[kictanet] Fw: RE: One subject, varying quality - We lack an accreditation system for ICT courses
Mwololo Tim
timwololo at gmail.com
Tue Jun 30 20:24:10 EAT 2009
Eng. Kariuki,
This is the only statement I could find:
"The Government will encourage the growth of local software industry by
increasing awareness among stakeholders of the opportunities offered by
different software models, including proprietary, open-source and free
software in order to increase competition, access, diversity of choice and
to
enable users to develop solutions".
Yes you are right it is not silent. What I meant was that we are
non-committal on OSS. The policy is "sitting on the fence", so to speak, and
therefore does not provide an explicit direction. This is what I meant -
sorry for the miscommunication
Is there a plan to review this policy any time soon?
Regards
tm
On 6/30/09, John Kariuki <ngethe.kariuki2007 at yahoo.co.uk> wrote:
>
> Tim,
> Please look at the ICT Policy of 2006 again and you will find that it is
> not silent on Open Source Software.
>
> I am sure other listers can confirm this.
>
>
> Eng. J.N. Kariuki.
>
> --- On *Tue, 30/6/09, Mwololo Tim <timwololo at gmail.com>* wrote:
>
>
> From: Mwololo Tim <timwololo at gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [kictanet] Fw: RE: One subject, varying quality - We lack an
> accreditation system for ICT courses
> To: ngethe.kariuki2007 at yahoo.co.uk
> Cc: "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>
> Date: Tuesday, 30 June, 2009, 6:02 AM
>
> Listers,
>
> Our 2006 national ICT policy is silent on open source software (OSS). As we
> think of a review of this policy, which according to me is due due to a
> number of issues (Vision 2030, BPO, and many other developments), we should
> think seriously about a section on OSS policy.
>
> tim mwololo
>
>
> On 6/29/09, Evans Ikua <ikua at lpakenya.org<http://mc/[email protected]>>
> wrote:
>>
>> There is also Camara Kenya (the local office of camara.ie) that has done
>> tremendous work in the area of putting hardware in schools, both Primary and
>> Secondary, installing open source software, supporting them, and training
>> the teachers. This in a short period of time.
>>
>> Their work has mainly been in the coast region but they are also getting
>> into the hinterland. They have about 150 volunteers from Ireland who have
>> just come in and they will conduct trainings for about a month.
>>
>> They have equipped schools in the whole of Lamu island, and many schools
>> at the coast.
>>
>> They are achieving much more by using FOSS as a computer installed with
>> Linux gives much more to a student as opposed to one installed with Windows.
>> Because they are not spending a penny on software licenses, they are able to
>> supply like twice the number of PCs than if they were to have the schools
>> buy licenses.
>>
>> Ikua
>>
>> --
>> Evans Ikua
>> Linux Professional Association of Kenya
>> Tel: +254-20-2250381, Cell: +254-722 955 831
>> Eagle House, 2nd Floor
>> Kimathi Street, Opp. Corner House
>> www.lpakenya.org
>>
>>
>> Quoting Walubengo J <jwalu at yahoo.com<http://mc/[email protected]>
>> >:
>>
>> forwarded--- On Thu, 6/25/09, Emmanuel Khisa <emmanuel.khisa at kadet.co.ke<http://mc/[email protected]>>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>> From: Emmanuel Khisa <emmanuel.khisa at kadet.co.ke<http://mc/[email protected]>
>>> >
>>> Subject: RE: [kictanet] One subject,varying quality - We lack an
>>> accreditation system for ICT courses
>>> To: "'Walubengo J'" <jwalu at yahoo.com<http://mc/[email protected]>
>>> >
>>> Date: Thursday, June 25, 2009, 10:11 AM
>>>
>>> And Project Discovery Kenya has been able to train more that 200 primary
>>> school teachers over the last five years in conjunction with Institute of
>>> Software technologies...I also know that similar training went on in Yala
>>> Division last April for Primary school teachers in the division organised
>>> by
>>> the Computers for Schools.
>>> On the subject of lack of adequate professors, I will leave that to
>>> Academicians and those keen on interrogating academics, I however would
>>> like
>>> the ICT training to move from over concentration with the academics and
>>> more
>>> to the more handson...more like incubator based learning approach...While
>>> the Far East economies have good universities, they still put more
>>> premium
>>> on handson skills...It is sad that even our graduate engineers let alone
>>> IT
>>> graduates (who by the way take a lot of flack) cannot invent or think
>>> outside the box...I mean no invention ever comes out of these highly
>>> restricted courses yet only a select few universities dare to venture
>>> into...
>>>
>>> The answer in my opinion lies in building skills that are more practical
>>> and
>>> focussed on creating entrepreneural opportunities.
>>>
>>> Rgds,
>>>
>>> Manu
>>>
>>> "New opinions are always suspected and usually opposed, without any other
>>> reason but because they are not already common."
>>> P Before printing, think about the Environment and your responsibilities
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: kictanet-bounces+emmanuel.khisa=kadet.co.ke at lists.kictanet.or.ke
>>> [mailto:kictanet-bounces+emmanuel.khisa<http://mc/compose?to=kictanet-bounces%2Bemmanuel.khisa>
>>> =kadet.co.ke at lists.kictanet.or.ke] On
>>> Behalf Of Walubengo J
>>> Sent: Thursday, June 25, 2009 8:41 AM
>>> To: emmanuel.khisa at kadet.co.ke<http://mc/[email protected]>
>>> Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions
>>> Subject: Re: [kictanet] One subject,varying quality - We lack an
>>> accreditation system for ICT courses
>>>
>>>
>>> I agree that something is happening within the High-School teaching
>>> fraternity. Last April, Multimedia University College trained 80 high
>>> school
>>> headteachers from Samburu and I think Transmara Districts, giving them
>>> basic
>>> ICT skills...am aware Strathmore University, IAT etc also do such
>>> trainings
>>> regularly...It may not be enough, but its definitely a good kick in the
>>> right direction.
>>>
>>> As for the University Level IT faculty staff. Unfortunately the
>>> statistics
>>> are likely to be true. You can count the number of IT Professors in this
>>> country on your three fingers ;-)
>>>
>>> walu.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> --- On Wed, 6/24/09, Barnabas K. Sang <bksang at education.go.ke<http://mc/[email protected]>>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>> From: Barnabas K. Sang <bksang at education.go.ke<http://mc/[email protected]>
>>>> >
>>>> Subject: Re: [kictanet] One subject, varying quality - We lack an
>>>>
>>> accreditation system for ICT courses
>>>
>>>> To: jwalu at yahoo.com <http://mc/[email protected]>
>>>> Cc: "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke<http://mc/[email protected]>
>>>> >
>>>> Date: Wednesday, June 24, 2009, 11:32 PM
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Betty,
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Thanks for your response on the article
>>>> mentioned below. Will go
>>>> through it and perhaps respond on key issues raised, which
>>>> ICT in Education has
>>>> already done or planned. I hope it will minimize fears all
>>>> of us have or may be
>>>> persuaded to think all is totally misplaced and lost.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> ?ICT Integration? is currently Ministry
>>>> of Education focus, and
>>>> steps already put in place are expected to make Kenya
>>>> improve both teaching and
>>>> learning environment, with better education ?products?
>>>> across all levels.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Kind regards
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> B. K. Sang
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> From:
>>>> kictanet-bounces+bksang=education.go.ke at lists.kictanet.or.ke
>>>> [mailto:kictanet-bounces+bksang<http://mc/compose?to=kictanet-bounces%2Bbksang>
>>>> =education.go.ke at lists.kictanet.or.ke]
>>>> On
>>>> Behalf Of Betty Ogange
>>>>
>>>> Sent: Wednesday, June 24, 2009 4:31 PM
>>>>
>>>> To: Barnabas K. Sang
>>>>
>>>> Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions
>>>>
>>>> Subject: Re: [kictanet] One subject, varying quality
>>>> - We lack an
>>>> accreditation system for ICT courses
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Hallo David,
>>>> Last week there was furore in this forum
>>>> about media
>>>> misrepresentation of the Kenyan situation. The article
>>>> that you make
>>>> reference to in today?s Standard (24.06.09) may be
>>>> accurate in the areas that
>>>> you have highlighted. However, I wish to take issue with
>>>> a few points raised
>>>> in the article.
>>>>
>>> http://www.eastandard.net/education/InsidePage.php?id=1144017693&cid=316
>>>
>>>>
>>>> ?Unlike other academic fields, very
>>>> little has been done
>>>> to train most teachers in ICT skills. Currently, no
>>>> primary teacher training
>>>> college offers comprehensive pre-service training in
>>>> information technology.?
>>>>
>>>> Anyone with a modest interest in education in
>>>> Kenya would not
>>>> miss something as obvious as a subject in the national
>>>> curriculum when reporting
>>>> in a national daily. Prior to the year 2004, a few
>>>> colleges had ICT skills
>>>> courses for pre-service teachers based on in-house
>>>> curricula that were
>>>> independently developed by each college. The Primary
>>>> Teacher Education (PTE)
>>>> ICT curriculum developed by the Kenya Institute of
>>>> Education has been in
>>>> force since the year 2004 and ICT is taught as a
>>>> compulsory subject in all
>>>> primary teacher training colleges. It is examined
>>>> internally at the end of
>>>> the first year and all students must pass in the subject,
>>>> among other
>>>> subjects, in order to proceed to second year. There are
>>>> several
>>>> implementation hitches in this programme arising from the
>>>> fact that ICT is
>>>> being taught as a discrete subject in the curriculum and
>>>> has yet to be
>>>> mainstreamed in the other subjects in the PTE curriculum.
>>>> The debate around
>>>> ICT- pedagogy integration in education and how to
>>>> operationalise it right
>>>> from curriculum development to classroom level
>>>> implementation continues in
>>>> the education circles.
>>>>
>>>> ?In-service training is often
>>>> provided by trainers who
>>>> are just barely literate in
>>>> computers?
>>>>
>>>> In my knowledge, this has happened especially
>>>> in instances when
>>>> some hardware providers ?dangle? teacher training as
>>>> an additional offer to
>>>> the institution. TTCs used to hire ICT technicians to
>>>> teach the course, but
>>>> in the last 2 years, the Teacher Service Commission has
>>>> posted trained
>>>> lecturers of ICT to a number of TTCs. There have also
>>>> been some highly
>>>> professional training offered to college lecturers by
>>>> Microsoft (in
>>>> conjunction with the Institute of Advanced Technology -
>>>> IAT) and the Kenya
>>>> Technical Teachers College. Computers for Schools Kenya
>>>> and the Nepad
>>>> e-schools teacher training programmes have also reached
>>>> teachers in selected
>>>> secondary schools. Lack of co-ordination (as with the
>>>> rest of the ICT
>>>> initiatives in Kenya ), lack of clear training targets
>>>> and time-lines have
>>>> compromised continuity and impact of some of these
>>>> training programmes.
>>>>
>>>> ?The
>>>> entire ICT education is in tatters?
>>>> An interesting analogy there. But I see a
>>>> sector that is struggling
>>>> with what some scholars in educational reform have called
>>>> an ?implementation
>>>> dip? ? that for a number of reasons things normally
>>>> tend to get worse before
>>>> they can get better. There are lots of difficulties in
>>>> implementing large
>>>> scale ICT initiatives in the education sector world over.
>>>> In our country,
>>>> there have been positive efforts by the Ministry of
>>>> Education, the KIE and a
>>>> number of stakeholders in education, and these do count.
>>>> On the other hand,
>>>> there has been the tendency (by education leaders)
>>>> towards elaborate policy
>>>> documents, ?ICT networks? and trust funds whose
>>>> mandates remain
>>>> indeterminate. All these need to be researched and
>>>> accurately presented.
>>>>
>>>> Accurate reporting by the media and objective
>>>> analysis of both
>>>> the positives and difficulties are important in helping
>>>> the public target
>>>> their attention and effort. Besides the inaccuracies, the
>>>> use of expressions
>>>> such as ?in tatters? ?the situation is bad?,
>>>> ?alarmed professionals?
>>>> ?obsolete hardware? to describe ICT in education in
>>>> Kenya sounds to me fairly
>>>> sensational.
>>>>
>>>> Betty
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> --- On Wed, 6/24/09, David Otwoma
>>>> <otwomad at gmail.com <http://mc/[email protected]>>
>>>> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> From: David Otwoma <otwomad at gmail.com<http://mc/[email protected]>
>>>> >
>>>>
>>>> Subject: [kictanet] One subject, varying quality - We
>>>> lack an accreditation
>>>> system for ICT courses
>>>>
>>>> To: ogange at yahoo.com <http://mc/[email protected]>
>>>>
>>>> Cc: "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions"
>>>> <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke<http://mc/[email protected]>
>>>> >
>>>>
>>>> Date: Wednesday, June 24, 2009, 9:32 AM
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> .....universities
>>>> offer many degrees but their quality and market demand
>>>> differ......
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Although
>>>> nearly all universities offer degrees, only the
>>>> University of Nairobi, Jomo
>>>> Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology and
>>>> Strathmore have
>>>> Master?s programmes and only UON and Jkuat teach at
>>>> doctoral level.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> There
>>>> is a diminishing number of staff with PhDs in ICT
>>>> departments. According to
>>>> Prof Rodrigues, UoN has the highest number of full-time
>>>> lecturers with PhDs
>>>> in ICT that stands at eight of 18, while Jkuat has three
>>>> of six, which is the
>>>> same number for Strathmore.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Kenyatta
>>>> University has nine full-time but none of them have a PhD
>>>> or an equivalent
>>>> qualification, while none of the Kabarak?s eight
>>>> lecturers have a PhD. Two of
>>>> six of United States International University has
>>>> doctoral degrees.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Many
>>>> lecturers have no experience as ICT professionals as
>>>> engineers, software
>>>> developers or in the emerging area of computer and
>>>> network security.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> See
>>>>
>>> http://www.eastandard.net/education/InsidePage.php?id=1144017693&cid=316&
>>>
>>>
>>>> for full story
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>>
>>>> David Otwoma,
>>>>
>>>> Chief Science Secretary,
>>>>
>>>> National Council for Science and Technology,
>>>>
>>>> Utalii House 9th Floor,
>>>>
>>>> Mobile tel: +254 722 141771,
>>>>
>>>> Office tel: +254 (0)20 2346915,
>>>>
>>>> P. O. Box 5687 - 00100, Nairobi, Kenya
>>>>
>>>> email: otwomad at gmail.com <http://mc/[email protected]> &
>>>> otwoma at ncst.go.ke <http://mc/[email protected]>
>>>>
>>>> www.ncst.go.ke
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
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