{"id":162282,"date":"2020-05-25T02:58:11","date_gmt":"2020-05-25T00:58:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/education-post-covid-19-customised-blended-learning-is-urgently-needed-the-conversation\/"},"modified":"2020-05-25T02:58:11","modified_gmt":"2020-05-25T00:58:11","slug":"education-post-covid-19-customised-blended-learning-is-urgently-needed-the-conversation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/press\/education-post-covid-19-customised-blended-learning-is-urgently-needed-the-conversation\/","title":{"rendered":"Education post-COVID-19: customised blended learning is urgently needed | The Conversation"},"content":{"rendered":"

Education post-COVID-19: customised blended learning is urgently needed<\/a>: <\/p>\n

Even with free data and unlimited educational material, online self-guided learning has a number of challenges.<\/span> GettyImages<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Many well meaning education benefactors and commentators in South Africa have expressed that in the light of the COVID-19 pandemic online self-guided learning could solve some of the current teaching problems and address the educational backlog. What learners need, the reasoning goes, is to get free internet access to educational support materials on offer online.<\/p>\n

Nothing could be further from the truth. <\/p>\n

In fact, self-guided online learning is doomed to fail. Research shows an exceptionally high drop-out rate \u2013 even in developed countries. Learners simply have no incentive to keep at their studies without peer pressure, a teacher at hand or a structured learning environment. <\/p>\n

In South Africa in particular, with socio-economic disparities and related problems, the drop-out rate would be even higher. More so in key subjects like mathematics and physical science where prior knowledge, conceptual understanding and self-motivation to succeed are critical. <\/p>\n

The only answer, in the country\u2019s unequal teaching environment, is a customised version of blended learning. Blended learning integrates computer-assisted online activities with traditional face-to-face teaching (chalk-and-talk). <\/p>\n

When used by a trained teacher, this approach can add valuable new dimensions to the learning process. It can allow learners to work at their own pace and teachers to fill content gaps.<\/p>\n

Blended learning in South Africa<\/h2>\n

In many developed countries, blended learning is a well-established practice. It has enabled these countries to adapt to the demands of the current pandemic. Digital remote learning and teaching is backed up by dependable infrastructure and skilled, motivated teachers. <\/p>\n

By contrast, the differences between South African schools have been thrown into sharp relief. The binary system of a privileged minority of schools and the rest remains, despite the political changes more than 25 years ago. <\/p>\n

More than 80% of public schools are under-resourced. They are ill-equipped to respond to the teaching and learning challenges of the 21st century \u2013 let alone the latest demands of the pandemic.<\/p>\n

The current lockdown has suddenly compelled teachers to adopt predominantly online, blended learning teaching practices. But nearly 90% of all households in South Africa are still without access to the internet at home. Very few schools had adapted to blended learning before lockdown and few schools would be able to adopt it during the lockdown. Therefore the schools that had fewer resources and skills will fall even further behind.<\/p>\n

This is especially disappointing since the current cohort of pupils (born after 2000) have long expressed their preference for a blended learning model. Even the recent recognition by the South African government that science, technology, engineering and mathematics are important in the Fourth Industrial Revolution has had little effect on the skills development of teachers, infrastructure or modernisation of resources in schools. <\/p>\n

Therefore, in the South African context, mainstream blended learning is not the complete answer. We need to go beyond blended learning.<\/p>\n

Customised blended learning model<\/h2>\n

Since 2002, the Govan Mbeki Mathematics Development Centre in Nelson Mandela University in Port Elizabeth has wrestled with these challenges.<\/p>\n

The bad news is that there\u2019s no way to make the teaching and learning of maths and science easy. But we\u2019ve developed a number of interventions that have lifted the twin burdens of poor training and lack of infrastructure from the shoulders of teachers. Skills development linked to the use of user-friendly and interactive digital resources has allowed teachers to focus on attaining a high quality of teaching with subsequent learning successes. <\/p>\n

Over the past decade, the centre has experimented with various combinations of online and offline self-directed teaching methods. It has worked specifically on blended learning for mathematics and physical sciences in secondary schools.<\/p>\n

The greatest success has been a blended learning system that uses a combination of online and offline interactive resources with pre-installed apps that are aligned with the South African school curriculum. These can be used as a guide for teaching, home-schooling, after-school study and tutoring. We call it techno-blended learning: a structured approach, using mostly offline apps in an integrated way, with the full participation of a trained or experienced adult mentor or guide.
One of the centre\u2019s more recent interventions is a mini personal computer called the GammaTutor\u2122. This\u2019s an offline device pre-loaded with interactive learning material. These resources have been specifically designed for South African school conditions. <\/p>\n