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Jandelyn Plane Isabella Venter

Comparing Capacity Building Frameworks for Computer Science Education in Underdeveloped Countries: An African and Asian Perspective. Jandelyn Plane Isabella Venter University of Maryland College Park University of the Western Cape

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Jandelyn Plane Isabella Venter

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  1. Comparing Capacity Building Frameworks for Computer Science Education in Underdeveloped Countries:An African and Asian Perspective Jandelyn Plane Isabella Venter University of Maryland College Park University of the Western Cape Department of Computer Science Department of Computer Science

  2. Purpose of this Presentation Summary of the state of Computer Science Education in underdeveloped countries as we have seen it in our work Introduction of programs we have been involved with Frameworks used in these programs for comparison ITiCSE 2008

  3. Current Computer Science Education challenges in these countries Less technological background as students enter a program Wider variety needed within a program Stricter university wide rules on what else needs to be taken Lack of required practice, due to emphasis on theoretical ITiCSE 2008

  4. Framework options • Teaching • Who to teach • Curriculum choices • Technique • Face-to-face • Distance Education • Support • Institutional questions

  5. Review of projects and programmes that we participate in: Rwanda Afghanistan South Africa AVOIR ITiCSE 2008 5

  6. Summary of the project: Rwanda ITiCSE 2008

  7. Teaching and support • Teaching of courses • Course support • Curriculum design • The University of Maryland College Park – one-on-one support ITiCSE 2008

  8. Expanding the Support ITiCSE 2008 8

  9. Technique • Committee design of curriculum with consultation from UMD • Face-to-face meetings • Asynchronous distance education methods • Email, web page. … • DVDs with “tutor assisted video instruction” ITiCSE 2008

  10. Summary of the project: Afghanistan ItiCSE 2008 10

  11. Support Curriculum development Faculty member development support from a worldwide alliance of universities ItiCSE 2008

  12. KU CS Faculty Members and me (Kabul, October 2005) ItiCSE 2008

  13. Afghanistan professors, Johnson and me at UWC, South Africa ItiCSE 2008

  14. Face-to-face classes were given in both Kabul, Afghanistan and Cape Town, South Africa. Teaching Alliance members presented classes in programming skills, engineering principles, research, etc. ITiCSE 2008

  15. ( Worst case scenario is during the winter in Maryland, USA) Meeting time is at: 3:30 am (EST) in USA 11:30 am in Cape Town 1:00 pm in Kabul 7:30 pm in Sydney Support Synchronous communication through video conferencing and the web

  16. Support - graduate seminars through desktop video conferencing Weekly seminar on Thursday afternoon (Kabul Time) thesis writing skills computer science content schedule and events presentations by all participants Branches were created later for a weekly seminar for English language development meetings with thesis supervisor and individual student ItiCSE 2008

  17. Summary of the UWC programme: South Africa ITiCSE 2008 17

  18. Teaching • The three year (taught) BSc degree is followed by an Honours degree • Students are taught core and elective courses at Honours level • The elective courses are chosen to inform the topic of the student’s Honours research project ItiCSE 2008 18

  19. Teaching • Course work is not, per se, part of the MSc, program. • The graduate program is very individualized and students do the necessary course work needed to fill in the gaps in knowledge considered essential for their research project. ItiCSE 2008

  20. Masters at UWC • To be accepted into the masters program, offered at the UWC computer science department, a student must have completed a four year degree. • In South Africa this will typically mean that a student would have passed both a Bachelors degree and an Honours degree. • The requirement for the UWC MSc is a successfully accepted, externally reviewed thesis. ItiCSE 2008 20

  21. Technique • Students with different backgrounds are accepted into the Honours and Masters programme. • Course requirements are personalised depending on the topic of research. ItiCSE 2008 21

  22. Support The Post-graduate Enrolment and Throughput project (PET project) offers support: • in language and writing skills development • as workshops which reflect expressed academic needs from students and staff ItiCSE 2008 22

  23. Support • Individual coursework requirement, and • research/writing support • make it possible for students from much less technologically advanced countries to pursue a master’s degree ItiCSE 2008 23

  24. AVOIR African Virtual Open Initiatives Resources (AVOIR) Network Red: AVOIR nodesBlue: Collaborating partnersYellow: Supporting partners ItiCSE 2008 24

  25. AVOIR Continent-wide support for the AVOIR Masters ItiCSE 2008 25

  26. What is AVOIR? African Virtual Open Initiatives Resources (AVOIR) Network ITiCSE 2008

  27. AVOIR vision • A pan-African Free and Open Source Software ecosystem originating in Africa so that African IT professionals can respond - with local solutions - to the needs of African universities, businesses, government and civil society while also tapping global business opportunities. • To achieve this vision, AVOIR was established as a network for capacity building in Free and Open Source Software engineering ITiCSE 2008

  28. Teaching and Support • All participants will teach courses • AVOIR node universities, collaborators and supporting parties will provide the necessary support ItiCSE 2008 28

  29. Technique • Each university will accept students into the AVOIR Masters programme according to their own entrance requirements • Course requirements depend on the university that will confer the degree • All collaborating universities will provide courses to participating universities ItiCSE 2008 29

  30. Comparisons – Lessons Learned Technique Progress in Internet reliability Distance Education Methods allow Constant Interaction Teaching Curriculum – maintainability and consistency More widely spread effect Retention of Students Support Individual relationship Remote alliance Local alliance ItiCSE 2008

  31. Thank you Questions… ItiCSE 2008

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