An analysis of Heutagogical Practices Through Mobile Device Usage in a Teacher Training Programme in Malawi

Abstract

Teacher education in Malawi is highly plagued by staffing challenges. According to the Malawi Education Sector Performance Report (MESPR), more than 60% of the teachers in secondary schools are unqualified (Ministry of Education Science and Technology [MoEST], 2015). The government of Malawi hires under-qualified and unqualified teachers to fill acute staffing gaps at the secondary school level (MoEST, 2015). Secondary school student-teachers are recruited either among fresh secondary school graduates or through upgrading schemes which target practicing, unqualified or under-qualified teachers who want to advance their qualifications. The staffing problem is further compounded by underfunding. A higher percentage of the 2014/15 budget appears to have been allocated to higher education (30% with about 12,000 learners) and secondary education (14% with about 761,000 learners) compared to basic education (53% with about 3,688,000 learners) although the overall allocation was insufficient (Nkhokwe, Ungapembe & Furukawa, 2017). The pupil-teacher ratio (PTR) at the secondary school level, which was 41:1 in 2015, is higher than the MoEST target of 20:1 (Index Mundi, 2017, sourced from the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Institute for Statistics). The MoEST, through the National Education Sector Plan (NESP) for the 2008 – 2017 period, acknowledges that limited funding leads to inefficiencies that affect the quality of teacher education (MoEST, 2008). A poor learning environment in colleges impacts negatively on the preparation of teachers and demotivates potential student-teachers to enroll (see also Msiska et al., 2013). // Paper ID 286