Information Technology And The Emergence Of New Educ Modules

Today, conventional teaching and learning methods, have become inadequate in the wake of deepening illiteracy, paucity of well-trained teachers and diminishing resources. Innovative teaching and learning schemes are therefore required if Africa is to move forward as a continent.

What is needed is a new form of learning system which will enable Africans to utilise modern communications technology (such as television, radio, telephone, Internet, CD-ROM, and print media), as new learning tools.

We believe that training in information technology will provide Africa with access to a steady stream of well-trained, educated and experienced personnel capable of guiding the development of the continent. Without solid and diverse training programmes tailored to the needs of the continent, even the most sophisticated electronic networks are doomed to failure.

Information technology now provides several avenues for acquiring education through a number of channels. As the vast web of global and local information networks grows, several new skills and forms of literacy will become available for anyone who wants to reap the full educational benefits of the information age.

According to a recent UNESCO Report, there are approximately 80 million students enrolled in higher education programmes worldwide, of which 6,150,000 are online.

This trend has given rise to new forms of mobile and virtual pedagogical approaches to teaching and learning.

Among the various forms are: m-learning (mobile learning), h-learning (hybrid learning), OD-learning (open and distance learning), e-education (electronic education), e-learning (electronic learning), u-learning (ubiquitous learning) and several others have emerged.

This article describes new pedagogical approaches that have emerged as a result of the impact of information communications technologies.

Mobile and wireless technology use in Africa has increased over the years and the use of it has become an integral part in the average African communicative lifestyle.

Given the proliferation of mobile telephone use across all sectors of the continent, it is becoming increasingly evident that this highly mobile form of technology and its infrastructure can be leveraged to deliver flexible educational opportunities to more and more Africans looking for options to further their education.

Mobile technologies have transformed the traditional ways of knowledge acquisition into more flexible, ‘anytime’ , ‘anyplace’ ways of learning. Devices such as Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), palmtop, handheld computers, mobile/cell phones, alongside other wireless communication devices are used in promoting m-learning.

Such mobile devices can be used to provide wireless access to educational materials in the form of email, voice, and text messaging.

Due to the widespread use of mobile phones in Africa, m-learning has the potential to attract a new group of learners who have been put off by traditional educational methods. M-learning can be used to facilitate both individual and collaborative learning, and provides a non-threatening, personalised learning experience.

STUDENTS

The use of m-learning has made educational opportunities accessible to students who in the past lacked opportunities due to factors such as work, geographical distance, time, family responsibilities, and lack of adequate financial resources . Also, m-learning has made it possible for learning to occur anywhere and doesn’t require concentration of building and the reliance of extensive traditional educational infrastructure (such as chalk, blackboard, power connection, etc.).

Africa needs to prepare an action plan to implement m-learning programmes to expand educational opportunities in the various African countries.

Another educational model is blended learning, defined as a combination of multiple approaches to teaching and learning. A typical example of this would be a combination of technology-based materials and face-to-face sessions used together to deliver instruction.

'Blended learning' can also be used to describe arrangements in which 'conventional', offline, non-electronic based instruction happens to include online tutoring or mentoring services.

Over the past few years, a number of academic and corporate institutions are increasing resorting to this model of educational delivery. Experts predict that blended learning will be the educational model of choice for most institutions over the next couple of years.

Traditionally, the two learning environments have been viewed separately. This is partly because the two has been viewed as addressing the needs of different audiences.

For example, traditional face-to-face learning has been with us since the days of Socrates when direct democracy was practiced in ancient Greece. It is instructor-directed with face-to-face interaction in a live synchronous environment.

In a blended learning environment, the emphasis is on self-paced learning and learning materials interactions that typically occurred in an asynchronous environment, for the most part. Educators have used the terms 'tyranny of proximity' and tyranny of distance' to describe the two learning environments.

.Blended learning can provide instructionally effective, highly interactive learning experiences that are flexible, equitable and responsive to individual student’s learning styles. It has the potential of addressing challenges inherent within higher education in Africa.

Electronic or e-education is generally defined as the use of computers and electronics to assist learning. The concept is sometimes used synonymously with e-learning

e-education use open and distance learning as a primary delivery tool to reach their students. The technology ranges from the use of video, multimedia CD-ROM (Compact Disk Read Only Memory), to developing websites for courses and placing them on the Internet, with links to databases and related sites on the Internet or a course Intranet.

We should have the courage to think about different ways to use the new communication technologies to provide education to the broad mass of Africans who are looking for options to acquire new knowledge and further their education.

The various forms of virtual education hold the key to unlocking Africa’s educational future.