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Date : 24/11/2003
Source: Ministry of Education
Title: Mangena: Microsoft research event


ADDRESS BY THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF EDUCATION, MR MOSIBUDI MANGENA, AT A MICROSOFT RESEARCH EVENT, Convention Centre, Cape Town, 24 November 2003

Director of Ceremonies, Mr Danny Naidoo; Developer and Platform Director South Africa, Mr Van Eden; Head of the University Relations Microsoft Research, Cambridge, Mr Kamal Athwal; Europe, Middle East and Africa Academic Developer Programme, Professor Daya Reddy; Dean of Science, Science Faculty University of Cape Town, Prof Ken Mac Gregor; Staff Members of Microsoft and Lecturers from various Universities and Technikons; Students; Distinguished Guests; Ladies and Gentlemen

Good evening, and a special word of welcome to our foreign guests.

Modern change is particularly driven by developments in information and communication technology (ICT). Digital media has revolutionised the manner in which society goes about its daily business, and these advances have impacted dramatically in the way in which teaching and learning is now taking place. Consequently, learning opportunities and access to educational resources have developed beyond what was traditionally possible.

The provision of a telecommunication infrastructure available for learning and teaching is gradually increasing, and many learning institutions are exploiting the benefits of ICT to enhance the quality of teaching, learning and management.

The core business of our schools is to prepare our youth for lifelong learning. Whereas in the past the emphasis in schools lay on teaching with little attention to ensuring that learning was taking place, there has been a clear shift in recent years towards equipping our learners with a full range of skills, knowledge and life expectations to better prepare them for the rigours of adult life. Our department sees this as a very positive development in our education system, and believes that it should be taken even further. The recently developed White Paper on e-Education outlines our vision for establishing the right conditions for the development of ICT in education in the coming decades.

The introduction of ICT in education will prepare our country to meet the challenges of the 21st century and beyond. The mastery of knowledge systems, information technology (IT) and enhancement of our human capital in this regard is of paramount importance. In order for our society to also benefit from globalisation, investment in the relevant skills development for our people is a necessary precondition.

In order to guide the implementation of ICT in education, the Department of Education is developing the strategy to implement the White Paper on e-Education. The White Paper outlines a vision that will serve as a blueprint for the rollout of ICT equipment and related services to schools. Included in the White Paper are the development of educational content, teacher training, a mechanism of maintenance and support and research and development.

The White Paper on e-Education indicates that the research and development community must continuously assess current practices and explore and experiment with new technologies, methodologies and techniques that are not only reliable, but also support teachers and administrators in e-learning and e-administration.

In order to implement e-Education effectively, the best way to learn and understand how to improve practice is through research, evaluation, experimentation and collaboration. To this end, the department must bring together teachers, researchers and the ICT industry into an action-oriented research and development forum to evaluate and develop leading-edge applications for e-learning.

Research has to be linked to practice. The teaching profession must play an important role in generating ideas, testing prototypes and implementing strategies. Research in and for e-learning must be closely linked to other general research on learning. Our department, in collaboration with the departments of Communications and Science and Technology, the teaching profession, higher education institutions and research agencies, would have to formulate a research agenda on ICT for e-learning.

Ladies and gentlemen, we all appreciate the value and importance of research to the growth and development of a country. Research promotes and engenders the values of inquiry, critical thinking, creativity and open-mindedness, which are fundamental to building a strong and democratic society. That is why our department's research agenda, as outlined in the National Plan for Higher Education (NPHE) highlights the need to "sustain existing research capacity and strengths, and to create new centres of excellence and niche areas in institutions where there is demonstrable research capacity or potential' (NPHE, p.70). We trust that this programme will go a long way towards increasing the research outputs of our public institutions.

With regard to research outputs of public higher education institutions, we are pleased to inform you that the Ministry of Education has recently published a research policy entitled, "Policy and Procedures for Measurement of Research Output of Public Higher Education Institutions". The purpose of this policy is to encourage research productivity by rewarding quality research output at public higher education institutions. We believe that learning technologies such as the ones provided by this programme would help to build the research capacity of our institutions.

Colleagues, I am truly delighted that our academics, including those who are based at our historically disadvantaged institutions, have shown great interest in Microsoft research and technologies and taken this opportunity to participate in such a challenging programme. Because of our historical realities, we would, however, like to see more of the historically disadvantaged institution taking part in the programme, that is, if we are to ensure that the majority of our needy students are afforded the opportunity to benefit from this initiative. If we are to enhance and increase the research capacity of our higher education institutions, encouraging collaborative research projects between the institutions of higher learning and the sharing of knowledge and experiences amongst institutions can hardly be overemphasised. That is why it is important that on programmes like these, all our public higher education institutions should be encouraged to participate.

Cabinet has approved the concept for the establishment of an Advanced Institute for ICT (AIICT). The AIICT will undertake world-class, needs-based and applied research in ICT, leading to development and innovation geared towards benefiting our economy and advancing the quality of life of South Africans and the region. The AIICT will also contribute to the education and training of high-level ICT knowledge workers through collaboration and partnerships with higher education institutions. Through its research and high-level human resource development, the work of the AIICT will support the implementation of e-learning approaches throughout the education system.

Our main concern is not whether ICT can play a role in modernising our education and training system; but rather on how we can stimulate and enrich learning and enhance teaching, administration and the management of our schools. Our learners will never appreciate the richness of learning, especially in mathematics, science, technology and languages, unless they can attain basic skills in computers. In this regard, the department's priority is to ensure that every child of school going age is equipped with some basic skills in computing.

The department has successfully championed a public and private partnership to connect schools using ICT. A shining example of this partnership is the Microsoft software donation to all our schools. The 102 dedicated mathematics and science schools in the Dinaledi Project have benefited immensely from the Microsoft donations.

We would like to thank Microsoft for investing in our education generally, and in ICT education in particular. The company's involvement in research puts a cherry on top of its achievements and investments. The fruit of your investment will be reaped by the generations that are still to come.

I thank you.

Issued by: Ministry of Education
24 November 2003

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