Country-Level Research Review: EdTech in Ghana

This document presents a review of the research landscape in Ghana in relation to EdTech research focused at the level of school-based education (not including higher education). The search strategy identified research literature, policy documents, grey literature, and communications with key experts and stakeholders. A growing body of relevant EdTech research is identified to have been undertaken in Ghana. After undertaking searches for relevant literature since 2007, 132 research articles or papers were identified for inclusion. The review provides an overview of trends in this literature in addition to identifying key actors and projects. It also considers how existing research on EdTech in Ghana relates to five research topics that will be the focus of future EdTech Hub research. In combination with political economy analysis, the research identifies potential areas for new research which would be practical and likely to have high impact

Emotional experiences and psychological well-being in 51 countries during the covid-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic presents challenges to psychological well-being, but how can we predict when people suffer or cope during sustained stress? Here, we test the prediction that specific types of momentary emotional experiences are differently linked to psychological well-being during the pandemic. Study 1 used survey data collected from 24,221 participants in 51 countries during the COVID-19 outbreak. We show that, across countries, well-being is linked to individuals’ recent emotional experiences, including calm, hope, anxiety, loneliness, and sadness. Consistent results are found in two age, sex, and ethnicity-representative samples in the United Kingdom (n = 971) and the United States (n = 961) with preregistered analyses (Study 2). A prospective 30-day daily diary study conducted in the United Kingdom (n = 110) confirms the key role of these five emotions and demonstrates that emotional experiences precede changes in well-being (Study 3). Our findings highlight differential relationships between specific types of momentary emotional experiences and well-being and point to the cultivation of calm and hope as candidate routes for well-being interventions during periods of sustained stress

Academic, social and entrepreneurial self-efficacy as they relate to Caribbean adolescent students’ technological, parental and school background.

This thesis explores the overall question of “What is the influence of Caribbean students’ technology usage, parental background and school type on their self-efficacy?” Different domains of self-efficacy are examined to explore how they might be uniquely affected by technology usage and adolescent student background. This includes entrepreneurial and social self-efficacy, which are underexplored amongst adolescents. Academic self-efficacy is also considered because though it is commonly explored globally, it remains underexplored in the Caribbean and in relation to technology usage. Technology usage (at school for schoolwork, at home for homework and social media time and connections) is explored because of its ubiquity in modern learning contexts, alongside the lack of research on its potential effect on the self-efficacy domains in this study. Parental background (mothers’ education, fathers’ education and wealth), school type and academic achievement are also explored because they have been shown in the global literature to be positively associated with several self-efficacy domains but remain underexplored in the Caribbean context. Exploring technology usage, student background and academic achievement together provides a detailed model of the pathways through which they interact and potentially affect self-efficacy. To explore these issues, a mixed-methods study was adopted, using a cross-sectional questionnaire involving 585 students, as well as semi-structured interviews with 34 teachers, students and a Ministry of Education official. Qualitative classroom and school observations were also done. Data were analysed using Structural equation modelling path analyses and Analyses of variance to establish models of relationships amongst variables. Qualitative data were analysed using thematic analysis to help explain the quantitative results. The results show various significant influences on self-efficacy. In terms of parental background, mothers’ education positively influences all types of self-efficacy. Wealth influences social self-efficacy through increased time spent on social media, and entrepreneurial self-efficacy through increased social media connections. The thematic analyses suggest that a greater exposure to opportunities and ideas beyond their community may be one reason why students with more privileged parental backgrounds might have higher confidence. Technology usage also influences all types of self-efficacy. Academic self-efficacy is directly and positively associated with technology usage for homework, whilst social self-efficacy is positively and directly associated with the time spent on social media and the number of connections on social media. Entrepreneurial self-efficacy is directly and positively associated with the number of connections on social media. Computer use at school had no significant effect on any type of self-efficacy. The thematic analysis suggests that that lack of effect of computer use might be due to insufficient infrastructure and teacher professional development, reducing teachers’ ability to competently facilitate technology use in classrooms. Finally, school ‘prestige’ positively influenced academic self-efficacy. The thematic analysis suggests that ‘prestigious’ schools had greater financial resources and lower levels of bureaucracy in implementing innovative pedagogy, which might facilitate the conditions for academic self-efficacy development. Finally, there were notable differences in the self-efficacy of boys and girls, with boys having higher. The thematic analyses suggest that the socialisation of meekness in girls and boldness in boys may be a reason. Ethnicity results also showed that African students had lower academic self-efficacy than their Indian counterparts, which the thematic analysis suggested could be because African boys are chastised by teachers at a seemingly greater rate. Notably though, African boys had the highest entrepreneurial self-efficacy. The conclusion brings together the results and identifies multiple areas for future research and policy development. Some key conclusions are that teacher professional development and infrastructure development are critical for technology use to be effective for developing student self-efficacy. Mothers’ education also emerged as a key variable, which highlights that mothers should probably be a target for access to further education so that they are better equipped to support their children’s confidence development. Schools could also explore having more celebrations of African culture to help African students feel more academically confident. Finally, the results of this thesis support the usefulness of domain-specific self-efficacy testing, as opposed to the testing of general self-efficacy, since clear differences were found in how each type of self-efficacy is influenced

The Use of SMS and Other Mobile Phone-based Messaging to Support Education at Scale : A Synthesis of Recent Evidence

Higher levels of device ownership and lower connectivity requirements are key reasons why mobile learning may have potential to support education at scale in low-income contexts. Interest in the use of mobile phones as an educational medium - particularly through the use of SMS or messaging apps - has been renewed recently, as a result of school closures prompted by the Covid-19 pandemic. As a result, the evidence base for educational interventions using SMS at scale has recently expanded. In this work-in-progress synthesis paper, we review recent research studies which have used SMS for education at scale, with findings published since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. We find that there has been a notable increase in studies which have used SMS to promote and support education at a large scale. In addition to its use as a medium for directly supporting learners, it has also been applied to promoting parental engagement and encouraging participation in formal schooling. The efficacy of interventions has been mixed, which highlights the need for nuance and further research as the field looks to understand which benefits of mobile learning could be beneficial to retain post-pandemic

EdTech for Ugandan girls: Affordances of different technologies for girls' secondary education during the Covid-19 pandemic.

MOTIVATION: This article discusses the use of educational technology (EdTech) in girls' education at PEAS (Promoting Education in African Schools) schools in rural Uganda during the Covid-19-related school closures. PURPOSE: This article addresses a research gap surrounding the potential use of EdTech to support girls' education, focusing on the barriers to girls' EdTech use and how technology might be used to enhance girls' education in disadvantaged rural areas-specifically their academic learning and their social and emotional learning. METHODS AND APPROACH: A sequential, explanatory mixed-methods case-study approach was used. Quantitative exploration of a dataset of 483 Ugandan students, from 28 PEAS schools, was first conducted, followed by interviews with PEAS staff to elucidate the reasons and context behind the findings. FINDINGS: Findings show that female students are less likely than male students to have access to their caregivers' phones for learning. The form of EdTech that appeared to be most beneficial for girls' academic learning was radio; girls also had significantly more interest in tuning into radio broadcasts than boys did. Also, poorer boys were more likely to be influenced by SMS messages than wealthier boys. Apart from gender-based differences, students with more highly educated parents found SMS messages more helpful, and phone calls from teachers appeared to help boost younger students' self-confidence. POLICY IMPLICATIONS: The findings suggest that policy-makers need to: carefully consider provision of education through multiple modes of EdTech in order to ensure that it reaches all students; ensure that caregivers are involved in the strategies developed for girls' education; make EdTech interventions interactive; and consider language in EdTech interventions. Given the gender differences which emerged, the findings are of relevance both to supporting the continuation of educational provision during periods of school closure, and also in terms of finding additional ways to support girls' education alongside formal schooling

Berufsbildung in Subsahara-Afrika: Eine systematische Aufarbeitung des Forschungsstandes

Haßler B, Stock I, Schaffer J, et al., eds. Berufsbildung in Subsahara-Afrika: Eine systematische Aufarbeitung des Forschungsstandes. Bonn: VET Repository; 2019