Magazine
The Magazine aims to promote the sharing of articles on topics relevant to the community of ALE professionals and practitioners in Africa – with a focus on new, topical information relating to the sector including new methods and approaches.
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Adult education for resilience? COVID-19-induced pondering for practice
en| MOJA Africa team ALE under Covid-19
Read MoreMOJA invited adult educators to a conversation with Astrid von Kotze, adult educator and activist. Astrid is and education activist working with organisations and people in poor working class communities in/around Cape Town, South Africa. Until 2009, she was Professor of Adult Education and Community Development at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, subsequently professor emerita at the University of the Western Cape, South Africa. Astrid has been deeply involved in cultural activism, and published widely on popular education, health and sustainable livelihood security.
Pollution adds to COVID-19 deaths, says scientists
en| Tony Carnie ALE under Covid-19
Read MoreTony Carnie's article brings into focus the relationship between COVID-19 deaths and comorbidities resultant from exposure to high levels of air pollution. Whilst this article focuses on the South African context, the author provides statistics from a number of countries globally. The article draws attention to the urgency for minimum pollution emission standards and the need for alternative energy sources that do not affect the health of citizens.
South Africa is the most unequal country in the world
en| Lauren Graham | University of Johannesburg ALE under Covid-19
Read MoreThe COVID-19 pandemic has brought this reality into sharp focus. In this article, the author focuses on inequalities related to living circumstances, livelihoods, education, access to the internet and food security. In the concluding section of the article, the author offers measures necessary as part of addressing deepening inequality in South African society.
The Digital Learning Divide
en| Zandile Bangani., 18 June 2020 ALE under Covid-19
Read MoreThis article focuses on how online learning during the Covid-19 pandemic further exposes the digital divide in South Africa. A few students and an academic share their experiences throughout the article, highlighting the difficulties with online learning. Not only are these difficulties to do with issues such as poor connectivity, high data costs, lack of access to hardware and inadequate online training, but also home environments that are not conducive as learning spaces. For example, many poor homes are small and shared by a number of family members, and creating a learning space may be very difficult or even impossible to create. This article emphasises that online learning does not simply level the playing field or somehow erase social inequality. When students are expected to transfer from face-to-face to digital learning, the conditions and context in which people live - which extend beyond just learning (such as having little or no food) - are brought to the fore. Education is part of a system of inequity and injustice and the online learning experience during the pandemic highlights this.
Kenyan Universities face big challenges going digital. But it can be done
en| Shehu Shagari Awandu., 29 June 2021 | Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology ALE under Covid-19
Read MoreThis article, written by an academic working at a university in Kenya, takes a critical look at online learning and how it was propelled by the COVID-19 pandemic into higher education. The author points out that online learning cannot simply replace face-to-face learning as some sort of panacea. In the Kenyan context, as in many other African countries, online learning has a number of negatives, such as issues to do with poor connectivity, high data costs, an unstable power supply, an inability to do practicals or field work and even write examinations. The author proposes a number of things that are needed in order to make digital learning work better. He also points out a number of challenges, such as that “only 40%” of the Kenyan population use the internet and very few universities have well developed IT infrastructure and staff who can oversee such systems. He offers a number of suggestions and solutions, such as blended learning. While the article takes a critical look at online learning, the author believes that with sufficient resources and infrastructure, digital learning should be part of the learning experience, remembering that “one size does not fit all”.
Covid and Livelihoods
en| Authors: Kunel Sen, Michael Danquah, Robert Darko Osei & Simon Schotte., 21 March 2021 ALE under Covid-19
Read MoreLockdowns imposed by governments all over the world has had significant impact on workers. As a result, several scholars have reflected on the impact of COVID-19 lockdowns on formal and informal labour markets. In this article, the focus is on the relationship between lockdown strategies and the labour market. The authors argue for targeted policies that offer protection for vulnerable groups including women, informal workers and those in low-income jobs.
COVID-19 AND FOOD SYSTEMS
en| Authors: Matthew Shupler & Dan Pope., 19 April 2021 ALE under Covid-19
Read MoreThe COVID-19 pandemic has affected various aspects of peoples lives. These include food security, employment and access to energy. This article draws attention to how COVID-19 has affected the lives of Kenyans in informal settlements with specific focus on their ability to feed their families and the use of energy in food preparation.
Effects of COVID-19 on adult education in West Africa
en| The MOJA team | Photo Credit: Martin Sanchez on Unsplash ALE under Covid-19
Read MoreIn this article, PAMOJA expressed concerns about, amongst others, the closing of adult learning spaces, reversing adult literacy gains as well as slowing down economic activities linked to poverty alleviation. PAMOJA argues for greater promotion of adult education using a variety of strategies.
