Prior to the onset of the global lockdown, some educators used strategies such as a flipped classroom, blended learning and hybrid learning to integrate the use of technology into the delivery of their modules. This all changed in 2020 when contact sessions were no longer an option to curb the spread of the COVID-19 virus. The result was that educators who partially used e-learning avenues and those who were fully into contact teaching had to make the shift to full online teaching. The pandemic thus brought about an awareness of how much progress we have made and the realisation of how far we still need to go in equitably addressing access and inclusion among students in higher education institutions. The purpose of the study was to explore the extent to which the relationship and partnership between specialists and educators could foster student support for inclusion, access and equity in higher education, thereby informing teacher education. This was a qualitative study with an action research design involving one educator, one e-learning specialist and 110 students across two modules. Affordance theory served as the theoretical framework for the study. Thematic analysis was used to arrive at the salient points and lessons from the partnership. The findings revealed that educators' access to information and technical support allowed them to create supportive learning environments for students. Furthermore, multiple modes of engagement ensured that the probability of diversity being an extenuating factor could be mitigated. Academics must create awareness among students on support interventions available in institutions.

The online and blended delivery of courses through the use of technologies has attracted attention and research.The teaching and learning of English for Academic Purposes (EAP) in multilingual contexts such as in Africa has also been given prominence in research, as well as the benefits of technology in EAP programmes. The pressing need for technology - supported educational practices has been evidenced by the COVID-19 pandemic that affected most educational systems around the world. Although there is an increasing body of research on the integration of technology in education emerging from developing contexts, most proposed models still come from high-income countries.Therefore, there is a need for more critical and contextually relevant approaches to the integration of technology in education. Based on the authors’ narratives of their lived experiences as teachers of EAP in a university in East Africa, this article aims to describe and reflect on the practices related to design and delivery of online and blended courses to university students, including in a teacher education programme. It is hoped that this work will contribute to discussions on how to make online and blended teaching practices of EAP more contextually relevant and how exogenous resources can be adapted to the realities of students in multilingual developing contexts.The online and blended delivery of courses through the use of technologies has attracted attention and research. The teaching and learning of English for Academic Purposes (EAP) in multilingual contexts such as in Africa has also been given prominence in research, as well as the benefits of technology in EAP programmes. The pressing need for technology-supported educational practices has been evidenced by the COVID-19 pandemic that affected most educational systems around the world. Although there is an increasing body of research on the integration of technology in education emerging from developing contexts, most proposed models still come from high-income countries. Therefore, there is a need for more critical and contextually relevant approaches to the integration of technology in education. Based on the authors’ narratives of their lived experiences as teachers of EAP in a university in East Africa, this article aims to describe and reflect on the practices related to design and delivery of online and blended courses to university students, including in a teacher education programme. It is hoped that this work will contribute to discussions on how to make online and blended teaching practices of EAP more contextually relevant and how exogenous resources can be adapted to the realities of students in multilingual developing contexts.

The purpose of the study was to examine how Zimbabwean teacher educators can develop pre-service and in-service teachers to teach effectively during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. This qualitative study, guided by the case study method, gathered the perspectives of experienced teachers and teacher educators in schools, teacher colleges and universities in Harare. Data was generated by means of face-to face interviews, Zoom meetings, WhatsApp and Google Talk, and it was analysed using the content analysis technique. My study found that pre-service and in-service teachers should acquire pedagogical and technological skills in addition to what they have been taught. Teacher educators as well as pre-service and in-service teachers also need information communication technology (ICT) knowledge and skills to implement blended teaching and learning, use the On-Demand Examination system, and develop and implement formative and summative assessment. Beyond the pandemic, the traditional 3-3-3 model of teacher development (i.e., 1 year, 3 school terms in college; 1 year’s teaching practice;1 year in college)will likely continue to be based on blended learning and Open and Distance eLearning (ODeL). It is recommended that technology infrastructure in Zimbabwe be upgraded to allow teacher educators, practising teachers and student teachers easy access to the internet, while also training them in ICT skills and knowledge.

COVID-19 was declared a pandemic on 11 March 2020. Various governments introduced measures to mitigate the pandemic, including lockdown, enforced compliance with social distancing, travel restrictions, a ban on large meetings and the closure of schools. At the peak of the epidemic, learning centres and higher institutions were closed in more than 190 countries, disrupting the education of 1.6 billion students. In Nigeria, this situation forced many schools, including universities, to introduce e learning. This study, which explores the extent to which selected students at the University of Lagos were adequately prepared for e-learning, was based on the Garrison and Anderson Community of Inquiry model. An analytical survey research design was adopted and a stratified random sampling technique was used to select 282 respondents from the University of Lagos. A validated self-developed questionnaire was used for data collection. Frequencies, percentages and means were calculated. Hypotheses were statistically tested at a 5% level of significance. The study found that the students in the Faculty of Education were to some extent prepared for the teaching mode, and they were assisted to establish social and cognitive presences to create a meaningful e-learning environment.

Although the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted education systems, especially at the schooling level, it is important that we now begin to look ahead to determine what we have learned from the pandemic that will help us to rebuild and move away from an emergency response to future-directed resilience (Kanwar & Daniel, 2020; Hodges et al., 2020).

The advent of COVID-19 caused massive disruptions to Teaching Practicum (TP) continuity and scheduled assessment activities. This study investigated the assessment tools and procedures adopted by Primary Teachers' colleges in Masvingo province during the COVID-19 pandemic in Zimbabwe. The transformative learning theory underpinned this study. A quantitative research design was used and data was gathered using online questionnaires with both closed and open-ended items. The items solicited information on how colleges transformed assessment tools and procedures during the pandemic for continuity of learning by teacher trainees. Non-probability purposive sampling was used to select respondents. There were 14 respondents, amongst them 13 primary teacher training lecturers and one TP coordinator. Findings indicated that TP assessment strategies did not change from physical lesson observations instead, TP assessments stopped at the peak of the pandemic since schools that host teacher trainees also closed. The completion of the course for teacher trainees was extended. Where lecturers got access to schools, they resorted to the observation of TP files and supporting documents. It can be concluded that assessment of teaching practicum online remains a challenge and there is a need to change assessment strategies post COVID-19 pandemic.

Formal Education in the 21st Century is focused on the development of learners’ skills and competencies essential to navigate the complexities and uncertainties of the age. Effective acquisition of these skills in the school is predicated on adequate provision of technological resources, adequate school infrastructure and continuous professional development of teachers for innovative instructional delivery. Therefore, this study was carried out to investigate the extent to which infrastructural provisions and continuous professional development of teachers in secondary schools in Nigeria support the development and acquisition of 21st Century teaching and learning skills. The study which adopted the impact of school infrastructure on learning by Barrett et al.as a conceptual framework, used descriptive survey design. Two self-constructed instruments were used to collect data from (20) selected secondary schools, (50) teachers and (200) students. Data were analysed using frequency count, percentage score, mean, and standard deviation. Findings showed that the schools visited lack infrastructural provisions, the teachers do not have the requisite skills and the students are not aware of any other means of learning different from the conventional styles offered by their teachers. Therefore, this study offered a two-prong approach of immediate provision of technological infrastructure for schools and the development of teachers’ professional skills through focused training targeted at enhancing their technological instructional delivery skills.

This study explored teachers’ knowledge and integration of competency-based practices in schools. One hundred and fifty in-service secondary school teachers were sampled across three African countries using a survey research design. A combination of both closed and open-ended questions was used to elicit responses from respondents via an online system. Responses from the open-ended questions were analysed using thematic analysis, and data received from the structured questions were analysed using percentage distribution. The theoretical lens through which this study was viewed was the Human capital theory and social constructivism theory. Findings revealed that teachers across the three countries have a positive perception of the usage of competency-based approaches but lack professional training and support, which in turn affects the quality of their teaching and assessment practices in classrooms. The implications and recommendations from this study offer teachers as well as education stakeholders in Africa valuable consideration to move beyond the traditional level of assessment and integrate good proxies of academic skills that support learners’ acquisition of 21stcentury skills such as problem-solving, creativity and critical thinking in assessing learners’ competencies.

Skill acquisition is a growing concern in Nigeria due to socio-economic circumstances and a glut in the labour market which predisposes people to alternatives such as self-employment and a refocus on the care for the environment. Diverse by-products of the self-employed artisans have varied effects on the environment, hence the need to establish how their training affects their environmental practices. The study is a descriptive survey of learners and facilitators in five skill set areas from different skill acquisition programmes in Lagos. The research set out to document the nature of waste output and level of environmental awareness of the participants and facilitators, as well as the effect of training on environmental practices. The study was premised on Botha and Atkins’ (2005) theory of adoption of innovation. Three research questions on artisans’ typical output, disposal practices, and effect on the environment, along with the influence of facilitators’ training guided the study. A total of 250 participants were selected using stratified and proportionate random sampling techniques. The Questionnaire, Key Informant Interview sessions, and Observation Schedule were used for data collection and analysed quantitatively and qualitatively using descriptive statistics and content analysis. Findings revealed a low level of incorporation of environmental awareness into skill training programmes and the gap in teacher training. It was recommended that both adult learners and facilitators be appropriately trained and equipped to effectively tackle 21st-century problems.