Computer technological change and its implication on information technology training: a case of selected technical training institutions in Nairobi area, Kenya.

Abstract

Computer hardware and software technology has grown at near exponential rate in the recent years. The more frequently this technology is upgraded, the more computer obsolescence occurs causing manufactured waste and user frustration. Educational institutions must keep in pace with these rapid technological developments being experienced in the computer industry for meaningful Information Technology training. Unfortunately, financial constraints have been a major draw-back. Hence these institutions have maintained older version computers for Information Technology training but there is concern over the quality and specifications of these computers. Particularly; system memory capacity, operating systems, processing speed, compatibility and provisions for upgrading which may not be adequate enough to effectively cover the content for Information Technology courses. As computer technology improves and becomes more effective, robust, functional and user-friendly, the computer user is forced to make the decision about upgrading his or her computer system, operating system and/or application version all too often. This ‘forced’ obsolescence has a profound effect on the individual from the standpoint of being at the cutting edge of technology at all times or having the ability to use an application that one is perfectly happy and comfortable with for a long time even though the application, operating systems and hardware platform the application runs on are outdated and no longer supported. Elsewhere in South Africa, second hand computers from the developed countries intended to equip educational institutions have been rejected on grounds that they are inferior and Africa was being used as a dumping site for obsolete technologies. To the contrary, here in Kenya, a number of used computers are making entry into the classrooms for IT training, probably not aware of the motive by the ‘west’ to politely transfer the burden of disposal onto these needy institutions, since computer donation is same as computer dumping. The study adopted survey design in which triangulation approach was used. The data was collected from purposively sampled public technical training institutions offering Information Technology courses within Nairobi region. Students, teachers, ICT administrators and computers were randomly and systematically sampled to obtain research raw data through questionnaires, observations and interviews. The quantitative data was analyzed using SPSS in which Chi-square and t-test techniques were applied at level of 0.05 significance testing. The analysis was done to establish how suitable are these older version computers, acquired by or existing in technical training institutions, in covering the syllabus for Information Technology courses in technical training institutions within the total recommended time frame and particularly the practical lessons. This study was guided by the theory of Constructivism that postulates that knowledge is not a fixed object; it is constructed by an individual through his or her own experience of that object. The results show that modern computers enhance good performance in IT courses and that computer memory upgrading and adoption of high processing speed computers is required for better IT training results. Based on the findings, recommendation is made on the use of branded computers rather than cloned ones for IT training and government to adopt one internet service provider for all public educational institutions at the same kilobyte per second. Suggestions for further research include trapping the computer virus menace.