University of Guelph hosted OJS journals
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Intersection of digital culture and social capital networks in South African Universities: Pathways to Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) competence
No full textThe Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) has transformed higher education, redefining how knowledge is created, accessed, and disseminated. However, South African universities face inequalities in digital access, infrastructure, and skills development, limiting their ability to prepare graduates for the demands of a rapidly evolving technological economy. The conceptual paper explored the intersection of digital culture and social capital networks in South African universities and their combined potential to foster competencies necessary for the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR). Grounded in social capital theory, constructivist and experimental digital learning frameworks, the study examined how digital networks shape access to knowledge, skills development, and innovation within higher education. The qualitative study synthesised existing literature, institutional practices, and theoretical models for understanding 4IR readiness in South Africa. Findings of the study reveal that universities play a pivotal role in promoting digital inclusion, strengthening connections between industry and academia, and equipping graduates with the skills needed for the 4IR. However, uneven digital infrastructure, disparities in digital literacy, and entrenched socioeconomic inequalities hinder equitable participation, highlighting the need to improve digital infrastructure and leverage social capital networks to bridge the skills gap. The study contributes to ongoing debates on digital transformation in higher education, providing a solid foundation for future research and innovation in 4IR-aligned teaching and learning
Integration of digital culture in teaching and learning for students with disabilities in Uganda
No full textThe increasing promotion of flexibility in teaching and learning methodologies has led to the adoption of blended learning and enhancement of digital competence. With equity, equality and inclusiveness in higher education, students with disabilities have benefited from technology to overcome the limitations of their physical impairments and access a world of limitless opportunities. However, the extent to which digital technology has been integrated into teaching and learning to accommodate students with disabilities in Ugandan institutions of higher education remains unknown. The study focused on availability, accessibility, and the extent to which digital culture facilitates the teaching and learning process in the age of blended learning. Guided by the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework, the study employed a phenomenological mixed-method approach to explore the experiences of learners with disabilities in Ugandan higher education institutions, particularly regarding their interactions with digital technologies in blended learning. Using purposive sampling and snowball methods, the study engaged 126 students and educators from three public universities in Uganda. The findings indicate that institutions of higher learning in Uganda have made significant efforts to incorporate digital technologies into the teaching and learning process through inclusive curriculum design and development. However, the study revealed that there is still limited emphasis on the learning needs of students with disabilities during curriculum development. Institutions face persistent challenges related to inadequate resources to provide the necessary technological tools and competences required to support these learners. In addition, some educators lack sufficient digital proficiency to effectively facilitate learning for students with disabilities, which further constrains the integration of inclusive digital practices. The study underscores the need for urgent action to address the digital skills gap among educators by equipping them with the necessary technological competencies before they can adequately support learners. It further recommends that institutions of learning strengthen support for students with disabilities by investing in specialised technological equipment, undertaking deliberate infrastructural adjustments, and designing inclusive curricula that respond to the digital needs of all learners
Understanding the Misinformation Paradox: How Do False Agricultural Narratives Shape Farmer Decisions in Ghana\u27s Planting for Food and Jobs Policy?
No full textThis study introduces the concept of Agricultural Policy Misinformation (APM) and examines its influence on sustainable practice adoption under Ghana’s Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ) policy. Building on Chowdhury et al. (2023), who highlighted the disruptive role of misinformation in agri-food systems, the study integrates the Social Amplification of Risk Framework, Information Deficit Model, and Framing Theory to explore how APM affects farmers’ decision-making. A cross-sectional mixed-methods approach was used, involving 107 participants (99 survey respondents and 8 key informants) across Ghana’s forest and savannah zones. Quantitative analysis employed descriptive statistics, probit regression, and Principal Component Analysis to construct an APM index based on four indicators: beliefs about PFJ as political reward, GMO seed concerns, doubts about input quality, and subsidy authenticity. Qualitative data were analyzed thematically. The results show prevalent misinformation related to input quality (36.3%), GMOs (28.5%), and political bias (17.6%). Political actors, social media, peers, and farmers were key sources of misinformation, while extension agents were most trusted. A notable finding is that misinformation decreased fertilizer adoption but increased seed adoption, revealing a paradox in behavioral response. This study contributes to agricultural policy literature by defining and empirically testing APM. It recommends strengthening transparent communication, utilizing trusted extension services, and implementing input-specific outreach strategies. Participatory training approaches are encouraged to build trust and resilience against misinformation. The findings emphasize the need for tailored communication frameworks to enhance policy impact and support sustainable agriculture in Ghana
Digital accessibility by students with disabilities: A pressing need in South African higher education
No full textAll diverse students need digital accessibility for them to be enabled meaningful learning in the present digital era in the African higher education at large, and in South African context specifically. It is while digital accessibility is a pressing need for all students that it is more urgent for students with disabilities. It is because they are always excluded from learning by alternative means of learning, even including the digital one during COVID-19. Using the desktop review method and informed by specific concepts from the Universal Design for Learning, combined with a principle of Ubuntu of respecting humanity in its diversity, the paper evaluated a specific digital technology, known as Blackboard Ally, specifically utilised by an institution of higher education in South Africa. The evaluation pertained to how it contributed to digital accessibility by students with disabilities and how it enabled them to learn like their able-bodied counterparts. The finding was that the specific digital tool and technology contributed to digital accessibility that enabled students with disabilities to learn. However, there was still lack of effective implementation and effective use of the specific digital technology by both students with disabilities and the academics who used it as a medium of interaction with the students they taught. Besides, the context of digitilisation within which the digital tool and technology was used did not fully support its full effectiveness. The argument for the paper is that though the specific digital technology contributed to digital accessibility by students with disabilities, and enabled them access to learning, a conducive digital landscape, that would allow for the full implementation for the respective technology was a necessity if students with disabilities were to be fully enabled to learn at the institution. As way forward, more training and improving of the digital landscape was necessary not only at the specific institution but also in other South African higher education institutions, and wider African higher education with similar contexts, and in the Global South at large
Improving Livelihood in Vavuniya District, Sri Lanka: A Case Study of Dairy Farmers\u27 Actual Use Towards Accessing Digital Extension Services
No full textIn light of global changes and emerging trends, various digital platforms have been used for effective dairy extension services. However, the expected result is not satisfactory, particularly after the war in 2009 in the Northern region. This study is designed to identify the dairy farmers’ attitudes, subjective norms/beliefs, perceived risks, and socioeconomic characteristics that influence dairy farmers’ access, use, and benefits of digital extension services to improve the livelihood of dairy farmers in Vavuniya, Sri Lanka. This investigation utilized a post-positivist, an exploratory sequential mixed-method approach. Primary data collection was carried out using four research methods: four focus group discussions (FGDs), ten expert interviews, the two-phase modified Delphi method, and 240 semi-structured farmer surveys. All data were audio-recorded. Descriptive statistics by Excel were used for Modified Delphi rounds 1 and 2, Likert scale data. Thematic analysis by NVivo 14 was used for data from the other three methods. Key findings of this study are consistent with this literature. Dairy farmers’ negative attitudes, prevailing sociocultural norms within their communities and rural locations, and challenges and risks in usage have a negative impact on the actual use of digital extension services. There is a gap between the perceptions of dairy farmers and experts about digital extension services, which influenced dairy farmers\u27 decision-making towards the actual use of it. This study lays out the suggestions for an effective dairy digital extension service, such as training and awareness programs for users, effective cross-sector collaboration between digital extension service providers and mobile network providers, modified government policies with divergent perceptions of providers and users, and the distinct management need that exist for livestock extension services
Bridging the Data-Action Gap: Potential Opportunities and Risks for Generative AI Language Models in Communicating Data Insights to Poultry Farms
No full textPrecision livestock technologies enable continuous animal monitoring or earlier health and welfare interventions. However, if data cannot be easily interpreted and acted upon by humans (e.g., farmers), benefits may not occur in practice. This case study explores the potential for Large Language Models (LLMs) to overcome the data-action gap by analyzing big data and communicating clear extension instructions. We worked with a company which has developed an AI model that predicts water intake deviations on poultry farms and identifies the possible cause, using an LLM to communicate farm data insights. Through qualitative interviews with developers and poultry farmers, we critically evaluate the potential role for LLMs in agricultural extension, exploring user preferences, design possibilities, and social/ethical opportunities and risks. Interviews uncovered an interesting extension journey, from initial manual data entry and reporting, towards the development of an LLM to automate the process. LLM insights informed work prioritization, but application varied across the chain of command in the poultry farming business as senior executives oversee multiple farm sites, each with a farm manager, some with a farm worker. Risks of using LLMs in extension were generally downplayed. The potential for LLMs to be used in ways that perpetuate inequality and tradeoffs, such as human surveillance for transparent animal welfare, is explored. Our work makes a theoretical contribution to emergent social science literature that has started to explore the application of LLMs in on-farm agricultural extension (e.g., Tzachor et al., 2023; de Clercq et al., 2024; Marinoudi et al., 2024), critically evaluating the potential role of LLMs in agricultural extension. We will shed light on the opportunities and risks of LLMs, as well as explore the potential role for user-centred design. Practically, we identify tangible factors that can optimize the use of LLMs for on-farm agricultural extension
Artificial Intelligence and the future of African Higher Education: Promise, peril, and the pursuit of epistemic justice
No full textArtificial intelligence (AI) is no longer a distant prospect but a transformative force in global knowledge production. Its rapid integration into higher education since the release of large language models such as ChatGPT in 2022 raises fundamental questions about educational equity, intellectual autonomy, and epistemic justice. This article critically examines the implications of AI in African higher education. Drawing on recent empirical and theoretical literature, it explores AI’s ethical, social, and epistemic dilemmas within the unique context of African universities, marked by infrastructural disparities, historical marginalisation, and epistemological contestation. The article argues that while AI presents opportunities for democratising access to knowledge, it also risks reinforcing intellectual dependency unless deliberate efforts are made to align AI integration with Afrocentric educational contexts and priorities. It calls for context-sensitive AI literacy programmes, investment in localised AI infrastructure, and the development of indigenous datasets and models to ensure that AI serves as a vehicle for intellectual empowerment rather than exclusion
Barriers, Perceptions, and Solutions in the Dissemination of Horticultural Cultivars: Insights from Farmers and Experts in Iran
No full textThe adoption of improved horticultural cultivars is crucial for increasing agricultural productivity, yet in Iran, there remains a significant gap between the introduction of new cultivars and their adoption by farmers. This study explores barriers to dissemination and uptake from the perspectives of both experts and farmers across nine provinces, focusing on key horticultural products. Using stratified random sampling, data were collected from 825 farmers and 231 experts through structured questionnaires and analyzed with SPSS. Results showed broad agreement between groups regarding major obstacles: delays and limited access to information on new cultivars, restricted availability of quality seeds and seedlings, insufficient opportunities for trial cultivation, lack of demonstration farms, and poor adaptation of some cultivars to local conditions. These challenges fall into four categories—informational, economic, knowledge-based, and managerial. Over 62% of experts and 46% of farmers reported receiving cultivar-related information with considerable delays. While many farmers had attended training programs, most rated them as below average, highlighting deficiencies in current extension approaches. To address these issues, the study proposes an integrated management strategy with three pillars: (1) strengthening communication and training through effective courses, digital platforms, and extension materials; (2) developing technical and demonstration infrastructure via model orchards, demonstration farms, and mother orchards; and (3) implementing supportive economic measures such as credit facilities, subsidies for seedling purchase, and guaranteed markets for products. Overall, reducing informational delays, improving technical support systems, and providing financial incentives are critical to bridging the gap between cultivar innovation and adoption in Iran
When the Trojan Horse Enters the Castle of Resilience: Rethinking Agricultural Extension to Avoid Risk of Maladaptation to Climate Change
No full textAs agricultural systems face growing climate threats, extension services are increasingly tasked with promoting adaptation strategies. However, emerging evidence highlights the risk of maladaptation—well-intended responses that inadvertently increase vulnerability or harm environmental and social systems. This analytical review critically examines agricultural extension\u27s overlooked but crucial role in mitigating or unintentionally reinforcing maladaptive outcomes. Drawing on interdisciplinary literature and case studies from the Global South, the paper explores how extension advice can contribute to short-term solutions that undermine long-term resilience, particularly when local contexts, change trajectories, and justice concerns are ignored. We propose a conceptual framework for "Resilient and Responsible Adaptation," emphasizing systems thinking, participatory approaches, ethical awareness, and feedback mechanisms within extension practice. The findings underscore the need for extension professionals to shift from purely technical recommendations toward facilitating co-learning and climate-wise decision-making. The paper provides strategic insights for practitioners, educators, and policymakers on how to embed maladaptation awareness into extension training and advisory services, ensuring that climate adaptation efforts are not only effective but also just and sustainable