PEDAGOGICAL INTEGRATION OF ICTS IN UGANDAN EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS By: Alice N. Ndidde, Jude Lubega Daniel Babikwa and Grace Baguma Makerere University

Introduction to research team Partner institution : Makerere University Department of Adult education and communication Studies Focal point: Dr Daniel Babikwa Primary researcher: Alice Nankya Ndidde Other researchers: Dr Jude Lubega, Dr Daniel Babikwa, Grace K Baguma 4/19/2019 Makerere University

Methodology The design was both quantitative and qualitative: a mixed methods approach was used in the collection of data which consisted of: self administered questionnaires, one on one interviews, focus group discussions observation and review of documents Eleven educational institutions were included in this study of which; five (5) were primary schools, four (4) secondary schools and two (2) teacher training institutions all the institutions were of mixed gender except one which was a girls’ only secondary school the institutions were purposively selected from rural, semi urban and urban areas of Uganda eight of the institutions were public and only three private 4/19/2019 Makerere University

Overview of research results General state of pedagogical integration of ICTs : ICT Integration is still inadequate, More individualized than institutionalized Highlighted successes in pedagogical integration of ICTs: Educational Institutions are doing their best to acquire computers for teaching, learning and administration purposes; Schools that have embraced public-private partnerships like cyber schools technology solutions have gone along way to integrate technology in science subjects Existence of computer clubs has enabled peer learning sharing and documentation of information 4/19/2019 Makerere University

Overview of research results (cont...) Specific challenges in pedagogical integration of ICTs: Centralized computer labs as opposed to having computers in classes causes a limitation in usage Public education institutions have a higher student to computer ratio than private ones partly because, Government policy of not charging fees which makes it difficult for public schools to generate adequate resources to acquire computers and internet connectivity; Negative attitude or lack of awareness towards use of computers and internet by school governance and Administration Lack of teacher training in pedagogical integration 4/19/2019 Makerere University

Research Results National ICT Policies and pedagogical integration Several ICT policies exist: Broadcasting 2007, Communication 2007, East African e-Government Strategy 2005, National ICT Master Plan Final Report 2006, Uganda Country-based Research, Policy Support and Advocacy Partnerships for Pro-Poor ICT The above, did not have a direct relationship on education improvement However, the draft ICT Policy for Uganda (2008) was found to have a direct relationship on education improvement. In the areas of: teacher training , making the use of IT mandatory at all levels of educational Institutions, developing relevant IT curricula for the primary, secondary and tertiary institutions But an ICT in Education/E-Learning Policy was missing 4/19/2019 Makerere University

Research Results (Contd..) Equipment, access and connectivity The study established that: the studied institutions were trying their best to provide the necessary ICT equipment and infrastructure BUT the ratio of students to computers was still very high especially in public primary schools with none below 1:15 access to computers by educators and administrators was also limited Educators in particular had to share computers with learners in all institutions apart from one tertiary institution (DAECS) where all lecturers had access to computers in their offices 4/19/2019 Makerere University

Research Results (Contd..) Equipment, access and connectivity (Contd..) 4/19/2019 Makerere University

Equipment, access and connectivity (Contd..) Research Results (Contd..) Equipment, access and connectivity (Contd..) However, in schools where cyber schooling and computer clubs existed, science students and club members often enjoyed greater access to the computers Connectivity: Internet Connectivity was found in only 8 out of 11 institutions studied and in all, connected to just a few computers Institutions subscribed to different Internet providers (no policy/support, institutions depend on good will) Bandwidth used was too low for majority of institutions and costly 3 out of the 5 primary schools did not have internet connectivity at all Factors limiting Access and Connectivity: Government policy of not charging fees in primary schools makes it difficulty for public schools to generate resources to fund the necessary ICT infrastructure and activities School Governance and Administration attitude towards integration of ICT Connectivity access costs are very high Absence of a policy that streamlines pedagogical integration of ICT in education 4/19/2019 Makerere University

Research Results (Contd..) Teacher training The study revealed that: Majority of teacher trainers reported to be computer literate, that they had competencies in using software like micro soft applications like Word, Excel, Access and PowerPoint, Internet exploration and emailing Generally, more male than female teacher trainer have received ICT training. Despite the above, the teacher trainers lack the attitude and motivation to fully integrate ICT in their training of teachers This could be as a result of inadequate capacity in pedagogical integration of ICT, limited ICT equipment, lack of incentives from both institutions and government to encourage the use ICT the design of the teacher training curriculum did not favor the pedagogical integration of ICT but still followed the traditional methods At secondary level, majority of educators had participated in less than 50 hours of professional development which included ICT integration 4/19/2019 Makerere University

ICT Use for teaching and learning Research Results (Contd..) ICT Use for teaching and learning It was only in one secondary school where 62% of educators were reported to having participated in more than 50 hours of professional Development including ICT Integration Findings indicated that: Tertiary institutions and secondary schools had to a certain extent integrated ICT in their teaching Male educators on average used more hours per week on the computers for academic purposes than females Three schools out of eleven had Cyber rooms connected to internet where teachers and students could undertake teaching/learning In some schools like Kibuli SS plans were under way to compel all teachers to take advantage of the Cyber rooms and the Smart board for their teaching 4/19/2019 Makerere University

Research Results (Contd..) 4/19/2019 Makerere University

ICT use for learning by learners Research Results (Contd..) ICT use for learning by learners Results indicate that: There were variations in the ICT use for learning by learners and this was a result of levels of access to computers, institutional rules and regulations, the level of ICT skills by the learners and extent to which teachers used methods that would encourage use of ICT, i.e. inquiry based methods At primary school level, learners used the computer labs only once a week for about thirty (30) minutes. In two public primary schools, students reported that they rarely used computers At secondary level, learners’ use of ICT for learning varied according to school, class level and whether they belonged to the computer club or not Students that had access to and used ICT regularly were those who were taking computer studies as an examinable subject at ‘O’ level 4/19/2019 Makerere University

ICT use for learning by learners Research Results (Contd..) ICT use for learning by learners Challenges to the use of ICT as stated by the learners included: High student Computer Ratio, Intermittent power supply, Unstable and slow internet facilities, Regular computer breakdowns and viruses, Limited time for practice, Congested computer labs, Absence of ICT teachers Limited skills in ICT for most learners, Absence of printing services, Very old computers with outdated operating systems 4/19/2019 Makerere University

Institution Management and ICT Research Results (Contd..) Institution Management and ICT The study reveals that: Majority of institutions (8 out of 11) did not have well written out ICT integration plans: what the researchers found at institutional level were the expressed views and ideas of the educator in charge of ICT Overall the institutions did not have written down strategic plans on how to sustain the ICT they had acquired However in some schools a computer fee was being levied every term from every student which helped the institutions in acquiring and maintaining computers and internet connectivity where they existed Barriers to ICT sustainability in institutions Inadequate funding especially to access software as most schools use licensed as opposed to open source software Lack of awareness by education managers and teachers towards use of ICT Government policy of removing the payment of institutional fees and other costs by parents in public primary schools Current teacher training has not mainstreamed ICT in the curriculum Absence of an enabling environment in institutions i.e. intermittent power supply, proper infrastructure etc.. 4/19/2019 Makerere University

Lessons learnt Educational Institutions are doing their best to acquire computers for teaching, learning and administration purposes; Public education institutions have a higher student to computer ratio than private ones partly due government policy of not charging fees which makes it difficult for public schools to generate adequate resources to acquire computers and internet connectivity Negative attitude towards computers and internet by school governance and Administration With regard to connectivity, access rates are still high and therefore most institutions can not cope with connectivity There is need for policy guidelines to cover education institutions with regard to ICT equipment and connectivity 4/19/2019 Makerere University

Lessons learnt (Contd..) Effective utilization of ICT for teaching and learning purposes requires: easy access to adequate and functioning computers and reliable Internet connectivity competencies and skills/interest of educators in ICT integration and availability of supportive institutional ICT policies Pedagogical Integration of ICT is still inadequate, more individualized than institutionalized Teachers have continued to use traditional methods of teaching Delivery of ICT enhanced learning is demanding on teachers’ time Programmes that have attempted to introduce pedagogical integration have not been nationally rolled out Government has not effectively embraced the issue of ICT integration by preparing both in-service and pre-service teachers for pedagogical integration Continuous professional development of teachers has not targeted ICT integration 4/19/2019 Makerere University

Implications for policy and practice There is need by Government to expedite the finalization of the drat National ICT Policy that will address challenges of equipment and infrastructure, training of educators in pedagogical integration of ICT The need to develop appropriate ICT enhanced curricula content for national roll out Government should take a leading role in equipping the institutions it supports with adequate ICT to realize its long term vision of providing quality education 4/19/2019 Makerere University

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Policy Dialogue Uganda Overview Objectives To present research findings of the first phase of the research on the pedagogical integration of ICT in the Ugandan Education institutions To discuss the above research findings To draw lessons and recommendations from the first phase of the PanAF study To develop a framework for continued dialogue among different stakeholders Methodology of Workshop Mixed Methods, presentations, group discussions and plenary sessions Participants Ministry of Education and Sports, Ministry of ICT, Private Sector, NGOs, researchers and representatives from participating institutions 4/19/2019 Makerere University

Recommendations ensuing from policy dialogue workshop: Govt should consider making integration of ICT in education among the proirities Focus should be put on training of teachers ion pedagogical integration(inservice and preservic Equipping institutions with hardware through pubilc private partnerships Cost sharing to reduce on the costs of connectivity 4/19/2019 Makerere University

Policy dialogue (cont..) There was need of development of ICT enhanced content to cater for the different categories of education institutions Teachers need to train in development of ICT enhanced content Next steps Document best practices on pedagogical integration of ICT and how we can draw lessons from them to influence policy Establish a training programme for the teacher trainers Hold roundtable meetings with key decision makers in the Ministry of education, Ministry of ICT, Private Sector and Researchers 4/19/2019 Makerere University