Harnessing Open Educational Resources to the Challenges of Teacher Education in Sub-Saharan Africa

Thakrar, Jayshree; Wolfenden, Freda; Zinn, Denise

doi:10.19173/irrodl.v10i4.705

Cited by 56 publications

(42 citation statements)

References 8 publications

(2 reference statements)

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“…TESSA 6 is a research and development project initiated by the Open University in the United Kingdom in 2005 to improve the quality of, and extend access to university-led teacher education programs in SSA (Wolfenden, 2008;Thakrar et al, 2009). TESSA involves a consortium of 18 institutions (13 African institutions and 5 international organisations) delivering teacher education in nine African countries.…”

Section: Tessamentioning

confidence: 99%

An empirical investigation of the emergent issues around OER adoption in Sub-Saharan Africa

Ngimwa

Wilson

2012

Learning, Media and Technology

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An empirical investigation of the emergent issues around OER adoption in Sub-Saharan AfricaWithin the past few years, Africa has joined the rest of the world as an active participant in the Open Educational Resources (OER) movement with a number of home-grown and externally driven initiatives. These have the potential to make an immense contribution to teaching and learning in Sub Saharan Africa (SSA). However, certain barriers prevent full participation. This paper reports on qualitative research that sought to investigate SSA's readiness to adopt OER. The study involves three case studies based in higher education institutions involved in OER projects and located in Kenya, Uganda, and South Africa. Findings indicate contrary to popular belief that low technology levels in Africa do not necessarily impede adoption of such educational technologies; the real challenges facing readiness to adopt OER appear to be related to socio-economic, cultural, institutional and national issues. This paper argues for a complete mind shift in how people perceive OER. It also proposes raising awareness of OER at all levels, involving institutions and government, versioning OER for the African context and conducting more research on OER adoption.Keywords: open educational resources; OER in Africa; challenges of adopting OER IntroductionWhen the concept of Open Educational Resources (OER) was conceived, supporters perceived it as a way of making knowledge accessible to all, especially those in most need (Smith & Casserly, 2006 Framing the investigation within an existing OER project (i.e. Teacher Education in SubSaharan Africa (TESSA)) it was possible to interview institutional practitioners (already involved in OER in higher education institutions (HEI)) in Kenya, Uganda and South Africa and discover challenges and success factors that had an impact on their readiness to adopt OER in this region. Although a single project is not representative of a greatly diverse continent such as Africa, the choice of TESSA presented an appropriate study context as it provided access to African practitioners conversant with OER who had first-hand experience of developing and using such content within their own context. Additionally, nine non-TESSA participants from the same institutions were included to help identify socio-cultural issues that potentially influenced non-adoption of OER. We first present a brief literature review followed by a background section which includes a description of the TESSA project.An account of the research method used is then provided, followed by the research findings which are discussed within the context of existing knowledge. The paper concludes with suggestions for future OER development in SSA and similar contexts. LITERATURE REVIEWIssues around adoption of OER have been identified in relation to the African continent; however the discussion has been anecdotal in nature since little documented empirical evidence exists (Hodgkinson-Williams, 2010). Although broadband access can be limited and costly (OECD, 20...

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Section: Tessamentioning

confidence: 99%

An empirical investigation of the emergent issues around OER adoption in Sub-Saharan Africa

Ngimwa

Wilson

2012

Learning, Media and Technology

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“…The existing obstacles to promoting and sustaining OERs in higher educational institutions are discussed in a number of studies (Olcott, 2012a;Anderson & McGreal 2012;De Langen & BitterRijkema, 2012;Olcott 2012b;Sener, 2010;Soffer & Cohen, 2015;Joseph & Nath, 2013), which provide insight into the common constraints such as poor infrastructure, inaccessibility and lack of funding. Scholarly works in primary education too highlight similar problems, in addition to which the need for teacher training and pedagogical adaptability are greatly debated (Kurelovic, 2016;Lee, Messom, & Yau, 2013;Whitworth, Mcindoe & Whitworth, 2011;Bergman, 2014;Van Acker, Van Buuren, Kreijns & Vermeulen, 2013;Thakrar, Zinn & Wolfenden, 2009;Sapire & Reed, 2011). The chapter then reviews the scholarly works on OERs in India, in reference to their role in other countries.…”

Section: Thesis Organizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These differ largely from jurisdiction to jurisdiction and from one institution to another, making sustainability a factor that should perhaps be examined on a case-by-case basis, rather than trying to understand it collectively (Downes, 2007). For example, in the case of the TESSA (Teacher Education in Sub-Saharan Africa project), a major challenge was sustaining the initiative without allowing the flow of funds to be disrupted, whilst maintaining and enhancing it further (Thakrar, Zinn & Wolfenden, 2009). In addition, it faced another issue: The Open University (OU), in the United Kingdom was leading the initial phases of the project, since which it has been difficult to shift the administrative functions to Africa (D'Antoni, 2009;Sapire & Reed, 2011).…”

Section: Oers and Primary Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For OERs to reach the learner and for them to achieve their goal of free mass education, teachers are key, as they are the ones who are the focal point between OERs and the learners as well as the ones who can provide the appropriate resources from its source to students (Petrides et al, Ponti, 2014). According to Thakrar et al (2009) (Hennessy, Haßler & Hofmann, 2016;Basha, 2010 Africa need to overcome and as discussed, teacher education and access are of prime concern (Thakrar et al, 2009;Wolfenden et al, 2012). (Kanwar, 2013).…”

Section: Oers and Primary Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…They are the focal point between learners and OERs, who can provide the appropriate materials from their source to students (Thakrar, Zinn & Wolfenden, 2009;Wolfenden, Buckler & Keraro, 2012). This means that the "present generation of teachers cannot afford to be isolated practitioners working within a single classroom " (Misra, 2012, p.1).…”

Section: Teacher Trainingmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Role of Open Educational Resources (OERs) in Primary Education in Developing Nations: A Case Study of India

Ganapathi¹

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This research aims to identify how open educational resources (OERs) can contribute towards primary education, and what role they might play in increasing childhood literacy in particular, which has been identified as a prime component in ensuring educational attainment in primary school. Literature in the area largely addresses OERs and their potential to widen participation in tertiary education with a focus on developed nations, with little discussion about how OERs can be utilized in primary education. This thesis is particularly interested in the role OERs might play in primary education in developing nations where a range of challenges contribute to the low levels of literacy. In nations like India and South Africa, which are the locations of the case study organizations selected for this research, decentralized rural populations, combined with high levels of poverty, child labor and low levels of literacy and awareness cause poor attendance and access to schools. This research suggests that OERs aimed at developing literacy in primary school-aged children can overcome the distribution and access issues that contribute to low attendance and engagement with education in these nations. OERs have the capacity to bypass low levels of educational infrastructure by distributing high quality resources online in low definition formats suitable for downloading and under open licenses on platforms suitable for users to repackage, translate and re-purpose according to their particular need or audience. While there are a range of sustainability challenges for organizations with a social mission to use OERs to increase the equity and access of educational materials, these organizations have found innovative solutions taken from other online successes such as gaming and social media. Making use of volunteers and users in a community of practice to ensure that content is translated, quality is maintained and there is volume on their sites has some risks but also enables the maintenance of an open repository of materials for use, re-use, adaptation and sharing. This thesis contributes to the existing literature by shedding light into understanding these challenges from the experiences and perspectives of three case study organizations that provide OERs for children.

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The Quality of Life of Teachers in Sudan

Abdelgafar

2019

Handbook of Quality of Life in African Societies

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Harnessing Open Educational Resources to the Challenges of Teacher Education in Sub-Saharan Africa

Cited by 56 publications

References 8 publications

An empirical investigation of the emergent issues around OER adoption in Sub-Saharan Africa

An empirical investigation of the emergent issues around OER adoption in Sub-Saharan Africa

The Role of Open Educational Resources (OERs) in Primary Education in Developing Nations: A Case Study of India

The Quality of Life of Teachers in Sudan

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