A Framework for Embracing Mobile Gadgets to Nurture the Reading Habits of Rural Learners in Southern Africa

Abstract

Access to mobile gadgets has increased exponentially, altering social and educational conditions in Africa. This also applies to the reading habits of rural learners in secondary schools. This paper investigates how mobile gadgets could be embraced to nurture the reading habits of rural secondary school learners in Southern Africa. This qualitative study employed a multiple case study design in five rural secondary schools in Beitbridge District, Matabeleland South, Zimbabwe, and five rural secondary schools in Vhembe District, Limpopo, South Africa. Focus group interviews were adopted as a data collection tool for this study. Data was then analysed thematically according to the objectives of the study. The findings reveal the benefits of mobile reading, which include sharing reading materials, easy access, and use by rural learners. The barriers to mobile gadget reading include a strong emphasis on academic, as opposed to leisure, reading and internet connectivity problems. The findings further reveal that some rural learners in Beitbridge did not have access to mobile gadgets. In addition, we found that some rural learners in Limpopo were using their mobile gadgets to read e-news and e-novels. Some of them spend five or more hours accessing social media for entertainment purposes only, and this has a negative effect on their reading. The study concludes that some rural learners in Southern Africa use their mobile gadgets to nurture their reading habits, although some challenges were identified. In response, this study presents an integrated framework that could be adopted to embrace mobile gadgets to improve the reading habits of rural learners.