Copyright

Flora Fabian, Jonathan Harle, Perpetua Kalimasi, Rehema Kilonzo, Gloria Lamaro, Albert Luswata, David Monk, Edwin Ngowi, Femi Nzegwu, Damary Sikalieh

Published On

2023-10-25

Page Range

pp. 509–532

Language

  • English

Print Length

24 pages

22. Collaboratively reimagining teaching and learning

While there are regular calls for African universities to improve their teaching, finding ways to do this within the resources available in already stretched institutions, and at the scale required, have proven elusive. This chapter is a reflexive exercise, discussing the work of an international partnership, Transforming Employability for Social Change in East Africa (TESCEA), that aimed to reshape habits of teaching and learning in four institutions of higher education. The authors explain how they sought to enable teaching for critical thinking and problem-solving, ensure degree programmes were relevant to social and economic needs by engaging employers and local communities, and learning environments enabled both young women and men to learn effectively. It offers reflections on the change observed, the ways in which this was achieved, and the challenges encountered. The authors hope it adds to understandings of how change can happen in higher education, particularly in resource-constrained settings.

Contributors

Flora Masumbuo Fabian

(author)
Professor, Biomedical Science at University of Dodoma
Vice Chancellor at Mwanza University

Flora Masumbuo Fabian is professor of Biomedical Science, focusing on transformative teaching-learning in higher education. Co-author of Gender Mainstreaming in Higher Education Toolkit (INASP, 2016), Fabian is a champion in embedding gender responsive pedagogy in HE and promoting equal opportunities for females and males in economic participation. Former University of Dodoma director of research, current Mwanza University (Tanzania) vice chancellor, Fabian has over 40 publications in peer reviewed journals.

Jonathan Harle

(author)

Jonathan Harle is director of programmes at INASP and lives and works in Berlin (Germany). He works with educators, researchers, and universities to find new ways to strengthen capacity, confidence, and leadership in research, teaching, and learning. He convened and co-leads the Transforming Higher Education for Social Change in East Africa (TESCEA) partnership.

Perpetua Joseph Kalimasi

(author)
Senior Lecturer, Educational Management and Policy Studies at Mzumbe University

Perpetua Joseph Kalimasi is a senior lecturer in Educational Management and Policy Studies at Mzumbe University (Tanzania). She is currently the head of Teaching Skills and Distance Learning at Mzumbe University. Her research and supervision interests include graduate employability, gender, lifelong learning, entrepreneurship education, inclusive education, school management, and vocational education. She is currently the coordinator for gender and inclusive education for the World Bank HEET programme for Higher Education Transformation implemented at Mzumbe University.

Rehema Kilonzo

(author)
Senior Lecturer and Director, Internationalisation, Convocation and Continuing Education at University of Dodoma

Rehema Kilonzo is a senior lecturer and director of Internationalisation, Convocation and Continuing Education at the University of Dodoma (Tanzania). She teaches at the intersection of sociology, policy analysis, and development. Her current research focuses on private managed cash transfers, funded by DANIDA. She was a TESCEA project lead at the University of Dodoma.

Gloria Lamaro

(author)
Lecturer in Education Management, Faculty of Education at Gulu University

Gloria Lamaro is a lecturer in Education Management, Faculty of Education at Gulu University (Uganda). She is a member of the editorial board of the Journal for Common Research Network. Her research interests include gender equity, empowerment of women in the workplace, and HE in Africa. She oversees development programs in capacity building and training for academic staff, MA training, and establishment of higher education qualifications for academic staff in Uganda. She is a programme assessor for the Uganda National Council for Higher Education.

Albert Luswata

(author)
Senior Lecturer and Director of the Institute of Ethics at Uganda Martyrs University

Albert Luswata is a senior lecturer and director of the Institute of Ethics at Uganda Martyrs University. He has trained faculty in online and transformative teaching at his university and other African universities through the PedaL and TESCEA projects. His research interests are ethics, higher education partnerships, transformative teaching/learning, and gender responsive pedagogies.

David Monk

(author)
Lecturer, Faculty of Education and Humanities at Gulu University
Honorary Assistant Professor, School of Education at Nottingham Trent University
Affiliate Faculty, Education at University of Victoria

David Monk is a lecturer in the faculty of Education and Humanities at Gulu University (Uganda), honorary assistant professor in the School of Education at Nottingham University (UK), affiliate faculty of Education University of Victoria (Canada), special advisor to the UNESCO Chair Lifelong Learning Youth and Work, and coordinator for the Gulu Hub of the UNESCO Chair Community Based Research and Social Responsibility in Higher Education.

Edwin Ngowi

(author)
Senior Lecturer, Department of Development and Strategic Studies at Sokoine University of Agriculture

Edwin Ngowi is a senior lecturer in the department of Development and Strategic Studies at Sokoine University of Agriculture (Tanzania). Dr Ngowi has specialities in socioeconomic impact research; development policy analysis; livelihoods, climate change, and variability impact analysis; and sustainable development analysis. In this book, he shares an experience of a project consortium Transforming Employability for Social Change in East Africa (TESCEA) developed by a group of academics, learning designers, and social entrepreneurs.

Femi Nzegwu

(author)
Assistant Professor, Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine

Femi Nzegwu is assistant professor of Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (UK). She is a social researcher, MEL and international project management specialist with 30 years of experience in these fields, including institutional learning, institutional and national capacity development, and sharing and institutional strategy development. She is highly multidisciplinary and holds degrees in post-colonial studies, public health, sociology, and economics.

Damary Sikalieh

(author)
Professor, Management and Entrepreneurship Education at United States International University Africa

Damary Sikalieh is a professor of Management and Entrepreneurship Education at the United States International University–Africa. Professionally, she has over 50 publications with immense experience in curriculum development and transformative teaching and learning. In consultancy, she has served on different project teams with the university and the Association of Faculty Enrichment in Learning and Teaching (AFELT). Her research interests are in the broader areas of management, entrepreneurship with a bias to inclusivity, and resilience.