(Case study) TICZA: A collective impact strategy for transforming education

The Teacher Internship Collaboration South Africa (TICZA) is a multi-sector partnership launched in 2021. TICZA was initiated by Trialogue, JET Education Services (Jet) and the Bertha Centre for Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the University of Cape Town (UCT). The Global Teachers Institute (GTI) was also involved in the early stage of conceptualising the initiative and Bridge Innovation has since joined as a convening partner. 

TICZA’s stakeholders include government departments, higher education institutions (HEIs), trade unions, funders, and non-governmental organisations (NGOs; for a full list of stakeholders, see Appendix). Together, these stakeholders invest in extended student teacher internship initiatives.

These focus on students enrolled in Initial Teacher Education (ITE) programmes, mainly through distance learning. TICZA’s stakeholders view such extended student teacher internships as an attractive auxiliary option for student teacher training, with potential for high impact.ⁱ 

This Case Study was designed and developed by Trialogue, and forms part of a series of knowledge products and publications identified in TICZA’s theory of change (TOC) and five-year work plan for the period from 2021 to 2025. ⁱⁱ The Case Study is intended to both profile TICZA as a relative newcomer within the South African education sector, as well as to analyse and provide an in-depth perspective into the collective impact model with which it was founded, the collaborative processes that have been catalysed, results achieved thus far, obstacles and challenges encountered, and next steps going forward.  

1. Introduction

The Teacher Internship Collaboration South Africa (TICZA) is a multi-sector partnership launched in 2021. TICZA was initiated by Trialogue, JET Education Services (Jet) and the Bertha Centre for Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the University of Cape Town (UCT). The Global Teachers Institute (GTI) was also involved in the early stage of conceptualising the initiative and Bridge Innovation has since joined as a convening partner. 
 
TICZA’s stakeholders include government departments, higher education institutions (HEIs), trade unions, funders, and non-governmental organisations (NGOs; for a full list of stakeholders, see Appendix). Together, these stakeholders invest in extended student teacher internship initiatives. These focus on students enrolled in Initial Teacher Education (ITE) programmes, mainly through distance learning. TICZA’s stakeholders view such extended student teacher internships as an attractive auxiliary option for student teacher training, with potential for high impact.ⁱ 

1.1 Purpose of the case study

This Case Study was designed and developed by Trialogue, and forms part of a series of knowledge products and publications identified in TICZA’s theory of change (TOC) and five-year work plan for the period from 2021 to 2025.

ⁱⁱ The Case Study is intended to both profile TICZA as a relative newcomer within the South African education sector, as well as to analyse and provide an in-depth perspective into the collective impact model with which it was founded, the collaborative processes that have been catalysed, results achieved thus far, obstacles and challenges encountered, and next steps going forward.  
 

1.2 Methodology

Trialogue developed this Case Study between August and December 2022 using the following methodology, with engagement and feedback from TICZA stakeholders at multiple stages throughout: 

1. Trialogue conducted a review of TICZA’s internal and external (published) documentation, as well as other relevant literature and theory.¹  
2. Trialogue hosted and facilitated a webinar discussion on 29 September 2022, in which convening organisations and other stakeholders discussed the collective impact model and how it has been used in TICZA’s design, operational processes and activities.  
3. Trialogue developed an initial version of the Case Study that, alongside a write-up of the September webinar, was published in the annual Business in Society Handbook released on 24 November 2022. The Handbook attracts a wide and well-established readership from the private, public, and non-governmental sectors.ⁱⁱⁱ  
4. In consultation with TICZA, Trialogue identified stakeholders and conducted five in-depth interviews with the aim of expanding and deepening the case study. Interviews were conducted in November and December 2022 with participants selected from across five high-level stakeholder categories: government departments; HEI’s; implementing partners; funders; and trade unions. 

1.3 Structure of the case study

The remainder of the Case Study is structured as follows: 

• Section II provides an overview of the South African education sector and challenges in relation to teaching quality. 
• Section III analyses the growing demand for new teachers and outlines current pathways to qualifying, as well as the case for extended student teacher internships.  
• Section IV presents the collective impact model and shows how it has been used in conceptualising, designing and operationalising TICZA.  
• Section V reviews TICZA’s results thus far, including both achievements and challenges; and,  
• Section VI summarises key findings and outlines TICZA’s next steps going forward.

2. South African education in context

This section of the Case Study provides a high-level overview of the state of the South African education system and ongoing challenges in relation to results and outcomes.^iv  

2.1 Challenges in educational outcomes 

South Africa has experienced continued challenges in educational underperformance for more than two decades. Even before the systemic disruptions brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic, learners ranked poorly across a range of comparative international tests. These include the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) and Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS).^v  

International test results aside, within the country enrolment has declined across a number of key subjects deemed foundational for higher education or university study, including mathematics and accounting. Pass rates have also dropped in these subjects, with most learners passing at the 30% level.^vi According to the Zero Dropout Campaign, an estimated 40% of learners who enter the school system in Grade 1 will leave before finishing matric, risking consequences including remaining “stuck in poverty and unemployment for life.”^vii 

2.2 High investments, limited returns 

Outcomes have remained poor despite sizable relative investments in the education sector. The 2022/23 National Budget allocated R430 billion to education in total. Of this, R298.1 billion was allocated for basic education and R131.6 billion for post-school education and training. Taken alone, basic education received the highest allocation of any national government function aside from debt servicing costs (R301.8 billion), and about three-quarters of this went directly to employee compensation (R222.3 billion).^viii   

Education also continues to attract significant support from the private sector, with 98% of companies surveyed by Trialogue for the 2022 Business in Society Handbook supporting educational causes, equating to 44% of average CSI expenditure.^ix  

In an analysis of education spending, interventions and results over time, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded in 2019 that that “money is clearly not the main issue” underlying these challenges. Rather, South Africa’s national education budget is “comparable to OECD countries as a percent of GDP and exceeds that of most peer sub-Saharan African countries in per capita terms.”^x 

There are, however, many complex systemic and structural challenges that have not yet been resolved in the post-apartheid period. Current underperformance remains rooted at least in part in historical legacy and South Africans who were denied quality education under apartheid continue to have low access to good schools.

In what authors Montfort Mlachila and Tlhalefang Moeletsi refer to as a “bimodal” education system, the “poorest 75–80 percent of learners depend on dysfunctional public schooling and achieve poor outcomes while wealthiest 20–25 percent of learners enrol in private schools and functional public schools and achieve better academic outcomes.”^xi  

2.3 Spotlight on teaching quality 

In as much as historical, structural inequality continues to shape educational access, opportunities and achievement, research also confirms a further obstacle that has not yet been overcome: teacher training, supply and quality has not been adequate to shift towards improved learner performance.  

In a 2013 report published by the Centre for Development Enterprise (CDE), researcher Nic Spaull raised concerns over low levels of content knowledge among teachers in their subjects of instruction. As such, they are unable to accurately evaluate learner performance or support improvements in comprehension or application. A nationally representative sample of tests administered in 2007 revealed that 79 percent of Grade 6 mathematics teachers were unable to answer questions designed for learners and achieved below-average scores.

The top five percent of learners received higher marks than the bottom 20 percent of teachers on the same test.^xii More recently, in a 2018 study of more than 700 aspiring teachers enrolled at in Bachelors of Education (B.Ed) degree courses at three universities, first-year students scored an average of 52 percent on a primary school mathematics test. Further, and cause for even greater concern: final-year students scored 54 percent, even after four years of full-time study.^xiii    

3. Pathways to teaching

South Africa produced about 26 000 new teachers in 2018.^xiv Every year, about half of all new teachers graduate through distance learning institutions. ^xv The format and duration of teaching practice course components varies across HEIs throughout the country.

A number of independent programmes have been established to offer extended student teacher internships, mainly targeting distance learners and with the intention of improving aspects such as teaching quality, pass rates and retention within the profession.  

3.1 Growing demand for teachers 

Forty-five percent of public-school teachers are scheduled to retire in the coming decade and will need to be replaced. In fact, if South Africa is to reach the targets set out in the National Development Plan (NDP), universities will need to “increase the number of teachers they graduate by at least 50% within 5 years and double current production by 2030” – in real terms, a growth from 26 000 in 2018 to 50 000 per year.

This exponential rise, according to the 2022 Background Report for the 2030 Reading Panel, is necessary to “avoid large increases in class sizes or unqualified teachers being recruited to fill vacancies.”^xvi   

3.2 Attaining a teaching qualification 

Aspiring teachers in South Africa can pursue one of two pathways to qualify: they can either complete a four-year B.Ed degree or, alternatively, complete a three or four-year Bachelor’s degree majoring in subjects taught in the school curriculum, followed by a one-year Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE). Every year about half of all graduating teachers complete their degrees through the College of Education at the University of South Africa (UNISA) through open and distance learning (ODL) programmes.^xvii 

All South African ITE programmes include a practical teaching component, consistent with education theory and best practices worldwide. Teachers in training (also variously referred to as student teachers and pre-service teachers) spend time in classrooms working directly with learners and observing and being mentored by experienced educators.

Through these “student teacher internships”, trainees are able to develop and deepen a core skill set, from subject command and application to instructional techniques, classroom management, lesson planning, effective communication (often with multilingual learners), resource use and relationship building. ^xviii They also gain first-hand insight into the responsibilities and requirements of the job and importantly, begin building their own professional identities.^xix  

Conversely, according to Professor Sarah Gravett, student teachers with very limited practical experience can struggle to overcome the “theory-practice divide” when entering employment.^xx This under preparedness can lead to poor performance and even attrition from the profession altogether. As described by John Gilmour of the GTI at the TICZA webinar, “the dropout rate of teachers coming out of universities, going straight into schools, and then looking quickly for alternative ways of earning a living, is way too high”.^xxi 

3.3 The case for extended student teacher internships 

While student teacher internships feature in all ITE programmes, these vary considerably by structure and duration across HEIs – and are relatively short overall. B.Ed candidates, for example, only spend an average of four to six months in student teacher internships, referred to as both Work Integrated Learning (WIL) or teaching practice (teaching prac).

The four to six months of WIL or teaching prac is divided between the four years of a B.Ed programme. At UNISA, the single biggest producer of education graduates in the country, students generally complete around five practical weeks each year, depending on the programme.^xxii  

Student teacher internship periods drop to between six and eight weeks for those completing a PGCE. Taking into account both the current challenges in teaching quality and evidence of the value of practical experience, a number of programmes have been established to facilitate extended student teacher internships. As described by Zahraa McDonald of JET, in practical terms extended student teacher internships mean that “a student teacher would be spending a lot more time in a school than an average B.Ed or PGCE.” ^xxiii  

Extended student teacher internships represent a departure from prevailing practices, in which student teacher interns often only spend time in classrooms during specific times of the year. Such efforts to change and improve ITE are timely given that plans are under way to meet growing demand for new teachers and could become a viable approach for an auxiliary component for ITE. 

4. The collective impact approach

In its early conceptualisation stages, TICZA’s convenors made the deliberate and considered decision to ground the initiative within collective impact theory and adopt the features of this model.  

4.1 Origins of collective impact theory 

The collective impact model and methodology was developed by John Kania and Mark Kramer and originally published in a 2011 edition of the Stanford Social Innovation Review. The authors’ starting point – not unlike the South African context – was a host of series challenges in the American public education system that had “thwarted attempted reforms for decades”, including high dropout rates and poor performance in relation to peer countries. Despite investments valued at billions of dollars together with the “heroic efforts of countless teachers, administrators and non-profits”, the national statis meant that “system-wide progress [had] seemed virtually unobtainable.”^xxiv  

Kania and Kramer, however, unpacked and analysed the remarkable results of the Strive Initiative in Cincinnati – which managed to achieve improvements across a range of indicators including graduation rates and test scores, amid a recession and budget cuts. At the core of this success was the strategy of a group of organisations and community leaders to “abandon their individual agendas in favour of a collective approach to improving student achievement.” This involved a carefully structured process that “focused the entire educational community on a single set of goals, measured in the same way.”^xxv  

4.2 Adopting the collective impact theory 

Prior to TICZA, its convenors were all actively involved in various segments of the South African education and ITE sector – and shared a sense of the need for systemic change. Seeking to start with a more comprehensive understanding of the state of ITE in the country, one of TICZA’s first activities was to undertake a sector mapping study, the results of which are reported in the 2022 Training Better Teachers implementation brief.

The study found that a variety of different programmes offered extended student teacher internships, and many of these shared common goals. However, internship programmes also varied considerably in form and features and had not been formalised or well-coordinated, nor had the approach become a recognised practice.^xxvi  

Taking these findings into account, TICZA’s stakeholders set a goal that was both targeted and ambitious: to achieve systemic change in ITE through demonstrating the value and impact of extended student teacher internships, which, if implemented, will lead to a new generation of high-quality, effective teachers for South African public schools.^xxvii  

4.3 Features of the model 

According to Kania and Kramer, the collective impact model shares features with other types of networks, partnerships, and collaborations. However, initiatives adopting this methodology are distinguished by five key features. These, as purposefully embedded in TICZA’s structure and operations, are as follows: 

4.4 Establishment of work streams 

Given TICZA’s complexity, the numbers of stakeholders involved and the range of planned activities and outputs, four internal workstreams were established to bring additional structure to its operations.  

The first of these, and critical to TICZA’s collective approach, was to set up platforms for collaboration. A robust Steering Committee (SteerCom) champions the common agenda, oversees agreed activities and ensures accountability. In addition to 13 voting organisations, SteerCom meetings have included up to 50 participants and observers from across TICZA’s stakeholders.^xxix  

Additional platforms include a series of community of practice (CoP) sessions focusing on  

information sharing, learning and reflection; and an Innovation Lab, which consists of multi-day design process workshops. These are ultimately intended to advance programme redesigns, in line with TICZA’s common agenda.^xxx   

The second work stream focuses on knowledge production, with the goal of at least two outputs annually – include the 2022 Training Better Teachers implementation brief.^xxxi 

Thirdly, TICZA is committed to supporting young researchers through the sector capacity development work stream. In 2021, grant funding in the amount of R35 000 each was provided to two postgraduate students, one undertaking a comparative study of university education curricula; and the second researching the behaviour of embedded interns and novice teachers in rural contexts. In addition, an outcomes mapping exercise was undertaken to assess and document the abilities and ambitions of different stakeholders with an interest in internships in ITE. ^xxxii 

Finally, the fourth work stream of tools and resource development has thus far focused on the TOC and M&E framework. TICZA’s TOC is shown in Figure 1.^xxxiii    

Figure 1: TICZA Theory of Change 2022 

Three TICZA working groups have also been established: a Mentoring Group; and HEI and NGO alignment group; and the Supporting Schools group. The working groups were set up in recognition of the fact that in a context of multiple initiatives previously working in isolation, there is limited to opportunity to entrench or formalise broader practices, and definitions and practices vary substantially. The working groups function to extract learning and good practice and provide guidance and standardisation, assisting all implementers and organisations involved.  

5. TICZA’S achievements and challenges, 2021 – 2022

TICZA is now concluding its second year of formal, structured operations. Steady inroads have been made into its five-year plan, which maps out activities through to end-2025. Research conducted for this Case Study documented analyses and reflections on TICZA’s achievements and successes thus far, challenges encountered and perspectives on the future of the initiative. 

5.1 Lessons learnt: what works well 

The review of internal and external literature and documentation, stakeholder engagements and interview texts revealed several positive outcomes for TICZA after its first two years in operation.  

Continued relevance of ITE in South Africa 

There was general consensus among stakeholders interviewed for the Case Study research that TICZA’s commitment and focus on extended student teacher internships is highly relevant for ITE in South Africa, and important in the context of growing demand for new teachers and ongoing challenges in quality educational outcomes. Interview Participant 1 cited this relevance as one of the reasons behind their initial involvement with TICZA: 

“From a supply and demand side we are going to need more teachers. There’s only so many physical spaces for face-to-face learning. So, the growth had to be in distance education. But we also knew that the research on the quality of distance education, particularly the practice component, was poor.” (Participant 3) 

Participant 5 explained that “the internship model is the most effective way of, in a scalable manner, delivering reasonably qualified teachers”, adding that TICZA is exactly the kind of thing we’ve always wanted to be involved in” (Participant 5).  

Participant 4 similarly suggested that teacher internships remain one of the “core issues” within South African ITE and described the structure and content of TICZA’s work streams as “very commendable”. These affirmations of TICZA’s continued relevance and achievements to date contributed to stakeholders’ interest in continuing to participate in and support the initiative going forward.  

Successfully bringing stakeholders together 

Case study interview participants also highly valued TICZA’s capacity and track record of bringing together a wide, diverse group of stakeholders and creating opportunities for constructive dialogue, mutual learning and collaboration. Participant 4 mentioned being “very impressed with the way everything was structured and the commitment from the leadership in terms of getting all the different stakeholders on board, which is usually a very difficult task to negotiate” (Participant 4).

Participant 1 positively experienced debate and the sharing of ideas, even among stakeholders with differing opinions and points of view: 

“I enjoy participating in the group and I think that there’s a mutual respect of ideas and thoughts. So, it is a particularly stimulating environment… We should not take away [from the fact that] there is debate that’s going on. There’s higher education that’s brought in. There’s unions that are there, the implementing agents… The multi-stakeholder process and the debates that are going on are particularly useful. I enjoy making a contribution every now and then. They’re not all correct, but you know, [other stakeholders] listen to what you have to say, and in turn I do the same. So, there’s a lot of learning that’s going on at the moment.” (Participant 1) 

Stakeholders also underscored the value of having government officials, regulators and policy-makers present within TICZA. According to Participant 4 this has been difficult to achieve for other previous initiatives, whereas the TICZA process has, 

“really been the first one where at several of the meetings you would have the DHET, you would have the DBE, you would have the SETAs, you would have SACE. So, the really core educational stakeholders on one platform and hearing the purpose of what they were trying to achieve.” (Participant 4) 

has been “very impressed with the way everything was structured and the commitment from the leadership in terms of getting all the different stakeholders on board, which is usually a very difficult task to negotiate” (Participant 4).

Participants 3 and 5 viewed this collaboration and participation by government as critical if systemic and policy change are to be achieved successfully. 

5.2 Lessons learnt: obstacles and challenges 

Although not the only initiative of its kind, TICZA’s collective impact approach is relatively new and unique within South African ITE. Its first two years of operations have not been without challenges, as might be expected of a process that involves so many different stakeholders, each with their own experiences, priorities, methods, resources, and constraints.

Trialogue MD Nick Rockey has acknowledged that a process such as TICZA takes “time and effort.” TICZA has also been proactive about identifying problems and risks it faces, developing mitigation strategies, analysing issues as they happen, and maintaining a live register to track high-level risks. 

Limited awareness and adoption of the collective impact model 

TICZA’s convenors in particular have engaged extensively with the collective impact model as a foundation for the design and operationalisation of the initiative since its inception. The case study research, however, found that this level of awareness and adoption has not necessarily been shared by other stakeholders this far.  

Overall, interview texts reveal a relatively limited awareness of the collective impact model. Some participants had heard of the model before but most were unfamiliar with its five specific features. Participant 1, for example, commented that “I wouldn’t say that I’m familiar with the model” but “I think that the work going on resonates with some of these ideas.”  

Interview participants were prompted about these five features and also raised some concerns and limitations. Participant 3 suggested that TICZA stakeholders lack a clear understanding of what the common agenda is”. They referred specifically to TICZA’s implementing partners and their roles within the process, their sustainability and their capacity to adapt and scale up in future. Implementers, Participant 3 explained, have tended to, 

“see themselves as projects and are looking for additional funding… I’m not sure there’s a common understanding of seeing where [TICZA] can go to because if it does lead to systemic and policy change, the implementers have to, in a way, reinvent themselves.” (Participant 3) 

Participant 1 also agreed that there is a “a common goal [and] a common vision”, with particular reference to the language around an ATEP or auxiliary pathway, whether or not TICZA will adopt a specific internship “model” and how these ideas are communicated. Consensus over a common agenda, they suggested, has been complicated by “stakeholders coming in with different issues” and at times the process has become “a contested space with a bit of politics” and some “energies that are not quite gelling.” 

TICZA has also experienced ongoing challenges with uptake of shared measurement tools, despite the importance of monitoring and reporting across interventions. Some stakeholders have expressed concerns that implementers will be cast in a “bad light” if TICZA’s M&E processes document that their planned targets are unmet. Participant 3 also suggested that TICZA itself has not provided implementers with adequate support in this area, commenting that “you can give people forms and guides “but if you don’t accompany that with some form of training and on-site support and coaching, you’re not going to get participation.” 

Further, the model’s requirement of continuous communication has proved both advantageous and challenging. Participant 2 welcomed the fact that TICZA “has meetings all the time and so far, we have communicated very well.” Others, however, have found this level of engagement to be too demanding and resource intensive. In a sector characterised by constraints in time, funding, and human resources,  joining and remaining part of the TICZA process has proven onerous for some stakeholders and there has been attrition along the way. 

Stakeholder independence and intellectual property 

The adoption of TICZA’s common agenda and commitment to mutually reinforcing activities has also proved challenging, particular for some stakeholders when faced with the prospect of redesigning established programmes and even entire organisations. TICZA has worked to ensure that the benefits of participating in the process outweigh the risks and in response to some of the concerns raised, adopted the key principles that participation and information-sharing are voluntary. 

TICZA’s “internship model” 

Case study interviews also found a lack of clarity and consensus among participating stakeholders over whether TICZA will produce an “internship model”, the form this would take and how it would be introduced into existing ITE. As reflected in the 2021 Annual Report, TICZA’s focus has been on establishing and demonstrating the “efficiencies and impact of teacher internships as a credible and widely used alternative ITE pathway that can generate high-quality, effective teachers for public schools in South Africa.”^xxxiv

Stakeholders deliver a variety of different types of extended internships and TICZA has not intended to adopt or endorse any specific programme type or model. Rather, its contributions have been in the areas of working towards institutionalising pathways, increasing sector capacity, and creating shared standards and tools, among others.  

Reflecting on discussions held within various TICZA forums, Participant 1 referred to “unresolved ideas” and an internal “partition around if the internship model is a qualification entity or is it an alternative pathway to teacher training and education.”

This was discussed within the current policy context, in which “the university sets up the qualification and within that qualification’s requirements is the teaching practice component”, explaining that “a lot of work needs to be done” particularly if this policy is to change. “Settling on a particular explanation for the model that we are investigating,” Participant 1 added, would strengthen TICZA’s focus, contribution, relevance and future prospects of success. 

Questions related to a TICZA “internship mode” or proof of concept and how this will fit into HEIs were also raised by other stakeholders. Participant 5 explained that ““universities are stuck in a very hard place in which they have to deliver rigidly defined programmes” and cautioned that any adjustments or changes could take years to be approved and implemented. Participant 3 also underscored the value of developing an evidence-based proof of concept: 

“Distance education providers would love to do what NGOs are providing in terms of the teaching practice component, but government subsidies don’t allow them to provide this kind of support. That’s why the proof of concept is absolutely critical for making a case to government around this model. [We need to assess] what is needed in the ecosystem around the model, and we’re talking about additional resources.” (Participant 3) 

The fact that multi-party stakeholders including HEIs and government officials have been part of TICZA from the outset of the process, Participant 3 added, is likely to strengthen buy-in for any proof of concept and ultimately support policy change. 

Stakeholders also identified features and contents of an internship “model” or proof of concept that they felt would benefit implementers and HEIs. These included research results and the possibility of a pilot programme that could be tested and reviewed by institutions (Participant 2). Participant 4 also emphasised the need for core materials and resources, including tools for planning, observations and assessments of teaching practice, citing the “great variety and lack of coherence and consistency” in terms of the materials currently in use.  

5.3 Sustainability and the future of TICZA 

Case study interview participants were generally optimistic about the TICZA process going forward. Many agreed that TICZA’s achievements to date have been significant and expressed an interest in seeing the process continue beyond 2025. Participant 1 described TICZA as “a fertile ground for knowledge construction that’s different from what happens at the school level and what happens at university level” and added that this is a space that “needs to be [further] exploited” in future.  

Challenges were raised, however, around issues of funding and sustainability. Participant 2 observed that HEIs are “suffering financially” and are already cutting back on current programming – limiting opportunities for new or expanded ITE interventions. Given finite resources within the sector and among TICZA stakeholders themselves, Participant 3 also cautioned that funding needs to be used carefully in relation to expanding the capabilities of HEIs and implementers.  

Questions also emerged around the ability and capacity of stakeholders to “scale up”, as will ultimately be required to achieve the “new generation of high-quality, effective teachers” that TICZA envisages. Although not a full census of programmes, TICZA’s 2021 sector mapping study found total teacher intern numbers ranging from 383 in 2019 to 623 in 2021 across 13 surveyed programmes.^xxxv Although these numbers increased considerably over this three-year period and despite the Covid-19 pandemic, they represent only a small fraction of the total numbers of teachers graduated during this time. Participant 3 was unsure of where the necessary scale up could even start:  

“NGOs can’t scale up without funding. And if we are talking about a [university] scale up, there’s a whole policy route they have to take to offer distance education. I don’t see the scale up happening by NGOs simply trying to attract more funding to [support] more interns, because that’s never going to even touch the surface in terms of supply.” (Participant 3) 

Participant 5 added that if such change is to be achieved within the sector “we need to ask harder questions and we need to be braver generally in the way we approach things”, explaining that “we’re dealing with a shortage of hundreds of thousands of teachers and training 50 teachers a year isn’t going to cut it, we need to find a better way.” Participant 5 also hoped that in future, TICZA would be able to bring more “rigor and alignment to the system” and support interventions with high prospects for both impact and scalability.  

6. Key findings and next steps

This final section of the report provides an overview of the key findings of the Case Study research and outlines the next steps planned for TICZA.  

6.1 Case Study key findings 

The following key findings were identified through the Case Study research: 

6.2 Next steps for TICZA  

Looking to the next three years, TICZA plans to consolidate and expand on the foundations developed in 2021-2022. The activities outlined in the TOC will continue to mature, including raising awareness of the organisation and its evidence base confirming the value and impact of extended student teacher internships, as well seeking out and aligning funding streams; collecting and reporting on results using shared indicators; new workplans and activities in the key areas of mentorship, implementer alignment and school support; and an exciting array of new knowledge products, practical tools and publications that will be freely available on the new TICZA website, planned for 2023. Finally, a service provider has been appointed to conduct an external evaluation. 

REFERENCES 

APPENDIX: TICZA STAKEHOLDERS 

ENDNOTES

Final draft developed by Trialogue, 6 February 2023