Cornelius Ssempala¹, Peter Mpiso Ssenkusu¹, John Mary Vianney Mitana^2,

The professionalisation of the Ugandan teaching workforce in general, and initial teacher education (ITE) in particular, are currently the subjects of considerable policy reform. In the first part, this study carries out a comparative analysis, pointing out convergences and divergences in regard to ITE policy adoption in various parts of the globe. The uniqueness of Uganda’s 2019 National Teacher Policy’s directives on ITE is spelled out in the light of a delicate ‘middle position’ between and betwixt the epistemological (ITE as a scientific practice) and phenomenology (ITE as a social practice). The last part of the paper provides a reflective background against which an integral professional education is both a technical and ethical challenge, especially in a country that is emerging from prolonged school closures during Covid-19 lockdowns. The paper recommends that ITE ought to prepare trainee teachers with the competencies needed to teach for the 21^st century skills and how to assess these skills.

excellence and equity, scientific and social practices, epistemology and phenomenology, whole brain theory, functionalism and personalism, affective communities