Abstract
The integration of technology into teaching and authentic learning has great potential of improving the delivery of quality education in developing countries. Technology for education has fostered remarkable growth in Open Distance Learning (ODL), nationally and internationally. The integration of digital technologies in education has fuelled the expansion of distance learning over the years. Thus, online mobile technologies, which enable interaction and collaboration, are the main drivers of authentic learning in ODL. However, in the developing countries, educational inequalities, poor ICT infrastructure, the digital divide and unreliable electricity supply hamper effective and efficient use of technology for education to enhance teaching and authentic learning. This study follows a phenomenological approach to qualitative research, which investigates the use of technology in an ODL ecosystem to achieve authentic learning and collapse the transactional divide between the students and the lecturers. The research findings revealed that the institution has a good ICT infrastructure, and some of the students’ constituencies have poor ICT infrastructure. This might explain why there is limited use of technology for education at the department to improve authentic learning. According to the data from the participants, lack of digital skills, information illiteracy, transactional divide and digital divide are some of the drawbacks to the effective integration of technology in teaching and authentic learning. The collected data shows that both the lecturers and the students are not empowered with needed skills to effectively use technology to enhance teaching and authentic learning. This may explain why the lecturers use limited technology-based authentic activities to enhance authentic learning. The use of ICTs in education might not be the panacea to all the problems that beset ODL; however, there is empirical evidence that the use of ICTs can greatly improve teaching and authentic learning. Effective use of technology in education can produce knowledge human capital for an ever-changing knowledge economy, which is looking for individuals who can provide solutions to the challenges the world is facing today.
M.Ed. (Education in ICT)