Researchers shine at AFRETEC & WSoE Research Bonanza
- Wits University
Schools of education are at the centre of some of the most emerging and urgent questions of our time.
“If Africa is to succeed in the next phase of global transformation, it will depend not only on engineers, doctors, and entrepreneurs, but on the quality of its educators and the strength of its educational system,” said Professor Ruksana Osman, Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Academic.
She was speaking at a joint conference for the Wits School of Education’s AFRETEC Project and Research Bonanza. The African Engineering and Technology Network (Afretec) is a pan-African collaboration of technology-focused universities.
Osman said projects like AFRETEC are the product of a new kind of collaboration, and the digital shift in higher education has created unprecedented opportunities for collaboration and new forms of knowledge production.
“This is a momentous period for educational research in South Africa and in Africa. There is growing recognition among governments, foundations, international partners and philanthropists that educational research is not a luxury; it is an essential intellectual infrastructure for social and economic transformation. Increasingly, educational research is influencing formal policy processes, shaping public debates, and informing institutional reform. This is an important milestone for research in education and research on education, and these are some, and these are some opportunities we should take up,” Osman said.
Researchers in the WSoE also presented their research projects. According to Professor Juliet Perumal, Head of School, the projects celebrate three years of WSoA-AFRETEC collaboration.
“We are showcasing the innovation that has taken place with this collaborative continental initiative, which is focused on inclusive digital transformation within the African education systems. It is both fitting and intentional as it reflects our belief that educational transformation in Africa requires partnerships between research, innovation, technology, and socially responsive educational practice. It also reflects the School's ongoing commitment to research-led teaching and learning, transformative scholarship, and the development of contextually relevant education solutions that respond to the realities and aspirations on the African continent,” she added.
The research presentations were divided into 4 sessions:
- Artificial Intelligence, Digital Transformation and Educational Technology
- Critical Pedagogies, Teacher Development and Educational Futures
- Multilingualism, Decolonisation and Inclusive Education
- ICT Integration, Digital Pedagogies and Technology-Enhanced Learning
Winners announced
The winning presentations were:
- Professor Peter Aloka- Publication Input
- Professor Peter Aloka- Highest Annual Publication
- Dr Fatima Makda- Second Annual Highest Publication
- Dr Chibueze Tobias Orji- Highest Level of Research Productivity
- Dr Zaheera Jina-Asvat – Short Collection Book