South Africa Connect

Steve Vosloo speaks about how broadband will change the way learners participate in the knowledge economy.

Steve Vosloo, 21st Century Learning Fellow at the Shuttleworth Foundation, painted an inspiring picture of what teaching and learning could be in the future if South African students were broadband-enabled.

Steve started off by reminding us of the hopes that South African leaders have had for South Africa even from 1996 – to be an information society, made up of knowledge workers who participate in the knowledge economy on a global level. What this means is that access to information through ICT is critically needed to allow us to plug in to this knowledge economy, not only as consumers or receivers of information, but as participants too.

Steve spoke about the skills that youth are gaining by being actively engaged with content – they are learning critical reading, skills problem solving, and how to share and collaborate - these kids are learning how to be active 21st century citizens.

In a non-broadband enabled world, education was about acquiring information, trusting the knowledge authorities and asking no questions, it was a one of instruction.

Compare this to an information-rich broadband enabled world (this is the electrifyingly exciting picture of learning that Steve paints!) - where homework becomes user-generated content, that is not written for the teacher to read, but is written for a wider audience, a change of focus which has shown that students improve their writing ability and quality. And when your homework is published on the web, it means that your circle of friends broadens – you learn inter-cultural competence and awareness, and are positioned for peer-to-peer learning. And with a global outlook it means your eyes are opened so that problem solving become global, you have a broader audience and a bigger voice. Essentially this opens learners up to an information rich world that is about constructing meaning from multiple sources, and involves debating, questioning, and interacting.

Steve gave some exciting examples of the type of homework that could be assigned to children in a broadband-enabled learning environment. For example, instead of asking students to read the opening scene of Macbeth at home – how about asking them to find a few video examples on YouTube, and then get them to write a critical comparative analysis of these on their homework blog? The second example he used was one that is actually happening through the popular chat application Mxit – it’s called Dr Math where kids can log in and ask for help with their maths homework from University of Pretoria students.

The point that Steve made through the latter example was how broadband need not give rise to ‘high tech’ education tools, it can enable in different ways, at different speeds, depending on the level and needs of a community. The point is that it enables an array of interactive, participatory, skill-building opportunities for young people.

The other critical point that Steve made was that this approach is completely aligned with outcomes-based education – it teaches learners how to be critical, analytical, communicative, and how to work in a group. He also said that it won’t suddenly turn bad teachers into good teachers – what it will do is empower learners to keep teachers accountable.

Without access to affordable broadband, the ‘participatory gap’ is widening in South Africa - what this means is that South African youth are faced with unequal access to the opportunities, experience, skills and knowledge that will prepare them for full participation in a knowledge economy. This is where broadband steps in as a critical enabler that will truly fulfill the vision of a participatory, information society in South Africa.