Call for submission for a special issue: Volume 9

2025-08-27

Teacher Education through Flexible Learning in Africa and other Developing Contexts (TETFLE) open journal

Theme: Empowering the Global South through Distance Teacher Education: Technologies, Pedagogies, and Leadership

Guest editors:

Dr Brinda Oogarah-Pratap, Mauritius Institute of Education

Dr Pritee Auckloo, Mauritius Institute of Education

 Rationale and background

Distance education offers promising avenues for teacher development and for addressing educational challenges in the Global South, where issues such as a shortage of qualified teachers, under-resourced educational institutions, and systemic inequities hinder the implementation of quality education (Lim et al., 2020). It has the potential to improve teaching quality and learning outcomes across diverse and marginalised contexts by supporting large-scale teacher training and continuous professional development.

Innovative technologies and pedagogies, ranging from mobile learning and low-bandwidth platforms to community-based learning networks, constitute key elements of effective distance education in marginalised and under-resourced communities (Herodotou et al., 2019; Wajnah et al., 2025).  Leadership also plays a crucial role in transforming educational ecosystems. To improve teaching quality, and teachers’ practices in the Global South, educational leaders need to adopt inclusive, context-sensitive practices that promote digital equity and create enabling environments that support sustainable, scalable solutions. This requires both theoretical insight and practical considerations that promote teacher growth through reflexivity, creativity, professional autonomy and systemic support (Allen & Wright, 2014; Auckloo et al., 2025). Equally important is the development of institutional frameworks and policies that address issues of access, affordability, sociocultural relevance and the digital divide (Connolly, O’Brien & O’Ceallaigh, 2023; Mulaudzi, 2024).

The work of Hodgkinson-Williams and Arinto (2017) on OERs in the Global South foregrounds the importance of context-sensitive research, particularly in examining how factors such as access, infrastructure, cost and local champions influence OER adoption. Although many countries in the Global South have adopted OER policies, further research is required to understand how OERs, and open and educational practices (OEPs) are being actualised in developing countries where open and distance education (ODE) is essential for teacher professional development. Harnessing and understanding the benefits of OERs in ODE, including teaching practicum, can help sustain common efforts to adopt technologies and pedagogies in the Global South, while being mindful of the multiple and contextual realities.

Research literature provides evidence of the potential of technological and pedagogical innovations to improve literacy, numeracy, and science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics (STEAM) education outcomes in multicultural and resource-constrained environments (Lavicza et al., 2022; Norman, 2023).  Emerging tools - including AI, GenAI, virtual reality (VR) and gamified learning - offer new pathways for personalised, inclusive learning, particularly for learners with special needs (Chalkiadakis et al., 2024; Yan et al., 2024). However, the potential of emerging technologies and innovative pedagogies hinges on context-sensitive instructional design, strong leadership, and overcoming challenges such as access, affordability and sociocultural barriers (McMahon & Walker, 2019).

This special issue invites scholarly contributions that critically examine the interconnected dimensions of technologies, pedagogies and leadership within the broader goal of empowering teachers in the Global South. Through a thorough understanding of these dynamics, this issue aims to foreground research that supports teacher development in ways that are inclusive, contextually grounded and responsive to the rapidly evolving global educational landscape.

References

Allen, J. M., & Wright, S. E. (2014). Integrating theory and practice in the pre-service teacher education practicum. Teachers and Teaching, 20(2), 136-151.

Auckloo, P., Thondee, M.C., Baichoo, V., Ramasawmy, S., Sowdagur, D., Permall, J., Jahangeer, C., & Beedassy, S.  (2025). Exploring trainees’ experience in the teaching practice component in the postgraduate certificate in education part-time programme. Journal of Education, 13(1), 98-118.

Chalkiadakis, A., Seremetaki, A., Kanellou, A., Kallishi, M., Morfopoulou, A., Moraitaki, M., & Mastrokoukou, S. (2024). Impact of artificial intelligence and virtual reality on educational inclusion: A systematic review of technologies supporting students with disabilities. Education Sciences, 14(11), 1223.

Connolly, C., O’Brien, E., & O’Ceallaigh, T. J. (2023). Ensuring knowledge sustainability in a digital era: Empowering digital transformation through digital educational leadership. Technology, Knowledge and Learning, 1-17.

Hodgkinson-Williams, C., & Arinto, P. B. (2017). Adoption and impact of OER in the Global South. African Minds, International Development Research Centre & Research on Open Educational Resources.

Herodotou, C., Sharples, M., Gaved, M., Kukulska-Hulme, A., Rienties, B., Scanlon, E., & Whitelock, D. (2019, October). Innovative pedagogies of the future: An evidence-based selection. Frontiers in Education,  4, 113.

Lavicza, Z., Weinhandl, R., Prodromou, T., Anđić, B., Lieban, D., Hohenwarter, M., ... & Diego-Mantecón, J. M. (2022). Developing and evaluating educational innovations for STEAM education in rapidly changing digital technology environments. Sustainability, 14(12), 7237.

Lim, C. P., Tinio, V., Smith, M., Zou, E. W., & Modesto III, J. E. (2020). Teacher professional development at scale in the global South. Anticipating and Preparing for Emerging Skills and Jobs: Key Issues, Concerns, and Prospects (pp. 229-236). Springer Singapore.

McMahon, D. D., & Walker, Z. (2019). Leveraging emerging technology to design an inclusive future with universal design for learning. CEPS Journal, 9(3), 75-93.

Mulaudzi, L. (2024). Evaluating impact: South Africa’s e-education white paper on digital equity and post-COVID education leadership. Cogent Education, 11(1), 2415749.

Norman, A. (2023). Educational technology for reading instruction in developing countries: A systematic literature review. Review of Education, 11(3), e3423.

Wajnah, W., Kusmawan, U., Arifin, S., Muhammadiyah, M. U., & Arsyad, M. (2025). Technology-based learning innovation in community service: Impact on improving education access in remote areas. Journal of Human and Education, 5(2), 137-144.

Yan, L., Greiff, S., Teuber, Z., & Gasevic, D. (2024). Promises and challenges of generative artificial intelligence for human learning. Nature Human Behaviour, 8(10), 1839-1850.

Important dates

Call for papers opens: 25 August 2025

Manuscript submission deadline: 25 February 2026

Notification of acceptance: August 2026

Publication of accepted manuscripts: October 2026

Manuscript submission instructions

  • Manuscripts for this special issue must be submitted through the TETFLE online submission system.
  • Submissions must be original, unpublished and not under consideration elsewhere. All manuscripts will undergo a double-blind peer review process.
  • Carefully review the Author Guidelines and Submission Preparation Checklist and prepare your manuscript
  • Ethics approval should have been granted and proof of approval should be submitted a long with your article submission. 

Information about the peer review process and criteria is also available at:

https://upjournals.up.ac.za/index.php/tetfle/peer-review-process.

Page fee

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