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They say a good education can change anyone, but a good teacher can change everything.
They say a good education can change anyone, but a good teacher can change everything.
No saying rings truer than it does for Ofentse Molefe, the product lead and professional development facilitator at SPARK Primary and High Schools – a role that enables her to design and facilitate impactful professional learning experiences that empower educators and school leaders to deliver intentional, data-informed instruction.
Ofentse didn’t land in such a prestigious position by luck. She previously served as principal of SPARK Midrand High and as a university lecturer.
"My hope is that my legacy will not be defined by a position I held but by the leaders, educators and scholars I helped develop along the way" — Ofentse Molefe
Born and raised in Protea North, Soweto, Ofentse credits several forces with shaping who she is today: her parents’ encouragement of independence, Jeppe High School for Girls principal Ms Goncalves for instilling unwavering discipline, and three Golden Key achievements alongside a cum laude degree for teaching her resilience.
“When I look at the educator and leader I am today, I can see the fingerprints of all of those experiences. My parents taught me to have a voice. My teachers taught me to use it with purpose. Resilience taught me to believe in it. And faith continues to remind me that leadership is ultimately about what you make possible for others,” Ofentse tells TRUELOVE.
Throughout her journey across multiple roles in education, learning from a myriad of leaders, she has come to understand that leadership takes many forms – both good and bad – and that has cemented the kind of leader she is.
“Having worked across multiple roles in education, I have been fortunate to learn from exceptional leaders who demonstrated empathy, vision and courage. At the same time, I have also encountered leadership approaches that showed me what I did not want to replicate.
“Those experiences taught me that leadership is a choice; one that requires intentionality every day. They motivated me to become the kind of leader who listens before leading, develops before directing, executes with others and creates opportunities rather than barriers,” she explains.
Ofentse’s current position directly aligns with her passion for leveraging transformative educational technology to drive personalised learning for pupils from every background.
“What excites me most is that technology allows us to move away from a one-size-fits-all approach to learning,” she says.
“Through adaptive platforms and real-time data, educators can better understand where scholars are thriving, struggling and what personalised pathways should be true to help intervene and support scholars appropriately. It enables us to personalise learning in ways that were previously much more difficult to achieve in traditional classrooms.”
While Ofentse and her team embrace the role technology plays in helping learners develop the adaptability, problem-solving skills, critical and systems thinking, self-management and confidence needed to participate meaningfully in the future economy, she is adamant that no curriculum, platform or strategy can replace the impact of a great teacher.
“Great teachers develop when they are given clarity about what excellence looks like, regular opportunities to practise and refine their craft and meaningful coaching and feedback that helps them improve. But perhaps most importantly, they need leaders who believe in their potential and share that vision with them; sometimes even before they believe in it themselves,” she shares.
“As a professional development facilitator, I have seen firsthand how transformative coaching can be. When educators are encouraged to reflect, take risks, learn from mistakes and celebrate growth, they begin to see themselves not just as teachers but as lifelong learners.”
One thing Ofentse had to learn on her way to becoming the education leader she is today was to own her voice and trust that she belonged in the rooms she worked so hard to be in.
“Early in my career, I often found myself being one of the younger leaders at the table, and there were moments when I questioned whether I had enough experience, enough knowledge or enough authority to contribute meaningfully.
“Looking back, I realise that many women experience this tension between competence and confidence. I silently still do,” she admits.
She also had to break free from the unspoken expectation that women in leadership be everything to everyone – nurturing yet decisive, collaborative yet firm, ambitious yet agreeable.
“Learning that I did not need to choose between being an effective leader and being authentically myself was an important part of my growth,” Ofentse shares.
“What helped me navigate these challenges was a combination of resilience, mentorship, and preparation. I learned that confidence is not something you wait to feel before taking action; it is something you build through action.”
If there is one message she hopes young women take away from her journey, it is this: “Never underestimate the power of your influence.”
She adds, “As women, we sometimes wait until we feel completely ready or comfortable before stepping forward. My encouragement is to start before you feel ready. Trust your ability to learn, to grow and to lead. The young people sitting in our classrooms do not need perfect role models; they need authentic ones.
“Never underestimate the impact of showing a child what is possible simply because you showed up, believed in them and refused to lower your expectations of what they could become.”
