4 Scenarios for the Mauritian Education Sector in 2022

Growth 

This scenario looks at the Mauritian Education system as a graduate production machine achieving the vision of Government of one graduate per family. In this scenario, intellectuals will be formed at a constantly increasing rate irrespective of their primary and secondary schooling foundations. Skilled labor will be on shortage on the market and more and more graduates will be forced to do blue-collar jobs and manual jobs to earn a living thereby creating a sense of frustration and inequality of chances. People with MBAs will be driving taxis and others with a degree in Food Science will become hawkers. The entrepreneurial culture will be strengthened but with a mitigated sentiment that Government has fooled around with the future of the graduates. On the other hand Mauritian intellectuals will form the core of the so-called knowledge hub where human resources will be exported to Africa from Mauritius where a number of economies are prospering. Growth of the education sector to serve the region and the African continent can make education services as one of the emergent pillars of the new Mauritian economy.

Constraint 

In this scenario, the status-quo is being maintained. In essence the education system will look like the same it was as today except with some cosmetic improvements. Schools will be flooded with computer hardware and software but most of them would be obsolete and require update. Teachers will still be asking for new types of training to be able to master the technology, because the technology that they were used to during their teacher training periods is no longer in place. In 2022, in the constraint scenario, ICT will still be at experimental level in schools and Government promises will have moved from offering a laptop per child policy to a tablet per child policy to now a mobile phone per child policy. In reality the curriculum will not have changed in its essence except that new subjects would be added to overload the learner and therefore maintain the same problem of pass rates and output rates from successive education levels. 

Collapse (contributed by Rubina Rampersad)

In order to please the different lobbies in the Mauritian context, educational reforms are piecemeal and “too little and too late”. The Certificate in Primary Education (CPE) has not been revamped: cosmetic changes were made. Wherever overhauling was proposed, voices were raised by X or Y Community making the government go back on archaic methodologies. The result is that in 2020, we still have a nation of followers instead of innovators and creators. We depend on others to find solutions to our local problems. Moreover, in a globalised world, instead of using our promised world-class education to produce citizens who can ‘export’ their skills, and knowhow to others, and/or solve our local problems, the government has to depend on exogenous expertise and technology in developing the following: growing staple foods that require low irrigation, finding ways and means to have a manufacturing industry that was not water –greedy, development of renewable sources of energy as there was urgency to save funds for high priority projects such as food and water. Even in the ICT /BPO sector, local people work on the lower rungs of the organization whereas the highest paid positions where the “knowledge workers”, the creators and innovators are, come from overseas. The CPE exams have doomed generations by making them rote learners who accumulate information but do not know how to transform and deconstruct that knowledge. Foreign labour are fast gnawing the job market by taking up the best positions and this is leading to a new form of colonialism. The food and water crises further exacerbate the ‘rigid’ nature of schools as schools become more militaristic and authoritarian to justify their status quo. Since the economic conditions are bad, there are pressures to do more with less, with schools trying to maintain the status quo rather than experimenting in new teaching and learning methodology where the centre would become the learner. This becomes the ‘less risky” and safest approach in highly febrile context, both social and economic.Our own “brains”, given fierce global and regional trends, have migrated in search for better opportunities. 

Transformation 

The ideal scenario for 2022 is the transformation of the education system into the schools without walls concept where much of the knowledge acquisition phase will take place at home through interactive curriculum that is tailor made and distributed over interactive digital broadcast networks such as IPTV and the internet. Schools would become places where important life skills will be taught such as moral values, community living and other socially related activities will be taught. The Mauritian school will be temple of Life Arts which makes individuals better and smarter citizens. Our learners have found the Holy Grail for surviving in a globalised village: lifelong learning skills to find ever- innovative and creative solutions, but never losing their uniqueness as Mauritians, which in fact gives them an additional edge. 

The Act of the Open University from an Academic standpoint

The Open University of Mauritius Act[1] of 2010 (OUM, 2010) describes in eight substantive parts, the legal framework within which the Open University of Mauritius will operate. In this section we shall concentrate on those parts that are relevant to teaching, learning and research. The first element of attention is the objects of the University. The first object of the university as per the act is that it seeks to advance and disseminate learning and knowledge through a diversity of means, with emphasis on information and communication technologies. This clearly means that the University will focus on ICT as its main driver for operation and that distance e-learning will be the preferred form for knowledge dissemination. The second object of the Open University is to widen access and promote lifelong learning. While the third one is related to the use of open and distance learning methodologies, the fourth object talks about research at the University. The fourth object makes the University a specialised research institution in educational technology and related matters. It is clear from the above paragraph and in the context of this reflection, that the objects of the University are nothing more than those of the e-learning initiative of the University but supposedly on a larger scale.

The Open University, as per its act of 2010, will have the following structure:

• Academic Affairs Division
• Multimedia and ICT services section
• Quality Assurance and Capacity-Building division
• An Open School Division
• An Administration Division
• A Finance Division
• A Confucius Institute
• A Language Institute and
• Such other divisions and institutions as may be specified in the Statutes.

From the act, the Council of the University which is the supreme governing body will have powers to create Schools and other centres if there is the need to. Looking at the above super-structure of the University, any school will have to fit in the Academic Affairs Division. Will it make sense in this institution to have schools in a similar way as Faculties in the classic Universities? This might be an option but what is unclear is how will the concept of open and distance education be articulated with the concept of having Faculties and Schools which will be composed of academics? Let us assume that such a University will have a unit named the School of Law and Management. In reality, any University with a School of Law and Management will comprise of academics in the area and who will be research-active persons in the field of Legal Affairs, Business Management and other related areas. The paradox of this is that among the five core objects of the Open University of Mauritius, the clause related to research reads “encourage and promote scholarship and conduct research and development in educational technology and related matters’’. Amongst the functions of the Open University, there are two distinct clauses that capture attention, namely the clause stating that the Open University will “provide services and consultancy especially in open and distance learning” and “make provision for research and development in educational technology, instructional design, learner support and related matters”.

Although these may be amended in the future to reflect more the field realities of Universities whether open or not, it cannot be theoretically conceived that all academics in the different schools in a University will be doing research in one field namely education technology. In the same logic of things, we cannot expect a University to be offering services and consultancy in one field only. There are two possible explanations for such paradox to occur in the Open University of Mauritius act. The first one is that there has been clearly a misconception that above all an Open University is a University and the mission of any University is basically to create and disseminate knowledge. The second possibility is that policy makers and legislators did not want to be under the criticism that this is yet another University in such a small country where three or four public Universities doing the same thing would be seen as a wrong strategy. The second reason is therefore mainly political in nature. If we take the Open University of UK as a point of reference, we can find that the University consists of seven faculties and two institutes. There is the Institute of Educational Technology and the Knowledge Media Institute. On top of that the University consists of five interdisciplinary research centres among which there is one on computing, and one on education research and educational technology.

While the main vehicle for knowledge dissemination in the Open University concept is considered to be distance education and e-learning modalities, it should by no means overshadow the real philosophical concept of a University. If the same logic is followed, then why it is that research on face-to-face teaching is not the main area of investigation for all traditional universities?

[1] Open University of Mauritius Act http://www.gov.mu/portal/goc/assemblysite/file/act0210.pdf

The Educational Technology Seminar

The VCILT organised a one-day seminar on Educational Technology on the Saturday 14th July 2012. About 40 educators of the primary schools and a few secondary school educators were present to discuss on related issues with respect to the state of affairs in their schools, and also to hear from academia about the latest emerging trends and technologies. 

Presentations related to Open Educational Resources, Educational Cartoons or the use of Creole Language in the development of Interactive Educational Resources were at the heart of very constructive debates. The seminar was supported by Microsoft Indian Ocean and the Microsoft Partners in Learning Initiatives were presented to participants. 

The participants acknowledged the ability of the team from the VCILT to motivate teachers for a full Saturday was something to be praised.  On top of that 50 educators were trained to developed their own interactive learning materials back in March/April 2012, and which were conducted on Saturdays and Sundays. The whole idea behind this capacity-building programme was to decentralize the development of content to the educator's community to enable a sharing culture among peers. Technology is moving at such a pace that the modern technology of today is considered obsolete by tomorrow and we just cannot keep relying on a few persons to develop a whole curriculum. Teachers and students should become co-creators and co-consumers of content. 

We hope to keep the ball rolling and to start forming together a kind of communities of practice who come together once a while to share the latest progress, good practices and know about the latest trends in the educational technology sector. Mr Santally in his opening speech highlighted that in the present age we cannot ignore how technology is affecting us and our environments on a daily basis, and in the wait for the schools without walls reality, we have to keep on our efforts to continuously adapt and modernise our education systems.  

Mr Auckbur from the Ministry of Education highlighted the efforts that are being made at policy level and the management level to equip classes in Mauritius with the technologies of the future. He also highlighted the changes that will soon be brought along this line. The seminar also gave the opportunity to four educators to showcase field realities and their initiatives in terms of the use of technologies in the schools. On the other hand, the interactive whiteboard was at the centre of another interesting debate where educators discussed about the constraints and issues related to its usage/under-use and content related problems that they are facing in the schools. The presentation titled "Interactive whiteboard in schools - a good tool or just another trend?" sparked interest among those present.

The Open University of Mauritius: Operational

http://www.lemauricien.com/article/tertiaire-mauritius-college-air-devient-l%E2%80%99open-university-mauritius


The Open University of Mauritius is finally ''operational''. Yes indeed with the appointment of a chairman of the board and of the Director General. Will things really change? 

Here is a brief recap (from the author's perspective and deemed correct by the author as far as his humble knowledge permits) of the history of the ''OUM'' and some very pertinent questions for the future.

In between the year 2000 to 2005, the concepts of open learning and technology-enhanced learning were on the political agenda of the government. The first such initiative in terms of technology-enhanced learning was the very successful initiative called the Mass Computer Proficiency Project (CPP) that was targeted at making mass training in basic information technology in a bid to sustain the strategic objective of making Mauritius a cyber-island. The initiative was later enhanced, but within the same goal through the Universal IC3 (Internet and Computing Core Certification) in 2005. The pedagogical philosophy behind the CPP and IC3 courses was based on the “learning-by-doing” approach and “learning IT through IT” which meant that contents were made available in digitized form comprising of multimedia and hypermedia elements. 


At the same time during the 2000-2005 periods, the government came up with the idea of an open-learning institute which would be fundamentally absorbing the Mauritius College of the Air. The idea later evolved into that of an Open University in 2005 but it never came into operation, until a revamped bill was presented in 2010 in Parliament. A recent press article in November 2011 (Le Mauricien 2011)[1] reported that the Open University of Mauritius would be operational before the end of the year. We are currently in 2012, yet no sight of any operationalisation of this University. A similar press article dating back in 2010 (L’Express 2010)[2] highlighted that the said University would be operational before the end of that particular year also. A related press article (Defimedia 2011)[3] in October 2011 revealed that Open University of Mauritius would be ‘one of the best institutions which will offer distance learning courses’ and that once it is operational, it will achieve the ‘Government’s vision of having one graduate per family’. 


These were reported to be the statements of the Minister of Tertiary Education and Scientific Research. The press article in 2011 (Le Mauricien 2011) talks of the collaborations with the Commonwealth of Learning and that in a first instance courses of the Open University of UK would be offered by the Open University of Mauritius. This is a first contradiction as the Open University of Mauritius has as objective to offer courses at affordable costs while the Open University of the UK cannot really be counted as an ‘affordable’ institution in terms of cost for many Mauritians. Other similar press articles reporting either the Minister’s statements or extracts of interviews from technical officers of the Ministry highlighted that all the plans were ready and that at least the first instance, the Open University of Mauritius will offer courses from other institutions like the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) of India. 

The very first definition of a University is that it is empowered by law as an awarding institution. It has the power to confer its own qualifications in its own name to its students. While the Mauritius College of the Air (MCA) exist since 1971 and its mission was precisely mass education through mainly radio and television programmes, it had over the years moved into running of more formal courses through affiliation to either local institutions like the University of Mauritius or external institutions like IGNOU. The reason for this was precisely the fact that the MCA was not an award institution. Now that the Open University has been (logically) created, the move of keeping the same operational model of the Mauritius College of the Air to run a University is not well articulated. In most of the press communiqués and other public speeches, there seem to be a confusion of the concept of open education and the distance e-learning modality. There is an amalgamation of these two concepts which to those driving the initiative, seem to be one and the same thing. This is obviously one of the main misconceptions of confused minds that have to some extent contributed towards the inability to operate the university after so long. 


Perraton (2000) has pointed out that the term ‘distance education’ captures the economic imperative of gaining benefits of scale, low cost and consistent quality, whereas ‘open learning’ evokes the political imperative of widening access. It is important to note that Kanwar and Daniel (2010) argued that establishing new brick and mortar institutions is not a viable option for most countries, especially developing ones. Back in 1988, there was only one Open University in Africa and there are currently four in all in Africa namely the University of South Africa, the Open University of Tanzania, the Namibian College of Open Learning, and the National Open University of Nigeria. One can easily understand the need of open learning institutions in those countries given their geographical sizes and the dispersion of their inhabitants. The rationale of an open university in Mauritius is not so clear in terms of the size of the island. Therefore the vision and mission of such an organization should be clearly linked to the national priorities and in line with the needs of our society. 

It is worth mentioning that the Open University of Mauritius is the third public University in Mauritius, although technically it is not yet operational. The business model so far is not clear for the University. A quick scan of the literature available on open universities also reveals University failures in distance education initiatives due to either the inability to attract students or to expand the courses catalogue. One such case is the Malaysian Virtual University. Malaysian Virtual University (MVU) was conceived in 1996 as a degree-granting institution aimed at increasing the participation in commerce and industry of the indigenous Malay ethnic group. One of the country’s largest commercial co-operatives was behind it and an American company was brought in to design it, but not as a web-based distance teaching institution. The MVU did not come into being, however, for lack of agreement regarding where, when or how the courses would be developed. Nor did it obtain the necessary licence to operate from the government (Ress and Sonberg 1998). Open University of the United States (OUUS), after three years of financial losses and low student enrolment, was closed in 2002 by the UKOU, its parent institution. It had not yet obtained full US regional accreditation (Hawkridge, 2003). 

In the context of the Open University of Mauritius, the following questions are pertinent:

• Is it important to have a new university if opening access and flexible learning are the main objectives to be achieved? 
• What would be the operational and the business model of the Open University? Will it be funded from public funds or will it aim to achieve significant financial independence? 
• What will be the pedagogical and diffusion model for the Open University and how these will be linked in an integrated framework throughout the educational process and the student life history? 
• What will be the target audience and the strategy to attract local and foreign students to the University? How will it compete with the UNISA, IGNOU and other Distance Education Universities operating in Mauritius? How will international recognition of the University be achieved? 
• Will the Open University of Mauritius be a real university or will it just be the MCA ‘operating’ as a University? 
  
  

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[1] http://www.lemauricien.com/article/tertiaire-l%E2%80%99open-university-mauritius-op%C3%A9rationnelle-avant-fin-2011

[2] http://www.lexpress.mu/story/13427-le-ministre-jeetah-souhaite-la-creation-de-l-open-university-avant-la-fin-de-cette-annee.html

[3] http://www.defimedia.info/news-sunday/nos-education/item/1002-open-university-how-will-it-work?.html

The Educational Technologies (ILT2000) Module : What the students think?

Student 1
First of all,frankly speaking it was a bit difficult at the beginning then it became a routine.I had adjusted myself to the different learning activities that was a daunting challenge,because most of them were unknown to me.Meanwhile i had to spare some of my time to concentrate on this topic.I had made many researches and even viewed examples before carrying on with the exercises given.

After doing this super gems,first of all i had gained knowledge and i had learned many new things like how to incorporated audio and video in e-learning courses or how to create blogs; just to mention a few.Of course most of them could be used doing my projects or assignments.Educational activities had accommodated different learning styles and facilitate learning through a variety of activities. 

This had developed my knowledge of the Internet and computers skills.After successfully completing on-line courses.this had built self-knowledge and self-confidence and encouraged me to take responsibility for my learning.

Without the routine structures of a traditional class,i got confused about course activities and deadlines.Most of the time i felt isolated from the instructor and classmates and instructor was always available at that particular moment when i was studying or needed help.When i was stuck on something,i asked a few simple questions and discussed it on the forum itself so as to clear the doubt.It was frustrating to manage computer files and online learning software which were complex for me as i was a beginner-level computer skills,but later i managed as i mastered the module properly after much researches on the different activities respectively.

Above all the Q&A forums were of great help to keep in touch with the tutor,friends and classmates. Finally it was really a great experience that i had done this activity.I had no regret,thumbs up. 

Student 2

Before coming to the University of Mauritius, I have never heard about SuperGEM and I did not even know what it was all about. Soon, I get to know its importance within my program of study and among the three choices I had, Educational Technologies seemed to be the most appealing to me. I did not have any apprehension and chose the Educational Technologies SuperGEM module without hesitating. Back then; I was unaware of the fantastic and innovative learning experience that I was about to undergo.

Soon after the enrolment, I started Unit 1’s lesson on Educational Technologies together with the forum post activity hassle free. I also noticed that all of the other units were hidden and I deduced that they were going to be revealed progressively. I think that this is where this SuperGEM stands out from the two other choices I had. Many friends of mine, who opted for the one of the two other SuperGEMs, did not get the chance of undergoing a similar e-Learning approach. For them, all of the units were made available from day one and this created much confusion and disorientation. On my side, the Educational Technologies SuperGEM was from day one well organized on a neatly presented e-Learning environment.

Then, week after week I carried out the units and their activities, as they were made available on the platform. All of the learning resources provided were written in a clear, concise and explicit language and were easy to read and to understand. The learning activities were my favourite part of this SuperGEM because everything had to be done and/or submitted online. No need to waste time and resources, as online submission boxes were made available and results were instantly displayed for activities like MCQs. All of these were amazing.

Things started to get more interesting when I had to do the assignments on concept mapping, the VCILT blog and the online video lectures. These were surely challenging but absolutely more innovative and instructive. I think that this is also a very creative approach because it reduces the conventional way of doing excessive and systematic written works. Everything was fine and running smoothly and semester 1 came to a beautiful end.

However, semester 2 started with some difficulties. The assignments were a bit longer to complete, there were frequent problems with my Internet connection and the assignment on the EXE web design tool brought about some issues over its installation and use. All these resulted in the building up of lateness at the level of submission of some works. But hopefully, I have been able to overcome these difficulties thanks to the extension of the submission deadline provided and the alternative to the EXE, the NVU which I used effortlessly. I hence submitted my 3 last assignments with much relief.

Now that I have completed all the lessons and learning activities, I feel so educationally and technologically fulfilled. This SuperGEM has provided me with a lot of innovative educational tools. Tools that I have never used before but that I will now make use of for my entire life as a learner and even as a future instructor.

Concerning the Q&A forums, I think that it is another good approach for the tutor to interact with students regarding some unclear issues. Still, many students misused it and posted their general opinions instead of questions on the Q&A forums. Anyway, it is just a little confusion which is due to may be too much of old-fashioned education. The only suggestion that I can make for a possible betterment of this SuperGEM is to organize workshops at least once a semester or even once a month.

Finally, I have to say a big thank you to VCILT, for the support they provided throughout the duration of this course, and to all the dedicated people at the VCILT who are actively working towards the promotion of e-Learning in Mauritius. The benefits I gained from the concept mapping techniques to web page designing are incredible. I will never forget this incomparable e-Learning experience and I will surely share and nurture what I have acquired from this module. 

Transforming Teacher Education - The BSc (Hons) Educational and Instructional Technology (Top-Up) Degree

In 2009 the VCILT launched the BSc (Hons) Educational and Instructional Technology Top-Up programme to allow in-service educators holding either a Diploma in Primary or Secondary Education or educators with Certificate of Primary Education with at least 10 yrs of teaching experience to embark on this lifelong learning programme.

Teachers/Educators of specially primary schools in Mauritius have always suffered from injustices in terms of their salary (which is very low for such a noble job) and in terms of the possibility to upgrade their qualifications. 

The entry qualification on a teacher training programme in Mauritius used to be the School Certificate level which has over the years been raised to HSC. However, nowadays it is a fact that many graduates are embracing this job for a derogatory salary. 

Why are they doing so? There are only 2 reasons. They have to earn a living, and it is imperative that they get a secured government job. At what expense? They have to embark on another 2 or 3 year training at the Mauritius Institute of Education with many of their counterparts who only have HSC and who have just come out of the secondary schooling system. On top of that, they have to sign a bond of about Rs 175000 to ensure they serve in the primary sector for at least five years. 

Can we achieve world class education with such a philosophy? Can we reform our education system with such a philosophy? As a result people are no longer embracing the primary school teaching profession for the passion that they have but merely as a job which they dislike and look for the very first opportunity to quit.

Now comes the issue of those who want to further their qualifications but they get stuck in the system. They have to wait years based on a number of different criteria before they can embark on either an Advanced Certificate in Education or a B.Ed for those having a Diploma in Education. 

As a result many educators start to embark on fresh degree programmes which do not have any relation to the teaching profession. 


This is where the Online Innovative BSc (Hons) programme of the University of Mauritius addresses some of the very many injustices to teachers. First and foremost it recognizes their prior teaching qualifications and most importantly their experiences. It values their contribution to the profession and gives them a fast track route to earn a degree which reflects teaching and learning of the 21st century. 

On the other hand, after this degree they can go for any generic Masters degree programmes that can open other career avenues for them in higher levels of the hierarchy of the education system. 

For teachers of the secondary schools who have diploma in education, this top-up degree provides the avenue for them to be upgraded to Grade A teacher therefore getting better salary and fringe benefits which helps in achieving a better job satisfaction. 

Unfortunately so far educators are having to pay for this programme but this contribution is also helping in a way to make the course financially sustainable for the greater benefit of society at large. This programme is helping to make our experienced educators digital migrants and equipped our young educators with a modern approach to education. Thus only a radical transformation process with regards to learning and the education system can start...

Capacity-building workshops on Rapid e-Learning and Interactive Materials Development

2012 has marked a year where the VCILT has engaged into a series of Capacity-Building Workshops on Rapid e-Learning and Interactive Materials development for e-learning. The main target are educators of the primary and secondary schools who are exposed to technology in the classroom but who cannot use them in innovative and creative ways as they would have wished to for a variery of reasons.

The VCILT has been working on research and development related to pedagogical design of high quality learning environments using rapid e-learning methodology since 2009. We felt that this is the time to start disseminating the technique after its successful experimentation within the university courses and a few international consultancies. 

The VCILT has been generously supported by MICROSOFT in this endeavour and more 50 educators have received a 2-day training on rapid e-learning development in March-April 2012. 

The philosophy is to distribute the development of interactive learning resources among the teachers by empowering them in terms of technical skills through these capacity-building workshops to allow more resources to be  developed, which are customised according to the teachers' students and their respective abilities, and to take less time in reaching a critical mass of a variety of resources than can be used, reused and shared among the practitioners.