Education 2030 Agenda points out that by 2030, 3.2 million more teachers are required to achieve universal primary education and 5.1 million more will be needed to achieve universal lower secondary education, with Africa as the continent with the biggest shortage. It requires urgent attention, with a more immediate deadline, because the equity gap in education is exacerbated by the shortage and uneven distribution of professionally trained teachers, especially in disadvantaged areas.

The Continental Education Strategy for Africa (2016-2025) (CESA) includes ‘revitalise the teaching profession to ensure quality and relevance at all levels of education’ as the first of its 12 strategic objectives, to set up a qualitative system of education and training to provide the African continent with efficient human resources adapted to African core values and therefore capable of achieving the vision and ambitions of the African Union.

To deal with both the shortage and the quality of teachers, Teacher Education Institutions (TEIs) or Teacher Training Institutions (TTIs) play an indispensable role.

In this context, the China-Africa Deans of Education Forum 2022, hosted by Beijing Normal University and organised by Faculty of Education of Beijing Normal University, UNESCO International Institute for Capacity Building in Africa (IICBA) and UNESCO International Research and Training Centre for Rural Education (INRULED), is to be held on 15-16 June this year, aiming to build a platform for knowledge sharing and policy dialogue between researchers, practitioners and policy-makers in the field of teacher education both in China and African countries, to discuss and reflect on teacher-related issues at the local, national and international levels, and to build a China-Africa community with a shared future innovatively and cooperatively.

The Forum consists of keynote speeches, three parallel sessions and a plenary session.

The keynote speeches will focus on the theme ‘Reimagine Teacher Education towards a Shared Future’, discussing how to establish and ensure teacher education with high quality in the complex post-epidemic context and exploring new models of cooperation between TEIs in China and Africa.

The three parallel sessions focus on the following themes:

Parallel Session 1: Technology-enhanced Teacher Education: Achievements and Challenges

This session will review the implications of technology for inclusiveness, equity, and quality of teacher training and development. Deans of Education from China and Africa will share their experiences of harnessing technology for quality teacher preparation and in-service professional development.

Parallel Session 2: Quality Teachers for Rural Schools: Policy, Practice and Research Evidence

Deans of School of Education or Teacher Education from both sides will address issues of preparing qualified teachers for rural schools. Policies, evidence-based research and innovative practices would be shared in terms of teacher qualification, relevance of teacher education programmes and teacher support in rural areas.

Parallel Session 3: Education towards Peace and a Community with a Shared Future

In this session, representatives will share practice, challenges, and plans to train teachers as agents of change with knowledge and attitudes that permit every student to work on building a peaceful and a shared future for mankind.

Further to the keynote speeches and parallel sessions, the plenary session will focus on approaches to build up and strengthen the stronger partnership and create cooperation opportunities to generate innovation for sustainable development.

Organisers

Supported by: National Commission of the People’s Republic of China for UNESCO

Hosted by: Beijing Normal University

Organised by: Faculty of Education, Beijing Normal University

UNESCO International Institute for Capacity Building in Africa (IICBA)

UNESCO International Research and Training Centre for Rural Education (INRULED)

Co-organised by: Institute of Africa Studies, Zhejiang Normal University (IASZNU)

Centre for Teacher Education Research of Beijing Normal University, Key Research Institute of Humanities and Social Sciences for Universities, Ministry of Education of China

Institute of International and Comparative Education of Beijing Normal University, Key Research Institute of Humanities and Social Sciences for Universities, Ministry of education of China

Huiyan International College, Faculty of Education, Beijing Normal University

Agenda