A sustainability framework for mobile technology integration in resource-constrained schools: a case study in South Africa

Abstract

The importance of sustainability for ICT4D projects has been acknowledged but there remains, however, a lack of frameworks to guide the long-term sustainability of mobile technology integration to support teaching. The diversity of contexts complicates the development of a consolidated view of how to sustain mobile technology integration into teaching. This study sought to investigate and develop a sustainability framework for mobile technology integration in schools in resource-constrained environments in South Africa (SFMTIS). The Design Science Research Methodology (DSRM) was applied to answer the research questions and to iteratively develop the SFMTIS artifact. The main philosophy which guided the research is pragmatism. Interpretivism was applied, when a case study was used, to refine and validate the framework within the DSRM process model. This research was undertaken from 2014 to 2017 and the SFMTIS was developed in three phases. Based on the review of the existing literature, an initial framework was synthesised in Phase 1. A systematic literature review was conducted to investigate mobile technology integration in the South African basic education system as well as ICT4D sustainability models and frameworks. The SFMTIS sustainability dimensions, as abstracted from the literature, include financial, political, social/cultural, technological, environmental and pedagogical sustainability. In Phase 2 of the research a case study was done to investigate the perspectives held by teachers and district officials regarding mobile learning integration in the schools. The findings were used to improve the initial SFMTIS. The case study involved teachers from schools that had formerly participated in the ICT for rural education and development (ICT4RED) initiative who were selected through purposive sampling to participate in this research as well as district officials from the same school district. The ICT4RED initiative is a large-scale South African government research, development and implementation initiative which was carried out over a period of three years, from 2012 to 2014, at one of the school districts in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. The initiative investigated ways in which ICTs can be integrated into teaching and learning in rural areas. The findings from the interviews with teachers and district officials, provided evidence which confirmed the value of the sustainability dimensions identified in literature. The study highlighted financial and technical support mechanisms required for the sustainable iv deployment of ICTs. The research findings indicate that communication and coordination at all levels of the education system, micro (school), meso (school circuit and district) and macro (provincial and national) are essential for ensuring sustainability. The findings highlighted some specific issues related to institutional challenges. This motivated the proposition of the institutional dimension to represent the structure, processes and practices at micro, meso and macro levels of the education system. The intermediate SFMTIS was refined by applying the findings of the case study to the initial framework. In Phase 3 the intermediate framework was presented to the teachers and district officials who had formerly been interviewed during the development of the SFMTIS, as well as other experienced individuals who had been involved in the implementation of the ICT4RED initiative, for their expert evaluations. The expert reviewers’ feedback was applied to refine the intermediate SFMTIS and aided in the development of the final SFMTIS. The research contributes to theory by developing the theoretically grounded, evidence-based SFMTIS, thus contributing to praxis and adding new knowledge of a focal theory that addresses sustainable mobile technology integration in schools in resource-constrained environments.