Mtandao Afrika A learnerled program Shafika Isaacs Executive

Mtandao Afrika A learner-led program Shafika Isaacs Executive Director School. Net Africa s. isaacs@schoolnetafrica. org www. schoolnetafrica. net www. mtandao-afrika. org

About School. Net Africa l l l Network of schoolnet practitioners in 35 African countries Promote learning and teaching through use of ICTs FOCUS: • ACCESS: Campaign for 1 Million PCs • CAPACITY BUILDING: Teacher Professional Development in Technical and Pedagogical Skills • AFRICAN EDUCATION CONTENT: Curriculum Integration and Learning Strategies

Mtandao Afrika CONCEPT l Formerly Think. Quest Africa l Learners (12 -19) from different African countries forming teams to develop educational websites l The team chooses a topic from one of two sets of categories: thematic OR curricula l Team includes a teacher chosen by the learners l The teacher act as coach l Team research their topic, design their website and upload content onto the Mtandao-Afrika site

Mtandao Afrika CONCEPT l An international panel of educationists serve as judges l Websites are assessed l Awards are presented to the ‘best’ sites per category • • • Design Content-richness Strategies for interactivity Learning value Use of local African languages Gender mainstreaming

Activities l l l Web Contest Online learner forums Annual Youth Camp Awards Ceremony Digital Library of Learnerdeveloped content

Competencies l l l Information gathering Cross cultural communication Research and investigative skills Web design skills Technical skills Knowledge production of local content

Challenges/Criticisms l Internet-based l Contest-oriented l ‘Elitist’ model l Quality assurance – subjective

SNA Research Findings l Learning was extensive for learners interviewed l Changes in attitude and skill development l the social learning experiences were particularly significant l Fostered cultural sensitivity, new social understandings, tolerance, communication, creativity l Fostered agency in a way that goes beyond the dynamics of the classroom l Agency developed primarily through working within a team as equals but with diverse backgrounds across race, gender, culture, geographical divides, resource divides and histories

SNA Research Findings l l Competition and prizes, opportunity to travel and meet participants, were major motivating factors for participation The participants also saw the program as more than a competition but an opportunity for learning

SNA Research Findings l l l Criteria for judging the sites included redress, inclusivity, and outreach Competition was designed to motivate students to excellence BUT it also has broad educational goals, which imply mass participation

SNA Research Findings l l l Tension between the notion of “elitism” vs mass participation Suggests mass participation would require considerable scaling up of the program at significantly increased costs Proffers suggestions for mass participation: focusing on marginalized groups of learners in connected areas

SNA Research Findings l l Sites “put Africa on the map” through the production of local content Quality websites are learning resources for a wide range of target users

Similar programs l l l Global Teenager Project (www. globalteenager. org) Curriculum. Net in Uganda Mindset Learn and Cabanga (www. mindset. org. za)

THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION Shafika Isaacs Executive Director School. Net Africa s. isaacs@schoolnetafrica. org Mtandao Afrika Mr Amr Hamdy ahamdy@aucegypt. edu www. schoolnetafrica. net