The Student Factor in building an e-learning culture: Experiences at the University of Botswana

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dc.contributor.authorPhuthi, Nduduzo
dc.contributor.authorMolwane, Olefile Bethuel
dc.date.accessioned2015-12-05T09:03:16Z
dc.date.accessioned2023-07-05T13:18:00Z
dc.date.available2015-12-05T09:03:16Z
dc.date.available2023-07-05T13:18:00Z
dc.date.issued2008-06
dc.description.abstractThis paper presents findings of a small study on the prevailing characteristics and preferences of university students that can be linked to their motivation to adopt and sustain e-learning as their key learning strategy. The qualitative case study was carried out through a questionnaire survey, interviews and classroom observations of third year students enrolled in a five-year degree programme in design and technology at the University of Botswana. The university has embarked on a deliberate path of technological transformation through the University of Botswana e-learning initiative (UBel) which has been significantly supported by the institution’s management (Thurab-Nkhosi et al 2005). In this study, students were taken through a variety of learning activities incorporating internet-searches, group work and peer presentations, media-enhanced lectures, and guest lecturing. Through these activities, the students were encouraged to discover and communicate their strengths and preferred learning styles in an attempt to inform their readiness and motivation to embark on full-scale e-learning as desired by UBel. Owing to various reasons, the bottom-up approach to organizational transformation and innovation diffusion is often less explored because of, among others, problems of feasibility and expediency. The largely imported e-learning technology is often assumed transferable and appropriate for all students, regardless of background, orientation and aspirations. While e-learning is indeed suitable for the maturing and independence- seeking university learners who need more guidance than shepherding, few academics appear to understand who their students are, and which of their characteristics can be useful to bring about identified change in the learning and teaching processes. It has been suggested that university students, the most sensitive section of society, are open to ideas and have unsettled minds looking for change, while the universities they attend are centres of revolutionary ideas (Dibaj 2000). There are opportunities to derive from this. For their part, higher education students in Botswana have been, and are being, shaped in the realm and mindset of the prevailing socio-cultural environment around them. Being citizens of a fast economically developing country with a rare ‘inborn’ multi-party democracy described as ‘an oasis of tolerance and non-violence amid civil strife and political chaos’ among its neighbours (Rule 1988), Botswana university students are likely to portray situation-consistent behaviours and attitudes towards learning in general, and e-learning in particular. The findings of this study suggest that the surveyed students were largely expressive but unempowered knowledge and information recipients whose intellectual potential and multiple intelligences (Pritchard 2005) were not being fully exploited. They preferred less challenging learning tasks only because they were used to them, but would otherwise welcome active, interactive and information-rich experiences in their learning, with e-learning as a definite favourite.en_US
dc.identifier.citationPhuthi N., and Molwane O. (2008). The Student Factor in building an e-learning culture: Experiences at the University of Botswana.en_US
dc.identifier.urihttp://196.220.97.103:4000/handle/123456789/579
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherAcademic Publishing Limiteden_US
dc.subjectPreferred learning styleen_US
dc.subjectStudent characteristicsen_US
dc.subjectTransformationen_US
dc.subjectEmpowermenten_US
dc.titleThe Student Factor in building an e-learning culture: Experiences at the University of Botswanaen_US
dc.typeArticleen_US
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