04 Jul 2019

Before one can be eligible to teach in a university or college, they are expected to acquire a teaching qualification, says Botswana Qualifications Authority (BQA) Communications and Public Relations Manager Ms Selwana Pilatwe-Koppenhaver.

Speaking in an interview, Ms Pilatwe-Koppenhaver said in order to be qualified as a lecturer, one had to undergo the customary teaching qualifications, which are Post Graduate Diploma in Education or the Training of Trainers programme.

She said teachers and lecturers were not registered or accredited as was the case under the Botswana Training Authority (BOTA) quality assurance system. 

They are instead assessed for suitability to train at learning programme (course) accreditation phase.

She further said lecturers and teachers were a key requirement, therefore when an education and training provider submits an application for learning programme accreditation, it attaches credentials of the proposed teachers, which includes their Evaluation of Qualifications Reports and this is a service offered by BQA.

“The authority will on the basis of these reports accredit or reject accreditation of the learning programme. 

It will also define the level or scope of the lecturer,” she stated.

Ms Pilatwe-Koppenhaver indicated that the key principle was that a lecturer is eligible to train at a level lower than their qualifications, that is, a diploma holder teaches certificate and below, while a bachelor’s degree holder is eligible to train diploma and below, and so forth.

Ba Isago University Director of Human Resources, Ms Beauty Tibone says applicants for the post of part-time and full time lecturers must have a Master’s degree as well as additional qualifications at a higher level, for example particular areas of specialisation, expertise or practical experience achieved through employment, involving practical application of the discipline.

“Teaching qualifications form part of the basis of the assessment. 

It is compulsory for all staff at Ba Isago University teaching undergraduate students, to have a Master’s degree, whereas one is required to have a Doctoral degree to be able to teach postgraduate students,” she explained.

Ms Tibone said overall, the university is satisfied with the quality of available potential lecturers that the local market is offering. She however, said sometimes it is a challenge to find academics with the required qualifications in certain disciplines such as Actuarial Sciences, Quantity Surveying, Landscape Architecture and others. Ends