Ms Tseleng Olga Lekitlane, Deputy Chief Education Specialist:  Teacher Development, FSdoE, Mr Maruping Marumo, SACE Provincial Head; Mr Karabo Mokoena, Faculty Officer, Prof. Nosisi Feza, Dean of Humanities; and Dr Ratokelo Willie Thabane, Assistant Dean:  Teaching and Learning.

CUT continues to offer fully accredited courses with respectable professional bodies. On 26 July 2019, the Faculty of Humanities took a giant step in ensuring high quality of professional development of student teachers’ training when they signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the South African Council for Educators (SACE).

SACE is a professional body for educators which aims to enhance the status of the teaching profession through appropriate registration, management of professional development and inculcation of a code of ethics for all educators.

Prof. Nosisi Feza, Dean of Humanities and Mr Maruping Marumo, SACE Provincial Head officialised their two-year partnership dating back to 2017; making it the first MoU of its kind to be signed between SACE and a public higher education Institution.

To date, SACE has issued registration certificates to 393 CUT Bachelor of Education (B. Ed), and 99 Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) graduates. Graduates were also fortunate to have received these SACE certificates simultaneously with their CUT qualifications at the time of their graduations. This arrangement is the first to be achieved by a university in the history of higher education. 

“In the past, universities used to just train teachers and send them to their career field.  Now, things have changed, we need to know what they are up to in their placed schools and what informs our practice, that is the purpose of this MoU.  Continuous professional teacher development prepares teachers to keep up with changing trends in education. Our teaching practice needs capacity and support from the professional body to empower the theories they are learning throughout their training”, said Prof. Feza.

 Mr Marumo said he is excited about formalising the relations as the MoU will benefit both parties. “It is important for us that CUT came on board as this will have a positive impact on the quality of education in our Free State schools. The contents of the MoU are very substantial.  Research is our area of interest in order to advice the Ministry about facts from our studies to solve problems. We are very happy for this day and for this particular occasion,” said Mr Marumo.