Exploring the role of an organization in implementing a Work-From-Home Strategy

Organizations are trying to move quickly to adopt remote working policies into their organizations as to attract and retain top talent, reduce office space costs, and increase productivity. As many of these strategies were quickly adopted by South African ICT organizations during the COIVD-19 pandemic, organizations are still somewhat unclear on what their role is with regards to ensuring long term adoption of remote working. Thus, this study explored the role of the organization with regards to a work-from-home strategy. It was found that the organization is responsible for formalizing the chosen strategy, creating supportive policies, and adapting its management styles to facilitate remote working

Developing a model to assess Feasible Capacity to Work-From-Home

With the growing popularity of Work-From-Home (WFH) organizations have been required to adapt their ‘ways of working’ strategies to the ‘new normal’, as both employees and organizations aim to reap the benefits of WFH. This has resulted in organizations and their leadership teams needing to create WFH strategies for their organizations. With many of these WFH strategies developed in isolation of all stakeholders, with the feasibility of these WFH strategies remain uncertain. Therefore, this research task has reviewed literature to develop a conceptual model that describes how leadership teams can make informed feasible WFH strategy decisions, through the concept of a Theoretical Capacity to WFH. The proposed model describes the WFH Domain and how the WFH Domain influences the Feasible Capacity to implement a feasible WFH strategy. Thus, indicating to leadership how to form a feasible WFH strategy for their organization

The extent of usage of mobile devices for learning outside the classroom in a secondary school in Tanzania

Secondary school students are labelled as bad mannered, and low achievers because of their extent of using mobile devices. Elder siblings and parents have not supported these students use of mobile devices. In some cases, students have had their devices confiscated. Little do parents know; their children are using mobile devices for learning outside the classroom. Students view using their mobile devices for learning to be compatible with using textbooks and that as they use the devices outside the classroom, they are supplementing their learning. When confused, they contact teachers for clarification. To understand the extent of secondary school student’s use of mobile devices for learning outside the classroom in Tanzania, a single secondary school was purposively selected. A total of 202 students responded to questionnaire, and 20 students were interviewed by the researchers. The theory of diffusion of innovation was employed to provide an understanding of the phenomenon of interest. This research aims to debunk the myth on secondary school student’s use of mobile devices, equip students staying far from schools, and with less resources evidence of a tool they can use for learning, provide a theoretical elaboration on usage of mobile devices for learning, and apprise the informal learning community

USING GOOGLE SITES AS AN INNOVATIVE LEARNING TOOL AT UNDERGRADUATE LEVEL IN HIGHER EDUCATION

Using engaging and entertaining learning tools and techniques inside and outside the classroom has become imperative in order to ensure, amongst others, subject-matter retention for the scholars of today. These technologies are not restricted to enriching course content alone and can also stimulate and encourage students to participate in collaborative learning processes. In this paper, the use of Google Sites© is described to encourage collaborative learning.. The research findings are supported with outcomes from student questionnaires. The research found that integrating Google Sites© into undergraduate education will be beneficial for improving Information Systems knowledge and competence

Towards a social software technology ecology for computer-supported collaborative learning

The objective of this study was to determine whether social software can be used to support Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) for the Net Generation of students in a higher education context. The use of social software combined with a CSCL environment is proposed as a tool that can improve teaching and learning endeavours around the world. In attempting to justify this proposal, a Participatory Action Research project was conducted at the University of Pretoria which involved conducting social software interventions over the course of three years, 2009 to 2011, on a 1st year under-graduate course run in the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. Three key themes were explored extensively, being the Net Generation, CSCL and Social Software. The study sought to find commonalities between these three concepts, as well as identifying existing research, which would make them influential in supporting collaborative learning endeavours for the Net Generation in higher education. The use of Social Software in higher education, as well as the use of Social Software for CSCL in higher education, was explored to determine whether, how and the extent to which Social Software is being used to support CSCL for the Net Generation in higher education. Most of the research done in this regard is limited to the actual social software tool(s) that is used, with little focus on providing input as to how Social Software can be used for CSCL for the Net Generation in higher education. An existing CSCL Theoretical framework was used as a basis to develop an enhanced framework, called the Social Software Socio-Economic-Cultural-Technical (SECT) framework for CSCL. The SECT framework was developed incorporating relevant concepts from Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy, Experiential Learning Theory, CSCL and Participatory Action Research, as well as the application of the relevant findings from each iteration of the project. The positive results obtained from this study concerning the use of social software for CSCL and the subsequent social software SECT framework for CSCL, will enable lecturers to understand and design successful CSCL environments using social software for the Net Generation of students in higher educationThesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2013.gm2013Informaticsunrestricte

The Relationship Between Prior Game Experience And Digital Game-Based Learning: An INNOV8 Case-Study

The adoption of gaming within education on a global basis is receiving widespread attention as this trend is a relatively new and innovative method for teaching and learning on an institutional level. The nature of the research documented in this paper seeks to provide insight into the potential effectiveness of using IBM’s Innov8 © to teach information systems at a higher education institution. The authors conducted the research during a career placement week which took place at their higher education institution. A number of grade 12 learners had the opportunity to play IBM’s Innov8 in the institutions computer labs as a way of introducing them to broad information systems concepts as well as exposing them to a more enjoyable and entertaining way of learning. This paper will seek to explain correlations between the findings which point to the effectiveness of Innov8 as an innovative method of teaching information systems

Factors Affecting Organisations’ Adoption Behaviour toward Blockchain-Based Distributed Identity Management: The Sustainability of Self-Sovereign Identity in Organisations

Blockchain-based Distributed Identity Management (BDIDM) can enhance sustainable identification and authentication of users on organisations’ digital systems. But there is not a clear consensus on how organisations perceive the value proposition of such technology, nor what might affect their adoption behaviour toward it. This research explains how technological, organisational and environmental (TOE) factors affect organisations’ adoption behaviour toward BDIDM. This study aims to determine the most critical factors affecting the behaviour while assessing the effectiveness and appropriateness of the model involved, i.e., TOE-BDIDM. Online questionnaires are used to survey 111 information and cybersecurity practitioners within South African organisations. The analysis combines binary logistic regression modelling, Structural Equation Modelling of the measurement model, and chi-squared tests. The results suggest TOE factors positively or negatively affect adoption behaviour. The behaviour is significantly affected by technology characteristics, i.e., BDIDM’s disruptive nature, and is associated with Blockchain type. Indeed, the majority of participants intended to recommend BDIDM to their organisations yet paradoxically preferred private-permissioned blockchain the most, revealing resistance to decentralised and privacy-preserving BDIDM models like Self-Sovereign Identity (SSI). The latter might be utopian or unsustainable for organisations. TOE-BDIDM was found relatively appropriate and effective but arguably ‘incomplete’ for explaining the adoption of disruptive technologies like SSI in organisations. TOE should extend to TOEU by including the User factors