Technological Infrastructure and Use of ICT in Education in ... - ADEA

92 Working Group on Distance Education and Open Learning
10. ICT and Tertiary Education ................
At the University of Dar es Salaam we have realized
that the ongoing information revolution has, and will,
continue changing the way we teach and learn, the
way we do research, and above all else, the way we
provide our services to the community at large.
(Prof. M.L. Luhanga, Vice Chancellor, University of
Dar es Salaam, cited in Levey, 2002, p3)
The effects of globalization on learning are perhaps most felt in the
tertiary education sector where there is increasing competition between
institutions, both within countries and internationally. As e-learning,
‘virtual’ education, and distance education methods become increasingly
popular, sub-Saharan African countries will find themselves under
increasing pressure to provide quality tertiary education that meets the
skills needs of their countries. Saint (1999) notes that tertiary distance
education is the world’s fastest growing educational sector. Distance
education and ICT have important roles to play in the improvement of
tertiary education delivery, quality, and access. As noted above, however,
use of ‘new’ ICTs is still limited in many tertiary institutions because of
infrastructure constraints, lack of instructional materials, lack of skilled
faculty, and because ICT-based pedagogy is still new for many. Although
some universities in sub-Saharan Africa have embraced the challenge
– as is noted above in the quotation from the Vice Chancellor of the
University of Dar es Salaam – others have been slower to respond.
This section will briefly explore some initiatives making use of ICT within
the tertiary education sector. It is useful to begin with a look at Table 11,
which provides some indication of the extent of distance education in
the tertiary sector, the types of courses offered, and the technology
used. Table 12 provides further information about technology use in the
tertiary sector.
10. ICT and Tertiary Education