PREPARING LEARNERS FOR A DIGITAL COMMUNITY 5.1.4

I teach in a school not very far from the urban municipal centre -- 6 km away actually. We therefore have very good internet and we make use of it. The school is integrated with Nursery, Primary and Secondary campuses not very far from each other and with seamless collaboration among the campuses possible. The learners hail from a variety of backgrounds - Ugandan and non-Ugandan and have been exposed to Digital Technology (prior to their coming to our school) in varying degrees. The teachers have basic knowledge about Digital Technology; mostly acquired as a result of the school emphasis (in its different policies), on need for knowledge in ICT as a prerequisite for employment in any of the campuses. There is a growing use, however, of application of Digital Technology in learning.

The learners study ICT as a subject and are able to use the knowledge they acquire to use the different Digital Technologies in place. These technologies include, but is not limited to smart phones, laptops, computers, tablets which are used to access mainly social media sites. This said, I must now clearly mention that the use of Digital Technologies in school is still not adequate and so the school still has a lot to do when it comes to preparing its learners for the digital society.

PUPIL AT OUR SCHOOL DEMONSTRATES THE USE OF DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY TO PARENTS ON PARENTS DAY  WITH THE HELP OF A PROJECTOR

Currently, the school has created a website and several social media pages and groups. Learners are allowed to interact with one another through these platforms. Interaction, however, is still profound in regular chatting with little application to the teaching – learning process. There is little supervision of interaction by a few teachers who are proficient in the use of these platforms and there is greater learner engagement than teacher engagement. The desire to use these technologies is great in the learners but an equal passion is lacking in most of the staff. A few learners who have access to these technologies from home are able to use it to collaborate on some ‘home work’ they are given; but only a few. I personally have encouraged teachers to engage with learners on the internet (strictly on academic grounds) and encouraged learners to do the same. In a bid to guarantee safe use of the internet and social media, I have proposed a policy guideline on internet use which I think the school will embrace soon.

As far as improving on our innovation is concerned as regards this issue, I hope to stay on this track as I:

1. Emphasis that a knowledge creation approach to teaching is far better than a knowledge acquisition and that creation through collaboration is easiest using the internet as a collaboration tool.
2. Develop innovative pedagogies that simultaneously support the acquisition of a deep knowledge base, understanding, and 21st Century skills.
3. Advocate for both teachers and students to increase their presence on the internet using the guidelines set in place.
4. Advocate for the school to make ready the infrastructure needed to foster preparation of digital citizens.
5. Emphasis on the need to embrace the use of digital tools not only as a socializing tool but a collaboration tool for creating, collecting and sharing information. The broader relevance in the digital community now and in time to come should also be underscored.
6. Educate parents on the significance and relevance of these technologies in creating a digitally ready child and in so doing prompting them to make available these technologies at home.
7. Personally exhibit passion for the use of Digital Technology in teaching and learning particularly; and transmit that same passion to many. 

I would end by using Dr. Micheal Wesch analogy that: if each bird carried a drop of water on its beak and released it on the burning world, all the birds together would be able to literally rain down drops of water and kill the fire and so prevent the world from burning up.