Transcript Slide 1

By
Hayley Bentham
University of Life Sciences
ESD in South Africa
• “We cannot imagine how the people of all nations could move
toward a more sustainable world without the contribution of
educators from around the globe.” (UNESCO, 2005, p.11)
• 2010 report by UNESCO reveals what has been achieved within
the first five years of the UNDESD as well as the strategy for the
second half of the UNDESD
• The strategy suggests generally that teachers’ pedagogical practice
be developed by supporting teachers with regards to how they
might develop ESD teaching and learning strategies (ESD
Competences)
• “In Africa, the re-orientation of education towards sustainable
development requires the strengthening and boosting of the
quality and efficiency of capacity development initiatives
(education, training, community development and public
awareness programmes) to address the relevance of education to
development and poverty alleviation objectives.” (UNESCO, 2010,
p.5)
Historical considerations of TEI’s in
South Africa.
 How does institutional policy encompass global and
national initiatives, specifically the UNDESD?
 Is it fair to assume that it involves the same task for all
nations? (Beyond the argument of resource access)
 What colours the issue in a South African Context?
South African TE prior to 1994
 1910 constitution divided responsibility of teacher
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education between national and provincial government
Provincial responsibilities – Colleges of Education &
Primary school education
National responsibilities – Secondary teacher training
(Universities and Technikons)
1950s = Bantu Education (stabilizing Apartheid as a special
skill-based education)
Teacher training colleges separated according to
provinces/homelands and were governed by provincial
education departments
120 Colleges by 1994
South African TE after 1994.
• 1994 – Post Apartheid, new democratic
constitution
• Teacher Education endured a double transition as
(1) education and teacher policy changed, as well
as (2) higher education structure
• All with the specific slant of dismantling the
apartheid past (Kruss, 2008) and redressing
injustices
• Inherited TE was fragmented (despite strong CNE
core curriculum), inefficient (costly) and quality
was questionable (National Teacher Education
Audit, 1995)
(1) Transition of education policy
 ANC - Democratic constitution (SACE & RDP)
 Teacher Audit (1995)
 SAQA & NQF
 Norms & Standards for Teacher Education (1996)
 GEAR (2 goals and 2 foci – EfA and employment
opportunities)
 Need for new policy (RDP undermined)
 New Norms and Standards (2000) & OBE-oriented
NQF and C2005
 The Norms and standards provide a generic picture of a
teacher and the required competences, together with the
guidelines for the development of learning programmes
aligned with the new Outcomes Based NQF.
 Intended to significantly contribute to the implementation
of C2005 by training educators who have the knowledge,
skills and values to make learning in schools more relevant
to social and economic needs of South Africa.
 7 Roles and Competences of an Educator
• Learning Mediator
• Interpreter and designer of learning programmes and materials
• Leader, administrator and manager
• Scholar, researcher and lifelong learner
• Community, citizenship and pastoral role
• Assessor
• Learning Area/subject/discipline/phase specialist
A Time for In-service Teacher re-skilling
 National Professional Diploma in Education (NPDE) re-
skilled teachers who did not meet the NQF.
 In-Service Education and Training (INSET) workshops
were delivered to attempt to implement the new
curriculum 2005, (unfamiliar facilitator roles & learnercentred OB focus.
 The Department of Labour (DoL) -strong influence on the
development of the SAQA act and the Skills Development
Act.
 Strong focus within education policy on labour movement
and the implementation of education and training in line
with an outcomes-based epistemology…training designed
for economic and social development.
(2)Restructuring of Higher Education
 In 1996 TEIs were made a National competence
 Higher Education Act of 1997 made all TEIs part of the
Higher education system
 Colleges = ran like schools, practical based, required no
research productivity output, under-qualified staff in many
instances.
 Higher Education Act of 1997 stipulated
 TE may become autonomous HEIs if they had 2000 fulltime student minimum enrolment
 Otherwise, become part of existing Universities and
Technikons
 Colleges shut down
These transformations complicated things for Teacher
Educators
 Restructuring = Pressures on TE
 Research productivity output (5 % of all publications only (CHE,
2006)) lowest financial provisions
 Raising academic standing is a focus – due to furthering of
knowledge interests of HEIs
 Stiffled the teacher professional development and equity interests
of the Department of Education
 Is it fair to expect ESD competences to be seen as a priority focus in
teacher education?
The concern is not simply that the capacity to produce sufficient numbers
of new teachers appears to have been significantly eroded. The capacity
of the teacher education system to produce the kinds of teachers
required by new education policy to promote development and growth in
South Africa is equally significant (Kruss, 2008)
The complexity continues…
• However the redesigning of the curriculum faced and still
faces other challenges
• “..the pedagogical and theoretical approaches articulated
by academics from different backgrounds and institutional
identities, which shape future curriculum development in
teacher education” (Kruss, 2008, p.86)
• Another challenge involves the differing perceptions of
teacher education that previous colleges of education and
present Universities hold.
• Perceptual disjuncture = conflict in how teacher education
modules should be delivered and what percentage of
theory and practice they should contain.
TEIs in SA – What it boils down to
 Today colleges of education have diminished and 22 HEIs
have since been tasked with offering initial teacher
education and training (Kruss, 2008)
 Forced teacher education and training under a university
style framework.
“, teacher education has typically been shifted from the
specialized college sector into the higher education
sector….Hence, teacher education internationally has also
become subject to the multiple new demands of
globalization and the knowledge economy as they are
played out on the higher education terrain,” (Kruss, 2008,
p.77)
If ESD competences are addressed in certain TEIs,
then what forces/factors assist this? (Resilience?)
SA National Curriculum offers a way…
 Identify & solve problems & make decisions using critical and
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creative thinking.
Work effectively with others as members of a team, group,
organization and community.
Organise and manage themselves and their activities responsibly
and effectively.
Collect, analyse, organise and critically evaluate information.
Communicate effectively and critically showing responsibility
towards the environment and the health of others.
Demonstrate an understanding of the world as a set of related
systems by recognizing that problem-solving contexts do not exist
in isolation.
Use Science and Technology effectively and critically showing
responsibility towards the environment and the health of others.
SA National Curriculum offers a way…
 Reflect on and explore a variety of strategies to learn
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more effectively
Participate as responsible citizens in the life of local,
national and global communities.
Be culturally and aesthetically sensitive across a range
of social contexts.
Explore educational and career opportunities
Develop entrepreneurial opportunities.
Research Purpose
 Examine the degree to which ESD permeates the goals
and objectives of policies that guide teacher education
programmes in South Africa
 Understand to what degree TEI’s promote the
development of ESD based competencies.
 Explore in what ways teacher educators recognise and
address ESD competencies, and why.
Overall Aim
It is hoped that ESD stakeholders gain more constructive
insight into the existing challenges and the complex
net that holds the initiative together at an institutional
level.
Research Questions
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In what way(s) does policy guiding teacher education, promote
the development of competencies in Education for Sustainable
Development?
What methods have been employed at an institutional level to
realise a teacher education that is ESD competency oriented?
To what degree do key policy implementers recognise and
address ESD competencies within the teacher education
curriculum?
Why do key policy implementers provide this degree of ESD
competency address within the teacher education curriculum?
What contextual factors influence key policy implementers’
attempts to effectively engage in ESD-oriented activity?
Methodology
 Survey
 Document Analysis (Course outlines and
materials, guiding policies for Teacher Education,
Constitutions)
 Case Study
 Attend meetings (upon invite) regarding any internal
restructuring, current issues faced by the education
faculty, current educational foci etc.
 Observation (Interaction between personal,
institutional and policy motivations)
 Informal conversations (snow-ball sampling)
Methodological Implications
 Web-based survey of 22 Teacher Education Institutions in South
Africa
 Question 1-3 = Biographical data
 Question 4
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= Lists the Knowledge, Skills and Values related to ESD that
student teachers should display
Asks the academic to rate the degree of attention that the
institution and themselves personally give to each K, S, & V
Question 5 = Academic is asked under each K, S, & V listed to tick the
factors (listed) that they feel influence it’s address in the
TE program
Question 6/7= General questions about SD as an institutional focus
Question 8 = Only for teaching academics. Concerns how SD is said to
be
implemented in their practice and how they
motivate
student teachers to develop ESD
competencies
Question 9 = Seeks to understand what meaning academics give ESD
 Select 2 Institutions
 One case of an Exceptional TEI
 One case of a typical SA TEI
 Or should I only consider one case?
 Indepth exploration of the chosen TEI(s) – spending a
period of 5-6 months in the field
– Aiming to identify:
1.
What methods have been employed at an institutional level to
realise a teacher education that is ESD competency oriented?
2.
To what degree do key policy implementers recognise and
address ESD competencies within the teacher education
curriculum?
3.
Why do key policy implementers provide this degree of ESD
competency address within the teacher education curriculum?
4.
What contextual factors influence key policy implementers’
attempts to effectively engage in ESD-oriented activity?
TEI Framework
University Policy
Level 1
Faculty Dean
HoD - Science
Academics
Level 2
HoD - Maths
HoD - Tech
•Course Outlines &
Programs
•LOs according to DoE
•Finances (publications)
•Personal Interests &Skills
HoD - Lang
Level 3
Conceptual & Theoretical Support
 ESD Competencies
 Complexity Theory
 Organization Theory
 Phenomenology
The ESD Competences
(UNECE, 2011)
 The Holistic Approach
 Integrative/systems thinking (awareness of how change
in one part influences change in another)
 Inclusivity (consider a range of perspectives critical to
discussing sustainable futures)
 Dealing with complexities (e.g. citizenship, poverty
alleviation, sustainability assessment etc)
 Envisioning Change
 Learning from the past (understanding & critique of
previous developments)
 Inspiring engagement in the present (address the needs
of the present considering the future)
 Exploring alternative futures (consider new pathways
by considering scientific evidence, current beliefs and
creative thinking
 Achieving Transformation
 Transformation of what it means to be an educator
(critical reflective practitioners who are openly fallible
and empathetic)
 Transformative pedagogy (considers learners
experiences and provides opportunities for learners to
actively participate and creatively think towards
sustainable living)
 Transformation of education systems (Integration of
ESD competences for learners into education policies)
Complexity & Organization Theory
 Concerned with how the nature of a system may be characterised
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with reference to its constituent parts in a non-reductionist
manner (Manson, 2001)
Complexity research concerns how complex behaviour emerges
from relatively simple local interactions between system
components over time.
Phenomenological perspective that you cannot understand an
individual or a group of individuals before understanding their
environment and the interactions that take place within it.
It is a descriptive theory and not a prescriptive theory
Towards a modelling of the specific, local linkages that
interconnect actors, practices, and events across multiple levels
of organisation.
 Complexity theory encourages a look at the whole in
terms of its parts and the connections between these
parts (loose coupling), without simply reducing the
system to a sum of its parts
 Metaphors in Organization theory offer insights into
the whole and constituted parts of the teacher
education institution.
 E.g. Organizations as loosely coupled systems
 E.g. Organizations as a Culture
 E.g. Organizations as a political system
Potential Difficulties
 Conceptually – Identifying ESD competences which can often
be disguised in other Learning activities and objectives.
 Data collection – Achieving a non-invasive way of interacting
with academics and building a trusting relationship that
encourages snow ball sampling
 Data analysis – How to promote validity and connect the dots
in a way that tells a story about the cases being explored.
 Worth – How can the findings become more meaningful in
terms of promoting ESD? Should the research suggest
implementation strategies/models or is it enough to reveal the
structures that serve to promote/obstruct ESD realisation in TE?