NW EDUCATION DEPARTMENT INTENSIFIES TEACHER DEVELOPMENT TO BOOST LEARNER PERFORMANCE

The North West Department of Education has stepped up its commitment to teacher development, with over 1 000 educators already trained in various areas of specialisation including language, mathematics, science, and other critical areas of learning since the beginning of the 2025 academic year.

The Department’s ongoing training interventions are designed to sharpen teaching skills, enhance subject mastery, and align classroom practices with modern curriculum demands.

Currently, Quarter 2 training sessions are underway, ensuring that educators continue to receive relevant, high-quality professional development in preparation for the final stretch of the academic year. This sustained investment in teacher capacity is one of the Department’s strategy to reach the 95% learner performance target set by MEC Viola Motsumi for year-end results.

The Department has also entered into a collaboration with the South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (SADTU) to design and implement a capacity-building programme for school principals. Scheduled to roll out in September 2025, the programme will focus on:
– Jointly developing and delivering context-specific training for principals
– Building ethical, accountable, and visionary school leadership
– Empowering education managers to embrace digital transformation.
– Fostering change management to keep school leadership aligned with evolving educational demands.
– Strengthening unity and partnership between the Department and SADTU in transforming education.

Other teacher unions in the province will also implement similar programmes to equip principals with the necessary leadership skills and to provide them with ongoing professional support. These parallel initiatives to ensure that regardless of affiliation principals receive consistent and impactful training to improve learner outcomes.

This approach aims to strengthen instructional leadership, ethical governance, and professional management across schools, ensuring that curriculum delivery is both innovative and responsive to learner needs.

MEC Viola Motsumi emphasised the importance of these efforts in meeting the performance target.
“Our investment in teacher and principal development is about equipping our educators with the right tools, skills, and mindset to inspire excellence in every classroom. The strides we are making through ongoing training, and now through the teacher unions collaboration, are laying the foundation for us to reach and even surpass the 95% mark. A strong curriculum depends on strong teachers, and strong teachers need strong leaders, “ Motsumi expresses.

The Department will continue to prioritise teacher development as a critical driver of curriculum improvement, learner support, and sustainable excellence in the province’s education system.