EdTechTeam Branches out to South Africa!

One of the keys to success of any school and their students is high quality, relevant and accessible professional development for teachers. After all, if the teachers are not fully prepared and comfortable with the new or revised parts of their jobs, there is a higher likelihood that the students may not do as well as students whose teacher felt well prepared and confident. The challenge facing us is that money doesn’t freely fall from the skies. Providing high quality training and support for teachers is challenging and striking that balance is just what EdTechTeam is doing. Our goals are threefold: increase the number of opportunities African teachers have for high quality training, celebrate the story of African educators so they inspire others, and base our work on principles of adult learning to make the experience valuable and fruitful for teachers.

Teachers at the Fall Educator Conference for AISA, Association of International Schools in Africa, this October

EdTechTeam is an Associate Member of the Association of International Schools in Africa

I’ve learned that three things are very important to teachers who have attended my training sessions around the world. People want to have a mentor or a role model that has already gone with the new approach and has survived if not even flourished. The past success of a peer makes it easier for them to envisage what they are being asked to do. Secondly, they want to see value in terms of their money, their effort and, most importantly, their time. It’s human nature to value the things we put our effort towards. As a trainer I try to help each teacher see what payouts can come from their effort. Finally, they want their past experience to be valued and built upon. If you can address these three key points when working with other educators then you have a much greater chance of making real, positive change in the classroom.

We are very excited to announce that EdTechTeam has officially entered into a Joint Venture agreement with CloudEd Solutions. The newly formed EdTechTeam South Africa will be organising at least three two-day conferences in the three largest metropolitan areas in South Africa.

Cape Town Summit. 4-5 April 2017 in Cape Town. Hosted by Parklands College
Johannesburg Summit. 30 June – 1 July 2017 in Johannesburg. Hosted by Dainfern College
KwaZulu-Natal Summit 5-6 July in Pietermaritzburg. Hosted by Pietermaritzburg Girls High School

Be sure to check out za.gafesummit.com for the complete list of events, which also include hands-on workshops, certification bootcamp and masterclasses.

Keep an eye out for future events across South Africa!