Addressing the Grand Challenges: Pathways to Sustainable Educational Development in Africa through Culture, Community, and Co-Creation

Abstract

The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) has emerged as a critical framework for enhancing pedagogical practices and advancing higher education globally. In Africa, where educational systems grapple with socio-economic and infrastructural challenges, embedding SoTL within sustainable development objectives is imperative. This essay explores strategies for fostering and institutionalizing SoTL in African higher education, employing Hutchings’ (2000) framework to interrogate key questions: “What is SoTL in Africa?”, “What works in promoting SoTL?”, “What could be done to enhance SoTL?”, and “What new theories can support the development of SoTL?” By aligning these questions with the five Grand Challenges for SoTL identified by Scharff et al. (2023), this essay examines pathways for institutional support, faculty development, and policy advocacy. Through the interconnected lenses of culture, community, and co-creation, it argues for a contextually relevant and globally informed SoTL ecosystem that fosters sustainable educational reform across the continent.