Integrating Technology to Support Learners With Barriers to Learning in the Rural Classroom

Abstract

To reduce extended academic delays and disruptions, in-service teachers (hereafter teachers) enrolled for an online BEd Honours Learner Support programme had to re-think the integration of technology when supporting a learner with a barrier to learning in their classrooms. The teachers, of whom a few are educators in rural schools, had to complete a practical paper-based portfolio as a formative assessment. The portfolio expected the teacher to identify a learner with a learning barrier and develop a support plan over six months. With the schools closed, the portfolio in its original form became a challenge since the teachers could not have face-to-face interaction and interventions with their learners.