My name is Sipho Sibanda, I am a lecturer in the Department of Social Work and Social Policy, at the School of Allied Health, The University of Western Australia. I have 10 years experience of tertiary teaching and supervision of research projects of post-graduate students.

Prior to joining the academia, l held several roles in child protection organisations, ranging from being a social worker, social work supervisor and social work manager. 

I am from the Ndebele tribe in Southern Africa, my name means gift. I believe that I am a gift to humanity. My surname means Lion, yes, l am the King of the Jungle.

I am a holder of a Dphil in Social Work and a Master of Social Work Degrees obtained from the University of Pretoria. I also have a Bachelour of Social Work Honours Degree from the University of Zimbabwe.

My research interests are as follows: Child Protection; Foster Care; Family Reunification; Out of home care; Child Legislation; Social Policy; Social Development, Human Rights, and Social Justice.

Some of my personal attributes are as follows;

• Treats colleagues and students with respect.
• Has a strong sense of integrity.
• A team player that is honest, hardworking and goal oriented.
• Possesses good analytical and decision-making skills.
• Equipped with good interpersonal and communication skills at all levels.
• Easily adapts to dynamic changes and new environments in the workplace.
• Willing to learn, take advice and adhere to ethical practice.
• Cultural competency

Dr Sibanda is a passionate Social Work Lecturer who has demonstrated excellence in teaching and learning and is finding creative ways of facilitating student engagements and class discussions. His teaching philosophy places students as active participants in the learning environment. Dr Sibanda often utilises the flipped classroom model of teaching which encourages a student-centred approach to learning. This model entail completing traditional in class activities and out of class, pre and post class activities, use of technology, a change in use of classroom time, and activities which emphasise active learning, peer learning, and problem-based learning. He is currently using a hybrid learning model, where he tries to expose students both to in-person and online environment. Prior to class discussions, he often does power-point presentations and notes on the subject area / topic which he posts on LMS for the students to engage with. Then in class, he facilitates discussion sessions. It is impressive that his discussion outlines are often detailed and provide students with clear guidelines on how to prepare for class.

Dr Sibanda believes in having fun whilst learning, he makes learning very interesting, engaging, and in-depth for students. Instead of using textbook examples, he tries to come up with case studies, scenarios, videos, and role plays that students can relate to. He creates online discussion threads for students to continue with the discussion even after class time has ended. Besides the innovative teaching practices that Dr Sibanda implements, he has also devised creative and alternative assessment methods for students. He does not only rely on traditional written assessments, but makes use of alternative assessments, for example he at times asks students to do assessed class presentations, posters, and journals. Sipho believes in creative, practical, and reflective styles both in learning and assessment.

Dr Sibanda is developing two major research projects in child protection targeting Australian Research Council Funding (DECRA) and other NHMRC funding opportunities. Previously, Sipho has conducted research on child protection with a demonstrated growing publication in international journals and several technical reports which have contributed to child protection policies and practices in South Africa. For example, In the past, Dr Sibanda has been able to conduct groundbreaking and impactful scientific studies. Some of his studies are as follows:

Conducted a doctoral research study titled: A holistic family reunification services model for children in alternative care.

Conducted an MSW research study titled: Challenges faced by social workers working in child protection services in implementing the Children’s Act 38 of 2005.

Dr Sibanda has served on the scientific review committees of several universities and has supervised several postgraduate students. At UWA, he is currently on the research advisory panel of one PhD student and is co-supervising one PhD student. 

Dr Sibanda has been involved in the curriculum planning and development for the Bachelor of Social Work program at UWA. He led the development of teaching materials for the following BSW units;

SWSP 1003 – Human Rights and Social Justice.

SWSP 1006 – Introduction to Critical Thinking in Social Work;

SWSP 2003 – Social Work in a Global Context

He is the Unit Coordinator for these BSW units, and he mobilises both material and personnel to ensure high quality learning in these units. These units are an essential foundation for social work.

He will coordinate more units in different year groups as the students’ progress through the course.

Other than unit coordination and teaching in the undergraduate programme, Dr Sibanda is also co-teaching SWSP 5407 – Research Methods in Social Work, an MSW unit.

Dr Sibanda is in the pporocess of establishing networks for community engagement, he is in conversations with the department of communities (a givernment department) and St Barts' (a non profit organisation) to pestablish their support needs from UWA as an academic institution. Dr Sibanda also continues to serve on the board of two non profit organisations, namely, Future Families; and Itsoseng Empowerment Village. Dr Sibanda works closely with the Organisation of African Communities in Western Australia to explore research and community development opportunities.

The years of research excellence and social work practice experience has opened numerous funding and consultancy opportunities for Dr Sibanda, in the past he has been contracted by international organisations, NGOs, and government departments in South Africa to conduct consultancy research projects. Some of his research consultancy work is as follows:

2023 – Contracted by the South African National AIDS Council (SANAC) to be part of a team that developed the SANAC Multi-Sector Policy Framework including the review of the SANAC Procedural Guidelines.

2022 – Contracted by the International Labour Organization (ILO) to be part of a team that did a project on the development of coordination guidelines for the expanded public works programme

2022 – Contracted by the Department of Social Development (DSD) to be part of a team that developed an Implementation Plan for the National Child Care Protection Policy (NCCPP)

2022 – Contracted by the Department of Social Development (DSD) to be part of a team to work on the Development of a costed Intersectoral policy and Implementation Plan for the provision of appropriate alternative care, mental health services and education needs of children with severe or profound disruptive behaviour disorders.

2019 - Contracted by the South African Council for Social Service Professions (SACSSP) to be part of a team that worked on the Job Readiness Induction Programme for newly qualified social workers

2016 - Contracted by the Gauteng Children’s Rights Committee (NGO) to conduct a study on evaluating the impact of programmes provided by the Gauteng Children’s Rights Committee

Dr Sibanda is proficient in the following languages:

• English
• Zulu
• Ndebele
• Shona
• Xhosa
• Venda
• Isiswati
• Tswana

The previous positions occupied by Dr Sibanda are as follows;