Digitising the South African education sector is no mean feat. It has its own unique set of challenges that have to be overcome by any provider in this space, ranging from the technology itself, the software to the connectivity required. And that's not even taking the user into account.
Claude Schuck, regional manager for Africa, Veeam, elaborates, "Challenges include accessibility, availability, backup and storage and security. How can educational institutions at all levels with limited budget provide the expected digitalisation capability while ensuring learners' expectations are met in terms of always-on accessibility to material?"
With tablets, smartphones and notebooks becoming increasingly commonplace at institutes of learning at all levels of education, educators are having to ensure that learners have always-on access to course material - and that their data is secure at all times. And should something go wrong, data recovery has to be instantaneous.
Increasingly digitally savvy learners are demanding online access to course material, lecture notes and assignments. The benefits are clear: up-to-date information that's interactive and highly portable. However, that's only if it's delivered properly.
Over and above traditional learning, there's increasing focus on distance learning, which is becoming an increasingly competitive sector.
Schuck says, "Essentially, institutes of learning need a solution that meets the connectivity needs of staff and learners. It needs to keep vital information such as exams, results and research secure, and it needs to ensure 24/7 access to any important documents or research that the learner might need to complete their course.
"The three focus areas are infrastructure, availability and data recovery. Not being able to access lecture notes, assignments, or other essential information because of a network error or slow recovery process could negatively impact the learning process."
With South African schools, universities and other learning institutions embracing this new way of leveraging technology for an improved learning environment, education's IT decision-makers need to redefine their thinking and focus on how best to support a growing reliance on digital technology and ensure they have at the very least a foundational strategy for data recovery and availability.
A quality digital learning experience requires:
* 24/7/365 availability;
* A quality WiFi network;
* Disaster recovery; and
* Data security.
The question is, do educational institutions - whether they offer on-site or remote learning or a combination of the two - have the internal resources to implement and support digital learning? Can they afford them? If not, how do they choose an external provider?
In this fast-paced digital age, traditional organisations including educational institutes battle with one element - people and the digital process. It's not what they are used to, and getting people to adapt is proving to be the barrier, according to Schuck.
In addition, learners and students are often more tech savvy than the educational institutions themselves, and demand access to data and resources at rates the organisations cannot deliver.
Merely providing tech doesn't equal success. Digitisation has to incorporate a human being at the end output of the experience. Educational institutions need to adapt faster in order to deliver meaningful content and relevant data that is always accessible and available. People, users and students are impatient and fickle and can choose many other learning providers with ease, to satisfy their need for knowledge and learning. It's very much a case of adapt or go out of business, concludes Schuck.
Share