Closing the Digital Divide

August 19, 2005
By Robert Alfonsi

"I feel that I have a contribution to make in closing the digital divide between the developed and the developing world in the field of education," writes Robert Alfonsi. Robert is a Masters student in Computer Science from the University of Pisa, Italy. He is currently based at Rhodes, and is writing a thesis on e-learning solutions for teacher education in South Africa.

My parents are both teachers, and I grew up in an environment where education was of paramount importance. Because of this, I truly believe that an education is one of the most important gifts a person can be given. Personally, I feel that I have a contribution to make in closing the digital divide between the developed and the developing world in the field of education, which in turn will contribute to the developing world's education standard in general.

This is not only because I grew up in family of teachers, but is also due to the fact that I believe that education, from a strategic point of view, could be crucially important in freeing the developing world from its dependence upon the developed world.

In October 2004 I attended the First Italian National Congress on E-Learning in Ferrara. A presentation given by a PhD student from Rhodes University attracted my attention. Lorenzo Dalvit was talking about a new educational tool developed at Rhodes and the localization efforts made in order to let the Xhosa speaking people to have access to the ICT - Information and Communication Technologies. I immediately found this research very intriguing and I decided to talk to him.

After our conversation, I realized that I wanted to be part of this new renaissance that is taking place in South Africa, and I told Lorenzo that I wanted to come to Rhodes.

I arrived in South Africa in June 2005 and I am based at Rhodes University in Grahamstown. During my stay I intend to work on a joint project promoted by the Departments of Computer Science, Information Systems and Education.

Here in the Eastern Cape, I am currently involved in research to develop e-learning contents for the upgrade of teachers' skills in computer literacy. This forms part of my Master's degree in Computer Science at the University of Pisa.

Grahamstown is a relatively safe town, without the major problems affecting other big cities in South Africa, and I found it an ideal environment for research. Rhodes University is renowned for its role in the development of ICT projects for education. For example, ACE (Advanced Education Certificate) and RUMEP (Rhodes University Mathematics Education Project) amongst others, are products of Rhodes University. Moreover many NGOs (Non-Government Organizations), the town council and Rhodes University are striving together to collaborate and find a system in order to address the main problems of the area.

My supervisors, Alfredo Terzoli, from the department of Computer Science, Brenda Mallinson, from the department of Information Systems and Cheryl Hodgkinson, from the department of Education, encouraged me to work in the field following a "learning by doing" approach.

Therefore, during my first few weeks at Rhodes, I assisted as a tutor in the computer labs for the teacher computer literacy programmes, namely RUMEP and ACE. This has helped me to better understand the level of the audience for my research and at the same time enabled me to build a small network with some of the many teachers who attended the programmes.

I was also invited to visit some of the schools in the disadvantaged part of town, where I talked to principals, teachers and students. All this has allowed me to put together a broader picture and to better understand the teachers' needs.

Furthermore, I also attended meetings with a delegation from a number of Finnish universities who are interested in developing a partnership with Rhodes University for the sustainable introduction of ICT in formal and non-formal education. I found this opportunity empowering for me personally, and I enjoyed having the chance to talk to consultants from the Finnish and South African governments.

What I have appreciated at Rhodes is the practical approach that everyone here takes, and how this provides the tools one needs to carry on research of the sort I have been involved in. I consider the "learning by doing" method, which is widely used here at Rhodes, the best way to be motivated by, and involved with, what one is learning.

I believe that Rhodes University gives you the chance to empower both yourself and the poorer people of the Grahamstown area, by encouraging you to become more proactive in all fields of your own personal growth.