University of Pretoria, Department of Educational Psychology
Vignette research in Pretoria is primarily, but not exclusively, used in educational psychology and related disciplines. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 3) on good health and well-being and quality education (SDG 4) serve as ideal starting points for vignette research in the African context. Specific vignette studies within the Pretoria group currently encompass work on well-being, early childhood education, hope, vulnerability, and in-depth investigations into sustainable development. The phenomenological roots of vignette research are closely linked to the theoretical foundations of numerous early studies in educational psychology in Pretoria. Vignettes are also used as research tools across the entire educational continuum—from the early years of learning to higher education.
From April 2021 to March 2023 , the University of Pretoria, the University of Innsbruck , and the University of Vienna pursued the goal of raising awareness of the UN Sustainable Development Goals ( SDGs ) in school curricula by sustainably integrating them into teacher education within the collaborative project "Teaching the Global Goals: Exploring synergies between teacher education programmes and the Sustainable Development Goals – Teach4Reach," funded by the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research (BMBWF) (AfricaUniNet). "Teach4Reach" conducts forward-looking research on the UN Sustainable Development Goals, builds networks to support the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and promotes the development of scientific knowledge on the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Subsequently, the Teach4Reach 2.0 project began towards the end of 2023 with the same research partners. The focus of Teach4Reach 2.0 is on researching the professionalism of teacher trainers in the context of the 2030 Agenda in the Global North and the Global South, and how this professionalism can be used to accelerate the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. Vignettes are used as part of the mixed methods methodology.
The Teachwell project commenced in March 2026 and will continue until February 2028 with the Universities of Pretoria and Innsbruck as research partners. In this project vignettes will be combined with survey research to develop a multiplier training programme on teacher educator well-being, which aims to equip teacher educators with practical tools for managing stress and preventing burnout, creating a cascade effect that intends to benefit future teachers and their students.
At the University of Pretoria, several Master's and doctoral studies have been completed on topics such as well-being, transition from school to university, early childhood education, youth leadership, teachers' anxiety, teenage pregnancy, homophobic microaggressions, and anxiety in traumatized children. Ongoing postgraduate studies include themes of the invisible work of teachers in inclusive classrooms, teacher educator professionalism and quality education, student well-being within romantic relationships, neurodiversity, inclusive education for students with visual impairment in university settings and nature-based expressive arts therapy.