ICT Use in Teaching and Learning: Bridging Gender Inequality in Education in Uganda? Alice Nankya Ndidde Dept. of Adult Education & Communication Studies Makerere University PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- 1 E-mail: [email protected]/Makerere University 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 acad 7 6 purposes per week 5 4 3 2 1 0 Kisowera Primary School St Anthony Day and Boarding... Buganda Road Primary School St Kizito Primary School Bugo... St Peters Primary School Ns... emic Kibuli Secondary School KYAMBOGO UNIVERSITY SCHO.. King's College Budo PanAf project/Observatory/panaf- DEPARTMENT OF ADULT EDUC... edu/Makerere University Nabisunsa Girls School ST.KIZITO SECONDARY SCHOO... Females Males 13 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 for academic purposes with variations in frequency The Frequency of ICT use by Learners for Academic P : 8 6 4 2 0 Buganda Road Primary