Teaching through technology

23 April 2020 | Story Joanne Hardman. Photo Pexels. Read time 6 min.
Many schoolchildren do not have devices or connectivity; yet another factor that widens the gap between the advantaged and the disadvantaged.
Many schoolchildren do not have devices or connectivity; yet another factor that widens the gap between the advantaged and the disadvantaged.

These are difficult days. We are a country in lockdown and schools and universities are being called on to teach remotely so that students can finish the 2020 academic year. Online teaching, however, in the most unequal country in the world, is highly problematic, writes the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) Associate Professor Joanne Hardman.

In an article published on April 9, Professor Jonathan Jansen makes an ethical argument for why teaching online is a problem in the South African context and proposes scrapping the academic year. I do not rehearse his cogent arguments here except to underline his point that 80% of schools are disadvantaged. Most schoolchildren do not have devices or connectivity, making this online move yet another step in widening the gap between the advantaged and the disadvantaged. 

My article is not about the ethics of online teaching and learning, but rather, deals with the pedagogical implications of teaching “through” versus “with” technology.

Information and communication technologies (ICTs) are tools that can be used very well, provided they are underpinned by what is referred to as a constructivist pedagogy. The research is clear: it is how the tool is used by a competent teacher that determines the outcomes. A constructivist pedagogy assumes that children are active learners who, together with the teacher, can construct knowledge. An iPad, for example, is a tool much like a pen is a tool. In the early 20th century when pens replaced chalkboards and styluses, there was a huge outcry about how this novel tool would adversely affect children.

Did the pen change children cognitively? Undoubtedly, yes. We no longer must remember things orally but can write them down, leaving cognitive space for other things. The pen alone does nothing to alter a child cognitively. Technological devices, also, cannot on their own alter a child cognitively. There is a body of evidence to show that ICTs have a positive effect on, for example, mathematical gains in primary schools, but this depends entirely on how the ICTs are used pedagogically, where pedagogy refers to the dialogical interaction opened between teacher and taught. It is in the social space opened by communicative interaction that understanding and conceptual development can happen. A pen carries with it no concepts; neither does any ICT.

If schooling is about anything, it must be about the development of cognitive functioning. This requires face to face pedagogy. I am unaware of any research suggesting that teaching through technology (as opposed to with technology) can promote cognitive development. So, pedagogically, this online move is not likely to lead to learning in any meaningful way, which starkly brings into question why this move has been made. Moreover, the practicalities of online teaching are hard to navigate, even for those who have significant privilege.

I am well educated, I have three devices in my house, and I am fairly competent at using them. I’m privileged enough to have a space to work with my daughter who, in grade 4, has begun online schooling. Grade 4 is an interesting age; at 10 children have not yet developed the ability to fully self-regulate or think in abstract ways. They require concrete examples of the concepts they will acquire over time. 

My child is at a good former Model C school and the teachers are doing their best to interact with the children online. Unfortunately, cognitively, children below the age of 13 or 14 are unable to grasp abstract concepts in the absence of concrete examples. Worksheets, placed on Google Classroom, are not concrete examples. 

Although I am educated, I am not a qualified teacher and the struggle to make concrete the concepts she is being given is a very real one. What of those parents who do not have familiarity with devices or who are not well educated? How will they traverse this uncertain terrain? 

Of course, the question then becomes, what to do if we cannot teach online?  We need to be thinking long term, it’s conceivable that children will not return to classrooms if Covid-19 is not brought under check. With this in mind, we need to streamline our curriculum to teach core concepts. If the lockdown is lifted and schooling does commence, I do not necessarily think the year is lost — provided we pare down the curriculum and use the longer holidays as teaching time. 

I’d like to salute the teachers who are sitting in their homes, with their own children and 30 to 40 virtual children, operating through a platform they were never taught to fully use in university. The next time you clap for essential services, I hope you will be clapping for these unsung heroes who educate our children.

Joanne Hardman is associate professor in the school of education at the University of Cape Town.

This article was originally published by Mail & Guardian.

For licensing information please visit the source website.

UCT’s response to COVID-19

COVID-19 is a global pandemic that caused President Cyril Ramaphosa to declare a national disaster in South Africa on 15 March 2020 and to implement a national lockdown from 26 March 2020. UCT is taking the threat of infection in our university community extremely seriously, and this page will be updated with the latest COVID-19 information. Please note that the information on this page is subject to change depending on current lockdown regulations.

Minister of Health, Dr Joe Phaahla, has in June 2022 repealed some of South Africa’s remaining COVID-19 regulations: namely, sections 16A, 16B and 16C of the Regulations Relating to the Surveillance and the Control of Notifiable Medical Conditions under the National Health Act. We are now no longer required to wear masks or limit gatherings. Venue restrictions and checks for travellers coming into South Africa have now also been removed.

In July 2022, the University of Cape Town (UCT) revised its approach to managing the COVID-19 pandemic on UCT campuses in 2022.
Read the latest document available on the UCT policies web page.

 

Campus communications

 
2022

Adjusting to our new environment 16:50, 23 June 2022
VC Open Lecture and other updates 17:04, 13 April 2022
Feedback from UCT Council meeting of 12 March 2022 09:45, 18 March 2022
UCT Council
March 2022 graduation celebration 16:45, 8 March 2022
Report on the meeting of UCT Council of 21 February 2022 19:30, 21 February 2022
UCT Council
COVID-19 management 2022 11:55, 14 February 2022
Return to campus arrangements 2022 11:15, 4 February 2022

UCT Community of Hope Vaccination Centre

On Wednesday, 20 July, staff from the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) Faculty of Health Sciences came together with representatives from the Western Cape Government at the UCT Community of Hope Vaccination Centre at Forest Hill Residence to acknowledge the centre’s significance in the fight against COVID-19 and to thank its staff for their contributions. The centre opened on 1 September 2021 with the aim of providing quality vaccination services to UCT staff, students and the nearby communities, as well as to create an opportunity for medical students from the Faculty of Health Sciences to gain practical public health skills. The vaccination centre ceased operations on Friday, 29 July 2022.

With the closure of the UCT Community of Hope Vaccination Centre, if you still require access to a COVID-19 vaccination site please visit the CovidComms SA website to find an alternative.

 

“After almost a year of operation, the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) Community of Hope Vaccination Centre, located at the Forest Hill residence complex in Mowbray, will close on Friday, 29 July 2022. I am extremely grateful and proud of all staff, students and everyone involved in this important project.”
– Vice-Chancellor Prof Mamokgethi Phakeng

With the closure of the UCT Community of Hope Vaccination Centre, if you still require access to a COVID-19 vaccination site please visit the CovidComms SA website to find an alternative.


Thank You UCT Community

Frequently asked questions

 

Global Citizen Asks: Are COVID-19 Vaccines Safe & Effective?

UCT’s Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine (IDM) collaborated with Global Citizen, speaking to trusted experts to dispel vaccine misinformation.



If you have further questions about the COVID-19 vaccine check out the FAQ produced by the Desmond Tutu Health Foundation (DTHF). The DTHF has developed a dedicated chat function where you can ask your vaccine-related questions on the bottom right hand corner of the website.

IDM YouTube channel | IDM website
 

 

“As a contact university, we look forward to readjusting our undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in 2023 as the COVID-19 regulations have been repealed.”
– Prof Harsha Kathard, Acting Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Teaching and Learning

We are continuing to monitor the situation and we will be updating the UCT community regularly – as and when there are further updates. If you are concerned or need more information, students can contact the Student Wellness Service on 021 650 5620 or 021 650 1271 (after hours), while staff can contact 021 650 5685.

 

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