Johannes Cronje

Using Hofstede's cultural dimensions to interpret cross-cultural blended teaching and learning

This article reflects on the cross-cultural communicative experiences of professors from South Africa and students from Sudan, during a two-year Internet-supported Masters course in Computers in Education. Four of Hofstedes cultural dimensions were considered as categories of interpretation. The purpose of the research was to determine the extent to which Hofstedes static quantitative, research could be used as a basis for an essentially qualitative dynamic interpretation. While Hofstedes work focuses on cultural differences, this article tries to uncover what commonalities were constructed in the process. It was found that in this case, dimensions such as power distance and uncertainty avoidance tended to amplify each other, while together they resulted in a movement away from individualism towards collectivism. Accommodating across cultures did not mean that one should move into the other culture. Three elements seem to play a role when cultures meet: Reduction of communicative uncertainty, construction of shared meaning, and appropriate use of technology. More research should be conducted to uncover the elements that are common to cultures because emphasising commonality seems more useful than trying to overcome differences.

Metaphors and Models in Internet-Based Learning

Abstract Most Internet-based education and training sites use the metaphor of a virtual classroom, and the methodology follows the model of a virtual lecture. This article investigates ways in which other instructional techniques, such as discussions, case studies, workshops and “buzz groups” can be delivered in a virtual classroom on the Internet in order to create a more interactive and interesting learning experience. Aspects covered include student participation by creating own web sites, holding discussions and a student rag procession. The article concludes with a list of “Lessons learnt” from 4 years of lecturing in a web-based environment.

Read-only participants: a case for student communication in online classes

The establishment of an online community is widely held as the most important prerequisite for successful course completion and depends on an interaction between a peer group and a facilitator. Beaudoin reasoned that online students sometimes engage and learn even when not taking part in online discussions. The context of this study was an online course on web-based education for a Masters degree in computer-integrated education at the University of Pretoria. We used a mixed methodology approach to investigate how online activity and discussion postings relate to learning and course completion. We also investigated how student collaborative behaviour and integration into the community related to success. Although the quantitative indices measured showed highly significant differences between the stratifications of student performance, there were notable exceptions unexplained by the trends. The class harboured a well-functioning online learning community. We also uncovered the discontent students in the learning community felt for invisible students who were absent without reason from group assignments or who made shallow and insufficient contributions. Student online visibility and participation can take many forms, like read-only participants who skim over or deliberately harvest others discussions. Other students can be highly visible without contributing. Students who anticipate limited access due to poor connectivity, high costs or other reasons can manage their log-in time effectively and gain maximum benefit. Absent and seldom contributing students risk forsaking the benefits of the virtual learning community. High quality contributions rather than quantity builds trust among mature students. We suggest how to avoid read-only-participation: communicate the required number of online classroom postings; encourage submission of high quality, thoughtful postings; grade discussions and give formative feedback; award individual grades for group projects and rotate members of groups; augment facilitator communication with Internet-independent media to convey important information. Read-only-participants disrupt the formation of a virtual community of learners and compromise learning.

Computers for Africa: lessons learnt from introducing computers into schools in Mozambique

This article discusses research undertaken to document the process of introducing and using information and communication technology (ICT) in the secondary schools of Mozambique in the last three years of the 20th century. The research takes the form of a case study focused on the internet for Schools Project (IFSP), which is considered the first attempt to integrate computer-assisted education in Mozambique. The study identifies some important collateral aspects that developing countries should not underestimate when planning the dissemination of ICT in schools to accelerate the countrys future participation as an active member of the global information society. We ask three questions What happened? What worked? What did not work? We then propose some recommendations for implementing computers in schools in other developing countries.

Training cataloguing students using a mix of media and technologies

The appropriateness of utilising a training resource programme consisting of a mix of media and technologies for the training of cataloguing students is evaluated. The findings from reported research and evaluation of the training resource programme made it possible to identify advantages and disadvantages of using such a programme. The results of the research enabled the researcher to derive guidelines for the design and development of a training resource programme consisting of a mix of media and technologies. The use of media and technologies, in a training research programme for cataloguing training, can be utilised in training cataloguing students in contact classes, distance education as well as in‐service training.

Alternatives in evaluating multimedia in secondary school science teaching

While different approaches to evaluation will yield different results, depending on the purpose of the evaluation this article describes an evaluation approach that was aimed at investigation the mental models of users of the programme. The study was driven by questions about the differences in mental models of the instructional designers and the learners, the time learners spent working through the program and the observable changes in their mental models. In this design experiment, a program was developed to teach basic principles of electricity. Three boys and three girls one each of high, medium and low achievement in science were selected from an advantaged urban school, and a similar sample was taken from a disadvantaged rural school. They were asked to draw their impressions of various concepts of electricity and then allowed free access to the program, where they could visit any section even if they had not completed a previous one. Afterwards they were asked to draw sketches again. Other instruments included an opinion questionnaire and observation of the learners working with a think aloud protocol. It was found that there were considerable differences in the mental models of the learners and designers about what to expect from computer-based learning. While navigational freedom allowed fast learners to move through work that they knew already, weaker learners tended to get lost. The sketches that learners made before and after exposure to the program provided valuable insights into the growth of their understanding of the concepts.

The Internet as an information conduit in developing countries: an investigation of World Wide Web usability among small and medium textile enterprises in Botswana

The Internet has been called the technology of the century because it is expected to reduce the development gap between developing countries and developed ones. This article examines the validity of that assertion. The researcher examines Internet use at two levels. The first level is the macrolevel of issues of Internet connectivity in developing countries and the second level is the microlevel of the usability of the World Wide Web (WWW) for information management in a developing country, Botswana. The two research methodologies of content analysis and case study were used for this study. The findings of this study are that entrepreneurs found a Website easy to use, but while there is a need for macropolicy to create national and global environments for using the Internet sustainable connection should not be universal, but should rather be based on the information management needs of a target population. Inherent infrastructural and socio-technical challenges should then be tackled as part of the effort to create a sustainable Internet usage.

Learning from a free‐access digital information kiosk in Africa: An objectivist – constructivist investigation

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to consider the type of learning that takes place if members of an under‐resourced community are exposed to a free‐to‐use computer that is connected to the internet.Design/methodology/approach – Qualitative application of an instrument that was developed to evaluate the information resource for the extent to which it facilitates both objectivist and constructivist learning. Video recordings of the interactions of people at the information kiosk were viewed and transcribed, and subjected to classical analysis to answer the questions posed by the instrument.Findings – It was found that this particular information resource contained both objectivist and constructivist elements. Furthermore, it was found that objectivism and constructivism are complementary to one another and the degree of integration varies according to certain pedagogical dimensions. An open‐access information portal affords opportunities both for direct instruction and constructivist learning.Research...

Towards a systemic view of educational technology in developing regions

This paper is aimed at educational technology specialists who work with multicultural and international projects in developing countries. Educational technology is increasingly portrayed as a cure for the developing countries educational challenges. But as countries differ much from each other, and as developing regions differ in many ways from industrialized regions, naïve technology transfer just does not work. We propose a tentative framework for a systemic view of educational technology in developing regions. In that framework, we present 100 pedagogical, socioeconomic, and technical considerations that educational technology developers may need to re-think in projects in developing regions. We propose further research on developing the current framework into a proper analysis tool.

Methical Jane: Perspectives on an Undisclosed Virtual Student

We examined the ethical implications of a mythical online student with a carefully concealed real identity who took part in an online post-graduate course. The mythical online student took part in all student activities and provided co-students with cognitive and technical support as a covert second facilitator; consequently, students found scaffolding unobtrusive and integrated the unknown virtual student into the learning community. We explored the ethical implication of undisclosed identity and analyzed Students’ reaction to the disclosure of the mythical student after the course. The study confirmed our success in creating a convincing virtual student, but this success precipitated some shock, disbelief, and dismay. Most students accepted the presence of a virtual student, but some felt betrayed because her real identity was hidden. Recommendations for implementing such a virtual tool ethically are advanced, along with suggestions for teaching situations that may benefit from its use.