More than two-thirds of South African teachers say administrative work is their biggest source of stress, and nearly half are considering leaving the profession within the next decade due to overwhelming workloads*.
For many educators, the school bell does not mark the end of the workday. It marks the start of hours spent marking, planning lessons, adapting materials for different learning needs and completing paperwork long after learners have gone home.
At the same time, classrooms are becoming more diverse. Teachers are expected to support learners with a wide range of needs, from ADHD and Autism to language barriers and social-emotional challenges, while still meeting curriculum requirements and maintaining lesson quality.
Educational publisher Twinkl says teachers should not have to choose between inclusive education and manageable workloads.
“Teachers enter the profession to teach and inspire, not to spend their evenings buried in admin,” says Jon Seaton, co-founder of Twinkl. “When we hear that teachers are spending hours after school preparing lessons and adapting materials for different learners, it highlights a real challenge in the system. Twinkl was created to help those who teach, and that mission feels especially important right now.”
Founded in Sheffield in 2010 by Jonathan and Susie Seaton, Twinkl now supports educators in more than 190 countries. The platform was introduced in South Africa 10 years ago and has since built a comprehensive library of locally produced, CAPS-aligned resources designed specifically for the South African classroom.
The goal is simple: help teachers deliver high-quality, inclusive lessons while reducing the hours spent on preparation and administration.
Twinkl’s South African offering includes ready-to-use lesson plans, assessments, worksheets, interactive digital tools and AI-supported resources aligned to CAPS requirements. Instead of creating materials from scratch or adapting generic content, teachers can access ready-made resources instantly, significantly reducing preparation time.
Importantly, the platform also includes an extensive range of SEN and LSEN resources that support inclusive classrooms and celebrate learning differences. These materials help teachers confidently support learners with diverse needs, including resources related to ADHD, Autism awareness, South African Sign Language (SASL), and learner mental wellbeing.
Rather than adding to teachers’ workloads, the resources are designed to save planning and administrative time while making it easier to adapt lessons for learners with different abilities and learning styles.
Administrative tasks, including marking, are cited as a key stress factor for more than 70% of teachers*. These are also supported through structured assessment tools and ready-made evaluation resources that help streamline the process without compromising educational quality.
Twinkl’s materials are also available in multiple South African languages, including isiZulu, isiXhosa, Afrikaans, SASL, Setswana and Sesotho, helping educators respond to linguistic diversity in their classrooms without additional planning pressure.
“When teachers are less overwhelmed by preparation and admin, they have more energy for their learners and for their own wellbeing,” Seaton adds. “Inclusive education works best when teachers feel supported too. If we can help give teachers their evenings back while helping every learner feel included, that’s a meaningful impact.”
With teacher burnout increasingly recognised as a national concern, tools that reduce workload while strengthening inclusive teaching could play an important role in supporting educator wellbeing and improving classroom outcomes.
Educators and parents can explore Twinkl’s South African CAPS-aligned resources at www.twinkl.co.za.
About Twinkl Twinkl provides high-quality, standards-aligned teaching resources, tools and services. Founded in 2010 in Sheffield, UK, by Jonathan and Susie Seaton, Twinkl serves teachers, parents and educators across all educational settings. With more than 1.5 million resources and innovative digital tools, Twinkl supports classrooms in over 190 countries worldwide, including South Africa, where it has supported educators for the past decade.
