AP Success - AP English Language: E-Learning in the COVID Pandemic

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, which brought greater

awareness of the benefits of blended tuition in Africa and

beyond, the focus is turning away from the technical

stability of learning management systems (LMSs) to concerns

5

about how to support people to get the most out of these

edtech platforms and enhance the quality of teaching and

learning.

In an article published last year in the International

10

Journal of Higher Education, Bongani Gamede and colleagues

from the University of Zululand in South Africa argue that,

while LMSs provided the best alternative to face-to-face

learning during COVID-19 shutdowns in South Africa, their

effective use is anchored on the availability of

15

technological resources that give users (both lecturers and

students) the required support.

LMSs are platforms for the delivery and storage of learning

materials and activities used by teachers to design, manage,

20

organise and present learning materials for online access.

According to Gamede and colleagues, there are more than 100

LMS platforms available in Africa, including Moodle, Author,

Blackboard Learn, Forma, Learn Afrique, Google Classroom and

Schoology Learning. Some universities have also developed

25

their own unique systems.

While there has been an increased appreciation of the role

of LMSs and technology in education in the wake of COVID-19

despite connectivity challenges, Dr Melvin Govender, country

30

manager for educational technology systems company

Anthology, South Africa, said there is a need for staff to

be “digitally competent to enable the creation of learning

material that allows students to have exceptional learning

journeys”.

35

He said that, in partnership with UNESCO, Anthology has

trained more than 12,000 educators in North Africa and the

Caribbean on effective use of LMSs in teaching.

40

“You can have the infrastructure for proper functioning of

LMSs but, without training of the subject experts, it

becomes useless,” he said, adding that having regular

meetings through user communities “provides a platform for

course facilitators to share their concerns and learn from

45

each other”.

Emergency interventions

As it became clear that the pandemic might drag on, so did

50

the need to embrace online teaching.

Dr Ndidi Ofole, a lecturer at the University of Ibadan’s

faculty of education in Nigeria, said that, before the

COVID-19 outbreak, her university had an e-learning

55

programme for distance learners but the programme was rarely

used by regular students.

When the pandemic struck, students and lecturers at the

university were caught off guard as the capacity to use the

60

e-learning platform was poor on the part of both lecturers

and students.

Like those at many institutions of higher learning in

Africa, Ndidi and colleagues began with ‘emergency’

65

interventions, using mobile phones to share learning

materials with students and conducting rudimentary

assessments.

Ndidi was fortunate to have received training in online

70

facilitation, course design, assessments and support of

students led by Nairobi-based Partnership for African and

Social Governance Research.

“I had gone through intensive training in online delivery,

75

using Moodle. The skills I acquired made it easier for me to

design interactive courses. Many of my colleagues who had no

training were struggling to design learner-centred courses.

Students were also struggling,” said Ndidi.

80

For Ndidi, a key challenge her university faced while

transitioning to online teaching was the attitude of faculty

members who did not believe that Moodle could deliver

enhanced quality learning.

85

“What they did not know about were innovative teaching

methods such as e-case studies, group work and role-plays to

facilitate learning online. The platform [Moodle] offered

interactive platforms such as wikis and discussion forums

for students to actively participate in class,” said Ndidi.

90

An emphasis on quality

Professor Tashmin Khamis, vice provost quality, teaching and

learning at the Aga Khan University (AKU) in Kenya, said

95

that COVID-19 put the spotlight on teaching online with

tremendous progress from African universities but with

little emphasis on the quality of learning.

“The question of concern should be quality. Are university

100

students getting quality teaching?” she said. “We are seeing

awareness that we need to use what LMSs give us to better

teach the learner,” Khamis told University World News in an

interview.

105

When universities first adopted LMSs, Khamis said, many

lecturers were using them as simple repositories to post

learning materials for students.

“But, with time, the students demanded interactive teaching,

110

not only with the course facilitator but also among

themselves,” said Khamis, adding that this prompted the need

to train and support faculty to meet student needs.

Now, through AKU’s Network of Quality, Teaching and Learning

115

(QTL_net), “we are supporting faculty to look at the designs

that engaged the learners through blended teaching ... [such

as] a flipped classroom”, she said.

What is critical, said Khamis, is to help faculty design

120

teaching activities, such as creating quizzes on the LMS

that help realise course learning objectives, and designing

discussion forums and wikis for students to interact and

give feedback.

125

“We are improving learning experiences for students by doing

more asynchronous teaching, which is different to

independent learning. The course facilitator could design

activities for students to do on their own or as a group so

as to encourage peer learning,” she said.

130

Asynchronous e-learning can be described as flexible

learning that allows students to log on to an e-learning

system at any time, download study material and interact

with teachers and peers, but at a time convenient to the

135

student.

Providing sufficient support

But, for African universities to ensure sufficient support

140

for educators, there is a need to have e-learning

developers, instructional designers and educational

technologists who help faculty in making decisions on course

design for effective delivery online, said Khamis.

145

“In the Global North, these architects of online teaching

are in universities. In Africa and Asia … we do not have

these resources, making it difficult for faculty to

effectively teach online,” she added. With such experts, she

said, faculty can be trained on critical aspects such as how

150

to ensure inclusive teaching and learning, innovative online

facilitation and assessment and course design.

She urged African universities to create an enabling

environment for blended teaching, not only with respect to

155

infrastructure but also in the provision of support for

teaching staff and students.

Khamis said it was also important that faculty and students

are not overburdened. A study by AKU published last year in

160

the Journal of Work-Applied Management found that faculty

motivation, mental wellness and high workload were critical

challenges for those grappling with online teaching.

“We need regular refresher training to upgrade our skills

165

and re-tooling to engage our students,” said Ndidi, calling

for the introduction of online teaching into curricula for

training teachers at universities.

Gamede and colleagues confirm that “the professional

170

development of academics needs to be not only adequate but

regular to address quality online teaching, online classes

and assessments”.

Meeting students’ needs

175

Khamis said learners need equitable access to LMSs and

should be helped to navigate them and maximise use of the

virtual learning environment.

180

This is particularly important, given problems of access to

technology experienced by students around the world,

particularly those in developing countries.

A recent survey by UNESCO and Anthology published in a white

185

paper found that approximately 35% of students and faculty

globally said that lack of access to technology is a major

drawback to accessing education. In Africa, this situation

is even more pronounced.

190

Mirko Widenhorn, a senior director of engagement strategy at

Anthology, and colleagues found that 54% of students and

faculty said lack of access to technology was a major

challenge.

195

Govender said an LMS should allow students to use technology

for “personalised learning experiences” which means that

teaching platforms respond to student needs, especially

those living with disabilities, to enable them to maximise

learning outcomes.

200

Govender, whose work involves supporting academics to use

Anthology (which merged with Blackboard in 2022, but still

offers Blackboard Learn as a solution), told University

World News: “Accessibility and inclusivity are important in

205

ensuring that no student is left behind.”

This means that the blind and students living with other

disabilities should have LMSs that meet their special needs.

One special feature allows blind students to convert a

210

PowerPoint presentation into audio, change the colour of

content or convert content into electronic Braille.

Govender said Anthology is set to introduce a data

collection feature that collects information about

215

individual students from the time of entry to the end of the

course.

“High intelligence experience for our students is what we

want to see. Collection of data will make the system

220

proactive and provide timely interventions by the course

facilitators to help students throughout the course study …

the data will also help students make informed decisions

about their strengths and where they want to go,” said

Govender.

225

Regular feedback

As universities go back to face-to-face teaching post-COVID

restrictions, the focus of Anthology is “on the course

230

engagement tools as institutions are more flexible with

hybrid lecturing, with wider acceptance of students to learn

online,” Govender said.

To do this, LMSs engage institutions in getting regular

235

ideas and feedback on what they want to enhance teaching and

learning with the product development team using such

feedback to improve their system.

With increased efforts being made by universities and LMSs

240

to improve student experiences and meet their needs,

Widenhorn and colleagues argue that there are still

opportunities to help support learners to improve access,

retention, and student success globally.

245

“By considering student feedback and investing in technology

resources to deliver more personalisation across everything

from course delivery options to career services, higher

education leaders can position their university to provide

an experience that meets the needs of today’s learners – and

250

those of tomorrow.”