The COVID-19 crisis has affected 94% of the world’s student population, as schools and other learning facilities have been forced to close to curb the spread of the virus. To overcome the disruption in education, technology has come to the rescue in providing online tools and resources for continuous learning to take place. While these developments are exciting, stimulating innovative approaches and the integration of technology in the classroom, it has also highlighted the existing digital divide in rural areas where there is often a lack of infrastructure, resources and skills to make online learning a success. In South Africa,…
The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the need for online learning, with UNESCO reporting that one and a half billion students around the world were engaged in remote learning due to school closures in March 2020. While some learners have returned to schools and academic campuses, it’s unlikely that education systems will return “back to normal” soon, if ever, as blended or hybrid learning with the help of technology can complement and extend current learning offerings. Unfortunately, in South Africa, not everyone has access to a laptop or PC to use as a remote learning device, but 78% of young people…