SOUTH AFRICA: Universities not far behind the curve

The use of information and communication technologies to support learning in South African universities is booming and they are "not very far behind the curve" of developed countries in e-learning, says Stephen Marquard, learning technology coordinator for the University of Cape Town. Activities are limited by low internet bandwidth and uneven access by students to computers, but there is widespread experimentation within this constrained African context and interest is keen - last month participants from 14 African countries and 24 worldwide 'attended' the third virtual conference on educational technology in Africa, e/merge 2008.

The University of Cape town is actively involved with institutions elsewhere in the world in developing the open source software Sakai, locally branded as Vula (which means 'Open!'). It is used by 25,000 students, staff and visitors, with some 10,000 distinct users logging on each day - and also by the distance University of South Africa and North-West University.

"We are using the same software as Stanford, Cambridge and other leading universities and the extent of our use is high - more than 70% of the student body," Marquard says. "So on uptake and software we are similar to many universities worldwide."

However, South African universities are generally not as well resourced as those in the developed world. Bandwidth is very low - though fibre networks and other ICT infrastructure is on the way - internet costs are high and many students do not have easy access to computers. A World Bank-commissioned report on connectivity in African tertiary institutions showed that the average in South Africa is 11 users per computer, which is much better than the African average but indicates the pressures on access.

"While laptops may be the lowest common denominator for students at some US universities, most students here don't have laptops," Marquard adds. "Cell phones are the lowest common denominator among students here, and South Africa is more advanced than the US in using cell phones for e-learning." There are 724 mobile subscribers per 1,000 South Africans - more than in the US or UK - and an estimated 98% of students have cell phones.

Use of educational technologies and e-learning took off in South Africa from around 2000.

Almost all universities have some form of e-learning activity but it varies greatly in level of institutional support, funding, uptake and staffing - which ranges from one to 82 in university e-learning centres. Use also depends considerably on facilities available. The role of e-learning thus depends a great deal on what an institution needs to - and can - do.

Some institutions, such as the University of Pretoria, adopted an institutional strategy early on, while others have not taken a strong institutional line. Mostly, e-learning is used to support and supplement face-to-face teaching - called 'blended learning' - deliver learning materials and enhance communication between students and between staff and students.

The University of South Africa uses e-learning to distribute resources and facilitate interaction, and 160,000 of its students have an online account with the university. But, like many other universities, it is bumping up against constraints such as the problem of weak ICT skills among staff, lack of resources and low levels of computer and internet access.

"Now e-learning is consolidating but there are also lots of new things happening," Marquard says. Universities are increasingly interested in services and platforms on the general internet for learning purposes. But is more difficult in South Africa to use Web 2.0 applications and social platforms, such as Second Life, because of slow access - low bandwidth and internet systems that are heavily over-subscribed limit the use of some educational applications.

At UCT, technologies are used to distribute notes and announcements, and e-learning supports teaching while some courses are designed around use of an online environment and others employ complex simulation games. "We work with courses and departments, using specialist education technology to address a particular learning issue," says Marquard.

For instance, simulation is used to enable students to experience the process of locating a flaw in a ship's hull, and film and media students are able to simulate film editing. International law courses in the Bachelor of Laws degree include an award-winning tutorial simulation, Inkundla yeHlabathi (World Forum), in which students apply rules and methods of international law by simulating the work of legal advisers to African states.

Despite infrastructural constraints and a range of organisational contexts, practices and cultures, e-learning has become very much part of universities, write the authors of a report titled "The impact of South Africa's ICT infrastructure on Higher Education", presented at the 3rd International Conference on e-Learning held at the University of Cape Town in June.

"ICTs are used by almost all staff and students for teaching and learning activities in some way, although use is still quite narrow and confined to familiar technologies," say Cheryl Brown of the University of Cape Town's Centre for Educational Technology, and five colleagues from UCT and the universities of the Free State and Stellenbosch.

Aside from the constraints already mentioned, they point as additional problems to divides between poorer and wealthier students, and lack of infrastructure and access leading to some activities only being undertaken in specialised areas with facilities and skilled staff. Also, managers "are still battling misconceptions of e-learning and distance education", and half of universities do not provide e-learning incentives for academic staff.

But constraints can also be viewed as opportunities, Brown et al write. Limited access can inspire different ways of working, such as computer tasks involving peer learning or group work, while universities should more fully exploit the pervasive use of cell phones.

"While many institutions may focus on the number of computers available for students, it is really the conditions of access that make the difference for students. This suggests that institutions may be better off focusing on practical conditions such as opening hours and support," they add.

The wide use of the internet also provides "an opportunity to counter the paucity of African languages and content through the development and sharing of locally produced content that span South Africa's myriad of language groups", while "digital divides suggest opportunities also exist for student support of e-learning within the domain of educational development." Finally, the authors write: "There are definite areas for collaboration, joint research projects and sharing of good practice."