Many development organisations are initiating programs in Sub-Saharan Africa bringing information technology to community centres, schools, universities, and government institutions. In the United States and more particularly Silicon Valley, California, people are convinced of the benefits of the Internet. An organisation started in this context, Schools Online, has initiated programs in over 31 countries and spent millions of dollars in the South. The study focuses on Schools Online's history, structure, and vision while researching its activities in a rural school in the town of Jinja, Uganda, in Sub-Saharan Africa. It is recommended that Schools Online listens and learns from its beneficiaries when planning an information technology project. / Development Studies / M. A. (Development Studies)

Many development organisations are initiating programs in Sub-Saharan Africa bringing information technology to community centres, schools, universities, and government institutions. In the United States and more particularly Silicon Valley, California, people are convinced of the benefits of the Internet. An organisation started in this context, Schools Online, has initiated programs in over 31 countries and spent millions of dollars in the South. The study focuses on Schools Online's history, structure, and vision while researching its activities in a rural school in the town of Jinja, Uganda, in Sub-Saharan Africa. It is recommended that Schools Online listens and learns from its beneficiaries when planning an information technology project. / Development Studies / M. A. (Development Studies)

Collaborative partnerships aimed at strengthening institutional capacities are a long established trend in academia. Recent developments in Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) have fostered a renewed interest in collaborative initiatives in the academic sphere, however, and at the same time, have created new ways of working together. Current research models do not provide sufficient methods to guide collaborations in capacity-building processes in virtual environments, especially in contexts associated with inadequate resources. Conceptual tools are therefore needed to guide the implementation of partnerships that use technology to mediate capacity building in these contexts. This research study was aimed at understanding whether and how virtual partnerships can be used to facilitate capacity building in tertiary education institutions in the SADC region. It is based on a single case study of the SANTED Virtual Classroom Project, a partnership between the Departments of Computer Science at Rhodes University (RU) and the University of Namibia (UNAM). In the project, ICTs were used to mediate the process of building teaching and research capacity in the department at UNAM. The dynamics of the partnership are explored as the implementation process developed over a period of three years. The research adopted a sociocultural perspective in the analysis of the project‟s implementation. It uses activity theory and the notion of communities of practice as conceptual frameworks to explore how the two departments organised themselves and how they harnessed the virtual environment to enable the capacity-building partnership. Activity theory provided a lens to understand the complex relationships between the different elements of the partnership activities mediated by technological tools. The concept of communities of practice, on the other hand, enabled participants‟ progress to be analysed, as they went through the various transition stages of the capacity-building process. The thesis identifies the following four categories of challenges inherent in the implementation of virtual partnerships: infrastructural, institutional, cultural and individual expectations. It also emphasises the need for identifying the different transition stages corresponding to the levels of participation in the capacity-building process. The thesis recommends that the implementation of virtual partnerships for capacity building purposes in the SADC region must focus on: identifying the appropriate capacity building strategies at Abstract ii each transition stage; finding appropriate, light-weight virtual classroom solutions; identifying appropriate pedagogic models to suit available technology; addressing systemic tensions that can arise as a result of different institutional cultures; and developing and nurturing virtual communities of practice to ensure sustainability. The research findings contribute to the body of knowledge exploring the use of technologies to develop and strengthen human resource capacities in developing contexts in a sustainable way. More importantly, it contributes to the literature on collaborative virtual partnerships in the SADC region, and demonstrates one way in which the operations of such a partnership may be supported in similar contexts / Adobe Acrobat 9.53 Paper Capture Plug-in

English text, with summaries in English, Afrikaans and Zulu / This study aims to propose an e-learning framework for mobile devices in Africa to help improve enrolment rates and education standards in the FET (Further Education and Training) phase. The study is qualitative in nature and employs document analysis as main research method. An overview of the South African education context with supporting statistical data to motivate why an e-learning alternative is crucial for improving South African and African education is provided. The literature review includes a descriptive analysis of 7 existing e- and m-learning frameworks, with key features highlighted for possible adaptation or incorporation into an e-learning framework for Africa. Behaviourism, Constructivism and Connectivism are discussed as applicable learning theories to pedagogically underpin this proposed e-learning framework. Thereafter, a critical evaluation of current South African education policy documents (White Papers, the Norms and Standards for Educators and the Draft Policy for the Provision and Management of Learning Teaching and Support Materials) is conducted to determine whether these policies support and enable e-learning effectively. Part 2 of Chapter 5 comprises a critical analysis and comparison of education systems and applicable legislation in the USA, Finland and Malawi to establish how education is structured and how e-learning is administered in these countries to make relevant recommendations for South Africa and to inform the design of an e-learning framework for Africa. Research findings are presented as answers to the research questions posed and the proposed e-learning framework with further recommendations are presented to the South African Department of Basic Education, teachers and researchers. / Die doel van hierdie studie is om ‘n e-onderrig-en-leer raamwerk vir mobiele toestelle vir Afrika voor te stel, sodat inskrywingsgetalle en onderrig- en leerstandaarde in die Verdere Onderrig en Opleidings (VOO) fase verbeter kan word. Dit is ‘n kwalitatiewe studie en dokumentanalise word as navorsingsmetode toegepas. ‘n Oorsig van die huidige Suid-Afrikaanse onderwysstelsel en konteks met ondersteunende statistiese bevindinge word verduidelik om e-onderrig-en-leer as noodsaaklike alternatief vir Suid-Afrika en Afrika te motiveer. Die literatuuroorsig sluit ‘n beskrywende analise van sewe bestaande e- en m-onderrig-en-leer (mobiele-onderrig-en-leer) raamwerke in. Hoofkenmerke van elke raamwerk word uitgelig vir moontlike aanpassing en inkorporering in ‘n e-onderrig-en-leer raamwerk vir die Afrika-konteks. Leerteorië, nl Behaviourisme, Konstruktivisme en Konnektivisme (Connectivism) word in diepte bespreek as pedagogies fundamenteel om die e-onderrig-en-leer raamwerk te onderbou en te ondersteun. ‘n Kritiese evaluasie van Suid-Afrikaanse onderwysbeleid (d.w.s. Witskrifte, die Norme and Standaarde vir Onderwysers en die konsepdokument oor die Voorsiening en Bestuur van Onderrig-, Leer- en Ondersteuningsmateriaal) is gedoen om vas te stel of die beleid wel e-onderrig-en-leer effektief ondersteun en prakties moontlik maak. ‘n Krities analitiese en vergelykende studie van die VSA (Verenigde State van Amerika), Finland en Malawi se onderwysstelsels- en wetgewing is gedoen in hoofstuk 5 deel 2 om te bepaal hoe dié lande onderwys struktureer en hoe e-onderrig-en–leer geadministreer word, sodat relevante voorstelle vir Suid-Afrika gemaak kan word en om insae te lewer in die ontwerp van ‘n e-onderrig-en-leer raamwerk toepaslik vir die Afrika-kontinent. Navorsingsbevindinge word voorgelê aan die Suid-Afrikaanse Departement van Basiese Onderwys, onderwysers sowel as aan navorsers. / Lolu cwaningo luhlose ukuphakamisa uhlaka lwe-e-learning lamadivaysi eselula e-Afrika ukusiza ukuthuthukisa izinga lokubhalisa nezindinganiso zemfundo kwiSigaba se-FET (Further Education and Training). Ucwaningo luyimfanelo enemvelo futhi lusebenzisa ukuhlaziywa kwedokhumenti njengendlela yokucwaninga eyinhloko. Ukuhlolisisa umongo wezemfundo waseNingizimu Afrika ngokusekela imniningwane yezibalo ukugqugquzela ukuthi kungani enye yokufunda email ibalulekile ekuthuthukiseni imfundo yaseNingizimu Afrika ne-Afrika. Ukubuyekezwa kwezincwadi kuhlanganisa ukuhlaziywa okuchazayo kwezinhlaka eziyisikhombisa ezisekhona ze-e- e-m-learning, nezici eziyinhloko eziqokonyiswe ukukhishwa kwe-adaption noma ukufakwa kwisakhiwo se-e-learning se-Afrika. Ukuzikhethela, Ukwakhiwa kwe-Constructivism (Kwe Zokwakha) kanye ne-Connectivism (Kwe Zokuxhumana) kuxoxwa njengezifundo ezifanele zokufunda ukusekela lolu hlelo oluhlongozwayo lwe-e-learning. Ngemuva kwaloko, ukuhlolwa okubalulekile kwemibhalo yamanje yemfundo yaseNingizimu Afrika (Amaphepha Asemhlophe, Imigomo Nemigomo Yabafundisi kanye neNqubomgomo Yohlaka Lokufundiswa Nezifundo Nokusekela) kwenziwa ukuze kutholakale ukuthi lezi zinqubomgomo zisekela futhi zikwazi yini ukufundisa nge-e-ephumelelayo. Ingxenye yesibili yeSahluko sesihlanu iqukethe ukuhlaziywa okubucayi kanye nokuqhathaniswa kwezinhlelo zemfundo kanye nemithetho esebenzayo eMelika, eFinland nase Malawi ukuqinisekisa ukuthi imfundo ihlelwe kanjani nokuthi i-e-learning inikezwa kanjani ukwenza izincomo ezifanele eNingizimu Afrika nokwazisa ukuklama uhlaka lwe-e-learning lwe-Afrika. Imiphumela yokucwaninga inikezwa njengezimpendulo zemibuzo yokucwaninga ephakanyisiwe kanye nohlaka oluhlongozwayo lwe-e-learning kanye nezincomo ezengeziwe ezethulwa eMnyangweni wezemfundo Eyisisekelo, othisha nabacwaningi baseNingizimu Afrika. / Curriculum and Instructional Studies / M. Ed. (Curriculum Studies)