echnology Integration & Higher Education in Cameroon: Exploring how learning environments inform technology use

• In Event: Using the comparative method to study learning, design and technology

Proposal

The last decade has seen a push for the integration of technology in formal learning settings by African governments. In the African context, institutions of higher education have been leading the integration of technology. They have served both as grounds for experimenting technology, and as spaces for researching effective ways of integrating technology into learning and teaching.
For instance, calls for information technology and communication (ICT) integration in education on the African continent were issued by higher education institutions (Ng'ambi, Brown, Bozalek, Gachago & Wood, 2016). Furthermore, the African Union (AU) in its 2063 agenda, states the potential of technology for a prosperous Africa. According to the AU agenda, an accelerated integration of technology in sectors such as education, agriculture, or health services will create economic opportunities, innovation, and a knowledge society that will transform the continent politically, socially, culturally, and economically (Agenda, 2063).

Reviewing ICT integration in South African higher education, Ng’ambi et al. (2016) explain that teaching and learning with technology depends on local realities. Students and faculty tend to drive technology usage in learning and teaching (Ng’ambi et al., 2016). It is worth pointing out that institutions of higher education in Africa are a key force for innovation and development (Teferra & Altbachl, 2004). Hence, when it comes to investigating learning and teaching with technology, higher education contexts are critical to understanding learning and teaching with technology in Africa. It is with this in mind that this paper examines technology integration in higher education settings in Cameroon, with a particular focus on how learning environments shape technology integration and/or use. The paper builds on previous research on learning and teaching with technology, and learning spaces as a lens to explore the role learning environments play in teaching and learning with technology in Cameroon. For example, the paper will ask the following questions: what technology (ies) do students and teachers use for learning and teaching? How do teachers and students use technology for learning and teaching? And, how is the learning space informing technology (ies) use? In other words, how is the learning environment influencing learning and teaching with technology in Cameroon?

The author anticipates that findings from this research will indicate that context, in terms of learning space is critical when considering technology integration into learning and teaching in Cameroon. Hence, as educators, and researchers it is important to consider, among other factors, the design of the learning environment or the setting when implementing and/or adopting approaches to teaching and learning with technology in different contexts, and particularly in Cameroon.
References
Agenda 2063 (2014). Agenda 2063: The Africa we want. Retrieved from https://au.int/en/agenda2063
Ng'ambi, D., Brown, C., Bozalek, V., Gachago, D., & Wood, D. (2016). Technology enhanced teaching and learning in South African higher education–A rearview of a 20 year journey. British Journal of Educational Technology, 47(5), 843-858.
Teferra, D. & Altbachl, P.G. (2004). African higher education: Challenges for the 21st century. Higher Education, 47 (1) 21-50.


Author

• Rebecca Y. Bayeck, Penn State University