Ericsson, at a recent video conferencing involving Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya, displayed the huge potentials that abound in a networked society, in the area of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) education.
Ericsson, which has been at the forefront in driving the networked
society, said the idea was to empower individuals and communities to drive
change towards completely new ways of governing, doing business, innovating,
learning and educating.
Ericsson believes that students and teachers that are empowered by technology will act as catalyst for the expected fundamental change in the educational system.
According to Ericsson, if schools and communities were fully
connected with devices such as laptops, PCs, mobile phones, with internet
access, there would be a huge change in the learning and teaching situation in
schools. Ericsson is of the view that a connected classroom and community would
bring about transformation from the old traditional way of teaching and
learning, to a more sophisticated digital way of learning.
The company said a networked society would make a whole lot of
change among parents, teachers, students and the classroom situation.
Analysing the advantages of a networked society in
ICT education, Ericsson said the teacher would no longer be seen as final
embodiment of knowledge, as it is in the traditional educational system, but
would be seen as a guide to students in a networked society, where students
could have access to virtually everything that has to do with teaching and
learning, such as electronic books, electronic devices, among others.
On the part of parents, Ericsson believes that the networked
society will enable parents to be more involving in their children’s education,
since they will also have access to electronic books, through their connected
electronic devices. For the classroom itself, the vision of Ericsson is to
change all classrooms in a networked society, into smart classrooms, where
students are connected to electronic devices and study with such devices.
Participants from Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa, applauded the
Ericsson’s vision of a networked society, but listed the challenges in their
various countries that must be addressed before networked society could thrive.
In Nigeria, the issue of low broadband and PC/Laptop penetration, especially in schools, was raised as possible barrier that could hinder the success of a networked society in the country. “If schools are not connected with broadband capacity for internet access and students could not afford to buy their own laptops, it will be extremely difficult for a networked society to make meaningful impact,” argued participants from Nigeria.
Responding, the Ericsson team said the company has various
initiatives it is currently working on with the Nigerian government, to deepen
broadband penetration in the country.
Emma Okonji
ThisDay Nigeria
ThisDay Nigeria