African Education Week Moderator Graeme Bloch: "Education is Not an Employment Bureau for Adults"

Johannesburg, South Africa, June 07, 2013 --(PR.com)-- “African Education Week provides a platform to air problems and find solutions: such platforms are very important. We have to talk; we have to hear each other. This is the only way to decide on priorities, to agree on solutions, to find real pathways to real quality.” So says independent education specialist Graeme Bloch and moderator of this year’s African Education Week opening session on 20 June at the Sandton Convention Centre. The leader of Agang SA, Dr Mamphela Ramphele, is the keynote speaker.

Graeme Bloch is a regular contributor to the event: “It is the discussions, the meeting of colleagues, the wide input of stakeholders and the practical orientation that keeps bringing me back to African Education Week.”

Now in its seventh year, it remains the continent’s leading educational resources and training event, attracting more education professionals than any other event. The conference programme addresses challenges in Basic as well as Further and Higher Education and the Technology Indaba focuses on the increasingly important roles of technology and e-learning in the classroom.

Main challenge: to get our schools working
Asked what made him smile and what made him worry regarding South African education, Bloch states: “The kids are what make me smile, their energy and optimism. They will fly if we let them. Education is not an employment bureau for adults.”

He continues: “The main challenge is a big one: to get our schools working. We need better accountability from politicians and government; better teaching; fair and more resources to fight poverty. Jobs for our young people. It will not be easy or quick: we have to do it: parents, community and teachers working with government.”

The event is increasingly becoming pan-African, with an international panel discussion part of this year’s programme:
Discussion theme: “Developing more effective school and higher education institutional partnerships”
• Chairperson: Professor Linda Clarke, Head of the School of Education, University of Ulster, Northern Ireland
• Dr Eugenia Cossa, Dean of the Faculty of Education, Universidad Eduardo Mondale, Mozambique
• Dr Justine Otaala, Lecturer in Education, Head of Department of Biological Sciences, Kyambogo University, Uganda
• Dr Mercy Kazima, Associate Professor and former Dean of the Faculty of Education, Chancellor College, University of Malawi

Says Graeme Bloch: “Meeting colleagues from other African countries, sharing issues and solutions, is very helpful. This continent is moving and it needs our children’s talents. Which other platform encourages such wide participation from across the continent?”

Practical workshops for teachers
The African Education Week Learning Expo offers more than 60 free workshops for teachers to help them further their professional and personal development. These include:
• Discover lessons learnt from working with children with disabilities – Sue Philpott, Disability researcher
• Engage students in science, technology, engineering, art and math (STEAM) – Justin Taylor, Autodesk
• How interactive whiteboards can improve student achievement – Andre van der Merwe, Parrot Products
• Is there life after E-learning? – Prof Johannes Cronje, CPUT
• Music: a solution for education – Heidi Mitchell, Rhythmsticks
• The role of adults in young people’s lives – Nokonwaba Pakade, loveLife
• How to interact and engage students using Samsung Smart School Technology – Paulo Ferreira, Samsung Mobile

Career Indaba
While teachers and educators are attending lectures, workshops and networking opportunities, learners can also attend the co-located Career Indaba for free. More than 4000 learners were at this expo last year. Career Indaba aims to bridge the gap for students between studying and entering the world of work with workshops on career guidance in a variety of fields, job interview and CV writing tips, celebrity appearances and much more.

African Education Week:
Wednesday, 19 June 2013: Pre-conference workshops, 09h00-16h00
Thursday, 20 June 2013: Opening keynote session, Learning Expo opens, 09h00-18h30
Friday, 21 June 2013: Conference sessions, Learning Expo open, 09h00-17h00
Saturday, 22 June 2013: Learning Expo open, Post conference workshops, 09h00-17h00

Career Indaba:
Thursday, 20 June 2013: Career Indaba opens, 09h30-18h30
Friday, 21 June 2013: Career Indaba open, 09h00-17h00
Saturday, 22 June 2013: Career Indaba open, 09h00-17h00

Location: Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg, South Africa