The Department has four related yet distinct foci: Mathematics Education, Science Education, Technology Education and Educational Computing. These focus areas are served by a staff complement of dynamic and innovative lecturers and researchers. The Science Education group are involved in national projects, and are deeply involved in the teaching community, and they feature in the local press and on television. Dr J De Beer is a renowned Evolution expert and he offers seminars and talks to many teacher groups. He is also a pioneer in the field of ‘Science on a Shoestring’. His colleague, Dr Umesh Ramnarain is currently doing interesting research on the use of cartoons in Physics and Science teaching. This Science Education division of the Department has shown phenomenal growth over the last few years, both in the increase of undergraduate and postgraduate students, as well as in research output. Dr K Luneta is involved in projects related to Mathematics Education on a national and international basis, and he is particularly involved in teacher development projects in Soweto.
The Educational Computing group currently involved in a project funded by the GDE in firstly establishing baseline practices in computer use in Gauteng Schools, as well as identifying and mapping good practice in these schools. This division has over the years trained many teachers in Educational ICT’s, and have a particular good track record in producing postgraduate students. The Technology Education group and TechnEd, also continues to impress with innovations in the field of Technology Education and continuous professional development of teachers for technology, and probably has the best programme for this kind of training in the country. They also have strong links in industry, and have obtained several sponsorships from national and international companies.
The Department takes the imperative of teacher development for SET training very seriously, and have several plans in development to make a real difference in how teachers in Mathematics, Science, Technology and Computers are trained.
For more information, please contact the Departmental Secretary Ms Susan Gouws on +27 (0)11 559 2666 or by email: susang@uj.ac.za