Presentation
A conceptual framework of access to educational technologies
Laura Czerniewicz and Cheryl Brown, Multimedia Education Group, University of Cape Town
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In the past few years, concepts of the digital divide and theories of access to ICTs have evolved beyond the separation of the “haves” and the “have nots” to include more than just physical access to computers. Researchers have started considering the conditions or criteria for access and broadened the concept by including additional components. Terms such as “real access”, “thick conceptions of access” and “social inclusion” give some indication as to the change in thinking about access to ICTs.
This broader view of access is particularly applicable in the Higher Education context. However, in examining the applicability of the existing theories of ICT access, we found that no single model fully encompassed that range of resources required for access to Higher Education in South Africa. We therefore combined, simplified and enhanced the existing models to develop a comprehensive framework for ICT access. The framework includes resources that are: physical, practical, individual (disposition and aptitude), contextual (social and institutional) and digital.
The applicability of this model is being tested in a survey of academic staff and students in Higher Education institutions in the Western Cape, South Africa. Our aim is to explore the relationship between access to different kinds of resources and how they may support or hinder a range of educational technology practices.