access to technology

Online teaching and learning using multi-media can be very successful providing that there is adequate internet connection in the community for the service provide. “Access” is the operative word.  Certain countries do experience connectivity as far as adequate internet connection is concerned. For example in South Africa, internet is expensive for many residing there although many competitors have entered the horizons and hopefully the situation of cheaper connectivity may improve. The climatic conditions also add to problems associated with connectivity as heavy thunderstorms blow out the modems if they are switched on.

Our focus on online teaching and learning is situated in Aotearoa New Zealand context and the access to computers and internet connections have to be taken into consideration when planning online teaching and learning using multimedia. Web 2.0 is a social networking site and allows users to interact and collaborate with each other when viewing blogs and sharing video uploads. Once again, access to computers and good internet connections is needed.

When looking at resources and assessment tools used in various workplace, community-based settings and or respective institutions that promote courses for adults, there are very little provisions made for online resources and assessments. This situation of a lack of online teaching and learning resources may be because of a lack of funding.

Setting up lesson and activities to match the learning outcomes and having to find resources that are conducive to situated adult learning can become time consuming if the educator is not skilled in online teaching and learning strategies using multimedia or if there is a lack of access to computers. Using social networking site and interacting and collaborating with each other when viewing blogs and sharing video up-loads needs computers and good internet connections for this activity to take place.

Adult learners who are not exposed to computers and online activities because of a lack of resources in their homes might find difficulty in understanding concepts and terminology. Searching information may be too daunting for these adults. Another obstacle could be that because information is through the written word, adults with a lack of or very little reading, writing and keyboards, find difficulty in understanding instructions.

We live in this dynamic changing world where technology changes constantly. Affecting adults is the economic paradigm shift. Computers, mobile phones, iPods, iPads, tablets as well as all software and applications are constantly being upgraded that these changes are very difficult for providers of adult education including individuals to maintain or fund. This makes access to new technology even more difficult. New technology scares the older generation and therefore the use of the new technology suddenly does not become “important” however it blurs the ideas of not knowing how to go about using new technology. Face Book, the social media networking site, has just changed personal profile setting to time-line settings and this application takes a while for adults to adjust to. Web 2.0 has applications that allows for active interaction and collaboration on the World Wide Web by making use of blogs, wikis, and other applications. Yet, access to computers and networking sites is imperative for all these forms of technology to be effective.

Reference

Sork, T. (2000). Planning educational programmes. In A. L. Wilson & E. R. Hayes (eds.), Handbook of adult and continuing education. (pp. 171-190). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.