At any given time there are more than 3 000 students enrolled at the UWC Education Faculty, and now they have a new building to call home.
The green building on the southern section of the UWC main campus in Bellville features state-of-the-art classrooms that will set the benchmark for producing educators, and teaching and learning spaces for early childhood development, primary and high school.
UWC Rector and Vice-Chancellor Professor Tyrone Pretorius said that the faculty building was initially constructed in the 1960s and was made up of standalone buildings and empty spaces.
“Now our Faculty of Education has a new home, one which the dean is very proud of, but that we as a university are also proud of.”
The Department of Higher Education and Training provided funding for UWC to offer a Bachelor of Education Foundation phase programme. The first cohort graduated in 2020, and this year at the autumn graduation, more than 30 students graduated with the Postgraduate Certificate in Education (FET) Phase Teaching.
“We appreciate the ministry’s faith in us and the many levels of assistance we receive throughout, from funding that allowed for the initial planning to actual construction. It is therefore fitting that you are here today,” Pretorius said.
Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology Dr Blade Nzimande congratulated UWC management on the opening of the Faculty of Education building and lauded the contribution the faculty has made to education over the years.
“You gave us good policy tools. I remember the debate, the transition from education theory to policy and all those issues. You gave us very good policies. The foundation, in 1994, not least the work done by UWC which also informed the passage of the Higher Education Act in 1997. So you deserve this building,” said Nzimande.
kailene.pillay@inl.co.za
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