International NVAS Conference: Education for Life in Africa

To celebrate the 20^th anniversary of the Netherlands Association for Africa Studies (NVAS), NVAS, NUFFIC and HHS are organizing a two-day conference on the theme “Education for life in Africa”, assuming that quality education will indeed equip students better for life, but wondering about what constitutes good quality education. The aim of this conference is to provide a forum for education stakeholders in Africa – researchers, practitioners, teachers, policymakers, sponsors and consumers – to exchange ideas about how to attain and sustain quality at all levels of education in Africa, from the basic to the tertiary level, from academic to vocational training.

Sustainable development can only be attained when individuals and groups have the tools to adapt to local circumstances and make them work for the wider community. Education should provide these tools. The focus of the conference is on the quality of education, where the goal of good quality education is to prepare recipients for both civil and professional life by equipping them with the appropriate attitude, knowledge and skills. This conference aims to enhance our understanding of this process by asking and answering questions such as: How can we attain an efficient transmission and acquisition of knowledge through the educational system, from preschool to university level teaching? How can knowledge acquired at research centres be used to improve forms and contents of all types of education? Where can theoreticians and practitioners meet to exchange information? Is it necessary to redefine standards of education, to change forms of cooperation in order to enable children and students to better address present and future problems of life? What forms of knowledge will lead to more employment?

These and other questions can be discussed and debated around four themes that are, alongside the political and economic context, the prerequisites for good quality education: curriculum, teachers, infrastructure and resources.

Take a look at the programme on the NVAS website.

Check out the web dossier on Education for Life in Africa, created by the ASCL Library, and the thematic map on education dynamics in Africa, published by the ASCL and ICLON.

Organizing committee: Anneke Breedveld (NVAS), Jos Walenkamp (HHS), Jan Jansen (NVAS), Beer Schröder (NUFFIC)
Partners: NVAS, HHS, NUFFIC
Language: English
Registration: The registration fee is € 100 (€ 80 for NVAS members, € 50 for students BA-MA; student pass required).
Please register via this form.

For questions, mail to: educationforlifeafrica@fsw.leidenuniv.nl
Read more on the NVAS website.