Revue des arts et des sciences sociales

Foundation Phase Teachers′ Practices of E−Learning Strategies in a Rural Context: Challenges and Opportunities for Innovations during the COVID−19 Pandemic

Abstract

Dumisani W Mncube1* and Blanche Hadebe-Ndlovu2

This study explored Foundation Phase (FP) teachers' practices in their quest to improve curriculum implementation by using e-learning strategies in rural schools. Most studies underscore the significance of using contemporary curriculum approaches to guide teachers towards innovations to expedite the decolonisation of rural education using e-learning strategies. The purpose of this study was to understand how FP teachers' practices of using e-learning strategies helped improve the curriculum while ensuring quality education and an improvement in learner behaviour and rural education. The COVID-19 pandemic has raised serious questions about design flaws in the current curriculum and implementation, as it fails to respond to the challenges faced by the majority of learners in schools located in rural areas. This qualitative study used semi-structured interviews, classroom observations and teacher narratives framed by the philosophy of Ubuntu to generate data that were thematically analysed. Ethical issues were given high priority. The study found that most FP teachers struggle to infuse innovative practices targeted at promoting quality rural education into their daily praxis. Further, the facilitation of e-learning through a range of interactive strategies is only possible if issues of access to data and networks are urgently addressed.