Papers by John Foster Jill Moyo
Mediterranean journal of social sciences, Nov 5, 2022
The aim of the systematic review was to compile and synthesise evidence on the contributions and ... more The aim of the systematic review was to compile and synthesise evidence on the contributions and implications of girl-centric policies and specialised interventions for girls' education in terms of access and participation. The results of the review confirm that girls' education programmes designed and implemented in a gender-based framework are effective in increasing girls' access to education. The results support the hypothesis that gender-centric policies and affirmative action interventions are sincere attempts to improve equity within education systems in Malawi. Despite these findings, the article argues that gender-centric policies and programmes can be replete with unfounded and contradicting assumptions about the nature of gender and egalitarian programming, which may negate the agenda on gender equality. The article also contends that even though great progress has been made in developing and adopting gender-sensitive education policies, feminist approaches have complicated implementation of the resulting gender-sensitive educational interventions. One of the main challenges in implementing feminist frameworks is in resolving the unquestioned and inconsistent assumptions about gender and egalitarian programming that have led to replication of affirmative action programmes that are only marginally effective. From the emanating perspectives, the article opiniates that general restorative interventions can be better approaches for overcoming gender inequality, and thus argues that girl-centric frameworks are unsustainable and must be supplanted with gender-as-equity paradigms.
Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences
The aim of the systematic review was to compile and synthesise evidence on the contributions and ... more The aim of the systematic review was to compile and synthesise evidence on the contributions and implications of girl-centric policies and specialised interventions for girls' education in terms of access and participation. The results of the review confirm that girls' education programmes designed and implemented in a gender-based framework are effective in increasing girls' access to education. The results support the hypothesis that gender-centric policies and affirmative action interventions are sincere attempts to improve equity within education systems in Malawi. Despite these findings, the article argues that gender-centric policies and programmes can be replete with unfounded and contradicting assumptions about the nature of gender and egalitarian programming, which may negate the agenda on gender equality. The article also contends that even though great progress has been made in developing and adopting gender-sensitive education policies, feminist approaches ha...
The struggle for admission to university education in Malawi has become more aggressive. In addre... more The struggle for admission to university education in Malawi has become more aggressive. In addressing access challenges surrounding higher education and the desire to promote equity, government introduced a Quota Policy wherein admission is based largely on ethnicity and partly on merit replacing the initial merit system which was purely based on academic competence. Critics of Quota System see it as a fraud designed to stagnate educational progress of the educationally advantaged students from the Northern Region. The two variant arguments have brought a kind of a stalemate which if not properly addressed has the potential to destabilize the country’s social cohesion. This policy brief analyses the impasse by reflecting on the problem’s background, weighs both admission criteria by its merits and demerits, and finally recommends a solution. The conclusion of the paper is that while the idea of quota system sounds equitable, its implementation in Malawi is more of a political strategy for reversely discriminating Northerners than addressing equity challenges. On the other hand, meritocracy looks just yet it is far from achieving equity. Therefore, this brief suggests that the idea of egalitarianism can inform an ideal admission policy.
The enactment of re-admission policy in 1993 by the Ministry of Education, Science & Technology i... more The enactment of re-admission policy in 1993 by the Ministry of Education, Science & Technology in Malawi has generally been understood as a milestone achievement in promoting teen mothers’ continuity with formal education. However, while appreciating that the policy provides a legal basis for the re-enrolment of teen mothers, this paper argues that the policy is challenged by a policy-intention-practice gap. Specifically, the policy’s conditionality and arbitrariness fundamentally contradict with the legal provisions of the right to education thereby making the policy less desirable. The policy’s inability to take cognizance of the socio-economic bottle-necks that drove its enactment renders it not fully effective. And finally, while the policy can be said to be affordable, its lack of involvement of some key stakeholders compromise its feasibility. The paper, therefore, advances the need to re-do the policy.
Thesis Chapters by John Foster Jill Moyo
The dissertation explored graduate teachers’ perceptions and experiences about the usefulness of ... more The dissertation explored graduate teachers’ perceptions and experiences about the usefulness of the Secondary School Teacher Education Project (SSTEP) in improving teaching competences. SSTEP is an in-service distance teacher preparation programme offered by Domasi College of Education (DCE) in Malawi. The programme was introduced in the year 2000 by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST) with funding from the Canadian Government. It was introduced to meet the country’s high teacher demand and to enhance the quality of education at secondary school level, especially in the newly established Community Day Secondary Schools (CDSSs).
The study employed a qualitative case study approach and used classroom observations and semi-structured interviews as data collection methods. Four (4) CDSS teachers who participated in the study had been trained through the SSTEP and were conveniently sampled from Euthini Education Cluster in the Northern Education Division (NED) of Malawi. The findings of the study were analysed using an inductive analysis methodology which aimed to establish the scope to which the programme has been beneficial in improving teacher competences.
The outcomes of the study established that the SSTEP enriches teachers’ pedagogical knowledge, lesson planning skills, classroom management and organization skills, and teachers’ motivation for learning. However, the study also established that the sampled SSTEP-Graduates demonstrated inadequacy in their possession of subject content knowledge and communication skills. Therefore, as the outcomes indicate, a conclusion was suggested that while the SSTEP is generally beneficial in enhancing teaching competences, it is weak in developing some core teaching competences. The dissertation consequently proposes that the programme provider, DCE, should make deliberate efforts to improve its distance teacher training curriculum, especially relating to content knowledge and communication skills.
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Papers by John Foster Jill Moyo
Thesis Chapters by John Foster Jill Moyo
The study employed a qualitative case study approach and used classroom observations and semi-structured interviews as data collection methods. Four (4) CDSS teachers who participated in the study had been trained through the SSTEP and were conveniently sampled from Euthini Education Cluster in the Northern Education Division (NED) of Malawi. The findings of the study were analysed using an inductive analysis methodology which aimed to establish the scope to which the programme has been beneficial in improving teacher competences.
The outcomes of the study established that the SSTEP enriches teachers’ pedagogical knowledge, lesson planning skills, classroom management and organization skills, and teachers’ motivation for learning. However, the study also established that the sampled SSTEP-Graduates demonstrated inadequacy in their possession of subject content knowledge and communication skills. Therefore, as the outcomes indicate, a conclusion was suggested that while the SSTEP is generally beneficial in enhancing teaching competences, it is weak in developing some core teaching competences. The dissertation consequently proposes that the programme provider, DCE, should make deliberate efforts to improve its distance teacher training curriculum, especially relating to content knowledge and communication skills.
The study employed a qualitative case study approach and used classroom observations and semi-structured interviews as data collection methods. Four (4) CDSS teachers who participated in the study had been trained through the SSTEP and were conveniently sampled from Euthini Education Cluster in the Northern Education Division (NED) of Malawi. The findings of the study were analysed using an inductive analysis methodology which aimed to establish the scope to which the programme has been beneficial in improving teacher competences.
The outcomes of the study established that the SSTEP enriches teachers’ pedagogical knowledge, lesson planning skills, classroom management and organization skills, and teachers’ motivation for learning. However, the study also established that the sampled SSTEP-Graduates demonstrated inadequacy in their possession of subject content knowledge and communication skills. Therefore, as the outcomes indicate, a conclusion was suggested that while the SSTEP is generally beneficial in enhancing teaching competences, it is weak in developing some core teaching competences. The dissertation consequently proposes that the programme provider, DCE, should make deliberate efforts to improve its distance teacher training curriculum, especially relating to content knowledge and communication skills.