| Title | Chapter 8: Facilitators as co-creators of equity and inclusivity in online work-integrated learning excursions |
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| Contributor | Adri du Toit(editor) |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.4102/aosis.2024.BK486.08 |
| Landing page | https://books.aosis.co.za/index.php/ob/catalog/book/486 |
| License | https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ |
| Copyright | Adri du Toit, Neal Petersen & Iman C Chahine. Licensee: AOSIS (Pty) Ltd. The moral right of the editors and authors has been asserted. |
| Publisher | AOSIS |
| Long abstract | Curriculum innovation is a continuous process as part of efforts to scaffold work-integrated learning (WIL) excursions towards realising the South African vision for intercultural competence, equity and inclusivity. For this reason, the WIL excursion programme at the North-West University (NWU) is reviewed, revised and adapted annually to enhance and strengthen the imperative educational value thereof for future teachers. One key aspect that needs adaptation in future WIL excursion implementations is ensuring that equity and inclusivity are prioritised as competencies that student teachers must be prepared with. Therefore, the programme should encourage open dialogue to foster understanding and empathy amongst students from diverse backgrounds and prepare them for diversity in their future careers. Strengthening this aspect will contribute to the preparation of student teachers for a complex and diverse working environment. In the constructivist context that serves as the theoretical underpinning of the excursion programme, the input of various role players – such as students, facilitators and lecturers – as co-creators of learning is considered invaluable. Exploring these role players’ voices – in the form of their feedback after the implementation of the virtual WIL excursions –contributed insights that can be used to enhance and strengthen future programme implementations. The current chapter, therefore, reports on the ‘voices’ of two groups of facilitators who contributed to the 2023 implementation of the virtual WIL excursions for student teachers at the NWU as part of an interpretative phenomenological investigation. The perspectives of student facilitators (Bachelor of Education [BEd] honours students) and lecturer facilitators (teacher educators in the Faculty of Education) provided qualitative data that were inductively analysed to determine the strengths and areas for improvement in the current WIL excursion programme. The findings from this exploratory qualitative research offer valuable insights into creating inclusive teaching-learning activities and strengthening subsequent implementations of the BEd WIL excursion programme, focusing on enhancing equity and inclusivity in future offerings. These suggestions aim to strengthen the programme’s ability to provide an inclusive and equitable learning experience. |
| Print length | 25 pages |
| Language | English (Original) |
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Adri du Toit is a researcher with education at heart. She is uniquely positioned to explore entrepreneurial learning and entrepreneurship education as part of teacher education and has been doing that for more than a decade. Du Toit’s interests and expertise in curriculum design, teacher education programmes and particularly Technology Education and Consumer Studies Education have been woven together into an interesting and innovative tapestry that contributes practical insights for improving and expanding learning in these areas. She has published widely on these aspects, served on numerous committees and presented on various occasions based on her expertise in these aspects. Du Toit is an associate professor and has supervised several postgraduate students to completion. Currently, Du Toit serves as the president of the South African Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (SAAFECS). She endeavours to support and engage the organisation’s members and educators in the field in the academic and research environment. She enjoys collaborating with researchers from across the globe, particularly, yet not exclusively, with academics who share the challenges and delights of developing education on the African continent.
Annerie Kruger is a lecturer in Movement Education at the Faculty of Education, North-West University, Vanderbijlpark, South Africa. Kruger has worked in the field of teacher education over the past 15 years. She is a member of South African Physical Education Association (SAPEA). Her subject speciality is physical education, and her research interest focuses on online or distance physical education teacher education. She is working towards obtaining her PhD in Movement Education, provisionally titled: ‘A “best-practice” model for Physical Education teacher training in distance education mode’. Kruger was engaged in the training programme for work-integrated learning aimed at first-year students, encompassing both those attending physical contact sessions and those pursuing their education remotely. Her expressed interest in the work-integrated learning (WIL) programme is to gain involvement in forthcoming research and planning initiatives.