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Wamutitu, Joseph M.; Keraro, Fred N.; Changeiywo, Johnson M. and Cullen, Jane
(2011).
Abstract
The Teacher Education in Sub-Saharan Africa (TESSA) consortium has developed Open Educational Resources (OERs) to support school-based teacher education and training. Egerton University has been involved in the creation and development of TESSA materials since 2005. TESSA materials are used particularly in the B.Ed. (Primary) programme for in-service teachers and are integrated into the relevant pedagogy courses. In Kenya, there have been changes in the minimum requirements for joining primary teacher education programmes. This has led to an increased interest among teachers to upgrade their qualifications, improve their competencies and the quality of their practice. There are incentives for them to do so, including paid study leave, incremental credits on salary and promotion upon completion of their studies. For in-service teachers taking a qualification, part-time and distance learning is a necessity: because they need to fit their study around their own teaching. The expectation is that periods of residential study during holiday times, materials supplied as part of their programme, and school-based assessment, provide the basis for the development of their practice in their schools. This paper explores some of the challenges of these changing circumstances. We examine, through analysis of interviews which have been carried out with teachers and teacher educators, the opportunities and the constraints offered by a qualification designed to develop teaching practice. We explore the ways in which the use of TESSA OERs help support the development of teaching practice, and we map the challenges faced by teachers and by teacher educators in changing practice and in fitting new practices into existing school cultures.
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)
