Latest News Archive
Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
27 October 2025
|
Story Sefako Mokhosoa
|
Photo Supplied
Ten Grade 12 learners from Mampoi Secondary School in Phuthaditjhaba.
On 1 October 2025, the Projects and Innovation Directorate in the Faculty of Education at the University of the Free State (UFS) proudly hosted a certificate ceremony to honour ten Grade 12 learners from Mampoi Secondary School in Phuthaditjhaba on the Qwaqwa Campus. These learners completed a Skills Development Initiative and Workshop Series focused on digital literacy and ICT skills – a programme designed to equip rural youth with the tools they need to thrive in a digital world.
The initiative, which ran from May to August 2025, was made possible through a strategic partnership with BANKSETA to bridge the digital divide in rural communities. The learners received hands-on training in essential digital tools. Each learner also received a tablet to support continued learning and personal growth beyond the classroom.
The Director of the office in the Faculty of Education, Dr Kwazi Magwenzi, stressed that digital skills promote independence and self-directed learning. “Grade 12 is a time when learners should manage their studies, meet deadlines, and explore their options,” she said. “Digital fluency supports that autonomy. It enables learners to use online research, interactive tools, e-learning, and collaboration platforms to make learning more effective, flexible, and aligned with their pace and style. In Grade 12, where the stakes are high – with exams, tertiary entrance, and career choices – this ability helps learners become more self-directed, confident, and equipped.”
The programme not only built learners’ confidence in using ICT tools for learning and communication but also prepared them for the technologically driven environments they will encounter in institutions of higher learning.
Beyond developing digital skills, the project offered learners valuable exposure to the university environment, as their training took place on campus. Inspired by the success of this pilot, the Faculty of Education now aims to expand the initiative to reach more schools and learners across the region. The vision is to scale up access to digital education and empower more young people in rural areas with the skills necessary for academic and professional success.
This ceremony marked the conclusion of a successful training programme and the beginning of a long-term commitment to digital empowerment and lifelong learning in rural communities.
Dean of Health Sciences receives prestigious international fellowship
2015-11-11
Dean of the Faculty of Health Science,
Prof Gert van Zyl
|
The Dean of our Faculty of Health Science, Prof Gert van Zyl, was admitted as an Inaugural Fellow of the Association for Medical Education in Europe (AMEE) at the annual conference in Glasgow.
This fellowship recognises members of AMEE who have demonstrated a consistent commitment to excellence in health professional education through scholarly contributions to the field over at least five years. Prof Van Zyl was honored with a Fellowship for his senior role related to education at the UFS, including his scholarly contributions. “This was an enormous privilege for me to be awarded the AMEE full Fellowship as one of only two South Africans to receive this honour from a prestigious organisation such as the AMEE. It also gives credit to the excellent work done by the team in the South African Association of Health Educationalists (SAAHE), and the Health Science Education team in the Faculty of Health Sciences at the UFS. All the leadership, hard work, and excellence over many years are acknowledged with this Fellowship. My appreciation to colleagues that motivated and inspired me during my academic journey to achieve this fellowship,” says Prof Van Zyl.
In seeking Fellowship of AMEE, applicants make a commitment to continue their leadership and the promotion of scholarship in health professional education into the future, as well as to the ongoing mentorship and development of more junior members who aspire to recognition at Associate Fellow or Fellow level. Fellows are expected to contribute actively to AMEE activities.
Prof Van Zyl was also recently appointed by the Minister of Health, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, as Council Member representing Higher Education on the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA).