Professional development needs of TVET college lecturers towards remote learning : implications for leadership

Abstract: Rapid technological development has affected the educational sector, prompting it to evolve and embrace technology as part of everyday teaching and learning. The coronavirus outbreak has exacerbated the need for educational institutions to transform from being 100% face-to-face learning institutions to ones that integrate ICT mechanisms as part of teaching and learning. As a result of the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, universities were forced to suspend all contact learning activities and transition to online learning. However, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges had to come to a complete halt because they lacked response mechanisms in the form of infrastructure, and experienced and knowledgeable lecturers. In this study, the training and resource needs of TVET college lecturers are investigated. Moreover, lecturer training guidelines for remote learning are proposed for TVET college leaders. Employing a generic qualitative research approach, within the interpretivist worldview, data gathering was undertaken through qualitative surveys and semi-structured interviews. Seventy-three TVET college lecturers participated in the survey and three TVET college Heads of Department (HODs) were interviewed from a TVET college in Ekurhuleni, Gauteng. The findings were presented using a generic qualitative research design and reporting methods. The findings of the study revealed that TVET college leaders need to furnish lecturers with resources and training in the utilisation of remote learning prior to implementation. The appropriate resources and training needed were recommended. The study also found that owing to the differing nature of the vocational subjects offered at TVET colleges, the training and resource needs of lecturers differed and therefore recommended that TVET leaders cater for the individual and subject-related needs of the lecturers. The study also recommended a distributive leadership approach to assist with the resource and training needs of lecturers, through the formation of and reliance on campus and college committees comprising internal and external stakeholders. Furthermore, training guidelines were recommended to ensure that the training of lecturers is adequate, appropriate, accredited and meets global educational standards to make sure that lecturers become 21st-century transformative intellectuals.M.Ed. (Educational Leadership and Management