ICT in Education: The European View

This unit has been treated as per the instructions and for that matter a discussion group was set up yesterday (28th April) to delibrate, brainstorm and bring together ideas. Members of the group are Jonas, Kobina, Gyau, Collins and Modestus. After a thorough discussion these are the answers that group agreed to present.

Q1. With regard to question 1, the group observed that there are a number of elements in the transformed role of the teacher in elearning which are beneficial to our work. The beneficial elements are as follows:
1. Less Physical contact: Undoubtedly, elearning reduces the level of physical contact that the teacher has to experience everyday. Because, lessons and assignments could be relayed to students by email. An example is what we are experiencing while undertaking this course. We have had a series of lessons and assignments from our tutors but without physical contact.
2. Teacher becomes a facilitator more than a lecturer. Rightly so because lesson could be presented in power point presentations and other formats so that the class becomes more interactive as the lecturer/teacher, conducts, guides or facilitate the smooth running of the class.
3. Design lesson materials in an interactive manner. This is a follow up to the second point. Lessons, when presented with ICT tools, makes the class more interactive and lively. Since the attention of students could be engaged with visuals (steel and motion) as well as sound. My experience in Barking College, London, taught me how to do this and do it effectively. Last semester, I tried this interactive ICT based method in the Diploma 2 class in GIJ. The topic was 'Measuring Advertising Effectiveness'. Ofcourse, testing effectiveness in advertising calls for 'Recognition', 'Recall', 'Salience', and 'Engagement' tests. In a quest to test the students, I presented two Television ads with the Laptop and the projector for students to watch and interact by discussing the high points of the ads. The results was amazing and after conducting plenary I realised that the lesson had gone down well and they had understood. the topic. For three consecutive times I had to do this to finish the topic and it worked.
4. Students have the opportunity to research more and get exposed to a greater community of learning. Exactly so. Offering students the opportunity to do assignments through research gives them a greater avenue to maneuver and search for info.


Q2. The answer to question 2 is as follows:

1. Blended learning will be a better option for us in
Ghana and Africa. Because people are so used to the traditional classroom learning and will not easily and entirely switch to 100% elearning Not to mention the numerous probems we face in ICT development. It might occure in the future but for now I am afraid not.
2. Due to special education needs. As a trainded Special Education Needs(SEN)teacher, coupled with my experience in London as a SEN Facilitator, I would like to state categorically, that 'all children/students are equal but not all children/students are the same'. Differences in IQ, cultural backgrounds, sensory impairments and others deficiencies on the part of students makes it necessary for the blended option to be used.
3. Course structure. Differences in course structure and modules also makes it impossible to use elearning method only. Because some subject areas may require practical demonstrations through the traditional method of learning and this cannot probably be rendered with ICT.
4. In terms of quota, how much emphasis should be placed on both? what should the ratio be? I think it should be 50% traditional and 50% elearning. However, it depends on the environment.

Q3.

1. I dont think the European and African attitudes
in education is compatible. Attitudes are not compatible. Because in Africa, attitude towards ICT adoption and practice is slow yet in Europe it is a generic/ everyday life kind of thing and adoption uncompromised – very fast.
2.. Literacy rates must improve in Ghana and Africa. Lack of education is a nuisance and delaying the proliferation of ICT.

3. Language barrier, lack of reading. In Africa the English language is a barrier to ICT development even in Anglophone countries like Ghana. Worse of it is reading and a culture of low-interest-in-reading. Yet reading is an inevitable activity in ICT. Change the language to the native/ local dialect and the problem of reading is likely to be there.

4. Elitism. What we mean by ‘elitism’ is that people who are computer literate (computer scientists/ programmers) in our societies are not developing programmes to help digitalize our day-to-day activities like transportation, buying and selling, traveling etc. at the local level. Rather they are producing for high capacity businesses and financial companies.