Abstract
The purpose of the study reported on here was the curriculum development of suitable natural sciences and technology education modules, including practical investigations to complement the theoretical content of these for open and distance e-learning (ODeL) in the 21st century. In light of this purpose, the chapter will especially mention assessment practices and tools, curriculum development, multimedia use, student engagement, learning management systems, and multiculturalism and diversity in the online classroom. The objectives were related to establishing the aspects that must be considered during the curriculum development of well-designed natural sciences and technology education modules, which will include practical investigations, and that students should be able to have opportunities to reflect on their engagement with practical investigations to complement the theoretical content of the modules for ODeL purposes in the 21st century and demonstrate their pedagogical content knowledge after having successfully completed natural sciences and technology education modules.
TopIntroduction
The management of North-West University (NWU) decided, in 2014, to offer the B.Ed. (Intermediate and Senior/Further Education and Training phases) qualification via distance learning. The Education Faculty was tasked with developing new modules for both full-time and distance students.
Figlio, Rush and Yin (2013), however, warned that students’ process could be harmed by distance learning. According to Minnaar (2013), the Open and Distance e-Learning (ODeL) planning process is vague, and universities are not ensuring quality distance education.
While describing the history and context of the University of South Africa (UNISA), Goosen and Van Heerden (2019b) mentioned a system using so-called postal or correspondence courses as part of distance learning. The “concept of providing higher education at a distance” is not “new: the first correspondence course, teaching shorthand, was offered in the 1700s” (Wildavsky, 2016). “Correspondence courses continued to catch on, and … in 1858, the University of London became the first college to offer distance learning degrees” (Florida National University, 2019) “to students around the world” (Wildavsky, 2016). Fifty years ago, the Open University (OU) of the United Kingdom “began broadcasting its first lectures over” the television and radio stations of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).
The seventh in a series of reports, “produced by The Open University in collaboration with the Centre for the Science of Learning & Technology (SLATE)” from the University of Bergen, Norway, proposed “ten innovations that are already in currency but have not yet had a profound influence on education in their current form” and explored “new forms of teaching, learning and assessment for an interactive world, to guide teachers and policy makers in productive innovation” (Ferguson, et al., 2019).
By embarking on the research reported on in this chapter, the authors wished to contribute in a pragmatic and meaningful way to the curriculum development of online modules for student educators. Additionally, it is envisioned that the chapter will contribute to the methodology of educational research by scrutinizing the research problem to ensure the appropriate structuring thereof through comprehensive analysis. By accurately analyzing the research problem, researchers can prevent difficulties during the research process (Dunn, 1994) and failure by reaching the wrong solutions, because of this methodological deficit.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Teacher Training Programs: Programs offered by higher education institutes to afford prospective teachers to obtain a formal qualification in teaching. North-West University offers the B.Ed-degree in Foundation Phase, Intermediate Phase and Senior/Further Education and Training Phase, as well as different diploma and certificate programs.
Instructional Design: includes processes of the gathering of information for making decisions about instruction, processes creating instructional plans, processes of creating instructional resources, processes of implementing the instruction and lastly processes of evaluating the instruction.
Distance Education: Distance education is institution-based, formal education where the learners are separated, and where interactive information and communication technology are used to connect instructors, learners, and resources.
Natural Sciences and Technology: A subject that combines Natural Sciences and Technology offered in the Intermediate phase. Natural Sciences include the knowledge strands Life and Living, Matter and Materials, Energy and Change and Earth and beyond. Technology knowledge strands include Structures, Processing Systems and Control. Natural Sciences and Technology have their unique goals, focuses, developmental methods and processes. These two subject areas are closely interrelated.
Intermediate Phase: is the education phase from Grade 4 to Grade 6. In this phase, more technical and academic skills are the focus. Students studying this degree are required to choose from a variety of subjects. Students wishing to study this phase of teaching should have a passion for developing the basics of academic skills.
Inquiry-Based Science Education: is a teaching and learning method that prioritizes learner questions and ideas. Learners need to find solutions to complex real-life problems, think deeply, and collaborate with peers during activities that take the form of practical investigations, experiments, fieldwork, and case studies.
Design-Based Research: A methodology designed by and for educators that seek to increase the impact, transfer, and translation of education research into improved practice. It stresses the need for theory building and the development of design principles that guide, inform, and improve both practice and research in educational contexts.