Digital inequalities in rural schools in South Africa
Abstract
It has been argued that advancements in digitalisation and enhancement of digital development could be beneficial for rural schools. However, digital inequalities persist and affect rural schools since little attention has been paid to the specific conditions rural schools find themselves in when facing continuous digital developments.
This paper aims at revealing the facts related to the status of the digital inequalities in rural schools in South Africa. Data was collected by means of the desk research, whereby researchers reviewed existing literature pertaining to digital inequalities in rural schools in South Africa, in Namibia and in some developed countries for cross referencing and triangulation purposes.
After review of data from secondary sources, the study found out that lack of digital literacy on the side of the rural teachers can lead to accessibility and knowledge differences among learners and furthermore it was found that the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) equipment and digital literacy training in rural schools are very much dependent on luck: pupils depend on the socioeconomic status of their respective rural school. Considering the prevailing circumstances, through this paper it is recommended that there is a need for the state to invest in necessary infrastructure namely the ICT sector to provide for the driving of digital transformation and facilitate skills development programmes for teachers to ensure that they have the needed skills to utilise modern technology more effectively.
Keywords
Full Text:
PDFReferences
Arnold, M.L., Newman, J.H., Gaddy, B.B. & Dean, C.B. (2005). A look at the condition of rural education research: Setting a difference for future research. Journal of Research in Rural
Education, 20(6):1-25.
Blank, G.; Graham, M. & Calvino, C (2018). Local Geographies of Digital Inequality. Social. Science Computer. Frankfurt. 36: 82–102
Brown, J., Handrigan, R., Stone, G., & Downey, S. (2002). A Study of Education, Out-Migration of Young Adults, and the Impact of Information and Communications Technologies on the Economies of Rural Communities in Newfoundland and Labrador [Avalon West School District]. Canadian Rural Partnership. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 560 Rochester Street, Tower 1, Floors 5 and 6, Ottawa, Ontario, K1A 0C5, Canada.
Bubb, S. & Earley, P. (2007). Leading & managing continuing professional development: Developing people, developing schools. London: Sage.
Department of Statistics South Africa, (2020). Covid-19 Pandemic in South Africa Demography Volume plus SA Corona Virus Index. Gvt Printers: Pretoria
Duma, M. A. N. (2018). A Handbook of School Managers of Today and Tomorrow. Durban: Reach Publishers.
Du Plessis, P (2014. Problems and Complexities in Rural Schools: Challenges of Education and Social Development Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences. 5 (20): 210-219.
Eberhard, B., Podio, M., Alonso, A. P., Radovica, E., Avotina, L., Peiseniece, L., Sendon, M.C., Lozano, A.G., & Solé-Pla, J. (2017). Smart work: The transformation of the labour market due to the fourth industrial revolution (I4.0). International Journal of Business and Economic Sciences Applied Research. 10(3): 47–66.
Gardiner, M (2008). Education in Rural Areas. Issues in Education Policy. Braamfontein: CEPD
Grimes, S. (2000). Rural areas in the information society: diminishing distance or increasing learning capacity? Journal of rural studies, 16(1) :13-21
Hennessy, S., Harrison, D. J., & Wamakote, L. (2010). Teacher factors influencing classroom use of ICT in Sub-Saharan Africa. Itupale Online Journal of African Studies, 2(2010), 39–54.
Herreid, C. F & Schiller, N. A. (2013). Case studies and the flipped classroom. Journal of College Science Teaching, 42(5): 62-66.
Hlalele, D (2012). Social justice and rural education in South Africa. Perspectives in Education. 5 (4) :111-118
Howell, S. & O’Donnell, B. (2017). Digital trends and initiatives in education. Ontario Media Development Corporation. Canada.
Jacobs, S. J., & Herselman, M. E. (2006). Information access for development: A case study at a rural community centre in South Africa. Issues in Informing Science & Information Technology, 3.
Jamtsho, S., & Bullen, M. (2007). Distance education in Bhutan: Improving access and quality through ICT use. Distance education, 28(2): 149-161.
Kozma, R. B. (2005). National policies that connect ICT-based education reform to
economic and social development. Interdisciplinary Journal on Human in ICT
environments. 1: 117-156.
Kozma, R. B. (2008). Comparative analysis of policies for ICT in Education. In J. Voogt
& G. Knezek (Eds.) International Handbook of Information Technology in primary and
secondary education. 6 :1083-1096.
Li, Y., & Ranieri, M. (2010). Are ‘digital natives’ really digitally competent? —A study on Chinese teenagers. British Journal of Educational Technology, 41(6), 1029-1042
Malecki, EJ (2003) Digital development in rural areas: potentials and pitfalls, The Journal of Rural Studies. 9(2): 201:214.
Martin, A & Grudziecki, J. (2006). Concepts and Tools for Digital Literacy Development. Innov. Teach. Learn. Inf. Comput. Sci. (5): 249–267.
Matengu, K.K. (2011). Information and Communication Technology, Innovation Education,
Development: Can Adoption of ICT in schools assist in the war against poverty
and Underdevelopment in Namibia. NERA Journal. 11(1): 141-160.
McLeman, R., Foy, N., & Clark, K. (2010). Adaptive capacity-building and sustainable development in Canadian rural and remote communities: The role of information and communication technologies. Unpublished SSHRC Grant Report. 6: 1-42.
Mestry, R., & Ndhlovu, R. (2014). The implications of the National Norms and Standards for School Funding policy on equity in South African public schools. South African Journal of Education. 34(3): 44-56
Meyers, E.M., Erickson, I.& Small, R.V. (2013). Digital literacy and informal learning environments: Learn Media Technology. Language Learning & Technology. 38 (4) :355–367.
Mhlanga, D & Moloi, T. (2020). COVID-19 and the Digital Transformation of Education: What Are We Learning on 4IR in South Africa? Education sciences. MDPI. UJ. Johannesburg.
Mulkeen, A. (2005). Teachers for Rural Schools: A challenge for Africa. Working Paper. Biennale on Education in Africa. Association for the development of education in Africa, Libreville.
Mwapwele, S.; Marais, M.; Dlamini, S.; & Van Biljon, J. (2019). Teachers’ ICT Adoption in South African Rural Schools. A Study of Technology Readiness and Implications for the South Africa Connect Broadband Policy. The African Journal of Information and Communication. 24(1): 1-21
Nam, T., & Pardo, T. A. (2011). Conceptualizing smart city with dimensions of technology, people, and institutions. In Proceedings of the 12th annual international digital government research conference: digital government innovation in challenging times. 9: 282-291).
Ngololo, E.N (2010). An evaluation of the implementation of ICT Policy for
Education in rural Namibian schools. PhD thesis university of Pretoria, Pretoria
O’Leary, Z. (2014). The essential guide to doing your research project. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publishers.
Porter, G., Hampshire, K., Milner, J., Munthali, A., Robson, E., De Lannoy, A., … Abane, A. (2016). Mobile phones and education in Sub-Saharan Africa: From youth practice to public policy. Journal of International Development, 28(1), 22–39.
Rao, Z. (2010). Chinese students' perceptions of native English-speaking teachers in EFL teaching. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 31(1): 55-68.
Robson, C. (2013). How to do a research project: a guide for undergraduate students. Malden, MA: Blackwell.
Rundel, C and Salemink, K (2021). Bridging Digital Inequalities in Rural Schools in Germany: A Geographical Lottery? Education sciences. 11: 5-18.
Salemink, K.; Strijker, D. &Bosworth, G. (2017). Rural Development in the Digital Age: a systematic literature review on unequal ICT availability, adoption, and use in rural areas. Journal of Rural Studies.7:66-80.
Secker, J (2018). The Trouble with Terminology: Rehabilitating and Rethinking ‘Digital Literacy’. In Digital Literacy Unpacked; Reedy, K., Parker, J., Eds.; Facet Publishing: London.
Shikalepo, E.E (2020) Improving the quality of Education at Rural Schools
in Namibia. International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science. 4(2): 44-55.
Singleton, A. D., Longley, P. A., Allen, R., & O’Brien, O. (2011). Estimating secondary school catchment areas and the spatial equity of access. Computers, Environment and Urban Systems. 35(3) :241-249
Sipple, J.W., Francis, J.D. & Fiduccia, P.C (2019). Exploring the gradient: The economic benefits of ‘nearby’ schools on rural communities. Journal of Rural Studies. (68): 251-263.
Stockdale, A & MacLeod, M (2013): Retirement transition migration: implications for
rural development. Journal of Rural Community Development. 8(3): 303-320.
Voogt, J. (2008). IT and curriculum processes: dilemmas and challenges. In J. Voogt &
Knezek (Eds.), International handbook of Information technology in primary and
secondary education 7: 542-554.
Waller, P. P., & Maxwell, K. L. H. (2017). Mathematics teachers’ perceptions of resources and curriculum availability in post-apartheid schooling. International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, 15(4): 741–757
Wang, H., & Wellman, B. (2010). Social connectivity in America: Changes in adult friendship network size from 2002 to 2007. American behavioral scientist, 53(8): 1148-1169
Wastiau, P., Blamire, R., Kearney, C., Quittre, V., Van de Gaer, E., & Monseur, C. (2013). The Use of ICT in Education: a survey of schools in Europe. European journal of education, 48(1): 11-27.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.23954/osj.v6i3.2984
Refbacks
- There are currently no refbacks.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Open Science Journal (OSJ) is multidisciplinary Open Access journal. We accept scientifically rigorous research, regardless of novelty. OSJ broad scope provides a platform to publish original research in all areas of sciences, including interdisciplinary and replication studies as well as negative results.