ICT, cultural knowledge, and teacher education in Africa

In this paper, we make a case for the need to carry out more culturally
appropriate research on ICT and teacher education in Africa generally and in
Uganda more specifically. We begin by examining the promise of ICTs and digital
literacies, and highlight the importance ascribed to ICTs for national development
and educational change. While agreeing that ICTs may have transformative
potential in developing countries, we argue that the much-hyped potential may not
be realized if the major focus of promoting ICTs in a developing country like
Uganda is merely to provide greater access to global information, rather than
encouraging local knowledge production for wealth creation. We frame our
argument with reference to the New Literacy Studies perspective of viewing
literacy as a social practice situated in a specific sociocultural context.