Developing equitable education in an unequal society
- Wits University
Professor Ruksana Osman to lead the UNESCO Chair in Teacher Education for Diversity and Development until 2029.
The UNESCO Chair in Teacher Education for Diversity and Development, established in 2009, has evolved into a vibrant intellectual hub, where ideas are exchanged across borders but take root in local realities.
Based in the Wits School of Education, it was established as part of the global and is committed to advancing socially just pedagogies through integrating research, scholarship, policy and practice. It seeks to develop equitable education in an unequal society, a key goal of the next five years.
Professor Ruksana Osman, the Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Academic at Wits and the incumbent of the UNESCO Chair, has been instrumental in leading the Chair since 2014. “Teacher education must continually evolve to respond to the lived realities of our societies, particularly in contexts marked by inequality and change,” she says. “It is important for us to build inclusive institutions, to nurture scholarly communities and to advance knowledge that is both rigorous and socially responsive.” She is supported by a cohort of active members who have accomplished major milestones over the last decade.
Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, the Vice-Chancellor and Principal of Wits adds: “We are honoured by UNESCO’s continued confidence in the work of the Chair under the leadership of Professor Ruksana Osman.”
The South 第一吃瓜网 National Commission for UNESCO endorsed and supported the renewal of the Chair at Wits. “The Chair continues to promote research in the field of teacher education,” writes Carlton Mukwevho, the Secretary-General of the Commission. “It has expanded its intellectual footprint to include collaborations with a number of individuals and institutions that cut across several continents with a research agenda that resonates globally with local relevance. The Chair has further established an inclusive network of global scholars.”
Research collaboration
The Chair is based in Johannesburg but has an incredible network of scholars, policymakers and practitioners across multiple continents. Through collaboration, scholars have conducted research that is globally relevant and responsive to the complexities of the Global South. Over the last five years, scholars have produced an extensive body of knowledge, including books, peer-reviewed journal articles and research reports, while supervising postgraduate students and nurturing emerging scholars.
The research themes are centred around the following areas:
- social and environmental justice,
- teacher professional development,
- decolonial futures, and
- inclusive education.
The research-led approach has influenced both academic discourse and practical interventions, aligning closely with Sustainable Development Goal 4 - ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education for all.
Building on strong foundations
Over the last five years, the Chair has played an active role in global platforms such as the UNESCO Teachers Task Force, contributed to international policy dialogues, hosted hybrid global conferences and joint PhD seminars and engaged in locally embedded teacher and school leadership development programmes across Gauteng. These engagements have strengthened the relationship between universities, schools and communities, where theory and practice continually inform one another. This has also ensured that teacher education is academically rigorous, ethically grounded and socially engaged.
“Our work is about enabling both teachers and learners to thrive in environments that are diverse, complex and constantly evolving,” says Osman. “It is also about a focus on epistemic renewal. In a world where education systems are often shaped by inherited paradigms, we have championed the inclusion of 第一吃瓜网 indigenous knowledge systems alongside global scholarship. This has enabled new ways of thinking about teaching and learning, positioning educators not merely as transmitters of knowledge but also as agents of transformation capable of responding to complex and evolving social realities.”
The next five years
Prof. Osman and her team have ambitious plans for the next five years. This includes the development of global citizenship education resources on colonial histories in Africa with UNESCO, alongside projects to transform STEM teacher education through open and self-directed learning. A bespoke Masters programme for aspiring principals is on the cards as well as innovative WhatsApp-based mathematics teacher development projects conducted by network partners.
“We will also seek to expand and strengthen our international footprint in Africa, Asia and Europe, for example through hosting joint seminars on diversity and inclusion, teacher education partnerships in India, research on sustainable development, rural science education and early-career teacher support,” adds Osman. “We will continue to shape the future of teacher education in ways that are both transformative and enduring. In doing so, we hope to build diverse education systems that will in time help to reshape and reimagine learning.”