Presenter: Dr. Jerome Dooga, Lecturer University of Jos, Nigeria

Format: Asynchronous discussion from 5 – 9 December + Live online meeting on Tuesday 6 December (12:00 Abuja time/ 13:00 Cape Town time/ 14:00 Nairobi time). Using a Nigerian Open and Distance Learning Institution as case study, this seminar engages participants in a conversation on what factors are hindering technology uptake in education and the role of learning design approaches as a driver in technology uptake.

More and more institutions are adopting some form of technology in teaching and learning. Even those yet to do so hold a positive view of its use. Yet, many who have, struggle to add value to the learning process with its use. Many feel that use of technological tools and devices seems to add little value to their practice and sometimes is actually a hindrance or a distraction to learning. Thus, even some Open and Distance Learning (ODL) institutions can’t seem to fully embrace technology for their course offerings. One reason for such frustrations may lie in the focus on the tool rather than the principles of best practice in teaching and the misalignment of learning design and technology choices. In this presentation, I will argue that learning design should drive technology choices. Conole defines learning design as “a methodology for enabling teachers/designers to make more informed decisions in how they go about designing learning activities and interventions, which is pedagogically informed and makes effective use of appropriate resources and technologies” (2013:7). In order to use technology effectively for teaching and learning, educators need to ask basic questions about the classroom: what do we want to do? With what goal and objectives? What outcomes are desired? The answers to such questions will inform what tools are needed to accomplish what is desired. Technology integration will therefore align with the learning design. During this presentation I will share examples from my own teaching contexts in Nigeria to illustrate how learning design involves reimagining some key functions of the classroom and that this is essential for effective technology integration. Such reimagination is key for making best use of technological affordances to enhance teaching and learning experiences.

Dr. Jerome Dooga  is an Lecturer,Department of English, Faculty of Arts, University of Jos, Nigeria.
He is also the e/merge Africa Regional Coordinator for West Africa and Commonwealth of Learning (COL) eLearning consultant to the School of Education at the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN). Jerome holds a PhD in English and has received postgraduate training in Educational Technology at the University of Cape Town. He has presented research papers at various fora in a range of African countries including a number of conferences. He has published widely in the field and is co-author and editor of a new book on technology in African Higher Ed.

This seminar has ended please review seminar resources here

Dr Juliet Inegbedion, National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN)

Format: There will be one 1 hour online session on Monday 7 November at 1:00 pm (SAST) and asynchronous discussion from 7-11 November.

Across Africa conventional universities can only provide places for a tiny fraction of students who meet all the entrance requirements so open and distance learning widens access to university education. The Nigerian Federal Government established the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) in 2002 to provide access to those who seek quality education at the university level through flexible learning.

The quality of the programmes and courses depends on the academics who plan the programmes, develop the curriculum, manage courses & programmes and carry out administrative duties. It is observed that the academics often complain of work overload. It also appears there is a mix-up in integrating the mode of planning workload in the conventional universities into the open and distance education universities. This may be attributed to inadequate spread in the duties assigned, which if not checked could affect the quality of teaching and learning. This study seeks to examine NOUN policy on the workload framework, workload planning and the implications for teaching and learning. The outcome of this study will not only be beneficial to NOUN but every other open and distance education institution which faces similar challenges.

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I would like to participate in the one hour Adobe Connect live session on Monday 7 November (12:00 Abuja time/ 13:00 Cape Town time/ 14:00 Nairobi time)

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Join us today online at 10 am (SAST) today (Accra 8 am/Abuja 9 am/Nairobi 11 am) when we present preliminary findings from our needs and assessment survey conducted in collaboration with the Association of African Universities.
To join:
1) go to the e/merge Africa Adobe Connect Meeting Room (http://meeting.uct.ac.za/emergeafrica)
2) Choose ‘Enter as Guest’ (usually default option)
3) Type in your name in the text box
4) Click Sign in to room.
During April, May and June, the e/merge Africa team joined forces with the Association for African Universities (AAU) to conduct an e-learning  needs assessment survey. Designed to understand the needs and priorities of elearning practitioners and researchers in African higher education the survey was distributed to institutions throughout the continent receiving 287 responses. The survey closed in early June and we are now ready to share provisional findings based on the analysed survey data. Join us on 22 September at 10 am (SAST) for an insight into what African colleagues consider is needed to make blended and online based teaching successful in African institutions.

Please note this will be a blended session: If you are at the University of Cape Town campus we welcome you to join us at the Centre for Innovation in Learning and Teaching (CILT), Upper Campus, PD Hahn building, Level 7. Should time or distance only permit participation remotely then this is possible via Adobe Connect (please view this guide for instructions on how to attend). Please sign up below.

This event is presented in collaboration with the Centre for Innovation in Learning and Teaching (CILT) University of Cape Town, South Africa and the Association of African Universities (AAU)

This event has ended thank you to all who took part – To view the recording of the webinar and continue the conversation please access this forum (requires login)