The Education Association of South Africa (EASA) is a network of academics, researchers, and practitioners dedicated to advancing education in South Africa. Through active exchange and critique, members promote excellence in education research and practice.

EASA's annual January conference serves as a platform for lively debates on past, present, and future education, fostering social change. It brings together diverse voices, including students, teachers, principals, and researchers, encouraging nuanced, relevant, and thought-provoking learning.

At the recent EASA conference held at Sun City, the Early Childhood Education department was well represented.

Ms Masuelele presented "Interrogating the PEN’s Quality Management Systems’ Model in Early Childhood Education: The South African Rural and Township Setups". Dr Masola’s presentation was titled "Parent-Teacher Collaboration to Address Fear in the Foundation Phase of Children in Limpopo Province, South Africa".

Prof Bipath, Dr Masola, Dr Thuketana, and Ms Masuelele jointly presented "Exploring an Intervention Model for Training Teachers: A Rising Tide in Early Childhood Development". Dr Thuketana also delivered a presentation titled "Teachers' Comprehension of Brain-Based Learning to Support Neurodiversity in Inclusive Foundation Phase Classrooms".

Dr Joyce West shared her research on translanguaging in multilingual classrooms with a presentation titled "Translanguaging for Reading Success: Quasi-Experimental Insights from Multilingual Foundation Phase Classrooms". Dr Swanepoel presented "Supporting Pre-Service Foundation Phase Teachers’ Mathematics Word Problem-Solving Instruction Through a Lesson Study Design".

Mr Mbele explored the topic of "The Role of IsiZulu Language in Developing and Fostering the Cognitive and Cultural Growth of Learners in the Foundation Phase". Lastly, Dr Willemse focused on "Undergraduate Students’ Perceptions of Teaching and Learning Coding and Robotics in the Foundation Phase".