College of Education. Learn without limits. college of education

Transcription

1 College of Education Learn without limits. college of education

2 Introduction The College of Education (CEDU) supports Unisa s quest for excellence in teaching, research and innovation. The CEDU team is committed to increasing the university s reach, influence and research output in the field of teaching and learning. CEDU had students enrolled in This large footprint means that the college is responsible for the professional education and training of close to half of all the teachers in South Africa. CEDU s research across the many facets of education is by its very nature futuristic in that it directly impacts on the future of millions of children in our country s schools. There is a deliberate emphasis on Mathematics Education, Science and Technology Education, Early Childhood Education, Language Education, Arts and Culture, Inclusive Education and Adult Basic Education and Youth Development. Plans are underway to establish a Centre College of Education Any relevant undergraduate degree or diploma Bachelor of Education 3-year Diploma in Education Postgraduate Certificate in Education Honours Bachelor of Education Advanced Certificate in Education of Excellence in Disability Studies with funding from the Department of Higher Education and Training. This is a first for the country. Aligned with Unisa s institutional goals and the Department of Higher Education s imperatives, CEDU provides both initial professional education of teachers and continuous professional teacher development. Strategic focus CEDU offers a wide range of different qualifications across the different school phases (including early childhood development (ECD), Grade R, foundation, intermediate and senior phases) as can be seen in the diagram below: Master of Education (Research/coursework) Doctor of Education Innovation in teaching To prepare current and future teachers to address the emerging dynamics of teaching in the 21st century, Unisa is offering an online signature module equipping teachers with the ability to use information and communication technologies in the classroom. In CEDU this module, Being a professional teacher, is designed for students registering for the first time for an undergraduate degree in education. After registration, students receive a digi-band (a device loaded with learning materials), enabling them to work both offline and online on their personal computers. For assessment purposes, students participate in discussion forums and through written assignments. The assignments are marked online and marks are regularly fed into the grade-book in the student system. This is CEDU s attempt to change the quality and professionalism of the new teacher. Strategic focus There are large shortages of qualified teachers in certain areas including Foundation and Intermediate phase; Mathematics; Science and Technology Education; Early Childhood Education African Languages and Inclusive Education and prospective students should consider specialising in these critical areas. The college is structured into two schools: the School of Educational Studies and the School of Teacher Education. The Centre for Continuous Professional Teacher and Community Education and Training, Office of Graduate studies and the Teaching Practice unit also forms part of the college.

3 Educational research focusing on schools Currently CEDU is involved in 26 community engagement projects based on research-related. The first grouping comprises of projects related to school management, governance and leadership, and the next group of projects is related to gateway subjects and teacher development. These will feed into the development of the teacher centres, another CEDU project jointly embarked on with the Department of Basic Education (DBE). The third cluster of projects is related to Inclusive Education for which a new Centre of Excellence will be established at Unisa. The fourth group includes projects related to Early Childhood Development. The CEDU community engagement map School management, governance and leadership School management, governance and leadership Adopt a school project Preventing violence in schools Professional learning in school management Inclusive education DHET infrastructure project for inclusive education Developing Maths and Science teachers for the blind Enhancing the impact of the Kha ri Gude programme Tateni: Breaking the Cycle of Poverty HIV/AIDS project: Grandmothers raising children Special schools and prison schools Training facilitators for persons with hearing loss 500 schools Teacher Centre Project At the centre of the four groups or quadrants is the 500 Schools project which covers all these aspects. By means of the 500 Schools project research information is gathered which will inform the development of better practices in the schools and how teachers are trained in schools and in teacher centres. The research is done together with the teachers who co-construct the knowledge about their situation and together they find ways of improving teaching and learning in the classrooms. Gateway subjects and teacher development Maths teacher professional development Developing mathematics proficient teachers Strategies to improve learner performance Strengthening the teaching of indigenous languages Mathematics teaching and learning intervention Science outreach in KwaZulu-Natal South African-Zimbabwe Mathematics Strengthening the implementation of CAPS Teacher education in sub Saharan Africa (TESSA) Early Childhood Development Support for African, Indian and Coloured Foundation Phase teachers Academic Skills for ECD practitioners Growing ECD in rural areas More information on some of the community engagement projects: The 500 Schools research project investigates the underlying causes of under-performance in grades three and six with a view to developing an intervention approach. The Dynamics of Violence in Schools Project, has been embarked on jointly by universities in the United Kingdom, Brazil, Pakistan and South Africa. The aim of the project is to facilitate international comparison of school violence through the generation of school-based indicators of violence and of security measures. The Vhembe Schools Project focuses on increasing learner performance in National Senior Certificate Examinations. The Early Childhood Development (ECD) Outreach Intervention is aimed at developing ECD teachers who are able to teach through the medium of the African Languages. The project will provide support for ECD teachers specifically in rural areas. The Growing ECD Teachers in Rural Areas project is aimed at attracting and recruiting 100 young black females to register for a four-year Bachelor of Education degree in Foundation Education. The recruitment process will target learners in rural schools. Ilima Lemfundo seeks to improve the teaching of indigenous languages in poorly performing schools. The Science Outreach in KwaZulu-Natal project aims to empower science teachers in rural areas through face-to-face contact sessions. An investigation into the teaching of science and mathematics to students in schools for the blind intends to involve mathematics and science education for visually impaired learners. The Analyses of Mathematics Teacher Professional Development Programmes is a cross-continental collaborative study will analyse teacher professional development programmes with a view to improving the quality of maths teachers. A community project focused on the training of facilitators for persons living with hearing loss, which is aimed at developing a short learning programme in cooperation with the National Institute for the Deaf.

4 Support for master s and doctoral students The Office of Graduate studies arranges support workshops for all master s and doctoral students registered at the college. These workshops cover a wide range of topics such as procedures, academic writing and library training, research proposal structure and problem statements, theoretical and conceptual frameworks, literature review and research methodology. NRF-rated academics The college has eight academics who have been rated by the National Research Foundation (NRF). Their specialisations cover a wide range of subjects including parent involvement, female leadership, multicultural education, early childhood education, development of principals as well as general leadership and management, policy in education with special focus on issues of good governance, democratic citizenship education, democracy and social justice, economics education, cooperative learning, indigenous knowledge systems, economic justice and sustainable rural ecologies. Facts and figures Male Female Enrolments by gender Enrolments by age group Honours Master s Doctorate Undergraduate Postgraduate Enrolments by level of study Our academics contribute and write books on a variety of education themes

5 College of Education management School of Educational Studies School of Teacher Education Executive Dean Prof KP Dzvimbo Prof KP Quan-Baffour Adult Basic Education Dr MG Ngoepe Mathematics Education Deputy Executive Dean Prof VI McKay Prof J Seroto Educational Foundations Prof N Nkopodi Science and Technology Education Director: School of Educational Studies Prof LDM Lebeloane Director: School of Teacher Education Prof PL Mabunda Dr N Naidu Psychology of Education Prof PM Sebate Chair: Language Education, Arts and Culture Manager: Tution and Learner Support Prof LJ van Niekerk Manager: Office of Graduate Studies and Research Prof MM Nieman Prof NT Phasha Inclusive Education Prof G van den Berg Curriculum and Instructional Studies Head: Teaching Practice Unit Prof MW Maila Manager: Centre for Continuous Professional Teacher and Community Education and Training Dr SJ Mohapi Prof VS Mncube Educational Leadership and Management Prof EM Lenyai Early Childhood Education

6 Message from the Executive Dean: Prof Kuzvinetsa P. Dzvimbo Re-imagining teacher education at UNISA As we re-imagine the teaching and learning of education as a discipline, the College of Education is proud to play a pivotal role in assisting the Department of Basic Education in the education and training of qualified and professional teachers from the Foundation to the Further Education and Training levels in this country. We are committed to playing a critical role in improving the quality of teaching and learning in our schools and classrooms particularly in the fields of mathematics, science and technology education; early childhood education, inclusive education; and language education arts and culture. We are also determined to be engaged in trans-disciplinary research, academic citizenship and community engagement activities that help us to gain deeper insights into curriculum reform and critical pedagogy; student learning; innovative assessment practices; teacher learning and how to make our schools more effective and productive. We will continue to be engaged in reflexive research that will enable us to improve our blended mode of teaching and learner support so that our teachers graduate with the requisite knowledge base and a philosophical orientation that will enable them to be reflective practitioners committed to the education of our children in South Africa and the continent. As a new college, the CEDU is also committed to the development of research knowledge in education. As such, our academics are engaged in both basic and applied research to enhance our disciplines and practice in schools. Ours is a continuous quest for excellence and relevance in the South African and continental landscape. In our South African context, we are committed to work with all stakeholders in order to achieve the key features of the schooling system as stipulated in the National Development Plan, which envisage that by 2030 we should have: A schooling system characterized by highly motivated learners and teachers Effective managers who provide administrative and curriculum leadership Parents involvement and support of the schooling system Committed and professional teachers who are conversant with the knowledge base of the subjects they teach High speed broadband is available to support learning Availability of basic infrastructure for all schools

7 Contact us Postal address: College of Education PO Box 392 Unisa South Africa 0003 Telephone number of the student advice centre: Website: Mobi site: College BBM pin barcode to link to the college website