Computer education specialist Futurekids South Africa and Edutech, the listed business arm of the teachers` organisation, the TO-Group, have established Futureteacher, a company that will specialise in the professional development of teachers.
The shareholding split in Futureteacher will be 70% Futurekids (SA) and 30% Education Technology Curriculum Services, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Nova Education and Technology Holdings, listed and trading as Edutech Holdings.
This is the second joint venture between Edutech and Trustee Board Investments, the holding company of Futurekids South Africa. Last month a joint venture company, TeacherAssist, was formed between Edutech and Care Assist, a subsidiary of Trustee Board Investments in which Santam is a 30% shareholder.
The TO-Group, part of the SA Onderwysersunie (SAOU), represents approximately 45 000 teachers in the Education Labour Relations Council. Educator members are predominantly from public primary and high schools and tertiary institutions nationally.
Dr Huw Davies, MD of the TO-Group and executive director of Edutech Holdings, has been named chairman of Futureteacher.
Futureteacher has been granted a licence to offer Futurekids-developed courses to teachers throughout the company-owned territories, using the existing infrastructures and facilities of both Futurekids and Edutech. Futurekids chairman Abrie du Preez says the focus will be the provision of IT-related training and retraining of education sector personnel in both the utilisation of information technology, and its integration in the education environment.
"Futurekids has a long-established relationship with the teachers` organisation and we have been working together for some years on the implementation of Futurekids computer laboratories in schools around the country, as well as teacher training," says Du Preez.
"There is a huge need for initial and on-going IT teacher training in this country, and we believe the inroads we have made to date represent only the tip of the iceberg. In the US, for example, professional development currently comprises around 39% of Futurekids` revenue, while in SA it`s only about 1%. Five years down the line, we could be in a similar position, but it`s a long-term objective as South African education is still grappling with the basic needs of hardware and software."
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