Exploration

=**Exploration** =

The exploration phase provides an investigation and documentation of relevant information related to the training setting in Technical Education, Vocational and Entrepreneurship and Training (TEVET). This is done by looking at national policy documents, strategy papers, national plans and reports.

** Zambian Context of ICTs **  The ICT sector in Zambia is governed by a National Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Policy that was launched in 2006. The policy recognises the opportunity to make a difference by adopting and using ICT as a tool available to reduce the development divide thereby increasing the chances of improving the quality of life of Zambian citizens. ICT is an enabler to build an information centered society where everyone can create, access, utilize and share information and knowledge leading to greater productivity, greater competitiveness and sustainable economic growth, a pre-condition for poverty reduction. The ICT Policy highlights the potential of ICTs to improve quality of education and‍ t raining through e-learning and online learning. The ICT policy identifies some challenges that are faced in the educational system: Zambia is currently facing a shortfall in critical ICT skills required for developing its information and knowledge economy at managerial, professional and technician levels in order to facilitate the development, deployment and application of ICTs in both the private and the public sector. It is acknowledged that Zambia faces a number of challenges in the educational system.

Some of these include:- (a) General financial and technological resource constraints that the Government faces in its effort to develop and improve the educational system including efforts directed at integrating ICTs in education; (b) Inadequate awareness on the benefits of integrating ICTs in the administration of the delivery chain in the education sector; (c) Lack of coordinated approach in the adoption and implementation of initiatives targeted at the deployment of ICTs within the educational system; (d) High opportunity cost of deploying ICTs in the educational system - it is difficult to justify spending scarce and limited resources on ICTs when many institutions are still lacking basic amenities and educational supplies; and (e) Shortage of teachers with ICT skills to meet the requirements of schools, thus limiting ICT penetration within the education system (Ministry of Communications and Transport, 2006:4).   In order to address some of these challenges, the Ministry of Science, Technology and Vocational Training (MSTVT) has developed an Open and Distance Learning (ODL) Policy Guideline (still under consultation with various stakeholders) with assistance from the Commonwealth of Learning whose headquarters are in Canada. The purpose of the Policy Guideline is to guide the provision of ODL in TEVET. ‍‍ This overall goal of the policy guideline is to enhance provision of ODL in the TEVET sector as a supplementary or alternative path for citizens to access training and acquire skills and overall personal development (Ministry of Science, Technology and Vocational Training, 2011:15).  In the TEVET sector, as mentioned above, some institutions are offering TEVET programmes via open and distance learning (ODL). These programmes are offered mostly in a blended-learning approach. At TVTC and ZIBSIP students learning via ODL attend two-week residential classes every semester or term. The purpose of these residential classes is to have some face-to-face contact with students so that they can have some concepts clearly explained. Students are also able to access the learning materials in the College library. However, students face a number of challenges in having effective communication with their lecturers when they are not attending the residential classes. They also are not able to access suitable learning materials as some of them are from towns with no or poor libraries. Another challenge has been getting learning and study materials to students on time and also the lack of adequate learning materials for students. <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; text-align: justify;"> The policy proposes the development of ICT Infrastructure by harmonising ODL policy guidelines and the strategic framework with the draft National e-Learning Strategic Plan that is being developed by the Ministry of Education and promoting the development of ICT infrastructure in TEVET institutions. Some of the objectives outlined in the National e-Learning Strategic Plan are that: <range type="comment" id="689790">ICT infrastructure should be available, fully integrated and functional throughout Zambia. Another objective is that e-Learning should be applied in all learning and socio-economic activities n Zambia with the Government explicitly committed to establishing e-Learning throughout Zambia (Ministry of Education, 2010:9). <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%; text-align: justify;"> Technical and Vocati onal and Entrepreneurship Training (TEVET) is provided by various players in Zambia. These include Government Ministries such as of Science, Technology and Vocational Training, Education, Sport, Youth and Child Development and Community Development and Social Service. Other providers are Faith based Organisations, Community based organizations, Trusts and Private Organisations. The enrollment of students in TEVET is about 34,000. A total of 3,000 students of these students are doing their studies through Open and Distance Learning. The provision of some TEVET programmes through Open and Distance Learning (ODL) is meant to cater for teachers and other employees that would like to upgrade their qualifications but cannot do so on a full time basis. Some of the main providers of ODL programmes are Technical and Vocational Teachers College (TVTC) and Zambia Industrial and Business Studies Institute of Practice (ZIBSIP). The Technical & Vocational Teachers' College was established in July 1975 to provide Teacher education in order to service training institutions under the department of Technical Education and Vocational Training in the Ministry of Science, Technology and Vocational Training. In January 2000 TVTC was established as a management board through the Technical Education, Vocational and Entrepreneurship Training Act No. 13 of 1996. The College is an affiliate of the University of Zambia and all College Diplomas are underwritten by UNZA (TVTC, 2011).

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">**Educators**
<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%; text-align: justify;">ODL programmes at TVTC are offered by all the lecturers. These lecturers also teach the same programmes to full time students at the College. The lecturers are qualified in various technical subjects and also pedagogy. They have also been exposed to training in the use of ICTs in education. The ODL co-ordinator has undergone training in flexible and blended learning and use of technology organized by the Commonwealth of Learning. <range type="comment" id="472145">Almost all the lecturers are comfortable using ICT technologies using computers for searching for online resources for their teaching. The lecturers have recently been exposed to the use of Moodle as a Course Management System and Learning Management System. Moodle can be used to enhance and support teaching and learning activities more deliberately<range type="comment" id="975526">. It needs to be noted that most of the lecturers have access to technology at the College mostly with a few having Internet enable mobile phones and modems they can use to access the Internet at home. A summary of the educator's competencies can be found here: [|ICT Survey Use]
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 16px; line-height: 23px; text-align: justify;">Learners **

<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%; text-align: justify;">Most of the learners are adults who are working and serving as teachers in various schools in Zambia. The average number of learners in each academic year is 1000. The learners (Distance learning) have difficulties in having interactive discussions with their teachers and peers when they are off campus. While efforts are made to interact using e-mail and phone, these have their challenge of not being affordable and lacking immediate feedback. The learners generally have access to various types of ICTs i.e. radio, TV, mobile phones and computers. Most of the students also have access to social networking tools like Facebook. Their use of these technologies is fairly competent as can be seen from here: [|ICT Survey Use] <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">Learning theories are useful when it comes to Online Learning design. The learning activity incorporates Behavourist and Constructivist Learning theories. The reasons are provided in thee Enactment phase.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">Learning Theories **

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 16px;">** Online Learning Design Model **
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%; vertical-align: baseline;">Online Learning Design is a complex problem-solving process of determining what is to be learned and then designing, developing and implementing appropriate pedagogic strategies that optimise the affordances of various technologies available within a specific context and evaluate their effectiveness (Hodginkson-Williams, 2011). <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%; text-align: justify;"> Online Learning design requires knowledge of pedagogical models, delivery methods, and competencies needed by instructors and learners, as well as an awareness of research outcomes and effective instructional strategies. In addition, the design and development process should be sufficiently flexible to address the multiple settings or contexts in which this form of instruction is used (Dabbagh & Bannan-Ritland, 2005:110,111). The Learning Design Model selected is based on the Integrative Learning Design Framework (ILDF) model by Dab bagh & Bannan-Ritland (2005) and the ADDIE Model. This is selected because the lecturers have some knowledge of ICTs and also have pedagogical skills. The ILDF model by Dabbagh & Bannan-Ritland (2005) allows for the e-learning developer or instructor to adopt a grounded approach and therefore suits teachers best. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #303030; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 140%;">I have also used the ADDIE model. This is a generic term for the five-phase instructional design model consisting of Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, and Evaluation. Each step has an outcome that feeds into the next step in the sequence. The five phases of ADDIE are as follows: <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;"> <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #303030; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 140%;">**[1] Analysis** <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #303030; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 140%;">During analysis, the designer identifies the learning problem, the goals and objectives, the audience’s needs, existing knowledge, and any other relevant characteristics. Analysis also considers the learning environment, any constraints, the delivery options, and the timeline for the project.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #303030; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 140%;">**[2] Design** <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #303030; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 140%;">A systematic process of specifying learning objectives. Detailed storyboards and prototypes are often made, and the look and feel, graphic design, user-interface and content is determined here.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #303030; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 140%;">**[3] Development** <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #303030; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 140%;">The actual creation (production) of the content and learning materials based on the Design phase.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #303030; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 140%;">**[4] Implementation** <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #303030; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 140%;">During implementation, the plan is put into action and a procedure for training the learner and teacher is developed. Materials are delivered or distributed to the student group. After delivery, the effectiveness of the training materials is evaluated.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #303030; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 140%;">**[5] Evaluation** <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #303030; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 140%;">This phase consists of (1) formative and (2) summative evaluation. Formative evaluation is present in each stage of the ADDIE process. Summative evaluation consists of tests designed for criterion-related referenced items and providing opportunities for feedback from the users. Revisions are made as necessary (Dick and Carey, 1999) cited in Learning Theories website.

<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 16px; text-align: justify;">**Content** <span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 16px; text-align: justify;">**Learning outcomes** <span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 16px; text-align: justify;">Using the learning content in the blog the teacher will be able to: <span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 16px; text-align: justify;">1. Use the chat tool in Moodle. <span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 16px; text-align: justify;">2. Use a blog as a tool for learning how to use the chat tool in Moodle. <span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 16px; text-align: justify;">3. Comment and ask questions on how to use the chat tool. <span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 16px; text-align: justify;">4. Develop a better understanding of how the chat tool can make communication with students more effective.

<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 16px; text-align: justify;">In order to achieve the above learning outcomes, the Online Learning Activity will have the following content:

<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 16px; text-align: justify;">a) Step by step text instructions on how to use Chat tool in Moodle. <span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 16px; text-align: justify;">b) A diagram illustrating how to create a chat session in Moodle. <span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 16px; text-align: justify;">c) A video that gives an overview on how to use that Chat tool in Moodle. <span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 16px; text-align: justify;">d) A blog chat window to enable the user ask any questions from me in an interactive manner. <span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 16px; text-align: justify;">e) A space for comments to be made about the blog.

= = <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 110%; text-align: justify;">__**References**__ <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%; text-align: justify;">Dabbagh, N., & Bannan-Ritland, B. (2005). //Online learning: Concepts, strategies, and application//. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Merrill Prentice Hall. <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%; text-align: justify;"> <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%; text-align: justify;"> Dick, W., & Carey, L. (1996) //The Systematic Design of Instruction//. (//4th Ed//.). New York: Haper Collins College Publishers.

Learning Theories (2011) ADDIE Model [Online] Available from: []. Accessed on 31 January 2011. <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%; text-align: justify;">Ministry of Communications and Transport (2006) //National Information and Communication Technology Policy//. Lusaka: Ministry of Communications and Transport. <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%; text-align: justify;">Ministry of Education (2011) //National Open and Distance Learning Policy (Draft)//. Lusaka: Ministry of Education. <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%; text-align: justify;"> Ministry of Science, Technology and Vocational Training (2011) //TEVET Open and Distance Learning Policy Guidelines (Draft)//. Lusaka: Ministry of Science, Technology and Vocational Training.