Today’s era is defined by emerging innovative technologies. We are living in a time during which digital is merging with the physical and robots are capable of executing surgeries on human brains. These times require completely revolutionary approaches to schooling and to education – approaches that start with children as young as 2 and 3. So, how do we prepare today’s children for the “technology renaissance” we are witnessing? How do we prepare them for the global challenges? How can we increase the quality of education in developing countries that are experiencing significant social and economic transformations?

Seedstars had a chance to talk with Sabina Vigani, Country Director at TRECC, and Catherine Seya, Early Childhood Technical Lead at TRECC, about the future of education in Africa and worldwide to find out some insights on the education development in Africa.

How do you envision the future of school education in Africa?

C.S. Whether the gap between Africa’s social and economic situation and that of the West or other emerging regions narrows depends largely on the performance and relevance of its schooling system in the years to come. First, in terms of service delivery, African nations will have to ensure that access to quality education drastically improves given the rapid population increase the continent is witnessing. It is important to note that quality education is just as important as access.

Access without quality undermines investments in the sector and yields limited gains. Ivory Coast, and the continent more broadly, has witnessed an increase of the school attendance rates over the last two decades, but the massification of students has come with new challenges, such as overcrowded classrooms, insufficient manuals, demotivated teachers, to name just a few. As a result, more children attend school, but they are not learning. To give you an idea, the 2019 national evaluation shows that barely 19% of children in the third grade have reached a sufficient level of mastery in reading. We need to make sure that teaching is effective and that children learn.

Secondly, and very importantly, the content taught in schools must be relevant to the local economies, but should also equip youth with relevant skills and knowledge allowing them to embrace global trends, such as the rapid growth of technologies, adapt in a rapidly changing world and address global issues like healthcare, energy, and development challenges.

Quality education is strongly linked to job creation and employment rates, and it will significantly determine how the continent performs in the global economy 10, 20, and 50 years from now…

Read the full article originally published on the Seedstars blog

Posted in
Share this