1、An Education Network,The Kenya Education Network Experience (Opportunities, Challenges & Lessons Learned)Victor Kyalo Dept. of Electrical Engineering, University of Nairobi KENET Coordinator,Agenda,Background Overview Opportunities Challenges Partnerships Conclusions Lessons learned,vk-05/2005,The K
2、ENET initiative emanated from the Leyland initiative -1999 Local model made up of public & private institutions Trust formed in 2001 to oversee and steer the initiatives operations: Members include: VC, UoN VC, Moi University VC, JKUAT VC, Daystar VC, USIU MD, Telkom Kenya DG, CCK,Background,vk-05/2
3、005,Goal,Establish sustainable communication and networking among educational institutions in Kenya that will facilitate wide use of ICTs in teaching, learning, research and sharing of other information resources to the general populace at affordable cost.,vk-05/2005,Objectives,To establish a high s
4、peed national IP-based network interconnecting all learning and educational institutions. To provide sustainable and permanent Internet access to all institutions Create at least one learning center in each institution to support e-learning To develop a comprehensive national education portal with a
5、n appropriate e-learning platform To train faculty and ICT support staff,vk-05/2005,Digressing NRENs elsewhere!,JANET pioneer Research and Educational Network (NREN), currently operated on private business status CERNET largest NREN at the moment very active in research and learning material product
6、ion. Funded by the central government, cost recovery model and operated by a consortium of universities TENET South African tertiary institutions network. Government funded Korea, Belgium, Texas Universities, Egypt, Rwanda, Ukrain, etc., Mixture of govt and cost recovery models in existence.,vk-05/2
7、005,Infrastructure Content Policy Capacity development,Areas of operation,vk-05/2005,Coverage/member institutions,ICTs have impacted all economic sectors immensely: Work environments Culture & social interactions Etc,Overview,? Can ICTs influence development & Education Competition of scarce resourc
8、es Integration of ICTs into the education system teaching & learning processes Best fit models & benchmarking,Opportunities,May be deployed to allow wider access to high quality learning resources ICTs offers the opportunity to harnesses the scattered resources into a single well organized and easil
9、y accessible point An enabler of sharing the scarce teaching resources to a wider population Improving teaching delivery efficiency by deploying technology to improve education and not as an end by itself,In the quest for empowering learners independence, a people comfortable with ICTs develop an in
10、formation culture that generates critical thinking and awareness about knowledge production. Offers opportunities for collaboration and peer support Well articulated and formed communication channels can be used for other purposes for the benefit of the communities at large. Technological advancemen
11、ts,Opportunities cont.,Challenges,Infrastructure: including Hardware Software Power Supply Connectivity value etc.Initial and ongoing training: untrained staff tend to be weary of deploying new technology in their work Running costs and maintenance: besides the initial setup, continuity and sustaina
12、bility of the system is paramount,vk-05/2005,Replacement costs: Obsoleteness of systems (equipment and technologies) is a reality which planners have to live with in the ICTs arena.,Relevant ContentInstitutions commitmentRegulatory & Taxation Regimes,Challenges cont.,vk-05/2005,Interventions,Partner
13、ships & Resources mobilization (systems & human capital): Different players government, private & public sector Sharing resources institutional alliances, community involvement,Policy & Strategies: An all inclusive approach Integrated into the core teaching and learning approachese-rates Open Source
14、 encouragement Legal implications IP, Copyright, Ethical considerations,vk-05/2005,The framework allow for the establishment of a highly decentralized environment that takes cognizance of various stakeholders roles. produce policies that coalesce fragmented interests in the role of ICTs into a healt
15、hy community of interests and actions.,Conclusion & Lessons Learned,vk-05/2005,Why Connectivity,ICTs offers the opportunity to harnesses the scattered resources into a single well organized and easily accessible pointThree levels of connectivity International Connectivity National or Local Inter-ins
16、titutions Connectivity Intra-institutional Connectivity,vk-05/2005,Tier1,Tier2,Tier3,KENET Education,x-change node,members,Connectivity Tiers,vk-05/2005,International Connectivity,kixp,vk-05/2005,Satellite dish,Satellite dish,others,Maseno,All Major Institutions,with Downlinks and E1,Backhaul to KEN
17、ET,Aggregation point,E1 Links,E1 Links,nXE1,KENSTREAM,64k, 128k, 256k, 512k, 1m,Links to KENET institutions,Downlinks,Downlink,Future Uplink,Central Downlink,Remote or Locally Located,KENET Sat Hub.,Initially to be used for,Downlink only,GILAT, KENSAT,etc,KDN,Other,DATA,Networks,Access/,Bandwidth Mn
18、gr,National or Local Inter-institutions Connectivity,mainly in Nairobi,vk-05/2005,International Gateway,National Connectivity,Institutions Networks,Internet connectivity thro JamboNet, Jamii, KDN, Own Gateway, etc,PoPs in all regions to ensure easy distribution, connection to KIXP for National Inter
19、net,Computer Labs & Networks in all institutions,ConnectivityLevels,Users collectively, alliances with others like AVU, PAREN, etc,Contributions polled together,Responsibility Domain,Investment,KENET in partnership with local loop operators, building of wireless links, etc,Members through contributi
20、ons & support,-institutions -KENET -partners, etc,By all stakeholders,Implementation Approach,Connectivity Approach,Description,vk-05/2005,Institutional Level Networks,National Level,Others (outside networks access),Aim at institutions accumulating 40% of their content requirements internally,Develo
21、p shared content nationally by hosting (available content), harnessing new content aim/fill 60% requirements,Be able to get what one needs,ContentAvailability,Description,Developing and eplatform with a CMS, elearning support, MIS module, etc,Collaborations, focused platforms cutting across board, e
22、.g ITDawn, Content Mall, etc,How?,Required,Extend the pool of partnerships eg KARI, AJOL, ICIPE, TTCs, MOEST Agencies, etc,Structured content developing & hosting Tying up of the content availability,All collectively,Negotiate with others (NRENS), mirror servers, etc,Implementation Approach,Content
23、strategy,vk-05/2005,Labs,MIS,Content,Intranet,Institutional Networks,Institutional Readiness,Elearning,Library systems,Hot spots,FIS,Student enrollment,vk-05/2005,2.0,2.0,2.0,2.0,3.0,2.5,2.0,2.0,2.5,2.0,2.0,2.0,2.5,2.0,1.5,1.5,1.5,2.5,1.5,eReadiness Indication Kenya 2002,vk-05/2005,Connectivity -get
24、ting there, though still constrained by the local loops availability and capacities Content issues generation of usable content beginning to appear, positive collaborations emerging Policy has improved tremendously from hostile to very supportive Future can only be better,Score Card,vk-05/2005,Thank you,vk-05/2005,
