"All diploma students, who sign the 2013 registration contract and pay their deposits or settle in full, will receive a Samsung Galaxy Tab2 P3100 7" 8GB with Wi-Fi. They can upgrade to a Samsung Galaxy Tab2 P5100 10" 16GB with Wi-Fi, by paying in R1000," said College Campus' MD, Genevieve Allen.
"However, simply giving out a device is not enough. It must be loaded with information. That's why we invested nine months' research and preparation with kalahari.com and Samsung South Africa," said Allen.
Students will receive free student manuals and financial assistance in purchasing digital textbooks, a cheaper alternative to hard copies.
Allen stressed: "We have ensured that upwards of 60% of the required textbooks are now available in digital form from kalahari.com and can be downloaded and read on the tablets using kalahari's e-reader application.
"Lecturers and students will be trained to use the devices, which are to be utilised in lecture rooms, the library and at home.
"Besides the cost-saving benefit of more affordable digital textbooks, the convenience and immediacy of learning that the tablet provides will be of great value to students. They can type notes or even record their lectures, access the Internet for research without having to wait for a computer, download their manuals, assignments and course content through our student portal and make full use of the multimedia and app functionality found on the tablet to aid them in their studies."
Digitising large quantities of text and images to make them available over the Internet and in downloadable form is a massive enterprise which is set to transform students' ways of working.
"The digital space is poised to explode in South African education," said kalahari.com's academic project manager, John Edward Jacobs. "Nonetheless, a lot needs to be done to enable this and unlock the opportunities. We are very proud of being able to pull together the partnership, infrastructure and content in a small space of time. Most particularly, we are excited about our pioneering solution: we are able to pre-load the students' digital textbook purchases onto their tablets, resolving untold logistical and supply issues. This means that on the first day of class, once the students register their kalahari.com e-reader applications, they will immediately have access to all of their unique digital content on their Samsung devices."
"A recent excerpt from a mobile learning conference paper* points out that in the developing world, mobile learning is not just about having the right content, on the right device, for the right person, at just the right time, but also having it at just the right cost, something our partnership with kalahari and the technology provided by Samsung allows us to do," said Allen.
Higher certificate and degree students who'd like to purchase a tablet have the option to log in via the College Campus website and purchase a Samsung Galaxy Tab2 P3100 7" 8GB with Wi-Fi at the College Campus online shop (powered by kalahari.com) at a reduced rate of R2899, which amounts to a R2000 saving. It's an exclusive offer to College Campus students and will be available for a limited time period only.
Today's "digital native" students understand the value and impact of technology and are the primary adopters of mobile technologies in South Africa, with nearly 72% of mobile ownership occurring among 15 to 24 year olds**. An education system or institution that fails to take this into account will lose a unique opportunity to holistically educate and engage this generation.
As College Campus moves into the powerful digital era of education, the emphasis and goals are clear: to enhance a student's learning experience better to furnish him to gain from the current impressive technology and confidently take their place in the global community. Allen and staff share this focus:
"This decision has not only been about access to information and technology. We aim to equip our students to thrive in a brave new world. One where tech-literacy is commonplace."
Students can register with College Campus until 28 February, 2013. Up to 700 Samsung Galaxy Tabs have been made available for diploma students to take advantage of this mobile learning opportunity.
*mLearn 2012 conference in Helsinki, 14 October, 2012."Mobiles For Teaching (And Learning): Supporting Teachers With Content And Methods For Reading Instruction."
**South African mobile generation: Study on South African young people on mobiles, 29 May, 2012, UNICEF New York, Division of Communication, Social and Civic Media Section Gerrit Beger, Akshay Sinha
