The Partnership for Higher Education in Africa Educational Technology Initiative

1. The Partnership for Higher Education in Africa Educational Technology Initiative Neil Butcher

2. Project Goal • The purpose of the project has been to support interventions in universities supported by the Partnership for Higher Education in Africa (PHEA) to make increasingly effective use of educational technology to address some of the underlying educational challenges facing the higher educational sector in Africa. This has required a focus on capacity development to initiate and sustain effective educational technology projects which impact on the nature and quality of the student learning experience and outcomes, as well as a focus on knowledge creation and dissemination across and between partner universities on the use of educational technology.

3. The Universities • Makerere University in Uganda • University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) in Tanzania • University of Jos in Nigeria, • University of Ibadan in Nigeria, • Kenyatta University (KU) in Kenya • UniversidadeCatólica de Moçambique (UCM) in Mozambique • University of Education, Winneba in Ghana

4. A Two-Part Process: Part A • A model for engaging institutions in the development of effective, integrated Educational Technology Plans. • Seven comprehensive Educational Technology Plans. • A network of researchers established across participating institutions. • A coordinated research programme, which comprises local-level research activities conceptualized and developed under the auspices of an overarching set of questions.

5. Significant Progress • Institutional commitments to ICT growing – has led to policies at some institutions • Strong focus on deployment of ICT to tackle teaching and learning challenges: • All institutions using Moodle • Some deployment of other technologies (mobile, radio, e-portfolios) • Extensive growth in number of online courses produced over the life of the project • Growing use of online courses on campuses • Research agenda developed and implemented, but quite late in project (once activity was well underway): • Case studies • Baseline surveys • PhD • External evaluation

6. Emerging Lessons (1) • Unpredictable events are the norm, so this reality should be factored into project design and timing • Keep expectations of what will be delivered realistic and modest, rather than overloading the project designs with highly ambitious objectives • Ensure that timeframes to achieve objectives are kept tight, but leave space towards the end of these timeframes to absorb unexpected delays • Working through rigid hierarchies creates problems in communication and implementation

7. Emerging Lessons (2) • Often, educational technology units are marginalized within institutions • Capacity development is a key need, including ability to design projects that: (a) have clearly identifiable, specific, and realistic deliverables; (b) respond to already identified institutional priorities; and (c) are properly budgeted, with full analysis of all resource inputs required for implementation • Paucity of ICT infrastructure remains a major barrier to deployment of technology for educational purposes. • Simplicity is key to success and success is key to future success

8. The Opportunities… • Telecommunications capacity is growing rapidly • Growth in range of devices at reducing cost • Lower power use and growth in solar power • And there is an explosion of freely available, high quality content online that educators and students can link to…

9. So, what are the implications?

10. Secure ubiquitous broadband connectivity

11. Harness what already exists – and teach students how to do the same

12. Re-orient human resources more explicitly around interplay between research and education, to release all available productivity

13. Purge and reverse the growth of administrative bureaucracy

14. Publishing Results See the results on: www.oerafrica.org (follow links to the PHEA Educational Technology Initiative)