Media Usage Patterns of African Higher Education Students: A Ghanaian Perspective

The study examined the media usage patterns of 598 university students in Ghana to understand their demands for digital teaching and learning, as well as their patterns of media use for learning, with the goal of informing the media selection process. Overall, the study found that the universities fell short of meeting students' expressed need for digital learning formats. The gap represents both a challenge and an opportunity for the expansion of digital teaching and learning formats in Ghanaian universities. Furthermore, the media usage patterns reveal significant leisure-seeking and recreational uses of media by students, emphasizing the pervasiveness and embeddedness of smartphones in academic contexts. The emphasis on entertainment usage and the prevalent use of media for hedonistic purposes may suggest a deficit in digital skills regarding the use of media for learning. The study found no significant differences in user profiles between traditional and non-traditional students. The implications for instructional design activities and strategies for a mobile-saturated context are discussed

Exploring OER Awareness and Engagement of Academics from a Global South Perspective – a Case Study from Ghana

This study explored how academics in a Ghanaian university conceptualized and engaged with OER through a qualitative approach (in-depth interviews). “Access” emerged as the most dominant theme in how OER was conceptualized. Academics regarded OER positively; emphasizing its role in reducing the knowledge imbalances between the Global North and Global South and enhancing academic practices. Whilst some quality concerns about OERs were expressed, the reputation of sharing-institutions turned out as a significant factor in determining quality of the materials. Overall, the study revealed a deep-seated culture and practice of (re)use, revise, remix and redistribution of e-resources – akin to open practices, only that, this occurred locally among faculty, and at highly informal levels without the application of relevant open licences due to low awareness. In effect, the existing practices among faculty signal open-readiness

Learning with Digital Media: A Systematic Review of Students’ Use in African Higher Education

This study examined African higher education students' digital media use for learning. A total of 64 papers were selected for final synthesis from 1046 publications between 2010 and 2021. The review was dominated by campus-based undergraduate studies in the STEM subjects. The synthesis confirmed a variety of digital media usage; however, learning management systems were mainly used for course delivery and primarily accessed by students through weak internet-enabled mobile devices. Digital-media learning activities include communication, information search, instruction, knowledge management, exploration, assessment, collaboration, and simulation. Subject areas were found to have no associations with type of learning activity. These findings suggest an emphasis on transmissive learning modes in digital environments, which may not promote active learning. Although African countries have leapfrogged the development of tethered devices and internet applications, connectivity cost, reported incompatibility, technical issues, and low digital proficiency still prevent the upscaling of technology-enhanced learning via mobile devices

Elements of Open Education: An Invitation to Future Research

This paper explores elements of open education within the context of higher education. After an introduction to the origins of open education and its theoretical foundations, the topics of open and distance learning, international education issues in open education, open educational practices and scholarship, open educational resources, MOOCs, prior learning accreditation and recognition, and learner characteristics are considered, following the framework of macro, meso, and micro levels of research in open and distance learning. Implications for future research at the macro, meso, and micro levels are then provided

Elements of Open Education: An Invitation to Future Research

This paper explores elements of open education within the context of higher education. After an introduction to the origins of open education and its theoretical foundations, the topics of open and distance learning, international education issues in open education, open educational practices and scholarship, open educational resources, MOOCs, prior learning accreditation and recognition, and learner characteristics are considered, following the framework of macro, meso, and micro levels of research in open and distance learning. Implications for future research at the macro, meso, and micro levels are then provided