Launch of the New Journal of Teaching and Learning in Africa

Together, the Africa Federation of Teaching Regulatory Authorities (AFTRA) and UNESCO’s International Institute for Capacity Building in Africa (IICBA) are launching an expanded and improved version of the Journal of Teaching and Learning in Africa with support through IICBA from the European Union under its Regional Teacher Initiative for Africa. The relaunch of the journal was announced at the 11^th AFTRA Conference and 13^th AFTRA Roundtable hosted in May 2024 in Lusaka by the Ministry of Education and the Teaching Council of Zambia. The conference was attended by over 400 participants in person, including Ministers of Education from Ghana, Lesotho, Namibia, Nigeria, Morocco, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. At least 1,000 people participated online. H.E. Mutale Nalumango, Vice President of Zambia, opened the conference on behalf of H.E. Hakainde Hichilema, President of Zambia.

AFTRA and History of the Journal

AFTRA is an intergovernmental organization comprising the Ministries of Education and national agencies regulating teaching in African Union Member States. Inaugurated in October 2010 in Abuja, Nigeria, by the Ministers of Education of Nigeria and South Africa, AFTRA has grown into a continental federation that leads policy development and implementation for the professionalization of teaching in Africa. A half dozen issues of the Journal of Teaching and Learning in Africa have been published over the years, essentially to publish proceedings with selected papers presented at the annual conference, thus with only one issue per year (except during the COVID-19 pandemic when the conference was not held in 2020 and 2021). 

The new version of the journal will welcome high quality papers, with at least two issues published each year. This may include special issues put together by guest editors. The journal will be jointly managed, edited, and promoted by AFTRA and UNESCO IICBA. Papers will be peer-reviewed and published in open access at no cost to authors. Journal issues and article published from 2024 onwards will be available on both IICBA’s and AFTRA’s websites. Authors may submit papers online via the journal section on the AFTRA website, ideally also emailing the Programme Manager at the AFTRA Abuja Headquarters through info@africateaching-authorities.org. You can also inquire about the journal with IICBA’s team at info.iicba@unesco.org. Selected papers presented at the AFTRA annual conference may still be published in the journal provided they are of high quality.

Aims and Scope of the New Journal

The Journal of Teaching & Learning in Africa will publish research into matters affecting teachers in Africa and globally with the aim to inform evidence-based teacher policies, including approaches to empower countries to accelerate the level of development of their teaching profession. The journal will also publish research on factors affecting student learning at all levels, from pre-schools to higher education. This will include a focus on the role of teachers and school leaders in improving student performance, but also articles considering other factors affecting learning. Beyond foundational learning, due consideration will be paid to issues related to education for peace and sustainable development, as well as to the many benefits from education in the labor market and beyond. Empirical as well as conceptual or theoretical papers on teaching and learning in Africa and globally will be welcome. The journal will welcome high quality articles that will be of interest not only to researchers, but also to policy makers, teachers, and school leaders, as well as more broadly education stakeholders.

Special Issue on School Leadership

The first issue of the new version of the journal focuses on school leadership, an essential ingredient to support teachers and improve learning outcomes for students on the continent. This follows up on a workshop on investing in school leaders in Africa organized by AFTRA, the African Union, and UNESCO IICBA at the Lusaka conference in May 2024. The workshop considered among others the following questions: (1) How much does school leadership matter for teachers and learners?; (2) What can we learn from surveys of school leaders?; and (3) How can we strengthen policies for school leadership including Africa-wide certification? School leadership is also the theme of the next 2024/25 Global Education Monitoring Report to be published by UNESCO (see the concept note for the report). Articles for the special issue of the Journal of Teaching & Learning in Africa on school leadership can still be submitted, and a subsequent post on this blog will summarize articles already accepted for publication.

Link to the journal on IICBA’s website and AFTRA’s website.