Tertiary Education Qualifications:
Bachelor of Arts, University of Cape Town (UCT)- Higher Diploma in Education, UCT
- Advanced Diploma in Adult Education, UCT
- Master of Education, UCT
Barbara has always been concerned with social justice and, after a period of traditional high school teaching, her interest in adult education was sparked by her work in the Black Sash during the 80s and early 90s, first as a branch chairperson and then as National Executive Secretary.
In 1994 she joined the Business Skills and Development Centre (BSDC), a not for profit organisation (NPO) aimed at the training and development of primarily black women for entry-level employment in the business sector. After a year as teacher and office manager, she was appointed as Principal and Manager of the organisation, and over the next 9 years expanded the number of programmes offered and extended campuses into Langa, Gugulethu and Worcester. These ventures were developed in collaboration with other education organisations, NPOs, community organisations, funders and the Department of Labour.
During this period Barbara embarked on her adult education studies to deepen her understanding of the practice and grow her expertise in this field. This led to a Master of Education in Curriculum Studies and, after 10 years she left the BSDC to pursue her interest in education research. Since then, she has engaged in and led a multitude of research projects in further and higher education, most notably in the areas of recognition of prior learning (RPL), in flexible and ICT enhanced teaching and learning, and in micro-credentials transformative pedagogies, including multi-modal teaching and learning. She has also held teaching posts at various Western Cape universities in adult education and research methodology, and curriculum development and academic planning posts.
Barbara has always had a passion for the natural environment, and she is a certified Biomimicry Practitioner and Educator. She obtained accreditation by the South African Council for Educators (SACE) for the Biomimicry for Educators course, which provides educators with the tools to incorporate biomimicry thinking and practice into their lessons and for them to gain CPD points. She has also run various educational Biomimicry workshops and experiential Biomimicry design courses, including the 2019 Biomimicry Design Challenge for the SA Water Research Commission, which was run in association with Biomimicry South Africa.
Barbara has recently completed her Sophro-ki Sophrology Diploma, training as a Sophrology Practitioner, certified by the Energy Centre Sarl, Geneva. She has run Sophrology training sessions, was involved in the Sophrology pilot in Masakhane, and is seeking accreditation for a Sophrology training course for educators, social and healthcare workers in South Africa.
Biomimicry courses for TILE:
- Introduction to biomimicry: one-day workshop
- Biomimicry design, principles and practice: 2-day experiential workshop
- Biomimicry for educators: 2-day experiential workshop
- Biomimikids: half day hands-on exploration of biomimicry principles in nature for young children