ZA-WWW, ZA-WWW2010

Font Size: 
The integration of computer-assisted education in the teaching of life orientation in schools in the Sedibeng districts, South Africa
Siphokazi Kwatubana

Last modified: 2010-09-03

Abstract


Although there is willingness by the South African Department of Education to facilitate the introduction and spread of ICT in Education and while the use of computers has become widespread in recent years, a unified, integrated approach to their use in the school curriculum in the Sedibeng districts has not yet emerged.  Integration to some means using the power and ability of the computer to aid learning, and or as a tool to teach subject matter and to promote problem solving skills and higher order learning. The integration of computers in the teaching of a learning area is neither computer literacy nor computer awareness. It is about using a computer as the best medium to support the learning goal. This research focused on how Life Orientation educators integrate computer-assisted education in the teaching of Life Orientation. It intended to investigate the educators’ competency in guiding learners in the use of the Internet thereby, enabling collaborative processes and allowing for interaction. The results of this research indicated that computer integration in the teaching of Life Orientation in the Sedibeng districts has not yet materialized. Among the problems affecting computer use and instruction in schools is still the lack of trained educators who have acquired knowledge and skills of computers and the Internet during pre-service teacher training.