The Future of Education

For the past twenty years we have been involved in the teaching of university students as well as the upgrading of Mathematics teachers. (Note: Namibia became independent in 1990 and much training was needed). We have come to realize that students and teachers require more than the traditional subject training to cope in our fast changing world. So we have developed a special teaching approach to ensure “whole-person” empowerment. We call it the triple H model.

The three components are head (knowledge), hand (skills) and heart (passion/motivation).  For example Mathematics teachers need knowledge of the subject and students, the skills to present the subject and last but not least passion for their learners and the subject.

As part of the “heart” component we do a lot of personal development. In the process we have learned that the key to teaching success is to ensure student wellness.

We define personal “wellness” in terms of eight life dimensions, four internal and four external.

Internal wellness: mental; physical; emotional; spiritual.

External wellness: social; material; ecological; career.

Since we implemented this approach we have seen remarkable improvement in terms of students’ and teachers’ motivation levels. We personally believe that self-development should be an integral part of any training programme.

Pieter and Wilma Erwee

Lecturers - University of Namibia

Directors – Namibian Mathematics Institute