3.7 Moodle curriculum Signals
3.7.1.2 Physical permission
Physical permission is informed by formal reflection since it seeks to address the physical ability of lecturers to access teaching and learning using Moodle. It includes the means of transport and actual hands-on and onsite access to Moodle hard-ware (Nnaka, 2014; Van Manen, 1991). In other words, physical permission addresses the ways in which lecturers access Moodle in order to engage
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students during teaching and learning. Further to this, formal reflection seek to understand means of transport required by lecturers to reach the university to use Moodle and also attend seminars on how to use Moodle. This also involves ways or steps used to access Moodle hard-ware, security passwords as well as the issue of eligibility of lecturers to use Moodle (Jackson, 2017; Pitman, Koshy, & Phillimore, 2015). For instance physical permission checks if all lecturers have a permit to access Moodle according to their ranks, whether the lecturer is permanent staff or contract staff.
That is the reason why Mpungose* (2016) refers to physical permission as any physical facility that permits lecturers to undergo the process teaching. This suggests that formal reflection seeks lecturers to be well versed by formally reflecting on the, portable, physical gadget that influences their teaching and learning using Moodle; this may include physical gadgets like desktop computers, laptops, printers, network routers, Wi-Fi routers, data projectors, policy documents, Moodle manuals, and others.
In addition to the above, see the case study of seven lecturers conducted by Sarfo, Winneba, and Yidana (2016), in Ghana. The purpose of the study was to understand university lecturers reflections on the design and development of Moodle-based modules at the University of Education, Kumasi campus. The study revealed that teachers were given laptops in order to use Moodle but students did not have enough computers or laptops to use Moodle, and it was revealed from the study that lecturers had to be given training and incentives as a motivational package to adopt and use Moodle successfully. The study concluded that lecturers were lacking technology competence, and lacked relevant or adequate technological facilities. The assertion from this study indicates that physical permission in the use of Moodle is greatly influenced by formal reflection where lecturers are supposed to have formal knowledge and skills of using Moodle from various sources like training programmes, and research work (articles); and have adequate facilities like laptops, lecture halls, lecturers’ offices, and others. However, the study did not reflect on what mode of transport was used by lecturers when coming to use Moodle to design and develop modules. On the contrary, the importance of transport physical permission in the use of Moodle is taken as priority before others, because it ensures the availability of a lecturer in the space of teaching and learning in higher education (Bates*, 2016; Eaves, 2011),
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In addition to the above, physical permission is also about the health and well-being of the lecturers, whether the lecturer is physically and mentally fit enough to use Moodle resources (Ramona, 2017). This articulation correlates with the report presented by UNESCO (2005) on guidelines to equal access to education, which outlines that half a billion people are denied access to education due the that fact that they are disabled on the basis of mental ability, physical ability, sensory impairment, and others. This then suggests that formal reflection in physical permission addresses the issue of whether lecturers’ physical wellbeing does allow them to use Moodle properly for teaching and learning. For instance, lecturers who are on sick leave may not access Moodle, and when lecturers have a particular disabilities, like blindness, it may hinder physical permission to use Moodle (Ngubane-Mokiwa & Khoza, 2016).
In addition to the above, formal reflection relates to physical permission because it seeks all action be driven by facts and knowledge from formal documents like policies that guides lecturers’ action during teaching and learning (Myers, 2016; Van Driel, Verloop, & de Vos, 1998). Teaching and learning using Moodle requires lecturers reflect formally on four main areas in higher education, namely: research output (publication); academic promotions; academic development; and policy implementation (Vithal, 2016; Vithal & Jansen, 2012). These assertions are in line with what is outlined from the study conducted by Van den Berg et al. (2013) and Cranton (2011). These studies outlined that higher education teaching requires lecturers’ formal reflection on their qualification which determines their level of competence during teaching and learning using Moodle. This then indicates that lecturers’ academic qualification become the formal assistance or motivator in their teaching and learning using Moodle. For instance, if a lecturer is a Doctor holding a PhD, and he has been allocated duties to coordinate a module, even if he is not well versed with skills of using Moodle, he will try to do better and learn how to use Moodle in order to give credit to his qualification or title (PhD). As a result, lecturers need to work towards improving their qualification so that they can use Moodle according to what policies are regulating. This may enhance them to publish and supervise student on issues pertaining Moodle (Waghid- & Davids, 2016; Waghid, 2010).
128 3.7.1.3 Cultural permission
The study conducted by Harland, Raja Hussain, and Bakar (2014) explored ten Malaysian University lecturers on the acceptance of the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL). The study revealed that SoTL introduced new ways of teaching and learning, like the use of educational technology such as Moodle, but some lecturers and student were resistant. As a result, reluctant lecturers were drawn back to do traditional practise of teaching and learning (lecture method). The study therefore concluded that for a realistic and practical SoTL, the importance of cultural and social background should be reflected during teaching and learning for academic development.
This articulation then suggests that cultural permission in teaching and learning when using Moodle is all about bringing in the personal background of each lecturer influenced by produced reflection. This advocates inclusion or bringing in of cultural experiences such as religion and language in order to construct ideas during teaching and learning (Vithal, 2016; Vygotsky, 1978).
That is the reason why Khoza* (2016b) and Amory- (2015) assert that cultural permission has to do with issues informed by produced reflection which are personal beliefs, political, and socio- economic issues, that are incorporated during teaching using any educational technology (Moodle). For instance, produced reflection may seek lecturers to interactively use all official languages adopted by a university, such as to IsiZulu and English. Moreover, according to Mpungose* (2016), cultural permission relates to issues of gender or sex and race-related matters as well as linguistic issues which are all informed by produced reflection during teaching and learning. Further to this, language is critical to higher education transformation as it impacts on cultural permission to the teaching using educational technology and success in such a way that,
“The challenge facing higher education is to ensure the simultaneous development of a multilingual environment in which all our languages are developed as academic/scientific languages, while at the same time ensuring that the existing languages of instruction do not serve as a barrier to access and success.” (DHE, 2002, p. 5). This then seeks lecturers’ to reflect personally on the use of relevant language which will cater for social needs of students and other stakeholders in teaching and learning using Moodle (Khoza, 2015c; Yuan, Powell, & CETIS, 2013).
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Furthermore, Ramona (2017) and Khoza- (2015d), assert that cultural permission allows lecturers to bring in their cultural backgrounds in teaching and learning. Studies further aver that lecturers must be aware that Moodle is for social teaching and learning informed by informal reflection which indicates that lecturers must not feel uncomfortable or infringed during teaching and learning process. For instance, when a lecturers is from cultural beliefs of Muslim and he is using discussion forum to discuss the benefits and the limitation of Muslim religion, a lecturer must not feel offended or as if his religion is infringed when students are criticizing this religion. On the contrary, permission to Moodle teaching and learning, and education can never be debated alone without mentioning goals that are to be achieved.