ERIC Number: EJ1158130
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2012
Pages: 23
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-2146-0353
EISSN: N/A
Distance Education and Spatial Citizenship in Africa--Challenges and Prospects
Kanwischer, Detlef; Quennet, Fabienne
Review of International Geographical Education Online, v2 n1 p95-117 Spr 2012
The relevance of GIS for sustainable development in Africa is undisputed. One web 2.0 application which plays a particularly strong role within local governance structures in Africa is PGIS (Participatory Geographical Information System). In fact, Spatial Citizenship education is the basis for the empowerment of the indigenous capacity for using PGIS. This article will introduce the concept of Citizenship and address the question: What are the conditions in Africa that enhance Spatial Citizenship through distance education? Consequently, the relationship between ICT, distance education, e-government, geographic information technologies, and PGIS in Africa is of central interest. These interrelationships have been studied within the context of a meta-analysis of already published data and qualified studies of these topics. One of the results of this investigation is that there is no lack of distance education materials for GIS and PGIS; even so, all are being developed for the post-secondary education sector and not for primary and secondary education. In addition, online-based distance learning is not accessible for all African citizens due to a lack of skills, technical equipment, and financial means. As a solution for this problem, m-learning approaches need to be advanced.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Geographic Information Systems, Distance Education, Web 2.0 Technologies, Spatial Ability, Citizenship Education, Indigenous Populations, Educational Technology, Technology Uses in Education, Correlation, Meta Analysis, Elementary Secondary Education, Access to Computers, Telecommunications, Handheld Devices, Postsecondary Education, Geographic Regions, Barriers, Governance, Citizen Participation
Review of International Geographical Education Online. Eskisehir Osmangazi University, Meselik Campus, Eskisehir City, 26480, Turkey. Tel: +90-222-239-37-50; Tax: +90-222-229-31-24; Web site: http://www.rigeo.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Africa
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A