09 December 2008
Our general goals, in no particular order are: 1), to get all stakeholders to discuss the challenges South African education faces, and 2), to create opportunities for those stakeholders to meet, learn, and collaborate in finding ways to address those challenges, and 3), create opportunities to highlight successes and encourage appreciation and positive feedback.
When we first stated our work with curriculum advisors in 2006 we discovered that:
- The challenge South Africa faces in education is a deeply systemic problem with a wide range of stakeholders who need to be able to collaborate powerfully in thinking systemically about what they wanted to create and how best to do it.
- Many people feel overwhelmed by the challenges and changes. Working in education is very challenging and people are not respected, rewarded and recognized enough for their contributions.
- There is no blueprint for success. Stakeholders need to learn their way into the future together. A culture of collaborative learning needs to be encouraged rather than the defensive and divisive blame-finding that has become established in many areas.
- There are many deeply intentional and passionate people who are doing incredible work, but who are getting very little appreciation for their effort and achievements. Without appropriate positive feedback and appreciation, morale and motivation will continue to devolve in to hopelessness, anger and helplessness.
We also learned that, generally, people in South Africa are passionate about education, and no matter where they work in the system, they want to get together to discuss, learn and share together. Over the past two years SACATS’s delegate base has increasing included more and more people who are not curriculum advisors.
Based on these insights, what we wanted to create then, for curriculum advisors and others involved in teacher support, and which we are building on now for other stakeholders is:
- A unique experience that allows them to focus both on their particular context , niche and needs, as well as, enable them to see the system as a whole and to collaborate across functions and departments and sectors.
- An enriching and enlivening process that firstly engages delegates intellectually with world class content, secondly, reopens their hearts to their passion by reminding and reconnecting them with their purpose in education and thirdly, improves their ability to work collaboratively and more effectively by giving them the opportunity to develop new skills and relationships.
