Teachers’ Continuous Professional Development in the African Context

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to discuss future research on teacher policies in African societies in the 21st century with a focus on continuous professional development for teachers. In this era of globalization, the definition of competencies and roles of teachers has been reconsidered in developing countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. This article grounds its research suggestions in an overview of recent changes in teacher education contexts from the EFA movement until the SDGs period, reviewing the changed focal points of educational development with global agendas. Attention is then paid to the role of teachers and hence what the ideal teacher’s role would be in the understanding of educational outcomes. Considering diverse forms of education and images of “desirable” teachers in terms of “old model” and “new model” education, this article questions the feasibility of preparing teachers to engage in desired 21st century education models through teacher education. After reviewing the themes of previous research regarding teacher policy, this article proposes three research themes to be further developed in the future to advance the discussion surrounding teacher policy.