Facing the challenges of e-learning initiatives in African universities

This paper explores the possibility of bringing e-learning to African universities through collaborative networks of public–private partnerships. It is envisaged that this approach will solve the dual problem of infrastructural barriers and weak ICT policies. As technology is used more in education, the teachers’ roles are increasingly integrated with those of support staff, administrators and technical staff. The needs of e-learning environments suggest the viability of multistakeholder networks to share expertise and resolve issues related to training needs. The paper concludes that collaboration networks that include e-learning sponsors, policy makers, telecommunication network service providers and educators are required to solve the problems of online education in Africa.

[1]  J. Wells.  Hospital-based industrial therapy units and the people who work within them - an Irish case analysis using a soft-systems approach. , 2006, Journal of psychiatric and mental health nursing.

[2]  R. Middlehurst.  A world of borderless higher education: impact and implications , 2006 .

[3]  Karanja Gakio.  African Tertiary Institutions Connectivity Survey (ATICS) - 2006 Report , 2006 .

[4]  Gary Motteram,et al.  'Blended' education and the transformation of teachers: a long-term case study in postgraduate UK Higher Education , 2006, Br. J. Educ. Technol..

[5]  Paul D. Williams.  Blair's Commission for Africa: Problems and Prospects for UK Policy , 2005 .

[6]  John Couperthwaite,et al.  Building learning communities: foundations for good practice , 2005, Br. J. Educ. Technol..

[7]  Mike Johnson,et al.  Effective practice with e-learning , 2005, Br. J. Educ. Technol..

[8]  John Cowan.  Global perspectives on e-learning , 2005, Br. J. Educ. Technol..

[9]  Daisy Mwanza,et al.  Managing content in e-learning environments , 2005, Br. J. Educ. Technol..

[10]  Fernando Alonso,et al.  An instructional model for web-based e-learning education with a blended learning process approach , 2005, Br. J. Educ. Technol..

[11]  Rob Koper,et al.  Educational modelling language: modelling reusable, interoperable, rich and personalised units of learning , 2004, Br. J. Educ. Technol..

[12]  O. Debande.  ICTs and the Development of eLearning in Europe: the role of the public and private sectors , 2004 .

[13]  S. Mehrotra,et al.  Education for All: How Much Will It Cost? , 2004 .

[14]  Rashid Aderinoye.  African Virtual University: The case of Kenyatta University, Kenya. , 2003 .

[15]  Siddhartha Prakash.  The African Virtual University and growth in Africa : a knowledge and learning challenge , 2003 .

[16]  Kazimierz Kowalski,et al.  The role of local authorities in the integration of ICT in learning , 2002, J. Comput. Assist. Learn..

[17]  Christopher Ziguras,et al.  Educational technology in transnational higher education in South East Asia: the cultural politics of flexible learning , 2001, J. Educ. Technol. Soc..

[18]  Magdallen N. Juma.  African Virtual University , 2001 .

[19]  P. Orazem,et al.  Worker Displacement During the Transition: Experience from Slovenia , 1999 .

[20]  Oleg Liber,et al.  A framework for pedagogical evaluation of virtual learning environments , 1999 .

[21]  Richard T. Vidgen,et al.  Stakeholders, soft systems and technology: separation and mediation in the analysis of information system requirements , 1997, Inf. Syst. J..

[22]  Andrew Jamison,et al.  Making Dreams Come True , 1984 .