Education – Views & Research

Four people seated at a table in an office setting

African universities can do more than teach and research: they can drive social change

Annika Surmeier, University of Cape Town; Addisu Lashitew, McMaster University; Bongi Bangeni, University of Cape Town; David Littlewood, University of Sheffield; Gideon Nomdo, University of Cape Town; Kasturi Behari-Leak, University of Cape Town, and Phyllis Awor, Makerere University

School pupils in uniform, some of them with academic gowns and mortarboards

Going to university is a big change from school but mentors help – study

Lesedi Senamele Matlala, University of Johannesburg

How can African schools support children’s mental health? Research shows what works and what doesn’t

Lydia Namatende-Sakwa, African Population and Health Research Center

Schoolgirls holding hands around a circle.

South Africa’s schools reflect an unequal society: what can teachers do about it?

Nhlanhla Mpofu, University of Notre Dame Australia

Hand holding pen and resting on open notebook

Child covering their face with their hands

‘Lazy, weak, bewitched’ – how stigma stops Uganda’s children from getting help, and what schools can do about it

Lydia Namatende-Sakwa, African Population and Health Research Center

Kenya’s large class sizes make it harder for teachers to help children learn

Fridah Gatwiri Kiambati, African Population and Health Research Center

Four girls in uniform writing at a school desk

Academics in South Africa have to focus on ‘outputs’: what’s lost when other work’s not counted

Curwyn Mapaling, University of Johannesburg and Nokulunga Shabalala, University of Johannesburg

Young woman standing at a desk in a lecture theatre; young man looks on

Social workers who protect children in South Africa carry a burden of trauma – better preparation could help

Marinei Herselman, University of Fort Hare

Three bicycles for 39 volunteers: the uphill battle to fund playful parenting in rural Zambia

Malizgani Paul Chavula, University of Zambia

A father kneeling in a field smiling broadly holding his daughter up in the air while she laughs

A child’s first 5 years set them up for life. African study explores how to target education spending

Katherine Theiss, Radford University and Subha Mani, Fordham University

Young children wearing school uniforms and playing

Are South African teaching posts up for sale? School staff say an old problem hasn’t gone away

Amy Sarah Padayachee, Cape Peninsula University of Technology

Changing the history curriculum is not enough if English always dominates the classroom – South African study

Nhlanhla Mpofu, University of Notre Dame Australia and Simthembile Xeketwana, Stellenbosch University

Old black and white photo of men in a mineshaft

Woman and man at computers in office environment

Why isn’t the accounting profession more diverse? Research points to the real levers of change

Sedzani Musundwa, University of South Africa

Why children learn English more easily with the help of their home language – Namibian study

Nhlanhla Mpofu, University of Notre Dame Australia and Clement Simuja, Rhodes University

What helps young children learn? Adults who take an interest in their homework and reading

Pearl S. Kyei, University of Ghana

Early childhood is a great time to learn about clean energy: this game aims to make it fun

Moleboheng Mokhele, North-West University

Children playing with toy blocks at home.

Black women academics in my study said their main allies were White men – what this reveals

Sally K. Ledwaba, Tshwane University of Technology and Adrian D. Van Breda, University of Johannesburg

Hands giving and receiving a rolled-up paper bound with red ribbon; one person is wearing an academic gown

What happened when a South African school switched from English to bilingual science tests

Robyn Tyler, University of the Western Cape

Skills shortages are holding back businesses in South Africa – survey finds the weak spots

Martin Magidi, University of Cape Town and Tariro Chivige

Reforms to South Africa’s technical colleges keep failing students and employers: why?

Stephanie Allais, University of the Witwatersrand

Factory worker in hard hat operating an industrial machine

Funding boosts postgraduate student success – South African study measures how

Derek Yu, University of the Western Cape; Christie Swanepoel, University of the Western Cape; Rochelle Beukes, University of the Western Cape; Ronald Arendse, University of the Western Cape, and Shaun Pather

Smiling young people in academic gowns, raising certificates above their heads

What’s overlooked in student mental health in South Africa: social connection and sexual wellbeing

Jarred H Martin, University of Pretoria; Jacomien Muller, University of Pretoria; Jolize Joubert van Appel, University of Pretoria, and Sonja Nicolene Mostert, University of Pretoria

Group of young people walking; girl looks back smiling

Malawi’s education choices in the wake of aid cuts

Alyssa Morley, Michigan State University; Nelson Masanche Nkhoma, Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, and Rachel Silver, York University, Canada

Open books on the ground; children's feet and legs

Young, South African and unemployed: finding direction starts with knowing yourself – counsellor

Kobus Maree, University of Pretoria

Conflict hits schooling hardest where children are the target – study

Roos van der Haer, Leiden University; Andreas Forø Tollefsen, University of Oslo; Gudrun Østby, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO); Ragnhild Nordås, University of Michigan, and Siri Aas Rustad, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)

Cultural bias in west Africa’s school-leaver exam questions puts many students at a disadvantage

David Baidoo-Anu, Ontario Tech University and Monsurat Raji, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa

Black and white photo of young people sitting in rows

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Parenting matters

Adult and child hands seen atop a wooden game with the child's hands resting on round objects in a round hole.

How families can support children’s early mathematics learning at home

Ozlem Cankaya, MacEwan University

When your child asks if they’ll be harmed like the people on the news, what do you say? Psychologists provide tips on how to talk about identity

Anahi Collado, University of Colorado Boulder and Colleen Cummings, Georgetown University

Parent holding child's head against chest with hand threaded through hair.

Why parent-child playful interactions mean so much more than fun and games

Ana Karen Espinosa Becerra, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa and Jean-François Bureau, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa

A father cradles his child who is leaning back and laughing.

What we misunderstand about absent fathers

Matthew Alemu, University of Michigan; Northeastern University

Close-up of man's arm with a space between his daughter's arm, suggesting distance and coldness.

How the heat affects children as they learn, play and do sport – and how parents can help

Stacey Cowe, Nottingham Trent University; Caroline Sunderland, Nottingham Trent University, and Simon Cooper, Nottingham Trent University

A young boy on his bed surrounded by posters of football players reading a football magazine.

Does it matter what children read, as long as they are reading?

Caroline Cauchi, University of Hull

Helping their friends to read can boost children’s attainment

Emma Vardy, Nottingham Trent University and Helen L Breadmore, University of Birmingham

South African learners struggle with reading comprehension: study reveals a gap between policy and classroom practice

Tracy Kitchen, Rhodes University

Silhouette of a seated child holding an open book

We set out to improve literacy among struggling readers in Kenya – what we learnt