Track: E-Business/E-Service

Abstract

Unisa (University of South Africa) has acquired vast experience in Distance Education (DE) and is the oldest DE institution in Africa. In the university’s strategic documents, the need to transition from paper based correspondence to fully online tuition is vividly stipulated. Unisa recognizes the unrelenting and increasing demand for education in Africa. And together with the unprecedented explosion in the use of cellular phones experienced in South Africa, Mobile Learning (ML) has arguably become a more affordable education delivery method for improving access to education. ML presents a practical response to the demand for accessibility in education. Statistics in the university and in Africa has placed cellular technology as the most common means of communication in the continent. Therefore ML is a mode of learning that could play a critical role in addressing the increasing demand for education, enhance the achievement of the strategic goal of the university and ultimately open new opportunities for research in the institution. This paper adopts a qualitative research approach to explore, explain and discuss a design process flow model developed for ML implementation. Commensurate challenges experienced in the development of the model will be critically engaged and finally an implementation structure will be discussed.   

Keywords

ML; DE; mobile technology; cellular; e-learning