be included during lessons across the spectrum from primary and secondary schools to higher institutions. teachers' language proficiency, classroom participation norms, teaching experience and attitudes towards home languages can all shape how learning transpires. therefore, interrogating their experiences and learning from that can provide possible solutions to the challenges faced in the learning environment. contexts of education education practices in many postcolonial sub-saharan african countries are conducted within multilingual contexts where the local languages are used in communities alongside english, french or portuguese that are used as the languages of instruction. most countries have developed educational policies aimed at ensuring that students are provided with quality education (unesco & unicef, 2013), that is, education that would equip students with the competencies and skills they need to function effectively in the world outside the school (scott, 2015). these competencies ensure that learners develop the attitudes and skills to become critically reflective adults, who are functional members of the societies to which they belong (ndofirepi, 2012). there are several challenges that truncate the achievement of these goals, and one of them is when language constitutes a barrier to learning. monar-lopez and villar (2018), opine that students are disadvantaged in respect of performing to the best of their abilities when they are taught in a language in which they have limited knowledge or with which they are not familiar with at all. extenuating factors include the fact that most teachers in these contexts are themselves second or third language users of the language of instruction and are not necessarily the best models. the united nations educational, scientific and cultural organisation (unesco) (2016, p. 2) furthermore points out that international and regional learning assessments indicate that "when home and school languages differ there is an adverse impact on test scores". an analysis of the trends in international mathematics and science study (timss) data in australia clearly indicates that english reading comprehension is an educational challenge, with approximately two-thirds of indigenous students achieving the minimum benchmarks in mathematics in grade 8 between 1994/1995 and 2011, while almost 90% of their non-indigenous peers managed to do so (thomson, hillman, wernert, schmid, buckley, & munene, 2012). according to unesco (2016, p. 6), teachers in australia teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5784-7734 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 158 "have often mistaken language problems for a learning difficulty". this is not unique to australia. in the united states of america (usa) for example, indications are that an influx of emigrant families, amongst others (unesco, 2016), poses a challenge to attempts aimed at providing the best learning experience possible to bilingual and multilingual students. statistical estimations are that 14% of american students speak two or more languages, while english, the language of instruction at school, is not their primary or home language, indicating that the languages they are exposed to at home and at school are different. by implication, the united states finds itself at a crossroad to come up with effective strategies to educate these students, and to support teachers to acquire the new knowledge and skills they would need to face the realities of bilingual or multilingual classrooms (unesco, 2016b; weber, 2014; garcía & sylvan, 2011). other countries such as the united kingdom (uk) are also faced with cultural and linguistic diversity issues, resulting in intricate patterns of compounded disadvantages (dryden-peterson, 2015; ouane & glanz, 2011). the presence of these migrant families presents unprecedented challenges to both the country's education system and the students. one outcome of this situation could be that teachers become less committed, an attitude which could affect student performance, potentially resulting in early school exit without qualifications. according to desai (2016) and mckay (2012), students with higher proficiency levels and greater fluency in the language of instruction have the advantage of developing content and language knowledge simultaneously and with less difficulty. desai (2016) also notes that learners limited or lack of exposure to the english language, coupled with a lack of support at home, contributes to their struggle to grasp the content of subjects taught through english as a medium of instruction. all these shortcomings have an adverse effect on academic performance (makgato, 2014). bilingual and multilingual learners often experience great difficulties coping in classes where the teacher is inadequately trained to teach a multilingual class (agirdag, 2014; chostelidou, griva & tsakiridou, 2015). in south africa, studies have identified that issues relating to the language in education policy (liep) contribute to teachers' and students' lack of reading comprehension and critical-analytic thinking in english (prinsloo, ramani, joseph, mashatole, lafon, & webb, 2015; spaull, 2015; van staden & howie, 2010). evidence from different studies indicate that students whose home language is the language of instruction seem to have an advantage over those who still have to develop their proficiency and reading comprehension skills in the language of learning to an academically functional level (clegg & simpson, 2016; marin & halpern, 2011; sibomana, 2020). moreover, students who learn in an additional language have more difficulty coping with the subject content as they are compelled to juggle between acquiring language proficiency while at the same time learning new subject-related content (makgato, 2014). success in all learning aspects of the school curriculum requires the building of a "complex network of linguistic understanding" (omidire, bouwer, & jordaan, 2011, p. 48), posing a challenge to learners who do not have the requisite language skills to succeed in their academic pursuit. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5784-7734 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 159 teachers in south africa and in other sub-saharan african countries conduct their teaching in multilingual and bilingual settings. in this regard, many students would not have a proper linguistic foundation in english literacy, causing them to take a longer time to acquire the threshold level of english language proficiency that would enable them to learn in english. spaull (2013) attributes students' underachievement, particularly in literacy and english literature, to a lack of proficiency in english, teachers' having limited or no training in teaching english and failure to accommodate the differences that the learners bring to classrooms, limited knowledge of how to plan classroom tasks to attend to all the learners' needs, and little or no understanding of how to evaluate learning. from the abovementioned, the challenges of language in education in multilingual contexts are not in doubt. however, teachers who work in these contexts ought to be able to contribute to knowledge generation and inform teacher education and practice based on their experience of teaching and interacting with learners in multilingual classes. more often than not, teachers are at the receiving end of the teaching and learning challenges that occur in school and are sometimes deemed to contribute to the poor achievement of learners for many reasons including the lack of adequate training or limited pedagogical content knowledge. teachers' perspectives and experience is therefore pertinent in resolving and alleviating the challenges associated with learning. training teachers for multilingual classes teacher education in sub-saharan africa needs to foreground the training in context-specific strategies that speak to the multilingual nature of the environment. clegg and simpson (2016) and portolés and martí (2020) highlighted the mismatch between curriculum reforms and training methods for teachers at teacher education institutions or enrichment support services offered by means of ongoing professional development. this mismatch is compounded due to limited awareness and focus on suitable pedagogy for the contexts. brutt-griffler (2017) recommended enhanced participation in research which had as aim the discovery of instructional and pedagogical practices. research is critical and research involving teachers more so. studies have shown that teachers in the uk indicate inadequate support for teachers teaching in culturally and linguistically diverse classes (finch, theakston & serratrice, 2018). according to the chikiwa and schäfer (2018) teaching additional language students to think beyond recall and memorisation are abilities which could contribute to enhanced economic development and higher literacy levels in sub-saharan africa. we argue that teachers need to be properly equipped to carry out this task in their multilingual contexts. for instance, the shift in thinking regarding multilingualism, means that educational researchers have developed pedagogies such as translanguaging and others that view multilingualism as a resource (garcía & kleyn, 2016; wei, 2011). these shifts in paradigm and ideology should be incorporated in the pre-service training and ongoing teacher professional development and training through distance education. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5784-7734 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 160 distance education for teacher professional development distance education and the inherent use of technology has made it possible to reach in-service teachers even in remote areas. distance education therefore affords education practitioners the opportunity to incorporate new research findings into the professional development of teachers. teacher professional development can be described as a process for enhancing and bringing teachers' knowledge and skills up to date to improve teaching and learning. in some instances, professional development targets the attitude of teachers or aims to develop certain strategies (philipsen, tondeur, roblin., silke, & zhu, 2019). teachers need to keep abreast of new developments/innovations in the field of education and pedagogy. distance education with online learning programmes has become an invaluable and cost-effective tool for reaching in-service teachers in different contexts (philipsen et al., 2019). distance education for teacher professional development is an avenue for challenging teachers to reflect on their pre-service training, their experiences, and the habits, assumptions and beliefs formulated regarding teaching and learning in the course of their careers. distance education provides the opportunity to move in-service teachers to twenty-first century thinking in terms of current teaching and learning methods and strategies (richardson & alsup, 2015) especially with the shift in knowledge regarding language in education and positive aspects of multilingualism. using sociocultural theory as a basis to enhance practice the multilingual teaching and learning spaces are fraught with challenges but there are equally success stories that teachers can learn from. insights can be derived from teachers' experiences in relationship to teaching in multilingual classes, relationship with learners and teachers' interaction with them and the school environment. the study leaned on vygotsky's sociocultural theory as a framework. the theory posited that there is a close relationship between the use of language as a cultural tool (in social interaction) and the use of language as a psychological tool (for organising our own individual thinking in the socio-cognitive and sociocultural frameworks (bo, 2015; philpo, 2015). the role that language plays in learning highlights its importance in pedagogy, indicating the benefits students derive from teachers' use of techniques or guidance strategies aimed at the generation of a common frame of reference for teaching and learning. mwelwa (2016), whose study was conducted in zambia, found that an understanding of the value of culture and language was an important scaffolding component enabling teachers and students alike to participate effectively in english discourse in the classroom. code-switching and translation of concepts into the local languages is sometimes used by teachers during teaching and learning to enhance cognitive development and achieve a deeper understanding of the concepts being taught. in south africa, pretorius (2014), whose study was aimed at exploring dysfunctional schools and educators' perceptions of school effectiveness, found that language was a powerful tool for communication in the classroom context and indicated that two factors led to students' underperforming at these teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5784-7734 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 161 schools – their lack of proficiency in the english language, and limited home language instruction. in an attempt to overcome this challenge, students were observed shifting between english and other south african languages during classroom discussions, thereby codeswitching and code-mixing. teachers' voices on their experiences of teaching in these multilingual contexts, their successes and challenges faced are critical to moving the process of developing adequate teaching and learning strategies forward. methodology the purpose of the study was to explore the experiences of teaching and learning in multilingual classrooms particularly those situated in resource constrained environments. the aim was to present teachers' voices in the debate and conversation regarding teaching and learning in multilingual classes. the problem of language in the teaching and learning space requires input from teachers given that they are directly involved and often blamed for the challenges experienced by learners. understanding teachers experiences and how they have coped with teaching in these environments could contribute to arriving at lasting solutions and contributing to the limited literature on the subject. the critical question was "what are teachers experiences and perceptions of teaching and learning in multilingual classrooms? the study also aimed to highlight the strategies teachers believed to be effective for teaching and learning in multilingual classes and the challenges they faced when working in these contexts. the study employed a case study design to explore the experiences and views of teachers with teaching and learning in resource constrained multilingual classrooms. purposive sampling was used to identify and select the participants who were teachers working multilingual classes. the participants were 67 teachers (female n=51; male n=16) from nine primary schools in the gauteng province of south africa. the years of teaching experience range from two years to 29 years. a researcher developed questionnaire was distributed to teachers with relevant experience teaching in multilingual classrooms. the questionnaire had two sections. the first section had demographic information and questions on a likert scale. the second section required written responses that required teachers to give extended details on their knowledge, experiences and strategies utilised for teaching and learning. data analysis involved coding the data by labelling, categorising and organising the data from the first section of the questionnaire. this generated descriptive results from the data. thematic analysis was utilised for the second section. the data was transcribed and sorted into categories from which emergent themes were developed. institutional ethics approval was obtained for the project and informed consent was obtained from all the participants. the researchers adhered to the guidelines and conditions of the ethics approval. there was no risk of harm to any of the participants. results teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5784-7734 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 162 demographic information the majority of the participating teachers were aged between 30 to 60 years. about 76% of the participants were female and 24% male. the qualifications ranged from advanced certificates in education (ace), bachelor of education (b.ed.) to post graduate certificate in education (pgce). the participants taught grades 4, 5, 6 and 7. in the primary classes, the teachers are responsible for teaching all the subjects to the learners in their class. the class sizes varied. one participant had 30 learners in the class, while the other participants that had between 41 and 58 learners in each class. the languages represented in the school were all the 11 official languages of south africa. in addition to those languages, portuguese, chinese and igbo languages were also represented. the language most widely spoken was isizulu, followed by sesotho and isixhosa. the home languages taught in all the schools were isizulu, sesotho and english. afrikaans and english were also offered as first additional languages in the schools. all the teachers categorised their proficiency level in their home languages as "excellent". an overwhelming majority of the learners do not speak english at home. conceptualisation of multilingualism the participants were able to define multilingualism and multilingual education. some of their definitions include the ability to; "speak more than one language", "write or speak more than two languages", "use more than two languages for communication", "communicates in more than two languages", "ability to speak multiple languages" being equipped to teach in multilingual classes less than 10% of the participant believed that they were properly equipped to teach in multilingual classes. some of the participants believed that they require training and support to deal with the multilingual nature of their classes. many of the participants opined that their knowledge of teaching in multilingual classes was still developing and that they explore options and strategies to see what works. thus, not taking advantage of the sociocultural theory notion of language as a cultural and psychological tool in the learning process. the participants' self-evaluation revealed mixed opinions from them regarding their competence to teach in multilingual classrooms. they expressed that though they had teaching qualifications, their training did not prepare them for the pedagogy required to facilitate learning in multilingual classes. about 40% of the participants believed that they had the skills to teach in multilingual classes as a number of them were very much confident about teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5784-7734 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 163 their abilities. about 55% of them believed that they had no adequate qualification to teach in multilingual classrooms. their experience could be described as "on the job learning" as one participant put it "i try to develop myself through the learners while trying to support them". these group of participants however agree that they need assistance to optimise the learning in their classes. how multilingualism affects learners and teaching across the curriculum the participants indicated that from their experience, the multilingual nature of their classes had both positive and negative effects on learners and teaching. essentially, participants stated that the effects on teaching included hinderance of teachers' development as teachers had to focus on learners with no time for personal growth. furthermore, the language of instruction constituted a barrier as there was usually a lack of understanding of the content. the participants unanimously agreed that attempting to carry everyone along when the majority do not follow the lessons consumes times and makes it difficult to cover each lesson and by implication the whole curriculum. the participants revealed that the multilingual nature of the classes had some negative effects on the learners. the most mentioned of these effects is lack of vocabulary by both teachers and learners to work in all the languages represented in the classes. inappropriate use of languages, the struggle to communicate and potential communication breakdown during lessons are a source of concern for teachers. the participants indicated that there is a perception among learners that learning english language is difficult and some learners hate having to learn in english. in addition, participants believe that allowing the use of home languages could lead to learners mixing languages when communicating resulting in the inability to grasp concepts, and challenges in learning and mastery of the language of instruction. the participants however identified the positive effects on learners. they agreed that once concepts are explained and clarified in home languages, the result was an in-depth knowledge of such concept. this results in motivation for the learners. better understanding of the content motivates the learners to aim to achieve more. more importantly, where there is understanding of particular home languages, it promotes better communication across board and results in positive attitudes and learners who are confident to interact with others as well as the teachers. benefits of multilingualism the participants agreed that there are benefits to being multilingual. the benefits included are varied between teachers and learners. the participants expressed that teaching in a multilingual class could lead to teachers learning new languages through their learners. teachers are also placed in a better position to offer extended explanations of key terminologies or concepts to their learners using code switching. multilingualism offered teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5784-7734 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 164 another opportunity to reach learners who were struggling to cope with subject content and provided additional support for those at risk and alleviated the challenges of language as a barrier to learning. the participants believed that learners who were competent in the use of more than one language were more confident in their approach to their studies. furthermore, the participants expressed that from their experience, being multilingual facilitates rapport building with colleagues and learners. challenges experienced whilst teaching in multilingual classes the findings revealed that the participants unanimously agreed that there were multiple challenges associated with teaching in multilingual classroom especially in a situation where there was limited access to the resources and facilities to support teaching and learning in such context. ethnocentrism the participants opined that from experience the promotion of multilingualism could be challenging due to ethnocentrism as there would be languages that are spoken by majority of learners in any given classroom. misuse of time promoting multilingualism was deemed to require significant lengths of time. participants expressed that there is usually limited time earmarked on the school timetables for each subject and engaging in multilingual activities. they stated that covering the curriculum and associated administrated responsibilities are time consuming and make incorporating additional tasks unrealistic to take on. lack of resources participants believed that a major challenge to the introduction and use of multilingualism is resources. they opined that there were not enough books and learning support materials in english, the language of instruction. it is therefore inconceivable that resources will be allocated to the introduction and use of other languages. lack of professional development participants opined that from their experience of working in primary schools, the number of teacher professional development programmes available to them was limited. those presented often do not meet the needs of bringing the teachers up to date and introducing innovative strategies but are largely a recap of policy statements. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5784-7734 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 165 orthography and language complexities the participants explained that the orthography of some of their home languages were yet to be developed for academic use. translation of terminologies is often difficult; even while trying to implement code switching, some home languages are deemed harder than others. furthermore, participants explained that their experience has shown that there could also be confusion due to teachers trying to explain in different languages during a single lesson. this could lead to "communication breakdown" according to a participant. teachers' linguistic attitudes participants believe that some teachers have a negative attitude towards the use of home language and that such teachers as well as parents want teaching and learning to take place solely in english the language of instruction. the participants emphasised the importance of acknowledging cultural and linguistic diversity and actually finding meaningful ways to celebrate differences among the learners and teachers. the multilingual teaching strategies learners respond to the participants emphasised that teachers do have strategies that they use to ensure progress is made with the teaching and learning in their classes. the strategies that were indicated include group discussion and peer tutoring to ensure comprehension. in addition, teachers used code switching and elaboration to make their points clear especially when teaching difficult concepts. some participants indicated that they conveyed questions orally to support learners with reading difficulties. furthermore, individualised attention and teaching of learners which is often accompanied by adaptation, adaption, and modification of lessons improve learner engagement. employing role playing, songs and rhymes have been found to be useful strategies to facilitate learning with younger children. using resources for a varieties of communication modes and learning styles such as visual aid alongside written materials have been found effective, although resources are not always available making the process tedious. resources required to facilitate learning in multilingual classes the participants indicated that they and other teachers in similar multilingual contexts are not specifically prepared to teach in multilingual contexts. however, given the nature of the job, teachers often have to improvise. the participants identified two main components: classroom-based resources and training-based teacher support. with classroom-based resources, participant highlighted having textbooks (including dictionaries, posters, charts, flashcards, kinaesthetic resources), equipment such as overhead projectors and access to technology to enhance teaching. other resources required include teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5784-7734 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 166 for all learners to have access to a glossary of terms and keywords in multiple languages. all the teachers included the need for smaller class sizes. in respect of training-based teacher support, more than half of the participants indicated that they experience limited support from the school and would appreciate more opportunities for relevant in-service training and workshops focused on appropriate intervention strategies. the participants also reiterated the need for concerted involvement of school-based support team on issues relating to multilingualism and language in education. discussion in answering the question of what constitutes the derived knowledge and experience of teachers in the context of the study, the participants used their personal experiences to elaborate on what they deemed worth knowing in terms of multilingual classes and lessons to be learned from them. teachers were adequately knowledgeable in terms of concept clarification and general understanding of language in education. this is a first step in being able to recognise the depth of the challenges faced by both teachers and learners. inability to grasp the concepts could be construed as the teachers, not in tune with the challenges faced by their learners and resultant barriers language posed in the teaching and learning of the learners. a central theme from the experience of the participants is the acknowledgement by the majority of them that the pre-service training they had received did not adequately prepare them, in terms of pedagogy for working in a multilingual classroom. this is currently a recurring theme as identified by finch, theakston and serratrice, (2018). furthermore, the participants believe that the effects of teaching and learning in multilingual classrooms without the correct resources and training could result in barriers to learning. this concurs with several studies over the years (finch, theakston and serratrice, 2018). there is a need to change the narrative around language, language in education, multilingualism and multilingual education. it is evident in the experience of the participants that there are multiple challenges associated with teaching in multilingual classes. this is significant because the importance of information gathering from those directly affected is that policymakers and researchers are able to see through the eyes of teachers and establish the necessary step to support them based on their experience and perception of need. previous studies also highlight challenges of teaching in these contexts and effects on learner achievement (monar-lopez and villar, 2018). furthermore, the participants noted that there were benefits of teaching and learning in multilingual classes. many studies have also shown the benefits of being multilingual and learning in multilingual contexts (finch, theakston and serratrice, 2018; monar-lopez and villar, 2018). aluko (2019) used affordances theory to elaborate on the opportunities and possibilities that exist if the interaction between the teachers, learners and the multilingual setting is optimised. the interaction and relevant shared experiences within the learning environment is also supported by the sociocultural theory. the participants shared a range of teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5784-7734 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 167 strategies that they used to bridge the gap in learning and reduce the incidence of language being a barrier to learning. the novel ideas used by the participants in the study also shed light on possible approaches that could be implemented effectively in classes. from their description, it is evident some of the strategies required further enhancement and structure to be effective. further research and development of frameworks for the use of code-switching, group discussion and peer tutoring and integrating these into the curriculum specifically designed for multilingual classrooms should be conducted. daly and sharma, (2018) acknowledge additional language as resource for learning and the difference multilingual education can make in classes with diverse learners as in a multilingual setting, the majority of the time could be spent by the learners simply attempting to make sense of the questions asked or instructions given by the teachers; and in terms of communicating their ideas. teachers' attitude and language ideologies could affect the course of teacher-learner relationship and the learning process as found by catalano, reeves and wessels (2018). the participants' actions and level of engagement to support learners were directly dependent on their beliefs about language and language in education. finch, theakston and serratrice (2018) also found that the attitude of teachers could affect the quality of teaching. a basic programme for improving the quality of teaching in these contexts could start with an awareness campaign aimed at producing a shift in attitude to a more positive stance towards the use of home languages for learning. notable among the knowledge shared by the participants is the nature of the resources and support required to optimise learning in multilingual classes. while in the short term, it might be difficult to resolve challenges such as large class sizes, a concerted effort to provide other resources such as books, and multilingual glossary of terms is a start. the specifics in terms of required training and professional development should be properly mapped in addition to intervention study into the efficacy and impact of the strategies deemed effective by the teachers (finch, theakston and serratrice, 2018). teacher education programmes in higher institutions of learning need to be revised to accommodate new thinking regarding multilingualism and teaching in multilingual classrooms and conventional ideas regarding learning, including language and other subjects have to be challenged while other novel ideas should be developed. conclusion the findings show that the experiences of teachers and their derived knowledge of multilingualism varied. it is, however, significant that teachers' perspectives and knowledge on the matters of teaching and learning in multilingual classes will inform our knowledge on the pathways for promoting learning, learner wellbeing and facilitating improved achievement in multilingual classes. the paper adds to the body of knowledge by providing insights from teachers' and adding teachers voices to debate around multilingualism and language in education. this is a first step in gaining traction on the subject. the challenges highlighted by teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: margaret funke omidire funke.omidire@up.ac.za orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5784-7734 this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 168 teachers also provide information on the specifics researchers and policymakers need to focus attention on when developing support strategies and bridging the gaps in the quest for multilingual education. importantly, the study affirms that there are significant benefits of multilingualism as identified by 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licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 2 3tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, 2022 issn 2788-6298 how well are student teachers prepared for e-learning and teaching? a case study from the university of lagos oyeyemi ololade aitokhuehi department of adult education, faculty of education, university of lagos,akoka, lagos email: oyeyemiaito@gmail.com orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0772-635x doi: 10.35293/tetfle.v3i1.4123 official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za 4 contact: oyeyemi ololade aitokhuehi oyeyemiaito@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. abstract covid-19 was declared a pandemic on 11 march 2020. various governments introduced measures to mitigate the pandemic, including lockdown, enforced compliance with social distancing, travel restrictions, a ban on large meetings and the closure of schools. at the peak of the epidemic, learning centres and higher institutions were closed in more than 190 countries, disrupting the education of 1.6 billion students. in nigeria, this situation forced many schools, including universities, to introduce e-learning. this study, which explores the extent to which selected students at the university of lagos were adequately prepared for e-learning, was based on the garrison and anderson community of inquiry model. an analytical survey research design was adopted and a stratified random sampling technique was used to select 282 respondents from the university of lagos. a validated self-developed questionnaire was used for data collection. frequencies, percentages and means were calculated. hypotheses were statistically tested at a 5% level of significance.the study found that the students in the faculty of education were to some extent prepared for the teaching mode, and they were assisted to establish social and cognitive presences to create a meaningful e-learning environment. keywords: blended learning; virtual learning; teaching presence; social presence; cognitive presence; community of inquiry model tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 5 introduction the first significant effect of the covid-19 pandemic was the partial lockdown that was introduced in most countries to curtail the spread of the pandemic, and that grounded economic activities at both the macro and micro level (obioma et al., 2020; asante & mills, 2020; congressional research service, 2021). other measures taken by various governments to curb the pandemic included enforced compliance with social distancing, travel restrictions, ban on large meetings, closure of schools (private and public), and even a total lockdown. for example, nigeria’s total lockdown lasted 35 days and was eventually gradually eased down in phases.the covid-19 regulations changed the educational, social and economic life of billions of people all over the world (aitokhuehi, 2021).all these measures and other pandemic factors significantly impacted our world’s health, economy, education, and social environment. individuals’ everyday lives in society were seriously affected by the unprecedented demands of the pandemic. covid-19 and its impact on education the education sector suffered a noticeable blow due to the pandemic.the lockdown that was designed to curb the spread of the pandemic forced schools to close down. according to a united nations report, the covid-19 pandemic caused an unparalleled disruption of education systems in history, affecting nearly 1.6 billion learners in more than 190 countries and on all the continents.the closures of schools and other learning spaces had an impact on 94% of the world’s student population, and totally disrupted up to 99% of learners and students in low-income and lowermiddle-income countries (united nations, 2020). there was practically no preparation for the pandemic worldwide, especially in nigeria. schooling activities in nigeria used to be based mainly on the face-to-face mode of learning. its educational institutions, teachers and learners were completely unprepared for the online learning approach (adelakun, 2020). furthermore, due to the many uncertainties and the indecisive direction of the pandemic, many schools initially gave homework to students to keep them busy. however, as the pandemic progressed and it became evident that the virus would be with us for some time (myhre & sifris, 2020;charumilind et al., 2020),different measures had to be adopted to mitigate the effects of prolonged school closure. private schools, especially the 6 high-fee and middle-fee paying ones, were for example, able to adopt online learning. public schools, on the other hand, were affected quite badly, because they were not prepared or equipped to operate an online programme. some nigerian states, the federal government, religious institutions and non-government organisations (ngos) tried to provide educational programmes on television and radio (aitokhuehi, 2021). innovative teachers in a few public schools, especially in the lagos state, utilised whatsapp to engage their students. despite all the terribly adverse effects of covid-19, it is clear – in retrospect – that the pandemic has had clear advantages and that the country can learn and utilise much out of the pandemic. taking advantage of the covid-19 pandemic for nigeria, one of the positive outcomes of the covid-19 outbreak has been the “enforcement” of virtual or e-learning in the education system and its incorporation into nigerian schools. virtual learning has become imperative in promoting and sustaining educational development globally, due to the disruptive effect that the covid-19 pandemic had on the traditional modes of learning.the world currently has to deal with covid-19, and nobody knows what other occurrences may in future lead to the disruption of the educational system in nigeria or the entire world. the pandemic situation engendered a concerted effort to address and bridge the digital divide, and many schools were able to adapt and introduce online learning during the time of their closure. reverting to the full face-to-face mode of learning would be injudicious and should be avoided. blended learning should be integrated into the education system, especially at university level, to exploit the most effective aspects of the face-to-face and online learning modalities. blended learning and teacher preparation blended learning is a mixture of two models, the teacher-student regular classroom setting, which is called the face-to-face mode of instruction, and online learning, which implies accessing instruction online. this blend is rather appropriate for the 21st century learner, since it is more engaging and can meet all the expectations of teaching-learning relationships. blended learning involves mixing the best of faceto-face teaching and online learning as it allows for small group instruction, personal learning plans, guided practice and inquiry-based teaching, all of which will lead to a tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 7 better and deeper understanding of learning concepts (rao, 2019; lalima & dangwal, 2017; hockly, 2018). blended learning furthermore involves instruction, collaborative teaching, and individualised computer-assisted learning (lalima & dangwal, 2017). it also boasts a number of other features such as face-to-face teaching; student interaction with course content; peer group interaction; group discussion and exchange of ideas; accessing e-libraries and virtual classrooms; online assessment; webinars; e-tuition; viewing expert lectures on youtube and learning through videos, audios and virtual laboratories; as well as accessing and maintaining educational blogs (lalima & dangwal, 2017; mbaka & mwenda, 2021). it is called blended learning because all the features are blended into one frame. to summarise, blended learning involves leveraging digital content to provide students with skills and practice.the e-teacher can provide differentiated instruction to create an environment where students can get individualised and self-paced instruction. students are also more engaged in using online content as against paper practice. further advantages of blended learning include that students receive honest and timely feedback; students are more involved and can participate better in discussions, and students can also ask questions online. blended learning favours differentiated instruction; it promotes collaboration and can change the nature of teaching and learning. according to garrison (2009) three interdependent presences are necessary to create a proper online learning environment in schools: teaching presence, social presence and cognitive presence.these three interact through climate setting, content selection and discourse support. for these interactive modes to operate, the teacher’s service is necessary, and the teacher must have the required competencies (casanova et al., 2009; mishra et al., 2020). for online learning classes to become operational, the teacher has to set optimal class sizes for online teaching, design online course materials using multiple strategies, make teaching more attractive to the student, and build an engaging experience (use pop-up questions, etc.). the teacher must also assist unresponsive and slow learners in e-classes, cultivate a sense of community among the students, establish and reiterate routines, educate students about plagiarism, acknowledge student accomplishments, appraise students’ learnings through online tests, and ensure sound teacher-learner relationships in online classes.therefore, rather than having diminished the teacher’s relevance, adopting online learning has increased it. 8 contact: oyeyemi ololade aitokhuehi oyeyemiaito@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. the question that needs to be asked is whether just any teacher can function as an online learning facilitator? online learning facilitation requires specialised skills, which are paramount for successful facilitation. such specialised online facilitation skills include pedagogical, content, design, and technological skills. other requirements are related to management and institutional skills, as well as social and communication skills, all of which require specialised training and a period of acclimatisation.teachers who are in training must be prepared to take on this new challenge. thus, the integration of blended learning has become paramount to teacher preparation in the faculties of education nationwide and worldwide.the probability of expecting prospective teachers to be it compliant and able to handle online teaching is constantly increasing. prospective teachers will eventually be required to display their online facilitation competence right from the interview stage. the problem the emergence of covid-19 and its attendant consequences compelled schools to find innovative learning approaches that can cope with the demands of all unforeseen circumstances. a possible way of doing this has been to adopt technology into the learning system. the university of lagos was one of the institutions in nigeria that took advantage of schools’ lockdown due to the covid-19 pandemic to introduce online learning. lectures as well as examinations were conducted online. this development served as a great and timeous opportunity for students in the faculty of education – especially those in the core teaching departments – to be prepared for their future role as online learning facilitators. nevertheless, the crucial questions that this study endeavoured to answer are: • as prospective teachers, will their exposure to online learning equip them with sufficient skills that will enable them to handle online learning in their future schools? • does their online learning environment have a sufficient teaching, social and cognitive presence to stimulate their skills development as online learning facilitators? tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 9 theoretical framework of the study the current study is based on the community of inquiry (coi) model developed by garrison et al. (2000). this model facilitates research within online learning environments by eliciting educational experience through the establishment of teaching, social and cognitive presences when designing and delivering online courses.the model is based on john dewey’s educational philosophy and postulates that learning is produced by forming an inquiry-based educational community (czujko-moszyk, 2014). according to dewey, inquiry leads to a better educational experience for a community of students and teachers. dewey also acknowledged that learning was a social activity and argued that students need to take responsibility for their learning by understanding their own educational experiences (known as constructivist learning). participants of inquiry-based learning collaboratively engage in activities stemming from the interdependent elements of teaching presence, social presence and cognitive presence to construct a worthwhile community learning.the coi model is depicted below: figure 1: community of inquiry model source: garrison et al., 2000 10 contact: oyeyemi ololade aitokhuehi oyeyemiaito@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. the three presences – teaching, social and cognitive – work together to create a community that fosters critical thinking and promotes learning for students (rehm et al., 2013). the activities involved include selecting suitable content (combining the cognitive and teaching presences), setting the climate (combining the social and teaching presences), and supporting discourse (combining the social and cognitive presences). this study is based on the coi model and presumes that any prospective online learning facilitator should be adequately integrated into the three presences and well acquainted with the required activities. the level of integration of the principles of community of inquiry into the online learning programme offered at the university of lagos determines to a large extent the expertise that students will display as online learning facilitators in the future. research questions the main research question that guided the current study was formulated as follows: how well are student teachers prepared for e-learning and teaching at the university of lagos? the main research question was further explored by the following three research sub-questions: 1. to what extent were teaching presence,social presence and cognitive presence provided to students in online teaching offered by the faculty of education at the university of lagos? 2. to what extent were the faculty of education students actively engaged in teaching, social and cognitive presence during the online teaching offered at the university of lagos? 3. how much has the knowledge gained during online teaching prepared the faculty of education students for future online teaching? research hypotheses there is no significant relationship between the engagement of education students and the online teaching offered by a specific department in the university of lagos. tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 11 there is no significant relationship between students’ preparedness to conduct future online teaching and the various departments in the faculty of education. research methodology a descriptive survey design was adopted for the study.the study population comprised all the faculty of education students at the 300 and 400 level in the department of arts & social sciences education, the department of human kinetics and health education, and the department of science and technology education, totalling 2548 students. stratified random sampling was used as the technique to identify 282 respondents, and the instrument for data collection was the questionnaire. a self-developed 29-item likert scale questionnaire adapted from the community of inquiry survey instrument (draft v14) and with a response scale of strongly agree (sa), agree (a), disagree (d), strongly disagree (sd) and undecided (u) as options was used. respondents were required to tick [√] the appropriate column corresponding to the degree to which they agree or disagree with statements made in the questionnaire.to ensure the instrument’s validity, the questionnaire was given to different experts from related departments such as statistics and educational foundations for vetting and scrutiny prior to sending it to the field as a pilot study for assessment.this was done to ascertain the face and content validity of the instrument. the experts’ comments, modifications and suggestions assisted the researcher in adapting the instrument before being used in the main study. a preliminary study was conducted to try the instrument out before the main study. forty respondents were selected from the general population to respond to the research questions (these respondents were not included in the main study sample). the observations made from their responses were used to validate and improve the instruments and data collection process. a reliability test was carried out using cronbach’s alpha. the result of the test gave a reliability coefficient of 0.86, indicating very good internal consistency. a google form was created to administer the questionnaire to the learners, and the link was sent to the selected students via whatsapp. responses were also received electronically from the google form. each questionnaire was accompanied by an introductory letter stating the purpose of the study and seeking the cooperation of the respondents. the data collected was analysed using descriptive statistics. the research questions were analysed using percentages, 12 contact: oyeyemi ololade aitokhuehi oyeyemiaito@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. frequency distributions and means. chi-square was used to test the hypotheses. a 5% significance level was used. informed consent was obtained from all participants, and there was no risk of harm to any of the participants. results and discussion of findings three research sub-questions explored in more detail the extent to which student teachers were prepared for e-learning and teaching at the university of lagos. sub-question 1 explored the extent to which teaching presence, social presence and cognitive presence were established in online teaching at the faculty of education of the university of lagos.the results presented in table 1 are based on the analysis of the data collected in respect of students’ experience of teaching presence. table 1: sub-question 1a – establishment of teaching presence 4 3 2 1 0 sa (%) a (%) d (%) sd (%) u (%) weighted mean the university gave us adequate information on the online learning process. 8.9 42.9 23.8 11.0 13.5 2.2 training was provided for us before online teaching started. 2.8 12.1 39.4 28.0 17.7 1.5 the lecturers communicated important due dates for assignments and other learning activities to us. 16.3 51.4 11.0 6.0 15.2 2.5 the lecturers documented important lesson objectives. 8.9 45.7 18.8 9.2 17.4 2.2 the lecturers provided instructions on how to participate in course learning activities. 8.9 38.3 25.2 11.0 16.7 2.1 the lecturers helped guide the classes toward understanding course topics in a way that helped me think clearly. 10.6 35.5 25.5 6.7 21.6 2.1 the lecturers helped keep the students engaged and participate in productive class discussions. 9.2 41.1 22.7 9.6 17.4 2.2 the lecturers helped keep the students on task in a way that helped me learn. 7.4 42.6 19.1 11.0 19.9 2.1 the lecturers’ actions reinforced the development of a sense of community among us as students. 9.9 37.6 19.9 9.9 22.7 2.0 tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 13 the lecturers helped to focus discussions on relevant issues in a way that helped me learn. 11.0 46.5 13.1 7.8 21.6 2.2 the lecturers provided responses that helped me to learn. 9.2 52.1 14.5 8.5 15.6 2.3 the lecturers provided feedback that helped me understand my strengths and weaknesses. 5.7 40.1 23.4 12.4 18.4 2.0 the lecturers provided feedback relevant to the topic of discussion. 9.2 45.4 16.7 10.3 18.4 2.2 grand mean 9.1 40.9 21.0 10.9 18.2 2.12 as indicated above,table 1 reflects data from the questionnaire on the establishment of teaching presence during online teaching. it shows that a mean of 9.1% of respondents strongly agreed that teaching presence had been provided, 40.9% agreed, 21.0% disagreed, 10.9% strongly disagreed, and 18.2% were undecided. altogether, over 50.0% of the respondents agreed that teaching presence had been established during the online teaching. with a weighted average of 2.1, it could be concluded that teaching presence had to some extent been provided during the online teaching. table 2: sub-question 1b – establishment of social presence 4 3 2 1 0 sa (%) a (%) d (%) sd (%) u (%) weighted mean i was able to relate with my mates closely. 14.5 40.8 21.6 8.5 14.5 2.3 i found online communication to be an excellent medium for social interaction. 13.5 33.7 24.1 14.2 14.5 2.2 i felt comfortable conversing through the online medium. 15.2 38.7 20.2 8.2 17.7 2.3 i felt comfortable participating in the online discussions. 17.7 35.5 20.2 9.6 17.0 2.3 i felt comfortable interacting with my course mates online. 16.7 40.4 17.0 10.6 15.2 2.3 my disagreement with my mates during online discussions did not affect our relationship. 16.0 52.8 5.0 6.7 19.5 2.4 i felt that other members of the class acknowledged my point of view. 11.0 50.4 12.1 6.7 19.9 2.3 14 contact: oyeyemi ololade aitokhuehi oyeyemiaito@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. online discussions helped me to develop a sense of collaboration. 13.5 45.7 15.2 8.5 17.0 2.3 grand mean 14.8 42.2 16.9 9.1 16.9 2.29 table 2 reflects data from the questionnaire on the establishment of social presence during online teaching. it shows that a mean of 14.8% of respondents strongly agreed that social presence had been provided, 42.2% agreed, 16.9% disagreed, 9.1% strongly disagreed, and 16.9% were undecided. altogether 57.0% of the respondents agreed that social presence had been established during the online teaching, and with a weighted average of 2.29, it could be concluded that social presence had to some extent been provided during the online teaching. table 3: sub-question 1c – establishment of cognitive presence 4 3 2 1 0 sa (%) a (%) d (%) sd (%) u (%) weighted mean questions raised in the discussion during online classes increased my interest in the courses i offered online. 8.9 45.0 17.0 7.4 21.6 2.1 homework given and practised increased my interest in the courses i offered online. 8.5 45.4 17.4 7.8 20.9 2.1 the video lectures increased my interest in the courses i took. 8.9 33.7 21.3 13.5 22.7 1.9 i made use of a variety of information sources to explore problems encountered in the courses. 18.1 57.8 5.7 5.7 12.8 2.6 brainstorming and finding relevant information helped me resolve questions related to the content of the courses. 18.4 54.3 5.3 6.7 15.2 2.5 online discussions were valuable in helping me appreciate the different perspectives of the courses. 12.4 50.4 10.6 8.9 17.7 2.3 tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 15 applying what i learned and combining new information helped me answer questions posed in the courses. 25.5 51.8 7.4 7.1 8.2 2.8 learning activities during online classes helped me construct explanations/solutions. 18.8 44.7 14.2 7.8 14.5 2.5 reflection on course content and discussions helped me understand fundamental concepts in the classes. 18.4 51.4 8.2 8.9 13.1 2.5 based on what i gained in each of the courses i took, i can describe ways to apply the knowledge i created. 11.7 49.3 9.6 6.0 23.4 2.2 i can apply it the knowledge gained in the online courses to teach an online class. 10.6 46.1 17.0 7.1 19.1 2.2 i can apply the knowledge gained in my courses when i become a practising teacher. 16.7 51.8 7.4 6.7 17.4 2.4 grand mean 14.7 48.5 11.8 7.8 17.2 2.36 the results intable 3 are based on data from the questionnaire dealing with the degree to which facilitators managed to establish cognitive presence during online teaching. it shows that a mean of 14.7% of respondents strongly agreed that cognitive presence had been established, 48.5% agreed, 11.8% disagreed, 7.8% strongly disagreed, and 17.2% were undecided. altogether, the majority or 63.2% of the respondents agreed that the facilitators had provided cognitive presence during the online teaching.with a weighted average of 2.36, it could therefore be concluded that cognitive presence had to some extent been provided during the online teaching. sub-question 2 explored the extent to which the faculty of education students actively engaged in teaching presence, social presence and cognitive presence during the online teaching offered at the university of lagos.the results presented in table 4 are based on the analysis of the data collected in respect of students’ experience. table 4: sub-question 2 – facilitation of online engagement 4 3 2 1 0 sa (%) a (%) d (%) sd (%) u (%) weighted mean 16 contact: oyeyemi ololade aitokhuehi oyeyemiaito@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. the lecturers helped guide the classes toward understanding course topics in a way that helped me think clearly. 10.6 35.5 25.5 6.7 21.6 2.1 the lecturers helped to keep the students engaged and participate in productive class discussions. 9.2 41.1 22.7 9.6 17.4 2.2 the lecturers helped in keeping the students on task in a way that helped me to learn. 7.4 42.6 19.1 11.0 19.9 2.1 the lecturers’ actions reinforced the development of a sense of community among the students. 9.9 37.6 19.9 9.9 22.7 2.0 grand mean 9.3 39.2 21.8 9.3 20.4 2.1 table 4 is based on data from the questionnaire on students’ level of engagement during the online teachings. it shows that a mean of 9.3% of respondents strongly agreed that they had been engaged, 39.2% agreed, 21.8% disagreed, 9.3% strongly disagreed, and 20.4% were undecided. altogether, 48.5% of the respondents agreed that they had been kept engaged by the facilitators during the online teaching.with a weighted average of 2.1, it could be concluded that students had been kept engaged to some extent during online teaching. sub-question 3 explored the extent to which the knowledge gained during online teaching had prepared the faculty of education students for future online teaching. table 5: sub-question 3 – preparation for future online teaching; cognitive integration & resolution 4 3 2 1 0 sa` (%) a (%) d (%) sd (%) u (%) weighted mean applying what i learned and combining new information helped me answer questions posed in the courses. 25.5 51.8 7.4 7.1 8.2 2.8 learning activities during online classes helped me construct explanations/solutions. 18.8 44.7 14.2 7.8 14.5 2.5 tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 17 reflection on course content and discussions helped me understand fundamental concepts in the classes. 18.4 51.4 8.2 8.9 13.1 2.5 based on what i gained in each of the courses i took, i can describe ways to apply the knowledge created by each of the courses. 11.7 49.3 9.6 6.0 23.4 2.2 i can apply the knowledge gained in the online courses to teach an online class. 10.6 46.1 17.0 7.1 19.1 2.2 i can apply the knowledge gained in the courses taken when i become a practising teacher. 16.7 51.8 7.4 6.7 17.4 2.4 grand mean 17.0 49.2 10.6 7.3 16.0 2.44 table 5 reflects data from the questionnaire on students’ preparedness to conduct future online teaching. it shows that 17.0% of respondents strongly agreed that they had been prepared, 49.2% agreed, 10.6% disagreed, 7.3% strongly disagreed, and 16.0% were undecided. altogether, a majority or 66.2% of the respondents agreed that online teaching had prepared them to conduct future online teaching themselves. with a weighted average of 2.4, it could be concluded that students had to some extent been prepared by the online teaching to conduct online classes by themselves in future. research hypothesis 1 there is no significant relationship between the engagement of education students and the online teaching offered by facilitators of the university of lagos and its various departments. table 6: chi-square contingency table – engagement of education students with the different departments observed frequency / engagement score education departments undecided not engaged slightly engaged fairly engaged well engaged total 18 contact: oyeyemi ololade aitokhuehi oyeyemiaito@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. arts & social sciences education 10 8 27 48 18 111 human kinetics & health education 5 10 19 11 1 46 science & technology education 8 20 35 43 19 125 total 23 38 81 102 38 282 expected frequency arts & social sciences education 9 15 32 40 15 111 human kinetics & health education 4 6 13 17 6 46 science & technology education 10 17 36 45 17 125 total 23 38 81 102 38 282 p-value 0.01 df 8 x2 statistic 19.26 x2crit 15.51 result: x2 (8, n = 282) = 19.26, p< 0.05 conclusion: reject the null hypothesis since x2 is greater than the critical value. table 6 presents the contingency table for the chi-square analysis of the various education departments’ level of engagement of education students in online teaching. based on the result x2 (8, n=282) = 19.26, p < 0.05, the null hypothesis had to be rejected, as the study indicated that students’ engagement during the online teaching was dependent on or had a significant relationship with specific departments at the university of lagos. in other words, how engaged the students appeared, depended on the type of or the nature of the department. a review of the observed response frequency of the contingency table data showed that the arts & social sciences education department students were more engaged (fairly engaged plus well engaged) compared to the other departments. tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 19 research hypothesis 2 there is no significant relationship between students’ preparedness to conduct future online teaching and their involvement with a specific department in the faculty of education. table 7: chi-square contingency table – relationship between students’ preparedness to conduct online teaching and the e-learning offered by different education departments observed frequency / students’ preparedness score education departments undecided not prepared slightly prepared fairly prepared well prepared total arts & social sciences education 5 19 18 47 22 111 human kinetics & health education 1 9 10 19 7 46 science & technology education 5 21 30 45 24 125 total 11 49 58 111 53 282 expected frequency arts & social sciences education 4 19 23 44 21 111 human kinetics & health education 2 8 9 18 9 46 science & technology education 5 22 26 49 23 125 total 11 49 58 111 53 282 p-value 0.91 df 8 x2 statistic 3.42 x2crit 15.51 20 contact: oyeyemi ololade aitokhuehi oyeyemiaito@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. result: x2 (8, n = 282) = 3.42, p> 0.05 conclusion: do not reject the null hypothesis since x2 is less than the critical value. table 7 presents the contingency table for the chi-square analysis of the relationship between education students’ preparedness to conduct future online teaching and the e-learning offered by the various education departments. based on the result, x2 (8, n=282) = 3.42, p > 0.05, we failed to reject the null hypothesis. this indicated that students’ preparedness was independent of their departments at the university of lagos. in other words, the students’ preparedness response distribution or profile for all the departments were similar and could not be related to the department in which the student had been enrolled. discussion of findings the study sought to explore the extent to which education students in the faculty of education at the university of lagos were adequately prepared for e-learning and teaching. results from the study indicated that a teaching presence, social presence and cognitive presence was established in the online classes to some extent. each of the presences could be categorised as being provided but had to be improved upon. the findings firstly showed that teaching presence was provided to some extent in online teaching. citing various opinions such as those of garrison et al. (2000), garrison (2009), garrison (2017), shea et al. (2006) and damm (2016), affirms consensus on the finding that teaching presence is a significant determinant of student satisfaction, perceived learning and sense of community. it was therefore concluded that teaching presence plays a significant role in online learning. suppose the saying that what you do not have, you cannot give is correct. in that case, the education students at the university of lagos may not be able to create adequate teaching presence in online learning facilitation in the future, unless they undergo special training. however, the introduction of online learning already at school level will significantly prepare them to become future learning facilitators as this will establish a knowledge foundation for them. secondly, the study indicated that social presence was provided to some extent tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 21 in the university of lagos’ online teaching. the covid-19 pandemic seriously influenced the way students interact, and learning situations should therefore factor in ways of improving social interaction in the post-pandemic era (zhao &watterston, 2021). garrison et al. (2000) posit that social presence in a community of inquiry must create personal but purposeful relationships. in this respect, the limited social presence provided in the online learning of faculty of education students probably did not pose a problem, because students had previously been involved in face-to-face contact, which would have given them ample opportunity for social interaction.the adoption of dual-mode learning could further encourage social presence. however, the challenge of transferring the social presence knowledge gained in a face-to-face environment to the online learning setting could be a problem. the study findings thirdly indicate that cognitive presence was provided to some extent in online teaching at the university of lagos. students felt they were at least partly prepared to conduct future online teaching themselves. according to garrison et al. (2000) cognitive presence is defined as a cycle of practical inquiry where participants move deliberately from understanding the problem or issue, through the exploration, to integration and application.this view is corroborated by makri et al. (2014) and what is revealed consistently in the research findings is that it appears that inquiry invariably has great difficulty moving beyond the exploration phase. garrison (2007) and garrison et al. (2000) concluded that discussions do not reach the highest levels of inquiry and are strictly related to the role of the instructor. these assertions point to the crucial role of the online learning facilitator in establishing a cognitive presence in an online class.therefore,it may not be enough for prospective facilitators to be superficially exposed to cognitive presence during their training to develop sufficient capacity for future application. any student teacher who facilitates online learning must understand the notion of cognitive presence in order to move learners from exploration to application. this study indicates that students felt they were at least partly prepared for future online teaching themselves.this finding is corroborated by the study by scherer et al. (2020) who insisted that teachers who will be involved in online teaching must be well prepared. this will give them confidence and a basis from which to improve when they become facilitators. however, a follow-up study will be needed to ascertain the extent to which this manifests in practice. if the future online facilitators are exposed to minimal cognitive presence during their studentship, follow-up research will be 22 contact: oyeyemi ololade aitokhuehi oyeyemiaito@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. required to help determine the level at which such presence is displayed in practice. conclusion and recommendations the study showed that adaptations to improve future online facilitation by faculty of education students are not necessarily department-based; students were able to develop the capacity irrespective of the department in which they were taught. it would therefore be important not to discontinue the hybrid process of learning that had been introduced at the university of lagos so as to further enhance student teachers’ ability to facilitate online classes. in view of the results above, the following recommendations are made: 1. the teaching, social and cognitive presences should be made explicit in future e-learning provisions. teachers should be made aware of the community of inquiry model, asked to evaluate the extent to which it has been modelled in practice and then to reflect on their sense of preparedness. 2. facilitators in the university system should enhance inclusive, participatory online discussions to keep their students highly engaged in the classroom. 3. the university of lagos and other higher institutions should improve on their mode of instruction considering the ‘new normal’ situation. references adelakun, i. s. 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(2021). the changes we need: education post-covid-19. journal of educational change, 1–10. advance online publication. https://doi. org/10.1007/s10833-021-09417-3. 26 contact: oyeyemi ololade aitokhuehi oyeyemiaito@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za contact sylvia kabumle ocansey @ ocanseyarm@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. guidance and counselling for pupils with special educational needs in accra, ghana: implications for inclusive education sylvia kabumle ocanseya and prof. emmanuel kofi gyimahb aphd student, university of pretoria, south africa; buniversity of cape coast, college of distance education, department of education vol 1 no 1 2019 issn: 2788-6298 doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v1i1.67 abstract pupils with special educational needs require guidance and counselling services to overcome their social and psychological challenges. the study explored available guidance and counselling services in three special schools in ghana. the concurrent triangulation mixed method design was used. the samples of pupils (88) and staff (3), comprising administrators and guidance and counselling coordinators were purposively selected for the study. data were collected with a questionnaire and an interview guide. quantitative data was analysed using descriptive statistics, specifically, frequencies and percentages while in the qualitative analysis, the thematic approach was used. the importance of guidance services was prevalent. the facility enabled discussions regarding pupils’ educational goal construction, career plan development and solving relationship problems among pupils, their staff and parents. regional education officers were subsequently recommended to liaise with their counterparts at the guidance and counselling and special education regional offices to monitor special schools, which will enable them to ensure widened service access and effective implementation. keywords: guidance and counselling, inclusive education, special schools, special educational needs. teacher education through flexible learning introduction the prevalence of socio-emotional and psychological concerns among pupils with special educational needs precipitate the need for diverse school support services. guidance and counselling services seek to promote the academic objectives and overall development of pupils with special educational needs (lununberg, 2012; hamilton-roberts, 2012). in ghanaian educational institutions, guidance coordinators collaborate with other school staff for the implementation of effective guidance and counselling programmes. guidance committees essentially comprise teachers (ocansey, 2012) but the wide variety of school guidance activities necessitates other staff’s assistance in the facility’s execution. school guidance activities aim to establish a conducive learning environment that also nurtures pupils’ growth. a key counselling objective in special schools is to facilitate disability identification and consultation for pupils (clark & bremen, 2009). ghana has since early 2003 been piloting inclusive education in forty-five schools. the institutions are situated in the greater accra, central and eastern regions (vanderpuye, 2013). in 2016, the policy draft for inclusive education, with highlights on the universal design for learning (udl) and the child-friendly school (cfs) models was launched in accra. both models stress education as a right for every child and further aims at promoting the fruitful development of pupils with special educational needs. inclusive education implies mainstreaming pupils with special educational needs, instead of segregating them in special schools (de boer, pijl & minnaert, 2011). the educational reform sought primarily to contest discrimination against special needs pupils (gyimah, sugden & pearson, 2009) while promoting their attainment (kalambouka, farrell, dyson, & kaplan, 2007), increasing access to, and participation in education (walton et al., 2009). aside ensuring enhanced educational resources for pupils’ optimal education, the reform further introduced the term, ‘pupils with special educational needs’ to shift focus from the rather demeaning emphasis on handicaps and disabilities (de boer et al., 2011). special education refers to schooling for ethnic minorities or the socially disadvantaged (de boer et al., 2011). indeed, until the early 1990s, special schools were singularly responsible for the education of children with special educational needs. the institutions aimed at providing appropriate learning experiences for pupils (simmons & bayliss, 2007). the s. ocansey and e. gyimah introduction of inclusive education ensured the mainstreaming of special needs pupils to facilitate their overall advancement. special education concerns various disabled people and individuals with handicaps including the blind, learning disabled, mentally challenged, hearing impaired and children with profound and multiple learning difficulties (pmld) (simmons & bayliss, 2007). de boer et al., (2011) also categorise pupils with communication, behavioural, motor skills, sensory and learning disorders, mental retardation, and pupils with chronic diseases as special needs pupils. such children are also referred to as exceptional though the term exceptionality is more culturally inclined (gargiulo, 2010). indeed, gargiulo (2010) simply describes such children as social deviants. the disabilities of such children may also be single or multiple (altun, guven, akgun, akkurt, basak & akbulut, 2010), often handicapping them by inhibiting the children’s capacity to perform specified tasks normally. disabilities are also usually biologically initiated, emerging from body muscle or organ loss, malfunctioning, or paralysis (gargiulo, 2010) that generally interferes with the child’s ability to accomplish his expected educational, social and vocational potential (pijl, frostad & flem, 2008). the deformity may also be physical, developmental, cognitive, or affective in nature (altun et al., 2010). in developed countries, people with disabilities represent as much as ten percent of the population, but the percentage slightly appreciates in developing countries (altun et al., 2010). in ghana, the special education division of the ghana education service manages the entire service (kyere, 2009). teachers remain key partners in the successful educational reform implementation (de boer et al., 2011). their strategic position in establishing daily direct contact with pupils emphasizes their role in the implementation process. according to giangreco, suter and doyle (2010), efficient collaboration with teacher aides in inclusive classrooms is a basic necessity. the assistive roles of such aides regarding teachers’ efforts (rose & o’neil, 2009) has resulted in their sudden upsurge in english and irish inclusive schools in recent times (department for education and skills, 2007; ochai, 2011 as cited by oluka & eke, 2015). nonis and jernice’s (2011) for that matter underscore the positive attitudes of pre-service teachers in singapore towards inclusion, likewise, sweetland (2008) who describes teachers as generally caring, supportive and determined to construct worthwhile interpersonal relationships to teacher education through flexible learning optimise pupils’ learning opportunities in inclusive institutions. however, rose, mondaamaya and espelage (2011) also identified bullying and the victimisation of disabled pupils as further severe difficulties confronting pupils in american institutions. lack of classroom assistants (black-hawkins et al., 2007) to meet the ‘demanding’ needs of special needs pupils (ainscow, 2007) was also not left out of the numerous challenges pupils often encounter. literature, however, underscores poor inclusive and woefully inadequate school resources, particularly in ghana (agbenyagah, 2006 & 2007; ocloo & subbey, 2008). inappropriate school practices, lack of proper resources amidst poor teacher special skills, gravely threaten the smooth reform implementation process. teachers have also been identified as key perpetrators of challenges for pupils with special educational needs in ghana. their uncompromising use of corporal punishment for example, though strongly prohibited in inclusive schools, confirms their poor attitude towards the educational reform (agbenyagah, 2006 & 2007). kuyini and mangope (2011), as well as ocloo and subbey (2008), also endorse the report of poor teacher and stakeholders’ attitude towards inclusion. oluka and eke (2015) however, attribute the trend to the staffs’ dislike for pupils with learning disabilities in their classrooms. on their part, teachers cited systemic inadequacies including poor skills training and lack of appropriate facilities to justify their low attitudes towards the reform. gyimah et al., (2009) likewise refuted agbenyega’s (2006) earlier submissions regarding low teacher attitudes. the authors explained that teachers in ghana cared about pupils in various categories of special educational needs. yet, all is not rosy for the pupils in special and inclusive schools. reports of prevalent depression and rejection in related ghanaian institutions equally highlight the immense psychological and emotional challenges encountered by pupils (agbenyega, 2007; oluka & eke, 2015). the duties of classroom assistants are critical in boosting pupils’ selfconfidence, sharpening their attention on assigned tasks and promoting their overall participation in class (ainscow, 2007). the mentioned difficulties indeed derail the very purpose of inclusion for pupils with special educational needs. school guidance services comprise a combination of seven services with counselling as the core. school counselling aims to facilitate pupils’ emotional, social and mental s. ocansey and e. gyimah support to actualise their educational objectives. guidance and counselling facilities usually assist pupils encountering confusion, fear, discrimination, and bullying, both at home and in school (hamilton & roberts, 2012). in ghana, guidance coordinators function to promote pupils’ self-understanding, self-direction, and meaningful adjustment for an overall productive life (oluka & egbo, 2014). in special schools, guidance counsellors are responsible for redressing the attention difficulties, fixation to routines and mood challenges of pupils with special educational needs (oluka & eke, 2015). the counsellors additionally facilitate pupils’ self-understanding, their construction of positive self-images and also motivate them towards increased studies for better school achievement (obani, 2006). parents of pupils with special educational needs likewise require counselling to construct positive skills in caring for their children with special educational needs (charema & eloff, 2011). bitsika & sharpley, (2004) for instance, reported that many parents encounter stress and depression as a result of the challenges they face in understanding and relating meaningfully with their children with special needs. in line with this idea, the welsh assembly stressed on the importance of counselling by demanding an effective service for pupils in all local authority schools (national strategy paper, wag, 2008). efficient guidance and counselling services are thus desirable to facilitate schooling among pupils with special educational needs. the inclusive education policy goal to establish worthwhile schools aligns with the current study focus that re-echoes facilitating needed efforts to augment overall school environments. this reflects a comprehensive educational agenda which agrees with ghana’s 1992 constitution portion that highlights; equal rights to education for all (amenya, 2009; republic of ghana 1992) as well as the free compulsory and universal basic education (fcube) policy (agbenyagah, 2006). the current study accordingly sought to examine existing guidance and counselling services in special schools in ghana. an investigation of the service to address inadequacies both in inclusive and special schools is a worthwhile effort (rose & o’neill, 2009). inclusive education and special schools stress worthwhile and supportive school environments. the aims of both institutions (inclusive schools and special schools) are currently challenged by various shortcomings (agbenyega, 2007; oluka & eke, 2015). reports of bullying, victimisation and depression have become the order of the day teacher education through flexible learning within the confines of such institutions in recent times. however, lack of appropriate interventions to redress the social and emotional challenges of pupils with special educational needs continue to hamper their fruitful education. little or no records additionally exist on available guidance and counselling services in the mentioned educational settings although the guidance facility has been proven to be extremely worthwhile (clark & breman, 2009). the reports confirm the inadequacy of support for pupils in special and inclusive schools (mprah et al., 2015). oluka & egbo, (2014) specifically observe that pupils acquire positive and independent learner attitudes while constructing holistic personalities with consistent guidance and counselling services. in accordance with efforts to ensure efficient education for pupils with special educational needs in ghana, the goals of the current study cannot be overemphasised. theoretical framework carl rogers’ client-centred theory underpins the current study. a key concept of the theory is that every human being has a natural tendency to seek growth, constructive change, and life enrichment (allen, 2015). this calls for the counsellor to believe in the client’s inherent self-actualising tendencies to realise his personal advancement. indeed, the title ‘every person is to be prized’ (allen, 2015, p12) simply speaks volumes in this circumstance. another core concept is that every human being has a value or worth that demands respect from others, particularly the counsellor (babilonia, 2016). rogers accordingly proposes a warm, respected, and supportive counsellor-client relationship to promote the achievement of counselling goals. indeed, the counsellor’s warmth and acceptance motivates the client into realising his/her potential. it is critical in this theory that counsellors also remain genuine and non-directive in promoting the achievement of counselling goals (babilonia, 2016). in line with the theory, pupils with special educational needs undeniably have value and worth and desire respect and warmth from significant others (counsellors, teachers and parents). the support and warmth from significant others, in fact, serves a motivating purpose to promote the pupils’ development into a fruitful future. the current study focus thus aligns perfectly with the client-centred theory, given the positive goal of school guidance and counselling services. instead of mocking, bullying and teasing them, peers, parents and teachers should instead endeavour to support these pupils to enable them actualise their potentials. s. ocansey and e. gyimah research question the following research questions guided the study: 1. what are the guidance and counselling activities available for pupils with special educational needs in special schools within the greater accra region of ghana? 2. what roles do school staff play in offering guidance and counselling services to pupils with special educational needs in special schools within the greater accra region of ghana? research methods the concurrent triangulation mixed method design was employed for this study. this design is one directed towards determining the nature of a phenomenon as it exists at the time of the study (maduabum, 2004). the study population consisted of three special schools in the greater accra region of ghana, two of them were public and the remaining one private. the total population in the studied schools was 508, comprising 254 in school a, 115 in school b and 139 in school c. details of the population distribution among the three schools are shown in figure 1. figure 1: population distribution of the respondents school name down’s syndrome cerebral palsy autism emotionally disturbed mild brain damaged hearing impaired grand total a 254 254 b 31 23 23 38 115 c 95 25 5 14 139 total 126 48 28 38 14 254 508 sampling technique purposive sampling technique was used to select the three special schools (a, b and c). this sampling procedure was used because, the schools fit into the sampling criteria of being “special schools”. again, in the selection of the pupils who will serve as the respondent of the study, purposive sampling technique was used for each of the three schools. this sampling approach was deemed right because the nature of the pupils’ condition is such that some are unable to express themselves meaningfully in oral or written language. in view of this, the researchers purposively selected pupils who could express themselves well, either orally or in written language. in specific teacher education through flexible learning terms, 57 pupils were taken from school ‘a’, 22 pupils from school ‘b’ and 11 pupils from school ‘c’. the samples from the three schools were put together to make one case, thus totaling a sample size of 88 participants. aside pupil selection, a school administrator from two schools and one guidance and counselling coordinator from the third institution were also purposively selected to be engaged in the study. details of the sample distribution are shown in figure 2. figure 2: sample distribution by gender population sample name of school male female total male female admin. / guid. coordinator totals school a 135 119 254 16 40 1 57 school b 71 44 115 18 4 1 23 school c 86 53 139 7 3 1 11 totals 292 216 508 41 47 3 91 instrument(s) self-designed questionnaire and a semi-structured interview guide were used as instruments of the study. items on both instruments were derived from literature and they were all based on the research questions. the questionnaire was a four-point likert type of scale ranging from strongly agree, agree, disagree and strongly disagree. the instruments were pilot-tested in two special schools in central region, cape coast. in the pilot-testing, 20 children with special needs were engaged for the questionnaires and one administrator and one guidance and counselling coordinator were also interviewed. the pilot testing was done purposely to fine-tune the instrument in order to improve its validity and reliability (cohen, manion & morrison, 2007). the cronbach alpha reliability coefficient of 0.67 was attained for the questionnaire, after its refinement. ethical consideration in accordance with qualitative research ethics, permission was sought from all relevant gate-keepers, before data collection commenced in the selected schools. initial telephone calls were made to all three school heads for briefing and to seek permission. letters were subsequently sent to the school heads for documented s. ocansey and e. gyimah approval while parents’ letters for approval were accordingly distributed. researchers ensured that replies from parents of the selected pupils were received in good time. all the gatekeepers including parents were equally assured of confidentiality and anonymity of the engaged pupils’ identity. teachers and resource persons also discussed the study with pupils and assured them of confidentiality. the pupils then volunteered their participation in the study but the few who objected to their engagement were left out. data collection procedure data collection spanned a total of four weeks. familiarisation visits were made to the schools during which letters of introduction and requests for permission were presented to the school heads and parents. convenient dates were then agreed on for the commencement of data collection. the researchers collected the data themselves with interpretation assistance from teachers in each school. in schools b and c for instance, data collection dragged on more, due to the interference of the pupils’ disabilities. teachers also sometimes had difficulties explaining some questionnaire items to the pupils while some pupils also encountered difficulties responding coherently to the questionnaire items. some pupils were also found to provide responses that were unrelated to the questions asked. a few other participants also did not respond to some items. in school a, however, the one-on-one method of questionnaire administration was easily applicable following the researchers’ reliance on teachers to utilise the sign language and lip reading to explain questionnaire items to the pupils. furthermore, on the part of adult respondents, one-on-one face to face interview sections were held for the selected school administrators and guidance and counselling coordinator at their convenience in their respective schools. permission was also sought from the respondents to audiotape their sessions after meaningful rapport was established with each of them. data processing and analysis the four scales of item responses were converged into two – agree and disagree for easy analysis. frequencies and percentages were used to analyse the data whereas thematic analysis was used for the qualitative data. teacher education through flexible learning results table 1: results on guidance and counselling-related activities in the studied schools item content name of school agree disagree no. % no. % i think school guidance and counselling services are important for pupils with special educational needs. school a 45 80.3 11 19.7 school b 22 100 0 0.0 school c 10 100 0 0.0 i easily get someone at school to discuss my future education, whenever i need it. school a 46 82.1 10 17.9 school b 20 90.9 2 9.1 school c 10 100 0 0.0 table 1, continued i easily get someone at school to discuss my future career plans, whenever i need it. school a 47 83.9 9 16.0 school b 19 86.4 3 13.6 school c 9 90.0 1 10.0 i get good counselling services at school whenever i want to discuss my academic performance with someone. school a 45 80.3 11 19.7 school b 19 86.3 3 13.6 school c 9 90.0 1 10.0 i often join my colleagues at school for school guidance and counselling activities. school a 46 82.2 10 17.9 school b 18 81.8 4 18.2 school c 10 100 0 0.0 my school staff are willing to listen to and protect me whenever my friends maltreat me. school a 42 75.0 14 25.0 school b 20 90.0 2 9.1 school c 10 100 0 0.0 whenever my parents or siblings abuse me at home, i easily get a school staff to comfort me and talk it over with my family members. school a 40 71.5 16 28.6 school b 21 95.4 1 4.5 school c 8 80.0 2 20.0 i mostly join my school team whenever they are going on an excursion or a school outing programme. school a 48 85.8 8 14.3 school b 21 95.4 1 4.5 school c 9 90.0 1 10.0 i learnt about my interest areas and hobbies through a school programme. school a 42 92.8 4 7.2 school b 19 86.4 3 13.6 s. ocansey and e. gyimah item content name of school agree disagree no. % no. % school c 9 90.0 1 10.0 i easily access counselling services in my school whenever i need it. school a 26 46.4 30 53.5 school b 19 86.4 3 13.6 school c 9 90.0 1 10.0 study findings regarding available school guidance services were encouraging. pupils essentially recorded their satisfaction with the staff’s immense roles in providing them with relevant support services. this resulted in the numerous benefits and enjoyment they derived from the provided support services. all pupils from schools b and c and majority (n= 45, 80.3%) of the pupils from school a acknowledged the significance of school guidance and counselling services to their education. similarly, majority of pupils, (n= 42, 92.8%), (n=9, 90%) and (n=19, 86.4%) from all three schools, a, b and c respectively further acknowledged learning about their interest areas and hobbies from the support services they enjoyed in their institutions. an equally high majority (n= 46, 82.2%) from school a, (n= 18, 81.8%) from school b and all pupils, (n= 10, 100%) from school c reported joining their colleagues at school for guidance-related excursions. furthermore, majority (n= 46, 82.1%) and (n= 20, 90.9%) from schools a and b respectively and all, (n= 10, 100%) from school c additionally confirmed easily accessing a school staff to discuss their future education issues with them. other support services received from school staff includes holding discussions with pupils regarding their future career plans, (n= 47, 83.9%) from school a, (n= 19, 86.4%) from school b, and (n= 9, 90%) from school c. majority (n= 45, 83.3%) from school a, (n=19, 86.3%) from school b, and (n=9, 90%) from school c also acknowledged easily accessing a staff member to discuss their academic performance with them. the school staff were further found to avail themselves to discussing pupils’ complaints but also protected them from maltreatment by their friends. forty-two (42) pupils representing (75%) from school a, (n= 20, 90.9%) from school b and finally, all (n= 10, 100%) from school c made the report regarding staffs’ protection and pupils’ complaints. whenever pupils with special educational needs were abused by siblings and parents at home, a high percentage of pupils (n= 40, 71.5%), (n= 8, 80%) (n= 21, teacher education through flexible learning 91.4%) from all three schools reported finding a staff member to comfort them and talk things over with their families. however, apart from the majority of pupils in school b (n= 19, 86.4%) and (n= 9, 90%) in school c who reported easily accessing school counselling services whenever they needed it, only a few (n= 26, 46.4%) from school a confirmed enjoying such a facility at school. indeed, majority (n= 30, 53.5%) of pupils in school a, confessed not being able to access counselling whenever they most needed it. it is essential to consider the concerns of such a significant percentage of pupils in school a being denied counselling, despite the service’s importance among pupils with special educational needs (the estonian ministry of education & research, 2014; oluka & egbo, 2014). discussion school guidance and counselling services were essential to many participants in the study. participants reportedly used the facility to meet their relationship, career, educational and academic needs. results revealed the majority of pupils in all three schools acknowledging the significance of guidance and counselling services in promoting their education. pupils relied heavily on the service to discuss their academic performance (refer to table 1 item 4), plan their future education (table 3 item 2), and career paths (table 1 item 3). others were also content when school staff intervened in the conflicts they encountered with parents (table 3 item 7) and their peers (table 3 item 6). these findings agree with logan (2006) and oluka and eke, (2015) who opined that support services positively enhanced schooling for pupils with special educational needs. the socio-emotional and psychological support pupils also received from the counselling service were also well-appreciated. according to clark and breman (2009), the counsellor's role in identifying, placing and consulting with parents regarding the individualised education programme (iep) for special needs pupils remains core to inclusive education. iep facilitates the application of appropriate school resources to meet the direct educational needs of identified pupils. guidance and counselling services in this regard also aligned with rogers’ client-centred counselling theory to promote the pupils’ potential for personal development. furthermore, the intervention of school staff in the academic and career concerns of the pupils additionally meets their emotional needs. such support often boosts the s. ocansey and e. gyimah pupils’ self-confidence and urges them on into achieving their personal potential. this study result particularly confirms the importance of extra classroom support as a crucial factor in the progress of inclusive schools (rose & o’neil, 2012). the assistants’ encouraging roles regarding pupils’ overall participation and improved academic performance in inclusive schools (black-hawkins et al., 2007) is a worthwhile guidance-related facility. incidentally, the researchers witnessed some student attendants on an internship from the university of ghana in school b during data collection. the role of such teacher aides in propelling the pupils’ studies cannot be over-emphasised. staffs’ interview reports in all three schools further stressed the immense role of guidance and counselling in promoting the holistic development of pupils with special educational needs. the staffs’ submissions regarding talk programmes on grooming for female pupils in school a, for instance, is critical to their fruitful future development. the guidance coordinator firmly stressed the female pupils’ maintenance of personal hygiene during their menstrual periods. she also mentioned encouraging the girls to maintain low haircuts and well-combed hair, clean fingernails, and neat clothes at all times to remain healthy. to quote from her direct report, the guidance coordinator, for instance, noted during her interview that: ‘we take time to groom these girls so that they can keep themselves neat and dress well during their menstrual periods. as part of our educational responsibilities, we must ensure that they grow into responsible adults, who value the norms of the ghanaian society.’ (interview script) such orientations often reduced the incidence of irresponsible and problematic behaviours among young people (njoka, 2007). additionally, in school b, the administrator noted that: ‘excursions to social places of interest, are termly organized by the school to enable pupils [to] learn more about their society. such activities further provided relevant recreation as well as career information to pupils.’ (interview script) teacher education through flexible learning the administrator further emphasised that: ‘the school ensured that teachers often accompanied pupils on such outings to enhance learning experiences and ensure the safety of pupils’. (interview script) in school c, the administrator identified sporting activities as vital to the physical and psychomotor development of the pupils. it was on one such sports day that the researchers arrived at the school for data collection. this explains the availability of only a few less expressive and agile-minded pupils for the questionnaire administration. the emphasis on sports, in this case, aligns with the expression, ‘a healthy mind lives in a healthy body’. pupils’ sporting interest in school c was critical to their healthy development. sports also has a guidance-related focus given that it promotes the physical development of pupils. overall, the staffs’ interest in promoting the lives of pupils in the three selected special schools aligns with the client-centred theory’s optimistic focus. roger’s emphasis on counsellors to show acceptance and warmth towards clients reflects the supportive element of guidance and counselling staff within the school setting. the staffs’ show of care also endorsed rogers’ counsellor congruence as a core condition of the clientcentred theory. contrarily, the finding regarding pupils’ inability to easily access direct counselling support in school a (refer to table 3, item 10) was problematic. given the documented importance of counselling in the literature (hamilton-roberts, 2012; estonian ministry of education & research 2014), the result defeats the very basis or rationale behind establishing school counselling. this requires immediate redress to facilitate pupils’ emotional and psycho-social development in the school. finally, the results show that pupils in all three studied schools were fairly involved in school support services, and also acknowledged benefiting immensely from the facility. this result equally endorses the importance of the client-centred theory. the staffs’ extended love and acceptance to parents of pupils with special educational needs aligned with genuine counsellor interest and care in ensuring the pupils’ fruitful advancement. such useful parent-teacher collaborations also depict worthwhile s. ocansey and e. gyimah counselling orientations to improve parental interactions with their special needs children. reports of parental stress and depression due to ignorance in relating with their wards with special educational needs at home will soon be extinct (bitsika & sharpley, 2004; charema & eloff, 2011) as staff consistently counselled parents regarding their relationships with their special needs children. such support assures the pupils of reliable and comforting relations with significant others. the researchers also noted the vocational emphasis in all three schools. vocational activities such as bead-making, weaving, sewing and batik-tie and dye were found to have significant teaching focus in all the three selected special schools. this reflects the key role skills training, and future employment plays among pupils with special educational needs. warnock and norwich (2010) recommend a vocationally-focused curriculum for pupils with special educational needs. the authors stressed the future benefits of such a curriculum for all pupils. figure 1: the proposed guidance and counselling model for pupils with special educational needs cognitive affective psychomotor vocational training guidance and counselling activities teacher education through flexible learning the interplay among the key human domains, namely, cognition, psycho-motor and affect eventually converge to define our primary life purpose – vocational development. the social cognitive theory (bandura, 1986) and the social cognitive career theory (scct) (lent, brown & hackett, 1994) stress the importance of preliminary life activities in exploring our vocational interests and occupational choices, to establish our future career successes (lent, 2005). undeniably, the environment, the individual and the behaviour intricately interact to define our future goals. our entire life activities, through childhood thus converge to influence our career plans, vocational orientations, and training. they also ultimately define our future roles and personalities. the proposed model simply emphasises our talents, skills, and educational endeavours to determine our future vocations. the following objectives are accordingly outlined to augment future guidance and counselling services within special schools in ghana. objectives to be achieved with the proposed counselling model 1) train teachers in using the model 2) assess and identify pupils’ individual disability areas upon admission 3) outline pupils’ individual counselling needs 4) design suitable guidance activities for their needs 5) design guidance services for family members of pupils with special educational needs target groups are: ● pupils with special educational needs ● parents of family members of pupils with special educational needs ● the staff of pupils with special educational needs conclusion the study on the whole, highlighted the immense importance of school guidance and counselling services for pupils with special educational needs. the benefits of the facility are numerous and critical to the pupils’ fruitful education and development, although a lot more could be done to support the emotional and social development of pupils in special and inclusive schools. s. ocansey and e. gyimah implications of the study findings to inclusive education in ghana the study highlighted the significant role guidance and counselling services play in inclusive classrooms. it is reassuring to observe that objective two, strategy three of ghana’s proposed implementation plan on the national inclusive education draft policy, recommends training of focal persons in guidance and counselling. such a facility will ensure professional and well-grounded guidance and counselling facilities within the various institutions. secondly, the emphasis placed on teacher aides and the non-compliance of teachers regarding the use of corporal punishment in class requires urgent attention. the reduced use of corporal punishment will go a long way to reduce the number of hindrances and ultimately strengthen pupils’ emotional and social development at school. the use of guidance and counselling staff to intervene in the relationship issues of special needs pupils, both at school and home should be extended to all other inclusive schools. this aligns with the inclusive reform’s emphasis on child-friendly schools. pupils stand to benefit both emotionally and socially from such support services. recommendations following the importance of guidance and counselling services in the education of pupils with special educational needs, it is recommended that officers at various regional guidance and counselling units should liaise with the ghana education service to post a trained guidance coordinator or counsellor in each inclusive or special school, for the implementation of professional services. officers from the regional guidance and counselling units should also liaise with the special education unit officials to undertake bi-annual monitoring and evaluation visits to the various schools. such activity will, for instance, ensure the redress of the various reported challenges related to inefficient service provision within the institutions. designing more gender sensitive guidance and counselling-related programmes in the various special and inclusive schools will enhance the growth and development of pupils with special educational needs. this will ensure that both male and female pupils benefit tremendously from the implemented services. teacher education through flexible learning given that true educational and pedagogical change for social and educational inclusion must start early (mclaren, 2007), it is recommended that more emphasis be placed on professionalism at the various teacher training institutions in ghana. this will redress the reported incidents of teachers’ negative attitudes towards inclusive education and pupils with special educational needs. it is further recommended that the special education unit organises bi-annual in-service training on inclusion for teachers in inclusive and special schools. secondly, an inclusive-enriched curriculum should be factored into the teacher training institutional programmes for enhanced awareness among trainee teachers in ghana. references agbenyega, j. s. 2006. corporal punishment in the schools of ghana: does inclusive education suffer. the australian educational researcher 33(3), 107-122. agbenyega, j. 2007. ‘examining teachers’ concerns and attitudes to inclusive education in ghana’. international journal of wholeschooling 3(1), 41. allen, b. p. 2015. ‘every person is to be prized: carl rogers’. in personality theories 5th ed., 223-246. new york: psychology press. altun, c., guven, g., akgun, o. m., akkurt, m. d., basak, f., & akbulut, e. 2010. oral health status of disabled individuals attending special schools. 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(ed.) 2006. special education and special educational needs in obani. teaching pupils with special educational needs in the regular ube classrooms. ibadan: book builders. ocloo, m. a. & subbey, m. 2008. perception of basic education school teachers towards inclusive education in the hohoe district of ghana. international journal of inclusive education 12(5 & 6), 639-650. oluka, b. n., & eke, n. a. 2015. managing children with learning disabilities in inclusive classroom: roles of guidance/counsellors. journal of educational policy and entrepreneurial research, 2(2), 53-59. pijl, s. j., frostad, p., & flem, a. 2008. the social position of pupils with special needs in regular schools. scandinavian journal of educational research, 52(4), 387405. rose, c. a., monda-amaya, l. e., & espelage, d. l. 2011. bullying perpetration and victimization in special education: a review of the literature. remedial and special education, 32(2), 114-130. rose, r. & o’neil, a. 2009. classroom support for inclusion in england and ireland: an evaluation of contrasting models. research in comparative and international education, 4(3), 250-261. simmons, b., & bayliss, p. 2007. the role of special schools for children with profound and multiple learning difficulties: is segregation always best? british journal of special education, 34(1), 19-24. vanderpuye, i. 2013. piloting inclusive education in ghana: parental perceptions, expectations and involvement. unpublished doctoral thesis, leeds: university of leeds. warnock, m. 2005. special educational needs: a new look. london: philosophy of education society of great britain. warnock, m., & norwich, b. 2010. special educational needs: a new look. bloomsbury publishing. official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za contact: ememe p. i. pememe@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 84 open distance learning: an alternative strategy for rural teachers’ professional development in lagos state, nigeria ememe p. i. department of adult education, university of lagos, nigeria issn: 2788-6298 doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v2i1.89 abstract advancement in technology and changes in knowledge delivery are making it imperative for teachers to acquire new skills and knowledge to meet the needs of today’s students. teachers in rural areas rarely take advantage of professional development opportunities provided for them. this study explored the perspective of rural teachers on the constraints of accessing professional development programmes in order to situate open distance learning (odl) as an alternative method of delivering professional development training. rubenson’s recruitment paradigm (1977), cross’ chain-ofresponse model (1981) and darkenwald and merriam’s psychosocial interaction model (1982) guided the study. the study employed survey research design to answer the research questions raised. the population consisted of all teachers in public secondary schools in the rural areas of lagos state. ten secondary schools were randomly selected for the study. twenty teachers were purposively selected from each school, making a total of 200 teachers. a self-developed questionnaire was employed to collect data. data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics. the study revealed that teachers in the rural areas rarely go for professional development programmes as a result of constraints such as lack of time, lack of funds, inability to forego family time for development training and teachers’ disposition. based on the findings, it was suggested that the effects of these barriers can only be mitigated through odl which allows teachers to learn whatever, wherever, whenever, and however they want to learn through information communication technology. keywords: odl, alternative, strategy, rural, teachers, professional, development teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ememe p. i. pememe@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 85 introduction the educational system is grappling with the problem of an ever-increasing population of learners both at the primary and secondary levels as well as with a high number of out of school children. there is also the problem of the high number of untrained and undertrained teachers as well as low number of qualified teachers, which experts have attributed to the problem of unemployment which is taking unqualified graduates into the teaching profession as a way out. the rural areas seem to be worst affected by all the problems mentioned above. rural areas in nigeria are associated with unique contextual challenges, which include lack of social amenities and low level of infrastructural development which makes it difficult for them to attract and recruit competent and qualified teachers (haruna & liman, 2015). this is in addition to other deficiencies such as geographical isolation and poor socio-economic conditions. these situations contribute to making teaching in rural schools inferior and undesirable by many qualified teachers (pennefather, 2011). for instance, in lagos state, the perennial and gross lack of social amenities prevalent in rural communities has affected the quality and quantity of teachers available in most schools. this critical situation of teachers in the rural areas calls for constant training and retraining of teachers through professional development training programmes (international labour organization, (ilo), 2016). the assumption is that exposure to such training will not only help them to acquire requisite teaching qualifications but will also enable them to update and upgrade initial qualifications they had as well as help them keep abreast with changes thrown in by technological advancement (unesco, 2015). in reaction to the perennial shortage of teachers with requisite qualifications in rural areas, in-service training in the form of professional development programmes are organized for teachers from time to time. professional development programmes are organized for teachers to help them acquire new skills, knowledge, values, and to update and upgrade existing knowledge and skills in order to improve their output and serve the learners better. however, not all of them seem to take advantage of such training opportunities hence the goals of such professional development programme are not achieved. the reasons studies have shown include teachers’ attitudes adams (2013), teachers’ characteristics and strategies of implementation (zheng, honbiao & shenghua, 2019). it calls for a paradigm shift and an alternative way in which professional development programmes for teachers are provided in order to mitigate the effects of possible barriers, enhance the teachers’ buy-in and uptake of such programmes as well as enhance their effectiveness and efficiency. theoretical framework and review of related literature the theoretical framework adopted for this study is based on rubenson’s recruitment paradigm (1977), cross chain-ofresponse model (1981) and darkenwald and merriam’s psychosocial interaction model (1982). these theories posit that the tendency of adults to participate or not to participate in learning activities is determined by dispositional, institutional and environmental teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ememe p. i. pememe@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 86 factors. these factors include attitude towards professional development activities, self-efficacy, time, resources, school culture, family influence, principal and colleague influences. rubenson (1977) proposed a recruitment paradigm which sees the individual learner’s participation behaviour as contingent upon both personal and environmental variables operating within the adult’s life space. personal variables include the individual’s previous experience, personal attributes, developmental tasks confronting the individual during the life cycle. environmental variables include the degree of hierarchical structure of the individual’s life space which are environmental constraints deterring one’s control of one’s situation; others are the norms, values of significant others and institutional facilitators or impediments to continuing education. cross (1981), developed a composite chain-ofresponse model, which explains adults’ participation in learning activities. the model stipulates that adults’ participation in learning activities is conceived not as a single isolated act but as a result of a complex chain of responses of the position of the individual on the environment. darkenwald and merriam (1986) proposed the psychosocial interaction model, which postulates that participatory behaviour of adults is determined by a continuum of responses to both internal and external stimuli. according to the theory, adult participation behaviour is determined by the socio-economic status and adult socioeconomic status is conceptually portrayed as the first and most dominant of the model’s continuum. these theories are relevant to this study because they identified possible factors that affect participation in professional development programmes among adults. their assertions are in line with the findings of other scholars and help to strengthen the finding of this study that personal attributes, government and school-based problems hinder participation of teachers in rural areas in professional development programmes. the theories, therefore, brought to the fore the need to evolve an alternative system of educational delivery that will reduce the challenges of participation in professional development among teachers. this educational system according to this study is open distance learning (odl). open distance learning in the context of teachers’ professional development is a kind of selfeducation which allows learners to learn independently and at their own pace irrespective of location, time or place. it is technology-based, flexible and makes access to learning easy for the learners. it has been recognized as an alternative strategy for providing continued professional development training for teachers. for instance, pitsoe and maila (2012), contended that odl is a vital strategy for human capital development such as teachers’ development and it is also a practical strategy to address the challenges of widening access thereby increasing participation in higher education. odl helps teachers to assess course materials, learning instruction, data and other information via diverse media and methodologies. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ememe p. i. pememe@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 87 open and distance learning (odl) has been defined by different scholars. for instance, shohel and power (2010), defined odl as an educational process in which a significant proportion of learning takes place remotely and flexibly beyond the formal learning environment. ghosh, nath, agarwal and nath (2012) contend that odl connotes open access to education and training that frees the learners from the constraints of time and place as well as offers them flexible learning opportunities. it is education without borders because it makes it possible for students to have access to education regardless of where they are, when they want, and how they want through the use of information communication technology (ict). in the context of this study, “open” connotes that access to education and learning opportunities for teachers is easy and not restricted and that teachers are at liberty to study independently what, when, where and how they want through the use of telephone, video, internet and other electronic online materials. this can be done synchronously that is, learners are able to interact and receive feedback from their teachers and fellow student through instant messaging system or asynchronously which does not involve immediate feedback and instant messaging system but enables the learners to download and attend to their courses at their convenient time without leaving their homes or workplace. the “openness” of odl does not imply that odl is free because the technologies (internet, telephone, video, and others) used for odl are not in any way cheap to acquire especially by teachers in the rural areas. however, through odl other costs associated with the conventional method such as the sacrifice of leaving the family to attend professional development training away from home, cost of transportation, cost of accommodation and even feeding are completely eliminated because the learners are able to access the training from wherever they are. odl is also useful for teachers especially those in the remote areas as it grants them unlimited access to learning opportunities, helps to study at the comfort of their homes thereby helping them to overcome geographical and other barriers to learning. in addition, it helps to take care of cultural, religious and political barriers that may hinder teachers, especially those in rural areas from taking advantage of professional development training. challenges of professional development programmes it has been established that teachers, especially those in the rural areas, rarely take advantage of available professional development programmes despite their importance in teacher’ professional development and quality of output. while some scholars attribute it to the use of traditional formal method which does not allow teachers easy and flexible access to learning, involves moving to different geographical location as well as entail taking the teachers away from their families and jobs, others attribute it to the teachers’ personal characteristics. for instance, filges, torgerson, gascoine, dietrichson nielsen and viiholt, (2019),contend that the suitability of methods and approaches employed for continuing professional development of teachers teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ememe p. i. pememe@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 88 determine teachers’ perception and participation in the programme. other factors that affect teachers’ participation in professional development programmes include; personal characteristics such as attitude, time, self-efficacy, age, gender, appraisal of feasibility (aydin, 2011; collins, 2011; pearsall, hodson-carlton & flowers, 2012; adams, 2013; mascher, 2016; zheng, et al., 2019). others include work environment factors, i.e. management support and collegial support (postholm, 2011; higgins and harreveld, 2013). of these factors, personal factors are said to be more significant in affecting participation in professional development programmes among teachers. according to burns (2015), the barriers to professional development can be classified into four difficult working conditions for teachers, namely: • lack of or irregular remuneration, • lack of respect from school leaders and community members, • lack of teaching learning materials; • systemic challenges poor leadership, limited administrative capacity, lack of incentives and encouragement conflicts; and poorly designed professional development programmes as a result of disconnect between policymakers and educational planners, policy makers misunderstanding teacher, what they do and how they should learn. in a similar vein omar, rashid, mohamad and yusof (2017), observed that distance, job commitment and allocation of time, financial problems and family commitment tend to hinder teachers from participating in professional development programmes. in addition, gomba (2019), posited that lack of interest by the teachers, lack of support by school management by not providing the teachers with requisite incentives and time for professional development, lack of understanding of the value of professional development and poor ict skills among teachers all contribute to hinder teachers in the rural areas from taking advantage of professional development training. finally, pitsoe and maila (2012), posited that professional development training is not always accessible to teachers located in remote and rural areas where there are no higher education institutions. statement of the problem to be effective in a dynamic environment such as our own, teachers need to continually update and upgrade their knowledge, skills and abilities through professional development programmes. studies have shown that professional development programmes are not readily available to many teachers and where it is available; teachers in remote places such as rural areas rarely participate. this situation is attributed to and exacerbated by contextual characteristics that make access to such programmes difficult and therefore calls for an alternative strategy that will minimize the teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ememe p. i. pememe@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 89 problems and make access to and utilization of opportunities for teachers’ professional development programmes better for rural teachers. although many studies have been done to identify barriers to teachers’ participation in continuing professional development programmes, none seem to have been to investigate how odl can be used to mitigate the barriers. this study was therefore conceived to determine major factors hindering teachers in the rural areas from participating in professional development programmes in order to suggest ways odl can help to reduce or eradicate the problems. purpose of the study the study was carried out to explore odl as an alternative to enhance access to professional development programmes for teachers in rural areas in lagos state. specifically, objectives of the study include: 1. to determine the professional development programmes available for teachers in rural areas; 2. to ascertain the extent to which rural teachers have access to teachers’ development programmes; 3. to identify factors that hinder teachers from attending professional development training in rural areas; and 4. to determine how odl can enhance the delivery of professional development for teachers. research questions the following questions were formulated to guide the study. 1. what are the professional development programmes available for schoolteachers in rural areas? 2. to what extent are professional development programmes accessible for rural teachers? 3. what are the factors affecting participation in professional development programmes among teachers in rural areas? 4. how can odl enhance participation in professional development programmes among teachers in rural areas? methodology this quantitative study employed a descriptive survey to answer the questions generated for this study. this design is appropriate because of its potential in investigating and establishing facts about the nature, distribution and interrelationships between educational, sociological and psychological variables within the population of the study. again, it allows the researcher to study a segment of the population in-depth and generalize the finding from the sample to the larger teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ememe p. i. pememe@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 90 population. the population of the study consisted of all teachers in public secondary schools in shomolu local government area of lagos state. a total of ten secondary schools were selected, and twenty teachers were purposively selected from each school, making a total of 200 teachers. to be selected for the study, the teacher should have spent a minimum of two years in the school. all the teachers in the selected schools who met this criterion were selected for the study. participation in the study was voluntary. the respondents’ consent was sort before involving them in the study. they were intimated of the study and were assured that their response will be used only for the purpose of the research and that the research will not expose them to any kind of danger and their response will be confidential. data for the study was collected using a researcher-developed structured questionnaire. the questionnaire consisted of two sections. while the first section elicited information on the biodata of the respondents, the second section consisted of items that answered the research questions. the research instrument was also validated by experts in test and measurement in the faculty of education, university of lagos. the instrument was found to be reliable with a correlation coefficient value of 0.72. data collected were analysed using percentages, mean, and standard deviation. in analysing the data, only valid responses (not the sample size) were used in the analysis. limitation of the study one limitation of this study was that data was collected from a local government which is not completely rural. however, the profile of a good number of public schools in this lga in terms of learning environment, infrastructure and quality of teachers may not be significantly different from what we have in rural areas in the state. results teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ememe p. i. pememe@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 91 table 1: demographic characteristics of respondents s-n variables frequency percentages (%) 1 gender male 87 43.5 female 113 56.5 total 200 100 2 marital status single 85 42.5 married 105 52.5 divorced 6 3.0 widowed 4 2.0 total 200 100 3 qualification nce 55 27.5 b.sc., b.ed 110 55.0 masters 35 17.5 total 200 100 4 experience less than 5 years 66 33.0 5-10 years 62 31.0 9-14 years 37 18.5 15 years and more 35 17.5 total 200 100.0 teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ememe p. i. pememe@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 92 table 1 shows the demographic statistics of the respondents used in the study. from the table, 113 (56.5%) of the respondents were female teachers, while the remaining 87 (43.5%) were male teachers. the table further shows that 85 (42.5%) of the teachers were still single, 105 (52.5%) were married while only 6 (3%) and 4 (2%) were divorced and widowed, respectively. with regards to the educational qualification, the result from table 1 indicates that respondents with nce constitute 55 (27.5%) while teachers with first degree and its equivalent, as well as master’s degree certificates, constitute 110 (55%) and 35 (17.5%), respectively. information from the table also shows that 66 (33%) of the respondent had only worked in their respective schools for less than 5 year, 62 (31%) for 5-10 years while those with 9-14 years of experience as well as 15+ years of experience are 37 (18.5%) and 35 (17.5%) respondents, respectively. research questions 1: what are the professional development programmes available for schoolteachers in rural areas? table 2 availability of professional development training for teachers in rural areas based on availability and unavailability profession dev. training strategies participation available (responses) not available (responses) n % n % n % rank (ava) in-service training 83 41.5 31 15.5 52 26.0 1st seminar 69 34.5 17 8.5 52 26.0 2nd workshop 33 16.5 8 4.0 25 12.5 3rd conference 8 4.0 4 2.0 4 2.0 4th others (further study via (odl) 7 3.5 2 1.0 5 2.5 5th total 200 100 62 31.0 138 69.0 teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ememe p. i. pememe@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 93 table 2 shows the responses of the respondents (teachers) on available strategies utilized for professional development training for teachers in rural areas. the result was computed based on valid responses of each response categories: available (62) and not available (138). the ranking was also done based on the availability of each strategy. it is evident from the table that 31(15.5%) of the respondents indicated in-service training as the professional development strategy is available to them, while 52 (26%) felt otherwise. in a similar pattern, 17 (8.5%) of participants agreed that seminars were available in their school. 52 (26%) of the respondents indicated that seminars were not available to them. for workshops, eight (4%) while 25 (121%) said that it is not available in their school. the table also shows that of the eight teachers who have participated in conferences, four each indicated availability and non-availability, respectively. the responses of the respondents were further ranked to identify the strategy perceived by the respondents as the most available to them. evidence from the table shows the most rated strategy by the teachers is in-service training. this is followed by seminars. others include workshop, conferences and paid study. however, odl ranked lowest and the least utilized strategy used. the reason for this could be ignorance of the benefits inherent in odl as an educational delivery system. research question 2: to what extent are professional development programmes accessible for rural teachers? this research was measured using ability to have attended or not attended any of the five professional development programmes listed. table 3: access to professional development training programmes among teachers in rural areas attended frequency (%) not attended frequency (%) total in-service 58 142 200 (29%) (71%) (100%) seminar 48 152 200 (24%) (76%) (100%) workshop 26 174 33 (13,5%) (86.5%) (16.5%) conferences 46 154 200 (23%) (77%) (100%) others 22 178 200 (11%) (89%) (100%) weighted % 40 (24.0%) 160(76.0%) 200 (100.0%) teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ememe p. i. pememe@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 94 table 3 shows the extent of or participation by rural teachers in various professional development programmes available to them. as can be seen from the table, 58 (29%) admitted to have attended in-service training while 142 (71%) said they have not attended in-service training. similarly, only 48 (24%) of the participants agreed that they have attended seminars, organized by their schools as form of professional development while 152(76%) reported otherwise. as regards to workshops, only 26 (13.5%) of the participants admitted that they have attended workshop in their respective schools leaving a large proportion 17 (86.5%) of the participants who think otherwise. furthermore, only 46 (23%) of the 200 participants agreed that they have attended conferences organized by their respective employers while a higher proportion of the participants reported otherwise. in summary, 48 (24.0%) of the respondents agreed to have attended professional development programmes while majority 152 (76.0%) appeared to have not. this, therefore, shows that the majority of the participants have never attended any continuing development programme. this is despite the fact that there may be occasional opportunities for in-service training for them. this result, therefore, establishes the fact that even when training opportunities are provided for the teachers, most of them may not participate if the conditions are not convenient for them. research question3: what are the factors affecting participation in professional development programmes among teachers in rural areas? to answer this question, the likert scale was used to compute the rated mean. the means for each item is calculate using n= fx+fy/ n where n = total population. fx= no of responses x scale value (2x agree), fy (1x disagree) for instance= n= 73(2) + 127(1)/200= 1.36 teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ememe p. i. pememe@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 95 table 4: challenges of teachers’ professional development in rural nigeria (n=200) s/n item disagree (response s) agree (respon se) mean std. dev. rank g ov er nm en t r el at ed ob st ac le s 1 low budgetary allocation (funding) for training by government 127 73 1.36 .482 2 poor selection process 147 53 1.27 .442 3 poor awareness/opportunities 138 62 1.31 .463 4 absence of study leave 144 56 1.28 .450 5 lack of clear government policy on professional development grand mean 148 52 1.26 1.29 .439 .455 3rd te ac he rre la te d ob st ac le s 1 time constraints 109 91 1.45 .499 2 long distances involved 145 55 1.28 .447 3 financial constraints 90 110 1.55 .498 4 family considerations 118 82 1.41 .493 5 poor teacher readiness 123 77 1.35 .479 grand mean 1.41 .483 1st s ch oo l b as ed o bs ta cl e 1 poor facilities in schools 126 74 1.37 .494 2 inadequate personnel to hand over their responsibility 129 71 1.36 .479 3 poor incentives for professional development 138 62 1.32 .471 4 poor access to professional training 116 84 1.42 .494 5 poor capacity of school administrator grand mean 134 66 1.31 1.36 .463 .480 2nd nb: likert scale disagree (1), agree (2) teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ememe p. i. pememe@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 96 table 4 shows the various challenges and factors hindering rural teachers’ from taking advantage of available professional development training, as reported by the respondents. in computing the mean values, only valid responses were utilized. evidence from the table indicates that the factors responsible for poor teachers’ participation in professional development in rural areas are multifaceted. the factors were grouped into three, covering government-related factors; teacherrelated factors and school-based factors. with regards to government-related factors, low budgetary allocation (funding) (m=1.36, s.d =.482) topped the group. other factors in that group include; poor awareness/opportunities of professional development options, (m=1.31, s.d=.463), absence of long-term leave for teachers aspiring to upgrade their qualifications (m=1.28, s.d= .450), poor selection process that favours teachers in the city at the expense of those in rural areas (m=1.27, s.d=.442), and finally lack of clear and consistent government policy on teachers professional development (m=1.26, s.d=.439). with regards to teacher-related factors or obstacles, evidence from the table indicates that financial challenges top the list (m=1.45, s.d = .499). other teacher-related factors as identified by respondents include; time constraints, (m=1.45, s.d=.499), family considerations such as child care (m=1.41, s.d=.493), rural teachers’ poor readiness for professional development (m=1.35, s.d=.479) as well as long-distance with regards to the venue of professional development programmes. as regards to school-related factors, access to professional development programme (m=1.494, s.d=.494) ranked highest. others are poor facilities in schools (m=1.37, sd=.494), inadequate personnel to handle their responsibility for the period of such professional development (m=1.36, sd=.479), poor incentives for professional development (m=1.32, sd=.471) and poor capacity of school administrator (m=1.31, sd=.463). the three groups were further ranked to determine the group with the most effect. evidence from the table indicates that teacher-related obstacle ranked first. personal disposition such as attitude, poor readiness for professional development as well as excuses of not having adequate time, play key roles in preventing the teachers from seeking and participating in professional development programmes. next to teachers’ related obstacle is the school-based obstacle, the inability of the school administrator to commit to the professional development of their teachers by providing necessary incentives for teacher has contributed immensely to teachers’ low interest in professional development. interestingly, government-related obstacle ranked the least among the challenges. discussion of findings the study was conducted with a view to establishing odl as an alternative strategy for effective continuing professional development of rural teachers in lagos state. to achieve this goal, the study leveraged on three theories which identified factors that impede adults from participating in professional development programmes and this helps in formulating the research questions for teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ememe p. i. pememe@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 97 this study as well as justifies the need for an alternative mode of delivery that eliminates the barriers identified by the theories. professional development programmes available to teachers in the rural areas were, determined, and the level of participation and factors that impede participation by rural teachers ascertained. findings from the study show that a number of professional development programmes are available for teachers in rural areas with in-service training ranking first. this is followed by seminars, workshop, conferences and paid study. although the respondents indicated that these programmes are available in some cases, most of them were of the view that the programmes are not significant across schools in rural areas. this means that even where professional development programmes exist, access will still be limited for the majority of the teachers in rural areas. in line with this assertion, buckler and gafar (2013) posit that even when teachers are keen on embarking on their professional development, they are often confronted with lack of opportunities for professional development and other obstacles and hindrances. this result raises questions such as why is accessibility low? are there impinging factors or are there professional development programmes that appeal more to rural teachers? some of these questions were not covered in this study hence the need to carry out further research on the type and nature of professional development programmes that will appeal more to the rural teachers. with regards to factors that affect access to professional development programmes, the study revealed an array of challenges that face rural teachers in their bid to participate in professional development training. they were grouped into three, namely government-based factors, teacherrelated factors and school-based factor. these factors were further ranked to determine their level of impact as perceived by the teachers and interestingly teacher-related which has items such as financial constraints, poor teacher readiness, family consideration, lack of time and others teacher characteristics ranked first. all these can be regarded as teachers’ characteristics or disposition. however, the study did not set out to assess the attitude of rural teachers towards teachers’ professional development programmes. it is therefore recommended that a detailed investigation into the impact of rural teachers’ attitude towards professional development programmes be conducted using the same respondents if possible. the result of this study is consistent with several studies that reported a high influence of teacher characteristics on participation and outcome of professional development programmes (aydin, 2011, collins, 2011; pearsall, et al., 2012; adams, 2013; mascher, 2016; zheng, et al., 2019). the importance of the teachers’ disposition in adult learning, such as in-service training cannot be overemphasized. this is mainly because adults are self-directed learners and are only motivated to learn when they are free to choose what to learn and how to learn; when they see learning as meeting their immediate needs, when they believe they have the time and resources for learning and when they can apply what they have learnt to solve their immediate problems. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ememe p. i. pememe@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 98 this is why odl is being recommended as a suitable alternative to help rural teachers deal with the challenges of the conventional face-to-face strategy. in line with this, ghosh, nath, agarwal and nath (2012), contend that odl makes for open access to education, frees learners from the constraints of time and place and offers them flexible opportunity for learning. this means it enables the learners to learn what, where, when and how they want. it also allows them to study and work at the same time as well as gives them the freedom to learn at their own pace. odl is also flexible in terms of how the courses are structured, the place, medium and time of delivery. it is technology-based and therefore removes learners’ time constraints because it allows them to study according to their schedules. learning through odl can be synchronous, which allows learners to ask questions and receive immediate response or feedback through instant messaging system, or asynchronous which allows learning to be done online or off-line and allows course materials to be delivered via the web, email and message boards where students can downloads or post in the online fora. through the learning management system (lms), information is delivered to the learners, thereby making it convenient for them to access learning materials, interact with a facilitator in different geographical locations. for instance, if teachers are away to work or for any outside assignment, through the lms, they can access, get and exchange information using their telephones. odl is a kind of self-education, and it is learner-centred and offers the learner some level of autonomy. through odl, learners have access to learning resources and knowledge and links where they can upload files and documents that are relevant to their study. however, “open” in odl does not in any way imply that odl is free. rather it means that odl allows teachers a high level of autonomy and flexibility in terms of course content, the way the course is structured, the place, medium and time of delivery. that is, it allows the teachers to access learning from wherever they are, whenever they want and however they want. the teachers do not have to travel from their stations to attend professional development programme elsewhere, they will not abandon their families, pay for transportation or for accommodation to study outside their homes because they can study from their homes or offices through the use of ict. with regards to who pays for the cost of odl if it is not free, the assumption is that almost every teacher in the rural areas has or can afford to have a telephone, a computer, radio or television through which odl course materials can be accessed. it is also believed that teachers who engage in further studies do so because they know the value of acquiring additional skills and knowledge and therefore should be able to pay to access training through odl because everything of value has a cost. but where they are not able to do so they can seek help from the school management or the school management can motivate and encourage them by helping them to acquire and pay for the technologies they need and any other cost they may incur. the management can also advance some soft loans to the teachers to help them with the payment teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ememe p. i. pememe@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 99 for their programmes as incentives to participate in the programmes. finally, the issue of who pays for the cost of odl is not covered in this study. it is therefore recommended that further research should be done to cover this area. integration of odl in teachers’ professional development has some implications for the teachers, the school management and the government in general if it is to achieve the purpose. for instance, some teachers may have poor ict knowledge, some may lack knowledge or experience in online learning environment, others may simply be technophobic, and others may not have the resources to acquire the necessary ict gadgets. the implication is that the teachers need orientation on the usefulness of ict in their development training, they need to acquire ict knowledge and those who already have the knowledge should constantly update and upgrade their knowledge of these technologies in order to effectively apply it both in their own study and in delivering their lessons when necessary. furthermore, the study found out that school-based obstacles such as poor facilities in school, low incentives for professional development, access to professional development, lack of or inadequate personnel to hand over their responsibilities to, poor capacity of school administrators affect teachers’ participation in professional development. this finding is consistent with gomba, (2019), who reported lack of support from school management and their inability to provide the teachers with requisite incentives to attend professional development as major challenges to participation in professional development among teachers. furthermore, unesco, (2014), identified lack of finances and teaching resources, lack of or unstable electricity supply, difficult working condition for teachers, a dearth of accommodation and low remuneration as difficult circumstances in the schools that affect teachers’ participation in professional development. this implies that school management should provide the necessary incentives and motivation for the teachers to participate in professional development training. the school management should provide opportunities for ict literacy programmes for the teachers and encourage them to attend through cash incentives, paid study leave or provision of loan facility to purchase ict materials for their study. efforts should be made to reduce the workloads as well as remove difficult working conditions that may hinder rural teachers from attending professional development programmes. government related obstacle ranked last among the challenges indicated by the respondents as impinging on their ability to participate in professional development programmes. these factors include poor funding, lack of awareness and opportunities and lack of opportunities to proceed for leave of absence, among others. this result is not surprising because over the years, budgetary allocation to education has been dwindling and the rural areas are worst affected resulting not only in low quality of education but also low opportunities for teachers to update and upgrade themselves through professional development programmes. this has brought to the fore the need for government not just to increase funding on education but also to create opportunities teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ememe p. i. pememe@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 100 and enabling learning environment for teachers, especially teachers in the rural areas for their continuous development. professional development of teachers through odl should be encouraged and the cost subsidized to motivate teachers to participate. there is a need to increase the budget for education of rural teachers, some of which should be used to purchase and upgrade ict materials. conclusion teachers are undoubtedly the most crucial component of a schooling system, and the quality of education in any society is a function of the quality of its teachers. to be effective teachers need to update and upgrade their skills and knowledge continuously. this study has identified an array of challenges hindering rural teachers from participating in professional development programmes. these challenges require a paradigm shift in the way and manner professional development is delivered to be accessible to teachers. educators in rural areas that are not only isolated but also grappling with a plethora of challenges that have made it almost impossible for them to take advantage of professional development programmes when and where they are available. therefore, odl which allows teachers in rural areas to participate in professional development programmes regardless of their location, qualification, pace and even age through the use of ict such as telephone, the mass media and other web-related material is no doubt the best alternative to alleviate the effects of space, time and distance barriers. finally, there is no doubt that teachers, especially those in the rural areas may be confronted with a myriad of challenges which include limited internet access, unstable power supply and inadequate funds to buy data for teachers that have telephones. it is recommended that teachers who express interest in odl be assisted by relevant stakeholders in education such as nongovernmental organisations (ngos), parent teachers fora, cooperatives and school management to acquire phones, data and even scholarships for deserving participants. recommendations based on the findings of the study, the following recommendations were made: equal and enhanced access of professional development programmes for teachers in the urban and rural areas should be ensured through odl. there should be continuous ict literacy training for rural teachers to equip them with the necessary skills and knowledge that will enable them to take advantage of odl and other online learning opportunities. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ememe p. i. pememe@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 101 improved budget allocation for professional training for all teachers in rural areas, to enable rural schools to purchase the right technology and other facilities to improve technology-enhanced online learning among teachers in rural areas. school leaders should provide rural teachers with incentives that will motivate them to participate in continuing development programmes. this could be in terms of purchasing smart phones for them at a subsided price, providing stipends for them to buy data or even providing free data for them when necessary. the school could help the teachers acquire needed ict materials for development programmes at a subsidised rate or pay fully for them to attend such programmes. attendance of professional development programmes could be made to be part of teachers’ assessment for promotion. policymakers at educational districts across the nation should carry a comprehensive assessment of rural teachers training needs and partner with odl institutions to make programmes accessible to schools in rural areas. to address the issues of poor internet connectivity and incessant power outage, the government should scale up rural electricity programme to ensure regular power supply in the rural areas as well as encourage more internet providers to locate their businesses in rural areas 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(eds), school university partnership for educational change in rural south africa. lewiston, ny: edwin mellen press. pp (211-230) pitsoe, v.j.& maila, m. w. 2012. rethinking continuing professional teacher development within the open distance learning framework. international journal of technology and inclusive education. 1(1) 17-23. postholm, m.b. 2011. a completed research and development work project in school: the teachers’ learning and possibilities, premises and challenges for further development. teaching and teacher education, 27, 560-568. rubenson, k. 1977. participation in recurrent education. paris: centre for educational research and innovation. organization for economic cooperation and development. shohel, m.m.c. & power, t. 2010. introducing mobile technology for enhancing teaching learning in bangladesh: teacher perspectives, open learning 25(3) 201-215. shohel, m.m.c. 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tetflemanager@up.ac.za contact judah ndiku @ judahndiku@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. teacher empowerment strategies for conflict transformation and peace building in kenya judah ndiku school of education, masinde muliro university of science and technology, kenya vol 1 no 1 2019 issn: 2788-6298 doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v1i1.65 abstract the effects of violent conflict on education are enormous, and provision of quality education cannot be realised if teachers are not adequately trained to teach in conflict-prone areas. this reality prompted the study to investigate strategies to empower teachers in conflict transformation and peacebuilding. guided by the conflict transformation theory which proposes to identify the root causes of a conflict, and the use of creativity to transform the causes based on relationships and sub-systems that surround the conflict over time, a cross-sectional mixed methods study was conducted in mt. elgon region, kenya. the study found that: for teachers to participate in conflict transformation there was a need for training in peace education and implementation of life skills curriculum through various methods including distance education. since then the government has developed education sector policy on peace education which provides for policy and curriculum initiatives, collaboration and partnerships to address challenges in peacebuilding and violent extremism. initiatives to train teachers and education officers in peace education and implementation of the life skills curriculum have been instituted. however, despite the efforts, peace education is not effectively taught in many schools due to inadequate teacher training. equally, life skills education, one of the main subjects to promote peace education, is not effectively implemented. to mitigate this, the government has made several efforts to identify best practices to promote peace education and implement life skills, among them, teacher training on how to enhance peace education through mainstreaming and implementation of life skills curriculum. there is need for further investigation on the current gaps in peace education in the wake of the curriculum review to competency based curriculum in kenya. keywords: conflict, conflict transformation, life skills, peace building, violence teacher education through flexible learning introduction violent conflicts escalating into wars and civil strife are on the increase, especially in the developing world. according to einsiedel (2014) major civil wars almost tripled from four to eleven between 2007 and 2014. these were experienced in iraq, afghanistan, drc, somalia, south sudan, syria, libya, ukraine, pakistan, and nigeria. the structures and processes that turn intolerance into violence are varied and highly complex with factors such as historical forces, economic tensions, bad governance, perceived threats to cultural identity, and formal, non-formal and informal educational processes being the main contributing factors to such strife (fund for peace,2012; ohlson, 2008). in kenya a serious and unique incursion of violent conflict occurred in the mount elgon region and for a period of about two years (2006 to 2008), the region was under siege of local militia gangs until the government intervened and forced a ceasefire (wakhungu et al., 2008). as a result of the violent conflict, schools were greatly affected; some schools absorbed displaced pupils, and this created large classes in the accommodating schools. such classes posed challenges of class control to teachers. equally, the few teachers who remained after some sought transfers, were displaced or killed, were unable to cope with the heavy workload (ndiku, 2017). the school calendar and syllabus coverage were also affected. psychological effects of the violent conflict on the children and teachers were also evident. displacement from homes and schools and living in congested camps was traumatising. signs of such trauma were manifest through children who had emotional and behavioural disturbances including low self-esteem, withdrawal and aggression. aspects of post-traumatic stress disorders were also manifest. the effects of violence on children especially among those attending school required keen attention by teachers yet the teachers may not have had the skills and competencies to address the challenges hence the need to establish the skills the teachers required to enable them intervene on the effects of the violent conflict (ibid). as part of the communities affected by the violent conflict, teachers were also traumatised, and they required help to manage the trauma and effectively perform their duties in this difficult environment (ndiku, achoka and onkware 2013) hence the need for training in conflict transformation. j. ndiku 3 after a ceasefire, a violent conflict graduates to the final stage of the conflict cycle; the post-conflict stage. this stage is characterised by reconstruction and reconciliation including the healing of psychological wounds and the re-establishment of relationships (frazer and ghettas, 2013; paffenholz, 2009; action, 2003). in the post-conflict stage, the effects of the conflict abound, and if the issues and problems that caused the conflict are not addressed, the events in this stage can easily lead to another conflict, and the conflict cycle continues. therefore, there was need to help the societies experiencing the effects of the violent conflict in kenya to come out of them through conflict transformation processes. in conflict transformation, action of several players is enlisted. among the local players in conflict transformation are community groups, community leaders, professional groups, churches and individuals who represent majority of the population and can be reached through a wide range of peacebuilding approaches among them implementation of peace education programmes in schools and capacity building for peacebuilding actors (paffenholz, 2009; action, 2003). education plays a critical role in promoting sustainable peace, hence, the role of teachers (novelli, mieke cardozo and smith, 2017). as professionals and opinion leaders, teachers play crucial roles in influencing change in conflict situations through: peace education, change in attitudes, perceptions, behaviour and constructed beliefs of the learners and other persons and agencies that they interact with (kangethe, 2015; opongo,2009). teachers are perceived as the most important care-givers outside the child’s home. they have the potential to help children recover from the trauma of conflict through, the return to normalcy provided by the opening of schools. they also manage the classroom environment and provide learners with a safe place where they are heard. teachers also identify learners requiring additional support, make referrals and model peaceful resolution to conflict, children learn how to manage the conflicts around them at interpersonal, classroom and community levels (horner, kadiwal, sayed, naureen and novelli, 2015). despite the enormous task on teachers in conflict transformation and peace building, peace education and life skills have not effectively taken root owing to lack of teacher teacher education through flexible learning training in this area as life skills is not part of the teacher education curriculum (kangethe, 2015). indeed, teachers in kenya require support through regular training and provision of appropriate materials to support them to deliver peace education and life skills lessons (kangethe, 2015; world bank, 2002; nicolai, 2009; penson and tomlinson, 2009; unesco, 2006). where it may not be possible to reach out to all the practising teacher and train them, distance education offers the best mode of instruction for them. owing to the challenges posed by the violent conflict in kenya and in mt. elgon in particular, there was need to establish the training needs for teachers to empower them to effectively handle conflict transformation and peace building along with the most effective methods of training them hence the motivation to undertake this study. theoretical framework: conflict transformation theory this study was hinged on the conflict transformation theory. conflict transformation was re-conceptualized from conflict management and conflict resolution theories with contributions of many scholars such as azar (1990), vayrynen (1991), galtung (1996), rupesinghe (1995), lederach (1997;2003), miall (2004) among others (miall,2004). conflict transformation theory attempts to identify the root causes of a conflict and uses creativity to transform the causes (nicolaides, 2008). lederach (1997) argues conflict transformation should be seen as process of peacebuilding based on the relationships and sub-systems that surround the conflict over a time. he proposes four elements of conflict transformation that is: personal, relational, structural, and cultural and each of these representing different levels that influence conflict. personal change reflects change on the individual level in emotional, perceptual and spiritual ways. relational change affects areas of life that are interdependent with others, mainly communicative and interactive changes in relationships. structural change influences a broad range of areas from basic human needs to decision-making structures. finally, cultural change deals with, among other things, the patterns of how conflicts arise and how they are handled within group culture (moiese and lederach, 2009). conflict transformation, according to lederach (1997) is not interested in ‘ending’ something that is not desired but building relationships that form new patterns, processes, and structures. therefore, peacebuilding through constructive transformation of conflicts is a visionary and a j. ndiku 5 context-responsive approach. the conflict in mt. elgon which was the basis of this study was intra-state pitting two sub-groups of the same ethnic group. in this study the factors which contributed to the conflict were analysed and the capacities and support required of them to effectively participate in the conflict transformation processes. methodology this study was conducted in mt. elgon region in 2010/2011. the region is located on the south-eastern slopes of mt. elgon in western region of kenya. the study adopted a mixed methods research design. cross-sectional research approach was used to collect data. the target population of this study were primary and secondary school teachers (1293), education officers (34), school management teams of boards of management chairpersons (28), primary school committees’ chairpersons (104). proportionate stratified sampling was used to select the survey universe which was divided into subpopulations where the four divisions of the region namely: kapsokwony, kaptama, kopsiro and cheptais were identified to get representation of teachers from all the four divisions. further strata of primary and secondary schools were identified to get representation of primary and secondary school teachers. the study sampled two hundred and ten respondents (210) distributed as follows: eight education officers who were purposively selected; eight boards of management (bom) representing the secondary schools; twelve school committee members representing the primary schools and one hundred and eighty two (182) teachers comprised of 117 primary and 65 secondary school teachers. regarding the teachers’ qualifications, 78 had a primary teachers’ certificate, 57 were diploma holders and 47 were bachelor of education degree holders. data were collected through questionnaires, interview schedules and focus group discussion schedules. the questionnaire administered to teachers had closed ended items with responses on a likert scale ranging from strongly disagree (sd), disagree (d), undecided (u), agree (a) and strongly agree (sa). open spaces were provided for the respondents to comment freely on any other issues related to the study which were teacher education through flexible learning not covered in the closed section. closed forms of questions in questionnaires were preferred because they are easy to administer and fill out, assist the respondents mind to be focused on the subject and facilitate the process of tabulation and analysis (mouton and prozesky, 2010). an interview schedule was used to collect data from education officers where individual officers were interviewed. interviews were chosen to collect information from the education officers because they provided in-depth data that may not be possible to get when using a questionnaire (bordens and abbott, 2005). during the interviews, the researcher was able to probe the respondents and seek clarifications to the responses made. two separate focus groups were constituted one group was composed of a combination of boards of management representatives (8 members) and primary school committee representatives (12 members). these are critical persons in governance and shaping policy at school level. focus group discussion were used because of their ability to yield accurate information through probing (lindlof and tylor, 2002). though focus group discussions have some weaknesses such as being less representative of a large population and the researcher being unable to control the discussions compared to an interview (tracy, lutgen-sandrik and alberts, 2006), they were used in this study to triangulate and clarify views and opinions given by the teachers and the key informants. qualitative and quantitative data were collected concurrently. this served triangulation purposes in this study. data were analysed through cross-tabulations, and percentages were computed and presented in tables. qualitative data obtained from the open-ended sections of the questionnaire, interviews and fgds were analysed through themes (gibson, 2006). j. ndiku 7 findings this section presents the findings of the study articulating the strategies to empower teachers to effectively participate in conflict transformation. this was borne out of the fact that violent conflict and the need for conflict transformation brought new challenges which called for new capacities to address them. to establish the requirements for empowering teachers to be effective in conflict transformation, teachers were requested to respond to statements on a likert scale and the findings were presented in tables. table 1.0 presents teachers’ responses against the statement which enquired whether the teachers themselves needed training in skills in handling children affected by the violent conflict. from the findings, majority of the different categories of teachers strongly agreed and or agreed with the statement. these findings implied that teachers felt that they needed more training to be able to handle children who were affected by the violent conflict. table 1.0: skills in handling children affected by violent conflict respondents sd d u a sa p1 certificate holders 0 0 3% 40% 59% diploma holders 0 0.5% 0.5% 15% 84% b. ed degree holders 0.5% 0 0.5% 41% 58% related to skills in handling children affected by the violent conflict was the statement to measure whether there was a need for skills in handling parents affected by the violent conflict. from the findings presented in table 1.1, the majority of the teachers of different levels of professional training strongly agreed with the statement. table 1.1: skills in handling parents affected by the violent conflict respondents sd d u a sa p1 certificate holders 8% 6% 8% 20% 58% diploma holders 2% 0% 3% 30% 65% b. ed degree holders 10% 6% 3% 35% 48% teacher education through flexible learning teachers were also asked whether they needed additional skills in counselling. these findings were presented in table 1.2 below. from the findings, it was established that most of the teachers required enhanced skills in counselling where they agreed or strongly agreed with the statement. an interesting scenario, however, was noted among the degree holders where those who agreed with the statement were more than those who strongly agreed with the statement. table 1.2: skills in counselling respondents sd d u a sa p1 certificate holders 4% 6% 10% 30% 50% diploma holders 2% 0 3% 35 61% b. ed degree holders 17% 0% 3% 42% 38% teachers were also asked to respond to a statement which enquired whether they needed enhanced skills in implementing the peace education curriculum. from the findings presented in table 1.3, it was established that teachers required enhanced skills in the implementation of the peace education curriculum as majority of them strongly agree with the statement. this was also the opinion of the education officers and the other stakeholders who participated in the focus group discussions. table 1.3: skills in implementation of peace education curriculum respondents sd d u a sa p1 certificate holders 0 1% 3% 36% 60% diploma holders 1% 0% 0% 38% 61% b. ed degree holders 1% 1% 8% 40% 50% table 1.4 presents findings on whether teachers required enhanced skills in conflict resolution and peace mediation as a strategy to enhance teacher participation in conflict transformation. from the findings presented, it was established that teachers needed additional training in conflict resolution and peace mediation because those who strongly j. ndiku 9 agreed with the statement were more than 50% among all categories of teachers. further responses through the interviews and fdgs confirmed the need for training of teachers in new skills. one key informant observed: training programmes for teachers, learners and the community to promote peace, safety and security are important … teachers and other education personnel should be provided with the skills to give psychological support and promote learners’ emotional well-being. (education officer, deos office, kapsokwony). table 1.4: skills in conflict resolution and mediation respondents sd d u a sa p1 certificate holders 0 0 2% 20% 78% diploma holders 0 0 1 24% 75% b. ed degree holders 1 0 0 40% 59% through the interviews and the fdgs it was established that some action in training had been taken to empower teachers in peace building. a senior education officer who was interviewed observed that teachers were trained on peace education in six centres where over 300 teachers participated in a programme run by unicef. in the training, teachers were sensitized on the implementation of the life skills curriculum, peace education and how to set up peace clubs in schools and training of peer counsellors. the officer however, noted that, further training on peace education, effective teaching methods to handle children affected by the conflict and counselling skills to empower teachers to handle both affected parents and pupils was required. from the findings it was clear that though some training had been carried out, there was need for more. this may have been occasioned by the fact that part of the teachers who were participants in this study may not have been among the 300 hundred who were reported to have been trained. teacher education through flexible learning another education officer observed that teacher empowerment through training was the only way to change the society in mt. elgon region. he said, … to make strides in peace building and development, teachers should be trained to advocate for peace in and out of school… because teachers are opinion leaders and shapers in society in their own right and they form a critical mass of agents of change. (education officer, kapsokwony,). the interviewed education officers observed that there was need to enhance training and rehabilitation programmes which had been instituted by ngos. according to the information shared by key informants namely education officers and school management teams, ngos and cbos; unicef, undp, aphia ii action aid were involved in training and issuing supplies of food, clothing and sanitary towels to children affected by the violent conflict to facilitate their access to education. as it was observed, though some training had been instituted, it may not have been adequate hence the need for more training for the education officers and other education stakeholders in peace education. commenting on the need for training, another education officer stated that, there was need for teachers to uphold professional ethics at all times. he observed that seminars to sensitise teachers on professional matters were crucial. he stated that: teachers need to be sensitised on teachers’ code of regulations, the education act and the tsc act … school managers like school committees need to be sensitised on their roles… head teachers should be sensitised on their duties and responsibilities in order to manage the resources under their care. (education officer, deos office, kapsokwony,). the above comments were valid owing to the behaviour of some teachers who failed to attend to duty in the pretext that they were threatened during the violent conflict. another strategy required for effective conflict transformation was to ensure that the education offices created safe and conducive working environments especially in the schools which were vandalized during the violent conflict. the key informants reported j. ndiku 11 that repairs of the vandalized schools to improve the teaching environment was required. the above views by the key informants were confirmed through the fgds too. these views support the observation that teachers in the affected schools and other schools which were crowded required more space in form of instructional facilities. according to one of the senior education officers, efforts to repair schools in the affected areas had born positive results in that, the government gave grants through the kenya education sector support programme (kessp) and disaster management funds to reconstruct vandalized schools. it was also established that teachers required more support from the education officers especially the quality assurance officers to be able to perform their duties in conflict transformation. as presented in table 1.5 below, the majority of the teachers in each category of teachers strongly agreed that teachers required support from quality assurance officers to be effective in conflict transformation. through the interview, key informants affirmed this, that: during the violent conflict the quality assurance officers were unable to reach most of the schools. they also reported that there were additional duties in teacher supervision especially monitoring the way the affected schools were stabilising. it was observed that the schools which had closed were opening afresh with almost new pupils and teachers and that there was need to support them to start off under the new circumstances occasioned by the violent conflict. table 1.5: support through quality assurance services respondents sd d u a sa p1 certificate holders 1% 2% 4% 33% 60% diploma holders 0% 2% 1% 32% 65% b. ed degree holders 2% 6% 1% 41% 50% the teachers who participated in this study had different teacher education qualifications. however, in their responses to whether they required training and support to participate in conflict transformation, they were in agreement that there was such a need. to test whether teachers of different levels of training differed significantly on the strategies teacher education through flexible learning required to enhance teacher participation in conflict transformation, a kruskal-wallis test was computed as presented in table 1.7. from the kruskal-wallis computation, the pvalue obtained 0.003 was less than the alpha 0.05 and the null hypothesis; there is no significant difference in the strategies to empower teachers to effectively participate in conflict transformation in mt. elgon region according to teachers of different levels of professional training was rejected. table 1.7: kruskal-wallis test on the significance of the difference of the strategies required to empower teachers to effectively participate in conflict transformation qualifications n mean rank strategies to empower teacher to participate in conflict transformation p1 78 91.24 diploma 57 107.43 degree 47 72.62 total 182 test statistics ͣ ˒ᵇ strategies require to empower teachers to participate in conflict transformation chi-square df significance 11.364 2 0.003 a. kruskal wallis test b. group variable: professional qualifications from the findings, it was established that the level of training of teachers was significant among teachers in determining the strategies required to empower them to effectively participate in conflict transformation in mt. elgon region. the above findings may have been the case because of the prior training of teachers especially the capacity building seminars and workshops instituted after the 2008 rollout of the peace education and life j. ndiku 13 skills curriculum (kangethe, 2015). some teachers may have had more training in some of the conflict transformation aspects compared to others hence the differences. the study having been conducted in a conflict area, and with the efforts by the government and ngos to train teachers in peace education, the findings were valid. thus, it was necessary for the education stakeholders to take more responsibilities in empowering teachers to effectively participate in conflict transformation and peace building in kenya. discussions out of the need for further training and capacity building in conflict transformation, the government of kenya through the ministry of education launched peace education in 2008. peace education is meant to transform society from conflict stances to peaceful coexistence; to come up with interventions to counter the conflicts and escalation of the same. peace education and life skills are aimed at equipping learners with psychosocial competencies that would help them make informed decisions, solve problems, think creatively and critically, communicate effectively, build healthy relationships, create selfworth and self-awareness, help reduce gender inequalities and stereotypes, eliminate antisocial behaviour and criminal tendencies among others (kie, 2008). implementation of peace education subscribes to conflict transformation theory which denotes change. educating people targets influencing them to change at personal level, changing the way they relate, and transforming the structures and the cultures to bring about peace. such influence can be realised through peace education which can be passed in formal, nonformal and informal settings. according to the conflict transformation theory, personal change reflects change at the individual level by influencing the emotional, perceptual and spiritual ways. relational change affects areas of life that are interdependent with others, mainly communicative and interactive changes in relationships. structural change influences a broad range of areas from basic human needs to decision-making structures. finally, cultural change deals with, the patterns of how conflicts arise and how they are handled within group culture. this is what peace education strives to achieve to bring about a transformed/changed society. teacher education through flexible learning informed by this need, it was realised that there was no capacity to implement peace education. the government took to capacity building education stakeholders in peace education, key among them; teachers, school heads and education officers (kangethe, 2015) as peace education and training in life skills which is used to aid conflict transformation had not been common in kenya owing to emphasis on examinations brought about by cut-throat competition for high grades on standardised examinations. further, life skills had not been a taught subject in teacher education programmes in kenya and those who handled it initially did it out of interest and or passion. however, since then life skills teachers have been trained through in-service in the cascaded model of training where education officers who were trained in turn trained head teachers and two teachers from every school (irungu, 2015; kandeli, 2014). however, up to date, teaching of life skills has not been effective because most teachers in the school system have not been trained on life skills curriculum and those few who have attended the in-service training argue that the in-service training gave them inadequate skills to handle it successfully. it has also been observed that teaching and learning resources to implement life skills curriculum are inadequate (irungu, 2015; okech and role, 2015; abobo and orodho, 2014; kandeli, 2014). due to the short period of in-service training of teachers, many teachers have not mastered the teaching approaches for life skills. other challenges to implementation of life skills were inadequate time allocated to this subject and negative attitude of teachers and some students towards the subject because it is non-examinable. (irungu, 2015; okech and role, 2015; abobo and orodho, 2014; kandeli, 2014). other challenges facing implementation of the life skills curriculum especially at primary school level were pupil related. some of them lack confidence to discuss private matters such as sex issues in class especially in the presence of adults, with the teacher hence degrading the life skills curriculum. others succumb to peer pressure which pushes them to indulge in drug abuse and premarital sex even when guidance is given. driven by this force and desire to be like their counterparts who are outside the school set up, they tend to ignore the teachings of the life skills curriculum which they view as barriers j. ndiku 15 to the satisfaction of their needs and desires. there are also traditional beliefs, religion and initiation practices which interfere with smooth implementation of the life skills curriculum. traditional practices such as female circumcision may work against health awareness created through programs initiated by the life skills curriculum. equally, religious conservatism can bar the effective implementation of the life skills curriculum through preaching against the teaching of sex education on the basis that it spoils the young generation. there are also administrative challenges related to inadequacy of the government financing of life skills curriculum which to a large extent stalled further development in the life skills curriculum implementation (king stefan writing zone, 2017). owing to the above challenges, the impact of implementation of the life skills curriculum has not been fully realised. there is, therefore, need for further training of teachers to enable them effectively implementation peace education and life skills in schools. this resonates with the 4th r of reconciliation in the peacebuilding process (novelli, mieke cardozo and smith, 2017) in post-conflict societies. it can be used to prevent a society from relapsing into conflict. it incorporates education’s role in dealing with the past, truth and reparations, transitional justice processes, issues related to bringing communities together, processes of forgiving and healing, and the broader process of social and psychosocial healing. teachers cannot effectively handle this if they are not effectively trained and empowered to do so (nicolai, 2009). the need to support and train teachers to participate in conflict transformation is critical as it addresses the challenges and conflicts experienced in society through training to build skills, knowledge, and motivation to transform the situations and lives of others. the findings of this study affirm this. this is the same argument advanced by nicolai (2003) and unesco (2006). according to nicolai (2003) and ndiku (2007) teachers are the single most important shapers of student learning and provision of quality education. well trained teachers are required in crisis and emergency situations because emergencies place new and different demands on children, teachers, their communities and the education systems in general. training and support help teachers to respond to pressures mounted by violent conflict and enable them to cope with increased responsibilities in serving parents and pupils affected by the conflict and the crisis situation. teachers in mt. teacher education through flexible learning elgon region experienced the violent conflict just like other teachers in conflict-prone zones (ndiku, achoka, onkware, 2013). under such circumstances support from the education officers and other educational stakeholders to adjust to their work, perform additional duties in dealing with different students, parents, colleagues and communities affected by violent conflict is necessary. for instance, some teachers may have required additional time and space to be with their families, repair their homes, deal with changes in their livelihoods especially among teachers who were affected by the violent conflict. such situations need understanding support and encouragement. the support can be offered by the school administrators and education supervisors through new ways of management and training. implementation of peace education and life skills curriculum calls for different methods of instruction (king stefan writing zone, 2017). studies in kenya since the introduction of the life skills curriculum have shown that teachers are faced with challenges of implementing the curriculum due to lack of appropriate skills and competencies and attitude towards the subject (king stefan writing zone, 2017; okech and role,2015; abobo and orodho, 2014; kandeli, 2014; kilonzo, 2013). due to time constraint, many teachers often use the lecture method of teaching. this method limits implementation of the life skills curriculum since it is to a great extent expository and pupils’ participation in the lesson is very limited. participatory teaching methods among other skills are important in this subject, yet most teachers are comfortable with lecture method and other conventional teaching methods. lack of training in methods to teach life skills has greatly hampered effective implementation of life skills, hence, the need for enhanced teacher training in methods to implement life skills in kenya. to effectively handle teaching and learning in emergency situations teachers with the right knowledge, skills and attitudes are essential. whereas the government responded to the challenges brought about by violent conflict through the implementation of the peace education and life skills curriculum, its implementation has been hampered by low skill base among teachers despite the efforts to train teachers in a cascaded manner (irungu, 2015; kangethe, 2015). owing to the challenges posed by violent conflict, it may j. ndiku 17 not be possible for teachers to create time to go for training. equally, teachers may be overworked especially due to understaffing occasioned by violent conflict, thus, making it impossible to participate in in-service courses. there is, therefore, a need for schools to adopt new approaches to continuous professional development (cpd) for teachers especially in the implementation of peace education and life skills curriculum. multiple training methods for practising teachers depending on their circumstances are critical. a variety of training modes to build the capacity of teachers in conflict transformation was and is still required. such modes include face to face and distance e-learning modes. seminars, workshops and distance learning along with self-study correspondence courses, radio education, and education with the use of computers and the internet are all possible delivery modes to enhance teacher capacities (unesco, 2010; action, 2003). such training which utilises new and improved technology enables trainees to take up training courses at locations of their convenience. such modes may enable trainees to save money and support large groups of trainees at the same time. web-based training is also important because materials are standardised as all trainees use the same program. the use of technology to train teachers in peace education has been successful elsewhere. for instance, in rwanda the ministry of education endorsed the use of tessa materials in the national retraining programme for primary school teachers and the tessa materials were integrated in the new retraining materials for the programme with a particular focus on core classroom teaching skills, subject teaching skills, creativity and innovation (unesco, 2010). conclusions and recommendations from the foregoing, it has been noted that peace education initiatives have been faced with many challenges despite efforts to mainstream peace education in primary and secondary school curricula and implementation of life skills in schools. though teacher training has been done to counter this, there are many capacity gaps in the delivery of peace education and life skills in classrooms and schools. kenyan schools have put much emphasis on academic subjects at the expense of value-based subjects like life skills. communities do not attach much value to life skills and peace education either. this explains why there is weak coordination of psychosocial intervention due to a lack of a teacher education through flexible learning response framework. there is, therefore, need to strengthen peace education at all levels including mainstreaming peace education in all teaching subjects. peace education should be given special consideration in the curriculum reform process which is now ongoing in kenya. due to the dynamic nature of violence and conflict in society, there is also a need for new initiatives to counter emerging issues of conflict evident through radicalisation and violent extremism in schools. to bring about this change, peace education should be included in initial teacher training to build capacity for all teachers. further, to reach the teachers already in-service a distance education intervention would probably be more appropriate to reinforce the other face to face interactions. references abobo, f. and orodho j.a. 2014. life skills education in kenya: an assessment of the level of preparedness of teachers and school managers in implementing life skills education in transnzoia district, kenya. iosr journal of humanities and social science (iosr-jhss) volume 19, issue 9, ver. ii (sep. 2014), pp 32-44 action. 2003. transforming conflict: reflections of practitioners worldwide. cambodia: src printing. akerlund, a. 2005. transforming conflicts and building peace. experience and ideas of swedish civil society organizations. sida studies no. 13. 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(ed) 1991. new directions in conflict theory: conflict resolution and conflict transformation. london: sage. j. ndiku 23 wakhungu, j. nyikuri, e. and huggins, e. 2008. ‘land tenure and violent conflict in kenya in the context of local, national and regional legal and policy framework consultative conference proceedings report’. african centre for technology studies. 6th october. hilton hotel nairobi. wambua, m. 2017. the ethnicization of electoral conflicts in kenya: options for positive peace. africa journal of conflict resolution. volume 17 no. 2. world bank 2002. children, education and war: reaching education for all objectives in countries affected by conflict. conflict prevention and reconstruction working papers, paper no. i. www.worldbank.org/conflict official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za contact: ahimie, b. bahimie@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 133 professional guidance and counselling services for open and distance learning students in nigeria ahimie ba, ikuburuju-orola aa and oizimende pb adepartment of educational foundations, faculty of education, university of lagos; bpost primary education board, benin-city issn: 2788-6298 doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v2i1.91 abstract counselling services are common features in conventional school settings and are designed to help students resolve personal and academic issues, explore career options and attend to their social needs. it is of great concern that these services are absent in open and distance learning (odl) programmes, although the peculiar nature of the programmes reveals the urgent need for them. odl students should be able to access guidance and counselling services just as their counterparts in the conventional school setting. the main focus of this article is to point out the relevance of professional guidance and counselling services in odl programmes in nigeria. an in-depth description of these services and the benefits odl students can derive from accessing them is presented. in addition, the authors adapted a conceptual model to accentuate the expected output of professional counselling services. the purpose of this model is to present a clear explanation of the fact that adequate provision of professional counselling services will lead to the improved school, workplace and family environment. it is expected that this will lead to good behaviour and improved academic performance, invariably creating a safe school, out of school and workplace environment for odl students. recommendations include the creation of awareness programmes through online seminars and workshops to educate odl students on various ways to access guidance and counselling services. keywords: professional counsellors, guidance and counselling services, conventional school setting, open and distance learning (odl). teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ahimie, b. bahimie@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 134 introduction uncertainties, complexities and natural disasters in recent years have exposed people to various challenges. reaction to these challenges varies depending on an individual’s family background and experience. this has revealed the importance of counselling at every stage of human growth and development. all professions hinge their practice on certain principles, and counselling as a profession is not excluded. counselling upholds the belief that “counselling is for all”. this implies that everyone needs counselling at different points in their lives, therefore the service is open to all who desire to access or appropriate it. the national policy on education (npe) (2014; p. 26) recommended that counselling centres should be instituted in nigerian universities to provide counselling services to all students and staff members regardless of their mode of study and areas of expertise to foster productivity in the university environment. open and distance learning (odl) is a mode of learning that is flexible and open to all qualified and willing students wherever they may reside . students of this programme can access highquality lectures and lecture materials provided by experts through all forms of technologies. one of the main reasons for the advent of distance education is to provide equal access to education for citizens of the society who are not among the elite and thus do not have the opportunity and resources to receive on-campus education in an educational institution (saykili, 2018). odl gives the opportunity for students/learners to study at any time and in any location. according to traxler (2018), there seems to be a clear distinction between campus education and distance learning, because one happens on campus or within campus universities and the other does not. however, many universities now exploit digital technologies to reach larger distant markets, and reach out to students who may study entirely remotely and entirely online to enable universities to have significant proportions of distance learning students. in nigeria, the university college ibadan in 1947 commenced extra mural studies under the aegis of the oxford university in the united kingdom. this helped a good number of nigerians who were unable to gain admission into the university but were thirsty for higher education to acquire higher education through correspondence study. some nigerians also registered for the ordinary and advanced level general certificate of education (gce) at the london and cambridge university. other attempts at open and distance learning in nigeria include; the ahmadu bello university air programme in 1972; the university of lagos distance learning programme in 1974; the kaduna national teachers’ institute (nti) in 1978 and the national open university (nou) in 1984. the nou was closed for 18 years as a result of political disturbance and was reestablished formally as the national open university of nigeria (noun) in 2002. it catered for the university education needs of thousands of students who were qualified for the higher education programme but were denied access to the existing conventional universities (jegede, 2016). teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ahimie, b. bahimie@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 135 globally, there has been a growing enrolment in open and distance education as part of educational growth at all levels of education. alongside this are the ascendance of online education, the mainstreaming of distance education, the digital transformation of education and growing competition in open and distance learning (qayyum & zawacki-richter, 2019; p. 125). all these are in addition to the enormous problems associated with instructional delivery at a distance. research and empirical studies have confirmed that individualized learning is a lonely activity; especially since most students in the distance learning programmes are faced with challenges of family, work and other social demands. these demands sometimes take precedence over their programme of study. other problems include the lack of digital readiness among staff and odl institutions, absence of electronic library for easy accessibility to journals from scientific database, inefficient cybercafé and internet facility within university settings (apuke & iyendo, 2018). there is also the problem of inconsistency in programme and policy implementation in addition to the poor power supply, poor telecommunication facilities and poor postal system. while students in conventional institutions have access to counselling services, it appears that their odl counterparts are unaware of these services and the benefits they can derive from them. this could be attributed to the peculiar nature of the distance learning programme where physical contact between lecturers and students is not common or regular and as such is not an environment which allows odl students the physical opportunity to access counselling services. odl students can take advantage of the following counselling-services provided in the university environment; orientation, appraisal, information, counselling, planning , research, placement, follow-up and follow-along, referral, consultancy, evaluation, testing, motivational service, cumulative record-keeping, in-service training programme, remedial laboratory programme, career library, career week/day programme and excursion services. these services are geared towards helping students in areas of educational/academic achievement; vocational /career development and personal/social development. classroom teachers/lecturers may not be equipped to handle these aspects of the lives of their students since such services can only be rendered by experts. odl programmes may also not prepare students to offer counselling services, especially if they are not being trained as professional counsellors. however exposing odl students to professional counselling services and the benefits derived from it, might equip them to make appropriate referrals in any setting they find themselves. the aim of this article is to present a clear description of these services and how odl students can benefit from them. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ahimie, b. bahimie@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 136 guidance and counselling services in the school system guidance and counselling services in the school system are services rendered by professional counsellors to students regardless of their mode of study to help in their academic, career, social, emotional and personal development. when appropriately rendered, these services help students learn more about themselves, discover their potentials and be motivated to tackle and discover solutions to the problems they face daily. ahimie, ikuburuju-orola and lawal (2018) outlined the counselling services that cannot be ignored in the school system. the benefits of these services as outlined by various authors are also discussed. these services include, but are not limited to the following; orientation service: this is one of the most important guidance services rendered to new students in a school setting. it usually takes place as soon as new students arrive in school to start the school year. it helps them know the facilities and resources that are available in the school environment and how to locate them. for example, classrooms for lectures, departmental offices, libraries, bookshops, laboratories and health facilities are some of the facilities that students should be able to locate and use easily. orientation service is crucial in the field of counselling because it reveals to new students, the nature of life in institutions of higher learning. information given to new students during orientation helps them to adjust quickly to life within the institution (agi, 2016). orientation is a mandatory part of a new student’s enrollment into college. it is a rite of passage required for the new student to enter the hallowed halls of academia. it helps new students make friends before the start of lectures; find their way around campus and learn about campus resources (carlevatti, 2018). the scholars hub africa (2019) outlined benefits of orientation to new students in a university campus, these include; the provision of a wealth of information to new students, provision of great academic advice, taking them on campus tours and providing an opportunity for them to ask questions during the question and answer sessions. they are also exposed to services and resources on campus and campus rules and regulations. appraisal service: this involves collecting, organizing, synthesizing, administering and interpreting data about students. the appraisal process involves; setting academic performance standards; assessing students’ actual performance relative to these standards and providing feedback to students with the aim of motivating them to eliminate performance deficiencies or to continue to perform above par (danku, soglo, dordor & bokor, 2015). hyattractions (2015) outlined the six main principles of appraisal techniques as a testing process, administering, scoring, interpreting, communicating results to students while observing the ethical principle of confidentiality. test results provide descriptive and objective data which help the counsellor to assist students better in making choices that will positively affect their lives. the student is then able to make a reasonable choice from different alternatives at his or her disposal (namale & awabil, 2018). teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ahimie, b. bahimie@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 137 information service: students specifically need information about themselves, their education, the world of work and their social environment. this is because the students “cannot make effective and sound decisions on any issue without adequate and usable information. information about issues helps them to make wise choices or sound decisions out of the alternatives open to them in any given situation” (onyemenam, 2018, para. 2.3.2). the researcher further stated that information services expose students to further educational opportunities and the prerequisites for them; trends in the world of work and personal and social issues in their environment. this gives the students an understanding of their interests, abilities and financial resources before making a choice. information gives students a broad knowledge about issues and protects them from making mistakes (sheikh, 2016). counselling service: this service according to namale and awabil (2018) is primarily designed to empower individuals to solve their problems. it is provided by trained professionals. the rationale for guidance and counselling in schools is based on the belief that prevention is always better than cure in every aspect of life. counselling is a collaborative relationship between therapists and clients who seek to enhance their emotional or psychological well-being and therapists who provide supportive environments where clients can work towards enhancing their emotional or psychological wellbeing (short & thomas, 2015, p.10). counselling is a professional interaction between an expert and one or more individuals seeking assistance in dealing with difficulties and in making changes in their lives (berven, thomas & chan, 2015, p.1). planning service: this involves assisting students to plan effectively for their future and work towards the realization of such plan. effective planning helps students make the right career choices. this is one of the major decisions students need to make in the course of their studies. the right decision will assist them in their professional lives (zafar, 2019). there is need for adequate planning in a world where new ways of thinking are coming up in the midst of interwoven economic, environmental and social development (mcgrath, ramsarup, zeelen, wedekind, allais & lotz-sisitka, 2019). a well planned and organized guidance and counselling programme is essential in assisting students to cope with the stresses they face while in and out of school (ruttoh, 2015). research service: counsellors are researchers. they carry out scientific investigations on crucial issues pertaining to human behaviour such as; emotional development, behaviour modification, adolescence, academic performance, interpersonal relationship, career or vocational development and many more. findings gained from researches conducted by counsellors are applied in addressing the myriads of issues presented by clients. research evidence around the process and counselling outcome according to mcleod and mcleod (2015) represents a valuable resource that has the potential to enhance the quality of counselling conversations enacted by teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ahimie, b. bahimie@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 138 practitioners in health, education, social work and other professions. it is important to properly guide students who are often required to conduct diverse research work as they progress through their final years in institutions of higher learning (apuke & iyendo, 2018). placement service: this has to do with placing students in the right schools and streaming them into the right classes. it enables students to be admitted into schools of their choice to avoid frustration and job dissatisfaction in future (namale & awabil, 2018). appropriate placement into right schools and classes help students build the kind of relationships and learning opportunities they need to promote their well-being and healthy development; and this can then be transferred to the world of work (darling-hammond, flook, cook-hurvey, barron & osher, 2019). follow-up and follow-along service: this is done to obtain relevant progress report on students’ performances during and after therapy. it is concerned with what happens to students while in school or after they have left school. this service is designed to assess the extent the guidance programme is meeting the needs for which it was established. it is concerned essentially with successes, failures, problems and feedback from students who have benefited from the programmes. the ultimate goal of follow-up and follow-along service is to evaluate and improve on the programme or make necessary adjustments that have been indicated by the beneficiaries of the programme (suleiman, olanrewaju & suleiman, 2019). referral service: professional counsellors refer students to appropriate professionals when a problem is beyond their scope or area of competence. a referral is made for specialized assistance. this happens when the problem is beyond the scope of the services provided by a counsellor (suleiman et al., 2019). a referral is considered in counselling when the counsellor believes that a student’s problem is beyond his experience and expertise or when he is not comfortable with rendering assistance with regards to the particular problem the student is experiencing (university of central florida, 2020). counselling and counsellors have limitations. this should be made clear to the client as soon as the counselling session starts (onyemenam, 2018). a client with advanced neurosis should be referred to the psychiatrist and another with a high temperature to the medical personnel. a referral can also be made when counselling issues require the assistance of experts in that area of counselling. consultancy service: consultancy service is one of the indirect services rendered by counsellors in collaboration with parents, other school staff and outside agencies on behalf of the students (pannoni & moody, 2020). it is a service rendered by a counsellor who serves as a consultant to the third party (client /student) by equipping him with knowledge and skills so the student’s needs will be adequately met. the counsellor as a provider and manager of human resources is expected to successfully act as a consultant to personalities within and outside the school setting (namale & awabil, 2018). teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ahimie, b. bahimie@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 139 evaluation service: this service determines the extent to which all other services have been successfully implemented in the school system. once the guidance and counselling services have been offered, there is a need for the service to be evaluated (namale & awabil, 2018). it is important to evaluate the effectiveness and efficient delivery of guidance and counselling services in the school system. it is of great benefit not only to the school but also to the community as it provides information on how to manage adolescent moral development, career options, reproductive health and study skills (samanyanga & ncube, 2015). testing service: counsellors need to understand and assist students to make effective choices in life and acquire new behaviour. this can only be done based on information acquired from the students in some systematic and objective ways using carefully-developed testing and assessment procedures (popoola & oluwatosin, 2018). the counsellor using this service in the school system collects information from students, analyzes and evaluates the student to identify his/her problems. the counsellor is then able to adequately diagnose the problem of the student to plan the treatment procedure or necessary intervention. this reveals other areas that the counsellor needs to focus on and if there has been any change in the student. counselling psychologists subject clients to various tests in an attempt to measure their intellectual abilities. these tests include paper and pencil tests, objective tests, performance tests and subjective tests such as essay tests (makinde & akanni, 2015). motivational service: this involves encouraging students/clients to seek counselling intervention for their problems voluntarily. motivation involves students having either personal or group interaction with a counsellor using the motivation interview. this type of interview is a collaborative conversation style to strengthen students’ motivation and commitment to change (manthey, brooks, chan, hedenblad & ditchman, 2015, p. 250). motivation is a psychological force that compels or reinforces an action towards a desired goal (adeusi, adekeye & babalola, 2016). motivation service is used to encourage students going through difficult times to seek counselling intervention voluntarily. cumulative record keeping: cumulative records are objective and up-to-date information about a student from his first day in school to when he leaves and even extends to the period after graduation. additional information about the student is accumulated over a long period. students’ cumulative records or files have general information that typically contains the students’ grades, attendance, discipline, standardized assessment reports and other information from their educational career. cumulative records also contain a history of the programmes students have attended, previous support services provided to them and their families and their educational performance history (logsdon & blackburn, 2020). heads of institutions also make use of cumulative and academic records of students to gather all information required about the teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ahimie, b. bahimie@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 140 students. amanchukwu and ololube (2015) advocated for the need to keep a record of all school activities such as personal details of pupils along with those of their academic performance, assessments, examinations, and all existing and accessible records on the pupil. in-service training programme: this is offered to trainee counsellors to promote in them an understanding of the core facilitative conditions of counselling. it is a continuous process for counsellors, as with other professions, even after training and in the work environment. in-service training programmes for counsellors include the relevant courses and activities which counsellors participate in to upgrade their professional knowledge, skills and competences in the counselling profession. it encompasses all forms of education and training given to the counsellor who is already practicing the counselling profession either within or outside the school system (osamwonyi, 2016). in-service training is very relevant in the counselling profession. remedial laboratory programme: this is a service that helps with students reading skills because reading is a crucial part in all subject areas. this programme is designed to help students improve their reading techniques and prepares them for their studies while in school and for their future careers. students should be “encouraged to read more using games. when students associate reading with a fun game, they want to do it at all time” (unicheck, 2015, para. 3). “many students struggle to understand the purpose of a paragraph or chapter in a book”. it is important to help students increase their reading comprehension. this is a key to educational success or failure (kelly, 2019, para. 6). career library service: this involves the provision of career information to help students with their career choice. it helps students in researching various careers whether they are interested in such careers or not. the career library provides information about various career to give students enough background on their choice of career. the advanced career library has a collection of computers to give students internet access to the best job-searching websites and career-related materials (weber state university, 2019). a career library gives “detailed career information on hundreds of occupations including job description, training/education, employment projections, salary/pay and more” (career information-all careers, 2019, para. 1). career counsellors offer assistance to students who need information about their career of interest. career week/day programme: this is an avenue to introduce students to available jobs. professionals from various fields are invited to discuss their occupations with students. the vast amount of career options in today’s world has revealed the urgent need for assisting students to be exposed to and allowed to explore different career interests and possibilities. it is essential that students receive career counselling in school through the organization of career day/week so that they are better prepared for life after school and the transition into adulthood and the workforce (hilling, 2017). the primary goal of career guidance and counselling is to make it teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ahimie, b. bahimie@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 141 possible for students to see and explore their unlimited endowed options (amoah, kwofie & kwofie, 2015). there are numerous benefits to having career-focused programmes in schools to prepare students for their future with the hope of making their choice easier. during career day/week, students have the opportunity to learn about exciting careers from people who work in those fields. this encourages children to start thinking about what they might want to be and what career they will choose in adulthood (schreiner, 2018). excursion/field trips: this is used in the vocational guidance of students. excursion or field trip is synonymous with learning outside the classroom. it is an active process, where students encounter authentic problems, construct novel hypotheses, test for real solutions and interact with others to make sense of the world around them (claiborne, morrell, bandy & bruff; smith & fedesco, 2020). field trips/excursions to a high extent help students to develop the ability of obligation and this significantly enhances their performance in their chosen area of study (nnamonu, anih, nzewi, ogbodo, aleke, kama & ndukwe-ani, 2016). benefits of guidance and counselling services in odl programmes every guidance and counselling service discussed is of immense benefit to students because each of these services address every aspect of the student’s life. it is also important to consider the benefits to be gained when they partake in these services. some of the benefits of these services to all students include, but are not limited to the following; orientation service helps students locate and use facilities easily. appraisal service helps students understand themselves, their aptitudes, abilities, interest, strengths and weaknesses. it gives counsellors a better understanding of students and the circumstances surrounding their behaviours and attitudes. information service exposes students to further educational, vocational and persona-social opportunities. counsellors assist students to narrow down their choices out of several alternatives. counselling service empowers students to resolve confusion in decision making with regards to their educational, vocational and personal social needs. planning service helps students plan effectively for their future. research service exposes students to the application of new problem-solving techniques derived from intensive scientific investigation. placement service prevents students’ frustration and job dissatisfaction in future as they are placed in the right schools and classes. follow-up and follow-along service reveal to students their progress during and after therapy, pointing to counsellors where and when modifications can be made. referral service exposes students to other professionals they can consult for better professional help. consultancy service equips students with knowledge and skills to help them teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ahimie, b. bahimie@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 142 meet their needs adequately. this might involve a third party, for example, a parent or a teacher. evaluation service reveals the feelings of students about their experiences during therapy. it reveals to counsellors the extent to which all other services have been successfully implemented and the effectiveness of counselling methods used on students. testing service reveals the problem areas of students, if there is any change or need for a counsellor’s attention. motivational service encourages students to seek counselling voluntarily. the cumulative record is of benefit to students as contact can be quickly made to family members in case of crisis. in-service training helps in updating the skills of teachers which they can apply to classroom teaching. students are aware of new techniques and development, especially in a fastchanging technological world. remedial laboratory service helps students improve their reading skills. this translates to effective lesson delivery as teachers have students who assimilate faster and better. career library service provides career information to help students with their career choice. counsellors are able to guide students on their choice based on their abilities, aptitudes and interest. career day/week gives students in depth knowledge of their choice of career. counsellors are helped by invited professionals from various fields to discuss details of their occupation with students. excursion/field trips help students gain on-the-job and original experiences in their choice of career. how odl students can access guidance and counselling services. guidance and counselling services is best provided in a one-on-one, face-to-face or person-toperson(s) contact. however, this may not be possible for odl students because of environmental separation. odl students can however access guidance and counselling services with consideration on their peculiarities. orientation service orientation service is organized to help new students locate and use facilities easily. it also saves time for lecturers as they do not have to always spend time describing or taking students to these facilities. this service is rendered by bringing all students together to inform them about the university, her vision and mission, faculties and department in the university, facilities in the university, principal officers and lots more in a week full of activities. however, odl students may not have the opportunity to access this service because they are not readily available to physically attend an orientation programme. with the presence of information communication technologies icts and internet, the counselling unit in conjunction with the university could have a platform on the university’s portal where information about the university in video form will be uploaded for all students to compulsorily familiarize with. in addition to this, a general study (gst) course could be developed to assess students’ knowledge about the university in their first semester. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ahimie, b. bahimie@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 143 appraisal, testing and placement services help students understand themselves, their aptitudes, abilities, interest, strengths and weaknesses. it gives counsellors a better understanding of students and the circumstances surrounding their behaviours and attitudes. counsellors in the open and distance learning setting can appraise students by utilizing epsychological tests. the responses of the students in the e-psychological test would be analysed, the result and its interpretation would later be communicated to students. decisions and placements are also initiated based on the result of the analyses. information, career library and career week/day programme services academic or educational information, vocational or career information and personal-social information could be made available to odl students to have unrestricted access electronically via students institutional e-mail addresses, counselling unit portal or on social media platforms. videos of an interview with professionals in diverse fields should be uploaded for students on the designated career day or week. counselling, planning and research services: it is best for odl students to meet the counsellor on a face-to-face contact to resolve challenges they might encounter in their daily experiences. nevertheless, the distance learner could benefit from individual or group counselling sessions via video chat platforms like skype, whatsapp and facebook video chat and lots more. during counselling sessions, the counsellor could guide students in mapping out plans and actions to make such plan a reality. the output from researches conducted by counsellor could also be applied to assist students during counselling sessions. excursion/field trips: physical presence during excursions most times is preferable for students who value first-hand information. when this is impossible, the information in video clips or picture formats of field trip scenes could be made available to students via the counselling unit’s page on the school portal. follow-up and follow-along service: the performance of a student during and after counselling, and after graduation can be monitored via the student’s social media handle. referral service and remedial laboratory programme: odl students can access referral services when the counsellor transfers or recommends them to other professionals that will best manage their cases. students could be referred via emails to other professionals. tracking the student’s progress report could also be done using emails and phone calls. evaluation service: experience of students during counselling sessions could be evaluated using specially designed online forms. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ahimie, b. bahimie@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 144 cumulative record keeping: cumulative records of students could also be archived in; cdrom, flash drives or cloud. information on students could be retrieved whenever the need arises the expected output of professional guidance and counselling services for odl students figure 1 was adapted from the proposed conceptual model of ehren, altricher, mcnamara and o’hara (2013: p. 14). the original model was on the intended effects of european inspectorates of education in six countries (netherlands, england, sweden, ireland, austria and the czech republic). the inspectorates of education in the six countries focused on “good education in individual schools and /or the education system as a whole”, which succinctly describe the intended effects of education (ehren et al., 2013: p. 14). the model in this study like the original model, presents at a glance, the expected output of guidance and counselling services for odl students. the aim is to draw attention to the fact that adequate implementation of these services will translate to improved school, workplace and family environment which will lead to a safe school, out of school and workplace environment for odl students. the model reveals that adequate input and implementation of all guidance and counselling services will help in addressing the problems and challenges of students. these challenges faced by students in conventional universities include; academic, vocational and personal social needs such as; financial needs, peer pressure, substance addiction and abuse. students in odl programmes, in addition to the needs mentioned above, are faced with workplace/work pressure challenges, family/financial and social demands. the process involves the offering of guidance and counselling services by experts with complete cooperation from teachers/lecturers in these institutions who can also benefit from these services. stakeholders can help this process through the provision of facilities and materials to enhance the adequate provision of counselling services, teaching and learning. the expected outputs are; good behaviour, improved academic performance and a safe and improved school, out of school, workplace and family environment. the purpose of this is to produce students who are well equipped and prepared for the changes and uncertainties of the world of work in particular and the society in general. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ahimie, b. bahimie@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 145 an adapted model for guidance and counselling services in odl programmes adapted from: ehren, altricher, mcnamara & o’hara (2013: p. 14). s tu de nt s’ tr an si tio n fr om s ec on da ry s ch oo ls input/ implementat ion of guidance and counselling services s tu de nt s’ p ro bl em s an d ch al le ng es conventional university settings • academic • vocational • personal social (financial, peer pressure, substance use and addiction open and distance learning settings • academic • workplace • personal social (family, financial, work pressure, other social demands etc.) processes • counselling services to: address teachers/lecturers issues and challenges or problems benefits to teachers/lecturers provision of facilities and materials. enhanced teaching/learning process. improved school, workplace and family environment good behaviour improved academic performance output a safe school, out of school and workplace environment. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ahimie, b. bahimie@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 146 conclusion and recommendations effective provision of guidance and counselling services to students using diverse forms of ict tools in odl institutions will help them cope with the demands of studying from a distance and outside pressures resulting from family, workplace and environmental factors. creating an effective learning environment through inclusion of all counselling services in the odl institutions in nigeria, will not only motivate odl students to have increased motivation for learning, but it will also check attrition rates in odl institutions and encourage students to have access to and utilize all counselling services in their institutions whenever challenges arise in their family or workplace to threaten the completion of their studies. no counselling service should be neglected in the odl institutions because the students in addition to their studies, are faced with other demands and external factors. the following recommendations are made by the authors: guidance and counselling services are designed to provide professional, systematic and psychological help to odl students like the conventional students with the aim of encouraging their academic, vocational, social, emotional and personal adjustment or development. this can be accomplished through individuals/small group counselling sessions using various information communication technologies (icts) and social media platforms. since distance education lacks the face-to-face contact that is present in the conventional education setting, necessary infrastructure, equipment and fund should be available to provide means of communication (which is an integral and most important component of distance education) to students especially because of the peculiarities of their situation as distance learners. stakeholders in the educational sector should ensure that all guidance and counselling services are rendered in all school settings (conventional and odl). none of these services can be ignored or treated as more important than the other. no school setting should also be treated as more important than the other. proper utilization of these services should also be ensured. counsellors should be ready and versatile to render guidance and counselling services to odl students using diverse forms of information communication tools and social media platforms. awareness programmes should be created through online seminars and workshops to educate odl students on the benefits of guidance and counselling services and various ways to access them. more counsellors should be employed in all odl programmes to cope with the increasing demands of students, and to enhance better productivity and practice by students at the end of their programme. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: ahimie, b. bahimie@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 147 references adeusi, s. o., adekeye, o. a., & babalola, o. 2016. influence of guidance and counselling on students’ motivation and school adjustment among covenant university students, ogun state. covenant international journal of psychology. 1: 11-21. agi, c. 2016. role of students’ orientation as school adjustment among 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february 2020. university of central florida. 2020. counselling and psychological services: making a referral. available at https://caps.sdes.ucf.edu/resoruces/referrals/accessed 23 august 2020 accessed 21 august 2020. weber state university career services. 2019. career library: need help researching careers. available at https://www.weber.edu>careerservices accessed 20 march 2020. zafar, m. 2019. career guidance in career planning among secondary school students. asian journal of education and social studies, 5: 1 – 8. 7_erasmos charamba_final_production.pdf emerging pedagogies in higher education: cutting through ‘either-or’binaries with a heteroglossic plurilingual lens vol 3, 2022 contact: erasmos charamba erasmos.charamba@wits.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 2 3tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, 2022 issn 2788-6298 emerging pedagogies in higher education: cutting through ‘either-or’binaries with a heteroglossic plurilingual lens erasmos charamba school of education, university of the witwatersrand orcid identifier: hhttp://orcid.org/0000-0001-8650-6931 email: erasmos.charamba@wits.ac.za official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za doi: 10.35293/tetfle.v3i1.4171 4 contact: erasmos charamba erasmos.charamba@wits.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. abstract technology use can introduce fundamental pedagogical changes that are integral to achieving significant academic improvements in higher education. when used to support learning, technology permeates higher education with digital learning mechanisms;enlarges course offerings and instructional alternatives;facilitates learning 24 hours a day; develops 21st century skills; enables greater student motivation; and facilitates deeper comprehension of concepts. the use of technology also has the potential to modify learning by instituting a new model of intertwined instruction. present-day multilingual technology has transcended the debate about language dominating the educational space. instead, it is now a question of how progressive multilinguals act differently as they take part in current opportunities offered by the various languages on the web.the appreciation and embracing of heteroglossic perspectives in e-learning repudiate inscribed ideologies that posit monolingualism as the default norm in education.through a sociolinguistic lens focusing on the funds of knowledge theory, this article seeks to explore the role language plays in e-learning and how educators can use multilingualism as a teaching/learning resource in higher education.the study presents results from a mixed methods approach in which 42 purposively sampled distance teacher education undergraduate students were taught through english and shona. data was collected through focus group interviews and a written assessment activity. quantitative data suggests an improved performance while qualitative data presents an acknowledgement by students of the efficacy of multilingual pedagogy.the article recommends the use of multilingual approaches in today’s linguistically diverse e-learning higher education classrooms. it further justifies acknowledging that multilingualism is not new, even if the dramatic secularisation of the term seems recent. keywords: e-learning; higher education; monolingualism; multilingualism; translanguaging tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 5 introduction the academic pass rate for secondary school general science students in zimbabwe – some of who will enrol to train as secondary school science educators – keeps dropping annually, with researchers and educationists continuously suggesting the difference between the students’ home language and the schools’ language of instruction as the major cause for underachievement (chireshe & musengi, 2012). in the year 2018, zimbabwe’s pass rate for ordinary level general science was 32.83% (zimbabwe school examinations council, 2019).it should be noted that the country’s education cycle takes 13 years and involves a dual phase model, namely primary and secondary school. the first grade in formal primary school (grade 1) starts when the child is approximately six years old. after completing the seventh grade, students sit for a national primary school-exit examination. the successful ones then proceed to secondary education. after the first four years of secondary education (referred to as form 4), students sit for examinations and need to obtain a pass in a minimum of five core subjects (english, history,mathematics, general science and a technical or vocational subject). the next two years of schooling after ordinary level is referred to as advanced level, where a student takes a minimum of three subjects.to obtain a pass at a-level, the ministry of primary and secondary education (2015) requires two passes. in 2018, zimbabwe had a general science pass rate of 32.83% in the ordinary level examinations. some of these students were involved in the current study as they were enrolled as first-year students for the bachelor of education degree to specialise in secondary school science education in the year 2021.in attempting to find solutions to the current underachievement of students in zimbabwe, studies continue to provide strong evidence of the efficacy of multilingual approaches to education (sibanda, 2015). few (if any) studies have however focused on the bachelor of education degree specialising in secondary school science education. zimbabwean universities, like other universities across the globe, are witnessing an increase in the enrolment of a linguistically diverse teacher education student population,which means that greater academic demands are made on these institutions. in 2020, the situation worsened following the emergence of the coronavirus disease (covid-19), an infectious disease caused by the sars-cov-2 virus and spread through human-to-human transmission.to minimise the transmission of covid-19, 6 contact: erasmos charamba erasmos.charamba@wits.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. institutions had to suspend contact academic activities, leaving them with only one option: e-learning. e-learning is an instructional system that enables teaching and learning at places away from the traditional lecture room by using applications and processes such as web-based learning, computer-based learning, virtual education opportunities, and digital collaboration. e-learning facilitates the transfer of skills and knowledge through technology at a time and place convenient to individual students. zimbabwe – like most countries in the world and in africa in particular – is not unaffected by multilingualism and translingual practices have always been the norm within the country’s institutions of learning.this presents an incontestable case for the use of multilingual instructional practices that blur boundaries between different languages. the country recognises 16 official languages, namely chewa, chibarwe, english,kalanga,khoisan,nambya,ndau,ndebele,shangani,shona,zimbabwe sign language, sotho,tonga, tswana,venda, and xhosa (author, 2019a). these languages are used as mediums of instruction in the first two grades only. education from the third grade up to higher education is offered solely in english. while numerous studies on multilingual pedagogy have appraised the prevailing monolingual approach to education, a sprinkle of frameworks have been advanced to demythologise the ontological, epistemological and methodological framing of these practices with regard to e-learning (sun & chen, 2016). predominant conversations about 21st century education amid the covid-19 pandemic centred on institutions’ efforts to conserve the academic year.in the present study,the delivery of e-learning to multilingual students has been appraised through a sociolinguistic lens on the funds of knowledge andvygotsky’s sociocultural theories.the study examines the perceptions of undergraduate teacher education science students regarding multilingual e-learning pedagogy as well as the latter’s efficacy as taught at a university in harare, zimbabwe. theoretical framework funds of knowledge are collections of knowledge – based in different cultural practices that are part of a family’s inner culture, work experience, or their daily routine. it is the knowledge and expertise that students and their relatives have by virtue of their roles in their families, communities, and culture.the theory of funds of knowledge recognises the potential associated with the knowledge that emanates from these students’ active participation in multicultural, multilingual, and multigenerational tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 7 households and/or community activities (gonzalez, 2005). students, regardless of gender, race, language or socioeconomic background, do not arrive in the science classroom as blank slates (goossens, 2019).as such, the funds of knowledge theory argues that academic instruction should be linked to students’ lives, and the details of effective pedagogy should be linked to local histories and community contexts with regard to language, culture, and socialisation (gonzalez et al., 2005). this theory has its origin invygotsky’s (1978, 1980) social development theory, which is built on three concepts – social interaction; the more knowledgeable other; and the zone of proximal development. vygotsky argues that together, these principles advocate for a social approach to learning that involves a kind of academic apprenticeship.the latter enables students to bring their own experiences into the science classroom and to explore and build on these experiences in a way that acknowledges them as individuals, with individual funds of knowledge (gonzalez et al., 2005). in drawing up a curriculum based on the funds of knowledge theory, institutions will arrive at a curriculum that seeks to connect homes, classrooms and communities. the funds of knowledge theory is concerned with making learning ‘real’ (mckinney & tyler, 2019). it tries to get out of the existing deficit model by paying attention to the academic journey rather than just measuring the student’s shortcomings against the intended destination. kiramba and smith (2019) argue for a conceptual space that bridges the space between marginalised funds of knowledge such as students’ home languages and academic knowledge. in this space, different discourses between home and school contexts are explored,and everyday knowledge is integrated with academic learning to create new ways of knowing (gonzalez,2005). embedded in the students’funds of knowledge is their language,a resource that should also be harnessed in the classroom situation. the current study examined – from a social development theory perspective (vygotsky, 1978;1980) and by using the funds of knowledge theory – the learning of multilingual teacher education students in a science course at a university in zimbabwe. considering these theories, language and learning are regarded as action-situated in a historical, cultural and social context, irrespective of the learning area (macswan, 2017). according to these theories, while a pragmatic perspective on learning has enabled an analysis of language, gestures and physical artifacts by focusing on their use and consequences in a specific context, sociocultural perspectives have made it 8 contact: erasmos charamba erasmos.charamba@wits.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. possible to approach these resources as mediating means,having both affordances and constraints for multilingual science students (barakos & selleck, 2019). vygotsky’s theories deal with the concept that language plays a central role in mental and concept development. vygotsky focused on the interactions and shared experiences between people and their sociocultural context (bonomi, 2019). the use of multiple languages in the classroom has been shown to offer a smoother interface between home knowledge and school knowledge, and to support students to comprehend the scientific knowledge more deeply, easily and faster (meyerhöffer & dreesmann, 2019). garcia (2009) refers to the simultaneous use of multiple languages as translanguaging. literature review: translanguaging and science education translanguaging was originally conceived as a classroom strategy for bilingual alternation between english and welsh (collins et al., 2019). in its original form, translanguaging referred to a language communicative function of receiving input in one language and providing output in another language (jang & brutt-griffler, 2019).this allowed bilingual students to use their home language and develop positive experiences in the classroom in any subject area (hornberger & kvietok dueñas, 2019; li, 2018). garcia (2011) expanded the concept of translanguaging to account for multilingual communicative practices that include a wide array of multiple discursive practices in spatial, visual and spoken modes across the globe. she furthermore construed the complexity of bilingual education through a recurring analogy of the banyan tree. it is an image that captures the myriad of contextual variables and choices involved in multilingualism and multilingual education, and it allows for ‘growth in different directions at the same time [while] grounded in the diverse social realities from which it emerges’ (garcía, 2011). as this analogy shows, multilingual education is multifaceted in its complexity,since historical,linguistic,cultural,political and social realities must be considered prior to any useful discussion (garcía & leiva, 2014).taking into account garcia’s model of multilingualism, languages previously separated on the basis of cultural and linguistic differences can converge through fluid classroom interactions (goossens, 2019) and so enhance students’ academic performance (cunningham, tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 9 2019) in the science classroom.this approach counters and redresses the traditional view of languages in which they are treated as separate and bounded entities (garcía & li,2014) to avoid contamination of one language by the other.as societies become culturally and linguistically more diverse, many science students enter the classroom with a home language that is different from the language of instruction used at school (hamman, 2018). translanguaging is now a revised pedagogy that moves away from monolingual teaching strategies towards a more integrated, less bounded use of language resources in teaching and learning (meyerhöffer & dreesmann,2019).it already features strongly in the daily practices of these science students and teachers (author, 2019a). in the science classroom,for example,multilingual students might receive information in the language of instruction, but for self-understanding and processing of the concept, they might itemise the point in a different language – whether in writing or by discussing it with classmates (benson,2018; mckinney & tyler,2019). research shows that there is increased participation and academic performance in classrooms where translingual practices are used in science classrooms. it is also suggested that the use of more than one language allows students to ‘bridge’ between their everyday knowledge and the scientific knowledge in science books (barakos & selleck, 2019; meyerhöffer & dreesmann, 2019). as such, translanguaging in the science classroom can be viewed as an ecological approach where the teacher creates interactive lessons and uses the languages not rigidly separated, but in a flexible, fluid and concurrent fashion – for the benefit of the students. translanguaging concerns the act of languaging, which is inseparable from the social, historical and institutional context in which it occurs (li, 2018). in the zimbabwean context, no major empirical study exists of dual-language or ‘two-way’ programmes, in other words those that mix english and african languages in roughly equal proportions to foster full bilingualism and biliteracy, with a focus on science education (karlsson et al., 2018; macswan, 2017). recent studies also suggest that translanguaging is the most effective strategy for educating science students whose home language is different from the school’s medium of instruction, as it helps them to become competent bilinguals without sacrificing either their english development, science teaching/learning, or their home languages (mckinney & tyler, 2019). 10 contact: erasmos charamba erasmos.charamba@wits.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. research questions the study sought to answer the following questions: 1. what are the perceptions of undergraduate science students regarding multilingual e-learning resources? 2. how does the use of multilingual e-learning resources affect science students’ academic performance/comprehension of scientific knowledge? 3. what are the implications of the above findings for teacher education? materials and methods in the present study, the undergraduate teacher education students attended lectures on diversity,change and continuity focusing on evolution by natural selection. one of the specific aims of the module relates to appreciating and understanding the history, importance and applications of life sciences in society. due to the covid-19 pandemic, lectures were delivered in the form of videos, animations and narrated slides in english.the videos and animations also had subtitles in shona.according to the student profiles, all participants spoke shona as home language, hence its use in the materials’ subtitles. for ethical reasons, all names in this article are pseudonyms. excerpt 1 presents an example from a multilingual e-learning video presented by dr gloria nyoni (lecturer’s pseudonym) on the sub-topic‘evolution by natural selection’. excerpt 1: english voice note the five main observations in darwin’s theory of natural selection. variations in characteristics of individuals occur in a population and these can be inherited. more offspring are produced than can survive on the available resources. there is competition for limited resources, i.e. people struggle for survival. natural selection allows only the ‘‘fittest’’ to survive and breed. tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 11 when developing the multilingual resources, the lecturer made the following remark: ‘when it comes to key terms, it’s either i deliberately leave these in the english language and explain them in shona enabling my class to know their meanings while at the same time remembering the term in english language for examination purposes’. at the end of the six weeks, the teacher education students were given a multilingual end-of-module assessment activity written in the two languages (english and shona).in zimbabwean institutions of higher education, assessments are part of cardinal contexts that restrict linguistic preferences by promoting monolingual, standard language use (omidire, 2019).all assessments are inevitably tests of language, considering the way in which language conciliates assessment administration, content, instructions, or responses. several scholars focusing on assessments in education have recommended the incorporation of multilingualism in the design and administration of assessment activities (see for example otheguy et al., 2015; shohamy 2011). in completing the end-of-module assessment task, participants were given the freedom to use either english, shona or both languages. examples of questions from the assessment task are presented in excerpt 2. excerpt 2: question 1 english: name the part of the ear that is responsible for balance of the human body due to gravity and describe how this balance is brought about. question 2 english: explain why it was necessary for the researchers to collect dna samples. data collection and analysis the study was carried out at a teacher education university in harare, zimbabwe’s capital city. harare is a populous city that houses around 17% of zimbabwe’s total population (united nations, department of economic and social affairs, population 12 contact: erasmos charamba erasmos.charamba@wits.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. division, 2019) and a total number of seven universities.the 42 participants, selected through purposive sampling, were the only teacher education first-year students enrolled for the bachelor of education, followed by specialisation in the secondary school science course. all 42 of these undergraduate science students, as well as the lecturer, were native shona speakers coming from various parts of the country.the study was conducted over seven weeks. as researcher, i attended the group’s online lectures once a week. each lecture was 60 minutes long.to protect the participants’ identities, pseudonyms were used throughout the study and all ethical considerations were observed. due to the covid-19 pandemic that restricted face-to-face interactions at the time, qualitative data was collected from two focus group interviews held via microsoft teams. an advantage of using microsoft teams is that it records and immediately transcribes the proceedings, hence safeguarding against any loss of data. i interviewed the course lecturer, dr nyoni, at the beginning and end of the study to gain better insight into her role in e-learning instructor and to understand how she advanced cognition of scientific knowledge among her undergraduate teacher education students by re(shaping) the prevalent linguistic landscape in this first-year science course.a combination of both inductive codes originating from an analysis of the interview transcripts and deductive codes resulting from the literature reviewed was used to analyse the data collected during the study (alok & mishra, 2017). i subsequently identified recurring patterns to construct conceptual categories and themes (bhattacherjee, 2012).to ensure the validity and trustworthiness of the findings, direct quotes from some of the participants are included in the results section. results academic benefits of integrating multilingualism into higher education e-learning in view of the funds of knowledge theory, the linguistic repertoire of multilingual teacher education students at university can become a principal pedagogical resource in higher education,especially when they are taught through a language different from their home language and struggle to meet the academic demands of the curriculum texts. tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 13 during the interviews, all 42 students (100%) agreed that multilingual e-learning resources facilitated their fuller and deeper understanding of the scientific concepts they were taught during the course.this was because ‘all of us here are shona speakers and only speak englishduring the lessons.this hasmade our learning difficult even in secondary [school]’ (tendai, 16 july 2021). in line with tendai’s response,tapiwa remarked,‘if we speak english outside of class, it’s mostly shonglish [laughs]’. in zimbabwe, the term ‘shonglish’ refers to a mixture of shona and english in the same sentence, for example: this course is gozharing (difficult).the word gozharing is constructed from the shona word ‘gozha’ (difficult) to which ‘ing’ is added.this is further evidence that students at this university engage in multilingual practices. on explaining why they would resort to ‘shonglish’,anopa pointed out: ‘look at our secondary school results, i got an e for english ata level and my other friend only did english at ‘o’ level so how can we understand everything in class? plus science uses some big words not found in the dictionary’. in zimbabwe, an e in a-level examinations denotes a mark between 40% and 49%. however,to study education,a student is required to have passed o-level english with a grade c (50-50%) or better.this also gives a clear indication of the proficiency of some of these university students in the language of instruction. although english has become the lingua franca in zimbabwe, it is the home language for less than 1% of the country’s population (united nations, department of economic and socialaffairs,population division,2019).its exclusive use in education has been blamed for students’ academic underachievement, as 99% of the country’s population are not native speakers of the language of instruction (author, 2020b).this corresponds with the findings of a body of recent research in science education that suggests that low proficiency in the language of instruction is the major cause of low academic performance amongst science students whose home language is different from the language of instruction (li & lin, 2019; omidire, 2019).the fundamental cause of this problem is that,as students reach higher grades of study, both the content and language of science become increasingly difficult. as a result, by spurning multilingual teacher education students’ use of their linguistic repertoire in e-learning these students are expected to perform well in academic activities while being allowed to use only a fragment of their linguistic resources for meaning making (yuvayapan, 2019).vygotsky (1978) positions students 14 contact: erasmos charamba erasmos.charamba@wits.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. as social actors whose intellectual blossoming is contingent upon language.through multilingual e-learning pedagogy, these multilingual undergraduate science students decode relations between their everyday languaging practices and higher education languaging, which in turn aids their knowledge comprehension and assimilation (garcía, 2017). to this and similar interview responses, dr gloria nyoni remarked: ‘most of these students have a poor command of english language and letting them make use of their linguistic repertoire helps [the students] understand science better.this [use of more than one language] has also resulted in students getting higher scores in assessments.’ an analysis of students’ performance in the end-of-module assessment shows 26 of them (62% of the participants) attained a score above 80%, while 38% of the participants (16 participants) scored between 70% and 79% because, ‘how can i fail when i was taught in shona and english? it’s different from other modules when we use english only’ (nosta, 16 july 2021).the students’ academic performance during the study confirms the efficacy of multilingual pedagogy.the assessment carried 50 marks, converted to a percentage for easier analysis.table 1 shows the statistical analysis of the students’ academic performance in the assessment,while table 2 shows their academic performance before the intervention (i.e. the use of multilingual pedagogy). table 1: students’ performance in end-of-module assessment mean (x ̄) median standard deviation (σ) range % pass rate participants (n= 42) 82.5 82 7.7 28 100 table 2: students’ performance before the intervention (multilingual pedagogy) mean (x ̄) median standard deviation (σ) range % pass rate participants (n= 42) 47.6 48 9.8 40 45.2 table 1 shows that the average score attained by the students was 82.5%, with a standard deviation of 7.7.in terms of the university’s assessment criteria, 78.6% of the participants passed with a distinction (75% or higher). commenting on the students’ tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 15 academic performance in this assessment, dr nyoni stated: ‘such excellent performance is a result of using more than one language. i used english and shona in the videos,animations and lecture notes i gave to the students and guesswhat?they allunderstood the concepts. ihave neverhad sucha highmean and low standard deviation before’. empirical studies suggest that if science students do not have the requisite communicative skills in the medium of instruction, such students are bound to have problems with access and comprehension of scientific knowledge, especially when delivered through e-learning. e-learning also prevents students from demonstrating their actual scientific knowledge,and therefore gives rise to a defeatist spiral in which motivation, interest and scientific knowledge acquisition might become reduced (bonomi, 2019).this consequence was confirmed by the academic performance of the teacher education students before the use of multilingual pedagogy when the pass rate was 45.2%, compared to 100% after the study.there was also a difference of 34.9 between the respective means, with the end-of-module assessment having a higher mean and a smaller standard deviation. our study clearly corroborates the findings of other studies that suggest the efficacy of multilingual pedagogy (see for example aluko, 2019; omidire, 2019). discussion e-learning in higher education should not be viewed only as a question of university students’ biologically given capacity to master scientific knowledge. instead, prior knowledge, literacies and proficiencies need to be aligned to the specific educational context (benson, 2018). in this regard, educators must take note of how university students relate to their colleagues,as well as how they make use of different intellectual, physical, cultural and linguistic resources in the process of e-learning (vygotsky, 1978). teacher education institutions in some countries have accepted multilingualism as a legitimate, socially just pedagogical approach that facilitates the scaffolding of one communication mode by another and for the making of meaning in the educational space (burgess & rowsell, 2020).for instance, inasia, europe and north america, students are taught in their home language (wolff, 2018) and they only learn some of the global languages, such as french and english, to prepare them for 16 contact: erasmos charamba erasmos.charamba@wits.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. global communication later in life. such global languages are used alongside students’ linguistic repertoire as a scaffold to assist them to fully comprehend the complexities of their linguistic repertoire (cummins, 2008;wolff, 2018). through multilingual e-learning, university students enrolled in distance teacher education are given the opportunity to make use of an integrated meaning-making system. in this system, multiple discursive practices are used to understand the multilingual world and to develop education spaces that are conducive to the use of their entire semasiological and semiotic repertoire in higher education (garcía & otheguy, 2020).a study conducted by caruso in 2018, dealing with the effectiveness of multilingual pedagogy in higher education, examined linguistic practices in a course attended by a linguistically diverse student population. during the course lectures, the university students were allowed to use their various language resources in all instructional activities and at the end of the course; they submitted a structured multilingual final assessment task.the research reported better academic performance among the students and accredited it to the affordance of spaces conducive to translingual practices during the lectures and assessment. multilingual e-learning pedagogy can therefore transform higher education institutions from being places for mere random transferrals of global theories and information into spheres where acts of cognition are brought about with students’ linguistic repertoire (fanga et al.,2020). as distance teacher education becomes more widely available and more internationalised (maringe, 2013), there is a need for pedagogical evolution. the acceptance of multilingualism is a top priority,as it affords students a great opportunity to understand the world by making use of every linguistic resource at their disposal (mendoza & parba, 2018; ocampo, 2018). multilingual education is associated with transformation, social justice (hurst & mona, 2017) and decolonisation, all of which are essential for an efficient and productive higher education (palfreyman & walt, 2017). multilingualism is also a policy orientation towards the formal recognition of multiple languages. it includes all the non-standard varieties under postmodern notions of heteroglossia, which gives equal standing to all languages and dialects spoken within a formalised system (garcía, 2017; palfreyman & walt, 2017; poza, 2019). through multilingual e-learning, languages that were historically separated based on racial, cultural and linguistic disparity will no longer be seen as rigid or stabilised entities.instead,they can amalgamate through fluid instructional interactions and so deepen multilingual students’ comprehension of knowledge across university tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 17 curricula (wedin, 2020). in current e-learning in the higher education space, language and other forms of communication neither have predetermined or prevalent meanings, nor do they subsist on their own. languages rather gain meaning through their contextual use (garcia, 2011). hence, e-learning communicative practices of distance teacher education should incorporate a wide range of students’ linguistic resources, which will eventually contribute towards students’ acquisition of scientific knowledge.the current study puts forward the hypothesis that permitting multilingual university students to use their linguistic repertoire in e-learning offers effortless confluence between their home knowledge and academic knowledge, thus scaffolding their mastery of scientific knowledge. research by kiramba and harris (2019) presents a comparative study of englishonly instruction and multilingual practices in science education.their study suggests that english-only classrooms are underlined by rote repetition, copying, lack of motivation, and little participation from students during lessons and group discussions. in comparative science classrooms where the educators permitted multilingual practices, students engaged actively in knowledge production and exhibited excellent concept comprehension, suggesting the efficacy of multilingual pedagogy. considering the efficacyof multilingual pedagogy in contact classrooms,the current article suggests that educators should adopt the same approach in distance teacher education e-learning since language is central to cognition and scientific knowledge acquisition. in accordance with the interview responses and students’ academic performance in the end-of-module assessment, multilingual pedagogy amplifies students’participation during e-learning lessons,keeps them highly motivated to learn, and expedites their optimal comprehension of scientific knowledge. considering that heteroglossic practices are normal occurrences in most multilingual communities, educators should consider using this strategy to help multilingual university students draw on all their linguistic resources as they read, write,and discuss scientific concepts in the e-classroom. sociolinguists and neurolinguists argue that multilinguals do not have two separate languages but one linguistic repertoire comprising features of their verbal and nonverbal forms of communication (garcía & otheguy,2020).their linguistic repertoire encompasses features (phonological, morphological, syntactic, and pragmatic) of all the languages they speak (garcía & li, 2014). effective higher education e-learning 18 contact: erasmos charamba erasmos.charamba@wits.ac.za this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. approaches should therefore adopt instructional strategies that draw on all the language resources possessed by the multilingual students. what is evident from the current study is that, when distance teacher education e-learning embraces multilingual approaches, the scientific correctness of concepts does not change simply because a different language(s) has been used. considering the assessment of students online,the implementation of e-assessments will undoubtedly enhance cost effectiveness, as they will reduce the costs of traditional face-to-face teaching and learning practices related to the use of offices, pens and paper. costs related to infrastructure will also be reduced as e-assessments will facilitate distance learning and a more convenient education setup. the adoption of e-assessments is a fast, innovative and quick way of handling student evaluation. the hypothesis that the present study seeks to defend involves a case for definitive attention to the language used by multilingual distance teacher education university students. educators need to acknowledge and understand the link between language, science education and e-learning and recognise that language is the medium through which science students make meaning in academic activities. limitations in order to determine the consistency or inconsistency of the present study’s findings, the academic performance of these multilingual distance teacher education students should be monitored over time as the lecturer continues to use a multilingual pedagogy. mine was a one-time study and the major limitation here was the sample used. more studies should be conducted, based on a larger sample size and focusing on various courses. since zimbabwe is a multilingual country with 16 official languages, further studies could also involve other african languages than only shona. conclusion e-learning presents an opportunity to deviate from the days when higher education was socially stratified and students were expected to carry bags full of instructional resources to attend lectures in specified lecture rooms, in specified ways and seating positions, and during fixed times.when they use e-learning, universities can adopt either a synchronous or an asynchronous model of science teaching and learning. tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 19 whichever e-learning model higher education lecturers choose to accomplish effective teaching and learning, and achieve lesson outcomes, they have to support their students in any reasonably possible way.the results of the present study show that multilingual higher education students appreciate multilingual e-learning strategies and resources.this emphasises the crucial role that language plays in e-learning and towards the academic performance of undergraduate students who are taught through a language different than their home language. higher education institutions can enhance students’ academic performance by acknowledging students’ available linguistic repertoire in e-learning. multilingual e-learning in higher education allows different languages to be used to enhance effective learning, as these languages will be working with and not against each other. the current study recommends that universities move away from the current practice of linguicide which has also resulted in epistemic injustice towards multilingual students who are taught in a language different from their home language.it is further suggested that a multilingual e-learning approach promotes a deeper and fuller understanding of scientific knowledge;it enhances the sustainability and development of minority languages, promotes cultural cohesion, instils confidence in students, boosts their self-esteem, improves academic performance, and promotes oneness among students, parents and lecturers (caruso, 2018; fanga et al., 2020). references alok, s., & mishra, s. b. 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(2019). translanguaging in efl classrooms: teachers’ perceptions and practices. journal of language and linguistic studies, 15(2), 678-694. zimbabwe. ministry of primary and secondary education. (2015). chief education officer’s circular no.3 of 2015. government printers. zimbabwe school examinations council.(2019).ordinary level results,2019.results council. 24 contact: makoe mpine qakisme@unisa.ac.za & tony mays tmays@col.org this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 5_antunes & farooq_tetfle_template_02_09_2022 reimagining online and blended provision of english for academic purposes: practices and reflections from a distributed network in east africa vol 3, 2022 contact: jean antunes jeantu@rocketmail.com & mariam farooq mariam_frq@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 2 3tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, 2022 issn 2788-6298 reimagining online and blended provision of english for academic purposes: practices and reflections from a distributed network in east africa jean antunes email: jeantu@rocketmail.com; jantunes@uevora.pt mariam farooq email: mariam_frq@yahoo.com doi: 10.35293/tetfle.v3i1.3713 official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za 4 contact: jean antunes jeantu@rocketmail.com & mariam farooq mariam_frq@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. abstract the online and blended delivery of courses through the use of technologies has attracted attention and research.the teaching and learning of english for academic purposes (eap) in multilingual contexts such as in africa has also been given prominence in research, as well as the benefits of technology in eap programmes. the pressing need for technology supported educational practices has been evidenced by the covid-19 pandemic that affected most educational systems around the world. although there is an increasing body of research on the integration of technology in education emerging from developing contexts, most proposed models still come from high-income countries. therefore, there is a need for more critical and contextually relevant approaches to the integration of technology in education. based on the authors’ narratives of their lived experiences as teachers of eap in a university in east africa, this article aims to describe and reflect on the practices related to design and delivery of online and blended courses to university students, including in a teacher education programme. it is hoped that this work will contribute to discussions on how to make online and blended teaching practices of eap more contextually relevant and how exogenous resources can be adapted to the realities of students in multilingual developing contexts. keywords: blended, educational technologies, english for academic purposes, higher education, online, teaching and learning tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 5 introduction the current covid-19 pandemic has evidenced, perhaps as never before, the importance of the role of technology in education. although this trend is not new, the pressing need for technologysupported educational practices (resulting from a pandemic that affected most education systems in the world) has become a reality in all kinds of educational contexts, including resource-abundant and resource constrained ones. as unesco (2020) documented on their website, which was referred to in the call for papers for the special issue of this journal, there is an effort to “mobilize and support learning continuity”. one of the central themes in the publication is connectivity, the others being gender and teachers.the new reality, or “new normal” as it is widely referred to, calls for stakeholders in all educational fields to reassess, reflect and adapt – in other words, to reimagine their practices. for some time now the online and blended delivery of courses through the use of established and emerging educational technologies has attracted much attention and research (dziuban et al., 2015). there has also been more interest and research on the role of technology, specifically in the teaching and learning of english for academic purposes (eap) (asoodar et al., 2014; lawrence et al., 2020; aborisade, 2013), and in eap in multilingual contexts (bitchener et al., 2017; mpofu & maphalala, 2021). although a growing body of research and practices related to the integration of technology in education has emerged from developing contexts, such as from africa (ezumah, 2020; meda & makura, 2017), most proposed models, resources, products and research still hail from high-income countries (truncano, 2014). therefore, the need for more critical and contextually relevant approaches to education in general, and the integration of technology in teaching and learning in particular becomes even more urgent. the main aim of this work is to describe and reflect on the practices related to the design and delivery of online and blended eap courses to undergraduate and graduate students, including courses delivered to students in a teacher education programme. based on the authors’ narratives of their lived experiences as teachers of eap in a university in east africa, this article hopes to contribute to discussions on how to tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 6 make online and blended teaching practices contextually relevant and how exogenous models and resources can be adapted to suit the realities of students in developing contexts. background and context of the study the background and context of the practices reported in this study relate to work that has been conducted for the aga khan university’s (aku) network of english language enhancement (ele_net) in east africa from 2017 to the present. aku is an international university that has campuses in east africa (tanzania, kenya and uganda), in pakistan and in the united kingdom. ele_net was set up to offer university support services for the development of english language skills to students, faculty and staff across all campuses, and the network relies heavily on online and blended provision due to its nature as a distributed network working across campuses in different geographical regions. one of the authors was based in tanzania between 2017 and 2019, and the other has worked from the campus in karachi, pakistan, since the establishment of ele_net in 2014. both authors were involved in the provision of eap and worked on the design and teaching of online and blended courses offered to students enrolled in the bachelor of science in nursing (school of nursing and midwifery in tanzania, kenya and uganda), and the master of education (institute for educational development east africa, in dar es salaam). these courses included modules such as ‘introduction to academic reading and writing’; ‘integrating academic reading into writing’; ‘academic presentation skills’; ‘english for research’; ‘language accuracy in writing’; to name a few. most of these modules were offered fully through the online mode, and some were offered through a blended mode. the authors’ experience at designing and delivering these online and blended courses, the challenges faced, and their adaptation to the new ways of teaching and learning prior to and during the covid-19 pandemic have driven this study. moreover, the multilingual context of the practices reported in this work is especially relevant in this study. most of the students in aku programmes in east africa speak kiswahili (especially students from tanzania and kenya where it is a national or official language), one or more local east african language, and also english.am in addition, the two eap teachers (authors of this study) have languages other than english as their mother tongue (portuguese 7 contact: jean antunes jeantu@rocketmail.com & mariam farooq mariam_frq@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. and urdu). methodology drawing on insights from phenomenology and based on the authors’ narratives of their lived experiences as teachers of eap in the contexts described above, this work adopts a reflective approach towards the practices carried out – not only in consideration of the role of technology in the processes of teaching and learning, but also, as mentioned above, with regard to the multilingual nature of the students and teachers involved in the programmes.the multilingual nature of contexts is important for all pedagogical practices, and especially in the case of language programmes such as eap. for the authors of this paper, the roles of both technology and multilingualism have become essential when reflecting upon the practices of their work. the need to think about technology and pedagogy at the same time is echoed by fawns (2022) and confirmed by omidire (2020, p. 157):“the derived knowledge and lived experiences of teachers working in multilingual classrooms and the methods used to navigate the challenges in these spaces, whether perceived or real, become pertinent.” according to creswell (2013), the basic aim of phenomenology as a method is to describe the nature of a phenomenon. insights from phenomenology resonate with this present work, as a phenomenological design analyses the lived experiences and perspectives of an individual (flynn & korcuska, 2018). moreover, and in line with the purposes of this study,“exploring lived experience does not only allow the researcher to ascertain a series of events through time but also aims to elicit the meanings and interpretations that people attribute to these experiences” (frechette et al., 2020). in addition, adams (2014, p. 54) posits that the “always-too-late backward turn to lived experiences” can be achieved by the collection of descriptions of memories and occurrences from individuals who lived the studied phenomenon. citingvan manen’s (1997, 2014) work, adams (2014) furthermore asserts that the phenomenological study of practice is useful for revealing and promoting practical insights and communicative attentiveness in teaching practices, and that thematic analysis is one of the techniques to explore their lived experiences and memories. therefore, the data collection process focused on identifying the themes that emerged from each of the participants’ tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 8 memories and recollections and were analysed during their mutual discussions and reflections. furthermore, exchanges during the writing process were essential for the development of reflections on the identified themes. as van manen (1984:41) remarked, “[f]or indeed, to do research in a phenomenological sense is already and immediately and always a bringing to speech of something. and this thoughtfully bringing to speech is most commonly a writing activity”. ethical considerations were also taken into account in this work. natvik and moltu (2019, para. 25) point out that “[r]esearch drawing on the first-person perspective is occasionally understood as a“good” and ethical approach in itself ”.nevertheless, even though this work is based solely on the authors’ reflections and narratives of their own lived experiences as teachers of eap in the context of this study, it is important to point out that the anonymity of the course participants or other parties involved in the programmes mentioned has been preserved at all times. moreover, another important consideration on the purposes of this study – from our point of view – is that “strengthening the ethics of research into learning and teaching with web 2.0 offers the potential to (…) [e]ncourage reflective practice among educators and give greater research status to their endeavours in this field” (chang & grey, 2013, p. 162). in the next sections, through themes identified as important aspects of our teaching practices, this article provides descriptions related to the design and teaching of eap courses to students in our context in east africa. it also includes reflections and discussions on how these processes can become contextually more relevant and how (in our perspective) they can contribute to the practices of teachers working in similar contexts. description of practices as mentioned above, ele_net practices involve the planning, design and teaching of online and blended eap courses to students across all the university’s campuses. for the purposes of this paper, the authors focus on their practices conducted as support services offered to two institutions – the school of nursing and midwifery (sonam) in tanzania, kenya and uganda, and the institute for educational development east africa (ied-ea) in dar es salaam,tanzania.the latter offers the master of education (med) degree annually, and receives teachers from tanzania, kenya and uganda as course participants. 9 contact: jean antunes jeantu@rocketmail.com & mariam farooq mariam_frq@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. most courses were offered as a non-credit-bearing support service. however, at the request of faculty and programme coordinators, some were integrated into the academic units’ official programmes. a case in point is the ‘integrating academic reading into writing’ course, which was incorporated as an online component into the ‘academicwriting and critical thinking’ course offered at the school of nursing and midwifery in kenya in 2018 and 2019,bearing 20% of the course weight.the same course was also offered annually to med students in dar es salaam as a continuation of their induction programme.this was done through the blended mode, along with an information and communication technology preparation course offered by the ied_ea. online courses such as ‘introduction to academic reading’, ‘introduction to academic writing’, ‘introduction to academic speaking’ and ‘language accuracy in writing’, were offered regularly to students across all campuses, including to students from east africa. in addition, courses such as ‘integrating academic reading into writing’ and ‘english for research’ (1 and 2) were also offered periodically through the blended mode at locations where ele_net had a physical presence. in the case of east africa, this took place in dar es salaam,tanzania. currently, these are courses are offered online, with weekly synchronous sessions facilitated via the zoom platform. course design and delivery the authors’ practices related to the design of the eap courses had the support of other ele_net team members. the design process involved the choice of topic and content based on students’ needs identified by academic units, research work conducted by the university’s language policy thinking group (aga khan university, 2017), and discussions within ele_net. our work first of all involved the writing of the course proposals (stating course name, description, rationale, learning outcomes, content and structure, delivery, assessment and evaluation). these proposals were subsequently submitted for scrutiny and approval by the other members of the team and the group’s director, who would suggest amendments and improvements when necessary and provide additional ideas for course implementation. after approval, our work would focus on the development of the proposed courses in the virtual learning environment (vle), which in the case of the university was the moodle tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 10 platform. this involved the selection of materials for the creation of asynchronous learning objects (los), the recording of tutorial videos or screencasts, and the creation of discussion forums, pdfs, quizzes, assessment, course announcements and other resources.these components would eventually be added to the specific moodle course site and structured under the topics for each course week. regarding the delivery of online eap courses, team discussions would be conducted to find the best time of the year for them to be offered.the courses were available to students in all of the university’s geographical locations, and they would be added to ele_net’s annual calendar. in due time, the courses would be advertised on the university’s website and sent out through student mailing lists to advertise the courses and gain a maximum number of registrations across the different campuses. initially, the online courses were only offered asynchronously, with the teachers sending weekly course announcements, posting on discussion forums and providing feedback on activities. however, later we started offering weekly real-time zoom sessions, during which we went over the course materials and clarified any points that needed attention. participation in these sessions was optional. due to students being in different time zones and possible clashes with their other classes, it was difficult to find a suitable time for all course participants. the sessions were usually recorded and posted on the course site so that all students would be able to access them at a convenient time. as for the blended courses offered on campus in tanzania, the appropriate dates and times of the face-to-face sessions were discussed with the faculty management and heads of departments of ied-ea and sonam to ascertain whether the target groups would be available to attend.the students would have access to the materials that were made available on the moodle platform on the course site. this is where they were expected to complete the instructional activities and attend the weekly face-to-face sessions.these weekly in-person sessions incorporated not only some of the materials from the course site, but also other materials from eap coursebooks, academic articles (magesa et al., 2011), powerpoint presentations and discussions. however, they followed the online course structure and aimed to cover the same content.to illustrate, one example involved the assignment of an instructional activity in which med students were asked to access los from the course site that covered presentation and practice of paraphrasing techniques.this was done in class and was followed by discussions that required students to analyse examples of paraphrasing 11 contact: jean antunes jeantu@rocketmail.com & mariam farooq mariam_frq@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. from their own assignments written for the med courses. similarly, when taking the blended ‘english for research’ (1) course, sonam students were asked in face-toface sessions to identify, in selected sections of assigned academic articles, phrases with the same purpose as found in the academic phrasebank (university of manchester, 2021).the latter’s link was provided on the course site. as described above, the processes of online and blended course design and delivery involved the utilisation of numerous technological tools. the next section describes the materials and resources used in our teaching practices. materials and resources the main platforms used for the design and delivery of our courses were moodle and zoom.all the online and blended eap student courses were hosted in the university’s vle on the moodle platform. each course site hosted the instructional activities, quizzes, course documents, discussion forums and assignments. although some communication with students was conducted through emails, weekly announcements posted on the course sites provided information pertaining to the assignments for that specific week, reminders, or the schedule for face-to-face or synchronous video sessions. the zoom platform was used for synchronous lessons in the online courses.this made it possible for us to offer weekly sessions to present or revise course content and material, to promote interaction among students, and to increase participation in and motivation for the online courses. whenever possible, the ‘breakout rooms’ feature on zoom was used to promote interaction and pair/group work, and this feature was especially favoured in courses that involved an academic speaking component. unfortunately, the use of such features was not always possible. for example, for the course ‘academic presentation skills’ offered to sonam students in nairobi and facilitated by the teacher in dar es salaam, all course participants had to sit together in their classroom during the time appointed for the live-online lessons. students were able to access the video platform through their own devices, but they were not able to unmute them to interact simultaneously, as their close proximity caused sound interference. this problem was mitigated by the use of another external resource, tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 12 flipgrid. on this platform we were able to record and reply to video messages, and students could record sections of their own academic presentations that were being studied and developed in the course. another example worth noting was the zoom synchronous sessions conducted for the ‘integrating academic reading into writing’ course delivered to first-year sonam students, also in nairobi. since class interaction via the video platform’s ‘breakout rooms’ feature could not be promoted due to the classroom arrangement, the teacher projected the tasks on the screen and asked participants to share the findings of their discussions through the forums on the moodle course site in real time.the patterns of interaction during the synchronous sessions, as described in the two examples above, represent some of the challenges that we faced in the delivery of these online courses. initially, the learning activities that provided the main content for the courses were taken from an eap toolkit (university of southampton, 2021). these los (obtained by ele_net under licence from the university of southampton) covered a wide range of eap skills areas, including writing, reading, speaking, grammar and vocabulary.the objects also focused on specific topics such as plagiarism, quoting and paraphrasing, describing trends in graphs and tables, to name a few.the instructional activities were selected and embedded into the moodle sites in accordance with the course objectives. they offered presentation and practice of the relevant academic english areas and skills that needed to be worked on in each course week. the los were useful in giving students a degree of hands-on, interactive practice with the content they covered. after completing the activities, learners could check their answers automatically, and access further explanations and clarification. furthermore, the students could independently use the los as self-directed learning activities in the online courses, in the blended face-to-face sessions, as well as in class activities. in 2019, ele_net decided to stop using the licensed materials from the eap toolkit. as an external resource embedded into the online courses, teachers could only attest from the moodle course data that those los had been accessed by students; they could not confirm that the activities had been completed, and could not track the learners’ performance in doing them. thus, it was decided that teachers would develop their own los for content presentation and practice, and make more use of 13 contact: jean antunes jeantu@rocketmail.com & mariam farooq mariam_frq@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. the internal moodle quizzes and assignments functions so as to better try and track students’ progress. another external resource, h5p – an open-source tool that allows for the creation of interactive presentations and tasks as well as their integration into moodle – was consequently brought into our practices for the design and delivery of eap content. many other external tools and resources have been used in the courses and embedded into the moodle sites. these include youtube videos on academic skills and language, the creation of screencasts through screencast-o-matic (a free screen recording tool), activities on padlet (a kind of interactive bulletin board tool), mentimeter and kahoot! (interactive presentation and quizzes tools), as well as specific references to eap online materials from the ‘using english for academic purposes’ website (uefap, 2022) and the ‘academic word list’ (victoria university of wellington, 2022).the use of all these exogenous resources and technological tools provided a wealth of materials and approaches through which teachers could prepare and enrich their course content. using the resources and tools also facilitated the processes of design and delivery of our eap courses. however, the need for them and our dependence on their use (different from the traditional face-to-face approaches to teaching and learning) were a source of anxiety for the teachers involved, due to the implications of the time consumed, the learning curve and challenges faced. a great effort was needed (and achieved with varied levels of success) to adapt and make these resources relevant and useful to the students in our contexts, so that their learning experiences could be grounded and effective in the online and blended teaching environments. reflections and discussion reflectivity is an essential component of teachers’ greater awareness of their teaching, themselves and their contexts. it fosters an examination of assumptions and understanding related to their practices to change and improve teaching and learning processes (zeichner & liston, 2013). our reflections on our online and blended eap practices are categorised according to themes that stood out when we recollected the process of design and delivery of the courses, the incorporation of the wide range of technological tools, and the use of online materials as described earlier. mainly, these reflections focus on our context where the necessary technological infrastructure – tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 14 reliable internet connection and power supply, as well as an it team that could offer support to teachers and students – were present on the different campuses. we are, however, aware that in many contexts this is not the case, and many of our students face serious difficulties when trying to work online off-campus. the four themes discussed next emerged as strategies to make the courses more contextually relevant, meaningful and accessible to our students. they do not only have implications for the teachers involved and for the wider academic units of the university, but also resonate with practices of other teachers and institutions in similar multilingual developing contexts. contextualisation of practices and adaptation of resources considering all the resources that were available in the design and teaching of our eap courses, we started our reflection by asking how we could adapt such resources and materials to our context. one way was to include instructional activities and assignments that would allow the use of students’ current work for other disciplines too, rather than to rely only on the practice exercises included in the activities on the moodle site.although in line with sibomana’s (2019,p. 20) remark that they“indicate to the learners, who are teaching themselves (or learning on their own), what is expected of them in the materials and, to an extent, what successful learning means”, those learning activities were thought to have their learning potential maximised by being applied directly onto the students’ own work and contextualised within the programme of studies they were undertaking at the university. for example, in the ‘integrating academic reading into writing’ blended course, students used the introduction section of assignments they had written for programme-specific med courses to check the structure, use of sources,paraphrasing, and other textual elements that were covered in the los ‘structuring your writing’ and ‘introduction to quoting and paraphrasing’. similarly, the use of peer review strategies allowed course participants to work with others to check if points from instructional activities (e.g. signposting language and describing trends) had been integrated into their own work. this involved preparation and discussions to suggest to students that all collaborative work should aim at improvement and not be judgmental, as this creates a more comfortable atmosphere in which learners can share and discuss their work. it was also agreed that 15 contact: jean antunes jeantu@rocketmail.com & mariam farooq mariam_frq@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. this process would benefit all involved in such activities, as affirmed by knight and steinbach (2011, p. 94):“peer review benefits both the reviewer and the reviewee by involving them in active learning and focusing on higher order learning involving synthesis, analysis, and evaluation.” a further example of a strategy to contextualise teaching and learning comes from the ‘researchwriting’ course offered to sonam students in tanzania.as mentioned earlier, published health sciences articles written by local authors on local contexts (such as by magesa et al., 2011) and publications from kenya’s andtanzania’s pages on the website of the world health organization (who, 2021) were used for academic writing and structure work, in an attempt to bring the topics and materials closer to home. our reflections on how to use the wide range of online exogenous materials in our practices led us to be grateful for the availability of the infrastructure and resources we had at our disposal. however, we were also led to consider the difficulties that our students faced when working online off-campus, and the realities of teaching and learning that takes place in institutions with access to fewer resources. moore et al.’s (2018, p. 1) definition of the digital divide refers to “the gap between people who have sufficient knowledge of and access to technology and those who do not” and which “can perpetuate and even worsen socioeconomic and other disparities for already underserved groups”.therefore, when thinking about our own use of some of these resources, we considered ways in which they could be adapted in situations where resources such as internet connection and devices are scarce. in resource-constrained contexts, the format of materials can be adapted and less expensive technology such as projectors, whatsapp groups and sms texting can be used when possible. some of the uses of these technologies have been reported in research (madge et al., 2019; viljoen et al., 2005). as an example of its use in a possible eap teaching context, material from the academic phrasebank can be adapted and projected onto a white screen or wall for whole class work, or it can even be shared in other formats such as handouts or worksheets. similarly, the lengthy academic word list is available as a .pdf document from the university of victoria’s website, to be downloaded, printed and incorporated into class work whenever necessary. other possibilities include the use of whatsapp groups to host online discussions, share content, and even serve as academic speaking tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 16 practice through the use of the audio recording feature. sms texting can also be used to some extent, and one possible idea is the sharing of the ‘words or phrases of the day/week’ by means of this technology. of course, our wish as teachers is that all our colleagues and their students everywhere should have access to state-of-the-art equipment and facilities, but since this is not feasible in the present reality, we believe that, with teachers’ ingenuity, technology can still be used when available and needed. inter-departmental collaboration in our experience, one of the main differences between online and blended courses was the levels of student engagement. the numbers of students who completed the online courses offered as a free and independent support service across the university, were remarkably lower than for those who attended blended courses or the online courses that were embedded into the degree-leading programmes.this was probably because when students saw the courses as part of their degree programmes, they were more likely to dedicate themselves and felt under pressure to complete the courses.this was true both for the courses that carried a percentage of credits (e.g. the ‘integrating academic reading into writing’ course offered to sonam students in nairobi) and the non-credit-bearing courses that had the support of the academic units’ faculty (e.g. the ‘academic presentation skills’ course offered to sonam students in nairobi and the course offered at ied-ea as part of the med students induction).the support of the degree-leading programme’s faculty ensured that students would complete the self-directed activities in the course, interact more actively in forum discussions and faithfully submit their assignments. this was not the case in the majority of online courses that had been offered as an independent support service. in these courses, the drop-out rates were high, due to competing priorities. students would always naturally favour work that was exclusive to their degree-leading programmes. our findings have shown a real need for inter-departmental collaboration and support. in some cases this was forthcoming, especially when faculty management discussed with us the aims, schedules and content of courses and shared with us some of the difficulties that students faced.the latter involved the following of their courses of study in english and producing academic essays and articles, as well as making oral presentations. such collaboration became effective when we managed to embed our online and blended courses within the faculty’s programmes, as well as 17 contact: jean antunes jeantu@rocketmail.com & mariam farooq mariam_frq@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. share class times and approaches towards assessment. we can even quote an example of collaborative teaching. this occurred while nursing students in dar es salaam were taking the ‘english for research writing’ course, and the ele_net teacher was invited by a faculty member to work collaboratively and help students develop academic english writing skills. in a joint face-to-face class, the teacher introduced the academic phrasebank (university of manchester, 2021) by projecting the website on the board.they worked through the useful phrases for introducing work, describing methods, discussing findings, writing conclusions and signalling work. during this practice, students gave instant feedback on the material’s usefulness for the work they were writing at the time. the faculty member also pointed out that learning about this resource was quite useful for herself. all these points show us that the support of the discipline-specific faculty and departments is essential for the success of the eap practitioner. such collaboration also holds great benefit for the students and the teachers involved. expanded roles of the teacher another theme that emerged from our reflections on the design and teaching practices that we used included the expanded roles of teachers working through the online and blended modes. some of the extra roles required in our practice included those of material designer and e-moderator. despite the rewarding experience of seeing the results of a well-designed online activity, observing students interacting in the courses and having successful outcomes and positive feedback, teachers who work through and with technology face challenges and anxieties that are typical of the transition from the traditional classroom environment. as morgan (2008, p. 28) stated with regard to the context of australia, “the rapid uptake of online learning has placed increased demands on the traditional role of educators”. the same was true for our teaching context in east africa and for most teachers who found themselves in similar circumstances all over the world. morgan (2008, p. 28) further affirms that online learning places greater expectations on “students’ own initiative, self-motivation, and resourcefulness” and,as e-moderators,teachers need to promote reflective and creative thinking skills in their practices.the same author also posits that substantial demands are made on higher education institutions, as they need to provide the infrastructure, professional development and support to allow for web-based teaching and learning. tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 18 these expanded teacher roles call for support through effective continuous development initiatives. in the case of our practices these were available to us through attendance of free moocs (massive open online courses) on online teaching and learning, and the possibility to attend specialised courses offered by outside institutions and initiatives organised in-house. the experience gained from attending some of these courses, coupled with discussions with other colleagues in our department, helped us to reflect on our practices and to learn about approaches and resources that could be incorporated into our teaching and learning practice. it also aided us in coping with the stresses and anxieties related to the demands of our work. multilingual contexts the final (and by no means least important) theme that emerged from our reflections was related to the multilingual nature of our teaching and learning context. as stated earlier, it is essential to consider the multilingual nature of local and foreign languages and the roles that they play in the context of teaching and learning. according to omidire (2020, p. 159) there are no doubts about the challenges of language in education in multilingual contexts, and she affirms that “[t]eacher education in subsaharan africa needs to foreground the training in context-specific strategies that speak to the multilingual nature of the environment”. in our contexts where students from tanzania, kenya and uganda speak several languages – including home or local languages – and where english is sometimes the third or fourth language, ignoring the linguistic landscape is not an option. focusing on the teaching and learning of eap should not mean disregarding the linguistic resources that students and teachers bring into the teaching and learning process. on the contrary, these can be used to facilitate learning, tackle linguistic prejudice, and instil motivation for the learning of a global language such as english and the access that its appropriate academic uses may offer. however, for teachers to be able to do this, it is necessary to include this “shift in thinking regarding multilingualism in paradigm and ideology”, in teacher education and professional development, especially “through distance education” (omidire, 2020, p. 159). we believe that the experiences gained from our practices and reflections can be fostered in the teaching and learning process by promoting open discussions about language use, the roles of dominant and minority languages in the contexts, as well 19 contact: jean antunes jeantu@rocketmail.com & mariam farooq mariam_frq@yahoo.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. as the global and local (“glocal”) contemporary role of english. furthermore, the role of english in academia and in scientific writing must be foregrounded in these discussions, so that all involved can reflect, contribute and feel more included in the learning process and course objectives. student involvement and issues surrounding language ownership in these discussions are very important in english language programmes, as the approaches that are usually adopted are those based only on native speaker models, even though they do not always reflect the contemporary uses and role of the language. this is especially important in eap courses, as english plays a dominant role in academia, as mentioned above. according to mauranen et al. (2020, p. 184), “if the vast majority of readers and writers are not native speakers of english, perhaps qualities such as clarity and effectiveness in communication should be considered from their perspective rather than that of the native speaking minority”. as they concluded – “[t]here are no native speakers of academic english”. our reflections on the multilingual context of our work and on the insights gained from interacting with literature that highlights the importance of raising our own as well as students’ awareness of the roles of languages in our lives and work, helped us to place greater value on the linguistic resources that our learners and ourselves bring into the everyday teaching and learning practices. we agree with omidire (2020, p. 157) who concluded that “[t]eachers’ language proficiency, classroom participation norms, teaching experience and attitudes towards home languages can all shape how learning transpires”. conclusion this article attempted to describe our practices as eap teachers in east africa. our reflections emanate from the process of designing and delivering online and blended courses in a university setting that relies on technology for the deployment of instruction to students in different geographical locations.these reflections reinforced in ourselves the need for an emphasis on reflective practice in the teaching and learning processes. in current times, when a global pandemic makes explicit (more than ever) the need for alternative ways of teaching and new approaches to education, the sharing of practices, concerns, ideas and possible solutions among educational tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 20 practitioners and stakeholders becomes increasingly important. in this scenario, our practices and reflections confirm the need for an ever more contextually relevant approach to teaching. the latter adopts a critical perspective on content, materials and resources, and on how they can be used and adopted in the classroom or online environment to create a more effective learning environment. in the specific case of our eap courses offered through online and blended modes, our reflections emphasised the special attention to be given to interdepartmental collaborations, the promotion of teachers’ professional development, and considerations on the multilingual realities of the contexts in which teaching and learning occur. although we understand the multiplicity of contexts in which eap takes place through online and blended teaching and learning does not allow for expansive generalisations, we hope our reflections may be useful to eap practitioners and any other teachers working in similar contexts. in reimagining our practices in terms of the use of technology in education in developing contexts, we need to consider the reality of the “digital divide”.we agree with aborisade (2013, p. 40) who concluded that “[t]he gap can be bridged by teachers who are daring and resourceful and students can be sources of expertise. change is possible: we can help students speak english more and better, interact more and learn more independently”. references aborisade, p. a. 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(2013).reflectiveteaching:an introduction. routledge. official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 55 level of incorporation of environmental awareness into skill acquisition programmes in lagos, nigeria tewo v bakare department of adult education, university of lagos, nigeria issn: 2788-6298 doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v2i1.88 abstract skill acquisition is a growing concern in nigeria due to socio-economic circumstances and a glut in the labour market which predisposes people to alternatives such as self-employment and a refocus on the care for the environment. diverse by-products of the self-employed artisans have varied effects on the environment, hence the need to establish how their training affects their environmental practices. the study is a descriptive survey of learners and facilitators in five skill set areas from different skill acquisition programmes in lagos. the research set out to document the nature of waste output and level of environmental awareness of the participants and facilitators, as well as the effect of training on environmental practices. the study was premised on botha and atkins’ (2005) theory of adoption of innovation. three research questions on artisans’ typical output, disposal practices, and effect on the environment, along with the influence of facilitators’ training guided the study. a total of 250 participants were selected using stratified and proportionate random sampling techniques. the questionnaire, key informant interview sessions, and observation schedule were used for data collection and analysed quantitatively and qualitatively using descriptive statistics and content analysis. findings revealed a low level of incorporation of environmental awareness into skill training programmes and the gap in teacher training. it was recommended that both adult learners and facilitators be appropriately trained and equipped to effectively tackle 21st-century problems. keywords: environment, method, facilitators, skill acquisition, 21st century, artisans, waste output. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 56 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 56 introduction the 21st-century has emerged with its attendant and peculiar challenges, one of those being the care and management of the environment in a manner that will be sustainable for future generations. adult education practices have made it patently clear that human actions, as they affect the environment, pose a definite challenge for everyone, and to be engaged in activities that will improve the environment (bakare, 2018). according to the great schools partnership for 21st century skills (2016), environmental literacy is critical, especially in the demonstration of knowledge and understanding of the environment and the circumstances and conditions affecting it, particularly as relates to air, climate, land, food, energy, water and ecosystems. one of the skills associated with the 21st century is the knowledge of environmental and conservation literacy, as well as ecosystems understanding, hinged on the belief that learners must learn what is relevant, useful and in-demand. if this is applied to adult learners, then learning to care for their environment must be prioritised. thus, when the skill acquisition process is infused with the necessary awareness and action needed, it will make it easier for recipients to adopt and embrace better management of their environment. brendia (2002) agrees that environmental adult education will be beneficial to adult learners, while opara and ogudu (2009) examined the negative effect that farming practices have on the environment. kumar (2018) equally agrees on the necessity to address the problem from the perspective of e-waste as an emerging threat to the environment. bakare (op cit) further observed that to maintain the delicate balance between human beings and their physical environment, nigeria must ensure adequate environmental education. unfortunately, this has not been conscientiously adhered to, and the effect has been overall environmental degradation. facilitators and learners in the process of education constitute a viable resource target group for better environmental management to occur. (those who help adults to learn are referenced facilitators in lieu of teachers). skill acquisition is the process of learning and attaining new professional skills, equivalent to artisanship. it could also be a new way of doing old things in order to become proficient in that old skill; this is done through training or experience, according to feshchuk (2018). it involves a specific form of learning or training for a particular task until a suitable level of expertise is attained on that skill. the action thus becomes automatic, efficient, and almost without conscious thought as the transition between the learned actions becomes smoother, more seamless, and faster. the skills can be repairing, improving computer technology, developing artistic skills, or languages. most skills are not automatic and are usually learned, deliberately practised, and honed to expertise over a period of time and is a constant process (feshchuk, op cit). skill acquisition is, however, now key to survival as a 21st-century phenomenon and, in true adult education fashion, it is never too late to learn a skill. possessing a skill for the adult ensures a means to wealth, selfreliance, independence, job acquisition, and empowerment. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 57 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 57 eheazu (2016a) maintains that the human environment is made up of all the external factors and forces with which individuals interact from conception to the grave. people interact with the environment daily, and their actions or inactions seriously impact the nature of the environment and it is important that they care for it. every human action has repercussions for the environment. in this age where environmental awareness is becoming vital to sustainable development, it is imperative to ensure that skill acquisition appropriately considers the effect of what is being learned about the environment and ultimately national development. since adults learn for immediate use (knowles 1985), they can have a direct and immediate impact on the environment as a result of their activities. it is within the framework of adult education that artisans can be exposed to the necessary tools to empower them to care for the environment by making artisans aware of their actions and consequences so they can make informed choices. facilitators who help adults are instrumental to adult learning. it is thus essential for them to constantly update their knowledge of working with adults to the level of 21stcentury functionality. statement of the problem skill acquisition is becoming popular as more people are embracing it as a 21st-century necessity, so there is the need to pay more attention to it and address any issues concerning it. however, studies on skilled workers’ awareness of input and their waste output in the environment are not common. artisans may not be as aware of environmental protection as they ought to be and practical solutions are seldom promoted in environmental education for adults, which will influence adoption patterns. if learners graduated without awareness of their impact on the environment, the ignorance might prevent them from treating their environment differently, hence the need to ensure environmental awareness within programs, and explore facilitators’ level of involvement in environmental education. if facilitators do not engage in environmental education or use appropriate methods, the artisans’ involvement with the environment will not change, and the environment will continue to suffer. the european centre for development of vocational training (cedefop, 2012) noted that the economic crisis in the european economy has mandated changes and necessitated new strategies to get people employed more viably, especially in ‘green’ jobs that encourage eco-friendly production and consumption. their findings call for further research into education and training requirements that favour the environment. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 58 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 58 purpose of the study the purpose of this study was to ascertain the level of awareness of learners about their interaction with the environment, and facilitators on the effect of method of handling the training for skill acquisition to note whether consideration for the environment was incorporated. it is to further ascertain that in the 21st-century, facilitators and learners imbibe the spirit of resolving current problems concerning the environment, such that both parties are equipped to respond more positively to environmental issues. it is to further test the level of adoption of better environmental practices as a result of the artisans’ training. specifically, the purpose of this study is to establish the level of awareness of artisans about the effect of their waste output on the environment, document the level of incorporation of environmental consciousness into their training and their level of adoption, as well as establish how solutions could be gained through adult education. research questions the following research questions guided the study. 1. what are the respondents’ typical outputs, mode of disposal, and effect on the environment? 2. what are facilitators’ training background and their level of incorporation of environmental awareness into skill acquisition programmes in lagos state? 3. do recipients of skill acquisition programs become more aware of their interaction with their environment as a result of their training and method used? review of literature the socio-economic situation in nigeria today mandates the possession of skills, even beyond academic theoretical learning for survival. many graduates have failed to secure employment, as formal education and certificates no longer guarantee entry into the labour market, and graduates have failed to secure ‘white-collar’ jobs even in their fields, despite their qualifications. the socioeconomic trend of overdependence on job-seeking in the shrinking world of work emphasises that only skilled people will survive in the future. different forms of adult education have thus waded into the gap to provide people with the necessary tools to survive, cope, and fit into society (bakare, 2013). the pertinent question is whether skill acquisition programmes are taking the environment into consideration in their practices. agbor (2016) advocates the incorporation of environmental education into teacher education programs in nigeria. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 59 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 59 the nigerian education system, unlike in more developed nations, is yet to be structured to incorporate skill acquisition into the mainstream educational system, rendering graduates illequipped to survive outside the job market. the hitherto half-hearted attempt by authorities to build entrepreneurial skills into tertiary education is yet to yield tangible results. unfortunately, nigeria’s warped value system had encouraged people to look down on skill acquisition as menial, pursued by the uneducated. umunna (2018) categorises skills into vocational and white collar. it was suggested that informal skill acquisition might not require excessive mental intelligence, while the other category is for educated people. however, the technological age has made online education more accessible through distance education processes to supplement individualised skill acquisition. nowadays, people learn through technology-driven resources like youtube, for example, which makes self-training more accessible, as against the conventional method of formal education. traditionally in nigeria, skills were acquired through apprenticeship from an already established expert within a pre-arranged time after which the recipient gained their ‘freedom’ to set up on their own. different countries have different approaches. one may apprentice under the traditional version of a ‘journeyman’ who is often seen as the skilled expert and experienced craftsman (emms, 2005), who helps to instruct, oversee, correct and support the apprentice, and may or may not be formally certified. many artisans in nigeria learn from vocational training centres, whether publicly or privately run, and now use technology to their advantage to acquire skills online. in modern times, the apprentice learns skills on-the-job and the modern journeyman is more of a concept in adult education to indicate the nature of learning which must be pursued vigorously throughout life. king (2007) relays the kenyan experience, reporting that a wide variety of skills were acquired by low-income earners, through an unofficial fee-paying apprenticeship at the feet of older, often illiterate craftsmen. this mirrors the usual practice in nigeria also, in addition to the newer influx of educated people into the non-formal sector. prior to 2007, lagos state had three functioning skills acquisition centres, a number that later rose to 17 by the end of 2011, according to the state government records. many people have since availed themselves of skill acquisition opportunities by learning different trades under the government’s renewed interest in instituting poverty alleviation programs to battle unemployment, after several other failed attempts. other sponsors of skill acquisition programs include ngos, religious organisations, and philanthropists. programmes cater to the youth and women of different categories in pursuance of the united nation’s millennium development goals (mdgs). learners are trained in courses ranging from literacy to aspects of the beauty industry, hotel and catering, carpentry, and textile, among others. certificates of competency were usually given by the skill acquisition centre or other technical trade regulatory bodies at the end of the training. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 60 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 60 eheazu (2016b) noted that some forms of environmental degradation are anthropogenically caused by human activities, where some are by natural causes. human activities and outputs account for increasing pollution, and sound ecological practices are essential for sustainable development, which is why many now advocate for greener practices, in line with the doctrine of eu 2020 strategies. solaja, aliyu, and omobowale (2015) observe that the care for the environment has become a monumental responsibility among countries in the world in order to achieve sustainable consumption, communities, as well as a sustainable future, and ultimately, the world. adekeye, ojo, and ajayi (2011) found the fallout of welding to be detrimental to the soil as it could inadvertently enter the food chain and pollutions constitute major health risks. abia, fomboh, ntungwe, abia, serika, and ageh (2016) found that barbers and hairdressers in yaounde were exposed to occupational hazards through their method of waste disposal. the seriousness attached to environmental protection has mandated governments and other stakeholders to pay more attention to issues concerning the environment and thus devote more effort, finances, and policies into mitigating the problems. a major conduit has been through different forms of adult education. nigeria has the federal environmental protection agency (fepa), and states have corresponding agencies. lagos state, in addition, has the lagos state waste management authority (lawma) to take care of refuse, but are artisans and entrepreneurs complementing the government’s efforts on the environment? water pollution is also a major global concern for its potentially disastrous consequences for human and environmental health. most pollution issues in lagos are from industrial waste; other pollutants are in the form of smell from garbage, sewage, refuse-burning, and traffic emissions. ukemenam (2014) agrees that pollutants can be man-made or natural. she mentions carbon monoxide as one of the most common pollutants in lagos as a result of exhaust, and probably generator fumes. she also noted that the concentration was above fepa-recommended limits in lagos, compared to world health organization standards. numbero (2019) adds that lagos’ pollution index at 82.49 is deemed high. contaminants introduced into the natural environment cause instability, disorder, harm, and discomfort to the ecosystem. pollution affects land, soil, air, and water, with dire consequences for all living things. environmental education consists of all forms of knowledge about the environment. it is interested in the acquisition of skills, knowledge, and understanding to help develop appropriate values, attitudes and behaviour towards the environment. unesco (1978) saw it as education aimed at producing a citizenry that is knowledgeable concerning the biophysical environment and its associated problems. environmental adult education, on the other hand, is defined by eheazu (2013) as a process in which adult individuals gain awareness of their environment, acquire knowledge, values and skills, experience and determination which will enable them to act teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 61 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 61 individually and collectively in harmony with forces and elements that surround them as they emerge in their daily activities for survival. the research and curriculum development department of the industrial training fund (2014), while agreeing with improved trainee employability prospects after skill acquisition programs, recommended training needs assessment and constant curriculum review. bosah (2013), in a bid to encourage environmental consciousness and awareness from youth, examined the input of environmental education to environmental awareness in order to address global and regional environmental concerns and reported a low level of incorporation of environmental education into the syllabus. eneji, onoghen, and acha (2017) adopted the phi delta kappan model of trainingthe-trainers for environmental education. they suggest that, rather than the usual laissez-faire attitude to the environment, believing it is the government’s responsibility to take care of it, individuals and groups must equally begin with the self and contribute meaningfully to the care of the environment. they further advocate environmental adult education, using appropriate methods and techniques incorporated into the programme content. theoretical framework the curiosity about what motivates the adult to learn leads to the exploration of theories. this study explored the method of training of artisans and its effect on their adoption of positive environmental practices. botha and atkins’ (2005) theory views adoption from a psychological point of view as a process of decision-making by individuals that requires cognition, or their ability to perceive, understand and interact with their environment in an intelligent manner. this translates into the way in which the learners decide to interact with their physical environment will be a value of how they perceive and understand the situation; in other words, their training background. botha and atkins (op cit) believe that the individual moves from a state of ignorance to being aware, and that the adoption process itself is influenced by contextual factors and personal characteristics. they note different stages in the adoption of innovation processes which they described in a somewhat cyclical manner that indicates that the contextual and personal factors will dictate whether an idea is adopted, rejected, ignored or becomes a focus of interest. of particular interest to this study is their extension theory which is about changing voluntary behaviour through communication. the theory, however, only concentrates on bringing about behavioural change rather than providing a framework for studying the adoption of innovation, apart from evaluating extension outcomes. this may be translated into when adults are learning new things, the method used will be critical to their adoption level. if environmental awareness is therefore, not incorporated into their training, they are unlikely to adopt good environmental practices. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 62 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 62 when applied to the situation of artisans, their ability to interact positively or negatively with their environment will be a product of the type of exposure or training they have, and the method used in their training; thus it can be subsumed that if their training background does not adequately address their environmental awareness level they may not be able to interact intelligently with their environment. rogers (2003:18) in the same vein, argues that, even though in the diffusion of innovation the message is about a new idea, most people still depend on a subjective evaluation of what peers who are already adopters convey. this suggests that facilitators have a strong influence in the transmission of new ideas, and if the facilitators are already converted themselves, it will be easier to convey the message to the artisans. this study posits that, if the appropriate method is used, it will assist the adult learner’s learning outcome. thus, they need to be sensitised to perceive, understand and intelligently interact with their environment. therefore, if the training does not incorporate elements that will make them appreciate their commitment to the environment, then it is not likely that their reaction to their environment will be different after training. this has implications for artisans’ environmental practices, policy makers, as well as the innovation adoption theory. methodology the study was a descriptive survey in nature. it covered the lagos metropolis, documented environmental practices of skilled workers, and established the level of incorporation of environmental consciousness into training programs by facilitators. five skill set areas — carpentry, catering, hairdressing, mechanic, and tailoring — from different skill acquisition programmes in lagos were used in the study. different skill acquisition centres, formal/informal, were utilised. proportionate stratified sampling technique was used to select 50 respondents from each of the five trades used, along with 50 facilitators, making a total sample size of 300. some of the respondents were still in training while some had graduated and were practising their trade. the study cut across government and privately owned centres. the nature of their waste output also varied according to their trades. the population was all artisans engaged in skilled work and those still in training and all the program facilitators. this study focused more on the informal vocational skills that are more manual, requiring less of excessive mental acumen. there are three senatorial districts in lagos state, the lagos west (9 wards), east (5 wards), and central (5 wards). lagos west, consisting of nine local government areas was used for the study, from where skill acquisition centres were picked and learners and facilitators selected. the instrumentation consisted of the questionnaire which was used to gather data, supported with structured interviews and observation using a checklist. post graduate students in the department of adult education helped with data collection. respondents who could not complete the questionnaire were interviewed. the instruments were duly validated by three experts in the departments of adult education and environmental sciences. test-retest was used to establish teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 63 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 63 coefficient values of the questionnaire and interview schedule at 0.81 and 0.76, respectively to deem the instruments reliable for the study. data collected were analysed quantitatively and qualitatively using descriptive statistics and content analysis, and the results presented graphically in percentages and through content analysis. findings of the study background biodata of respondents the respondents’ bio-data, on the overall, revealed that 53 (21.2%) had higher education, 104 (41.6%) had the west african school certificate (wasc), 48 (19.2%) had primary school leaving certificate (pslc), 34 (13.6%) were primary school drop-outs while 11 (4.4%) did not have any formal education. the facilitators equally had a varied educational background. majority 16 (32%) had the primary school leaving certificate. this was followed by those with the west african secondary school leaving certificate (13 26%); 11 (22%) were primary school non-completers, 4 (8%) had higher education equivalent, while 6 (12%) had no formal education, or had a more traditional training background. the majority of the artisans, 200 (80%) had their training with the traditional apprenticeship scheme/skill acquisition centres and 50 (20%) through more formal education including vocational training centres. some 135 (54%) were still in training, while the rest were already on their own. a total of 142 (56.8%) were male and the rest were female. a breakdown of the gender is shown in figure 1. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 64 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 64 figure 1: gender of respondents 48 8 12 47 27 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 ca rp en try ca te rin g ha ird re ssi ng m ec ha nic ta ilo rin g n um be r of r es po nd en ts trade of respondents gender of respondents male female teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 65 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 65 overall, 108 (43.2%) were female and the trend showed a higher female presence in some professions as some programmes targeted women as recipients. some skills also seemed to be more gender-specific, like carpentry and mechanic, which were male-dominated at 98% and 96% respectively, while catering and hairdressing were dominated by females at 86% and 76% (see figure 1). research question one: what are the respondents’ typical outputs, mode of disposal, and effect on the environment? responses to research question one sought to find out the respondents’ typical outputs, mode of disposal, and effect on the environment. the observation schedule according to the trades showed, in part, their typical waste outputs as documented in table 1. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 66 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 66 table 1: waste output and effect on the environment 1. occupation 2. usual output 3. mode of waste disposal 4. effect on the environment catering a) small scale: selfemployed(hawkers) b) medium scale: serve larger crowds like the ‘bukateria’ or party planners, c) the big franchise eateries/restaurants. organic/inorganic material plastic, nylon, bottles, food leftover, blood, bones, smoke, dirty water burning, leave to decompose, refuse dump (garbage), throwing dirty water, blood and other liquid waste in gutters burning causes smoke and air pollution, the landfill can smell and cause air and soil pollution as well as attract vermin, but the most damage is caused by the disposal of non-biodegradables such as nylon and bottles. nylon causes drainage problems and bottles can take up to 4 000 years to decompose. wastewater can get into the potable water source, breed mosquitoes. tailoring pieces of cloth, oil, thread, pins and needles, worn fan belts, paper. wood garbage, burning incineration causes air pollution, landfill attracts pests. pollution of the land threatens food security. noise, oil spill, and drainage problems. same as above. carpentry shavings, sawdust, wood pieces, nails, plastic, and bottles, etc. garbage, burning, selling burning causes air pollution, one of those repercussions is that breathing in polluted air puts people at a higher risk for asthma and other respiratory diseases. landfill, noise, and air. same as above. mechanic gas, abandoned car parts, spilled engine oil, solder/welding light, metals, battery acid, rubber/leather. garbage an oil spill can leak into the water source, gas affects the ozone, and pollution of water decimates living organisms in the water, apart from causing health issues. noise, air, refuse. same as above. hairdressing hair spray (freon), hair, plastics, chemicals, wig strands, etc. garbage, burn clogging of drainage with hair strands and burning causes air pollution. gas affects the ozone, refuse, and water pollution. same as above teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 67 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 67 the table details skill sets, their typical waste output, methods of disposal, and effect on the environment. most trades also use generators to power their activities, which adds to the noise and air pollution. research question two: what are facilitators’ training background and their level of incorporation of environmental awareness into skill acquisition programmes in lagos state? rq2: the second research question sought the facilitators’ training background and their level of incorporation of environmental awareness into skill acquisition programs in lagos state. figure 2 shows the educational background of the facilitators. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 68 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 68 figure 2: facilitators’ training background 0 1 2 3 4 po st gr ad ba ch elo r te ch nic al w as c pr im ar y no fo rm al ed u n um be r of r es po nd en ts respondent's educational background carpentry catering hairdressing mechanic tailoring teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 69 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 69 facilitators’ educational background revealed that, apart from formal education, hardly any facilitator was a professionally trained adult educator as none specifically had training in working with adult learners. the facilitators’ training background seemed to affect their method of delivery and their incorporation of environmental awareness into skill acquisition programs in lagos state. responses to the observation guide showed that facilitators were generally not found to be using andragogical principles. this oversight cannot be unconnected to facilitators’ training background. the observation schedule further showed that facilitators failed to use adult teaching/learning principles or methods that will allow the learners to learn experientially so that they become more invested through participatory learning about environmental care; neither were there specific courses dedicated to environmental education. this gap may be related to their lack of adult education training background. the facilitators’ training background could thus be said to affect their method of delivery and the level of their incorporation of environmental awareness into skill acquisition programs in lagos state. facilitators’ responses further addressed the lack of environmental courses when 37 (74%) blamed this on the lack of provision to teach about the environment from outlined content or dedicated courses on environmental education. facilitators generally focused more on the care of work tools/proper storage and general cleanliness. in response to a question from the interview schedule, one facilitator maintained ‘i always taught my students that cleanliness is next to godliness and that they must always keep their environments clean’. murphy (2014) who had adopted botha’s and atkins’ theory in his study concluded that the difference in farmers’ innovation adoption practices was hardly a result of socio-demographics, but rather based on the source of their information and its relevance and compatibility with farmers’ needs and their capacity to adapt it into their existing farming practices. this is implied in this study that artisans will more likely adopt better environmental practices if their facilitator already incorporated it in their training. the reverse is that if the facilitators themselves were not exposed to better environmental practices in their own training, lack of vested interest in the environment would simply be perpetuated. research question three: do recipients of skill acquisition programs become more aware of their interaction with their environment as a result of their training and method used? rq3: do recipients of skill acquisition programs become more aware of their responsibility to their environment as a result of their training and method used? evidence from the observation schedule did not indicate that the respondents’ behaviour towards the environment changed drastically after training. figure 3 shows the level of incorporation of environmental education into their skill training programme. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 70 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 70 figure 3: facilitator’s incorporation of environmental education into skill acquisition 0 2 4 6 8 10 yes no yes no yes no yes no yes no carpentry catering hairdressing mechanic tailoring n um be r of r es po nd en ts trade of respondents teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 71 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 71 when asked whether their training affected their subsequent treatment of the environment, 181 (72.4%) said no, 48 (19.2%) responded ‘mildly’ while 21 (8.4%) claimed to care more about their environment as indicated in table 2. table 2: effect of the learners’ training on their treatment of the environment yes mildly no 21 (8.4%) 48 (19.2%) 181 (72.4%) responses in table 2 suggest that the training did not equip the learners to care better for their environment. it is possible that if a more practical and experiential method of training had been utilised, there would have been a more positive outcome. teachers’ incorporation of environmental awareness into training was found to be low at 26%. interview sessions revealed that facilitators did not learn about environmental awareness during their own training either; another respondent claimed: “nobody taught us specifically about the long-term effect of our output on the environment”. this is in line with rogers (2003:18) assertion that the informationexchange relationship determines the conditions under which a source will or will not transmit the innovation to the receiver. if the facilitators themselves were not trained in good environmental practices, they could hardly parlay any innovative ideas. overall, the study agrees with botha’s theory of adoption. environmental problems identified in artisans’ work locations varied from soil to air, ranging from erosion, flooding, clogged drainage, refuse dumps, noise, etc. when asked who should be responsible for solving environmental problems, the majority of 119 (47.6%) of the respondents believed the government should be held responsible for environmental problems like flooding, erosion, and different forms of pollution (soil, air, etc). their ranking of environmental problems by the artisans in their locations in order of severity showed land pollution was the highest, followed by noise and air as indicated in table 3. table 3: ranking of the severity of environmental problems air pollution land pollution noise pollution water pollution soil pollution 49 (19.6%) 81 (32.4%) 56 (22.4%) 45 (18.0%) 19 (7.6%) teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 72 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 72 most of the respondents 81 (32.4%) felt the most severe pollution problem was in terms of refuse disposal and therefore chose land pollution. this was followed by 56 (22.4%) who thought noise pollution ranked high too. 19.6% felt air pollution in terms of emission was a problem, while 22.4% selected noise pollution, in terms of the generator, music, traffic, and so on, and 18.0% viewed water pollution as an issue. the least was 7.6% who rated soil pollution as a problem. most artisans (47.6%) felt environmental problems should be resolved through government actions by government authorities and thus failed to take personal responsibility for their waste disposal activities. they felt the government should provide infrastructure like proper drainage and manage solid waste better. they all complained about the government’s inability to collect waste efficiently, which leaves the onus on them to look for alternatives. accumulated garbage causes pests, breeds mosquitoes and vermin; it equally constitutes eyesore and smell, while the run-off can affect the water source. evidence from the observation schedule did not indicate that the respondents’ behaviour towards the environment changed after training. when asked whether their training affected their subsequent treatment of the environment 181 (72.4%) said no, 48 (19.2%) responded mildly while 21 (8.4%) claimed to care more about their training as shown in table 2. in summary, the level of awareness of the effect of respondents’ behaviour on the environment was rather low as many did not learn environmental skills from their training. pollution (air, soil, water) remains one of the huge contributors to environmental degradation, and facilitators spent most of their teaching time focusing on the skill acquisition process, and little, if any, on environmental matters. the extent of training on environmental care remained on keeping it clean. awareness of the long-term effect was absent, and respondents are yet to take more responsibility for environmental management. discussion of the findings respondents’ typical output and mode of disposal negatively affect the environment (air, soil, water). findings showed a low level of awareness of the long-term effect of their waste output on the environment by both sets of respondents. this result further highlights the effect of the gap in their training and environmental practices, which were hardly affected by training. this was found to be due to the facilitators’ emphasis dwelling more on the skill acquisition itself, likely influenced by their own lack of training, which calls for heightened teacher education to enable them to resolve 21st-century problems appropriately. it also revealed a gap in the adoption of innovative and better environmental practices. findings further showed a dearth of provision for specific courses to ensure better environmental management practices. it also indicates that not enough effort was being put into the incorporation of environmental education into skill acquisition programs in lagos state, which has obviously affected artisans’ adoption practices. this is in teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 73 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 73 agreement with eneji, et al (2017) findings that not enough attention is being paid to environmental issues as yet. facilitators’ failure to incorporate environmental education into their training methods invariably exposed a lack in their own training. this is similar to rogers’ (2003:18) assertion that the information-exchange relationship determines the conditions under which a source will or will not transmit the innovation to the receiver. if the facilitators themselves were not trained in good environmental practices, they could hardly parlay any innovative ideas. overall, the study agrees with botha’s theory of adoption. respondents felt it was more of the government’s responsibility to care for the environment, also in line with eneji, et al (2017). if most of their outputs wound up in the garbage, and the government does not have adequate programmes in place for its collection, there will be a problem. this exposes the wide gap that adult education can fill for all stakeholders through enlightenment and environmental awareness education so that everyone is more committed to their responsibility to the environment. most of the artisans’ waste output contributed to environmental pollution and the gap in their training meant, understandably, their behaviour did not change significantly after their training, due to the void in environmental education. this further exposes a gap in the adoption practices as postulated by botha and atkins (2005). the learners have not successfully gone through the experiential process to change their behaviour towards the environment. although qaman (2000) agreed that in adoption studies, objective evaluations are difficult, this study agrees with botha and atkins’ submission that communication is vital to the adoption process. when the communication process or methods teaching/learning of artisans is defective and good environmental practices are not incorporated, adoption of better environmental practices will be a non-sequitur. the typical effect of these waste by-products on the environment includes pollution of air, smell, noise, and the soil, litter, pests, contamination of water source, and loss of biodiversity. all these have an associative effect on human health, agriculture, the ozone layer, and climate change, among others; it ultimately affects socio-economic activities as well as national development efforts. the concentration on skill acquisition and the faulty resultant byproduct management constitutes a typical 21st-century problem that needs to be addressed with 21st-century solutions, like teacher’s updated skill education and incorporation of technology into environmental training. the study, therefore, highlights the necessity for learners and teachers to have a shift in skill set standards and enhanced consciousness about their environment. modernday facilitators must be suitably equipped to focus on current environmental issues and encourage its incorporation into the teaching and learning content and methods in order to be current and effective. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 74 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 74 conclusion this study has indicated the need to improve awareness about environmental concerns; conscientise artisans about care for the environment and engender action to promote environmental consciousness. it has equally listed the typical output of five different artisan skills. apart from enumerating their effect on the environment, it noted the low awareness level of the artisans from the training, calls for teacher education, and what can be done to protect the environment. findings further showed that the level of incorporation of environmental awareness into the teaching/learning content was low, hence the need for incorporating environmental adult education into the teaching-learning processes in skill acquisition centres. contribution to knowledge the study exposed the huge gap in the environmental training of facilitators and learners in skill acquisition programs in lagos nigeria. it calls attention to the adoption of innovation processes and methods that will improve environmental consciousness. it will positively contribute to the practice of environmental adult education. recommendations it is important to incorporate environmental education into the content in skill acquisition programmes, no matter the mode of learning, so that learners can learn about care for the environment pari pasu the skill training. awareness of the impact of the dire effects of their waste output and the long-term negative effect on the environment will further highlight the implications and conscientise them. it is important to dedicate courses to sustainable environmental practices to highlight environmental consciousness. artisans must learn practices like composting and observing the three rs – to reduce, reuse and recycle along with tree planting, etc. more than anything, it is important to properly train facilitators to approach 21st-century problems with 21stcentury solutions as a matter of policy. if they were not appropriately trained, they would not know any better. facilitators could employ appropriate methods such as case study, field visits, simulation, excursions to disaster and model areas, and other participatory methods to engage adult learners actively in environmental education. when facilitators are aware of the effect of adoption processes of new ideas by artisans, and the need to be mindful of incorporating practical and experiential methods of synergising with the environment, they are more likely to use approaches that will maximise goal attainment and positive environmental practices. these are more engaging methods that will engender transformational teaching and learning, as well as enrich the adoption of innovation processes. the government should equally work with the populace on environmental issues; different forms of adult education can help ameliorate the teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 75 contact: tewo v bakare tbakare@unilag.edu.ng this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 75 situation. technology should also be used more to solve environmental problems and enhance distance 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commons attribution 4.0 international license. 2 3tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, 2022 issn 2788-6298 teaching practicum assessment procedures adopted by primary teachers’colleges in zimbabwe during the covid-19 pandemic tawanda chinengundu email: university of pretoria, tchinex2@gmail.com orcid identifier: 0000-0002-9114-6368 hondonga jerald new era college, email: jhondonga@gmail.com orcid identifier: 0000-0001-7608-0818 founders mhazo morgensterteachers’college, email: mhazofounders@gmail.com orcid identifier: 0000-0001-6826-4430 doi: 10.35293/tetfle.v3i1.3709 official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za 4 contact: tawanda chinengundu tchinex2@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. abstract the study in hand investigated the assessment tools and procedures adopted by primary teachers’ colleges in masvingo province of zimbabwe during the covid-19 pandemic. covid-19 caused massive disruptions to the continuity of teaching practicum (tp) and scheduled assessment activities.the transformative learning theory underpinned our study.a quantitative research design was used and data was gathered by means of online questionnaires that contained both closed and open-ended items. findings indicated that tp assessment strategies did not change from physical lesson observations, and since assessments completely stopped at the peak of the pandemic due to the closure of schools hosting teacher trainees, the completion date of the course for teacher trainees was extended. where lecturers eventually got access to schools, they resorted to the observation of tp files and supporting documents. our study found that the assessment of teaching practicum online remains a challenge and there is a need to change assessment strategies in the post-covid-19 era. keywords: assessment, assessors, college lecturers, covid-19, online teaching, mentors,micro-teaching, teaching practicum,teacher trainees,zintec. tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 5 introduction the covid-19 pandemic caused massive disruptions to the continuity of teacher training and assessment activities, thereby affecting and even threatening the course completion dates for many students (internationallabour organisation [ilo],2021). the pandemic forced several countries to cancel, reschedule or postpone training activities, thereby disrupting scheduled school-based and work-integrated learning assessments (atkins & danley,2020). thenegative impact that schoolandtrainingclosureshadonthe learningoutcomes for learners was greater in low-income countries where the delivery of courses and assessments online are also hampered by the lack of digital skills among teachers and students (hondonga et al., 2021).the corona pandemic impacted the whole world, and the zimbabwean school calendar was disrupted on 24 march 2020 to contain the spread of covid-19 (ministry of primary and secondary education [mopse], 2020).the teaching practicum (tp) component of initialteacher education (ite) programmes was significantly disrupted, as the national lockdown period coincided with the time thatmany itestudents wereengaged withtp in schools. ineducation, the term ‘teaching practicum’ is used interchangeably with concepts such as workintegrated learning (wil), teaching practice, teaching experience, professional training or school-based training (moosa, 2019). the school-based component of teacher training programmes in zimbabwe is referred to as theteaching practice.it is seen as a purposeful, organised, supervised and assessed educational activity required for the completion of an ite programme that integrates theoretical learning with its applications in the workplace (macqual et al., 2021). in the current study,tp refers to the form of educational pedagogy that combines all the theoretical and practical knowledge that teacher trainees utilise when they are in schools (batholmeus & pop, 2019).learningtoteachisalreadyacomplexprocess that requirescontinuousguidance from lecturers, and the covid-19 pandemic disrupted and complicated the process even further.teacher training institutions adopted various methods to continue their practice andprepare teacher trainees for the changed teaching conditions (ersin et al., 2020).what remained important throughout thepandemic were theholistic concern for the professional progression of teacher trainees, the effects of missing learning during the practicum,and worries about the finaltp assessment. while the delivery of most theory lessons went online, tp and its assessment 6 contact: tawanda chinengundu tchinex2@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. could not be conducted online. this was due to a lack of digital equipment and technical knowledge to migrate to technologically based assessment strategies (moyo, 2020).somecritics ofonline teachingargue thateven where simulations canbe done, distance and online learning do not really allow for the development of practical skills. moreover, many institutions in developing countries like zimbabwe cannot afford simulator technology (bates, 2015; ilo-unesco-world bank, 2021, p. 12) or technological innovations that have the potential to transform the way teacher educators support teacher trainees during teaching practice.however,with the right attitudes, skills, knowledge andbehaviours ofexpert lecturers,student teachersmay be enabled to practise teaching effectively in non-traditional ways (world bank,2020). the current forms of support available to teacher trainees during teaching practicum – friends, peers,mentors, and college supervisors – are considered limited in a digitalised era (bernhard & camins, 2020). for example, the model of training for the 2-5-2 programme used in zimbabwean primaryteachers’colleges makes it difficult for teacher educators to offer continuous support and guidance to teacher trainees during teaching practicum (maguraushe, 2015).the support and guidance from college supervisors are mostly limited to occasional supervisory and post-lesson discussions which are sometimes conducted in haste.thepresent study also sought to identify any quality assurance systems fortpassessment that had been put in place to ensure that reliable andvalid assessments are not compromised due to thecovid-19 pandemic.while several studies (atkins & danley, 2020; cahapay, 2020; gravett & jiyane,2019) have been conducted internationally, it is clear that in the zimbabwean context, limited research is available on the assessment of teacher trainees while on teaching practice during a pandemic.we as authors therefore attempted to acquire a deeper understanding of the teaching practicum assessment of zimbabwean teacher trainees during a crisis. in a dichotomous model of teacher education, the teacher training college provides the pedagogical theory and skills about teaching through coursework,while the school provides the field setting where such knowledge is applied and practised (worthy, 2005, p. 380).thus, the field practice of teacher trainees complements the college-based aspects, as it allows prospective teachers to participate directly in the experience of teaching and to face the challenges of the real classroom environment (worthy,2005).lecturers have to prepare teacher trainees to recognise and copewith the complexities of teaching so that they can participate in the educational setting in tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 7 an increasingly competent way.the main actors of tp are teacher trainees, schoolbased mentors, teacher educators or lecturers, and learners – in decreasing order of attention.this requires from colleges to work closely with schools in the supervision and assessment of teacher trainees on tp.the covid-19 pandemic disrupted not only the continuity oftp assessment activities but also college lecturers’ support to students on tp; hence this study sought to find out how teacher training colleges managed to assess students during the pandemic. main research question what assessment tools and procedures were adopted to assess teaching practicum (tp) during the covid-19 pandemic in zimbabwe? research sub-questions • what assessment tools and procedures were used to assess teacher trainees during the covid-19 pandemic in zimbabwe? • what were the challenges for tp assessment of teacher trainees during the covid-19 pandemic in zimbabwe? • how can the assessment oftp be improved in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic in zimbabwe? a better understanding of innovative tools and procedures to assess tp during the covid-19 pandemic might help to inform policymakers, researchers and teacher educators about assessment practices to be used during and after a crisis.the study further signpostsdirections for future researchwork andemphasises theneed to invest in digital technologies to aid with the recording of teaching sessions and the transfer of such records.by transforming online assessment, the responsibility for assessment may be shared between training institutions and the schools that host pre-service teachers ontp. transformative learning theory (mezirow, 1991) the study was grounded in the transformative learning theory, which focuses on 8 contact: tawanda chinengundu tchinex2@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. enlightened agents of a change empowered with decision-making skills when faced with crises that threaten the existence of people (mezirow, 2003). the theory is viewed partly as a development process theory, since transformation starts from a point of discomfort to guide action to a revised standpoint.transformation occurs because of acute personal or social crises (like pandemics).when people are faced with experiences that are both stressful and painful and that threaten the very coreof their existence, they will rely on acquired knowledge, existing technology and skills for survival.basedon this theory,our study explored the transformation of assessment innovations pursued by teacher training institutions during disruptions caused by the covid-19 pandemic. since transformative learning liberates and empowers people to question the status quo, it also enables them to take decisions.the study examined how new assessment strategies were utilised during the pandemic to achieve the intended assessments and refrain from compromising quality assurance processes. effects of covid-19 on the assessment of tp healthrestrictions,protocolsandrecommendationsaimedatmanagingthecovid-19 pandemic prohibited manypeople from getting into schools.for instance,zimbabwe spent the whole of 2020 under lockdown in a bid to curb the spread of covid-19. the almost universal move internationally by learning institutions towards the online delivery of teaching content, at relatively short notice, was unprecedented and has become one of the greatest disruptions to occur in education in general, and in teacher education in particular (crawford et al., 2020). since most schools that host teacher trainees ontp had to close, teacher trainees who were supposed to go ontp were affected.this completely disrupted the formativetp assessments that needed to be carried out to check students’ progress. for instance, the ilo-unesco-world bank (2021) survey found that, in some countries,work placements were cancelled, rescheduled,or postponed – due to a lack of a coordinated response to the challenge of not incorporating the assessment of work-integrated learning online. similarly, in zimbabwe, teacher trainees who were supposed to start their tp in may 2020 eventually started in march 2021, in line with the academic calendar.assessment of tp was deferredby half a year (two terms),thereby extending the completion date of the course.however, the ministry of higher andtertiary education (2021) advised that colleges might engage with the university of zimbabwe’s centre for teacher tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 9 development andmaterials production andhighlight areas that need clarity regarding tp issues (herald,2021). regarding practicums for teachereducation, severaloptions canbe explored,such as using an action research approach (neil & marais, 2020) or introducing remote tp. other options can focus on the perceptions of students and mentors about using online messaging platforms likewhatsapp and functions such as surveys, file sharing, and video recordings. further exploration can then focus on students’ and mentors’experiences and challenges,as well as on the perceivedbenefits ofusing such platforms to guide upscaling and comply with technical, partnership, and practicebased requirements. while school-based teacher trainees could continue with working and learning in the workplace under strict health restrictions, their competencies and skills development had to beassessed tomeet course requirements (ilo-unesco-world bank, 2021).this scenario prompted training institutions to adopt flexible, inclusive and sustainable assessment options dictated by the prevailing situation and the countrywide covid-19 protocols.as the crisis unfolded, there was an urgent need for improved resources to provide new assessment methods.to date, the pandemic continues to present challenges and obstacles for everyone involved (korucu-kış, 2021).this has forced educator preparation programmes to invest in virtual learning professional development opportunities and revise the education programme by preparing teacher trainees to offer their future students a quality education, regardless of the instructional delivery format (atikson & danley, 2020). this means that in future, two forms of practicum will need to be incorporated – the face-to-face component as well as the online component. however, it remains a challenge to observe and assess teacher trainees in action and to evaluate their ability to manage a classroom and its environs continuously.this is a feat that may not easily be achieved remotely. assessment of teaching practice in crisis times the pandemic has changed the way lessons are delivered and how assessments are conducted.thewayinwhichtheteachingpracticumisconductedmustbetransformed with creative solutions andflexible innovations aimed at encouraging meaningful and relevant teaching and learning in times of crisis (korucu-kış, 2021). for example, a 10 contact: tawanda chinengundu tchinex2@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. study by neil and marais (2020) established that a teaching practicum experience via whatsapp can offer a new way in which a university and a school, as sites of workintegrated learning, can work together to benefit all partners – including the school children. during the covid-19 teaching practicum experience, the university or college lecturers, the mentor teachers and the teacher trainees were compelled to communicate, collaborate, supervise, monitor and mentor more purposefully than during traditional face-to-face school placement. implementing a teaching practicum viawhatsapp in times of crisis can ensure that effective supervision,monitoring and mentoring can continue, while valuable communities of practice can also develop between the core partners (neil & marais,2020). in the large collection of studies by ferdig et al. (2020), other authors focus specificallyon the replacementof thepracticumwith strategies suchasmicro-teaching online,by using case studies involving virtual classroom technology and video-based assessment (mollenkopf & gaskill, 2020;monroe et al., 2020;yucesoy-ozkan et al., 2020). micro-teaching online can be done using selected learners who have or are provided with connectivity. in some instances, like in the united states of america, murraystateuniversity implementedanonlineportfolioasa substitute forcompleting in-person practicum hours for teacher trainees who had been affected by school closures due to the covid-19 pandemic (hendrith et al., 2020).teacher trainees created awebsite andcomplied withpracticum requirementsby demonstrating lesson planning and teaching skills in thee-portfolio sites.benander and refaei (2016)posit that e-portfolios address the need for teacher trainees to develop digital identities and to communicate their pedagogy and technology practices.research in colleges should also focus on improving practices in both colleges and schools, so as to equip future teachers with the requisite information and communication technology (ict skills to use modern technologies in their work and lesson delivery.although these strategies were found to succeed,they require a significant investment in terms of the digital tools to beused and an uninterrupted internet connectivity.the latter remains a challenge in many countries, including zimbabwe. alternatively, lecturers were found to record lessons and place them onyoutube before giving them to teacher trainees as case studies to critique and discuss.teacher trainees were also provided with activities to do based on what they saw in the case studies. dede et al. (2005) suggest that high-technology simulations using a virtual classroom are an effective means of giving teacher trainees practice with new skills tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 11 they are mastering in their teacher preparation courses.according to dieker et al. (2017), teaching simulations can be immediately integrated into online learning contexts.this is possible in many ways, whether in synchronous teaching situations with peers or virtual simulations with avatars.an avatar is a personalised graphic file or rendering that represents a computer user or a student in an online environment. however, if funding for simulations is not available, a less costly alternative would be to provide a traditional micro-teaching experience via skype (piccolo et al.,2020). reflecting on current practices and planning – placing teacher trainees in virtual learning and teaching environmentswill ensure that they are given the instruction and support needed to be successful teachers in the future.according to lambert (2020), extensive student teaching practice is required to earn most teaching credentials, and it is generally regarded as an essential part of a teacher’s training before getting his or her classroom. however, the covid-19 pandemic created a dilemma because opportunities for teaching practicumwere limited.this required a shift in thinking,as teacher education programmes had to adapt the curriculum to a virtual formatwhile engaging students in conversations on how to problem solve during a pandemic or crisis (atkins & danley, 2020). our study therefore examined assessment tools and procedures adopted for teaching practice during the covid-19 crisis in zimbabwe. teaching practicum of primary school teachers in zimbabwe teaching practicumprovides opportunities for teacher trainees todevelop career-long learning skills, specific teaching competencies, and class-orientated managerial skills to enhance their professional identity development (zegwaard et al., 2019). these processes create contexts of mentoring for pre-service teachers during theirtp field experiences in schools, as the teacher trainees can put into practice their theoretical knowledge in a real classroom situation. the2-5-2programmewasintroducedbythezimbabweangovernmentinjanuary 2002 as a mergerof thezimbabwe integratedteachers educationcourse (zintec) and the conventional model of training where student teachers spent more time on campus than in schools.according to samkange (2013), the zintec initiative was not a new development in the training of teachers and such initiatives were common in otherparts ofafrica.most countries inafrica introduced such initiatives soon after attaining independence to alleviate the problem of teacher shortages (zvobgo,2003). 12 contact: tawanda chinengundu tchinex2@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. cases in point are botswana, kenya, malawi and uganda, among others (peroaton, 2010).teacher trainees choose either the early childhood development programme (ecd) for grades ecd a to grade 3 or the general programme for grades 4 to 7 for their training. the 2-5-2 programme is a three-year diploma programme that prepares mainly primary school teachers at a distance, and it is structured in such a way that it has a longer teaching practicum period than the residential period (maguraushe, 2015). the name of the 2-5-2 programme was derived from how the major components of the training programme were structured: two (2) zimbabwean school terms (approximately 32 weeks) for the theoretical component at college; five (5) terms (approximately 80 weeks) continuously on teaching practicum; and another two (2) terms (approximately 32 weeks) for the theoretical component at college (tshuma & bhebhe, 2016).this teacher training programme is grounded in the philosophy that pre-service teachers can learn to teach on the job,evenwith limited prerequisite theory, skills and knowledge.darling-hammond (2017) refers to such a programme as a teacher’s apprenticeship of some sort where teacher trainees learn – through observation and supervised teaching – what works in the classroom. during their field placement,which is some form oftp, teacher trainees are expected to integrate theory from their module courses with classroom practice in a purposefully designed college curriculum (dollinger & brown,2019). the teacher training programme has two main components: theory and practice. the theoretical component consists of courses in psychology, sociology, philosophy, appliededucationandan in-depth studyof anacademic area.these are coveredduring the first two terms and the last two terms of the course on campus (maguraushe, 2015).thecourses weredesigned toequip teacher trainees withknowledge ofhuman behaviour, pedagogical content knowledge and disciplinary knowledge within the primary schoolcurriculum.the secondand morevaluable component is the teaching practicum component, which occurs continuously over five terms in schools. it is within this component that teacher trainees are socialised into the profession as they experiment with teaching and learning approaches introduced in foundation and methods courses in a classroom setting (lambert, 2020). once deployed in their selected school,teacher trainees are assigned to agrade and attached to anexperienced and qualified teacher who becomes their mentor. this is the person whom they would consult about almost all their teaching practice activities.teacher trainees are tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 13 usually supervised, monitored and mentored by mentor teachers at the schools and by university lecturers during their teaching practicum (bernhard & camins, 2020). the conventionaltp model of primary school teacher development in zimbabwe is heavily embedded in all aspects of open distance learning (odl) (tarusikirwa, 2016;tshuma & ndebele, 2015). because of this scenario, practical tp assessments were negatively affected by the outbreak of covid-19. research methodology aquantitativeresearchdesignwasusedbecauseadoptedstrategies fromtheparticipants could be quantified and comparisons be made more easily (creswell,2014).data was gathered using online questionnaires containing both closed and open-ended items. the items solicited information on how colleges transformed assessment tools and procedures during the pandemic to ensure continuity of learning by teacher trainees. non-probability purposive sampling was used to select 14 respondents: 13 lecturers for training primary school teachers and one tp coordinator.a questionnaire was deemed appropriate for this study because it was inexpensive, practical, and could cover every aspect of the topic (mouton, 2015).the questionnaire was validated by three independent experts in teacher education. online questionnaires, which were distributed on google forms to all participants in the sampled colleges,were used to effect social distancing and get instant feedback. three primary school teacher training colleges were purposely selected from masvingo province in zimbabwe.the total number of lecturers in all these colleges was 240 and a sample of 50 was selected. the sample was relatively small as the participants were the only ones with accessible contacts during the period of study. non-probability purposive sampling was used to select the 50 respondents – among them 47 lecturers and threetp coordinators – to respond to the online survey.this helped togather informationon theperspectives of the lecturers andtpcoordinators from various college contexts, since they are involved in the assessment of pre-service teachers on tp. only 14 responses were received, giving a response rate of 28%. despite this low response rate, the findings gave important and authentic insights into teacher educators’practices in timesof emergency.the fact that therewere some covid-19 cases at one of the colleges during the time of data collection may have contributed to the low response rate. descriptive statistics were used to present the 14 contact: tawanda chinengundu tchinex2@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. research results, and quantitative analysis and descriptions were used for clarification. open-ended questions were thematically analysed. permission to conduct this research was sought from theministry of primary and secondary education (the ministry that oversees all training colleges in zimbabwe), and from the respondents. researchers adhered to the ethical principles of human rights, honesty, fairness, respect for individuals’ reputation, and confidentiality of collected information to ensure that the respondents were not exposed to any risk by taking part in this study (creswell,2014;mcmillan & schumacher,2014). findings pre-pandemic tp assessment strategies among the 14 respondents, four (28.6%) indicated that they were lecturers at government teacher training colleges, nine (64.3%) were at private teacher training colleges,andone (7.1%)wasatpcoordinator inoneof thecolleges.all14 respondents indicated thattp was mandatory in their colleges, thus suggesting that each student had to go totp,be assessed and pass before graduating. findings also indicated that before the covid-19 pandemic,tp assessment was done with college-based assessors, school-based mentors, school headmasters and university-based external assessors (seetable 1). in some cases (n=2,14.3%), assessors from other colleges would assess teacher trainees. table 1: tp assessors pre-pandemic assessor frequency % college-based assessors 14 100 school-based supervisors/mentors 11 78.6 school headmasters 12 85.7 assessors from other colleges 2 14.3 university-based external assessors 12 85.7 tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 15 as shown in table 2, tp was generally assessed pre-pandemic through lesson observations by college assessors,mentors,headmasters and university-based external assessors.documentary (file) assessment was also carried out in schools (64.3%). table 2: methods oftp assessment used by the colleges pre-pandemic method frequency % observation of trainees in a class by college assessors 14 100 observations of trainees by school-based supervisors or mentors 12 85.7 observations by school headmasters 12 85.7 observations by assessors from other colleges 3 21.4 documentary assessment in schools 9 64.3 observation by university-based external assessors 12 85.7 as to how feedback on assessment was communicated to colleges, 92.9% of respondents indicated that this was done physically, while 7.1% stated that online platforms were used. tp assessment during the covid-19 pandemic table 3 indicates how the tp assessment was conducted during the covid-19 pandemic.most assessments during the pandemic were still using the old system (n= 10,71.4%).this suggested no or little transformation of the assessment methods that had been used before the pandemic. six respondents (42.9%) indicated that thetp assessment was postponed. table 3: tp assessment during the pandemic item frequency % continued with the old system of assessment 10 71.4 changed the assessment strategy 3 21.4 16 contact: tawanda chinengundu tchinex2@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. postponed assessment 6 42.9 stopped assessment completely 0 0 the majority of respondents indicated that in some instances, colleges awarded marks based on a document (file) assessment, since they could not access schools. respondents indicated that since the students were already ontp, it was practically difficult todisseminate information on howto use alternative assessment strategies to the teacher trainees.according to respondents,some studentswerenoteasily accessible online.the outbreak caught everyone unawares and it was extremely difficult to put new assessment strategies in place. table 4:alternative assessment strategies adopted fortp assessment were you familiar with alternativetp assessment strategies that were implemented during the pandemic? response % yes,entirely 27 yes,partially 27 no 46 table 4 shows that most assessors were familiar with alternativetp assessment strategies which were implemented during the pandemic. some lecturers createdwhatsapp groups for teacher trainees to discuss progress on research projects.respondents highlighted that alternative assessment strategies were not approved by the certifying university. they suggested that this lack of quality assurance could affect the certification of students since the colleges were affiliated with theuniversity.themajority of respondents felt that switching to online strategies remained a challenge. tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 17 challenges to the use of new tp assessment tools and methods tp assessment activities were seriously affected.for instance, the majority of schools were closed during lockdowns and as such, notp assessment venues were available. although 59% of the respondents indicated that additional resources were deployed to createnewtpassessment methods,33% saidno additional resources were added in their institutions and 8% were not aware of any (seetable 5). table 5: additional resources to support alternative assessment strategies did the institution allocate resources to expand the use of new assessment strategies? response % yes 59 no 33 i don’t know 8 several issues were raised in response to an open-ended question concerning challenges abouttp assessment during the covid-19 pandemic: • lesson observations and documents such as hard copy files could not be assessed, since travelling was restricted. • online assessmentwas prevented since both lecturers and students lackedict tools and access to the internet.besides the fact that there were no effective platforms to use for doing onlinetp assessment, respondents suggested that the situation was further exacerbated by poor internet connectivity and high data cost. • inadequate resources and support from colleges affectedtp assessment. • no proper scheduling couldbe madeof assessmentactivities betweencolleges and trainee teachers due to the speedof the spread of the covid-19 disease, uncertainties about and fear of the disease, and caution by all parties (school authorities, assessors and trainee teachers). • the lack offlexibility among both trainees and assessors to accept changewas a major setback. 18 contact: tawanda chinengundu tchinex2@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. improvement of tp assessment after the covid-19 pandemic since new digital technology-based strategies had to be adopted to augment existingtp assessment methods, it was necessary to determine the extent to which colleges were investing in and developing the new strategies.table 6 shows that nine respondents (81.8%) thought that teacher training colleges were actually trying to create virtual environments fortp assessments;however, therewas noclear indication of the implementation of a particular method. table 6: institutions’ investment in new assessment methods method of assessment introduced frequency % encouraging the use of video conferences 3 27.3 developing simulations 1 9.1 creating a virtual learning environment 9 81.8 developing videos 3 27.3 usingyoutube 1 9.1 using podcasts 0 0 other 2 18.2 responding to the open-ended question on howtp assessment could be improved in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic, the majority of respondents highlighted a need for training lecturers to implementnew assessment strategies.furthermore, they indicated the need for staff development in respect of ict skills, since most activities were in the process of transitioning online. respondents furthermore argued that schools alsoneeded to conduct lessonsonline iftp were to continueduring and after the pandemic. discussion the study gathered data from both private and public teachers’ colleges.this mix of colleges gave the researchers insight into different response strategies used fortp tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 19 assessment during the pandemic.all respondents indicated that tp was mandatory in their colleges, which implies that each student had to go to tp, be assessed and pass before graduating. our findings suggest thattp assessments in teacher training collegeswerenormally conductedbymeansof lessonobservationsbycollege assessors, mentor teachers in schools, headmasters and university-based external assessors.tp assessment activities were seriously affected, inter alia because the majority of schools were closed during lockdowns (atkins & danley, 2020) and left training institutions without access to any tp assessment venues. our findings also revealed that little transformation was made totp assessment methodologies during the pandemic.the rate of transformation was limited by the following: • a lack of effective platforms fortp assessment. • a lack of collaboration between colleges, schools and the university. • limited resources deployed to create and adopt newtp assessment methods. • limited skills of both lecturers and teacher trainees on the use of other/new methods fortp assessment. • a lack of access to online facilities/tools, both in schools and in colleges (for teacher trainees and lecturers). • poor internet connectivity and high data cost. assessment of tp was deferred by half a year (two terms), thereby extending the duration/completiondate of thecourse. although some lecturers createdwhatsapp groups for teacher trainees todiscuss their progress,thiswasnot a long-lasting solution as itwasnot sustainableandnotconsistent forall colleges,lecturers and teacher trainees. neil and marais (2020) nevertheless suggest that facilitating a teaching practicum via whatsapp in times of crisis can ensure that effective supervision, monitoring and mentoring can continue,with valuable communities of practice developing between the core partners. hard copy lesson observations and documents such as files could not be assessed, since travellingwas restricted.many lecturers (college assessors)were just comfortable using their old waysof assessment– probablydue to a lackof resources or innovation, or simply not being flexible (hondonga et al., 2020). our also findings revealed that most assessors were not familiar with alternative assessment strategies. piccolo et al. (2020) argue that teacher education programmes need research and guidance 20 contact: tawanda chinengundu tchinex2@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. on how to support student teachers in alternative teaching and learning formats, while maintaining high standards and best practices.their study established that there was neither adequate training of lecturers and teacher trainees on the use of new assessment strategies,nor effective platforms to use for the onlinetp assessment.this finding disagrees with that of benander and refaei (2016) who stressed that future teachers must be equipped with the requisite ict skills to use modern technologies when doing their work and delivering lessons.one of the most important aspects of a teaching practicum is the gathering of evidence that the student teacher is gaining greater confidence and displaying a wider range of sophisticated competences during the process.an e-portfolio of reflections on practice can help to provide evidence of this in a way that lesson observations often fail to do – unless the class is visited several times during the practicum.the latter is often not affordable if the course is lecture-based. the responses intable6 suggest that notmuch was invested into the development or implementation of innovative tp assessment platforms and technologies that were required to support the changes induced by the covid-19 pandemic. since the main challenge involved financial resources, efforts to switch from face-to-face tp assessment methods to digitised platforms were futile when teacher trainees were based in rural schools where there was no access to electricity and internet connectivity. in addition,many schools and students cannot afford the required digital devices (hondonga et al., 2021). due to the rapid spread of covid-19, as well as uncertainties about and fear of the disease, it was very difficult to organise the scheduling of tp assessment activities between colleges and teacher trainees. since teacher traineeswere alreadyengaged intheir tp,nonew assessment strategies were in place. it was virtually impossible to disseminate and teach teacher trainees on the use of alternative assessment strategies since many were not easily accessible online.this deviates from the suggestion by monroe et al. (2020) that micro-teaching online can be done using selected learners who have or are provided with connectivity.teacher trainees andassessors were found tobe notflexible toaccept thechange compelledby the pandemic.there werenotp venues since schools and colleges hadclosed.where assessments continued for a while, college assessors were using manual assessment instruments and direct observations. however, this arrangement was inadequate for certification by the university with which the colleges were affiliated. tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 21 recommendations based on the findings of the study – and even after thepandemic – it was considered essential that new methods of tp assessment be put in place to augment physical classroom observations by college assessors.teacher trainees need to gain experience at using e-learning management platforms in order to qualify and be effective teachers.the transition to online teaching-learning is almost inevitable, and unless the curriculum is transformed,many will remain inadequately skilled and ineffective in modern-day lesson delivery dominated by digital technologies.such teachers will be marginalised and end up in poorly resourced schools where their inadequacies will not be exposed. it is also important to plan for follow-up staff development in respect of lesson delivery to this cohort of teachers, even when they are qualified, so as to provide any support they might have missed because of the disruptions caused by the pandemic. additional resources need to be deployed for research to reimagine, rebuild and find suitabletp assessment methods going forward. such methods are essential if future teacher trainees are to be assessed in action during a crisis similar to the covid-19 pandemic.more collaboration needs to be established between colleges, universities, schools and parents to open up online tp assessment opportunities. this corroborates the suggestion made by dieker et al. (2017),namely that teaching simulations canbe immediately integrated intoonline learningcontexts inmany ways – whether in synchronousteaching situationswith peersor invirtual simulationswith avatars.quality assurance processes also need to be revisited to accommodate online tp assessment.a follow-up study on the efficacy of the newtp assessment strategies is necessary to checkwhether the strategies are feasible,whatchallenges theypose and whether the identified challenges can be mitigated. conclusion little transformation occurred in primary school teacher training colleges in zimbabwe during the pandemic, as most of them were still using the traditionaltp assessment methods and tools such as school visits for lesson observation. overall, failure to quickly transform to newassessment methods suggested inequalities in ict 22 contact: tawanda chinengundu tchinex2@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. resources in local colleges and schools,as well as amongqualified and teacher trainees. this affected learning and programme completion for teacher trainees. the study revealed thattp waspostponed, since schools andcolleges were closed. this undoubtedly had a negative effect on the level of support teacher trainees received during the covid-19 pandemic, and could well affect teacher trainees’ effectiveness in practice due to negative self-efficacy.the unprecedented disruption caused in schools and colleges by the covid-19 pandemic is likely to have a longlasting impact on theteachingprofession and mayaffect studentachievement for years to come. references atkins, c., & danley,a. 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(2019). professional development needs of the international work-integrated learning tetfle official publication of the unit for distance education, vol 3, july 2022 issn 2788-6298 27 community [special issue]. international journal ofwork-integrated learning,20,201217. zimbabwe. ministry of higher and tertiary education, science and technology. (2021). roadmap towards the reopening tertiary education institutions: 2021. paper circulated to colleges.government publications. zimbabwe.ministry of primary and secondary education. (4 may 2020).zimbabwe covid-19preparednessandresponsestrategy.educationclusterstrategy.government publications. zvobgo,r. j. (2003).the impact of the economic structural adjustment programme on education in zimbabwe.the zimbabwe bulletin ofteacher education,12,65-101. official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 1 competency-based education in africa: exploring teachers’ perceptions, understanding, and practices aakinrinola, bogegbo, aemmanuel and cadewusi acomputer science and home economics departments, michael otedola college of primary education, lagos, nigeria; bdepartment of science and technology education, university of johannesburg; cdepartment of educational psychology, university of pretoria, south africa issn: 2788-6298 doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v2i1.86 abstract this study explored teachers’ knowledge and integration of competency-based practices in schools. one hundred and fifty in-service secondary school teachers were sampled across three african countries using a survey research design. a combination of both closed and open-ended questions was used to elicit responses from respondents via an online system. responses from the open-ended questions were analysed using thematic analysis, and data received from the structured questions were analysed using percentage distribution. the theoretical lens through which this study was viewed was the human capital theory and social constructivism theory. findings revealed that teachers across the three countries have a positive perception of the usage of competency-based approaches but lack professional training and support, which in turn affects the quality of their teaching and assessment practices in classrooms. the implications and recommendations from this study offer teachers as well as education stakeholders in africa valuable consideration to move beyond the traditional level of assessment and integrate good proxies of academic skills that support learners’ acquisition of 21stcentury skills such as problemsolving, creativity and critical thinking in assessing learners’ competencies. keywords: competencies, competency-based education, competency-based strategies, competency-based assessment, 21st century skills teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 2 introduction there is a compelling shift in the skills and competencies learners need to flourish globally in the present job market. this shift can be attributed to the rapid technological revolution and increased globalisation which highlight the need to develop key competencies that learners require to adapt to the changing world of work (penprase, 2018). in this regard, research specifies that the content of every curriculum should include cross-cutting ideas, processes, and practical skills aimed at providing learners with real-life experiences that prepare them for the workforce (roegiers, 2016). thus, learners acquire and demonstrate essential skills that are increasingly in demand in the labour market by engaging in competency-based learning activities. studies have described competency-based strategies in education as an innovative approach to the design of educational programs with a focus on learner’s mastery of knowledge, skills, and values; as well as a convincing change towards the concept of learning in which milestones are less time-based than learning-oriented (day & berkeley, 2018; rainwater, 2016). thus, it can be argued that in preparing learners for a digital economy and the future of work in africa, teachers and other educational stakeholders need to embrace the implementation of competency-based teaching and assessments in secondary school education across africa. the education landscape is globally shifting due to technological innovation, causing learning to become more measurable and personalised (penprase, 2018; rainwater, 2016). as such, there is increased debate about the evolving demographics of today’s learners which is attributed to the widespread use of technology, thus increasing the demand for knowledge and skills necessary to address the needs of the rising fourth industrial revolution era. however, research claims that many high school learners after graduation appear not to be adequately prepared for university education or the workplace (national conference of state legislatures, 2020). in light of this, there is a growing recognition, reorientation, inclination, and integration of competencybased education in the education system of some countries around the world, including europe, america, canada, and australia. in africa, countries such as zambia, rwanda, kenya, tanzania, nigeria and south africa, among others, have adopted competency-based education (cbe) into their education system (kabombwe & mulenga, 2019; muneja, 2015; muraraneza, mtshali & mukamana, 2017; ruth & ramadas, 2019). in africa, cbe was first adopted in south africa in 1998 (komba & mwandanji, 2015). this adoption aimed for the country to produce skilled and employable graduates who could meet the 21st century challenges. in 2004, nigeria introduced universal basic education and changed its curriculum from content to competency-based learning, which brought about compulsory training for teachers (osarenren-osaghae & irabor, 2018). adequate provisions have therefore been made in the country’s national policy of education documents on the training and retraining of teachers on the competencies needed for the effective building of 21st century skills. of such provision is the enactment of three different national teacher teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 3 education standards that include professional knowledge, pedagogical competence and professional engagement which was set to guide teacher education programmes (federal ministry of education, 2007). several studies have shown how factors such as a high school dropout rate, poor education funding, shortage of skilled stem graduates, inefficiency and poor quality of teachers amongst others are causing the deterioration of the education system in many african countries (mtantato, 2018; omebe & omebe, 2015; taylor & robinson, 2019). as technological innovation continues to rise, it gives rise to the driving process of learning becoming a personalised approach driven towards the workforce. therefore, learning must become an experiential approach that can accurately fulfil the needs of the economy. this can be done by mandating learners’ comprehensive mastery of skills, subject matter knowledge, and attitudes needed to develop the african continent, as well as thriving in the global economy, instead of assessing learning outcomes by how much training a learner has undergone. several studies have focused on the adoption of a competency-based curriculum in preparing learners for the changing world of work (day & berkeley, 2018; kabombwe, & mulenga, 2019; muneja, 2015; muraraneza, mtshali & mukamana, 2017; rainwater, 2016; ruth & ramadas, 2019). correspondingly, factors that mitigate against the effective implementation of the adoption competency-based curriculum appears to be more pronounced in most african countries. a particular focus of this research was, therefore, on teachers’ perceptions, understanding and practices of cbe in selected african countries. thus, the study is guided by the following research questions: • what are teachers’ self-perceived competency-based teaching and assessment methods used across african secondary schools? • what are the inhibiting factors to the development of a competency-based approach to education in africa? competency-based education cbe is a learning model that embraces students’ learning outcomes or competencies on a task (thakaberry, 2017). it focuses on the learning outcome a student can demonstrate effectively after learning. in essence, it seeks to develop learners’ ability to know, learn and learn how to learn, doing things individually and functioning well in teamwork (gervais, 2016). its recent appraisal in the education sector is owed to the pressure from the industry that most graduates lack the basic skills and competencies needed for the world of work (henrich, 2016). in effect, countries around the world have been transforming their education sector from content to a competency-based curriculum to meet with challenges of the 21st century. this shift has teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 4 pedagogical implications because it requires a change in teaching and assessment practices (siarova, sternadel, & mašidlauskaitė, 2017). to meet up with this pressing demand of the knowledge-based economy, the teachers matter, since they are the main change agents in educational transformations (federal republic of nigeria, 2013; vandeyar, 2017). considering that teachers are significant agents of change in the implementation of cbe (vandeyar, 2017), it is important to assess teachers’ understanding of cbe and how they facilitate competency-based approaches that allow learners to develop important skills needed for the workplace. gervais (2016) explains that cbe was designed to address the needs of the learners. such needs are basic skills, their effective application and the attainment of higher skills which are expected to be infused into the curriculum and presented in different forms throughout the students’ course work (dlamini & dlamini, 2018). however, a change in the curriculum also involves a change in teacher preparation and professional development, since teachers tend to slide back to the traditional teaching method when they are not adequately trained to adopt a revised curriculum (govender, 2018). competency-based teaching and assessment mcclarty and gaertner (2015:2), stress that “competency-based approaches to education have the potential for assuring the quality and extent of learning and developing integrated skills that ease learner transitions between school and work”. in this regard, cbe allows learners to show mastery of a specific set of skills needed to progress and receive marks for graduation, rather than completing a certain number of years spent in school or taking the assessment for proxy measures to meet an awarding body requirement. while competencies vary due to job context, different frameworks have been developed to emphasise the basic 21st century competencies that learners require to thrive in the changing world of work (sanghi, 2016). researchers have argued that teaching and assessment practices in cbe should focus more on helping learners make links between pieces of evidence, thereby fostering their capacity to generate new knowledge (mcclarty & gaertner, 2015). in like manner, curry and docherty (2017) equally claimed that teaching within the context of cbe ought to engage learners in self-directed learning, provide possibilities for continuous training, be collaborative, interactive, and showcase learners’ application of competencies in terms of knowledge, abilities, and attitudes. this implies that competency-based instructions could be delivered using teaching approaches that are inquiry, problem, or project-based. furthermore, research indicates that acquisition of competencies could be stimulated through the development of attitudes and attributes such as brainstorming, presentations, debate, small groups, guided practice, simulations (e.g. role-playing), questioning, use of metacognitive tasks, laboratories, and integration of technology tools (curry & docherty 2017; dilmore, moore, & bjork, 2011). since cbe encourages teachers to depend strongly on open-ended questions, and encourage comprehensive learners’ dialogue, assessment becomes teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 5 very crucial in gauging the knowledge and skills that learners acquire in competency-based instruction, course or program. in addition, studies have shown that the role of assessment in cbe is integrally connected and crucial to the teaching methods used in classrooms (henri, johnson & nepal, 2017; kabombwe, 2019). thus, assessment practices within the cbe context are assumed to create opportunities for the integration of learners’ knowledge, skills, and attitude, as they reflect on ways of addressing issues experienced in everyday life. mcclarty and gaertner (2015) indicated that methods of assessments in competency-based education should generate individual pathways for the learner. thus, methods such as the use of digital portfolio, performance assessment, formative assessments, self-assessment, authentic assessments, creating tests, quiz or exams, summative assessments and creating scoring instruments that empower learners to evaluate, interpret, and envisage data could be used to promote competency-based assessment practices in classrooms (curry & docherty 2017; dilmore et al., 2011; mcclarty & gaertner, 2015). for instance, dilmore et al. (2011) argued that repeated formative assessments of knowledge, attitudes, and skills during training should be carried out while content is learned, regardless of whether it has been scored or not. such formative assessment provides learners with non-threatening feedback on their performance and offers them significant possibilities to practice skills, learn the knowledge, and gain self-reflect about their learning. dilmore et al. (2011) further argued that teachers could also utilise ready to use or modifiable rubrics such as class participation, written communication, peer evaluation, laboratory work, oral communication, written assignment, small group work, miscellaneous, and self-assessment surveys in assessing learner’s competency during and/or after classroom instruction despite the affordance of cbe in preparing learners for future challenges of the 21st century, its implementation in africa still appears to be problematic due to teachers’ values, practices and beliefs about cbe (ruth & ramadas, 2019). the existing secondary education system in most african countries is assumed to be focused on countless standardised tests, resulting in a more general curriculum, covering more content, but at the cost of in-depth understanding and skill development (dlamini & dlamini, 2018; makunja, 2016; ruth & ramadas, 2019). while assessment describes what learners know and how they do what they have learned; unfortunately, examinations and grading in the secondary education scheme of most african countries do not appear to reflect learners’ performance correctly, especially concerning competencies of the 21st century (atibuni & olema, 2017). although cbe is focused on outcomes, teaching and assessments within competency-based learning are considered as an ongoing process that constantly develops the knowledge and skills that learners are required to have mastered by the end of their secondary education program. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 6 factors affecting the implementation of cbe in africa most african countries have recently incorporated cbe into the education system. however, it has not been widely disseminated or implemented in many classrooms due to the varied educational challenges affecting african countries (ruth & ramadas, 2019). the following inhibiting factors are discussed based on their applicability to developing african nations: • absence of educators on the job training about cbe the absence of appropriately prepared instructors was one of the significant difficulties thwarting successful execution of cbe (tambwe, 2017). educators are anxious to actualise cbe, yet the huge challenge which most educators face is the absence of training. the vast majority of them do not unmistakably see the skill-based methodologies since they could not get any preparation. absence of in-training preparation for educators ruined the viable usage of a capability-based educational plan in optional schools. accordingly, the educators are confronted with difficulties when it comes to actualising cbe since they needed current information and aptitudes to manage learning issues which, sadly, influence the nature of training (makunja, 2016) in the most african nations. thus, educators neglect to actualise cbe because they come up short on the required instructive and specialised abilities required to manage students’ difficult learning problems which influence the nature of training in the african nations by creating graduates without the required aptitudes and capabilities in the labour market. • low teaching and learning resources/facilities text and reference books are insufficient to accommodate the number of learners in schools; even the available books do not mirror the current educational plan and need clarity on the best way to instruct according to cbe necessities. on account of the state of classrooms, library space and computer laboratories, the circumstances are even more appalling. deficient educating and learning facilities/resources inhibit the execution of cbe in tanzania (chisi, 2018) and students may not be able to develop necessary independent learning capabilities, problem-solving, critical thinking minds which might deprive them the chances to being equipped skilfully (makunja, 2016). with the situation of things in schools, it is imperative to improve the quality and quantity of learning resources. • large class size the issue of a large class is a common phenomenon among many countries in africa. this condition creates difficulties for both the teachers and students when engaging in teaching and learning in the classroom. marais (2016) observed that in south africa, some schools experience overcrowded classrooms; unfortunately, this situation may remain for a long time to come in the future. all teacher training institutions must provide appropriate teacher training programmes which can assist upcoming student teachers in handling the critical challenge of teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 7 teaching in overcrowded classrooms. huge class sizes could be a mind-boggling environment for recently designated educators if they need to teach an overcrowded class (marais, 2016). it can be concluded that overcrowded classrooms tend to affect classroom teacher-students and student-student interactions during group discussions. for example, teachers failed to attend to individual students with learning difficulties (marais, 2016; muthusamy, 2015; tejada reyes, 2019). overcrowded classes also increased the workload of teachers (muthusamy, 2015). consequently, the teachers failed to use learner-centred interactive teaching methods as cbe demands. • low institutional support lack of institutional support was one of the major demanding situations hindering effective implementation of cbe in most african schools. tambwe (2017) documented that about 69 respondents (46%) showed that lack of institutional help limits a powerful implementation of cbe in technical establishments. take the issue of overcrowded college students in school training. if the college students are divided into manageable smaller groups, the instructors may incur more coaching hours and will have to be paid additionally for the extra classes. the schools are too aware of possible additional fees which have jeopardised the implementation of cbe in one way or the another. sadly, cbe on the job training has not been given serious attention (cedefop, 2015; tambwe, 2017; makunja, 2016). schools have to create conducive and pleasant coaching and learning environments for powerful cbe implementation. some challenges continue to impact on the introduction of cbe, particularly in african countries. it is therefore important to harness all possible remedies to salvage the debilitating condition of making the introduction of cbet a reality in the schools. theoretical underpinnings this research study is based on the concept of human capital theory (becker, 1962), and social constructivism (vygotsky, 1978). the human capital theory indicates the significance of education and training as a crucial factor to developing the knowledge, skills, competencies, attributes and/or attitudes required to thrive in a changing global economy (becker, 1962; gillies, 2017). the basis of the human capital theory lies in how teachers support learners to develop the academic, metacognitive, social, and emotional skills needed to increase their efficiency and productivity in the workplace, hence contributing to the economic development of african schools. the integration and implementation of competency-based strategies in africa’s secondary education create an opportunity for teachers to tailor their teaching principles to meet the unique abilities of individual learners, support the learners’ growth towards becoming responsible citizens and providing them with skills and knowledge needed for the development of the country. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 8 the philosophical underpinning of social constructivism proposed by vygotsky (1978) also provides a practical orientation into understanding how teachers can adopt a classroom practice that promotes competency-based learning in africa’s secondary education. the social constructivist posits that learning is achieved as a result of social interaction that occurs in the process of collaborative inquiry which enables learners to draw upon each other’s experience in solving difficult tasks (vygotsky, 1978; amineh & asl, 2015). within the constructivist approach, learners play an active role in their education as they engage in real-world, engage in genuine and meaningful application of skills, while teachers act as facilitators or more knowledgeable others. in this study, the implementation of social constructivist theory is based on how teachers use different performance tasks, peer assessments and other approaches to the teaching and learning process to facilitate the development of learners’ knowledge and skills in preparation for the world of work. the teaching and learning activities employed by teachers are anticipated to help improve the knowledge, skills, proficiency, self-sufficiency, and independence of subject matter for learners in providing answers to specific problems. methodology this study adopted a qualitative research design (creswell & creswell, 2017). this design provided a greater degree of understanding of the variety and complexity of teachers’ use of competency-based strategies in selected african countries, summarising the qualitative variables using descriptive statistics (pietersen & maree, 2016). the population comprised secondary school teachers in three african countries, including nigeria, rwanda, and south africa, all of which are selected from west, east and southern africa, respectively. one hundred and fifty inservice teachers were sampled across the three african countries using a non-proportional quota sampling method. the participants were mainly teachers who taught science subjects at the secondary level. these categories of teachers were selected because the researchers believed they would have utilised cbe practices during teaching in one way or another. the data was collected through a combination of a closed and open-ended questionnaire jointly designed by researchers 1 and 2 above, and the face validity was confirmed by researchers 3 and 4 above. after much deliberation during which the questionnaire was satisfactorily certified, it was then sent to 10 teachers via an online system using google form for a pilot study. the questionnaire was then sent to the main participants of the study using the google form. however, for participants in nigeria, the form had to be printed and sent to them to be filled in on paper because most of them did not have access to the internet. responses from the open-ended questions were qualitatively analysed using thematic analysis (clarke & braun, 2013) and data received from the closed-end responses were quantitatively analysed using percentage teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 9 distribution (lavrakas, 2008, pietersen & maree, 2016). the percentage representation of the participants’ responses is presented in a graphical form (see section 7). for the thematic analysis aspect of the analysis, the data was read and collated by the second author and verified by the first author. coding and categorisation were jointly done by all the researchers, while the findings are presented in themes. findings the following discussions provide answers to the two research questions stated above. what are teachers’ self-perceived competency-based teaching and assessment methods used across african secondary schools? first, teachers’ awareness of cbe practices in africa was investigated. chart 1 illustrates the difference in the percentage of teachers’ understanding and awareness of cbe across the three countries. the percentage of teachers that claimed to be aware of what cbe was and who were able to describe their understanding of cbe was south africa = 14.7%, nigeria = 26%, rwanda = 33.3%), which was apparently higher than the percentage of teachers who were unable to describe their understanding of cbe (south africa = 18.7%, nigeria = 7.3%). from chart 1, the findings revealed that there is a great extent of cbe awareness among teachers across the three countries. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 10 chart 1: cbe awareness in africa teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 11 however, the survey indicated that teachers, particularly in nigeria and rwanda, have an inadequate understanding of the meaning of cbe. for instance, teachers from nigeria described cbe as the “way instructions, assessment and grading are carried out; level of approach a teacher use in making the student understand what is being taught better”. for rwanda, cbe was described as “an approach to developing critical thinking instead of memorising facts; and a way of implementing knowledge into practices”. the findings infer that the orientation and conception of these participants towards cbe are not sufficient for their practice as compared to their counterparts in south africa who described cbe as “as a set of teaching skills required for the future workplace; an outcome-based learning focused on enhancing learners with the required skills and attitude for work”. a further analysis into their teaching approaches revealed that group work and discussion are mostly used although with low percentages (27.3%, 16% and 12.70% in south africa, nigeria and rwanda respectively). in addition, the three countries claimed the use of demonstration and practical work but with very low percentages with rwanda having the lowest percentage of 2.3%. however, question and answer/role play, and multimedia/visuals are rarely used. chart 2 presents a graphical representation of the results. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 12 chart 2: teachers’ cbe teaching approaches group work/discussion demonstration and practicals question and answer/role play multi-media/ visuals 27.30% 14% 2.70% 16% 17% 0 1.30% 12.70% 2.30% 4% 1.30% rwanda nigeria south africa teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 13 in addition to the above, researchers asked teachers how the teaching approaches used were selected. the findings confirmed that 86.6% of teachers in the three countries chose suitable approaches for the teaching of science concepts. this finding can be related to their use of demonstration and practical sessions, and group discussion as represented in chart 2. the selected teaching approaches also support the use of higher-order thinking (83.3%) and complex concepts (61%). in addition, 83.3% of the teachers claimed it was very true that they monitored their learners understanding of the scientific concepts. table 1: teacher’s teaching approaches teaching approaches statements south africa (%) nigeria (%) rwanda (%) selection of suitable teaching approaches very true 33.3 22.7 30.6 somewhat true 0 10.7 2.7 monitoring of learners understanding very true 33.3 26.7 32.0 somewhat true 0 2.7 1.3 not very true 0 1.3 0 not true at all 0 2.7 0 teaching approaches supporting higher-order thinking very true 33.3 20 30 somewhat true 0 11.3 3.4 not true at all 0 2 0 teaching approaches supporting complex concepts very true 13.1 22.6 25.3 somewhat true 20 10.7 2.7 not very true 0 0 5.3 teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 14 in chart 3, the result shows that teachers in the three countries sometimes used traditional forms such as written materials for teaching. however, other technological tools such as video, digital tools, audio and the internet were not often used. however, there seems to be a level of usage of video tools in both south africa (22%) and nigeria (20.70%). chart 3: instructional tools for teaching 33 .3 0% 22 % 14 % 6% 25 .3 0% 20 .7 0% 7. 30 % 5. 30 % 1 0% 30 .7 0% 6. 70 % 4. 70 % 5. 30 % 12 % w r i t t e n v i d e o d i g i t a l a u d i o i n t e r n e t south africa nigeria rwanda teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 15 a further probe into their assessment approach within the context of cbe in chart 4 reveals that teachers rarely used the assessment methods. however, it was found that the percentage of teachers depending on traditional methods of assessment such as multiple-choice tests and essays/shorts which focus on assessing surface knowledge were respectively higher in south africa (20%, 31.3%) and nigeria (10.7%, 24.7%) as compared to rwanda (4%, 20.7%). chart 4: cbe assessment practices teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 16 in a bid to investigate more into the assessment practices used by science teachers across the three countries, 64% of the teachers claimed they designed assessments that measure learning objectives demonstrating mastery of the content. in contrast, 34% only did on a somewhat true basis. discussing whether the designed objectives aligned with the learning objectives designed, 82.1% of the teachers claimed they were very true to the usage of this practice for designing assessments. in comparison, 16.3% said this was somewhat true. the teachers (58%) also claimed that they not only focused on the design aspect of the assessment but also assessed student learning by allowing them to showcase their knowledge of science concepts since the curriculum allows learners to show what they know. therefore, the teachers (80.7%) encouraged the learners through the demonstration of their proficiencies in science subjects. this finding relates to the use of demonstration and presentation as a form of assessment in chart 4, but only a few teachers used it often. it is interesting to see that teachers (67.9%) allowed learners to showcase their skills as a form of assessment that enables teachers to engage learners in selfreflective learning. what’s more, 54.1% of teachers have also conducted assessments outside of the subject matter because the curriculum of cbe supports such assessment methods. however, 31.6% did on a somewhat true basis, and 13.3% did not. teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 17 table 2: assessment plans and methods used by teachers assessment methods statements south africa (%) nigeria (%) rwanda (%) design of learning objectives demonstrating mastery of content very true 13.4 20 30.6 somewhat true 20 11.3 2.7 not very true 0 2 0 design of assessment tasks aligning with learning objectives very true 22 30.1 30 somewhat true 11.3 3.3 2 not very true 0 1.3 0 curriculum supports learners’ assessments outside the subject matter. very true 0 20.7 33.4 somewhat true 21.3 11.3 0 not very true 12 1.3 0 curriculum allows learners to show what they know very true 2 29.3 26.7 somewhat true 7.3 0 2.7 not very true 24 4 4 gives opportunity for demonstration of proficiencies as an assessment very true 14 33.4 33.3 somewhat true 19.3 engages students in self reflection very true 10.6 28.7 28.6 somewhat true 18.7 4.7 4.7 not very true 4 0 0 teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 18 what are the inhibiting factors to the development of a competency-based approach to education in africa? from the thematic analysis of data, three themes were generated. the themes are curriculum issues, learner characteristics and school-based problems; as factors inhibiting proper integration of cbe at the secondary school level. the associated categories are lack of government support, curriculum overload, limited time to teach lessons, overcrowded classrooms, inadequate teaching resources, learner characteristics and poor language proficiency. each theme is explained below. • curriculum issues findings revealed that even though the government of the three countries advocated for cbe in schools, there is no support for smooth implementation of cbe practices from the government. teachers in both south africa and rwanda claimed that because the curriculum is overloaded, they find it difficult to allow for differentiation of learning as entrenched in cbe practices in the classroom. also, since the curriculum is too crowded, teachers mostly find it difficult to express themselves using different cbe approaches because of the limited time allocated to each subject. they believed that the only solution for curbing this problem is to get training support from the government on the way and manner in which they can effectively cope with both curriculum overload and allotted time for each subject. teachers from nigeria stated that they required financial incentives from the government, which will serve as a source of motivation on the job. however, they seem not to get such support at the moment. in support of the findings, 30% of the participants from the three countries said, “the content is much compared to the available to cover it; “there is no time to execute the process, and the curriculum does not allow for differentiation of learning because the number of teachers to student ratio is too high”; and ‘no support from government in terms of adequate time to use of this approach”. • school-based problems school-based problems relate to the lack of teaching resources and over-crowded classroom in nigeria and rwanda. participants from south africa did not state whether or not they face these problems in their classrooms. the teaching of science subjects requires the use of different teaching resources such as scientific and technological tools, textbooks, laboratories, electricity and internet facilities that will assist teachers in presenting the content to the learners. however, findings from this study show that most of the teachers are willing to use these tools for teaching and learning, but there was no provision for them by the school authority. in addition, the available tools for teaching do not cater for all the students in the class. therefore, teachers are mostly left with no choice other than not to use these tools since students tend to wait for each other to use the tools with limited time available. to worsen the case is the overcrowding of the classroom, which teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 19 do not allow teachers to support struggling and physically challenged learners easily. however, teachers in rwanda said they could manage the situation. in support of the findings, some of the participants quipped, “availability of resources and time will determine the integration of cbe in my classroom; … “these large number of students in each class and problems of personal disabilities while we try our best to solve them by applying inclusive education”; and ‘yes as a science teacher, there is often a scarcity of resources… to support permanent existence of electric power”. • learner characteristics this theme describes issues related to learners. teachers in south africa and rwanda claimed that most of their learners behaved unruly in the classroom with the introduction of cbe practices and the complexities attached. they are receptive to making the approach successful in the classroom. in addition to this, teachers face issues with learner’s language proficiency because of the diversity of learners in the classroom. they often face problem explaining the content to learners who struggle with the english language. discussion it was found that sampled teachers in the three countries recognised the benefits of cbe in developing learners’ knowledge and skills for the competitive world of work and development of the country. whilst teachers are aware of the importance of cbe; their understanding of cbe was to some extent related to instructional and assessment tools utilised in their classroom practice. teachers in this study also indicated that they used learner-centred approaches like demonstration, practicals, and group discussion to promote competency-based learning in their classrooms. the findings also revealed that most of the teachers relied primarily on traditional resources like textbooks and workbooks as instructional tools to track learners’ understanding, promote higher-order thinking and complex concepts. however, these traditional resources do not allow extensive social interaction among learners. a further concern revealed in the study is that teachers in the three countries rarely use technology in schools due to lack of infrastructure and limited teaching time. with regards to their assessment practices, teachers depended mostly on traditional methods of assessment such as multiplechoice tests’ and essays/shorts’ answers which do not prepare learners for expertise. hence, one factor that appears to be critical to the effective implementation of cbe in africa is teachers’ understanding in terms of their roles, ability, and use of competency approaches in classrooms. from the foregoing, the findings of this study align to some extent with human capital and social constructivism theory which was used towards understanding teachers’ implementation of cbe in africa. although teachers taught learners the academic content using different teaching teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: fatimah akinrinola tijanifatima.tf@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. 20 approaches and assessment methods, certain skills such as social, metacognitive and technological skills needed for the 21st century workplace were rarely used by the teachers in the three african countries. the reasons for this can be understood from the challenges experienced by teachers in effectively integrating competency-based approaches in their classrooms. for instance, inadequate time for teaching was identified as a general challenge across the three countries, while challenging factors relating to learners’ unruly behaviour and language barrier were unique to south africa and rwanda. in addition, problems related to overcrowded classrooms and unavailability of resources were mostly reported by teachers from nigeria and rwanda. the literature attests that teaching in an overcrowded classroom, inadequate educating and learning facilities/resources hinder a powerful execution of cbe in similar african countries; and this may affect the learner in developing the necessary independent learning (chisi, 2018; marais, 2016). furthermore, curriculum overload was reported as a contextual challenge, hindering teachers’ effective implementation of cbe in south africa and nigeria. also, it appears that teachers from nigeria mentioned a lack of support from government as a major problem affecting their implementation of cbe. these findings corroborate the claims of tambwe (2017) that curriculum issues owing to overloading of the curriculum, and lack of support affect the realisation of competency-based practices in africa. conclusion and recommendation this study explored teachers’ knowledge and integration of competency-based practices in three african countries. findings from the study indicated that teachers have a positive perception using competency-based approaches but lack professional training and support, which affect the quality of their assessment practice in classrooms. these findings, therefore, call for education stakeholders in africa to provide models illustrating key knowledge, skills, and attitudes that teachers can use to implement appropriate competency-based approaches in classrooms effectively, particularly those in a distance learning environment. the use of open educational resources, computer marked assessments and observed learners’ performance should be considered by teachers and education stakeholders in africa as valuable considerations required to prepare learners with good proxies of academic skills like problem-solving, decision-making, creativity, critical thinking and digital literacy needed in the changing world of work in africa. orcid fatimah akinrinola https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7906-2428 ayodele ogegbo https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4680-6689 teacher education through flexible learning in africa volume 2, 2020 contact: 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https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za contact epimaque niyibizi @ eniyibizi@yahoo.fr this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. from an african oral tale to an english picture book: rwandan teachers’ experience with online translation of south african institute of distance education’s african storybooks epimaque niyibizia, emmanuel sibomanab, aloysie uwizeyemariyab, sylvestre ntabajyanab and cyprien niyomugabob university of johannesburg; university of rwanda – college of educationa university of rwanda – college of educationb vol 1 no 1 2019 issn: 2788-6298 doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v1i1.66 abstract research findings pertaining to language education and distance education point to the lack of online reading materials written in african languages and reflecting african contexts. such a shortage is a challenge to literacy skills development in africa. in rwanda, although there are some graded readers to support the teaching of reading in kinyarwanda, there is a shortage of enjoyable storybooks on which children can practice their reading skills. this paper contributes to addressing this challenge by investigating the partnership between the university of rwanda-college of education and south african institute of distance education’s (saide) african storybook initiative, which provides a website of digital storybooks in kinyarwanda and other languages for early grade reading. data were collected from 32 rwandan teacher educators who participated in a workshop. participants created online picture storybooks in kinyarwanda, translated some from other languages and published them on the african storybook website. the researchers firstly observed their activities during the workshop, then, all participants filled in the questionnaire and ten teachers were interviewed on opportunities offered and challenges encountered during the translation process. the key finding is that teachers’ experiences with translation revealed differences in story reading levels between the original kinyarwanda folktales and english translated versions. they found special features of african agglutinating languages in determining reading levels, and foreignization of translated stories based on cultural clashes. differences in length between the original and the translated stories were observed, as well as the specificity of english versions in reinforcing more critical thinking than the translated kinyarwanda versions. the paper recommends teacher educators and translators to bear in mind that adaptation to african languages requires care and a high level of ability to maintain the meaning and moral lesson of the original tale and make it enjoyable for children. translating and adapting stories from english into agglutinative african languages have implications for early grade reading interventions in african schools since children stories on african storybook website are available in more than 100 african languages. keywords: african storybook initiative; early years reading; kinyarwanda folktales; agglutinating language; saide; university of rwanda-college of education. teacher education through flexible learning introduction rwanda is among african countries where reading materials in local languages are not enough. various studies including williams, de montfort-nayimfashe, ntakirutimana and o’sullivan (2004); niyomugabo (2008); niyibizi (2015a); niyibizi (2015b); sibomana (2015) reported that early grade reading abilities in rwandan schools were revealed to be insufficient. for instance williams et al. (2004) investigated the reading abilities among 251 grade six primary school learners in rwanda and found that more than 90% of the sample were able to read adequately in kinyarwanda, a language which they were using as a medium of instruction, but only 0.77% of 251 grade six primary school learners who were tested in five schools in rwanda were able to read adequately for their studies in english at primary school level. niyibizi (2015a) also observed that primary school teachers and learners have different levels of proficiency in kinyarwanda and english. as a solution to such a shortage of reading materials in african languages and african context, the african storybook (www.africanstorybook.org) initiative was established. hence, this paper falls under the theme of distance teacher education, within the african perspective based on the african storybook initiative. while teachers in rwandan primary schools have many interesting stories for oral storytelling, they need additional knowledge to harness this richness to create storybooks and translate the existing ones from other languages, so that children can have sufficient stories to read by themselves. this paper reports on the participating teachers’ experiences in creating and translating picture storybooks, especially african folktales versus english picture storybooks. background on african storybook initiative and saide-urce partnership the paper is based on the partnership between the south african institute of distance education (saide) and the university of rwanda – college of education (ur-ce), which was initiated in 2017 and introduced the african storybook initiative, website and storybooks in rwanda. the african storybook (asb) is an initiative of the south african institute of distance education (saide), a south african non-governmental organization with a footprint across southern africa, east and west africa. african storybook initiative is addressing the severe shortage of appropriate books for early e. niyibizi et al. 3 reading in the languages of africa, and such a shortage has a great impact on the literacy development of the poorest 80% of people in african countries. an observation of the african storybook website on 28th october 2017 revealed that there were over four thousand storybooks in 100 languages, with 842 in english, 129 in french, and 82 in kinyarwanda. these numbers increase almost on a daily basis. the african storybook provides free, digital, openly licensed storybooks, with creation and translation tools for users to publish their own storybooks. on the african storybook website people are able to create their own picture storybooks in their own languages; to search an expanding library of storybooks created elsewhere in africa; to choose the stories they like and use them; or to translate and adapt the stories for the language, context or level they need. the online storybooks can be read on a cell phone, tablet or laptop, or downloaded onto a flash drive and projected as big books on a classroom wall. they can also be printed out as booklets on a home or office printer for use by students or children. the aim of the study the main aim of this study is to investigate the opportunities offered and challenges encountered while participants created and translated stories into kinyarwanda and english picture storybooks and posted them on the african storybook website. specifically, the study seeks to answer the following research questions: 1. what were the teacher educators’ experiences in creating, translating and adapting stories into kinyarwanda and then posting them on the african storybook platform? 2. what are the opportunities offered and challenges encountered along the process of creating, translating and adapting stories into kinyarwanda? introduction to african knowledge systems: oral tales, oral literature, folktales and picture books african oral tales, oral literature, folktales and picture books are explored in this paper and are viewed as traditional and cultural african knowledge systems. the nuances between the four concepts are the following: oral literature is described as the opposite of written literature, but various scholars (nandwa and bukenya, 1983; okpewho, teacher education through flexible learning 1992; okombo, 1994; killick and boffey, 2012; rossister, 2002) described them from different perspectives. these scholars interchangeably used several terms for the concept of ‘oral literature’; for example, nandwa and bukenya (1983), miruka and sunkuli (1990), okpewho (1992) and okombo (1994) suggest terms like orature, traditional literature, folk literature, folktale and folklore. as a nuance between folktale and oral literature, nandwa and bukenya (1983, p.1) argued that folktales constitute a subgenre of oral literature, where folktales are “those utterances, whether spoken, recited or sung, whose composition and performance exhibit to an appreciable degree the artistic characteristics of accurate observation, vivid imagination and ingenious expression”. as for miruka and sunkuli (1990, p.36), a folktale is described as “a popular traditional story handed down orally through generations”. one objective of folktales is to preserve social and cultural values and norms in order to perpetuate the society. folktales are common in many cultures and have existed since the beginning of civilisation; their authors are usually unknown, there are often many versions of one tale, and they are transmitted orally by storytellers (nandwa & bukenya, 1983; miruka & sunkuli, 1990). the oral tale is also described as one of the genres of oral literature, which is conveyed through the art of storytelling, or a way of educating and teaching children (pedersen, 1995). nandwa and bukenya (1983) described it as those utterances, which are spoken, recited or sung. similarly, killick and boffey (2012) described storytelling as one of the oldest and most powerful forms of communication, where stories are means of gaining new perspectives, exploring moral choices and gaining insight into characters. such a description supports rossister’s (2002) viewpoint that the major role of storytelling is to deliver lessons and pass history down from one generation to another, relying heavily on mental images. picture books, which constitute one of the printed forms of literature, come to fill in the gaps by adding visual images. as children are sensitive to pictures even before they start speaking, rossister (2002) and killick and boffey (2012) confirm that they enjoy reading picture books. a picture book is a book combining both texts and illustrations to be more attractive and readable, and this kind of book is normally written for children. the pictures in the book expand the meaning of the text, making it more attractive to children and helping them enjoy reading (kress and van leeuwen, 1996). such enjoyment is supported by arizpe and styles (2003) who contend that today’s children’s stories should incorporate graphical e. niyibizi et al. 5 representations and illustrations, which contribute in creating meaning in the text since children cherish a mixture of texts and images. a clear distinction between a ‘storybook’ and a ‘picture book’ can be drawn far back from shulevitz (1985, p.19) in his “writing with pictures”, who distinguishes them as follows: “picture books are written with pictures as much as they are written with words. a picture book is read to the very young child who doesn’t know how to read yet; consequently, the child sees the pictures and hears the words directly, without having to deal with the intermediate step of reading the printed word. by telling a story visually, instead of through verbal description, a picture book becomes a dramatic experience: immediate, vivid, moving. a picture book is closer to theater and film, silent films in particular, than to other types of books, it is a unique type of book.” translating oral tales from african languages while translation is defined differently by different scholars (venuti, 1995; tianmin, 2000; ordudari, 2008; webster, 2017), the translation activity tends to lead to the same understanding. for example, venuti (1995, p.17) describes translation as “a process by which the chain of signifiers that constitutes the source-language text is replaced by a chain of signifiers in the target language which the translator provides on the strength of an interpretation.” in the same vein, webster (2017) defines translation as a “rendering (of a message) from one language into another, and, the product of such a rendition”. these two descriptions view translation as a process that transfers a meaningful message from one language to another. the process of translating folktales and oral tales from african languages the translation of folktales and oral tales that are explored in this paper tend to go beyond the language to embrace ordudari’s (2008) perspective of cross-linguistic and cross-cultural communication which ordinarily aims at producing a target language text that is functionally equivalent to a source language text. such translation also reflects hatim and mason (1997), tianmin (2000) and ordudari’s (2008) view on translation as a simultaneous decontextualization and recontextualization of a meaning, which requires creativity and decision making by the translator. that is why robinson (1997), douglass (2002) and ordudari (2008) qualify translation as an intelligent activity that requires creative problem-solving in textual, social, and cultural conditions. to render teacher education through flexible learning the message from african folktales into the target language adequately, translators have to choose among translation techniques such as calque, borrowing, transposition, modulation, literal translation, equivalence and adaptation; and they have to take into consideration the translation of linguistic, structural and cultural differences, as venuti (1995, 1998, 2000) and (wang, 2014) argue. benefits of translating oral tales from african languages translation of stories from an african perspective offers a great number of opportunities and benefits, and this paper views it as a process that enriches languages and cultures, as a booster of literacy in those languages and cultures, as well as a creative activity. while language is described as a system of communication that consists of sounds, words, and grammar, or the system of communication used by people in a particular country or a specific type of work (webster, 2017), this paper applies it to nida’s (2017) description as a system of communication used to maintain and convey culture and cultural ties. hence, as nida (2017) argues, language represents a culture, and therefore translation cannot deal with language by ignoring the mirrors of its culture; rather, it must use words in a ‘culturally acceptable manner’. culture is a complex aspect; it includes knowledge, belief, art, law, morals, customs and various other abilities and habits that are acquired by members of a given society (newmark, 1991,1988). translation of stories enriches not only languages and cultures but is also a creative activity that boosts literacy in those languages and cultures. hence, translation is viewed from bassnett-mcguire’s (1980, in ordudari, 2008) view about good and effective translation, which is a translation that fulfils the same purpose in the new language as the original did. such translation requires developing a new situation, new design and new system for audibility, from the original audience to the target audience (ordudari, 2008). however, it offers some challenges. challenges of translating oral tales from african languages translating african folktales, oral literature and picture books was reported to be both interesting and challenging. mutahi (1987) and okombo (1994) pointed to the e. niyibizi et al. 7 challenges by indicating that there is something lost when translating this genre from one language to another, and such a loss is prompted by differences in both the structure and the culture between the source language and the target language. he summarises the loss as follows: translation is just like chewing food that is to be fed to the others. if one cannot chew the food oneself one is to be given the food that has been already chewed. such food however is bound to be poorer in taste and flavor than the original. (mutahi, 1987, p.133) similarly, other challenges include the translation of linguistic and cultural differences (venuti, 1995), linguistic untranslatability (newmark, 1988), linguistic and cultural domestication and foreignization (venuti,1998; venuti, 2000; wang, 2014), and special characteristics of languages like agglutinating bantu languages or differences in morphological structure among african languages (nida, 2017). foreignization refers to the translation strategy in which the target text keeps something of the foreignness of the original; whereas domestication is a target culture-oriented translation strategy in which unusual expressions to the target culture are transmitted and changed into some familiar ones to make the translated text easy to be used/ understood by the target reader (wang, 2014). wang (2014) argues that domestication is a strategy that better passes on the spirit of original works while foreignization may serve in expressing the contents of literary works. in the same spirit, venuti (1998, p.108) had introduced the concept of “remainder” as the collective force of linguistic forms that outstrips any individual's control and complicates intended meanings. in this regard, he confirms that translation can lose linguistic and cultural features of the foreign text. such a loss sometimes leads to what newmark (1988) describes as “linguistic untranslatability”, which refers to failure to find a target language equivalent due to differences between the source language and the target language. domestication comes as a strategy to solve that challenge because it enables the foreign text to be rendered with values that are specific to the targetlanguage culture (venuti, 1998). regarding the challenge of translating linguistic and cultural differences, venuti (1998, 2000) and (wang, 2014) still argue that the issue about the proper and effective techniques to convey and translate both linguistic and cultural differences elements is still debatable. teacher education through flexible learning another translation challenge is based in differences in morphological structure between the original language and the target language, and such differences are often difficult for the translator, as nida (2017) argues. for example, the translator may come across a language that does not have passive form while the target language has it. this leads to what nida (2017) describes as special characteristics of languages. some illustrative examples of such special characteristics of languages can include french passive voice or french nominalisation versus english passive voice or english verbalisation: à notre dernière rencontre (french nominalisation) = when we last met (english verbalisation). specificity in translating african agglutinating bantu languages in addition to the translation challenges mentioned above, african agglutinating bantu languages have particular specificities, which are challenging in translation. such african agglutinating bantu languages include kinyarwanda and kiswahili, which combine several words or several morphemes into one word, with the possibility of conveying different meanings in one word (nida, 2017). the example below serves as an illustrating demonstration, where the same meaning is expressed with different number of words and morphemes in english, french kinyarwanda and kiswahili: a. english: i will teach you = /i/ /will/ /teach/ /you / 1 2 3 4 (4 words in english) b. french: je t’enseignerai = /je/ /t’/ /enseignerai/ 1 2 3 (3 words in french) c. kiswahili: nitakufundisha = ni-ta-ku-fundisha 1 2 3 4 (4 morphemes constituting 1 word) d. kinyarwanda: nzakwigisha = n-za-ku-igisha 1 2 3 4 (4 morphemes constituting 1 word) the examples a, b, c and d above display differences based on specific characteristics of languages, namely english and french which belong to indo-european or protoindo-european language family (bock & mheta, 2013; akmajian, demers, farmer and harnish, 2001); and kiswahili and kinyarwanda which belong to african bantu language family (books, 2010). as indicated in examples above, english and french e. niyibizi et al. 9 have many words, but kinyarwanda and kiswahili have one word with various morphemes. that is why kinyarwanda and kiswahili are categorised in agglutinating bantu languages, which combine several morphemes in one word (books, 2010; bock & mheta, 2013; nida, 2017). this section on literature review has given a glimpse on translating african folktales, oral tales and picture storybooks, with the benefits, opportunities and challenges in translating them. the next section describes the methodological perspective of the paper. research design and data generation strategies the paper adopts a qualitative design. as a starting point, a workshop was organized in april 2017 at the university of rwanda – college of education (ur-ce), with the purpose of exploring how south african institute of distance education’s (saide) african storybook initiative could be used as a platform for reading materials to supplement reading materials for rwandan children. that is why the target audience for the workshop was early grade primary school teachers, primary teaching training college tutors, teacher educators and pre-service teacher-trainees involved in language teaching (english, kinyarwanda, french and kiswahili), and language teaching methodology in rwandan schools. the data for this paper were generated and collected from this workshop process that started in april 2017. sample size and sampling techniques thirty-two educators from different schools in rwanda participated in the workshop and constituted the sample. they include ten primary school teacher educators, ten tutors from teacher training colleges, seven university lecturers, three pre-service high school teacher-trainees and two trainers from saide. they were selected using purposive sampling technique, based on their experiences in language and literacy teaching as well as teacher training, focusing on the four languages used in rwandan schools, namely english, french, kiswahili and kinyarwanda. the workshop introduced the participants to the african storybook initiative and familiarised them with the read and translation functions on the african storybook website. the workshop provided them with tips on how to create stories of their own and translate those already on the website. thereafter, each participant was asked to write a story; they teacher education through flexible learning discussed the stories in groups of four and chose one story which they agreed to be the best. the selected stories in each group were collected, edited and then uploaded on the african storybook website. participants also translated picture storybooks from other languages into kinyarwanda and published them on the african storybook website. data collection instruments the main instruments that were used to collect data for this paper are questionnaires, individual interviews and observations. the researchers followed up and observed the workshop process as trainees. they were therefore participant observers; they asked questions about the activities that were completed by different group members during the workshop. all the participants filled in the questionnaire and ten of them were interviewed. they were interviewed individually, using semi-structured interviews. they filled out the questionnaires and were interviewed about their experiences with translating and creating children stories along the workshop. observation schedules also supplemented the questionnaires and interview schedules. data analysis and interpretation to analyse the collected data and interpret the findings, the analysis for qualitative data followed thematic content analysis (creswell, 2009) where themes and categories were produced from data. in this regard, themes that emerged from the questionnaires, interviews and observations were analysed and interpreted in line with the existing literature on translation and creation of children’s picture storybooks. hence, methodological triangulation, where different measures or research instruments were used to investigate the phenomenon (mackey & gass, 2005) was not only used for data collection but also data analysis. informed consent for ethical consideration all ethical considerations were adhered to by ensuring confidentiality, voluntary participation and filling consent form and freedom to withdraw from the study at any stage of the research, on the side of participants. the research validity was ensured by the technique of triangulation, especially the methodological triangulation (mackey & gass, 2005), as three different research instruments namely the questionnaires, interviews and observations were used to investigate and cross-check the participants’ e. niyibizi et al. 11 information on their experiences with translating and creating children’s picture storybooks. research findings as the thematic content analysis was used to analyse the data, the findings are presented following the themes and categories of participants’ experiences with translation and creation of online stories during the workshop. salient themes emanated from participants’ responses from the questionnaires and interviews, while observations cross-checked the participants’ responses from questionnaires and interviews. having translated some stories from english or french or kiswahili into kinyarwanda during the workshop, participants reported on their experiences of translating folktales and oral tales from other languages into kinyarwanda. they also created kinyarwanda folktales into picture books and posted them on the african storybook website. the salient themes and categories from their experiences are the following: teachers’ experiences with translating storybooks into kinyarwanda in regard with participants’ experiences with translating, adapting and creating folktales from other languages into kinyarwanda, the occurring themes from participants’ responses include: (i) difference in story levels between the original and the translated stories, (ii) special features of african agglutinating language in determining reading levels, (iii) ‘foreignization’ of translated stories based on cultural clashes, (iv) stories specificities in reinforcing critical thinking, and (v) differences in length between the original and the translated stories. these experiences are presented with details and evidence as follows: experience 1: difference in story levels between the original and the translated stories the salient experience reported by participants, after translating some folktales from english into kinyarwanda, is that english story levels are not equivalent to kinyarwanda translated story levels due to clusters. their experience with the storybooks on the african storybook initiative website was guided by the categorisation of reading levels into five different levels, namely level 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. the factors that are considered to classify a story at a given level include the number teacher education through flexible learning of words in a sentence, the level of simplicity or complexity and familiarity of vocabulary, sentences and plot, and high-interest topics, as reflected in collins children’s books (2017). participants compared the general characteristics of levelled stories between the original english stories, and the kinyarwanda translated versions. they realised that the nature of the source and target language was somehow different. therefore, a storybook’s level varied from the original language to the translated version, whereby a simple term in one language got a complex equivalent in the translated stories. participants experienced this while translating african storybook stories from english into kinyarwanda on the african storybook platform. as evidence, participants translated english level 1 stories such as “counting animals” and “different plays” into kinyarwanda. the translated titles of the two stories were “kubara inyamaswa” and “imikino itandukanye or imikino inyuranye”. the comparison of the titles in the two languages revealed that the kinyarwanda titles could not be read and understood easily by a level 1 reader due to consonants cluster sounds in these titles. the participating teachers indicated that kinyarwanda consonant cluster sounds such as ‘ny’, ‘sw’, ‘mb’, ‘nd’, ‘shy’ and ‘nyw’ are too complex and difficult for level 1 readers because these clusters are taught in grades two and three in rwandan schools, where learners are mostly level two and three readers. however, such complexity is not necessarily the case for english as it can be seen in the following example, drawn from the story “counting animals”: • two giraffes are going to drink water (english): • udusumbashyamba tubiri tugiye kunywa amazi (kinyarwanda translation, with highlight on consonant cluster sounds) the highlighted consonant cluster sounds in the kinyarwanda translation illustrate how the story changes the reading level when translated from one language to another. further examples can be drawn from the ‘different plays’ story, as described in table 1 below: e. niyibizi et al. 13 table 1: difference in categorising story levels (reading levels) in english and kinyarwanda based on cluster sounds page words and phrases in original story in english words and phrases in kinyarwanda translation 1 skipping gusimbuka 2 running kwiruka 3 jumping gusimbuka source: stories from: www.africanstorybook.org the above-mentioned examples are evidence that story levels vary from one language to a translated version in another language. while the english words ‘skipping, running and jumping’ still keep the story to reading level 1, their equivalents in kinyarwanda, namely ‘gusimbuka, kwiruka and gusimbuka’ automatically change and shift the story to reading level 2 or 3 due to the highlighted cluster sounds. that is why the participating teachers suggest that reading levels in kinyarwanda should be determined according language and educational curriculum, in addition to the aforementioned factors. the participating teachers confirmed that it is not easy to translate a level 1 story from english into kinyarwanda without considerably changing its content. the reason is that it is unusual to communicate in kinyarwanda without using consonant clusters. in other words, accuracy of, and faithfulness to, the source language are hard to achieve when the story is being translated into kinyarwanda. to overcome the above-mentioned translation challenge, that is to attempt to keep the story at level 1 in the kinyarwanda translated version, the participating teachers modified the words like ‘imbeba’ (mouse) into ‘akabeba’ (small mouse); ‘inkoni’ (a stick) became ‘agakoni’ (a small stick), etc, to minimize consonant cluster sounds in kinyarwanda version for reading level 1. however, they could not find a word for ‘injangwe’ (cat) which does not contain a consonant cluster sound. thus, they had to rephrase it as ‘agakoko gahiga utubeba’ (a small animal which hunts small mice). in a nutshell, translators had to be aware of the order in which letters and consonant clusters are taught to different levels in rwandan schools, so as to translate and adapt translated stories to different reading grades and then help early grade readers to find enjoyable and friendly stories at their levels of literacy skills. translating such stories into picture books was the best solution to help children understand and enjoy the teacher education through flexible learning stories, because, as arizpe and styles (2003) argue, today’s children’s stories should incorporate graphical representations and illustrations to contribute in creating meaning in the text. such a solution to the translated versions helps children’s understanding, despite the changing reading level, as shown in the kinyarwanda translation above. this benefit was revealed to be one of the effectiveness of saide’s african storybook initiative. in regard with the participating teachers’ experiences in turning kinyarwanda folktales into online english picture books, they reported that the translation process was revealed to be a difficult exercise because kinyarwanda folktales are traditionally meant to be told or narrated to a live audience (especially children) while the storybooks have to be read (both text and pictures). the translated folktales had to preserve and perpetuate social and cultural values and norms from one generation to the next one, as miruka and sunkuli (1990) had argued. thus, the teachers’ experience in translating and adapting kinyarwanda folktales into english picture stories offered both opportunities and some challenges. experience 2: special features of african agglutinating languages in determining reading levels as indicated in experience 1 above, the participating teachers found it challenging to get kinyarwanda level 1 stories due to the presence of several cluster sounds. they also reported to have encountered challenges in determining reading levels for kinyarwanda based on the number of words, due to the nature of kinyarwanda as one of african agglutinating languages. it is indicated that kinyarwanda is one of the bantu languages which are categorized into ‘agglutinative or agglutinating languages’, which combine several words or several morphemes into one word which, from a semantic perspective, to form a complete sentence or phrase (akmajian, demers, farmer and harnish, 2001; books, 2010; bock and mheta, 2013; nida, 2017). the participating teachers provided some illustrating examples in the stories, where the translation of one kinyarwanda word embedded several words in english: • “nzamugukundira” (kinyarwanda) = i will love him for you (english); • “nyamutegerakazazejo” (kinyarwanda) = a man who plans for the future (english); e. niyibizi et al. 15 • “nzamukubwirira” (kinyarwanda) = i will pass the message to him/her on your behalf (english); • “uzabansuhurize” (kinyarwanda) = greet them / say hello to them on my behalf (english); • “nyamutegerakazazejo” (kinyarwanda) = who waits for tomorrow’s opportunity (english). these examples above show the specificities of kinyarwanda as an african agglutinating language where one word combines several morphemes to make a full sentence, which is made of several words when translated into english. the opportunity for such characteristics of kinyarwanda language is that different meanings, and moral lessons are conveyed in single words. however, this is very challenging for the reader: while readers in african agglutinating languages like kinyarwanda have to process the meaning of a single word (made of several morphemes), the readers in other languages, including english, have to process the meanings of different words and how they link up together to form the sentence meaning. reading proficiency is often determined by the number of words that a child can read per minutes, and this is very challenging if we compare kinyarwanda with english. thus, determining reading levels on the basis of the number of words as it is done in english may not necessarily work for kinyarwanda because ‘full sentences made of one single word’ are very common in kinyarwanda and in other african agglutinating languages. that is why this paper suggests that the specificity of each language should to be taken into consideration when counting the number of words for each reading level. the same applies to reading skills evaluation while determining the number of words that readers are expected to be able to read per minute. experience 3: foreignization of translated stories based on cultural clashes and lack of appropriate illustrations the participating teachers indicated that rwandan culture is rich in folktales with both human and animal characters and monsters. they reported having experienced some challenges when they attempted to adapt such stories into picture stories, especially about illustrating monsters and ogres. one example is “akavumburamashyiga” (a kind of small animal that devours children who are disobedient). they reported that they teacher education through flexible learning found it difficult for any illustration specialist to imagine what this animal looks like while in a folktale people would describe such animals in a way that will frighten children to keep some ethics and some moral lessons. they reported that the challenge became bigger when the text was to be read across cultures. for instance, the illustration of a drum (ingoma) in some folktales was to be adapted to three cultural perspectives, namely rwanda, uganda and burundi respectively. participants indicated that illustration specialists may come up with the following different illustrations, though somehow related: source: different types of drums in east africa, retrieved from https://www.jumia.ug/ uganda-djembe-drum-brown-72878.html on 18 march 2019. as much as this is likely to be a challenge which may prompt cultural clashes, it also constitutes a window through which children from one cultural background see what other cultures look like. to translate such folktales from different cultural perspectives, the translators have to rely on some translation strategies like linguistic and cultural domestication and foreignization (venuti,1998; venuti, 2000; wang, 2014) and linguistic untranslatability (newmark, 1988). in this regard, the participating teachers had to keep some foreignness of the original story (foreignization) but at the same time attempt to adapt the unusual concepts to familiar concepts (domestication) in the translated text to make it understood by the target reader, as wang (2014) explained. participants experienced both foreignization and domestication; they indicated that saide’s african storybook initiative is offering plenty of such experiences, and commended that saide’s picture books facilitate easy understanding and readability by combining texts and images. e. niyibizi et al. 17 experience 4: differences in length between the original and the translated stories the participating teachers commented that most of kinyarwanda folktales tend to be lengthy in nature, due to three aspects. the first aspect is the agglutinating nature, as discussed earlier. they observed that even with the same number of words, most kinyarwanda words tend to be longer than their english equivalents. for example, the english word “oval” is equivalent to kinyarwanda word “umwiburungushure”. with such examples, participants commented that the kinyarwanda language tends to offer more opportunities for older children to practice reading, while it tends to be a challenge for young children to read for a single sitting. such a challenge may prevent the children from enjoying the stories, and this is likely to be the reason why participants tend to conclude that it is difficult to adapt the stories to the children’s reading level in kinyarwanda, by comparing the number of words for each level, in both english and kinyarwanda. hence, participants revealed that they had to delete some parts of the original folktales in kinyarwanda while translating them into english; as the adaptation required rewriting the story with respect to the general message which embodies the moral lessons to be instilled in children. the second aspect that make kinyarwanda folktales lengthy is that they are full of repetitions and details. the participating teachers narrated that the rwandan folkloric stories are full of repetitions, and repetition was a way of inviting the audience to participate (repeating together) and help the storyteller to recall the story for a long time. repetition was also done as a way to emphasise very important values and moral lessons. they indicated that the opportunity offered by these repetitions is to ease memorisation and facilitate the mastery of storytelling style. they gave an example of the kinyarwanda story called “nyiramuhimbo”, which embeds a part consisting of seven lines that are repeated four times throughout the story. hence, they raised a concern to story converters in other languages that in case the repetitions are omitted, the tale will lose it very important essence and, if the emphasis is to be kept, the challenge is how to do it in online picture stories. the third aspect for repetitions in the rwandan traditional folkloric stories was to ‘keep time going’ as most of these stories were told to children to keep them awake till dinner was ready because they would mostly be feeling sleepy. hence, the participating teacher education through flexible learning teachers indicated that the nature of kinyarwanda folktales is that they provide all the information to the listener so that curiosity is satisfied and that they are not left with questions. the notion of ‘kubara inkuru’, which is the equivalent of ‘telling a story’ implies providing all the details, with lasting effect such as moral lessons, memorisation or keep time going as indicated above. however, the picture books preserve the above-mentioned effect and add the development of children’s reading skills. the next experience compared the kinyarwanda stories and their english versions in promoting critical thinking. experience 5: stories specificities in reinforcing critical thinking the participating teachers picked some stories they had translated and posted on saide’s african storybook website and compared the kinyarwanda version with the english translation, to weight up the extent to which the two languages promote critical thinking. table 2 below provides some examples in the two languages: table 2: comparison between kinyarwanda and english stories in leaving room for critical thinking to read this table, it is to be explained that participants compared kinyarwanda stories with different english versions that are found on african storybook website, for different reading levels. the first column is about the picked a part from kinyarwanda version; the second column is about the translated english version, based on details from the kinyarwanda version; while the third column picked any other english version of the same stories, for different reading levels. e. niyibizi et al. 19 kinyarwanda version adapted english version with details english version leaving room for critical thinking ikimara kuvanaho umupfundikizo, hasohokamo nyarubwana ihita iyifata agakanu irajwigigiriza igaca mo kabiri (explaining the kind of death hare died) as soon as he removed the lid, the fierce dog came out quickly. he suffocated hare and then cut his neck angrily. out jumped a very angry dog! and that was the end of hare. (encourage the reader to think from different perspectives: did the dog devour hare or just kill him? how was he killed in the first place? etc.) ndabaregera mpyisi, kereka nimwemera kumpa kuri izo mbuto. abana bemera kugabana na bakame kugira ngo atabaregera mpyisi i am going to report you to hyena; unless you agree to give me some fruits. the children agreed to share with hare to avoid being reported to hyena i am going to report you to hyena …unless you agree to give me some fruits. the children agreed to share with hare. (the part highlighted in english version is not necessary) bageze mu rugo nyina amusobanurira ko ……………… ………………… when they got home, his mother explained to him that …….. what do you think his mother said to him? source: translated stories from www.africanstorybook.org as it can be observed in table 2 above, while kinyarwanda tends to provide details for each story (in the first column), the english version has the possibility of providing details as the kinyarwanda version (in the second column) as well as the possibility to leave more room for critical thinking and imagination (in the third column). hence, the african storybook website provides various versions of english stories, which are at different reading levels. participants observed that english language has more flexibility of providing room for critical thinking, while other african languages like kinyarwanda tend to provide more details. the next section discusses and interprets the findings. teacher education through flexible learning discussion and interpretation of the findings this paper has revealed that translation, adaptation and creation of online picture stories on saide’s african storybook website provide a number of reading opportunities for children, in kinyarwanda, english and many other african languages. the first interpretation of such opportunities is that it increases access to early grade reading materials in both african and western languages. hence, this platform is one of the solutions to the issue of insufficient reading materials in kinyarwanda, as highlighted in various studies (williams, de montfort-nayimfashe, ntakirutimana and o’sullivan, 2004; niyomugabo, 2008; niyibizi, 2015a; niyibizi, 2015b, sibomana, 2015) and other african languages as well. the second interpretation is related to the five experiences that the participants went through during the online translation process, on the african storybook website. such a process enabled the research participants to identify a number of opportunities and challenges related to the translation process, based on the nature of languages, the traditional nature of folklore and the new trend of picture stories, as well as the criteria of categorisation of reading levels. the overall feeling about the translation process of children stories is that the process experienced a kind of mismatch between english and african languages, but at the same time expanding the horizons for children reading opportunities. the implication from this study is that it requires teacher educators, who mainly use these online picture stories with young learners, to be creative, careful and adaptive when creating, translating and adapting stories from english and other languages into kinyarwanda. one lesson drawn from this study is that translation and adaptation of original traditional kinyarwanda folktales into picture books require to delete some parts of the folktales and rewrite them with respect of the general message which embodies the moral lessons to be instilled in children. another lesson is that the specificity of each language, namely kinyarwanda and english, needs to be taken into consideration when counting the number of words for each reading level. the key argument here is that some models for categorising reading levels based on english, french and other western languages might not match completely with african languages, as the agglutinating languages have shown in this study. such a mismatch should be taken into consideration when assessing the reading skills which is often determined by the number of words that readers are expected to be able to read per minute. this study has demonstrated that some african agglutinative languages like kinyarwanda can have a one-word sentence, which is equivalent to several words in e. niyibizi et al. 21 english, french or other languages. the key benefit of saide’s african storybook initiative is that it offers a full range of children reading experiences and literacy practices in a great number of african languages and western languages. conclusion and recommendations to conclude, this paper has identified a number of opportunities and challenges that the participating teachers experienced while translating, adapting or turning oral folktales into kinyarwanda and english online picture books. while the existing literature counts few studies that explored the educators’ experiences with translating african traditional folktales, this study has brought its contribution in filling in this knowledge gap. in this regard, it has highlighted the opportunities and challenges offered by translating or turning kinyarwanda folktales into english picture books and vice-versa. literacy in african agglutinating languages, which are under-researched, was explored as well. the implication from this paper is that african teacher educators need to bear in mind that adaptation of african folktales requires care and a high level of ability to maintain the meaning and moral lesson of the original tale and make it enjoyable for children. having worked with a small number of teacher educators, we recommend saide and the university of rwanda – college of education to take this african storybook initiative further, by contacting the rwandan ministry of education and rwanda education board so as to approve these online stories and use them in rwandan primary schools. even though the participants’ experiences emphasised on challenges encountered while translating oral tales from kinyarwanda into english picture books, the opportunities offered outweigh the challenges. in this regard, several african countries benefit from african storybook website because it has stories in more than 100 african languages. such an opportunity should be seized to instil the culture of reading among early grade learners, which boost literacy and provide solid foundation for quality education in african countries. acknowledgement we are very grateful to dr emmanuel sibomana from university of rwanda college of education and wellspring foundation for education and prof. tony lelliott from south african institute of distance education (saide) who proofread and edited this paper. your inputs have been a great contribution to this paper. teacher education through flexible learning references african storybook initiative. retrieved from www.africanstorybook.org, accessed 22nd april, 2017. akmajian, a., demers r. a, farmer a. k., and harnish r. m. 2001. linguistics: an introduction to language and communication (5th ed.). cambridge: mit press. arizpe, e. & styles, m. 2003. children reading pictures: interpreting visual texts. new york: routledge/falmer. bassnett-mcguire, s. 1980. translation studies. london & new york: methuen. bock, z. & mheta, g. 2013. language, society and communication: an introduction. pretoria: van schaik publishers. books, l. l. c. 2010. synthetic languages: basque language, bantu languages, ukrainian language, 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(ed.). translation studies reader. london and new york: routledge wang, f. 2014. an approach to domestication and foreignization from the angle of cultural factors translation. theory and practice in language studies, 4 (11): 2423-2427. webster, m. 2017. online merriam-webster collegiate dictionary (10th ed.). springfield, ma: merriam-webster. williams, e., de montfort-nayimfashe, l., ntakirutimana, e., & o’sullivan, b. 2004. proficiency in french, english and kinyarwanda in the primary and secondary sectors of the rwandan education system. unpublished report commissioned by cfbt education trust for the department for international development. official publication of the unit for distance education faculty of education university of pretoria web address: https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle email address: tetflemanager@up.ac.za contact emmanuel sibomana @ esibomana1@gmail.com this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. learning activities in the university of rwanda’s distance teacher education materials: some lessons for designers emmanuel sibomana the wellspring foundation for education, university of rwanda-college of education, rwanda vol 1 no 1 2019 issn: 2788-6298 doi: https://doi.org/10.35293/tetfle.v1i1.68 abstract learning activities constitute a very important component of distance education materials. they are associated with active learning and learning by doing, which are widely accepted as effective learning approaches. learning by doing is particularly significant in distance education because distance learners have to teach themselves or learn on their own through doing and reflecting. this article reports and reflects on research which focused on the distance education materials designed by the university of rwanda’s college of education to provide professional development opportunities for high school teachers of english in rwanda. findings from a textual analysis of the materials and from interviews with a sample of teachers who had used these materials indicate that most of the activities were designed solely for ‘assessment of learning’ purposes and encourage a surface approach to learning. it is argued that activities which encourage a surface approach to learning limit learners’ engagement with, and understanding of, the content in the materials and improvement in quality teaching, a key goal of teacher professional development. keywords: distance teacher education, learning activities, approaches to learning, assessment teacher education through flexible learning introduction learning activities are an integral part of teaching (lockwood 1992) and refer to the tasks given to learners by the teacher in order to help them learn actively. they play an important role in distance education (de). for race (1992, 61, capitals in the original text) “the quality of an open learning module is closely connected to the quality of the things learners do while using it” and for lusunzi (1999, 4), “the use of instructional activities to effect better distance teaching is not optional, but mandatory”. as noted by biggs and tang (2009), kember (1996) and struyven et al. (2002), the learning approaches which learners adopt are influenced by the nature of the activities. in their study, struyven and colleagues (2002) found that learners adapted their learning to the demands that they were exposed to in activity questions. thus, care needs to be taken to produce high quality learning activities which engage “self-directed learners” (bordeau & bates 1996, 268). this article reports and reflects on the teaching/learning activities in distance education materials designed by the university of rwanda’s college of education (urce) for high school teachers of english and the kinds of learning approaches which they encourage. ur-ce, formerly known as kigali institute of education (kie), was created in 1999 to address the shortage of qualified high school teachers in rwanda. in 2001, with limited experience in offering distance education, it started the first de programme in rwanda for under-qualified in-service high school teachers. this mode of education was chosen for these teachers because their number was so high that they could not be all taken out of schools and offered on-campus professional development; there were no other teachers to replace them. the beneficiaries were mainly teachers in rural areas with limited chances and means of joining on-campus, evening or weekend degree programmes. they volunteered for the programme because, in addition to increasing their knowledge and helping them teach better, getting a degree would make them qualified, would make their jobs secure, and would result in an increase in their salary. this programme used printed materials as the main teaching/learning resource, supplemented by bi-annual face-to-face sessions with ur-ce lecturers and monthly e. sibomana 3 tutorials with regional subject tutors who are university graduates in the respective subjects. the aims of these print materials were three-fold: (i) to help in-service secondary school teachers acquire more subject knowledge, (ii) to develop their analytical and reflective skills and (iii) to improve the quality of their teaching (kie 2009, 1). the materials designers were full-time lecturers at kie and designing these materials was an ‘add-on’ to already heavy workloads. the designers were mainly subject specialists and had limited experience in designing de materials (kie 2009). these factors are likely to have had a bearing on the quality of the materials. this paper aims at addressing the following research questions: 1. what role do learning activities play in ur-ce de materials for teachers of english? 2. what learning approach is encouraged in ur-ce de materials for teachers of english and what are the related implications for learning? 3. what are the teacher-learners’ perceptions of learning activities in ur-ce de materials for teachers of english? literature review the focus of the short literature review is on (1) the rationale for including activities in distance education materials, (2) surface and deep learning, two learning approaches which can be encouraged by these activities, and (3) the implications which these materials and approaches have for learning. distance education materials constitute one type of self-instructional materials or texts. self-instructional materials facilitate individualised learning and are appropriate for learners who study mostly on their own. writers of de materials (e.g. biggs & tang 2009; howard & mcgrath 1995; lockwood 1992; phillips 2007; race 1992; rowntree 1990) emphasise the importance of learning activities in the teaching/learning process. according to howard & mcgrath (1995, 9), activities should provide students “with feedback on the effectiveness of their processing”. they should also encourage learners to learn actively and to apply and reflect on what is learned and its implications (lockwood teacher education through flexible learning 1992; race 1992). a key finding from lockwood’s investigation of student response to de materials was that students regard activities as “contributing to their understanding of the course content, the particular ideas, relationships, procedures and techniques that are at the centre of the teaching” (lockwood 1992, 100). in short, learning activities play a central role in learning outcomes in distance education because, as smith and smith (2006) indicate, a good number of distance education learners gear their reading primarily to learning activities. activities include all instances where learners are instructed to do something which may or may not require an explicit and/or written answer which needs to be marked. for example, teacher-learners may be required to try a new way of teaching in their classrooms and to reflect on a certain scenario in the classroom or their community. questions constitute a frequently used type of activity but are not the only possible activity type. where activities include questions, these can be of two main types: (1) selfassessment questions (saqs) and (2) in-text questions (itqs). rowntree (1990) notes that the former may appear severally together at the end of approximately an hour of reading in order to test understanding. race (1992) considers saqs to be the most important single factor that leads to successful learning from de materials while for rahman (2015), these questions are important for activating learning. self-assessment questions can be designed for both formative and summative assessment purposes with the former being particularly important in the process of learning something new. itqs are rhetorical questions used at frequent intervals to create a dialogue between the instructional materials and the learner (lusunzi 1999) and between the designer and the learner; they should make conversation flow and promote interactive learning (rowntree 1990; shabani & okebukola 2001). the teacher (de materials writer) may build on possible answers to the itqs in order to introduce and teach new content rather than merely using saqs to check how much learning has occurred. as fung (2005, 182) indicates, appropriate in-text activities in de materials for teachers can help “teachers to think from a variety of perspectives and to relate theory to practice”. e. sibomana 5 lockwood (1992) suggests that if students understand why the activities are worth completing, they are more likely to invest in these. indeed, one reason for students skipping activities, according to mishra and gaba (2001), is the trivial nature of some of these. clarity of activity questions and related instructions also encourage students to attempt the activities in self-instructional texts. according to swales (2000), activities and accompanying instructions should be unambiguous, and the questions should be answerable especially because distance education learners mostly study alone (phillips, 2007). another feature of activities that can increase the likelihood of learners attempting them is diversifying activities to meet individual needs and study styles (fung 2005), as people use different styles to learn and, within each learning style, at different paces (christensen, horn & johnson 2008). activities should also make various intellectual demands on learners (lockwood 1992) and avoid the boredom which may result from dealing with the same type of activity (rowntree 1990). variety in activity questions and tasks also encourages learners to use different skills, think from different perspectives and at different levels (lockwood 1992). in short, activities should offer a balance between brief activities and lengthy ones, those requiring written answers and those merely requiring thoughts, closed questions and open questions (rowntree 1990). if it is accepted that the purpose of education is to stimulate inquiry skills and knowledge creation rather than encouraging learners to memorise a body of knowledge (jordan & pillay 2009), de materials designers should set activities that encourage learners to go beyond memorisation. while different types of questions and other activities are needed to cater for diversity, i suggest that the questions which require a low level of creativity and criticality should be fewer than those recommended by murdoch (1994) and phillips (2007) which require the highest levels of creativity, interaction production and application of ideas to learners’ work or personal life. the four roles/resources model referring to the level of engagement and criticality expected from students reading to learn, freebody and luke (1990) developed a four roles/resources model while biggs (1987) conceptualised deep and surface approaches to learning. students’ successful teacher education through flexible learning learning largely depends on their ability to read various teaching/learning materials successfully. this is more so in distance education where learners are expected to read the materials mostly on their own. therefore, de materials should engage readers in the critical reading of texts. writing about critical engagement with texts, freebody and luke (1990) identified four roles of a successful reader as follows: code breaker (decoding the codes and conventions of a text), text participant (comprehending texts), text user (understanding the purpose of different texts for different cultural and social functions) and text analyst (understanding how texts position readers and listeners). a successful reader needs to play the above four roles in his or her engagement with texts (freebody & luke 1990). in educational contexts, the extent to which learners play the four roles in reading educational texts will depend on, among other factors, what the learning (and assessment) activities require. thus, reading and writing activities which are aimed at helping learners to learn should encourage them to get to the text-analyst level, which is related to critical thinking (freebody & luke 1999), one of the prime aims of higher education. deep and surface approaches to learning according to warren (2004), approaches to learning describe what students do when they go about learning and why they do this in particular ways. in this regard, two approaches (a deep approach and a surface approach) have been identified by biggs (1987). warren (2004) indicates that deep learning involves a critical analysis of new ideas, leading to understanding and long-term retention of these for problem-solving in unfamiliar contexts. this approach is in line with a deep approach to learning which encourages people to create or construct their own new understandings or “individual interpretations of their experiences” (zarei 2008, 282) linking what they already know and believe to the ideas, events, and activities which they come in contact with in their daily life (tenenbaum et al. 2001). e. sibomana 7 in contrast to deep learning, “surface learning is the tacit acceptance of information and memorisation as isolated and unlinked facts” (warren 2004) 1 . learners using this approach only read and/or listen and reproduce what they learn, usually without thinking much about what it means to them individually; thus they cannot understand it deeply and/or relate it to what they already know. such students are unlikely to recognise the same matter presented differently or in a different context. biggs (2003) argues that effective teaching should encourage learners to adopt deep learning approaches. in other words, learners need to be engaged in activities that require them to work with content rather than merely reading it (rowntree 1990). given that the distance education learner is physically separated from the teacher (abedi & badragheh 2011) and “the learning materials take over some of the traditional role of the teacher” (robinson and latchem 2003 i), learners do most or all their learning from the materials alone (phillips 2007). therefore, de materials largely determine the learning experience and success depending on the kind of approach to learning they encourage. according to warren (2004), deep learning involves a critical analysis of new ideas, leading to understanding and long-term retention of these to be used for problem-solving in unfamiliar contexts. learners using a deep approach draw on their background knowledge to develop their own understanding and interpretation of what they learn. since ur-ce’s de materials are expected to engage teacher-learners’ experience, help them apply the knowledge to their own situation and stimulate critical thinking (kie 2009), learning activities in these materials should adopt a deep approach to learning. this is more so in teacher education, particularly because teachers need to adapt their teaching to ever-changing teaching/learning contexts. 1 the chapter from warren’s (2004) book was accessed online from http://stbweb02.stb.sun.ac.za/tutors/documents/deep%20and%20surface%20approaches%20to%20learning.pdf, on 10 october 2015. page numbers are not indicated. teacher education through flexible learning methodology this article is drawn from a phd study and is a case study (gillham 2000; hancock & algozzine 2006) of the university of rwanda’s de materials for teachers of english and their responses to the original and modified versions of these. textual analysis (bloor & wood 2006; mckee 2005), which is one of two main sources of data for this study, focussed on content and mediation devices included in these materials. the analysis was conducted on modules 1 (introduction to language and linguistics) and 7 (french and english teaching methods): module 1 because it was the first module with which the teachers engaged and had a subject content focus and module 7 because it was the only module which aimed to address the teaching of english. teacher-learners’ responses to both ur-ce’s materials were obtained through 30 to 40 minutes semi-structured interviews (corbetta 2003; kajornboon 2005). the information that was sought was mainly teacher-learners’ experiences with the ur-ce de materials with a focus on a section in module 7 that focused on writing pedagogy. the section on writing pedagogy was selected because writing has received less emphasis in the literature on language teaching than reading, speaking and listening (ciobanu 2011; ralfe 2009) while the ability to write well is central to success both in school and in the workplace (norman & spencer 2005; ralfe 2009). in addition, writing remains an overlooked area of investigation of teacher’s knowledge (hlas & hildebrandt 2010) and instruction in writing pedagogy for pre-service teachers is often limited (norman & spencer 2005) nine respondents were selected from all the four regional centres where they have their bi-annual face-to-face sessions. since the number of teacher-learners in the programme was far too high (599) for it to be feasible to interview them all, nine teacher-learners were selected using a combination of purposive and random sampling. the researcher concurs with ning and downing (2013) who indicate that students’ learning experience has an influence on academic performance. thus performance was taken as a basis for selecting teacher-learners who took part in this study. the researcher was guided by the tutors in the choice of informants from both high and low achieving categories. learner e. sibomana 9 performance, coupled with the need for countrywide representativeness led to the selection of two teacher-learners from each centre: one teacher-learner randomly selected from those with a relatively high level performance and another one from those with relatively low performance. the researcher intended to involve eight teacherlearners. however, one more teacher-learner volunteered to participate, bringing the total number to nine. one respondent elected to be interviewed in french, three chose kinyarwanda (their mother tongue), and the rest preferred english. the interviews were conducted in the centres and were tape-recorded, transcribed and, where necessary, translated into english. thematic analysis (braun & clarke 2006) was used to analyse teacher-learners’ responses; these were grouped, analysed and interpreted according to the different themes identified. in this article, only one theme, learning activities, is explored. pseudonyms are used in the discussion of findings from the interviews. findings this section presents the findings of an analysis of the activities in the materials, focusing on what they are meant for, what they require learners to do and related learning implications. it also reports on and discusses teacher-learners’ responses to ur-ce de materials. the role of learning activities in ur-ce de materials for teachers of english the textual analysis conducted on activities in the ur-ce de materials indicates that these activities are of the self-assessment question type. the activities which are included in the materials are meant just for ‘assessment of learning’ purposes and, therefore, play a very limited ‘teaching role’ (vrasidas 2000). for instance, the activities in the modules are introduced together with two ‘types of assessment’ (tutor marked assignments and final exams) under the heading ‘how will i assess my learning’. the following instructions to ur-ce de teacher-learners regarding activities in the modules indicates their summative nature: teacher education through flexible learning in every block, there are activities meant to test how much you have learnt from each section. attempt them after each section before moving on to the next block. if you find the activity difficult, read the section again and attempt it a second time. if the second attempt doesn‘t yield much, consult your colleagues or subject tutor (module 1, 5). this quote is in line with the instructions given to ur-ce de materials designers regarding the role of activities: activities should enable teacher-learners “to assess their understanding of the block content” (kie 2009, 15). the role of activities in exploring and extending learning is ignored in the ur-ce de materials. without attempting a comparative study, i would like to use the instructions given to learners in de materials designed by gultig and colleagues (2001; 2010), which have been appreciated for their quality design2. gultig and butler (2010) address teacher-learners as follows: [w]e rely strongly on your participation in the activities we set which often require you to practise the ideas introduced in this module in your own school. we believe that our teaching style works best if you also try new ways of learning, rather than only concentrating on increasing what you know (2010, 4, emphasis in the original). gultig (2001, 6-7) warns the users of learners and learning of the danger of ignoring learning activities as follows: [o]f course you could complete this module in a couple of days if you ignore all the activities and simply read it from cover to cover. but this isn’t studying and you will probably forget everything within days ... you will miss the most important part of the learning pathway we have developed for you. 2 in his review of learners and learning, the director of the centre for research and development at the open university (uk) points out that the module is “an invaluable resource for those designing pre-service and professional courses for teachers” (moon 2002, 27). e. sibomana 11 students who use the ur-ce materials and those using materials designed by gultig and colleagues are likely to approach them differently with likely differences in learning outcomes, while both materials aim at training a competent teacher of the 21st century. while memorisation and remembering may be valued by the rwandan society’s learning culture, these are unlikely to help graduates from the system to compete in the global context. another indication that the activities in the ur-ce materials play a limited teaching role is that while the teacher-learners are instructed to read and understand the content of one section before moving to the following one, the presentation of content in subsequent sections does not refer in any way to the content, activity questions and feedback on previous sections. according to the instructions, completing an activity is supposedly a pre-requisite to continue to the next section, but it is not the case in practice. such an approach ignores one important purpose of assessment: “to aid learners in their subsequent learning” (rahman 2015, 96). the approach also contradicts vygotsky’s concept of mediation, which, according to rogoff (1990), cited in donato (1994), emphasises the teacher’s (in the case of de materials, the designer’s) active continual revisions of previous learning in response to the emerging capabilities of the learner. furthermore, it can be argued that some activities are set just to comply with the requirement of “at least one activity in each section” (kie 2009, 15) as there is just one (not more) activity for each section irrespective of its length. for instance, there is one activity (5 questions) for a ten-page section on “components of language” (module 1, 53), one activity (1 question) for a five-page section on “issues and procedures in english language teaching” (module 7, 20) and one activity (4 questions) for a half page section on “writing system on the computer” (module 1, 96). the learning approach encouraged by learning activities in ur-ce de modules the learning objectives included in ur-ce de materials mostly encourage teacherlearners to adopt a surface approach to learning: they generally expect them to state, define, explain, differentiate, classify, identify, etc. all of which require lower order thinking skills. for instance, learning objectives for block 2 of module 1 (the grammar of english) teacher education through flexible learning include (i) state the characteristics of nouns, (ii) describe different types of nouns, pronouns and determiners, (iii) explain the functions of pronouns and determiners and (iv) distinguish the different types of adjectives. this is despite the directive to materials designers to help teacher-learners “acquire more subject knowledge, develop their analytical and reflective capacity and improve the quality of their teaching” (kie 2009, 1). these skills, duron, limbach and waugh (2006) argue, are likely to develop when students are engaged in activities which require them to analyse, synthesise and evaluate different issues, concepts, theories, etc. it should be noted that some sections do not contain any learning outcomes, which is a cause for concern, given that specification of learning outcomes is likely to influence learners’ engagement with learning materials. while ur-ce de materials designers are requested to design activities which ”challenge students to think more deeply, and to put concepts into context”(kie 2009, 11), the activities in ur-ce de materials for english predominantly consist of questions for which answers can be taken directly from the materials without much thinking. they generally ask for definitions and explanations presented in the content. for instance, the activity on a section on ‘sociolinguistics’ (module 1, 69) includes the following questions: (i) what is a dialect? (ii) what is a sociolect? (iii) what do you understand by the term dialectology? and (iv) differentiate between sociolinguistics and the sociology of language. all these questions ask teacher-learners to reproduce definitions of sociolinguistics-related terms. consequently, answering these questions correctly may not necessarily imply an understanding of what sociolinguistics is and of the effects of society on language use (and vice versa), which, according to the designers, is the essence of sociolinguistics (module 1, 69). as an example, the answer provided by the module designers to the fourth question is that “sociolinguistics focuses on the effect of the society on the language, while sociology of the language focuses on the effects of language on society" (module 1, 70). this answer does not help teacher-learners to understand the ‘effects’ and how they happen, to identify these in their linguistic community/ies and, more importantly, to incorporate and respond to these in their classes. if activities in ur-ce de materials are supposed to encourage teacher-learners to think deeply (kie 2009), and the end aim of mediation is to enable learners to use acquired e. sibomana 13 information to develop their independent thinking and problem-solving skills (see williams & burden 1997), i suggest that the above activity questions should be improved. for instance, in addition to defining a dialect, teacher-learners could be asked to identify some kinyarwanda dialects and, possibly, compare them to the standard dialect. the concept of ‘world englishes’ could also be used to exemplify how the same language can be used (and owned) differently by different societies. teacher-learners could also be asked to identify and explain some of the effects that society, its values, norms and changes therein have had on the use of kinyarwanda. for instance, the militia that committed the 1994 genocide in rwanda used to call itself ‘interahamwe’ (people working together). the association of the word ‘interahamwe’ with the 1994 genocide has changed its meaning to that of a ‘serial killer’. such examples could provide a better understanding by encouraging teacher-learners to relate content to their own personal world (turuk 2008). a second example of an activity which promotes a surface approach to learning comes from block 2 (the grammar of english) of module 1. recent language teaching specialists (for example gardner 2008; wang 2010) suggest that grammar should be taught in context. therefore, a lesson on pronouns should aim to enable learners to use these correctly and in context. however, this is not the approach taken by the designers. the following is one activity on pronouns: question 1 in each of the following sentences, a pronoun has been highlighted. what type of pronoun is it? a. let’s contact one another once we have made some progress. b. she wants to do it herself. c. i can’t find them. d. i can’t believe it’s finally ours. e. the girl who usually cuts her hair has won the lottery. f. he wants to go to scarborough. g. why are you shouting at me? h. jim gave me the last copy. i. nobody said a word all night teacher education through flexible learning question 2 give the objective forms of the following pronouns a. i b. we c. he d. she e. they f. who since a table of the different types of pronouns is provided in the teaching text, learners can copy the pronouns and their types (for question 1) from the table without necessarily thinking about their use. question 2 is even more problematic because the pronouns are not put in sentences. what teacher-learners need to do is to go back to the table and copy the corresponding objective forms. thus, teacher-learners are not challenged to explicitly state the functions of the pronouns (which is the learning outcome of the section) or, more importantly, to use them in new contexts as a result of attempting the activity. in order to enable learners to use and explain the use of the pronouns, teacher-learners could have been asked to use these pronouns in their own sentences for question 1. another alternative question could be to provide sentences or a text containing nouns and ask learners to replace them with pronouns and, if necessary, to name the type of pronouns they have chosen. for question 2, the designers could have provided a text containing the same nouns (or names) used both as subjects and as objects in different sentences. teacher-learners could then be asked to replace the nouns/names with personal pronouns, which could show whether or not they understand the difference between the two uses of pronouns. the encouragement of surface rather than deep learning can also be identified in the pedagogy module (module 7), which is expected to encourage theorised practice. the activities in this module do not generally take teacher-learners beyond reading and reproducing content in the module; they just require learners to identify or even copy answers directly from the materials. some examples include ‘what are the main objectives e. sibomana 15 of the direct method?’ (54), ‘how does the direct method differ from the gt method?’ (54), ‘what are the main criticisms levelled against the cognitive code method?’ (63), ‘give the name of the methods that are based on the comprehension approach’ (76), ‘what are the advantages of teaching your learners how to read with understanding’ (98). moreover, even when questions seem to ask teacher-learners to think critically and give their opinion, the related feedback does not usually reflect this requirement. for instance, activity 2 in block 1 (module 7, 47) is as follows: elaborate on any two of the following basic principles of language learning, making any critical comments based on your personal opinions. these principles (according to the module designers) are habit formation, accuracy, concreteness, proportion of different aspects of a course, to mention just a few. no answer is provided for this question. instead, teacher-learners are referred to related ‘feedback’, which reads as follows: “this is an open-ended activity. you may summarize the ideas given for each principle from the above sections. but you are free to give your personal opinions on the issues involved” (47). this feedback implies that teacher-learners’ opinion is optional, contrary to what is indicated by the question. i suggest that there should be at least an example illustrating (a) way(s) learners could engage with the question. however, there are very few instances where questions do encourage critical thinking and feedback (through answers to activities questions) links up with, and responds to, the requirements of the questions. these include the following question: “[m]ention some of the barriers that students bring with them and show ways in which the teacher can overcome them other than ensuring a complete control of his/her classroom” (module 7, 67). the answer to the question mentions some barriers (fear, hatred of the target language culture, anxiety, etc.) and suggests that teachers should make their lessons interesting by being friendly and using teaching aids that are interesting for learners to overcome these barriers. one could argue that instructing learners to make a second attempt if they find the activities difficult implies deep engagement. however, there is no indication of what learners will do differently during the second attempt. thus, making teacher education through flexible learning repeated but similar attempts to complete a difficult activity may not necessarily lead to deep engagement with the content. the researcher suggests that learners should have been provided with different ways of approaching the questions, which could help them think from different perspectives. teacher-learners’ perceptions of the learning activities as explained above, a small number of teacher-learners in the ur-ce de programme were asked to express their views on both ur-ce de materials and a redesigned section. the aforementioned conceptualisation of ‘teaching-learning’ activities in the ur-ce de materials for english as primarily for ‘assessment of learning’ purpose has resulted in some teacher-learners share this understanding. they appear to believe that activities in de materials are meant just for assessment and use them only for this purpose. for instance, two interviewees (mukamana and gashumba) pointed out that they read the entire redesigned section without answering the learning activity questions; they answered these later without re-reading the content ‘in order to see how much they had learnt’. by using the activities in this way, these teacher-learners missed a very important point: the presentation of content in this section continuously built on activities and related answers and feedback. thus, by ignoring activities while reading the section, there are issues which the teacher-learners could not grasp well. however, some informants’ answers suggest that they understood the role of learning activities. for instance, karangwa criticized activities in module 7 as follows: “the activities which we have here, it is to … it is like an exam in this module. it is like a very difficult exercise.” 3 by referring to the activities as an (final) exam, which he was not happy with, karangwa seems to imply that they do not contribute much to learning. in addition, some informants’ answers concur with the findings of textual and content analysis, indicating that the activities encourage a surface approach to learning, although they did not use these words. they expressed their responses in different ways: for mugabo, the activities in ur-ce de modules are ‘theoretical’ while writing is practical; for mutabazi, they do not develop critical thinking while for mukamana and rukundo, they are not ‘effective’ 3 quoted verbatim. e. sibomana 17 because they just require the copying of sentences from the modules without much thinking. for ngarambe, the questions do not have anything to do with teaching and, therefore, are not important for someone training to be a teacher. this situation left some teacher-learners frustrated. for example, mukamana said: for me, if you have given a definition of writing, then at the end you ask learners to reproduce it and, for feedback to the question, you reproduce the same definition, it is a waste of time. you should set questions for which answers cannot be copied directly from the modules. these remarks suggest that the informants understand that learning is not transmission of information and rote learning but learners’ active and meaningful construction and application of knowledge (yew et al. 2016). in other words, they understand that they, as learners, have a central and active role in their learning and teacher educators are responsible for encouraging this through de materials. so in addition to helping them to understand what is expected of them as learners, teacher education materials are supposed to help them understand their role as teachers. teacher-learners’ answers reveal another important point seen through what ndahayo expects from activities: to remind the learner of the most important things in the materials. this echoes rowntree’s (1990) recommendation that each important idea in teaching material should be made a subject of an activity. in other words, if teacher-learners want to know and understand what is important in the section, one option available to them is to look at the related activities. indeed, some studies (for example, biggs 2007; liu 2007) indicated that some (distance) students tailor their reading primarily to the assessment tasks. therefore, when the activities do not cover all the content as is the case with some sections in ur-ce de modules for english, teacher-learners may overlook some important issues. indeed, as biggs (2007, 3) argues, citing ramsden (1992), “the assessment is the curriculum, as far as the students are concerned. they will learn what teacher education through flexible learning they think they will be assessed on, not what is in the curriculum, or even on what has been 'covered' in class”. discussion while learning activities are supposed to help learners “engage with content rather than merely reading about it”(rowntree 1990, 83) and should encourage active and deep learning, notably by engaging learners in problem-solving strategies (lockwood 1997), ur-ce de approach to teaching does not comply with these requirements. the analysis reported in this article indicates that ‘learning activities’ in ur-ce de materials for english are just meant for assessment and generally expect learners to operate as decoders (freebody & luke 1990) and encourage them to adopt a surface approach to learning (biggs 1987). thus they seem inappropriate in a teacher education programme: they are unlikely to encourage critical thinking and a deep understanding of the content that teacher-learners are learning. the approach taken by the designers contradicts the deep approach to learning which is officially encouraged by the university of rwanda’s college of education (kie 2009) in such guidelines as “stimulate, provoke, and challenge students to acquire new skills and knowledge” (kie 2009, 2), “challenge students to think more deeply, and to put concepts into context” (kie 2009, 11) and help learners “apply knowledge to their situation” (kie 2009, 2). surface approach, czerkawski (2014) and niyibizi et al. (2018) argue, fails to prepare learners adequately to overcome tomorrow’s economic, technological, and societal challenges and thereby take part in socio-economic transformation. one reason for this is that it just encourages the reproduction of what learners learn without internalizing it or relating it to what they already know (warren 2004). the teacher-learners interviewed were frustrated by the low level intellectual demand of many of the activities in the ur-ce de materials. this frustration confirms vygotsky’s suggestion that instruction located at or below learners’ current level of understanding is not challenging enough to promote further development (lui 2012). these informants seem to understand that a teaching/learning approach that encourages rote learning is e. sibomana 19 likely to produce dull and uninspired learners (simister 2004 as cited in turuk 2008). conversely, they were interested in activities which encourage/challenge them to move beyond mere reading of the modules and to consider various perspectives on the issues addressed in the modules. their answers suggest that, as teachers, they understand that teaching should not just be about giving information to learners but should also challenge and help them to analyze, construct and reconstruct the information progressively (donald, lazarus & lolwana 2010; jordan & pillay 2009) and to test and make judgments about the acquired knowledge, being open to alternative ways of thinking (wheelahan 2010). thus as some of these teacher-learners indicated, with the current ur-ce de materials, they may pass the exams and get degrees but still fail to make a difference in the way they teach. as a result, they indicated that after getting the degrees they would have to find ways of acquiring the knowledge which they expected to (but did not) find in the programme. some of them expressed their views as follows: but here i haven’t seen any example that can inspire a teacher [in teaching writing]. it implies that expecting changes in our teaching habits as a result of reading these modules is an illusion (mukamana). even if i put everything in this module [the language pedagogy module] in my head, i will not be able to teach writing. as a teacher-learner, i go to school to study how to teach other people [how to write]. and when i arrive there, the module shows me the type of writing is this, but how to teach writing in the classroom there isn’t. that is a very big problem. you can read and finish the whole ur-ce pedagogy module without understanding how to write an essay (kalisa, quoted verbatim). and you still find that … though you may pass the exams, you cannot say that you understand the content effectively. we will still need to find more knowledge from elsewhere so as to be able to teach effectively (karangwa). the above participants’ views concur with the findings of a study conducted on assessment practices in ur-ce’s on-campus programmes (niyibizi et al. 2018). this teacher education through flexible learning study indicated that assessment practices heavily encourage surface approach to learning, with limited focus on the socioeconomic transformative knowledge. in his research on challenges faced by rwanda postgraduate students in an english medium university, sibomana (2016) found that the students’ undergraduate learning experiences did not emphasise critical thinking. this situation suggests that even the lecturers who designed these materials were under the influence of the surface learning culture in the country’s education. thus, the challenge may not necessarily be addressed from the materials design perspective but should be looked at from the overall education system’s perspective. conclusion learning activities constitute an important element in instructional materials, particularly in self-instructional materials. they indicate to the learners, who are teaching themselves (or learning on their own), what is expected of them in the materials and, to an extent, what successful learning means. thus, care needs to be taken while designing them so that they are aligned to the goals of the learning programme. the activities in the ur-ce de materials for english appear not to help learners to achieve the goals of their education programme because they focus almost entirely on summative assessment and encourage a surface approach to learning. the teacher-learners interviewed about their response to these materials expressed dissatisfaction with this approach. therefore, it is recommended that the university re-designs the materials in order to encourage deep learning and allocates resources of design expertise and adequate time for designing. such redesigning is important especially now that distance education has been given a key role in achieving the country’s economic visions 2020 and 2050 and in meeting the united nations’ sustainable development goals (sdgs). in rwanda, as elsewhere, for these to be achieved, the promotion of critical thinking skills is mandatory and likely to be achieved only when teaching and learning approaches adopted in distance education materials encourage students to apply critical thinking to what they learn. while findings from one case study cannot be generalized to others, it may be possible to offer some ‘fuzzy generalizations’ (bassey 1999). therefore, the university of rwanda’s de programme as discussed in this article can offer lessons to other institutions. e. sibomana 21 references abedi, m. & badragheh, a. 2011. distance education in developing countries. journal of american science, 7(4) 295-301. bassey, m. 1999. case study research in educational settings. buckingham: open university press. biggs, j.b. 1987. student approaches to learning and studying. victoria: brown prior anderson. biggs, j.b. 2003. ‘aligning teaching and assessing to course objectives’. paper presented at a conference on teaching and learning in higher education, university of aveiro, 13-17 april, 2003. biggs, j. b. 2007. aligning teaching for constructing learning. the higher education academy. 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(2016). stimulating deep learning using active learning techniques. malaysian online journal of educational sciences, 4(3), 49-57. zarei, g.r. 2008. the effect of constructivist language teaching/learning on students' conceptions of l2 reading. iranian journal of language studies (ijls) 2(2), 281298. deta booklet layout.indd issues and challenges in educ ation in afric a – the need for a ‘new’ teacher proceedingsproceedings 3–6 august 2009 university of cape coast, cape coast, ghana editor: prof johan beckman assistant editor: dr ruth aluko university of cape coast university of education: winneba 2009 teachers can change africa deta i distance education and teachers’ training in africa 2009 issues and challenges in education in africa – the need for a ‘new’ teacher proceedings of the 3rd biannual international conference on distance education and teachers’ training in africa (deta) held at the university of cape coast, cape coast, ghana, august 2009 editor: prof johan beckmann, faculty of education, university of pretoria assistant editor: dr ruth aluko, unit for distance education, university of pretoria the distance education and teachers’ training in africa (deta) conference strives to provide a platform for educationists in africa to meet and deliberate on educational issues in africa challeng t he ers ist t ed a) h cap st, ust 2 n, tori ed th u pr ta) c nd al w’ t distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta iii ii issues and challenges in education in africa – the need for a ‘new’ teacher proceedings of the 3rd biannual international conference on distance education and teachers’ training in africa (deta) held at the university of cape coast, cape coast, ghana, august 2009 publisher: unit for distance education, university of pretoria, with the university of cape coast, ghana and the university of education, winneba, ghana editor: prof johan beckmann assistant editor: dr ruth aluko place of publication: pretoria, south africa printed in tahoma 10 pt by businessprint july 2011 isbn 978-1-86854-952-8 the authors are responsible for the accuracy and correctness of the content of the contributions, although deta provided some editorial assistance. deta does not accept responsibility or liability for the content of any contribution published in these proceedings. deta conference 2009 proceedings foreword the distance education and teachers’ training in africa (deta) conference is a biennial conference that was initiated to provide a platform for educationists in africa to meet and deliberate on educational issues in africa. since its inception, it has enabled educationists to exchange knowledge and enhance their capacity to engage with opportunities and challenges in education on the continent. deta’s major objectives are to contribute to the debate on teacher training in africa and to build capacity for the delivery of teacher training programmes in africa. these objectives represent ways in which the conference can support nepad, various protocols on education and training in africa, the millennium development goals, and some of the recommendations of the all-africa education ministers’ conference on open learning and distance education. the conferences are co-hosted by the organisers and other educational institutions and organisations. the 3rd conference, co-hosted by the university of pretoria, the university of cape coast, ghana, and the university of education, winneba, ghana, was held at the university of cape coast, ghana, from 3 to 6 august 2009. the theme was issues and challenges in education in africa – the need for a ‘new’ teacher. subthemes included the following:  distance education in teacher education  teacher education, and curriculum studies and development  special needs education and education management, law and policies, and technology in education in africa  mathematics and science education, language and literacy education, religious and moral education, and hiv and aids education more than 200 delegates from 14 african countries (botswana, the drc, ghana, kenya, lesotho, malawi, mozambique, nigeria, south africa, sudan, tanzania, uganda, zambia and zimbabwe) and three other countries (canada, the uk and the usa) attended the conference. fifty papers were read. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta v iv participants were requested to submit papers for possible inclusion in the fi rst conference proceedings to be published, if they so wished, and they were given guidelines on the submission. thirty-fi ve drafts were submitted, which covered the conference subthemes. the drafts were subjected to double blind reviews. of these 35 drafts, 12 were provisionally accepted and returned to the authors for improvements. nine contributions were fi nally accepted for inclusion in the proceedings, which deta now proudly puts before the distance education and teacher training communities in africa and elsewhere. this is deta’s fi rst volume of conference proceedings and is by no means perfect. however, the editorial team wishes to assert emphatically that academic robustness and merit were of paramount importance in the selection of contributions. deta has a developmental dimension, and it hopes to put better and more voluminous proceedings before its readership in future. we appreciate the hard work and input of the authors, the editorial team (prof johan beckmann and dr ruth aluko), the reviewers of the manuscripts, the speakers, the sponsors and the secretariats of the institutions that co-hosted the conference. we wish you interesting reading and look forward to having your paper included in the next volume if you are a participant at the 2011 conference in maputo. johan hendrikz albert koomson university of pretoria university of cape coast south africa ghana co-chairpersons deta 2009 contents of the proceedings this volume consists of nine contributions. the contributions are from the papers presented at the deta 2009 conference. in the fi rst contribution, clara akuamoah-boateng, josephine sam-tagoe and eddiebright joseph buadu evaluate the changes in student teacher trainees’ level of knowledge on the transmission, stigmatisation, symptoms, prevention and control of sexually transmitted infections (stis) and hiv/aids. they also consider students’ sensitivity to impart knowledge on the pandemic. although there was an increase in students’ knowledge, it appears that not all of the changes were due to the programme, because they were exposed to other hiv/aids material and activities outside their modules for the programme. through a qualitative study, sharayi chakanyuka investigates the effectiveness of the mentoring strategy in the supervision of secondary teacher education students in a postgraduate diploma in education (pgde) programme. he emphasises the importance of collegial relationships and the use of different strategies for successful mentoring. elias chakwera addresses the student support system of cluster meetings and study circles in distance education as a critical element of improving students’ retention and ensuring high completion rates. he argues that it provides unity among students of same-subject combinations in a cohort in the same way that classes provide a sense of belonging in a face-to-face programme. this further encourages peer support, which gives further impetus to achievement through increased collaboration in academic assignments. as nations strive to improve their education systems through various strategies and plans, the primary concern for chukwu and chukwu is how school administrators handle the issue of the placement of pupils in classes. they found that most of the schools investigated adopted the random placement criterion, irrespective of their context. they highlight the value of having a heterogeneous rather than a homogeneous class grouping that offers both low and high achievers the opportunity to interact and learn from one another, with the less academically bright pupils benefi ting from the brighter ones. this could aid the overall success of education. the distinctions between codes of conduct and their purposes, and ethical principles and their place in the teaching profession, are controversial. sunday dada and distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta vii vi fadokun james banji’s contribution addresses the challenges and constraints in the implementation of training and development programmes with regard to professional ethics in teaching in large education systems. the scope of the training and development challenge is revealed by posing a series of questions. some of these questions go to the heart of the professional learning discourse. they advise that professionalism should be organised in such a way that the members have a sense of belonging because the services of teachers are indispensable to any nation. emmanuel kofi gyimah and irene vanderpuye examine the philosophy of inclusive education in the school system. they emphasise that there are changes that need to be made to effectively translate theory into practice to celebrate the outcomes of inclusivity. borrowing cues from the united kingdom’s special education needs code of practice and toolkit (2001), they suggest the importance of every child, working with parents and planning to make provision for special educational needs as some levers that have to be critically considered to make inclusive education a reality. eunice ivala investigates the inadequacy of many african universities to lead the process of integrating information and communication technologies (icts) into education. she emphasises that, for universities to lead in integrating icts in education, there is a need for total commitment to the initiative from management, a conducive environment, and technology support for faculty staff, among others. in his contribution, jan nieuwenhuis argues that moral reasoning should be seen to be that which an individual regards as being morally right, based on a personal set of values. teachers are also human, and this means they have the capacity to make choices and to act in accordance with the choices made. in this initial study, he explores students’ thinking and argumentation regarding moral dilemmas with a view to understanding how students, who are all practising teachers, take moral decisions. through a theoretical framework developed from the analysis of the fi ndings, he stresses the importance of communalism in african culture as a possible lens through which the moral dilemma could be analys ed. in his contribution, anselm chidi njoku argues that management challenges are drawbacks that have impacted greatly on the optimal development of the teacher. some of these relate to the inconsistencies with regard to admission requirements for teachers’ training, discrepancies in their recruitment and deployment, irregular career progression, inadequate provision of teaching and learning material, the non-inclusive nature of curriculum review, the reluctance of government to address teachers’ genuine grievances, inadequate teacher incentives and others. the teacher should be equipped to cope with the modern practices that are required of the “new” teacher. the review process in march 2009, deta sent out a call for papers for the conference to be held in ghana in august 2009. approximately 36 paper proposals were received. they were subjected to peer review before nine papers were fi nally selected. persons who read papers were invited to submit drafts for publication in the conference proceedings. editorial guidelines were provided to the conference speakers and 35 of them submitted drafts for consideration. the drafts were submitted to a double blind review and eventually nine of the original 35 drafts were selected for inclusion in this proceedings document. academic robustness was the primary criterion used in selecting contributions, but deta also proudly espouses a developmental dimension in the african research and publication context. we are confi dent that the proceedings will comply with the standards of academically acceptable conference proceedings worldwide. the editorial team wishes to thank the following peer reviewers for reviewing the drafts and providing the authors with valuable comments: alant, dr e bipath, dr k bornman, prof j bothasitse, mrs m brijraj, mr r bulawa, mr p chifwepa, dr v cossa, prof e de wet, mr h du toit, dr c ebersohn, prof l evans, dr r fraser, prof w fresen, dr j gatsha, dr g gumbo, dr t habashi, dr j heystek, prof j jele, dr d jordaan, mr d joubert, dr i joubert, prof r kamper, prof g kiboyi, mr w letseka, mr m lumadi, prof w madiba, dr m mahlangu, dr v mampane, dr r masalela, dr m meyer, mr g modesto, dr s nagel, dr l nieuwenhuis, prof j ogina, dr t olivier, dr h pansiri, dr o potgieter, prof p prinsloo, dr s schultz, prof s sefotho, mr m shonubi, mr o slabbert, prof j spamer, prof m stols, dr g sutherland, dr d trudie, dr f tshetlo, ms n van der berg, dr g van der westhuizen, dr c van niekerk, prof l van vuuren, dr h van wyk prof n venter, dr e wolfenden, ms f distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta ix viii acknowledgements the editors wish to express their appreciation towards the following individuals and institutions:  dr johan hendrikz, manager of the unit for distance education, faculty of education, university of pretoria, for the opportunity to publish this volume of conference proceedings.  the various contributors for their contributions.  mr pieter van der merwe of the department of library services of the university of pretoria for his assistance.  janine smit editorial services for the fi nal editing of the contributions, as well as for the design of the cover and layout of the publication.  the university of pretoria for its fi nancial and other support.  the university of cape coast, ghana, and the university of education, winneba, ghana, for hosting the conference.  businessprint for their professional printing service. table of contents 1. an impact evaluation of student teacher training in hiv/aids education: the case of the centre for continuing education, university of cape coast, ghana – mrs clara akuamoah-boateng, mrs josephine sam-tagoe and eddiebright joseph buadu 2. mentoring strategy in the supervision of secondary teacher education students in the postgraduate diploma in education of the zimbabwe open university – dr sharayi chakanyuka 3. maximising student support through cluster meetings in a distance teacher upgrading programme – elias wj chakwera 4. the policy and practice of placement of pupils in nigerian primary schools: a paradigm for educational success – a chukwu and lc chukwu 5. professional ethics in teaching: the need for a paradigm shift – sunday dada sw and fadokun james banji 6. inclusive education in ghana: what are the levers for change? – emmanuel kofi gyimah and irene vanderpuye 7. implementing blackboard: a case study of the cape peninsula university of technology, south africa – eunice ivala 8. exploring students’ understanding of values and moral reasoning – prof jan nieuwenhuis 9. management challenges as drawbacks to teacher development: the way forward for the nigerian teacher in basic education – anselm chidi njoku 1 17 37 51 65 87 101 117 137 distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 1 an impact evaluation of student teacher training in hiv/aids education: the case of the centre for continuing education, university of cape coast, ghana 1mrs clara akuamoah-boateng, mrs josephine sam-tagoe and eddiebright joseph buadu abstract this study was conducted to evaluate changes in student teacher trainees at the centre for continuing education, university of cape coast, ghana, after completing a course on the human immunodefi ciency virus/acquired immune defi ciency syndrome (hiv/aids). it particularly evaluated changes in relation to improving their level of knowledge on the transmission, stigmatisation, symptoms, prevention and control of sexually transmitted infections (stis) and hiv/aids. the study also considered stigmatisation, the attitudes of students towards people living with hiv/aids (plwha) and their sensitivity to impart knowledge on the pandemic. a descriptive research design was used. the target population comprised all student teachers who had participated in the programme on reducing hiv/aids and stigmatisation through education. a sample size of 600 respondents randomly selected from 10 study centres throughout the country responded to a 32-item questionnaire. section a of the questionnaire collected data on participants’ age, sex, study centre and level or year group. section b focused on fi ve research questions. frequencies and percentages were used to analyse the data. findings from the study revealed that there was an increase in the knowledge of student trainee teachers on stis, hiv/aids and stigma prevention, and their ability to discuss reproductive health and sexual issues. however, as student teachers were exposed to other hiv/aids materials and activities outside their written modules for the programme, it appears that not all of the changes were due to the programme. keywords: teacher training, hiv/aids education 1 mrs clara akuamoah-boateng, mrs josephine sam-tagoe and eddiebright joseph buadu are associated with the centre for continuing education, university of cape coast, ghana. e-mail: cakuamoahboateng@yahoo.co.uk and brightbuadu@yahoo.com distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 3 2 acronyms aesop annual education sector operational plans aids acquired immune defi ciency syndrome cbe community-based organisation cce centre for continuing education csw commercial sex workers dbe diploma in basic education esp education sector plan fbo faith-based organisation gac ghana aids commission ges ghana education service gdhs ghana demographic and health survey gnat ghana national association of teachers hiv human immunodefi ciency virus moess ministry of education science and sports moh ministry of health nacp national aids control programme ngo non-governmental organisation plwha people living with hiv and aids std sexually transmitted disease sti sexually transmitted infection tad teachers as agents of dissemination and change tewu teachers and education workers union ucc university of cape coast unaids united nations joint programme on hiv/aids vct voluntary counselling and testing introduction the human immunodefi ciency virus/acquired immune defi ciency syndrome (hiv/aids) pandemic continues to be a major challenge to global health and the socioeconomic development of many countries both developed and developing. the pandemic is one of the world’s most widespread infectious diseases. the extent of its devastation has raised global concern. the estimated number of persons living with hiv and aids worldwide in 2007 was 33.2 million (unaids, 2007). currently, around 40 million people worldwide are living with hiv and aids (bakilana et al., 2005). sub-saharan africa bears the greatest burden with more than two-thirds (68%) of all persons infected with hiv, although disparities exist in its distribution. an estimated 1.7 million adults and children became infected with hiv in sub-saharan africa and 1.6 million died of aids in 2007 (unaids, 2007). annually, an average of three million people dies of hiv-related illnesses, with about 80% of these deaths occurring in sub-saharan africa. similarly, almost 72% of all new infections take place in africa. there are currently an estimated 12 million aids orphans on the continent. although the highest rates of hiv infection occur in countries in eastern and southern africa, the threat of the disease is not confi ned to these subregions. more than half of the countries in sub-saharan african countries are experiencing a generalised epidemic, with the adult hiv infection rate exceeding 5% at the end of 1999 (kelly, 2001). the countries experiencing a generalised epidemic include those with large populations such as nigeria, ethiopia, south africa and the democratic republic of the congo (kelly, 2001). the countries of west africa are not among the worst hit, but the prevalence rate of the epidemic in these countries is nonetheless alarming. the general fragility of the economic, political and social systems of african nations has deprived the continent of any meaningful socioeconomic safety nets that could serve as a reliable bulwark against the ever-increasing menace of hiv and aids. the fi rst case of aids in ghana was diagnosed in 1986. by 1990, the number was around 1 130. the fi gure rose steadily to 5 500 in 1994, 22 500 in 2000 and 36 000 in 2004 (national hiv/aids/sti control programme, 2004). ghana had a median prevalence rate of 3.6% in 2003. this translates into 392 000 hiv/aids-infected persons as at the end of 2003. the 2007 national estimates and projections put the hiv and aids population at 249 145, which comprised 231 840 adults and 17 305 children, with a cumulative death rate of 2 027 (hiv sentinel survey, 2008). distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 5 4 hiv/aids prevalence rates are most pronounced among groups at high risk of infection. among patients infected with sexually transmitted diseases (stds), the prevalence rate is estimated to be 76% and 82% among commercial sex workers (csws) in accra and kumasi respectively (ghana aids commission, 2001). disaggregation of data by age, gender and region in both rural and urban surveillance sites reveals a high prevalence among the youth (15–30 years). however, the peak age of hiv/aids infection is 25–29 years for females and 30–34 years for males. higher numbers of aids cases are reported in the urban centres than in the rural ones (national aids control programme [nacp], ministry of health, 2001). the scale of the epidemic will result in considerable human suffering for infected and affected people at all levels of life, from the individual to the macroeconomy, especially the education sector, which has a workforce of over 240 000 in ghana. thus, the education sector is a major and critical area in which the hiv/aids menace can do most harm. if teachers, who have taken many years to train and on whom governments spend a rather large amount of scarce resources, should die prematurely in high numbers, the education of children and the youth would be greatly jeopardised. generally, hiv/aids impacts on the education sector in various ways, including the following:  as more and more educators and other education workers become infected, more money will be spent on servicing medical bills and little or no money will be left for expansion and the training of the workforce.  as administrators and managers fall sick, supervision and accountability will become diffi cult.  more budgetary allocation to the health sector will be required at the expense of the education sector in order to cope with the high demand for health care from people living with hiv/aids.  decreased donor support to the education sector will occur in favour of the health sector. as more and more families and pupils become infected with hiv/aids, the education system itself risks a reduced demand. this implies that there will be fewer children to be educated and fewer children who are able to afford education. the education system in general will be compelled to limit the supply of education because of teacher shortages and fi nancial constraints. furthermore, high absentee rates of infected and affected teachers will reduce the interaction between the student and the teacher, leading to a reduction in the quality of education provided. eventually, the ability of the education sector to fulfi l its function will be severely affected. ghana has made considerable strides in its response to the epidemic. since 2001, the country has adopted a multisectoral response to hiv and aids. as part of this initiative, the ministry of education has developed and implemented a strategic sectoral plan for hiv and aids, focusing on the prevention of new infections, care, support and advocacy. this is refl ected in the education sector plan (esp) 2003– 2015 and the annual education sector operational plans (aesop). ghana’s response to the hiv/aids pandemic was initially characterised by a medical approach, in which the disease was managed as a health rather than as a developmental issue and consequently directed by the ministry of health (moh). the overall coordination of hiv/aids was not strong at all levels because of the lack of an institutional framework to mobilise support from various stakeholders (ghana aids commission, 2004). the alarming spread of the pandemic at the time led to a realisation for the need for a strong political will and commitment, openness and a multisectoral and multipronged approach to control and manage hiv/aids in the country. as a result, a wide range of stakeholders, from governments, non-governmental organisations (ngos), faith-based organisations (fbos) to community-based organisations (cbos), was targeted to launch preventive care and support measures that are expected to successfully raise awareness and promote behaviour change among the populace. against this backdrop, the centre for continuing education at the university of cape coast, the university of education in winneba and the university of ghana in legon, ghana, collaborated with the simon frazier university in vancouver, canada, to launch a programme to reduce hiv/aids and stigmatisation through education in 2005. the main objective of the programme was to equip adult trainee teachers in distance education programmes with knowledge and skills that would enable them to take good care of themselves and to serve as agents of dissemination of knowledge and change in their schools and school communities. since its inception, the programme has trained three cohorts of student teachers, numbering about 6 000. this paper specifi cally evaluates the level of knowledge of distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 7 6 student teacher trainees at the centre for continuing education on the transmission, symptoms, prevention and control of stis and hiv/aids. methodology the research was a descriptive survey and covered a total of 600 diploma in basic education (dbe) student teachers at the centre for continuing education (cce). the students were conveniently sampled from 10 out of 22 study centres, covering fi ve regional capitals and fi ve district capitals. the 600 students represent about 10% of a total of 6 574 dbe student teachers who have completed the course on reducing hiv stigmatisation through education since its inception in 2006. the instrument used for data collection was a 32-item questionnaire. section a collected data on participants’ age, sex, study centre and level or year group. section b contained fi ve research questions. the respondents were asked to tick their preferred option or fi ll in their responses in the spaces provided. the instrument was administered by cce staff during one of their usual weekend faceto-face interactions with the student teachers. any ten readily available student teachers of each year group (from the fi rst to the third year) were provided with questionnaires and asked to complete and return them before the close of lectures. the return rate of the questionnaires was 96%. data collected was compiled and analysed, using the simple percentage comparison method. results and discussion background information table 1: sex distribution of respondents sex frequency percentage male 316 54.67 female 262 45.33 total 578 100.00 table 1 shows that more males (316) responded to the instrument than females (262). the method used to select the respondents was completely random. in addition, available statistics from the cce students’ database indicate that more males (3 408) have pursued the dbe programme than females (2 966) since its inception in 2006. these two factors may have accounted for the observed difference. table 2: age distribution of respondents age range frequency percentage below 25 years 80 13.84 26–35 378 65.40 36–45 84 14.53 above 45 63 6.23 total 578 100.00 the age distribution of students, as shown in table 2, indicates that the majority of the cce student teachers are between 26 and 35 years. a total of 378 students, representing 65.4% of the respondents, belong to this age category. conversely, those aged 45 and above form only 6.23% of the respondents. students within the 26–35 age bracket form part of the reproductive age group that is often considered to be between the ages of 19 and 49. in ghana, most people start working before the age of 26. in order to protect their jobs, they enrol in distance education programmes. this may account for the large number of students between the ages of 26 and 35. the 26–35 age group is the most vulnerable and forms the major workforce of the country, particularly in the education sector. any negative effect of hiv/aids on this group will have dire consequences for the country. a study indicated that the education sector had an hiv/aids prevalence rate of 9.2%, which was higher than the national prevalence rate of 3% (tumokong, 2004). the conclusion to be drawn is that the programme is directed at an appropriate category of students. what is the level of knowledge of student teachers at the centre for continuing education on sexually transmitted diseases and hiv/aids? a number of questions were posed to the students in order to evaluate their level of knowledge on issues of hiv and aids. table 3 provides details of the responses given by the students. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 9 8 table 3: level of knowledge of student teachers item positive response negative response frequency % frequency % no difference between hiv and aids 16 2.77 562 97.23 herbalists have a cure for hiv/aids transmission 36 6.23 542 93.77 female genital mutilation can transmit hiv/aids 556 96.19 22 3.81 aids can be transmitted without sexual contact 544 94.12 34 5.88 discrimination against people living with hiv/aids 24 4.15 554 95.85 stakeholder collaboration relevant to control 566 97.92 12 2.08 generally, the students exhibited a great understanding of all the issues raised. as shown in table 3, as many as 562 students (97.23%) out of a total of 578 knew that there is a difference between hiv and aids. on whether herbalists have a cure for aids, 542 students (93.77%) gave a negative response. again, while as many as 544 respondents (94.12%) knew that aids can be transmitted even without sexual contact, 5.88% thought that sexual intercourse was the only channel through which the disease could be transmitted. the trend was the same for other related questions on hiv and aids. when asked to comment on why, in spite of the many interventions, hiv and aids control has not been completely successful, students mentioned poverty, stigmatisation and ignorance as some of the factors militating against the struggle. other factors identifi ed were a high illiteracy rate, doubts about the existence of the disease, attribution of the disease to evil spirits and the diffi culty that people have in changing their behaviour. on what could be done to reverse the trend, the following suggestions were provided by the student teachers:  regulation of youth entertainment  use of information vans to show fi lms on real-life situations  active involvement of religious bodies in the campaign  elimination of stigmatisation  intensifi cation of television and radio programmes on hiv/aids  establishment of more guidance and counselling centres to provide hiv/aids education  more education on hiv/aids to be provided in local dialects  more recreational centres to be established in the communities  education on hiv/aids to be made examinable the high understanding of hiv and aids issues demonstrated by student teachers is consistent with the fi ndings of the ghana statistical service and macro international (published in the national hiv/aids strategic framework ii, 2006–2010), which states that there is near-universal awareness of the hiv/aids epidemic. this fi nding is an indication that the programme is making a positive impact on the trainee teachers. the broad knowledge base of the students on hiv and aids may also be attributed to other intervention activities by the ministry of education, science and sports (moess) and the ghana education service (ges), such as the teachers as agents of dissemination and change (tad) programme, the hiv and aids alert model and hiv and aids manuals for basic and senior high schools. did the education on hiv/aids and stigmatisation course result in a change in the attitude of cce trainee teachers towards the disease? the following attitudes of student teachers were evident before taking the course on hiv/aids:  they were afraid of people living with hiv/aids (plwha) and hence avoided and discriminated against them.  they saw plwha as immoral people receiving punishment from god.  they did not respect plwha.  they were pleasant towards plwha, but refused to interact with them.  they were unfriendly or hostile towards plwha. table 4: attitude of student teachers after the course on hiv and aids attitude positive response negative response frequency % frequency % talking to people suffering from hiv/aids 550 95.16 28 4.84 shaking hands with plwha 518 89.62 60 10.38 living in the same house as plwha 546 94.46 32 5.54 distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 11 10 attitude positive response negative response frequency % frequency % eating from the same bowl as plwha 484 83.74 114 16.26 washing the bedding of plwha 468 80.97 110 19.03 sharing an offi ce with plwha 552 95.50 26 4.50 walking with plwha 564 97.58 14 2.42 respecting and loving plwha 544 94.12 34 5.88 a baseline survey conducted on the student teacher trainees prior to the course on hiv and aids indicated that they did not respect plwha because they saw them as immoral people receiving punishment from god. students therefore discriminated against plwha and avoided them. it could, however, be seen from table 4 that there has been a reversal of the trend since the cce hiv/aids programme was introduced. the study, however, shows that students still shun activities that bring them into direct contact with plwha. table 4 shows comparatively lower numbers of responses for shaking hands with plwha, eating from the same bowl as them and washing their bedding in comparison to the responses for activities that keep people at reasonable distances from plwha. some students probably feel that having direct contact with plwha could be risky, as it may result in the transmission of the aids virus or other opportunistic diseases if one is not careful. to what extent are student teacher trainees at the cce involved in the dissemination of information on hiv/aids? table 5: students’ involvement in public education on hiv/aids item positive response negative response frequency % frequency % taking part in radio/fm discussions on hiv and aids 56 9.69 522 90.31 organising workshops, seminars, etc. 260 44.98 318 55.02 sharing knowledge on hiv/aids with people i come across 576 99.65 2 0.35 positive results to national issues are achieved when the populace is adequately informed. on the dissemination of information on hiv and aids by student teacher trainees, table 5 shows that out of the 578 respondents used for the study, 56 (9.69%) were involved in radio/fm discussions on hiv and aids, even though it may be unfair to expect such activity from all students. the remaining 522 (90.31%) were not involved in any radio/fm programmes on hiv and aids. regarding workshops, seminars and conferences, as well as being used as resources, 260 respondents (44.98%) said they had been involved in such programmes, while the remaining 318 (55.02%) replied in the negative. on sharing knowledge on hiv and aids with people, 99.65% of trainee teachers said they shared their knowledge with people they came across, while 0.35% said they did not. this may have contributed to the current high awareness of the hiv/aids epidemic in the country. a question asked on hiv and aids lessons taught in class revealed that 96.54% of trainee teachers teach such lessons very often or sometimes (table 6). the remaining 3.46% indicated that they had never taught hiv/aids lessons in class. from the data analysed so far, it can be concluded that, to a very appreciable extent, student trainee teachers are involved in the dissemination of information on hiv and aids. when people are well informed, it is easy to share information. table 6: rate at which hiv/aids lessons are taught response frequency percentage very often 164 28.37 sometimes 394 68.17 not at all 20 3.46 total 578 100.00 how do student teachers in the centre for continuing education distance programme protect themselves from contracting hiv/aids? this research question sought to fi nd out how student teachers protect themselves from contracting hiv and aids. table 7: student teachers who have gone through voluntary counselling and testing response frequency percentage yes 188 32.53 no 390 67.47 total 578 100.00 distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 13 12 as can be seen from table 7, 32.53% of a total of 578 student teachers who responded to the instrument have gone through voluntary counseling and testing (vct), while the remaining 67.47% have not. it is obvious from the results that people are not translating their broad knowledge on hiv/aids to the importance of vct. this may partly be attributable to the fear of discrimination and the stigma society attached to hiv. this fi nding is consistent with the survey report of the ghana national association of teachers (gnat) and teachers and education workers union (tewu) in 2008, which indicated that many people in ghana still hold the view that when it comes to hiv, ignorance is bliss. the low rate of vct among respondents could also be due to the lack of vct centres in a number of communities. in ghana, informal conversations reveal that most people are afraid to go for voluntary testing. they think that the psychological trauma they might suffer if they are declared positive will speed up their death even faster than the disease itself. knowing your hiv status serves as a control measure. it enables those who are negative to protect themselves from infection and provides the infected ones the opportunity to take good care of themselves with respect to medication and nutrition. there is therefore a need to intensify education on vct. other responses obtained in reaction to this research question include abstinence and condom use during sexual intercourse, not sharing sharp or piercing objects, and refusing blood transfusion. this fi nding is similar to the results of the ghana demographic and health surveys (gdhs) of 1998 and 2003, which showed that 88% of men and 81% of women knew that condoms could be used to avoid hiv/aids infection (ghana statistical service and macro international, 2004). other measures identifi ed by the students included using gloves to handle accident victims, avoiding deep kissing and blood covenants, not engaging in prostitution, as well as being faithful to one’s partner. the conclusion is that student teachers protect themselves through a number of means. if people know how to protect themselves against the disease, their chances of being infected will be reduced in the sense that they may make a conscious effort to refrain from certain negative behavioural tendencies. ignorance about the disease can lead multitudes to their early graves. what practical measures should be adopted to improve the hiv/aids course? this research question sought to unravel some of the practical measures that could be adopted to improve the hiv/aids course offered by the centre for continuing education. the majority of the respondents (95%) mentioned showing videos on hiv and aids as one of the strategies. videos will reveal some of the symptoms, as well as the state of the individual at certain stages of the disease. this will make students aware of how devastating the disease can be and they could hence avoid being infected. student teacher trainees also think that the course should be run for longer than a semester. this will enable students to get involved in various fi eld trips that will enhance their perception of the disease and also help them to have fi rst-hand information about the disease. other respondents said that another practical measure that could be adopted would be to include more pictures and diagrams in the course module to make the study real, for “seeing is believing”. measures, such as using people suffering from hiv/aids (plwha) as resources, reducing the content of the module to ensure better understanding and organising in-service training programmes for course tutors, were also mentioned by students. in addition to the above, students recommended the use of condoms, piercing instruments (needles, knives, blades, etc.), gloves and artifi cial penises and vaginas for teaching. to them, this will enable teachers to demonstrate the correct way of using these items and lead to an overall control of hiv and aids. conclusion this study was principally undertaken to evaluate the impact of hiv/aids education on student trainee teachers pursuing the dbe programme at the centre for continuing education. specifi cally, it considered transmission, symptoms, the prevention and control of stis and hiv/aids. the study also looked at stigmatisation, the attitudes of students towards people living with hiv/aids and their readiness to impart knowledge on the pandemic. the results revealed a high level of understanding of cce student teachers on issues of hiv/aids. questions bordering on the relationship between hiv and aids, cure, transmission and control were correctly answered by over 90% of the sample population. it was discovered from the fi ndings that students’ relationships with plwha have been improving since the introduction of the hiv and aids education course. some distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 15 14 students, however, still refuse to have direct contact with hiv/aids victims. more education is required to reverse this attitude. the number of student teachers involved in the dissemination of information on hiv/aids depended on the medium used. it was found that numbers were comparatively high for those media that related directly to their profession, but were low for other media, such as engaging in radio discussions. student teachers were found to adopt various measures to protect themselves against hiv/aids. among those mentioned were abstinence, condom usage and refusal of blood transfusion. recommendations the fi ndings of the study have implications for the hiv and aids programme at the centre for continuing education and other similar programmes being implemented in the education sector. the following recommendations were made:  the programme should focus attention and resources on the promotion and use of vct services.  the cce should open vct centres at least in the regional study centres as a means of encouraging student teachers to access this service.  face-to-face interaction attendance should be made compulsory for student teachers at least during hiv/aids lessons.  student teachers who wish to undertake specifi c programmes on hiv/aids should be given the needed support and motivation.  the content of the hiv/aids education and stigmatisation course module should be made more interactive and updated to include current issues on the pandemic.  more pictures and diagrams should be included in the course module to make meanings clearer.  the module and other education material used by facilitators should be reviewed to address the lack of female empowerment in making decisions and negotiating for safer sex. references appiah, en, afrane, s & price, mp. 1999. infringements of the rights of people living with hiv/aids (plwha): any evidence in ghana? the african commission for health and human rights providers: accra-ghana. bakilana et al. 2005. accelerating the education sector response to hiv/aids in africa: a review of world bank assistance. world bank global hiv/aids discussion paper. baku, jjk. 2006. mid-term output-to-purpose review (opr) of the teachers as agents of dissemination and change (tad) project. draft: moess. ghana aids commission. 2003. annual report. accra-ghana. ghana aids commission. 2005. national hiv/aids strategic framework ii, 2006–2010. accra-ghana. ghana health service, ministry of health. 2004. national aids/sti control programme. hiv sentinel survey report. accra-ghana. ghana health service, ministry of health. 2008. national aids/sti control programme. hiv sentinel survey report. accra-ghana. ghana health service, world health organization and dfid. 2004. aids surveillance report 2003: reported aids cases in ghana. national hiv/aids/sti control programme: accra. ghana statistical service and macro international. 2004. 2003 demographic and health survey. accra-ghana. kelly, mj. 2001. challenging the challenger: understanding the response of universities in africa on hiv and aids. washington: adea working group on education. kelly, mj. 2004. hiv and aids and education newsletter. international institute for education planning, 22(2). ministry of health. 2003. education strategic plan, 2003 to 2005: policies, targets and strategies, 1. moess. ministry of education, science and sports. 2008. a study of the education sector’s response to hiv and aids in ghana. hiv/aids secretariat: moess. research international/family health international. 2001. behavioural surveillance survey. ghana: family health international/ministry of health. sipa-adjah yankey. 2008. executive summary: hiv sentinel survey report. national aids/ sti control programme: accra-ghana. tumokong. 2004. the impact of hiv/aids on teachers and other education personnel in west and central africa. a synthesis of the literature from 2000–2004. yaounde-cameroon. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 17 16 mentoring strategy in the supervision of secondary teacher education students in the postgraduate diploma in education of the zimbabwe open university 1dr sharayi chakanyuka abstract the study sought to investigate the effectiveness of the mentoring strategy in the supervision of secondary teacher education students in the postgraduate diploma in education (pgde) programme. the study was qualitative in nature using a case study approach. mentoring was the phenomenon studied in depth. a convenience sample of three students and their three mentors was used for the study. this sample was done from a total population of eight student teachers and their eight mentors in the masvingo region of zimbabwe. data was collected through observation of lessons taught by each of the three students. students and their mentors then produced autobiographical accounts of their experiences with the mentoring process. data was also collected through document analysis of the students’ teaching practice fi les, which contained their schemes of work, detailed lesson plans, pupil records and mentors’ supervision reports. the study found that all six participants had a clear understanding of what mentoring entailed. the students and their mentors had collegial relationships that facilitated the guidance the students needed. the mentors used different strategies to guide the students, such as joint planning of lessons, conducting demonstration lessons in areas of student diffi culty and observing students’ teaching in order to facilitate the students’ acquisition of skills and knowledge in lesson delivery and interactive classroom management. students indicated that, through being mentored, they had developed positively in teaching skills, refl ective teaching and classroom management. keywords: mentoring strategy, supervision, teacher education, improved teaching skills 1 dr sharayi chakanyuka is associated with the zimbabwe open university. e-mail: sharayichakanyuka@yahoo.com distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 19 18 introduction distance education has played a signifi cant role in education and has been viewed internationally as a viable option for improving access to and the equity and quality of basic education in various settings (mcquaide, 2009). it is a way to educate people who would not otherwise have access to education and is a tool to support and supplement conventional educational programmes (perraton, 2000). one of the key characteristics of distance education according to keegan (1996) is the physical and temporal distance between the learner and the tutor. consequently, there are no lectures or classrooms and learners study at their own pace (holmberg, 1995). distance education institutions have to devise strategies to bridge the distance and offer tuition to learners. instruction is offered by various means, such as print, audio, video, television and the internet. in zimbabwe, the higher education landscape was transformed with the establishment of the zimbabwe open university (zou) in 1993 – initially as the centre for distance education of the university of zimbabwe and, in 1999, as a fully fl edged university with its own charter. the zou uses a combination of media to offer instruction to its students, such as print, face-to-face communication and the internet. it offers varied programmes in four faculties: arts and education, commerce and law, natural sciences and social sciences. one of the programmes offered in the department of education is the postgraduate diploma in education (pgde), which is a teacher education programme. a component of this programme is supervised teaching practice. the supervision of teacher education students engaged in teaching practice through distance education has provided logistical problems to many institutions. ntuli (2008) states that one of the attractions of distance education is that students learn from their jobs and homes, but these attractions are often eroded by problems associated with classroom teaching, especially in situations where students are in schools located long distances from each other and from the distance education institution. simpson (2008) argues that fi eld experience is considered important as it “provides the testing and proving context for the theoretical and curriculum courses in the programme”. such exposure could be provided through block releases, microteaching and observations. simpson (2008) goes on to argue that fi eld experience should provide opportunities for students to learn to enquire and refl ect on their teaching, as well as on the power and infl uence of relationships that operate in schools. one challenge faced in organising meaningful school experience arises from the need to fi nd suitably qualifi ed teachers to work with students and for lecturers from the distance education institution to visit the schools to give the necessary support to the teacher education students. the distances between the institution and the schools where the students are working make it fi nancially and logistically diffi cult to visit students regularly enough to ensure that students are developing professionally, as is expected by the institution (simpson, 2008). in view of the challenges of supervising teacher education students, the zou adopted mentoring as a strategy for supervising student teachers in its teacher education programmes. mentoring was seen as a viable means of ensuring that student teachers could practise the theory they learnt in their courses in the schools in which they were already teaching. the zou intended to empower mentors in those schools for their roles through training. mentoring was fi rst practised in business where it was used to induct new employees, and for career development and management training (alleman, 1986, daloz, 1983, hawkey, 1998). mentoring has since been adapted to teacher education programmes, where it is utilised mostly when student teachers are in schools to gain fi eld experience. in distance education, this is the part of the programme where university lecturers deliberately visit the schools to support mentors and to assess student teacher performance. in many universities, such as sussex university (dart & drake, 1993), teacher education is mostly school based, as it has been found that teachers learn more from the real school environment rather than in the higher education institutional environment where there are no classrooms or pupils. in zimbabwe, teacher education institutions combine stints in the institutions with periods at schools where students put the theory learnt in the institutions into practice (chakanyuka, 2002). in teacher education, mentoring can be viewed as a process through which a newer person in an organisation is helped into the system by a more experienced person. anderson and shannon (1995) view it as a process “involving an ongoing, caring relationship”. the american heritage dictionary (2006) defi nes a mentor as a wise and trusted counsellor or teacher. as a formal relationship, mentoring is assigned, deliberate and directed at employee development. as such, it has goals, schedules, the training of mentors and student teachers, and evaluation (hawkey, 1998). makoni (2006) views the process as facilitating the professional development of a student teacher in whom the mentor leaves footprints or a distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 21 20 legacy. through mentoring, student teachers have the opportunity to link theory learnt in teacher education institutions with practice in real classrooms with real pupils. pollick (2007) defi nes mentoring as a process in which the mentor guides a student teacher and offers spiritual, fi nancial and emotional support. this ability to marry theory with practice is the reason why mentoring has become popular in school-based teacher training programmes. the zou introduced the pgde, a school-based teacher education programme, in 1999. the programme afforded students the chance to study for a professional qualifi cation from the schools where they were teaching as untrained university graduates. as simpson noted above, this was an advantage for them in that they did not have to fi nd additional accommodation, meals, classrooms, scholarships or transport to a full-time conventional college (zou minutes, 17 june 1997). all they had to do was to attend two-week tutorials during school holidays and do assignments during term time. the programme was initially offered over four semesters until the period was reduced to three semesters in 2004. while students were teaching as they studied, they were monitored in teaching practice over two semesters, during which period they were assigned to a mentor, who was another teacher at the school. the mentor would regularly meet with the students, observe some lessons taught and give the student teacher a chance to observe the mentor teaching. the zou trained the mentors on how to carry out their mentoring responsibilities and, once in a while, visited the schools to supervise the students, offer support to the mentors and also to assess the students’ performance. in masvingo, the mentor was selected by the school principal on the basis of his or her being a fully qualifi ed teacher teaching the relevant subject to the student and having a minimum of fi ve years’ teaching experience (interview with zou lecturer in charge). the zou normally accepted the school’s choices, but carried out initial training to orientate all the mentors to the zou’s requirements and impart knowledge and skills in mentoring. the lecturer in charge of the programme organised the one-day training at the regional offi ce. through this training, all the mentors for the programme got acquainted with one another and shared their experiences. they would then go back to their schools and mentor students in those schools. this mode of training was considered to be more cost-effective than asking trainers to travel around the region to train mentors in their schools (interview with zou lecturer in charge). in this case, the lecturer in charge was female and had been working with the zou for three years prior to the study. before that, she had also worked as a lecturer in a teacher training college. this paper investigates the effectiveness of the mentoring strategy in the supervision of teacher education student teachers in open and distance learning. statement of the problem the zou adopted the mentoring strategy for the supervision of pgde students. from 1999 when the programme was launched, no research was carried out to fi nd out how effective the strategy was in developing students’ knowledge and skills. this study sought to investigate the extent to which the mentoring strategy contributed to the professional development of student teachers in the pgde programme. research question to what extent does the mentoring strategy of pgde student teacher supervision contribute to students’ professional development in open and distance learning? subquestions the study aimed to answer the following questions:  what perceptions do mentors and student teachers hold of mentoring?  what mentoring strategies do mentors use in supervising pgde student teachers?  what challenges does the zou meet in the supervision of student teachers?  what benefi ts do mentors and student teachers derive from being involved in the mentoring process? methodology for this study, qualitative research was used, which, according to guba and lincoln (1994), is “a situated activity that locates the observer in the world.” the researcher investigates things in their natural environments. in addition, the researcher’s aim is to try and make sense of, or interpret phenomena in terms of the meanings people give to the phenomena under study. the mentoring of pgde students in masvingo distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 23 22 was studied from the point of view of the students and mentors who were involved on a daily basis (yin, 1984, kaplan & duchon, 1988, key, 1995). qualitative research enabled me to obtain in-depth data from participants about their experiences and perceptions of mentoring and being mentored. through qualitative research, i adopted an interpretive perspective that enabled me to understand the reality of mentoring from the perceptions of the mentors and student teachers who were involved in it on a daily basis (kaplan & duchon, 1988). i aimed to gain a deep understanding of mentoring as it was practised in the schools in masvingo (darke et al., 1998). in line with qualitative research, i used a case study design, which, according to yin (2003), is “an empirical inquiry which investigates a contemporary phenomenon within its real life context”. kaplan (1985) defi nes case study research as research that studies a phenomenon in its natural setting, employing different methods of data collection. from these two defi nitions, we note that case study research focuses on one phenomenon in the setting in which it normally occurs. the case study was appropriate for this study because i was studying a contemporary phenomenon – mentoring – in its natural setting (darke et al., 1998). mentoring was a specifi c strategy deliberately selected for the supervision of student teachers. one advantage of the case study was that it enabled me to use different data collection methods (kaplan, 1995, tellis, 1997, yin, 2003) so that i could establish how mentoring was used as a strategy of supervising secondary school teacher education students in an open and distance learning institution. some of the data collection strategies used in case study research are direct observation, interviews and document analysis (tellis, 1997, yin, 2003). at the time of the study, i was working as a lecturer in the department of educational management in masvingo. i used convenience sampling to select mentors and student teachers to participate in the study. convenience sampling was suitable for this study because the students selected attended the supervision sessions that had been organised by the lecturer in charge of teacher education in masvingo and were both accessible to me and were presumed to have adequate knowledge and experience of being mentored (russell & gregory, 2003, teddlie & yu, 2007). the students were also from three different districts of masvingo (chiredzi, mwenezi and bikita) and were willing to participate in the study. their mentors automatically became participants. data collection there was a total of eight pgde students in one intake in masvingo. these students taught in different schools at least 100 km away from masvingo in four different directions: chiredzi to the southeast, bikita to the east, chivi to the southwest, and zaka and mwenezi to the south. with the limited fi nancial resources available to the region at the time, it was impossible for zou lecturers to supervise the eight student teachers in the schools in which they were teaching. students were invited to one central school in a district, where they taught pupils in that school in forms similar to those they regularly taught. zou lecturers supervised them in these schools. the student teachers had to bring to the venue the textbooks they needed for the lessons they had planned, as well as their teaching practice fi les, to ensure that they had adequate teaching and learning material for the arranged sessions. i took advantage of these arranged supervision sessions to collect data from the student teachers in my study. consequently, i did not have the opportunity to visit student teachers in their normal classrooms, where they had established a rapport with pupils and were familiar with the school routines. one of the data collection methods for case study research is observation (yin, 2003). i used observation to obtain fi rst-hand data on how the student teachers were operating in their classrooms. as a non-participant, i observed each of the three student teachers teaching a ”new” class in a ”new” environment to fi nd out how they managed the lesson, the pupils and the subject content being taught. this strategy enabled me to observe the student teachers (marshall, 1998) on three different days when the arranged supervision took place. it is possible that the results of my observation may not have been a true refl ection of the teachers’ performance, but it provided me with fi rst-hand data, which demonstrated the skills and knowledge that the student teachers had mastered up to that point in their teaching practice. none of the other data collection strategies could provide this data. i also collected data through autobiographical accounts written by both mentors and students (thorne, 2000). armstrong (1987) argues that autobiographical accounts are useful instruments for collecting data because they assign signifi cance and value to a person’s own story and the interpretations he or she places on his or her experiences. in addition, the accounts document the inner, subjective distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 25 24 reality as constructed by the individuals. the accounts in this study placed value on the students’ and mentors’ own perceptions of the process of mentoring and being mentored. i used this data collection method to minimise misconceptions that might arise from the fact that i could not observe students teaching in the schools in which they normally operated. i hoped that this method would generate data that gave a realistic representation of their experiences in schools. through personal accounts, the participants had the opportunity to express their views and perceptions of the mentoring process in their own language and expression. the responses received varied in length from one to three pages. even though i had given the mentors and students the option of using phrases, they all chose to use full sentences. this was useful because it was easier to understand what they had written. the participants were informed that their accounts could address any or all of the following mentoring issues:  understanding of the concept of mentoring  mentor-student relationships  mentor strategies  skills and knowledge that mentors focused on  the benefi ts of mentoring  students’ progress during the mentoring period ideally, the students and mentors should have been interviewed as well. however, this was not possible due to the long distances that the student teachers travelled and the very busy timetables they had to follow on these days. the detailed information in the autobiographical accounts and document analysis, taken together with observation data, helped to give as realistic a picture as possible of how mentoring could be used as a strategy to supervise teacher education students in open and distance learning institutions. finally, the lecturer in charge of the programme in masvingo was interviewed to get the institution’s perspective on the mentoring strategy. ethical issues the case study involves obtaining a great deal of personal and subjective data from participants. scott (1996) recommends that participants must be consulted and must give their consent before taking part in the research. simons (1984) identifi es the rights of the research subjects as impartiality from the researcher, which enables representation of all viewpoints, and willing participation. the researcher also has to maintain the privacy, anonymity and confi dentiality of the participants. in this study, i explained to the participants what my research entailed before observing them and asking them to write their accounts of the process of mentoring or being mentored. i explained that the data i was collecting was for the purposes of this study and would not be used offi cially by the zou. in addition, i did not use the names of my subjects or any information that might reveal the identity of the participants. each participant wrote his or her personal account privately and did not share it with either the mentor or fellow students. the participants were asked to keep their accounts anonymous. because of this, i am confi dent that the perceptions i received on different aspects of the mentoring process were genuine representations of the participants’ experiences. data analysis data analysis in qualitative research starts at the beginning of the study. i began to do tentative data analysis as i started to collect data and read about mentoring. from literature on mentoring, certain themes, such as a defi nition of mentoring, strategies for mentoring and relationships in mentoring, began to emerge and i used these in the guides on personal accounts (watt, 2007). genuine data analysis began after i had collected all the data. in analysing the data, i kept checking the accounts, document analysis and observation notes i had made to ensure that no useful information was overlooked. as qualitative data analysis is iterative (holliday, 2007), i refl ected on this data over and over again to ensure as thorough an understanding of the mentoring phenomenon as possible. as i did this, i made notes that i used to identify patterns, recurring themes and the general meanings mentors and students placed on their experience. i checked data from various distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 27 26 sources for convergence of information (darke et al., 1998). these represented the themes that i then used to present the data. to ensure that my results were credible, believable and trustworthy, i used data from different sources to capture the essence of mentoring from such different perspectives as documentary data from students’ records, mentors’ personal accounts, students’ personal accounts and the observation notes that i had made. these sources taken together proved useful in generating the understanding of mentoring given below. i took this decision in line with rossman and rallis’s (1998) assertion on the value of triangulation. findings student supervision in masvingo the lecturers in masvingo have to supervise widely dispersed teacher education students. because of logistical and fi nancial problems, zou lecturers were unable to supervise the students adequately in the schools in which they were teaching. as a way of dealing with the problem, the lecturer in charge of the pgde in masvingo decided to cluster the schools according to districts and their close proximity to each other. student teachers in one cluster would be asked to report to a school central to the cluster and be supervised by a team of zou lecturers. such visits were not conducted regularly. the clustering of schools for supervision purposes served their purpose during a period of fi nancial hardship for the university. background information on participants all student teachers and mentors were male. this was a refl ection of the overall gender profi le in this programme, where only two of the eight student teachers in the intake were female. only one of the three mentors held a university degree or a graduate certifi cate in education. two mentors held diplomas in education (secondary). the shortage of certifi cated graduates in rural secondary schools accounted for this situation. ideally, a teacher mentoring a student teacher on the pgde programme should have been a university graduate. chakanyuka (2002) reports that some students found it diffi cult to take advice and guidance from someone they considered to be less qualifi ed than they were. the mentors’ teaching experience ranged from eight to 17 years. their ages were 30, 40 and 44 years. the three students were 30, 34 and 30 years of age. two mentors were older than the students they were mentoring. from this perspective, the mentors were old enough to be respected by the student teachers they were mentoring. in one study, chakanyuka (2002) discovered that one mentor had a problem mentoring a student who would not respect her because they were of the same age. defi nition of mentoring all six participants in the study had a reasonable understanding of the concept of mentoring. the defi nitions they gave covered key issues of mentoring such as “giving guidance to someone less qualifi ed”, “helping teacher training students with techniques that could make them good teachers” and “offering advice by a practitioner who is above you in terms of professional qualifi cation”. from these defi nitions, it is noted that mentors and students identifi ed the key issue of mentoring, namely the pairing of a qualifi ed person with a less qualifi ed one to ensure that the qualifi ed person guides the professional development of the student. in this case, a teacher with higher qualifi cations and more experience is paired with a student teacher who is undergoing pre-service training. these aspects of mentoring are similar to the defi nitions given by maynard and furlong (1995) and anderson and shannon (1995). maynard and furlong (1995) view the role of the mentor as a complex one in which the mentor supports the trainee teacher to acquire concepts, schema and skills about practical teaching and learning in the process of professional development. tomlinson (1995) refers to mentoring as active assistance given to student teachers who have to acquire the complex skills of teaching and learning, which he identifi es as “acquisition of awareness and strategies relevant to teaching”, “engagement in teaching activity”, “monitoring teaching activities and their effects”, “adapting teaching strategy in response to refl ection” and “motivate student teachers to harness their personal strengths through relevant interpersonal strategies” (tomlinson: 1995). in a welsh programme (estyn, 2001), mentors provide welltargeted support and guidance to trainee teachers in order to meet their needs and help them to solve the problems they come across in the classroom. relationship between the mentor and the student teacher the three pairs viewed their relationships positively, describing them as “sound, learning from each other”, “very good and sound”, “good two-way communication”, distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 29 28 “favourable – the mentor has a strong desire to assist the student teacher” and “good and working cooperatively”. from the above excerpts from personal accounts, we note that the relationship verged on being open, which allowed communication to fl ow freely from mentor to student teacher and vice versa. the relationships enabled the mentors to guide the student teachers’ professional development. chakanyuka (2002) found that relationships tended to determine the level of assistance and support mentors gave student teachers. where relationships were positive, mentors gave maximum support and guidance to student teachers. both the mentor and student teacher had a responsibility to ensure that the relationships between them enabled mentors to adequately guide the student teacher. as a result of the positive relationships between the mentors and the students, all pairs indicated that they learned from each other. the discussions were productive. one student wrote that “at the end of lesson observations we all come to an agreement”. the mentors are seen as being prepared and ready to assist the students in their professional development. one mentor indicated that he and his student worked cooperatively for the benefi t of the student. in such situations, the mentor’s guidance was accepted without question by the student teacher. the issue of mentors without university degrees was not raised in this study. students viewed them as qualifi ed enough to assist them to become qualifi ed and professional teachers. mentor strategies mentors in the study used a variety of strategies to assist student teacher development. one mentor indicated that he planned lessons with the student teacher and proceeded to observe such lessons. all mentors observed some of the lessons taught by the student teachers and gave feedback in post-lesson discussions. one mentor offered demonstration lessons to guide the student in diffi cult areas. one student viewed the supervision by his mentor as “supervision and not fault-fi nding to guide and help me where i went wrong”. these activities are similar to mentor activities reported by kiely and mcclelland (undated). in their study, mentors guided, coached, challenged student teachers and offered advice on planning, classroom management and refl ection. these strategies are similar to those identifi ed by tomlinson (1995), the purposes of which were to help students acquire the skills of teaching and learning. in carrying out these strategies, mentors focused on teaching methods, lesson delivery, interactive classroom management skills and teaching methods. mentors, therefore, focused on knowledge and teaching skills. teaching methods focused on the acquisition of knowledge, while lesson delivery and teaching skills focused on the skills necessary for successful and effective teaching, both of which are similar to the knowledge and skills that tomlinson (1995) suggested trainee teachers should acquire. some skills cited by both groups were lesson introduction, classroom management, the maintenance of discipline, teacher-pupil interaction, pupil-pupil interaction, marking skills, lesson evaluation and planning skills. in the skills domain, the mentors focused on all aspects of lesson delivery from planning to lesson introduction and lesson evaluation. a study of the supervision reports the mentors had produced on the students’ teaching also confi rmed this. in general, the mentors gave constructive comments that helped the students to develop in their teaching practice. from the reports written in the early stages of the teaching practice to the later reports, there was evidence of growth in the student teachers’ teaching performance. in the early stages of teaching practice, one mentor wrote: “the student has to plan his lessons more effectively.” another mentor wrote: “the student teacher’s lesson evaluation is shallow.” in the supervision reports just before the observation lessons, the two mentors wrote: “his lesson plans are now more meaningful for his lessons” and “lesson evaluation points out genuine areas of pupils’ strengths and weaknesses, and necessary remediation is being undertaken”. these reports point to the fact that mentors had defi nite areas of professional development on which they focused. in one case, the student teacher was weak in lesson planning and in another the student teacher was weak in lesson evaluation. the two mentors gave advice on these areas and recorded progress on them in the supervision reports. it would appear that student teachers heeded the mentors’ advice and feedback to improve their classroom performance. student learning from the nature of the relationships between mentors and student teachers, it was clear that there would be positive learning on the part of the student teachers. the students indicated that they had gained a lot through being mentored, as the following excerpts show: “teaching skills as well as refl ective teaching”, “the value of the teacher as a facilitator of learning, child-centred learning and refl ective teaching”, “how to deliver lessons through different methods and different learning aids” and “group dynamics are more effective than lecture method”. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 31 30 the student teachers identifi ed the area of their professional development as teaching skills, refl ective teaching, the teacher as a facilitator of learning and the use of group work rather than lecturing. from these gains, we note that the student teachers’ gains were on the critical aspects of teaching and learning. as teachers without certifi cates, these were areas posing problems to them. the mentors helped the students to critically evaluate their lessons and teaching approaches. this strategy helped the students to develop into refl exive teachers who would experiment with different teaching approaches and not be replicas of their mentors. one weakness of mentoring is that some mentors discourage students from experimenting with new ideas, thereby limiting the professional development of the students. through being mentored, the student teachers had the opportunity to enquire and refl ect on their teaching, as simpson (2008) argues. on the other hand, mentors viewed the student teachers’ gains in more or less the same fashion, as the following excerpts from the mentors’ personal accounts show: “students started to practise strategies suggested by the mentor”, “improved remarkably in presentation of lessons – from lesson preparation to lesson evaluation”, “improved in the control of classes”, “counselling pupils and offering individual help or remedial work”, “remarkable progress in teaching, formulating objectives and lesson evaluation” and “student developed from chalk-and-talk and lecturing strategies to pupil-centred strategies”. it can be seen that the gains were genuine, as mentors and students identifi ed similar gains in teaching skills, refl ection (from lesson preparation to lesson evaluation) and class control. the student teachers also took the advice of their mentors seriously, which led to the progress they made in their teaching. this development was also evident in the mentors’ supervision reports, as indicated above. the mentor helped to instil new ideas and values in the student teachers, such as pupil-centred methodologies and the teacher as a facilitator and not a dispenser of learning. the working relationships between the mentors and the student teachers in this study encouraged enquiry and experimentation, which led to greater development on the part of the student teachers. while the mentors in this study did not identify the benefi ts they derived from the mentoring experience, chakanyuka (2002) and estyn (2001) point out that mentors have an opportunity to refl ect on their own practice and thereby improve their teaching skills. mentors also improve their management skills. it can be argued that mentors in this study also benefi ted from the process in similar ways. conclusions the fi ndings of this study indicate that the participants understood what mentoring was and what it entailed. the defi nitions they gave and the activities they carried out were clear indications of their understanding. it would appear that for the pgde programme in masvingo, mentoring was an effective strategy for managing the fi eld experience of secondary teacher education students. while zou lecturers could not supervise student teachers in their regular schools, the mentors provided the guidance necessary for the student teachers’ professional development. a telephone interview with the lecturer in charge of the programme in masvingo suggested that very little or no training of mentors took place. the mentors relied on their extensive teaching experience to guide the student teachers. the mentors used a variety of strategies to ensure that the students in their care developed professionally. while they focused mostly on classroom teaching, they also helped the students understand the changing role of the teacher, in terms of which the teacher is not a dispenser of knowledge but a facilitator. mentors encouraged students to use effective group work, which enabled pupils to learn both from each other and from the teacher. all the students and mentors confi rmed that there were defi nite gains for the student teachers in the mentoring process. students were guided meaningfully and acquired the necessary teaching skills, knowledge and aptitudes in classroom teaching and the profession. students also found the relationships with their mentors to be conducive to their positive professional development. it can be concluded that student teachers were able to practise the theory they learnt from the zou under the safe guidance of the mentors. from the fi ndings above, it can be concluded that mentoring was a strategy that contributed effectively to the professional development of the student teachers in masvingo. with extensive training, using mentors is a strategy that can be used to manage students’ fi eld experience in open and distance teacher education programmes. recommendations while mentoring is an effective strategy for the supervision of student teachers, it needs to be supported by intensive training of the mentors to ensure that they distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 33 32 are imparting the knowledge and skills required by the relevant open and distance learning university. this would ensure that when, because of logistical and fi nancial problems, zou lecturers cannot supervise the student teachers adequately, mentors have the necessary skills and knowledge to guide students effectively. the clustering of schools for supervision purposes may be useful for a while, but a more sustained and effective method of supervising student teachers is required. the best method would be to supervise the student teachers in their regular classrooms where they have established routines with their classes, are familiar with the classes and are taken seriously. students referred to the inconvenience of carrying piles of textbooks to these venues and the possible problems this posed if, for some reason, they lost some textbooks. in addition, pupils in the “new” schools took time to get accustomed to the student teacher and sometimes did not take them seriously. there is a need for more research in the other regions of zimbabwe to fi nd out how the mentoring of student teachers is being practised. the zou needs to have a fuller understanding of the mentoring strategy of supervising teacher education student teachers in open and distance learning institutions. references alleman, e. 1986. measuring mentoring frequency quality impact. in: gray, ww & gray, mm (eds.). mentoring: aid to excellence in career development, business and the professions. british columbia: the xerox production centre. anderson, em & shannon, al. 1995. towards a conceptualisation of mentoring. in: kerry, t & mayes, as (eds.). issues in mentoring. london: routledge. armstrong, pf. 1987. qualitative strategies in social and educational research. the life history method in theory and practice. newland papers. bates, aw. 1999. technology, open learning and distance education. london: routledge. chakanyuka, s. 2002. mentoring and professional development of pre-service primary teacher training students of masvingo teachers college, zimbabwe: a case study. dphil thesis. falmer: sussex university. daloz, l. 1983. mentors: teachers who make a difference. change, 15(6):24–27. darke, p, shanks, g & broadbent, m. 1998. successfully completing case study research: combining rigour, relevance and pragmatism. information systems journal , 8:273– 289. dart, l & drake, p (eds.). 1993. improving initial teacher training: new roles for teachers, schools. falmer: university of sussex. estyn. 2001. good practice in mentoring trainee primary teachers in wales. available at: www.estyn.gov.uk/publications/mentoring_ittp.pdf. guba, eg & lincoln, ys. 1994. competing paradigms in qualitative research. in: denzin, nk & lincoln, ys (eds). handbook of qualitative research, pp. 105–117. london: sage. hawkey, k. 1998. mentor pedagogy and student teacher professional development: a study of two mentoring relationships. in: teachers and teacher education, 14(6). holliday, ar. 2007. doing and writing qualitative research. 2nd edition. london: sage publications. holmberg, b. 1995. theory and practice of distance education. london: routledge. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 35 34 kaplan, b & duchon, b. 1988. combining qualitative and quantitative methods in information systems research: a case study. mis quarterly, 12(4). kaplan, r. 1985. the analyses of perception via preference: a strategy for studying how the environment is experienced. landscape urban planning, 12:161–176. keegan, d. 1996. foundations of distance education. london: routledge. kerry, t & mayes, as (eds). 1995. issues in mentoring. london: routledge. kiely, e & mcclelland, g. undated. case study on mentoring in initial teacher training of science teachers in ireland. available at: www.mint-mentor.net/en/pdfs/ casestudy_etaink.pdf. latchem, c & robinson, b. 2002. teacher education through open and distance learning. london: routledge. makoni, ta. 2006. nurturing champions: powerful mentoring strategies and concepts for perpetuating your infl uence and legacy. harare: rapha trust. marshall, g. 1998. non-participant observation. a dictionary of sociology. available at: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1o88-nonparticipantobservation.html. accessed 18 february 2011. maynard, t & furlong, j. 1995. mentoring student teachers: the growth of professional knowledge. london: routledge. ntuli, z. 2008. evaluating and improving teaching practice and distance education teacher training programmes using learning environments assessments. perraton, h. 2000. open and distance learning in the developing world. london: routledge. perraton, h. 2003. models for open and distance learning: teacher education and training. london: commonwealth of learning. rossman, gb & rallis, sf. 1998. learning in the fi eld: an introduction to qualitative research. thousand oaks: sage. russell, ck & gregory, dm. 2003. evaluation of qualitative research studies. evidence based nursing, 6(2):36–40. scott, d & usher, r. 1996. understanding educational research. london: routledge. simons, h. 1984. negotiating conditions for independent evaluations. in: alderman, g (ed.). london: croom helm.the politics and ethics of evaluation. simpson, m. 2008. field experience in distance delivered initial teacher education programmes. available on the internet. tellis, w. 1997. introduction to case study. the qualitative report, 3(2). available at: http://www.nova.edu.ssss/qr/qr3-2/tellis1.html. the american heritage dictionary of the english language. 4th edition. 2006. houghton miffl in, boston, ma. thorne, s. 2000. data analysis in qualitative research. in evidence-based nursing, 3:68–70. tomlinson, p. 1995. understanding mentoring: refl ective strategies for school-based teacher preparation. buckingham: open university. watt, d. 2007. on becoming a qualitative researcher: the value of refl exivity. in the qualitative report,12(1). available at: http://www.nova.edu/sss/qr12-1/watt.pdf. yin, rk. 1984. case study research. 1st ed. beverly hills, ca: sage. yin, rk. 2003. case study research. 3rd ed. thousand oaks: sage. zimbabwe open university. 1997. minutes of meeting of the department of education on the introduction of the pgde programme. unpublished zimbabwe open university document. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 37 36 maximising student support through cluster meetings in a distance teacher upgrading programme 1elias wj chakwera abstract in an attempt to improve students’ retention and ensure high per cohort completion rates, a student support system of cluster meetings was introduced for the upgrading of teachers from primary teacher certifi cate to secondary teacher diploma in malawi. the programme targeted teachers who were teaching in community day secondary schools (cdsss), despite being qualifi ed for primary school teaching. the distance education upgrading programme was aimed at improving knowledge and skills to enable students to improve their competency in teaching the secondary school syllabuses. as part of the student support system, cluster meetings and study circles were meant to enhance student-to-student support and instil a sense of belonging to a cohort. both cluster meetings and study circles have continued to be well supported by subsequent cohorts many years after their introduction in the support system. the study investigated how cluster meetings and study circles contributed to the success of students in the programme. data for the study was collected through individual interviews with programme managers, focus group discussions with cluster leaders, and questionnaires for students and fi eld supervisors. the study found that study circles and cluster meetings united students of same subject combinations in a cohort in the same way that classes provided a sense of belonging in a face-to-face programme. it was, therefore, concluded that cluster meetings provided peer support, which gave further impetus to achievement through increased collaboration in academic assignments. keywords: open and distance learning (odl), fi eld supervisor, learner support system, teacher upgrading, cluster meeting, study circle 1 elias wj chakwera is associated with the domasi college of education, malawi. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 39 38 introduction an appropriate support system is necessary to help students in a distance education programme achieve the goals they set individually prior to enrolling in the programme. this is especially true of a teacher upgrading programme, which aims at increasing knowledge and updating the skills of teachers who learn and teach at the same time. teacher upgrading through the distance mode ensures that the teacher shortfall and quality in deprived schools are addressed at the same time without additional costs to replace teachers who would otherwise upgrade their skills through full-time tuition (unesco, 2002). because teacher upgrading programmes are usually linked to career progression, such as salary increments and promotions, they tend to enjoy high patronage of teachers in service. the candidates that enter such programmes tend to have the greatest desire to succeed and increase their chances of promotion and better salaries in their careers. it is, therefore, important to ensure that the learner support system provided in an open and distance learning (odl) teacher training programme maximises the number of students who successfully complete the training. in malawi, a certifi cate is a qualifi cation for primary school teachers, while a diploma offered by a university or a college of higher learning is the minimum qualifi cation for secondary school teachers. due to critical shortages at various levels, teachers trained for primary schools are sometimes deployed to teach in secondary schools. in such a deployment, the teachers are considered underqualifi ed because they lack content and appropriate methodologies for the secondary level. the upgrading programme that was investigated targeted qualifi ed primary school teachers who were teaching in community day secondary schools (cdsss), but were enrolled to upgrade their qualifi cations to diploma-level through the distance mode. the cdss is a secondary school that once operated as a distance education centre where primary school teachers were deployed as tutors to facilitate studies. the change of the status of the distance education centres to cdsss also changed the role of teachers from facilitators to teachers, as was the case in conventional secondary schools. it was against this background that the distance teacher upgrading programme was introduced to help teachers acquire knowledge and skills while teaching in already deprived schools. from the outset, the upgrading programme under investigation deployed a fi eld support system that promoted student collaboration. the key components of the support system included a residential phase and a fi eld support phase. during the fi rst eight weeks of the academic year, students were provided with face-to-face instruction by college lecturers to introduce them to the year’s work and assignments. the next ten months constituted the fi eld support phase, in which cluster meetings and study circles characterised peer support, while fi eld supervisors – as off-campus staff members of the college – gave administrative support. the fi eld supervisors also gave on-the-spot academic support and encouragement to students to ensure timely attendance to and submission of assignments. by providing regular contact between students on the one hand and between students and their supervisors and lecturers on the other, the support system reduced the isolation experienced by students, which could otherwise have affected their progress (maroba, 2004, craig, kraft & du plessis, 1998). this study examined the contribution of study circles and cluster meetings to learner success in the upgrading programme. both the cluster and study circle meetings provided face-to-face support, which added a human voice to the learner support system (modesto & tau, 2009). the question under investigation was the following: to what extent did study circles and cluster meetings infl uence student performance in the upgrading programme? the cluster meetings were held once a month to deal with administrative matters, which included issues of communication from the college or to the college through fi eld supervisors. study circles, on the contrary, were subject combination-specifi c and enabled students to discuss academic matters, including assignments and problems related to their profession. in both meetings, the students enjoyed the feeling of not being alone in their study programme. the inclusion of study circles and cluster meetings was important to provide students with peer support, which is critical for professional growth. peer discussions engaged students deeply in new knowledge and skills that, in turn, helped them to meaningfully internalise what they learnt. it is against this background that the study aimed to examine the extent to which cluster meetings and study circles provided students with opportunities to learn and succeed in the programme. methods the study used mixed methods of data collection, despite using a largely descriptive qualitative design. the purpose of the design was to create meaning of the practice, which has been maintained for a period of ten years since its introduction. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 41 40 the design depended on drawing from participants their constructed meaning of what they considered to be the value of the study circles and cluster meetings in the learner support system. it was of interest to draw from the participants their perceptions or feelings of the support system in ensuring that the design helped to answer the question of interest (richards, no year). the qualitative data was supported by quantitative data drawn from closed-type items, which were included in the questionnaires for students and fi eld supervisors. it was of interest to quantify responses as frequencies or percentages to facilitate the interpretation of the data. for this reason, both qualitative and quantitative results have been reported in the fi ndings of the research. several stakeholders were sampled to participate in the study as informants from whom data was collected. the key informants were the students who were the direct benefi ciaries of the learner support system. the students were divided into two categories, cluster leaders and ordinary students. one hundred students were randomly selected from existing lists to complete questionnaires that specifi cally focused on the perceived value and contribution of the cluster and study circle meetings. the questionnaires were distributed during the residential session when students came together to write the fi rst semester examinations. this approach helped to increase the return rate of the questionnaires to 78%. the cluster leaders who participated in focus group discussions were purposely selected by the programme managers who knew them well. they comprised both men and women, who could contribute freely in discussions as key informants, and were drawn from both humanities and science combinations. there were eight participants in each focus group discussion for humanities and science, which raised the number of teacher learner participants to 94. this number was considered representative enough, considering that using both questionnaires and interviews to collect data from the same target population ensures richness in the depth and quality of information drawn for purposes of research (fraenkel & wallen, 1993). in addition, information was sourced from 16 fi eld supervisors through questionnaires. independent interviews were conducted with two key managers, who coordinated the activities of the programme. in all, there were 112 participants from whom data was drawn for the study. the open questions in both the interviews and the questionnaires were analysed qualitatively by identifying themes and unique responses of a qualitative nature. of interest was the need to establish whether the cluster meetings satisfi ed the academic or administrative needs of the students in the programme. unique responses, which revealed the feelings of the students, were of interest to provide the qualitative aspects of the fi ndings. the closed questions in the questionnaires were quantitatively analysed with the help of the spss computer software package. the data called for descriptive statistics of frequencies and percentages to provide summaries of the most expressed opinions on which conclusions have been drawn. the two analytical approaches increased the accountability of the wealth of the data collected in the study. this, in fact, facilitated the triangulation of the information, which guaranteed the study’s depth in dealing with the problem that would otherwise have been missed had only a single method of data collection and analysis been used. extracts from open questions in the interviews and questionnaires have been reported as evidence of qualitative responses and tables have been used to report quantitative fi ndings. the inclusion of quantitative analysis made comparison between groups possible, as each could be tabulated with their frequencies and percentages. findings and discussion qualitative and quantitative fi ndings have been presented together and not separately to emphasise the fact that mixed methods were used to triangulate the data and provide deeper meaning of what was observed. data triangulation is a way of strengthening the evidence that had been unearthed in support of the arguments presented in the discussion of the fi ndings. creation of environments that sustain learning the study circle and cluster meetings provided learners with consistent contact with supervisors and fellow learners, which created safe learning environments in which they could ask questions, reveal their uncertainties and explore new dimensions in their studies (o’rourke, 2003). both students and fi eld supervisors indicated that study circle and cluster meetings fulfi lled different, but complementary purposes in support of student learning. the former mostly facilitated academic discussions with groups of different subject combinations and the latter allowed for the participation of all teacher learners in the affairs of the cluster members and also dealt with administrative matters led by a fi eld supervisor. the fi eld supervisors promoted less formal interaction with the students through attendance and spot checking on study circle meetings. the study circles were conducted more frequently (at least every fortnight), while cluster meetings were conducted once a month. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 43 42 it was reported that, in study circles, students tended to meet in groups of subject combinations to conduct academic discussions. the agenda was guided by content topics and assignments prescribed for each semester. from the interviews with programme managers and cluster leaders, it emerged that students used the interactions to share resources and skills in teaching the various topics they were assigned to teach in their classes. it was clear from the responses that the study circles were seen as anchors of the programme to which the success and sustainability of learners could be attributed. by putting emphasis on subject combinations, the study circles were conducted with a specifi c agenda that helped learners to discuss problems that were specifi c to their subjects. this ensured a detailed analysis of the academic problem and possible solutions that could be collectively generated. it is not surprising that all participants felt that the study circle meetings greatly helped clarify issues that would otherwise have been diffi cult for individual learners to do. in responding to the question of what would happen if study circles were taken out of the support system, one student said: “there would be total disaster because students are not confi dent to tackle assignments on their own before they check with their colleagues. i am sure some would withdraw from the programme before submitting the fi rst assignment in which much peer assurance is required.” table 1 provides a summary of how teacher learners felt about the usefulness of the study circle meetings in supporting their learning in the odl programme. table 1: teacher learner perceptions of the usefulness of study circle meetings reasons for maintaining study circle meetings in odl percentage helping each other in assignments 92 helping each other in clarifying diffi cult areas 78 helping each other to improve the teaching of diffi cult areas 11.5 others 44.9 for the students, the major reason for maintaining study circles was to enable them to help each other with assignments. this reasoning is consistent with their response to the question of how they benefi ted individually from the study circles. the majority of the participants attributed their success or high performance to the support they received from their peers in the study circles. these results confi rm what other authors have indicated about the value of discussion groups in odl programmes, such as providing opportunities for tutoring (moon, leach & stevens, 2005, maroba, 2004, thuteotsile, 2004), reducing isolation, which undermines efforts to study in rural settings (craig, kraft & du plessis, 1998), and promoting the spirit of sharing learning resources, which are often scarce (jenkins, 2004). resource-sharing is evident in the manner in which teacher learners of the same subject combinations cite similar references in assignments. one of the managers interviewed in the study stated: “students use study circles to share resources. i see assignments in my subject are often completed using the same sources per cluster, which is an indication that study circles enable students access the same sources.” providing socialisation opportunities and a sense of belonging in the category ̒others̕ in table 1 were a variety of reasons that showed some unique responses regarding the benefi ts of the programme to individuals. among the reasons were welfare matters that demonstrated opportunities for socialisation. apart from reducing isolation and affording the individual members a sense of belonging to a group, the study circles offered opportunities for developing trust among group members, which became the basis of sharing resources. this was important in a country where resource scarcity has been exacerbated by unwarranted competition among teachers in various schools. it is common to see neighbouring schools reporting serious disparity in terms of human and material resources, despite being funded from the same budget. another important factor that demonstrates lessons from study circle groupings is the opportunity for students to express or learn organisational skills. this was particularly noticeable when the college coordinated fi eld activities through cluster leaders in the absence of hired fi eld supervisors for two years. at the time, the initial contracts of the fi eld supervisors had expired and the college used cluster leaders to coordinate administrative activities in the fi eld. the students performed their roles satisfactorily, except for those matters that were purely academic in nature. for example, it was ethically challenging to allow one student to collect assignments from others and send them to the college as fi eld supervisors do. providing administrative links with the training institution the teacher learners also saw the attendance of the cluster meetings as obligatory and as a means of sustaining themselves in the programme. for both meetings, no-one reported never attending the meetings. the majority indicated that they frequently attended the meetings, as shown in table 2. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 45 44 table 2: summary of frequency of teacher learner attendance of cluster and study circle meetings frequency of attendance study circle cluster most frequently 46.2 46.2 often 44.9 41. rarely 9.0 12.8 never 0.0 0.0 it was clear that students felt obliged to attend both meetings. the results were not specifi c to gender or subject combinations, as all respondents showed that they attended the meetings regularly. the few that selected “rarely” as a response also indicated distance or lack of partners with similar combinations as their reasons for not attending the meetings frequently. the students’ responses regarding their attendance of the meetings were consistent with the expectations of the programme managers who felt that the attendance was obligatory for all students. the managers emphasised that the meetings were the only reason for which the students could be allowed some time off from their schools to attend to academic work in their course. the college management had, from the onset of the programmes, negotiated with ministry of education offi cials to allow the students time off on a school day once a week or fortnightly for the purpose of attending such meetings. the managers also felt that the support that the students gave each other through the meetings contributed substantially to the high success rates and minimal dropout rates registered in the programme. with regard to cluster meetings, it was generally observed that the majority of the respondents regarded them as administrative in nature. the meetings were held in the presence of a fi eld supervisor to share information about the programme and to afford learners the opportunity to submit assignments or receive communication from the college, including marked assignments. table 3 provides a summary of what teacher learners and supervisors felt were the contributions of cluster meetings to the whole learner support system of the programme. table 3: summary of how cluster meetings provided learner support contributions of cluster meetings to learner support responses per group of participants (percentage) field supervisors students facilitating important communication 62 88 facilitating the submission and receipt of assignments 78 51 contributions of cluster meetings to learner support responses per group of participants (percentage) field supervisors students discussing welfare matters concerning the cluster 47 25 other 9 7.7 the results generally demonstrate agreement between learners and fi eld supervisors on the factors that were fi rst articulated in the interviews with cluster leaders and managers of the programme. the cluster meetings generally satisfi ed the administrative functions of the programme under the leadership of fi eld supervisors. in supporting this, one of the students in a group discussion said: “you cannot miss cluster meetings because that is where you meet the supervisor to give marked assignments or submit assignments that are due. sometimes you go to the venue of the meeting very early to get the assistance of others on the assignment before it is submitted.” it was, therefore, clear from the fi ndings of the study that both cluster and study circle meetings provided learning environments to individuals and groups of students. cluster meetings were considered to be important forums for the exchange of ideas and resources that were necessary in the programme. the fi ndings were consistent with the original plans of the support system of the programme in the fi eld phase. opportunity for professional growth although many students who completed questionnaires did not see the improvement of teaching as either the reason for or the benefi t of the study circle meetings, it remains an important factor for the teacher programme delivered through the odl mode. an upgrading programme for teachers would fail to enhance quality improvement if it only encouraged the acquisition of additional content without regard to how the teachers would improve the practice of teaching in their classrooms. apart from understanding diffi cult areas covered in the course materials, students in the study wanted to make an immediate impact on their teaching as though they were already qualifi ed. by enrolling in the programme, they felt that they could immediately do better in their teaching because they were exposed to both the materials and techniques of qualifi ed secondary school teachers. this turned out to be the case because the major drive for them to enrol in the programme was to get the respect of a qualifi ed teacher at the schools in which they taught. it is, therefore, not surprising that some of them reported distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 47 46 how the study circle discussions helped them to improve their teaching. this was consistent with the observation that adult learners typically want to be able to link what they are learning with their life and work (o’rourke, 2003). it was, therefore, inevitable for the students to expect the programme to offer them opportunities to practice teaching in the areas of their professional interests. it was reported that, at times, group discussions were diverted to deal with how to teach a topic that had direct relevance to the syllabus they were teaching. this was a necessary extension of the intellectual discussions to accommodate the professional needs of the most inquisitive students who saw opportunities for the immediate application of what they had learnt. in this way, the discussions in the study circles usually moved from mere intellectual interactions to professional enrichment through the horizontal process of consolidating individuals’ support to ensure cross-fertilisation of ideas on resources and techniques of teaching that were relevant to specifi c topics. one student expressed this experience as follows: “before i joined the programme, i experienced diffi culties teaching some topics of the biology syllabus. through discussions and sharing ideas and examples in our study circle, i have gained some competency to teach the topics.” challenges and recommendations both learners and managers, including fi eld supervisors, cited distance from the school to the venue of cluster or study circle meetings as a hindrance. this was particularly a problem because students used their own money to travel and attend such meetings. in a number of cases, modifi cations to the schedules have been made either to hold study circles fortnightly as opposed to weekly and/or to rotate the venues of the meetings to balance the fi nancial demands of the meetings for different students. in areas where more than two students of the same subject combinations were present in one school or at the same locality, a study circle would be established to reduce transport costs. the supervisors were also advised to ensure the rotation of cluster meeting venues so that distance does not affect the same students in the same way all the time. the system was diffi cult to monitor because of distances to be covered and the fi nancial limitations that were usually experienced. the programme managers depended on reports from fi eld supervisors or cluster leaders in the absence of the supervisors. usually such reports were about student attendance or absenteeism and not about the academic or professional discussions that took place. in some instances, learners followed up on those who failed to attend the meetings as a way of encouraging them. an additional challenge was that of cash needed to buy food and refreshments for members whose meetings went beyond lunchtime. both students and fi eld supervisors reported this as a serious problem, especially because the project that started the programme made provision for refreshments every time students and supervisors met in cluster or study circle meetings. the college management was, on several occasions, petitioned for consideration of this aspect. the programme managers shared the view of the college management that such a service would not be possible in view of budgetary constraints. in addition, it would be diffi cult to monitor accountability of such a service, even if money was available for it. the concern was indeed genuine because it was reported that some groups resorted to taking monthly contributions for drinks and snacks during the meetings. there were also indications that some students were pressing their school heads to contribute towards transport and refreshment expenses during the meetings. there seemed to be no easy solution to this problem considering the fact that the programme was expanding. it would be appropriate for the training institution to recognise such expenses as additional costs of the programmes when reviewing students’ fees. it was also observed that some students abused the arrangement to embark on their own personal errands without attending the meetings, yet they were absent from teaching in their schools. this is a challenge because some head teachers saw the arrangement as an excuse for those teachers who just wanted to miss classes. it was, therefore, diffi cult for some head teachers to grant permission for students on the programme to be away from their duties to attend the meetings. despite the once-off communication, which the ministry of education made regarding the arrangement at the beginning of the programme, the college management was asked to clarify the arrangements from time to time to sustain the cluster meetings and study circles. the demands of the head teachers were not unusual in the context of the serious teacher shortages experienced, especially in rural schools. although the meetings ensured the success of the learners in one way or the other, it is necessary for the management of the programme to seriously monitor the meetings to curb abuse. it should be necessary to ensure that the meetings are carefully integrated into the resource demands of the schools so that the support system does not further deprive the schools of their teachers, as is the case in full-time programmes (unesco, 2002). there is also a need for the programme managers to deliberately regulate cluster and study circle meetings in such a way that they meaningfully meet the needs of all students, with their agendas being made available to school administrators for collective support. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 49 48 the current setup of study circle meetings favours subject combination groupings based on the year of study. it was observed that the arrangement further isolated the learners of minority subjects, who could not usually have anyone of their year and subject combination in the same locality. there was evidence that the students continued to meet and discuss within the same cohorts and not across years. the system, therefore, denied those who had already gone through the course an opportunity to help those who came after them. this explains why some students felt isolated, even when they had seniors of the same combinations in their cluster. it is, therefore, recommended that programme managers plan assignments that are subject focused rather than syllabus prescribed to allow students of different years to engage in discussions across broader perspectives once in a while. such an approach could promote collaboration between students based on the subject area rather than being specifi c to the year of study. from the managers’ point of view, the most serious challenge of cluster and study circle meetings was the enforcement of learner dependence on group work. it was observed that weak learners mostly depended on the contributions of others when responding to individual assignments. college lecturers were bothered with similarities in some responses to assignments by students from the same study circles, which could be a sign of a serious offence of plagiarism. apart from demonstrating the learner abuse of study groups, the problem also challenged the way lecturers come up with assessment tasks, which failed to get unique responses based on the creativity of individual students. if students discuss factual questions exhaustively, it will be to the advantage of all to copy the points raised during discussion groups. while factual presentations would be expected to be similar, students get distinctions when they try to apply or provide examples and illustrations that demonstrate unique interactions with the material that has been fully understood. it could be necessary for the college lecturers to deal with the problem by improving on assessment tasks so that more challenging responses could be expected. conclusion both cluster and study circles provide the opportunity to sustain learners in the programme. this is particularly important in a country with serious resource limitations where learners do not have access to a computer, telephone and/ or electricity connections and supplies in their homes, as well as a poor postal connection (jenkins, 2004). the print material that the learners receive upon enrolling in the programme remains the most precious information, which must be fully understood in order for them to make progress in the programme. therefore, the groups in the study circles have been used to achieve the maximum benefi t from the course of study. the meetings accorded teacher learners with the opportunity to understand the coursework and improve their pedagogical skills to complete their teaching assignments better. the meetings reduced learner isolation and they also increased the learners’ motivation to stay in the programme and successfully complete their training. the use of cluster and study circle meetings helped the students to recognise fellow students as an important resource for their progress in the programme. they used the meetings to support each other both academically and professionally. in addition, the meetings provided opportunities for socialisation and practising organisational skills, which teachers need. an upgrading programme is essential when it focuses on teacher growth as a whole and not just on the academic side of the teacher. it was clear that the use of the cluster and study circle meetings helped the students to see the potential of their fellow students in facilitating their own academic and professional growth. it is not surprising that they all generally supported the continuation of the support system for the retention and success of the students in the programme. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 51 50 references craig, h, kraft, rj & du plessis, j. 1998. teacher development making an impact. washington, dc: usaid and the world bank. creed, c. 2001. the use of distance education for teachers. international research foundation for open learning. fraenkel, jr & wallen, ne. 1993. how to design and evaluate research in education. new york: mcgraw-hill inc. freeman, r. 2004. planning and implementing open and distance learning systems: a handbook for decision makers. vancouver: commonwealth of learning. maroba, m. 2004. focus on learner support. in fentiman, a, (ed.). forum on open schooling for secondary education in sub-saharan africa. workshop report of the commonwealth of learning, gaberone, 5–8 october. modesto, st & tau, dr. 2009. introducing distance education. available at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0. moon, leach & stevens. 2005. designing open and distance learning for teacher education in sub-saharan africa: a toolkit for educators and planners. washington, dc: the world bank. o’rourke, j. 2003. tutoring in open and distance learning: a handbook for tutors. vancouver: the commonwealth of learning. richards, l. qualitative research design. available at http://www.sagepub.com/upmdata/13172-chapter 4. accessed 6 april 2011. thuteotsile, t. 2004. learning centres: the experience of botswana college of distance and open learning (bocodol). in: fentiman, a (ed.). forum on open schooling for secondary education in sub-saharan africa. workshop report of the commonwealth of learning, gaberone, 5–8 october. unesco. 2002. education sector, higher education division, teacher education section in cooperation with e-9 initiative. paris: unesco. the policy and practice of placement of pupils in nigerian primary schools: a paradigm for educational success 1a chukwu and lc chukwu abstract nations continue to strive to improve their education systems through various strategies and plans. some of these are outcomes of research on various aspects of education; hence the need for continuous research on all aspects of education. based on this, the present study aims to assess how school administrators handle the issue of the placement of pupils in classes in nigeria. the study, designed as a survey, used questionnaires and interviews to elicit responses from the sample. a total of 382 teachers, who participated in a workshop organised at the national institute for educational planning and administration, constituted the sample. a contingency analysis, as well as a t-test, was used to analyse data. results showed that most schools adopted the random placement criterion, an observation that was not a chance phenomenon, but refl ected the actual practice in the schools sampled (x2 computed = 520.76 > x2 table = 21.69, @ .05 level, 12df). results also showed that older schools used this practice more than the relatively newer ones. a t-test showed that between the educationally advanced states of the south and the educationally backward states of the north, the practice was the same (f computed 1.3 < f critical 1.3 @ .05 level). the implication is that a heterogeneous rather than a homogeneous class grouping is created that offers both low and high achievers the opportunity to interact and learn from one another, with the less academically bright pupils benefi ting from the brighter ones. the implication of this and other appropriate recommendations are discussed to aid overall education success in nigeria. keywords: pupil placement, educational success, educational planning and administration 1 a chukwu, and lc chukwu are associated with the national institute of educational planning and administration, ondo state, nigeria. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 53 52 introduction education is the bedrock of and the catalyst for any economy’s growth and development. governments appropriate huge sums of money in national budgets to education as a result and adopt strategies to attempt to ensure their education systems do not fail. such strategies include, but are not limited to offering free basic education, free tuition at tertiary levels, boosting teacher welfare, research and evaluation and improving teaching effectiveness by adopting various teaching methods to even such issues as the placement of pupils in classes. primary-level education is the foundation of all other subsystems in education. this recognition may explain numerous researchers and scholars’ interest in this area, as it is one of the ways countries sometimes attempt to provide optimal circumstances for learning for all pupils. the placement of pupils in classes is an emerging area which, if handled well by administrators and planners, could contribute to overall educational success. placement of pupils in classes this paper explores an international as well as a nigerian perspective on the subject of the placement of pupils in classes, taking the usa as a case study because of advanced policies in this area. in the usa, class placement is taken so seriously that policies exist for placing pupils. this, at times, involves parents who may even make specifi c requests either for specifi c teachers or classes due to various considerations. generally, factors that are considered in class placement include total enrolment, students’ ability levels, gender, special education needs, learners’ languages and other considerations that may benefi t all students or pupils. edina (2009) reported that when using a team approach, the head teacher addresses the following when placing students in instructional groups: heterogeneous groups (a mixture of academic abilities, talents and personalities), students with special needs (students who are disabled, physically handicapped or have emotional and/ or behavioural challenges) and special information (as identifi ed by the parents and/ or guardians). others include organisational options (students may be considered for options that may include self-contained or team teaching) and class size. in some instances, for example, at stillwater elementary school in the usa, placement displays variations of the above. the placement team tries to create a balance in classes, using the following criteria: classroom confi guration (ratio of boys to girls), the programme needs of individuals, a balance of achievement levels, the social needs of students and their leadership skills. other criteria are compatibility of students with one another (such as separating students who have not worked well together in the past) and the recommendations of former teachers, head teachers, parents, the guidance team or related information from previous schools (fierro, 2009). meeks (2009) adds that, in class placement, authorities should consider natural and man-made barriers, promote contiguous attendance boundaries (keeping neighbourhoods together), maximise the effi cient use of space, staff and transportation resources, and strive for future placement stability, considering future population growth and development. heumann (1994) argues that, with regard to the placement of a disabled child, authorities should consider special aids and facilities available in the class, such as appropriate teaching aids, specially designed walkways for the physically challenged who may need wheelchairs and the location of the class. underscoring the importance of careful placement of pupils in primary schools, especially twins, wiki (2009) reported that twins and multiples are specially handled, arguing that experts recommend that, unless there is a compelling reason to separate twins or multiples, the benefi t of keeping them together, especially at primary school level, outweighs the detriments. furthermore, there is legal backing for twins not being separated in class. some states in the usa have passed such laws or are in the process of passing them. for example, the texas twin bill (80 r h.b. 314) was passed in oklahoma and illinois in 2007. resolutions that have been passed date back as far as 1994. the state of new york introduced senate bill s. 2074 and state assembly bill on 21 august 2007. other states that have passed such laws include the state of pennsylvania (23 april 2007) and the state of florida (june 2008). in addition, bills have been sponsored and introduced in new jersey, massachusetts, alabama, carolina, georgia and indiana (fierro, 2004). in addition to the matter of twins and multiples, there is also the issue of gifted children. even the placement of a gifted child receives special consideration, granted that it is usually diffi cult to identify who is gifted and who would require a different type of school experience to succeed (palmer, 2009). overall class placement in the usa has received considerable legal and policy attention, which is not noticeable in nigeria. nigeria has a well-articulated national policy on education (npe), which specifi es the philosophy, objectives and values derivable from education. it specifi es these in broad terms and narrows them down to each type and level of education: pre-primary, primary and post-basic (secondary level and tertiary), stating clearly what each level should aim at achieving. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 55 54 there is no doubt that every citizen desires and is also compelled to get some level of literacy. hence the federal government has made education in the fi rst nine years (six years at the primary level and the fi rst three years at the junior secondary level) not only free, but also compulsory. the nigerian education system at all levels recognises and emphasises the following positive educational values stated in the npe (2004): respect for the worth and dignity of the individual, faith in man’s ability to make rational decisions, and moral and spiritual principles in interpersonal and human relations. other values include shared responsibility for the common good of society, the promotion of the physical, emotional and psychological development of all children, and the acquisition of competencies necessary for self-reliance. these values are defi ned in programmes of the primary education system because of the need to institute such values early in life as this level of education forms the bedrock of future levels of education. unfortunately, there is no legislation yet from the national primary education commission (npec), established by decree 31 of 1988, or its successor, the universal basic education commission (ubec), launched in 1999, on classroom placement, even though the npec (adeboyeje, 2006) was established among others to prescribe minimum standards for primary education throughout the country to cater for the needs of the educationally disadvantaged states, and to establish primary school management boards (psmb) at the state and district levels throughout the country. the nearest the commission got to legislation was the power statutorily given to the local government education authorities by decree 3 of 1991, which, among others, was responsible for “full enrolment and attendance of pupils in all primary schools in its area of jurisdiction”, without specifying how to place pupils so enrolled. so, whatever value can be added to this level through research is a milestone in the right direction. hence, this study deals with class placement in nigerian primary schools. however, no policy exists in the npe as to how pupils are to be placed in classes. there is, therefore, an assumption that the teacher knows how to place pupils or has the discretion to do so. there is no such policy at state or even local government level, hence the need to determine the policy and practice in nigerian primary schools. determining this has critical implications for educational success. this is why this study is about fi nding out what has been happening in the fi eld, with a view to providing appropriate advice on how to streamline them. previous studies have addressed areas such as class enrolment, dropout, transition or how to group pupils in large primary school science classes (ikitde, 2007). but, preceding these, is the issue of how pupils should be placed in classes. what criteria are used in nigeria to place primary school pupils to enable them to derive the maximum benefi ts enunciated in the national objectives? since no policy or legislation exists, determining this through this study is likely to have implications for contributing to educational success in nigeria. significance of the study if, by the present review, it is shown that class placement is as important to teachers as it is to parents and government, the study would have been of immense value in reawakening policy-makers’ interest in this area even more so, considering that advanced countries have already passed legislation guiding class placement. research design the study was a survey. questionnaires and oral interviews were the instruments for data collection. the sample consisted of 382 head teachers, who were involved in a skills improvement workshop for primary school teachers in the country. the questionnaire was given to them as part of the registration formalities. only a selected few of this number were interviewed in a panel of 10. data analysis data was analysed using contingency analysis to test if the frequency of occurrence of the responses was by chance or whether there was a relationship with the actual observation in the fi eld. a t-test was also used to test the difference between the responses from the “educationally advanced states” and the “educationally backward states” – the former used to refer to states in the southern and the latter to states in the northern part of the country. the qualitative data arising from the interview was used to enrich the observations from the questionnaire, as they were not subjected to a statistical analysis. presentation of the results data collected using the questionnaire was analysed using table 1. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 57 56 table 1: placement criteria by age of institution placement criteria homogeneous (by academic performance) discipline sex alphabetical (by surname) random* total age of school under 10 years (4.71) 18 (1.5) 6 (0.7) 3 (0.26) 1 (13.61) 52 (20.94) 80 10 years and more, but less than 20 years (3.93) 15 (3.14) 12 (1.05) 4 (1.3) 5 (12.56) 48 (21.99) 84 20 years and more, but less than 30 years (3.93) 15 (2.36) 9 (1.05) 4 (1.5) 6 (17.27) 66 (26.18) 100 30 years and more (3.14) 12 (2.36) 9 (0.26) 1 (1.5) 6 (23.56) 90 (30.89) 118 total (15.71) 60 (9.43) 36 (3.14) 12 (4.71) 18 (67.01) 256 (100) 382 *p < .05 figures in parenthesis in table 1 are percentages. table 1 shows data on how respondents addressed the issue of class placement in their respective schools. the table showed that of the 382 respondents, 15.71% (n = 60) place pupils by academic performance criteria. that is to say, the most brilliant group are identifi ed and placed in an ”a” class, while the less brilliant are placed in the ”b” class and so on. some 9.43% (n = 36) adopt placement by “discipline”, while 3.14% (n = 12) use “sex” as a criterion. in addition, 4.71% (n = 18) specifi ed “alphabetically by surname”, while 67.01% place pupils according to the “random” criterion. the latter indicates that as pupils arrive in a class from registration, they are just assigned to a class, irrespective of their academic ability, sex, surname or discipline. in addition, the study was interested in establishing the infl uence of the age of the school on the variable – class placement. data revealed that 20.94% of the schools were under 10 years old, 21.99% between 10 and 20, while 20.18% were between 20 and 30 years old, and 30.89% had been in existence for over 30 years. results showed that most of the schools, irrespective of age, adopted the ”random” criterion for placement more than any other criterion (13.61%, 12.56%, 17.27%, 23.56% and 67.01%). the study attempted to fi nd out if this observation occurred by chance or had any signifi cant relationship with the reality in the fi eld. table 2 explains this. table 2: contingency table on placement criteria by age placement criteria homogeneous (by academic performance) discipline sex alphabetical (by surname) random* total age of school under 10 years (4.71) a 18 12.6 (1.5) b 6 7.5 (0.7) c 3 2.5 (0.26) d 1 3.8 (13.61) e 52 53.6 (20.94) 80 10 years and more, but less than 20 years (3.93) f 15 13.2 (3.14) g 12 7.9 (1.05) h 4 2.6 (1.3) i 5 3.9 (12.56) j 48 56.3 (21.99) 84 20 years and more, but less than 30 years (3.93) k 15 1 (2.36) l 9 9.4 (1.05) m 4 31.6 (1.5) n 6 4.7 (17.27) o 66 6.7 (26.18) 100 30 years and more (3.14) p 12 18.5 (2.36) q 9 11.1 (0.26) r 1 3.7 (1.5) s 6 5.6 (23.56) t 90 79.0 (30.89) 118 total (15.71) 60 (9.43) 36 (3.14) 12 (4.71) 18 (67.01) 256 (100) 382 *p < .05 x2c= 520.76 > x2t = 21.69, .05, 12 df nb – figures to the right in the cell in parenthesis are percentages. figures down the left in the cell are the contingency observation scores of each cell. figures in the middle (centre) are frequencies. a, b, c … t are cell identifi ers. cells o e ∑ (o – e)2 e a 12.6 20.56 3.08 b 7.5 20.56 8.3 c 2.5 20.56 15.85 d 3.8 20.56 13.66 e 53.6 20.56 53.09 f 13.2 20.56 2.63 g 7.9 20.56 7.79 h 2.6 20.56 15.68 i 3.9 20.56 13.50 distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 59 58 cells o e ∑ (o – e)2 e j 56.3 20.56 62.12 k 15.7 20.56 1.15 l 9.4 20.56 6.05 m 31.6 20.56 5.30 n 4.7 20.56 12.23 o 67.0 20.56 104.89 p 18.5 20.56 0.20 q 11.1 20.56 4.35 r 3.7 20.56 13.82 s 5.6 20.56 10.88 t 79.0 20.56 166.11 ∑ 411.2 520.76 ∑ o = e = 411.2 = 20.56 n 20 x2c = 520.76 > x2t @ 12 df at .05 level table 2 shows the contingency table derived from the data in table 1. each of the 20 cells (a to t) has the ”observed” data at the bottom left, while the data in parenthesis are percentages. the fi gure in the middle of each cell is the obtained frequency of responses. following the calculations of the chi-square statistic, using the formula ∑ (o – e)2, a computed e x2 of 520.76 was yielded. compared with the table (critical) x2, which is 21.69, at 12 df at .05 level of signifi cance, it was confi rmed that the observations were not by chance and represent an actual relationship with what was obtained in the fi eld. therefore, most schools across the 25 states from which the sample was drawn adopted the random criterion in the placement of pupils in primary schools in nigeria. this observation further confi rmed the results of table 2 regarding the differences between the educationally backward and educationally advanced states. these are presented in table 3. table 3: the differences between the educationally backward states (ebs) and the educationally advanced states (eas) criteria n x sd t f eas 194 48.75 10.4 3.66 1.3 ebs 182 46.25 13.04 f 193,181 f computed = 1.3 < f critical = 1.39 @ .05 level table 3 presents data testing if there was any observed difference in the respondents from educationally advanced states and educationally backward states. since the table value (f = 1.39) is greater than the computed f value (1.3 at 0.5 level), the variances between the educationally advanced states and the educationally backward states do not differ, but are homogeneous, confi rming that there was no difference in the observations of the educationally advanced states and the educationally backward states, as both made use of random placement as the major criterion. findings the fi ndings of the study were that most nigerian primary schools adopted the random criterion in the placement of pupils in primary schools. this means that pupils are placed in classes as they arrive, without much regard to criteria such as sex, alphabetically by surname and discipline. the next most adopted criterion is by academic performance – where pupils are grouped according to the best academic performers in the a class, the next best in the b class and so on, otherwise referred to as tracking. the primary schools in the educationally backward states of the north essentially adopted the same criteria as the schools in the educationally advanced states of the south, that is, by random selection and academic performance. discussion of findings findings were consistent with the observations of the focus group who remarked that “if you don’t place by random, you will not be encouraging slow learners to rub off on the experiences of the brighter students who otherwise could have been caged into an a class, making learning experiences lopsided”. another frequent remark was that such random placement afforded pupils the opportunity of sharing the experiences of people from different home backgrounds, ensuring equity in teaching and learning as teachers might wish to water down learning distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 61 60 in an academically inferior b class. these two critical remarks summarised the observations of the focus group discussions. overall, the data – as presented in table 1 to table 3 – showed that the random criterion that automatically creates heterogeneous rather than homogeneous classes was used most. research evidence abounds, confi rming that such heterogeneous groupings – as compared to homogeneous ones – offer better educational learning experiences, even though anderson (2004) observed that comparing student achievement in homogeneous and heterogeneous classes is not as obvious as it appears at fi rst glance, arguing that the disparity is more likely in the ways in which students with a low or a high ability are treated when placed in a homogeneous class rather than a heterogeneous class, than it is in relation to group membership per se. hallinan in anderson (2004) concluded that students with a lower ability in homogeneous classes tended to receive instruction at a slower pace, their teachers had more time off-task for administrative or managerial reasons and the pupils were often taught using material that was less interesting than that used to teach similar students in heterogeneous classes. osaki and agu (2002), studying classroom interaction in primary schools, found that while segregating pupils on the basis of intelligence (tracking), when the boys and girls sat together, the girls in three rural schools in the districts of musoma, kisarawe and zanzibar complained that sitting close to the boys led to their being harassed, but there was no such harassment in the urban schools where the boys and girls sat together. this is another reason why class placement is an issue. the study has confi rmed that most schools adopted academic performance (tracking) as a criterion for placement. it also showed that such a criterion created homogeneous classes, while random placement creates heterogeneous classes. the implication is that the placement of pupils by academic performance denied average pupils the opportunity of mixing with the bright pupils. such interaction could have impacted positively on the average pupils. this system also reminded pupils so “tracked” in the b class that they were inferior to those in the a class and, as such, were likely to be affected emotionally, leading to some negative behaviour, such as being withdrawn, vexatious or delinquent. this may not be the best for low achievers or for equity, for the latter presupposes that the teacher of the b class may have a mental picture of the class being inferior and, as such, may tailor his or her teaching to suit the class. rather than motivating such pupils, the teacher might perceive the low quality teaching and watering down of the content to be a factor of their perceived underachievement. even in terms of teacher quality and availability, the school management may be unconsciously conditioned to have fewer quality teachers posted to the b class on the presumption that the school was dependent on the a class for the quality of the school’s academic performance. in a case of paucity of teachers in a stream, the a class got the needed attention rather than the b or c class and so on. but does tracking make a positive contribution to universal basic education? does it promote education for all? probably not. universal basic education is interested in promoting education for all, whereas the academic performance (tracking) criterion promotes education for a homogeneous group of learners: the so-called academically bright ones. using the random criterion, on the other hand, offers every pupil an equal chance of being either in the a or the b class. as such, both the academically bright and the less academically bright or the low achievers are mixed up in a class to share experiences. the apparently low achievers may, within some years, begin to perform better and, as such, promote healthy competition among the pupils. implications and recommendations this study has policy implications for school administrators, as well as planners and teachers, especially with regard to the advantages of heterogeneous versus homogeneous class groupings. based on the above, the following recommendations are made:  school administrators are encouraged to adopt the random criterion in class placement and reap the benefi ts of such heterogeneous class groupings.  planners are to ensure that this policy of classroom placement is refl ected in the curriculum of teacher trainees so they know the benefi ts of creating heterogeneous classes through random placement.  following this, teachers who are the direct line managers in the system should recognise that a heterogeneous class grouping demands special recognition in classroom management, especially as it relates to the question of distribution and class control.  a careful adoption of this policy increases the internal effi ciency of the educational system, which means increasing the capacity to turn out its graduates maximally, thereby reducing educational wastage that results from repetitions, failures and dropouts/early leavers. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 63 62 legislation should be considered, as in the usa, to guide the policy of class placement, such as who takes fi nal action, how to handle twins, the disabled and the physically challenged, etc., while adopting the random criterion for class placement. conclusion the overall fi ndings offer a number of explanations regarding how pupils should be placed in classes, recommending the random criterion as the most appropriate in a normal school setting devoid of pupils with special educational needs, especially handicapped or gifted pupils at the other extreme. in conclusion, the nigerian experience that favours heterogeneity through the random criterion, though not legalised, offers a good opportunity for low achievers to obtain equity, teacher quality and availability, and by extension, will contribute to the overall success of universal basic education, hence its adoption is recommended as standard policy in nigeria. references adeboyeje, ra. 2006. education laws in nigeria: concepts, principles and cases. ibadan: ruvic communications. anderson, lw. 2004. increasing teacher effectiveness, paris: iiep, unesco. edina. 2009. classroom placement: placement considerations. available at http://www. edina.k.12mn.us/concord/parents/handbook/placement.html. accessed 18 april 2009. federal republic of nigeria. 2004. national policy on education. fierro, pp. 2009. making decisions about classroom placement. available at http://multiples. about.com/cs/twininschool/a/twininschool.html. accessed 7 may 2009. heumann, je. 1994. osep memorandum 95 – 9. offi ce of special education and reliabilitative services, universities state department of education. ikitde, g. 2007. grouping strategy for teaching primary school science in large classes. in: african journal of educational research, ii(1 & 2):20–25. meeks, b. 2009. the classroom – boundary adjustments: what should the criteria be? available at http://www.farmingtin.k12.mn.us/classroom. accessed 5 september 2009. palmer, d. 2009. how schools decide if kids are gifted. available at http://www/metrokids. com/april08/gifted0408.ht.ml. accessed 5 september 2009. osaki, km & agu, ao. 2003. a study of classroom interaction in primary schools in the united republic of tanzania. prospects: a quarterly review of comparative education, xxxii(1):18–26. unesco. twin wiki, t. 2009. legislation in placement of twins. available at http://www. twinstaff.com/wiki/index.php/legislation_on_placement_of_twins_in_classrooms. accessed 5 october 2009. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 65 64 professional ethics in teaching: the need for a paradigm shift 1sunday dada sw and fadokun james banji abstract the term “ethical conduct” brings to the fore a debate about the distinctions between codes of conduct and their purposes, and ethical principles and their place in the teaching profession. some would argue that codes of conduct mandate specifi c behaviour in particular situations, but do not promote individual adherence to ethical principles. the grey areas in decision-making which confront most teachers on a regular basis arise in the face of competing interests and values. codes of conduct may assist, but not give clear defi nition to teachers’ decisionmaking. in other words, the organisation or system can mandate what not to do in particular situations, but it is impossible to list all possible situations that may arise. this becomes the territory of ethical decision-making. the delivery of training related to codes of conduct may be possible. training individuals to adhere to particular ethical principles when making decisions may not be possible. this paper addresses the challenges and constraints in the implementation of training and development programmes with regard to professional ethics in teaching in large education systems. the scope of the training and development challenge is revealed by posing a series of questions. some of these questions go the heart of the professional learning discourse. the use of case studies as a professional learning strategy is explored and examples of cases are included. keywords: teacher education, teacher professionalism, professional ethics, teaching ethics, development and training 1 sunday dada sw and fadokun james banji are associated with the national institute of educational planning and administration (niepa), nigeria. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 67 66 introduction ethical practice lies at the core of the teaching profession. the establishment of an agreed upon set of ethical principles by both the teaching profession and the public provides collective understanding and vision for the professional judgment and action of educators. there are, however, many challenges facing teachers in their profession in the area of professional ethics. it has been stressed by various authors that the challenge has to do with teacher in-service training programmes that hardly include issues of professional ethics (jekayinfa, 2005, hoyle & john, 1995). this paper is therefore intended to address the issue of teachers’ professionalism and teacher ethics in nigeria. the concept of professionalism according to halliday (1999), attempts have been made to solve the problem of defi nition using different approaches, such as the functionalist approach, the interactionist approach, the foucauldian approach and the division of labour approach. the functionalist approach is premised on the concept of a professional knowledge base. the focus of this approach, according to eraut (1994), is the social control of expertise. this approach was developed by marshall (1963) and goode (1969). criteria such as collectivity orientation and altruism were emphasised. the functionalists view a profession in terms of its central social function, its length of training, body of knowledge, high level of skills, a code of ethical conduct, client centredness, autonomy, independent decision-making, adaptability and selfgovernance. what is paramount in this approach is what a profession needs to be like and how its members need to act. people who defi ne a profession from a functionalist approach state that the approach spells out the privileges and position of professionals in terms of a rational solution to society’s needs. eraut (1994) observes that providing a list of professional traits and assuming their integrative function has not removed or solved the problem of defi nition. this is because most of the criteria in the functionalist approach to the defi nition are culture-bound with greater signifi cance in some countries – especially the developed countries – than in others. for instance, the approach assumes that there is a welldefi ned set of needs within society without working on the question about the nature of society. this means that the approach provides an understanding of the nature of the profession in terms of current practices that arise from the needs of societies, without considering the variations that exist within societies. the interactionist approach is concerned with the everyday actions and interactions of professionals and how they defi ne their social world as participants and construct their careers. this approach views professionalisation as a social and political project or mission that is designed to enhance the interest of an occupational group (hargreaves & goodson, 1996). this is why the interactionist approach is also called the social constructivitist approach. to the interactionist, profession is a relative concept that can be subjected to different constructions according to the discursive disposition of its advocates and critics. in this approach, the driving force of professionalisation is striving for upward mobility, while the main strategy is social closure, which enables the groups with a common interest to act in a collective manner to protect their interests and membership. the emphasis in this approach is on employment rewards for those who achieve professional status. ukpo (2005) maintains that the materially and symbolically privileged position of professional workers is achieved by virtue of the protection and patronage of some elite segment of society. the problem with this approach to the defi nition of profession is that the group may willingly or unwillingly erect barriers that could, in turn, promote inequality in an attempt to close access to its occupation. the foucauldian approach, on the contrary, establishes the relationship between knowledge and power. it is observed that knowledge is a key component in the competition for power. to foucauldians, knowledge and power are two sides of the same coin. who decides what knowledge is and who knows what needs to be decided? the power and legitimacy of professions are acquired, in part, from their status as organisations, defi ned by their control over knowledge. if control over knowledge is lost, what happens to power? mcdonald (1995) observes that this approach rejects any idea that the state is a purposeful actor; instead the state is considered as a collection of institutions, procedures and knowledge, which together form the particular direction that the state has chosen. the foucauldian approach suggests that both the state and the professions are, in part, the emergent effects of the interplay between changing government policies and occupational strategies. the concern of the division of labour approach is the competition between professions. its focus is on the content of professional work among professions and distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 69 68 dispute over work areas, to which mcdonald (1995) refers to as the jurisdictional dispute. this approach was made popular by abbott (1988). the different approaches provide useful understandings of professions and their professional activities, which have brought agreement on the criteria and characteristics of a profession. there is widespread agreement, according to hoyle and john (1995), on the criteria of knowledge, autonomy and responsibility. the approaches have provided benchmarks with which the status and conduct of a profession or its erosion might be measured and also draw attention to the changing nature of professional status, defi nition, work and behaviour. according to stanley et al. (1956), a profession may perhaps be defi ned as an occupation based on specialised intellectual study and training, the purpose of which is to supply skilled service or advice to others for a defi nite fee or salary. with regards to teaching, the unesco intergovernment conference on the status of teachers (1966) states the following: teaching should be regarded as a profession. it is a form of public service which requires of teachers expert knowledge and specialised skills, acquired and maintained through rigorous and continuing study; it calls also for a sense of personal and corporate responsibility for the education and welfare of the pupils in their charge. traits of professionalism the search for a set of criteria by which a profession can be recognised has been on for at least a century now. yet, there are no universal lists of characteristics of professionalisation that are universally acceptable. however, there are areas of widespread consensus, including the following:  performing an essential social service: teaching meets this criterion. the service that education performs is essential to the individual child who cannot be fully socialised into our modern society if he or she does not receive formal education. to society, it prepares individuals for various occupational roles.  possessing a body of specialised knowledge: there are some differences of opinion as to whether teaching meets this requirement. in teaching, both the subject matter knowledge and knowledge of education theory are essential in the preparation of teachers. what is not appreciated is the fact that education has a specifi c distinctive subject matter component. it could, therefore, be said that teaching meets this particular criterion.  having a high degree of autonomy: a profession must be self-regulating and self-governing. the autonomy to practice the profession relates to two main factors that are interdependent. the autonomy of the individual professional to perceive his or her role and responsibilities the way he or she feels best is in the interest of the profession and the autonomy of the profession as a whole. teaching does not meet this criterion fully.  a code of ethics: professions usually have well-defi ned codes of ethics to regulate the conduct of their accredited practitioners. the national union of teachers (nut) in nigeria has a code of ethics that guides its relationship with students, parents, the community, employer and the profession. unfortunately, it has little or no infl uence in matters of policies for auditing and registering professionally qualifi ed persons in the profession. in addition, it lacks the control and legal backing to enforce the standards it sets.  organisation into professional groups: every profession institutes and operates a professional association or organisation to which it ascribes certain functions and powers, such as the advancement of the professional competence and maintenance of prescribed standards. every professional association has a self-concept that transcends that of a mere trade union. unfortunately, the major obstacle preventing the nut from becoming a professional body has been the lack of extended educational training for all members of the union. the implication is that the nut has no control over its members when compared to other professions, such as medicine, law and engineering, among others.  exalting service above personal gains: members of any profession are expected to regard their services to the public as altruistic, with public interest put above fi nancial and other gains.  recognition by the public: recognition by the public is closely linked to the nature of the service that the profession renders. it must be such that the service is regarded as being essential to humanity. further still, the practitioners or the profession must have a high self-esteem. coupled with this is the question of personal satisfaction demonstrated by members of the profession. this is not always true of the teaching profession.  setting its own standards: standards are set and it is only when a new entrant satisfi es the stipulated requirements that he or she can be registered distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 71 70 as a member of the profession. the medical and legal professions, for example, have laid down standards that new entrants must meet before they are admitted into the professions. this is not true of the teaching profession, where the nut lacks the control and legal backing to enforce the standards it sets. although the teachers’ registration council of nigeria (trcn) is being charged with that responsibility, it is too early to assess its effectiveness since it only came on board six years ago. judged in the light of the above discussion, teaching in nigeria doesn’t meet all the characteristics of a profession in many countries of the world. in nigeria, however, teaching is yet to achieve autonomy and teachers do not require a licence or certifi cate to practise. a decree setting up the trcn was promulgated in 1993, but it is yet to be operational. thus, it can be said that in nigeria, teaching is progressing towards full professionalisation. the trcn partners with universities, state governments and other stakeholders in the education sector to organise training and retraining programmes in various parts of nigeria for teachers, with the aim of professionalising the teaching career. it also aims at equipping teachers to become better professionals. concepts related to teacher education education is a very powerful instrument for social progress. it is the greatest power yet known to man for his own improvement. broadly defi ned, it is the aggregate of all the processes by means of which a person develops abilities, skills and other forces of behaviour of positive (and sometimes negative) value in the society in which he lives (fafunwa, 1982). education is seen as a tool that is used for the integration of the individual into society so that he or she can achieve selfrealisation, develop a national consciousness, promote unity and strive for social, economic, political, scientifi c, cultural and technological progress (afe, 1995). training, on the other hand, differs from education. while the skills, knowledge and attitudes acquired in training are directed to improve performance in a specifi c vocation, those of education include a broad knowledge, skills and attitudes not directed to any particular job. training does not take place in a vacuum. it involves people, money and material. however, there are fi ve essential factors that affect training output, positively or otherwise: quality teachers and instruction, equipment or facilities and overall management capacity. teaching has existed for ages and it is sometimes diffi cult to trace its origin precisely. it is one of the oldest of human activities or occupations. as an activity, it consists of a body of “actions intended to induce learning, through the conscious and deliberate efforts by a matured or experienced person to impart knowledge, information, skills, attitudes, beliefs, etc. to an immature or less experienced person” (afe, 1998). a teacher refers to a person who instructs to provide the teaching and learning process. he or she assumes various capacities as an educator, instructor, tutor, lecturer, counsellor, professor, etc. he or she is the mainstay or prime mover of the educational system. according to aghenta (1991), “as an input operator into the educational system, the teacher plays a big role in the conversion of raw materials (particularly students) into fi nished products i.e. graduates”. teacher education is that component of any educational system that is charged with the education and training of teachers to acquire the competencies and skills of teaching to improve the quality of teachers for the school system (afe, 1993). having examined the basic concepts, let us now examine the history of teacher education in nigeria. training and development the training and development of teachers vary according to the institutions where teacher training takes place. it is not logical to believe that ethics or codes of behaviour should be part of the curriculum, since there is no harmonised pattern that all institutions can follow to train teachers. even some of the specialised colleges charged with the responsibility of training teachers do not conform to training with essential codes during the training period. perhaps we should ask the question whether it is possible to train teachers in ethical conduct. the term ethical conduct brings to the fore a debate about the difference between codes of conduct and their purposes, ethical principles and their place in the teaching profession. we can argue that codes of conduct mandate specifi c behaviour in particular situations, but do not promote individual adherence to ethical principles. the grey areas in decision-making that confront most teachers on a regular basis arise in the face of competing interests and values. this is a challenge to the professionalisation of the teaching profession in nigeria. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 73 72 we can ask this question: do student teachers learn through mentors and supervisors after leaving the school? this is necessary since the training acquired may not have contained the necessary standards that can withstand the realities in the fi eld. if the mentors and the supervisors are not ready to provide the mentorship, due to many protests of social inequity, the student teacher will be left stranded in the community school, not having any role models to follow. this will impact negatively on the learning performances of the students. the post-learning demands of the pupil teachers require experienced supervisors and mentors to be stationed to provide additional assistance to the village and community schools. this will make learning of the essential codes easier. professional ethics for the teaching profession in nigeria ethics is a branch of philosophy that deals with the theory of values. the ethics of the teaching profession are the moral beliefs and rules about right and wrong that infl uence teachers’ behaviour, attitude and ideals. the teacher is a crucial facilitator of knowledge acquisition, hence we take many cues from his or her behaviour in terms of dress, mannerisms in speech, attitude, and private and social life patterns. this is the basic rationale for the introduction of codifi ed ethics to the teaching profession. the code of ethics is meant to guide teachers’ behaviour and job performance. the task of education is mainly to guide the total growth and development of young people so that they will be functional, competent, welladjusted and sociable citizens of their communities in nigeria. there are some known, acceptable (social) norms that appear to be taken for granted as ethics in teaching. these acceptable (social) norms comprise two categories. firstly, moral ethics, such as honesty, loyalty, discipline, not smoking or drinking alcohol in the presence of students and in public places, dressing neatly and decently to school, sexual comportment and punctuality, is one of the hallmarks of teacher professionalism. secondly, work ethics, such as continuous learning, the regular preparation of lesson plans, serving in loco parentis for students, the regular assessment of learners, reporting on learners, being cooperative with other teachers at work and obedience to authority, is social norms that must be transmitted from generation to generation. the teacher, as a facilitator of learning, must not send inappropriate signals to students. it is to promote the actualisation of these critical attributes of a teacher that the federal government of nigeria took steps towards the professionalisation of teaching and teacher registration to sift the “weeds from the tar”. professional ethics in teaching, on the other hand, is a statement of the ethical commitments, practices and aspirations that refl ect the ongoing articulation of the profession. the practical applications of codes of ethics are expressed in codes of conduct. teachers in nigeria are committed to the principles of dignity, respect, integrity, empathy and justice. in the same vein, the trcn prepared a code of conduct for teachers in 2004, which was widely circulated. objectives of a course in professional ethics if we cannot teach people to be ethical, then what can we achieve with an ethics course and what should such a course include? the answers to this question vary (wines, 2007). in an earlier co-authorship with brinkman, sims (2001) set out the following seven goals for a business ethics course:  know thyself, your own moral values and thresholds.  learn to see moral issues, confl icts and responsibilities.  learn to identify the specifi c moral aspects of a situation.  learn to share moral understanding.  learn how to handle moral issues and confl icts.  acquire moral courage.  acquire a critical attitude towards the business school curriculum and its disciplines. they do not set strengthening moral behaviour as an objective. corey and callanan (2005) set the following nine course goals:  ensure students recognise and appreciate the unavoidable ambiguity in ethics, i.e. of multiple points of view or contradictory possibilities.  instil in students the idea that there are multiple pathways to addressing a single ethical dilemma.  improve students’ self-knowledge.  improve ethical sensitivity. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 75 74  improve moral cognition.  instil determination to act ethically.  teach students the profession’s established code of ethics.  teach students their legal, ethical and professional responsibilities.  teach questioning of the ethical dimensions of their workplace. in their paper, they ascribe students’ determination to act ethically as a result of their courses. this result, which the authors say they achieve, is based on students’ selfreporting of changes in their values; not on an empirical measure of changed behaviour. webber (2007) says ethics courses in industry should build ethical awareness and promote the company’s moral values in order to broaden the criteria used by managers when making decisions with moral implications. he advocates stimulating managers to become more “other oriented” by exercises in which all stakeholders are treated as equals, in contrast to their level of infl uence on corporate performance. other aims that webber espouses are the following:  to engender trust and confi dence among stakeholders.  to stimulate mutual moral development through self-discovery in peer group discussions of real ethical dilemmas.  to develop a concrete plan for a career-long, ongoing moral enhancement of individual attitudes and planned business behaviour. webber acknowledges research (ferrell et al., 2002) that shows how the ethical culture of an organisation has a strong infl uence on ethical business judgments. therefore, ethics training should also make employees overtly aware of the ethical culture and values of the organisation. we agree with most of these objectives, but believe that some are subsets of broader objectives; others are a natural outcome of an ethics course. we propose the following four principal objectives for a course in ethics:  building ethical sensitivity and moral cognition  providing a widened applied teaching content that covers all ethical practices  adopting teaching methods that maximise learning impact in relation to ethical knowledge and behaviour  developing negotiating and persuasive capabilities (oral and written skills for use in assessing and advocating an ethical position) literature review courses in ethics with case problems and lectures on ethical theory increase students’ ability to reason their way through moral issues. the following examples of the impact of ethics courses on ethical sensitivity and cognition are drawn from engineering. self and ellison (1998) used rest’s defi ning issues test (dit) to assess whether there was an increase in moral reasoning from students who took an ethics course. the researchers applied the test before and after the course and found a signifi cant increase in reasoning capability. drake et al. (2005), using the dit to assess capabilities in moral reasoning, also found a signifi cant difference between the capabilities of students at the beginning of a course and those of the students at the end of the course, which manifested a signifi cant increase in capabilities. the class size was 164 students and teaching assistants were employed. the discussion on moral practices and the teaching of ethical theory seemed to increase capabilities in moral reasoning. whether this reasoning translates into higher levels of moral practice is a separate concern. such an assessment is diffi cult to measure, as the centre for vocational assessment and research concluded after its study into the assessment of attitudes, ethics and behaviour at work (mossop, 1997). blasi (1980) reviewed 75 studies that assessed the relationship between moral judgment and behaviour. this classic meta-study found a positive, but strongly qualifi ed relationship in a number of the studies. the research, however, is almost 30 years old, with some of the original studies now almost 80 years old. we have not found recent studies that correlated courses on ethics with improved ethical behaviour. the most we can be confi dent about is that courses seem to increase ethical sensitivity and strengthen ability to tell right from wrong. this ability, in itself, may lead to improved practices, but such improvements have not, for the most part, been verifi ed. the need for a course on ethics for teachers two arguments can be developed that support a course being built around the ethical issues in a profession, discipline or organisation. firstly, a new graduate entering a profession or organisation may encounter entrenched unethical practices that will be near to impossible for a new entrant without basic knowledge and skills to tackle alone. continued acceptance of a practice where “everybody does it” can condition the new recruit to accept certain behaviour. prior classroom encounters distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 77 76 with the issues they are most likely to face, however, will at least have helped clarify the new entrant’s ethical assessment and may even provide a core of new graduates with the motivation and skills to resist entrenched unethical practices. the second argument is that the ethical acceptability or unacceptability of some issues in a discipline can be unclear. a study by bowden (2006) in the engineering profession identifi ed a number of practices on which opinions were divided – reverse auctions being perhaps the most obvious, but bid-peddling and front-end loading were among some of the more contentious ethical issues. every profession or industry has similar examples. training institutions there are institutions authorised to give professional training as enunciated by the federal government of nigeria in the revised national policy on education (2004). these include the following:  national teacher institute (nti): this is an institution established to formally train student teachers for primary education. the policy regarding teaching at primary school level now provides that the least qualifi ed teachers for primary education should be holders of the national certifi cate of education. the nti is now charged with the responsibility of upgrading holders of a grade ii teacher’s certifi cate. it provides in-service training for teachers on the job in order to upgrade their skills.  national commission for colleges of education (ncce): this commission was established for the specifi c purpose of prescribing minimum standards for colleges of education that train teachers for primary education in nigeria. they are responsible for all the components of ethical conduct, while training teachers after secondary education.  institute of education: it was established in universities for the training of teachers for the delivery of education at both secondary and tertiary level.  national board for technical education (nbte): this board coordinates the activities of polytechnics and technical colleges and prescribes minimum standards for post-primary school level training. it also trains teachers for technical and vocational education in nigeria.  national institute for educational planning and administration (niepa): this institute has the mandate to develop a critical mass of education sector planners and managers for the effective and effi cient planning and management of the education system through capacity building, continuous training, action research and information dissemination.  nigerian educational research and development council (nerdc): it develops a curriculum for early childhood care and education, primary education, junior secondary schooling and senior secondary schooling. it also builds the capacity of teachers on the effective utilisation of the curriculums that have been developed.  international agencies: these are united agencies that provide technical support, funding, equipment and services in all sectors of the economy, including the education sector. other professional bodies include the following:  national union of teachers (nut): this is a trade union for teachers, particularly at primary school level. it is not a professional organisation. it sees to the welfare of its members.  teachers’ registration council of nigeria (trcn): this is a body established by law to make teaching a profession (professionalised teaching). the minimum qualifi cation for registration is a national certifi cate in education (nce). it provides support for the professionalisation of teachers, registering them and ensuring that only qualifi ed teachers are in the education sector. the trcn reports to the federal ministry of education and provides technical foresight to teachers. the nigerian experience the trcn, in collaboration with the federal ministry of education and the nti, initiated the special teacher upgrading programme (stup) with the aim of freeing the school system of unqualifi ed teachers. this programme commenced in 2007. the screening tests were jointly conducted by the trcn and the nti, which helped to select suitable grade 2 teachers to benefi t from the programme. a total of 40 000 candidates passed the screening and have since commenced with their studies. the programme is designed to run for two years in order to fast-track the upgrading of the grade 2 teachers to the level of the nce, which is the national minimum teaching qualifi cation. the stup is the fi nal chance and hope for unqualifi ed teachers as the national council on education had instructed the trcn to deal with any unqualifi ed teachers still in the school system after the programme. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 79 78 the trcn is the torch-bearer on ethics in the teaching profession. every registered teacher takes the following oath of allegiance: i, …, do solemnly affi rm that i will be faithful, loyal and bear true allegiance to the teaching profession, that as a registered teacher, i will discharge my duties honestly, to the best of my ability and faithfully in accordance with the provision of the teachers’ registration council of nigeria, act 31 of 1993; that i will not allow my personal interest to infl uence my offi cial conduct or any offi cial decisions; that i will preserve, protect and defend the dignity of the teaching profession, so help me god. the dysfunctionalities of teacher education education, viewed from a social system perspective, comprises three main elements: students, teachers and a curriculum. the effi ciency and effectiveness of any educational system depend on the cohesion between these three elements. if one of them has some defi ciency or weakness in performing its role, reduced productivity may result in the educational process as a whole. however, it is clear that every one of the three elements has a signifi cant effect on the other two. in this case, the teacher is the basic element that affects the educational process more than the other two. consequently, we use the concept of dysfunctionality in teacher education against the background of the objectives of teacher education as spelled out in the national policy on education:  to provide highly motivated, conscientious and effi cient classroom teachers  to encourage further the spirit of inquiry and creativity in teachers  to help teachers to fi t into the social life of the community and society at large  to produce teachers with the intellectual and professional background adequate for their assignment  to enhance teachers’ commitment to the teaching profession in assessing the achievement of these objectives, we fi nd that our teacher education programmes have been defi cient in providing teachers with an intellectual and professional background appropriate to their assignment in society. we carried out an intensive study of student teachers’ perceptions of teaching and why they have chosen the profession. some of the results of my study were enlightening. the factors responsible for determining the attractiveness of the teaching profession were those relating to salary, fringe benefi ts and working conditions, while the converse was true for teachers’ poor public image and lack of job satisfaction. these fi ndings are consistent with other studies (aghenta, 1971, omoregie, 1994, ossai, 1995, awanbor, 1996). other reasons usually advanced for not wanting to remain in the teaching profession are lack of retirement benefi ts, lack of regular promotions and the irregular payment of salaries. the professionalisation of teaching professionalisation of teaching has been a topic of controversy and – in nigeria – it has been an issue of concern among educators, teachers, administrators, organisations and the public at large. the question of whether teaching is an occupation, a vocation, a calling, a semi-profession or a profession has further complicated the situation to the extent that members of the public have accorded low status and recognition to teachers. as a result, no one is proud to identify or introduce himself or herself as a teacher in the manner a lawyer or a medical doctor would proudly and gladly do. two examples are cited to illustrate the plight of teachers in lagos, delta, edo, ondo and probably many other states. landlords will not lease their houses to teachers. from bitter experience, they know that teachers are sure to fall into arrears on their rent, not because they are congenital debtors, but because they are poorly paid and rarely get paid regularly. parents do not hesitate to disown a daughter foolish enough to fall in love with a teacher. this situation led legatt (1970) to say that teaching is a profession, but not a highly esteemed one and may never be so. the case study of adeyemi college of education this college is located in ondo, in ondo state, nigeria. it is mandated to develop and train primary school teachers who will provide the required basic education for the fi rst six grades in the primary school and the fi rst three grades in the junior secondary school. the head of department in the primary phase cited the following code of conduct, which forms part of the curriculum for the training of pupil teachers: ethics is crucial as far as teacher education is concerned; teacher education involves more than just teaching in the classroom. a teacher is an individual who leads learners to learn using pedagogical methodology. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 81 80 conclusion in this contribution, the centrality of the teacher in the education process was emphasised and buttressed with examples of various policies of government implemented to speed up national development. from a historical viewpoint, teacher education was presented as the pivot of the educational system, though constrained by both historical and social factors. we found that when teaching is examined as a profession in nigeria against the defi ning characteristics of control of entry, conditions of service, maintenance of standards and autonomy, it does not satisfy all the criteria associated with a profession. to remedy the situation and make teaching a fully fl edged profession, a number of recommendations were made, emphasising that a profession should be organised in such a way that the members have a sense of belonging to a particular body, which determines codes of conduct, regulates conditions for entry into the profession, plans for the welfare of members, organises the exchange of ideas and disciplines erring members. as hanson (1964) put it: “an important sign of the long-range health of a nation is the spirit and quality of its teachers… the future of the nation rests in the hands of its teachers, for the qualities they possess today will inevitably be refl ected in the citizens of tomorrow.” the challenge for the 21st century is that the education and training of nigerian teachers must top the list of priorities of government, because the services of teachers are indispensable to any nation and they, more than any other professionals, infl uence the lives of the nation’s youths and the nation’s future. references abangma, ma. 1981. a study of primary teachers attitudes towards realization of school curriculum in english speaking cameroon. unpublished phd thesis. university of london. abbott, a. 1988. the system of the professions. london: university of chicago press. abimbola, io. 2005. professional growth and development of teachers. in: abimbola, io & abolade, ao (eds.). fundamental principles and practice of instruction. ilorin: department of curriculum studies and educational technology. adesina, sa. 1969. a study of the problem of secondary level teachers supply and demand. lagos: monograph. adesina, s. 1977. planning and education development 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anker publishing company, inc. shores, bm. 1986. the teaching dossier: a guide to its preparation and use. ottawa: canadian association of university teachers. ukpo, eo. 2005. professionalization of teachers in nigeria: challenges and obstacles. the african symposium: an online journal of african educational research network. available at //www.2ncsu.edu/ncsu/aern/dcembjnl.htm. accessed 26 may 2007. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 87 86 inclusive education in ghana: what are the levers for change? 1emmanuel kofi gyimah and irene vanderpuye abstract the philosophy of inclusive education necessitates rigorous changes in the school system for it to be effective. in order to respond to the challenge, countries are required to develop structures that make it possible for schools to adapt curricula and pedagogical strategies to meet the needs of all children, including those with special educational needs. such changes must be ecosystemic, requiring the involvement of all stakeholders, including schools, the home and community, and voluntary organisations. what are the changes that need to be made to effectively translate theory into practice to celebrate the outcomes of inclusivity? on the basis of the experience of the united kingdom, this paper explores certain levers that have to be critically considered to make inclusive education a reality in ghana. keywords: inclusive education, special educational needs, regular schools 1 emmanuel kofi gyimah and irene vanderpuye are associated with the department of educational foundations, university of cape coast, cape coast. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 89 88 introduction the policy guiding the principle and practice of inclusion was fi rst adopted at the world conference on special needs education: access and quality, where delegates, representing 92 governments and 25 international organisations, met in salamanca, spain, in june 1994, under the sponsorship of the united nations educational scientifi c and cultural organisation (unesco) to deliberate on and sign a framework for action on special needs education and a statement on the rights of the child. now known as the salamanca statement (unesco, 1994), the statement has drawn global attention to access and quality in the delivery of special needs education. the statement was later emphasised at the world education forum in dakar, senegal, in 2000. the forum committed itself to various goals, including expanding and improving early childhood care and education, especially for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children. this, of course, included children with disabilities and special educational needs. the dakar framework for action was attended by 1 100 participants. the forum reaffi rmed its commitment to achieving education for all by the year 2015. in order to achieve the goals set, the forum entrusted unesco with the overall responsibility for coordinating all international players and sustaining the global momentum, supported by the united nations standard rules on the equalisation of opportunities for persons with disabilities, proclaiming participation and equality for all (http://www.unesco.org/education/efa/wef_2000/). the salamanca statement recommended that governments should, as a matter of urgency, do the following:  give the highest policy and budgetary priority to improving education services so that all children could be included, regardless of diffi culties.  adopt, as a matter of law or policy, the principle of inclusive education and enrol all children in ordinary schools, unless there were compelling reasons for doing otherwise.  ensure that organisations of disabled people, along with parents and community bodies, are involved in planning and decision-making.  put greater effort into pre-school strategies, as well as the vocational aspects of inclusive education (unesco, 1994:ix). most importantly, paragraph 2 of the salamanca statement spelt out the following major provisions as key issues in inclusion:  every child has a fundamental right to education, and must be given the opportunity to achieve and maintain an acceptable level of learning.  every child has unique characteristics, interests, abilities and learning needs.  education systems should be designed and educational programmes implemented to take into account the wide diversity of these characteristics and needs.  those with special educational needs must have access to regular schools that should accommodate them within a child-centred pedagogy that is capable of meeting these needs.  regular schools with an inclusive orientation are the most effective means of combating discriminatory attitudes, creating welcoming communities, building an inclusive society and achieving education for all. moreover, they provide an effective education to the majority of children and improve the effi ciency and ultimately the cost-effectiveness of the entire education system. according to this statement, all children, including those with special educational needs, were to be educated in an ordinary school, where equal opportunities and access were to be guaranteed. the meaning of inclusion the principle of inclusion is novel and laudable in developing the potential of persons with disabilities. however, there is no substantive defi nition for inclusive education (pearson, 2005, beveridge, 1999), nor is there any consistent government defi nition of inclusion, which makes the practice of inclusion diffi cult (sheehy, rix, nind & simmons, 2004). it was to overcome this diffi culty that ainscow, booth and dyson (2004) and mitchell (2005) proposed principal features to facilitate understanding. ainscow et al. (2004) proposed the following:  inclusion is a process.  inclusion is concerned with the identifi cation and removal of barriers.  inclusion is about the presence, participation and achievement of all students.  inclusion involves a particular emphasis on those groups of learners who may be at risk of marginalisation, exclusion or underachievement. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 91 90 the principal features cited by mitchell (2005) are the following:  entitlement to full membership in regular, age-appropriate classes in neighbourhood schools.  access to appropriate aids and support services, as well as individualised programmes with appropriately differentiated curriculum and assessment practices. these features mean that inclusive education is developmental in nature and seeks for ways to make children with special educational needs participate actively in regular/ordinary/mainstream education. it is about “engendering a sense of community and belonging, and encouraging mainstream and special schools, and others, to come together to support each other and pupils with special educational needs” (department for education and skills, 2001). it is about valuing diversity and individual differences, and assuring equality and access. it was in the light of this argument that deiner (2005) pointed out that successful inclusion involves “placing children in an education setting that provides the support that meets children’s emotional, social and educational needs”. inclusion may, therefore, be regarded as the process through which all children, including those with special educational needs, receive their education in the mainstream with structures in place to ensure participation and progress. these structures include collaboration with support personnel, professionals and parents (kathryn, daniel, angelia & norah, 2007, department for education and skills, 2001). collaboration occurs when people work together towards a common goal (isichei, 2007) and is necessary. as gyimah, sugden and pearson (2008) succinctly argue, it can reduce or eliminate the stress teachers experience in meeting the needs of children with disabilities and special educational needs in inclusive settings. challenges to inclusion inclusive education has not been without challenges. lewis (2000) questioned what rationale is ”behind getting same-aged groups of students to learn where the real achievements of the less able will never be recognised as they will always be below the artifi cial average of their peers and where their fi nal efforts are bound to be degraded in the common exam system?” lewis’s (2000) fear is about the possibility of including persons with disabilities and not catering for their needs. the council for exceptional children (1996) in the usa noted how challenging it becomes if time and resource allocations are poor. if time is effi ciently managed, those who have to participate in the delivery of service for the child with special educational needs can do so reasonably easily. resource availability can allow for curriculum access. the audit report (2002) expressed concerns about the possibility of children with special educational needs having a poor time as a result of schools not making a sustained investment in staff and school facilities in order to make inclusion work. it will therefore mean that for children with special educational needs to fully participate in the regular curriculum and achieve academic and social success, educational systems will have to make provision for appropriate aids and support services, with appropriately differentiated curriculum and assessment practices (unesco, 1994). ghana’s experience with inclusive education ghana’s attempt to develop the potential of all children in the educational system, including those with special educational needs, dates back to the early 1960s soon after the attainment of independence (okyere & adams, 2003). the education act of 1961 provided for free and compulsory education for all children. the country was among the fi rst countries to ratify the united nations convention on the rights of the child. the ministry of education’s strategic plan for inclusion manifests the country’s objective to fully implement inclusive education by 2015 by providing equitable educational opportunities. it aims to do this by integrating all children with non-severe special educational needs into mainstream schools and fully enrolling hard-to-reach and out-of-school children by 2015 (ministry of education, 2003). the ministry of education’s education strategic plan has now been revised to cover the period 2010–2020 (ministry of education, 2010). the government has, through the promulgation of act 2006, act 715, made provision for the education of children with special educational needs. for instance, article 20(1) stresses that “a person responsible for admission into a school or other institution of learning shall not refuse to give admission to a person with a disability on account of the disability unless the person with a disability has been assessed by the ministry responsible for education in collaboration with the ministries responsible for health and social welfare to be a person who clearly requires to be in a special school for children or persons with disabilities”. in terms of this, all schools are obliged to enrol children with disabilities, unless otherwise specifi ed (unesco, 1994). the national disability council was formed and inaugurated to oversee the implementation of provisions for the disabled. there is a national assessment distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 93 92 and resources centre for children with special educational needs and disabilities in achimota, accra, as well as speech and hearing services at the university of education, winneba, and units in major hospitals for the assessment of vision and hearing, for example, korle-bu teaching and okomfo anokye hospitals in accra and kumasi, respectively. in order to realise the vision of inclusion, the country, under the direction of the special education division of the ministry of education, has embarked on pilot projects. since 2003, the special education division has targeted a number of regions in the country to pilot inclusive education programmes. the following are some of the regions and districts that have been targeted: greater accra:  accra metro (tudu) (four schools)  dangbe east (ada-foah) (three schools)  ga west (amasaman) (three schools) central region:  cape coast metropolis (four schools)  ewutu/afutu/senya (winneba) (four schools)  agona swedru (three schools) eastern region:  new juabeng (four schools)  birim south (akim oda) (four schools)  yilo krobo (somanya) (three schools)  manya krobo (odumase) (three schools) ghana’s challenge regarding inclusion in spite of the attempts and provisions, gyimah, sugden and pearson (2009), akyeampong (2003), avoke (2001), and avoke and hayford (2000) observe that the country is faced with a number of challenges in practising inclusive education. these include the following:  insuffi cient health and paramedical personnel, for example, neurologists, audiologists, and speech and language therapists.  lack of comprehensive and multidisciplinary assessment practices.  seemingly negative social attitudes.  poor parental involvement and community participation.  inadequate central government and district assembly funding. it is common knowledge that the 2% district assemblies common fund (dacf), which is meant to develop the capacities of persons with disabilities, is not made available to the disabled.  poor teacher competency in adapting the physical environment and curriculum to meet the needs of the disabled in educational settings.  inaccessible buildings that make it impossible for those using wheelchairs to gain access to facilities.  the large class sizes and high pupil-teacher ratio (ptr). in some classrooms, especially in the urban school environment, class sizes range between 50 and 70 or more. this makes it diffi cult for teachers to give individualised attention to those likely to underachieve academically. levers for change to improve practice given that ghana’s attempt to implement inclusive education is fraught with certain challenges, certain levers to improve practice are worth considering. senge (1990) regards levers as “actions that can be taken in order to change the behaviour of an organisation and those individuals within it”. measures need to be taken to help the country realise the vision, and improve the practice and expand the frontiers of inclusive education. although a growing number of countries have legislation on inclusive education (curcic, 2009) that can be considered, the authors are of the belief that ghana can, in particular, take cues from some of the measures the united kingdom has adopted to enhance inclusive practice (department for education and skills, 2001). the united kingdom’s special educational needs code of practice and toolkit (2001) gives some guidance to local educational authorities, health and social services as to how children with special educational needs can be included in regular or ordinary settings. lessons from the united kingdom in practising inclusive education, the united kingdom government’s green paper (department for education and skills, 2003) addressed issues related to the following: distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 95 94  policies for excellence. in terms of the document “every child matters” (department for education and skills, 2003) and all children are to be valued, irrespective of their location.  working with parents.  planning, among others, to make provision for special educational needs. in terms of this green paper, every step had to be taken to ensure that the potential of every child is harnessed in order to make them contributing and independent members of society. parents are recognised as key stakeholders who have to play an active and valued role in their children’s education. they are encouraged to make their views known about how they want their children to be educated. in planning to make provision for special educational needs, parents are to be fully involved in the school-based response for their child and to understand the purpose of any intervention or programme of action. other measures to be taken include the following:  requiring all children to be registered on the roll of the mainstream school supported as appropriate by specialist provision.  targeting specifi c grants towards measures that will enhance mainstream schools’ ability to include pupils with special educational needs. grants could be earmarked for disability awareness training and special educational needs, as well as the specifi c training of teachers and others in mainstream schools.  seeking ways to celebrate the success of those schools that improve their ability to provide for a wide range of special needs.  giving some priority to capital support where possible to planned school reorganisation that would enhance provisions for special educational needs in mainstream schools (department for education and skills, 1997). the government strategy for special educational needs (2004) promoted the idea of partnerships. target participants were the local authorities, partnerships between schools, partnerships with health and social services, and partnerships with voluntary organisations. in order to crystallise the vision, the special educational needs code of practice and toolkit, which came into effect in january 2002 (department for education and skills, 2001), envisaged specifi c roles for local educational authorities. local educational authorities were to ensure that parents have access to essential services that help them meet the needs of their children. they were to welcome their involvement and value the contributions they make to their children’s development. they were also to ensure that information was available in a language parents can understand. best practices should be shared and spread among schools. in other words, practices that facilitate the inclusion of children with special educational needs should be shared. in this way, schools could learn from one another. the role health and social services could play in the partnership was specifi ed. for example, social services were required to liaise with the home to identify social factors that might make it impossible for the child to be fully included. similarly, health personnel were to ensure that up-to-date medical and health records of the child were kept to facilitate service delivery. voluntary organisations had roles to play in assisting parents to obtain information. they could talk to parents and explain the types of services that were available. they could share the experiences of best practice and encourage schools and local educational authorities to adopt them. although the documents did not explicitly defi ne step by step how inclusive education should be practised, at least they set out certain structures that were worth considering. what ghana can learn: what should be considered? in ghana’s bid to implement inclusive education, there is a need to forge stronger cooperation between special education and mainstream education (fletchercampbell, 1994). mainstream education teachers can receive much help from special educational needs teachers when there is such cooperation. for example, it will be possible for special educational needs teachers to team up with their counterparts in mainstream education to successfully accommodate children with special educational needs in the regular classroom. most importantly, there can be better understanding of issues pertaining to services for children with special educational needs. barriers that may impede achievement can be collectively identifi ed and removed. central government, metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies should make funding available to schools for logistical and support services. schools need to distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 97 96 be adequately resourced if they can be successful in accommodating the needs of different ranges of children. money is needed to purchase equipment such as braille machines for visually impaired children and hearing aids for children with hearing impairments, and to engage the services of professionals. without suffi cient funding, access to the curriculum can be diffi cult for certain categories of children with special educational needs and – most importantly – for training resource persons to manage these children. furthermore, teachers should be trained on principles and methodologies to accommodate the needs of all children, including those with special educational needs. there may not be the need to have different curricula for different ranges of children, but some curricular adaptations are necessary if children with special educational needs are to have access to the regular school curriculum. there is a need for the country to encourage the design and/or use of appropriate school curricula. if the school curriculum is fl exible and friendly to the needs of all children, it facilitates adaptation. this suggests that the curriculum research and development division of the ghana education service should include more information on special educational needs in the curriculum of schools and colleges of education. when prospective teachers are well informed, they will know the measures to adopt to accommodate persons with disabilities. there is a need to train and involve more health personnel (including audiologists, and speech and language therapists), social workers, psychologists and counsellors to assist in meeting the needs of different ranges of children in regular schools. health personnel can assess the health status of children, and also provide information to teachers on best practices. social workers can liaise with the home, and support parents and professionals in service provision for children. each of these professionals should be assigned specifi c roles or duties to meet the needs of children with disabilities. efforts should be made to encourage active parental involvement. parents are key stakeholders and their involvement cannot be taken for granted. gibb, tunbridge, chua and norah (2007) suggest that ”productive collaboration with parents” should be pursued. if parents are actively involved in the education of their children, the children ”achieve more, stay in school longer and engage in school more completely” (ferguson, 2008). the assessment practices in the country should be seriously examined to allow for holistic assessment. the present situation, where individual assessors assess and recommend placement, is not suitable to meet the needs of children with special educational needs. the team approach, which involves professionals in health, social services and education (gyimah, sugden & pearson, 2009) can be more helpful as it will reveal hidden diffi culties. finally, the physical environment or architecture in most schools should be improved to facilitate access for people with handicaps (pivic, mccomas & laflamme, 2002). conclusion from the foregoing, it can be concluded that a great deal of preparation, including a strong political will and community participation, is needed to successfully practise inclusive education. inclusion draws much on the sharing of experiences for it is developmental in nature. while we recognise that the united kingdom does not yet have all the answers, its legislation on the practice of inclusion can be studied and – where necessary – adapted to improve the education of children with special educational needs and enhance practice. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 99 98 references ainscow, m, booth, t & dyson, d. 2004. understanding and developing inclusive practices in schools: a collaborative action research network. international journal of inclusive education, 8(2):125–139. audit commission. 2002. statutory assessments and statements of sen: in need of review? london: audit commission. avoke, m. 2001. some historical perspectives in the development of special education in ghana. european journal of special education, 16(1):20–40. avoke, m & hayford, s. 2000. promoting inclusive education in basic schools in winneba circuit: the role of school attachment programme. available at www.isec2000.org.uk/ abstracts/papers_m/mawutor_1.htm. accessed 3 may 2004. beveridge, s. 1999. special educational needs in schools. 2nd ed. london: routledge. council for exceptional children. 1996. inclusion – where are we today? today, 3(1):5–15. curcic, s. 2009. inclusion in pk-12: an international perspective. international journal of inclusive education, 13(5):517–538. deiner, pl. 2005. resources for educating children with diverse abilities: birth through eight. 4th ed. new york: thomson delmar learning. department for education and skills. 2001. special educational needs code of practice. london: department for education and skills. department for education and skills. 2001. inclusive schooling: children with special educational needs. london: department for education and skills. department for education and skills. 2003. every child matters – the green paper. london: department for education and skills. department for education and skills. 2004. removing barriers to achievement: the government’s strategy for sen. london: department for education and skills. department of education. 1997. quality education for all: overcoming barriers to learning and development. report of the national commission on special needs education and training (ncsnet) and national committee on education support services (ncess). pretoria: government printer. fletcher-campbell, f. 1994. special links? [partners in provision]. collaboration between special school and inclusion partnership: pupil parents and teacher perspectives. international journal of inclusive education, 21(4):118–120. ferguson, dl. 2008. international trends in inclusive education: the continuing challenge to reach each one and everyone. european journal of special needs education, 23(2): 109–120. gibb, k, tunbridge, d, chua, a & norah, f. 2007. pathways to inclusion: moving from special school to mainstream. educational psychology in practice, 23(2):109–127. gyimah, ek, sugden, d & pearson, s. 2008. an investigation into the emotional reactions to inclusion of ghanaian mainstream teachers. support for learning, 23(2):71–79. gyimah, ek, sugden, d & pearson, s. 2009. inclusion of children with special educational needs in mainstream schools in ghana: infl uence of teachers’ and children’s characteristics. international journal of inclusive education, 1–18. isichei, fm. 2007. interest groups and value systems. international journal of multicultural education, 1(1):1–17. kathryn, g, daniel, t, angela, c & norah, f. 2007. pathways to inclusion: moving from special school to mainstream. educational psychology in practice, 23(2):109–127. lewis, j. 2000. let’s remember the ‘education’ in inclusive education. british journal of special education, 27(4):202. ministry of education. 2003. education strategic plan. accra: ministry of education. ministry of education. 2010. education strategic plan. accra: ministry of education. mitchell, d. 2005. introduction: sixteen propositions on the contexts of inclusive education. in: mitchell, d (ed.). contextualizing inclusive education evaluating old and new international perspectives, 230–252. london: routledge. okyere, ba & adams, js. 2003. introduction to special education: an african perspective. accra: adwinsa publications (gh) ltd. pearson, s. 2005. sen – a politically correct phrase to replace terms such as disabled? a study of the views of students entering a secondary pgce course. support for learning, 20(1):17–21. pivic, j, mccomas, j & laflamme, m. 2002. barriers and facilitators to inclusive education. exceptional children, 69(4):97–107. senge, pm. 1990. the fi fth discipline: the art and practice of the learning organisation. london: century business. sheehy, k, rix, j, nind, m & simmons, k. 2004. perspectives on inclusive education; learning from each other. support for learning, 19(3):137–141. unesco. 1994. the salamanca statement and framework for action on special needs education. paris: unesco. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 101 100 implementing blackboard: a case study of the cape peninsula university of technology, south africa 1eunice ivala abstract universities, in general, form a critical component of a country’s national system of innovation and are its intellectual backbone. however, the capacity of many african universities to lead the process of integrating information and communication technologies (icts) into education is woefully inadequate. this paper presents the experience of the cape peninsula university of technology (cput) in integrating blackboard into teaching and learning. the paper discusses the implementation approaches, successes, challenges and lessons learnt. it also provides insights into how institutions can best support academic staff in mainstreaming technology into teaching and learning. keywords: learning management system, open source, blackboard, e-learning, mainstreaming, diffusion, innovation, information and communication technologies, adoption process and approaches, integrating 1 eunice ivala is associated with the cape peninsula university of technology, south africa. e-mail: ivalae@cput.ac.za. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 103 102 introduction a learning management system (lms) is a software package used for delivering, tracking and managing training and education. there are two types of lmss: commercial and open source. blackboard and webct are examples of commercial lmss (blackboard acquired web-ct in 2005), while some of the commonly used open-source lmss are sakai and moodle. educational institutions may adopt a commercial or an open-source lms to enhance, supplement and support classroom teaching and to offer courses to large populations of learners across the globe. universities have adopted these software packages on a wide scale. despite their rapid adoption on the african continent, few studies have documented the implementation and use of these systems (snowball & mostert, 2010, van der merwe & mouton, 2005) or the impact they have on lecturers’ teaching. this paper attempts to share the cape peninsula university of technology’s (cput) implementation processes, approaches, successes, challenges and lessons learnt in the implementation of blackboard. it is hoped that ideas and insights generated through this institution’s implementation process can provide useful lessons to other institutions that are planning to implement this lms or are grappling with the implementation of learning management systems. methodology the research methods used to gather data for this study included in-depth interviews and document reviews. in-depth interviews were carried out with key informants, who included staff of the centre for e-learning, staff who use blackboard in their teaching (20 interviews) and staff who do not use blackboard in their teaching (20 interviews). the key informants that were used in this study were chosen because they possess special knowledge, status or communicative skills and were willing to share such knowledge and skills with the researcher (babbie, 1995, zelditch, 1962). these individuals also contributed insights into the process variables that were not evident to the researcher. they sensitised the researcher to value dilemmas within the project and also the implications of specifi c fi ndings (goetz & lecompte, 1984). a literature review – based largely on sources from developed and developing countries – was conducted on adoption approaches and cput’s documentation on icts in teaching and learning, which included its vision, strategic plans and policy documentation. the reason for carrying out this literature review was to provide the researcher with insights into what has or has not been done in the area under investigation. this helped the researcher to learn from and build on research conducted by others, to link the present research to what has been done by others, and to demonstrate relevance by making connections to the appropriate body of literature. the researcher then analysed in-depth interview data using an analytical induction strategy that involved scanning the data for categories of phenomena and relationships between such categories, as well as developing working typologies and hypotheses upon an examination of initial cases, and then modifying and refi ning them on the basis of subsequent cases (robinson, 1951, znaniecki, 1934). it was the researcher’s aim to prepare a report emerging from and supported by available evidence. therefore, the researcher sought to identify evidence that was repeated by or common to several participants, while at the same time taking into account the ideas and perceptions that were different in the responses of several participants. direct quotes were used, where necessary, to capture the intended meaning of the speaker as fairly and accurately as possible. pseudonyms were used to protect the participants’ identities. introduction of blackboard the idea of introducing blackboard arose in 1998 when the vice-chancellor and deputy vice-chancellor of the former cape technikon at the time attended a conference where they were exposed to presentations on the use of lmss for teaching and learning. they saw the benefi ts of blackboard for teaching and learning, and in 1999 the implementation of blackboard commenced at the technikon, with the aim of improving the effectiveness of teaching and learning. a few years later, the cape technikon merged with the peninsula technikon to form the cape peninsula university of technology (cput). this was in line with the higher education amendment act, act no 63 of 2002 (republic of south africa, 2002), which dealt with the transformation of the south african higher education landscape in order to maximise integration and diversity, promote equity and increase access. the use of blackboard was then introduced on all campuses of cput. the use of technology in teaching and learning is embedded in:  the university’s vision: “…to be at the heart of technology education and innovation in africa”;  the university’s strategic plan; distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 105 104  teaching and learning plans;  the assessment policy; and  many faculty and departmental plans. the director of the centre for e-learning indicated that the drawing up of an e-learning policy was still in progress as there were aspects that were not included in the abovementioned documents, as they still needed to be addressed. despite the existence of these documents in support of the use of technology in teaching and learning, most of the interviewees felt that the university management did not fully support the e-learning initiative. this was primarily due to the fact that the computer and telecommunications system (cts) division, which was tasked with providing information technology support for e-learning at the university, had been unable to provide adequate support. institutional systems were blamed for this problem not being attended to. although most of the faculties and departments had included the integration of technology into teaching and learning in their plans, these plans were not being implemented in some of the departments. while the university had a student to computer ratio of 6:1, which could be considered fairly good, it was felt that the infrastructure did not fully support the use of technology in teaching and learning. the reasons for this were that it was underutilised, there was no open access to the computer laboratories and there was no system in place for lecturers to book laboratories for their classes. suffi cient technical support was not provided to the centre for e-learning. more often than not, e-learning staff had to either beg for assistance or log calls at the cts help desk, where the calls were usually not prioritised. despite the abovementioned challenges, implementation of blackboard at cput is ongoing. adoption process and approaches there are different theories on how information technology should be integrated into higher education teaching and learning, what the e-learning strategy should be, who should formulate the strategy and who should drive the integration process. beller and or (1998) state that the integration of information technology can either be an evolutionary process, which relies mainly on local initiatives and the personal motivation of individual faculty members, or it can be top management-driven. the results of this study indicate that both these approaches are employed at cput. top management invested money in the purchase of blackboard, ensured that the use of technology was embedded in its guiding documents and policies, and gave a directive that every subject should have a minimum web presence. this means that each subject should at least make use of the calendar tool, activate one of the communication tools, populate the grade book and have study guides on the lms. top management does not force lecturers to use blackboard and therefore most of the lecturers using it are personally motivated to do so. they also went for training voluntarily and started using the lms to support their teaching. this point has been expressed differently by most of the lecturers interviewed, and can be summed up in the following quotes: “the factor that encouraged me to use blackboard in my teaching is my experience with electronics. i studied in the usa and i was able to access notes online at home. i know the advantages from the student’s point of view” (respondent a, personal interview, 16 may 2009). respondent b had this to say: “what encouraged me to start using blackboard in my teaching is the fact that i like new technology and feel modern students should use it and i like the idea of saving paper and time” (respondent b, personal interview, 2 june 2009). everett roger (1995) identifi es the following three types of innovation adoption approaches:  optional innovation-decision approach: the choice to adopt or reject an innovation is made by an individual independent of the decisions by other members of a system.  collective innovation-decision approach: the choice to adopt or reject an innovation is made by consensus among the members of a system.  authority innovation-decision approach: the choice to adopt or reject an innovation is made by relatively few individuals (in a system) who possess power, status or technical expertise. at cput, the optional innovation-decision approach is commonly used since it provides maximum fl exibility to users and accommodates individuality. this approach allows lecturers to use blackboard according to their individual needs. the downside of this approach, however, is that it makes great demands on resources such as support services. the authority innovationdecision approach is also used at cput, but to a lesser extent. for example, management made the decision to use blackboard and laid down the rule for every subject to have a minimum web presence. while this approach leads to rapid adoption, it often produces high resistance among particular individuals. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 107 106 the use of blackboard at cput: lecturers’ perspectives to explain the use of blackboard at cput, everett roger’s (1995) “diffusion of innovations” theory will be utilised. roger (1995) explains the categories of innovation adopters as follows: innovators are individuals who tend to be experimentalists and interested in technology itself. early adopters are individuals who may be technically sophisticated and interested in technology for solving professional and academic problems. the early majority are those who are pragmatists and constitute the fi rst part of the mainstream. the late majority are those who are less comfortable with technology and are the sceptical second half of the mainstream. the laggards are those who may never adopt technology and may be antagonistic and critical of its use by others. the implementation of blackboard at cput caused the users of information technology in teaching and learning to change from being innovators to early adopters and part of the early majority. findings of this study indicated that the users of blackboard at cput are innovators, early adopters and a few are part of the early majority, since most of these adopters have stopped using blackboard in their teaching due to their wariness of new technology (in this case due to network instability and lack of ongoing support after training). roger (1995) explains the latter by indicating that, despite careful planning, there will always be unintended and unanticipated consequences when an innovation is diffused. factors that encouraged the interviewees to use blackboard in their teaching varied from lecturer to lecturer. the following factors were identifi ed:  to be able to control large class sizes.  to help students engage with coursework outside the classroom.  to try and keep students interested in the subject.  to ensure more transparency – the fact that one can upload assignments and notes and no student will say they have lost the handouts.  the accessibility of a variety of features on blackboard.  the love of technology and the fact that they know the advantages of using blackboard for teaching and learning from a student’s point of view. blackboard is mostly used to supplement face-to-face instruction. most of the lecturers who use blackboard for teaching access it from both their homes and the campus, with a small number accessing it on campus only. the majority of the users have utilised blackboard for their teaching for more than fi ve years, while a few users utilised it for one to two years. blackboard tools used for teaching and learning, and their use of these tools are listed in table 1. table 1: blackboard tools used for teaching and learning, ranked from the most used to the least used blackboard tools use communication (mostly e-mail) to send and receive e-mail to and from students in the course on course matters. assessment (mostly for quizzes and self-tests) to create quizzes that students complete and submit for marks to assess their performance in the course. to create self-tests that students complete and submit for marks to assess their understanding of the course material. assignment to create an inventory of assignments for the courses and for students to submit their assignments by attaching their own fi les. calendar to post deadlines for course assignments. learning modules to organise and deliver course content and extra reference material to students. grading book to enter, view and manage grades for all students and auditors. announcements to create and post important information for students about upcoming assignments, tests and other events in their class. web links to compile a list of internet addresses that serve as reference material for the course. the most liked aspect of blackboard is the communication tool, in particular e-mail, because it makes it easy to reach all the students from anywhere at any time. the following extract from respondent c best supports this point: “you don’t have to be on campus to interact with your students. you can do it from home. you can answer students’ questions and distribute the information to all” (respondent c, personal interview, 16 may 2009). other aspects of the lms that are equally liked by lecturers are the fact that it saves the university money on printing and photocopying, and it provides a rich learning environment. the following quotes from respondent c and respondent d confi rm these points respectively. respondent c had this to say: “what i like most about blackboard is that you don’t have to print or photocopy; you upload the material on the system and they [students] print it” (respondent c, distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 109 108 personal interview, 16 may 2009). respondent d stated: “what i like most about blackboard is that it enables a rich learning environment. it is easy to collect a rich variety of resources and i like the diversity of learning activities it allows” (respondent d, personal communication, 11 may 2009). on the other hand, the most disliked aspect of blackboard is the unreliability of the network. the following extract from respondent e may speak for all: “network failure is problematic. at one time the system went down for two days and i had to make a large number of copies” (respondent e, personal interview, 24 june 2009). other aspects that discourage the use of the lms are slow internet connections and lack of time on the part of the lecturers to learn to use the different tools and to prepare teaching and learning materials to populate the system. interviewees cited varied benefi ts that they derived from using blackboard in their teaching. some of these benefi ts are that it enables communication between lecturers and students, assists with the submission of assignments, the marking of quizzes and self-tests (the feedback on which helps improve future lessons and addresses students problems), helps students (especially absentees) to access course content from anywhere and at any time, and acts as a portal for other resources. the grading book helps students to see their marks anywhere and offers them privacy. blackboard also helps lecturers practise a student-centred approach to teaching. most interviewees revealed that students taking courses through blackboard are in favour of the system because they are able to access course materials and information online. this point is best illustrated by the following statement: “students are quite positive about the subjects offered through blackboard. they phone to ask why i haven’t put what i promised on the system yet. there is pressure from the students to use the system” (respondent f, personal interview, 19 june 2009). however, most of the lecturers pointed out that there was a lack of formal training for students to use blackboard effectively for their learning. lecturers revealed that subject matter lecturers using blackboard for their teaching had to train students to use blackboard and lecturers were not aware of any support offered to students in the information technology laboratories. furthermore, most of the lecturers who were interviewed stated that although the centre for e-learning provided them with technical support, no educational support was forthcoming. the impact of blackboard on the way lecturers teach on the question of whether using blackboard had made any difference in their teaching and their students’ performance, the majority of the interviewees reported that it was too early to assess the impact on the students’ performance and their teaching. however, a few lecturers believed that using blackboard had infl uenced the way they teach. some of the ideas raised in this regard are that it helped lecturers identify students who are at risk, it forced lecturers to plan thoroughly and to consider the link between what happens in the classroom and what happens on the blackboard system, and it developed in lecturers an interest in research in order to provide students with up-to-date information. perspectives from non-users of blackboard eliciting non-users’ points of view on the use of blackboard is vital for cput because it is important to get to know the needs of these faculty members as well; not just the innovators and the early adopters. this is due to the fact that cput’s “technology in teaching and learning” agenda is to accommodate all types of adopters. data gathered from lecturers who do not use blackboard in their teaching revealed that the majority of them were not aware of the institutional policy concerning the use of technology in teaching and learning. furthermore, most of the interviewees revealed that they were not using blackboard in their teaching because of a heavy workload, resulting in a lack of time to prepare material to upload on blackboard. respondent g said: “i don’t use blackboard because i lecture fi ve subjects, i am the coordinator for wil (work integrated learning) and i am trying to embrace research… ” (respondent g, personal interview, 20 may 2009). lack of information regarding blackboard and its usefulness, as well as a lack of skill to access and use blackboard, were other reasons given by a good number of interviewees. the following extract from respondent h could speak for them all: “i don’t use blackboard in my teaching because of a lack of information about it. i don’t have the skills to use it and don’t know how to access it” (respondent h, personal interview, 20 may 2009). network instability was also cited as one of the reasons for the non-use of blackboard. however, all the interviewees indicated their willingness to use blackboard in their teaching. in this regard, the majority of the interviewees indicated that if they were provided with training on how to use blackboard, information on the usefulness of blackboard and time off to convert their teaching material into electronic format, they would start using blackboard and use it effectively. this point is best illustrated by respondent i: “to start using blackboard and use it effectively, i need training. i need time to convert learning materials into e-format and i would like to see its distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 111 110 application and its advantages” (respondent i, personal interview, 20 may 2009). the need to phone someone for help was another aspect highlighted by some of the interviewees. successes since the inception of the implementation of blackboard, up to 240 lecturers have been trained on the use of blackboard each year. about 25–30% of the lecturers who have received training are currently not using blackboard to support their teaching and learning. this can partly be attributed to the fact that there is no real emphasis on the use of the lms from management, and due to the network instability and the once-off training provided by the centre for e-learning without ongoing support at faculty level. the latter point is clearly highlighted by respondent j: “the training offered is fi ne, but when lecturers go back to their offi ces, they don’t know what to do. continuous onsite training is needed” (respondent j, personal interview, 15 may 2009). in 2009, about 380 lecturers were actively using the lms for teaching, which indicated a decline from 500 in 2008. there were 998 active subjects on blackboard in 2008 and 390 in 2009. the decline in the number of active subjects and lecturers seems due mostly to network instability. respondent j expressed this point clearly: “blackboard is not useful for teaching and learning because of network problems. you can’t access it at times, especially when we are writing a test” (respondent j, personal interview, 12 may 2009). approximately 50–60% of cput students take one or more classes through blackboard. in summary, it appears that there has been success, albeit limited, in the integration of blackboard in teaching and learning, as evidenced in the data presented above. additionally, there is some success in getting the support of the institutional systems and in the institution drawing up the necessary regulations to guide the use of technology at cput, as well as success in winning the support of the students regarding the use of blackboard for teaching and learning. success is also shown in the number of lecturers trained in the use of blackboard each year, although some of these lecturers need ongoing support in order to embrace the use of blackboard in their teaching. challenges during the implementation of blackboard at cput, a number of challenges – or what everett roger (1995) calls “unanticipated/unintended consequences” – emerged. these are the following:  a lack of total commitment from management to the integration of technology in teaching and learning. although management stipulated that each subject should have a minimum web presence, there is no push for the lecturers to implement this rule. the university does not have an e-learning policy and, for many years, there was no committee tasked with the mainstreaming of technology in teaching and learning (this committee was only formed in march 2009). the lack of total commitment from management and the non-existence of a committee to look at issues of integrating technology into teaching and learning can partly explain why some of the departments do not implement the technology aspects in their teaching and learning plans.  the information technology infrastructure does not fully support the use of technology in teaching and learning. this is because there is limited access to computer laboratories as most of them are locked for security reasons and those that are open normally close at 16:00, thus not allowing students to work after hours.  inadequate information technology support to the centre for e-learning. staff indicated that they have to log a call at the cts help desk whenever the blackboard system has a problem and their calls are not prioritised.  network instability and slow internet connections. most of the interviewees raised the fact that network instability and slow internet connections discourage them from using blackboard.  a lack of ongoing support at faculty level after lecturers have been trained in the use of blackboard affects the diffusion of technology at the university. about 25–30% of all the trained lecturers do not use blackboard, although everybody who is trained is expected to do so.  a lack of formal training for students to enable them to use blackboard effectively puts a burden on the lecturers as they have to hastily train students who, in some cases, are not fully equipped to learn to use blackboard.  a lack of information on blackboard and its usefulness in teaching and learning. this point was raised by most of the lecturers who do not employ blackboard in their teaching practices. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 113 112  a lack of pedagogical/educational support in the use of blackboard impacted on the effectiveness of blackboard in improving lecturers’ teaching and students’ performance.  heavy workloads have either completely discouraged lecturers from using blackboard or have dissuaded them from using it as much as they would like to because they do not have the time to convert their teaching material into an electronic format. lessons learnt and suggestions for future implementation in the cput context, the processes of implementation have made it clear that the implementation of an innovation is not an event, but a process. cput views all the unanticipated/unintended consequences emerging from evidence on the implementation of blackboard as learning moments that will inform the future diffusion of blackboard. at this stage of the implementation of blackboard in teaching and learning, cput has learnt the following:  the total commitment of management is required in order to integrate technology into teaching and learning (phillips, 2005). this is because efforts of a committed team of lecturers can be undermined by an unsupportive management or unsupportive heads of schools (phillips, 2005). to ensure the future diffusion of technology in teaching and learning, cput’s top management needs to formulate a vision and priority areas for mainstreaming technology into teaching and learning, as well as to establish a technology integration forum (formed in march 2009) to oversee the implementation of the university’s policies concerning the use of technology in teaching and learning.  to speed up the diffusion of blackboard, departments need to embed technology in their normal teaching (phillips, 2005). a needs analysis must be carried out to fi nd out the kind of support that the departments require and the kind of support that should be provided.  a stable information technology infrastructure is crucial and adequate technical support for faculty and centre for e-learning staff is needed (phillips, 2005). the university is in the process of upgrading its servers to ensure a more stable technology environment.  a high-speed internet connection is needed to enable blackboard to be a useful portal for other learning technologies and for easy access by students and lecturers. the university plans to increase the bandwidth by using the low-cost bandwidth provided by the recently launched seacom optic fi bre cable.  adequate training in the use of blackboard and ongoing on-site support for academics is vital. literature proves that once-off training or workshops (as is the practice at cput) are adequate for introducing new ideas to trainees, but to enable trainees to implement those ideas in practice, regularly scheduled followup support is needed (rude-parkin & hancock, 1990). this practice is necessary to enable lecturers to fully integrate the new ideas into their teaching repertoire and to ensure that the new approach will not be lost due to disuse (butler, 1992). the best way to achieve widespread use of new technologies is to provide justin-time support (that is, assistance and encouragement when needed – not tomorrow, but now!). therefore, the centre for e-learning needs to look at its support strategy and ensure that lecturers are provided with ongoing support in their implementation of blackboard. perhaps the centre for e-learning should consider a mixed-mode method of training, that is, use the human resources route to offer training to an entire department (this is preferred by lecturers) and – should the need arise – offer one-to-one training to lecturers, especially those who are afraid of the technology and need to be trained at their own pace. the current practice is that training sessions are included in the university calendar and are advertised in the university newsfl ash (notice board). those who need to attend the training apply through the human resources division.  a rigorous awareness campaign about blackboard and its usefulness for teaching and learning is required (sherry, billig, tavalin & gibson, 2000, carr, 2006). the centre for e-learning needs to produce an awareness campaign on the use of blackboard in teaching and learning if the conditions and activities that can promote adoption by the early and late majorities and laggards are to prevail.  there is a need to provide both technical and pedagogical training on the effective integration of technology in teaching and learning (ferrazzi, 2003). the centre for e-learning was praised by most of the users of blackboard for its provision of technical support. however, most users of blackboard indicated that there was a lack of educational/pedagogical support in the use of blackboard in teaching and learning. educational support should be provided to avoid what phillips (2005) calls “the surface learning, teacher-centred, contentbased approach”, which is currently used in many universities where educational technology is widely adopted through the replication of traditional teaching techniques (reeves, 2002). distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 115 114  in order to encourage and sustain the use of technology in teaching and learning, a recognition and acknowledgement system of rewards, parallel and equal to that associated with “traditional” academic pursuits, needs to be in place. such a system is not in place at cput, and management needs to encourage lecturers to use blackboard. they could do this by offering formal blackboard training for students, thus freeing up lecturers’ time to train and support students. additionally, there could be some recognition or reward for lecturers who use blackboard appropriately. conclusion based on the implementation process and the challenges encountered, the inadequacy of cput in leading the process of integrating icts (in this case, blackboard) in education is highlighted. as a result of the lessons learnt during the implementation of blackboard in teaching and learning at cput, the researcher can conclude that, in order for universities to lead in integrating icts in education, there is a need for the following:  total commitment to the initiative from management.  the provision of an environment that is conducive to the effective use of technology in teaching and learning.  a stable information technology infrastructure.  adequate technical support for faculty staff and units providing e-learning services.  adequate training on the use of blackboard or technology and ongoing on-site support for academics, and the provision of both technical and pedagogical training concerning the effective integration of technology in teaching and learning.  just-in-time support to faculties is suggested as a crucial requirement for the widespread diffusion of technology into teaching and learning. references babbie, e. 1995. the practice of social research. 7th ed. belmont, ca: wadsworth publishing company. beller, m & or, e. 1998. the crossroads between lifelong learning and information technology: a challenge facing leading universities. journal of computer mediated communication, 4(2). butler, ja. 1992. staff development. school improvement research series. available at: http://www.nwrel.org/scpd/sirs/6/cu12.htmll. accessed 12 december 2008. carr, jrvh. 2006. technology adoption and diffusion. available at: http://tlc.nlm.ih.gov/ resources/publications/sourcebook/adoptiondiffusion.html. accessed 22 july 2009. ferrazzi, g. 2003. ambitious vision, limited resources: a fl exible approach to distributed learning. the technology source archives at the university of north carolina. available at: http://technologysource.org/articles/ambitious_vision_limited_resources. accessed 31 july 2009. goetz, jp & lecompte, md. 1984. ethnography and qualitative design in educational research. orlando, florida: academic press inc. phillips, ra. 2005. challenging the primacy of lectures: the dissonance between theory and practice in university teaching. journal of university teaching and learning practice, 2(1):1. available at: http://jutlp.uow.edu.au/2005_v02_i01/phillips003.html. accessed 31 july 2009. phillips, r. 2005. pedagogical, institutional and human factors infl uencing the widespread adoption of educational technology in higher education. available at: http://www.ascilite.org.au/conferences/brisbane05/blogs/proceedings/62_phillips.pdf. accessed 31 july 2009. reeves, tc. 2002. storm clouds on the digital education horizon. in: williamson, aw, gunn, c, young, a & clear, t (eds.). proceedings of the 19th annual conference of the australasian society for computers in learning in tertiary education, auckland. available at: http://www.unitec.ac.nz/ascilite/proceedings/papers/key_reeves.pdf. accessed 31 july 2009. republic of south africa. 2002. higher education amendment act, no 63 of 2002. government gazette, 1598 (24187), 19 december 2002. pretoria: government printers: section 5. robinson, ws. 1951. the logical structure of analytic induction. american sociological review, 16:12–18. rogers, em. 1995. diffusion of innovations. 4th ed. new york: the free press. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 117 116 rude-parkins, c & hancock, m. 1990. collaborative partnership for technology adoption: a working model in louisville. techtrends, 35(1):3–5. sherry, l, billig, s, tavalin, f & gibson, d. 2000. new insights on technology adoption in communities of learners. in: crawford, c et al. (eds.). proceedings of society for information technology and teacher education international conference 2000 (pp. 2044–2049). chesapeake, va: aace. available at: http://www.editlib.org/p/15930. accessed 31 july 2009. snowball, j & mostert, m. 2010. introducing a learning management system in a large fi rst-year class: impact on lecturers and students. south african journal of higher education, 24(5):818–831. van der merwe, a & mouton, j. 2005. integrating icts into the teaching and learning environments: an investigation of lecturers perceptions of possible barriers and incentives. perspectives in education, 23(4):19–37. zelditch, m. 1962. some methodological problems of fi eld studies. american journal of sociology, 67(5):566–576. znaniecki, f. 1934. the method of sociology. new york: rinehart. exploring students’ understanding of values and moral reasoning 1prof jan nieuwenhuis abstract this paper discusses research conducted among distance education students at the university of pretoria in 2009. the aim of the research was to explore moral reasoning and how it may be guided or infl uenced by what students regard as important values in their lives. the paper argues that being human means having the capacity to make choices and to act in accordance with the choices made. it is argued that the choices people make are based on their own personal and socially constructed values, assumptions and beliefs. this personal set of values, assumptions and beliefs informs a person’s understanding of what is morally right and morally wrong, and of the type of conduct that would be just and ethical. moral reasoning is therefore seen to be that which an individual regards as being morally right, based on a personal set of values. in the research, an attempt was made to determine the priority given by students to certain values and how these value orientations may infl uence their reasoning when they are confronted with a moral dilemma. the aim of the research was to explore students’ thinking and argumentation regarding moral dilemmas with a view to understanding how students – who are all practising teachers – take moral decisions. although the study will run over a number of years, some preliminary fi ndings of a survey undertaken in june 2009 are discussed, indicating some of the initial trends emerging from the data. keywords: moral reasoning, moral dilemmas, teachers, values, value education, value orientation 1 prof jan nieuwenhuis is associated with the department of education management and policy studies, faculty of education, university of pretoria. e-mail: jan.nieuwenhuis@up.ac.za distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 119 118 introduction why is it that, even though people know what is right, they continue to do what is wrong? why is it that even though educators know that they should not have sexual relationships with learners, some still choose to have such relationships? this question has intrigued me for many years. in training school leaders, i learned two important lessons early on in my career: fi rst, that theory and practice do not always agree; and secondly, that morally right and morally wrong may not be as fi xed as what we often assume them to be. let me illustrate this with an example. in 2004, i conducted research using refl ective journaling to analyse the daily work life and decisions taken by school managers (nieuwenhuis, 2008). the data collected revealed a diverse range of challenges faced by rural school principals and illustrated how often principals acted differently to what common management theory would describe as being appropriate. secondly, it revealed how morally right and morally wrong may differ, depending on one’s own understanding of what people “ought to do”. in one case, the principal, in his refl ective journal entry on the monday, told the story of a learner in the school who had passed away that morning. for many african people, life – and life beyond the grave – dictates human behaviour (mazrui, 1986). for a whole school week, the major part of the refl ective journal entries talked about how the principal had devoted his time to arrange the memorial service and funeral for the deceased learner. this is not an isolated incident, but common practice in many of the more traditionally oriented rural schools in south africa. according to custom, it is believed that the parents should be given the opportunity to grieve while the community or school steps in to make the arrangements for the funeral. on the friday, the memorial service was held at the school. a big tent was put up on the school premises, as the school had no school hall, and all the chairs in the school were moved to the tent. on the friday, the community came to the school to prepare food for the memorial service and for the funeral that was to be held on the saturday. as a result, there was no schooling on the friday or the monday, when everything had to be returned to the classes. apart from anything else, this story raises the question whether the principal’s conduct was morally right or whether it should be judged as being morally wrong, based on western concepts of school management. from a management theory perspective, what the principal and the school did does not adhere to notions of best practice in terms of what one “ought to do”. looking at the scenario from a traditional african perspective, however, the actions of the principal and the school met the requirements of the traditional things that one “ought to do”. as stated earlier, for traditionally oriented african people, life – and life beyond the grave – determines human behaviour. mazrui (1986) explains that for those in africa who believe in the power of the ancestors, not paying the necessary respect to those who depart from this world will bring the anger of the ancestors over one. this link between the living and the ancestors is taken for granted in african communities, and it must be understood in terms of the notion of ubuntu – “i am human because you are human”. associated with this is the idea that a child is the child of the community and that the school should therefore step in, not only to make its facilities available, but also to help provide funds for the cost of a funeral. although such a line of argumentation may explain the example given, it does not present us with a fi nite answer. does this line of reasoning, for example, propose that culture alone could act as the lens through which one could defi ne what is morally right or morally wrong? the fi lm a reasonable man tells the story of a young man of 18 who stood accused of murder in the fi rst degree. he had pick-axed a toddler of three to death. in the fi lm, the advocate for the defence argued that the hut in which the murder took place was dark and the accused did not know that this little child was sleeping in the hut. when he saw the rug moving, he did not know that the child had pulled the rug over her and was trying to free herself. all he thought was that it must be a tokoloshe (an evil spirit) and he did the only brave thing a man could do and hit out at the spirit to kill it. talking about the fi lm, the producer, gavin hood (as quoted in daily dispatch, 1999), said: “one man’s religion is another’s superstition. it is easier to prove reasonable behaviour than reasonable belief, as it is such a personal concept.” the fi lm is based on the case r v mbombela (1933 ad 269 at 272), which established the objective principle of a reasonable man. in this case, the judge argued that “[a] reasonable belief, in my opinion, is such as would be formed by a reasonable man in the circumstances in which the accused was placed in a given case”. this principle has been followed repeatedly in numerous cases, as was the case in the constitutional court case of s v manamela and mdlalose (cct 25/99). the constitutional court argued that in s v van as, rumpff cj (1976 (2) sa 921 (a) at 928 c – e), the origin and application of the frequently invoked standard of the “careful head of a family”, the diligens paterfamilias, was also explained. rumpff cj stated: distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 121 120 in our law since time immemorial we have used the diligens paterfamilias as someone who in specifi ed circumstances would behave in a certain way. what he would do is regarded as reasonable. we do not use the diligentissimus [excessively careful] paterfamilias, and what the diligens paterfamilias would have done in a particular case must be determined by the judicial offi cer to the best of his ability. this diligens paterfamilias is, of course, a fi ction and is also, all too often, not a pater [father]. in the application of the law, he is viewed ‘objectively’, but in essence he must apparently be viewed both ‘objectively’ and ‘subjectively’ because he represents a particular group or type of persons who are in the same circumstances as he is, with the same ability and knowledge. if a person therefore does not foresee what the other people in his group, in fact, could and would have foreseen, then that element of culpa, that is failure to foresee, is present. the court, therefore, argues that the test for reasonableness, of course, remains objective. what is reasonable will, however, be construed in the circumstances in which the accused in a particular case fi nds himself or herself. if this argument stands, then one could apply the same type of argument to social values and moral reasoning. although it may offer some provisional acid test, it does not really fully resolve the dilemma in a diverse society where different cultural sets of morality operate. for this reason, the research that i will discuss in this paper looks at the values that students reported are important to them and how they argue about a moral dilemma. research question contrary to international experience, very little empirical research has been conducted on values and moral education in the south african context. for the most part, it has remained more of a philosophical debate at a conceptual level, often borrowing from research done abroad or based on anecdotal evidence. given the emphasis placed on moral regeneration in south africa and the urge for schools to assist in this regard, the faculty of education at the university where i work, in collaboration with the south african department of education, developed an advanced certifi cate in education (ace) in values and human rights in education in 2003. this later developed into a bed(hons) module called managing values and human rights in education. much of the content of the ace and the bed(hons) module is based on the manifesto on values, human rights and democracy in education (2002), published by the south african department of education, as well as on international literature and empirical research data and trends. although these served an invaluable purpose, they remained sterile in terms of locally produced research insights. for this reason, it is essential to conduct research into the values of students and how they argue about moral dilemmas so as to enhance our own understanding of the student population. such an understanding would enable us to align our training during contact sessions to the unique understandings and value frameworks of students. the research is premised on the assumption that people are not born with a complete set of values or morals. we may be born with the genetic potential to attach greater importance to certain values than to others, but in the end we learn and develop a value system based on our interaction with the natural world, with people, with thoughts, feelings and ideas. we are not passive recipients of the values of our ancestors, but active creators of our own set of values, which is related to that of our forbearers; yet our set of values is unique. as stated by mclean (1991), a person’s values refl ect his or her culture and heritage, as well as what he or she has done with the set of values handed down to him or her. bull (1969) explains this point as follows: “the child is not born with a built-in moral conscience. but he is born with those natural, biologically purposive capacities that make him potentially a moral being.” as we grow older and mature, we begin to impart unique personal meaning to the values and principles that underpin the rules that we have learned to obey. as we impart meaning to different things, rules and behaviour, we organise the values into a specifi c abstract internalised structure called our value system and begin to develop the ability to take decisions that are congruent with our value system. straughan (1992) argues that “what determines the level of moral development a person is at is not the particular action he judges to be right or wrong, but his reasons for so judging”. this implies that in considering the actions of people, we must make allowance for social cognition and moral reasoning. knowing right from wrong is more than a simple process of being aware of specifi c social rules, and doing the right thing is not a simple matter of putting those rules into practice. the research therefore sets out to answer the following key research questions:  what are the important values in the lives of our students?  what content and understanding is given to these values?  how do these values impact on their moral understanding and reasoning? distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 123 122  what factors do they consider in solving moral dilemmas?  to what extent are they willing to negotiate and/or sacrifi ce their moral standpoints? theoretical understandings that underpin the study being human means having the capacity to make choices and to act in accordance with the choices made. the choices we make are based on our own personal and socially constructed values, assumptions and beliefs. this personal set of values, assumptions and beliefs informs our understanding of what is morally right and morally wrong and of the type of conduct that would be just and ethical. it should be obvious from our earlier discussion that what is right and what is wrong are not absolute truths that are written into some convention or eternally valid declaration. right and wrong are socially negotiated and mediated and therefore unstable. they have to be rediscovered, reinvented and redefi ned by each generation as it searches for a way to make living together more just and equitable. this does not mean that there are no normative principles on which right or wrong are based, but that the specifi c content imparted in these normative principles is relative to the specifi c spatio-temporality of the person or group. this makes any global notion of morally right or wrong highly problematic. secondly, i accept that all human beings are equally capable of doing what is right as they are of doing what is wrong. nussbaum (1999) asserts the following: …that all, just by being human, are of equal dignity and worth, no matter where they are situated in society, and that the primary source of this worth is a power of moral choice within them, a power that consists in the ability to plan a life in accordance with one’s own evaluations of ends. taking a decision is partly based on the education (enculturation) people receive at home, in school and in society, and partly on their inherited propensity towards certain kinds of behaviour; but mostly, it is based on their own personal experiences and the meanings they have attached to notions of right or wrong. in other words, decisions about right or wrong are socially constructed ideas of what they “ought to do” (the morally right). however, acting in accordance with that idea is not predetermined. instead, it is actively chosen. even the most morally corrupt person among us can at times do what is right, and even the most moral person can at times choose to do what is wrong. lickona (1991) points out the need to distinguish between moral knowing, moral feeling and moral behaviour, i.e. habits of the mind, habits of the heart and habits of action. lickona claims that all three are necessary for leading a moral life, as all three make up moral maturity. moral knowing is described as involving moral awareness, values, perspective taking, moral reasoning and decision-making. moral feeling includes the conscience, self-esteem, empathy and humility. finally, moral action is founded on moral competence (the ability to turn moral judgment and feeling into action), moral will (the desire to do what is right) and moral habit (an unconscious inclination to do what is right). lickona (1991) views moral action as an “outcome” of both moral knowing and moral feeling. the moral environment in which individuals are situated is viewed as a key factor that determines whether people behave morally. for hale-haniff and pasztor (1999), values refer to the sense that something is or is not important (worth striving for or desirable). they contrast this to beliefs, which they defi ne as assumptions, convictions, rules or expectations about life, people and ideas. hale-haniff and pasztor (1999) claim that we only tend to hold beliefs about things that matter to us, i.e. we formulate beliefs in the light of that which we value. viewed from this perspective, beliefs not only include philosophical assumptions or convictions about whether or not one’s life has overall meaning or purpose, but also rules and expectations about life, people and ideas. accepting that a value is something worth living or striving for foregrounds two fundamental aspects of a value: cognition (what i think or believe) and feeling (what i feel/my emotions). values are, however, not restricted to these two aspects, as they are mediated by a variety of other variables (place, circumstance, opportunity) so that the relation is not direct and certainly not isomorphic (berkowitz, 1995). certainly, a value entails cognition (knowing), for a value is centrally a belief in the desirability or lack of desirability of the focus of the value. it also includes emotion (feeling), as it is by its very nature affectively laden (nieuwenhuis, 2005, 2007, manual, 1994). hale-haniff and pasztor (1999) state that our emotional responses provide cues that one or more of our (conscious or unconscious) expectations are being violated. for example, when someone else has violated an important belief or expectation, feelings of disappointment, anger or hurt often ensue. because these emotions serve as signals of unmet expectations, they can serve as catalysts for identifying unconscious expectations or beliefs. in this regard, rokeach (1973) claims that values guide, but do not necessarily predict behaviour. it is easy to reject drugs in the safe environment of the classroom, but it becomes a much more complex decision in the club when one’s peers are using drugs. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 125 124 against this background, the study draws its theoretical conceptualisation from satir’s growth model and csikszentmihaly’s model of optimal experience, as discussed by hale-haniff and pasztor (1999), infusing these with the ideas of lickona (1991). satir approaches the understanding of consciousness from a holistic perspective in which she translates the awareness of wholeness (which is largely a fi xed, spatial metaphor) into temporal form, expressed through the infi nite continuity or fl owing movement of attention. her concept of “congruence” (also see kohlberg, 1975) refers to holistic patterns of consciousness in which attention fl ows freely and continuously (hale-haniff & pasztor, 1999). when all bits of information in consciousness are congruent with each other, there is fl ow, and the quality of experience is optimal. when the bits of information confl ict, the attention pattern becomes blocked or repetitive, and experience is painful. satir attended to congruence or lack of congruence at multiple simultaneous levels: values, intention, attention and behaviour. diagram i: relationships among the subsystems of congruent subjective experience (hale-haniff & pasztor: 1999) one could apply the notion of fl ow and congruence to the thinking of csikszentimihaly. csikszentimihaly (in hale-haniff & pasztor, 1999) studied experience (or fl ow states) in hundreds of individuals as they engaged in many different activities. from the work of satir and csikszentimihaly, an isomorphic relationship between the pattern and structure of fl ow states, and satir’s description of congruence can be identifi ed. both refer to the interrelationships among the subsystems of values, goal-setting or intention, attention, emotion and behaviour. diagram i summarises the relationships among these subsystems of subjective experience. the thinking underpinning diagram 1 could also be linked to lickona’s idea of moral knowing, moral feeling and moral behaviour, i.e. habits of the mind, habits of the heart and habits of action, and to kohlberg’s idea of moral development. csikszentmihaly provides clear and useful descriptions of the relationship between values, intention, attention and emotion. values are the major arbiter of choice. what we value is pervasively refl ected across all aspects of consciousness: in our implicit and explicit choices, philosophical orientation and rules to live by, the nature of our expectations and assumptions, decision-making, means of motivation, prioritisation of goals, choices about what we attend to and how we behave. intention or goalsetting is the force that keeps experience ordered. goals or intentions, which may be immediate, short or long range, are assigned many levels of priority, ranging from trivial to vital. attention refers to what will or will not appear in consciousness – what we notice internally and externally. at any given moment, we have at our disposal many individual units of attention, which may be usefully categorised as auditory, visual and kinaesthetic in nature. behaviour is how we act (what we do, what we say, how we say it and our body language). an unconfl icted or unifi ed intent presupposes clearly prioritised values, supported by compatible or unconfl icted assumptions and in patterns of attention where people are predisposed to notice that which is congruent with their personal goals. this alignment of values, intention and attention supports those emotions and behaviours that are congruent with personal goals. on the other hand, confl icted or split intentions presuppose unprioritised values and/or confl icting beliefs, which result in patterns of attention that include both relevant and irrelevant stimuli, and are accompanied by mixed emotions and inconsistent or dissonant behaviours. according to csikszentmihaly (1990), “flow helps to integrate the self because in that state of deep concentration consciousness is usually well ordered. thoughts, intentions, feelings and all the senses are focused on the same goal”. negative emotions, like boredom, anxiety or fear, produce a state from which people are not able to use attention to effectively deal with external tasks. instead, they must turn their attention inwards to restore order. based on the ideas of satir, csikszentmihaly, and hale-haniff and pasztor, it is assumed that when people are confronted with a moral dilemma, the natural fl ow is interrupted and attention is focused on that which creates disequilibrium, thus requiring them to turn their attention inwards to resolve the incongruence experienced. in order to do this, they need to refl ect on their held values, assumptions and beliefs to be able to formulate a stance that will help them restore congruence and fl ow. it is this process of inward reasoning that this study sets out to investigate and explore to gain greater insight and understanding about students’ moral reasoning. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 127 126 research design methodology the theoretical framework presented is aimed at understanding the interplay between values and moral reasoning by focusing on fl ow states (see satir, csikszentmihaly, hale-haniff & pasztor and lickona). based on this, a combination of quantitative and qualitative data-gathering methods was used. a concurrent mixed method design using a single data-gathering instrument was employed. the aim was to establish the possible value orientations and personal value structure of individual students and, based on this, to explore how they reason about moral dilemmas. to do this, students were required to complete a section containing multiple-choice and ranking questions to provide us with an individualised value structure per student. a separate section of the questionnaire required students to complete open-ended questions in which they were confronted with a number of moral dilemmas. the purpose of the dilemmas was to create some form of incongruence in their fl ow state, which required some inward refl ection and reasoning to restore fl ow. this reasoning process would be captured in text in the questionnaire and would be subjected to an empirical hermeneutic phenomenological analysis. in order to verify the possible infl uence that group norming might have had, students were given the opportunity to discuss the moral dilemmas after they had completed the questionnaire. a moderator facilitated the fl ow of the discussion without pronouncing any moral judgment, but could ask questions for clarifi cation and probing purposes. the moderator took fi eld notes, which captured the main arguments raised and discussed. after discussion, students were given the opportunity to add to or change any aspect pertaining to a specifi c moral dilemma if they so wished. space was provided on the questionnaire where these afterthoughts could be added. sampling all students enrolled for the distance education module owb 781 of the bed (honours) degree in education management who attended the july 2009 contact sessions were invited to participate. approximately 900 students from all nine provinces usually attend these sessions, which increased the possible transferability of the fi ndings. the existing contact teaching programme makes provision for a discussion of values and morals on the second day of the contact session and this study simply replaced that lecture. for the purpose of this contribution, the responses of only one group attending the session in pretoria will be discussed. the participants were from the gauteng province and could be regarded as coming from mainly urban settings. data analysis although the fi rst section of the questionnaire was designed in such a way that item analysis might be undertaken to develop measures of reliability and validity, and so that inferential statistical methods might be employed to standardise each question, these advanced statistical procedures were not used in the preparation of this paper, as this will only be done after all the questionnaires have been returned. based on the fi ndings of the study, it is foreseen that the questionnaire will be refi ned and adjusted to allow for possible standardisation in the future. such a process will greatly enhance the validity and reliability of the instrument, but may detract from the focus of the study vis-à-vis the moral reasoning of students. in terms of the data gathered in the quantitative section of the questionnaire, a basic statistical analysis was undertaken to determine individual student value preferences, from which a tentative value structure for the group could be inferred. this step in the research process was needed to establish a provisional framework of students’ value orientations. the variables included in the biographical section of the questionnaire may be used in future for secondary data analysis to identify trends within subgroupings in the data set. a total of 51 questionnaires were received from the fi rst group. with the exception of one, they all claimed to be christian in religious orientation and, with the exception of two, were all of african origin, speaking one of the nine african languages pronounced as offi cial languages in south africa. two-thirds of the participants were female and a third were male (refer to table 1), which is typical of the gender distribution of educators. more mature students generally enrol for postgraduate studies and this fact is refl ected in the data, which indicates that more than 80% of the participants were middle-aged (refer to table 2). table 1: gender distribution gender number male 17 female 34 distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 129 128 table 2: age distribution age number <30 2 31–40 16 41–50 25 >50 8 findings value structure section a explored the value orientations of the students. the section consisted of two parts. in the fi rst multiple-choice part, students were given a question with three possible choices from which they had to choose the one that corresponded best with their own preference. the three alternatives posed for each question represented a specifi c value. a values key index was developed that enabled weighting of the 12 values measured. three opposites were formulated to check for consistency in the response pattern. in the second part, ten values were listed in alphabetical order, which participants had to rank in terms of personal preference. the results are refl ected in figure 1 and diagram 2. figure 1: distribution of participants according to weighted values altruism materialis self aesthetic family work retributio respect caring honesty justice peace selfi sh spender dishonest 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 weight diagram 2: rank order of values a clear pattern emerged from the data obtained (see figure 1). values regarding family (communalism), honesty, social justice and peace were identifi ed as important. at the same time, dishonesty and self-interest were rejected. communalism (altruism), honesty, respect, accountability and peace were also ranked high as values. this must be regarded as preliminary. moral dilemmas the main focus of the research was on the moral reasoning of students. this was contained in section b of the questionnaire. students were given fi ve moral dilemmas in narrative form, followed by a number of open-ended questions. only one of these dilemmas will be discussed in this contribution. a similar approach to that of blatt and kohlberg (1975) served as the basis for these moral dilemma discussions. the blatt-kohlberg method of inducing cognitive confl ict uses piaget’s equilibration model as a basis, but could also be aligned with the idea of fl ow, as discussed in satir’s growth model and csikszentmihaly’s model of optimal experience (hale-haniff & pasztor, 1999). the basic argument is that a person takes one view, becomes confused by discrepant information, and then resolves the confusion by forming a more advanced and comprehensive position. asking thoughtful questions play an important role in inducing students’ higherlevel cognitive processes, such as self-refl ection, revision, social negotiation and conceptual change of misconceptions, all of which are integral to critical thinking and moral reasoning. freedom socialisation democracy materialism peace responsibility respect honesty altruism distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 131 130 before presenting the moral dilemma and the emerging pattern of responses, it is important to make a number of observations regarding the importance of communalism in african culture (nieuwenhuis & goolam, 2009) as a possible lens through which the moral dilemma could be analysed. communalism could be linked to the african idea of humanism or ubuntu and its essence is to ensure the welfare and interests of each individual member of society. ubuntu has been translated to denote a feeling of common humanity, a spirit of humaneness, social justice and fairness. it refers to the art of being a human being and includes a number of virtues, such as tolerance, compassion and forgiveness. it emphasises the value of human dignity and expresses the idea that a person’s life is only meaningful if he or she lives with other people, nature, the divine spirits and the ancestors. ubuntu advances the idea of individual human rights to include the concepts of community/communalism and the co-existence of rights and duties. ubuntu should, in addition, be understood in terms of african ontology. the hierarchical nature of african ontology places the supreme being at the apex and the world of natural objects, and phenomena at the bottom. african ontology is essentially spiritualistic. in this regard, ancestors and their infl uence over and connectedness to the living is accepted (mazrui, 1986). religion permeates all areas of life and it is not possible to isolate it from the other areas. morality is inextricably linked with religion, but the main determining force in morality is harmony. at a psychological level, this fi nds expression in a sense of a “reciprocal we-ness” and emotional care for others, and – at a volitional level – through helping others (metz, 2008). the essential rationale of communalism is that it indicates the value of collective action, mutual aid and interdependence as necessary conditions for the successful achievement of even the most diffi cult undertakings. communalism puts forward the idea that the good of all determines the good of each, or that the welfare of each is dependent on the welfare of all. the moral dilemma presented to participants, which forms the basis of the further discussion and analysis, was the following: the grade 10 class at your school wanted to go to maropeng (cradle of humankind). the school principal promised them that they could go if they collected enough money to pay for the trip. the class worked very hard selling sweets and food at the school, and collecting money from the community. in the end they collected r4 000, which would pay for the trip, and a little more besides. but, a few days before the planned trip, one of the grade 12 learners passed away. the school principal started to arrange the funeral and decided to use the money collected by the grade 10s for the funeral. so, he told the grade 10s that he would use the money for the funeral and that they would not be going to maropeng any more. the grade 10s were very disappointed, thinking of how hard they had to work to get the money. the students were confronted by a moral dilemma and had to decide on three issues:  whether a sense of communalism should take precedence over their sense of social justice (communalism individualism)  whether a person in authority may use his or her power to take a decision (authoritarianism democracy)  the moral principles of the relationship between the principal and the learners eight open-ended questions were posed to explore the three dimensions listed. from the responses, it was clear that students saw the scenario as a moral dilemma. the majority of responses (39 out of 51) gave strong indications of communalist thinking. even in cases where they felt that the principal had no right to use the money, their sense of communalism was aroused. typical responses included: “ubuntu must take its part”; schoolchildren had to “sympathise with their principal and schoolmate”; they had to “...go to the funeral and show care and value for human life”; and “the important thing is to attend funeral” and “i will remind learners of things that we do not have control over”. many felt that the funeral was a deserving cause and that even the unilateral decision of the principal to use the money for the funeral could be excused. participants, for example, said: “the principal has no right, only the situation made him do that” and “[the] money is used for a good cause and they can raise more money, but the dead body cannot be kept any longer”; “the life of a person is more important than personal or social things”; “what matters now is the fact that, since there will be a funeral for one of the pupils, the money for the funeral is available”; and “[they can] postpone the trip and donate their money for the funeral because it is a good thing to do”. it is, of course, possible that urbanised people may have lost their traditional values and beliefs, and, through their exposure to western cultural infl uences, have adopted a more individualistic or self-centred stance. if the latter is the case, then it was expected that participants would see the actions of the principal sketched distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 133 132 in the scenario as wrong and unjust. examples of self-centred thinking were found on 25 occasions in the responses of participants. in essence, the argument was that “the money was not for the funeral”; “the school is not a burial society and the money was collected for the trip”; “it is not their responsibility to bury that learner”; and “the learners worked very hard to collect the money for that particular purpose (trip)”. from the responses received, it became evident that the use of the money for the funeral was not seen as such a moral dilemma, but what generated a lot of attention was the fact that the principal used the money without consulting the grade 10 learners. this action of the principal challenged their sense of justice and democracy. firstly, they viewed the money as belonging to the learners and, secondly, they felt that the learners must have a voice and a choice in the matter. participants said: “...he should have asked the grade 10s’ opinion fi rst before he made the fi nal decision” and “the principal had no right, but needed to explain the situation and negotiate with learners and allow learners to take the decision”, while other participants explained: “there must be a mutual understanding and equal sharing of ideas” and “the learners should make their choice about their money.” the fact that the principal used the money without consulting with the learners was seen as an act of disrespect. one participant explained: “he doesn’t have the right to use it without the permission of the learners. he shows that he doesn’t respect them” and “...their effort and commitment should be respected too”. respect emerged strongly as a common theme. participants felt that the principal had to keep his promise, since being true to your promise ensures that people will respect you. one participant claimed that “they [the children] will recognise that their rights are being respected and behave well”, while another said that “...[w] hen learners see that the principal respects them, they will in return respect him”. linked with the theme of respect is trust and fi delity. trust and fi delity were closely associated with the importance of keeping a promise. this is illustrated by the following statements of participants:  “a promise kept building a trust among people; it is therefore important to share the same feeling.”  “a good relationship takes time to be rebuilt when it is broken.”  “the learners should trust the principal and respect what he says.”  “that the learners trust him and have faith in him and that he/she should treat them well and respect them.”  “a promise is an obligation.”  “as a man in authority, you cannot go back on your word due to unforeseen circumstances.”  “it makes you to walk your talk and makes you trustworthy.” the high premium attached to fi delity and the importance of keeping a promise corresponds with the importance attached to honesty as a value (see figure 1 and diagram 2) and affi rms the consistency of the response pattern in the respondent group. conclusion south africa is now in its second decade of democracy. for the generation now entering high school, apartheid and the liberation struggle are presumed to be a history lesson, but what they see around them is a society that has not yet transformed. they see adults caught in a cultural discontinuity of not being able to fully identify with traditional culture any more and who are not fully embracing a type of modernist or universalistic culture. in the words of the afrikaans poet, weg louw, “a halfway up the hill stand”. this tendency is corroborated in the moral dilemma discussed. the traditional way expects them to honour and respect the dead and to act in a way that will harmonise the group and ensure communalism. at the same time, they want to embrace the more self-centred and individualistic stance of having a fun day. or they want to act in a way they see as being morally right, i.e. to be honest and to honour a promise made. in arguing through the moral dilemma, we see many of the participants move between these choices. the blatt-kohlberg (1975) idea of inducing cognitive confl ict or disturbing the fl ow (hale-haniff & pasztor, 1999) was created through the moral dilemma posed. in arguing through the dilemma, it would appear as if csikszentmihaly’s notion of the relationship between values, intention, attention and emotion could serve as a basis for the interpretation of the reasoning. if we accept that values are the major arbiter of choice, then it is insightful to note the dominance attached to trust, respect and honesty when the participants considered the scenario sketched and how feelings of altruism (communalism) permeated their reasoning. it would thus appear that the theoretical framework developed for the study could be used to further explore and analyse the data obtained in the study. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 135 134 references berkowitz, mw. 1995. the education of the complete moral person. aberdeen, scotland: gordon cook foundation. blatt, m & kohlberg, l. 1975. the effects of classroom moral discussion upon children’s level of moral judgment. journal of moral education, 4:129–161. bull, nj. 1969. moral education. london: routledge & kegan paul. csikszentmihaly, m. 1990. flow: the psychology of optimal experience. new york: harper and row. csikszentmihaly, m. 1997. finding fl ow: the psychology of engagement with everyday life. new york: basic books. hale-haniff, m & pasztor, a. 1999. co-constructing subjective experience: a constructivist approach. dialogues in psychology, 16.0. (paper presented at the mind-4 conference, dublin city university, dublin, ireland, on 17 august 1999.) hood, g. 1999. a reasonable man: interview with gavin hood. daily dispatch, 1999. lickona, t. 1991. educating for character: how our schools can teach respect and responsibility. new york: bantam books. manuel, bd. 1994. values in philippine culture and education: philippine philosophical studies. washington: council for research in values and philosophy. mazrui, a. 1986. the africans. london: bbc. mclean, gf. 1991. person and moral growth. in: van doan, t, shen, v & mclean, gf (eds.). chinese foundations for moral education and character development. 2nd expanded edition. washington: council for research in values and philosophy. metz, t. 2008. choosing whom to save from death: prioritising treatment for hiv/aids. paper presented at annual conference of the philosophical society of southern africa, university of pretoria, 16–18 january 2008. nieuwenhuis, fj. 2005. from equality of opportunity to equality of treatment as a value-based concern in education. in: russo, c, beckman, jl & jansen, jd (eds.). equal educational opportunities: comparative perspectives in education. pretoria: van schaik. nieuwenhuis, fj. 2007. the life of a rural school principal in south africa: what we have learnt from refl ective journaling. proceedings of the saches conference, dar-essalaam, 9–11 september 2005. nieuwenhuis, fj & goolam, n. 2009. ubuntu as social justice: a moral dilemma in the south african education system (in press). nieuwenhuis, fj, prinsloo, i & beckmann, jl. 2007. growing values and human rights in education. pretoria: van schaik publishers. nussbaum, mc. 1999. sex and social justice. new york: oxford university press. rokeach, m. 1973. the nature of human values. new york: free press. r v mbombela (1933 ad 269 at 272). s v manamela and mdlalose (1999 cct 25/99). s v van as, rumpff cj (1976 (2) sa 921 (a) at 928 c – e). south africa. department of education. 2002. manifesto on values, democracy and education. pretoria: doe. straughan, r. 1992. can we teach children to be good? basic issues in moral, personal and social education. milton keynes: open university press. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 137 136 management challenges as drawbacks to teacher development: the way forward for the nigerian teacher in basic education 1anselm chidi njoku abstract teaching as a profession is deeply rooted in historical antecedents. granted that its journey from the status of a voluntary service in the hands of christian missionaries with no legal instruments and reliable conditions of service to the present one of its integration into the public service has been a giant stride, its management challenges have, in many instances, constituted drawbacks to the optimal development of the teacher. some of the management challenges touch on the inconsistencies with regard to admission requirements for teachers’ training, discrepancies in their recruitment and deployment, irregular career progression, inadequate provision of teaching and learning material, the non-inclusive nature of curriculum review, the reluctance of government to address teachers’ genuine grievances, inadequate teacher incentives and others. as a remedy, the school should be recognised as a learning organisation that, among other things, should fi nd expression in the nigerian teacher being equipped to cope with the modern practices that are required of a new teacher. keywords: management challenges, teacher development, basic education 1 anselm chidi njoku is associated with the national institute for educational planning and administration (niepa), ondo, ondo state, nigeria. e-mail: anselmnjoku@yahoo.com distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 139 138 introduction to prepare a new teacher requires a paradigm shift from what constitutes the old concept of a teacher to what should constitute the concept of a new teacher, given the knowledge explosion as a result of globalisation. teaching generally – both in nigeria and elsewhere – is regarded as a special profession, characterised by deeply rooted historical antecedents. it has its unique challenges, but there is compelling evidence of progression. it has been operating in terms of the incremental model of policy-making. it graduated from a level of voluntary service without any legal instruments to the present level of a pensionable profession in the public service. conceptual clarification contextual clarifi cation of two salient concepts is considered necessary (okafor, 1984). these are basic education and teacher development. basic education in section 3 of the national policy on education (npe), the federal republic of nigeria (2004) explains that basic education shall be of nine years’ duration, comprising six years of primary education and three years of junior secondary education. it shall be free and compulsory. it shall also include adult and nonformal education programmes at primary and junior secondary education levels for adults and out-of-school youth. the goals of basic education include, among others, the inculcation of sustainable literacy and numeracy, and the ability to communicate effectively, laying a sound basis for scientifi c and refl ective thinking, offering citizenship education and opportunities for developing manipulative skills, character moulding and providing basic tools for further education. teacher development teacher development seeks to prepare teachers adequately to fi t into what obanya (2007) calls “the international framework for teacher education”. for this, he emphasises two sides of the pedagogy inculcation principle, namely mastering the teaching model and modelling the master teacher. the former stresses excellent grasp of learning promotion principles, techniques and technologies, especially the capacity to inculcate these in learners. the latter stresses the internalisation of learning promotion principles, techniques and technologies, especially radiating these in classrooms, in school in general and in workplace interactions with students. to achieve this would involve continuous updating of knowledge, making the teacher comfortable, as well as giving him or her a sense of belonging. antecedents of basic education and teacher development because the level and nature of education suggest the level and nature of teacher development, different levels and periods of educational development are identifi ed in nigeria. period of traditional pre-colonial education this was the period of self-rule before the coming of colonial rule. during this period, every normal adult was regarded as a teacher with parents playing a major role in education, without having undergone any formal school learning. every normal adult member of the extended family was a teacher, emphasising vocational skills, abilities, attitudes and acceptable behaviour patterns (ukeje, 1992). during this period, the child learnt many cultural practices at home from his or her signifi cant others, including parents, uncles, cousins, children in senior grades, members of peer groups and other adult members of the community. the method of learning was imitation or “do as i do”. while the boys learned especially from their fathers and other adult male members of the community, the girls learned from their mothers and other adult female members of the community. everything was done traditionally in the indigenous way. period of sole voluntary agency system and control (1842–1887) this period witnessed the coming of voluntary education agencies. the voluntary agencies were the various missionary groups that came to nigeria for their primary work of evangelisation but who used education as an instrument. the various missionary groups included the wesleyan methodist mission, the church missionary society, the roman catholic church, the presbyterian church and others. this period witnessed the introduction of formal education in 1842 by the wesleyan methodist mission and the opening of the fi rst known western form of school in nigeria in 1843 (fafunwa, 1974). teaching was a voluntary occupation. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 141 140 ukeje (1992) notes that the church missionary society “established perhaps the fi rst teacher training institution in the country…” the teacher taught what the church wanted him to. government had no hand in education, implying that there was no uniformity in the curriculums provided by the various churches or in teachers’ conditions of service. period of dual control (1887–1953) this was the period of control of education by both the missionaries and the colonial government. essentially, while the missionaries had the upper hand in the provision of manpower (mainly teachers), the colonial government had the upper hand in the provision of administrative instruments for education. this period provided for four classes of teachers: school masters, assistant school masters, pupil teachers and monitors. during this period, the fi rst indigenous nigerian education ordinance was introduced. it provided for a board of education and the appointment of an inspector. the different missions established more schools, including teacher training institutions, of which there were now three. margery (1960) notes that there was a strengthening of government control of education. period of increased government control (1952–1970) this was the period of emerging regional universal primary education with local education committees. four inspectors of education were appointed, who were in charge of primary, secondary, teacher training and technical education respectively. teachers were more or less policed. exceptional growth in private proprietary secondary schools, the use of common syllabuses by private and indigenous schools, and the same staff qualifi cations and registration characterised the period. the unsatisfactory state of affairs in curriculum and its delivery led to the national curriculum conference (ncc) of 1969 (fafunwa, 1974). era of state takeover and national universal primary education (1970–1979) this was the era during which educated and concerned nigerians expressed dissatisfaction over the irrelevance of the curriculum in schools as the emphasis was on arts, and science and technology were neglected in a country that was agrarian in nature. teachers’ knowledge was very shallow and limited. the ncc paved the way for the fi rst national policy on education in 1977 (fafunwa, 1974). the ncc was an impressive gathering of nigerians from all walks of life – engineers, lawyers, farmers, teachers, businessmen and women, members of various trade unions, artisans and members of religious bodies. these nigerians gathered and questioned the rationale behind the offering of such an arts-based foreign curriculum in a country that was naturally endowed with abundant mineral resources and prospects for scientifi c agriculture, given the vast area of arable land. the result of the ncc was the articulation of the fi rst national policy on education, which has been reviewed several times subsequently. era of the knowledge explosion and globalisation (1980 to the present day) the knowledge explosion and the burden of the teacher teaching a curriculum he or she never took part in developing, infrastructural decay, inappropriate teacher recruitment, the image of the teacher and the comparison syndrome were among the characteristics of the era, suggesting that a way forward had to be found. management challenges of teacher development to prepare a “new teacher”, it is necessary to identify the management challenges facing the present teacher. lack of interest in teacher education there is a lack of interest in teacher education programmes, which can be attributed, among others, to the declining social status of the teaching profession. data sourced from the joint admissions and matriculations board’s (jamb) 1999/2000 and 2000/2001 applications and admissions into tertiary institutions shows that while universities and polytechnics are still highly competitive, with attrition rates of 81% and 72% respectively, it seems that colleges of education have to go out literally begging for students – a situation that has given rise to an increase in prenigeria certifi cate in education (nce) programmes, which seldom attract the most motivated students (obanya, 2007). the candidates in the pre-nce programmes lack the basic requirements to pursue the nce programme. therefore, they are once more taken through the senior secondary school subjects on which they write qualifying internal examinations distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 143 142 conducted by the college of education. candidates who pass the examination with the acceptable minimum requirements enrol for the nce programme. so, the benefi ting candidates are graduates of the remedial programme, who have now entered the regular nce programme, whereas for the polytechnics and universities, the enrolled students are qualifi ed graduates who enter the programme directly from the senior secondary school. teacher recruitment and deployment poor decisions have adversely affected the way the recruitment and deployment of teachers is handled. normally, before government or any formal organisation recruits or deploys new employees, there are basic considerations that have to be heeded. the considerations would include collecting data on the number of vacancies, noting the various categories of staff required, the gender mix (especially with regard to teaching in mixed gender schools), the advertising of vacancies, shortlisting applicants, the establishment of a panel of interviewers, interviewing candidates, selecting and recruiting candidates, and the deployment of staff to areas of need. but, unfortunately, because of poor decisions, these guidelines for recruitment and deployment are hardly followed by some state governments. the result is that most urban schools, especially those in the southern part of the country, have a preponderance of female teachers in basic education. the situation therefore shows gender insensitivity (federal ministry of education, 2007), as most of the schools do not have enough male teachers to cater for the special needs of male learners. the worrying situation prejudices the realisation of the dakar education for all (efa) goal of eliminating gender disparities among teachers, since there are not enough male teachers to cater for the male pupils in primary and secondary education in that area by 2005. unqualifi ed teachers still teaching the minimum teaching qualifi cation approved by the federal government of nigeria is the nce. regrettably, many states, especially those in the northern part of the country, record low percentages of qualifi ed teachers. for instance, the federal ministry of education’s basic and secondary education statistics in nigeria for 2004 and 2005 (2006) show the following low percentages of qualifi ed teachers for four states, as refl ected in table 1. table 1: percentage of qualifi ed teachers in four northern states of nigeria (federal ministry of education, 2006) states percentage of qualifi ed teachers primary school all schools zamfara 20.45 65.85 yobe 20.70 57.64 taraba 29.67 61.33 sokoto 19.19 67.88 irregular career progression once employed in most organisations, a career progression path is made available to the new employee for him or her to study and follow in order to achieve personal development. this is done with the assistance of the employing organisation. the organisation then provides the enabling environment for career progression. the enabling environment may include fi nancial assistance, the identifi cation of courses and recommending or nominating the individual to attend the courses. furthermore, employees’ organisations frequently sponsor members to attend workshops. this makes it possible for them to grow fast and perform more effectively. teaching is lacking in this respect: many teachers need to pay for themselves from their meagre salaries to attend career development programmes, such as sandwich courses, evening study programmes and even workshops. sometimes the teachers attend workshops without fi nancial assistance from their employer to cover their transport and meals. often, when they receive meals, it is of a poor quality and they receive shabby treatment. sometimes, the stipend proposed for them to attend workshops is politicised. in the nigerian context, when an issue is said to have been politicised, the general understanding is that it was not handled in the proper way. this implies that some people may have been favoured, while others may have gone without anything even when there are concerted efforts to convey the impression that the government cares for the teachers. given this unpleasant situation, teaching at this level is seen as a “dead end” or an unattractive proposition. moreover, for many years, teachers who retired from government service in most of the states have not been paid their pension and gratuity. many retirees have died without receiving their pensions and gratuities. this situation resembles what distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 145 144 the nigerian author njoku (2007), in his treatment of manipulating administrative principles, calls manipulative democracy or pseudo-democracy. inadequate provision of teaching and learning material there is an acute shortage of teaching and learning materials in schools. granted that a resourceful teacher should be able to improvise teaching and learning materials, it should be noted that there is a limit to improvisation by a teacher. the absence of such materials adversely affects the level of teachers’ performance. it is obvious that teaching without the materials that would aid learning will not make learning adequate: not seeing the learning aid, not touching it, not smelling it in some cases, and even not hearing the sound would all constitute signifi cant limitations to effective mastery of the subject matter. absence of teachers from curriculum review processes a principle of curriculum review is that all those who are affected by a given curriculum should be involved in its review, at least through representatives. much curriculum review and innovation done in nigeria does not have the support and commitment of teachers. edozie (2005), while examining constraints to curriculum innovations in developing countries, points out that most curriculum planners hardly involve teachers in curriculum innovations. accordingly, “new learning experiences are quietly included in existing curricula and thrust upon unprepared teachers to implement”. if teachers, as the real technicians in teaching, are not involved in the review of the curriculum they are operating, but are merely asked to implement what was reviewed without approving of the changes, they might view the implementation as an unfair imposition. government reluctance to address teachers’ genuine grievances over the years, lip service has characterised attempts by government to resolve teachers’ genuine grievances. yet, what teachers are asking for is to be given reasonable remuneration that should take cognisance of ever-increasing infl ation. a typical instance of government reluctance in this regard is the recently approved teachers’ salary structure (tss).the issue of the tss came up as a result of pressure exerted on the federal government of nigeria by the nigerian union of teachers (nut) because of teachers’ dissatisfaction with their conditions of service. the implementation of the tss is proving problematic after its approval by government. the manner of implementation varies between states. while some states have implemented the new salary structure to some extent, others have not. the way forward for the new teacher the old and present teachers have not satisfi ed the yearnings of the public in respect of service delivery in education. therefore, there is a need for a teacher development programme for the new teacher. national education sector development planning planning is a process whereby a direction is set forth and the way of following that direction is specifi ed (unesco, 2006). nigeria needs a national education sector plan (nesp), a national education sector operational plan (nesop) and similar plans for the states. it is interesting to note that some states have embarked on these plans. among other things, the task of carrying out national educational sector development planning would require a business-type process and reengineering that should start with carrying out a swot analysis to identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (obanya, 2007) to obtain reliable baseline data. treating schools as learning organisations a learning organisation is one that works to facilitate the lifelong learning and personal development of all of its employees, while continually preparing to respond to changing demands and needs (griffi n, 1997). the teacher should be constantly exposed to learning portals – gateways or avenues of knowledge. these would include the provision of internet services, computers, newsletters, journals, training workshops and research to keep abreast of global trends. government readiness and preparedness to address teachers’ genuine grievances government needs to provide a legal instrument that will address teachers’ genuine grievances. this can be referred to and tendered as evidence in a court of law. constitutional provision for uniform teachers’ salaries in nigeria, education is in the concurrent legislative list (gazetted amended constitution of the federal republic of nigeria, 2011). this situation has given rise distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 147 146 to varying salary structures and conditions of service for teachers in the various states. to rectify the anomaly, the constitutional provision in respect of this should be amended to provide for uniform teachers’ salaries across the states. involving teachers in curriculum innovation planning is involved in curriculum innovation. a recognised principle of planning is that those who will be affected by any plan should be involved in its development from its inception to its implementation. curriculum innovation can only be confi rmed as serving the purpose when professional teachers are involved in curriculum innovation at all levels. this will give teachers a sense of belonging and recognition in this profession and, eventually, emotional stability. making the study of education as a discipline more attractive at the moment, the study of education is less attractive than that of other disciplines, such as the sciences and business subject areas. there is, therefore, a need to conduct an elaborate empirical study with a view to restructuring, repositioning and revamping the faculties of education at universities, colleges of education and other higher educational institutions where they exist. the empirical study envisaged should cover the curriculum, skills acquisition and job prospects, improved conditions of service, political will and the professional status of teaching, among other variables. the essence of the suggested study is to empirically identify the various areas of intervention in the discipline of education with a view to upgrading and making the discipline more attractive, so that new entrants will see it being as good as other disciplines in other tertiary institutions. adequate provision of teaching and learning materials the teacher should have learning support material to work with. teaching and learning materials concretise learning, making it more enduring and facilitating skills and knowledge acquisition. the comparative education study and adaptation centre (cesac) highlighted the production of actual curriculum material – pupils’ texts, teachers’ guides and workbooks – as indispensable, emphasising audiovisual aids to facilitate teaching and learning (okeke, 1981). summary and conclusion this paper provides conceptual clarifi cation of basic education and teacher development. a brief reference to historical antecedents of educational development, which suggests the nature of teacher development, is made. education in nigeria progressed from the level of the traditional pre-colonial era when every adult was regarded as a teacher, passing through a voluntary agency control era when the teacher volunteered to work as guided by missionaries, to the policing of the teacher, which started with the era of dual control of education when government started partnering with voluntary agencies. a somewhat uniform standard in education was ushered in by the era of state takeovers of national universal primary education up to the present era of globalisation. to be able to address the way forward, management challenges in the system were identifi ed, such as a lack of interest in teacher education (obanya, 2007), poor decisions and practices regarding teacher recruitment and deployment, unqualifi ed teachers still teaching, irregular career progression, inadequate provision of teaching and learning materials, the non-inclusive nature of curriculum review and government’s reluctance to address teachers’ genuine issues. as a way forward, the following suggestions are made: national education sector development planning, treating schools as learning organisations, government readiness to address teachers’ grievances, constitutional provisions for uniform teachers’ salaries, involving teachers in curriculum innovation, revamping facilities of education and adequate provision of teaching and learning materials. it is therefore concluded that if these recommendations are judiciously implemented, a good road map would have been charted for the development of a new teacher. distance education and teachers’ training in africa teachers can change africa deta deta 149 148 references edozie, gc. 2005. teachers and curricular innovations in developing countries. in: so oraifo, gc edozie & dn eze (eds.). curriculum issues in contemporary education. benin city: da-sylva infl uence. fafunwa, ab. 1974. history of education in nigeria. london: george allen & unwim ltd. federal ministry of education. 2006. basic and secondary education statistics 2004 and 2005. federal ministry of education, nigeria. 2007. national policy on gender in basic education. abuja. federal republic of nigeria. 2011. gazetted amended constitution of the federal republic of nigeria. abuja. federal republic of nigeria. 2004. national policy on education. yaba-lagos: nerdc press. griffi n, rw. 1997. management. boston: houghton miffl in compact. margery, p. 1974. history of education in nigeria. london: george allen & unwin ltd. njoku, ac. 2007. humility – what nigerians need: an educational approach for reorientation, reconscientization and reconstruction. ibadan: aldis books. obanya, pai. 2007. thinking and talking education. ibadan: evans brothers (nigeria publishers) ltd. okafor, fc. 1984. philosophy of education and third world perspective. enugu: star publishing company. okeke, eac. 1981. the dynamics of curriculum revision. in: u onwaka’s curriculum development for africa. onitsha: african publishers ltd. ukeje, bo. 1992. education administration. enugu: fourth dimension publishing co. ltd. www.deta.up.ac.za teachers c an change afric a isbn 978-1-86854-952-8 a teacher education and development in africa deta proceedings 20–24 july 2015 mauritius institute of education réduit, mauritius “the future we want”: teacher development for the transformation of education in diverse african contexts 2015 editor: dr folake ruth aluko assistant editor: dr hyleen mariaye b deta proceedings 20–24 july 2015 published in 2017 editor: dr folake ruth aluko assistant editor: dr hyleen mariaye “the future we want”: teacher development for the transformation of education in diverse african contexts proceedings of the 6th biennial international conference on distance education and teachers’ training in africa (deta) held at the mauritius institute of education, réduit, mauritius july 2015 i deta ii deta proceedings of the 6th biennial international conference on distance education and teachers’ training in africa (deta) held at the mauritius institute of education, réduit, mauritius july 2015 volume 4 published in 2017 publisher: unit for distance education, faculty of education, university of pretoria, with the mauritius institute of education editor: dr folake ruth aluko assistant editor: dr hyleen mariaye place of publication: pretoria, south africa printer: business print centre language editing and layout: janine smit editorial services isbn 978-1-77592-144-8 eissn 978-1-77592-145-5 the authors are responsible for the accuracy and correctness of the content of the contributions, although deta provided some editorial assistance. deta does not accept responsibility or liability for the content of any contribution published in these proceedings. teacher education and development in africa iii deta the distance education and teachers’ training in africa (deta) conference strives to provide a platform for educationists in africa to meet and deliberate on educational issues in africa. this document is also available online at www.deta.up.ac.za iv deta proceedings policy the distance education and teachers’ training in africa proceedings is a pan-african medium for articles of interest to researchers and practitioners in distance teacher education, and especially those presented during the distance education and teachers’ training in africa (deta) conference. the publication is interdisciplinary in approach and its purpose is to provide practitioners who work within the african context the opportunity to disseminate original research and new developments within their field. due to the pan-african nature of the conference, the editors have sought the professional support of an international advisory board made up of experts in the field of distance teacher education. these are mostly from african countries, but also include experts from the united kingdom and the united states who have been involved in various projects on the continent. the consultant editors are also professionals in the same categories. this is the fourth edition of this publication. previous editions have, until now, existed as a repository on the conference website (www.deta.up.ac.za). these editions have been published biennially following the preceding conferences. from 2018, the editors plan to publish the publication twice a year as an in-house online journal. further information on the new developments will be made available in due course. the views expressed in the publication are those of the respective authors. open access policy the distance education and teachers’ training in africa proceedings (with a possible name change to be communicated in due course) is housed at the unit for distance education in the faculty of education of the university of pretoria, south africa. peer-review process all research articles submitted to the distance education and teachers’ training in africa proceedings have undergone a rigorous peer-review process. the process involves initial editor screening, anonymized refereeing by at least two referees, and a final reading by a critical reader. the reviewers are requested to complete a brief written report, along with a score sheet of whether the article is suitable for publication in the proceedings. authors are requested to submit a covering letter indicating that their paper has not been previously published or is under consideration for publication elsewhere. v teacher education and development in africa deta editorial committee editor: folake ruth aluko (university of pretoria) associate editor: hyleen mariaye (mauritius institute of education) senior consultant editors: gerrit kamper (prof emeritus, university of south africa) salome schulze (university of south africa) international board of advisers prof richard siaciwena prof olasupo jegede dr jill fresen dr januario francisco prof freda wolfenden prof letseka moeketsi prof victor pitsoe dr clara akumoah-boateng prof wenceslas consultant editors b. o. pratab (mauritius institute of education, mauritius) m. f. omidire (university of pretoria, south africa) d. stephens (university of brighton, united kingdom) t. mays (university of pretoria, south africa) d. human (university of pretoria, south africa) k. mohangi (university of south africa, south africa) a. rumjaun (mauritius institute of education, mauritius) i. kibirige (university of limpopo, south africa) m. kazeni (university of pretoria, south africa) j. s. rabari (kenyatta university, kenya) s. oyoo (university, of the witwatersrand south africa) h. bessoondyal (mauritius institute of education, mauritius) e. sujee (university of pretoria, south africa) a. loveless (university of brighton, united kingdom) f. wolfenden (open university, united kingdom) d. jaguthsing (national institute of education, singapore) vi deta s. schulze (university of south africa, south africa) n. abbass (mauritius institute of education, mauritius) a. uworwabayeho (university of rwanda-college of education, rwanda) m. a. owodally (mauritius institute of education, mauritius) m. dwomoh-tweneboah (linfield college, united states) o. ayodele-bamisaiye (university of ibadan, nigeria) e. b. jean-françois (the pennsylvania state university, united states) g. kamper (university of south africa, south africa) r. de villiers (university of pretoria, south africa) c. robinson (university of brighton, united kingdom) j. nieuwenhuis (university of pretoria, south africa) e. venter (university of south africa, south africa) c. akuamoah-boateng (university of cape coast, ghana) v. naeck (mauritius institute of education, mauritius) a. oojorah (mauritius institute of education, mauritius) t. e. lumadi (tshwane university of technology, south africa) d. i. sutherland (ex-registrar, general teaching council for scotland, united kingdom) j. fresen (university of oxford, united kingdom) l. j. van niekerk (university of south africa, south africa) vii teacher education and development in africa deta acknowledgements the editors wish to express their appreciation towards the following individuals and institutions: dr tony mays, manager of the unit for distance education in the faculty of education of the university of pretoria, for the opportunity to publish this volume of distance education and teachers’ training in africa proceedings. the various contributors for their contributions. sonto mabena of the department of library services of the university of pretoria for her assistance. janine smit editorial services for the final editing of the contributions, as well as for the design of the cover and layout of the publication. the university of pretoria for its financial and other support. mauritius institute of education for hosting the conference. business print centre for its professional printing service. viii deta preface to the deta conference proceedings the sixth deta conference, with the theme “the future we want”: teacher development for the transformation of education in diverse african contexts, was held in mauritius in july 2015. it had the ambitious agenda of bringing together more than 200 delegates from more than 15 african countries to reflect on the future of education in africa. this target was largely met with 115 paper presentations by delegates from botswana, burundi, ghana, kenya, mauritius, mozambique, namibia, nigeria, rwanda, south africa, tanzania, togo, uganda, zambia, zimbabwe, canada, france, germany, the united kingdom and the united states. the presentations considered the following subthemes: 1. teaching children in diverse african contexts 2. pedagogies that will achieve “the future we want” for education in africa 3. the role and impact of technology on teacher development 4. quality in education as a prerequisite to establish “the future we want” for education in africa deta conferences have now become a unique and regular biennial event on the african academic calendar, offering a platform for practitioners and researchers in education to collectively reflect on how educational policies, while guided by local contexts, can be attuned to achieving a shared vision for the continent. it also focuses on how practices can be enhanced by learning from the experiences of others; and on how theories and models borrowed from the north can be challenged by more culturally sensitive perspectives developed from empirical data produced in a diversity of african contexts. international educational targets also shape our contexts and protocols, which seek to bring about a common focus to solve perennial concerns in education, of which quality remains a priority. what the conference brought out unambiguously was the need to mobilise massive resources and willpower in order to guarantee access to an education that empowers individuals and communities to effect the necessary economic, social and political change. countries cannot achieve this ambitious ix teacher education and development in africa deta social reconstruction project through education without including teachers, their training and quality in the equation. the correlation between innovation in educational practices and the work of the teacher scholar is well established, yet africa lags behind in terms of its scholarly and research productions, despite the richness of its contexts. conferences such as deta can not only add to the discourse, policies and practices in education, but also contribute to the development of the next generation of academics by initiating them into the rigour of the peer-review process. this document is a modest contribution to the publication landscape. while displaying the merits of ongoing research projects in schools and universities, it also signposts the challenges currently faced by african teacher scholars on the one hand, and institutions of higher learning on the other, in upscaling the quality of academic productions in teacher education. aware of the varied profiles of participants, the double-blind peer review process sought to be supportive and developmental by providing constructive comments to authors on structure, substance and form. twenty drafts covering the conference subthemes were submitted. of the 20 drafts received, 11 were provisionally accepted and returned to the authors for improvements. eventually, four submissions were converted into shorter reports on creative and innovative educational projects or small-scale research, while the remaining six were retained in the more traditional article format. the process of putting together distance education and teachers’ training in africa proceedings indicated some critical areas for both reflection and concerted action for us as a community of scholars to be able to position africa on the research and publication map. converting postgraduate dissertation work into a conference presentation is a necessary rite of passage for emergent researchers and, judging from the corpus of dissertation-derived submissions, the sixth deta conference was no exception. yet, it seems that more support is needed to facilitate this process for postgraduate students. a common observation by the editors of this volume relates to the quality of empirical data presented in submissions for publication. while strong submissions x deta were received, they were worrisomely scarce. methodological awareness and rigour in writing in terms of attention to language, referencing and proper academic style are unequivocally on the decline for reasons that we can only, at this point, conjecture about. yet, we look to the seventh edition of the conference proceedings with hope for a reversal of this trend. perhaps it is an ideal time to reflect on whether african scholars, through a virtual network of institutions of teacher education, could develop a coherent strategy to build capacity for academic writing as part of the professional development agenda of teachers and the induction of teacher educators. currently, africa accounts for less than 1% of all the research publications in the world. most of these african publications are written by south africans. we know this figure has to go up and be more evenly distributed across nations, and that all of this needs to happen fairly soon. whether it will depends on our capacity to work together. this has prompted the organisers to include a session on research in support of quality teacher education in the preconference workshop that forms part of deta 2017. this session includes a theme on getting from presentation to publication. it is our hope that readers of these proceedings will be inspired by the engagement of authors in their practice as scholars and practitioners. we also hope that the authors will feel that value has been added to their thinking and writing through the submission of their papers and the peer-review process. it is also our expectation that students of education across faculties will be motivated to present their own research to a vibrant community, which deta organisers have painstakingly created through years of dedicated service. this volume also includes a book review of assuring institutional quality in open and distance learning (odl) in the developing contexts, edited by aluko, letseka and pitsoe (2016). lastly, we are happy to bring to your attention that, from 2018, the conference proceedings will become an online in-house journal, distance teacher education journal, to be housed at the unit for distance education in the university of pretoria. we believe this is a route to opening access to its contents in support of making research more freely available. we plan to initially publish it twice a year, with a view to increasing the number of editions. dr folake ruth aluko dr hyleen mariaye xi teacher education and development in africa deta contents full papers 1. teaching the teachers of teachers of teachers tony mays 1 2. problem-based learning in teacher education: an action research project shakuntala payneeandy, pritee auckloo, amrita ramani-mosaheb 18 3. embracing the new technology to enhance teaching and learning for school learners dr vannie naidoo 43 4. teacher training that meets the needs of the mathematically gifted learners michael kainose mhlolo 63 5. learning oral communication skills in a teacher professional development programme through open and distance learning in tanzania jacob leopold 80 6. using large-scale assessment results to improve additional language teaching and learning: challenges and opportunities funke omidire 96 field reports 1. enabling conditions for the successful integration of open educational resources for professional development in a developing context institution dr kassimu a. nihuka, brenda j. mallinson 111 2. the active pedagogy for all teachers through tessa oer richard kossi agbogan 120 3. challenges facing teachers using teacher education in sub-saharan africa (tessa) print materials in selected schools in tanzania joviter katabaro 127 4. the implementation of scientific inquiry skills in primary teacher training colleges in kenya angela ndunge kamanga 132 book review 139 dr ephraim mhlanga saide, johannesburg, south africa assuring institutional quality in open and distance learning (odl) in the developing context aluko, folake ruth, letseka, moeketsi and victor, pitsoe (eds), 2016. 1 deta teaching the teachers of teachers of teachers tony mays university of pretoria tony.mays@up.ac.za abstract nigeria, like many other countries, is currently in the process of curriculum reform to make the school curriculum more responsive to the changing needs of a 21st-century knowledge economy. this entails re-thinking not only what is taught, but also how it is taught. it is almost axiomatic that teachers teach the way they themselves were taught. therefore, if we wish to change practices in the classroom, we first need to change practices in the colleges of education, where teachers are trained, by offering appropriate continuing professional development (cpd) to college lecturers. the design and development of a cpd programme for college lecturers was therefore the focus of one of the recent initiatives of the teacher development programme (tdp) in consultation with the national commission for colleges of education (ncce) in nigeria, which was facilitated by the south african institute for distance education (saide). in the belief that the programme should practise what it preaches, the design and development of this programme was based on an activityand resource-based and collaborative hermeneutic model. the article outlines the process followed and the outputs achieved, and may provide a useful example for others contemplating the development of a similar programme. keywords: continuing professional development (cpd), hermeneutics, activitybased learning, resource-based learning, collaborative learning, modelling full papers 2 teacher education and development in africa deta introduction nigeria, like many other countries, is currently in the process of curriculum reform to make the school curriculum more responsive to the changing needs of a 21st-century knowledge economy. this entails re-thinking not only what is taught, but also how it is taught. it is almost axiomatic that teachers teach the way they themselves were taught. therefore, if we wish to change practices in the classroom, we first need to change practices in the colleges of education where teachers are trained, by offering appropriate continuing professional development (cpd) to college lecturers. the design and development of a cpd programme for college lecturers was therefore the focus of one of the recent initiatives of the teacher development programme (tdp) in consultation with the national commission for colleges of education (ncce) in nigeria, which was facilitated by the south african institute for distance education (saide1). although it was a programme design and development, rather than a research initiative, the process involved a typical action-research cycle, as articulated by lewin (1946; 1948), which involves planning, acting, observing and reflecting or revising. the cpd programme detailed in this article deliberately adopted the term “teacher educators” rather than “college lecturers” to flag the proposed change in pedagogic approach it sought to influence. the article outlines the process followed and the outputs achieved, and may provide a useful example for others contemplating the development of a similar programme. problem statement and theoretical framework in its 2012 curriculum implementation framework, nigeria’s ncce sets out the key changes that the reform process seeks to bring about with regard to the curriculum for the training of teachers (ncce, 2012). it identifies the need for a shift in emphasis from what is taught to what is learned (ncce, 2012:11) and also recognises that it is not only content that is learned, but also skills and attitudes (ncce, 2012:112). this requires a restructuring of the teacher education curriculum to reflect the identified specialised teaching areas and programmes as follows: early childhood care and education (ecce), primary education (ped), 1 saide prefers use of the name saide rather than the acronym or full name as the scope of its work now goes beyond distance education provision. 3 deta junior secondary education (jse), adult and non-formal education (anfe), and special needs education (sped). these recommendations arose from a series of workshops and discussions involving the ncce and the teacher education in sub-saharan africa (tessa)-initiative. in the framework, it is noted that the move from a content-based to a competency-based learning approach will have implications for the ways in which education courses are conceptualised, what learning materials will be appropriate, what teaching methods should be employed, how teaching practice is mediated, how methods courses are presented and how assessment is designed and implemented (ncce, 2012:15). the problem and response the problem to be addressed then, was how to ensure that the curriculum reform would be implemented by teacher educators who had not been directly involved in the reform process and who might feel threatened by and/or resistant to the kinds of changes required. moreover, it was clear that the scope of change was such that professional development would need to be introduced as an ongoing activity and not as a once-off event. the tdp, which is supported by ukaid, sought to respond to the reform challenge for teacher educators by creating an initial cpd programme that would provide a start to engaging constructively with the reform agenda. however, it also sought to turn the design, development, implementation and review of this initial cpd programme into a model process that might subsequently be used, with amendments based on learning from experience, for the design, development and implementation of subsequent, more in-depth cpd interventions. saide was commissioned to facilitate the design and development of the initial cpd programme. theoretical framework the approach taken to the work with nigerian teacher educators was framed within a qualitative interpretivist paradigm and stemmed from a belief that teachers and teacher educators have curriculum agency – teachers do not simply enact a curriculum; they partly create it through the practical decisions they make in their different contexts of teaching. saide believes there is no single right way to teach, and there are always some differences between the ways in which the curriculum is planned, mediated and experienced (carl, 2009; mays, 2015; slattery, 2006; woolfolk, 2007). 4 teacher education and development in africa deta the design and development of a cpd programme that is aimed at developing the capacity of teacher educators to mediate the new curriculum reform approaches needed to reflect these understandings, and so a series of workshops was proposed following a hermeneutic cycle of enquiry (gadamer, 2004; danner, 1995; kissack, 1995), and action-research-type processes, in which each workshop would reflect and build on what had gone before and be modified in light of the discussions on that experience. hermeneutics seemed an appropriate theoretical lens because it is concerned with a process of continual interpretation and re-interpretation of texts and contexts in pursuit of increasingly enhanced understandings (stanford, 2005; kinsella, 2006). this kind of iterative process is consistent with what the literature recommends about programme design and development, particularly in the kind of open and distance and e-learning (odel) mode that seemed most appropriate for cpd. short literature review on programme development it is noted that the provision of appropriately designed learning materials is critical for all kinds of resource-based learning that might be classified under the broad description of odel and that these materials need to incorporate a range of media and approaches to cater for a wide variety of learning purposes and learning styles (col, 2005; dede, dieterle, clarke, ketelhut & nelson, 2007; lockwood, 1992; randell, 2006). however, good materials are a necessary but insufficient requirement for successful learning: it is equally important in all modes of provision to encourage students to be actively engaged in the learning process (che, 2007; moll, 2003) and to provide a wide range of support strategies during that process (mills, 2003; subotzky & prinsloo, 2011). it is also necessary that assessment should support the learning process in an integrated way rather than being seen as something that happens only at the end of the process (coats, 1988; beets, 2014). the importance of formative feedback on assignments, in particular, has long been recognised in the distance education literature as an essential component of effective programme design and implementation (freeman & lewis, 1998; morgan & o’reilly, 1999; mothata, van niekerk & mays, 2003; raggatt, 1994; rowntree, 1987; rowntree, 1990). 5 deta decisions made about what to include and how to mediate engagement with the selected content need to be informed by the understanding that the target learners are full-time working adults with considerable experience, which can be both a source of value (in that teacher educators can learn from one another’s experience and feedback and they have the opportunity to try out possible new approaches immediately in practice) and a potential barrier (in that extensive experience of working in particular ways can result in reticence, and even active resistance, to exploring alternative approaches) (gravett, 2005; illeris 2008; merriam, caffarela & baumgartner, 2007; nwokeochu, 2014; rogers, 2002). in the kind of blended odel model that seems most appropriate for the nigerian college context, the traditional concerns of distance education (access, scale and affordability) need to be balanced by the new possibilities of online facilities to augment face-to-face learning and support (cooperative and collaborative learning, tracking progress through the use of learning analytics, and improved quality through interventions designed to close the feedback loop from performance to practice so that understanding of what does and does not seem to work are used to improve the programme in subsequent iterations) (garrison & vaughan, 2008; cleveland-innes & garrison, 2010). it is necessary to integrate cognitive, social and teaching presence in the design of such a learning programme – for example, by providing a coherent knowledge structure, developing a community of inquiry and providing a variety of support mechanisms (anderson & elloumi, 2004; anderson, 2008). the inclusion of more cooperative and collaborative approaches allows for the development of “wisdom communities”, in which participants can continue to learn from and build on one another’s professional experience, even after the formal programme has ended (gunawardena, ortegano-layne, carabajal, frechette, lindemann & jennings, 2006). hence, there is a need for an integrated design process to develop appropriate learning programmes (welch & reed, 2005; che, 2014; louw, 2007; koper & tattersall, 2005; rsa, 2014) and to think systemically about the fit or lack of fit between learning and teaching needs, and institutional structures and processes on the one hand, and the aspirations and habitas of institutions, academics and learners on the other (moore & kearsley, 1996; moore & kearsley, 2012; prinsloo, 2009). one way to manage this is to make use of a structured integrated programme and course design process as illustrated in the saide’s course design guide (saide, 2015). 6 teacher education and development in africa deta process and outputs in the end, five workshops were run over a seven-month period (programme design, course design, materials development, materials review and training of master facilitators), following the kind of cyclical key-steps approach suggested by the experience of the national association of distance education organisations of south africa (nadeosa) and saide (welch & reed, 2005; saide, 2015). during the course of november 2014, the tdp and saide discussed the design and logistics for an initial workshop that would cover the following issues: • curriculum design • course design • materials development • open educational resources • forward planning the workshop was to be followed by a supported materials development process. the outputs by the end of the workshop were the following: • a cpd programme outline and implementation plan • outlines for each of the constituent modules • draft materials for each of the constituent modules, including assessment tasks, print-based materials and digital materials • guidelines for sustaining such curriculum and materials design and development processes it was agreed that, in light of the context and target audience, a blended odel approach would be followed, using a mix of resource-based, independent learning, face-to-face contact and group discussions and work-integrated learning with ongoing support and monitoring by email and mobile phone communication. in the belief that the programme should practise what it preached, the design and development of this programme was based on an activityand resource-based and collaborative model. design and development focused first on the design and development of introductory, developmental and consolidating activities that would provide evidence of achievement of purpose and outcomes. then resources were sourced, adapted or created to enable these activities to be completed. participants worked in specialist teams, but opportunities were created for inter-team review and 7 deta feedback to help ensure a coherent programme experience, but also to foster the cross-pollination of effective ideas and approaches. by modelling such an approach through a series of interlinked development workshops, it was hoped that the teacher educators involved would feel sufficiently capacitated to model these approaches to their peers, who would, in turn, model these approaches to their teacher students, who, in turn, would, hopefully, adopt such practices in their classrooms. the cpd development process was launched in an initial workshop in november 2014 and involved 50 teacher educators drawn from six colleges of education from three states in nigeria: kano, katsina and zamfara. the first key message of the workshop was that curriculum design required a holistic and integrated approach that considered the complex interaction of internal and external stakeholder expectations, student needs and expectations, the identification and development of appropriate content and learning resources, learning and learner support, an appropriate assessment strategy and appropriate supporting human, physical and information and communication technology (ict) infrastructure. the key output for the first session was a draft programme overview geared towards bridging the gap between what teacher educators could be assumed to already know and be able to do, and what was expected of them as a result of the recent education reforms and the emerging understanding of skills needed in 21st-century societies. the second key message of the first workshop was that the design of individual courses needed to be aligned to the design of the curriculum as a whole, and needed to follow similar iterative and collaborative development processes. all learning resources, whether print-based or in digital format, were to take issues such as the following into consideration in the design and formative evaluation processes: • introduction and orientation • selection and coherence of content • view of knowledge • presentation of content and interactivity • activities, feedback and assessment • language • layout and accessibility 8 teacher education and development in africa deta however, how these guidelines were interpreted in practice depended on the level, context and purpose of the different courses. particular attention needed to be given to ensuring there was coherence, sequencing and progression, from in-course selfassessment activities to formative assignment activities and summative activities that provided evidence appropriate to the stated exit-level outcomes or objectives; and also that formative feedback (and feed forward) comments should be provided at each key stage in the learning journey. it was further noted that introductory course units needed to play multiple roles. in addition to providing an orientation to underpinning foundational disciplinary knowledge, initial course units also needed to help students provide a scaffolded engagement with the features of the chosen learning style and mode of provision. the key output for the second session of the first workshop was the development of draft module outlines related to each of the key areas of the programme outline. the focus of the third session of the first workshop was the design of appropriate activities and feedback to encourage students’ active engagement with the learning process. participants had the opportunity to engage with examples of a wide range of different kinds of activities developed for other programmes in teacher education, such as the tessa materials and the south african advanced certificate in education in school management and leadership (which are available as open educational resources (oer)). working teams in the following areas (derived from a brainstorming process) were then given time to update their draft module outlines, now including key topics and learning activities: • early childhood care and education primary education • junior secondary education • adult and non-formal education • special needs and inclusive education • technical and vocational education and training • professional development and quality assurance • educational technology • teaching and learning methods • learning resources 9 deta session 4 then focused on the possibilities of using oer to support the materialsdevelopment process and explored the following questions: • what are oer? • where can we find them? • how can we evaluate oer? • how can we adapt oer? • how can we publish oer? a comprehensive set of resources (833 mb) was provided to support this workshop and included resources that could be drawn upon throughout the subsequent curriculum and materials-development process. the tdp, in general, and workshop participants, in particular, were recommended to release their own cpd materials under an open licence to allow others to learn from and use the resources developed. session 5 involved a recapping of key issues and initial forward planning from a project, team and individual perspective. following the first workshop, which provided a big picture overview, designated teams needed to work on finalising the outline for the programme as a whole, as well as the outlines for its constituent modules. this was then followed by a second workshop that explored the implementation model for the proposed programme, unpacked the module design in more detail and revisited the plan and criteria for subsequent materials development. the outline for the second workshop was as follows: • day 1: reviewing the curriculum design for the programme and its constituent modules, including technology integration • day 2: developing a curriculum implementation framework • day 3: developing detailed module and theme maps based on activityand resource-based approaches • day 4: developing activity-based materials • day 5: reflection, collaborative feedback and forward planning the key outputs of the second workshop were a revised programme outline, as well as updated constituent module outlines, a flexible implementation model and key activities (introductory, developmental and consolidating) for at least two of the subthemes explored in each module. 10 teacher education and development in africa deta after this workshop, the programme was seen to comprise four generic modules (learning and teaching methods, educational technology, learning resources and inclusive education) and one elective specialist module (chosen from early childhood care and education/primary education, junior secondary education, adult and non-formal education or technical and vocational education and training). these decisions were arrived at through a collaborative discussion process during the workshops, as nothing had been decided prior to the start of the engagement. following the second workshop, which provided development teams with clear module maps, designated teams needed to work on finalising the constituent theme maps for their respective modules, and then to develop the materials for at least the first sub-theme. this was followed by a third workshop in january that collaboratively explored issues of level, presentation, language and design, as well as exploring and revisiting the plan and criteria for subsequent materials development. the third workshop followed in march. it provided development teams with insights into and examples of the development of activity-based independent learning materials (both in print and for sharing via mobile technology). module teams then worked on their draft materials to a first complete draft stage. they continued to get feedback during this process from saide as needed through emailed comments on draft materials. all the draft materials were then shared via dropbox. the fourth workshop in may considered the feedback received and the lessons learned, provided space for supported revision and explored implications for the future review and updating of the curriculum, the materials and the implementation model. once the first draft materials had been completed, they were reviewed by representative “typical” students for accessibility and relevance, and by designated discipline experts for content and level. they were also taken through a language and third-party copyright clearance process. it was this fifth version of the programme and its constituent materials that was piloted in the latter part of 2015 and the early part of 2016. the four design and development workshops were followed by a fifth workshop to train master facilitators. the cpd programme for the colleges of education sought to achieve at least three things: build the capacity of the teacher educators in developing materials for their 11 deta peers, train a core team of master trainers who will sustain the programme, and provide opportunities for teacher educators (on a continuous, regular basis) to update their knowledge of subject matter and pedagogical skills (activity-based, learner-centred pedagogy). by modelling an activityand resource-based and learner-centred approach through these five interlinked development workshops, it was hoped that the teacher educators involved would feel sufficiently empowered to model these approaches similarly to their peers, who would, in turn, model these approaches to their teacher students, and then hopefully adopt such practices in their classrooms. as will be noted, each subsequent workshop built on what had gone before, allowing for both top-down and bottom-up design and development approaches. discussion and work also continued between the face-to-face workshops in direct contact within institutional development teams and via email and dropbox to facilitate collaboration between colleges, as participants were spread geographically. in addition, a concerted effort was made to solicit feedback on the draft curriculum and materials from potential participants and discipline experts, who were not part of the original design and development process. the programme was being piloted at the time of writing. the supporting materials developed during the process comprised the following: • programme outline • implementation model • orientation powerpoint • module 1: overview of the ncce-tdp cpd programme for teacher educators • induction powerpoint • module 2: orientation to teaching and learning methods • module 3: introduction to learning resources • module 4: introduction to supporting learners with special educational needs • module 5: introduction to educational technology • module 6: introduction to early childhood care and education and primary education • module 7: introduction to junior secondary education • module 8: introduction to technical vocational education and training • module 9: introduction to adult and non-formal education. 12 teacher education and development in africa deta the final version of all the materials is intended to be published under an open licence. a more detailed outline of the curriculum design process and outputs is already available as an oet at: http://www.oerafrica.org/resource/developingcurriculum-and-learning-resources-guidelines-effective-practice. overview of the cpd programme a programme is more than a list of modules. figure 1 summarises the way in which the programme was organised to make for a coherent learning experience. figure 1: cpd programme overview in the pilot, all potential participants were invited to an orientation session and took a copy of the foundational module 1 with them. this allowed them to make informed decisions about whether to engage with the programme and, if so, which elective to choose. even those who did not sign up for the full programme thus gained an 13 deta orientation to the need for cpd, as well as insight into the key expectations of the curriculum reform. all those who registered for the programme completed the four core modules and registered for one elective module in which they were guided towards exploring the implications of the four core modules for the ways in which they would teach a particular elective subject. there were no examinations. instead, teacher educators completed a number of assignments and reflections that they compiled into an initial portfolio of professional practice, which they could subsequently maintain throughout the rest of their professional careers. the three formative assignments completed for each of the core and elective modules were designed to provoke reflection on prior learning and experience, promote exploration of new ideas in practice, and consolidate learnings into changed practices. supporting, regular contact sessions were then designed to provide opportunities to discuss, including contest, the examples and guidelines provided in the materials, as well as the examples that participants themselves developed for their assignments. each module was designed to comprise 40 hours of learning (31 hours of self-study and nine hours of contact sessions). the programme of five modules was to be mediated over 20 weeks over two semesters, although in practice different colleges piloted the programme in slightly different ways. the full programme, from orientation through induction to completion, was designed to take 220 hours to complete. in designing and facilitating the programme, it was important that saide should model the kind of approaches advocated in the curriculum reform process and in the draft programme and its materials. accordingly, the facilitation process involved the following practices and strategies: • collaborative determination of outcomes, agendas, responsibilities and time lines • resource-based workshops in which there was a deliberate strategy to move the locus of responsibility from the facilitator to self-determined development teams 14 teacher education and development in africa deta • cooperative peer review processes • constructive formative feedback against collaboratively developed criteria although participants completed an evaluation after each workshop and the evaluation forms were analysed and written up, it was understood that this was for internal reporting purposes rather than for research purposes, and so is not discussed here. it should be noted, however, that the overall feedback was positive and that weaknesses noted in one workshop or phase were demonstrably addressed in the following workshop or phase, as would be expected in a hermeneutic process that employed action-research-type approaches. conclusion if one wishes to bring about positive change in the classroom, one of the things one needs to address is the way in which teachers are trained. this indicates the need for cpd opportunities for teacher educators. however, teacher educators typically become trainers after completing a teacher qualification and then, maybe or maybe not, teaching in a classroom. subsequent qualifications gained will, in many instances, not prepare teacher educators to develop, facilitate and review a cpd programme for their peers. it is therefore necessary to provide an authentic and integrated cpd experience that explores the full development process, from curriculum design to course design to materials development and review and into tutor training. in such a process, it is important that the trainer of the teacher educators, who will, in turn, train their peers, models the kind of resourceand activity-based approaches called for in the curriculum reform itself. the approach described in this paper sought to illustrate such a process. acknowledgements my thanks to the tdp cpd team who fit the project work in over and above their normal commitments (often sending draft outlines and materials for comment in the early hours of the morning). the names of these exemplary teacher educators will be known once the final draft materials are published as oer. 15 deta references anderson, t., 2008, theory and practice of online learning, 2nd ed., athabasca university press, athabasca. anderson, t. & elloumi, f. 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(eds), 2005, designing and delivering distance education: quality criteria and case studies from south africa, nadeosa, johannesburg. woolfolk, a., 2007, educational psychology, 10th ed., pearson, boston, ma. 18 teacher education and development in africa deta problem-based learning in teacher education: an action research project shakuntala payneeandy mauritius institute of education s.payneeandy@mieonline.org pritee auckloo mauritius institute of education p.auckloo@mieonline.org amrita ramani-mosaheb mauritius institute of education a.mosaheb@mieonline.org abstract this paper argues that, although there is a worldwide move from face-to-face to distance education (de) and open educational resources (oer) in teacher education, there is no guarantee that de is able to lead to the development of appropriate teaching skills in student teachers. in the wake of the introduction of de in teacher education at the mauritius institute of education (mie), a group of teacher educators at mie have been questioning their own approaches to the teaching and learning process of teacher education. this questioning has encouraged them to revisit their own practices through the adoption of the problem-based learning (pbl) approach to deliver a module in an initial teacher education course. during the implementation of the pbl process, emphasis has been placed on the development of skills and the transformation of students from passive learners to active participants in their own learning. the teacher educators have investigated the implementation of pbl in their teaching through an action-research (ar) project. the research revealed that, when implemented using a face-to-face approach and cooperative learning, pbl was an effective tool in developing meaningful learning among student teachers. the researchers came to the conclusion that de could have a role to play in the delivery of the theoretical component of teacher education. however, for the development of teaching skills, face-to-face sessions and pbl should be used as an effective tool to help student teachers acquire certain skills and hence help them become more efficient in their future role as teachers. keywords: problem-based learning, active learning, pedagogy, teaching strategies, teachers’ beliefs, classroom practices, self-directed learning, meaningful learning, transformation. 19 deta introduction within the context of the worldwide demand for access to education and the increasing need for more qualified teachers in all sectors of education, the existing teacher education institutions are not able to meet the demand in many countries. decision-makers have come to the conclusion that there is a need to adopt new strategies to respond to the high demand in the field of teacher education through the adoption of the distance education (de) mode of delivery and the use of open educational resources (oers). the mauritius institute of education (mie), founded in 1979, is the only public teacher education institution in the republic of mauritius and has already started to move in this direction with some courses. currently, there are calls and expectations for the mie to evolve into a state-of-the-art organisation that is capable of providing different modes of teacher education to a larger audience through de, including online and blended approaches. it is widely recognised that de and oer in the field of education provide a number of advantages for students, especially to vulnerable communities living in inaccessible areas, as de provides larger numbers with access to education. however, in the minds of the authors of this paper and of other researchers (kangai & bukaliya, 2011; hampton, 2002:84), there has always been a nagging question: “how effective is de in teacher education, especially in the development of teaching skills?” to be more precise, the question was: “is de developing the “how to teach” in the classroom among student teachers?” this question, and the context of change with the advent of de as an alternative mode of operating in terms of teacher education at the mie, has led to our reflecting on the effectiveness of the present pedagogical practices of teacher educators in the delivery of modules in teacher education. as a result of this reflection process, we decided to revisit and act on our own pedagogical approaches in the lecture rooms of the mie. we wanted to experiment with a novel approach in the teaching and learning process of teacher education in mauritius; that is problem-based learning (pbl). this process was investigated through action-research (ar). this paper therefore focuses on the ar project that was carried out by a small group of teacher educators in the implementation of pbl in a module for student teachers in their initial professional development as primary school teachers. the project aimed at assessing the extent to which the pbl process was successful at 20 teacher education and development in africa deta creating a learning environment that would lead to more meaningful learning for the student teachers. this research is significant for us, the researchers, in that it allows us to question the current teaching and learning process in teacher education through the exploration of an essentially student-centred approach in a context where there is increasing pressure to adopt the de mode of delivery because of systemic constraints. the intent was to develop insight into the teaching and learning process in higher education through an in-depth study of data obtained by means of a variety of tools. this research also allowed us to take stock of how our students learn in different situations, for example, through independent reading of the appropriate literature, through cooperative learning groups, through mini lectures and through scaffolding sessions. we were also able to evaluate how innovative they were in their classroom practices, as well as the limitations of that pedagogical venture. rationale our experience as teacher trainers and researchers involved in teacher education led us to believe that many teachers in mauritius scarcely put the learning gained from the educational theories they encountered during their professional development into practice. many teachers still stick to the traditional “chalk and talk” approach, although during their professional development, a considerable amount of time was spent on face-to-face sessions. this phenomenon is not particular to mauritius, because, as biggs argues: “ …many students acquire knowledge in traditional programmes specifically for the purpose of passing examinations (entwistle & entwistle, 1997) and often only incidentally acquire the skill of putting knowledge to practical use.” (biggs,1999:207). furthermore, while several explanations can be given in the mauritian context as to why teachers, in general, are unable to make the shift from traditional approaches to more innovative ones, there needs to be a deeper inquiry into teachers’ classroom practices across the mauritian education system. therefore, in line with our main research question, this research seeks to investigate the teaching and learning process, through a pbl approach, of a teacher education programme, and also to analyse the extent to which pbl can be regarded as an effective tool in the development of more meaningful learning among student teachers. our endeavour, as a group of three lecturers, has therefore been to implement an alternative approach to the traditional lecture or face-to-face method in contact 21 deta sessions during the initial professional development programme for student teachers. most of these students were school leavers. some were university graduates, who had received their academic education in a system in which the traditional transmission model of learning was the norm. in the context of a 30-hour module, pedagogy, a pbl approach was adopted for primary school student teachers. the aim of the teacher educators/researchers was to assess how far a change in the teaching and learning process during the professional development of student teachers could lead to a change in the quality of their learning experience. this would ultimately influence their own classroom practices. we believe that the findings of this research will lead to pertinent recommendations that will not only influence the face-to-face delivery of the module afterwards, but will also influence our experience as a whole, which could improve alternative modes of study such as de delivery modes. objective of the study this ar research study intends to analyse the extent to which the implementation of a specific pedagogical action (pbl) has helped to bridge the gap between theory and practice in teacher education. it also intends to assess the use of pbl as a teaching and learning tool to transform student teachers from passive recipients of educational theories and pedagogical principles into active, self-directed and reflexive learners who take ownership of their learning. the following sections highlight the research questions that guided the study. research questions main question: how effective is the problem-based approach in developing more meaningful learning among student teachers? sub-questions: • will pbl, as an approach, be able to equip learners with the required strategies to take ownership of their learning or to become self-directed learners? • will student teachers have developed an in-depth understanding of the basic pedagogical concepts and principles? • how far will pbl enhance teaching and learning activities in teacher education in general? • how will pbl enhance the teaching and learning approaches of teacher educators? 22 teacher education and development in africa deta literature review pedagogical innovation for effective learning in higher education is an approach that is becoming increasingly prevalent in institutions of higher learning, as educators are being encouraged to question the effectiveness of their teaching. biggs (1999:54) argues that one facet of good teaching is “to encourage students to use a deep approach”. the second facet of good teaching is to discourage students from using a surface approach. to do this, we need to identify any factors in our own teaching that might have this effect, and eliminate them”. the best way to identify these factors is to research the teaching and learning process. the most common research approach is ar. since its introduction in medical schools, pbl has also been applied in other fields, including in teacher education, by some individual teachers or universities (as cited in de simone, 2014), such as barrows and tamblyn (1980), gijbels, dochy, van den bossche and segers (2005), walker and leary (2009), derry, hmelo-silver, nagaran, chernobilsky and beitzel (2006), hmelo-silver (2000), mcphee (2002), derry et al. (2006) and hmelo-silver et al. (2009). therefore, much of the research comes from the medical schools. a few studies are found in other fields. according to gallagher and gallagher (2013:112), the majority of research in pbl pursues two lines of inquiry: “the first line of inquiry investigates whether students in pbl classrooms learn as much as students in classrooms with traditional instruction. the second line of inquiry investigates whether students can learn discrete learning skills through a pbl curriculum.” this paper adopts both lines of inquiry, but has the added advantage of investigating how the use of pbl impacts on the teacher educator’s practice. the effectiveness of the use of pbl in the teaching and learning process has been confirmed by a number of researchers (faessler et al., 2006; hmelo-silver, 2004; mackinnon, 1999; maxwell et al., 2001). according to the research findings, pbl seems to motivate students to engage in their learning with more enthusiasm and to achieve deep learning. the evidence from research conducted in and outside the medical fields suggests that pbl is an instructional approach that offers the potential to help students develop a flexible understanding and lifelong learning skills (hmelo-silver, 2004). 23 deta pbl and adult learning implementing pbl among student teachers involves dealing with adult learners. according to knowles (1980), life experience is a rich resource for learning. for adults to learn, conditions should not be exactly the same as those used in a learning model or pedagogies for children. there is therefore a need in teacher education to create an adult-friendly and supportive environment, with mutual planning and setting of tasks, as well as the use of learning contracts and experiential techniques. we can describe our venture in adopting a pbl approach as a step towards creating an adult-friendly environment. models of instruction for adults are essentially founded on an adult’s ability to develop intrinsic motivation, and autonomous and self-directed learning approaches (knowles, 1980); this is also the basis of the de philosophy. that is why de is increasingly being adopted as a mode of delivery in teacher education. in fact, the literature reviewed shows that pbl (the teaching approach adopted in this research study) can be adapted for use with students in higher education who are studying through de. findings highlight issues on how to make learning more effective and successful, how to make it interactive, how to address students’ needs, how to provide support to students to shift to this mode of delivery, how to support student teachers’ needs with the use of technology, and how to work with the student teacher and other partners in the team, such as editors, designers, producers, technicians, media specialists and others through whom communication is mediated. other issues related to the implementation of pbl through de concern effective strategies to develop appropriate methods of feedback and reinforcement, optimising content and pace, and adapting to different student learning styles (sherry, 1996). however, several researchers have addressed issues related to adult education in relation to de prior to making such statements. peters (1988), for instance, strongly questions the relevance of adult learning models to a distance mode and draws our attention to the process of individualisation versus an “industrial model”. other researchers, such as bullen (1995), have also questioned the challenges experienced when individualisation or interaction is lost at the expense of mass production, which can be economically wise, but which does not necessarily support adult learning approaches. both peters (1988) and bullen (1995) then consider it 24 teacher education and development in africa deta essential to assess the feasibility and transfer of learning in de modes of delivery, which can weigh heavily on credibility and standards: “careful consideration must also be given to implications…for the academic credibility of distance education courses…an across the board approach is not likely to be politically acceptable.” (bullen, 1995:5). while we have not adopted a de mode of delivery in our attempt to review the approach to teaching in a teacher education institution, this does not mean that we reject de as a mode of delivery; we believe that part of the teaching experiment could have been carried out in de, that is, we could have adopted a blended mode. our main concern was the development of skills through pbl in a learning environment geared towards adult learning, and considering this as an essential shift from approaches that represented spoon-feeding to autonomous adult learning in a teacher training institution. we also viewed this research through a transformative paradigm (mezirow, 1981; 1994; 1997). transformational learning has been defined as learning that induces more far-reaching change in the learner than other kinds of learning, especially learning experiences that shape the learner and produce a significant impact or paradigm shift, which affects the learner’s subsequent experiences (clark, 1993). we draw from this the fact that the transformation that occurs in student teachers, as the result of the adoption of an alternative approach to teaching and learning, can in effect provoke a change even in an adult learner. this is in line with the view of mezirow(1994), who posits that transformative learning occurs when adults engage in activities that cause or allow them to see something from a different perspective, and which can cause a shift when integrated into an adult perspective. the transformation may be small or large, and can impact on the adult learner’s life, either initially or in time. an important aspect of this research is its impact on the teacher educators who are also the researchers. a current trend in teacher education is the pressure on the teacher educator to move from being a “teacher” to also being a “researcher”, that is, a reflective practitioner. hökkäa, eteläpeltoa and rasku-puttonenb (2012) mention the “tensions in the work of teacher educators, who are increasingly required to redefine their professional identity, moving away from the traditional identity of “me as teacher” towards that of “me as researcher” (cochran-smith 2005; murray 2007). 25 deta research methodology this research lies within the qualitative paradigm. the core of the research approach is that ar is the most appropriate method of researching the effectiveness of the implementation of pbl as a teaching and learning approach in teacher education. ar offers a systematic approach to introducing innovations in teaching and learning in higher education. it puts the tutors or trainees in the dual role of both a producer of educational theory and a user of that theory to reflect and improve practice. it is an interesting way of producing knowledge about teaching and learning in higher education, and serves as a powerful way of improving learning and teaching practices in teacher education. project implementation and management plan implementing pbl and its impact on student teachers, as well as on teacher educators the challenge for the teacher educators involved in this research was to plan the setting up of both the pbl experience for the students and the ar, which meant that both processes had to be planned concurrently. designing the environment the student teachers were introduced to the pbl environment in which they would have to direct their own learning with the help of selected tasks along a structured route by means of the guided questions. through this process, they would have to accomplish their learning tasks with a degree of autonomy. due to time constraints, only two problems or “triggers” could be proposed. these were, in fact, the brief case scenario of teaching and learning instances. the problems or triggers for the pbl process were crafted to address the dissonance between the philosophy of teacher education and traditional classroom practices in mauritian primary schools. before embarking on the pbl process, student teachers were prepared to work collaboratively as a group and to identify the learning strategies they needed to develop. there was a film-viewing session on cooperative learning or lesson planning. this preparation was important, as our students were not accustomed to cooperative learning. nevertheless, group work is an essential aspect of pbl, as it helps to develop learning communities. 26 teacher education and development in africa deta the following steps were planned and implemented for each trigger: • copies of the trigger were distributed to students (an example of a trigger or problem is included in the appendix at the end of this paper). • learning resources (hard and soft copies) were distributed. students were also directed towards certain websites that contained pedagogical content knowledge. • students participated in group work to discuss the first trigger and to develop their understanding of the problem. they were assisted in this task by the guiding and thought-provoking questions that accompanied the triggers. students were also scaffolded by the teacher educators, who acted as facilitators. • each group delivered group presentations to the whole class on their understanding of the problem and the pedagogical implications. this was followed by feedback from the teacher educators. • each group submitted written work on the trigger. • teacher educators provided feedback. the ar data-gathering process the pbl approach was first implemented during the second semester of 2014. although the approach continued to be implemented during subsequent semesters, this paper only reports on the experiment during this second semester. target group of students: teacher’s diploma primary 2013-2015 cycle 1 trigger 1 was implemented in this cycle. data was obtained by evaluating the dynamics of the group work through observation and a checklist. other types of evaluation included oral presentations by each group, and the written work submitted by each group. each member of each group undertook self-evaluation. data was also obtained through weekly meetings between the teacher educators, which included discussion and sharing. cycle 2 after reflecting on cycle 1 by analysing the data obtained during that cycle, the teacher educators crafted trigger 2 and distributed it to the students. the same process used in the first cycle was followed, data was gathered and reflection took place. 27 deta cycle 3 data from the second cycle was analysed and questions were crafted to be used to interview a group of students. all students were invited to participate in group interviews, but only a small number responded. the researchers met several times to discuss and reflect on the whole pbl process. this included issues that came up during the implementation of pbl and the ar. the ar process (description and analysis) cycle 1 cycle 1 related to a problem (trigger 1) that resonated with the reality of the primary school classroom. the problem addressed related to questions and issues based on a traditional teacher-centred approach to teaching and the need to shift to more constructivist perspectives. copies of the first trigger or problem were distributed to all groups. at a later stage, they were provided with the questions to trigger thinking and guide a discussion at both an individual and a group level through the pbl approach. slowly, student teachers became more actively engaged with background readings (cds with readings, reading materials and a few handouts, additional links and references to internet sources) in an effort to make sense of underlying issues in the trigger. in the process, they developed a higher level of cooperation and collaboration. this phase was dominated by some group organisational challenges in terms of role allocation and individual accountability. gradually, it was observed that the process allowed students to demonstrate tolerance towards each other, learn to work in groups, and listen to and negotiate points of views. some students demonstrated a lack of confidence when others dominated the group, while others were afraid to voice their views. cycle 1 was a determining start to pbl and students experienced both a sense of motivation (barrows, 1996) and some difficulties inherent to this process. it meant that they had to adapt to a new learning environment (learning in groups and using the pbl approach), while traditional teaching and learning had previously dominated their experience of education. the student teachers initially found it challenging to tackle the tasks, as they were responsible for their learning. they had to organise the roles of each group member 28 teacher education and development in africa deta in terms of oral presentations, group research, discussion and written tasks. although this was challenging at the start, we found that this mechanism quickly led to a means of revisiting the way they would be engaging in the learning process. some students found this experience to be “noisy”, “time-consuming” or “tedious”, as they had to answer their own questions and research the answers through readings. at this stage, they had little understanding of how to organise themselves, while some groups took the lead and became proactive, offering suggestions. other groups found themselves still struggling after several weeks, as a lot of social and teamwork skills were necessary for pbl. during group presentation of their work, students demonstrated some knowledge and understanding of the pedagogical concepts, but this was superficial. variations in trainees’ grasp of some core concepts surfaced between groups. many trainees included too many theoretical details in their presentations, lost the focus of the main argument, and failed to illustrate how these details were meaningful to practice in the primary school. at this early stage in the pbl process, it appeared that learners’ focus was more on reading and gathering maximum information. gaps in understanding and misunderstanding some pedagogical ideas and concepts were noted in the group discussions; these were addressed through guided discussions by teacher educators in their new roles as coaches and facilitators. this resulted in further probing by trainees to clarify issues and concepts. during the oral presentation of their findings, the teacher educators realised that the student teachers were in need of additional support or scaffolding if they wished the experiment to be successful. barrows (1986) also argues that a lack of adequate support will affect the effectiveness of pbl as a strategy. thus, additional support was provided in the form of mini lectures, coaching and clarification of misconceptions. advice was given to guide the groups towards more research when it was felt that this was needed. all these measures acted to organise the students’ study efforts (van berkel et al., 2001). as a result, their written coursework demonstrated an improved level of understanding of the concepts and constructs. it was noted that there appreciable attempts were made to integrate the background reading into the explanations of some issues. however, it was observed that students’ responses were broad and focused on reproducing the knowledge gained from the readings. this was reflected in their coursework. however, their writing remained at the descriptive level and little critical 29 deta thinking was demonstrated. trainees failed to apply a theoretical explanation to guide their analysis and to make suggestions to improve the teaching process. the level of argumentation was inadequate, and explanations and analyses remained superficial. these findings supported the crafting and organisation of trigger 2 some weeks later. cycle 2 the teacher educators crafted a new problem (trigger 2) (see the appendix). this focused on issues related to instructional planning using the constructivist approach and on issues related to “differentiated instruction”. the aim of presenting this trigger was to allow students to become more critical about teaching and learning in a primary school, and to develop core skills, such as lesson planning and selecting appropriate teaching strategies. at this stage, the learners’ experience of pbl progressed in a number of ways and they were more motivated (barrows, 1996). the oral presentations improved significantly, as they had already negotiated some basic organisational issues during the first phase (such as a working relationship with peers). as a result of this improved organisation, and some earlier readings for the first trigger, they could interpret a number of concepts the researchers saw them discussing and infusing in the presentations. trainees doubled their efforts to address some of their weaknesses, which had transpired from the learning process with trigger 1. for this stage of the learning process, the students demonstrated a willingness to take ownership of their learning, and they became actively engaged in the learning process. the students’ presentations indicated that some had also begun to read more materials than those found on the cd and the recommended readings provided to them, and they made plans to meet outside the lecture room to discuss the trigger. this stage necessitated fewer interventions from the tutors to direct the group tasks, as the trainees began to own the learning process. it was generally observed that the trainees were striving harder to analyse issues emerging from trigger 2. different groups became more actively engaged in the coconstruction of knowledge and developed the skills that were required to elaborate on lesson plans, while also catering for diversity among learners. 30 teacher education and development in africa deta according to the feedback obtained from student teachers’ reflections on the module, their active participation was stimulated by reading the learning resources provided and those accessed on the internet. as a result, their construction of knowledge and understanding through group discussions and the sharing of ideas on new concepts were richer. the clashes that occurred during the early stages of group work diminished as students made an effort to consider the different viewpoints. this resulted in greater consensus between group members. evidence of deep learning was apparent during the oral presentations. students, in their respective groups, demonstrated a greater in-depth understanding of the pedagogical concepts and constructs linked to lesson planning as they integrated information from their background reading into the presentation of a lesson plan and the subsequent arguments. their oral presentations were also characterised by poise, better communication skills, confidence and critical thinking as they challenged each other’s views and grew comfortable with the process. however, one major challenge that was experienced at this stage was that many students were still unsure about how to relate theory to practice. the trainees’ beliefs about teaching and learning still seemed to be influenced by the traditional teaching methods used at school. this was observed in their presentation of a lesson plan on differentiated instruction. the structure of the lesson plans, though adequately grasped, needed improvement and discussion. even if the underlying philosophy of teacher training was an inductive constructivist one, their lesson planning reflected more of a behaviourist and deductive approach, although some attempts were made to shift towards a more learner-centered approach. there seemed to be a problem at the level of transfer of learning. therefore, the teacher educators had to trigger prompts to provoke more thinking. as with trigger 1, additional scaffolding, coaching and mini lectures were needed to provide support to student teachers, especially when designing a more constructivist lesson plan (van berkel & schmidt, 2001). the last phase of the cycle was the submission and marking of the written assignment. the newly redesigned lesson plans showed a transfer of learning in the lesson planning process, though more in-depth knowledge and practice were necessary to develop skills for differentiated lesson plans. 31 deta cycle 3 for this cycle, data was obtained through interviews and focused group discussions after students had gone through a period of school-based experience, where they were given an opportunity to teach. responses obtained show a high degree of enthusiasm among trainees about their teaching experience and the successful implementation of the strategies and methods learned during training. most students seemed to associate their success in the classroom with their learning experience on the pbl process. according to the student teachers, they were challenged in their assumptions and representation of teaching at the primary school level by working on the pbl problems that they confirmed triggered a lot of thinking on the issues underlying teaching and learning from both a traditional and a constructivist perspective. they went through their practicum experience with an improved understanding of the mauritian school context (savery & duffy, 2001). many of the student teachers confirmed “an increase in our knowledge…and our lesson plan grew better and better”, and that some of the pedagogical knowledge acquired was done “through readings” and “during the group discussions”. it would seem that these pedagogical gains were infused in some of their classroom practices during the practicum. students confirmed that they were able to implement some constructivist teaching methods, such as brainstorming, group work and activitybased learning experiences that were devised to arouse their pupils’ interests – even if the current teaching context remained traditional. this situation has been highlighted by rendas, fonseca and pinto (2006). the practicum seemed to have provided the student teachers with an opportunity to test some of their newly acquired knowledge of some teaching strategies. taking a hindsight position, they felt they had become more critical thinkers; some were even making fun of the class teachers’ deductive approach to teaching (de west & walker, 2013). such changes in practice pointed to the possibility that using the pbl approach during professional development made learning more meaningful for the student teachers – so much so that it helped foster meaningful change in the trainees’ classroom practices. time taken to implement pbl led the teacher educators to be realistic, and we decided to restrict ourselves to two triggers instead of three to make room for deeper 32 teacher education and development in africa deta learning, both individually and in a group. the implementation of pbl kept all the educators very busy, as the process involved monitoring group work, scaffolding student activities, observing group work, administering different evaluation checklists and time management. the pbl process also involved a lot of teamwork and collaborative teaching among the teacher educators, as they visited each other’s classes. pbl in teacher education: discussion on emerging issues a number of issues emerged from the process of implementing pbl in teaching the pedagogy module in the initial professional development programme of primary school student teachers in mauritius. meaningful learning of pedagogical concepts and practices coming from a tradition of teaching that represented “spoon-feeding” from their schooling experiences and lectures or discussions during their professional development, student teachers were confronted with a teaching and learning process that was characterised by non-frontal teaching to self-directed learning. they were expected to own the learning process (knowles, 1975). the pbl experiment seems to have resulted in the student teachers being able to learn about and master a number of pedagogical concepts and constructs through self-directed learning, especially through cooperative learning, with some scaffolding from the teacher educators, as testified to by the students themselves: “we came across a lot of teaching concepts, such as cooperative leaning, how to explain, communication skills, discovering learning, brain-based learning, role plays and questioning...scaffolding…personally i think i’ve learnt a lot from pbl to be an effective teacher and i look forward to put my acquired knowledge into practice for the best use.” other trainees emphasised the importance of their independent reading: “…through readings we were able to increase our knowledge and afterwards apply it in our work.” “…went through several textbooks to have an understanding of various concepts for writing a lesson plan.” 33 deta it must also be pointed out that not all students achieved the same degree of mastery. the process allowed students to take ownership of their learning and to become actively involved in the construction of pedagogical knowledge, as testified to by one student: “discovery has taken place...it is true that sometimes, due to lots of assignments, we don’t have the time to go and do research work at home, but as it was part of our homework, we have done it and it has been of great help to me – the research work …” (interview) at the same time, student teachers seemed to have become aware of their personal growth (maurer & neuhold, 2012), as evidenced by these excerpts from the interviews: “we’ve progressed a lot in terms of knowledge and contribution to work and distribution of work” “our lesson plan grew better and better each time.” the learning process the learning process through cooperative learning for the student teachers was effective in creating learning possibilities. the students became more meaningfully and deeply engaged in the process of learning by working cooperatively. the positive effects of teamwork were observed by the teacher educators, and were testified to in trainees’ feedback: “i have developed social skills, listening more to my friends and encouraging one another…developed team spirit… can now work better in groups…selfdevelopment …” (trainee feedback). all individuals in each group evaluated themselves positively in terms of the social skills required to function in groups (listening, taking turns, contribution to discussion, quiet voice, reach consensus and valuing each other’s ideas). team spirit and teamwork were revealed through the students’ verbal and nonverbal language. they could increasingly relate to each other’s views and were capable of being reflective and critical, and of challenging each other in their 34 teacher education and development in africa deta understanding and presentation of their work, instead of being passive (thomas, 2000). student teachers’ acceptance to take responsibility for their personal growth led them to further develop their social skills as they explained how they shared information to complete their assignments and how this helped in their personal growth (mcphee, 2002) and by doing so, they showed they could move away from the “spoon-feeding” mode to a self-study and team approach. “we met several times through skype and phones and mails and did corrections…” (student teacher: feedback questionnaire) “we’ve developed many competencies on teamwork, leadership skills, cooperation, collaboration and socialisation” (student teacher: feedback questionnaire) self-evaluation by each member of each group showed that students were taking a critical and reflexive stance (de jong, cullity, haig, sharp, spiers & wren, 2011) regarding the different triggers as they began to take ownership of the learning process. our analysis of the process also led us to conclude that student teachers increasingly demonstrated a willingness to question themselves through the selfevaluation process, and they admit that the reflective nature of the tasks “made us reflect on what kind of teachers we want to become…” challenge to student teachers’ beliefs and representations of local primary education both problems crafted by the teacher educators to allow the students to develop their knowledge and understanding of pedagogical concepts and constructs also created a disposition (to a certain extent) in student teachers to question traditional practices in mauritian primary schools. having themselves been educated in the context of the traditional transmission model of teaching, they initially thought that that model was the “best”. working on those pbl triggers created an awareness among the students of their assumptions and representations of teaching at primary school level, as evidenced by the following reflection on the coursework: “pbl has indeed helped me to be aware of the real situations or problems actually existing in primary schools and how these can be tackled. i have been able to identify what teaching skills i must acquire to became an effective teacher through pbl…i have developed my interpersonal and communication skills…how a teacher must behave with his pupils in different circumstances.” 35 deta at the end of cycle 2, and during the interviews, we obtained a lot of evidence that the student teachers had a tendency to shift to a more constructivist approach in their construction of the teaching and learning process, especially in the specimen lesson plans that they produced. this may be evidence that there has been a transfer of learning. schӧn (1983) suggests that, in order to allow for reflective practitioners to develop their potential, confrontation with problems is necessary, as it necessitates that learners confront “hunches” to guide their new experiments and develop further reflection. pbl has influenced student teachers in different ways, causing them to review and negotiate their understanding of traditional ways of teaching at primary school level with an approach for self-direction as the process demanded. this process will inevitably have an impact on their present and future professional development. professional growth for teacher educators the research also provided an opportunity for continuing professional development (cpd) for the teacher educators. the whole process led to their professional growth through reflexivity and an improved understanding of adult learning, while giving the teacher educators the opportunity to take stock of the problems inherent to this new approach to teaching. in a study conducted by dolmans et al. (2002), the authors elaborate on how subject area expert tutors tend to focus more on subject matter expertise in a pbl approach, while non-content expert tutors focus more on process facilitation to direct group dynamics. in our case, given that the module taught was non-subjectoriented and predominantly process-oriented, we observed a number of benefits as we experienced the process of encouraging self-directed learning. the process of interaction was rich, in that we had regular formal and informal meetings. we were prompted by the “newness” of this collaborative endeavour to investigate further and improve each trigger, and discussed our observations and reflections after each interaction and during each cycle. this demanded additional effort and time for planning, as were brought to challenge our assumptions, anticipate new challenges, and report on the team and individual experiences (barrows, 1986; pagander & read, 2014). 36 teacher education and development in africa deta the study also influenced our posture as insider researchers (corbin & buckle, 2009). for instance, these were our classes and each of us served a dual role as teacher educator and researcher at the same time. we were conducting research in the context with which we were very familiar. shifting from one role to the other was problematic and stressful. in the beginning, it was particularly difficult for all three tutors to report in a dispassionate way about the ar. we needed to practice distancing ourselves from the experiences of our respective classes. this is where the approach suggested by drake (2010) (bracketing our understanding prior to analysis) became important as a process of distancing oneself from the action and research areas. in our case, this process necessitated team moderation, provocation and conflicts throughout the cycles as necessary processes that allowed the data analysis to be meaningful, dispassionate and interpretive for research. as researchers, we then had to shift from being a reflective practitioner (schӧn, 1983) and facilitator in class to thinking deeply about how this process was influencing student teachers and their practice. the overall process thus endowed us with greater tolerance, interpersonal knowledge and insight into the module. the process was also demanding and stressful as, in spite of the planning, we felt constrained by the 30 hours of face-to-face sessions in class, and we often found ourselves negotiating for more slots to advance. our common understanding of ar using pbl with student teachers as a team initiative was, in itself, a learning process, and was sharpened by the constant process of discussions, implementation and reflection over the cycles. this is in line with what dolmans et al. (2002) suggest, i.e. that tutors focus more on making the process geared towards self-direction and independence for the learner. this study allowed us to reflect on another aspect of this module, in particular with regard to the teaching modality, which has traditionally been a face-to-face approach. while a considerable amount of time and energy was spent on the mounting of pbl through an ar project with a focus on the traditional face-to-face approach, we believe we would have to put in greater efforts if this module were to be written or taught through a de mode. for instance, it would be essential not only to invest in the additional training of staff members, but also to consolidate a practical school-based component within this experience so that trainees could integrate the pbl experiences and triggers, and link these to their learning journey. 37 deta conclusion we started our argument by explaining that we had embarked on a pedagogical project of changing our approach in a specific module of teacher education through a pbl approach by changing the mode of the delivery of courses in teacher education, that is, a move towards de and oer. initially, we were mainly thinking of improving the quality of learning for our students, ensuring that they found the learning to be meaningful and that they went through some sort of transformation from being passive recipients of knowledge to active participants in their own learning. to a certain extent, we were successful in achieving our aims. at the same time, we were able to reflect on the different strategies and methods we adopted to achieve our aims. during this pbl process, students learned through a variety of modes. they learned through independent reading of the literature on pedagogy from handouts distributed by the teacher educators, cds on the subject, internet materials that, although not really de materials or oers, permitted them to develop their knowledge and understanding of different pedagogical concepts, theories and constructs. however, the research revealed that the students needed other aspects of the learning process – the cooperative learning sessions and the scaffolding from the teacher educators –to achieve in-depth learning of the main pedagogical principles, teaching strategies and support processes that may not be in place in many de programmes. at the same time, student teachers seemed to have come to a better understanding of their role in the teaching and learning process through the pbl process. we were able to observe their transformation from traditionally passive learners into active participants in their learning and the development of their social skills during cooperative learning sessions. student teachers demonstrated the disposition to be more innovative and inventive in their teaching strategies and 38 teacher education and development in africa deta seemed to have understood that they have to resist the pressure in schools to be conventional and traditional in their approach to teaching. at the same time, we witnessed them develop a reflective stance towards education in general, as well as towards the mauritian education system with its generally traditional classrooms. all this goes to suggest that, in initial teacher education programmes, student teachers need considerable pedagogical support in terms of the enactment of classroom practices. teaching involves a number of skills that enable the management of the teaching and learning process in a real classroom situation. it is not easy for the transfer of learning in terms of skills to occur only through reading, understanding and reflecting on the literature, as usually occurs in de. these teaching skills can only be learned in face-to-face sessions and classroom situations. that is why we are advocating a mixed mode of delivery in teacher education: de for the theoretical part; face-to-face with more of a pbl approach (so that contact sessions model good practice and are not used to transmit content); and immersion in the school and classroom situation (where teachers need to be able to transfer the theoretical knowledge they have gained from the literature and the experiential learning from the carefully scaffolded face-to-face contact sessions into the dynamic reality of real-life classrooms). furthermore, while the use of the pbl approach traditionally taught in a face-toface manner has been widely researched in trying to understand how learning is enhanced, further investigation is needed to understand its implications in a de mode. this research can therefore serve as leverage to evaluate the potential areas applicable for such study. a further study will be required to make recommendations about the inclusion of a de mode in the pbl process. it is hoped that this research will spearhead a campaign to transform outmoded approaches to teaching and learning in teacher education as we evolve towards alternative approaches to face-to-face delivery. 39 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pagander, l. & read, j., 2014, ‘is problem-based learning (pbl) an effective teaching method? a study based on existing research’, institutionen för kultur och kommunikation, linköpings universitet. peters, o., 1988, ‘andragogy as a relational construct’, adult education quarterly 38(3), 160–181. rendas, a.b., fonseca, m. & pinto, p.r., 2006, ‘toward meaningful learning in undergraduate medical education using concept maps in a pbl pathophysiology course’, advances in physiology education 30(1), 23–29, doi:10.1152/advan.00036.2005. savery, j.r. & duffy, t.m., 2001, pbl: an instructional model and its constructivist framework, crlt technical report, no 16-01. schön, d.a., 1983, the reflective practitioner – how professionals think in action, basic books, new york, ny. sherry, l., 1996, ‘issues in distance learning’, international journal of educational telecommunications 1(4), 337–365. singaram, v.s., van der vleuten, c.p.m., stevens, f. & dolmans, d.h.j.m., 2011, ‘“for most of us africans, we don’t just speak”: a qualitative investigation into collaborative heterogeneous pbl group learning’, advances in health sciences education 16(3), 297–310, viewed from http://doi. org/10.1007/s10459-010-9262-3. thomas, j.w., 2000, ‘a review of research on project-based learning’, viewed from http://www.ri.net/ middletown/mef/linksresources/documents/researchreviewpbl_070226.pdf. van berkel, h.j.m. & schmidt, h.g., 2001, ‘the role of lectures in problem-based learning’, paper presented at the annual meeting of the american educational research association, seattle, wa, 10 april 2014. 42 teacher education and development in africa deta appendix trigger 2 tina is a primary school teacher with ten years’ teaching experience. every day she has to present her lesson plans/notes to the dhm who will vet and sign the copy book in which her notes are written. tina used to write elaborate and detailed lesson pans just after she left her teacher training institution, the mauritius institute of education; but after a few years, she started to adopt the same practice as other teachers of long experience – her lesson plans were reduced to a few lines, as in the following example: english for 24 march 2014 lesson 7: p.27–28 the story of the little red hen teaching the future tense c.w. p.28 no 1–5 tina does not mention the teaching strategies she is going to adopt in order to teach the lesson. her class consists of 23 pupils of varying abilities, background and interests. questions to trigger reflection on trigger 2: main questions/diagnostic possibilities? solutions-driven • how much does the example of lesson planning given above resemble what you have observed during your school-based experience? • produce an elaborate lesson plan for a lesson of your choice in a subject area of your choice. • explain the importance of lesson planning. • what are the teaching strategies commonly used by teachers in mauritian primary schools? • identify and explain the importance of teaching strategies that promote active learning and are related to constructivism. • do teachers usually cater for the different needs of students? • explain differentiation. • plan a differentiated lesson. 43 deta embracing new technology to enhance teaching and learning for school learners dr vannie naidoo university of kwazulu-natal naidoova@ukzn.ac.za abstract teaching is under the microscope in terms of delivering quality learning to students in the classroom. new technological tools, such as simulations that extend the understanding of physics concepts, laser discs, video tapes, cds, computer analysis of digitised videos and presentation software have made their way into the school arena. the new technologies at a teacher’s disposal add value to the teaching experience and improve the quality of the teaching service provided. from a basic marketing and public relations perspective, when a school looks to improve its quality of teaching, it should look at the learners’ needs in terms of teaching and learning. learners of today are technologically advanced, since they live in the digital age. teachers can therefore embrace technology tools that can help facilitate the learning process in the classroom. since learners enjoy interacting with their cell phones, computers and tablets, teachers today need to use these technology tools for teaching, where possible. new technologies should therefore enhance classroom teaching and learning. in this paper, a literary review of various theorists’ views is explored. the research is qualitative in nature and is based on understanding the different approaches taken by different countries and theorists on the subject of adopting new technology in the classroom. by looking in the literature at the various studies undertaken, the pros and cons for embracing new classroom technologies for africa are examined. keywords: technology, teaching, learners, students, schools 44 teacher education and development in africa deta introduction we live in the age of computers. technology has bridged all areas of society, from government to large corporate entities, civil society and education. technology has changed the classroom dynamics. traditional instruction in a classroom takes place in a fixed space, while e-learning transcends boundaries and is designed and formatted in a more open and flexible manner. e-learning is remarkable in that the learner can access classroom material at work, at the gym, in the park or in his or her own bedroom. change is part of teaching, whether it is teaching at school, within africa or in the world at large. new technology is part of this change. as a teacher, one needs to come to terms with change and embrace it, as technological developments will no doubt play a crucial role in education in the future. technology can change the teaching experience, introduce a wider variety of learning styles and ensure faster marking of scripts in certain instances. new technology is thus a valuable tool in classroom education that can be used by teachers in africa. if it can enhance the quality of education, as many theorists advocate, then african teachers need to be trained to use these new technologies in their classrooms. in the discussion that follows, various themes are put forward for discussion in terms of technology in education, with specific reference to schools. technology in classrooms in africa will also be looked at specifically. literature review lim, zhao, tondeur, chai and tsai (2013) argue that schools are under pressure from the media, the public at large and government to ensure that technology is used for teaching and learning. these advocates of using technology in schools believe that students’ learning outcomes are enhanced by the considerable magnitude of investment in technology. bhattacharya and richards (2001) are of the opinion that teachers need to transcend traditional approaches and become acquainted with new methods of teaching in order to get a clear understanding of the educational functionality of technological tools in their educational practices. in the literature that was reviewed, various themes, theories and perceptions were explored. the researcher identified two important theories that formed the foundation of the use of new technologies in the classroom. these will be discussed in greater detail below. the discussion will begin with the theoretical framework that supports the use of technology and information and communication technologies (icts) in classroom teaching. 45 deta theoretical framework although there are many theories that support the use of technology and icts in the classroom, the researcher focused on two theories: constructivist theory, and neurosciences and 21st-century learning paradigms. the discussion will start by focusing on the constructivist theory. constructivist theory in 1934, vygotsky set the framework for the constructivist theory. bruner picked up on this and, in the 1960s, further added to the foundation of constructivist theory olsen (2000). olsen (2000) also suggests that there are “two main branches of constructivism”. one is based on the philosophical theories of learning and the other is based on psychological theories. pagan (2006) posits that a major theme in bruner’s constructivist theory is that learning is an active process, whereby students learn best by constructing new ideas and building new schemas based on current and previous knowledge. pagan (2006) adds that constructivist instruction theory addresses four important aspects of the learning process: students’ predisposition towards learning, how to structure knowledge so that it can be readily understood by the learner, the most effective sequence in which to present materials, and the nature and pacing of motivational rewards and punishments. in the discussion that follows, the core pillars of constructivist theory will be identified and practical examples will be put forward to expand on how this theory supports the use of technology and icts in the classroom. taber (2006) identifies the following core pillars that underpin constructivist theory: • knowledge should be actively constructed by the learner, not passively received from an external source. learning is therefore something done by the learner and is not an activity that is imposed on the learner. information that is required by schoolchildren is readily available on the internet via google. as a result, learners today like to obtain information online that they can use to understand and complete class assessments, for example. they therefore no longer depend on only what is in the textbook and what they learn in the classroom. • learners come to the learning situation (in science, etc.) with existing ideas about many phenomena. some of these ideas are random and unsubstantiated; 46 teacher education and development in africa deta others are more deeply rooted and well developed. the digital age has resulted in learners already being exposed to ideas on the subjects taught in class. in science, learners today understand more concepts than they did in the past as some of them have already seen them on television or on youtube. • learners have their own individual ideas about the world, but there are many similarities and common patterns in their ideas. some of these ideas are socially and culturally accepted and shared, and are often part of the language, supported by metaphors, etc. they could also often function well as tools to assist understanding of many phenomena. by using technology in the classroom, teachers could play a video in the classroom to show young students how culture affects people’s views on eating habits, for example. • these ideas are often at odds with accepted scientific ideas, and some may be persistent and hard to change. the big bang theory, for example, is often difficult for a school learner with a religious background to understand and process as he or she has already been taught by their priests and family members that god created the world. • knowledge is represented in the brain as conceptual structures, and it is possible to model and describe these in some detail. the brain stores information, and through memory, this information can later be recalled. the teacher needs to build constructs in children’s minds in a manner that they can later recall and understand information. with the aid of technology, like tools with game simulations, a child can enjoy the learning method and remember what has been taught in the classroom. • teachers have to take the learner’s existing ideas seriously if they want to change or challenge these ideas. students have very enquiring minds that should be challenged by the teacher so that new ideas can be learned and processed. the teacher also has to understand the student’s views. by positively encouraging a young mind in the classroom, ideas can be shared, which further adds to learning. • although knowledge is personal and individual, in one sense, learners construct knowledge through their interaction with the physical world, collaboratively in social settings and in a cultural and linguistic environment. (the relative stress on such factors accounts for the different “versions” of constructivism alluded to earlier.) the world can shape the mind of a student in the classroom. by using technology during classroom sessions, a student can actively engage with other learners by using online platforms to discuss pertinent issues about the world today. a teacher can create chatrooms for students in an ict class, for example, and ask students to explore how the internet has changed people’s lives. 47 deta mos (2003) indicates that, in constructivist theory, learning is not simply about being exposed to new information, but is an active process in which learners should examine, code, decode and interpret new concepts and ideas. mos (2003) adds that educational models that utilise constructivist theory consider these influences and attempt to match education systems and curricula to each socio-culturally distinct group of students. they also build programmes and train instructors to encourage students to discover principles on their own, using the knowledge they already have to embrace and internalise information. scientific reasoning is another learning technique that students can employ in constructivist education. as mentioned above, students must formulate and test hypotheses, build and adjust mental models, and form conclusions based on the course material and their own research (echevarria, 2003). the views explored by the constructivist theorists are indicative of how important icts and technology can be in improving teaching in a classroom setting. another theory that supports the use of icts in the classroom is the neurosciences and 21st-century learning paradigms. the discussion that follows will highlight these learning paradigms in detail. neurosciences and 21st-century learning paradigms teachers need to understand the learner’s brain and how the learner learns and processes information in the classroom. this is not easy. neurologists, physiologists and educationists are researching this area. the theory below can help us understand how technology affects a child’s brain, for example. jean piaget, a well-known theorist, made an enduring contribution to psychology and education. throughout his career, piaget strongly grounded his work in biology and tied it to education as phenotypic adaptation (piaget, 1980). according to smith (2000), piaget’s research famously identified four stages of cognitive development: the sensory-motor stage, the pre-operational period, the concrete operational stage and the formal operational stage. piaget also proposed adapting these to specific educational settings, along with a biological explanation for how they were instantiated. multi-sensory teaching skills in the classroom are important. according to wilmes, harrington, kohler-evans and sumpter (2008), scientists believe that over 80% of all information that the brain absorbs is visual, making lighting and colour particularly important factors in the learning environment. additionally, medical research has found that the ear has more extensive brain connections than any other nerves in the body. therefore, factors such as sound and music have been identified as possible significant contributors to learning in the classroom. 48 teacher education and development in africa deta in multi-sensory teaching, the teacher can use hearing and sight to teach learners new concepts in the classroom. for example, if a video is shown during a classroom lesson on poverty showing justin bieber talking about poverty in africa, learners will watch and listen to the video. secondly, since many classroom students love justin bieber, they are more likely to take the lesson on poverty seriously, as a celebrity is commenting on the subject. school learners are very taken in by celebrity role models. technology can therefore be used in a positive way to stimulate the minds of young, impressionable learners. the views put forward by the theorists below add to the value and importance of using icts as tools to facilitate learning in school learners. galimberti, bednare, donato and caroni (2006) argue that adolescents experience extensive brain transformation as they move towards cognitive, emotional and social adulthood. as a result, they are particularly susceptible to the outside forces found in the environments of the school, home and recreation. each new experience interacts with and sculpts the brain, and they will take these experiences with them into adulthood. of the many external sources interfacing with the teenage brain, technology is prevalent and potent. anderson (2004) adds that the evidence from neuroscience is indisputable: the teenage brain is a brain in transition. clearly, these changes are heavily dependent on experiences, and technology plays an integral part in facilitating learning. however, as we learn more about technology and the brain, it is important for educators to keep in mind that instructional technology is dependent on good teaching pedagogy and content knowledge, which are the cornerstones of academic achievement. studies conducted by le be and markram (2006) and paus, keshavan and giedd (2008), indicate that there is a relationship between learning and the number of neural connections in a learner’s brain. the educational implication is that students who learn a great deal in a subject area grow more neural connections in response to the stimuli they receive. conversely, neglect of an area inhibits neural connections from forming. for instance, students who dedicate themselves to playing the piano have more neural connections in that part of the brain than those who are not musically inclined. it appears that the introduction of neuroscience into an initial teacher education programme can support and facilitate the transfer of neuroscientific knowledge into best practices in the classroom. it was found that of 95 new teachers who had taken a course on the adolescent brain, over 90% stated that their knowledge of neuroscience research had impacted significantly on their classroom practice (mcbride & todd, 2008; mcbride & pomeroy, 2009). 49 deta in light of this, in africa, teacher training should also include such courses. since the brain is central to a child’s development, teachers in africa need to understand its workings and the physiology that affects children’s learning abilities. pitler, hubbell, kuhn and malenoski (2007) argue that technology is shaping the world we live in, and, as a result, our students’ brains are rewiring and restructuring themselves. burgeoning findings on the impact of e-learning on the teenage brain has helped inform instruction. tutorials, gaming and graphic organisers are all compatible with the teenage brain. while computer-based instruction provides the medium, it is important for educators to recognise that the instructional design ultimately determines the effectiveness of the means of instruction. according to tokuhama-espinosa (2011), there has been an increasing call for bidirectional collaboration between educational psychology and neuroscience. the early 1990s saw more international and interdisciplinary cooperation in this arena. tokuhama-espinosa (2011) adds that new neuroscientifically based reading curricula, like rave-o (retrieval, automaticity, vocabulary, engagement with language, orthography) and fast forword, were developed and are being successfully applied in the classroom. from the above discussion, it is clear that new technologies are important tools that can add value to the teacher’s lessons and can assist positively in classroom teaching. the discussion that follows will focus on the typology of new technological tools used in the classroom. the typology of new technological tools for teaching and learning classroom instruction has evolved beyond the use of textbooks and the blackboard. since technology has evolved and taken root in many of society’s hallways, the classroom too has needed to change, and it has done so by including new technologies as teaching tools. these technologies can be used to assist teachers to enhance their teaching in the classroom. in this century, teachers have an array of new technological tools at their disposal. some of these technologies are listed below: • simulations to extend understanding of physics concepts • laser discs, video tapes, cds • real-time data collection and graphic analysis tools associated with computer interfaced probes and sensors 50 teacher education and development in africa deta • computer analysis of digitised video • presentation software • interactive student assessment software (flick & bell, 2000) if taken a step further, schools in africa can use a combination of classroom and e-learning modes of delivery. in e-learning, the joint information systems committee (2004) indicated the following technology that is being used in e-learning environments: • desktop and laptop computers • software, including assistive software • interactive whiteboards • digital cameras • mobile and wireless tools, including mobile phones • electronic communication tools, including email for discussion • virtual learning environments • learning activity management systems examples and studies will be outlined that indicate how some of the technological tools mentioned above can be used by teachers in the classroom. throughout the world, movies are seen as an integral part of society’s popular culture. movies can also be used effectively in classroom teaching as it gives the learner an enjoyable way of learning outside the traditional classroom environment. according to o’babbon and golddenberg (2008), movies are an effective teaching tool. a prepared educator can use a movie to stimulate a discussion session in the classroom. a teacher can also use movies to facilitate learning on a topic such as poverty, aids or wealth creation. furthermore, the teacher can use movies to re-emphasise material that is being presented through textbooks or classroom presentations, which students might consider to be boring. by showing a movie in the classroom, a teacher can pair it with interesting methods of framing and debriefing. this provides a form of active learning that can be very useful to learners. a reason for the success of this teaching tool is that the teacher can reach diverse students in the classroom through movies (robinson, 2000). another benefit of using movies as a teaching tool is that they help humanise the teacher and encourage learners to engage with them (wilson, 2004). some teachers use technology to stimulate learning in very young learners. o’babbon and golddenberg (2008) argue that pre-schoolers are learning to use 51 deta technology at a very early age. tweens (9-12 year olds) and screenagers (tweens and young adults) have become accustomed to using digital devices and media input (rushkoff, 1996). screenagers opt to use google or wikipedia to do their homework, instead of working through piles of books in a library. this change is attributed to today’s learners having become habituated to getting information quickly and easily. this is what makes technology so appealing to them. the view of younge (2002) is that traditional means of teaching and learning do not always hold the attention of young people, who live in a technology-based, popular cultureworshipping society. o’babbon and golddenberg (2008) suggest that educators must be aware of what motivates learners. if they have to teach teenagers and screenagers, for example, their learning needs are often met when a movie is incorporated into their formal education. watching a movie is very stimulating to a teenage learner, just as discussion during the debriefing can be. teachers need to understand that movies provide an excellent opportunity to address different types of learning in the classroom. for example, a visual learner takes in a movie visually, whereas an auditory learner learns by listening to the movie and then to the discussion that follows. when teachers address learning styles through popular culture, learners’ capacity to learn, understand and retain information is increased. this can be seen in the visual learner’s appreciation of moving images and the auditory learner’s interest in dialogue and music. another tool that is used on the education frontier is e-learning. khan (2005) suggests that the design and format of e-learning is more open and flexible than traditional learning. it is also not as space-bound as traditional classroom instruction. kearsley (2002) indicates that traditional instruction is a closed system within the confines of the classroom, school, textbook and field trip. this can often limit the learner. employing e-learning can allow the teacher access to the learner beyond the traditional space boundary. another new technology that is being used increasingly in the education arena is mobile learning. sharples, taylor and vavoula (2005) posit that, given that social interaction is central to effective learning, as indicated by theories on new learning, mobile phones would also impact on educational outcomes by facilitating communication. mobile phones permit collaborative learning and continued conversation, despite the physical location of students. mobile learning can also stimulate students from different cultures and backgrounds to talk to each other. this type of learning allows learners to engage in conversations to resolve their differences, understand the experiences of others, and create common interpretations and an understanding 52 teacher education and development in africa deta of the world around them. in his study, ramos (2008) used an english module that contained an audio cd containing the workbook exercises in audio form to help learners with proper pronunciation and dictation. the modules were designed in such a way that sms quizzes and tests had to be passed in order to complete the modules. in this study, ramos (2008) indicated that learners expressed excitement regarding the use of mobile phones for learning. one learner mentioned that the learning process was akin to answering trivia questions, with feedback provided immediately on whether the answers were right or wrong; this feedback ensured that the learner did not repeat any errors. a study by valk, rashid and elder (2010) investigated a project led by the molave development foundation inc. (mdfi) and funded by the international development research centre (idrc). it explored the study of kam, kumar, shirley, mathur and canny (2009) on improving literacy in rural india using cell phone games in an after-school programme. the children who participated in this programme were from rural, low-income families. with the assistance of an indian english second language (esl) teacher, kam et al. (2009) devised a curriculum that was aligned with local esl learning needs and which represented the equivalent of the material that a qualified teacher could cover in 18 hours in a classroom setting with rural children. the cell phone games targeted listening comprehension, word recognition, sentence construction and spelling, and were constructed at various levels. the programme consisted of two-hour sessions that spanned 38 days from december 2007 to april 2008. the results of the study indicated that the children enjoyed the gaming and that it stimulated their learning. a study performed by anderson and barnett (2013) in the usa examined how a digital game used by learners aged 12 to 13 years increased their understanding of electromagnetic concepts, compared to learners who had conducted a more traditional inquiry-based investigation of the same concepts. in the discussion that follows, the benefits of using new technology will be explored, with specific reference to the african continent. benefits of using new technological tools for teaching and learning in africa brush, glazewski and hew (2008) have stated that ict can be used as a tool for students to discover learning topics, solve problems and provide solutions to problems in the learning process. ict makes knowledge acquisition more 53 deta accessible, and concepts in learning areas are understood while engaging students in the application of ict. in africa, school learners can use ict tools in the classroom to discover new learning topics, e.g. doing a google search on google earth. the speed at which the internet provides information makes it a very desirable tool to young teenagers. in a study conducted by jewitt, clark and hadjithoma-garstka (2011), the following conclusions were put forward on the benefits to school learners of using ict in the classroom: • using digital resources provided school learners with more time for active learning in the classroom. • digital tools and resources provided more opportunity for active learning outside the classroom, as well as self-directed spaces, such as blogs and forums, and access to games with a learning benefit. • digital resources provided learners with opportunities to choose the learning resources. • the resources provided safer spaces for formative assessment and feedback. • african students can also enjoy these benefits by using icts in the classroom, as research has shown this to be the case elsewhere in the world. teachers in africa could videotape their lessons and podcast these to learners who live in remote locations and cannot travel during the rainy seasons. learners could also use a computer in a local library in their village to access the lessons. interesting debates by educational experts suggest that new technology is the way to go. jochems, van merrienboer and koper (2004:166) suggest that “learning is integrated with other activities such as knowledge, skills, attitudes and competencies, and quality is judged by the impact on the organisation involved”. opting to use new technology in the classroom will change the focus of learning and recreate the role of the teacher. in africa, using technology in the classroom would force the learner to become more focused. the learner could develop skills as he or she uses the new classroom technology. this type of classroom learning forces the learner to become more engaged in the learning process. the learners are no longer only concentrating on mastering the academic subject matter, but are also learning a skill. the role of the 54 teacher education and development in africa deta teacher is then transformed from merely being the subject expert, the transmission medium or examiner, to being the subject guide, knowledge intermediary and assessor. the teacher becomes the coach in this instance. this adds value to the teacher’s everyday duties. learners see the teacher in a new light: that of motivator and guide. transforming the teacher into a coach opens up the mode of learning on both sides. in the discussion that follows, reservations about the educational use of new technologies will be debated. reservations about the educational use of new technologies today’s children are “digital natives”. they live in a world where computer technology is on every corner. however, their teachers are much older and had a totally different experience growing up, as they were not exposed to digital technology at every turn. these teachers are the “digital immigrants”, who are now tasked with addressing the needs of school learners who are technologically advanced and computer savvy. the role of the teacher has increased tenfold, as teachers have to grapple with these new technologies and make sense of them in order to employ them in their classrooms. some educationists argue that new technology can only be used in first-world countries as they have a well-built infrastructure for school programmes that make use of such technologies. africa has unique problems that include war, famine, poverty, aids/hiv and other diseases, and does not have the money to provide expensive technologies in the school system. spector and davidsen (2000) suggested that one single and typically simple approach to using technology to support learning would not succeed. the african continent is not like the rest of the world when it comes to school education systems. in africa, the school systems are in a state of constant transformation. this has resulted in many problems. an interesting view put forward by jochems et al. (2004) is that organisational, pedagogical and technological aspects have to be managed in a harmonious manner in order to adequately solve the current educational problems. learning technologies can play a pivotal bridging role in african schools. they can be the catalyst that can assist ministries of education 55 deta within african governments to formalise pedagogical and organisational thinking in such a way that they can be implemented as a workable, technical solution in the long term. african school systems can survive in the global landscape if governments are willing to set aside large amounts of money to benefit the continent as a whole. in a study conducted in indonesia, marwan (2008) suggested the following barriers to integrating technology into teaching: • lack of knowledge and skills. despite their active use of technology into pedagogy, most teachers felt that they lacked adequate knowledge and skills for optimally integrating the facility into teaching. one respondent, for example, admitted: “i frequently use technology to support my teaching, but, honestly, i am only able to use basic computer programs such as email programs and powerpoint. i never use other programs such as those that enable computermediated communication (cmc) or desktop teleconferencing. knowing how to operate other advanced programs would be very useful, i think.” • lack of technical support. for another respondent, “technical staff should be available before, during and after the class sessions”. yet another respondent added: “once i was about to start my teaching and i had difficulty in turning on the lcd projector … i tried to seek help, but no technical staff was available at the time, so i finally decided not to use the computer in my teaching.” • lack of incentives. throughout the interviews, lack of incentives was repeatedly mentioned by several teachers. they admitted that no additional incentive was provided by the institution to use the innovations that are available. according to one respondent: “the main reason i use technology for teaching is because i like learning new things and i like technology … if i didn’t, i would be less likely to use it, unless there were incentives for that.” since e-learning is part of the new technological advancement that is taking place in teaching, the next section will touch on this area. the above barriers cited by marwan (2008) are also barriers that african teachers face when using technology in the classroom. lack of funding to build infrastructure makes it difficult for teachers in africa to use e-learning. since the infrastructure for e-learning is not in place in many parts of africa, it is often difficult for e-learning systems to be implemented. 56 teacher education and development in africa deta secondly, in certain parts of africa, the reality is that rural communities are dealing with aids/hiv and other diseases, as well as dire poverty, which means that dispatching computers to these communities is not the highest on government’s agenda, since food, clean running water and medication is considered to be of greater importance. another shortfall to e-learning is having a great system, but not having sufficient technical support. power outages on the african continent are also a major obstacle that slows down the use of ict in the classroom. another serious problem associated with new technology in teaching is that african children can become addicted to gaming. this can have an adverse effect on their personalities. they can go home and not be very communicative with their parents, for example, as they become so engrossed in gaming that they cease to distinguish reality from fantasy. the need to train teachers to understand and use new technologies in the classroom will be discussed in detail below. the need to train teachers to use new technology research suggests that the successful implementation of technological innovations in the classroom is more likely to take place when teachers are highly reflective about their own teaching practice and goals, in the sense that they consciously use technology in a manner that is consistent with their pedagogical beliefs. in africa, teachers have to be trained to implement technological tools that could enhance their teaching and learning. since change is often hard to deal with from a personal perspective, workshops on change should first be introduced, before formal training sessions occur. it is often good to learn from our counterparts in the west how they managed to conduct training in their countries, and to adapt these techniques, where possible, to the african classroom context. according to the national staff development councils (nsdc) in the united kingdom (2001), technology purchases had increased dramatically in many school districts in the united kingdom during the past decade, often with little attention given to the development of teachers’ ability to use technology. the nsdc advocated that at least 30% of the technology budget be devoted to teacher development in this area. african ministries of education should also put teacher development programmes in place to upskill teachers on the new technologies. by doing this, teachers can plan and practise what they have learned. the investment made in rolling out new technologies in classrooms would not fail if government explored such initiatives. 57 deta african educationalists can learn from the proposals set forth by educationalists abroad in the science field. flick and bell (2000) proposed the following guidelines for using technology in the preparation of science teachers: • technology should be introduced in the context of science content. • technology should address worthwhile science with appropriate pedagogy. • technology instruction in science should take advantage of the unique features of technology. • technology should make scientific views more accessible. • technology instruction should develop students’ understanding of the relationship between technology and science. flick and bell (2000) argued that, despite western society’s heavy dependence on technology, few teachers actually understood how technology was used in science, for example. using technologies in learning science provides opportunities for demonstrating to new teachers the reciprocal relationship between science and technology. new teachers could develop an appreciation of how advances in science drive technology. in africa, the same is true: teachers need to be trained to apply the new technology to their specific field of teaching. for example, in africa, a teacher can show a physical science video on solids, liquids and gases during the lesson. they could then take it a step further and stimulate the young minds by showing them youtube science fair inventions. harwell (2003), from the centre for occupational research and development (cord) in the usa, recommends that, in preparing teachers on how best to teach content, and then equipping them with knowledge and skills, there should be programmes in place to support professional teacher development. these programmes should not only empower teachers to succeed in the present, but should also enable them to improve their skill over time. this is especially true with respect to technology, which has become an essential tool in teaching and learning, and will continue to play a significant role in education far into the future. in the science discipline, new technology can be actively integrated into the curriculum to stimulate student learning. flick and bell (2000) argued that the impact of digital technologies on science teacher education is more pervasive than curriculum or instructional innovations in the past. digital technologies are changing the way teachers interact with students in the classroom in a good way. ahburn and floden (2006) drew insights from the studies done by becker (1999), 58 teacher education and development in africa deta zhao and frank (2003) and zhao, pugh, sheldon and byers (2002), arguing that studies of teaching and teachers’ beliefs have shown that teachers who are more reflective and aware of their own pedagogical beliefs are generally more adaptive and flexible teachers. they can also adopt new technologies more easily. technology can also assist teachers in marking their assessments. teachers in africa have very large classes and multiple-choice questions can be used as a class assessment. these assessments can then be marked electronically. this can make a teacher’s life far less stressful. teachers in africa can use e-learning. the benefit of having an e-learning system is that learners from all age groups could work and study in their own time. this flexibility can benefit many who are illiterate or semi-literate by enabling them to work and study. ngos can now develop programmes to accommodate such rural people in africa. in africa, teachers do not have the training they need to use the new technologies. a way forward is that government can work with the ngos in rural communities to train teachers in using new technologies to enhance their classroom teaching practice. teachers also need technical support staff at hand to assist them when they encounter difficulties in the classroom. school administrators should budget for this and motivate for such support. the above discussion clearly outlines the need for the training of teachers and technicians. technicians have to be present to assist teachers if they experience challenges. concluding remarks in africa, we have to look at the new technologies being used elsewhere in the world. since the explosion of the internet, the world is a global village. teachers have to respond to these challenges. using new technologies in teaching can lead to better teaching styles, assessment times and feedback. this would, in turn, improve the overall quality of teaching. in africa, teachers need proper training to understand the new technologies. the 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instructional media 36(1), 439–447. sharples, m., taylor, j. & vavoula, g., 2005, ‘towards a theory of mobile learning’, in h. van der merwe & t. brown, mobile technology: the future of learning in your hands, m-learn 2005 book of abstracts, 4th world conference on m-learning, 25–28 october 2005, cape town. smith, l., 2000, a short biography of jean piage, viewed from http://www.piaget.org.biography/biog/ html. spector, j.m. & davidsen, p.i., 2000, ‘designing technology-enhanced learning environments’, in institutional and cognitive impacts of web-based education, idea publishing group, london. taber, k.s., 2006, ‘beyond constructivism: the progressive research programme into learning science’, studies in science education 42(1), 125–184. tokuhama-espinosa, t., 2011, ‘a brief history of the science of learning: part 1 (3500 b.c.e.-1970 c.e.) and part 2 (1970–the present)’, new horizons for learning 9(1), viewed from http:// education.jhu.edu/ newhorizons/journals/winter2011/. valk, j.h., rashid, a.t. & elder, j., 2010, ‘using mobile phones to improve educational outcomes: an analysis of evidence from asia’, the international review of research in open and distributed learning 1(1), 1–12. wilmes, b., harrington, l., kohler-evans, p. & sumpter, d., 2008, ‘coming to our senses: incorporating brain research findings into classroom instruction’, education 128(4), 659–666. 62 teacher education and development in africa deta wilson, m.e., 2004, ‘teaching, learning, and millennial students’, new directions for student services 106, 59–71. younge, j.r., 2002, ‘homework? what homework?’ the chronicle of higher education 49(15), 35–37. zhao, y. & frank, k.a., 2003, ‘technology uses in school: an ecological perspective’, american educational research journal 0(4), 807–840. zhao,y., pugh, k., sheldon, s. & byers, j., 2002, ‘conditions for classroom technology innovations’, teachers college record 104(3), 484–515. 63 deta teacher training that meets the needs of mathematically gifted learners michael kainose mhlolo central university of technology, south africa mmhlolo@cut.ac.za abstract in africa, there is increasing evidence that progress being made in producing scientists, engineers and technologists is very slow. yet, there is a total neglect of mathematically gifted students who have the potential to enter these careers. this is mainly due to teachers not receiving adequate training on education for gifted learners. this paper examines the necessity for and provision of suitable training for teachers who are required to teach gifted learners in mainstream classrooms. using gagné’s differentiated model of gifts and talents (gagné, 2015), the paper shows how gifts might never translate into talents if teachers are not trained to effectively nurture such talent. the model further implies that gifted students are found in mainstream classrooms, suggesting that all teachers encounter gifted students in a similar way to that in which they encounter learners with learning difficulties. the paper proposes that all pre-service teachers should receive training in education for gifted learners. the paper concludes by suggesting four broad components of a programme for training teachers to teach gifted students: changing beliefs and attitudes, the nature and identification of gifted students, the differentiated curriculum, and the assessment of gifted learners. keywords: gifts, talents, gifted education, skills development, teacher training 64 teacher education and development in africa deta introduction there is a global discourse that positions mathematical competence as the key that unlocks the gate to many opportunities for individual students and to the welfare of a nation in a 21st-century knowledge economy. many of the most sought-after careers depend on the use of mathematics. for example, civil engineers use mathematics to determine how to best design new structures; economists use mathematics to describe and predict how the economy will react to certain changes; investors use mathematics to price certain types of shares or calculate how risky particular investments are; software developers use mathematics for many of the algorithms that make programs useful. despite this global consensus, in africa, there is increasing evidence that progress in producing such skilled people is not yet satisfactory (department of science and technology, 2008). one might then ask: “what factors are contributing to this failure and what can be done to alleviate the challenges?” this theoretical paper is premised on empirical evidence that has shown that mathematically gifted individuals have the potential to become the critical human capital needed for driving modern-day economies. the majority of these gifted students in developing countries spend most, if not all, of their academic career in mainstream classrooms, as a result of inclusive practices that led to the dismantling of special schools for the gifted. although the presence of gifted students in almost every classroom indicates the need for teacher preparation programmes to include content on gifted students, empirical evidence shows that typical traditional preservice teacher programmes do little to prepare teachers to meet the needs of gifted learners (diezmann & watters, 2002; oswald & de villiers, 2013). this suggests the need for a paradigm shift in the way traditional teacher training programmes are conceptualised and designed in developing countries. in light of the aforementioned, the purpose of this paper is to examine the necessity for and provision of suitable training for teachers who are required to teach gifted learners in mainstream classrooms. the following questions guide the paper: • why should mathematically gifted students and their teachers be of concern to us in the 21st-century economy? • what competencies do teachers need to effectively teach gifted students? • how should teacher training programmes be designed to prepare graduates who are ready to teach well in the 21st-century classroom? 65 deta making a case for mathematically gifted students according to smith (2004), it has been widely recognised that mathematics occupies a rather special position in our lives. it is a major intellectual discipline in its own right, and provides the underpinning language for the rest of science and engineering, as well as other disciplines in the social and medical sciences. it provides the individual citizen with empowering skills that prove useful in private and social life, as well as key skills that are required at virtually all levels of employment. there is not a single area of life that is not affected by mathematics. for this reason, many scientists regard mathematics as the language of nature. if our citizens want to learn about nature (and want to learn to appreciate nature), it is necessary to understand the language (mathematics) of nature. supporting this view is the widely accepted belief that all citizens should be able to cope with the everyday mathematical demands of life (numeracy) at school, in the home, at work and in the community. however, beyond basic numeracy, advanced economies need an increasing number of people with more than the minimum qualifications in mathematics to stay ahead in the field of international competitiveness and to effectively exploit advances in technology. thus, the goals of contemporary mathematics education are twofold: to develop a numerate citizenry, because mathematics is found everywhere, and to develop a society with sufficient high-level mathematical capability that will give a country the competitive edge in the 21stcentury knowledge economy. in this regard, macgillivray (2000) suggests three distinctive levels of mathematical capability: the quantitative capability of society, the mathematical capability in the broad spectrum of areas with quantitative links, and the capability in terms of highlevel expertise of the discipline of mathematical sciences. it is in the latter two levels of mathematical capability that there have recently been increases in both importance and danger signs (diezmann & watters, 2002). in particular, there is a need to understand how to adequately cater for exceptional students, such as those who are gifted in mathematics, so as to achieve the third level of capability (high-level expertise). a major reason why society continues to be concerned about the education of mathematically gifted students is the belief that mathematically gifted individuals have the potential to become the critical human capital that is needed to drive modernday economies. while this assumption has been made intuitively, terman’s genetic studies (friedman & martin, 2011) and the longitudinal studies of mathematically precocious youth (smpy) (lubinski, benbow & kell, 2014) are arguably among the most famous longitudinal studies done in psychology to date that have tracked mathematically gifted youth over decades. these studies aimed to confirm or refute 66 teacher education and development in africa deta this intuitive thought. results from these studies have confirmed beyond any doubt that mathematically talented males and females will indeed become the critical human capital that is needed to drive modern-day conceptual economies. although the neglect of gifted students in south africa over the past two decades has been blamed on post-apartheid inclusive practices that were skewed towards addressing the needs of the historically disadvantaged population groups, ample evidence shows that authorities are now coming to realise that a democracy such as south africa, more than any other system, requires an abundant supply of such talent and leadership if it is to survive and prosper. for example, in 2010, south african president jacob zuma appointed the national planning commission (npc) to take a broad, cross-cutting, independent and critical view of the challenges facing the country. in its first diagnostic overview, the npc (2011) raised its concern that skills acquisition was out of line with the needs of a modernising economy, because there was so much focus on numeracy at the expense of critical skills development. the npc referred to this gap as “credential inflation” without a concomitant rise in earnings or skills requirements. with respect to students, the npc’s view was that a few well-motivated and talented individuals would be of more importance to the national economy than many who were not at the cutting edge and were content with substandard work. the npc then recommended the provision of opportunities for excellence for the most talented students. following the diagnostic overview by the npc, the department of basic education set up a task team to investigate the implementation of maths, science and technology (mst) talent development programmes in schools. the evidence gathered by the task team, with specific reference to talent search and development, showed that, more often than not, provincial education departments seemed to focus on under-performing schools, while neglecting gifted learners and learners with mst potential (department of basic education, 2013:48). their recommendations were as follows: • mst talent development programmes should be incorporated into the revised national mst strategy. • at least one dedicated mathematics and science academy or a special mathematics, science and technology school should be established in each province. the school should preferably have a boarding facility to accommodate learners and teachers from across the province, but it should be managed nationally. 67 deta the department of science and technology (2008) made similar observations. it set up a committee to undertake a study titled “review of mathematical sciences research at south african higher education institutions”. its interviews with students who had chosen mathematical studies left the team wondering how many talented mathematics students had been lost, and how many young people had never had the opportunity to develop a love for mathematical sciences. they further argued that the ultimate health of mathematical sciences depended on strengthening the foundation of mathematics in schools, identifying and nurturing the best students at secondary level, and encouraging such students to enter programmes in the mathematical sciences. its recommendation was that a vigorous mathematics talent search was needed at school level, particularly in the rural areas, where there is a huge reservoir of untapped talent. at provincial level, there has been a similar focus on gifted students. for example, a document entitled “gauteng mathematics, science and technology (mst) education improvement strategy 2009–2014” (gauteng department of education, 2010) set out the strategy and plans to improve mst education in the province. an important observation made in this document regarding gifted students was that the majority of school learners in gauteng are in schools located in economically disadvantaged communities, therefore, statistically, the largest provincial pool of potential future scientists, engineers and technologists is in these communities. yet, there are more challenges in respect of mst education in these schools than in more affluent schools. the provincial department lamented that it was “a tragic inevitability that we waste much human potential with each generation of school leavers that suffers as a result of poor mst education” (gauteng department of education, 2010:47–48). its recommendation was that there is a need for early talent identification, and nurturing and developing this human potential. all these recommendations suggest that if we are to transform student potential into the skills that we need in the 21st century, we need to put well-structured talent development programmes in place for our gifted students. theoretical model that puts teachers at the centre of talent development programmes this paper borrowed from gagné’s differentiated model of gifts and talents (dmgt) (gagné, 2015) as a theory that represents the process of transforming natural abilities (gifts) into skills (talents). this model is strongly anchored in the separation of these basic concepts (gifts and talents). in 1985, gagné first conceptualised his 68 teacher education and development in africa deta theory of talent development (the dmgt), which is internationally renowned and has been modified over the years. figure 1: gagné’s differentiated model of gifts and talents (gagné, 2009) (reproduced with the permission of gagné) the dmgt comprises six components, each being assigned an identifying acronym. as indicated in figure 1, the components demonstrate the progression from natural abilities or gifts (g) to competencies or talents (t). this progression is facilitated through the developmental process (d), which is either assisted or hindered by factors that gagné describes as catalysts. he groups these catalysts into environmental (e) or intrapersonal (i) catalysts and also includes the chance component (c) as a factor that can impact on all the contributing components of the model. this model emerged as gagné (2015:15) defined giftedness and talents as follows: “giftedness designates the possession and use of untrained and spontaneously expressed outstanding natural abilities or aptitudes (called gifts), in at least one ability domain, to a degree that places an individual at least among the top 10% of their age peers.” 69 deta “talent designates the outstanding mastery of systematically developed competencies (knowledge and skills) in at least one field of human activity, to a degree that places an individual at least among the top 10% of “learning peers” (those that have accumulated a similar amount of learning time from either current or past training).” in this way, gagné (2015) differentiated between giftedness as raw capacity, and talent as systematically developed ability. one very important outcome of viewing the concept of giftedness and talent through the lens presented by gagné (2015) is the implication that a child can, by virtue of having naturally high abilities, be recognised as being gifted from a very early age. as the child matures, these abilities will develop into talents; but the course such development takes is dependent upon the impact of what gagné (2015) describes in his model as “catalysts”, that is to say, the influences of environmental and intrapersonal factors. he also includes the chance factor as being influential in the eventual successful or otherwise outcome of the developmental process. the outcome of a successful developmental process is the maturing of these basic abilities into exceptional competencies or talents. thus, a person is described as being gifted to highlight that they have exceptional abilities and, when they have favourably developed these abilities, they may be described as being talented. therefore, to be described as being talented necessarily implies giftedness as a prerequisite. a further implication is therefore that, while such a child will always remain gifted, only when a high level of performance has been attained can they be described as being talented. this is important, as it alludes to the common phenomenon in our schools, and in life, of under-achievement by the gifted, and points us in the direction of beginning to understand – and therefore remedy – this (gagne, 2009). it supports the important understanding that if, through unfavourable catalytic circumstances, a child’s abilities fail to manifest into talents, the basic constituents of their giftedness do not disappear, and therefore neither do their special educational needs. in fact, they are likely to be even more in need of intervention and support. besides this distinction between giftedness and talent, another important question that has caused controversy in the field of the education of gifted learners has been the following: “who deserves to be labelled as a gifted student?”. gagné (2010) was particularly concerned about treating gifted students as belonging to a homogenous group, arguing that there are different levels of giftedness. as an intrinsic component of his dmgt, gagné then developed a clear and defensible 70 teacher education and development in africa deta metric-based (mb) system, which allows for much easier comparisons of subgroups within the gifted or talented populations. the dmgt of gagné (2010) proposes a five-level system of cut-offs for giftedness. these are the following: “mildly gifted” – 10% (top 1:10); “moderately gifted” – 1% (top 1:100); “highly gifted” – 0.1% (top 1:1 000); “exceptionally gifted” – 0.01% (top 1:10 000); and “extremely gifted” – 0.001% (top 1:100 000) (see table 1). table 1: levels of giftedness level labels for giftedness proportions 5 extremely (profoundly) 1:100 000 4 exceptionally 1:10 000 3 highly 1:1 000 2 moderately 1:100 1 mildly 1:10 (source: gagné, 2000) using this mb system, gagné (2010) argued that the mildly gifted (1:10) – or the top three achievers in a regular class of 30 – already distance themselves significantly in terms of ease and speed of learning. he refers to such mildly gifted students as the “garden variety” – a common english expression in the united states that means the “most common group”. similarly, renzulli (2012) uses the terms “high achieving” or “schoolhouse giftedness” to refer to students who are good lesson learners in the traditional school environment. so, in this paper, the term “gifted” is used in accordance with the recommendations of gagné (2015) and renzulli (2012) to refer to 1:10 students who attend everyday regular class and who demonstrate relatively high mathematical ability. the focus on these “mildly gifted students” follows the recommendation of gagné (2015) that the vast majority (90%) of gifted individuals belong to this lowest level, while highly gifted or talented individuals (1:100 000) are a rarity. the level of this rarity is such that even full-time teachers of the gifted may, in the course of their 35-year professional careers, encounter just a few, if any, of these extremely gifted students. his concern was that, when we present extreme examples of behaviour to parents or teachers, we risk conveying a distorted image of gifted individuals, because stakeholders would be tempted to conclude that such a rare population does not justify large investments of time and money to meet their educational needs. 71 deta gagné (2015) therefore recommends that gifted and talented programme coordinators should first think about services for their “garden-variety” or “mildly gifted” students. in education systems that are guided by the inclusive philosophy, the “garden variety” of gifted students spends the majority of their time in regular classrooms – hence it can be argued that every teacher should be regarded as a teacher of the gifted. what also makes the model of gagné (2015) particularly relevant for this paper on support for gifted learners is the place given to teaching and learning within the developmental process. in his model, the developmental process of learning, training and practice combines with environmental and intrapersonal catalysts to transform natural aptitudes into skills that can be publicly demonstrated. gagné (2015) sees the interplay of the catalysts as a chain that breaks if any link is missing, weak, ineffective or does not meet the learner’s needs over a period of time. gagné (2015) further argued that, within environmental catalysts, teachers (individuals) deserved to be labelled the “weakest link”, because all the other catalysts (resources) are manipulated by the teacher. similarly, clark (2002) argued that classroom teachers have the most significant influence on the learning, development and achievement of gifted learners. in south africa, the gauteng department of education (2010) also conceptualised a model that places the teacher at the centre of the teaching and learning process. this is known as the intervention model for the mst improvement strategy, and is illustrated in figure 2. (source: gauteng department of education, 2010:29) figure 2: intervention model for the mst improvement strategy this model sees teachers and learners as the primary actors in mst education, supported by, but not entirely dependent on, resources and influenced by a range of learning environment factors and role players. the model works from the 72 teacher education and development in africa deta assumption that the nature of the teaching and learning behaviour of teachers and learners determines the success of any education system more than any other factor. research and reality show that the achievements of students, regardless of the type of school at which they are taught, depend on good teachers who are responsible for the quality of their work. other factors, such as resources and the learning environment, are important, but not definitive. but once we point a finger at teachers as the weakest link, we are indirectly pointing at teacher preparation programmes. in south africa, van der westhuizen and maree (2006) argue that teacher colleges and universities should be the major advocates for improving gifted education, because they exert a direct influence on the education of gifted children by training (or not training) future teachers. similarly, oswald and de villiers (2013) argue that the quality of gifted education is dependent on the quality of training the teachers receive – yet teachers who took part in their study said that they had not been trained to deal with gifted students. the issue of who should be targeted by teacher training programmes in countries where gifted education has been separated from mainstream provisions, training has always been targeted at specialist teachers, who then teach in special schools for the gifted. however, separate schooling for the gifted is not favoured in many developing countries, given its association with colonial practices of the past. a major feature of post-democracy reforms in education in many developing countries was a paradigm shift from an exclusive (colonial) system of education for the gifted to an inclusive (democratic) system. these efforts have culminated in the closure of centres for the gifted in some countries, and the emergence of a single education system for all. the majority of authors who oppose separate education for the gifted agree, in principle, that adequate provision can be made for such students in the regular classroom (ainscow, 2007). in many developing countries, where the objective of education is primary education for all, stakeholders are usually hostile to and resentful of extra resource allocation to programmes for the gifted, which are seen to favour a few students. in such countries, van der westhuizen and maree (2006) warn that it is difficult to justify separate programmes for gifted children; hence meeting the educational needs of the gifted has to be addressed within the inclusive framework. gagné (2009) suggests that, in education systems that follow this inclusive philosophy, every teacher should be regarded as a teacher of the gifted. for this reason, davison (1996) argues for all teachers to be taught how to meet the needs of gifted students, since these students spend most of their class 73 deta time in a regular classroom. this implies that, in planning for “the future that we want”, training in gifted education should be mandatory for all pre-service teachers. this view is also consistent with the wider approach to inclusive education, which locates special education theory within a functionalist paradigm. this functionalist paradigm is concerned with learners who experience learning breakdowns, as well as those who evidence gifted behaviour and for whom either enrichment or acceleration could be used to ensure that the gifted learner is not neglected. some thoughts on the design of training programmes for teachers of gifted learners admittedly, there are various views as to what should go into a programme for training the teachers of gifted students. however, studies concerned with the essential competencies of teachers of the gifted are relatively consistent in their assessment of which competencies should be found in educators working with gifted students (cross & dobbs, 1987; hansen & feldhusen, 1994). some of the critical concepts that need to be considered include a change in beliefs and attitudes, the nature and identification of gifted students, a differentiated curriculum and assessment. each of these competencies will now be discussed. beliefs and attitudes lewis and milton (2005) and plunkett (2000) have highlighted the importance of beliefs and a positive attitude as a starting point in addressing the needs of the gifted. while the relationship between attitude and behaviour is complex and not always consistent, it is generally agreed that attitude is one variable that influences a person’s behaviour or behavioural intent, perceptions and judgment (bohner & wänke, 2002). research shows that, in many developing countries, there are hostile and negative stereotypes that shape teachers’ attitudes and expectations regarding gifted students – attitudes and expectations that become barriers to the process of learning and belie the egalitarian ideals that form the philosophical foundation of many schools. therefore, if the negative attitude of pre-service teachers about gifted students is not challenged, they will retain this attitude in professional practice. lewis and milton (2005) agree with plunkett (2000) that teachers’ and pre-service teachers’ beliefs and attitudes have a significant impact on their classroom practice. in a study of the characteristics of effective teachers of gifted students, significant factors identified included passion for their subject matter, positive relationships and a capacity to relate new learning to students’ interests (watters, 2010). 74 teacher education and development in africa deta similar studies have shown that teachers who participate in gifted education programmes have a more positive attitude than those who do not avail themselves of such opportunities (lassig, 2009; plunkett, 2000). a study by geake and gross (2008) shows that a teacher’s unconscious negative attitude can be reduced through professional development courses in which teachers become more familiar with the characteristics of gifted students and their learning needs. according to gross (2004), teachers should be trained in research and exposed to research findings that contradict many of the misconceptions held regarding gifted education. this may assist in dispelling the myths and misconceptions about giftedness and gifted children. enhanced knowledge, understanding and skills, and a related increase in confidence, may reduce unfavourable attitudes. change of attitude is not only important for pre-service teacher training, but also in the in-service training stage. for example, davis and rimm (2004) recognise the significance of attitudes towards the gifted when developing programmes. they recommended that the first question to be asked when devising a programme for gifted learners should be: “what is our attitude towards gifted children?” (davis & rimm, 2004:55). this is important in developing a successful programme, because schools must identify what they know and believe about gifted children and their education. in particular, they should be explicit about whether their teachers are interested in and supportive of gifted education. schools need to know why they are providing a particular programme, what they are aiming to accomplish, and whether they are willing to be responsible and accountable for the plan of action (davis & rimm, 2004). a negative attitude and prejudice can cause discriminatory behaviour, particularly when it exists within a group, for example, a group of teachers (bohner & wänke, 2002). if teachers develop positive attitudes towards giftedness, they are more likely to be supportive of gifted education, and effective in identifying and catering for gifted students. the nature and identification of giftedness besides teacher attitude, another major concern that pre-service teachers have is a lack of understanding of the nature of giftedness, stereotypical views of the rarity of gifted students and hence a lack of awareness of the prevalence of children who need enhanced or enriched educational experiences beyond what is normally provided in classrooms (watters, 2010). one of the commonly voiced concerns 75 deta regarding gifted education is that traditional methods of identifying gifted children are culturally biased and, more importantly, that traditional conceptions of giftedness are narrow and skewed towards certain cultures (gottfredson, 2004). pre-service teachers should therefore be exposed to more diverse methods of identifying gifted students. equity requires more diverse and more sensitive means of finding those unrecognised, potentially gifted students who have yet to reveal their true capabilities. reflecting a broader trend in gifted education, both ford (2011) and richert (2003) advocate a multidimensional view of giftedness and corresponding multimodal ways of identifying it. those who support a multidimensional approach present their broader conceptions as being more democratic, as they are more inclusive than the traditional intellectual approach. in short, gottfredson (2004) argues that if our tools for identifying giftedness do not produce racial balance, we should modify them until they do. differentiated curriculum another major concern in gifted education is that, in practice, planning for differentiation poses substantial challenges to teachers. in order to cater for the diverse needs of gifted students, the most common approach that teachers can implement is to create opportunities for gifted students to realise their potential through a differentiated curriculum. according to maker (1975), differentiation requires the modification of four primary areas of curriculum development: content (what we teach), process (how we teach), product (what we expect the students to do or show) and the learning environment (where we teach/our class culture). teachers can differentiate the curriculum by removing mastered material from the existing curriculum, providing new content, and extending the curriculum with enrichment activities (ashman & elkins, 2009). differentiation requires recognising students’ varied background knowledge, language and learning interests. according to harris and hemming (2008), varied and practical teaching strategies facilitate diverse ways to assist gifted students to achieve learning outcomes. the skills 76 teacher education and development in africa deta necessary to plan and implement a differentiated curriculum can also be developed in pre-service programmes. pre-service teachers themselves need to develop skills in higher-order thinking and creative thinking to develop content that is more abstract and engaging for students who seek complexity and challenge. assessment effective pedagogy requires assessment, which provides the critical links between what is valued as learning, ways of learning, ways of identifying needs and improvement (pendergast & bahr, 2010). following this view, ashman and elkins (2009) emphasise the need for pre-service teachers, teachers and other professionals to identify what gifted students know (assessment) and how they learn in relation to effective teaching. monitoring student engagement and performance through assessment strategies supports gifted students to scaffold academic skills and learning processes. yet pre-service teachers are often unprepared to assess students’ understanding (callahan, cooper & glascock, 2003). this may also be overcome with teacher education training that promotes effective communication and collaboration in the classroom, including the provision of a variety of assessment strategies to improve teaching and learning. conclusion this paper argued that mathematically gifted students are the hope for the future in the 21st-century knowledge economy. currently, they are found in mainstream classrooms that follow inclusive education practices. in these classrooms, they are not receiving adequate support, as teachers are not trained in how to cater for the needs of gifted students. this is detrimental to our efforts to produce skilled people. the paper then argued that all teachers undergoing pre-service training should receive training in educating gifted learners. this training should involve changing teachers’ beliefs and attitudes towards gifted education, the nature and identification of gifted students, the differentiated curriculum and assessment. 77 deta references ainscow, m., 2007, ‘teaching for diversity: the next big challenge’, in connelly, m., he, m.f. and phillion, j. 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talent development for the 21st century: a four-part theoretical approach’, gifted child quarterly 56(3), 150–159. richert, e.s., 2003, ‘excellence with justice in identification and programming’, in n. colangelo & g.a. davis (eds.), handbook of gifted education, 3rd ed., allyn & bacon, boston, ma. 79 deta smith, a., 2004, making mathematics count: the report of prof adrian smith’s inquiry into post-14 mathematics education, the stationery office limited, london. van der westhuizen, c. & maree, j.g., 2006, ‘some thoughts on the training of teachers of gifted learners’, gifted education international 21:201–217. watters, j.j., 2010, ‘career decision making among gifted students: the mediation of teachers’, gifted education quarterly 54(3), 222–238. 80 teacher education and development in africa deta learning oral communication skills in a teacher professional development programme through open and distance learning in tanzania jacob leopold the open university of tanzania, tanzania jacob.leopold@out.ac.tz or leopoldmwalongo@yahoo.co.uk abstract this paper explores the issues related to the learning of oral communication skills (ocs) in the english language through distance learning in an era where the information revolution is affecting the delivery and practice of language learning through open and distance learning (odl). the study is modelled after kurniasih’s study of language skills and learning (kurniasih, 2011), and uses both quantitative and qualitative approaches. the sample for the study comprises 102 participants (100 students and two tutors) from the diploma in primary teacher education programme, presented by the open university of tanzania. the data was collected through questionnaires and interviews. the findings indicate that the student teachers share positive perceptions of learning ocs through odl, primarily because of the nature of odl. the study can assist the development of teaching ocs in the english language. keywords: oral communication skills, open and distance learning, teacher professional development, english language, language learning. 81 deta introduction teacher professional development is defined as any formal or informal activity aimed at enhancing the knowledge and skills of teachers by means of orientation, training and support (coetzer, 2007). this development can take place in the form of initial training, induction courses or in-service training. according to the suzan (2000), teacher professional development is significant in deepening teachers’ knowledge of the subjects that they teach, sharpening their teaching skills in the classroom, helping them keep up with developments in individual fields and in education in general, helping them generate and contribute to new professional knowledge, and increasing their ability to monitor learners’ work. in addition, teacher professional development helps to change teachers’ teaching methods, which impacts on students’ learning (borko & putman, 1996). a study on the perception and practices of teachers in teacher professional development in tanzania by komba and nkumbi (2008) showed that 67.6% of teachers perceived teacher professional development as a means of improving teachers professionally, academically and technically. bearing in mind the significance of teacher professional development, this study aims to explore the issues related to the learning of oral communication skills (ocs) in the english language through distance learning in an era where the information revolution is affecting the delivery and practice of language learning through open and distance learning (odl) at the open university of tanzania (out). open and distance learning and teacher professional development odl refers to the provision of flexible educational opportunities in terms of access and multiple modes of knowledge acquisition, which permits learning with no barriers of age, gender and time (santhi, mohayidini & chun, 2015). as far as professional development is concerned, the odl mode is a tool for human capital development, specifically for in-service teachers who want to upgrade their knowledge and skills in higher education and education agencies in both developing and developed countries (maila & pitsoe, 2013). odl is also useful in developing the knowledge of teachers in remote and rural areas by helping them access opportunities for academic advancement. the odl mode is therefore complementary to the conventional teaching and learning system as it addresses challenges of cost, access and quality of education. it provides access to education for the marginalised. 82 teacher education and development in africa deta diploma in primary teacher education and english language learning at open university of tanzania the diploma in primary teacher education (dpte) is a two-year programme offered by out in collaboration with the united kingdom open university (ukou) and teacher education for sub-saharan africa (tessa). the programme was launched in 2008/09 in response to the urgent need for quality teachers in tanzania. the programme is offered in three streams: science, social science and languages. the languages stream is the focus of this study. in this stream, students enrolled for the programme practise and develop communication skills through odl. as a result of the information revolution in recent years, out adopted a policy for the integration of new technology in the teaching and learning process. the incorporation of information technology in language teaching through odl is thus expected to change students’ perceptions of learning ocs through odl, as showcased in the study of rodrigues and vethamani (2015) regarding the impact of online learning in the development of ocs. their study collected students’ feedback on the effectiveness of the online learning programme, english proficiency in conversation (epic). the study’s purpose was to assess how the programme influenced the speaking performance of students in both the epic group and the non-epic group. the study found that the epic group of students performed better than the non-epic group of students in terms of improved speaking grades, vocabulary and listening skills. it is against this backdrop that the present study aims to explore the current perceptions and challenges faced by out student teachers in learning ocs through odl in the context of the information revolution. aim of the study the study aimed to examine student teachers’ perceptions of learning ocs through odl, and the challenges they face in learning ocs through odl in the information revolution era. objectives the objectives of the study were as follows: • to identify the perceptions of student teachers enrolled for the dpte regarding learning ocs through odl. 83 deta • to explore the challenges faced by student teachers enrolled for the dpte in learning ocs through odl in the information revolution era. literature review the concept of ocs rahman (2010) defines communication as a dynamic interactive process that involves the effective transmission of facts, ideas, thoughts, feelings and values. according to alam and uddin (2013), communication can happen orally or in writing. byrne (1986) argues that “communication is a two-way process between the speaker and the listener and involves the productive skills of speaking and the receptive skills of understanding”. communication is therefore the process of verbally transmitting information and ideas from one individual or group to another. ocs include the mix of the verbal, interpersonal and physical strategies needed to interact confidently and effectively with a range of audiences (griffith institute of higher education, 2004). according to alam and uddin (2013), this implies speaking and listening to oral language. carter and nunan (2001) propose that speaking is a linguistic activity that consists of pronunciation (sound), morphology and lexis (words and their parts), grammar and syntax (structure), semantic discourse (conversation and utterances), pragmatics (the use of language and associated rules) and fluency (ease of speech, confidence, coherence and speed). speaking is thus all about verbal responses. according to kurniasih (2011), there are several activities for learning languagespeaking skills. these include songs, chants and poems, games, peer work activities and oral reports or discussions on materials read. these activities can encourage new learners of a language to listen to and experience the language in diverse ways, encouraging the sharing of ideas, as well as the ability to ask questions or give information. listening is an active process of constructing meaning. when listening, a listener needs active mental involvement (staab, 1992). in developing ocs, listening constitutes the first step (alam & uddin, 2013). kurniasih (2011) argues that no one can say a word before having listened to it. in this regard, the teacher must take into account that listening is a critical skill in communication, because one can respond accurately to a communication stimulus only after listening to it accurately. in this way, listening represents half of the communication process as a person gains 84 teacher education and development in africa deta access to most of the information through listening. learners spend more than half of their time in the classroom listening. both of these skills must therefore be practised satisfactorily for successful oral communication. alam and uddin’s study revealed that students improved their ocs because they were given opportunities to practise language skills in a structured environment (alam & uddin, 2013). the authors therefore concluded that the teaching of skills needs to be planned, strategised, practised and assessed; preferably in an authentic setting (chan, 2011). similarly, rahman’s study concluded that the task-based approach to language learning has merit (rahman, 2010). this study revealed that such skills were limited by technology in the past and might not have been accommodated by the present odl language-teaching technology. learning communication skills four language skills are involved in learning any language: listening, speaking, reading and writing (carter & nunan, 2001). figure 1 illustrates the process. figure 1: language skills and learning (adapted from kurniasih, 2011) as shown in figure 1, successful language learning involves listening and reading, which leads to language output in the form of speaking and writing skills. listening and speaking are considered spoken or oral communication language skills, whereas reading and writing are considered written communication language skills. eisenhart (1990) mentions five components to focus on during the teaching of ocs. these are the development of listening and speaking skills, the teaching of a variety 85 deta of spoken texts, the creation of a rich language-learning environment, the teaching and extending of vocabulary and conceptual knowledge, and the promotion of the auditory memory of the students. developing listening and speaking skills eisenhart (1990) argues that the teacher has to develop a set of pre-skills or rules before proceeding with the formal instruction of oral language. these are rules for listening and rules for speaking. for instance, when learning listening skills, a learner has to be taught how to be a good listener. the teacher has to encourage conversation and attentive listening, and create natural learning charts to demonstrate what good listening is. when it comes to speaking skills, learners should be provided with opportunities to engage with others in a conversational style, taught rules that govern social interaction, and use natural charts to capture the mannerisms associated with effective speaking, such as non-verbal behaviour. non-verbal behaviour may include intonation, use of voice, volume (which depends on the situation and needs), pronunciation, proximity, eye contact and pauses. teaching a variety of spoken texts eisenhart (1990) asserts that spoken texts include oral reports, questioning and interviews, storytelling and anecdotes, arguments, and formal or informal pair and small group work and debates. the work of the teacher is to show learners how to use these texts for the effective learning of oral communication skills. creating a rich language-learning environment supporting and nurturing the learning environment is key if communication styles are to be valued, accepted and accommodated (eisenhart, 1990). strategies for developing speaking and learning skills have to promote authentic learning. teaching and extending vocabulary and conceptual knowledge vocabulary is the knowledge of words and word meanings (kamil & hiebert, 2005). it refers to the kind of words that students must know. vocabulary is the term used to describe the collection of words in a given language and understood in speaking, listening, reading and writing (nrtac, 2010). a student has to be introduced to the familiar words or concepts before new vocabulary is introduced. 86 teacher education and development in africa deta promoting auditory memory auditory memory involves the process of attending to, listening to, processing, storing and recalling information. it refers to a student’s ability to assimilate information presented orally, to process that information, store it and recall what has been heard. conclusion this literature review has indicated all the skills that are important in communication, and has alluded to different strategies that can be used to enable teaching. even so, teaching in the odl mode is conducted by someone who is away from the learner. by definition, the learner and the teacher are not in the same classroom and are separated by some geographic distance (ghosh, nath, agarwal & nath, 2012). following this physical separation of the institution, the learners and the teacher in the odl mode, the teaching of ocs is likely to be problematic, despite the progress made by technology to mitigate the constraints imposed by physical separation. this study therefore aims to examine the challenges faced by students who have opted for the language stream in the dpte programme at out. methods this study uses a mixed methods approach. a quantitative method was used to collect data on students’ perception of learning ocs and the associated challenges brought about by the odl mode. a qualitative method was used to capture in-depth information from the tutors in the dpte programme. the study was conducted at eight out regional centres: temeke, kinondoni, ilala, njombe, iringa, shinyanga, morogoro and dodoma. purposive sampling was used in selecting the out regional centres and the subject tutors who were involved in teaching the ocs-related modules. simple random sampling was used in selecting the participants (student teachers). the sample included 100 students and two tutors. however, only 67 students returned the questionnaire. for the data-collection process, the study used both questionnaires and a structured interview. the questionnaires were administered to the student teachers and the tutors were interviewed. the questionnaire consisted of five-point likert scale-type responses. the scale ranged from “strongly agree”, represented by 5, to “strongly disagree”, represented by 1. participants were requested to indicate their level of agreement. 87 deta the questionnaire was used to collect data regarding students’ demographics, perceptions and challenges in learning ocs in the english language through odl. the semi-structured interview was administered to the tutors to obtain information about their perceptions of teaching ocs in the english language through odl, and the challenges they encountered in this process. the alpha reliability of the questionnaire was 0.79, which was in the acceptable range. data from the questionnaire was analysed using the statistical package for social science (spss) version 19. content analysis was used to process the interview data. findings table 1: demographic characteristics variables categories frequency of responses n % sex male 23 34.3 female 44 65.7 regional centres temeke 9 13.4 kinondoni 12 17.9 ilala 2 3.0 morogoro 9 13.4 shinyanga 9 13.4 njombe 10 14.9 dodoma 7 10.4 iringa 9 13.4 type of school where the student teachers are teaching private primary school 1 1.5 public primary school 65 97.5 private english-medium school 1 1.5 the data from table 1 indicates that the sample predominantly comprised females (65.7%). the participants were drawn from eight regional centres of out, of which 88 teacher education and development in africa deta kinondoni (17.9%) supplied the largest pool of participants. the findings showed that almost all respondents (97.5%) taught at public primary schools. students’ perceptions on the development of ocs in the english language through the odl mode the perceptions of student teachers on the development of ocs in the english language through the odl mode were processed separately from those of the tutors. the perceptions of the student teachers are represented in table 2 and those of the tutors in table 3. table 2: mean (m) and standard deviation (sd) of students’ perceptions of learning ocs in the english language through an odl delivery mode statements of the perception m sd ocs can be acquired individually through self-study 3.13 1.27 there is accuracy in learning ocs individually 2.31 1.10 ocs are individually learned and acquired easily 2.92 1.20 individual demonstration is important in learning ocs 1.67 0.89 individual practice on pronunciation and persuasion are crucial in learning ocs 1.49 0.84 average 2.26 1.04 scale: 5 = strongly agree, 4 = agree, 3 = i don’t know, 2 = disagree, 1 = strongly disagree the findings indicated that the highest level of agreement occurred on the item “ocs can be acquired individually through self-study” with a mean of 3.1 and a standard deviation of 1.2. the statement that “ocs can be learned individually and acquired easily” produced a mean of 2.9 and a standard deviation of 1.2. generally, the descriptive results shown in table 2 regarding the students’ perceptions of the development of ocs in the english language through odl demonstrated the low levels of agreement of students. the mean for the statements ranged from 3.1 to 1.4, where the average mean was 2.26 and the standard deviation was 1.04. 89 deta table 3: mean (m) and standard deviation (sd) of tutors’ perception of students’ learning of ocs in the english language through odl statement of the perception m sd ocs are effectively learned in the presence of a tutor during discussion 1.47 0.61 tutor directives are significant in learning ocs 1.52 0.58 tutors’ immediate feedback is crucial in learning ocs 1.49 0.84 tutor assistance and rewards are significant in learning ocs 1.47 0.61 tutors’ recognition of students’ needs and their ability to guide helps in learning ocs 1.52 0.58 average 1.44 0.64 scale: 5 = strongly agree, 4 = agree, 3 = i don’t know, 2 = disagree, 1 = strongly disagree the findings in table 3 indicated that tutors had the same level of agreement on the following statements: “ocs are effectively learned in the presence of a tutor during discussion” (mean of 1.47 and standard deviation of 0.61) and “tutor assistance and rewards are significant in learning ocs” (mean of 1.47 and standard deviation of 0.61). participants indicated similar perceptions with the statements “tutor directives are significant in learning ocs” (mean of 1.52 and standard deviation of 0.58) and “tutors’ recognition of students’ needs and their ability to guide helps in learning ocs” (mean of 1.52 and standard deviation of 0.58). as shown in table 3, the means ranged from 1.52 to 1.47. the findings indicated that tutors’ perceptions on the development of ocs through odl are similar to some issues in table 2, which summarises the findings from student teachers on the same issues. the average mean of the results in table 2 (m = 2.26) is higher than the average mean of the results in table 3 (m = 1.44). subject tutors were interviewed on their perceptions of teaching ocs in the english language through odl. they emphasised the importance of the availability of a tutor in teaching and helping student teachers develop their ocs through odl. 90 teacher education and development in africa deta the tutors indicated the following: tutor 1: “in learning ocs, the presence of a tutor is very important, because a tutor has to guide and direct students, and demonstrate the pronunciation of an english word.” tutor 2: “immediate feedback from the tutor is essential to what is learned in any language skill, including ocs.” table 4: mean (m) and standard deviation (sd) of the perceptions of the challenges of learning ocs through odl statements on the challenges *m sd time for practicing ocs is limited 2.34 1.08 synchronous feedback is limited in learning ocs 2.34 1.08 no guidance on clarity on the pronunciation of words in learning ocs 2.02 0.96 limited chance for students to make judgments on what they learn in the process of learning ocs 2.13 1.16 ocs learning through odl is passive 2.12 1.11 average 2.18 1.08 scale: 5 = strongly agree, 4 = agree, 3 = i don’t know, 2 = disagree, 1 = strongly disagree the findings from table 4 indicate that the following statements were perceived in equal rank: “time for practicing ocs is limited” (mean of 2.34 and standard deviation of 1.08) and “synchronous feedback is limited in learning ocs” (mean of 2.34 and standard deviation of 1.08). students had high perceptions on the statement “limited chance for students to make judgments on what they learn in the process of learning ocs” (mean of 2.12 and standard deviation of 1.16). generally, student teachers perceived minimal challenges in learning ocs through odl, with the average mean being 2.18 and the standard deviation being 1.08. furthermore, tutors commented on the challenges they faced when teaching english language to distance learners. 91 deta they indicated the following: tutor 1: “there is limited time in meeting students when needs arise, for instance, when i mark students’ annual examination papers or main timed test papers… i observe and find some of the things that a student needs to be told or taught for authentic learning of ocs… students are scattered all over.” tutor 2: “since the national and official language in tanzania is kiswahili, most learners use kiswahili in everyday communication. consequently, learning english becomes difficult. the students make many grammatical mistakes in examinations. learners tend to thinki in kiswahili and explain in english, as observed in face-to-face interaction sessions.” discussion students’ perceptions of the development of ocs through in the english language odl the findings of this study indicate that students recognise the importance of individual efforts for the development of ocs in the english language through odl. they realise that this is more important than tutor assistance due to the nature of odl as a mode of delivery. according to santhi et al. (2015), the odl mode provides flexibility to the students regarding their choice of educational endeavours that can occur anywhere, anytime and in any way. as a result, the individual student becomes self-directed. this means that the student is empowered to take increasingly greater responsibility for various decisions associated with the learning endeavour (hiemstra, 1994). moreover, the findings seems to support the view that, when studying through odl, information and communication technology (ict) plays a vital role in meeting the requirements and expectations of students on a large scale. icts in teaching and learning are significant in creating greater information access, better communication, synchronous and asynchronous learning, increased cooperation and collaboration, cost-effectiveness and pedagogical improvement (sanga, sife & lwoga, 2007). a study by yunus, lubis and lin (2009) shows that a high percentage of students agreed that it is beneficial to use icts to learn english (92.4%). in addition, 89.4% claimed that using icts improves english language skills. 92 teacher education and development in africa deta in odl, ict is integrated in terms of electronic learning through educational technologies (sanga et al, 2007). these educational technologies include computers, video conferencing, audio cds and dvds (nyandara, 2012), all of which facilitate the learning of ocs in odl through self-study. according to nihuka and voogt (2011), a student who studies through odl can interact with an instructor through icts. this implies that the odl mode promotes learner autonomy, empowers students and motivates self-directedness. the students take responsibility for their learning. as far as the odl mode is concerned, tutors highlight the importance of feedback in the development of language skills. these results are similar to the findings of mikre (2010:111), who considers feedback essential in improving learning, since learners will be in a position to review both correct and incorrect performance. however, black and william (2004) found that feedback in the form of incomplete comments had a negative impact on students’ learning. for instance, comments, grades or scores may not tell students how to improve in a certain area of learning. therefore, this indicated that immediate feedback through face-to-face interaction is significant in education through both the contact and odl mode. this leads to authentic learning. challenges distance learners encounter in developing ocs in the english language through odl even though learners reported minimal challenges in learning ocs in the english language through odl, their tutors stated otherwise. the tutors cited the lack of english language practice due to the common usage of kiswahili to present a problem. there are two contrasting contexts for language learning: the university and the home. this is supported by hurley (2003), who argues that this is a consequence of the many language identities and alternatives embedded in the day-to-day communication functions of the student, as well as the existence of environmental challenges. however, the findings regarding the challenge of limited interactions with students from tutors align with the findings of attri (2012), who contends that, in the odl mode, students lack feedback or contact with the tutor; this means that there are limited support services. other challenges distance students may encounter include insecurity about learning due to the financial cost and disruptions of family life. 93 deta the findings revealed that the autonomy and self-directedness developed by learning through odl empowered the learners who studied the english language to overcome challenges in their learning, while other general challenges remained constant for both odl and contact students. conclusion the development of ocs in the english language through odl is possible because of the flexible nature of the odl mode and the autonomy learners develop. despite the challenges experienced by learners, the odl mode is still viewed as positive and assists them in becoming competent in their teaching. 94 teacher education and development in africa deta references alam, q. & uddin, a.b., 2013, ‘improving english oral communication skills of pakistani public school’s students’, international journal of english language teaching 1(2), 17–36. attri, a.k., 2012, ‘distance education: problems and solutions’, international journal of behavioral social and movement sciences 1(4), 42–58. borko, h. & putnam r.t., 1996, ‘learning to teach’, in d.c. berliner & r.c. calfee (eds.), handbook of educational psychology, pp. 673–708, macmillan, new york, ny. black, p. & william, d., 2004, ‘teacher developing assessment for learning: impact on student achievement’, assessment in education: principles policy and practice 11(1), 49–65. byrne, d., 1986, teaching oral english, 2nd ed., longman, harlow. carter, r. & nunan, d. 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university. 96 teacher education and development in africa deta utilising large-scale assessment results to improve additional language teaching and learning: challenges and opportunities funke omidire university of pretoria funke.omidire@up.ac.za abstract the introduction of annual assessments in south african schools from 2011 represents yet another attempt to remedy the low learner performance in literacy and numeracy. the education authorities have embarked on the annual practice of testing learners in grade 1 to grade 6 and grade 9 for the twin purpose of measuring the performance of the education system and providing diagnostic information to teachers to guide and inform their teaching. the results have shown that there are no significant improvements in literacy in english language. in this paper, i present a review of the annual national assessment (ana) reports and other relevant literature with a view to establishing the extent to which the intent of providing diagnostic information to guide teachers and provide steps to improve literacy figures has actually been met. i further discuss both the challenges and opportunities of utilising annual assessments as a vehicle for improving english language teaching and learning in the classroom. i conclude by providing suggestions on how english language learning and teaching can be enhanced through this national testing regime. keywords: english language teaching and learning, literacy, large-scale assessment, annual national assessment, curriculum assessment policy statement 97 deta introduction the paper begins with global concerns regarding literacy and numeracy, followed by an overview of literacy concerns in africa and a discussion of south africa and the annual national assessment (ana). next, the methodology and findings of the study are presented, followed by a discussion on the language challenges faced by teachers in an attempt to use the results of the ana to improve teaching and learning. global concerns regarding literacy and numeracy according to the international reading association (ira) and the national association for the education of young children (naey), literacy is one of the most important academic skills and is deemed a significant predictor of success in life (ira & naey, 1998). every individual needs to be literate and numerate, as these basic skills form part of our daily lives; from interpersonal communication to simple tasks like following signs and instructions. traditionally, literacy is referred to as the skills of reading and writing, but today our understanding of literacy encompasses much more than that. consequently, our understanding of what is required of teachers of literacy needs to accommodate this shift in paradigm. according to an education programme carried out in the united states, the american federation of teachers (aft), the national council on measurement in education (ncme) and the national education association (nea) jointly defined seven standards for teacher competence in the educational assessment of students (aft, ncme & nea, 1990). these standards state that teachers should be skilled in choosing and developing assessment methods appropriate for instructional decisions. stiggins (1990), who proposed seven competencies that teachers should possess in order to be considered “assessment literate”, developed a revised version of this standard. after 20 years, brookhart (2011) argued that stiggins’s standards do not adequately address the current education context of teachers with regard to recent conceptions of formative assessment knowledge, skills and the effects of accountability and standards-based reform on teachers’ classroom practices. this limitation was addressed by proposing an extended set of assessment knowledge and skills that teachers require. gotch and french (2014) note that assessment literacy includes using multiple high-quality assessments that are aligned with accurately defined achievement targets. from this perspective, literacy includes the capacity to read, understand and critically appreciate various forms of communication, including 98 teacher education and development in africa deta spoken language, print, broadcast media and digital media. in the same way, we now think of numeracy as not just the ability to use numbers, but also the wider ability to use mathematics to solve problems and meet the demands of day-to-day living in complex social settings. for all these reasons, teachers of all post-primary subjects have an important role to play in developing and consolidating students’ ability to use literacy and numeracy. literacy concerns in africa south africa, like other post-colonial emerging economies, has its challenges with the development of literacy (abadzi, 2008), and needs to respond to what has been called a crisis in literacy teaching for almost a decade. in recent years, the key focus of the transformation programme for the post-apartheid schooling sector in south africa has moved towards assessment as a key driver for improving teaching and learning in schools (kanjee & sayed, 2013). the problem in south african schools has been observed despite the relatively large investment made into education when compared with neighbouring countries: increased inputs, which do not seem to match the observed learning outcomes (chisholm & wilderman, 2013). according to moloi and chetty (2010), both regional and international benchmarking studies continue to show that the level and quality of learning outcomes in south african schools tend to be lower than those of countries that invest significantly less in their schooling sector. the ana in south africa was therefore planned as a measure that could potentially increase awareness of the challenges of teaching and learning literacy (and numeracy) in south africa. south africa and annual assessments the ana is a series of standardised annual examinations, which represents one of the largest education initiatives undertaken in the country, with the primary aim of improving learning through effective teaching. the ana consists of the testing of all grade 1 to grade 6 and grade 9 learners in languages and mathematics. this testing involves approximately six million learners in all the public schools in the country (kanjee & moloi, 2014). national assessment surveys were first implemented in 1996 on representative samples of schools and learners in grade 3, grade 6 and grade 9 (kanjee, 2009). the ana was piloted in its current design in 2010 as a national strategy to monitor the level and quality of basic education with a view to ensuring that every child receives a basic education of a high quality, irrespective of the school they attend. 99 deta the ana was introduced due to the repeated findings that south african learners were underperforming in relation to the financial and resource inputs that the state was investing in education (chisholm & wildeman, 2013). therefore, a presidential injunction was issued to conduct the ana and monitor performance, with the target set at 60% of learners in grade 3, grade 6 and grade 9 achieving acceptable levels of literacy and numeracy by 2014 (republic of south africa, 2011a). according to the plan, the ana is expected to improve learning in four key ways: exposing teachers to best practices in assessment, targeting interventions to the schools that need them most, giving schools the opportunity to pride themselves on their own improvement, and giving parents better information on the education of their children (republic of south africa, 2012a:49). despite the cycles of the ana that had been completed, there had been limited research and information regarding the extent to which the objectives of the ana were being addressed in schools, or the challenges and opportunities that teachers were encountering in its use to improve teaching and learning. the purpose of the ana, as indicated in the reports, provides a glimpse of what should be expected from its outcome. a summary of the purpose of ana is listed below: • measure performance of the education system: overview of improvements and/or decline in different areas of the education system “in-house” data to compare with international assessment data • provide diagnostic information to the teacher: clearer picture of the nature of the problems in the system information to teachers regarding what the learners are actually failing • guide and inform teaching and learning: identification of problem areas should provide insights into the contents that require new teaching strategies opportunities to plan and prepare accordingly (republic of south africa, 2011a; 2012a; 2012b; 2012c; 2013a; 2013b; 2013c; 2014) 100 teacher education and development in africa deta problem statement and rationale although current debates concerning the value of the ana and its impact on improving teaching and learning continue, and accepting the idea that the ana should serve as a catalyst for spearheading reform in the classroom, the critical challenge of assessment results shows that there are no significant improvements in the literacy figures. however, instances of grade 5 learners reading at grade 1 level still remain. there are many limitations to the ana, as identified by the department of basic education (dbe) and other stakeholders. however, a lot can be learned from these assessments in terms of areas of difficulty for second-language and multilingual learners. having assessment results that reflect global annual improvements and/ or compare schools within a district or province and/or compare one province with another potentially provides valuable feedback. however, these assessments should be learner-centred and provide assessment feedback based specifically on the sections of the curriculum that certain groups of learners are struggling with and why. special attention should be paid to the language of instruction, as well as teaching and learning strategies and the support that is required to facilitate learning and ultimately improve learner achievement. the assessment results should be able to provide teachers with information regarding the area of the curriculum students are struggling with, and thus provide an opportunity for the development of appropriate and practical in-service training that is aimed at providing teachers with the tools to better teach these content areas. popham (2009) argues that usable information from the ana can have a positive effect on classroom practices and consequently improve teaching and learning. from this point of view, this paper investigates key challenges and opportunities for language teachers as they strive to use the ana’s results to improve learning and teaching in south african schools, focusing on the following questions: • in what ways have the results of the ana served as a catalyst for improving literacy? • how should the assessments facilitate learning and improvement? • what purposes should the reports on the assessments serve? 101 deta methods the data analysis used in the study consisted of the systematic review of the reports on the ana of 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014 (republic of south africa, 2011; 2012; 2013; 2014). it also included the diagnostic report and framework for improvement for first additional language. the diagnostic analysis for grade 4 to grade 6 was compared for the years in question. the recommendations for the national interventions, the language framework, as well as the proposed strategies for strengthening the teaching and learning of english first additional language (efal), were analysed and compared. other documents reviewed included the following: • review of the language component of the curriculum and assessment policy statement (caps) • analysis of guidelines for the teaching and learning of language (english) these findings for the reviews indicated above were subsequently compared to selected literature, focusing on the implementation of the recommendations for the improvement of learner performance, particularly in literacy. results and discussion the analysis of the reports on the ana and the diagnostic report, with a focus on efal components, are very revealing (see tables 1). it is commendable that, in the full reports, the dbe is upfront about the shortcomings and the logistical challenges encountered annually. some of these are as follows: • better logistics in the distribution of ana materials to schools • the late arrival of the required materials in the right languages to schools in the 2011 school year • more rigorous quality assurance measures in the verification of the ana • standardisation • better data collection procedures (republic of south africa, 2011) 102 teacher education and development in africa deta it is also commendable that the dbe goes into detail in the diagnostic reports about the challenges the learners are experiencing. the results of this review study have show that the contents of these reports are predictable. while intervention strategies are in place to address the identified learners’ gap in language learning, there is no evidence to suggest that the proposed interventions are being adequately implemented. focusing on what it is that learners need to improve on is an excellent strategy, provided that the teachers are experienced in teaching these language contents and are themselves suitable models of the target outcome. if learners are consistently weak in an area of learning, one probably needs to take a closer look at the teaching methods and put systems in place to support teachers who are faced with the challenges of teaching in an additional language in multilingual contexts. the reports revealed the following: • schools, districts and provinces are provided with feedback from an item-level diagnostic analysis of what learners were able or to demonstrate (or unable to demonstrate) in the tests in terms of requisite knowledge and skills at each grade level. • the dbe has put a comprehensive plan in place that includes detailed curriculum interventions, step-by-step guidance to teachers on how to mediate in the identified challenge areas, as well as pedagogic guidelines on how to teach specific concepts in the curriculum. a slight shift is needed in this top-down approach, which is used to disseminate the results. plans need to be collaboratively developed, with teachers in the affected areas working alongside specialists in the field. the teachers are most likely experts in their contexts and could detail the actual challenges they face in their schools and could indicate the specific support that would benefit them. 103 deta ta bl e 1: d ia gn os tic s um m ar y of a ss es sm en t r es ul ts ye ar g ra de 4 g ra de 5 g ra de 6 g ra de 9 20 13 • la ck o f un de rs ta nd in g of ev en ts in th e st or y • a n in ab ili ty to un de rs ta nd ch ar ac te rs in th e st or y • a n in ab ili ty to in te rp re t t he in fo rm at io n gi ve n in an a dv er t • p oo r un de rs ta nd in g an d us e of d iff er en t pa rt o f s pe ec h • in ab ili ty to r ew rit e se nt en ce s in a di ffe re nt te ns e • la ck o f un de rs ta nd in g of m et ala ng ua ge • la ck o f un de rs ta nd in g of ev en ts in th e st or y • a n in ab ili ty to in te rp re t t he ch ar ac te rs in a st or y or id en tif y th e le ss on o f a s to ry • in ab ili ty to w rit e a su m m ar y • p oo r un de rs ta nd in g an d us e of d iff er en t pa rt o f s pe ec h • in ab ili ty to r ew rit e se nt en ce s in a di ffe re nt te ns e • la ck o f un de rs ta nd in g of m et ala ng ua ge • la ck o f un de rs ta nd in g of ev en ts in th e st or y • a n in ab ili ty to in te rp re t t he ch ar ac te rs in a st or y, m ak e in fe re nc es a nd g iv e an o pi ni on • la ck o f f am ili ar ity w ith d iff er en t fig ur es o f s pe ec h an d in su ffi ci en t vo ca bu la ry to co m pr eh en d th ei r m ea ni ng • in su ffi ci en t vo ca bu la ry to un de rs ta nd th e qu es tio n or th e te xt • in ab ili ty to w rit e a su m m ar y • la ck o f un de rs ta nd in g of ev en ts in th e st or y • in ab ili ty to re co gn is e ei th er th e au th or ’s p ur po se o r th e na rr at or o f t he st or y • in ab ili ty to in te rp re t ch ar ac te rs in a st or y, m ak e in fe re nc es a nd gi ve a n op in io n pr ov id in g re as on s an d ex pl an at io ns • la ck o f f am ili ar ity w ith d iff er en t p ar ts of s pe ec h • in su ffi ci en t vo ca bu la ry to co m pr eh en d m ea ni ng 104 teacher education and development in africa deta ye ar g ra de 4 g ra de 5 g ra de 6 g ra de 9 20 13 • in ab ili ty to pu nc tu at e a se nt en ce a nd a dd ca pi ta lis at io n • p oo r kn ow le dg e of sp el lin g ru le s • in su ffi ci en t vo ca bu la ry to un de rs ta nd e ith er th e qu es tio n or th e te xt • v er y po or g ra m m ar an d sp el lin g • m in im al v oc ab ul ar y, in ab ili ty to w rit e co m pl et e se nt en ce s • in ab ili ty to c on st ru ct m ea ni ng fu l se nt en ce s to fo rm a lo gi ca l s to ry • in ab ili ty to pu nc tu at e a se nt en ce a nd a dd ca pi ta lis at io n • p oo r gr am m ar a nd sp el lin g • in ab ili ty to c on st ru ct m ea ni ng fu l se nt en ce s to fo rm a lo gi ca l p ar ag ra ph • f ai lu re to w rit e on a gi ve n to pi c • f ai lu re to w rit e a re co un t i n a lo gi ca l an d se qu en tia l w ay • in ab ili ty to id en tif y th e to pi c se nt en ce of a p ar ag ra ph , a nd di st in gu is h th e m ai n po in ts fr om th e su pp or tin g de ta ils • in ab ili ty to id en tif y th e so ur ce o f a n in fo rm at io n te xt • p oo r un de rs ta nd in g an d us e of d iff er en t pa rt s of s pe ec h • in ab ili ty to r ew rit e se nt en ce s in a di ffe re nt te ns e • la ck o f un de rs ta nd in g of m et ala ng ua ge • la ck o f e di tin g sk ill s • in ab ili ty to c on ve rt ac tiv e to p as si ve vo ic e in s en te nc es or d ire ct s pe ec h to in di re ct o r re po rt ed sp ee ch • la ck o f f am ili ar ity w ith m od al s • w ea k w rit in g of st or y an d di ar y en tr y 105 deta ye ar g ra de 4 g ra de 5 g ra de 6 g ra de 9 20 14 • s ou rc in g in fo rm at io n fr om a gi ve n te xt • in ab ili ty to p ro vi de sy no ny m s of g iv en w or ds • in ab ili ty to w rit e se nt en ce s fr om o ne te ns e to a no th er • s to ry w rit in g ba se d on m in d m ap s – le ar ne rs c ou ld no t f ol lo w g ui de d qu es tio ns • in ab ili ty to p ro vi de lo gi ca l r ea so ns fo r an sw er s gi ve n fo r tr ue o r fa ls e qu es tio ns • in ab ili ty to p la ce co m m as c or re ct ly an d us e ca pi ta l le tte rs fo r pr op er no un s in th e m id dl e of a s en te nc e • f in di ng a m ai n id ea in a n in fo rm at io n te xt • la ck o f un de rs ta nd in g of th e te xt • la ck o f un de rs ta nd in g of w ha t a r hy m e is • in ab ili ty to c ha ng e ve rb s in to s im pl e pr es en t t en se • in ab ili ty to u se ad je ct iv es in th e su pe rla tiv e de gr ee • la ck o f a ct iv e vo ca bu la ry fo r th e ap pr op ria te g ra de • in ab ili ty to r es po nd to o pe nen de d qu es tio ns th at re qu ire a m ot iv at io n • li m ite d kn ow le dg e of li te ra tu re fe at ur es • in ab ili ty to id en tif y th e m ai n ch ar ac te r in a s to ry • p oo r un de rs ta nd in g of d iff er en t fi gu re s of s pe ec h • in ab ili ty to tr an sf or m se nt en ce s in to th e ne ga tiv e fo rm • in ab ili ty to p ro vi de ex am pl es o f an to ny m s an d sy no ny m s of g iv en w or ds • in ab ili ty to id en tif y pa rt s of s pe ec h • w ea kn es se s w er e ob se rv ed w ith p ar ts of s pe ec h: te xt ua l ed iti ng , g ra m m ar , sp el lin g an d pu nc tu at io n • in ab ili ty to u se ac tiv e an d pa ss iv e vo ic e • in ab ili ty to u se di re ct a nd in di re ct sp ee ch • id en tifi ca tio n of th e to pi c se nt en ce in a m ai n cl au se 106 teacher education and development in africa deta furthermore, a review of literature has revealed that teachers say they do not know how to use the ana reports. although they agree that the information from the ana can assist them to improve their learning, there is very little knowledge on how to go about it. there are no plans in place at their schools for the use of ana data. a significant proportion also indicated that they received little or no support from the school district on how to use the ana results to address the following: • reading • fluency • comprehension • spoken language difficulties • written language difficulties caps guidelines and teaching and learning the curriculum and assessment policy statement is a detailed document, which emphasises that assessment should not just be of learners or of the learning, but should incorporate assessment for the purpose of learning. using assessment to facilitate learning is critical because then assessment is no longer seen as punitive or judgmental, but rather as a process to identify areas where further learning should occur and in what format. caps identifies a six-point framework that should be used: • clarifying, understanding and sharing learning intentions, learning objectives and criteria for assessment with the learners • managing effective classroom discussions, tasks and activities that elicit evidence of learning • providing feedback that moves learners forward • activating learners as learning resources for each other (peer assessment) • activating learners as owners of their own learning (self-assessment) • improving further teaching and learning (republic of south africa, 2012a; 2012c) interestingly, some teachers are not aware of the six-point framework. it was found from the studies reviewed (chisholm & wildeman, 2013; kanjee & moloi, 2014; spaull, 2015) that many of the teachers were not aware of what they actually needed to do in real terms. they found the administrative paperwork overwhelming and saw 107 deta this as an offshoot of the assessment requirements (e.g. continuous assessment). for teachers, the benefits of all these assessments are not altogether clear, and some felt they needed more training to do their jobs effectively. the overall consequence is that teaching and learning in the classroom is business as usual for the majority. therefore, the cycle of poor performance in literacy and language continues. where do we go from here? there is no doubt that the ana, as is the case with other large-scale assessments, has its shortcomings, but it also has value for different groups if used appropriately. diagnostic information on language achievement or literacy could be one of the tools for addressing the challenges posed by learning an additional language in a multilingual context. additionally, such information could be used to determine levels of home language competence, as well as to determine the systemic barriers, such as gaps in teacher education and a decline in reading culture in a digital age. this information, however, has to be used appropriately. reports that sit on shelves in libraries and the offices of school principals will not facilitate the change in literacy levels that are required. teacher training institutions need to be more proactive in leading a change in approach to the language teaching content and pedagogy for trainee teachers. i believe a different kind of analysis can be conducted from the ana data. an example is secondary error analysis that could reveal the areas that teacher training should be focused on. for the multitude of teachers already in the system, in-service training could focus on these problem areas, and workshops should be engaging, directed and contextually appropriate. workshops should also not be treated as information sessions, but as hands-on engagement sessions that involve manageable numbers of teacher participants (a maximum of 20). 108 teacher education and development in africa deta research has shown that there is a link between fluency and comprehension, and through the integrated language system, we know that challenges with one aspect of language learning more often than not leads to associated challenges in other areas. it is therefore critical that a systemic approach is used to combat the low level of literacy across the board. table 1 shows the compounded nature of language challenges if unresolved in the foundation phase. interestingly, during the 2015 ana, teachers’ unions refused to cooperate with the dbe and went further to threaten not to participate in the ana. some of the issues they raised were that there was not enough time to adequately remediate because the tests were written annually, and that there was a need for a more intensive programme of teacher development to properly address the shortcomings identified through the assessments (republic of south africa, 2016). one could say that this action by the teachers’ unions is a move in the right direction because there is now a process in place for the assessments to be redesigned. conclusion there are many opportunities for research into the practical use of the ana results, not just for literacy and language, but for numeracy and mathematics as well. we need active conversations on the subject if we are to break the cycle. part of this is further research that involves the further interviewing of teachers for their perspectives on these issues. the move by the teachers’ unions in 2015 is a clear indication that teachers themselves see a need to step away from using the assessments as merely a judgment of what learning has taken place (or not), to actually using the assessments as a tool for the purpose of learning. with the latter, assessment becomes an integral part of the teaching and learning process. results are not simply statistics, but real information that could form the basis for systemic evaluations, the development of support strategies and the in-service training of teachers. the results could also be pointers to the nature of the interventions required by both teachers and learners, and at what levels. 109 deta references abadzi, h., 2008, ‘efficient learning for the poor: new insights into literacy acquisition for children’, international review of education 54, 581-604. american federation of teachers (aft), national council on measurement in education (ncme) & national education association (nea), 1990, standards for teacher competence in educational assessment of students, american federation of teachers, washington, dc. brookhart, s.m., 2011, ‘educational assessment knowledge and skills for teachers’, educational measurement: issues and practice 30(1), 3-12. chisholm, l. & wildeman, r., 2013, ‘the politics of testing in south africa’. journal of curriculum studies 45(1), 89-100. gotch, c.m. & french, b.f., 2014, ‘a systematic review of assessment literacy measures’, educational measurement: issues and practice 33(2), 14-18. international reading association (ira) & national association for the education of young children (naeyc), 1998, ‘learning to read and write: developmentally appropriate practices for young children: a joint position statement of the international reading association and the national association for the education of young children’, young children 53, 30–46. kanjee, a., 2009, enhancing teacher assessment practices in south african schools: evaluation of the assessment resource banks’, education as change 13(1), 67-83. kanjee, a. & moloi, m.q., 2014, ‘south african teachers’ use of national assessment data’, south african journal of childhood education 4(2), 90-113. kanjee, a. & sayed, y., 2013, ‘assessment policy in post-apartheid south africa: challenges for improving education quality and learning’, assessment in education: principles, policy and practice 20(4), 442-469. moloi, m.q. & chetty, m., 2010, the sacmeq iii project in south africa. a study of the conditions of schooling and the quality of education, southern and eastern africa consortium for monitoring educational quality (sacmeq) educational policy research series, department of basic education, pretoria. popham, w.j., 2009, ‘assessment literacy for teachers: faddish or fundamental?’, theory into practice 48(1), 4-1. republic of south africa, 2011a, report on annual national assessment of 2011, department of basic education, pretoria. republic of south africa, 2012a, action plan to 2014: towards the realisation of schooling 2025 (full version), department of basic education, pretoria. republic of south africa, 2012b, annual national assessments 2012: a guideline for the interpretation and use of ana results, department of basic education, pretoria. 110 teacher education and development in africa deta republic of south africa, 2012c, national protocol for assessment: grade r–12, department of basic education, pretoria. republic of south africa, 2013a, report on the annual national assessment of 2013: grade 1 –6 and 9, department of basic education, pretoria. republic of south africa, 2013b, annual national assessments: 2013 diagnostic report and 2014 framework for improvement, department of basic education, pretoria. republic of south africa, 2013c, the state of our education system. national report 2012: the state of literacy teaching and learning in the foundation phase, national education evaluation and development unit, department of basic education, pretoria. republic of south africa, 2016, proposals on the redesign of the annual national assessments for 2016 and beyond (draft version), department of basic education, pretoria. spaull, n., 2015, the limitations of the annual national assessments (anas). what can and can’t we say? (presentation, june 2015), umalusi & cepd, pretoria. stiggins, r.j., 1999, ‘are you assessment literate?’, high school magazine 6(5), 20-23. 111 deta enabling conditions for the successful integration of open educational resources for professional development in a developing context institution dr kassimu a. nihuka institute of adult education (iae) kassimu.nihuka@yahoo.com; kassimu.nihuka@iae.ac.tz and brenda j. mallinson oer africa /saide and rhodes university brendam@saide.org.za; b.mallinson@ru.ac.za abstract there is evidence in literature to support the fact that the availability of enabling conditions is a critical requirement for open educational resources to be successfully institutionalised. several initiatives have been undertaken collaboratively in different countries to aid this process. in this field note, the researchers share findings from an investigation into the enabling conditions for the successful integration of oer for the professional development of lecturers at the open university of tanzania (out). data was collected from a sample of 23 lecturers (from seven academic departments), who participated in the institutional situational analysis workshop. the study used a questionnaire that included close-ended (structured) (cronbach’s alpha = 0.7) and open-ended questions adapted by oer africa. findings suggest that there are several opportunities at the institution, despite the prevalent challenges. the authors therefore provide some recommendations, which should be helpful to other institutions that experience similar challenges. field reports 112 teacher education and development in africa deta introduction according to unesco (2016), open educational resources (oer) are any type of educational materials that are in the public domain or which are introduced with an open license. the materials range from textbooks to curricula, syllabi, lecture notes, assignments, tests, projects and audio, video and animation, which anyone can legally and freely copy, use, adapt and re-share. oer are used in open and distance learning (odl) as a strategy to address challenges in relation to the professional development of teachers, tutors and lecturers by providing access to high-quality resources (atkins, brown & hammond, 2007; thakrar, zinn & wolfenden, 2009). in the context of teacher education in subsaharan africa (tessa), oer are reported to be used for professional development, as a strategy to ensure a well-prepared, engaged and committed corps of primary school teachers in sufficient numbers (thakrar et al., 2009; anamuah-mensah, buckler, moon, ricketts, sankale, wolfenden & pontefract, 2008). examples of collaborative initiatives in this regard include bringing educational resources to teachers in africa (berta), by the south africa institute for distance education (saide) and the open university of catalonia (uoc), funded by the international council for distance education (icde) (mallinson & mays, 2014), research on open and educational resources for development (roer4d), and the openuped programme of the united nations educational, scientific and cultural organisation (unesco). in this field note, the researchers share their findings from an investigation into the enabling conditions for the successful integration of oer for the professional development of lecturers at the open university of tanzania (out), based on a study previously reported on by nihuka and mallinson (2016). data was collected from a sample of 23 lecturers (from seven academic departments), who participated in an institutional situational analysis workshop using a questionnaire that included close-ended (structured) (cronbach’s alpha = 0.7) and open-ended questions adapted by oer africa. findings suggest that there are several opportunities available at the institution, despite the prevalent challenges. the authors therefore provide some recommendations, which should be helpful to other institutions that experience similar challenges. 113 deta critical requirements for the successful integration of oer in education for professional development research reports from the collaborative african initiatives mentioned in the previous section have shared experiences of successes and challenges in efforts to integrate oer in the education sector. despite the potential of oer, the availability of enabling conditions is a critical requirement for its successful integration in education (karunanayaka and naidu, 2013; unisa, 2014). these conditions include the following: • the availability of an institutional oer policy to guide oer practices and operations at the institution – either as a stand-alone policy or as a relevant section incorporated into an existing information and communication technology (ict) policy (unisa, 2014) • the willingness of both institutional leadership and lecturers to accommodate oer integration within their operations and practices (karunanayaka & naidu, 2013; thakrar et al., 2009) • the availability of expertise among lecturers in relation to all aspects of oer use, production and integration (karunanayaka & naidu, 2013; unisa, 2014) • the availability of relevant ict infrastructure and experienced technical staff (karunanayaka & naidu, 2013) • the availability of institutional support (with regard to both funding and the provision of incentives) and collaboration with other institutions within and/or outside the country (thakrar et al., 2009) • the availability of quality assurance structures – general or specific to oer – and copyright clearance good practice to ultimately ensure the provision of quality education (unisa, 2014) many of these enabling conditions were considered as criteria in the selection of out as one of four institutional partners for the collaborative out/oer africa participatory action research project (oer africa, 2013). background systematic efforts to integrate ict in education at out can be traced as far back as 2004 (mbwette, 2008; bakari, 2009). such efforts included the formulation of an institutional ict policy, an ict master plan and an e-learning implementation strategy (out, 2009a; 2009b; 2009c). these have recently been reviewed to accommodate new developments within the university (out 2015a; 2015b; 2015c). 114 teacher education and development in africa deta according to the ict policy, the university is committed to transforming paper-based learning course delivery to blended learning course delivery by installing a local area network (lan), improving ict infrastructure and access, training lecturers on basic pedagogical skills related to e-learning course design and development and training students on basic technology skills. furthermore, the policy stipulates the ambition of the university to motivate lecturers to use open source e-learning platforms such as the moodle learning management system (lms), and to improve access to the internet (to enhance communication, interactions and sharing of information) and learning technologies such as computers. to date, several achievements have been realised, as stipulated in the university’s ict policy ambitions. evidence indicates that the achievements include the improvement of ict infrastructure, including the installation of a lan at the university and connecting all regional centers to the headquarters in dar es salaam through a virtual private network (vpn) (mbwette, 2008; bakari, 2009). also, access to technologies such as computers and the internet by lecturers and students have improved substantially at the headquarters and in all regional centers since the installation of computer laboratories with internet connectivity, including wi-fi (mbwette, 2008). in terms of capacity, the university has managed to improve the technology competence of lecturers, with over 55 lecturers having been trained in pedagogical skills related to the design and development of e-learning courses for delivery using the moodle lms, both at headquarters and in all regional centres. in addition, over 21 000 students have been trained in basic technology skills (bakari, 2009). as a result of the developed capacity, the university now has a customised moodle lms, which is currently being used by lecturers and students to facilitate access to courses, learning resources and real-time or virtual interactions between them. furthermore, the university encourages lecturers and students to harness the freely available oers from renowned institutions such as the massachusetts institute of technology (mit), african virtual university (avu), tessa and unesco, which can be accessed through links on the university’s website and which are in addition to locally developed oers. research design and data analysis the study used a planning evaluation research design, which was conducted during the oer institutional analysis workshop, held on monday, 24 november 2014, at 115 deta out. according to guskey (2000), planning evaluation is an appropriate design, because it takes place prior to the implementation of an innovation and allows for a careful analysis of the context and a determination of opportunities and challenges for proper planning. the study used the instrument that was adapted by oer africa from baer and norris (2014) for the institutional analysis workshop. a total of 23 lecturers from seven faculties (who participated in the institutional analysis workshop) participated in the study. the adapted instrument comprised three parts: background (department/faculty and names of team members: page 1), open-ended questions (pages 2–4), and close-ended (structured) questions (pages 5–7). with the open-ended questions, participants were required to provide explanations or descriptions of specific issues related to the study. with the close-ended (structured) questions, participants were required to tick an option on a 5-point likert scale (i.e. strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree and strongly disagree) against statements that best described a specific phenomenon. this section had an average reliability cronbach’s alpha value of 0.7. findings findings from the study are discussed below: lecturers’ willingness to use oer the first research question explored lecturers’ perceived willingness to use oer for their professional development. findings from structured questionnaires indicated that all 23 lecturers (100%) were willing to use oer for their professional development. furthermore, findings from the open-ended questions indicated that lecturers were willing to use oer because “using oer increases the resource pool and ensures availability of adequate, teaching and learning resources, which improves teaching and learning practices”. also, lecturers were willing to use oer because “currently there are a lot of freely available online and oer materials for use in education”. lecturers’ expertise in terms of oer the next research question investigated lecturers’ expertise in terms of the use of oer in education. findings indicated that 20 (78.2%) of the 23 lecturers reported 116 teacher education and development in africa deta that they had expertise on how to design and develop resources for publication as oer. this contradicted other findings from the open-ended questions that none of the lecturers know what oer are, where and how to find oer, how to evaluate oer, how to adapt oer and copyright issues related to oer. the participants’ responses could mean that they are confident of being able to design and develop learning materials in general, rather than understanding that there are particular considerations when doing so for oer publishing. institutional policy to support oer the third research question sought to determine specific institutional policies that are available to support oer. findings from the structured questions indicated that the majority of lecturers in this study (20 lecturers – equivalent to 78.2%) affirmed that there are institutional policies in place to support the use of oer. responses from the open-ended questions identified the following specific structures that relate to oer that are available at the institution: an ict policy and operational procedures, an ict master plan, an ict implementation strategy and a study materials policy and operational procedures. however, the findings from both instruments indicated that, as yet, there was no specific policy, operational procedures or guidelines on oer. leadership commitment to oer out’s leadership commitment to oer mainstreaming for the professional development of lecturers – as perceived by respondents – was also explored during the study. findings from the study indicated that all 23 respondents (equivalent to 100%) affirmed the commitment of out’s leadership to oer. in support of this response, the majority of respondents (19 respondents – equivalent to 79.6%) affirmed that the leadership at out encourages the sharing of educational resources and acknowledges collaboration as an effective approach to developing oer. findings from the open-ended questions indicated that “currently, the university leadership is working in partnership with external institutions to introduce and support oer-related activities”. however, findings indicated that the leadership lacks effective institutional structures – 3 responses (13%) – and that it does not yet provide incentives to lecturers who use oer. infrastructure to support to oer another research question dealt with oer-related infrastructure that is available to support oer mainstreaming in the institution. 117 deta findings on oer-related infrastructure that is available to support oer mainstreaming at the institution indicated that lecturers and students enjoyed readily available access to the internet (16 responses – 69.5%). furthermore, the university has plagiarism software (19 responses – 79.6%), a functional platform (15 responses – 65.2%) and relevant technical staff to support oer development (17 responses – 73.9%). there are also adequate computers available (18 responses – 78.2%). quality assurance and control mechanisms the kinds of quality assurance and control mechanisms that are available at the institution to support the use of oer were also investigated. findings indicated that the university has a quality assurance and control unit (12 responses – 52.2%) and guidelines (15 responses – 65.2%). it was also revealed that feedback from stakeholders is fed back into quality improvement processes (19 responses – 82.6%). however, findings indicated major challenges with the following: the knowledge of staff on copyright issues (11 responses – 47.8%) and the availability of clearance procedures of third-party copyright of learning resources (8 responses – 34.8%). concluding remarks oer has the potential to advance the delivery of education by increasing the availability of relevant learning materials, reducing the cost of accessing educational materials, and stimulating the active engagement of teaching staff and students in creating learning resources (oer africa, n.d). however, institutionalising oer can be challenging. based on the findings of this study, the authors make the following recommendations: first, institutions that plan to institutionalise oer need to consider developing a policy to guide oer practices and operations. this should be aligned to all other related policies and, most importantly, to the quality assurance and control practices of institutions in order to ensure ongoing adherence to policies. in addition, it is necessary to design, develop and implement oer that can be used for the professional development of lecturers in order to promote lecturers’ expertise and knowledge in searching for, evaluating, adapting, remixing and publishing oer with appropriate licenses in the context of out. in addition, oers can also be used to orientate students in terms of relevant 21stcentury skills with respect to the effective use of digital resources for learning in odl. 118 teacher education and development in africa deta references anamuah-mensah, j., buckler, a., moon, b., ricketts, k., sankale, j., wolfenden, f. & pontefract, c., 2008, ‘building an effective oer environment for teacher education in sub-saharan africa: the tessa experience’, viewed from http://oeruniversitas.com/images/6/6a/pid_402.pdf. atkins, d.e., brown, j.s. & hammond, a.l., 2007, ‘a review of the open educational resources (oer) movement: achievements, challenges, and new opportunities’, report to the william and flora hewlett foundation, viewed from http://www.hewlett.org/uploads/files/reviewoftheoermovement.pdf. baer, l. & norris, d., 2014, analytics: moving from great promise to tangible success workbook, sahela pre-conference workshop, pretoria, south africa. bakari, j.k., 2009, ict at the open university of tanzania: achievements, challenges and future prospects, report presented during rolling strategic plan review at golden tulip hotel, 17–18 april 2009, dar es salaam, tanzania. guskey, t.r., 2000, evaluating professional development, corwin, thousand oaks, ca, viewed from http://rt3region7.ncdpi.wikispaces.net/file/view/eval%20pd%20article-guskey.pdf/461738692/ eval%20pd%20article-guskey.pdf. karunanayaka, s. & naidu, s., 2013, ‘capacity building of academic staff in the integration of ict and oer in teacher education programmes at the open university of sri-lanka’, viewed from http://oasis.col.org/bitstream/handle/11599/1845/2013_karunanayaka%26naidu_ capacitybuildingacademicstaff.pdf. mallinson, b.j. & mays, t., 2014, ‘collating and modelling oers to train teacher educators in quality odel on the african continent’, presentation at the 4th acde conference, zimbabwe, viewed from http://www.slideshare.net/brenda6/mallinson-oer-for-teacher-educators. mbwette, t.s.a., 2008, ‘the open university of tanzania and e-learning’, the guardian, 2 february 2008, viewed on 14 february 2008, from http://www.ippmedia.com/en. moon, b. & wolfenden, f., 2007, ‘the tessa oer experience: building sustainable models of production and user implementation, openlearn: researching open content in education’, proceedings of the openlearn2007 conference, 30 october 2007, the open university, miltonkeynes. nihuka, k.a. & mallinson, b.j., 2016, ‘towards integration of open educational resources for professional development of lecturers at the open university of tanzania’, journal of adult education tanzania 20(1), 1–20. oer africa, n.d., ‘understanding oer’, viewed from http://www.oerafrica.org/understanding-oer. oer africa, 2013, ‘participatory action research agenda’, viewed from http://www.oerafrica.org/ current-work. open university of tanzania (out), 2009a, ‘institutional information and communication technology policy’, viewed from http://www.out.ac.tz. 119 deta open university of tanzania (out), 2009b, ‘institutional information and communication technology master plan’, viewed from http://www.out.ac.tz. open university of tanzania (out), 2009c, ‘institutional e-learning implementation strategy’, viewed from http://www.out.ac.tz. open university of tanzania (out), 2015a, ‘institutional information and communication technology policy’, viewed from http://www.out.ac.tz. open university of tanzania (out), 2015b, ‘institutional information and communication technology master plan’, viewed from http://www.out.ac.tz. open university of tanzania (out), 2015c, ‘institutional e-learning implementation strategy’, viewed from http://www.out.ac.tz. teacher education in sub-saharan africa (tessa), 2016, ‘tessa’, viewed from http://www.tessafrica. net/. thakrar, j., zinn, d. & wolfenden, f., 2009, ‘harnessing open educational resources to the challenges of teacher education in sub-saharan africa’, the international review of research in open and distributed learning 10(4), viewed from http://www.irrodl.org/index.php/irrodl/article/ viewarticle/705/1319. united nations educational, scientific and cultural organisation (unesco), 2016, ‘what are open educational resources (oers)?’, viewed from http://www.unesco.org/new/en/communicationand-information/access-to-knowledge/open-educational-resources/what-are-open-educationalresources-oers/. university of south africa (unisa), 2014, ‘baseline study on open educational resources (oer)’, viewed from http://www.unisa.ac.za/contents/unisaopen/docs/2014%20baseline%20study%20 on%20open%20educational%20resources%20(oer).pdf. 120 teacher education and development in africa deta the active pedagogy for all teachers through tessa oer richard kossi agbogan direction des formations, lomé-togo adolfis2rich@yahoo.fr/adolfis2riche@gmail.com abstract one major observation about teaching in many west african schools is that there is no direct link between what is taught. queries are therefore raised about this reality. teachers at gsts baal (groupe scolaire tierno sylemani baal), a private school (primary and secondary) on the outskirts of guédiawaye in dakar (senegal), have shown the need to develop professionally as they find the means to achieve this goal. this paper backs the necessity to equip teachers with tools that drive them to look for open resources and active pedagogy to enhance their teaching methods. the context bringing down the illiteracy rate has remained a challenge in west africa on account of a multitude of factors, ranging from socio-economic and cultural factors to the inadequacy of educational policies in making a significant impact on the existing systems. it even extends to the nature of the school curriculum, which does little to encourage student engagement and success. one of the key aspects of the curriculum that can significantly improve both student engagement and outcomes is teachers’ sound pedagogical choices to ensure that the learning process is more attractive and meaningful for learners. however, a large proportion of teachers in french sub-saharan africa do not have access to professional development. for instance, only 27% of teachers benefitted from a training session held in chad, and only 36–37% of teachers in madagascar and togo benefitted from such a session (tilak, 2009, cited in lauwerier & akkari, 2015). in senegal, more than half the country’s primary school teachers are not trained (unesco-isu, 2014:19, cited in lauwerier & akkari, 2015). these samples of statistics show that many teachers are still totally inexperienced in matters of active teaching. this dilemma is the focus of the present report, which discusses the benefits of the active teaching/active pedagogy project undertaken by gsts baal using open educational resources from teacher education in sub-saharan africa (tessa oer). this report analyses the success of tessa’s resources in making learning active and helping to keep pupils engaged and focused when they are in school. 121 deta the project: tessa active teaching a key experiment of a holistic teaching-learning process has been undertaken by tessa oer using active teaching. the kind of pedagogy used by tessa aims to involve learners in what they are learning by providing challenging learning activities. tessa groups primary school subjects into five domains that reflect the skills and competencies pupils should acquire in primary school: life skills, numeracy, literacy, sciences, and social studies and arts. literature was made real and vivid, and sciences became more meaningful, relevant and practical for problem-solving and creativity. each domain is structured as follows (tessa, 2017a): literacy module area module 1: reading and writing for a range of purposes 2: using community voices in your classroom 3: promoting communication in an additional language section 1 supporting and assessing reading and writing investigating stories providing natural contexts for language practice section 2 stimulating interest in reading stories ways to collect and perform stories ways to achieve fluency and accuracy section 3 ways of reading and responding to information texts using local games for learning creating opportunities for communication section 4 ways of presenting your point of view using stories and poetry ways to build on home-language knowledge section 5 ways of becoming a critical reader and writer turning oral stories, poems and games into books supporting additional language learning 122 teacher education and development in africa deta tessa’s resources draw the teaching-learning situation from learners’ immediate environment or the local community. lesson titles in the sample resources embody activities that support the purpose of literacy in society. the design of the lessons is guided by foregrounding the link between notions learned and the possible competencies required. another key component of relevance in the teaching-learning process is the participation of learners. when learners work on the sections outlined above in class, they are gaining life skills at the same time. section 2, for example, enables pupils to develop fluency and accuracy because they are required to collect stories from the community and perform them in class. matching the contents to real-life situations remains a crucial element to assist pupils in developing a range of competencies. that is why the training of teachers is a prerequisite for the implementation of this type of pedagogy in their classrooms. tessa oer assists teachers to relate educational theories to the more concrete day-to-day world. teachers who are trained with tessa primary school oer at gsts baal (from primary to secondary school) develop confidence and explore their class practices in innovative ways. most of them are inspired and start creating their own teaching strategies to achieve a learner-centered pedagogy. these teaching experiences are shared on the wiki (tessa, 2017b) so that other teachers can assess, use or adapt them. texts, pictures and videos are shared on a regular basis. this process enables teachers to collectively find solutions to issues that emanate from their practices and learn as a community. the teacher training aspect of tessa oer aims to develop a set of pedagogical and reflective competencies to facilitate the professional development of teachers. chief among these is the ability to evaluate one’s own teaching practices. the benefits teachers assess their own teaching strategies training offered to teachers in the project involves a careful process of familiarising teachers with a range of teaching methods. its main objective is to enable teachers to devise experiences whereby pupils construct their own knowledge and skills in a stepwise process as recommended by blake and pope (2008). it was found that pupils’ motivation became intrinsic as soon as their teachers adopted methods of teaching with less lectures. teachers themselves questioned their own teaching methods and the impact of their teaching on pupils’ understanding. a critical self-evaluation of one’s own teaching naturally leads to an ongoing interest in 123 deta improvement through professional development. teachers at gsts baal are a tangible example of how teachers continually attempted to understand how pupils really learn and how this learning process can be enhanced. prior to this workshop, many teachers had never received initial or in-service teacher training. furthermore, most of them had never asked themselves whether pupils always benefitted from or enjoyed learning in their classes, though they were aware of their pedagogical shortcomings. during and after the 2014 workshop for using tessa primary school oer, they began to make a significant shift in their practice as they started questioning their teaching methods. they realised that pupils were not sufficiently motivated to engage interactively with their teaching methods. although adopting a researcher stance was not an easy process, it allowed them to become more creative. working collaboratively a number of relevant ideas and practices emerged from the workshop. these included the need to work collaboratively on issues that cut across different contexts. pooling together teachers across phases and levels proved to be successful throughout the training session, as participants realised that each of them came with different, yet relevant, teaching methods. this enabled a shared assessment of methods and approaches. working across phases also gave teachers the opportunity to find solutions to their immediate pedagogical challenges. difficulties encountered by teachers and learners during the teaching-learning process led the way to discussions about the quality of education and how this could be researched. the wiki facilitated the discussions by means of an online platform for interactive teacher-led sessions to take place. there is strong evidence to suggest that teachers who participated in the workshop became more creative and equipped to adapt the curriculum to the contextual realities and learners’ needs. teachers realised that using tessa methodology enhances the existing curriculum. although the existing curriculum may not be designed according to competencies-based approaches, active methods enabled leaners to acquire many competencies. to allow the learners to feel that they are learning something valuable, activities have to be selected with hypotheses formulation, manipulation and conclusion drawing in mind. this practice is not typically seen among teachers in primary and secondary schools in the west african context. however, even in the context of the currently available curriculum, 124 teacher education and development in africa deta well-trained teachers can bring about some solutions to adjust the curriculum to fit the new trends in education in line with the needs of the learners. this was one of the main aims of the training workshops. for example, a tessa inductive strategy allowed pupils to carry out field investigations among their family members and in their communities. with learner-centered teaching, teachers found that pupils could remember and reconstruct a particular experiment, speak about its benefits and demonstrate relevant skills. using some of the resources in tessa oer, the gsts baal workshop invited teachers to reflect on and assess their own style of teaching. teachers realised that different strategies could be used to teach the same content more effectively using active pedagogy. after both tessa workshops, participants became confident and shared constructive experiences concerning lesson preparation with secondary school teachers who did not have the opportunity to participate in the workshop. developing new skills since teachers produced oer on a wiki as an outcome of their understanding of active pedagogy, distance learning through the wiki became a means of disseminating the good experience to gsts baal teachers. resources such as videos, podcasts and audio with clear instructions may help pupils to strengthen their understanding of concepts and ideas. tessa resources provide teachers with some creative ideas to alleviate the problems associated with the lack of laboratories in schools in west africa. for example, a lesson on germination became a hands-on experience where a teacher asked his pupils to sow a seed and make notes on the germination process a month before the class took place. tessa workshops served as a great opportunity for all participating teachers to learn from each other. physics teachers understood that they must use skills developed in mathematics, and secondary teachers and university lecturers worked together with primary school teachers and found that sharing experiences contributed to assisting them in rethinking the kind of pedagogy to use in classrooms. this can be an open door for teachers to conduct continual research on how to improve the teaching-learning process in primary, secondary and high schools, as well as at university. for example, gsts baal primary school teachers discovered that they had been teaching equations in primary school. by being aware of the progression 125 deta of teaching equations through the child’s school career, primary school teachers can improve the teaching of this concept, knowing that it will be built upon at a later stage. recommendations in the light of this project, and to contribute to quality education for africa, we recommend the following: • continuous research must be conducted on both teachers’ and learners’ styles, as well as the teaching materials in use. • all teachers must be trained in active teaching according to the reality of the milieu and with regard to the globalisation of education. • africa must develop a relevant bank of oer as a solution to the lack of teaching material and laboratories, and promote collaborative work between teachers, regardless of phases. distance learning is an important tool to be developed in the framework of education for all. • more input from parents and the community is required to support the teachinglearning process. • evaluation methods have to be improved. concluding remarks the case study of gsts baal shows that teaching can be improved when teachers engage in collaborative endeavours and assess their own teaching. active teaching has had a positive impact on both teachers and learners. this workshop was an invitation to develop an awareness of the possibilities for collaborative work and research about teachers’ practices and pupils’ learning styles in private or state schools. tessa’s approaches equipped teachers to provide a holistic education that prepares students for life. this approach can enhance teaching across all levels of the education system. 126 teacher education and development in africa deta references astin, a.w., 1985, achieving educational excellence, jossey-bass, san francisco, ca. blake, b. & pope, t., 2008, ‘developing psychology: incorporating piaget’s and vygotsky’s theories in classrooms’, journal of cross-disciplinary perspectives in education 1(1), 59–67. teacher education in sub-saharan africa (tessa), 2017a, ‘primary curriculum framework’, open learn create, viewed from http://www.open.edu/openlearncreate/mod/oucontent/view. php?id=81683. teacher education in sub-saharan africa (tessa), 2017b, tessa oer wiki, viewed from http:// gstsbaal.pbworks.com/w/page/92674995/salle%20des%20enseignants. tilak, j.b.g., 2009, ‘basic education and development in sub-saharan africa’, journal of international cooperation in education 12(1), 5–17. cited in lauwerier, t. & akkari, a., 2015, les enseignants et la qualité de l’éducation de base en afrique subsaharienne, unesco, geneva, viewed on 10 december 2016, from http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0023/002327/232733f. pdf#page=2&zoom=auto,-107,827. unesco-isu, 2014, ‘recherche enseignants formés pour garantir le droit de chaque enfant à l’enseignement primaire’, unesco-isu, montréal. cited in lauwerier, t. & akkari, a., 2015, les enseignants et la qualité de l’éducation de base en afrique subsaharienne, unesco, geneva, viewed on 10 december 2016, from http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0023/002327/232733f. pdf#page=2&zoom=auto,-107,827. 127 deta challenges facing teachers using teacher education in sub-saharan africa (tessa) print materials in selected secondary schools in tanzania joviter katabaro university of dar es salaam kamug1971@gmail.com introduction education is one of the key priority sectors specified in the tanzania development vision 2025. it is considered to be an agent of change that is envisaged to transform the country into a middle-income economy (urt, 2011). tanzania faces a critical shortage of science teachers in secondary schools. according to the ministry of education, science and technology (urt, 2016:89), there is an incredible deficit of teachers in mathematics (7 291), biology (5 181), chemistry (5 373) and physics (6 873). it follows, therefore, that the teaching of science subjects in tanzania is wanting, implying a heavy load for these teachers, with some schools having none of these teachers at all. the critical shortage of teachers in secondary schools can be attributed to the small number of qualified science teachers in schools that are able to produce students to enter teacher education, hence the limited number of science teacher graduates from colleges and universities. another reason is the rapid expansion of secondary education following the implementation of the secondary education development plan (sedp) i and ii, consequently resulting in a mismatch between the number of teachers and the demand for science teachers in schools. there has also been a high attrition rate of teachers with a science background (urt, 2014). finally, the teaching and learning environment in which science is taught is not favourable, partly due to a shortage of teachers, but also due to a lack of science laboratories and a lack of student interest in science subjects. the culmination of these factors has resulted in a limited number of science graduates at teacher education colleges and universities. the teacher education in sub-saharan africa (tessa) secondary science project is one of the interventions that aims to address this problem. 128 teacher education and development in africa deta tessa secondary science project the tessa secondary science project was launched in five countries in 2010. it involved five participating institutions: dar es salaam university college of education (tanzania), makerere university (uganda), egerton university (kenya), university of zambia (zambia) and university of education, winneba (ghana). the open university of the united kingdom coordinated the project. the selection of the content was based on shared views from participating countries, reflecting the secondary science curriculum, focusing on common topics across member countries. the development stage included brainstorming and writing at different levels, reviews by the team, subject experts and classroom teachers, and versioning and customisation by individual countries for relevance and applicability. the outcomes included the creation of open educational resources (oer) to support teachers of pupil-centred pedagogies in teaching science in secondary schools, the development of 15 units on five themes in different scientific contexts, increasing awareness of participatory pedagogies that teachers could use in other science teaching contexts and lessons emerging from extending the tessa approach to secondary education. oer development oer is now a popular means to offer education through the distance mode by offering easily accessible reference material for teachers and learners in diverse learning environment (atkins, brown and hammond, 2007). the tessa material provides one module for each subject namely, biology, chemistry and physics, focusing on the following five pedagogical themes: probing children’s understanding and learning, making science practical, science lived (relevant and real), problem solving (creativity and innovation in science), and dealing with challenging ideas in science. tessa developed this material under the creative and commons attribution – non-commercial-share alike 4.0 license, which makes the material openly accessible online. in addition to web-based access, tessa materials are also available on cd and in print for circulation among member institutions. these options made it possible for the material to reach teachers in selected schools. the materials are accompanied by clearly selected case studies, activities and resources, customized to the national curriculum context. 129 deta purpose of the study the study explored the teachers’ use of tessa secondary science materials in classroom teaching and learning. it sought to establish the extent to which teachers in selected secondary schools were able to use the materials in teaching secondary school science subjects. the following five key questions guided the study: • what were teachers’ views on the covered topics? • how did teachers perceive the suggested teaching approaches? • what areas needed improvement? • did teachers access online tessa materials? • what were the major challenges teachers faced? methodology of the study the study employed a qualitative research approach, where interviews and observations were used as the main data-collection techniques. three secondary schools in a typical rural setting in the bukoba district were purposively selected for the study. a content analysis was performed to identify thematic areas and capture teachers’ and students’ activities during the lessons. both teachers and students were informed of the purpose of the study. results the findings of the study summarise the use of tessa science materials and the challenges faced by secondary school teachers in selected schools. 130 teacher education and development in africa deta advantages the study revealed that teachers were happy with the coverage of the material and the good linkage between the practical and theory components of the subjects. the use of the materials also enabled teachers to gauge students’ understanding of the content in different topics. the approach used also enabled teachers to support students’ learning through case studies and activities, and made the learners learn independently through experimentation (osaki, 2007). teachers felt that the webbased materials would enable them to access the materials if they had computers at their schools. teachers commended the tessa materials, particularly in respect of the guidance provided on practical issues and the enhancement of students’ interest in science subjects. furthermore, teachers commended tessa for bridging the gaps brought about by book shortages, and for enabling students to learn on their own in the absence of teachers. challenges the study revealed that only two out of seven participating teachers accessed the materials on the internet. limitations related to funds and unreliable internet connectivity were experienced. other teachers had limited familiarity with the internet, which posed a major barrier. teachers were hopeful that printed copies, video copies for practical work, and soft copies on cd or a flash device for schools would provide suitable alternative means to access the materials. conclusion this study assessed the impact of the tessa material in selected tanzanian schools and revealed that teachers used the print material received and found it useful. 131 deta references atkins, d.e., brown, j.s. & hammond, a.l., 2007, ‘a review of the open educational resources (oer) movement: achievements, challenges and new opportunities, report to the william and flora hewlett foundation’, viewed from http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/us/. kibga, e., 2012, ‘strengthening science practical work for secondary school teachers in tanzania: development and trial of in-service training materials’, phd thesis, dodoma university, tanzania. united republic of tanzania (urt), 2011, the national strategy for growth and reduction of poverty ii (nsgrp), urt, dar es salaam. united republic of tanzania (urt), 2014, ministry of education and vocational training, dar es salaam. united republic of tanzania (urt), 2016, national basic education statistics in tanzania 2012–2016, urt, dar es salaam. osaki, k.m., 2007, ‘science and mathematics teacher preparation in tanzania: lessons from teacher improvement project in tanzania 1965–2006, nue journal of international education cooperation 2(1), 51–64. 132 teacher education and development in africa deta the implementation of scientific inquiry skills in primary teacher training colleges in kenya angela ndunge kamanga ministry of education, kenya angelakamanga@ymail.com abstract this report investigates the implementation of scientific inquiry skills in a primary teacher training college, as a possible solution to transforming science education in primary classrooms. the current practice is that primary science tutors prepare pre-primary science teachers who do not have the prerequisite skills. according to this report, scientific inquiry skills are required for extensive and diverse learnercentred interactions and hands-on activities that centre on the application of science to improve a learner’s scientific literacy. the study sought to identify the scientific inquiry skills that primary science tutors need to develop in pre-service primary science teachers. five scientific inquiry skills were targeted: observation, questioning, experimentation, investigation and critical thinking. a qualitative approach and a case study design were used. data was collected using semistructured face-to-face interviews, classroom observation, focus group discussion and document analysis. the findings revealed inadequate utilisation of scientific inquiry skills in the pre-service science classroom, due to inadequate exposure of primary science tutors to such scientific inquiry skills in the initial teacher education curriculum. this report suggests that there is a need to integrate and utilise, adequate scientific inquiry skills in the initial teacher education curriculum, in order to adequately prepare primary science tutors. it is also necessary to integrate scientific inquiry skills in the in-service retraining of primary science tutors and in the induction course for those entering primary teacher preparation colleges. keywords: scientific inquiry skills, scientific literacy, primary science tutors, pre-service primary science teachers, initial teacher education. 133 deta introduction the need to realise good learning outcomes by developing scientific literacy in pre-service primary science teachers cannot be ignored. however, the teaching of “right” facts prevents many teachers in sub-saharan africa from using approaches that develop important inquiry skills (vavrus, mathew & barlett, 2011). this results in insufficient comprehension of the learned science concepts. according to mwangi (2011), there is inadequate understanding of the knowledge and skills of primary teacher education tutors with regard to pedagogical knowledge and skills, hence the need for research on primary teacher education tutors’ classroom teaching practices. furthermore, unesco’s technical paper 2 of 2005 states that, there is a need for innovative experiments and investigation regarding learning and teaching the science curriculum. the kenya vision 2030 aims at transforming kenya into a newly industrialised middle-income country by 2030 (government of kenya, 2007). investing in science education is critical and necessitates the preparation of primary science tutors who can actively engage pre-service primary science teachers in learner-centred approaches by implementing scientific inquiry skills. according to ng’asike (2012), primary science tutors are public university graduates who are trained as secondary school science teachers. the majority lack appropriate skills for the science instruction of pre-service primary teachers, since their training in the initial teacher education curriculum was intended for secondary school teaching. this report argues that a primary science tutor education curriculum that is embedded in the initial teacher education programme and places special emphasis on the implementation of scientific inquiry skills would ensure that these skills are put into practice during the preparation of pre-service primary science teachers. therefore, the research question posed by the author was: “what scientific inquiry skills do primary science tutors impart to pre-service primary science teachers during science lessons, and to what extent do these skills agree with the expected scientific inquiry skills teachers need in order to facilitate learners’ learning?” 134 teacher education and development in africa deta literature review scientific inquiry learning starts with the know-how of observation, which is acknowledged as an essential basic skill in primary science (johnston, 2005; boo, 2006). according to doherty (2011), experiments provide active hands-on, mindson learning that facilitates scientific thinking in learners other than memorising facts. inquiry-oriented investigations actively involve students in learning, raising their interest in science and developing critical thinking skills (hackling, goodrum & rennie, 2001). in addition, implementing investigative pedagogical approaches enhances active learning and not the passive receipt of knowledge (ng’asike, 2012). an inquiry-based classroom promotes critical thinking skills, which empowers students to become self-determining and lifelong learners (belleau & otero, 2013). although science educators continue to state the need for teaching science as inquiry, classroom practices have shown little proof of realizing this (bybee, 2010). furthermore, in kenya, pre-service primary science teachers do not have sufficient conceptual understanding of science process skills (chebalengula, mumba & mbewe, 2011). however, few studies, if any, discuss the implementation of scientific inquiry skills by primary science tutors in teacher training colleges. this is the significance of this study. conceptual framework figure 1 input pre-service primary science teacher process implementing scientific inquiry skills in the science classroom: • questioning • observation • experimentation • investigation • critical thinking outcome/ indicators presumably, acquiring scientific inquiry skills will lead to: • increased learner engagement • increased interest in science • increased creativity output scientifically literate pre-service primary science teachers source: author 135 deta according to kiggins (2007), teacher-learner engagement can enhance learner motivation – and therefore active participation in their lessons. in figure 1, the preservice primary science teachers are the “input” that the primary teacher training college takes through the “process”, which is the implementation of scientific inquiry skills. this would result in increased active learner engagement, which promotes interest in science and creativity; hence, scientifically literate pre-service primary science teachers would be regarded as the “output”. method a qualitative approach and a case study design were used. the instruments used were a semi-structured face-to-face interview with a science tutor, two classroom observations of the primary science tutor during the science lessons with 74 preservice primary science teachers, a focus group discussion with 6 pre-service primary science teachers and document analysis of the primary teacher education ministry of education (moe) science syllabus and science tutor’s schemes of work. the data was consequently transcribed and coded. the codes were clearly read to come up with categories, which were later organised into themes. results this report revealed that observation was found to be the most used scientific inquiry skill during the science lessons, especially during tutor demonstrations. the primary science tutor utilised more closed-ended questions than open-ended questions. there was no probing to facilitate an in-depth understanding of the concepts and active learning. experimentation was not a common scientific inquiry skill and only a few experiments were listed as a learning activity. in addition, classroom observation revealed that there was no evidence of experiments being done. investigation was not a regular scientific inquiry skill used during the science lessons and the pre-service primary science teachers perceived it as an unnecessary scientific inquiry skill for teaching science in a primary classroom. further analysis of the schemes of work showed that the science tutor had not included investigation as learning and teaching activity. minimal development of critical thinking in the preparation of pre-service primary science teachers was revealed. classroom observation revealed that critical 136 teacher education and development in africa deta thinking was rarely utilized, and only through a few open-ended questions that were posed. the scheme of work analysis showed that most of the questions listed elicited only factual information about the science concepts taught. nonetheless, the analysis of the moe’s primary teacher education science syllabus revealed that pre-service primary science teachers should be taught to develop critical thinking and creativity in addressing emerging issues in science. discussion of findings key findings revealed that the recommended scientific inquiry skills, which are the “‘process” in the conceptual framework (see figure 1) and are supposed to be imparted by the teacher, were not adequately implemented in preparation for achieving the “output” of the conceptual framework, in other words, scientifically literate pre-service primary science teachers. it was established that more use was made of closed-ended questions than openended questions. open-ended questions should be prepared that they elicit various opinions from the learners and stimulate the exploration of various options before making a decision (morgan & saxton, 2006). classroom observation further revealed that the participant pre-service primary science teachers were mainly engaged in observation during tutor demonstrations. in addition, exposure to only a few experiments was found to be a contributing factor to the inadequate utilisation of observation, which provides a powerful tool for acquiring insight into situations (cohen, manion & morrison, 2007). investigation was found to be rare, which denies pre-service primary science teachers exposure to the analysis and interpretation of hands-on, minds-on activities. the use of investigations would expose them to thinking and reasoning critically to evaluate scientific concepts and so develop their scientific literacy skills (hackling, et al., 2001). critical thinking was found to be used minimally in the preparation of pre-service primary science teachers. the use of critical thinking elicits meaningful science learning when it is well utilised in the preparation of pre-service primary science teachers (murcia, 2005). furthermore, if teachers are trained to acquire critical thinking skills, they would be able to question the scientific claims made by others. 137 deta conclusion this report attested to the fact that there is minimal implementation of scientific inquiry skills, like experimentation, investigation and critical thinking in the preservice training of science teachers. in addition, there was little evidence of effort being made to implement the skills of observation and questioning. based on the findings, it was determined that the initial teacher education curriculum may be adequate in terms of ensuring that primary science tutors have the essential science pedagogical content knowledge and adequate skills necessary for practice. however, in light of this report, there is a need to establish an initial primary science tutor’s curriculum that includes scientific inquiry skills in the initial teacher education programme. these skills should also be implemented in the in-service re-training of existing primary science tutors, as well as in an induction course for those entering primary teacher preparation colleges. 138 teacher education and development in africa deta references belleau, s.n., & otero, v.k., 2013, ‘critical classroom structures for empowering students to participate in science discourse’, aip conference proceedings, 1513, 11(2013), 11–14. bóo, m., 2006, ‘science in the early years’, in w. harlen (ed.), ase guide to primary science education, pp.124–132, association for science education, hatfield. bybee, r., 2010, the teaching of science: 21st century perspectives, nsta press, arlington, va. chebalengula, v., mumba, f. & mbewe, s., 2011, ‘how pre-service teachers understand and perform science process skills’, eurasia journal of mathematics, science and technology education 8(3), 167–176. cohen, l., manion, l., & morrison, k., 2007, research methods in education, routledge, london and new york, ny. doherty, d., 2011, ‘teaching experimental methods: a framework for hands-on modules’, journal of political science education 7(2), 163–172, doi: 10.1080/15512169.2011.564909. government of kenya, 2007, kenya vision 2030. a globally competitive and prosperous kenya, ministry of planning, nairobi. hackling, m.w., goodrum, d. & rennie, l., 2001, ‘the state of science in australian secondary schools’, australian science teachers journal 47(4), 6–17. johnston, j., 2005, early explorations in science, 2nd ed., open university press, buckingham. kiggins, j., 2007, ‘the underpinning knowledge basis of the alternative teacher education model’, the international journal of learning 14 (1), 221–228, viewed from http://ro.ouw.edu.au/edupapers/50. morgan, n. & saxton, j., 2006, asking better questions, pembroke publishers, markham, on. murcia, k., 2005, ‘science for the 21st century: teaching for scientific literacy in the primary classroom’, researchgate. mwangi s.k., 2011, ‘towards context-based learning as a model for pre-service primary teacher education in kenya: a case of meru and egoji teachers colleges’, ph.d. thesis, kenya university. ng’asike, j., 2012, ‘training of science teachers for early childhood and primary grades in kenya’, new zealand journal of teachers’ work 9(1), 36–49. unesco. (2005), guidelines and recommendations for reorienting teacher education to address sustainability. unesco. (2005). technical paper no. 2, unesco, paris. vavrus, f., mathew, t. & barlett, l., 2011, ensuring quality by attending to inquiry: learner-centered pedagogy in sub-saharan africa, unesco, addis ababa. 139 deta dr ephraim mhlanga saide, johannesburg, south africa assuring institutional quality in open and distance learning (odl) in the developing context aluko, folake ruth, letseka, moeketsi and victor, pitsoe (eds), 2016. usa: nova science publishers us $160, 190 pp., 12 chapters isbn 1536101265 (hbk), 9781536101263 (ebk) unless open distance learning practitioners (odl) deliberately give attention through research to quality issues, distance education may continue to be compromised, or at least questioned, in terms of its quality. this trend would be counterproductive and all investment that is being made by governments to expand access through this mode of delivery would amount to nothing. this book, edited by folake ruth aluko from the university of pretoria, letseka moeketsi and victor pitsoe (from the university of south africa) and containing contributions from 12 authors – all of whom are currently active in the field – explores burning issues around the need to ensure institutional quality in odl, especially in a developing context. this becomes imperative in view of the persistent concerns about quality among stakeholders, and the need to expand work in the context of odl quality assurance and its management, which has just started to evolve. however, this is compounded with the need to expand higher education opportunity, in accordance with the united nations sustainable development goals, which have particular significance for the developing contexts of africa, the continent from which the work is conceived. alan tait, in his preface to the book, laments the conflicting discourses of what excellence is in higher education in general. he observes in particular that there is another dimension of excellence, which concerns universities with a different mission, and usually those with a primary or significant commitment to open and distance education. therefore, he advocates that our discussions of quality book review 140 teacher education and development in africa deta should not accede to normative and a-contextual definitions of what is “best”, but should rather include definitions of excellence that recognise inclusion, access and widening participation. therefore, this book is very important as it helps odl providers (who are on the increase not only in south africa but also in the sub-saharan african region as a whole) to reflect on quality issues. the book contains twelve chapters. these are made up of subthemes ranging from understanding odl as second chance, the meaning of quality in odl, theorising quality in odl practices, assuring quality management and administrative services in odl, to quality access to odl. other chapters explore programme design in odl, quality student support in odl, quality odl research, programme evaluation as a tool for ensuring quality in odl, and the example of managing the quality of an odl module. chapter 1 aptly argues that odl is now a common mode of delivery, and focusing on quality is critical for various reasons. that not enough attention has been paid to quality assurance in odl in developing countries might not be very accurate, as some quality assurance has always been implemented. the major shift though, has been the adoption of more explicit and rigorous approaches to quality assurance. a client-satisfaction notion of quality given on p. 2 of the book seems very appropriate for odl. this first chapter does well to foreground the purpose of pursuing the quality theme in odl in this publication. this chapter is well written and well structured. chapter 2 deals with key elements of quality in odl and tries to cast definitions of quality within an odl context. it draws from various theories, including tqm. whilst it is accepted that there are theoretical ideas that have withstood the test of time, the authors should also have supported their work with more recent references. the chapter links quality to throughput rates, which i believe is a very important concept. the content of the chapter is great, but the argument and structure of the chapter need to be better streamlined and strengthened. there has to be a more logical flow of ideas in the chapter, all converging on one argument. in chapter 3, the argument that quality is contextual and is often conflated with concepts like efficiency, effectiveness and equity cannot be contested. it is important for scholars in the field of quality assurance to clear this confusion and generate clearer understanding of the concept of quality, for both practical and 141 deta theoretical purposes. whilst the authors introduce a sound scholarly flavour in the debate, the chapter tends to remain very much in the philosophical realm of the cited theories at the expense of teasing out quality and quality assurance per se, and how these theories should help us understand these processes in an odl context. nonetheless, this is a very useful chapter indeed, particularly in terms of viewing quality assurance from a different perspective than what is common. chapter 4 deals with terms that are related to quality assurance, such as quality management and quality control. it is important for practitioners to understand and distinguish between these terms. in the chapter, the distinction between quality assurance as a proactive process is not clearly distinguished enough from quality control, which is a reactive process. unfortunately, this kind of book (due to the wide range of issues confronting the theme in a developing context) is often unable to do necessary justice to important topics. this challenge can also be found in chapter 5. chapter 5 deals with the macro-political legacies of apartheid, and their implications for educational provision in the country. the core of the argument is that higher education has been the preserve of the elite. the curriculum, the high fees, the language and the location act as barriers that working class children have to deal with in order to access higher education. all this contributes to the dialectical structural condition of an ever-widening gap between the rich and the poor. this is a powerful educational argument at the centre of the discourse on inequality and inequity challenges in current south africa. the chapter could, however, have taken the debate further to closely link these problems to matters of quality provision of odl. for instance, by pointing out that even in instances where poor people take advantage of cheaper odl programmes, if the quality is poor, they remain marginalised as they fail to acquire competitive knowledge and skills. in addition, the argument that distance education is an alternative to addressing the dearth of human resource skills, can help ensure employability, and is a means to reduce inequality can only hold if quality distance education is provided, if access is further enhanced, and if throughput rates are raised. overall, the chapter pursues a very legitimate argument on quality as transformation, but this argument also has a very strong political spin that requires scholarly unpacking. in chapter 6, the author discusses the need to expand access in higher education in order to accommodate people from previously disadvantaged groups. whilst this is true, there is a tension here that needs teasing out. on one hand is the need to 142 teacher education and development in africa deta expand access in order to address the legacy of apartheid, and this entails enrolling many students from previously disadvantaged home backgrounds. on the other hand, is the importance of ensuring that this disadvantaged group experiences success. some of the claims also highlighted by the author seem contentious. nonetheless, the chapter aptly captures the challenges that are faced in the higher education system, at systemic level. the argument of the chapter, that openness of odl in sa is in fact not open enough to serve the majority of the poor people due to the social and economic structural problems that have largely remained unresolved in the society, is a very seminal argument. since the book is on quality, the argument, which speaks more to policy of provision than quality issues, can also be easily linked to issues of quality. chapter 7 is a very useful chapter that brings out not only conceptual clarity on key aspects of higher education delivery like programme and course design, but also how these aspects should be coherently planned in distance education. this planning aspect is a critical quality aspect in odl. the guidelines given in the chapter on course and programme design are extremely handy to odl practitioners, so is the discussion on the epistemological underpinnings of such design. the chapter brings home the important point that when thinking about a curriculum, providers should not only think of the content to be transmitted, they should also consider how the curriculum will be taught. this is a point that many odl practitioners often miss. this is a well-written chapter that clearly links theory of learning to practical design issues. chapter 8 deals with the all-important aspect of student support in odl. the argument that “... student support is deeply implicated in the politics of the elite culture” p. 134 needs to be pursued and clarified further, otherwise the reader does not see how this is so. however, the chapter makes an important point that student support services constitute an essential component of delivery that determines student retention and success in distance education. it deals with an immensely critical aspect of distance education delivery – student support. it would be useful if the chapter ended with practice-oriented recommendations for odl practitioners, though the author implied these here and there in the chapter. chapter 9 highlights the quality benefits of programme evaluation in odl, a very important aspect of odl delivery. it draws from principles of tqm and tries to show how application of these principles might improve quality delivery of odl. it is a useful idea to use a systems approach to understanding odl. one of the 143 deta benefits of programme evaluation is that it enhances regular programme renewal that ensures that programmes offered remain relevant to the needs of the students and of the market. the last statement of the chapter, cited from adea, captures this idea, though the aspect needs to be emphasised more because many institutions, odl and contact alike, often run out-dated programmes. the next edition of the book could further illustrate how tqm principles can be applied in practice in odl. often, practitioners need this kind of illustration of theory. chapter 10 starts by acknowledging the contested nature of quality, and the implications of different understandings of the term. for instance, it links the notion of quality as excellence to elitist notions of educational provision. this reflection on implications of perceptions of quality is very important in education. the question however, is how do we understand and implement such notions of quality without being elitist? the author does well by highlighting that, in spite of the elusive nature of the concept, quality remains the hallmark of educational provision. the author aptly captures the two broad conceptions of quality as applied in education, the subjective and the objective notions of quality. the chapter also considers the notion of value-addition as another conception of quality. this is very good, but perhaps we should also explore and suggest how we can measure it. i particularly like the conclusion the author draws from debates on quality, linking quality to the capacity of an institution to behave according to set targets. this is a very pragmatic approach to operationalising quality, which circumvents the 144 teacher education and development in africa deta problem of conceptual complexity. this is an excellent chapter that is well-written, well-structured and that deals with pertinent quality issues. the argument of the chapter is clear and intelligently draws from theory. it sheds useful hints on how to apply theoretical notions of quality to practice in odl, using unisa as a case. in chapter 11, the author deals with quality assurance of a module so that students can derive maximum learning gains out of it. this is obviously a critical aspect in odl. the author tried to use principles of ethical law, utilitarianism, universalism, distributive justice and personal liberty as a framework for showing how the quality of a module can be managed. this was good. however, the author would have done even better to effectively show how the principles of the framework can be applied in practice. chapter 12 summarises the book. overall, the themes dealt with in the publication are pertinent to the south african context, and indeed to the wider sub-saharan african region. in order to make the book more accessible to practitioners, i recommend that the book be published as an oer. though the book has not claimed to cover all important aspects in detail, i am looking forward to the inclusion in future of a dedicated chapter to online learning, and how best odl students can be supported through icts. this is in view of the prevalence of educational technologies. i applaud the authors of this seminal piece of work for compiling such a publication, which has a very strong contextual focus. article guidelines – note for contributors editorial policy all contributions must have distance education focus. all contributions must be submitted in english and will be submitted to referees (national and/or international). the consulting editors/referees will have documented expertise in the area that the contribution addresses. when reviews are received, an editorial decision will be reached to either accept the article, reject the article or request a revision (in some cases for further peer review). authors submitting contributions agree to there being no arbitration process should a contribution be rejected, as set out above. however, the editor will follow a supportive process to build publishing capacity in africa, where possible. as a rule, not more than one article per author or co-author will be accepted for refereeing and possible publication. authors bear full responsibility for the accuracy and recency of the factual content of their contributions. on submission of manuscripts, authors must present a written undertaking that the article has not been published or is not being presented for publication elsewhere. authors must also provide a written declaration that the work is their original work. the authors must ensure that the language in the manuscript has been properly edited and the name and address 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africa references references are cited in the text by the author(s) name(s) and the year of publication in brackets (harvard method), separated by a comma, for example, (brown, 1997). if several articles by the same author and from the same year are cited, the letters a, b, c, etc. should be added after the year of publication, for example, (brown, 1977a). page references in the text should follow a colon after the date, for example, (brown, 1997:40–48). in works by three or more authors, the surnames of all authors should be given in the first reference to such a work. in subsequent references to this work, only the name of the first author is given, followed by the abbreviation et al., for example, (ziv et al., 1995). if reference is made to an anonymous item in a newspaper, the name of the newspaper is given in brackets, for example, (daily news, 1999). for personal communications (oral or written), identify the person and indicate in brackets that it is a personal communication, for example, (m smith, pers. comm.). list of references only sources cited in the text are listed, in alphabetical order, under references. bibliographic information should be in the language of the source document (not in the language of the article). references should be presented as indicated in the following examples. special attention should be paid to the required punctuation. journal articles: name(s) and initial(s) of author(s), year of publication, title of article, unabbreviated title of journal, volume (not issue number) and pagination, for example, johnson, dw & johnson, rt. 1999. gifted students illustrate cooperative learning. educational leadership, 50:60–6. books: name(s) and initial(s) of author(s) or editor(s), year of publication, title, volume, edition, place of publication and publisher, for example, van zyl, r (ed.). 1994. recent advances in classroom research. new york: mcgraw-hill. chapters in books: name(s) and initial(s) of author(s), year of publication, title of chapter, editor(s), title of book, place of publication and publisher, for example, dukzec, s. 1988. gender issues. in: hicks, d & brown, j (eds.). education for peace. london: routledge. unpublished theses or dissertations: squelch. j. 1991. teacher training for multicultural education in a multicultural society. med dissertation. pretoria: university of south africa. anonymous newspaper references: citizen 1996. education for all, 22 march. electronic references (no author): violence and discipline problems in us schools 2001. available at http://www.nces.ed.gov/pubs98/ violence/9803000l.htm. accessed 2 march 2005. electronic references (published under author’s name): wilson, j. 2000. the blame culture. british educational research journal, 26. available at ebsco host: academic search premier. accessed 20 april 2005. personal communications: not retrievable and not listed. submission of manuscripts for publication manuscripts and covering letters must be submitted electronically by email to dr folake ruth aluko (ruth.aluko@up.ac.za). the deadline for submission is 31 october 2017. 147 deta deta conference 2015 proceedings: 20–24 july 2015 isbn 978-1-77592-144-8 eissn 978-1-77592-145-5 www.deta.up.ac.za isbn 978-1-77592-144-8 | eissn 978-1-77592-145-5 full papers 1. teaching the teachers of teachers of teachers tony mays 1 2. problem-based learning in teacher education: an action research project shakuntala payneeandy, pritee auckloo, amrita ramani-mosaheb 18 3. embracing the new technology to enhance teaching and learning for school learners dr vannie naidoo 43 4. teacher training that meets the needs of the mathematically gifted learners michael kainose mhlolo 63 5. learning oral communication skills in a teacher professional development programme through open and distance learning in tanzania jacob leopold 80 6. using large-scale assessment results to improve additional language teaching and learning: challenges and opportunities funke omidire 96 field reports 1. enabling conditions for the successful integration of open educational resources for professional development in a developing context institution dr kassimu a. nihuka, brenda j. mallinson 111 2. the active pedagogy for all teachers through tessa oer richard kossi agbogan 120 3. challenges facing teachers using teacher education in sub-saharan africa (tessa) print materials in selected schools in tanzania joviter katabaro 127 4. the implementation of scientific inquiry skills in primary teacher training colleges in kenya angela ndunge kamanga 132 book review 139 dr ephraim mhlanga saide, johannesburg, south africa assuring institutional quality in open and distance learning (odl) in the developing context aluko, folake ruth, letseka, moeketsi and victor, pitsoe (eds), 2016. www.deta.up.ac.za isbn 978-1-77592-032-8 proceedings 3–5 august 2011 universidade eduardo mondlane, maputo, mozambique ensuring the highest possible quality of educ ation in a changing afric ateachers c an change afric a editor: dr ruth aluko assistant editor: dr francisco januario universidade eduardo mondlane instituto nacional de educação à distância d e t a c o n f e r e n c e 2011 – p ro ceed in gs teachers can change africa deta i distance education and teachers’ training in africa 2011 deta conference 2011 proceedings 3 – 5 august 2011 eduardo mondlane university, maputo, mozambique editor dr ruth aluko assistant editor dr francisco januario ensuring the highest possible quality of education in a changing africa distance education and teachers’ training in africa detaii proceedings of the 4th biennial international conference on distance education and teachers’ training in africa (deta) held at the eduardo mondlane university, maputo, mozambique. august 2011 publisher: unit for distance education, faculty of education, university of pretoria, with the eduardo mondlane university, maputo, mozambique. editor: dr ruth aluko assistant editor: dr francisco januario place of publication: pretoria, south africa printed by: businessprint language editing and layout by: janine smit editorial services isbn 978-1-77592-032-8 the authors are responsible for the accuracy and correctness of the content of the contributions, although deta provided some editorial assistance. deta does not accept responsibility or liability for the content of any contribution published in these proceedings. teachers can change africa deta iii deta conference 2011 proceedings foreword the distance education and teachers’ training in africa (deta) 2011 was hosted by the eduardo mondlane university, maputo, mozambique, from 3 to 5 august. it was the fourth of its kind. the biennial conference was born out of the necessity to create a unique platform for all faculties of education to share knowledge and deliberate on educational issues as they affect africa. we understand our contextual landscape as it affects education better and expanding education and improving its quality is central to the continent development. african scholars always meet at international conferences, but at the inception of the deta conference in 2005, there were few conferences to bring these scholars together. deta’s major objectives are to contribute to the debate on teacher training in africa and to build capacity for the delivery of teacher training programmes in africa. these objectives represent ways in which the conference can support nepad, various protocols on education and training in africa, the millennium development goals, and some of the recommendations of the all-africa education ministers’ conference on open learning and distance education. the conferences are co-hosted by the organisers and other educational institutions and organisations. the theme of the 2011 conference was “ensuring the highest possible quality of education in a changing africa”. sub-themes included the following: • education in a changing africa: how is africa changing, and what are the implications for education? • teacher education in a changing africa: what counts as quality teacher education in a changing africa? • the role of leadership, management and governance development in ensuring quality education in a changing africa • the role of open learning, distance education, ict and open educational resources in ensuring quality teacher education in a changing africa • learning from success – how can we generalise from successful/innovative educational initiatives? distance education and teachers’ training in africa detaiv more than 200 delegates from 14 african countries (botswana, ghana, kenya, lesotho, malawi, mauritius, mozambique, nigeria, south africa, sudan, tanzania, uganda, zambia and zimbabwe) and three other countries (canada, the united kingdom and the united states of america) attended the conference. a total of 83 papers were read. nine contributions were finally accepted for inclusion in the proceedings. this is deta’s second volume of conference proceedings and it is by no means perfect. however, the editorial team wishes to emphasise that academic robustness and merit were of paramount importance in the selection of contributions. deta has a developmental dimension, and it hopes to put better and more voluminous proceedings before its readership in the future. we appreciate the hard work and input of the authors, the editorial team (dr ruth aluko and dr francisco januario), prof johan beckmann for his support, and the reviewers of the manuscripts, the speakers, the sponsors and the secretariats of the institutions that co-hosted the conference. we wish you interesting reading and look forward to having your paper included in the next volume if you are a participant at the 2013 conference in nairobi. johan hendrikz eugenia cossa university of pretoria eduardo mondlane university south africa mozambique co-chairpersons deta 2011 teachers can change africa deta v contents of the proceedings this volume consists of nine contributions and the contributions are from the papers presented at the deta 2011 conference. in the fi rst paper, citing the example of ghana, dr clara akuamoah-boateng and dr kankam boadu argue that that the goal of distance education can only be achieved if enrolled students fi nish on time. thus, the paper examines tutors’ and students’ perception on the attrition rate of distance learners. findings reveal that most of the signifi cant causes are evolutionary issues that can be resolved as time goes on through improvement in technology, effective course design, better understanding of learner characteristics and appropriate learner support systems. the authors opine that the complexity of causes of attrition and measures to reduce it, only allow for few practical or readily applied solutions. finally, they made some recommendations to curb high attrition rates among ucc distance learners. prof martin dwomoh-tweneboah discusses effective assessment and evaluation strategies for distance education. in his contribution, the author argues that very little has been written and discussed about the effectiveness of distance learning and the effective ways of assessing and evaluating distance education programmes. therefore, his paper explores various programme evaluation strategies and assessment tools and practices for distance education. dwomoh-twenebohan’s conclusion is that these not only help determine what and how students have learned, they also help in improving the quality of the programme. however, he cautions that the methods and data collected may vary, depending on each context. dr sharon mampane examines how the facilitators of distance education in an advanced certifi cate in education programme are trained and supported to improve their work. the author’s argument for the analysis is two-fold. the fi rst is to investigate whether facilitators are adequately trained, quality assured and supported so that their students can be able to study independently. the second is whether the training, quality assurance and support of facilitators contribute to improving their facilitation skills. mampane employs a theoretical framework based on the principles of human learning and concludes that there are no standardised support mechanisms for the facilitators which results in some facilitators being better prepared than others. she hoped the fi ndings would contribute to the development of standardised training and support strategies to assist both the trainers and the trainees. distance education and teachers’ training in africa detavi in her paper, dr teresa ogina emphasises the need for distance education providers to enhance distance students’ learning experience through effective support structures. she draws on theoretical insights from transactional distance theory (tdt), focusing on learning support in terms of dialogue in the learning facilitation process; the structure of the programmes; and learner autonomy. ogina concludes that though student-participants in the study found the support sessions valuable, there is the need for the continuous development of learning-support facilitators, learning materials and administrative support structures to enhance the quality of the support system in order to reduce transactional distance. in their contribution, dr alice olagunju and omolola oloyede attempt to examine the effect of outdoor activities as well as the influence of gender on secondary school students’ environmental attitude to biology. this was necessary due to the need to encourage students to develop a positive attitude towards the environment. using a quasi experimental design, findings reveal that there was a significant effect of outdoor activities on students’ environmental attitude and a significant influence of gender on the attitude of students to the environment. outdoor activities were observed to have brought about significant attitudinal change in the students. therefore, the authors recommend outdoor activities for the teaching and learning of environmental education in biology for both sexes. dr margaret funke omidire uses a qualitative study to employ curriculum-based dynamic assessment (cda) as a means of reducing the inequity in the assessment of learners using a language in which they lack proficiency in mainstream education. although the results suggest a generally positive influence of cda, to varying degrees, the participants’ low level of additional language (al) acquisition, which was not helped by some of the teacher-participants’ inability to be models of language, was almost crippling to the entire study. the question of the adequacy of teacher training and continuous professional development for teachers came to the fore, indicating a profound need to expand teacher education and in-service training through distance education. dr samuel oyoo cites a famous literature playwright who asked the intriguing question:“what kind of science can a child learn in the absence, for example, of basic language competence and an attendant inability to handle concepts?” though it appears that africa is perhaps the only continent in the world where most formal/ school education is conducted in instructional languages that are foreign to most teachers can change africa deta vii learners and their teachers, achievement of general profi ciency in the instructional language is a necessary fi rst step if any learning is to be expected in that language. through sustained literature reviews of cross-national research on language in science education over the last 40 years, he argues for an appropriate perspective on the use of (the foreign) language by science teachers during teaching and suggest approaches to assist in this area of need. prof yvonne reed attempts to fi ll the gap in teacher education pedagogy literature on the topic of the need for teacher educators to take a critical look at how they mediate knowledge and skills to pre-service and in-service teacher education students. using examples from a critical pedagogic analysis of selected south african teacher education materials, she argues that when teacher educators design materials for teacher education at a distance, they should consider not only the pedagogies that they wish to describe and discuss in the materials but also the pedagogies of the materials because both contribute to the constitution of particular subject positions for readers (as students and as teachers). her takehome message for distance teacher education material designers is the need to select and mediate knowledge in a way that encourages teachers to be not just consumers but also producers of knowledge. freda wolfenden cites the case of malawi in her paper. she contributes to current debates on how to address the gap in qualifi ed female teacher recruitment and retention in rural areas. there is ample evidence that gender parity in primary and secondary education is yet to be achieved in many countries in sub-saharan africa. she suggests that one solution to break the cycle of low female achievement in rural areas is through the use of distance education to prepare local women to become teachers within their own communities. finally, she highlights areas for further study. distance education and teachers’ training in africa detaviii the review process in march 2011, deta sent out a call for papers for the conference to be held in mozambique in august 2011. conference speakers were requested to submit papers for possible inclusion in the second conference proceedings to be published, if they so wished and they were given guidelines on the submission. a total of 34 drafts, which covered the conference subthemes, were submitted. the drafts were subjected to double blind reviews. of these 34 drafts, 12 were provisionally accepted and returned to the authors for improvements. eventually nine drafts were selected for inclusion in this proceedings document. academic sturdiness was the primary criterion used in selecting contributions, but deta also proudly espouses a developmental dimension in the african research and publication context. though readers may find one or two papers not directly related to teacher education, they have been included to show examples of well written papers. we are confident that the proceedings will comply with the standards of academically acceptable conference proceedings worldwide. the editorial team wishes to thank the following peer reviewers for reviewing the drafts and providing the authors with valuable comments: aguti, dr j amadi, dr m bholah, dr r blignaut, prof s cossa, prof e engelbrecht, dr a ferreira, prof r fraser, prof w gatsha, dr g gumbo, dr t hamweete, dr w joubert, prof r kabanda, prof g kamper, prof g keraro, prof f kirkup, dr g kruger, dr j letseka, mr m lumadi, dr t madiba, dr m mampane, dr r mays, mr t mnguni, dr l modesto, dr s mowes, dr d nagel, dr l nieuwenhuis, prof j ogina, dr t olivier, dr h olorundare, prof a omidire, dr m pathudi, dr n prinsloo, dr s reed, dr y safford, dr k schulze, prof s sutherland, dr d van der berg, dr g van niekerk, prof l van vuuren, dr h van wyk prof n venter, dr e wolfenden, ms f teachers can change africa deta ix acknowledgements the editors wish to express their appreciation towards the following individuals and institutions: • dr johan hendrikz, manager of the unit for distance education, faculty of • education, university of pretoria, for the opportunity to publish this volume of • conference proceedings • the various contributors for their contributions • mr pieter van der merwe of the department of library services of the university • of pretoria for his assistance • janine smit editorial services for the final editing of the contributions, the design of the cover, and the layout of the publication • the university of pretoria for its financial and other support • eduardo mondlane university, maputo, mozambique, for hosting the conference • businessprint for their professional printing service distance education and teachers’ training in africa detax teachers can change africa deta xi table of contents 1. reducing distance learners’ attrition rate at the university of cape coast: tutors’/students’ perception – dr clara akuamoahboateng and dr kankam boadu 2. effective assessment and evaluation strategies for distance education – prof martin dwomoh-tweneboah 3. facilitator preparation, support and quality assurance for the improvement of student performance at contact sessions – dr sharon mampane 4. distance education students’ experiences of learning support sessions – dr teresa ogina 5. effects of outdoor activities on biology students’ attitude to the environment– dr alice m olagunju and omolola o oloyede 6. the importance of continuous teacher development through distance education for teachers using additional language for learning, teaching and assessment – dr margaret f omidire 7. foreign languages in african science classrooms: perspectives on and approaches to language use during teaching – dr samuel oyoo 8. pedagogies of and pedagogies in distance learning material for teacher education – prof yvonne reed 9. supporting induction to the teaching profession for women in malawi – freda wolfenden 1 27 43 65 85 101 121 149 171 distance education and teachers’ training in africa detaxii teachers can change africa deta 1 reducing distance learners’ attrition rate at the university of cape coast: tutors’/students’ perception dr clara akuamoah-boateng (corresponding author) centre for continuing education university of cape coast, central region – ghana cakuamoahboateng@yahoo.co.uk dr kankam boadu department of arts and social sciences education university of cape coast, central region – ghana kankam21265@gmail.com abstract the goal of distance education in ghana is to make quality education, especially at the tertiary level, more accessible and relevant to meeting the human resource needs of the country. this is to improve performance as well as the quality of the lives of ghanaians. this dream can only be realised if students enrolled in the programmes graduate on schedule. currently, the number of students enrolled in the distance education programme at the university of cape coast (ucc) is over 24 000. however, for various reasons, not every student that enrols in the programme graduates on schedule. this paper examines tutors’ and students’ perceptions of the attrition rate of distance learners. the survey research method was used to gather data and an analysis was done using frequency count, simple percentages, mean and standard deviation. factors identifi ed as causes of attrition and measures to reduce the problem were signifi cant, as perceived by tutors and learners. however, this paper concludes that the complexity of the causes of attrition and measures to reduce it, allow for few practical solutions. most of the signifi cant causes were evolutionary issues that can be resolved as time goes on through improvements in technology, effective course design, better understanding of learner characteristics and appropriate learner support systems. some recommendations were made as interim measures to help reduce the high attrition rate among distance learners at the university of cape coast (ucc). distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta2 introduction distance education, as an alternative to face-to-face instruction, has witnessed steady growth in higher education since its beginning in the mid-1800s. this growth is demonstrated by the fact that, in 1990, nearly 30% of all adult students in the united states were receiving education in some distance format (roberts, 2006). the influx of adults taking distance education courses has occurred in part because of the proliferating demand for skills by our technological society and the complexity of modern life. before the distance education programme of the university of cape coast in 2001, the university had a total enrolment of 3 584 students on its conventional programmes. in 2010, the distance education programme alone had a total enrolment of about 24 000 students pursuing diploma and degree programmes in basic education, commerce and management studies (akuamoah-boateng et al., 2010). society demands lifelong learning, and employment and family responsibilities require adults to seek forms of education other than traditional face-to-face instruction (moxley, 2006). distance education provides adults with the opportunity for formal education while allowing for flexible scheduling. however, it appears the emergence of distance education at the university of cape coast is accompanied by a problem of high attrition rates. in an attempt to find reasons for some students’ non-completion of distance learning programmes and evidence for the high attrition rate, numerous studies have centred on the application of a variety of traditionally based theoretical models on the distance education setting (tinto, 1982). however, there has not been any empirical study on reducing the attrition rate based on tutors’/students’ perspectives at the university of cape coast. therefore, there is a critical need to examine these perceptions. this is necessary to give members of the faculty of education and counsellors the opportunity to interact with students who are possible non-completers. it will also help them to make careful placement decisions and enhance review techniques, particularly in the courses, and to further assist students to prolong their academic careers. teachers can change africa deta 3 statement of the problem higher education has an important role to play in national development, in keeping academic pursuits, and in augmenting knowledge (benakani, 2009). distance education students are perceived to have higher attrition rates than conventional students (phipps & merisotis, 1999), although there has been much debate over the causes of attrition. the distance education programme at the university of cape coast has provided access to higher education for many people in ghana. in 2001, before the advent of distance education, the university of cape coast had a total enrolment of about 3 584 students in its conventional programmes. the distance education programme alone has increased its enrolment tremendously from 10 543 in 2001 to 54 707 in 2010 (akuamoah-boateng et al., 2010). however, evidence from the assessment unit of the centre for continuing education (ucc) indicates that not all students who enrol in the programmes are able to graduate on time, and others do not graduate at all due to several reasons. in 2001, 143 out of 860 basic education students could not graduate. in 2002, 263 out of 2 868 students could not graduate and in 2003 and 2004, 459 out of 3 161 students could not graduate. this trend suggests that there appears to be some problems associated with the completion rates of students in the distance mode of education at the university of cape coast. although not all students are able to graduate on schedule, there has not been any known empirical research conducted on the causes of and measures to reduce attrition rates in the distance education programme at the university of cape coast. research questions the study was guided by the following research questions: • what are the demographic characteristics of distance learners? • what factors do distance learners perceive as causes of attrition in their programmes? • how do course tutors view distance learners’ high attrition rate? • what practical measures could be put in place to reduce the attrition rate of distance learners at the university of cape coast? distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta4 review of literature a review of literature offers an overview of other research studies related to this study as predictors of distance learners’ attrition. distance learning is an excellent method of reaching the adult learner. the competing priorities of work, home and school calls for a higher degree of flexibility in distance learning programmes. the structure of distance learning programmes gives the adult learner the greatest possible control over time, place and pace of study. however, the distance mode of learning is not without problems (carr, 2000). most distance programmes are affected by higher attrition rates. dagger and wade (2004) argue that, with the growth of distance education over the years, there has been an exceedingly high attrition rate of learners in most distance learning institutions worldwide. distance learners’ attrition and completion rate in any distance learning institution should get continuous attention from researchers and service providers. the success of such programmes depends largely on extensive research that will provide information that may help in developing better and appropriate student support services to improve the effectiveness and efficacy of programme delivery and success (thompson, 1999). huang (2004) concurs when he notes that the issue of attrition in distance learning programmes is important in assessing the relative effectiveness of the cost of distance learning, compared to traditional classroom-based learning. he further argues that attrition should be monitored, as it affects educational planning and the value of investment in distance learning, educational institutions, corporations, and government agencies. another reason given by huang (2004) is that research findings on distance learners’ attrition will help in determining the approaches to increase access, learning outcomes and the perceived value and credibility of distance learning programmes and qualifications. lowe (2005), recognising the complexity of attrition issues in distance learning, claims the problem reflects partly on the inability of distance learning institutions to provide learners with adequate relational and academic support services. he further argues that distance learning institutions have the higher ethical obligation of addressing attrition problems. however, there appears to be no empirical data on distance learners’ current attrition rates at the university of cape coast. teachers can change africa deta 5 characteristics of distance learners to understand the attrition rate in the context of distance learning, it is essential to understand the characteristics of adult learners. adults’ motivations for learning have been identifi ed by knowles et al. (1998) as follows: • the need to know: adults need to know why they need to learn something before learning it. • the learner’s self-concept: adults should have a sense of responsibility for their own decisions and for their own lives. once they have arrived at that selfconcept, they develop a deep psychological need to be seen and treated by others as being capable of self-direction. • the role of the learner’s experience: adults come into educational activity with both a greater volume and a different quality of experience than the youth. these experiences lead to diverse audiences in any adult group setting. • readiness to learn: adult learners become ready to learn those things they need to know and should be able to do in order to cope effectively with their real-life situations. • orientation to learning: adult learners are life-centred in their orientation to learning. they are motivated to devote energy to learning something to the extent that they perceive it will help them perform their tasks or deal with problems they experience in their life situations. • motivation: while adults are responsive to some external motivators (better jobs, promotions and higher salaries) the most potential motivations are internal pressures (the desire for increased job satisfaction, self-esteem, quality of life). motivation may be blocked by an adult’s negative self-concept as a student, time constraints and programmes that violate the principles of adult learning (knowles et al., 1998:55–61). • according to garrison (1987), knowledge of distance education learners’ background profi les will help to better understand how to design and deliver distance education programmes. causes of distance learners’ attrition research has shown that attrition cannot and should not be attributed to one factor, as the reasons for withdrawal are complex and interrelated (bernard & amundsen, 1989; morgan & tam, 1999). barriers to learning and participation can be classifi ed distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta6 under three headings as situational, institutional and dispositional (cross, 1981). situational barriers include poor learning environment, lack of time due to work or home responsibilities, and geographic location. institutional barriers include the following: • costs and problems with institutional procedures • course scheduling • course availability and tutorial assistance dispositional barriers include the following: • lack of a clear goal • stress of multiple roles • time management • learning style differences • psychological reasons • social and economic factors students’ chances of successfully completing distance learning programmes also depend on specific student characteristics that have been identified as indicators for potential success. these indicators include the following (keegan, 1986): • being a self-starter • having self-discipline • being knowledgeable of the technology requirement of specific formats • being able to meet other students in a virtual environment factors such as age, marital status, educational level and gender, which are particular to an individual context, have been identified as determinants of attrition among distance learners (morgan & tam, 1999). other factors that have been investigated as determinants of attrition include the number of courses and sources of financial aid (parker, 1999). another important variable for students’ progress is the impact of the part-time status of most adult learners in distance education. generally speaking, part-time students have higher attrition rates than full-time students. as students are the ones who study, their entry qualifications will certainly affect their study outcomes. research results have shown that the background characteristics teachers can change africa deta 7 of students are signifi cant factors affecting their completion rates in in studies (rovai, 2003). phythia and clement (1980) report job and domestic pressure, and course content being too hard or long as the three main reasons for dropouts from third yearlevel mathematics courses at open university. rekkedal (1983) reported a number of reasons for learners dropping out of the nkl school in norway, such as a lack of time, job commitments, changed career plans, economic reasons, illness, unsatisfactory living or study conditions, and personal reasons. oztok and brett (2011) stress that dropping out is a phenomenon caused by learners’ characteristics (educational background, personality, motivation and aptitude among others) and life circumstances (occupation, relationship with family and peer group, and health among others). research conducted by thompson (1997) showed that the majority of students reported that work, family, and study commitments were the main reasons for their withdrawal. some other researchers reported psychological reasons for dropping out, such as feelings of inadequacy, distress, and examination anxiety (fan & chan, 1997). diffi cult course content and learning environments have also been identifi ed as important reasons for attrition (chyung, et al.,1998). it is clear from the literature that many issues account for the causes of high attrition rates. methodology the study adopted a descriptive survey design, using a simple random sampling technique through a computer lottery method. a sample of 360 students was selected from a population of 1 985 fi nal-year education students who have not been able to graduate. these students were contacted through their cellphone numbers and were asked to meet at their various study centres to respond to the questionnaire. a 100 basic education course tutors were randomly selected out of the course tutor population of 1 300 in the ten regions of ghana. data was gathered at all the regional study centres located at ashanti, brong ahafo, central, eastern, upper west, northern, upper east and volta regions of ghana. each of the ten regions had a regional resident tutor, coordinators and course tutors. the study centre coordinators were briefed about the essence of the study and they were given the instruments to administer to the students at distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta8 the centres. final-year students were selected because they have been in the programme long enough to have experienced some of the causes of attrition in the programme. two sets of questionnaires, one for the course tutors and one for students, were designed to elicit relevant information for the study. in total, 75 (75%) course tutors and 285 (79%) students returned copies of the questionnaire. the gathered data was analysed using statistical package for the social sciences (spss) in accordance with the research questions. the investigators concentrated on the distance learners who actually dropped out of their programmes and those who have problems with some of their courses. presentation of results and discussion of research findings demographic characteristics of students the demographic characteristics of students were sought in order to determine whether they had any influence on attrition. the information obtained is shown in table 1. table 1: demographic profile of students variables subscales number (n) percentage (%) sex age programme of study employment status marital status male female below 18 18–22 23–27 above 27 psychology of education post diploma in education diploma in education employed unemployed married single divorced/separated widow/widower 185 100 135 150 140 85 60 265 20 85 200 64.9 35.1 47.4 52.6 49.1 29.8 21.1 93 7 29.8 70.2 teachers can change africa deta 9 table 1 represents the demographic characteristics of the respondents of the study. in terms of gender distribution, 185 (64.9%) were male, while 100 (35.1%) were female. this implies that males exceed females in terms of pursuing distance education programmes at the university. also, it can be seen that the majority, 150 (52.6%), of the respondents were above the age of 27, while 135 (47.4%) were between the ages of 23 and 27. furthermore, it can observed that the majority, 265 (93%), were employed, while 20 (7%) were unemployed. in terms of marital status, 85 (29.8%) were married, while 200 (70.2%) were single. this seems to suggest that, although the distance education programme is for all groups of people, most of the enrolled students are not married. the implications of this are discussed later in the paper. demographic characteristics of tutors the demographic characteristics of course tutors were sought in order to determine the characteristics of tutors responding to the attrition rate. the gathered information is shown in table 2. table 2: demographic profi le of tutors variables subscales number (n) percentage (%) sex age academic qualifi cation teaching experience male female below 30 31–35 36–40 41–45 46–50 above 50 first degree master’s degree phd others 1–5 years 6–10 years 11–15 years 16–20 years above 20 years 52 23 4 14 20 24 8 5 40 18 2 15 34 12 15 8 6 69.3 30.7 5.3 18.6 26.7 32 10.7 6.7 53.3 24 2.7 20 45.3 16 20 10.7 8 distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta10 table 2 represents the demographic characteristics of the tutors of the distance education programme used for the study. in terms of gender distribution, it can be observed from table 2 that, out of the 75 tutors used for the study, 52 (69.3%) were male, while 23 (30.7%) were female. this implies that most of the tutors teaching in the distance education programme are male. also, it could be seen that the majority, 24 (32%), of the respondents was between the ages of 41 and 45, while 20 (26.7%) were between 36 and 40. however, the table also indicates that only four respondents (5.3%) were below the age of 30. it could further be observed from table 2 that 40 (53.3%) of the respondents were first-degree holders in various fields of study, 18 (24%) had master’s degrees and two (2.7%) hold phds. also, 15 (20%) indicated that they had other forms of academic qualification such as diplomas in education and other professional qualifications. in terms of teaching experience, it could be observed that the majority, 34 (45.3%), of the tutors has taught for 1 to 5 years, followed by 15 (20%) who have taught for 11 to 15 years. however, there were 6 (8%) who had over 20 years of teaching experience. this is an indication that all tutors for the distance education programme have some level of teaching experience. this means that their professional competency levels are very high and they are well grounded in the pedagogical aspects of the teaching profession. causes of distance learners’ attrition the study sought to determine the causes of distance learners’ attrition. a total of 19 items in the instrument sampled students’ views on the causes of attrition. the information obtained is shown in table 3. mean ranges: agree (a) – 3; undecided (u) – 2; and disagree (d) – 3. mean of means = 2.53; mean of standard deviation = 0.76. table 3: students’ views on causes of distance learners’ attrition no. statement a n (%) u n (%) d n (%) m sd 1 academic achievement before entry predicts attrition. 175(61.4) 55(19.3) 55(19.3) 2.62 .80 2 whether the initial course is the first preference of students also has a significant impact on course attrition. 170(59.6) 80(28.1) 35(12.3) 2.47 .70 teachers can change africa deta 11 no. statement a n (%) u n (%) d n (%) m sd 3 student aspirations in undertaking particular courses and the degree of ‘fi t’ between such aspirations and the courses’ outcomes infl uence attrition rate. 220(77.2) 55(19.3) 10(3.5) 2.74 .51 4 the quality of teaching and the teaching staff infl uence attrition rate. 195(68.4) 45(15.8) 45(15.8) 2.83 .75 5 the economic position of the students themselves has also been linked to their risk of leaving study. 180(63.2) 30(10.5) 75(26.3) 2.77 .87 6 distance education may cause a sense of isolation that weakens motivation, which is an important reason for student attrition. 110(38.6) 40(14) 135(47.4) 1.91 .92 7 a social environment where the student experiences security, takes responsibility and is inspired, produces positive learning effects and also reduces student attrition. 160(56.1) 65(22.8) 60(21.1) 2.35 .81 8 the student’s ability to cooperate in a learning community is crucially important for the decision to drop out or complete studies. 185(64.9) 65(22.8) 35(12.3) 2.88 .70 9 the student’s previous education, study experience and motivation are all important factors infl uencing attrition. 185(64.9) 50(17.5) 50(17.5) 2.47 .78 distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta12 no. statement a n (%) u n (%) d n (%) m sd 10 distance education students who have their own families are somewhat more likely to drop out. 115(40.4) 40(14) 130(45.6) 1.95 .93 11 motivation and support from family and friends are factors that increase the likelihood that a student will complete the course. 235(82.5) 30(10.5) 20(7) 2.75 .57 12 communication, especially with the teacher, is an important ingredient in supported distance education. 220(77.2) 35(12.3) 30(10.5) 2.67 .66 13 there are great deficiencies in the communication between teacher and student, which should have a greater emphasis on the role of the teacher as a facilitator of dialogue and active participation. 165(57.9) 30(10.5) 90(31.6) 2.96 .91 14 other reasons for dropping out are simultaneous work and studies or parallel studies. 205(71.9) 45(15.8) 35(12.3) 2.60 .70 15 conflict between studies and other commitments in the family, social or working life is one of the important reasons for attrition. 215(75.4) 15(5.3) 55(19.3) 2.56 .80 16 psychological factors, such as feelings of inadequacy, distress, lack of confidence and examination anxiety, cause students to drop out. 200(70.2) 45(15.8) 40(14) 2.56 .73 17 lengthy and difficult course content causes attrition. 205(71.9) 35(12.3) 45(15.8) 2.86 .75 teachers can change africa deta 13 no. statement a n (%) u n (%) d n (%) m sd 18 a loss of interest leads to students dropping out. 170(59.6) 65(22.8) 50(17.5) 2.72 .77 19 course content not being relevant to students’ present careers may also contribute to attrition. 45(15.8) 40(14) 200(70.2) 1.46 .75 the results presented in table 3 shows a mean of means and mean of standard deviations as m = 2.53, sd = 0.76. according to the scale used for the analysis, these fi gures indicate that the students generally agreed that the 19 factors listed were possible causes of distance education students’ attrition. it means that a lot needs to be done if the administrators of the distance education programme want to reduce the level of attrition. this is because the nature of the given responses indicate that a lot of factors determine whether a distance learner drops out or completes a programme. the standard deviation (sd = 0.76) shows a relatively high consensus on the mean of means value (m = 2.53). this means that the reasons why distance learners drop out of their programmes over a certain period of time are many, as attested by the students themselves. interestingly, the students seem to consider motivation and support from family and friends as factors that increases the likelihood of students completing their programmes. tutors’ views on causes of distance learners’ attrition the tutors’ opinions on the causes of distance learners’ attrition were also sought. the reason is that the tutors might have interacted with the friends of the dropouts or the dropouts themselves. table 4 shows information gathered from the tutors. mean ranges: agree (a) – 3; undecided (u) – 2; and disagree (d) – 1. mean of means = 2.60; mean of standard deviation = 0.76. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta14 table 4: tutors’ views on causes of distance learners’ attrition no. statement a n (%) u n (%) d n (%) m sd 1 academic achievement before entry predicts attrition. 47(62.7) 15(20) 13(17.3) 2.95 .78 2 whether the initial course is the first preference of students also has a significant impact on course attrition. 44(58.7) 21(28) 10(13.3) 2.45 .72 3 student aspirations in undertaking particular courses and the degree of ‘fit’ between such aspirations and the courses’ outcomes influence attrition rate. 57(76) 15(20) 3(4) 2.72 .53 4 the quality of teaching and the teaching staff influence attrition rate. 51(68) 14(18.7) 10(13.3) 2.55 .72 5 the economic position of the students themselves has also been linked to their risk of leaving study. 47(62.7) 9(12) 19(25.3) 2.37 .87 6 distance education may cause a sense of isolation that weakens motivation, which is an important reason for student attrition. 30(40) 11(14.7) 34(45.3) 1.94 .93 7 a social environment where the student experiences security, takes responsibility and is inspired, produces positive learning effects and also reduces student attrition. 40(53.3) 19(25.3) 16(21.3) 2.82 .81 8 the student’s ability to cooperate in a learning community is crucially important for the decision to drop out or complete studies. 46(61.3) 19(25.3) 10(13.3) 2.88 .72 teachers can change africa deta 15 no. statement a n (%) u n (%) d n (%) m sd 9 the student’s previous education, study experience and motivation are all important factors infl uencing attrition. 47(62.7) 14(18.7) 14(18.7) 2.74 .79 10 distance education students who have their own families are somewhat more likely to drop out. 32(42.7) 12(16) 31(41.3) 2.91 .92 11 motivation and support from family and friends are factors that increase the likelihood that a student will complete the course. 61(81.3) 10(13.3) 4(5.3) 2.76 .54 12 communication, especially with the teacher, is an important ingredient in supported distance education. 57(76) 11(14.7) 7(9.3) 2.67 .64 13 there are great defi ciencies in the communication between teacher and student, which should have a greater emphasis on the role of the teacher as a facilitator of dialogue and active participation. 45(60) 9(12) 21(28) 2.82 .89 14 other reasons for dropping out are simultaneous work and studies or parallel studies. 55(73.3) 12(16) 8(10.7) 2.63 .67 15 confl ict between studies and other commitments in the family, social or working life is one of the important reasons for attrition. 57(76) 5(6.7) 13(17.3) 2.59 .77 distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta16 no. statement a n (%) u n (%) d n (%) m sd 16 psychological factors, such as feelings of inadequacy, distress, lack of confidence and examination anxiety, cause students to drop out. 50(66.7) 13(17.3) 12(16) 2.51 .76 17 lengthy and difficult course content causes attrition. 53(70.7) 10(13.3) 12(16) 2.55 .76 18 a loss of interest leads to students dropping out. 44(58.7) 17(22.7) 14(18.7) 2.62 .79 19 course content not being relevant to students’ present careers may also contribute to attrition. 12(16) 11(14) 52(69.3) 1.97 .76 an analysis of tutors’ views on the causes of attrition shows the mean of means and mean of standard deviations as m = 2.60, sd = 0.76. according to the scale used for the analysis, these figures indicate that the tutors generally agree that the 19 listed factors are possible causes of distance learners’ attrition rate. it means that some practical measures should be put in place as interim measures to address the problem of attrition. a standard deviation (sd = 0.76) shows a relatively high consensus about the mean of means value (m = 2.60). this means that the general reasons why distance learners’ drop out of their programmes over a certain period of time are varied, as attested by the students themselves. surprisingly, the students and tutors both indicated a lack of motivation from family and friends as the most common reason for dropping out. measures to reduce the attrition rate the tutors’ and students’ views on measures to reduce the attrition rate of distance learners were elicited. tables 5 and 6 respectively depict students’ and tutors’ views. mean ranges – students: effective (e) – 3; not sure (ns) – 2; and ineffective (ie) – 3. mean of means = 2.48. mean of standard deviation = 0.74. mean ranges – tutors: effective (e) – 3; not sure (ns) – 2; and ineffective (ie) – 3. mean of means = 2.46; mean of standard deviation = 0.75. teachers can change africa deta 17 table 5: students’ views on measures to reduce attrition rate of distance learners no. statement e n (%) ns n (%) ie n (%) m sd 1 providing guidance in time management through their core faculty and part-time academic counsellors 200(70.2) 30(10.5) 55(19.3) 2.51 .80 2 providing intense pre-entry counselling 225(78.9) 35(12.3) 25(8.8) 2.70 .62 3 monitoring the counselling sessions and evaluating assignments with tutor comments 225(78.9) 30(10.5) 30(10.5) 2.68 .65 4 providing more concrete guidance in writing assignments 205(71.9) 35(12.3) 45(15.8) 2.56 .75 5 introducing different types of assignments besides short answer and long answer types 160(56.1) 50(17.5) 75(26.3) 2.30 .86 6 sending evaluated assignments to the students in time 190(66.7) 50(17.5) 45(15.8) 2.51 .75 7 contact between the core faculty and the students may be increased using various communication technologies 205(71.9) 45(15.8) 35(12.3) 2.60 .70 8 introducing more hands-on experience for skills development 175(61.4) 55(19.3) 55(19.3) 2.42 .79 9 making teaching and learning material available to students on time 250(87.7) 10(3.5) 25(8.8) 2.80 .59 10 extending the duration of the courses to provide students with more time to complete them 170(59.6) 25(8.8) 90(31.6) 1.72 .91 distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta18 an analysis was done to determine the nature of the responses given in terms of the measures that can be put in place to reduce distance learners’ attrition rate. in the case of the students, a mean of means and mean of standard deviations were computed as m = 2.48, sd = 0.74. according to the scale used for the analysis, these figures indicate that the students generally agree that the 10 listed factors are possible means of reducing distance education students’ attrition rate. a standard deviation of sd = 0.76 shows a relatively high consensus on the mean of means value (m = 2.48 ≈ 2.50). the most remarkable measure to which students (250 (87.7%)) responded was making teaching/learning material available on time. tutors’ views table 6 presents tutors’ views on the measures to reduce the attrition rate in distance learning. mean ranges are: effective (e) = 3; not sure (ns) = 2; and ineffective (ie) = 3. mean of means = 2.48; mean of standard deviation = 0.74. table 6: tutors’ views of measures to reduce distance learners’ attrition rate no. statement e n (%) ns n (%) ie n (%) m sd 1 providing guidance in time management through their core faculty and part-time academic counsellors 52(69.3) 9(12) 14(18.7) 2.51 .79 2 providing intense pre-entry counselling 60(80) 9(12) 6(8) 2.72 .61 3 monitoring the counselling sessions and evaluating assignments with tutor comments 58(77.3) 8(10.7) 9(12) 2.65 .69 4 providing more concrete guidance in writing assignments 52(69.3) 11(14.7) 12(16) 2.53 .76 5 introducing different types of assignments besides short answer and long answer types 41(54.7) 13(17.3) 21(28) 2.27 .88 6 sending evaluated assignments to the students in time 49(65.3) 14(18.7) 12(16) 2.49 .76 teachers can change africa deta 19 no. statement e n (%) ns n (%) ie n (%) m sd 7 contact between the core faculty and the students may be increased using various communication technologies 53(70.7) 13(17.3) 9(12) 2.59 .70 8 introducing more hands-on experience for skills development 45(60) 16(21.3) 14(18.7) 2.41 .79 9 making teaching and learning material available to students on time 65(86.7) 3(4) 7(9.3) 2.77 .61 10 extending the duration of the courses to provide students with more time to complete them 22(29.3) 7(9.3) 90(61.3) 1.68 .90 an analysis was done to determine the nature of the responses given in terms of what measures can actually be put in place to reduce distance learners’ attrition rate. in the case of the tutors, a mean of means and mean of standard deviations were computed as m = 2.46, sd = 0.75. according to the scale used for the analysis, these fi gures indicate that the tutors generally agree that the 10 listed factors are possible measures of reducing distance education students’ attrition rate. a standard deviation (sd = 0.75) shows a relatively high consensus on the mean of means value (m = 2.46 ≈ 2.50). the highest rated measure given by the tutors, 65 (86.7%), was the provision of teaching/learning material on time. discussion of fi ndings the study has revealed that most of the students pursuing distance learning are male. one wonders why women are still lagging behind men, even when distance education has been made accessible in ghana. it is not clear whether the sociocultural practices that discourages in career development in african women are still dominant in communities. the smaller number of females also refl ects in the number of course tutors in distance learning. this fi nding is contrary to fi ndings made by adrah (2000) in the then college of education, winneba, where female students were found to be more than males. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta20 with regard to marital status, it has been found that the majority of the students are single. this fact may help the students concentrate on their books, as they will have no marital demands. it could also imply that the institution might need to monitor this trend. monitoring this issue will enable the institution to understand the characteristics of such students, their profile and how to better support them in their studies, especially in view of technological trends in the age group. on the topic of tutors’ qualifications, it was revealed that the majority of the tutors were first-degree holders. this qualification is on the lower level, since the requirement for lecturers at the university of cape coast is at least a second degree. with regard to the causes of a higher attrition rate in distance learning, students and tutors agree on the 19-point factor list above as possible causes of distance education. these factors fall in line with the existing literature (nash 2004; perraton, 1992; keegan, 1988; brookfield, 1987). the respondents’ highest-rated factor for preventing attrition (motivation from family and friends) confirms what brookfield (1987) noted: that adults need a comfortable and supportive environment to ensure success in learning. with regard to how the attrition rate can be reduced, tutors and students have rated providing teaching and learning material on time, intense and monitored preentry counselling, and evaluating assignments with tutor comments as the most significant to reduce attrition. again, sending evaluated assignments to students on time was also seen as a crucial measure to reduce attrition. these measures confirm literature in this area, which includes pre-course orientation (wojciechowski & palmer, 2005). while minich (1996) contends that frequent contact with students is critical in reducing attrition, nash (2004:2) reminds us that “interactions can be time-consuming and difficult for the faculty to sustain”. it has also emerged from the study that the reasons for female distance education students leaving the programme are significantly different from the reasons for male students dropping out. teachers can change africa deta 21 summary and conclusion the problem of attrition in distance learning programmes has been argued by several researchers, without any consistent conclusions about the magnitude of the problem or a clear understanding of what can be done to solve the problem. in examining tutors’ and distance learners’ perception of the attrition rate of distance learners, this paper focused on the distinctive characteristics of adult learners, predictors of attrition and measures to reduce the problem. while the fi ndings of this study offer a constellation of causes of attrition among ucc distance learners and some measures to reduce the problem, little can readily be done to ameliorate the situation. the complexity of the causes of attrition and measures to reduce it allows for few practical or readily applied solutions. in some instances, some causes may be evolutionary issues that may, in time, be resolved through improvements in technology, more effective course design, a better understanding of adult learner characteristics, good facilitation skills and effective learner support systems. one area where something can be done to reduce the attrition rate of distance learners is early faculty contact, where intense pre-entry counselling sessions are given through orientation in relational, academic and other retention strategies. a greater level of persistence may be achieved if learners are supported to anticipate, recognise and recover from the cognitive burden they may experience as beginners. the issue of distance learners’ attrition needs further research. however, it is believed that early faculty contact and thorough orientation will help reduce the high rate of attrition as perceived by both tutors and students. this contact can improve retention and enhance the learning outcomes of ucc distance learners. attrition cannot be attributed to one cause, but must be considered as from the result of a combination of factors. this study has identifi ed important predictors of attrition in distance learning and has identifi ed others that did not show signifi cant effects. the fi ndings may prove to be of value to ucc distance learning providers, future researchers and institutions providing distance learning. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta22 recommendations based on the findings, the following interim measures are recommended to reduce the high attrition rate of ucc distance learners: • efforts must be made by the centre for continuing education to make it a norm to employ tutors who have at least a second degree. such tutors will be able to teach and encourage students to get involved with the programme. • again, there is a need to provide teaching and learning material on time and intensify pre-entry counselling for tutors and students. this will help tutors and students to establish a foundation for the teaching and learning environment. • the centre should create a course website to promote online chats. this will encourage frequent interaction between the students and the centre, so that issues can be discussed promptly to prevent frustration, which may eventually lead to attrition. • the centre should also develop group projects and assignments that encourage students to develop relationships with other members in and outside their study centre, so that they can explore their knowledge base together. this group project may help students overcome physical separation, feelings of isolation, lack of support and feeling disconnected, thus reducing attrition levels. • furthermore, the centre should provide online access to a variety of services, including assessments, educational counselling, registration, technical support, study skills assistance, career counselling, library services, students’ rights and responsibilities and governance. • finally, there should be an open forum in all the centres where students’ concerns could be addressed. teachers can change africa deta 23 references akuamoah-boateng, c., sam-tagoe, j. & brown, p. 2010. issues, prospects and challenges in practicum organisation for teachers on the distance mode of education: the case of university of cape coast. teacher education conference and proceedings (july, 2010), pp. 97–106. andrah, r. 2000. profi le of distance education students at the university college of education, winneba. journal of educational management, 4:114–136. ansere, j. 1976. some characteristics of 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[online] available at: http://clp.cqu.edu.au (accessed on 31 january 2006). rovai, a.p. 2003. in search of higher persistence rates in distance online programmes. the internet and higher education, 6(1):1–16. thompson, e. 1999. can the distance education student progress (desp) inventory be used as a tool to predict attrition in distance education? higher education research & development, 18:77–84. tinto, v. 1982. dropout from higher education: a theoretical synthesis of recent research. review of educational research, 45(1):89–125. wojciechowski , a. & palmer, l.b. 2005. individual student characteristics: can any be predictors of success in online classes? online journal of distance learning administration, vii(ii):1–20. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta26 teachers can change africa deta 27 effective assessment and evaluation strategies for distance education prof martin dwomoh-tweneboah linfi eld college, oregon – usa mdwomoh@linfi eld.edu abstract distance education, or distance learning, is a fi eld of education that focuses on teaching methods and technology with the aim of delivering teaching, often on an individual basis, to students who are not physically present in a traditional educational setting such as a classroom (wikipedia, 2011). most institutions across the globe have embarked on distance education to meet the demands of students who, under normal circumstances, are not able to attend classes in the traditional classroom format because of time constraints, and job and family responsibilities. there is a compelling need to determine success through effective assessment and programme evaluation. much has been written about distance education in terms of types and structures, and tools and methods of delivery. however, very little has been written and discussed about the effectiveness of distance learning and effective ways to assess and evaluate distance education programmes and the use of programme evaluation outcomes to improve students’ learning, instructional techniques, resources and programme management. this paper discusses the various programme evaluation strategies, and assessment tools and practices. effective programme assessment and evaluation not only helps to determine what and how students have learned, but also helps to improve programme quality. keywords: distance education; distance learning; programme evaluation; assessment tools; evaluation metrics. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta28 introduction the past decade has seen a rapid growth in distance education programmes all over the world. many universities and other tertiary educational institutions have embarked on distance education programmes to expand their market reach and/ or bring affordable education to people who might otherwise not have access to higher education due to geographical barriers, employment demands, family demands, and financial constraints. distance education programmes also seek to involve instructors who would otherwise be unavailable to teach on a regular basis, and link students from different socio-economic and cultural backgrounds. in the past, the quality of educational programmes has largely been defined by the popularity of the programmes and the size of the institution. the rapid growth of distance education programmes has generated public interest in the quality of these programmes. there are skeptics who think distance learning does not deliver a similar quality of education to the traditional face-to-face setting in a classroom. several research projects have addressed the parameters and themes that address quality, but there are few discussions on the metrics and strategies of accessing distance learning programmes in africa (materu, 2007). a good assessment and evaluation of distance learning programmes identify the vision, goals, objectives, outcomes and measures. an effective programme evaluation should address the following questions: • what do you like to do? (vision) • what steps do you take to get there? (goals) • what do you have to achieve for each step? (objectives and outcomes) • how well are you doing it? (measures) • what and how does a programme contribute to the development and growth of its students? this paper outlines some of the problems associated with the successful implementation of quality distance education programmes in africa. it also discusses evaluation strategies that will lead to quality distance learning. quality evaluation issues related to the institutional mission statement, students’ needs and satisfaction, students’ learning and course outcomes, instructional technology, and staff needs and support are also discussed. teachers can change africa deta 29 categories of distance education programmes based on the technology in use and the location of the programme, the method of delivery in a distance education programme may fall under the following categories: • print-based courses • conferencing courses (video-conferencing) • computer-based training (cbt) • pre-recorded audio courses (tapes, podcasts) • radio broadcast courses • television broadcast courses • online courses using learning management systems problems affecting distance learning implementation in africa despite the perceived promises and obvious advantages of distance education in africa, several problems are associated with the implementation of distance learning programmes. the problems that need to be addressed in order to improve the quality of distance learning programmes in africa include the following (nartker, et al., 2009a:8, 2009b:35–69): • a lack of clearly defi ned institutional mission statements • a lack of a clearly defi ned programme mission • a lack of trained and qualifi ed staff • dependency on part-time instructors • inadequate technological infrastructure • inadequate staff training schemes • defi ciencies in curriculum development • inadequate laboratory spaces for medical and science-based courses in their reports on the use of distance learning to train health care workers in mozambique and tanzania , nartker et al (2009a; 2009b) recommended the development of strategic plans and visions for distance learning programmes, the provision of improved infrastructure and human resources, an increase in the awareness and skills of the use of technology, the decentralisation of coordination functions and learner support, and improved programme coordination. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta30 in the opinion of the general public and some academics, distance learning may not be as effective as face-to-face learning, and they are therefore skeptical about its quality. rigorous programme evaluations are needed to address this misconception. the standards used in determining the quality of distance education must be based on the philosophy of chickering and gamson’s principles of good practice (1987), which highlight accountability, effectiveness, impact, organisational context and unanticipated outcomes. distance learning can be as effective as traditional face-to-face learning if the following “seven principles of good practice in undergraduate education” (chickering & gamson, 1987) are applied to distance learning: • contact between students and instructors • cooperation among students • use of active learning techniques • prompt feedback • emphasis on time spent on each task • high expectations • respect for diverse talents and ways of learning evaluation strategies analyses of the problems related to the successful implementation of quality distance learning by wright et al (2009) and yusuf (2006) resulted in the need for appropriate strategies to assess and evaluate the quality of these programmes. standards must be developed over time, and the data collected on a regular basis should be compared with existing standards to determine which changes are necessary to steer the programme in the right direction. recent research activities in programme evaluation have led to the adoption of summative and formative evaluation techniques (lytle & wolfe, 1989). the data used in the evaluation includes interviews, surveys, documents and records gathered about various programmes, field reports and content analysis. as stated by worthen et al., “failure to use formative evaluation is myopic, for formative data collected can help rechannel time, money, and all types of human and material resources into more productive directions” (worthen, et al., 1997:16). teachers can change africa deta 31 in developing an assessment plan with the objective of improving its academic programmes, the offi ce of operational excellence and assessment support (oeas) at the university of central florida adopted evaluation strategies that addressed the following questions (operational excellence and assessment support, 2008): 1) what are the programme’s goals and objectives? 2) how are these goals and objectives met? 3) how (using the answers to 1 and 2) can the programme be improved? programme evaluations should be ongoing, not episodic. the cycle for an effective programme evaluation, as shown in figure 1, begins with identifying the indicators that outline the goals and objectives of the programme in the context of the institution’s mission. the appropriate data collection methods are then defi ned. data collection should focus on what and how the programme is contributing to the learning, growth and development of students (operational excellence and assessment support, 2008). the data normally tends to fall into two categories of information: quantity and quality. typically, quantitative data comprises numerical descriptions of programme activities and achievements while qualitative data often portrays programme activities and achievements through narrative descriptions (gajda & jewiss, 2004). any programme evaluation, no matter how well it is conducted, is worthless unless it incorporates a feedback mechanism. feedback procedures should be established to provide the information needed to defi ne the outcomes that will be used to improve the programme. the outcomes will defi ne and demonstrate what has been learned from the assessment efforts and how it can be used for programme improvement and revision. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta32 figure 1: components of evaluation strategies both self-evaluation and external evaluation should take place. self-evaluation techniques are used to determine if the objectives of various programmes align with the institutional mission statement. external evaluation will help judge the validity and credibility of the programmes. the external evaluators and assessors should include scholars with specialisations in the related fields and their responsibilities will involve the evaluation of format, curriculum and learning outcomes, student’s needs, staff needs and support and the technology used for delivery. table 1 shows the various evaluation metrics and related activities and evaluation frequencies. teachers can change africa deta 33 table 1: assessment metric, related activities and frequencies assessment activities frequency of assessment institutional mission statement accreditation summary of departmental programme assessment budget review student needs and satisfaction assessment distance education orientations student profi le study student satisfaction survey student evaluation of effectiveness of distance education student learning and course assessment techniques review of learning resources course evaluations classroom inventory course development review instructional technology assessment technology evaluation staff needs and support assessment faculty satisfaction survey review of academic credentials for new hires needs analyses for training site visits as scheduled by accreditation teams annually as defi ned by the institution’s annual report at the beginning of a programme or course ongoing both at the beginning and end of a programme or course ongoing in some cases and at the beginning of a programme or course annually institutional mission statements assessing and evaluating the success of a distance learning programme begins at institutional level. the institution’s mission statement should specify its educational philosophy and objectives. distance learning needs must be in line with the institution’s mission and be considered as providing education to distance learners using instructional methods that serve the needs of the learners. for effective distance programme implementation in africa, there should be some cooperation with the government, businesses, private organisations, churches and communities. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta34 the mission of the departments in charge of the various distance learning programmes or courses should also identify the missions, goals and objectives of each programme or course and align them to the institutional mission. institutional missions, in most cases, are identified in self-study reports. aligning the department’s mission statement to the institution’s mission statement helps to produce an outcome that will be used in the planning, administration and institutional support of the distance learning programmes. in its report, the association to advance collegiate schools of business (2007:5) recommends that institutional objects should “specify the educational objectives of each degree, identify the student population to be served, explain how distance learning contributes to the mission, goals and objectives of the institution, and how the institution’s distance learning differs from offerings of other providers”. upon assessing student learning outcomes, these will be aligned to the individual programme learning outcomes. institutional mission assessment and evaluation should address the following questions: • does the distance learning programme fit into the institution’s mission? • is the institution equipped to offer distance learning? • does the institution have adequate resources to offer distance learning? the various academic departments involved in the institution’s distance education programme should conduct programme evaluation at the following times: • upon graduation • at the end of a specific semester • at the completion of a required set of courses • upon the completion of a certain number of credits • upon programme completion • upon employment • a number of years after graduation the outcome of the institutional mission and departmental programme evaluation will help shape institutional decision-making, planning and resource allocation. teachers can change africa deta 35 student needs and satisfaction evaluation an important question to ask when it comes to student needs and satisfaction is: “does the institution have adequate student support services and apparatus to support off-campus students in terms of learning, advising and career development?” distance learners have diverse needs, which include family needs, business activities, and health issues. their learning activities can be interrupted by births, illness, loss of job, career changes, relocations, death in the family and needed vacations. in some cases, there may also be communication problems due the unreliable nature of the communication infrastructure in africa. the majority of students enrolled in distance learning programmes are working adults. as stated by pallof and pratt (2001:109): “most of our students today are older, are working, and need more fl exible schedules.” students’ needs can be identifi ed by getting to know them as soon as possible through the use of profi les and introductory activities that will provide the instructor or facilitator an insight into who the learner is, not only academically, but also professionally and personally. if possible, their learning activities must be planned around their schedules, activities and learning styles to create a positive learning experience. conrad and donaldson (2004:19) state: “one common mistake distance education instructors make is by not giving enough time for activities.” students’ satisfaction can be measured by the way in which instructors and facilitators interact with the learners. interactivity with students is, therefore, essential to the success of any distance learning programme. limited technological infrastructure in most parts of africa can hinder the effective implementation of distance education. in their report on the use of distance learning to train health care professionals in mozambique and tanzania, nartker et al (2009a, 2009b) indicate that a lack of technology may hinder the effective implementation of the programme. an effective way of interacting with students is through setting up district meeting centres where instructors and facilitators periodically meet with students. advances in mobile phone technology and the rapid expansion of fi beroptic technology in africa will soon provide an effective medium to communicate and interact with students. the following factors play a critical role in determining the students’ needs: age, cultural and socio-economic backgrounds, interests and experiences, educational levels, familiarity with distance methods and delivery systems. students’ needs distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta36 can be assessed by analysing existing data sources, conducting regular surveys, studying student profiles, and interviewing community members and focus groups. student learning and course evaluation techniques one of the major components of instructional design is course evaluation. course evaluation standards should aim at achieving learning outcomes comparable to traditional face-to-face programmes. the timing and type of evaluation is highly essential in bringing out the learning outcomes needed to strengthen the integrity of the programme. both summative and formative evaluation policies should be adopted. in general, course evaluations are intended to measure what students are learning about the content they are taught. in some cases, teachers aspire to more than simply teaching students information about the subject matter. they hope to use the subject matter to teach students to think, in order to develop higherlevel cognitive skills such as solving problems, analysing arguments, synthesising information from different sources and applying what they are learning to new and unfamiliar contexts (angelo & cross, 1993). effective course evaluation should help institutions determine whether the distance learning curriculum fits into the existing traditional programme of the institution and whether the institution has the appropriate guidelines for course development, review of instructional material, and revision of pedagogy, curricula and course sequencing. figure 2 illustrates the core areas of course evaluation and the expected outcomes. teachers can change africa deta 37 figure 2: course evaluation metrics and expected outcomes adapted from angelo and cross (1993:62–63). learning evaluation strategies a. direct indicators of learning • capstone course evaluation • course-embedded assessment • tests and examinations (locally/faculty-designed and commercially produced standardised tests) • portfolio evaluation • pre-test/post-test evaluation • thesis evaluation • videotape and audiotape evaluation of performance distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta38 b. indirect indicators of learning • external reviewers • student surveying and exit interviewing • alumni surveying • employer surveying • curriculum and syllabus analysis (adapted from http://www.provost.wisc.edu/assessment/ manual/manual2.html.) student learning outcomes can be used to do the following: • provide the necessary feedback to determine ways of improving student learning activities. • design new courses and revise existing ones. • clearly communicate expectations to students. • help departments align their respective programme objectives with the institutional mission statement. • increase learning awareness among students. • help departments, instructors, and facilitators devise effective advice strategies. • design and develop course materials that suit new technology. instructional technology evaluation the bates actions model of quality – “access and flexibility, costs, teaching and learning, interactivity and user-friendliness, organisational issues, novelty and speed” – can be used as an effective tool to select instructional technologies (bates, 2000). instructional technologies should not be limited to just one methodology, but rather a blend, depending on the geographical location, nature of the course and accessibility to technology. the cost factor is also a crucial element to consider, since it impacts on students, instructors, facilitators and institutions. staff needs and support assessment the majority of the instructors in distance education are part-time instructors. issues related to workload, efforts put into developing teaching material, work being considered as part for promotion/tenure decision-making and consultation time teachers can change africa deta 39 should all be considered when assessing staff needs and support. if staffi ng issues are not addressed before the implementation of a distance learning programme, they may lead to programme failure. in their paper on needs assessments, stewart and cuffman detail some important questions that must be explored when assessing needs (stewart & cuffman, 2011): (1) what is a needs assessment? (2) how are needs assessments related to successful distance education? (3) where have needs assessments been used in distance education? (4) which approach to needs assessment should one choose? (5) what sources and methods might one use for collecting data? (6) what factors infl uence the use of needs assessment results? (7) what criteria can be used to evaluate a needs assessment? needs assessments must focus on some fundamental metrics that enable the staff to function effectively as distance education instructors. the process of needs assessment begins with feasibility studies to identify the tangible and intangible benefi ts to the programme and the institution as a whole. this is followed by the needs assessment plan, which identifi es the goals and objectives of the needs assessment. finally, conduct the needs assessment by using a combination of techniques such as interviews, job performance, observations, questionnaires, student evaluations and consultation with administrators. conducting a needs assessment on the environment, incentives, motivation, knowledge, skills and profi ciency necessary to integrate technology in instruction and mode of delivery, and the ability to evaluate student achievements at distant sites identifi es the strengths and weaknesses of the programme. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta40 conclusion distance learning is only one strategy to deliver educational programmes. a particular assessment method and strategy cannot be applied to all programmes. the assessment and evaluation methods and data collected may vary in each environment. whatever the situation is, the data collected and outcomes are useful for charting the course of distance learning in an institution. by effectively accessing distance education programmes with regard to the institutional mission statement, students’ needs and satisfaction, students’ learning and course outcomes, instructional technology and staff needs, the integrity of distance learning can be assured and can be seen as comparable to traditional face-to-face programmes. in the past decade, higher education institutions have incorporated distance learning programmes into their existing ones. the number of students enrolling in distance education programmes is increasing, so are the programmes. quality assurance is critical to the overall acceptance and integrity of distance learning. in most countries in africa, quality assurance and accountability in education are addressed by the governmental agencies. to foster quality assurance, there should be accreditation bodies solely responsible for distance learning. for internationalisation and cross-border acceptance, regional accreditation bodies must be set up in the various economic blocs in sub-saharan africa to oversee the administration and programme development of distance education programmes. teachers can change africa deta 41 references angelo, t.a. & cross, k.p. 1993. classroom assessment techniques: a handbook for college teachers. san francisco: jossey-bass. association to advance collegiate schools of business. 2007.quality issues in distance learning. [online] available at: http://www.aacsb.edu/publications/whitepapers/ quality-issues-distance-learning.pdf (accessed on 9 july 2011). bates, a.w. 2000. managing technological change: strategies for college and university leaders. san francisco: jossey-bass. chickering, a.w. & gamson, z. 1987. seven principles for good practice in undergraduate education. aahe bulletin, 40(7):3–7. conrad, r. & donaldson, j.a. 2004. engaging the online learner: activities and resources for creating instruction. san francisco: jossey-bass. gajda, r. & jewiss, j. 2004. thinking about how to evaluate your program? these strategies will get you started. practical assessment, research & evaluation, 9(8). [online] available at: http://pareonline.net/getvn.asp?v=9&n=8 (accessed on 3 july 2011). lytle, s.l. & wolfe, m. 1989. adult literacy education: program evaluation and learnerassessment. ohio: eric clearinghouse on adult, career, and vocational education. materu, p. 2007. higher education quality assurance in sub-saharan africa: status, challenges, opportunities, and promising practices. world bank working paper no. 124. world bank. nartker, a., bachman, c., kalil, p., prongay, v. & torres, d. 2009a. mozambique distance learning assessment: the use of distance learning to train health care workers in mozambique. [online] available at: http://www.go2itech.org/resources/publicationspresentations (accessed on 15 june 2011). nartker, a., bachman, c., kalil, p., prongay, v. & torres, d. 2009b.tanzania distance learning assessment: assessing the use of distance learning to train health care workers in tanzania. [online] available at: http://www.go2itech.org/resources/publicationspresentations (accessed on 11 june 2011). operational excellence and assessment support. 2008. guidelines for planning and implementing quality, enhancing, efforts of program and student learning outcomes. in university of central florida academic program assessment handbook. university of central florida. [online] available at: http://oeas.ucf.edu/doc/acad_assess_handbook. pdf (accessed on 3 july 2011). distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta42 pallof, r.m. & pratt, k. 2001. lessons from the cyberspace classroom: the realities of online teaching. san francisco: jossey-bass. stewart, r.g. & cuffman, d.m. 2011. needs assessment: a systematic approach for successful distance education. retrieved from eric database (ed431384). turkish online journal of distance education, 7. [online] available at: https://tojde.anadolu. edu.tr/tojde21/pdf/article_2.pdf. wikipedia. 2011. distance education. [online] available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ distance_education (accessed on 3 july 2011). worthen, b.r., sanders, j.r. & fitzpatrick, j.l. 1997. program evaluation: alternative approaches and practical guidelines. 2nd ed. white plains, new york: addison wesley. wright, c.r., dhanarajan, g., sunday, a. & reju, s.a. 2009. recurring issues encountered by distance educators in developing and emerging nations. the international review of research in open and distance learning, 10. [online] available at: http://www.irrodl. org/index.php/irrodl/article/view/608/1180 (accessed on 3 july 2011). yusuf, m.o. 2006. problems and prospects of open and distance education in nigeria. teachers can change africa deta 43 facilitator preparation, support and quality assurance for the improvement of student performance at contact sessions dr sharon mampane education management and policy study university of pretoria, faculty of education sharon.mampane@up.ac.za abstract this paper focuses on how distance education (de) facilitators of the advanced certifi cate in education (ace) are trained, supported and quality-assured during contact sessions to improve their facilitation skills. the argument is whether facilitators are adequately trained, quality-assured and supported to assist students studying independently in improving their performance. a further argument is whether the training, quality assurance and support of facilitators contribute to the two-way communication between students and the facilitator, and the communication of students with one another during the learning process. ten facilitators from two provinces, the eastern cape and limpopo, who were involved in the ace education management programme, were purposively sampled and interviewed using semi-structured interviews. the aim was to establish what the support structures and methods used for distance education facilitation were. findings revealed that module coordinators had no standardised training programme or support mechanisms for the facilitators, which resulted in some facilitators being better prepared than others. these fi ndings may contribute to designing a standardised facilitator training programme and support strategies for the improvement of facilitation and learning, as well as quality assurance at contact sessions. keywords: distance education; training; support; quality assurance; contact session; facilitators; advanced certifi cate in education. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta44 introduction distance education (de) in south africa is provided by public universities and universities of technology (matsilisa, 2007:1). south africa, like the rest of the world, has shifted from correspondence education – based solely on the delivery of materials without any structured interaction – to distance education, where contact and structured opportunities for interaction between the facilitator and students are integrated into the programme design (badat, 2005:379). the term “distance education” refers to an intentional process of teaching and learning in which physical space separates facilitators and students. before every contact session, a compulsory facilitators training workshop is held by the module coordinator at the university to sharpen facilitator skills and to provide support (massyn, 2002). the module coordinators organise and plan the course and – with the assistance of the university’s administrative staff – ensure that the facilitators receive all the material timeously. at the training workshop, the coordinators are able to communicate with facilitators to solve any module-related problems they experience or foresee. all facilitators are given an opportunity to present a particular topic from the module, and the other members of the facilitation team provide constructive criticism on the presentation. this process is done in preparation for facilitation at contact sessions and for quality assurance. in addition to excellent study material, quality assurance is a very important aspect of achieving excellence in distance education, and follows a well-planned, proactive training and support programme for facilitators. effective distance education facilitation training should enable facilitators to adapt traditional teaching strategies to a new learning environment at contact sessions (massyn, 2002:139). the success and quality of distance education facilitation and learning is highly dependent on a variety of factors, such as the appropriateness of the learning material and the learning theory, the design and delivery of instructions, the roles of partners in distance education, methods and strategies to increase interactivity, inquiry, facilitator mediation, operational issues and facilitators’ delivery mode (dzakiria, 2008; sherry, 1996; and massyn, 2002:139). sensitivity to the context and the socio-economic circumstances of students and their environment should result in models of best practice developed from past experience with similar groups of students (mclean, 2001). teachers can change africa deta 45 best practices that have been benchmarked with other students should assist institutions in designing, facilitating, training and assuring the quality of the educational process (scardamalia, 2002:1). this should be done with the use of a triad consisting of the student, the facilitator/lecturer and the module coordinator – all of whom must function as a team (porter, 1994). where appropriate training exists, the level of understanding and experience of the facilitator is further enhanced through quality assurance. the facilitator may become more confi dent and deliver quality teaching from feedback discussions with the coordinator. in instances where facilitators have not been adequately trained, their abilities are curtailed and they fi nd it diffi cult to interact with students – thus becoming fearful of interaction with students during quality assurance (muhirwa, 2009). distance education students are given support by means of facilitation, peer interaction and support and the supplied materials (garrison and baynton, 1987). the assignments, tests and examinations that are compiled by the module coordinators are marked by the facilitators, but moderated by the module coordinator as a way of ensuring quality. the administrative personnel at the university are responsible for administrative support in terms of facilities and any other reasonable administrative need. they ensure that classrooms are available, that there is suffi cient stationery and resources, and they also deal with student enquiries. distance education facilitators/instructors and their functions distance education facilitators are employed on a contract basis by the university’s distance education administrators and have the required qualifi cations to be support staff members. they are part of a team of academic staff and their role is important in that it alleviates the workload of the full-time staff members – mostly that of module coordinators – by making their jobs more manageable (riffee, 2003:1; scagnoli, 2001). the facilitators employed by the university of pretoria’s distance education unit are teachers, heads of department, deputy principals and principals who possess a combination of training and experience that assures the required knowledge, skills and abilities for the position. each module is presented by parttime facilitators who hold at least one advanced degree and full-time lecturers who hold master’s and doctoral degrees. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta46 the university of pretoria’s advanced certificate in education (ace) study programme is a formal certificate qualification for teachers studying part-time but who are already in the teaching field. the functions of facilitators include being facilitators, organisers, graders, role models, counsellors, problem-solvers and liaison officers. the facilitators of the different modules operate as a team and travel together to contact sessions (psu 1998, 4). lessons are presented in three to four hours per day for five days. facilitator preparation as distance education expands in the university setting, it is imperative that module coordinators train the facilitators and examine the arrangement and facilitation of problems experienced in distance education prior to facilitators embarking on their journeys to contact sessions (wilson, litle, coleman & gallagher, 1997). according to a study by jelfs, richardson and price (2009), the facilitator’s expertise should include effective facilitation, subject expertise and the ability to stimulate critical thinking in the students through facilitator-student interaction. this collaboration between the facilitator and the students should create a symbiotic relationship which benefits both the facilitator and the students (calvert, 1986). facilitators should be committed to high-quality teaching and learning in order to improve students’ performance. the appropriateness and effectiveness of distance education depends on why and how well the facilitation process is designed and delivered (sherry, 1990). distance education initiatives undertaken for contact session facilitation should lead to the necessary improvement of facilitator expertise as well as provide opportunities for the development and success of students (mclean, 2001; beaudoin, 1990). facilitator support to enhance the distance education programme, all facilitators are provided with support in the form of a study guide, a reader and facilitation handouts or transparencies, an administration booklet, a tutorial booklet and an activity workbook for each module. the study guide contains details of all the units of the module and the content to be completed. it highlights difficult sections and makes suggestions on possible parts for self-study. the administration booklet contains important information related to the administration of the module in the programme, and the tutorial booklet explains the programme to be followed in teachers can change africa deta 47 each module, the assignments to be completed and details of the examination. all the material is compiled by the distance education unit and handed out prior to facilitator training for the contact sessions. in practice, a compulsory facilitators’ training session is held before every contact session. the module coordinator lists topics to be discussed in interactive group discussions. the coordinator then engages and interacts with facilitators as if they were students to give the facilitators a practical example of how to engage and interact with students in a face-to-face class setting. through these workshops, facilitators experience more open, honest, transparent, and supportive group relationships and collegiality with other facilitators before going for contact sessions. the purpose of the training of facilitators by the module coordinator at the university is to sharpen facilitator skills and to provide support (massyn, 2002). the module coordinators organise and plan the course and ensure that the facilitators receive all the material on time. this is done with the assistance of the administrative staff. at the training workshop, the coordinators are able to meet all the facilitators immediately and solve any module-related problems with them. furthermore, all facilitators are given the opportunity to present a particular topic from the study guide or module and the other members of the facilitation team give constructive criticism on the presentation. after the training, module coordinators and facilitators are in constant communication via telephone, email or sms. the facilitators work through the study guide, reader, tutorial letters, facilitation handouts and workbooks. the training of facilitators on module content is continuous and occurs before facilitators go to the four contact sessions in the year: two short and two long contact sessions. the short contact session is a one-day get-together to orientate students on the module and inform them about the requirements for the assignments and the examination, while the long contact session is a week-long facilitation of module content. during the preparation, training and support of facilitators, it is important that the module and learner characteristics and needs in the distance learning process be considered (carnwell, 2000; sherry, 1996). module coordinators should not only have the capacity to prepare, train and support facilitators, but they should also invest in, or obtain, the necessary resources to do it well (mclean, 2001). such resources include overhead projectors, fl ip charts, pens and data projectors. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta48 quality assurance training, supporting and assuring the quality of facilitators are important, as module coordinators are able to evaluate their facilitation skills and to identify strengths as well as areas for development during these activities. the module coordinator is responsible for the quality of academic content and ensures that the facilitators adapt to continuous developments in all the modules of the programme. the quality assurance of facilitators’ facilitation skills is done at a different venue from that of the contact sessions by the module coordinators, who provide feedback afterwards. the purpose is to assess the facilitators’ presentation skills, engagement and interaction with students, their mastery of content, their explanation of concepts and their provision of support for students. this is done by observing the lesson presentation, recording the facilitation process and having a feedback discussion with the facilitator after the lesson. distance education students and facilitators evaluate one another after every lesson in order to identify areas that need improvement and for the module coordinator to plan future student and facilitator support. contact sessions attendance at contact sessions is not compulsory, but approximately 90% of students do attend because the study material is unpacked and the interaction between students and the facilitator and between the students themselves encourages them to attend. students also feel that attendance is part of what they have paid for. the numbers of students who attend contact sessions, however, vary from venue to venue. some venues have more students than others, depending on the enrolment at the particular venue. facilitation and groupwork entails allocating students different roles to play in the given activities in the study material. facilitators ensure that students know what is expected of them and they motivate and encourage them to participate – as instructed – in groups. students are usually not very active on the first day, but as they become more familiar with the facilitator their involvement increases. to enable students to attain the set goals, facilitators are expected to make constructive suggestions where students struggle and help them improve and achieve success. teachers can change africa deta 49 context of the ace: distance education programme distance education contact sessions are conducted at venues at colleges, universities or schools closest to the students. there are six module coordinators and six modules in the ace: education management programme. each module coordinator is responsible for one module. the six modules are education management (edm) 401 and education management 402, professional and social context (eds) 401 and education law (edl), organisational management (edo) 401 and organisational management 402. the modules are distributed over a period of 18 months, with six months devoted to each of the following blocks: block 1 consists of edm 401 and eds 401, block 2 is made up of edo 401 and edl 401; and block 3 consists of edm 402 and edo 402. students in the distance education programme reside in all the provinces of south africa. in each of the modules, facilitators are responsible for the contact sessions and other duties identifi ed by the university; they facilitate in terms of their module and discipline knowledge (massyn, 2002). theoretical framework: facilitator support through lesson observation in distance education the quality assurance of the facilitation process is important and is likely to inspire student learning and positive student performance. to achieve success in performance through facilitation, a theoretical framework for understanding and improving facilitator practice is imperative. this study has used a theoretical framework based on the principles of human learning developed by the literacy professional development project (lpdp) in new zealand. this theory uses the principles of human learning, namely training and the interaction that occurs between facilitator and students during the facilitation of lessons. the observation and quality assurance of facilitation and learning depends on the training that the facilitator receives prior to travelling to the contact session venues. the aim of quality assurance is the improvement and the provision of feedback on the facilitator’s practice. the quality assurer offers facilitation suggestions after the facilitation of the lesson in order to help the facilitators improve their practice. the suggestions given are linked to the analysis of the observed lesson. the quality assurer and the facilitators work together in identifying areas of strength and areas that need improvement. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta50 the analysis is made in clear and simple language, so that the facilitators understand the relevance of the suggestions in terms of practice. the suggestions offered serve as a guide for facilitation and the facilitators should accept them as possible measures that may translate well into the practice context. research methodology this article is the result of research that used a qualitative approach to collect data from ten participants who have particular knowledge that is most likely able to advance the study’s interests and potentially open new doors (tongco, 2007:147). the ten participants were from two provinces of south africa, limpopo (tzaneen) and the eastern cape (east london). the sampled participants work in distance education and their knowledge and experience are related to the objectives and context of the study. all interviewed participants were males who perform facilitation in the two provinces. there were no female facilitators in the education management programme. female facilitators are connected to the ace: special needs programme, which was not the relevant sample for the study. the participants who were interviewed after delivery of their lessons at the contact sessions were easily accessed and they showed a willingness to participate in the study by signing consent forms (merriam, 1998:61). method face-to-face, semi-structured and in-depth interviews were used to collect data concerning the facilitators’ opinions about the training, preparation, quality assurance and support given to facilitators of distance education contact sessions. the interview questions were open-ended and multiple; varied responses were elicited from the facilitators about their experiences (merriam, 1998:9). each participant was interviewed for 20 to 30 minutes. interviews were tape-recorded and later transcribed. the facilitators who were interviewed were given copies of the interview transcripts with the emerging themes to verify the accuracy of the data and its interpretation. transcripts of the data analysis were also peer-reviewed to verify the integrity of the data. initially, the facilitators were asked to give a brief biography of themselves and their experience with contact sessions. informed by the purpose of the research, the following types of questions were asked: teachers can change africa deta 51 • exploratory questions that focused on the preparation and training of facilitators, their roles as facilitators at contact sessions, and their recommendations regarding training, preparation, and the facilitation and quality assurance of the contact sessions. • explanatory questions that assisted in reassessing and refi ning issues to interpret and frame the key fi ndings. • descriptive questions that revealed the signifi cance and impact of the experience of facilitating contact sessions and the success and challenges of the quality assurance process at contact sessions (denzin and lincoln, 2000:388–389). the verbatim transcripts produced from the interviews were coded and the codes were grouped into categories. from these categories, a number of themes emerged. the following themes were identifi ed and emerged as key fi ndings of the study: the importance of facilitator training, preparation and support for contact sessions; assumptions held about facilitation and quality assurance of contact sessions; the importance of facilitator and student interaction during quality assurance; facilitation and quality assurance success; contextual and administrative considerations; and suggestions for the improvement of facilitation and quality assurance processes. some of the questions asked were the following: • how were you trained, prepared and supported for the contact sessions? • do you consider training and quality assurance benefi cial? why or why not? • what is your experience of the contact sessions? • what are your roles with regard to student support at the contact sessions, and why? explain. • what challenges did you experience at the contact sessions? • what were the successes of the contact session? • what is your view about the quality assurance of facilitators? • what would you recommend with regard to the contact sessions? distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta52 results importance of facilitator training, preparation and support for contact sessions the facilitators who were interviewed indicated the importance and usefulness of the training, preparation and support of facilitators for the contact session. they saw it as enhancing the level of preparedness and facilitator confidence to deliver quality instruction. these are some of the participants’ responses: one can never say that he or she is familiar with the material to be presented, it is not good enough. it is good to have training because we share experiences with other presenters. you develop and grow as a presenter. (limpopo) yes, definitely. we received intensive training. we discussed issues around certain units and discussed the contents of the file and all the contents of the module. (east london) some facilitators – recognising the importance of training and support for contact sessions – felt that they should be standardised and adequately presented so as to ensure quality and consistency during facilitation. one of the participants said: you cannot just go there unprepared and embarrass yourself in front of people. your listeners will expect you to be prepared and to get additional information. (limpopo) other facilitators emphasised the fact that quality assurance was important and should be continuous, since different students and different environments need different interventions. they commented as follows: preparation, training and quality assurance are important. you meet different students and some students are better prepared and ask more challenging questions than others. the module coordinator can pick this up and suggest strategies to the facilitator. (limpopo) you have to reflect, you discover new things as you go on. extra preparation means making things easier for the students. i have to use a different approach and examples for different students to make them understand better. you have to make updates all the time. (east london) teachers can change africa deta 53 one facilitator maintained that quality assurance was not helpful: money was wasted by sending them for quality assurance that does not even occur. the module coordinator came in while i was teaching. the next minute she was gone. i did not see her leave nor did she give feedback. a further comment was: whether module coordinators know exactly what has to be done is also questionable. to spend less than one hour listening to a facilitator, for me it is not suffi cient. i think the module coordinator needs to sit in and give feedback and support. (east london) all facilitators agreed that quality assurance should be continuous, standardised and well designed, despite some facilitators having been in the programme for a long time. quality assurance cannot be underestimated, because it empowers and gives the facilitators confi dence to interact with students and the facilitators’ abilities are improved. facilitators who are inadequately trained and supported are insecure and struggle to interact with students. the criteria used for quality assurance should be explained to facilitators in order to be better prepared in terms of outcomes that should be realised. it is also important to be successfully rated through quality assurance by the module coordinator. assumptions about facilitation and quality assurance of contact sessions the module coordinators initially assumed that facilitation of distance education was going to be diffi cult since, some ace facilitators were newly appointed. they thought the facilitators would struggle with facilitation skills and would not be well prepared. one facilitator had this to say about his experience of quality assurance at contact sessions: in my fi rst contact session i thought that i would struggle with students who are highly intelligent, but i did not experience that. i then realised that i did a lot to help our students. i said to myself, “i am learning some skills that i did not have before.” (limpopo) distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta54 another facilitator, however, indicated the importance of assuring the quality of facilitators who were new to the work and emphasised that it was not only experience that counted. he commented: i think too much emphasis is placed on people’s qualifications without really looking at whether they are able to facilitate at the contact session in such a short space of time, and how they are unpacking the content. i think people must be quality-assured or asked to present a certain aspect or a portion of the work in order to make a judgment. i think the training alone is not beneficial, given the way some new facilitators teach. (east london) all facilitators initially had some fears about their teaching strategies and the comments they would get from the module coordinator. they soon realised that students came to contact sessions unprepared. what makes facilitation a challenge is when there is no training, preparation and support before the contact session. students need to see that the facilitator meets them halfway and that they only become successful after the contact sessions. the importance of facilitator and student interaction during quality assurance the facilitators follow guidelines provided during their training in facilitating distance education students at contact sessions. these include the explanation of concepts and activities to be carried out, student guidance, group discussions and the provision of feedback. facilitation is slowed down when facilitators struggle to engage students due to a lack of preparation; the facilitator has to resort to lecturing without getting feedback from the participants. it has become apparent to the module coordinator that the students struggle to understand the lessons. this is what one of the facilitators said about quality assurance and student expectations at contact sessions: we get an opportunity to explain in different ways so that they understand. i would expect the module coordinator to give feedback about facilitation and student participation and involvement after sitting through a facilitation process. (limpopo) these findings are in line with what hilary perraton (1988) says when she maintains that the role of the distance education facilitator – when she meets the teachers can change africa deta 55 distance students face to face – is to become a facilitator of learning, rather than a communicator of a fi xed body of information. the learning process should proceed as knowledge building among facilitator and students through the quality assurance of the facilitation process. from the relevant theory and the practical skills and competencies of the module coordinator, meaningful suggestions should be made to the facilitator during a feedback session. facilitators become concerned about whether students will pass the modules they facilitate if they are not supported in their facilitation and in their engagement with the students. facilitation and quality assurance success: contextual and administrative considerations when asked about the successes attained through their facilitation and quality assurance of distance education students at the contact session, the following response was given: i think the success of contact sessions is helping students succeed. we learn a lot in terms of the diffi culties and hardships the students experience as well as some of their challenges when given support in areas of weakness, so that when next time we present we consider the input and we improve. (limpopo) a further response raised concerns about some of the challenges faced outside the facilitation process: other challenges are in terms of administration. irrespective of how much we try to avoid them, they still crop up. sometimes you are morally discouraged. the students come to you with problems of not having received materials. we understand that we do not have to give them the material that we use but your morality will talk to you and you think of how best to help them. (east london) most participants interviewed have experienced success in their facilitation of contact sessions. students usually call them or come to them at contact sessions to express their gratitude for the success they have attained from the support and facilitation received at the contact session. the facilitators appreciated having been given the opportunity to visit so many provinces in order to make a difference to students. however, the slow and unreliable postal system, little and unreliable telephone communication, the lack of electrifi cation, poor road conditions, and distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta56 few and inadequate libraries and other public facilities for studying hamper the performance of distance education students. distance education contact services should provide both instruction and support services, which include developing and implementing effective student communication systems and the necessary learning requirements. these findings are consistent with garrison’s report (denzin and lincoln, 2000), which suggests that the quality and integrity of the educational process depends on sustained, two-way communication and the provision of adequate facilities and resources beforehand. the purpose of the contact session is to allow students faster and better access to services because when they access services better, they learn better and this also improves facilitation. however, geidt (1996:16–19) has identified significant practical challenges for distance education, such as the social and economic status of some disadvantaged communities in south africa that make it difficult for facilitators to succeed in their facilitation of contact sessions. he also emphasises the fact that students need to be prepared beforehand, but since the written texts are not in the students’ home language, facilitators have difficulty in accustoming students to critically interpret textual messages in english. garrison (1990), in support of geidt (1996), indicates the importance of two-way communication for quality and the integrity of the educational process. without connectivity, like communication with the administration staff, the facilitators and module coordinators, distance learning will degenerate into the old correspondence course model of independent study. students may become dependent and isolated, they procrastinate and eventually drop out of the course. this finding reinforces the fact that distance education models and practices should be adapted to the social, cultural, economic and political circumstances of the students and their environment. suggestions for improvement in the facilitation and quality assurance processes when asking the facilitators for recommendations on the development of the distance education programme, the responses included the following: i think the classes that we are conducting are too long. i think 3½ hours is a bit too long for one class. if they can reduce the time maybe it will be more efficient. (eastern cape) teachers can change africa deta 57 i do believe the university of pretoria has tried everything in their power to make it easier by bringing us overhead projectors and so forth. but i think we need to move to the next step, for example, laptops and data projectors, to make sure students take more in. (limpopo) in the case of distance education, geidt (1996:19–20), in line with what up does, suggests that a substantial component of face-to-face support is essential, especially from community-based tutors. what is lacking at up, however, is community learning centres and regional study centres. even though students have extra support in the form of community-based tutors (mclean 2001), successful distance education systems should involve interactivity between the facilitator and students, between students and the learning environment, and among students themselves. there should also be active learning in the classroom during the contact sessions (sherry 1996). implications/recommendations for practice interviews conducted during the research show that training is imperative every time contact sessions take place. facilitation at each contact session is different, because different students come for support at the different venues. facilitators can never say that they are completely familiar with the material to be presented. training has to be continuous, so that facilitators can share their experiences with other presenters and develop personally as facilitators. extra preparation means making things easier for the facilitators and it improves their understanding of course content and how to use the available technology successfully. experienced facilitators may be used to facilitate if there is a new facilitator in the programme. if facilitation is never practically demonstrated, new presenters may lose confi dence in the module coordinator. with regard to expectations of facilitators, the fi ndings reveal that there were few students who were prepared or who asked challenging questions at the contact sessions. this indicates that facilitators need to prepare in order to encourage students to interact at contact sessions. facilitators should not assume that most students can study on their own; they should realise that students will always need to be encouraged to be disciplined in their self-study. facilitators try their best to make it easier for students to understand the material and to pass the examination. the facilitators’ guidance and passion for facilitation are more important than their distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta58 having high qualifications. the recommendation is that facilitators should undergo quality assurance, and if found lacking, be supported or dismissed. the findings from the interviews with the facilitators about their successes in facilitation include the fact that facilitators are able to reach out to many students in the different provinces who want to better themselves. the knowledge they gain from their interaction with students helps facilitators to improve their understanding of the students and to develop strategies to address the students’ problems. another finding is how delighted students are with facilitators who help them achieve success. with regard to the challenges of facilitation and the quality assurance process, the administration of student affairs is seen as a deterrent in achieving success. despite knowing that they are tasked to only facilitate students, it is not easy for facilitators to disregard students’ administration problems. the distances to the venues affect facilitation, because the students are adults who travel far and start out very early in the morning. the long journey affects their participation, because they are tired by the time they arrive at the contact sessions. language is another concern that was raised because some english education terms cannot be explained in code-switching if the facilitator does not speak the students’ home language. coordinators of distance education also have to be sensitive to the context and the socio-economic circumstances of students and their environment in order to develop models of best practice for contact sessions. facilitators recommended that the ace: de programme’s contact session time be reduced in line with that of the bed programme for distance education. further recommendations were that presentations be done through the use of improved technology. best practice and lessons learned about facilitator support for distance education in designing effective distance education, the goals, needs and characteristics of teachers and students – as well as content requirements and technical constraints – should be taken into consideration. if unusual delivery systems are required, they must be made accessible to all participants. the theoretical basis on which facilitation models are based, affects not only the way in which information is communicated by the facilitator to the student, but also the way in which the student makes sense of, and constructs new knowledge from the information that is presented. distance teachers can change africa deta 59 education systems involve a high degree of interactivity between the facilitator and the student, particularly in rural and isolated communities separated by thousands of kilometres. although technology is an integral part of distance education, any successful programme should focus on the instructional needs of the students, rather than on the technology. it is essential to consider students’ ages, cultural and socio-economic backgrounds, interests and experiences, educational levels and familiarity with distance education methods and delivery systems (schamber 1988). facilitators are of the opinion that attendance at distance learning venues far outweighs the lack of student preparation, because contact sessions offer considerable dialogue during face-to-face interaction (mcnabb, 1994). interactivity takes many forms; it is not only limited to facilitator-student interaction, but also establishes the connectivity the students feel with the distance teacher, the local tutors and their peers. in addition, infrastructural challenges and the previous school experiences of most students, such as rote learning, are important. these challenges make it diffi cult for students to develop independently and critically. there is also a large cultural and linguistic diversity and, as a result of this, many students may have diffi culty with the language and culture of the standardised facilitation material. geidt (1996:14–15) concludes that the preparation and training of facilitators of distance education contact sessions can only be effective when the delivery system and the curriculum are appropriately matched to the social and political context of the students. conclusion the facilitation of contact sessions demands thorough training, preparation and support for the facilitators to produce successful students. facilitators are required to assist contact students and to facilitate interaction among students. they should also assess group discussions and provide assistance with questions asked or discussions held during the contact sessions (willis, 1993). the strategies that are effective in distance learning are developing appropriate methods of feedback and reinforcement, optimising content and pace, adapting to different student learning styles, and using case studies and examples that are relevant to the target audience. being concise and supplementing course content with printed handouts and personalised instruction also benefi ts the students. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta60 the facilitators agree that the university of pretoria’s distance education unit provides them with certain unique opportunities, like travelling to the different provinces of south africa, both inland and along the coastal areas. they enjoy the working holiday, staying in hotels and guest houses. however, care should be taken not to focus too readily and eagerly on the rewards and forget about some of the shortcomings. these attitudes are greatly varied among institutions and individuals, but seem to be more positive when certain motivational conditions are present. the findings from the study suggest that, although the study has drawn on a similar pool of staff members who work in the same programme, albeit in different modules, they appear to have undergone different methods of training. the implication of this finding is that the training, support and quality assurance of facilitators – though expensive and time-consuming – is well worth the effort. not only can training and support help to attain goals and reinforce major roles and responsibilities, but they also provide a mechanism for measuring and communicating the students’ progress. other benefits include improved distance education teaching methods and learning, a significant increase in course completion rates and better communication among and between the module coordinators, the administration staff, facilitators and students. teachers can change africa deta 61 references badat, s. 2005. south africa: distance higher education policies for access, social equity, quality, 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[online]. available at: http://www.worldbank.org. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta64 teachers can change africa deta 65 distance education students’ experiences of learning support sessions dr teresa ogina education management and policy studies, university of pretoria taogina@up.ac.za abstract distance education is a learner-centred approach to education that emphasises independent learning based on the assumption that students are self-motivated and active in the learning process. however, due to the fact that distance education students study alone most of the time, there is a need to enhance their learning experience by providing support structures. besides supplying learning materials, the university of pretoria offers face-to-face support sessions to facilitate learning. although students provide feedback on the sessions in the form of short questionnaires, there is a need to further explore their experiences using a qualitative approach to capture nuances of how the students experience and conceptualise learning support. it should also be established whether they think that it is worthwhile attending the sessions. this paper draws on theoretical insights from transactional distance theory, focusing on learning support in terms of dialogue in the learning facilitation process, the structure of the programmes and learner autonomy. data was collected by interviewing students enrolled for the advanced certifi cate in education (ace): education management at the distance education unit of the university of pretoria. the study’s fi ndings suggest that the students consider learning support sessions to be benefi cial. the knowledge and skills gained during these sessions and through dialogue in the form of networking with other students contribute to their professional and personal development and – to some extent – to their learner autonomy. however, a need is identifi ed for the continuous development of learning support facilitators, material and administrative support structures to enhance the quality of the support system and to reduce transactional distance. keywords: distance education; learning support; students’ expectations; facilitator support; transactional distance theory; south africa. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta66 introduction there are many public and private institutions offering distance education courses to students. this mode of learning often involves students working independently with course material, using postal services and electronic media such as email or the telephone as a means of communication, and being involved in mentoring and face-to-face tutoring (sherry, 1996). according to researchers like rumble (2000), course material alone cannot be relied on for the successful completion of studies. face-to-face learner support can make a difference in ensuring students’ success in distance education. additional learning support for distance education students can be provided in the form of “scaffolding” – a teaching strategy in which information and instruction from a teacher or facilitator serve as a means of assisting students in engaging with new knowledge (rymarz & mclarney, 2011). scaffolding involves a variety of activities in the learning process, such as offering explanations, encouraging students to participate actively, verifying and clarifying student understanding, generating questions and comments and modelling the desired behaviour (roehler & cantlon, 1997). such support can be achieved by establishing contact with the students in a learning support session. some distance education students are independent and self-directed learners. anderson (2007) describes independent learning as the learners’ ability to selfmonitor, recognise and manage their learning goals. however, since students are not homogeneous and have different needs, it is important to identify and understand the students’ individual differences to be able to design appropriate learning support services (rumble, 2000). some may need more support and guidance than others, depending on their learning styles. in his study, carnwell (2000) describes the different learning styles as systematic wading, speedy-focusing and global dipping. learners who are systematic waders engage actively and systematically with their study material and need less facilitator support and guidance. the systematic waders experience deep learning. the speedy-focusing students (who also depend less on the facilitator) tend to take shortcuts in their studies by focusing only on what is required for an assignment or test. such students experience limited deep learning. the third group, global dippers, are surface learners who study in a disorganised way, encounter difficulties with the learning material and may need more learning support. distance education students may fall into any of the above three categories of students. teachers can change africa deta 67 regardless of their different learning styles, most distance education students need learning support and encouragement to be able to complete their studies successfully. learner support structures include services, such as tutoring and faceto-face contact sessions, and a variety of resources that may incorporate media technology (tait, 2000). in distance education, it is often assumed that students have the ability to be self-determined and self-regulated. self-regulated learning is a strategy of dealing with academic challenges that involve personal motivation, knowing when and who to ask for help and learners’ ability to use contextual motivational resources (newman, 2002). some distance education students may be in dire need of learning support structures to enhance and improve their ability to be independent learners who are able to interact with the learning material and with other students (dzakiria, 2008). the need for a particular type of learning support structure may be determined by the type of learning style and the stage of a particular student’s study. according to brigley and kell (2007), students may need a greater degree of tutor support at an early stage of their study, while at a later stage a higher priority may be given to peer support, social integration and networking. an action research study with open university students in the united kingdom revealed that students enrol for distance education with high expectations of support services from tutors. students’ satisfaction with tutor support increases the course completion rate and reduces the student drop-out rate (stevenson, mackeogh & sander, 2006). in a related study, student and tutor perceptions of effective tutoring in distance education show that students and tutors conceptualise effective tutoring in different ways (jelfs, richardson & price, 2009). students relate effective learning support to subject expertise, the development of critical thinking and interaction with other students, while tutors perceive good tutoring as the ability to facilitate the transmission of knowledge and support learning. students’ expectations focus more on the tasks to be performed, while tutors are more inclined to focus on the students. the study recommends that both students and tutors should appreciate the importance of support in facilitating learning and whether it is taskor student-oriented. the things students and tutors/facilitators expect from a learning support session may change as the students progress in their studies (jelf et al., 2009). a study conducted at the open university of hong kong (fung & carr, 2000) explored the factors that contribute to successful tutorials and revealed that the data collected distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta68 at an earlier stage of the research indicates that students expect tutors to lecture them. the students want tutors to help them understand the course content better in order to improve their academic achievement. however, as they continue with their studies, students realised that interaction with their peers reduced their dependency on their tutor. thus, when providing support services in distance education, the students’ wishes should not be ignored and their needs should be taken into consideration (rumble, 2000). in an earlier study, sherry (1996) suggests that the most important factor for successful distance learning is the ability of the teacher to be caring, confident, experienced, creative and to interact with the students. the support the student receives may overcome any feeling of disconnectedness with the educational institution during the self-study period. tait (2004) argues that student retention in distance education is, in part, related to human relationships, which should have the ability to overcome different emotional and cognitive challenges experienced by the students. the purpose of this study was to explore students’ views on, and opinions of the integrated support components of a support session; to identify the students’ needs in terms of learner support; and to recommend strategies for improving support sessions. the study investigates the students’ perceptions and expectations of learning sessions, as there could be a discrepancy between their perceptions and expectations and the purpose of the sessions (fung & carr, 2000). an understanding of students’ experiences of support sessions may contribute to improving facilitation, learning materials and support structures for distance education students. transactional distance theory the underpinning theoretical framework used in this study is moore’s theory of transactional distance, which deals with the physical, psychological and communication separation between teachers and students in distance education (kang & gyorke, 2008). the patterns of behaviour of the students and teachers that affect the teaching and learning process in distance education are determined by examining the relationship between the learning structure, dialogue and the students’ ability to be autonomous (moore, 1980). moore theorises that when learning programmes are highly structured, there is a tendency towards reduced learner communication and interaction, and when they are less structured the learners need greater direction. the relationship between the structure of distance teachers can change africa deta 69 education programmes and learner communication is concerned with the nature of transactional distance in distance learning. less structured programmes call for high learner dialogue, which results in low transactional distance. programmes that are highly structured require less communication and dialogue and make the learner feel more isolated. learners who have more opportunities to communicate with their tutors and other learners will feel more autonomous. according to moore (1980), learner development in distance education is based on bridging a gap through procedures, instructional design and communication. the context of the study the university of pretoria offers the advanced certifi cate in education (ace): education management as part of its distance education programme as well as a bachelor of education programme – mostly to in-service teachers who wish to upgrade their qualifi cations and improve conditions at their schools by becoming better education managers. ace: education management consists of six modules. each module addresses a different aspect of education management, organisational management, the professional and social context of education and education law. because of an increase in the use of technology in teaching and learning, the more recent literature on distance education suggests a paradigm shift from traditional learning support structures to technological support media (lawton, 1997; zhang, perris & yeung, 2005; alonso & blazquez, 2009). although the general movement is towards a more technological world, there are distance education students in many communities that still depend on traditional approaches to learning support. these students are mostly in areas where new technologies are absent or used minimally (tait, 2000). most of the students enrolled in distance education at the university of pretoria live in remote and rural areas where there is no electricity or other resources to facilitate the use of technological innovation in the learning process; they rely on traditional face-to-face learning support to complement the course material and instructions. such support should be given during the tutorials and support sessions. learning support framework the different components of learning support given to distance education students enrolled for the ace: education management at the university of pretoria are learning guides, readers, worksheets, tutor facilitation and opportunities for peer interaction distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta70 in group activities arranged during the facilitation sessions. the components of such learning support structures are interlaced and they are used simultaneously during the session. for successful distance education learning to take place, there needs to be interaction between the tutor/facilitator and the students, between the students and the course material, and active learning should result from students’ interaction with their peers. brigley and kell (2007) found that the role of the tutor in learning support was to help students make sense of the course material, integrate the acquired knowledge with educational practice, and develop as educators. the tutor’s role is also to facilitate interpersonal relationships of friendship between the tutor and the students and among students in the process of learning (price, richardson & jelfs, 2007). learning support that takes place in peer discussions enables students to share ideas, review ideas and provide feedback (mcconnell, 2000). students do not only gain new knowledge, but they also acquire new social skills in communicating and collaborating with their peers. ferguson (2010) notes that, unless peer interaction is well managed, it may have a negative effect on students’ learning due to strong emotional and social elements that may be involved in the established relationships. on a positive note, through peer support students are given the opportunity to share advice and common experiences of the challenges of distance learning (cain et al., 2003). learning support during the contact sessions of the ace: education management takes place mostly in the form of facilitator presentations and peer support learning. these contact sessions enable the students to engage critically in exploring and evaluating their own school situation as part of the process of knowledge construction. students work in groups of four to six, working through and discussing the activities provided on the worksheets. in a similar study, mcconnell (2000) found that students share information in group discussions and review ideas based on feedback from peers. the support that the students receive from one another in group discussions not only reduces the feeling of isolation and loneliness that some distance education students experience (dzakiria, 2008), but it is also important for promoting networking (lawton, 1997). price, richardson and jelfs (2007) suggest that the role of the facilitator is to encourage student interaction with others in terms of course content. in view of the argument presented earlier that different students have different needs and learning styles, it seems that study material for distance education teachers can change africa deta 71 students should be designed to cater to the contextual content and to the students’ particular environment. for distance learning, study materials such as learning guides, tutorial worksheets and readers are designed in such a manner that the content and structure are suitable for independent study and allow students to participate actively in learning. in this study, the use of case studies and examples are relevant to the target audience. this provides the students with a better understanding of the course as education managers. in the ace programme, the learning guides contain the structure and content of the course. they also include exercises and activities that should be completed by the students during self-study or when working in groups. in addition to the learning guides, students are given worksheets that have been designed to complement the learning guides. the worksheets provide scenarios and case studies for students to refl ect on and to apply what they have learned to real-life situations. the readers contain a number of articles and research literature related to specifi c modules. these readers contain case studies that are relevant to their context and that stimulate students’ thinking and make them refl ect critically on issues related to the modules as well as the practical application of different management theories. the role of the tutor/facilitator during the support session is to explain the content material to make it easier for the students to understand the theories and concepts involved. the tutors/facilitators also encourage and monitor group discussions using the provided worksheets that were developed by a university lecturer, based on the subject content of different core modules. brigley and kell (2007) believe that the role of the tutor is to help students make sense of the course material, integrate the acquired knowledge with educational practice and develop as educators. in order to facilitate learning, the tutor/facilitator should be knowledgeable about the subject and prepare thoroughly before a session. the tutor should also be able to refer students to other sources of support (lawton, 1997). according to fung and carr (2000), tutors working with groups of students during contact sessions help students to better understand the course content and provide guidance in completing assignments – especially if such tutors are interesting, helpful and able to express themselves clearly. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta72 research methodology the study design was based on an interpretive paradigm, qualitative approach. the author assumed that to be able to understand the world of distance education students, it was necessary to explore the life experiences of the students and the realities of their everyday life. participants were given full details of the aims of the study and what was expected from them in responding to the interview questions. they were assured that the information they shared with the researcher during the interview would be treated confidentially and that they could withdraw from the study at any time. the identity of the participants was protected by using pseudonyms. they were requested to sign consent forms before the interviews. the subjective knowledge of the participants’ experiences was collected through semi-structured interviews with ten participants who volunteered to be part of the study. all participants were distance education students who were enrolled in the ace: education management and had attended tutorial sessions. the participants were from different age groups and various ethnic backgrounds and they taught in primary or secondary schools. the interviews were used as a data collection method to explore the learning support needs of the students, their experiences and concerns. all the interviews took place at the tutorial venues after the sessions and lasted for approximately 30 minutes each. to gain some knowledge about, and a better understanding of the current learning support structures for distance education students, the following questions were asked: • what can you say about the learning support sessions? • what is your role in and expectations of a session? • what kind of support do you receive in a learning support session? • what are the challenges? the data from the interviews was analysed in terms of the themes in the interview questions. to enhance credibility and trustworthiness, triangulation was done by means of different data sources. participants were given the transcribed data to see if there was any information that may reveal their identity and to confirm the accuracy of the data. the interviews with the students were compared to determine the differences and similarities of their experiences and expectations. teachers can change africa deta 73 peer triangulation enabled the researchers to compare transcript codes, emerging patterns and themes. recommendations were made based on the fi ndings about how learning sessions could be improved. the study was limited to two learning support venues, namely polokwane and mokopane in the limpopo province of south africa. themes that emerged from the interviews four major themes emerged from the interviews. the fi rst theme was appreciating the ability of the tutor to clarify subject content and to motivate students during the sessions. students recognised the importance of a combined effort of peer support in collaborative learning. the second theme involved the different ways in which the role of the tutor was perceived by tutors and students. the third theme is concerned with the nature and importance of the support that students were getting from support sessions, while the fourth theme dealt with the administrative problems experienced by distance learning students. theme 1: students’ experiences of learning support in respect of subject content learning support sessions were perceived by all students to be a useful support structure that provided them with the opportunity to improve their understanding of the course material through lectures provided by the tutor/facilitator and meaningful interaction with other students. the sharing of ideas among peers seemed to motivate the students and reduce any feelings of isolation. the following comments were made in this regard during the interviews: without contact sessions i would not have made it. books alone are not enough because there are questions at the end of each unit that you may not be able to answer if you are alone. (student 3) when you come from a support session, you feel that you want to read. even on your way home, you start reading. you feel as if someone is telling you to read. (student 2) some students felt that it was important for them to participate in group discussions during the session: groupwork is good in a contact session. it gives us a chance to learn. i think that it is important for me to participate in the discussions during the distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta74 sessions, to share ideas and listen to each other’s opinions. even if you do not talk, you gain something from those who talk. (student 1) i think my role in a tutorial session is to participate in order to help the tutor to try to understand us. if i participate, i contribute a lot to the tutorial. you would have a problem if you try to do assignments on your own. (student 4) the learning support sessions were perceived by some of the students as an opportunity for self-development and life-long learning. the knowledge and experience they gained seemed to have more meaning for the students – beyond the final effects of an examination: i would recommend that they attend the sessions. i would tell them that this is not only for the exams, but life-long learning. you will apply it in life even after passing the exams. it can even help you to become a better person outside your working environment. (student 7) when we were discussing problems in our groups, one of the group members talked about a similar problem i was having and how she solved it. we share with others the problems we have in our schools. after the sessions when i went back to my school, i was able to handle some of my problems better. (student 6) i feel that if i miss one tutorial session, i would have missed something that i would have applied in the weeks to come. what i gain here i can practically apply in our school even before i write the exam. (student 4) some participants seem to experience a wider transactional distance in terms of structure and the content of the learning support materials. they appear unable to fully engage with the learning content independently, and acknowledged that the support from their peers and the facilitators was valuable. theme 2: expectations and roles played during a learning support session some students expected the tutors/facilitators to lecture them and give them the answers to the questions asked on the worksheets, while others expected the facilitator to guide them in terms of the course content and its application to reallife situations. after attending the session, students commented as follows: teachers can change africa deta 75 i want to gain insight on what the course entails, how to approach the work, how to prepare for exams and what is expected of me. i fi nd that sometimes at home i struggle with what is expected of us. when i come to the contact sessions i say it’s like a formal class where i can share my experiences and what i understand in the programme. (student 10) i expect to get knowledge, to share the problems around our school and classrooms with others. (student 5) it must guide me to get to know how to study on my own because we do it individually. it should teach us to work in groups. you fi nd that there are people from your area who are doing the same course and you can make a study group. you can read books but you fi nd that doing an assignment is still diffi cult when you are alone without guidelines. (student 6) other students felt empowered and saw their role as making a contribution to the learning process during contact sessions: my role at the discussion session is to participate in order to help the tutor to try to understand us. if i participate, i contribute a lot to the session. (student 6) we as students have a role to play in the sessions. we must come prepared and not blame the facilitators for not being prepared. (student 2) it seems that the students’ interaction with their peers during the support session tends to reduce the gap in the transactional distance. the students talked of taking an active role in the learning process through discussions with their peers. theme 3: support received during the sessions the responses show that some students experience the learning support session mainly as a means of preparing them for completing assignments and for writing examinations. the students felt that it was also an opportunity for networking with other students and establishing study groups. i want to assure you that, for each and every assignment i wrote, i got high marks because of these sessions. the notes you take at the sessions help when you work at home. when it comes to assignments, the support sessions are number 1. (student 2) distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta76 the worksheets help us a lot. they give us what is expected of us. the worksheet summarises what is in the study guide. if you do the worksheets with others you are already preparing for exams. (student 9) worksheets are designed according to the study guide and they encourage you to read the study guide. (student 6) i find the tutors very supportive. we gain a lot of knowledge from them. we achieve the outcomes of the module units through group discussions with the help of the tutor. (student 8) the quality of the facilitator is really good. the first time i came here, i wondered what the module was all about. through the help of the facilitator, i now understand the module better. i am also able to do the assignments. (student 3) the participants’ narrations indicate the use of a well-designed learning structure and the interaction between the facilitator and the students as being fruitful. a better structure and an increase in dialogue seem to reduce the transactional distance and improve the ability of the students to complete assignments and prepare for examinations. theme 4: challenges and recommendations from participants a common challenge mentioned by all students relates to administrative problems, such as venue changes, the cancellation of tutorial venues and lastminute confirmation of tutorial venues. many students complained about the lack of response when they called the university. the students expressed their disappointment about poor service delivery: we are supposed to register by sms but we do not get responses or when they respond they give you a wrong venue. i am looking at a scenario supposing that the students who register are less than ten, only to find out that the tenth student is the one relocated to umtata. this is doing injustice to the nine students. (student 1) there is a breakdown in communication with the university. lately, there are no sms reminders for contact sessions. sometimes our names are not on the list and you feel embarrassed because you sent the sms. sometimes the sms does not go through because of poor network signals. for long teachers can change africa deta 77 contact sessions an sms is not enough, we should fi ll in a registration form. (student 2) we did not attend the long contact session last time because our sms was not registered due to weak signal. we were embarrassed because we came here and the session had been cancelled, although we had a confi rmation message on our phones. (student 7) we have administration problems – sometimes when we come for learning support sessions there is nobody to help you. we phone the university but we cannot get through – the lines are always busy. (student 4) contrary to the negative experiences that many students had with regard to administrative support, some seemed satisfi ed with how the university organised the learning support sessions. i am happy with the arrangements. the environment is conducive for the sessions. the tutors are very friendly. so, what i could say is that the university should keep on doing what they are doing. (student 3) all in all, the contact sessions have been excellent. (student 10) other challenges that were not of an administrative nature concerned the use of the vernacular during the sessions as well as questionable tutor competency. some of our colleagues who are primary school teachers sometimes fi nd it hard to express themselves in english. somebody teaching grade r will use the vernacular throughout but we have to reproduce the material in english and that is when it becomes a problem. (student 1) at times you fi nd that the tutor knows only one module and the second one is too diffi cult for him – when you ask him a question he cannot answer. language is also a problem. (student 4) with reference to the study guides, some students struggled to obtain additional study material. the recommended study materials are not easily available. sometimes we have to move around the country to get some references needed. perhaps the university should supply a summarised version for us. (student 9) distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta78 the university should come up with more information because some of our study materials give us brief or little information, then refers us to some books that we should buy or information to search on the internet. the internet is not always available. (student 1) discussion the distance education students who were interviewed during this study found learning support sessions useful in the sense that they could more easily understand the subject content because of tutor facilitation and peer learning support. the experiential knowledge gained through peer discussions seems to have had an impact on the work environment of the students. peer interaction seems to reduce the feeling of isolation by decreasing transactional distance (moore, 1980) between the facilitators and the students. the students appeared excited to be able to apply theory to practice in their work environment. they appreciated the role that the tutor/facilitator played in providing insights that made the course content easier for them to understand. stevenson et al. (2006) report similar findings. in their study, students’ positive feedback on tutor leadership motivated tutors to continue to evaluate the key issues of the course material. for most of the learners, the support they received during learning support sessions seemed more advantageous than studying alone. this finding shows that a high level of dialogue reduces transactional distance (moore, 1980). this links up with dzakiria’s (2008) warning that students studying alone may feel isolated and experience learning problems. it is suggested that students want more than just lectures from the tutor/facilitator; they want to be able to share their experiences, learn from each other and in the process increase learner autonomy, which results in low transactional distance. some of the students in the current study felt that they were contributing to the body of knowledge during the sessions and, thus, they did not rely exclusively on the tutor/facilitator as an expert. another important aspect of this study is concerned with the students’ expectations of a learning support session. the role of the tutor/facilitator was perceived in different ways, as some students expected the facilitator to lecture and give answers to the worksheets and the assignments, while others expected the facilitator to provide guidance only as they took charge of their learning. both teachers can change africa deta 79 groups of students needed some form of dialogue with the facilitator, although one group seemed more inclined to being autonomous. in the study by stevenson et al. (2006), some students wanted discussion and interaction with fellow students in a learning session, while others wanted lectures and a focus on course content. according to brigley and kell (2007), third-year students need tutor support with refl ective learning and content-oriented skills rather than pastoral care. different students were found to have different learning styles and needs. some students would engage more deeply with the study material and needed passive tutor support, while others were “disengaged” from the learning material and needed more active tutor guidance and support (carnwell, 2000). in this study, the students expected the facilitator to explain the course content and give them additional information that would be helpful in assignments and examinations. the implication of this fi nding is that the role of the tutor/facilitator and that of the students should be clearly defi ned so that there is a common understanding of the nature of the learning session. facilitators should be trained to balance the two roles to meet the learning needs of the different students. they should explain the diffi cult course content to improve students’ understanding and, at the same time, provide an opportunity for the students to share their own knowledge and understanding. this paper argues that the role of the tutor should be balanced between providing insights into the course content and facilitating peer learning through group discussions. furthermore, fi ndings in this study reveal that tutors/facilitators who were more inclined to teaching did not give adequate time for groupwork and students tended to become more dependent on the tutor/facilitator as the holder of knowledge. on the other hand, tutors/facilitators who believed in constructivist learning were more likely to encourage group discussions and conducted interactive sessions. with regard to the actual support received during the learning sessions, the students in this study seem to have benefi ted from the knowledge and expertise of the tutor/facilitator, and peer participation in group discussions contributed positively to the learning process. the tutor’s contribution was linked more to examination preparation and successful assessment outcomes, like obtaining pass marks for assignments and examinations, while the peer contribution was of a practical nature and addressed the work environment of the students. the sessions provided an opportunity for networking and collaborative learning, which was a distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta80 way of overcoming the loneliness and reducing the transactional distance that is often experienced by distance education students. a noteworthy finding involves the problems experienced by the students in the process of registering for, and attending learning support sessions. there seems to be serious communication problems between the students and the university’s administrative structures. the situation was described by one student as a “breakdown in communication”. the university’s infrastructure for communicating with students by means of sms technology seems to be inadequate, at times, in terms of recording students’ confirmation of attendance of the sessions. the discrepancy between the data records of the administrative section and students’ cellphone notifications indicates a serious malfunction in the communication system. the consequences of such malfunction is that students are denied access to the learning support sessions, as some venues are cancelled due to a low number of registrations that are confirmed via the sms system. it seems that the system requires a back-up or alternative means of confirming attendance for students in areas where there is poor network coverage and where students are not able to receive or send smss. ntshoe (2010) asserts that a reliance on technology for distance education students may alienate students in rural and remote areas where network coverage is problematic. in terms of the student context, it would be worthwhile exploring how communication can be improved to benefit all students rather than being a barrier to learning support for some students. dzakiria (2007) argues that the role of management is crucial for successful learning support to take place in distance learning, while cain et al. (2003) maintain that effective communication is a vital element in providing constructive learning support for distance education students. another aspect of communication that constitutes a part of the reported problems in this study is related to the language of communication. it is evident from the experiences of some students that not all the facilitators are comfortable communicating in english and rather use the vernacular during the sessions. the use of colloquial speech may be problematic, as some of the terminology may not be easy to translate. in addition, since assignments and examinations are written in english, it would be better for the students to understand the subject content in english in order to make it easier for them to answer the examination questions in that language. teachers can change africa deta 81 it should also be noted that students mentioned that they had diffi culty accessing the recommended additional study material. the reasons for this could be a lack of internet access for some students due to the underdeveloped technological infrastructure in their region and/or the non-existence of local libraries that could serve as resource centres. implications for practice from the study, it is clear that a number of steps should be taken to improve distance education students’ experiences of learning support sessions. the following recommendations are made: • the university should encourage peer support networks during and beyond the learning support sessions. • tutor/facilitator training should focus on strategies that develop the competency of the tutor/facilitator in respect of course content knowledge and the ability to motivate and facilitate group activities. • a reliable and effective mode of communication should be put in place. it seems that it is not enough to rely on sms communication. the university administration should consider implementing additional communication strategies to supplement the use of sms technology. the messages sent to students should be timely and, if possible, reminders should be sent as well. • examinations and assignments are mostly written in english. thus, when facilitators are recruited and prepared, their profi ciency in english should be a prerequisite and a priority for further training. • when the training course material is designed, it is crucial to take into consideration the availability of additional course material before drawing up the reference list., it is essential to provide an alternative means of obtaining the learning material for students who are unable to download reading material or who do not have access to libraries. these measures can include arranging for mobile resource units to be available as part of the learning support structure. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta82 conclusion in the current study, it was found that distance education students generally experienced learning support sessions as useful and worth attending. there was a close link between what the students expected from a learning support session and what they actually experienced during the sessions. the students positively valued the role and function of the tutors/facilitators. in their view, tutor/facilitator support managed to make theoretical content easier to understand and the support sessions encouraged practical activities by means of group interaction. interaction during group discussions was viewed as the sharing of knowledge and experience among peers, which seemed to reduce transactional distance. in their work environment, some students made practical use of the relationships and networks they had established during the discussions. the sessions also helped to develop the students, both professionally and personally. it was found that the high dependency on the use of sms communication for registering students for support sessions was likely to disadvantage some learners in areas where mobile phone network coverage was poor or unavailable, widening the transactional gap between the students and the support system. these students struggled to confirm their attendance, thus limiting their opportunity to attend learning support sessions. further research is required to establish a more effective communication system to meet the expectations of the students and to enhance the process of learning support. teachers can change africa deta 83 references alonso, d.l. & blazquez, e.f. 2009. are the functions of teachers in e-learning and face-toface learning environments really different? educational technology & society, 12:331– 343. brigley, s. & kell, c. 2007. external tutors and academic departments: supporting distance learners on a teaching certifi cate course. open learning, 22:251–261. cain, d.l., marrara, c., pitre, p.e. & armour, s. 2003. support services that matter: an exploration of the experiences and needs of graduate students in a distance learning environment. journal of distance education, 18:42–56. carnwell, r. 2000. approaches to study and their impact on the need for support and guidance in distance education. open learning, 15:123–140. dzakiria, h. 2008. students’ account of the need for continuous support in a distance learning programme. open learning, 23:103–111. ferguson, r. 2010. peer interaction: the experience of distance students at university level. journal of computer assisted learning, 26:574–584. fung, y. & carr, r. 2000. face-to-face tutorials in distance learning system: meeting student needs. open learning, 15:35–46. jelfs, a., richardson, j.t.e. & price, l. 2009. student and tutor perceptions of effective tutoring in distance education. distance education, 30:419–441. kang. h. & gyorke, a. 2008. rethinking distance learning activities: a comparison of transactional distance theory and activity theory. [online]. avalaible: http://krex.ksu. edu. lawton, s. 1997. supportive learning in distance education. journal of advanced nursing, 25:1076–1083. mcconnell, d. 2000. implementing computer-supported cooperative learning. london: kogan page. moore, m.g. 1980. independent study. in redefi ning the discipline of adult education, edited by r. boyd & j. apps. pp. 16-31. san francisco: jossey – bass. pp. 16–31. newman, r.s. 2002. how self-regulated learners cope with academic diffi culty: the role of adaptive help seeking. theory into practice, 41:132–143. ntshoe, i.m. 2010. realigning visions and missions of universities in a transbinary setting. south african journal for open and distance learning practice, 32:27–41. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta84 price, l., richardson, j.t. & jelfs, a. 2007. face to face versus online tutoring support in distance education. studies in higher education, 32:1–20. roehler l.r. & calton, d.j. 1997. scaffolding: a powerful tool in social constructivist classrooms. cambridge, ma: brookline books. rumble, g. 2000. student support in distance education in the 21st century: learning from service management. distance education, 21:216–235. rymarz, r. & mclarney, g. 2011. teaching about augustine: providing scaffolding for learning. the journal of adult theological education, 8:53–64. sherry, l. 1996. issues in distance learning. international journal of educational telecommunication, 1:337–365. [online]. available at: http://carbon.cudenver. edu/~1sherry/pubs/issues (accessed on 3 january 2010). stevenson, k., mackeogh, k. & sander, p. 2006. working with student expectations of tutor support in distance education: testing an expectation-led quality assurance model. open learning, 21:139–152. tait, a. 2000. planning student support for open and distance learning. open learning, 15:287–299. tait, j. 2004. the tutor/facilitator role in student retention. open learning, 19:109. university of pretoria. 2010. distance education programme, admin booklet. zhang, w., perris, k. & yeung, l. 2005. online tutorial support in open and distance learning: student perceptions. british journal of education technology, 36(5):789–804. teachers can change africa deta 85 effects of outdoor activities on biology students’ attitude to the environment dr alice m olagunju department of teacher education, university of ibadan – nigeria amolagunju@yahoo.com omolola o oloyede department of teacher education, university of ibadan – nigeria oloyedelol@yahoo.com abstract the teacher’s use of lecture method has been observed to be ineffective in bringing about the right attitude towards the environment and environmental problems. the purpose of this research is to fi nd out what are the effect of outdoor activities and the infl uence of gender on secondary school students’ environmental attitude to biology. outdoor activities are educational activities that occur outside the regular classroom activities to create awareness about the environment. the aim is for students to notice the environmental problems caused as a result of a negative attitude towards the environment and the need for a positive attitude instead. the study was carried out using a pre-test, post-test, and a control group. a quasi-experimental design data analysis was undertaken using descriptive statistics and inferential statistics such as analysis of covariance (ancova). the outdoor activities had a signifi cant effect on students’ environmental attitude (f=5.067 p<0.05). gender also played a signifi cant role in the attitude of students to the environment (f=6.939, p<0.05). outdoor activities were observed to have brought about signifi cant attitudinal change in the students. therefore, outdoor activities are recommended for teaching and learning environmental education in biology for both genders. keywords: attitude to environment; environmental concepts; environmental education; environmental problems; gender; outdoor educational activities. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta86 introduction environmental education (ee) is generally concerned with the development of the necessary motivation to make informed decisions about environmental issues. it is a learning process that increases an individual’s awareness about the environment and associated challenges, develops the necessary skills and expertise to address the challenges, and fosters attitudes, motivations and commitments to make informed decisions and take responsible action (unesco’s tbilisi declaration, 1978). teaching at any formal level of education should never be deemed a totally “talkand-chalk” affair. today, effective and meaningful teaching should be a process in which both the teachers and learners are actively engaged. if this process is to be fully realised, each significant step should be backed up with learning resources that are designed to make teaching easier and learning more meaningful (ayodele, 2001, as cited by orenuga, 2006). environmental education requires a “student-initiative education” in the sense that it is fundamentally oriented towards problem-solving. the inadequate environmental ethics, ignorance and inadequate environmental awareness, knowledge and skills in pupils and students in particular, can only be remedied through such education (ogueri, 2004). there is thus a need for a methodology that will make the students functional in environmental education. the need is to have environmentally conscious and literate citizens who are concerned about saving the environment from disasters. it may happen only when people are knowledgeable about their environment and associated problems, are aware of the solutions to these problems and are motivated to work towards these solutions. this naturally means a change in attitude and behaviour of the public (ahove, 2001). the more we learn, the better we realise the worth of our environment. the oxford advanced learner’s dictionary defines “gender” as “the fact of being male or female.” much research on factors that affect the performance of students in science and science-related subjects has been carried out. among the factors that have received attention are learner characteristics, such as gender. attitude is a way of life or a human behavioural pattern that can always serve as a direction towards human endeavour (afuwape, 2003). an attitude is a hypothetical construct about a mental state that is inferred from verbal reports and behavioural observation. as a concept, attitude takes its reality from our own introspection. teachers can change africa deta 87 attitude has been useful in understanding the behaviour of others. attitudes are based on values, have horizontal and vertical structure and range from general to specifi c. attitudes towards the environment are fundamentally important, widely discussed, frequently measured and poorly understood. they are conceptualised in terms of attitude theory as being composed of beliefs and affective components towards an object. environmental concern appears to be a specifi c belief that is largely embedded in cognitive structure and should be considered as an opinion rather than an attitude. although the issue of gender and achievement in science is an important area that has involved a lot of research, available results have not yielded a conclusive trend in performance (bilesanmi-awoderu, 2002). for instance, raimi (2002) has found a signifi cant gender group difference (in favour of boys). in addition, female students have demonstrated better performance than their male counterparts as revealed in the study of bilesanmi-awoderu (1998). some studies do not establish such differences or, at most, determine gender group differences to some levels of education and some science topics only (raimi & adeoye, 2002). according to owoyemi (2007), students’ achievement in physical chemistry courses has nothing to do with attitude or whether the student is male or female. in their separate research works, ogunleye (2002) and olatundun (2008) reveal in their fi ndings that females display more verbal commitment to the environment than their male counterparts. raimi and adeoye’s (2002) research results show that no signifi cant infl uence of gender and/or effect of ability existed on science students’ attitude to the environment. the results of research that focus on gender and students’ achievement in science and science-related subjects are thus confl icting. the present study is thus concerned with the infl uence of gender on the learning outcomes of environmental education. more studies on this infl uence can bring about a resolution of the confl icting nature of the subject. rationale for this study the study would perceive how much environmental change can be achieved through outdoor educational activities, especially when a holistic view of environmental problems and issues is portrayed to students through this method. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta88 the study would enhance the utility of knowledge and skills acquired through the formal education system for better living and sustenance of the environment in the process of harnessing it for survival. this would help to remove purely cognitive achievement and eventually lead to a systemic change in society. it may eventually bring about new educational policy or curriculum changes, especially in the areas of teaching methods and material for teaching, which would stimulate participatory learning by students. statement of the problem it has been observed that students exhibited poor knowledge of, negative attitudes towards and harmful practices to a healthy environment. this is evident in the way they sometimes litter. teaching science for utility is one of the goals of science education. a situation where students who are exposed to years of science instruction are still unable to tackle simple problems in their environments is highly undesirable. this occurs because such students have not grasped the vision of science application purposes (ige, 2003). therefore, there is a need for a methodology of teaching that will lead to the acquisition of knowledge as well as its application to everyday life activities, especially those related to solving of problems in the environment and the development of a positive attitude towards the environment. the problem this study seeks to address is to determine the effect of using another teaching strategy (outdoor educational activities) on secondary school students’ environmental attitude. it is to reveal how outdoor activities could bring about functional and holistic environmental education and an all-round national development and systemic change in education. hypotheses the following null hypotheses were tested at 0.05 levels of significance. ho 1: there is no significant main effect of outdoor activities on students’ attitude to the environment. ho 2: there is no significant main effect of gender on students’ attitude to the environment. teachers can change africa deta 89 methodology this study adopted a pre-test, post-test, control group and a quasi-experimental design using a 2x2x2 factorial matrix, which is represented below. table 1: the 2x2x2 factorial matrix treatment school location gender male female experimental rural urban control rural urban the researcher used 240 senior secondary school two (ss ii) students from four selected secondary schools in urban and rural areas of the akinyele and ibadan north local government areas of oyo state, nigeria, respectively. two schools from the urban and two schools from the rural areas were randomly selected from all the secondary schools in the area. the random sampling technique was used to assign the schools to experimental and control groups for the study. that is, two out of the four schools were randomly assigned as the experimental groups and the other two as the control groups. intact classes were used. the biology teachers (one from each of the schools) were involved in the study. instruments four instruments, constructed by the researchers, were used for data collection in this study. these are as follows: • students’ environmental attitude scale (seas) • instructional guide for teaching with outdoor activities(igtoa) • instructional guide for teaching with conventional method (igtcm) • evaluation sheet for assessing teachers (esat) distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta90 students’ environmental attitude scale (seas): this instrument consists of 14 positive items and six negative items with responses of “true” or “false” to be chosen by the students. each item was designed to test the students’ sense of responsibility towards the environment and how they as students could, through their attitude, show how much of the environmental education ethics have been inculcated in them, in order to conserve natural resources and solve environmental problems around them. the instrument was also trial-tested and the cronbach alpha measure was used to ensure its reliability. the reliability coefficient obtained for the scale is 0.82. this gave the indication that the items in the instruments were reliable. instructional guide for teaching with outdoor activities (igtoa): this is an instructional guide for teachers participating in the experimental group. it contains the statement of topic, objectives and the procedures expected to be followed by the teachers in teaching environmental education concepts during outdoor activities. this was prepared and used for the training of teachers to ensure uniformity in the teaching method. instructional guide for teaching with conventional method (igtcm): this is an instructional guide for teachers participating in the classroom using the conventional or lecture method of teaching. it contains the statement of the topic, objectives, instructional material and the procedures expected to be followed by the teachers in teaching the environmental concepts in the classroom. this was prepared and used for the training of teachers to ensure uniformity in the teaching method utilised in all the classes used as control groups. evaluation sheet for assessing teachers (esat): this instrument was designed to be used in evaluating the teachers’ effective use of the instructional guides during the teaching process. it shows their presentation of concepts, mastery of the topics, use of materials and activities as directed, and how effective their presentation would be for the mastery of concepts by the students. teachers can change africa deta 91 procedure for data collection and analysis in carrying out this research, the action plan was set out as follows: • two weeks for the training of teachers/scrutiny • one week for the pre-test • eight weeks for the treatment • one week for the post-test • total = 12 weeks the researcher took time to train the teachers on the use of the provided teacher’s guide in order to ensure uniformity. the areas of disparity of ideas were discussed and the reason why the guide should be used as expected was explained. the teachers were trained to teach with the instructional guides (igtoa) in the experimental groups. for a pre-test, the seas instrument was administered to the students to test their attitudes on environmental issues and concepts in biology to compare the likely effect of the treatment on them. the students in the environmental group were exposed to outdoor activities. the outdoor educational activities in this study included fi eld trips and excursions. the experimental group visited illegal dumping sites in the markets and environment near their school. they went on excursions to rivers and streams where domestic waste was being dumped. this was to enable them observe the effects of human activities on the environment, so that they can suggest solutions to the problems. the experimental group also used the lecture method, as well as charts, pictures, fi eld trips and excursions. these were used to enhance students’ understanding of the concepts they were taught. in the control group, the students were subjected to the conventional method of teaching and the outdoor activities by their biology teachers. the conventional method involved the use of lecture method and various teaching materials such as charts, pictures etc. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta92 for the post-test, the test (seas) was again administered on the subjects after the various treatments with the help of their biology teachers in the school. the students’ scripts were collected and marked. the scores were used to determine the extent of the effect of treatment (outdoor educational activities and lecture method) on students’ attitudes to environmental education. procedure for data analysis data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics of frequency counts, means, percentages and standard deviation. in addition, inferential statistics, such as analysis of covariance (ancova), were also used. the hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance. multiple classification analysis (mca) was also used to determine the magnitude of the differences of the various groups. results the results of this study and the summary in the tables are presented below using the research hypotheses as guide. table 2: descriptive statistics of post-test attitude towards environmental education according to treatment, gender and school location n mean deviation gender male location urban 24 18.42 1.349 rural 29 17.79 1.841 total 53 18.10 2.441 female location urban 36 17.86 1.807 rural 31 14.90 2.700 total 67 16.49 2.693 total location urban 60 18.08 1.650 rural 60 17.05 2.418 total 120 17.37 2.362 teachers can change africa deta 93 n mean deviation treatment gender male location urban 35 17.89 2.720 rural 24 15.90 2.568 total 59 16.90 2.384 female location urban 25 17.40 1.472 rural 36 16.59 2.645 total 61 16.50 2.264 total location urban 60 17.68 2.281 rural 60 15.38 2.662 total 120 16.73 2.589 gender male location urban 59 18.10 2.264 rural 53 16.75 2.441 total 112 17.46 2.434 female location urban 61 17.67 1.680 rural 67 15.79 2.777 total 128 16.69 2.496 total location urban 120 17.88 1.992 rural 120 16.22 2.667 total 240 17.05 2.493 table 2 presents the descriptive statistics of students with respect to their attitude to the environment. it comprises the mean score, standard deviation and numbers of students involved in the research. a detailed study of the table reveals that, with respect to attitudinal disposition towards the environment, the experimental groups’ performance was better than that of the control group. furthermore, male students performed better than their female counterparts, and urban students performed better than students in the rural area. for further statistical clarifi cation, the analysis of covariance – an inferential statistical method – was used to test the hypotheses in order to show whether the difference in the mean scores was signifi cant or not. it was also used to make up for the initial differences that may have existed between the groups, since intact classes were used. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta94 ho1: there is no significant main effect of outdoor activities on students’ environmental attitudes table 3: summary of 2x2x2 ancova of post-test attitude scores according to treatment, gender and school location type iii sum of square d mean square f sig. s o u rc e corrected model 394.443 8 38.055 7.444 .000* intercept 929.712 1 929.712 181.856 .000 atti_pre 4.971 1 4.971 .972 .325 treatment 25.907 1 25.907 5.067 .025* gender 35.472 1 35.472 6.939 .009* location 120.434 1 120.434 23.557 .000* treatment * gender .064 1 .064 .012 .911* treatment * location 71.811 1 71.811 14.046 .000* gender * location 5.020 1 5.020 .982 .323 treatment * gender* location .238 1 .238 .046 .830 error 1180.957 231 5.112 total 71254.000 240 corrected total 1485.400 239 a.r squared = .205 (adjusted r squared = .177 the result of the 2x2x2 analysis of covariance in table 3 reveals that outdoor activities have a significant effect on students’ attitude to the environment (f=5.067 p<0.05). the hypothesis was therefore rejected. this means that the experimental group scored higher (x=17.37) than the control group (x =16.73), as shown in the mean scores in table 4. this shows that students in the experimental group had a better attitude towards the environment than those in the control group. teachers can change africa deta 95 table 4: mca on post-test attitude scores by treatment, gender and school location treatment + category n adjusted for factors and covariates u n a d ju st e d adjusted for factors and covariates eta u n a d ju st e d beta treatment outdoor activities 120 17.37 17.37 0.317 0.127 0.322 0.129 conventional method 120 16.73 16.73 -0.317 -0.322 gender male 112 17.46 17.38 0.414 0.156 0.334 0.125 female 128 16.69 16.76 0.363 -0.292 location urban 120 17.88 17.80 0.833 0.335 .755 0.303 rural 120 16.22 10 -0.833 -0.755 grand mean = 17.05 table 4 shows the results of the mca on the post-test scores of attitude to the environment by gender, treatment and school location. the table revealed that the experimental group had a higher unadjusted mean (x= 17.37) than the control group(x= 16.73). the treatment is observed to have contributed 1.7% to students’ predisposition towards the environment. ho 2: there is no signifi cant main effect of gender on students’ environmental attitudes the results from table 3 reveal that there gender had a signifi cant infl uence on the students’ attitudes (f=6.939, p<0.05). the hypothesis was therefore rejected. table 2 shows that males had a higher attitude mean score (x=17.46, sd=2.434) than the female students (x=16.69, sd=2.496). the males are therefore more positively disposed towards the environment than their female counterparts. the results in table 4 further show that gender accounted for 1.6% of the total variance in students’ attitude scores, as given by the beta value of 0.125. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta96 discussion, implications and recommendations the results of the analysed data revealed that outdoor educational activities had positive effects on the students’ attitudes towards the environment. the effect of outdoor activities on attitude was significant. this, in a way, was in line with the findings of olatundun (2008), martins (2002), stine (1997) and knapp (1996). the study has provided students with the opportunity to build attitudes based on their experiences encountered in the environment. this approach towards solving environmental issues and problems is a step in the right direction for future sustainable development and could bring about change in peoples’ attitudes. this shows that the better an individual learns, the better he/she realises the worth of his environment and the better his repertoire of behaviour towards the environment. gender, which is the moderator variable in this study, was investigated to determine the influence it exerted on students’ environmental attitudes. the results of the analysis of data revealed that gender had a significant main effect on students’ environmental attitude. the male students performed better than their female counterparts. this is in line with the findings of oyedeji (1996), balogun (1994), raimi (2002), who showed a significant gender group difference (in favour of boys). this stands, however, in contrast to the findings of ogunleye (2002) and olatundun (2008), whose research revealed a significant gender group difference (in favour of the girls). this finding further lends credence to the fact that the boys are more predisposed to the learning of science-oriented subjects/topics than the girls. the present study was necessary to find a way of bringing about functional and holistic environmental education and an all-round national development and systematic change, and an acquisition of attitude for utility, especially towards the environment, which has been observed to play a vital role in all facets of life. the outdoor activities were seen to be effective in achieving this. thus, students are expected to make maximum use of outdoor activities as an opportunity to improve their attitudes towards the environment. based on the findings of this study, the recommendations below are considered as appropriate for the following role-players: teachers can change africa deta 97 1. curriculum planners: the results of this study have shown the need for curriculum planners to include outdoor activities as one of the methods required in the curriculum, especially the student/teacher activities, to bring about effective environmental attitudes. 2. teachers and students: outdoor activities have been observed to have brought about signifi cant attitudinal change in students. therefore, outdoor activities are recommended for the teaching and learning of environmental education concepts such as pollution, erosion, desertifi cation, deforestation, conservation of matter and energy, overpopulation and even ecological topics in biology. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta98 references adeyemi, b.o. & ajogbeje, o.o. 2006. revitalizing decayed educational system through instructional technology. african journal of historical sciences in education, 2(1):40– 51. afuwape, m.o. 2003. teacher and school factors as predictor of student’s achievement in integrated science. african journal of educate research, 9(1&2):89–96. ahove, m. 2001. environmental management and education: an introduction. 2nd ed. lagos: golden pen books. ajitoni, s.o. 2005. effects of full and quasi participatory learning strategies on senior secondary pupils’ environmental knowledge and attitude in kwara state nigeria. unpublished doctoral thesis, university of ibadan. akubuilo, d.u. 2004. the effects of problem solving instructional strategies on students’ achievement and retention in biology with respect to location in enugu state. journal of the science teachers association of nigeria, 39(1&2):94–100. aremu, a. & john, a. 2005. gender implications of the use of video drama in environmental education. in issues in language, communication and education. a book in honour of caroline a. okedara. edited by dada a. akinbade & o.o. kolawole. ibadan: constellation books, 342–352. bilesanmi-awoderu, j.b. 1998. the relationship between students’ performance in junior secondary integrated science and senior secondary school biology. studies in curriculum, 2:66–75. bilesanmi-awoderu, j.b. 2002. the status of biology practical skills acquisition among nigerian secondary school seniors in ogun state. african journal of educational research, 8(1&2):1–7. hornby, a.s. 2010. oxford advanced learner’s dictionary of current english. international student’s edition. oxford: oxford university press. ige, t.a. 2003. a problem solving model for bridging the gap between theory and practice in science teaching. african journal of educational research, 9(1&2):147–155. knapp, c.l. 1996. just beyond the classroom community adventures for interdisciplinary learning. charleston: eric/cress. martins, s. 2002: outdoor and environmental education development manager. curriculum service. [online]. available at: http://www.hse.uk/school/trips. teachers can change africa deta 99 ogueri, a.c. 2004. the need for environmental education in secondary education level in nigeria: problems and challenges. [online]. available at: http://rudar/ruc.dk/ bitstream/1800/331/1/the_need_for.pdf. ogunleye, b.o. 2002. evaluation of the environmental aspect of the senior secondary school chemistry curriculum in ibadan. phd thesis. ibadan: university of ibadan. olatundun, s.a. 2008. impact of outdoor educational activities on pupils’ environmental knowledge and attitude in selected primary schools in ibadan, nigeria. unpublished phd thesis. ibadan: university of ibadan. orenuga, o.a. 2006. optimization of educational resources: a move towards revitalizing nigerian education. african journal of historical sciences in education, 2(1):208–214. owoyemi, t.e. 2007. mathematics & chemistry senior school certifi cate result, gender & attitude as predictors of achievement in a physical chemistry course. african journal of education research, 11(1&2):27–34. raimi, s.m. 2002. a problem solving technique and laboratory skill as supplements to laboratory instruction in students’ learning of volumetric analysis. unpublished phd thesis. raimi, s.m. & adeoye f.a. 2002. gender differences among college students as determinants of performance in integrated sciences. african journal of educational research, 8(1&2):41–49. stine, s. 1997. landscapes for learning: creating outdoor environment for children and youth. new york: john wiley & sons. unesco-unep. 1990. international environmental education programme, 1–21. unesco. 1978. ee: background and history [environmental education]. [online]. available at: www.epa.gov/enviroed/eedefi ned.html.catchedpage (accessed on 10 march 2010). wikipedia. 2013. constructivist teaching method. [online]. available at: http://en.wikipedia. org/wiki/constructivist_teaching_methods. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta100 teachers can change africa deta 101 the importance of continuous teacher development through distance education for teachers using additional language for learning, teaching and assessment dr margaret f omidire department of education psychology, faculty of education, university of pretoria funke.omidire@up.ac.za abstract this paper is based on a study conducted to determine the infl uence of a curriculum-based dynamic assessment (cda) procedure on the performance and effect on additional language (al) learners in mainstream education. eight learners in grade 8 selected from two schools in lagos, nigeria, participated in a process of debriefi ng and mediation during three continuous assessment cycles and the endof-term examination in two subjects, business studies and integrated science. the study was an attempt to employ cda as a means of reducing the inequity in the assessment of learners using a language in which they lack profi ciency. although the results suggest a generally positive infl uence of cda to varying degrees, the participants’ low level of al acquisition was almost crippling to the entire study. code switching had to be used extensively during mediation and debriefi ng, questioning the actual al teaching and learning process. the severity of the barriers constituted a serious limitation to optimum learning. the results suggest that the al teaching and learning process could be fundamentally fl awed, as it appeared that some of the teachers, as models of language, were themselves failing the learners. the question of the adequacy of teacher training and continuous professional development for teachers was deemed a strong factor in both the participating schools. the results of this study indicate a profound need to expand teacher education and in-service training through distance education in order to increase the number of truly qualifi ed teachers, particularly in rural areas. keywords: additional language; code switching; assessment; dynamic assessment; teaching and learning. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta102 introduction the study focused on the influence of curriculum-based dynamic assessment (cda) as an alternative form of assessment for learners with an additional language (al), in this case english, as the language of teaching, learning and assessment (lolta), but the close relationship to teacher education became evident during the data collection. the importance of initial teacher education and continuous professional development could also not be ignored, but was rather deemed as requiring further investigation. the resultant assumption was that distance education could be the key to successfully training and engaging with teachers, particularly in rural and remote areas. this paper discusses the results of the study as they relate to language, and how language teaching methods and practices might have affected the learning and assessment of the participants. the paper begins with the background to the study, leading to a description of the study and the methods employed, followed by a discussion of the results and findings. the paper concludes with a discussion of the place and value of distance teacher education and continued professional development as probable avenues for improving learning outcomes on language acquisition and use. background to the study the additional language factor in education is a global phenomenon. immigration is on the increase and, with it, cultural and linguistic diversity (cld) in classrooms. in addition, many learners in developing and postcolonial african countries have to use an al as the language of learning, teaching and assessment (lolta) (omidire, bouwer & jordan, 2011). this is due either to the multiplicity of the languages represented in such countries or their official languages being foreign ones. the situation creates a new generation of al learners worldwide who are now said to outnumber l1 learners (nieman, 2006). teachers sometimes seem unaware of the complexities of al acquisition and learning, and classroom practices often label al learners as having learning disabilities, underachieving or being emotionally unstable, leading to classification into one or another form of special educational needs programme (gonzalez, brusca-vega & yawkey, 1997). other challenges associated with learning in an alternative language include static assessment in a language in which the learners lack proficiency on both teachers can change africa deta 103 the receptive and expressive levels. static assessment does not accommodate the language barriers that are often associated with alternative language acquisition and learning. how can assessment in the alternative language be equitable, valid or reliable when learners fail to comprehend or communicate due to alternative language barriers? the continued use of such static assessment practices can have lasting effects on the learners and their attitudes, especially when assessments are high-stakes assessments that are used for the classifi cation of learners, selection and progression in schools. purpose of the study other forms of alternative assessment and accommodation in assessment have been investigated and found to not be fully able to cater for the challenges of alternative language learners (omidire, 2009). the study therefore investigated the infl uence of dynamic assessment as an alternative method of assessment for learners whose home language is different from that of the lolta. the study built on cda, which was developed by lidz (2002:73) out of the need to “bridge assessment with intervention and for the results of the assessment to inform instruction”. the purpose was to fi nd out how alternative language learners respond to this method of assessment and determine the corresponding infl uence that the cda procedure has on the learning, performance and affect of the alternative language learners. research method a qualitative multiple-case study was conducted with eight alternative language participants, purposively selected from two grade 8 classes in each of the two government schools, one from the lower-income bracket (lib school) and the other from the middle-income bracket (mib school). the study ran for the fi rst school term through three continuous assessment (ca) cycles and the end-of-term examination. the participants were coded: af, am, bf and bm (lib school) and cf, cm, df and dm (mib school). the instrumentation consisted of ca1 assessment tasks in business studies (bs) and integrated science (is) as initially developed by the teachers, and mediational assessment tasks for the further rounds of assessment. mediational assessment then entailed the linguistic adaptation of assessment questions set by the teachers to mediate cognitive-linguistic acts of response, and scaffolding in the form of a glossary was developed. the glossary contained subject-specifi c and functional distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta104 assessment terms from the questions, e.g. agent, differentiate, describe. the strategies aimed essentially at enabling the alternative language participants to self-direct their language-related acts to process the questions and construct their responses more effectively (omidire, 2009). per ca cycle, the cda procedure took the form of mediational assessment, linguistically focused debriefing and mediation regarding assessment questions. debriefing involved discussing their observed behaviour and experience of the assessment with participants. the purpose of this was to identify the languagerelated challenges of the assessment tasks and engaging participants in a solutionfinding exercise to address the perceived linguistic barriers (omidire, 2009). permission to conduct the study was obtained from the lagos state ministry of education and the participating schools. informed consent was obtained from the participants and the teachers after a detailed explanation of the purpose of the study and processes involved. data analysis each participant’s continuous assessment scripts were examined individually in respect of receptive and expressive language skills. the participants’ test scores were also analysed comparatively across the ca cycles and with some reference to the means of the scores of the relevant classes for signs of possible progress. the transcripts of the debriefings and mediations in the original mix of english and yoruba were analysed per participant, using an explanation-building technique, but with some member checking, with reference to the linguistic challenges experienced. collective analysis of the debriefing and mediational data per ca cycle was used to arrive at emergent themes for the adaptation of the assessment items in the subsequent ca cycle or examination. results and findings (a) use of dynamic assessment the mediational process focused largely on the participants’ access to the assessment questions by mediating more in terms of language than content (losardo & notarisyverson, 2001). particularly with the lib school, mediation generally took the form of reading support. decoding and comprehension of the assessment material teachers can change africa deta 105 became the focus of most sessions, when, due to the extent of the alternative language barrier, graduated prompting (campione & brown, 1987) in respect of conceptual processing was rendered somewhat ineffective in some cases. the severity of the alternative language challenges (especially with participants af, am, bf, bm) often meant that processing the subject content itself was secondary to coping with basic communication in the lolta. three of the four participants in the mib school were slightly different in that they could read and understand generally what the questions required of them. therefore, support of metacognition to ensure focused comprehension of the questions and direction for the processing to arrive at appropriate responses became features of the dynamic assessment mediation. the fi ndings from the debriefi ng and mediation shed valuable light on the nature of the challenges in assessment that each participant had individually. dynamic assessment appears overall to have had a positive infl uence on the assessment process for the participants: directly, by aiding the reading and comprehension of questions, and guiding appropriate oral responses; and indirectly, by mediating comprehension of the questions during actual assessment through presenting linguistically modifi ed questions and providing the glossary and spelling list. the use of the glossary empowered the participants to exercise a degree of selfregulation in respect of comprehension of the assessment questions, suggesting that even indirect, non-individualised mediation in dynamic assessment could have a positive infl uence on the assessment of alternative language learners generally. the study concluded that dynamic assessment appears to have had a positive infl uence on the participants’ performance in assessment, although to varying degrees, and that contextual factors as well as individual learning potential played an important part in the variation. the results are an indication that latent learning potential possibly impacted on the participants’ capacity to respond positively to the dynamic assessment used. once the nature of the participants’ alternative language challenges was identifi ed and scaffolding was provided, individually appropriate dynamic assessment measures seemed to enable the participants’ true ability to manifest itself to different degrees, and allowed them to perform closer to their full potential even in the face of the alternative language factor. however, they seemed to require mediation sustained over a longer period, which would hopefully have resulted in even better achievement. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta106 (b) the additional language situation the socio-economic and affective contexts in each of the schools were major factors that contributed to the findings, but none more so than the overall context of language. the findings from this study suggest that the challenges concerning the alternative language proficiency experienced by the participants formed the unique linguistic context within which each of these learners resided, both cognitively and affectively. the factors contributing to the linguistic context included the language of the community and immediate out-of-school environment, including the family or parental influence, the processes of teaching and learning, the participants’ individual challenges in learning, and the influence of the school as context. all of these contributed strongly to the synthesis towards an understanding of the alternative language context of the study. (i) language in the community the participants’ oral and written responses displayed a high level of interference with their l1 (yoruba), at least in the linguistic, socio-linguistic, cognitive and affective dimensions. their pronunciation was laced with the yoruba accent and their spellings were faulty, often based on writing words as pronounced. whole sentences were sometimes translated directly from yoruba, thereby blurring the clarity of the meaning and making it especially challenging for someone who did not belong to the community. the interference of the l1 with pronunciation appeared to be a general phenomenon with all the participants. in yoruba, words are written phonetically, i.e. according to the pronunciation of the component sounds on the alphabet table, which means there are no unpronounced letters or irregular spellings as there are in english. therefore, some spelling errors of participants (am, bm) are actually phonetic spellings as they perceive the sounds and thus become understandable, e.g. “loamy” as “lomin” and “heart” as “hart”. grammatical “errors” made by learners in the alternative language sometimes carry psychoand socio-linguistic overtones. for instance, in yoruba, singular nouns and proper nouns (e.g. mom, dad, mrs x) quite often take the plural form of the pronoun in spoken communication, depending on the relationship between the parties. ordinarily in yoruba, one cannot refer to someone older or in a position of authority using a singular pronoun, as in the english language, because the plural form signifies respect in yoruba. an example would be a learner saying “they are calling you” instead of “he/she is calling you”. therefore, when referring to the teachers can change africa deta 107 teacher as “they”, cf in the example below was obeying the rules of yoruba, which is incorrect in formal english: researcher: ma a worry, ko kin se pe nma so fun teacher yin. mi o ni so. (don’t worry, it’s not as if i’m going to tell your teacher. i won’t tell.) cf: no, ma. if they (teacher) catch you, they will beat you very well (omidire, 2009). the tenses also create confusion for those who are not profi cient in both languages. in yoruba, actions that occurred in the past are described using the present tense. there is no declension for verb-noun correspondence; it is denoted by adverbs of time and by the subject, and not by actually changing the verb form. therefore a direct translation from yoruba to english often results in grammatical errors. below are examples in which cf was referring to incidents that occurred in the past, using utterances that were direct translations from yoruba: (a) cf: we do the correction in class. we stand up and answer the questions. (we did the correction in class. we stood up and answered the questions.) (b) cf: i check for words on the paper. (i checked for the words on the paper.) (c) cf: yes, ma. i check the words. it make it better. i can answer. (i checked the words. i made it better. i could answer.) (omidire, 2009) for the numerous differences between the two languages, ranging from phonology to syntax and orthography, learners require some measure of cognitive modifi ability to accommodate the variations as they move from the l1 used in their community to the alternative language used in their lessons. the participants in this study appeared to have little exposure to reading in either language. many learners in the communities to which the participants belong have parents who are not competent users of english even at the level of basic interpersonal communicative skills (bics) (cummins, 2000; cummins & swain, 1986). they get by using yoruba and pidgin. such learners (e.g. af and am) can be described as being linguistically hemmed in because they are surrounded by people who do not speak the language they need to acquire to make progress at school. hence, their only exposure to english, the lolta, is during their lessons in school. from the fi ndings, even peer interaction in the schools seemed to take place in yoruba, while distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta108 conversational communication in yoruba, which was mainly at the level of bics, was different from their required academic communication in english at the level of cognitive academic language proficiency (calp) in respect of content, linguistic complexity and lexicon (cummins, 2000; cummins & swain, 1986). in discussing the language proficiency of the participants and the results of this study, the choice and use of language in the immediate environment cannot be ignored. in nigeria, english may have been placed in a position of prominence because, as suggested by opara (2004), it appears to be a unifying element in a highly complex multilingual society in which it is estimated that about four hundred indigenous languages are spoken (bamgbose, 1995). although english is the official language of the country and by implication of the communities within which the study took place, local variations of english containing alterations to the grammatical structure are also in use, and press against the boundaries of the proper use of english grammar as well as pronunciation. this tendency, coupled with the everyday use of pidgin, forms a formidable challenge for any individual, particularly alternative language learners who have to attain english proficiency at calp level as well as assimilate complex subject terminology. in nigeria, there is now a very thin line between the correct use of english and the accepted use of english based on interference of the local languages. knowing where one ends and the other commences could be challenging for alternative language learners. the link between some of the participants’ errors in spelling and the local variation of the pronunciation of the words needs further investigation, as well as the use of pidgin in the community as a confounding factor in alternative language learning. the findings revealed that the language situation in the communities of both schools possibly constituted a limitation for the participants. this substantiates vygotsky’s suggestion that the physical and social contexts within which learning takes place remain an integral part of what is learned (haywood & brown, 1990; kozulin & garb, 2002; minick, 1987; wood, 1998), and that the concept of human development places interaction between children and more mature members of their culture at the heart of psychological growth. where cultural tools – such as language and speech – that facilitate social construction and intellectual development are not distinct or focused, the challenges become more complicated. vygotsky’s emphasis on the importance of the social environment and the social construction of the mind as a means of intellectual development (deutsch & reynolds, 2000; minick, teachers can change africa deta 109 1987) seem to be borne out by the infl uences that the contexts of the lib and mib schools had on the distinction between the results of their teaching and learning. (ii) processes of teaching and learning the impact of teaching and learning conditions on learners’ progress cannot be under-estimated and, as noted during the course of this study, barriers may sometimes be almost overwhelming. as with the power of the language factor of the community, the severity of the barriers in the teaching and learning situation studied constituted a serious limitation to optimum learning and, in some cases, appeared to make other considerations even seem irrelevant. the challenges ranged from an outright non-conducive physical environment brought about by a serious breakdown of basic infrastructure, to inadequate teaching techniques and poor language models from which to learn. in the lib school, the lack of basic amenities appeared to make both teaching and learning very challenging. what the mib school gained in terms of provision of basic infrastructure, it lost in hugely overcrowded classrooms averaging more than a hundred learners. the entire context seemed to be pitched against teaching and learning from the outset, a situation compounded by the alternative language factor and the learners having underdeveloped language profi ciency in the lolta and often even in their l1. it is noteworthy that in the mib school, even learners with above average performance (df and dm) had failed to comfortably attain language profi ciency in english at calp level. the lib school participants required considerable code switching to be certain that they had a good understanding of what the project was about, and in particular for the debriefi ng and mediation procedures. this was despite the responses anticipated in the assessment tasks not requiring the formation of lengthy or complicated sentences or advanced grammar. in the mib school, code switching was not necessary that often, but neither could it be ruled out (with cf). code switching functions on two levels: the receptive and the expressive. at the receptive level, it aids comprehension and allows the teacher to act as mediator of understanding, while at the expressive level, it helps one to convey one’s knowledge and understanding (brock-utne & holmarsdottir, 2004; nieman, 2006). in the study, the implication of code switching, when practised by the science teacher in the lib school, was that the learners were able to achieve some measure of comprehension of the lesson content. subsequently, preparing for an distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta110 assessment from english notes and textbooks and making sense of assessment questions in english independently without the help of code switching was a grim reminder that the challenges of an alternative language as the lolta certainly did not disappear. moreover, achieving some understanding did not ensure any communicative competence at the expressive level. english was still the medium of expression of what had been learned. code switching to convey understanding was not permitted, but rather learners were often stringently penalised for the smallest of errors. although the teachers’ code switching seemed to aid learners’ comprehension at the receptive level and the knowledge was then seemingly acquired, a major hurdle remained in preparing for assessments purely through the medium of the alternative language. learners had to depend on either the recalling of information learned by rote, or the translation of all knowledge back to the alternative language when expressing themselves. code switching certainly did not serve the needs of these alternative language learners at the expressive level. unfortunately, the nigerian national policy on education (2004) does not address the use of code switching in teaching and learning, so there seems to be no guidance on the subject. the alternative language challenge is further compounded by the level of complexity and linguistic demand of some subjects over others. integrated science was deemed more difficult than business studies by most participants (af, am, bf, bm, df and dm), apparently due to poor knowledge of subject terminology. the integrated science terminology was complex and finding yoruba words for scientific concepts was daunting, so much so that am and bm wished to drop the subject and speculated as to its pointlessness in their daily existence. business studies was obviously less complex for the majority of the participants and easier for the teachers to present. the alternative language factor in teaching and learning made it essentially difficult to ascertain whether errors were due to a lack of subject knowledge, language deficiency or learning disability, or maybe a combination of all three. this substantiates the suggestion that teachers in multilingual and multicultural classrooms face the task of distinguishing between language-related achievement issues and other obstructive factors, such as genuine learning disabilities (camilleri & law, 2007; frost, 2000; lidz & macrine, 2001; pena, iglesias & lidz 2001). teachers can change africa deta 111 the fi ndings suggest that it is crucial to have resources to make this distinction. there appeared to be no special education consultants, coordinators or educational psychologists, which left a gap in the system. (c) participants’ challenges in learning the fi ndings suggest particular areas in which the participants experienced the greatest diffi culties. for instance, the learners in the lib school seemed to have greater challenges with all aspects of reading than those in the mib school, and this necessarily impacted on their learning overall. in a study carried out with grade 8 learners in a township school in south africa, pretorius and ribbens (2005) found that a lack of basic reading skills indeed had direct implications for the learners’ academic performances. some of the challenges the lib participants faced included vocalising as well as following the words with their fi ngers when reading (af and am). this style of reading should long have been outgrown by learners in basic 8, and could indicate an extreme degree of reading diffi culty at the decoding level at this stage. it could also lead to a risk of losing track of the textual content due to overload of the short-term memory. af and am were the weakest readers among the participants. bf struggled with recognition of keywords, whilst bm’s reading, though slightly more fl uent than that of the others, still also required much practice. the participants’ reading comprehension was far from adequate, with questions having to be translated and terminology explained before they showed signs of understanding. however, in some instances (e.g. af), even that was insuffi cient to ensure full comprehension. in contrast, the mib school participants, except cf, were able to read relatively well. cf repeated words and phrases, which made the text sound somewhat confusing. cm, in his bid to rush through the reading, often tripped on words and then started again. df and dm required minimal assistance with their reading, but more with pronunciation. in all respects, comprehension was a considerable challenge for some of the learners, validating the fi ndings of barry (2002), who maintained that english l2 speakers did not have the level of profi ciency required for comprehension to make inferences and critically evaluate texts used in the study, and had also found it diffi cult to complete sections in which they were required to write their own responses as a demonstration of comprehension. the learners in the lib school distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta112 required extensive explanation (most often in yoruba) to grasp the essence of the assessment questions. they demonstrated a lack of comprehension of the conceptual aims of questions. at the expressive language level, virtually all the learners appeared to have difficulty coping with terminology and subject-specific key concepts, and more so for integrated science than for business studies. this finding is not surprising, considering the extent of difficulty generally associated with integrated science, and suggests that lacking equivalent words for translation into yoruba increased the level of complexity of the integrated science terminology from the point of view of the participants. cf and cm were the only two participants whose scores in integrated science were better than in business studies. these two participants (from the same class) appeared to have serious problems with the teaching methodology and attitude of the business studies teacher, resulting in a serious lack of interest in the subject and probably having a direct impact on their motivation and performance. there was evidence of rote learning on the part of participants from both schools (am, cf and cm). the findings seem to corroborate those of other studies (banda, 2000; barry, 2002; howie, 2004; howie & hughes 1998; prinsloo, 2005) suggesting that, due to the alternative language factor, the participants saw no other way to cope with the complex terminology than to memorise learning content even without real comprehension. as a result, they found it exceedingly difficult to formulate answers in their own words when questions required them to explain, differentiate and describe. the tendency to learn by rote could be linked to the alternative language factor and is a critical setback for education in developing countries, since it could inhibit learners’ ability to think independently and contribute to discussion and debate. higher-order thinking, the application of knowledge, synthesis and evaluation become virtually impossible if basic comprehension has not been achieved. the ultimate product of rote learning, especially where alternative language is a factor, are learners who fail to develop to their full potential, who simply regurgitate what they have memorised and who are unable to contribute meaningfully to issues that affect them. the findings further imply that, for the participants, processing their thoughts and ideas seemed challenging to varying degrees. df and dm appeared able to process teachers can change africa deta 113 their thoughts and ideas better than am and bf, but for some, such as af, it seemed virtually impossible. all the participants appeared to process their thoughts in yoruba and then attempt to translate them to english. the following ensued, as they: • read the questions in english; • translated to yoruba to attempt comprehension; • processed and mentally formulated their answers in yoruba; and • translated their responses back to english. this process of translation is very delicate, and could compound the problem when the learner’s english lexicon is limited. from the fi ndings, translating back and forth appeared directly related to the issue of vocabulary building and to participants’ varying lack of adequate vocabulary, ranging from functional assessment terms at the receptive language level, to subject-specifi c terms, which made it impossible for most (af, am, bf, bm and cf) to express themselves clearly when speaking or to achieve clarity in their written work. the fi ndings are supported by the report of howie and hughes (1998) on the performance of south african students in the third international mathematics and science study (timss, 1995), which also identifi ed these crucial language-in-assessment issues and concluded that they probably had a negative impact on achievement. similarly, aigbomian (in ogunleye, 1999) found that learners in nigeria did not have the required level of academic language to comprehend the physics concepts to the extent that they would meaningfully apply them. it is certainly not out of place to suggest that the above fi ndings might be related to the methods and processes adopted for language teaching and learning. the place of teacher training and access to distance education the linguistic challenges encountered during the course of the study were almost overwhelming. one of the reasons the participants were chosen from grade 8 was to ensure that, after seven years in full-time schooling and learning the alternative language, there would be some level of competence in the alternative language. the important questions then became: how was language taught in grade 7 and during the primary school years? what was the quality of language teaching for these learners? how can teacher training be used to address the challenges in language teaching for better outcomes with a majority of alternative language distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta114 learners in a particular classroom? how can distance education be used to bridge the gaps in teacher education when one considers the remoteness of many of the schools in lagos in terms of access to teacher training institutions? the findings of this study suggest that the training of alternative language teachers might be more effective if elements of the training are directed at an awareness of the psychoand socio-linguistic overtones that hinder language learning in the community in which the teacher will work. training should also incorporate possible errors affecting grammar, spelling and pronunciation due to interference of the l1. the obvious challenge for those teachers who are already trained and in the system is that the logistics for retraining or acquiring new teaching skills are lacking and there are no obvious support systems in place. the idea of using distance education to create access to teaching innovations is therefore encouraging. from the findings of the study, there appeared to be a somewhat desperate suggestion by the participants that english, (the alternative language) as a school subject, should be broken down into focused parts such as grammar, vocabulary, speech/ phonetics, comprehension and spelling. the participants further believed that each component should be taught by different language teachers. this suggestion by the participants is an indication that the language teachers might not be doing enough to ensure that the learners reach the calp level of language proficiency. the participants all felt that a support system independent of the schools, such as private after-school tutoring or study support, was important for them to make progress. this further demonstrates the participants’ lack of faith in the capability of the teachers to positively impact on their achievement. this appeared to be a call, albeit by a small group, for researchers to take a closer look at teaching practices and, consequently, the adequacy of teacher training methods to ensure that teachers are equipped with the right skills to handle the task of teaching alternative language learners. there is a need for a specialised focus on teacher training for alternative language teachers. literature has shown that achievement could be linked to proficiency in the lolta. the importance of a teacher training package that incorporates teaching strategies for trainee alternative language teachers cannot be understated. onceoff training should also be discouraged. new teaching techniques and innovations for language teaching and learning should be accessed through ongoing in-service training and professional development through distance education. teachers can change africa deta 115 continuous teacher development through distance education distance teacher education appears to be a feasible tool for addressing the challenges of inadequate language teaching in schools. there are numerous advantages to using distance education for initial teacher training and continuous professional development for alternative language teachers. among them is the convenience and fl exibility with which learning can be achieved; study can be organised around work, social and family commitments. the training could also be directed at specifi c individualised needs for personal growth for teachers, and it could thus also be selfpaced. the implication is that there should not be a gap in the methods adopted to facilitate additional language learning. it is an avenue for the latest language-teaching and vocabulary-building strategies to be intermittently introduced to teachers for effective teaching and learning to take place. distance teacher education could also hold promise, particularly for continuing professional development and in-service training. in-service training is an integral part of teacher development in the school system, ensuring that teachers keep abreast of the trends in education and encouraging consistent best practices and innovations in teaching. the united nations educational, scientifi c and cultural organisation (unesco) report on teacher education through distance learning (2001) states that distance education is used to “raise the skills, deepen the understanding and extend the knowledge of teacher” and that the basic initial training for teachers is no longer adequate. the organisation believes that distance education can be a means of reorientation for teachers. this study has been an eye-opener as to the extent of work still required to ensure that all teachers have basic training. language pedagogy and actual classroom practices require further investigation. there is a need for teachers to be encouraged to seek assistance and/or support when their teaching methods do not yield the expected results. in the case of nigeria, there is probably a need for urgent action to intensify efforts to make continuing professional development available and compulsory for teachers. it is essential to conduct research into practical ways of using distance teacher education and the latest teaching technology for professional development and in-service training in rural areas and places where the basic infrastructure is almost non-existent. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta116 conclusion in the course of the study, several questions became apparent that require research. at the fundamental level of theory formation, the influence of the alternative language and the severity of the linguistic challenges encountered mean that exploring the background of the classroom teaching of the alternative language is of primary concern. at the level of application, research into alternative language education practices in the feeder primary schools as well as into the level of proficiency carried forward into the secondary school is proving to be essential. the findings of the study suggest a need for further research into alternative language teaching and learning in primary schools as a method of exploring where the possible origins of the alternative language challenges for learners lie. in order to reduce the challenges faced by alternative language learners in mainstream classrooms, the alternative language teaching methods of grade 8 teachers should be studied. it is evident that distance teacher education is the most feasible way to maximise the reach in terms of teacher training and development. innovations are, however, still required to achieve success in rural areas. in nigeria, there appears to be a need to raise the entry requirements for teacher training programmes in order to ensure that those admitted have the basic criteria. the possession of the required skills enables teachers to be effective trainees and forms a solid foundation on which to build the requisite knowledge and teaching skills. teachers can change africa deta 117 references aigbomian, d.o. 1985. relationship between understanding of physics concepts and achievement in wasc physics examination. unpublished doctoral dissertation. nsukka: university of nigeria. bamgbose, a. 1995. nigeria’s choice. bua, 10(1):24–26. banda, f. 2000. the dilemma of the mother tongue: prospects for bilingual education in south africa. language, culture and curriculum, 13(1):51–66. barry, d. 2002. language equity and assessment in south african education. journal for language teaching, 36(1):105–11. brock-utne, b. & holmarsdottir, h.b. 2004. language policies and practices in tanzania and south africa: problems and challenges. international journal of educational development, 24:67–83. camilleri, b. & 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new york: the guildford press, pp. 116–141. nieman, m.m. 2006. using the language of learning and teaching (lolt) appropriately during mediation of learning. in the educator as mediator of learning. edited by m.m. nieman & r.b. monyai. pretoria: van schaik. omidire, m.f. 2009. investigation of dynamic assessment (da) as a means of addressing the assessment dilemma of additional language learners. unpublished phd thesis. pretoria: university of pretoria. omidire, m.f., bouwer, a.c. & jordan, j.c. 2011. addressing the assessment dilemma of additional language learners through dynamic assessment. perspectives in education, 29(2):48–60. teachers can change africa deta 119 opara, c.c. 2004. an introduction to language study for teachers and students: issues and approaches. lagos: rothmed international. pena, e., iglesias, a. & lidz, c.s. 2001. reducing test bias through dynamic assessment of children’s word learning ability. american journal of speech-language pathology, 10:138–154. pretorius, r. & ribbens, r. 2005. reading in a disadvantaged high school: issues of accomplishment, assessment and accountability. south african journal of education, 25(3):139–147. prinsloo, e. 2005. socio-economic barriers to learning in contemporary society. in: addressing barriers to learning: a south african perspective. edited by: e. landsberg & d. kruger. pretoria: van schaik. united nations educational, scientifi c and cultural organisation (unesco). 2001. teacher education through distance learning. wood, d. 1998. how children think and learn. london: blackwell. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta120 teachers can change africa deta 121 foreign languages in african science classrooms: perspectives on and approaches to language use during teaching dr samuel oyoo senior lecturer in science education, university of the witwatersrand samuel.oyoo@wits.ac.za abstract africa is perhaps the only continent in the world where most formal or school education is conducted in instructional languages that are foreign to most learners and their teachers. in contexts where formal learning is conducted in a foreign language, achievement of general profi ciency in the instructional language is a necessary fi rst step if any learning is to be expected in that language. in this article, the objective is to argue an appropriate perspective on – and suggest approaches to – the use of (the foreign) language by science teachers during teaching. this article is the outcome of sustained literature reviews of cross-national research on language in science education over the last 40 years. in this article, a plural nature of school science is adopted, including it being a distinct language foreign to all learners, irrespective of their fi rst language. therefore, the main objective of this article is to highlight the role of the instructional language as used by the science teacher and in science texts. this article targets the science teacher with regard to the well-known need for teacher intervention in the learning of school science. keywords: africa; foreign language; language of instruction; components and nature of words in the language of instruction; science learning and teaching; learning context; science education research. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta122 introduction and overview “what kind of science can a child learn in the absence, for example, of basic language competence and an attendant inability to handle concepts?” (achebe, p. 162) despite the united nations educational, scientific and cultural organisation’s (unesco) assertion that educating learners in a language they understand best is a tenet of good practice (unesco, 2007), africa remains the only continent in the world where formal education is generally conducted in instructional languages that are foreign to most learners and their teachers. the continent has in this regard been balkanised into anglophone, francophone and luzophone states, with reference to the european (former colonial) languages; english, french and portuguese respectively. in the special case of tanzania, the balkanisation may be referred to as a “swahiliphone”. in tanzania, swahili, the mandatory language of primary school education – but also used widely in secondary and higher education, although unofficially – is neither a local nor the first language to all students and their teachers. swahili is therefore also a foreign language to most students and teachers in tanzania, even though it is an african language. a common argument has been that all the foreign languages of european origin were retained at independence as the official as well as classroom instruction languages for economic and political reasons. it is also an acceptable argument that the retention of the languages must have been dictated by circumstances that were prevailing at the time in the respective african countries. in the case of kenya, although english was adopted on the recommendation of the first education commission, popularly known as the ominde commission, the logic may have been that at the time, “…english was [already established as] the language of the entire secondary education system, of university, in large part, of the press, and of many other sectors; it was also the language of much creative writing, and of effective public debate, whether in… scholarly writing and so on. it was for the time being, the main language of communication with outside ideas, whether in east or west, or indeed in other parts of africa… not… that this was desirable or that it… be perpetuated or protected... this was a fact.” (ogot, 2003:171–172) teachers can change africa deta 123 while the same argument may have been used in adopting french and portuguese in the respective african countries at their attainment of independence, the case for swahili in tanzania was purely a political one. arguably, the adoption of swahili as the language of formal education in tanzania in 1967, several years after independence, was so that the country became fully liberated from colonial infl uence (kadeghe, 2003). the current state of swahili in tanzania is such that the logic for the adoption of english in kenya – as argued above by ogot (2003), but in reference to swahili – is very relevant. in other words, all arguments should be for the adoption of swahili as the sole instructional language at all levels of education in tanzania (brock-utne & holmarsdottir, 2003; brock-utne, 2005; prah, 2003; roy-campbell & qorro, 1997). the global trends in the popularity of english (newsweek, 2007) and the need for easy international communication would be the major issues in the ongoing debate for the need to adopt english instead as the instructional language at all levels of formal education in tanzania. in the african countries where english, french and portuguese are already the languages of formal education, it is apparent that they may continue to be used at all professional and academic levels because of their global presence and attractiveness in international communication. with swahili also being a generally foreign language to most tanzanians, it follows that most students and their teachers in africa will continue to use foreign languages as instructional languages in formal education. there is thus a requirement for students in african countries to achieve profi ciency in whichever classroom language of instruction. this is a necessary fi rst step for effective learning of school subjects to occur. at least at the initial stages of learning, students in africa will continue to experience greater diffi culty than students who learn in their fi rst languages. this is due to the double task of learning two new things – the language of instruction and, for example, science – at the same time. the learning of most school subjects, including science, requires more than simple profi ciency in the language of instruction (wilson, 1999), in spite of the assumption by many (including teachers) in multilingual societies that once profi ciency in the instructional language has been achieved, students would be able to understand everything they are taught in that language (rollnick, 1998, 2000). distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta124 in this article, the focus is on the instructional language as used by the science teacher, based on the role of language in all learning, including school science (scott, 1998), and the now well-recognised need for teacher intervention in the learning of school science (driver, 1989; hodson & hodson, 1998; hodson, 1999). the article consists of three main parts. firstly, the components and nature of the language of instruction as used in science texts and by science teachers in classrooms are discussed. secondly, a critical review of research-based evidence of the possible universal difficulty of this language is presented. thirdly, the approaches to working around the difficulty and foreignness of this language via, in particular, effective classroom use of language by science teachers and the necessary research on language in science education are considered. the focus is particularly on science teachers’ language, because the author regards the science teacher as the foremost resource in students’ effective learning of science. however, based on the variety of resources or sources of school science knowledge available to the student, the term “science teacher” is considered to embrace and subsume the term “science texts” as a resource or an alternative source of the ideas of school science. hence, teachers’ (classroom) language as used in this article refers to the science teachers’ oral language as well as the language of science texts, including that used in distance education material. although the instructional language in particular focused on in this article is english, these discussions are meant to apply to any instructional language in use. the components and nature of science teachers’ language the instructional classroom language of the science teacher and science texts has two parts: a technical component and a non-technical component. the technical component: the technical component is made up of technical words or terminologies specific to a science subject, for example, “chromosome” in biology, “capacitance” in physics, or “anion” in chemistry. such terms may also be referred to as technical terms, scientific terms or terminology, science terms or simply science words. technical words, as originally argued by gardner (1972), “…include such things as physical concepts (mass, force…) names of chemical elements, minerals, plants, organs, processes, apparatus etc.” (p. 7). the technical or science words are everyday words deliberately used as science words (miller, 1999), and they teachers can change africa deta 125 have new (scientifi c) meanings in addition to their everyday meanings (sutton, 1992; wellington, 1994). the new, different meanings everyday words acquire when used as science words and/or when they become science words make them resemble words in a new, different or foreign language, although with fi xed meanings. regardless of the base language, the meanings of these words must be known in the international science community. therefore, apart from representing science concepts (murphy, 2002), science words are also representations of words in a different and/or foreign (science) language. the non-technical component: the non-technical component of the science teacher’s classroom language is made up of non-technical words. it is this part of the science teacher’s classroom language that may be referred to as the medium of classroom instruction or interaction as separate from the technical terms. this component of the science teacher’s classroom language thus becomes recognisable to be the same as the language in which a science textbook is written. gardner (1972:7) used the following sentence to illustrate examples of non-technical words: “gas molecules display random motion; we may predict their behaviour from theoretical considerations: the actual volume of the molecules may be neglected.” although they are not “technical terms”, the four words “random”, “predict”, “theoretical” and “neglected” remain key words in the sentence with regard to the understanding of the behaviour of the gas molecules, on the assumption that the meaning of the (technical) term “molecule” is known to the learners. in science education research literature relevant to this article, it is words like these thathave been referred to as “non-technical words in the science context” (wellington & osborne, 2001). apparently this has been done to distinguish them from the metarepresentational terms (wilson, 1999) and logical connectives (gardner, 1977), two other groups of words considered as distinct categories of non-technical words. the non-technical component of science classroom language of instruction and interaction, therefore, consists of three categories of non-technical words, namely non-technical words in the science context, metarepresentational terms and logical connectives. highlighting the boundaries between these is of interest. the “non-technical words in the science context”, as part of the language typical of science subjects, may be considered to constitute a language characteristic of school science. for example, the word “diversity” is more common in biology, “reaction” is more common in chemistry than in physics, and in a similar way, “disintegrate” would be more acceptable as a standard word when referring to the distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta126 concept of decay of an unstable nucleus in physics. the words “diversity”, “reaction” and “disintegrate” are recognisable as words also commonly used in everyday language, but become “specialist language” (barnes, britton & rosen, 1986:46) only when used in science to constitute the register of the science subject. each of these words embodies certain concepts important to the process of learning specific science subjects; this is unlike when everyday words are used as science words, when they become distinct science concepts as already considered here. the metarepresentational terms in particular refer to the non-technical words that signify thinking; these include metalinguistic and metacognitive words as defined next. according to wilson (1999:1069), “metalinguistic verbs are words which take the place of the verb to say (e.g. define, describe, explain, argue, criticise, suggest), while the metacognitive verbs are words which take the place of the verb to think (e.g. infer, calculate, deduce, analyse, observe, hypothesise, assume, predict).” evidently, metarepresentational (metalinguistic and metacognitive words) terms constitute the same words that are associated with learning and “talking science” (lemke, 1990), such as “observe”, “hypothesise”, “experiment”, “classify”, “analyse”, “conclude”, “deduce”, “interpret”, “define”, “investigate” and “infer”. it is these words, often used in examinations to indicate the content as well as the structure and emphasis required by the examination questions, that bearne (1999:62) and bulman (1986:188) have respectively recognised as the “key terms” or “operative words”. consequently, the value of these words is in the fact that knowledge of their meanings may enhance students’ understanding of the demands of the questions and accordingly design the correct responses (bulman, 1986). students’ understanding of the meanings of these words may also be expected to enhance their classroom participation (rodrigues & thompson, 2001). according to gardner (1977:v), logical connectives are “words or phrases which serve as links between sentences, or between propositions within a sentence, or between a proposition and a concept.” examples include “conversely”, “if”, “moreover”, “because”, “therefore”, “in order to”, “consequently”, “by means of”, “since”, etc. the importance or functional value of logical connectives, as may be evident from these examples, is that they are words that, according to fensham (2004:202), “are commonly used in the oral or written discourses of science to link observation to inference, theory to explanation, hypothesis to experiment, experiment to findings etc.” again, students’ understanding of the meanings of these words would enhance their classroom participation as well as the understanding of the processes of learning science, including science teachers’ classroom language. teachers can change africa deta 127 general difficulty of the science teacher’s language research studies have shown that all categories of words that comprise the science teacher’s language are generally diffi cult. diffi culty of words in the technical component of the classroom language george (1999) recorded that the general diffi culty of school science – hence, science content that is well known the world over – is that it varies in extent, depending on the specifi c circumstances in different countries. in this article, this general diffi culty is argued on the foreignness of science words/language or technical terms used in science. while most arguments on the diffi culty of school science have always made a claim on the diffi culty of the science content matter, the foreignness of science to learners is also a very important factor, as can now be explained. the fact that any science word has a meaning different to that in everyday language is one reason such words can be viewed as representations of a different, new or foreign language. the use of these words, therefore, comes with a way of speaking that is very uncharacteristic of the common or dominant culture. the science words and language therefore also represent a different culture – the (foreign) science subculture. science words may therefore be considered to have a triple identity (conceptually, culturally and linguistically). the origin of the general diffi culty of technical words interchangeably referred to as science words, science terminology or science content is this aspect of general foreignness. the foreignness of the science words may also explain the gap that exists between the students’ world and the world of science they are meant to learn (lemke, 1990; jones, 2000). yet, this general diffi culty of science words and content is only part of the diffi culty of words that comprise the science teacher’s instructional language. as revealed in the reviews of empirical research in the next section, all categories of non-technical words, just as the case with the science words, are also generally diffi cult. evidence is presented that the general diffi culty of non-technical words does not depend on the linguistic and cultural circumstances of the science learners. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta128 difficulty of words in the non-technical component of classroom language in this section, a critical review of the general difficulty of all categories of nontechnical words in the science teacher’s language is conducted. the distinctive focus is on the influence of students’ proficiency in the language of instruction (english) at the various levels of students’ understanding of the words. this has been done in the order of non-technical words in the science context, metarepresentational terms and logical connectives. a) student difficulties with non-technical words in the science context with regard to non-technical words used in the science context, there have been several cross-national studies, all of which have been based on paul gardner’s pioneering study (gardner, 1971). in this first project conducted in papua new guinea (gardner 1971; 1972), gardner studied the accessibility of 599 normal english words using a sample drawn from secondary school students in forms 1 to 4 for whom english was not their first language. tests were administered in the form of multiple choice items (see oyoo, 2009, for details on formats of representation of the test items). the study was not to compare, but only to detect the levels of difficulty the non-technical words presented to students of science. in the analysis, items were summarised in three ways: • alphabetical order: list contained all words tested in alphabetical order, with a brief description of the item, and the percentages correct for each form level and for the total sample. • level of difficulty: words were grouped into difficulty levels based on the percentage correct in the total sample. level 0 words were items on which the scores were 100% correct; level 1 words appeared in terms of which 90–100% were correct; level 2 words represented 80–89% correct and so on. • test item list: presented all items used in the project: the percentages selecting each distracter within each form level and within the total sample were shown for each item. in this first study, three words – “spontaneous”, “disintegrate” and “random” – stood out as the most difficult for the students, especially for the form 1 students, with only 10–19% of the sample scoring correctly on these words. in summary, 31%, 26% and 25% of the entire sample scored correctly on the words “spontaneous”, “disintegrate” and “random” respectively. teachers can change africa deta 129 two other studies by gardner using the same design and for the same objectives were conducted using the same test items in victoria, australia (gardner, 1972), and later in the philippines (gardner, 1976). while in both cases, participants were drawn from class levels/forms 1, 2, 3, and 4, all the participants in victoria were science students who used english as their fi rst language, while those who participated in the philippines study were students who learned science in english as their second language. both studies revealed similar trends in the understanding of the non-technical words, with differences that were a refl ection of relative linguistic circumstances specifi c to each of the countries. if comparisons on the levels of performance were made, it could be concluded that the second-language sample (philippines) performed poorer, i.e. encountered more diffi culties with the nontechnical words in the science context than the fi rst-language sample (victoria). although several subsequent studies have been conducted (oyoo, 2004), only the studies of farell and ventura (1998), prophet and towse (1999) and oyoo (2000) have not used the four-test design, or mainly english fi rst-language (l1) samples. the above studies, on the other hand, focused on different categories of learners at different levels of schooling. farrell and ventura (1998), for example, focused on non-technical words as used in a specifi c school science subject – physics. prophet and towse (1999) compared performance on these words in different countries and by fi rstand second-language learners simultaneously, drawn from a developing country (botswana in southern africa) and a developed country (united kingdom). the oyoo (2000) study also drew its sample from both fi rstand second-language learners, but from kenya and england (united kingdom, uk). in all the studies, the types and trends regarding students’ diffi culties with everyday words presented in the science context were very similar, irrespective of design and gender. the trends in the diffi culties encountered by students further did not depend on whether a student learns science in english as a fi rst or second language. a summary of the types of diffi culties is as follows: • students selected words of which the meanings were opposite to those intended in the studies. for example, “negligible” for “a lot”, “random” for “well ordered”, “initial” for “fi nal”. • for many words, the students lacked the required comprehension and often confused words with others in the same semantic fi eld, e.g. “detect” with “project”, “isolate” with “insulate”, “reference” with “referred”, “theory” with “fact” or “belief”. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta130 • it was also common for students to confuse words that were “graphologically” similar (gardner, 1972), i.e. “look-alike” (cassels & johnstone 1985:14), or “phonetically” similar (gardner, 1972), i.e. “sound-alike” (cassels & johnstone 1985:14), e.g. “complex” with “compound”, “consistent” with “constituent”, “component” with “opponent”, “detect” with “protect”; “accumulate” with “accommodate”; “diagnose” with “diagonal”; “proportion” with “portion”. the study by pickersgill and lock (1991) detected no difference between the understanding of non-technical words in science by males and females and no difference between the verbal reasoning ability of males and females, but found a positive correlation between a student’s score on a verbal reasoning test and on a test of understanding of non-technical words in science. the finding on verbal reasoning may be taken to imply that proficiency in the language of instruction may enhance the understanding of scientific concepts, but could also be a reflection of the different levels of intelligence and/or relative aptitude towards the subject. these explanations were not considered in the study. in all four-test formatdesigned studies, it was noticed that the best performance had been in the test where the words were presented in the science context and the lowest performance had been in the synonym test. pickersgill and lock (1991, p. 77), who used a firstlanguage sample, explain this as follows: “… in the sentence, science and non-science format questions, the word under test is placed in a context which may carry sufficient information to give a cue or trigger to the student. in the synonym format, this information is missing and it may be the absence of such cues which leads to the poor performance on this type of question compared with others.” according to marshall, gilmour and lewis (1991), the better performance in the test that had the words in the science context stem occurred because it is in the science context that the students first learnt the words; they conclude this by making comparisons with the cassels and johnstone (1985) study that used an exclusively first-language sample: “… although cassels and johnstone (1985) regard the words in this test as normal english, the results of this study indicate that for the papua new guinea students, this is probably not the case. for approximately 20 of the words, the results would seem to indicate that students acquired the meanings in science classes.” (marshall & gilmour, 1991:334) teachers can change africa deta 131 in the marshall, gilmour and lewis (1991) study, an additional observation was that the words were easier when presented in the science context stem to students in papua new guinea, themselves english second-language learners, than was the case in the united kingdom studies by cassels and johnstone (1980, 1985). this confi rms that everyday words have different meanings when used in the science context. this may be justifi ed by the fact that, although these studies claim an overall improvement in the relative scores in the higher (older) classes, a scrutiny of scores on the items does not reveal a linear trend. scores on individual items were either better or worse in the higher or the lower class levels. the greater diffi culty that the synonym-type test presented even to english fi rst-language samples indicates that the non-technical words may not have been those common in the world outside the school (ariza, webb & marinaccio, 2007; mason & mason, 1996; rolstad, 2005). b) student diffi culties with metarepresentational terms no empirical study in the literature has specifi cally reported students’ diffi culties with metarepresentational terms. reference to confusion caused by two everyday words, “describe” and “observe” (cleghorn & rollnick, 2002; peacock, 1995; clark, 1997), may be taken as evidence of the possible diffi culty of the two words; “describe” and “observe” belong to this group of non-technical words. however, the diffi culties students encounter with these terms may be argued on the fact that low outcomes in science examinations have been alleged to have their origin in students’ poor understanding of these terms. comments in the kenya national examinations council (knec) reports from 1990 to 2002 in the subjects chemistry, physics and biology, for example, would suffi ce in this regard. in kenya, english, a second language to learners and teachers alike, is used in all teaching and assessment. it is evident from the following comments that students’ low outcomes in these subjects may, among other reasons, have been a consequence of their having encountered diffi culties with the meanings of these words. comments about poor performance in chemistry papers revealed students’ diffi culties with the words “explain”, “comment” and “describe”: teachers should make a deliberate effort to explain to their students what certain terminologies mean when used in questions. such terminologies include “explain”, “comment” and “describe”. “this is because the kind of answers… indicated that the… candidates did not even understand what the questions were asking.” (knec, 1992:97) distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta132 students’ difficulties with “define” and “distinguish” are suggested in the following comment on performance in the physics examination question: “distinguish between ductile and brittle material.” as reported in knec (1990:41), “the candidates could only define the terms but could not distinguish between them. teachers should teach the candidates to differentiate between the terms distinguish and to define and such other terms used in physics.” further evidence of student difficulty was reported with regard to “describe” and “account” in the 1997 and 1998 biology examinations, where it was apparent that the students had encountered problems in the theory and practical papers because they lacked an adequate understanding of the meanings of the words. in oyoo (2004:199), the following students’ opinions are recorded in support of these reports. student 1: “if you do not understand the meaning… of the words used in the topic … when these words are used in an exam, you will fail the paper because you do not know the word meanings.” student 2: “lack of knowledge of the meanings of the words leads to time wastage during examinations because one takes a lot of time fumbling with the word meanings and then end up failing the exam just because of the meaning of a word.” in a first-language context, rodrigues and thompson (2001) report a teacher’s reasons for explaining the meanings of these words to students during teaching based on the fact that otherwise, students would confuse the meanings of these words. since confusion between the words has been a common source of students’ difficulty with everyday words as already reviewed above, these words may also be difficult in first-language contexts. c) student difficulties with logical connectives as gardner (1977a:v) reports about the only major study conducted so far of students’ difficulties with logical connectives, his was “a project set to identify the more commonly used logical connectives in science, and to measure junior secondary students’ difficulties in comprehending the connectives”. the connectives that emerged as difficult are the ones common in science texts and in science teachers’ classroom talk (oral language). this is evident in the following groupings of related connectives (gardner, 1977b:11): teachers can change africa deta 133 • several connectives that indicate inference are diffi cult: “and so”, “consequently”, “hence”, “it follows that”, “therefore”, and “thus”. • a second group contains connectives involved in generalisations: “commonly”, “frequently”, “in general”, “occasionally” and “often”. • several diffi cult terms signal similarities, comparisons and contrasts: “alternatively”, “as”, “at the same time”, “conversely”, “in contrast”, “in fact”, “in turn”, “much like”, “nevertheless”, “similar to”, “similarly” and “unlike”. • several apposition terms are diffi cult: “for instance”, “i.e.”, “in these examples”, “namely”, “that is” and “viz”. • some students are unfamiliar with additive terms like “again”, “also”, “further”, “furthermore”, “in addition” and “moreover”. overall, three connectives, “conversely”, “if”, and “moreover”, were found to be extremely diffi cult (mean item facility at form 4 less than 30%). although the study used an english fi rst-language sample, the emergence of a large number of diffi cult connectives implies that teachers’ classroom language could be a challenge to all learners, irrespective of their linguistic backgrounds, if the connectives are used with no appropriate measures taken to assist students’ understanding of them. general diffi culty of the science teacher’s language – a summary and analysis the general outcome of the review is that students encounter similar types and trends in diffi culties with these words of the science teacher’s language, irrespective of whether they are female or male (their gender). the types and trends of the diffi culties encountered further do not depend on the students’ linguistic circumstances, i.e. whether they learn science using their fi rst language or not. the overall outcome of the review therefore is that the total language of instruction as may be used in science texts or by the science teacher (technical as well as nontechnical words, as broadly defi ned in this article) presents diffi culties to students, irrespective of their linguistic and cultural backgrounds. in addition to students’ diffi culty with the words that have been referred to simply as non-technical words in the science context (gardner, 1971), students also encounter diffi culties with metarepresentational terms (metalinguistic and metacognitive words) and logical connectives. despite the fact that these words distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta134 comprise the entire non-technical component of the classroom (english) language of instruction and interaction, this overall outcome has now made it more apparent that science teachers’ language is generally a challenge to all learners. the extent of this challenge to students who learn in english as their second language may be dependent on the students’ relative levels of general proficiency in the language of instruction. general proficiency in the language of instruction is a necessary first step for successful learning of science to occur in that language (achebe, 1990). those who have to learn in a foreign language need some level of proficiency in the language of instruction as a prerequisite for all learning. the larger percentage of participant students in the studies reviewed for this paper had english as their first language. what has thus become apparent is that, generally, there is a need for caution in explaining students’ difficulties in learning science on their perceived levels of proficiency in the language of instruction. the general difficulty of the science teacher’s language in itself is therefore a strong support for the assertion that “everyday words when used in a science context cease to be mere english words” (marshall & gilmour, 1991:334). consequently, what now needs to be emphasised, perhaps more than has been the case, is the fact that learners need to be appropriately and contextually proficient in the language of the science classroom. the general difficulty of all categories of words in the language of the science teacher, whether written or oral, technical or non-technical, presents the linguistic face of the difficulty of school science. drawing on the nature and functional value of these and other words that comprise the science teacher’s language, it becomes apparent that there are other factors that influence students’ understanding of these words, in addition to the students’ proficiency in the (english) language of instruction. these words may also be representations of particular science subjects as well as embodiments of science concepts. students’ general ability or aptitude for science may also be expected to impact on the levels of understanding of the words. addressing the foreign language problem in science classrooms to reiterate, the role of language in all learning and the need for teacher intervention in the successful learning of school science (driver, 1989; hodson & hodson, 1998; hodson, 1999) are now well established. language, either as text prepared or presented by the teacher or science teachers’ own classroom teachers can change africa deta 135 talk, is therefore unavoidable in learning science. we should expect that students’ understanding of the meanings of all words in this language when used as science words and/or in science context would result in enhancing students’ understanding or internalisation of the taught concepts. the appropriateness of this language to the level of schooling and general background of the learners (as the teacher may be expected to know) may therefore be of utmost importance. teachers’ approach to classroom use of language as addressing the foreign language problem although teacher intervention in enhancing students’ understanding of the technical/ science words, or science terminology, is what has often been regarded as science teaching, the general diffi culty of science teachers’ language has suggested the need for equal attention to the meanings of the non-technical words as broadly defi ned in this article. the diffi culties students encounter with words that comprise teachers’ language have suggested that aspects of teachers’ approaches to the use of language in classrooms (vocabulary) may serve as major sources of students’ linguistic diffi culties when learning science. as implicit in the reviews of students’ diffi culties with words in science teachers’ language, these include the need for checks on talking speed, pronunciation, audibility and language level (vocabulary). as becomes apparent from the discussions that follow, these aspects clearly form a necessary checklist for effective communication in classrooms, which should be generally observed by teachers. this is especially in light of the general diffi culty of science teachers’ language, as has now become apparent. a) speed of talking and pronunciation a teacher’s speed of talking may be a potential source of students’ diffi culties with learning, even in very well-planned lessons. depending on students’ ability and linguistic circumstances, teachers’ fast speech may result in students not understanding or not recognising words used during teaching. the way in which words are pronounced during teaching is related to the speed of talking. while in fast speech words may not be pronounced clearly and/or correctly, incorrect pronunciation would possibly cause students to confuse these words with similar ones, or even fail to recognise the words altogether. while this problem might be expected to occur only at lower school levels, the reviews presented in this article have revealed that confusion between words distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta136 due to how they are pronounced occurred even at pre-university level. the confusion was between the following words that sound alike: “consistent” and “constituent”, “component” and “opponent”, “detect” and “protect”, “accumulate” and “accommodate”, “diagnose” and “diagonal”, “proportion” and “portion” (cassels & johnstone, 1985), “consistent” and “constant” and “parameter” and “perimeter” (farrell & ventura, 1998). other examples include “simultaneous” and “instantaneous”, and “spontaneous” and “simultaneous” (oyoo, 2004). b) audibility word recognition may not be a problem only when the speed of talking is fast or words are pronounced poorly. this may also be the case if the talking is not clear or loud enough, as may be necessary in large class sizes characteristic of schools in some populations, or depending on teaching arrangements. as may be expected, students not yet comfortable with secondary school-level language of instruction or those yet to attain an appropriate level of proficiency in the language of instruction would be additionally disadvantaged by a teacher talking fast, poor pronunciation and inaudible speech. c) language level (vocabulary) with regard to other components of teachers’ classroom language, the use of vocabulary that is not appropriate for the levels they are teaching may result in students’ difficulties with the classroom language. logical connectives, for example, may be especially difficult for many students. as pointed out here, the only study so far of students’ difficulties with these words involved only first-language learners (gardner, 1977a). hence, it can be expected that students who learn in a second or foreign language, and perhaps with different and possibly lower levels of proficiency in the instructional language, would have more problems with these words. what may be considered an obvious implication of this is that teachers’ classroom language could be a greater challenge to the learners who learn in a second or foreign language, depending on their levels of proficiency in the language. the importance of metarepresentational terms in examinations, as already pointed out in this article, highlights the need for learners to possess a good understanding of the meanings of these words. the difficulty of these words, particularly during examinations, assessments or in solving problems (bulman, 1986), may therefore be expected if science teachers do not emphasise their meanings during teaching. teachers can change africa deta 137 explicit or implicit use or reference to terms in particular may be sources of students’ diffi culties with the content of lessons and even assessment tasks. it is important to note that although science teachers would only use metarepresentational terms when solving numerical questions (problems), metacognitive and metalinguistic words, they would minimally explain the words’ meanings (oyoo, 2006). however, with regard to making explicit or implicit references to these words, teacher sensitivity to students’ language diffi culties may need to be judged on individual students’ circumstances. the implication of this for teachers is that they need to carefully consider when to make explicit or implicit references to words during their teaching (wilson, 1999). in addition to the approaches so far suggested, different approaches may be necessary, depending on teachers’ levels of knowledge and sensitivity to students’ general learning needs, including linguistic competence. the most important argument for the need for attention to how science teachers use language has been based on the nature and functional value of each category of the words that make up the language as used in science texts and by science teachers. apart from some of these words being themselves science concepts, others are representations of particular science subjects. yet, some of them embody science concepts as well as concepts necessary for the understanding of the processes of learning science, for example “fi ltration”, “distillation” etc. arguably, no word should be avoided during teaching, for the simple fact that: “… the learners are progressing with the learning and will most likely meet the same words at a higher level. the teachers should just uplift the level of vocabulary of the students. they should explain the meanings of these diffi cult words whenever they are used in class to avoid confusion in the understanding by the students.” (oyoo, 2004:203) while this opinion may be considered with reference to the entire non-technical component of the classroom language, it is generally applicable to circumstances where learning is in a language other than the learner’s fi rst language. it is also generally applicable to circumstances where the learners’ levels of profi ciency in the instructional language are perceived to be lower than may be the appropriate standard for the school level. the benefi t of this approach is in the fact that students’ competence in the instructional language will facilitate their understanding of the taught concepts. another argument (reproduced immediately below) represents the often-neglected voice of the student – the main stakeholder in all teaching. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta138 the argument is in favour of non-avoidance of any words, including those deemed difficult. learning the meanings of difficult words would also perhaps enhance their subject-related self-esteem. “student: we also should know the difficult words relevant to the subject so that when we meet the words, like “anomalous” then we just know that it is [means] “unusual”. so the teacher should provide the other possible meanings and this should be all the time.” (oyoo, 2004:204) the implication for teachers is that they need to have good mastery of subject matter content, vocabulary in the language of the classroom, and the learning context, including the learners’ cultural backgrounds. the non-technical words are generally unavoidable in the characteristic teachers’ classroom talk and students may generally not be expected to discover the meanings of these on their own. this is especially argued based on 1) the possible changeability of the meanings of words used in the instructional language depending on the context of use, and 2) the fact that the meanings of science words must be known in the science education community circles. teachers also need to observe the triple identity of the science words to be able switch between these during their offering of explanations in the classrooms. while teachers should be well aware of these issues, more information need to be sourced via more research, as discussed in the next and last major section of this article. further and new focus in science education research as addressing the problem this review has explicitly laid out the general difficulty of all words that comprise the language of instruction typical of science classrooms and texts, an outcome that may have conveyed the reality of the centrality of the language of instruction to science learning. as argued at the beginning of this article, the attention that has been given to language issues in the learning of science has in the main been with regard to learners’ proficiency in the language. further, interpretations of the findings in studies in this area (peacock, 1995; peacock, cleghorn & mikkila, 2002) have been conducted to benefit the improvement of science texts as learning resources for primary science. the teacher, as the foremost learning resource in school science at all levels, and teachers’ instructional language as a tool have been out of general focus in international science education research. hence, an urgent need exists for more research on the manner in which science teachers use the teachers can change africa deta 139 language of instruction in classrooms, with an emphasis on how this may infl uence students’ understanding and retention of science concepts via enhanced knowledge of word meanings. the role and place of language in all learning (vygotsky, 1986) is now well established. the need for this new focus in science education research is justifi able, based on the need for teacher intervention in the learning of science and everyday words when used in the scientifi c context. a focus on teachers’ classroom use of language is now generally urgent, including in countries where non-english language background (nelb) learners are in the minority (ariza, webb & marinaccio, 2007). in such countries, the teaching of science has continued with the expectation that students will understand and learn when teachers present the content in scientifi cally appropriate ways. in other words, there has been little consideration for these students’ literacy, language, and cultural understanding (lee & fradd, 1998). while this tendency might be responsible “in part for the under-representation and alienation of diverse students in science” (p. 13) in these countries, similar assumptions in the countries where students learn in a second or an additional language may have adversely impacted on levels of students’ outcomes and attitudes towards science. based on the observed similarities in the classroom language use of science teachers, more studies on the impact of teacher intervention in enhancing students’ understanding of language in the science classroom may be justifi able. although literature in this area is still scanty as observed so far (yore & treagust, 2006; yore, hand & bisanz, 2003), there is adequate evidence in the few reports in circulation on teachers’ classroom approaches to science teaching. in the bleicher, tobin and mcrobbie (2003:234) study of experienced teachers in australian and american contexts, for example, the teacher participant clearly controlled “the discourse in a linear, unyielding one-dimensional push to reach a satisfactory conclusion to cover the topic of the day”. in the same study during a follow-up interview, the students as well as the teacher indicated that they preferred the approach. the reason was that it led to the completion of the syllabus in time and would be a window on the constraints on effective practice teachers face in classrooms. the presentations by ogborn, kress, martins and mcgillicuddy (1996) of teachers’ approaches to explaining science in classrooms may be examples of science teachers’ approaches found in the united kingdom (yandell, 2003). they may distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta140 also be examples of science teachers’ approaches in any other country. abagi, cleghorn and merritt (1988), cleghorn, merritt and abagi (1989), cleghorn (1992), cleghorn and rollnick (2002) and abdi-kadir and hardman (2007) would present the situation in primary school science classrooms in kenyan and south african contexts in particular, as well as in classrooms where english is a second language to both students and their teachers. more research will have to be based on the recognition of the triple identity of the nature of science words and concepts, and should be based on the following three issues: • recognition of the science teacher as the foremost resource in learning science (driver, 1989) • the general purposes of teacher use of language in science classrooms (scott, 1998) • the greater percentage of talk in many classrooms, including those of science, across a wide range of teachers and across countries, comprises that of the teacher (barnes et al., 1986; barnes & todd, 1995; edwards & mercer, 1987; wilson, 1999; bleicher, tobin & mcrobbie, 2003) this commonality in science teachers’ classroom approaches may offer more support for the argument for more research in teachers’ use of instructional language in classrooms. the general existence of science teachers’ classroom approaches to classroom talk serves to challenge any assumptions about the existence of culturally determined approaches to the teaching of school science. conclusion in contexts where most formal education is conducted in instructional languages, usually foreign to most learners and even the teacher, the impact of language on learning is not new. however, the attention that has been given to the language of instruction has been with regard to the need to make learners proficient in it; hence, the apparent assumption that once proficiency has been achieved in the instructional language, the students would just understand the words’ meanings. this may be evidence of the possibility that communicating objective knowledge by means of language has traditionally been taken for granted by educators (von glasersfeld, 1998). while proficiency in the language of instruction is necessary for social interaction in the classrooms, learning science involves more than mere social interaction; it also involves deliberate formulation and sharing of ideas (wilson, 1999). therefore, the instructional language needs to be appropriate in all respects. teachers can change africa deta 141 it thus becomes apparent why even students who have attained acceptable levels of profi ciency in the language of instruction have often been found unable to follow classroom discussions with “good” science teachers. in many cases, this occurs when both the learner and the teacher know the meaning of a word (e.g. everyday word used in science context or as a science word) and each assumes that the other shares the same meaning. the consequence has been breaks in communication, poor understanding of the scientifi c concepts, and poor science outcomes. although it has been possible to educate science teachers on the contemporary effective teaching approaches for enhanced learning in science, the role of language of instruction has not really been a focus area. this is because 1) post-colonial practices linked to formal examinations and teacher training practices based on old models (personal communication), and 2) the education of science teachers in africa have often depended on research fi ndings in (english) monolingual societies – mainly australia, the united kingdom and the united states of america – to inform local approaches on how teachers are prepared. in these monolingual societies, the identity of the language of instruction has mainly been taken as static; hence an existence of unawareness of how words have different meanings when used in different contexts. despite the larger volume of research in these societies so far (fensham, 2004; harlen, 1999), studies on language for effective science education may only be beginning to consider the impact of the language of instruction on enhanced learning in science classrooms (kinchin, 2005; yandell, 2003). in this article, the objective has been to suggest an approach to the use of language by science teachers appropriate to the general international science education community, which may lead to an enhanced understanding of the scientifi c concepts. it will be of particular relevance to contexts where science is learnt in a foreign language (such as in all countries in africa) because of the language profi ciency requirement as a necessary fi rst step in learning in that language. the need to ensure that the language for learning is appropriate to the context of use also makes this article relevant to developers of science texts for classroom use as well as distance education material. this article is the outcome of sustained literature reviews of cross-national research and the view of 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[online]. available at: www.cascadilla.com/isb4.html. roy-campbell, z.m. and qorro, m.a.s. 1997. language crisis in tanzania: the myth of english versus education. dar es salaam: mkuki na nyota publishers limited. scott, p.h. 1998. teacher talk and meaning making in science classrooms: a vygotskian analysis and review. studies in science education, 32(1):45–80. teachers can change africa deta 147 sutton, c. 1992. words, science and learning. milton keynes: open university press. united nations educational, scientifi c and cultural organization. 2007. making a difference: effective practices in literacy in africa. hamburg: unesco institute for lifelong learning. von glasersfeld., e. 1998. cognition, construction of knowledge and teaching. in constructivism in science education. edited by m.r. matthews. dordrecht: kluwer academic publishers, pp. 11–30. wellington, j. 1994. language in science education. in secondary science: contemporary issues and practical approaches. edited by j. wellington. london, new york: routledge. wellington, j. & osborne, j. 2001. language and literacy in science education. buckingham, philadelphia: open university press. wilson, j. 1999. using words about thinking: content analyses of chemistry teachers’ classroom talk. international journal of science education, 21(10):1067–1084. yandell, j. 2003. thoughtless language, or the death of child-centred education. changing english, 10(1):5–12. yore, l., bisanz, g.l. & hand, b.m. 2003. examining the literacy component of science literacy: 25 years of language arts and science research. international journal of science education, 25(6):689–727. yore, l.d. & treagust, d.f. 2006. current realities and future possibilities: language and science literacy – empowering research and informing instruction. international journal of science education, 28(2–3):291–314. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta148 teachers can change africa deta 149 pedagogies of and pedagogies in distance learning material for teacher education prof yvonne reed languages, literacies and literatures division, school of education, university of the witwatersrand yvonne.reed@wits.ac.za abstract this paper is a response to calls made in the teacher education pedagogy literature (e.g. loughran, 2006; moletsane, 2003; murphy, 2008; russell, 1997) for teacher educators to take a critical look at how they mediate knowledge and skills to pre-service and in-service teacher education students. teaching teachers is a particularly complex kind of teaching, and is even more complex when this teaching is done on the page or screen in distance learning programmes. it is argued that, when teacher educators design materials for teacher education at a distance, they should consider not only the pedagogies they wish to describe and discuss in the materials, but also the pedagogies of the materials because both contribute to the constitution of particular subject positions for readers (as students and as teachers). such positioning is likely to affect their “investment” (norton, 2000) in their studies and in the classroom practices advocated by the designers. i use examples from a critical pedagogic analysis (reed, 2010) of selected south african teacher education materials to illustrate this argument. keywords: pedagogy; critical pedagogic analysis; teacher education; distance education materials. introduction according to levine (1992), pedagogy is the case of the missing concept. many authors in the broad fi eld of education theory and practice either assume the meaning of pedagogy to be self-evident (murphy, 2008), or add a wide range of descriptors to the concept, with freire’s pedagogy of the oppressed (1968/1970) being one frequently quoted example and jansen’s “pedagogy of compassion” and “post-confl ict pedagogy” (2008; 2009) being two recent examples from south distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta150 africa. because bernstein foregrounds the relation between learner and teacher, his conceptualisation of pedagogy is used to frame this paper: pedagogy is a sustained process whereby somebody acquires new forms or develops existing forms of conduct, knowledge, practice and criteria, from somebody or something deemed to be an appropriate provider and evaluator. appropriate either from the point of view of the acquirer or by some other body or both. (bernstein, 1999:259) while all designers of materials for distance education face the challenge of selecting, sequencing and mediating knowledge on the page or screen (the pedagogies of the materials), those who design materials for teacher education face an extra challenge, because they also need to make decisions about the “sustained process” with regard to the pedagogies in the materials (knowledge and skills for teaching in particular ways). as the pedagogy/pedagogies of the materials also offer pedagogic models to teachers, each is “entangled” (nuttall, 2009) in the other. teaching teachers is thus a particularly complex kind of teaching. all material designers for teacher education constitute “ideal” or “preferred” readers (hall, 1980), both as students and as teachers. however, even if the materials are read hesitantly, they are read within a particular semantic frame because all texts are “potentials of a quite specific kind” (bezemer & kress, 2008). texts have an effect on readers: they entice us into their way of seeing and understanding the world – into their versions of reality. every text is just one set of perspectives on the world, a representation of it: language, together with other signs, works to construct reality. (janks, 2010:61) the central argument of this paper is that the pedagogies of and the pedagogies in the texts read by student teachers in initial teacher education programmes or by in-service teachers enrolled in higher degree and professional development programmes, offer them particular subject positions. these subject positions are likely to influence their “investment” (norton, 2000) in their studies of educational theory, the subject or disciplinary content, and their “take-up” (adler & reed, 2002) of the classroom practices advocated by those who design the texts. the elements emphasised, ignored and backgrounded by the designers affect the professional knowledge signals communicated to readers of particular texts. teachers can change africa deta 151 in these texts, readers might be “imagined” (constituted) as students and teachers of a particular “type” – a type with which they may fully or partly identify. they may even reject the type altogether. the argument is derived from a critical pedagogic analysis (reed, 2010) of how content on “reading” is presented in three sets of south african teacher education materials, each of which has received accolades for its quality from local and international educationists: learners and learning (learning guide and reader in separate volumes), a module in the study of education series, is designed for use in both pre-service and in-service teacher education. a team drawn from several south african universities, under the leadership of staff members at the south african institute of distance education (saide), designed the text. it was fi rst published by saide and oxford university press (gultig, 2001). language, literacy and communication, imithamo 1–6 (36to 48-page booklets), a six-part module in an in-service bed programme designed by a team of university lecturers, education ngo staff and primary school teachers. it was developed under the leadership of the university of fort hare distance education unit and fi rst printed for internal use between 1998 and 2000. language in learning & teaching (lilt) (learning guide and reader in a single volume), a module in the bed honours programme, designed by lecturers in the school of education at the university of natal and published by the natal university press (inglis et al, 2001).learners and learning was revised in 2010 and is now an open education resource (oer) available on the oer africa site. to my knowledge, language, literacy and communication has been used only in university of fort hare programmes. language in learning and teaching has been used as a resource in both distance and contact teacher education programmes at several south african universities. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta152 critical pedagogic analysis of teacher education materials critical pedagogic analysis should not be understood as synonymous with “critical pedagogy” (as theorised by giroux, 1983; simon, 1992). rather, it is critical in its orientation to the analysis of pedagogy/pedagogies of and in teacher education materials. it seeks to identify and understand the designers’ purposes and their sense of audience, and is framed by questions such as the following: what knowledge selections are included and excluded? how do the designers mediate these knowledge selections? what subject positions are constituted for readers as students and as teachers when designers make particular knowledge selections and mediate knowledge in particular ways? who may be advantaged or disadvantaged by a particular constitution of an ideal subject – as student and as teacher? the ways in which material designers address the first two of these questions affect answers to the latter questions about readers’ subjectivities and responses. in the next section, the elements of a knowledge base for teacher education are outlined. examples from the materials listed above are used to illustrate how different design choices with regard to these elements are likely to influence both the learning opportunities and the subject positions offered to readers as students and as teachers. making knowledge selections in 2001, munby, russell and martin wrote the following in the handbook of research on teaching: the category “teachers’ knowledge” is new in the last 20 years, and the nature and development of that knowledge is only beginning to be understood by the current generation of researchers in teaching and teacher education. (2001:877) a review of a knowledge base for teaching proposed by teacher educators widely regarded as leaders in their field suggests that there is general agreement on teachers can change africa deta 153 including the elements listed below in teacher education programmes. examples of such leaders are alexander, 2008; banks, leach & moon, 1999; darling-hammond, 2006 and morrow, 2007. the knowledge focus of each element is illustrated by an example from content on “reading”: subject disciplinary knowledge – material that relates to theories and research about reading pedagogic knowledge – material that relates to methods of teaching reading knowledge of how learners learn – material that relates to what is involved in learning to read, both cognitive processes and sociocultural processes knowledge of the curriculum – material that focuses on current curriculum statements about reading and their “translation” into classroom practice contextual knowledge – material that locates reading and the teaching of reading in sociocultural context knowledge of self as learner and teacher – at a metacognitive level this includes material that promotes refl ection on past and present learning and teaching practices but also on other factors contributing to identity formation, including identity as a reader. an additional element frequently included in south african materials is academic literacy – an element that aims to extend teachers’ academic reading and writing competencies and to enable them to assist the learners they teach to do likewise. there is broad consensus on the inclusion of these elements in teacher education programmes. however, the extent to which each element is foregrounded, backgrounded or ignored by material designers, results in the offering of different subject positions to students/teachers. material designers’ choice and use of published texts in material plays a role in this regard. the three boxes below summarise the elements of a knowledge base on the topic “reading” that are foregrounded or backgrounded in three sets of material widely used in teacher education programmes in south africa for several years. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta154 learners and learning foregrounded: (i) subject or disciplinary knowledge about learning to read and reading to learn and the liberating possibilities of both; (ii) knowledge about how learners (including the readers of the material) learn – with some reference to sociocultural context; (iii) an international literature within a broadly constructivist frame; (iv) academic literacy backgrounded: (i) pedagogic knowledge; (ii) knowledge of the curriculum (deliberately, as these are the focus of other modules in the study of education series, but perhaps problematically as not all teacher education programmes incorporate all the modules) language, literacy and communication foregrounded: (i) pedagogic and contextual knowledge through the provision of very detailed guidance on collecting isixhosa traditional moral tales (iintsomi) and using these in reading activities, and on producing “big books” of learners’ stories and using these in the classroom – both presented as new ways of working in the classroom; (ii) reflections on pedagogic practices; (iii) knowledge of the curriculum backgrounded: (i) subject/disciplinary knowledge and knowledge of how learners learn (though a key text on a whole-language approach to literacy is included and presented as “new” to teacher-learners); (ii) academic literacy language in learning and teaching (i) all the knowledge is woven together, with the pedagogic experience of in-service teachers often explicitly acknowledged. for example, the introduction to the unit on reading begins with content about the importance of reading and the relationship between writing and reading, and ends with an activity which takes teacher-learners through a process of surveying both the materials they are studying and the textbooks they use in particular classroom contexts. (ii) in six of the seven texts in the reader, lecturers from the university of kwazulu-natal mediate ideas from key theorists and from empirical research to produce texts with reference lists attached. teachers can change africa deta 155 as each set of material was designed for different constituencies of ideal readers, the differences in the knowledge selections are not surprising. an analysis of language, literacy and communication – imithamo suggests that the designers have constituted their readers as teachers who need to change some of their traditional classroom practices and who will be responsive to detailed guidance for doing so. at the same time, they are positioned to value local traditional texts and cultural practices and to incorporate these in their “new”, whole-language approach to literacy teaching. they are expected to accept rather than critique what is presented in the booklets. by contrast, the designers of learners and learning encourage a critically refl ective orientation to teaching and learning. readers are established as either learner-teachers or teacher-learners (given that the module was designed for use in both pre-service and in-service programmes). they will engage with particular theories about learning to read and reading to learn. they will also refl ect on the implications of these theories relating to their practices as adult learners and as teachers, while also extending their academic literacy. however, the very limited attention paid to pedagogy may not give them suffi cient access to practices that would enable them to achieve what is advocated in the materials in their teaching. an analysis of the knowledge selected by the designers of language in learning & teaching suggests that the designers have constituted readers as teachers with both subject and pedagogic knowledge. they will extend this knowledge be able to use it productively in new ways as a result of working with the course materials. the designers also constituted the readers as student teachers with an interest in extending their own academic literacy and that of the learners they teach. it is argued below that the ways in which the knowledge selected for teacher education programmes are mediated on the page or screen also contribute to the constitution of particular student and teacher identities. mediating knowledge selections lantolf and thorne (2006:79), with acknowledgement to vygotsky, defi ne mediation as “the process through which humans deploy culturally constructed artifacts [sic], concepts and activities to regulate (i.e. gain voluntary control over and transform) the material world of their own and each other’s social and mental activity”. in terms of the pedagogy of their materials, the culturally constructed artefacts used distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta156 by designers include in-text activities and scaffolded readings, and in some teacher education materials “cases” (shulman, 2004) or “pedagogic episodes” (loughran, 2008). in teacher education materials, some instances of in-text activities, scaffolded readings and cases/pedagogic episodes are likely to focus on aspects of classroom practice (that is, pedagogy in the materials). designers’ choices of language (and explanations of language), visual elements, access devices, organisation of content and layout also contribute to mediating the selected knowledge. all of the above, individually and in combination, contribute to the pedagogy of the materials. when face-to-face interaction between teacher educator and students is limited or non-existent, the nature of the “authorial voice” is particularly important. for example, are readers encouraged to merely accept what is presented by experts or should they engage critically to offer alternatives? reed (2010) analysed the ways in which the designers of learners and learning, language in learning and teaching and language, literacy and communication used all of the artefacts and design elements listed in the previous paragraphs in detail. for this article, i have chosen two examples to illustrate how a critical pedagogic analysis of teacher education materials can help designers and evaluators to understand the “potentials” (bezemer & kress, 2008) of particular design choices. these examples have been chosen because they are in many respects “representative” of the choices made throughout by the teams of teacher educators who designed learners and learning and language, literacy and communication. example 1: a pedagogic episode from learners and learning shulman (2004:207) advocates the uses of cases as one way of representing knowledge to teacher education students. he argues that a case is not simply the report of an incident or event: “… to call something a case is to make a theoretical claim – to argue that it is “a case of something” or to argue that it is an instance of a larger class”. it is the knowledge that the case represents that makes it a case and thus, for shulman, “a case must be explicated, interpreted, argued, dissected and reassembled” (2004:209). in other words, a case, which in itself is a way of mediating knowledge, must in turn be mediated. loughran (2006:33) suggests that cases create opportunities for questioning the taken-for-granted and “invite inquiry into the diversity of possibilities and responses inherent in the problematic situations that arise in teaching and learning”. in a subsequent publication, he refers to such cases as “pedagogic episodes”, which he encourages teacher educators to teachers can change africa deta 157 offer to “students of teaching” for the purpose of informing their “developing views of practice” (2008:1180). the designers of learners and learning include pedagogic episodes in each section of the module. the episode selected for discussion takes the form of a cartoon strip and is introduced with the following statements: not all of us who read, however, enjoy the experience. reading is hard work and can be exhausting, especially if our experience of the world is very different to the world of the text we are reading. (gultig, 2001:119; italics in the original) the second of these sentences is made more salient by its repetition in the white space of the page margin where it is printed between quotation marks in large font. this feature of the page design, in conjunction with the high modality of the statements, the emphasis given to the affective word “enjoy” through the use of italics, and the choice of inclusive pronouns throughout (“us”; “our”; “we”), offers readers the following positions: • as readers of academic and other texts, “membership” of a reading community that can expect to experience diffi culties at least some of the time • as teachers, responsibility for mediating unfamiliar worlds to learners this introductory paragraph is followed by a directive to “look at” the comments made in the cartoon strip by mike who “describes what happened when he was supposed to read a book in class” (gultig, 2001:119). the designers model the classroom practice of “reading for a purpose” (one of the ways that teachers can mediate text) by asking readers to “try to identify at least two reasons why mike is not interacting with the book he is supposed to be reading” (gultig, 2001:119). the cartoon strip is reproduced in textbox 1 on the next page. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta158 textbox 1: learners and learning: the story of a struggling reader (gultig, 2001) teachers can change africa deta 159 the facial expressions, body language and words of teenage mike and the facial expressions and body language of the teacher all offer readers what adams (2008) terms an “authentic vicarious experience”. as a result, they are expected to identify with the learner and to be critical of his teacher’s pedagogy. the high modality statement1 immediately below the fi nal frame supports this positioning: “for many learners, reading is a struggle” (gultig, 2001:121). it is likely that the previous reading experiences of many teachers educated during the apartheid years in south africa were constrained by inadequate textual resources and limited teacher or lecturer mediation. the pedagogic practice, evident in the chalkboard instructions in the background of the fi rst two frames of the cartoon, is likely to be familiar to many of them. it may be a naturalised aspect of their own classroom practices as teachers and/or their experiences as learners. it is a practice in which teachers assume that learners know how to read chapters and how to answer questions without any support or guidance. while the teacher is recognisably male, he is a “type” and not an individual and has been drawn so that he cannot be identifi ed as a member of any particular “racial” category. however, the designers do not focus on the teacher in the fi rst part of their explication of this case. instead, as shown in textbox 2, they direct readers to refl ect on their own reading experiences as learners at school. 1. the modality of statements can be placed along a continuum from high (certain) through median to low (uncertain). distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta160 textbox 2: learners and learning: personal reflections on reading stop. think. • think about your own experience of reading at school. was it similar to mike’s experience? what was different? • did you ever experience reading as difficult, but worthwhile? if you answer yes, what made it worthwhile? if no, why do you think reading isn’t worthwhile? (gultig, 2001:121) in mediating knowledge about reading and the teaching of reading, the designers work with two of the analytically distinguishable strands of activity that are constitutive of academic practice: distantiation and appropriation (slonimsky & shalem, 2006). distantiation “calls upon students… to make the familiar or taken-for-granted strange” (slonimsky & shalem, 2006:43). by requiring readers to engage with mike’s experiences as a reader, to reflect on their own reading experiences at school and to work with input on factors that promote successful reading experiences before they respond as teachers, the designers encourage them to distance themselves from their naturalised practices and then to appropriate new knowledge. the presentation of what might be new knowledge for at least some readers begins under a bold type subheading: “why is mike struggling to read?” the use of bullets, italics for key words and phrases and repetition of the key message in large font in the right-hand margin, all reiterate one of the main ideas communicated in the cartoon by mike’s words, facial expressions and body language: “our attitude to reading is very important to the reading process” (gultig, 2001:121). in the next subsection, with the bold type sub-heading “important factors for a successful reading experience”, the designers again use bullets and italicised key words to construct a preferred reading. in some of the bulleted points they begin to constitute readers as teachers (“we”) rather than as learners (“they”), but in the final bullet they position themselves as teachers and the readers as learners: making meaningful links between the text and our existing knowledge will influence how successful the reading experience will be. (this is why we have tried to use teachers can change africa deta 161 familiar analogies in this text but, more importantly, why we have asked you to constantly relate ideas to your lives and practices as teachers.) (gultig, 2001:122) this is one of a number of instances in learners and learning where the designers make their own pedagogy explicit and present it as a model to the reader. in the explication of the case of mike’s reading experiences, there is an example of another recurring meditational strategy: revisiting content. the designers use questions in some of the small blocks in the page margins to recycle the content of earlier pages and to introduce new content: do you notice how similar the prerequisites for successful reading are to the prerequisites for successful learning? what does this tell you about the relationship between reading and learning? (gultig, 2001:121) the fi rst question uses a grammatical metaphor in which a question disguises a directive: notice the similarities and, by implication, if you do not notice them, revise the previous section (on “school learning”). the second serves to prepare readers to engage with the diagram of “a reading-learning cycle” on the next page of the learning guide. the designers return to the case of mike’s reading experiences in order to mediate this diagram. example 2: photographs, drawings and language choices in language, literacies and communication – imithamo the designers of language, literacy and communication – imithamo make extensive use of photographs (in colour on the covers; otherwise black and white). in a pedagogic episode that centres on the collection of a traditional story by one of the material writers, photographs of story collector tillie and her informants and information about the informants’ careers, ages and knowledge of the story, position teacher-learners to accept both the truth of the statements about the story and the complexity of the story collecting process. they are then given the set of instructions reproduced in textbox 3. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta162 textbox 3: instructions for recording an instomi when you have found a version you are satisfied with, we would like you to write out that version of your story in both isixhosa and english. this will take a long time. the learning area language, literacy & communication is not about just one language. this learning area includes all the language work that we do in all languages. we believe it is important to give status (importance and position) to all languages in our province. (umthamo 2, 1999:23) the designers’ choice of pronouns establishes a clear divide between experts (“we”) and novices (“you”), which is reinforced by the modality of this paragraph: it will take a long time to write the story in two languages and because this is important, we expect you to do it (thus negating the “softening” effect of “we would like you to”). at the time when these materials were written, the term “learning area” was used instead of “subject” in curriculum documents, so that all languages taught in schools were part of “the languages learning area”. the single instance of the inclusive use of the pronoun “we” to include both experts and novices (“language work that we do in all languages”) positions readers to identify with the designers’ view (and that of the official language-in-education policy) that it is important to promote additive bilingualism/multilingualism. the instructions are followed by the captioned drawing and photograph reproduced below. textbox 4: zozo figlan drawing teachers can change africa deta 163 textbox 5: mrs zenani photograph the captions underneath the drawing and the photograph are the only “comments” offered by the designers. it is suggested that each contributes to the affi rmation of the local which is such a central feature of the design of the university of fort hare materials. in the drawing, the background to the central fi gure of the storyteller indicates that the source of her stories is the open spaces of rural, traditional communities. zozo figlan is a powerful “traditional” presence who is physically dominant in the image. she is dressed in “afro-chic” for her performance in an urban setting (at the weekly mail storytellers market in cape town), with the gaze of each child in the multicultural group at her feet, focused on her. in the slightly blurred photograph above, children also gaze at the storyteller but this story telling is presented to the reader as a very different event. firstly, it is located in the past: mrs zenani “told” her tale – in contrast with zozo, who is “telling” hers. secondly, the setting is evidently a rural one in which children wrapped in blankets sit at a respectful distance while they listen. thirdly, it is the words selected for the caption as much as the image that position the viewer’s response: mrs zenani is a “gifted iinstomi teller” and she told an “epic” tale. the adjectives amplify the positive attitude of the designers to this event (martin and rose, 2003). finally, there is a quality of stillness and of conserved energy in the photograph of mrs zenani, in contrast with the energy expended in the larger-than-life drawing of zozo figlan. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta164 the placement of the drawing above the photograph and its greater sharpness make it the more salient2 (kress & van leeuwen, 2006) of the two images. it could be argued that its greater salience contributes to the offer of an aspirational image. teachers who collect and present stories could imagine themselves as people who bring the strengths of the local and traditional past into the local and global present. in the next unit of umthamo 2, the designers focus on using stories in primary school classrooms. in the margins of five of the pages, there is a small drawing of a teacher seated next to a “display stand” she has improvised by placing a table – designed for learners to work at – on its side with another of these tables on top. she attached paper to the side of the top table that faces the learners. lawrence (2007:22) describes eastern cape schools as “largely severely deprived and operating with inadequate infrastructure, resources and teaching staff”. the drawing demonstrates a way of overcoming a resource constraint the designers imagine they may experience in their classrooms. towards the end of the unit, the designers include a series of captioned photographs of learners at work. these photographs (and also those of the story collector and her informants) were taken by members of the design team rather than sourced from archives or photographic libraries. as noted by van der mescht (2004), the photographs are taken from a “teacher distance” as if the teacher was monitoring learners at work in his or her classroom. the gaze of the learners is directed inwards at their work or at one another or both. the captions tell teachers how to read the photographs and position them to respond positively to these examples of learner-centred classrooms. in the example in textbox 6, the teachers are positioned by the text immediately above the photograph. the designers have assumed that, before engaging with the module, these teachers’ classrooms were “bits-and-pieces” places in which there was no coherent learning programme. 2. salience, or prominence, is the result of a complex interaction of such elements as size, sharpness of focus, colour contrast, placement in the foreground or background and “culture-specific factors such as the appearance of a human figure or a potent cultural symbol” (kress & van leeuwen, 2006:202). teachers can change africa deta 165 textbox 6: language, literacy and communication, umthamo 2: the conclusion to the umthamo thinking, speaking, listening, reading and writing (university of fort hare,1999) the material designers’ choice of drawings/photographs, language and activities to mediate the knowledge selections combine to challenge readers as teachers to change their practices (or the practices that they experienced as learners). it also encourages them to act in “new” ways in their classrooms and communities. this is evident in each example of mediation discussed in this paper. however, the combinations in each set of materials constitute the ideal readers (hall, 1980) of learners and learning and of language, literacy and communication differently, as indicated in table 1: distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta166 table 1: ideal readers of the two sets of distance learning materials for language teachers readers of learners and learning are imagined as follows: readers of language, literacy and communication are imagined as follows: from diverse backgrounds throughout south africa and with fairly sophisticated knowledge of english. isixhosa speakers from the eastern cape with an interest in preserving traditional culture. knowledge of english may not be extensive. interested in and able to reflect on their own experiences and to use these productively. likely to be working in resource-poor environments. responsive to general suggestions rather than detailed instructions and able to work out for themselves how to teach well. responsive to detailed instructions for activities in and beyond the classroom; affirmed by drawings and photographs of familiar classroom scenes. whether or not readers of either set of materials would be likely to act in “new” ways in their classrooms could depend, at least in part, on whether these identity constructions are in alignment with their own and whether they experience them as unhelpful or supportive, liberating or constraining. conclusion this paper presented an idea of what critical pedagogic analysis of teacher education materials can offer to material designers and evaluators. such an analysis enables broad reflection on the questions introduced earlier in this paper. it includes a more focused reflection on how knowledge selections, the organisation of knowledge (for example, sequencing) and the mediation of knowledge (for example, in-text activities, scaffolding of readings, choice of language, images and layout) contribute to the constitution of identities for readers as students and as teachers. to return to bernstein’s definition of pedagogy, material designers for distance education programmes for teachers are encouraged to select and mediate knowledge on the page or screen (pedagogies of and in materials) in ways that encourage teachers to be producers and not only consumers of knowledge. however, it should also be recognised that pedagogy is “a sustained process” (bernstein, 1999). one of the many challenges for designers is to decide how best to stimulate teachers’ interest in learning and then to scaffold their learning so that they become increasingly agentive as learners and as teachers, which, for some, may involve a considerable identity shift. teachers can change africa deta 167 references adams, j. 2008. the pedagogy of the image text: nakazawa, sebald and spiegelman recount social traumas. discourse: studies in the cultural politics of education, 29:35–49. adler, j. & reed, y. 2002. researching teachers’ take-up from a formal in-service professional development programme. in challenges of teacher development: an einvestigation of take-up in south africa, dited by j. adler & y. reed. pretoria: van schaik. alexander, r. 2008. essays on pedagogy. abingdon & new york: routledge. banks, f., leach, j. & moon, b. 1999. understandings 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communication – umthamo 4. university of fort hare. university of fort hare distance education project. 2000b. language, literacy and communication – umthamo 5. university of fort hare. university of fort hare distance education project. 2000c. language, literacy and communication – umthamo 6. university of fort hare. van der mescht, c. 2004. creating a relationship: a discourse analysis focusing on the construction of identities and relationships in distance education materials for a teacher upgrade programme. ma research report. grahamstown: rhodes university. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta170 teachers can change africa deta 171 supporting induction to the teaching profession for women in malawi freda wolfenden open university – uk freda.wolfenden@open.ac.uk abstract gender parity in primary and secondary education has yet to be achieved in many countries in sub-saharan africa, including malawi. the presence of female teachers is recognised as positively impacting on girls’ enrolment and learning success, but in many rural areas in malawi, there are few qualifi ed female teachers working in primary or secondary schools. this paper contributes to the current debates on how to address this gap in qualifi ed female teacher recruitment and retention in rural areas. one suggested solution to breaking the cycle of low female achievement in rural areas is the use of distance education to prepare local women to become teachers in their own communities. in the programme reported on in this paper, aspiring female teachers are supported to take on the role of “learning assistants” in their local community primary schools while studying to achieve the qualifi cations necessary for application to a formal primary teacher training course. using applications, interviews and workshop data from the early stages of the programme, the backgrounds and motivations of applicants to the programme are explored. the paper also discusses the implications for the design of this distance learning programme, emerging constraints on the achievement of programme intentions and areas for further study. keywords: learning assistants; malawi; women; rural schools; teachers; distance learning. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta172 introduction a common factor in countries that have achieved the universal primary education (upe) and gender parity goals, is a substantial increase in the number of female primary school teachers (commonwealth secretariat & unesco, 2011). the training and deployment of female teachers has contributed to meeting capacity. equally important, female teachers have influenced conditions in schools and classrooms in such a way that their presence correlates with increased retention and learning gains of girls, particularly in rural areas where the challenges of girls’ education are greatest (herz & sperling, 2004; united nations girls’ education initiative, 2008; unesco, 2000). female teachers can challenge and change school culture and pedagogy in ways that offer girls greater encouragement towards success and achievement. they are able to advocate for girl pupils and to offer role models different to those habitually offered to girls in rural areas. in a malawian study, both parents and teachers expressed the view that female teachers also play a role in upholding moral standards and “offer personal counselling to girls” (commonwealth secretariat & unesco, 2011:18). the absence of female teachers, combined with a lack of gender-sensitive approaches in schools is argued to contribute to the perpetuation of female underparticipation and achievement (gaynor, 1997). however, strategies for the recruitment of female teachers, particularly in rural areas, are problematic. firstly, the number of girls who successfully complete secondary education is frequently small. this limits the pool of potential recruits to the teaching profession, particularly when countries are concerned with ensuring quality in teacher recruitment. secondly, in many countries there is often little interest in becoming a teacher among older girls in senior secondary schools. teaching is regarded as a low-status profession to those who have opportunities to access other professions and occupations (casely-hayford, 2008). qualified female teachers are frequently extremely reluctant to work in rural areas for extended periods. overt encouragement for women to enter the teaching profession (feminisation of the profession) gives rise to concerns that this will be associated with a loss of status for the profession and lower earnings (drudy, 2008). these are complex issues that demand greater attention to the gender realities of rural women when designing and implementing teacher education programmes such as the new distance learning initiative, which aims to support women who are entering the teaching profession in malawi described here. teachers can change africa deta 173 the malawi context in rural malawi, the shortage of qualifi ed female primary teachers is acknowledged to be a major factor that hinders progress towards the education for all (efa) goals. primary pupil enrolment increased dramatically following the introduction of free primary education in 1994, but it is unlikely that malawi will achieve universal primary education or gender equality in education by 2015 (unesco, 2011). as in many other countries in sub-saharan africa, the gap between goals and the current situation is greatest in rural areas, home to 80% of the population. here, primary school drop-out rates are high and pupils at all levels perform poorer than those in urban areas (malawi institute of education, 2009). this disadvantage is compounded for girls. fewer rural girls than boys complete primary school and those girls who do reach grade 10 are less likely to pass the primary school leaving certifi cate examination (pslce) than their male peers (republic of malawi, 2007). at junior secondary level, the pass rate of boys is almost 20% higher than that of girls (malawi national examination board, 2010). across the country, females comprise just over one third (38%) of the current primary teacher workforce (republic of malawi, 2008), but these average fi gures mask considerable geographical differences. in 2008, lilongwe city had 2 011 trained female teachers and 298 trained male teachers, while nsanje district’s qualifi ed primary teacher workforce comprised of 93 females and 485 males. even in a rural area like nsanje, female teachers are more likely to be located at a peri-urban area or growth point. thus, girls in rural schools frequently have no experience of female teachers as role models. gender discrimination and exclusion of girls can be unchallenged, with gender disparities remaining deeply ingrained (unesco, 2010a; ungei, 2008). the reasons for this gender distribution of teachers in malawi are complex. in comparison to many other countries in the region, female recruitment to the profession is relatively low (world bank, 2010). despite efforts to address the gender imbalance, the percentage of females recruited to the standard initial primary teacher education programme (ipte) has only been above 50% in one of the last four years for which there are data (details in table 1). this is not surprising, as expectations of academic success in malawi are generally lower for females. this is more pronounced in rural areas (kamwendo, 2010). in addition, the drop-out and turnover rates of female teachers in rural areas are high (kruijer, 2010). many female teachers are reluctant to be deployed to rural areas or request transfers away distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta174 from rural areas after only a short time. female teachers tend to prefer living in the cities. they perceive that there are more opportunities for development and career progression in the cities, housing is poor in rural areas (there is little official housing and a lack of other suitable housing) and they are often without basic services (running water and electricity). most crucially, dominant gender expectations act against teaching in a rural area. for unmarried women, it is often felt to be unsafe to live alone in rural areas and for married women, their husbands’ employment often precludes deployment to rural areas (kadzamira, 2006). in malawi, most primary teachers enter the profession through one of two routes. primary teacher training colleges run a traditional campus based on the ipte programme with an average combined annual output of 4 000 new primary teachers. in 2010, recognising that the demand for primary teachers would never be met with the capacity of the ipte programme, the government implemented a new open distance learning (odl) programme for teacher training in rural areas (republic of malawi, 2008). this two-and–a-half-year programme is scheduled to run for three cohorts, each of approximately 4 000 trainees. after an initial fourweek induction, trainees spend almost all their time in schools and are paid 90% of a qualified teacher’s salary. the programme follows the same curriculum as the ipte, but with the material adapted for distance learning. to encourage teachers to remain in rural areas, trainees on this programme must commit to remaining in their placement school (selected by local officials) for five years following qualification. applicants to both programmes are required to have successfully obtained a full malawi school certificate of education (msce), usually taken at the end of four years of secondary schooling. for the odl programme, the requirement for msce credit in english has been removed. (it is too early to assess the impact of the odl programme on the number of qualified female teachers in rural areas.) many previous initiatives in the region have focused on attracting greater numbers of female applicants to teaching and then persuading them to work in rural areas. tactics include changing the attitudes of newly trained teachers, integrating inexperienced teachers into community life and improving living and working conditions (casely-hayford, 2008). such approaches may improve gender parity in pupil access and outcomes, but they do not offer sustainable solutions to female empowerment through education in these communities. these measures generally favour women from more urban areas who have little interest in long-term teaching teachers can change africa deta 175 in rural areas. it is suggested that there is a need to rather consider how the education of women in these communities can be reshaped to support the development of their capabilities, including becoming teachers. these women are familiar with the context of their communities and can act as symbols of female agency, challenging the expectations of female life opportunities, which are currently largely limited to domestic or farm work. the pilot programme reported here (matss) adopts such an approach because it utilises distance learning to support females in rural areas to gain the qualifi cations and confi dence to become teachers in their own communities. this disrupts the cycle of rural female underachievement. the programme is congruent with government policies to increase female enrolment in teacher training and the overall number of teachers (republic of malawi, 2008). matss was designed by the open university (ou), uk, in partnership with forum for african women educationalists in malawi (fawema) and builds on the extensive experience of tessai (led by the open university, uk) in developing resources and programmes for student teachers in sub-saharan africa. matss programme structure the malawi access to teaching saltire scholarship (matss)ii programme aims to increase the number of qualifi ed female primary school teachers in rural malawi through targeting and supporting women in rural communities to apply for formal teacher training (ipte or odl). it combines distance learning study and practical school experience to provide a pathway to a teaching career for women who may be marginalised from formal learning, not only by being female and rural, but also by their ages and life circumstances. in its initial stages, the programme recruited two cohorts of 500 women each over two years (2011 and 2012) across four districts. these women aspire to be primary school teachers, they have previously studied for the msce but failed to achieve the requisite number of subject passes for the certifi cate (msce) and are consequently ineligible to apply for a formal teacher training place. during their year on the programme, the women are known as scholars. they spend four days each week in a local primary school working alongside a teacher in a standard 1 or 2 class while also studying for their msce in the priority subjects of mathematics, physical science, biology and english. distance learning materials have been developed to support both msce study and the structured school placement distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta176 in the form of a school experience handbook. during msce study, scholars are supported by a local tutor. at the primary school, each scholar is allocated a mentor who is encouraged to act as a “critical friend”, meeting regularly with the scholar to discuss her experiences in the school, to identify ways of helping her if she is encountering difficulties and to verify the completion of activities in the school experience handbook. this school experience dimension acts to induct scholars into the teaching profession as para-professionals and aims to serve two functions. firstly, scholars are positioned to support pupil learning and as female role models for girl pupils. secondly, through this experience, scholars find out if their commitment to teaching persists when exposed to the realities of classroom life. previous studies have concluded that many trainee teachers in sub-saharan african contexts can feel poorly prepared by their college courses for the demanding realities of classroom life. akyeampong and lewin (2002:344) suggest that many beginner teachers experience a “reality shock” when they first start as qualified teachers. the period of structured classroom work offered by this programme aims to offer some preparation for this reality, better equipping potential trainees for the future discussion of classroom life (akyeampong & stephens, 2002). scholars receive a modest bursary to cover travel expenses and personal hygiene and presentation. towards the end of the year, there is guidance on applying for the ipte and/or odl teacher training programmes. the programme is guided by a steering group, which includes key stakeholders from the malawi government (head of basic education, head of department for teacher education and development) with development partners including the department for internation development (dfid) and the canadian international development agency (cida). all programme material was created and critically read by local teachers and teacher trainers, and developmental testing was carried out with female students and teachers in malawi. material includes open educational resources, available on the tessa website under a creative commons, share alike licence, allowing users to use, reproduce and integrate with other resources without copyright costs. teachers can change africa deta 177 programme implementation to develop the programme framework, the research drew on experience with distance learning programmes (moon, leach & stevens, 2005) and similar projects with learners in the malawi context (chakwera, 2009; pridmore & jere, 2011), including the complementary basic education (cbe) programmeiii. the distance learning material (msce and school experience handbooks) is informed by situated learning theory in which skills and knowledge are acquired through authentic contexts and by communicating with peers and experts (lave & wenger, 1991). frequent, practical activities are complemented with refl ective writing tasks and prompts for discussion with peers and more experienced mentors and tutors. activities, particularly those in the school experience handbook, encourage scholars to engage in ongoing conversations with their practice and that of the teachers they are working alongside. in each school, the head teacher nominates a mentor (an experienced teacher) to work with the scholars. mentors support scholars in negotiating the initial stages of the intricate process of becoming a paraprofessional, extending support beyond classroom practices to include a discussion of the whole school and community concerns (mcintyre, hagger & wilkin, 1993; mtika & gates, 2011). through workshops and guidance material, mentors are encouraged to guide scholars in developing organisational skills, appropriate behaviour and negotiating the boundary between being learners and para-professionals. wenger (1998) suggests that the experiences of mentors can serve as “paradigmatic trajectories”. they provide details of how the school and teaching actually work and set possibilities for the scholars. guidelines for the selection of the mentor strongly suggested that she should be a qualifi ed female teacher, who offers a socially secure relationship in which the scholar can learn and grow as an emerging professional. this has not always been possible and a small percentage of mentors are qualifi ed male teachers. other teachers and the head teacher are potential additional sources of professional and practical support. teachers’ families looking after scholars’ children were observed and a few head teachers have allowed very young babies to accompany scholars to school. to support msce distance study, scholars are allocated one tutor for mathematics/ science and another for english. these are usually local secondary school teachers with experience of teaching msce. tutorial groups meet every week at the local distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta178 teacher development centre (tdc) or secondary school to discuss progress, and on alternate weeks, the tutor is present to structure and lead the session. the researchers wanted to recruit female tutors, but the gender imbalance among secondary school teachers is particularly acute in rural areas. as a consequence, only two (out of 40) msce tutors in the first year of the programme are women. the msce materials follow the specified msce curriculum drawn up by the malawi national examination board. scholars are always placed in pairs (and often in groups of four to five) at primary schools where there is already at least one female teacher. this both facilitates peer support and attempts to reduce the possibility of gender violence (leach et al, 2002); scholars lack the authority of teachers and could be open to prejudice and abuse from male teachers or older male pupils. participation in the programme is a process that embraces evolving competence in the tools and practices of teaching. curriculum subjects are understood as sets of social practices undertaken by members of a community, and there is a conscious attempt to highlight scholars’ relationships between their own developing subject knowledge (msce) and their school practices with young pupils. scholars are positioned with potential multiple sources of support (both formal and informal) through a network of people in the primary school, community and secondary school or tdc. a representation of this is shown in figure 1. the programme launched in two districts in the south region, mwanza and chikhwawa, as well as the dedza and ntchisi districts in the central region (malawi has 34 educational districts organised in six divisions). multiple data sets were analysed to select these districts. these included the number of qualified female teachers, the pupil-to-teacher ratio for trained teachers, the msce pass rates of females, the drop-out rates of females in primary education, and adult female literacy (republic of malawi, 2009). the district education priorities were considered (unicef, 2009) and logistical issues were factored in. communication and transport networks across malawi are not properly developed outside the main centres of population. in addition, the activities of other nongovernmental organisations (ngos) and projects were reviewed to identify possible synergies, partnerships and discussions held with ministry officials before a final selection was made. these four rural districts have low scores in all the education management information system (emis) data points considered, and teachers can change africa deta 179 resident offi cials expressed interest in supporting the programme. prior to launch, an extensive series of “sensitisation” activities were held in each zone (local area) in conjunction with the local district education offi ce. such activities served to raise awareness of the purpose of the programme and attempted to confer “legitimacy” with local leaders. the recruitment of scholars is administered by fawema, with support from other ngos operating locally. interest in the project exceeded expectations with several thousand women attending information sessions and 1 700 submitting applications. selection was done against a number of transparent criteria, which included residency in the zone, prior completion of secondary schooling (msce), achievement in english at msce level and commitment to becoming a teacher. at the start of the programme, scholars attend a local two-day residential induction meeting facilitated by teacher training lecturers, local and national education offi cers and gender experts from fawema and other ngos. these sessions familiarise scholars with the material and programme methodology, and enable them to meet each other, mentors and tutors. induction leaders emphasise the benefi ts of peer support and other support mechanisms (figure 1), as well as the importance of scholars taking responsibility for their own learning, progress and success in the programme. methodology a longitudinal study placing the scholars at the centre of the enquiry, exploring their experiences of the programme relative to their own development and changing identities, is integrated with the programme. this includes the exploration of resources the women bring to the programme, how these are recognised, utilised and legitimised and how the learning opportunities of the programme are experienced and they lead to changes in the scholars. including the perspective of tutors and mentors is also important. data collection is at fi xed points during programme delivery. some of the data is used for reporting to funders and programme evaluation. the fi ndings presented here are from the early stages of the project. they draw on an analysis of the applications of 500 scholars in cohort one, together with semi-structured interviews with a small sample (12) of scholars from two districts (mwanza and chikhwara) and with mentors (four) and tutors (four) in two districts (dedza and ntchisi). logistical and resource issues limited the number of such interviews that could be carried out in these early stages. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta180 the programme selection process had multiple stages. the initial application form requirediv a description of applicants’ previous school experience, msce results and interest in the programme. applicants were then invited to attend a recruitment centre to undertake an extended written task in english (one hour). the following items were included in the task: • describe a situation in your life where you overcame something difficult. • what was your strongest subject at msce level? why was this? • what are the qualities of a good teacher? • why are female teachers important? an oral interview was also conducted in english with female interviewers (fawema and a local ngo) for approximately ten minutes. the interview verified the applicant’s identity and involved an unstructured discussion on one topic (from a list) linked to educational experiences and aspirations. approximately 1 000 applicants went through this process. the selection process posed several challenges. these included transport, practical issues associated with verifying applicants’ residency and prior qualifications, as well as difficulties in the recording and categorisation of applicants’ interview responses. it became apparent that interviewers had little experience of note-taking during the interviews and the resulting summaries (in a pre-supplied template) offered little differentiation between applicants. consequently, a large number of candidates scored full marks on all criteria. due to their limited reliability and validity, only limited use was made of these interview notes in applicant selection and the research. for the next cohort, aspects of the application process are being refined, but it is perhaps worth noting that this selection process was perceived as innovative for its inclusion of open-ended questions linked to motivation and prior experiences. twelve semi-structured scholar interviews were carried out at induction sessions by members of the uk project team. this may have influenced the way that the participants expressed themselves. interviews were carried out in english and many interviewees struggled to find appropriate words. furthermore, their responses are highly likely to have been conditioned by the involvement of “outsiders” of the project. interviewees were selected against prior levels of msce achievement and age. interviews generated detail on the scholars’ rationale for participation in the programme and their prior education and life experiences, including the challenges teachers can change africa deta 181 of completing the msce. in addition, they provided insights into scholars’ views about the behaviour and attributes of a “good teacher” and how these were informed by their beliefs about teaching and learning. mentor and tutor interviews were undertaken at schools visited by the project team in the fi rst three months after the project launch. schools were sampled based on the number of scholars, pupil roll and location, but the project team had little knowledge of the mentors or tutors prior to the visits. interviews were audio-recorded and full transcripts of the interviews were produced later. an initial analysis of the qualitative data (applications and interview transcripts) involved critically examining a random sample of individual responses to the four open-ended questions to develop categories. this was undertaken separately by three members of the uk project team, who then agreed on a coding frame to apply to the entire sample of 500 successful applicants. the same frame was used for the scholar interview data to enable them to describe and analyse the data sets within a common conceptual framework. findings: characteristics of the scholars age: no age limits were placed on applicants to this programme, as older women with family ties may be more likely to stay in their own communities rather than leaving to pursue opportunities in urban areas. successful applicants covered a wide age range, with several individuals being over 35 years of age and a few under 20 years of age. the majority of scholars are aged between 20 and 30 years (detailed information is given in table 2). there is little data for comparison. coultas and lewin (2002) found the average age of female trainees in malawi to be similar (25.9 years), but their cohort mainly consisted of untrained teachers already working in schools who were subsequently undergoing upgrading. the scholars of the current project span a wider age range, but it is not possible to know whether this is due to the nature of the programme or its application process, which paid greater attention to potential and motivation than typical malawian teacher training programmes. educational qualifi cations: all scholars were required to show evidence of previous msce study. the majority of scholars had attempted the msce examinations in the last fi ve years (figure 2). however, there were some scholars who had fi rst attempted the msce examination as long ago as 1984. a minority (54 scholars from the cohort of 500) had attempted the msce examinations on more than one distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta182 occasion. as could be expected, these were almost entirely older scholars (aged over 30). to obtain a full msce certificate requires five or six passes at msce (depending on the number of credits), including passes in key subjects – mathematics, one science subject and english. although the average number of passes for scholars is close to six (table 3), they lack passes in the key subjects (table 4). the high number of passes in english is a reflection of the selection criteria for the programme; fluency in written english was given primacy as a selection criteria. the msce examinations, the project material and teacher training are all through the medium of english and it was argued that proficiency in english would give applicants the greatest chance of success. an analysis of areas of poor prior attainment (table 4) in the msce data reveals that mathematics is particularly problematic, and this is reflected in scholars’ comments. over 80% identified this as their weakest subject in school. a lack of books and equipment, poor teaching, including a lack of encouragement from the teacher, and teachers without relevant qualifications were all cited as contributing factors to low accomplishment in mathematics. many expressed low self-esteem in mathematics and science and constructed themselves as low achievers. nevertheless, the fact that they reached the final years of secondary school positions these females as high achievers in their own communities. family experiences of education can be highly influential in a trainee’s choice of teaching as a career, and other researchers have thus explored the educational attainments of trainees’ parents (coultas and lewin, 2002). this was not an explicit line of investigation in the current study, but scholars’ mothers’ experiences emerged as a theme in scholars’ backgrounds. many described their mothers struggling to care for several children without partner support, mothers suffering abuse from partners and other family members, illness and low levels of maternal qualifications. a minority drew directly on this experience to rationalise their interest in the programme and their determination to be economically active and independent. “my father died in 1991 and we have raised in a difficult life because my mother dropout from school in standard 2, so had no chance to get employed and she did not know how to run a business.” (sic) (c052) 4 teachers can change africa deta 183 all applicants had left school at least a year previously, so their activities and employment prior to the programme were scrutinised. the researchers were interested in perceived potential return to the individual while in their current occupation or employment. the extent of this perceived return was linked to a view of teacher training as a stepping stone to teaching or to employment in other potentially more lucrative sectors. data on the previous occupation of the scholars is fragmented with more than half of the cohort responding “none” or failing to answer this question. interview data leads the researchers to suggest that many of the women who did not respond are involved in farming, house-work and domestic labour. there were small differences across the districts; for example, in ntchisi district there were no scholars already engaged in education-related work and over 90% of those who responded described themselves as farmers or working in the home. however, in mwanza district, 12 scholars were already engaged in education-related work. this included “nursery teacher’’ and “volunteer teacher”. it is diffi cult to draw conclusions from this data beyond noting that few of the scholars have had any employment in the regular waged sector, and that the majority was engaged in farming and/or domestic work before starting with the programme. for these failed msce candidates, there are scarce opportunities for further training or education and limited openings for formal employment in rural areas. motivation for teacher training: the majority of scholars expressed extrinsic motives for joining the programme. these motives were focused around meeting materialistic needs, a wish to be fi nancially independent and to be able to support dependants. “i think it’s better to work so that i should assist my family, my relatives.” (respondent c15) many mentioned the desire to contribute to their local community or country by supporting children’s learning and reducing the pupil-to-teacher ratio: “so it is my ambition to help the villagers and village head men to help all the children who don’t like to go to school… we want to empower all the children surrounding us.” (respondent mo25) approximately a third of the responses included a gender dimension. these individuals wanted to act as a role model for girls in their local community: distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta184 “assist girls to work hard at schools in order to go to university, not only boys.” (respondent m133) “they can give courage to the ladies.” (respondent m138) this extended to a desire to contribute to the development of their local communities and country: “because it helps to reduce women’s ignorance in the country.” (respondent c004) “the second thing is that it helps for the country not to have a gender bias.” (respondent c053) good teachers and teaching: scholars inevitably bring with them a view of teaching formed from their own experiences. these experiences could include interacting with teachers in different roles as learners, parents of school learners and, for a few, working as volunteer teachers (in schools or in non-formal education situations with the youth or adults) or in other education-related roles. these ideas form the basis of what “teaching is ‘supposed’ to be” (akyeampong & stephens, 2002). scholars placed considerable emphasis on the personal behaviour, personal qualities and moral values of teachers. many described a teacher as someone who needs a smart, clean appearance and to be dedicated, punctual, reliable, resourceful, tolerant, hard-working, honest and “of good character” (respondent c027). at a classroom level, there was an emphasis on commitment to learners through caring and parenting: “… good women teacher is able to teach girls how to do their own cleanliness.” (respondent c013) scholars’ responses indicated that they perceived that nurturing learners was key to being a good teacher. many emphasised the importance of the relationship between learners and teachers. a good teacher was described as caring and friendly to learners, which creates a comfortable atmosphere in the classroom: “a good teacher should not be fearful to learners.” (respondent m96) “… to make sure when children making wrong that they be loved.” (sic) (respondent c15) teachers with such qualities were held to be role models for learners and more widely, in the community: “… to set a good example to friends.” (respondent c013) teachers can change africa deta 185 many scholars felt that female teachers were more likely than male teachers to possess these qualities and that they would be more capable of advising learners. women were believed to be more accustomed to hard work and less likely to be distracted by drink and to enter into inappropriate relationships with learners. their presence could reduce the gender differentiation and shift dominant cultural views about what it is to be “feminine” in schools: “… because a system of women abuse can be slow down in the schools” (respondent c108). experience of childcare and knowledge of children was frequently cited as a skill that women would bring to teaching. there was a perception of teaching as an extension of childcare and activity in the domestic sphere. “she teach pupils like her children.” (sic) (respondent c072) “women easily understand children because most women are mothers so they have a spirit of love for children.” (respondent c099) a small minority of the scholars argued that studying and working in schools would prevent women from engaging in other types of “undesirable activities”. “they can improve their education standard instead of going to the wrong places like bars and doing sex with married mens; they can be busy with teaching.” (sic) (respondent c070) experiences of learning: applicants’ writing revealed experiences of high levels of poverty and frequent interruptions to their learning. barriers and constraints to learning included illness, economic issues and parental expectations. experiences of bereavement (usually parental), illness (usually parental but occasionally themselves), pregnancy and husbands’ behaviour all inhibited regular school attendance. similarly, economic hardship (often as a result of poor harvest) interrupted schooling for many of the scholars. for some, there were insuffi cient family funds for school fees, clothing and study material and for others a need to be engaged in income-generating activity instead of attending school. for some, gender expectations and prejudices had impacted on their schooling: “parents they encourage you to get married instead of school.” (sic) (respondent c072) distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta186 “my parents believe that a boy have a right to go to school not a girl.” (sic) (respondent c057) many scholars expressed negative experiences of school. teaching approaches, particularly in secondary schools, were felt to have been inadequate, insufficiently engaging or inclusive, with unattractive conditions in school classrooms. many experienced an absence of encouragement or interest from teachers, physical punishment and inappropriate behaviour from male teachers. while these conditions and teacher behaviour affect both boys and girls in schools, the lack of value associated with girls’ education and dominant male behaviour, including sexual harassment, suggest that the impact on girls was greater. many had experienced a feeling of failure at their grades in crucial public exams (msce, jce or the primary leaving examination). however, for some, this had been mitigated by success at a later date. threaded through these scholars’ stories was the lack of possibility for agency in their own educational experiences and low self-esteem regarding educational attainment. discussion increasing the number of female teachers in rural areas in developing countries demands innovative measures to attract and retain community teachers. the programme described here is one response to these challenges, aiming to offer authentic situated learning experiences with high levels of support to rural women as they start to become members of the teaching profession. crucially, while the project is aligned with global aims (millennium development goals 2 and 3, undp 2013), it takes into account specific contextualising factors in malawi and harnesses existing systems. however, the key to success in such a programme is developing an understanding of participants, their motivations, aspirations and prior experiences of learning and an understanding of the positions of those supporting them – their tutors and mentors – to inform materials and the design of support systems. this programme attracted large numbers of applicants with an appetite for resumed study to achieve the msce and a professed desire to progress to becoming teachers. the initial work shows that many of the scholars construct themselves as failing in particular school subjects (especially mathematics) and have negative experiences of secondary schooling. but many see themselves as agents challenging societal expectations and they want to re-invent their identities. there are few developingworld studies examining factors that influence teaching as a career choice and teachers can change africa deta 187 even fewer that investigate trainees from more marginalised groups and their learning trajectories to becoming professionals. a recent study of secondary school trainee teachers in malawi indicated that teaching is frequently a profession of last resort for those who have failed to gain university admission (mtika & gates, 2011), confi rming similar fi ndings from an earlier study of primary teacher trainees (coultas & lewin 2002). in these studies and others (towse et al, 2002), teaching was seen as a “stepping stone” to a higher-status professional activity. the scholars of this programme were much less likely to hold such views about their future roles, and as women in rural communities, few possibilities have been open to them to develop their capabilities. scholars perceive teaching as an essentially pastoral activity. appearance and personal behaviour, particularly nurturing, are foregrounded as characteristics of a good teacher, underpinned by academic qualifi cations (msce) and competency in english. descriptions of good teachers contained little reference to the practice of teaching or classroom learning, and lesson planning was the only teaching skill mentioned. the social construction of the primary school teacher held by many scholars was synonymous with the constructs of “female” and “mother”. there is much in common here with the views of beginning teachers in other environments in sub-saharan africa, but with a greater emphasis on pastoral care for pupils (akyeampong and stevens, 2002; coultas and lewin 2002; towse et al, 2002). such views are infl uenced by participants’ own experiences of schooling and family life. a signifi cant number of scholars drew on their experiences with childcare or care of ill relatives to align themselves with their future role as teachers. holding such views allows these women to visualise themselves as teachers without overtly challenging prevalent cultural expectations of themselves as women in their communities. their multiple responsibilities in their own communities are not reduced while participating in the programme. the material prepared by the programme adopts a highly participatory approach, seeing the learner as agentive (bruner, 1996) and encouraging interactions with peers, relatives and friends. there is a large number of activities as well as selfand peer assessments. however, scholars’ participation in activities and the meanings they construct will be highly infl uenced by their relationships with their tutors and mentors, and the views of learning held by these tutors and mentors and what they judge to be important (mccormick & murphy, 2008). for the programme team, this mediation of the approach to learning by tutors (and mentors) poses critical distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta188 challenges in achieving programme aspirations. the mentoring dimension of the programme can be deeply challenging for mentors, not least because the programme material suggests new perspectives and ideas on learning that mentors may find unfamiliar and possibly threatening. interview descriptions of the mentoring process revealed a hierarchical relationship between mentor and scholar. for example, some mentors insist that scholars write out answers to activities in draft for correction before completion in the actual workbook. furthermore, the presence of the scholars as “learning assistants” may in itself threaten the identity of the teachers/mentors, particularly if they have become accustomed to being the sole adults in their classroomsv. the msce assessment framework is a key influence on the learning and teaching process, but the tutors – their views on pedagogy learning and knowledge – will also influence the way the curriculum is implemented and valued, as will their relationships with the scholars (mccormick & murphy, 2008). various factors make the programme’s approach to learning problematic. firstly, the selection of the curriculum topics is challenging, because tutors are often dismayed to find that the material does not cover all aspects of the syllabus, and may use additional materials to supplement those in the programme. this can cause information overload for the scholars. secondly, the majority of tutors have little experience of distance learning, and struggle with this role. many want to conduct tutorial sessions in the same manner as teacher-led transmission of knowledge. thirdly, the project team is keen that the scholars are not perceived as “failures” or deficient in their knowledge, but should rather be treated as mature learners with extensive funds of knowledge to draw on. for many tutors, this attention to individual needs (characteristic of distance learning tutoring) is in conflict with their customary “teacher-centred” pedagogic practice. concluding remarks the programme is still in its early stages and, as yet, there is only limited data on the scholars’ experiences to inform the development of the programme and to assess its success. although distance education is not widespread in malawi and few participants have any prior experience of it, the programme has been widely welcomed by participants, local leaders and key education stakeholders. harnessing the flexibility of distance learning, the material aims to develop scholars’ skills, teachers can change africa deta 189 knowledge and confi dence as they juggle study with work and family duties. initial data from the fi rst cohort of scholars indicates they feel strongly that their presence is important to girls and to pupils generally, although many lack confi dence in particular areas of study and in their ability to succeed academically. the analysis to date indicates several areas where there is emerging non-alignment of project design and implementation. one such area concerns gender dynamics at a local level in the practices of tutors and mentors. emerging evidence suggests that the prevailing attitudes of some members of these groups may be sustaining conditions that limit female empowerment. there is non-alignment between the learning approach inherent in the distance learning material and the practices in tutorials and mentor sessions. thus, a key part of programme is to increase researchers’ understanding of the tutors’ and mentors’ histories of participation and learning brought to the programme, together with their views of the scholars. without this, it will be diffi cult to disrupt tutors’ practices and support them in rethinking their teaching styles and expectations for the scholars. this has implications for the types of learning activities these distance education tutors are requested to carry out with the scholars and the forms of guidance and induction for this group. similarly, for mentors, there is a need to support them to think critically about their practices. historically, distance learning programmes in africa have given little attention to the perspectives of tutors, particularly with regard to issues of gender and poverty. distance learning offers a path into teaching to groups previously underrepresented in the profession, particularly women in rural areas. however, a successful programme requires different thinking. this different thinking includes pedagogy, teaching and learning in relation to learners’ identities to make any sustainable shift in the learning outcomes for females in these rural communities. this refers to both women on the programme and the girls in schools. for the funder of the project, the key success indicator is the number of scholars who progress to qualifi ed status and who, once qualifi ed, remain in their local communities. researchers are aware that there is a need to continue studies to understand the contribution it is making to their understanding of distance learning (material and support design). one should scrutinise the social and learning experiences of the scholars, their future activity and the infl uence of their presence in the participating primary schools. one should also consider the impact of programme participation on other role-players – mentors and tutors, and their practices. distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta190 figure 1: support for scholars in the matss programme figure 2: date scholars sat msce examination teachers can change africa deta 191 table 1: female teacher trainee recruitment cohort ipte 1 ipte 2 ipte 3 ipte 4 year 2005/6 2006/7 2007/8 2008/9 female intake 1276 1272 2,166 1,521 % female 45% 45% 55% 40% table 2: age distribution of scholars across the four districts, 2011 age band (%) chikhwawa dedza mwanza ntchisi total <20 3% 2% 1% 8% 3% 20–24 49% 44% 41% 48% 45% 25–29 24% 38% 29% 31% 31% 30–34 13% 12% 17% 7% 13% 35+ 6% 3% 8% 0% 5% data not available 5% 1% 3% 7% 4% grand total 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% table 3: scholar msce passes in each district district number of subject passes average passes per candidate average passes in the key subjects per candidate chikhwawa 668 5.6 1.9 dedza 735 6 2.0 mwanza 822 6 1.8 ntchisi 536 5.2 1.7 distance education and teachers’ training in africa deta192 table 4: passes in key subjects per district district biology physical sciences or science english language1 english literature mathematics total chikhwawa 55 19 108 0 42 224 dedza 71 24 111 1 40 247 mwanza 67 21 139 1 43 271 ntchisi 47 13 91 3 27 181 total 240 77 449 5 152 923 table 5: scholar prior occupations b us in es s re la te d e du ca ti on -r el at ed o ffi ce / a dm in / se cr et ar ia l fa rm in g/ a gr ic ul tu re /v ill ag er fa m ily / ho us ew ife /c ar er sa le s/ s ho p w or k d om es ti c w or k st ud en t o th er n on e b la nk ( no ne g iv en ) t o t a l total 16 19 3 97 50 4 2 13 4 47 234 4896 1 prior to 2010 there was only one msce for english. teachers can change africa deta 193 endnotes i. www.tessafrica.net ii. matss is a joint programme from the open university, uk (tessa), and fawema (forum of african educationalist women in malawi) with other local partners and is funded by the scottish government as part of the cooperation agreement which was signed between scotland and malawi in november 2005, outlining four key areas of engagement: civic governance, sustainable economic development, health and education. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/ topics/international/africa/malawi. iii. run by gtz, this 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