The CPUT-based South African Research Chair in Teacher Education and the Centre for International Teacher Education (CITE) invites applications to conduct teacher education research.

Applications are invited from suitable candidates to conduct research that contributes to the long-term development of research capacity in this field as from January 2015.

CITE has vacancies for three Post-doctoral Fellowships as well as scholarships for three doctoral candidates and three Master of Education full-time students.

The fellowship candidates will be required to contribute to the centre’s research activities and outputs as well as supervision and teaching where appropriate.

To qualify for the fellowship candidates must have completed their doctorates no more than five years ago, have excellent research and writing skills and should have proven ability to conduct research and produce academic journal articles.

Generous funding is available on a competitive basis for Doctoral and Masters Scholarships and candidates have to show knowledge of academic research as well as an interest in research in the field of teacher education.

An advanced degree in education or relevant social sciences together with some professional experiences is required to be considered for a scholarship.

Applications are accepted until 25 November 2014 and interviews will be held in December.

For full details and how to apply please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or visit http://www.cput.ac.za/research/centres/cite for further information.

Alternatively one may call Prof. Yusuf Sayed, Director and SARCHi Chair, on (021) 959 5833/2 or Prof. Azeem Badroodien, Deputy-Director, on (021) 953 8787.

Written by Kwanele Butana
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The Centre for International Teacher Education (CITE) is hard at work ensuring that it’s all systems go for the much-anticipated virtual Research Café on Monday, 15 March 2021.

The seminar programme, which starts at 15H30 and finishes at 17H15 will discuss amongst other things, critical issues relating to education and inequality in South Africa. The Director of CITE who is the South African Research Chair for Teacher Education in the country, Prof Yusuf Sayed, mentions that they will be discussing the stark inequalities in the South African education system by considering the Brackenfell High School conflict and how it challenges efforts at social cohesion in and through education. It will also look at Grade 12 learner results, and how it demonstrates huge disparities in learning outcomes between rich and poor schools. Inequalities in education will further be discussed in the context of the COVID 19 pandemic that has deepened and exacerbated global, regional, national inequities in public education.

Sayed says: “We are well advanced with the preparations and we anticipate lively, productive, and critical conversations about inequalities in and through education and how might they be overcome and addressed.”

A total of 100 guests are expected in this seminar, which will be chaired by the Wits School of Governance Chair in Public Governance, Prof Robert Van Niekerk. Meanwhile, Sayed in conversation with Human Sciences Research Council CEO, Prof Crain Soudien will discuss challenges in realising equitable and quality teaching and learning in South Africa during times of crises and disruptions.

This seminar is part of CITE’s pubic seminar series through which they share and disseminate the research they undertake and it is part of the Centre’s commitment to contributing to evidence-informed education policymaking, bridging the education policy- practice gap. “In particular, we are keen to build on existing initiatives in the field of teaching to develop and deepen the knowledge base and field of teacher education contributing to research and policy dialogues about education policy and teacher education, education in South Africa, regionally and globally,” Sayed says.

This is an important seminar for those interested in addressing inequalities in education and how the country might respond to overcoming and mitigating the challenges and problems that beset the education system. Sayed adds: “In particular, it is an important occasion to reflect and dialogue about the possible ways to effect social justice and equality in and through education for all so that we may build a better education system that reflects the values and ideals of the constitution and National Education Policy Act in South Africa.”

Written by Aphiwe Boyce
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Mowbray Campus is snuggled in the lively streets of Mowbray, making it easy for students to unlock adventures, fun experiences, new skills and timely support throughout the year.

This campus is home to the Education Faculty which is the largest teacher education contributor in the Western Cape province. At the Mowbray Campus instruction is offered in English, while at the Wellington Campus the undergraduate programme is offered in Afrikaans. The former offers a thrilling journey of unearthing knowledge as students study towards obtaining a qualification that will groom them for their future careers.

These graduates are taught at this well-equipped campus, which is situated in Highbury Road at a short distance away from the Main Road (Mowbray). The campus has modern lecture halls and well-resourced laboratories. Students also have access to study areas with computer facilities and a recently extended library.

The campus is also home to the Centre for International Teacher Education (CITE), which was founded in 2014 with the understanding that teacher preparation and teacher classroom performance are at the heart of enhancing education quality and ensuring that education acts as a vehicle for achieving equity and transformation in society.

CITE’s vision is to generate research capacity and academic outputs in teacher education that inform broader discussions of education transformation in South Africa.

Written by Aphiwe Boyce
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The National Research Fund has renewed the Research Leadership Chair in Teacher Education for another five years.

Prof Yusuf Sayed, Research Leadership Chair in Teacher Education, says the renewed funding is testament to the hard work and effort of all members of the CPUT-based Centre for International Teacher Education (CITE).

“It is an affirmation of the support we have received from the university and faculty,” said Sayed. “It reflects a deepening of research at CPUT and the commitment and values of CPUT as becoming a research-intensive university.”

For the next phase the Chair and CITE will continue to deepen the work they have engaged with in the first phase which included developing new knowledge about teacher education, building research capacity and strengthening national, regional and international research partnerships.

“We will also seek to continue to actively enhance the impact of our research in the coming phase,” he added. Sayed was reacting to an NRF announcement that confirmed the continuation of funding for the Chair.

“I am pleased to communicate that the panel has recommended that funding for the Chair continue for the next five-year cycle and that this recommendation has been accepted by the NRF,” Dr Rocky Skeef, NRF Executive Director: Reviews and Evaluations, wrote to CPUT recently.

Skeef also indicated in the letter that the panel’s recommendation outcome was reached by consensus.

CITE was founded in 2014 with the understanding that teacher preparation and teacher classroom performance are at the heart of enhancing education quality and ensuring that education acts as a vehicle for achieving equity and transformation in society.

CITE acts as a national, regional and international centre of excellence for research and policy dialogue about education policy and teacher education. 

Written by Kwanele Butana
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CPUT’s Prof Yusuf Sayed, South African Research Chair in Teacher Education and Director of the Centre for International Teacher Education (CITE), has won the prestigious South African Education Research Association (SAERA) Research Honours Award. 

The award recognises his outstanding contribution to the field of education. Sayed, received the award at the SAERA annual conference which was held in Pretoria this week.

“It is, therefore, my privilege to inform you that your nomination was successful and that you will be awarded this SAERA Honours Award at the SAERA 2018 conference in Pretoria from 22 to 24 October 2018,” reads a letter from the Association’s secretary, Prof Labby Ramrathan.

Sayed is ecstatic about the award from the largest education research association in South Africa.

“It is a testament to the search for equitable and quality education in South Africa and researching the work of teachers, teacher education and teaching,” he said. “Further, it is a recognition of continued and consistent engagement with South African research and policy analysis before and after the advent of the new democracy in 1994.”

He said the achievement bears testimony to the confidence and support in the research work that has been done and will continue to be done in CITE by staffers, postgraduate students and research partners.

“It reflects the fact that CITE is a leading national, regional and global institute and the key to the research architecture of CPUT. The university needs to continue to provide the support and commitment it has shown to date to allow CITE and its members to flourish and grow.”

CITE has developed a new five-year research plan beginning in 2019 which requires the vision and foresight of all role-players in the university and in the education sector broadly, Sayed added.

“Congratulations on receiving this prestigious SAERA award that recognises your outstanding contribution to education research in South Africa,” said Prof Marshall Sheldon, Acting Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research, Technology, Innovation and Partnerships to Sayed.

Written by Kwanele Butana
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CPUT in partnership with Tshwane University of Technology, the Aga Khan University (Tanzania) and Oxford University has launched a project that uses assessment to improve teaching and learning in schools.

Funded by the United Kingdom’s Economic and Social Sciences Research Council (ESRC), the Assessment for Learning in Africa (AfLA) project aims to provide equitable opportunities for deeper and sustainable teaching and learning in the Foundation Phase through supporting teachers in their assessment practices.

The purpose of the AfLA project is to enhance and support teachers’ use of classroom assessment for learning to improve the learning and teaching of numeracy in the Foundation Phase in disadvantaged schools.

The project will be piloted over a period of two years in the following primary schools in the Cape Winelands Education District: Amstelhof, Alfons, Langabuya, Dalubuhle, Nieuwe Drift and Nederburg.

Addressing a seminar during the recent launch on the Mowbray Campus, Director of CPUT’s Centre for International Teacher Education, Professor Yusuf Sayed, said that a collegial partnership was formed between the district office and CPUT and that all affected stakeholders are looking forward to the collaboration.

Sayed stated that this is one of the times where researchers are implementing a program based on research and which they hope to learn more about.

Professors Therese Hopfenbeck (Oxford University) and Gordon Stobart (University of London) addressed the seminar on the international dimension of AfLA and international perspectives on assessment, respectively.

Tshwane University of Technology’s Professor Anil Kanjee said the project builds on research about the crucial role assessment plays in learning.

Dr Brian Wilson, Head of Curriculum Co-ordination in the Cape Winelands Education District, stressed the need to progress from ‘assessment of learning’ to ‘assessment for learning’ to ultimately ‘assessment as learning’.

Written by Kwanele Butana
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The Centre for International Teacher Education (CITE) recently hosted the Symposium on Teaching for Social Justice: 2023 at Cape Town Hotel School, Granger Bay Campus.

The Symposium’s theme was: In Pursuit of Equity: Disrupting Social Injustice in Higher Education in South Africa in a Post-COVID Era. CITE Director, Prof Zayd Waghid said the symposium was aimed to facilitate the discussion of ideas and perspectives that can transform and re-evaluate the prevailing discourses concerning social justice within education. “It presented a valuable opportunity to engage in innovative discourse, derive fresh insights, and establish collaborative networks,” observed Waghid. The symposium was established in 2023 under the leadership of Waghid, the current interim South African Research Chairs Initiative (SARChI) Chair. It is envisaged that the symposium will be held annually at CPUT.

In his opening address, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor in Research, Technology, Innovation and Partnerships, Dr David Phaho revealed that earlier this year, the CPUT Council approved the business plan to turn CITE from a Centre to an Institute henceforth to be called The Global Institute for Teacher Education and Society (GITES). The new entity is envisaged to focus on multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary research and innovation. “It would be the first of its kind in Southern Africa and aims to generate knowledge in the social sciences with a particular focus on building and promoting scholars and scholarship in the Global South.

“I do not doubt that the newly established institutes will continue to build on the exemplary legacy of CITE and continue to host these types of critical engagements albeit under a different name and a much broader academic agenda,” Phaho remarked.

He added that the drive for access to higher education for all deserving students is topical in South Africa and “beyond our borders”. “If there is one thing the COVID-19 has exposed, is the gross inequalities which not only exist between the Global South and Global North in terms of access to life-saving vaccines and other interventions.”

Prof Kirti Meno from University of Johannesburg provided a presentation on: Pedagogical Continuities in Teaching and Learning in a ‘supercomplex’ higher education system. Meno said demands on higher education in South Africa have resulted in universities having to respond to the multiplicity of needs of the new South Africa while still grappling with the constraints of the apartheid regime.

University of Cape Town Professor, Joanne Hardman’s presentation was on: A Vygotskian approach to decolonial pedagogy: Back to the future. Virtually, Prof Yusuf Sayed from Cambridge University, provided a presentation on: Crises, Education Policy and Teacher Education: Towards a social justice agenda. The symposium was supported financially by the South African National Research Foundation, and it successfully offered critical insights pertaining to policy and practice that included critical perspectives from both the plenary speakers and the audience. “The diverse audience, including academics across various faculties, undergraduate and postgraduate students and certain department officials in the Western Cape government, can further be attributed to the symposium's success,” said Waghid.

Furthermore, Waghid said a significant highlight of the event was the discussion by Phaho concerning the CITE, which would transition into a new entity called the GITES and would house three Chairs, namely the SARChI Chair, and two CPUT funded Chairs. “This is a significant aspect for the university as it corroborates its commitment to further advancing research capacity and output in international teacher education.”

Written by Aphiwe Boyce

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