ICT Use in Teaching and Learning: Bridging Gender Inequality in Education in ?

Alice Nankya Ndidde Dept. of Adult Education & Communication Studies University PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 1 E-mail: [email protected]/ Introduction & Objectives

Pedagogical integration of ICT marks: - a positive step in revolutionalising education delivery, learning and teaching; - a commitment to MDGs and Dakar EFA goals whose central focus is access to good quality and equitable education for all; o MDG 3 and EFA goal 5 focus on achieving gender equality by eliminating gender disparities at all levels of education by 2015 Access to and use of ICTs is believed to hold promise for women’s empowerment and social change (Hafkin 2002)

Research has documented gender gaps in access to and use of technology worldwide and in developing countries including Africa PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 2 edu/Makerere University Introduction & Objectives • This presentation explores whether access to ICTs and its use in teaching and learning is equitable in Ugandan schools from a gender perspective • It draws mainly from the PanAf project data that has been uploaded on the Observatory - www.observatoreitic.org • Specifically, category 9 indicators that capture data on gender equality in access to ICTs and category 4 indicators relating to equitable ICT use and related barriers and challenges

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 3 edu/Makerere University Introduction & Objectives The PanAfrican Research Agenda Project aims at integration of ICTs can improve the quality of teaching and learning in Africa.

One of the Project’s unique characteristics is its commitment to gender and ICT and the collection of sex-disaggregated data

And the extent to which the analysis brings out differences in results on the basis of gender.

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 4 edu/Makerere University Methodology • The design was both quantitative and qualitative: • A mixed methods approach was used in the collection of data which consisted of: – self administered questionnaires, – one on one in-depth interviews, – focus group discussions and – observation

• Eleven educational institutions were included in this study in Uganda; – five (5) were primary schools, – four (4) secondary schools and – two (2) teacher training institutions

• All the institutions were of mixed-sex except one which was a girls’ only secondary school • The institutions were purposively selected from rural, semi urban and urban areas of Uganda. • Eight of the institutions were public and only three private

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 5 edu/Makerere University Research Results Access to and ICT use by male and female educators • Overall, access to computers and the Internet by both female and male educators in 10 out of 11 education institutions in the study was generally limited. • It was in only one institution (DAECS) that access to institutional computers was reported adequate with a ratio of 1:2 and majority of both male and female educators had a computer in their offices and some own personal laptops.

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 6 edu/Makerere University Access to & ICT use by male and female educators (Contd…) • In secondary schools access to computers among female educators was reported to be better compared to their counterparts in primary schools. For example , in St Kizito SS the presence of computers and internet connectivity in the staff room made access easier for female educators. • In primary schools, for both female and male educators access was constrained by mainly the high computer to educator ratio and limited computer skills.

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 7 edu/Makerere University Research Results Contd..

Access to and ICT use by male and female educators • For female educators, the situation was compounded by the so called ‘open access’ policy in all the institutions studied – An open access policy in many instances disadvantages the vulnerable (female educators) • For example institutional managers of 9 of the 11 institutions studied reported that both male and female educators had equal access to computers for teaching/learning purposes,

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 8 edu/Makerere University Access to and ICT use by male and female educators

However, discussions with both female and male educators revealed gender differences in access given the high computer to staff ratio – accessibility was influenced by: • ones assertiveness/aggressiveness; • availability of time to use the computers outside the scheduled office working hours.

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 9 edu/Makerere University Access and ICT use by male and female educators

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 10 edu/Makerere University Research Results (Contd…)

Access to and ICT use by male and female educators

The study established that other points of access to computers and Internet (home and Internet Cafes) were also replete with gender issues: • females educators who had computers in their homes access was problematic due to competing family responsibilities and competition for use among family members i.e. spouse, children and other relatives • the cost of access to internet cafes was very high for most of the female educators

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 11 edu/Makerere University Research Results Contd.. ICT use for academic purposes by female and male Educators

Findings indicate that: • There are more male educators trained in ICTs – formal qualifications – reported to be comfortable in using applications like Word, Excel, Access and PowerPoint, Internet explorer and E-mail • Male educators in tertiary institutions & secondary schools used ICT more frequently compared to their counterparts in the primary schools • Male educators on average used more hours per week on the computers for academic purposes than females

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 12 edu/Makerere University Frequency of ICT use by male/female educators for academic purposes per week

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PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 13 edu/Makerere University Research Results (Contd…)

St. Kizito SS educators are leading others because: - have access to computers connected to internet in their staff room, - the school managers organise ICT capacity building workshops for all teachers during holidays - have an enthusiastic IT technician

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 14 edu/Makerere University Research Results (Contd…)

• Nabisunsa SS, Kibuli SS and Kings College Buddo were performing relatively better at ICT integration mainly because of their involvement with the Cyber School Technology Solutions. • A partnership with the schools that trains teachers in the use of ICT in the teaching of science subjects at secondary level. • The gender difference in ICT use is mainly because of fewer female science educators at that level

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 15 edu/Makerere University Research Results (Contd…) Access to computers and Internet by female and male learners

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 16 edu/Makerere University Research Results (Contd…)

Access to computers and Internet by female and male learners

• 7/10 mixed-sex institutions reported that 100% of both female and male learners had access to computers • All the girls in the single-sex school were reported to have access to computers • Only one school (St Kizito PS) reported where girls had more access than boys • In Kisowera PS – a rural school, neither female nor male learners had access to computers

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 17 edu/Makerere University Research Results (Contd…)

Further scrutiny of the schools that reported 100% access for both female and male learners revealed that such statistics were misleading given the very high computers to student ratio in the schools:

• King’s College Buddo: 1:20 • Buganda Road P/S: 1:157 • St. Anthony P/S : 1:38 • Kibuli SS: 1:63

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 18 edu/Makerere University Internet Access by female and male learners

Overall, access to Internet by both female and male learners was generally low in all schools: - Internet connectivity was found in only 8/11 institutions and it was connected to just a few computers - 3/5 of the 5 primary schools did not have connectivity at all Other points of access to computers/internet reported by female and male learners were homes and the Internet cafes.

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 19 edu/Makerere University Access to Internet by female and male learners

• Female learners interviewed found the home the most convenient point of access to the computer/internet: - free of time restrictions compared to school, - less costly compared to the Internet Cafes - experience harassment from male attendants - limited ‘roving eye/hand of big brother’ (the teachers and male learners) • During FGDs a few boys and girls especially in ‘A’ level classes reported accessing the internet from their mobile phones

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 20 edu/Makerere University ICT Use by female and male learners for academic purposes Findings indicated that : • In 9 out of 11 institutions, both female and male learners used ICT for academic purposes with variations in frequency and type of use

The Frequency of ICT use by Learners for Academic P urposes

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PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 21 edu/Makerere University ICT Use by female and male learners for academic purposes (Contd…) • Female learners in tertiary institutions and secondary schools used ICT more frequently compared to those in primary schools;

• Frequent use by both female and male learners in Kings college Buddo, Kibuli SS & Nabisunsa is due to Cyber School Technology Solutions rooms connected to internet where students offering science subjects were taught regularly

• The other category of learners who used ICT regularly were those who were taking computer studies as an examinable subject at ‘O’ level and those who belonged to School computer Clubs PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 22 edu/Makerere University ICT Use by female and male learners for academic purposes (Contd…) Barriers to access and use of ICT for academic purposes as stated by both female and male learners:

• High student Computer Ratio • Intermittent power supply, • Lack of connectivity • Regulated internet access • Unstable and slow internet facilities (low bandwidth) • Regular computer breakdowns and viruses, • Limited time for practice, • Congested computer labs, • Absence of competent ICT teachers, • Limited skills in ICT for most learners, • Very old computers with outdated operating systems

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 23 edu/Makerere University Barriers to ICT use as stated by female learners

In addition to the above barriers, female learners mentioned the following barriers they felt limited their use of ICT as girls at the different point of access:

At school: - the location computer labs in school favor male students (the case of Kibuli SS, Kings College Buddo, etc.)

- Gender insensitive teaching methods and classroom practices that are disempowering to female learners

- Rules and regulations that govern access and use of computer labs (time schedules for accessing and closing of computer labs, the dress code, etc).

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 24 edu/Makerere University Barriers to ICT use as stated by female learners (Contd…)

- The sex of the teacher/technician and prefects in charge of the computer lab

- Dominant/overshadowing character of most of the male learners during lessons that integrate ICTS

- Preconceived prejudice by school managers and teacher that girls will get ‘spoilt’ when they access the internet (through surfing pornography)

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 25 edu/Makerere University Barriers to ICT use as stated by female learners (Contd…)

At home:

- Lack of time to use the computer due to domestic work load

- Restrictions on what they can do with the internet – parents are more strict on girls

- Dominating character of their brothers – they want to sit on the computer all the time – girls can access when the boys are ‘tired’

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 26 edu/Makerere University Barriers to ICT use as stated by female learners

At the Internet Cafe: - High cost of accessing the services – depended on the mercy of their parents/boyfriends - Harassment by male attendants and other male users - Restricted mobility by the parents - Location of some of the Cafes are not culturally girl friendly

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 27 edu/Makerere University Lessons learnt & Implications for policy and practice

• There are gender differences in access to and utilization of ICT for teaching and learning

• While some barriers to access and utilization are linked to factors that affect both sexes, other barriers are linked to gender issues that disadvantage female educators and learners more - thus widening the gender inequalities in education

• Effective utilization of ICT for teaching and learning purposes requires competencies and interest of educators in ICT integration and availability of supportive gender sensitive institutional ICT policies

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 28 edu/Makerere University Lessons learnt & Implications for policy and practice (Contd…)

• There is need to mainstream gender into ICT in Education policies and programmes • Challenges to mainstreaming gender include: - limited awareness of gender issues in ICT, - lack of gender analysis skills among education policy makers, managers, administrators and teachers, - lack of gender disaggregated data, and - absence of a critical mass that appreciate gender and ICT issues in education. This calls for capacity building in gender analysis for policy makers, school managers, administrators and the teachers including education researchers

PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 29 edu/Makerere University ======

Thank You!

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PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 30 edu/Makerere University