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TEPATE – Training of Trainers programme completed

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Irmeli Maunonen-Eskelinen

The overall aim of the Training of Trainers Programme was to support the continuous professional development of the key experts of UP and ISET-OW to deliver theory-practice balanced teacher education and to develop the quality and relevance of the teacher training programmes at UP Maputo and OW-ISET.

Over 10 people sitting and working together at a workshop.

The last week of the Training of Trainers (ToT) programme was held at the Pedagogical University in Maputo in 25-29 September, 2023. Thus, the programme that included altogether 6 weeks of studying and a study visit to Finland, has now come to an end.

The programme included five thematic parts which lasted one week each, except the first part which was 10 days. The overall aim of the ToT- Programme was to support the continuous professional development of the key experts of UP and ISET-OW to deliver theory-practice balanced teacher education and to develop the quality and relevance of the teacher training programmes at UP Maputo and OW-ISET. With the support of the ToT, the key experts were expected to strengthen their capacity, such as in particular, their organizational development skills, and skills in enhancing communal development in and between the universities. The figure below illustrates the core of the ToT.

Process of the training: 1. Orientation and basics of student -centered pedagogy, 2. Orientation and basics of student -centered pedagogy, 3. Study visit to Finland, 4. Enhancing theory-practice balance in teacher education and 5. Development scenarios. Presented in boxes.

The development of the capacity of key experts can be seen as tangible results in the form of three new teaching modules for student teachers different teaching and learning materials produced for the implementation of the modules at the partner universities, and trainings conducted by the TEPATE key experts to their colleague-teacher trainers and in-service teachers at the secondary schools. In addition, as an outcome of the ToT Programme, the key experts will demonstrate their professional development through a portfolio. The portfolios will be ready by the end of April 2024.

Towards the Future

The core theme of the last week of the ToT Programme was ‘future’. In order to go to the future of education and teachers, it was necessary to work on first the general aspects like megatrends on a global and national levels, future of work and working life. From those general developments we moved on to discuss competences needed from people in the future in general. After this we started to focus on the future of leaning and teaching, and that of education.

And finally, we got to work on the future of teachers and teacher competences as well as future of teacher educators and teacher educators’ competences. After many collaborative activities on above mentioned topics, we concentrated on future thinking skills and built scenarios for UP and ISET-OW in 2035.

The basic idea of working on scenarios was to describe the situation at the university in the year 2035, and then to define the most important actions – what we need to do - in order to reach the desirable scenario.

Based on one group’s working, the vision of being the best university in Mozambique demands

a curriculum reform
enhancement of inclusive education
training the personnel
developing organisational culture
partnerships and networks and
modernization of the infrastructures.

The whole week was about using imagination and creativity, moving from the present to the past and the future, filtering and screening what is essential for desirable future.