Representatives from the British Council, the Eastern Cape Department of Education and the Faculty of Education, including the University's Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Learning and Teaching, Dr Muki Moeng.
The overall aim of the project is to contribute to a more inclusive education system in South Africa by developing a model that trains teachers to support the needs of all learners in the classroom.
Mandela University’s Business School hosted the first cohort of Eastern Cape teachers, chief of directors, directors, and managers from the districts, with the project leader being the Faculty of Education’s Professor Cina Mosito.
From left, Dr Moeng; Education student Georgey Rex together with Education Faculty’s Drs Obakeng Kagola and Sanet Deysel, Professor Cina Mosito, Jackie Smith and Dr Xolani Khalo.
Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Learning and Teaching, Dr Muki Moeng, remarked that since the promulgation of the White Paper 6, the education field, including basic and higher education, has made great strides in making sure that classrooms are inclusive.
“As the teacher-education faculty, it is important for us to prepare the teachers who are going to go out in the field, to include everyone in their classrooms” she said.
“We thus need our classrooms, as physical spaces, to be conducive for inclusive education, and we are hopeful that an initiative like this will enable our teachers to be fit for purpose,” said Dr Moeng.
Country director of the British Council South Africa, George Barrett, reiterated these sentiments by adding that educators sit at the centre of an effective, inclusive education system, which serves learners in the public education system.
“Teaching For All is therefore also grounded, importantly, in a broad social justice and human rights-based approach, to education that delivers and places the teachers as key agent of change, both in developing an inclusive and equitable education system and by providing training to teachers inclusively” added Ms Barrett.
The initiative has also been developed based on comprehensive research, as it is important to have a solid evidence-base to develop and co-design programmes that really meet the needs of learners.
The project has already brought together the Department of Basic Education (DoBE), Department of Higher Education and Training, provincial education departments, 14 universities and over 20 CSOs and NGOs representing education, human rights, and health.
Together the stakeholders came to a consensus on a new conceptual framework for inclusive education in South Africa driven by social justice, the social model of disability and intersectionality.
The inclusive education framework and associated content has been institutionalised by the Western Cape Education Department (WCED), DBE, and 14 universities.
Since 2019 when it was launched, more than 30 000 pre-service teachers and 2 000 in-service teachers have already been trained in this model, and the Eastern Cape teachers will be the newest cohort to undertake the programme.
“As we stand on the verge of launching this significant initiative, we are embarking on a journey that holds the promise of transforming lives, shaping futures and building peaceful, just, and inclusive societies” said Jabulani Ngcobo, Director of Inclusive Education from the DoBE.
The struggles of learners are not necessarily because of their academic incapabilities, but because of resources, which they are not afforded, hence the need for support networks, he mentioned.
“The Teaching For All initiative demonstrates and exemplifies our collective commitment to ensuring that every child receives quality education they deserve, regardless of their background and circumstance” said Mr Ngcobo.
The programme has adopted a more sustainable approach with the Mandela University’s Faculty of Education’s experienced team facilitating the roll-out and related research in the Eastern Cape. There will be a close working relationship between the three partners to ensure the success of the programme.