Using ODL and ICT to develop the skills of the unreached: a contribution to the ADEA triennial of the Working Group on Distance Education and Open Learning

Innovation in technology is occurring at rapid pace thus shrinking the distances and making information and knowledge more than ever accessible to everyone irrespective of where the person resides. This paper consists of four main articles. The first one deals with technological trends. The second one focuses on the deployment and use of open and distance education mode in rural areas by documenting initiatives that embrace information and communication technologies (ICTs). Due to challenges faced in rural areas only a few success stories/cases currently exist and some of these are cited in this article. The challenges faced in the deployment of ICT enhanced ODL have been highlighted as well as the potential of developing and delivering effective and relevant ODL programmes in rural areas in order to ensure that issues of educational equity and social exclusion rural communities are adequately addressed. ICTs in ODL are perhaps the greatest tool to date for self-education and value addition to any community’s development efforts, yet poor rural communities particularly in Africa do not have the necessary awareness, skills or facilities to enable themselves to develop using ICTs. Inadequate ICT infrastructures in rural areas remain a major source for the digital divide in Africa and for under-performance of distance learners. The third one analyses the support provided to ODL learners who often encounter difficulties in completing their studies through the distance education mode due to loneliness, uncertainties and de-motivation. ICT has not been able to sufficiently support distance learners in overcoming those obstacles efficiently. An investigation regarding those learning supports has been conducted in ten distance learning institutions, along with an intensive literature review with the aim of understanding the high percentage of dropout rates of distant learners. The learners’ interactions have been scrutinized through content analysis of their synchronous exchanges, during a completely online course. After taking into account the limited technical and human resources in Africa, a technological virtual environment along with a pedagogical framework has been proposed with the aim of giving adequate educational support to them. The fourth article has explored The Open University (UK) and its efforts to use new technologies to deliver online courses to difficult-to- reach learners in prison environments. The case study analysed here is an international course (called, B201- Business Organisations and their environments) which also touches an African cohort of learners. The implications for designing and delivering online ODL to the complex unreachable environments of prisons anywhere, and particularly in Africa, have been discussed

Pedagogy, curriculum, teaching practices and teacher education in developing countries

This rigorous literature review focused on pedagogy, curriculum, teaching practices and teacher education in developing countries. It aimed to: 1. review existing evidence on the review topic to inform programme design and policy making undertaken by the DFID, other agencies and researchers 2. identify critical evidence gaps to guide the development of future research programme

Digital communities: context for leading learning into the future?

In 2011, a robust, on-campus, three-element Community of Practice model consisting of growing community, sharing of practice and building domain knowledge was piloted in a digital learning environment. An interim evaluation of the pilot study revealed that the three-element framework, when used in a digital environment, required a fourth element. This element, which appears to happen incidentally in the face-to-face context, is that of reflecting, reporting and revising. This paper outlines the extension of the pilot study to the national tertiary education context in order to explore the implications for the design, leadership roles, and selection of appropriate technologies to support and sustain digital communities using the four-element model

Cognition, literacy and mobile technology: A conceptual model of the benefits of smartphones for Aboriginal students in remote communities

Indigenous youth in remote regions of Australia are disadvantaged in school and in life. While the reasons are complex and multi-faceted, improved connectivity infrastructure, hardware such as smartphones and highly motivating Web 2.0 applications may provide mechanisms by which to improve the educational outcomes of Indigenous students in remote communities. Based upon review of the literature, a pedagogical model is proposed and presented. The model organizes the relationships between web-based applications, Indigenous learning styles and life circumstances and the potential benefits of smartphones in terms of cognitive and literacy skills. Smartphones may constitute a particularly powerful mechanism by which to improve the reading skills of Indigenous adolescents living in remote communities. The connectivity infrastructures, sophistication of devices and Indigenous adolescent motivation all currently exist

Challenges faced by rural accounting teachers in implementing web-based collaborative learning

The twenty-first century has witnessed a call for teachers to integrate information and communication technology (ICT) into teaching and learning. However, creating a classroom environment that engages in active learning has proved to be a hurdle to South African teachers, as more traditional teaching methods continue to be utilised in teaching. These challenges have derailed the current efforts by the Department of Basic Education to introduce ICT in the teaching and learning process in an effort to create a learner-centred environment. This paper seeks to open epistemic access by determining the challenges faced by rural accounting teachers in implementing web-based collaborative learning. The paper reports on the findings of a qualitative study that employed interviews to generate data with five Grade 10 accounting teachers in rural South Africa. The findings reveal that accounting teachers are faced with myriad challenges that serve as a stumbling block in their attempt to implement web-based collaborative learning. Contrary to the principles of Critical Accounting Research, the teaching methods and resources used position teachers in control and authority while the learners are disempowered, marginalised and oppressed. We consequently argue that accounting teachers require support and capacity building to implement web-based collaborative learning effectively

Mathematical Learning Approach for Special Education Pupils: The Effectiveness of Mauselis Board in Improving Adding Skills

Mathematic learning difficulties are common, significant, and worthy of serious attention. Many issues that have had an impact on bilingual education have also had an impact on Special Education.  One of the issues is, adding skill. Adding skill is one of the most crucial skills that every pupil needs to acquire with learning disabilities. The use of ‘MauSeLis Board’ (Maujud-Sebut-Tulis) which means ‘Concrete-Pronounce-Write’ in the classroom has been an effective tool for helping Special Education pupils in building up their skills in adding and reading the numbers aloud. This study investigates the improvement of the pupils with learning disabilities’ adding skill in Mathematic subject at school. The study's sole objective was (i) to identify the Mauselis board's effectiveness in Mathematical subjects among Special Education pupils. The MauSeLis board was invented for teaching and learning purposes based on the Bruner Theory and CRA Model (Concrete-Pictorial-Abstract). The data collection was conducted through pre-test and post-test conducted on 20 pupils with learning disabilities as respondents in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. The study found significant differences in terms of their adding-questions scores before and after using MauSelis Board in teaching and learning sessions. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics such as frequency and percentage to describe the Pre and Post Test results. The research study's finding showed a positive result as the Special Education pupils who involved in the study showed consistent improvement throughout the sessions. This study also found that MauSeLis Board in teaching and learning sessions is a highly effective approach that develops a deep and better understanding of mathematic skill among the Special Education pupils as well as contributing to active, fun, and meaningful learning session. In conclusion, this study summarises that the teaching and learning approach among special needs pupils should emphasize effective hands-on activities rather than rote learning

STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL NEEDS IN GREEK HIGHER EDUCATION: ICTS AS A VITAL TOOL FOR INCLUSION

The present paper intends to report and analyze ongoing practices and policies with respect to the inclusion of Students with Special Educational Needs (SEN) and/or disabilities into Higher Education in Greece. To achieve this goal, the researchers systematically searched the current literature sources to find out the extent to and the ways in which European priorities set by article 24 of the Convention on the Rights of Inclusion of Persons with Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities, have been advocated by Greek educational policy within the Higher Education context. Actually, the literature review demonstrates the existing law framework of the Greek national and local policy whose purpose is to promote the development and implementation of digitally assisted services which ought to take into consideration the needs of students with learning disabilities and comply with the international strides calling for a broader inclusive education. The results of this review showed that Greek universities have endeavored to respond successfully to the Greek legislation’s mandates and to fully address anti-discriminatory practice. However, more adjustments and decisive progress steps have to be made in relation to the curriculum and to teachers’ professional training to ensure all students’ inclusion.  Article visualizations