African entrepreneurs set to improve education technology

Entrepreneurs in education technology across Africa are to engage in a 'Hackathon'- an event which would bring together computer programmers and others involved in software and hardware development, to develop new paths and methods for sustainable change in social systems.

The event to be held in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, from May 17-20, 2015, as part of this year's E-Learning Africa forum would also enable graphic designers, interface designers and project managers to, collaborate intensively on software projects for social good.

A statement issued by the organisers of the event and copied to the Ghana News Agency in Accra, said the event would set to prove whether it is possible to achieve a measurable impact towards sustainable development through fun and engagement.

Iceaddis, a community oriented innovation hub in Addis Ababa is part of the team of organisers, led by GIZ and eLearning Africa.

Markos Lemma, the co-founder of Iceaddis, said it is the first time organisers of the programme have been able to bring 35 people from Africa together to work on social causes using technology.

"I think it's important to have a hackathon on social change because hackathons are a great way to collect ideas in a very informal way. It encourages people to get creative and come up with innovative solutions," said Lemma.

Lemma stated that, as many of Africa's technological entrepreneurs are involved in developing technology-supported educational materials, it is a great opportunity for them to not only show the rest of the continent how the private sector can be involved in education but, display the different e-Learning innovations coming out of Africa.

Under the theme 'Gamification for Social Good', teams of programmers, designers, problem solvers and subject matter experts are required to identify key challenges and problems from a variety of areas - with a particular focus on the African context - such as gamification and green technologies; gamification in education and (vocational) training; or gamification for emergency and disaster management.

Starting at iceaddis, the hackathon will finish up at the eLearning Africa conference on May 20, where teams will present their newly-developed gamified tools - whether it's an app, online platform or immersive environment - to an international audience.

The conference is being co-organised by the African Union and hosted by the Government of Ethiopia, and is expected to attract over 1,200 participants.

The winner will be invited to visit Berlin, Germany, for the 21st edition of OEB in December 2015 - the global, cross-sector conference on technology supported learning and training.

The statement said participation is exclusively for citizens of African countries, with teams coming from throughout the continent - Botswana, Cameroon, Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Mali, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Togo and Zimbabwe.

Source: GNA

University of Ghana acquires software to detect plagiarism

The University of Ghana has deployed software under its current e-Learning platform that detects plagiarism in all forms, from class assignments to project works and other academic work.

The software which is part of the university’s e-Learning management system called Sakai is aimed at enhancing original thought among students and promoting excellent academic work.

The Dean of Distance Learning of the University of Ghana, Legon, Prof. Yaw Oheneba Sekyi, who disclosed this to the media after the 2015 matriculation at the Kumasi Learning Centre, said all the distance learning campuses of the school had been connected through a fibre optic to the main campus at Legon in Accra.

He said the students had also been offered android-based tablets which were web-based and allowed students to access course materials electronically and submit assignments as well as interact among themselves on the same platform.
Vice Chancellor

In a speech read on his behalf, the Vice- Chancellor of the University of Ghana, Prof. Ernest Aryeetey, announced that the university recently through the government secured a $37.5 million ICT project for its distance education programme.

He said under the project, the Accra, Koforidua, Sunyani, Takoradi, Tamale, Tsito and Wa learning centres have been equipped with modern facilities with ultra-modern computer laboratories and smart classrooms.

The rest are video conference facilities, backup generating sets and outdoor Wi-Fi, while 3,000 Internet-enabled android tablets, preloaded with relevant teaching and learning materials have been distributed to students.

In all, 1,184 students were enrolled for the 2014/2015 academic year.

Prof. Aryeetey said students admitted for Distance Education this year would have all tutorials and examinations in their centres, without having to come down to Legon as had been the practice.


Source: By Donald Ato Dapatem, Graphic.com.gh