Active teaching and learning for Africa: ZEST

Mutinta Mwitangeti: In a school in Central Province teachers are taking part in their scheduled Teacher Group Meetings. These meetings occur regularly in every school across Zambia. In this school the teachers are using resources developed by the Zambian Education School-based Training project or ZEST.

Enock Palata: My experience with the ZEST program is that it has helped the teachers to learn new approaches which have allowed to improve good classroom management. And even just the general learning in the classroom environment.

Charles Banda: Our teachers they are able to use the new approaches which we are learning from the courses. Some of these approaches are a group work they are pair work and so on. When I go around observing the lessons. I can notice that the teachers are using these new approaches.

Mutinta Mwitangeti: In October 2017 the Open University UK and World Vision Zambia embarked on a journey together. The funding from the Scottish Government enabled the Open University to build on its existing work with teachers in sub-Saharan Africa under the TESSA programme.

Nicola Sturgeon: The Open University is also playing an increasingly important role in international development, something that I think is to be enormously welcomed and encouraged. The Scottish government and the OU are currently working together for example on a project in Zambia and that focus is on developing the skills of thousands of primary school teachers in that country. I think that’s a great example of the work that the Open University does to promote high quality education across the world.

Mutinta Mwitangeti: ZEST saw the Open University UK and World Vision coming together to build and roll out a school based continuing professional development programme which would ultimately reach over 4000 primary school teachers and educational leaders in Central Province between 2017 and 2023. The School In-Service Coordinator or the SIC explains how resources have contributed to teachers’ professional development.

Sharon Lesa: ZEST has contributed to in-service training in so many ways, firstly I would say It has focused much on learner centred education. It has also introduced the nine active teaching approaches which teachers use in their classrooms There's so many activities that seem to be different from the previous TGMs for example, previously teachers used to have their TGMs in a group, but only one participant was given a chance to go and teach while others they sat at the back and observed. Currently, we are having peers teaching. They observe each other and then they evaluate the lessons together. They share the experiences and note their experiences. In the teacher notebooks.

Enock Palata: The changes that I've observed is that there's a lot of participation among teachers because in the past it has been very passive. You find that there'll be maybe just one teacher in front maybe presenting, but nowadays now we find that there's a lot of group work, group activities.

Mutinta Mwitangeti: This enhanced School Based Continuing Professional Development responds to the revised Zambian Primary Curriculum with its focus on knowledge, values and skills, by developing teacher professional development resources in line with the Ministry of Education policy.

Speaker: Teacher attitude has greatly improved towards continuing professional development. CPD. Previously we could have a situation where teachers could shun the meetings for CPD. We call them teacher group meetings. Teachers look forward actually to having to TGMS because there's a lot they benefit from the materials. They benefit in terms of subject content as well as methods.

Mutinta Mwitangeti: For teachers, the 9 learner-centred pedagogical approaches can be applied to any level or subject. TESSA resources are also available in every school to assist teachers in their planning.

Enock Palata: The resources have been very helpful, especially the Tessa resources and even the moodle Pi which has been used by teachers during TGMs and even just during the learning process like when they're in the school environment to have access to those resources to enhance their teaching and learning activities.

Mutinta Mwitangeti: In Zambia, as with many other countries, internet access is expensive and can be unreliable which makes accessing online resources highly challenging. To combat this the Open University took an innovative step and used a low-cost computer designed to connect to other devices as part of an offline network. This device, the Raspberry Pi, has proven highly effective in supporting teachers to work together to upload, access and share digital resources, learning collaboratively with their peers.

Rita N. Nyirogo: They are excited to look at what they can learn from the approaches in a device which is called a Raspberry Pi. They are able to engage in technological issues so that they know how to access the materials. So somehow it has enhanced their ICT skills. So that is a positive attribute.

Mutinta Mwitangeti: To support the use of Raspberry Pi’s in schools, the role of the School Champion was created.

Kalaluka Nawa: As a school champion, you are bridging the gap by educating people on how to move about with the interface of the Raspberry Pi. So that's one of the special responsibilities because today you teach someone on how to do one particular thing and a week later that person has forgotten. So you are really a key person in a school setup. You have to be always available. You have to make sure you know everything about the PI. So that whosoever has challenges. They approach you and you help them. You’ll be moving round schools and educate these people more. And now even when you check SBCPDs, they are able to apply whatever they are getting from the resources on the PI into a classroom so that has bridged the gap. So people, schools now know how to integrate the PI in their lesson planning. lesson preparation.

Mutinta Mwitangeti: The latest digital innovation sees the use of QR codes as an alternative accessible way of reaching the resources. This technology, widely used through COVID, is now familiar to phone users across the globe. The QR codes are available on posters in schools and education offices across Central Province. The partnership with World Vision Zambia has meant that their in-depth understanding of local issues and constraints have in turn supported the Ministry of Education Province and District Officers in their growing understanding of this approach to school based continued professional development.

Paxina M. Mwenya: Now the way I would describe my standard officers, they're like partners with the teachers that they go to, to monitor, because it is not only for training. They discuss, as I mentioned earlier on, and they are there to give guidance so that teachers are put in the right direction as they do the implementation of the lesson.

Mutinta Mwitangeti: One of the strengths of this initiative has been the involvement of officials at District level in monitoring and supporting teachers. The Central Province Resource Center Coordinator explains what this has meant in practice.

Rita N. Nyirogo: There's been a lot of engagement with districts and after the orientation, because they now understand what ZEST is all about, they are able to engage more with the schools, able to engage more with the teachers in the schools, and as they go around monitoring the able to mentor and to coach. This betters implementation and it is a big positive as well.

Mutinta Mwitangeti: Alongside the 9 approaches the resources also focus on the broader aspects of literacy, reflective practice and assessment. The inbuilt sustainability of these resources mean that teachers’ continuing professional development can benefit from them long into the future.

Sharon Lesa: The literacy level at our school has gone up, and the teacher pupil interaction, it has also gone up. The planning of the lessons I can say it is at 80%. Teachers are able to plan together, then they go and teach in their classrooms observed by a peer and they have more confidence compared to the previous teachings that we used to have.

Mutinta Mwitangeti: Participants in this enhanced approach to the Zambian continued professional development across Central Province have found that it has added enormous value to the Teacher Group Meetings and improved their own classroom practice.

Enock Palata: The biggest impact is having a variety of approaches to choose from, because you know, lessons and lesson to lesson they vary in terms of what you are going to use the approach to affect to the pupils. They’re in terms of TGMs, the changes that I've observed is that there's a lot of participation among teachers because in the past it has been very passive. You find that there'll be maybe just one teacher in front maybe presenting, but nowadays now we find that there's a lot of group work, group activities. Everyone is able to participate and find solutions together to the problems that are brought up.

Speaker: We realize that ZEST has not come to replace what is already there. It has just come to supplement. So by supplementing we move to, to greater heights. You realize that the world is dynamic. Things keep changing. So we don't need to, to, to be glued to what used to happen long time ago, hence the coming of ZEST so that we move in step with the dynamic worlds.

Enock Palata: So I've seen a lot of change in my learners, as in some of them, their memory has improved in terms of retention, the way they remember things that they've learned because of certain approaches, even just when you assess them, the results have been better because of the approaches that I use in the classroom.

Mutinta Mwitangeti: From the province perspective there has been some very positive changes with learners.

Speaker: In terms of learning outcomes. The positive impact is so great because what has happened is that learners are given a chance to interact with a lot of approaches. They are able to participate more in classes. There is also an aspect of teaching and learning resources that have been made from the natural environment, and so it gives a chance for learners to participate more in class. Learners that we've interacted with before have say that learning is so interesting because they are given to do a lot of activities actually, and that is a big plus. And if you go deeper into it, you discover that it has actually curbed absenteeism because learners are eager to come and learn and learn from teachers that are able to teach with confidence.

Mutinta Mwitangeti: The most important people of course in this whole process are the learners. What do they think about it all?

Nkandu Musoka: I think using role play is good because people understand more and they learn better and it's not easy to forget

Mutinta Mwitangeti: As this project has been implemented across Central Province, the final word comes from the Provincial officer.

Provincial officer: Sprint stands for School Program of in-service for the term. So the Zest Project has injected something into the Sprint framework which betters the implementation of CPDs in schools.