Contextual framework for research

Purpose of contextual framework

• To provide a shared language to underpin the PHEA E-learning proposals, initiatives and projects

• To locate current issues and debates in context• To identify the key areas and elements of learning activities,

practices and research sites in Africa, and to map key relationships between those elements

• To identify points of leverage for change using educational technology to address educational challenges

Organisational

Technical

Adapted from Conole & Oliver 2007:13

Political

EconomicSocial

Pedagogical & Epistemological

Key factors

Course

Key levelsNational

Regional

Global

Disciplinary

Institutional

Course

Levels Key factors

Social, political and economic

Organisational Pedagogical & epistemological

Technical

Global

Regional

National

Institutional

Disciplinary

Course

Levels Key factors

Social, political and economic

Organisational Pedagogical & epistemological

Technical

Global

Regional

•Issues and debates•Interventions•Investigations

National

Institutional

Disciplinary

Course

Levels Key factors

Social, political and economic

Organisational Pedagogical & epistemological

Technical

Global

Regional

National

Institutional Probable key focus area for PHEA ETI

Disciplinary

Course

Institutional: Social, political & economic

• Institutional issues and debates– Changing student needs and social divides (rural/urban,

gender, class, disability)– Enabling policy environment– Economic constraints and sustainability

• Institutional interventions – Strategy for the inclusion of under-represented groups– Development of institutional e-learning policies– Inclusion of e-learning policies in relevant university

policies– Development of a long-term sustainability plan– Linkages between institutional policies, regulations and

quality assurance mechanisms

Institutional: Social, political & economic (cont.)

• Institutional investigations– How do the needs of the “information society” translate

into graduate competencies and institutional direction?– What does such concepts as “any time any where” and

“just in time learning” mean for university activities?– How does/can e-learning encourage access of under-

represented groups to the University?– How well does the e-learning policy direct and support

activities of university management, academics and students?

– In what ways does e-learning support the increase of the number of students enrolling at the University?

– How effective are monitoring mechanisms regarding e-learning policy and practice?

– How does the institutional environment constrain and enable the take up of ICTs for teaching and learning?

Institutional: Organisational

• Institutional issues and debates– Institutional structures to support student needs – Institutional structures to enhance contribution of staff– Integration of ICTs in higher education institutions– Recognition for e-learning developments– Incentives for e-learning activities and innovation– Intellectual Property Rights and alternative licensing

• Institutional interventions – The development of institutional policies to enable staff

in the use of ICTs for teaching – The development of institutional structures to enable

staff in the use of ICTs for teaching – The development of institutional policies to support

students in the use of ICTs for learning (eg computer literacy, information literacy, graduate competencies)

– The development of institutional structures to support students in the use of ICTs for learning

Institutional: Organisational (cont.)

• Institutional investigations– How well does the University support staff to develop

and students to use (and contribute to) e-learning materials?

– What recognition systems are in place to acknowledge the development of e-learning materials? Are they adequate? Which interests do the serve and what are the implications of this?

– What is the role of IPR policy in the production and dissemination of institutional resources? What are the implications of current and potential policies?

– How well does the University support staff in obtaining appropriate copyright for e-learning materials?

– How effective are dissemination mechanisms for the dissemination of institutional resources?

Institutional: Pedagogical

• Institutional issues and debates– Relationship between e-learning policy and curriculum

development– Quality assurance mechanisms– Use of e-learning for assessment and evaluation– Linkages between infrastructure and strategy

• Institutional interventions – Ensure synergy between e-learning policy & curriculum

development– Create quality assurance strategy– Appropriate infrastructure to support strategy decisions

for teaching and learning (classroom facilities, data projectors, wireless access etc)

– Rewards for good teaching with technology

Institutional: Pedagogical (cont.)

• Institutional investigations– How well do e-learning policies relate to and support

curriculum development?– How exactly is quality of e-learning courses ensured?– How exactly do staff and students use e-learning to

support their teaching and learning activities?– What pedagogical value do existing ICT-mediated

practices bring into the current classroom activities?– What existing ICT-mediated social practices do students

bring to the classroom context, which can be leveraged for teaching and learning?

– Which ICT tools add value to pedagogical activities– What are the global trends of ICT-mediated pedagogical

practices? How can these inform and influence local situations?

Institutional: Technical

• Institutional issues and debates– Institutional ICT infrastructure & support– Institution-wide learning management system– Other software for teaching and learning– On-campus/off campus accessibility

• Institutional interventions– Improvement of ICT support for students and staff– Creation of institution-wide learning management

systems– Creation of institutional repository for sharing teaching

and learning resources beyond university – Wireless access

Institutional: Technical (cont.)

• Institutional investigations– How well do existing structures support the use of e-

learning?– What is the role of the LMS in terms of the different

disciplinary communities within the university?– What long term scenarios need to be planned for?– How effective is the fit between the infrastructure and

the strategic direction of the institution?– What are the enabling and constraining technological

and practical factors for e-learning use?

Research agenda deliberations

• Day three– Introducing the research journey– Mapping the institutional e-learning agenda

and identifying potential projects– Identifying potential research projects within

the broader institutional e-learning research agenda

– Mapping potential projects to potential participants

– Developing a framework for a proposal for the potential research project

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