Children first start learning by exploring their immediate environment and playing with peers. These interactions raise many questions answered through their own observations or by family members.
With time, school takes over, introducing structure and rigidity. In the part of the world where I grew up, school de-emphasises the natural process of exploration and inquiry in favor of instructions and memorization. The teacher assumes a central position in this model, his or her competence and delivery delimits the knowledge the child imbibes. Opportunities for self-directed learning are limited to information in books and newspapers, which might not be easily understood by young learners. Thankfully, the interactive nature of using digital tools mimics how children learn naturally unlike the traditional school approach. Therefore, it is important to introduce digital literacy early.
Current technological developments make it possible to package educational content in interactive, multimedia formats and not just traditional text. Watching a video of “fertilization in flowering plants” enables students to easily grasp the process compared to cramming it from a book. Furthermore, class discussions can be extended beyond physical buildings with various web 2.0 social technologies (Gamelmag, 2013). For example, the Global Lab Ghana Facebook group is a growing community of students, teachers, and researchers sharing learning resources and discussing scientific concepts virtually. Students are encouraged to ask questions that arise from their learning and life experiences, opening them up to new insights and contacts not ordinarily available. There is great potential in using tools like Google Plus “hangouts” and Twitter hashtags to periodically involve subject matter experts with local classroom discussions (Gamelmag, 2013; Ripp, 2014). Networks like Global Lab have the potential to support students to develop along their independent tracks. MOOCs can also complement school
lessons or be used to pursue personal interests such as programming, music, or foreign languages. The possibilities seem to be endless.
Learning should not be allowed to remain in today’s abstracted state. Quoting MIT Media Lab director Joi Ito, David Sengeh rightly paraphrased during the symposium, “Education is what somebody does to you. Learning is what you do to yourself.” In adopting digital tools, we must de-emphasise technology in favor of learning. Adoption of a problem-based learning (PBL) model favors knowledge acquisition through the completion of contextual tasks (Heick,
2012). Initiatives such as the Ashesi Robotics Experience (ARX, 2012), Robotics Inspired Science Education (RISE), Tech Needs Girls, and Jamlab help to develop critical problem-solving skills among children and engender a “maker mentality.” Eyram Tawia and Lesley Kirinya, co-founders of one of Africa’s first mobile gaming companies (Leti Arts), are inspiring examples of “learning by doing.” Collaborative content creation among teachers and students is relevant for students both in terms of instantaneous and future learning. A good application of this idea is the recording of science practical videos that can be referenced in the future by the creators themselves or other students in resource-limited environments.
According to Viola Kup (personal communication, May 23, 2014), in addition to knowledge acquisition and development of hard skills, digital learning environments foster critical thinking, global awareness, and responsibility. This makes youth well-prepared to contribute to making policies that actually solve problems in society, given the opportunity. This can in turn advance learning. The approach should be focused on empowering youth to effect change and not just co-write policies that never get implemented.
There must be a rethinking of the role of technology in education delivery. The SHS connectivity project showcases fine examples of using digital media in the classroom, but effort needs to go into training many more teachers to use the right tools to teach their subjects. Crucially, outcomes of such projects must be evaluated as done in the Philippines (Lorenzo and Lorenzo, 2013) and elsewhere. The syllabi of certain subjects such as “Social Studies” must be modified to contain digital literacy topics like social networking, online safety, and privacy, to make students aware of the realities of the information age. A consideration for preventing students’ abuse of gadgets in the school environment would be making special devices in which the hardware and software is specifically tailored to classroom learning. In addition, as proposed by Benjamin Odoi-Lartey (personal communication, May 21, 2014) and Elizabeth-Patterson (personal communication, May 23, 2014), strong support should be given to the adoption of assistive technology to facilitate learning by the physically challenged and those with special learning needs.
Digitally-literate youth are empowered to use their skills and awareness to tackle the challenges of their communities. A major problem in Accra, Ghana, is unsafe processing of electronic waste by very young, informal recyclers at Agbogbloshie. An innovative initiative started by DK Osseo-Asare and colleagues, Agbogbloshie Makerspace Project (AMP), aims to co-create digital resources for safe processing to enable recyclers reduce their risks of exposure to harmful substances (QAMP, 2014). A group of high school students with the right set of skills can be engaged to contribute to the development of these materials. Aside from solving a real life problem, the project presents the opportunity to learn aspects of many school subjects contextually and to develop critical leadership skills and values.
Conclusion
Digital technologies have become important mediators of formal and informal learning,
accompanied by many benefits and risks. This article uses examples from the Ghanaian educational context, as well as insights from the Digitally Connected symposium, to explore experiences, challenges, and opportunities in using digital media tools. Aside from building infrastructure, government needs to expand training opportunities available to teachers while redesigning education to emphasise exploration and contextual learning enhanced by technology. Equipped with the right skills, learners should be encouraged to tackle problems in their communities. More research needs to be done to inform concrete policy decisions in less industrialized countries.
References / Resources / Links
ARX: The Ashesi Robotics Experience. (2012). Retrieved from http://
ashesi.edu.gh/arx.html
Gamelmag. (2013, November 5). Harnessing the Power of Digital Technology for Education in Ghana [Blog post]. Retrieved from
http://gamelmag.blogspot.com/2013/11/harnessing-power-of- digital-technology.html
Ghana Senior High Schools Internet Access Project. (2012, November). Retrieved from: http://www.gesci.org/ghana-senior-
high-schools-internet-access-project.html
Heick, T. (2012, November 20).The Inside-Out School: A 21st Century Learning Model [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://www.
teachthought.com/learning/inside-out-school-21st-century- learning-model
Lorenzo, A.R. and Lorenzo, B.U. (2013). Bridging
the Digital Divide among Public High School Teachers: An Adopt-a-school Experience. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 103 (2013), 190 – 199. Retrieved from http://
www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877042813037713
Ministry of Education (2008). Ghana ICT in Education Policy. Retrieved from http://www.moe.gov.gh/moe/docs/ICT%20in%20
Education%20policy_NOV%202008.pdf
QAMP. (2014). Project. Retrieved from http://qamp.net/
projecthttp://qamp.net/project
Ripp, P. (2014, May 22). Why My Students Are Connected [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://pernillesripp.com/2014/05/22/why-
my-students-are-connected
Acknowledgement: I am indebted to Benjamin Odoi-Lartey, Michael Anim-Adjei, Akaliza Keza Gara, Nnenna Nwakanma, Nina Chachu, Elizabeth Patterson, Viola Kup and Andres Lombana- Bermudez for sharing their perspectives on the topic, and thus making it possible for me to cover other viewpoints in this write-up.
Introduction
Every minute, every hour, young people around the world are inundated with information through various digital media platforms. Students and Youth are spending more and more time online than ever before, largely due to increasing accessibility via smartphones, tablets, computers and other technological devices.
While these platforms and devices are important, it is equally important that young people have to have a critical appreciation of the use and impact of these digital platforms on their lives. Digital literacy is the key that unlocks the creative power of young people to appreciate and effectively use digital media. It is a citizenship skill vital to democracy.