Conference Overview by the Manager of the Unit for Distance Education: Dr Mary Ooko

The University of Pretoria, Faculty of Education, in collaboration with Saide, is pleased to welcome delegates to our first virtual DETA Conference in August 2021.

The COVID-19 Pandemic has changed education dramatically with the distinctive rise of elearning, whereby teaching and learning is undertaken remotely on digital platforms. With this sudden shift, the main question is whether distance education will continue to persist past the pandemic through online learning. How will such a shift impact how educators package their content, conduct pedagogy, provide technological support and manage distance education as the main mode of delivery in higher education? DETA Conference 2021 will allow participants to explore and discuss the above through the theme, Reimagining Africa Teacher Education through Distance for a Post Pandemic Future.

I am pleased to introduce the TETFLE Online Journal (Teacher Education through Flexible Learning in Africa). TETFLE, launched in 2019, is a refereed, open-access e-journal that publishes original research on distance teacher education in Africa.

This journal will give delegates and other scholars a platform to publish their papers related to distance teacher education on the continent of Africa and beyond. The journal also aims to partially fill the gap that exists in the publications from Africa in the field of distance education.

Please plan to be part of this exciting conference that will take place virtually from 3 to 5 August 2021.