ICT in Education/Change Projects/2015C Tanzania Multi-Media intergration with mobile applications

Title of the change project :

Change agent : Augustine Kitulo

Email : augustinekitulo@gmail.com

Name of the organisation : Open University of Tanzania

Country : Tanznaia

Started date :

Status (finished/ongoing) :

1. Introduction of the project (problem):

The world technology is expanding day to day in a rapid way, and  due to these changes it’s up to the world especially developing countries(third world country) to adapt to the changes so as to use the advantage to develop themselves in various areas. One of the setbacks in the developing countries is how to use fully and adaptation of current technology.

Despite the existing challenges in infrastructure but still the use of mobile phone is still expanding where over 65% of the Tanzanian population is using mobile phone and most of them being smart phone. Even in the areas where there is no electricity still these devices are available where other alternative power supply eg solar and generators are used as a source for charging these devices. This can be an opportunity for OUT to use as the way to reach students especially those who are in remote areas.

Background of the Organization

The Open University of Tanzania offers its certificate, diploma, degree and postgraduate courses through the open and distance learning system which includes various means of communication such as face-to-face, broadcasting, telecasting, correspondence, and seminars, e-learning as well as a blended mode which is a combination of two or more means of communication. The OUT’s academic programmes are quality-assured and ascentrally regulated by the Tanzania Commission for Universities (TCU).

OUT operates through a network of about 30 Regional Centers; 10 Coordinating Centers, of which one is in Zanzibar and one in Pemba; two are in Kenya (Egerton and Njoro), one is in Rwanda (Kibungo), one in Namibia and one in Uganda. Other OUT Internal Coordination Centers are the African Council for Distance Education – Technical Collaboration Committee (ACDE TCC), the Centre for Economics and Community Economic Development (CECED) and the SADC Centre of Specialization in Teacher Education (SADC ODL COSTEC). OUT has also 69 Study Centers spread throughout the United Republic of Tanzania.

Challenges

Open University faces a lot of challenges in the open distance learning as a mode of Education, and these are some of them:

• Partial material accessibility for student, as only through internet in computers.
• Insufficient Face to face interaction between the student and lecturer presentations.
• Limited format of material presentation as currently only plan texts content in use.
• Inadequate use of ICT infrastructure in providing easy material accessibility.
• Time consumption in providing face to face lecturers to all OUT center over the country.

Overview

Open Distance Learning is the mode of education Delivery exercised at the Open University of Tanzania, and since our aim is to reach OUT student distantly and enable them to get easy access to materials, we look forward to use multi-media platform of integration of the smart board with mobile application, which will enable students to get lecturers videos from the tip of their fingers through smartphones. This will boost student capability and find conducive environment to learn since video lectures will be available anytime and anywhere as long as you have a smartphone.

Smart board is an innovated technology for academic conversion, it can captures lectures material presented by instructor at once and be used as many times as possible by different students throughout the age, through this kind of technology it is possible to make a better education environment for OUT student in material accessibility through well-developed mobile application which runs in different platforms.

2. Objectives :

A well designed mobile application which will make it easier for the video media files to be access from mobile devices, it will be a one-step achievement towards better education and making conducive environment of educational resources (Video lecturers). Due to this integration the following objective will be achieved:

• To reach as many students as possible with the lecturer tutorials within and outside the country due to the fact we provide Open Distance Learning base.
• To simplify the process of students to get access to video lecturers from the tip of their fingers through mobile phones.
• To break the silo experience that characterised the open distance learning mode.
• Enhancing learning materials by making it more dynamic.

3. Stakeholders :

• OUT students especially those in the country side and place where ICT infrastructure are still not well reached out.
• The project also targets to expose lecturers to a technological way of material presentation.

4. List of Activities :

This project will comprise of difference phase of activities including:

• Development of a mobile application platform for smartphones and mobile devices.
• Formulating a good mechanism including a compatible video format to enable good streaming in Smartphones.
• Creating at least three video course materials.
• Embedding the course materials on the mobile application as an implementation.
• Training and educating students and other staffs on the use of the mobile application.

5. Expected result :

With the success of this project we expect it to bring positive results towards our organization, and some of the expected results are:

• Easy accessibility of material from smartphones and mobile devices.
• Exposure of the out academic staff to video lecturers as another form of material presentation.
• Availability of video material in the smartphones and mobile devices.
• Improvement in material dynamicity in open distance learning mode of OUT.
• Reduction of time consumption on face to face lecturer all over our centers.
• Stimulation of proper user of smartphones to students for educational purpose rather than social Medias.