Department of Educational Foundations,Management and Lifelong Learning
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Item Relevance of entrepreneurship in teacher education: Stakeholders’ perspective in Tanzania(Routledge, 2020-12-31) Fulgence, KatherineEnterprising Africa explores the future opportunities, challenges, growth areas and key themes that will shape entrepreneurship in the African continent over the next decade. Entrepreneurship can be the key to unlock resilient growth, but only if it is driven by both socially productive and growth-oriented new businesses. The book considers entrepreneurship as an enabler for socio-economic growth and development in Africa, especially in the context of youth unemployment and increasing youth population for which the traditional, and indeed emerging, industrial sectors will not be able to produce sufficient jobs to meet demand. Organised around three thematic parts, Part I covers the notion of inclusive growth and the role that entrepreneurs can play supporting this. Part II considers the dynamic between entrepreneurs and the environment since social, economic and environmental concerns need to build upon each other rather than vie for recognition. Finally, Part III offers chapters exploring policy contexts and the wider institutional ecosystems that need to be developed and enhanced to ensure a strong and vibrant environment for the future entrepreneurs of Africa to thrive. Edited and authored by leading experts in the field, this fascinating text will be of interest to academics as well as students of International, Transformational and Social Entrepreneurship, International and African BusinessItem COVID-19 and Technology Enhanced Teaching in Higher Education in sub-Saharan Africa: A Case of the University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.(Commonwealth of Learning, 2021-07-31) Mtebe, J. S.; Fulgence, K; Gallagher, MThis article aims to share an experience on the process taken by the University of Dar es Salaam to adopt and deliver technology-enhanced teaching and learning during the COVID-19 crisis. The university started by forming a team which conducted an audit to identify existing ICT infrastructure, skills gaps amongst instructors, and information systems that could be quickly adopted to deliver various courses during the COVID-19 crisis. The Moodle system, Zoom video conferencing system, and Postgraduate Information Management System were identified and recommended. After the audit, 340 instructors were trained on identified systems and 369 new courses were developed. Although face-toface classes resumed a few months after the training and preparations, postgraduate courses continued to be offered via the blended mode with the Zoom and Moodle systems being used. The experience gathered from this study contributes towards knowledge of ICT integration in teaching and learning and can be integrated into teaching during the COVID-19 crisis in resource-constrained universities in sub-Saharan Africa and beyond.Item Are they Stress-Free? Examining Stress among Primary School Teachers in Tanzania(University of Ljubljana, 2021-11) Kavenuke, Patrick Severine; kayombo, Joel Jonathan; Kinyota, MjegeTeachers enter the profession with enthusiasm for the new adventure. Unfortunately, when they start working, they encounter circumstances that give rise to stress. Te present study, which used a sample of 550 participants from 50 primary schools selected from the Kisarawe district in the Coastal Region of Tanzania, examines the extent of stress among primary school teachers and the factors influencing stress. Overall, the results indicate that teachers’ levels of stress range from low to moderate. Moreover, the results from hierarchical regression analysis indicate that factors such as sex, class size, age, career intentions and teaching subject significantly predict teachers’ stress. Te study concludes that there is a need for the government, policymakers and school administrators to reduce teachers’ workload. Furthermore, school administrators in particular should be supportive and should design mechanisms that could develop a sense of collegiality among teachers in order to improve teacher-to-teacher relationships.Item Are Pre-service Teachers Prepared to Teach? Investigating their Locus of Control, Self-efficacy and Attitude towards the Teaching Profession and Teaching Subjects(Papers in Education and Development, 2020) Kavenuke, Patrick SeverineThe study examined pre-service teachers’ preparedness to teach using a sample of final-year students (n=454) in a Tanzanian teacher education university. The study measured pre-service teachers’ preparedness to teach using four dimensions—internal locus of control, self-efficacy, attitude towards the teaching profession and attitude towards teaching subjects. With exceptions of relatively low teachers’ attitude towards the teaching profession, results indicated that student teachers have higher levels of self-efficacy, positive internal locus of control and positive attitude towards teaching subjects. Also, a significant difference (p ˂ 0.05) was found between teaching subjects on the dimension of locus of control with social science majors having higher locus of control than science and mathematics majors. Future employment intentions had significant impacts (p ˂ 0.05) on student teachers’ attitude towards teaching with those intending to work in non-teaching sector having significantly lower attitude. Regression results indicated that working with students and pre-service teachers’ persistence were strong predictors of overall pre-service teachers’ attitude towards teaching (R² = 0.319). Results further revealed that 40.2 % of pre-service teachers regret that they chose the teaching profession and 56.2% are not intending to work as teachers after graduation.Item Thinking Critically about Lecturers’ Perceptions and Development of Critical Thinking Skills in Teacher Education Students(Papers in Education and Development, 2020) Kavenuke, Patrick SeverineThe study was envisaged to examine how lecturers perceive critical thinking skills (CTSs) as well as how they teach to develop such skills in students. The study employed a sample of 42 participants using four data collection methods namely semi-structured interview, focus group discussion, participant observation and artefacts method of data collection. Despite the extant misperceptions of what constitute CTSs among lecturers, findings indicated that lecturers perceive CTSs as skills and abilities, dispositions and skills that enable a person to perform some functions. The study concludes that developing CTSs require changes in the minds of lecturers and students. The study argues that there is no way CTSs could be developed while students are less motivated and unwilling to learn.Item Teacher educators’ perceptions and challenges of using critical pedagogy: A case study of higher teacher education in Tanzania(Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice, 2021) Kavenuke, Patrick Severine; Muthanna, AbdulghaniThis study investigates teacher educators’ perceptions of and challenges affecting the use of critical pedagogy in higher teacher education in Tanzania. The study employed a qualitative case study design and collected in-depth data through semi-structured interviews and direct classroom observations. The findings showed that critical pedagogy is a significant approach for developing students’ abilities to do critical reflection. However, critical pedagogy demands building a friendly relationship with students and encouraging dialogic interactions; all these lead to critical reflection in return, ensuring better understanding of the subject content. Most importantly, the findings report several challenges related to the presence of crowded classes, the use of lecturing teaching style and the use of English as a language of instruction, the use of unsuitable assessment format that is university guided and lack of teaching resources. These challenges impede the effective use of critical pedagogy in teaching. To overcome such challenges, policy makers and institutional leaders need to rethink of providing teaching resources and encouraging the use of critical pedagogy in teaching and learning at higher teacher education programmes. The study concludes that by practising what teacher educators perceive to be critical pedagogy, classrooms will be transformed into places of liberation. Further, while this qualitative study does not intend to make any generalisation, the findings might be of interest to international teacher educators who are interested in employing the critical pedagogy approach effectively.Item Teacher educators’ perceptions and challenges of using critical pedagogy: A case study of higher teacher education in Tanzania(Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice, 2021-07-13) Kavenuke, Patrick Severine; Muthanna, AbdulghaniThis study investigates teacher educators’ perceptions of and challenges affecting the use of critical pedagogy in higher teacher education in Tanzania. The study employed a qualitative case study design and collected in-depth data through semi-structured interviews and direct classroom observations. The findings showed that critical pedagogy is a significant approach for developing students’ abilities to do critical reflection. However, critical pedagogy demands building a friendly relationship with students and encouraging dialogic interactions; all these lead to critical reflection in return, ensuring better understanding of the subject content. Most importantly, the findings report several challenges related to the presence of crowded classes, the use of lecturing teaching style and the use of English as a language of instruction, the use of unsuitable assessment format that is university guided and lack of teaching resources. These challenges impede the effective use of critical pedagogy in teaching. To overcome such challenges, policy makers and institutional leaders need to rethink of providing teaching resources and encouraging the use of critical pedagogy in teaching and learning at higher teacher education programmes. The study concludes that by practising what teacher educators perceive to be critical pedagogy, classrooms will be transformed into places of liberation. Further, while this qualitative study does not intend to make any generalisation, the findings might be of interest to international teacher educators who are interested in employing the critical pedagogy approach effectively.Item The critical thinking skills of prospective teachers: Investigating their systematicity, self-confidence and scepticism(Thinking Skills and Creativity, 2020-06-16) Kavenuke, Patrick Severine; Kinyota, Mjege; kayombo, Joel JonathanRecently, researchers have shown an increased interest in studying about Critical Thinking Skills (CTSs). Indeed, the theme has become one of the most significant current discussions amongst many other international agendas. Given the perceived importance of CTSs in this 21st century, we investigated the CTSs of prospective teachers. The aim was to investigate the extent to which prospective teachers possess CTSs. Moreover, the study examined factors influencing CTSs of prospective teachers. The study sample (n = 965) was comprised of first, second and final-year students from one of the teacher education universities in Tanzania. The CTSs were measured using three dimension—systematicity, self-confidence and scepticism. Overall, the results indicated that prospective teachers had higher mean scores in systematicity and scepticism, but significantly lower mean scores in self-confidence. Also, factors such as parents’ education, parents’ occupation and year of study were significantly related to at least one dimension of CTSs. For instance, father’s education positively and significantly predicted prospective teachers’ scores on scepticism. These results have far-reaching implications for policy and future research.Item Teaching for Critical Thinking: Perceptions and Practices of Chinese Elementary School Teachers(Dar es Salaam University College of Education, 2020-06-30) Kavenuke, Patrick SeverineIn recent years, researchers have shown an increased interest in studying about critical thinking. Individuals with critical thinking are self-confident, and can listen and learn from others. This study examined the perceptions of Chinese elementary school teachers on critical thinking. It also examined how they teach to develop critical thinking among pupils. The study employed a qualitative approach. In particular, a case study design was used to examine the research questions. The study was conducted at Dong Bei Wang Zhong Xin Xiao Xue (东北旺中心小学), an elementary school in Beijing, China, located in HaiDian district, using a sample of 6 English language teachers. It employed focused group discussions and direct observations as methods of data collection. The results indicate that the teachers understand what entails critical thinking; and they are aware that critical thinking can be developed in actual classroom practices. Nevertheless, the results revealed that the teachers minimally practised what they understood about critical thinking in actual classroom practices. Since the results indicated that the teachers understand what entails critical thinking and are aware that critical thinking can be developed in actual classroom practices, the study recommends that teachers’ classroom practices should reflect their perceptions of what constitutes critical thinking.Item Examining Teacher Trainees’ Attitude towards Teaching Profession and Teaching Subjects in Tanzania(Huria Journal, 2019-09-01) Kinyota, Mjege; Kavenuke, Patrick SeverineTeacher trainees’ positive attitude on teaching is fast becoming a key instrument in teacher trainees’ motivation to teaching. Thus, it is regarded as a central policy agenda that has recently captured the minds of academics and researchers. Based on those facts, we examined the extent to which teacher trainees hold positive attitude on two dimensions—attitude towards teaching profession and teaching subjects. Additionally, we investigated whether these dimensions of attitudes are significantly related to demographic variables such as gender, GPA, whether or not they had worked before joining teacher education university programme, years of work, future work preferences and subjects of specialization. Participants for this study constituted a sample of 901 final-year teacher trainees from one of the teacher education university college in Tanzania. Findings indicated that teacher trainees’ attitude and GPA were not significantly related. Instead, a significant correlation was observed between the two dimensions of attitudes. Shockingly, findings indicated that more than 50% of teacher trainees had no preferences of working as teachers. Worse enough, the figures were similar even among science and mathematics majors who are highly demanded in the teaching career. Finally, the implications for policy and future research are put forthItem A Theoretical Perspective on how Doctoral Supervisors develop supervision skills(International Journal of Doctoral Studies, 2019-10-18) Fulgence, KatherineThe paper establishes how doctoral supervisors develop the supervision skills needed to handle the doctoral supervision process in the contemporary world. While the existing literature confirms that PhD holders can supervise doc-toral students, there is a need to provide supporting evidence that the skills they possess qualify them to do this. Using the qualitative research approach, the study established the knowledge and skills that are needed to supervise doctoral students in the contemporary world. Through thematic analysis of 82 scholarly publications, the study es-tablished, in order of preference, five mechanisms through which doctoral supervisors develop supervision skills, i.e. the supervision process, doctoral education, institutional guidelines, institutional training courses and individu-alized learning. The study contributes to the ongoing research on the supervision of doctor-al studies in the 21st century. Findings show that a well-structured doctoral education, including the related processes, imparts the knowledge and skills needed for doctoral supervision. Likewise, a combination of the mechanisms and an individual’s commitment, in terms of time and engagement, develop the skills that are relevant for doctoral supervision. Higher Education Institutions need to make supervisors aware of the poten-tial of these mechanisms for developing the skills necessary for doctoral su-pervision and encourage them to use them Further research on the development of doctoral supervision skills should broadly consider the role of different programmes in developing doctoral supervision skills in different contexts. The study has implications for doctoral supervisors and universities as re-gards the need to ensure that both mechanisms are instituted to enable doc-toral supervisors to develop doctoral supervision skills. Since the study was done theoretically, it might be important to conduct fur-ther research using mixed-methods research with a phenomenological design to establish the skills possessed by doctoral supervisors and the mechanism they used to develop the supervision skills in any context.Item Conceptualizing Digital Fluency among Teacher Educators(International Open & Distance Learning Conference, Anadolu University, Turkey, 2019-11-16) Fulgence, KatherineDigital Fluency as an emerging concept needs to be conceptualized in education setting. This is important, now that technology has revolutionized teaching and learning processes as evidenced in the delivery of curriculum through online courses and increased use of open education resources among others. Against this background, digital fluency as a concept and its defining characteristics are systematically analyzed in the education context for teacher educators mostly PhD holders at the University level. The findings provide guidance as regards the conceptualization of digital fluency and the related dimensions and attributes for teacher educators. Policy implications and areas for further research are provided.Item Assessing Digital Fluency among Teacher-Educators in University Schools of Education: The case of Tanzania(The IRES International Conference, Abu Dhabi, UAE, 2020-03-03) Fulgence, KatherineThis study assesses digital fluency among university teacher educators given its relevance in education industry. Digital fluency refers to educators‘ knowledge about digital tools and ability to make critical, creative, and autonomous blending of their potentials to realize teaching and learning objectives. Largely, the teacher education curriculum the educators studied did not integrate digital fluency as a key competence making the subject of interest to explore. The study established dimensions of digital fluency as a concept through literature review. The study used SAMR (Substitution, Augmentation, Modification, and Redefinition) model with its four levels of technology integration as a framework for assessing teacher educators‘ digital fluency. Data were collected through survey and interviews from 90 teacher educators at the university level including the management in schools of education. Findings show that most of the teacher educators perceive to have digital fluency at the substitution level, which is the lowest level. Educators with Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and science backgrounds sound to be more digitally fluent compared to the ones from the fields of humanities and social sciences, partly due to discipline exposure. The study contributes knowledge towards digital fluency as a key competence for teacher educators. Higher Education Institutions need to explore mechanisms for developing digital fluency skills in line with the preparation of 21st century teachers taking into consideration variations among educators‘ disciplines. Further research can shed light on the competence profile of digitally fluent teacher educators.Item Gender Differences in Enhancing Students’ Employability Skills(ORSEA Journal, 2019-12) Dominick, Theresia; Fulgence, KatherineMen and women have different ways of capturing pieces of information given to them for learning purposes. This study highlights the potential differences in students’ inclination towards developing employability skills. Descriptive characteristics and associations between gender and level of skills, the level of students’ involvement in extra-curricular activities (ECAs) and their intention to become self-employed were investigated. Stratified random sampling was used to collect data from degree groups. Thereafter, data from 359 university students were collected using a questionnaire. The results indicate that all students display average levels of core skills but male and female students differ significantly in their level of core competencies, with males displaying higher levels of core competencies than females. In addition, the results from the chi-square test indicate a significant association between gender and the level of participation in ECAs. Moreover, as students face two career choices between paid and self-employment, males are more likely to choose self-employment than female students. Further analysis indicates the contribution of degree programme, parents’ background and students’ experience in doing business as factors that affect their employability. Theoretically, the study highlights gender differences in terms of employability skills, engagement in ECAs and intention to become self-employed considering the stated factors. As regards policy and practical relevance, higher learning institutions are recommended to consider gender differences as they develop relevant ECAs in order to enhance students’ employability skills equally regardless of their gender.Item Developing digital fluency among teacher educators: Evidence from Tanzanian Schools of Education(International Journal of Education and Development using Information and Communication Technology (IJEDICT), 2020-08-30) Fulgence, KatherineThis study explores how teacher educators develop digital fluency as a key competence in the contemporary world. Largely, the teacher education curriculum that the educators studied did not integrate digital fluency as a key competence. The study established dimensions of digital fluency as a concept through reviewing the literature. The study was qualitative, with data collected through interviews with ninety educators, including the management of university schools of education. The findings show that both individual mechanisms, particularly individualized learning, practice, engagement in research and consultancy, and institutional mechanisms - specifically training, infrastructure and the delivery of online programmes - contribute to the development of the digital fluency of teacher educators. The study contributes to the existing body of literature regarding digital fluency as a key competence for teacher educators. As regards practice, on-going training should be aimed at professional development, supported by continuous practice.Item A Theoretical Perspective on how Doctoral Supervisors develop supervision skills(International Journal of Doctoral Studies, 2019-10-18)The paper establishes how doctoral supervisors develop the supervision skills needed to handle the doctoral supervision process in the contemporary world. While the existing literature confirms that PhD holders can supervise doc-toral students, there is a need to provide supporting evidence that the skills they possess qualify them to do this. Using the qualitative research approach, the study established the knowledge and skills that are needed to supervise doctoral students in the contemporary world. Through thematic analysis of 82 scholarly publications, the study es-tablished, in order of preference, five mechanisms through which doctoral supervisors develop supervision skills, i.e., the supervision process, doctoral education, institutional guidelines, institutional training courses and individu-alized learning. The study contributes to the ongoing research on the supervision of doctor-al studies in the 21st century. Findings show that a well-structured doctoral education, including the related processes, imparts the knowledge and skills needed for doctoral supervision. Likewise, a combination of the mechanisms and an individual’s commitment, in terms of time and engagement, develop the skills that are relevant for doctoral supervision. Higher Education Institutions need to make supervisors aware of the poten-tial of these mechanisms for developing the skills necessary for doctoral su-pervision and encourage them to use them Further research on the development of doctoral supervision skills should broadly consider the role of different programmes in developing doctoral supervision skills in different contexts. The study has implications for doctoral supervisors and universities as re-gards the need to ensure that both mechanisms are instituted to enable doc-toral supervisors to develop doctoral supervision skills. Since the study was done theoretically, it might be important to conduct fur-ther research using mixed-methods research with a phenomenological design to establish the skills possessed by doctoral supervisors and the mechanism they used to develop the supervision skills in any contextItem Promoting Teacher Professional Learning in Tanzanian Schools: Lessons from Chinese School-Based Professional Learning Communities(Journal of Education, Humanities and Sciences, 2019) Kinyota, Mjege; Kavenuke, Patrick Severine; Mwakabenga, Rehema JaphetThis paper reports on the history, features, and challenges of School-Based Professional Learning Communities (SBPLCs) in China to elicit lessons for Tanzania towards improving in-service teacher professional development. Based on the Chinese SBPLCs, this review aims to provide some insights to educational planners and teachers in Tanzania on how to establish and maintain effective school-based professional learning. This analysis used 30 journal articles published over the past twelve years (2006-2017) to provide research-based evidence. The findings indicate that Chinese schools have registered significant achievements in SBPLCs by supporting teacher collaborative learning and research in both rural and urban areas. As Tanzania strives to promote school-based teacher professional development, several lessons are worth learning. Thus, the study recommends that the country endorse professional learning at the school level by developing explicit in-school policies, allocating time for teacherlearning, offering financial and material support to teachers, and encouraging teachers to take charge of their professional learning.Item Does going abroad benefit my country? Views of highly skilled personnel from Sub-Saharan Africa on brain drain-brain circulation(Mkwawa Journal of Education and Development, 2018) Kavenuke, Patrick Severine; Kinyota, MjegeThe debate on brain drain-brain circulation has been a longlasting phenomenon of interest among educators in the field of education, in particular, international and comparative education. This long-lasting debate triggered us to rethink about the effects which the concept has on the source country as well as the destination country. The study explored the perceptions of Highly Skilled Personnel (HSPs) residing in Sub-Saharan Africa on HSPs mobility. Respondents for this study comprised of 43 Sub-Saharan African scholars. Data were collected into two phases. First, all the 43 respondents actively participated in a four-day Online Focused Group Discussion (OFGD) moderated by the researchers. The second phase involved online interviews with 12 members who also participated in the first phase. Findings indicated that the majority of respondents favoured brain circulation. This implies a significant shift from brain drain to brain circulation. The socio-economic and political contexts of countries where respondents came from influenced their responses. We suggest that in the current globalized world, instead of restricting HSPs mobility, Sub-Saharan African countries need to create attractive working environment as a means to retain the best talents and motivate those who left to come back. Furthermore, Sub-Saharan African countries must work with diaspora to improve knowledge and business networks that will enable these countries to improve their economies thereby compensating the cost incurred in educating mobile talents. Finally, brain drain-brain circulation agenda should not be viewed in isolation rather as multidimensional in nature due to its overarching countless influencing factors.Item Establishing comparative education society in Tanzania: Opportunities and prospects(World Voices Nexus: The WCCES Chronicle, 2018-02) Kayombo, Joel Jonathan; Kavenuke, Patrick SeverineComparative education as field of study has long history in many universities in the North. For the universities in the South it dates back to the 1960s. In view of the globalization of education and the call for local actors to respond to the forces of globalization, we have analyzed the context of comparative education in Tanzania and the potential of establishing comparative education society as a response to the globalization of education.Given the wide spread of the comparative education courses in Tanzanian universities, there are potentials for establishing a strong comparative education society that can act as an intellectual home for many scholars in country.Item Whose names are in science textbooks? Justifying the need for critical eedagogy in Tanzania Science Classrooms(Journal of Education, Humanities and Sciences, 2018) Kinyota, Mjege; Kavenuke, Patrick SeverineTextbooks are the most important teaching and learning resources in education in most developing countries, including Tanzania. However, researchers in education have tended to ignore critical issues related to textbooks. For example, while Africa, as a continent, has contributed a lot to the development of science and technology, it is unfortunate that African scientists and their achievements do not feature in science textbooks used in African schools. This paper seeks to explore critical aspects in science textbooks that are often taken for granted, such as names of scientists cited in those textbooks. Additionally, the question of what are the stereotypes and the hidden messages that students in developing countries learn when science textbooks are full of white male Western scientists’ names was considered pertinent for this study. We argue that such biased naming in science textbooks sends negative messages and stereotypes to students on what counts as legitimate science knowledge. We also argue that the messages, in turn, limit students’ creativity and affect their identities as science knowledge producers and owners. The situation may be worse for non-white female students from developing countries. We recommend that teachers should use critical pedagogy in science classrooms so that issues related to the nature of science and the historical development of scientific knowledge are critically questioned, analysed and discussed. Given the limited time due to the pressure of national examinations, we also recommend teachers to use information and communication technologies (ICT) to facilitate critical pedagogy. Lastly, we call for the integration of indigenous scientific knowledge in science curriculum in Tanzania.