As more lecturers embrace technology as an educational tool the face of teaching and learning at CPUT is changing fast.

From making use of popular social networks such as Facebook, to implementing the use of tablets in classroom activities, CPUT lecturers are tapping into technology to teach students.

Lecturers’ efforts were recently showcased at the 2016 Teaching and Learning with Technology Day, hosted by the Knowledge Information Technology Services(KITS), a division spearheading the introduction of new technology tools into the CPUT curriculum.

This move towards incorporating technology into everyday activities at CPUT has been welcomed by Prof Louis Fourie, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor KITS. Fourie, one of the presenters at the event, says CPUT is moving towards becoming a “smart university”, where teaching, research, business and communication activities are supported, facilitated, integrated and enhanced.

“A smart university uses technology to the full extent to modernize and enhance the teaching and learning experience,” he says.

To achieve this goal, Fourie says a “smart university” must advocate the concept of BYOD (bring your own device), which will facilitate teaching and learning by providing students with access to a wide range of online educational resources.

Fourie also mooted the rollout of online programmes, stating that the medium offers flexible and cost-effective study options for students who cannot locate or who are employed fulltime.

“Technology is changing the way we interact with students,” he says.

“We have to prepare for change.”

Education consultant Barbara Jones, who presented at the conference, says there is a move towards online learning and teaching options in South Africa.

Referring to the White Paper on Post School Education and Training, Jones says it advocates education programmes that are “responsive to students needs and realities, which take in account their varying life and work contexts, rather than requiring them to attend daily classes at fixed times and central venues.”

However, Jones says for universities to achieve success in online education, they must explore changes in the curriculum and the delivery of it, alongside new technology.

“It’s not just enough to put technology in place. Flexible shifts in the entire way the university operates must be made.”

For more information on the Centre for e-Learning see: http://www.cput.ac.za/services/elearning

Written by Candes Keating
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Provides coverage for the Engineering and Applied Sciences Faculties; the Bellville and Wellington Campuses, and research and innovation news.

From blogging to working on apps, first-year students can look forward to integrating the latest technology into their learning experience.

First-years will be trained to work with the Learner Management System (LMS) system, commonly known as Myclassroom.

Facilitated by the Centre for e-learning, the LMS provides students and lecturers with a wide variety of online tools and applications on one integrated platform for teaching and learning.

Students can expect to complete online test and assignments via Myclassroom. Other exciting tools include discussion forums, online group work forums, blogs and journals.

Myclassroom is a safe learning environment, providing students with the option to integrate their social media environments. Students then have the option to filter information and set privacy settings to make a clear distinction between their personal and academic profiles.

In addition to Myclassroom, different departments are also integrating technology into the learning environment.

For example, some students can look forward to working with tablets and apps, while others will have access to video recordings and podcasts of lectures.

Myclassroom can be accessed Here.

Written by Candes Keating
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Provides coverage for the Engineering and Applied Sciences Faculties; the Bellville and Wellington Campuses, and research and innovation news.

Department of Clothing and Textile Technology Lecturer and Curriculum Officer, Dr Sweta Patnaik, and Manager - Technology Station Clothing and Textiles, Shamil Isaacs, have won an international e-learning Excellence Award at the ECEL 2022 21st European Conference on e-Learning.

The awards ceremony was conducted at the University of Brighton, United Kingdom, where they we were presented with their certificate.

The award is to showcase innovative examples of e-Learning use. These examples are presented through case histories which can be written by academics, teachers, business professionals or students. The pair have created an integrated project around sustainability in clothing and textiles and entrepreneurship for exit level third-year students. The students worked around the project throughout the semester and there were multiple activities they had to achieve and meet their learning outcomes, e.g. surveys, market research, polls, creating an artefact, multilingual digital storytelling videos, final report and presentation which was assessed by the community. They were expected to create sustainable consumer preferred products out of waste i.e., clothing offcuts and fabric swatches which were freely handed down by retailers… “For this award category we created a google sites page from scratch where all the information shared within is of low-tech data for anyone to access and learn. This is the link to the website with embedded YouTube videos,” Patnaik remarks.

She continues: “We had to create all this and go through three stages to be finally invited as a finalist and then there at the conference through two rigorous processes to be shortlisted, therefore this winning came as a big surprise, and we enjoyed every moment of it along with our students. We had 12 strong competitors from all over the world, Microsoft USA being one of them who have been shortlisted as finalists for two consecutive years. Overall, the project has augmented learning in various forms:

• Self-directed learning
• Peer to peer learning
• Collaborative and constructive learning
• Creating a community of practice
• Building in entrepreneurial knowledge.”

Reflecting on this feat, Patnaik says: “Milestones are accomplished over time from achievement after achievement. I feel very accomplished to have achieved this milestone in my life. It took a lot of work, but I am grateful that we not only achieved this but also touched on a very important aspect which speaks to Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) goals such as sustainability. Not only this, but it has also helped in putting our department, faculty, and institution on the global arena all over again.”

Patnaik, who’s the first recipient within CPUT to win the DAAD UNILEAD Germany leadership course for the year 2021 and NMU rising star for the year 2020 adds that her students are the reason for her success “so all credit goes to them”. “If you ask me about my attributes to success then that must be the following: passion, optimism, persistence, creativity, self-discipline, a desire to Improve and a commitment to Learning.”

Issacs says they are using an e-learning platform and mode of delivery to teach students about Entrepreneurship within the framework of environmental sustainability, “in this case, adding value to waste material”.  “At the same time transferring this knowledge to disadvantaged communities as a means for them to generate an income,” Isaacs continues.

“Hopefully through these, students are spurred on to entrepreneurial endeavours and at the same time have an awareness of sustainability both from an environmental perspective and social /community perspective.  This award gives recognition to the role universities can play in transforming society.”  

Patnaik says the award gives her recognition and a platform globally to take the work to another level. “To the department of Clothing and Textile Technology as well as to the Technology Station, Clothing and Textiles it showcases the kind of work that we do and how it adds and enhances student exposure and knowledge. We are contributing towards CPUT’s Vision, its seven focus areas and its emphasis on SGDs, which we portray through our work.”

Written by Aphiwe Boyce
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Academics and researchers from 24 different countries attended the 13th International Conference on e-Learning, hosted this year by CPUT.

ICEL 2018 took place at the Granger Bay Campus from 5 to 6 July. It saw 61 academic research papers, three PhD research, three Masters research and two Work in Progress papers published in Conference Proceedings. The actual conference broke up into five different streams on the two days to explore various topics pertaining to e-learning.
Conference organiser Louise Remenyi said the 120 people attending the conference presented or listened to talks covering a broad spectrum, with much emphasis placed on the use of social media and blended learning.

“There was a positive response to lots of collaborative discussions and positive feedback to the high quality of work.

“I am hearing a lot of talk of new collaborations. The big thing being discussed is that universities have less funding available which makes it less likely that people are sent to conference. But, the argument against that is that you can get more out of conferences because of the possibility of further research that gets discussed,” said Remenyi.

The conference included five keynote presentations on a diverse range of e-learning issues, including CPUT Prof Johannes Cronjé’s ‘What Pokémon Go taught me about collectionism in e-learning’.
Cronjé also discussed how using the characteristics of games could change teaching techniques.

Gamifying the learning process could be something as simple as allowing a student to retake an online test over and over again until they get full marks, just as gamers often retake a game stage until they perform perfectly.

“I’m not in it for the marks. I’m in it for the value the students can get out of it,” Cronjé remarked as he spoke about the benefits of allowing peer review as a way to assess tests.

“Do they have to be in the classroom to perform a particular activity? There must be a reason for them to be in the class,” Cronjé challenged his audience.

Conference attendees voted for their choice of Best PhD poster with Mohamed Tauheed Ahmad of Benha University, Egypt and Kathrin Hohlbaum of the RWTH Aachen University, German both winning the top spot. Johan Vorster, manager of the IT department at Monash South Africa, won for best PhD paper presentation.

Written by Theresa Smith
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.