An exciting opportunity has arisen at Mzuzu University (MZUNI), Malawi’s second Public University, for suitably qualified candidates to enrol and study for a short course in GIS through Open, Distance and e-Learning (ODeL). With support from the USAID funded Strengthening Higher Education Access in Malawi Activity (SHEAMA), led by Arizona State University (ASU), MZUNI is inviting applications from suitably qualified persons to pursue a short course in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to be offered through ODeL.

Introduction

The Government of Malawi through the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology has recently reviewed the secondary school curriculum. In case of Geography syllabus, Geographic Information System (GIS) has been incorporated. Despite the introduction of GIS, many teachers have had problems in handling the topics related to GIS. Despite being a more practical theme, most of GIS teaching is done theoretically. Geography teachers lack technical support and in-service training and proper teacher guidelines. They lack adequate knowledge and technical hand-on skills in GIS.

Course Description

The course shall run for four weeks. The first week will cover the theoretical aspect while the last three weeks will be practical. The program is designed to bridge the GIS knowledge and skills gap existing among Geography teachers in secondary schools. Once bridged, it is expected that the teachers will be able to competently teach GIS and remote sensing topics. Participants will be introduced to basics of GIS, cartography, digital map making and spatial analysis tools in QGIS. Candidates will be awarded certificates of attendance at the end of the short course.

Target Group

This program targets all secondary school geography teachers, especially in rural Community Day Secondary Schools (CDSS) and any other interested candidate. Candidates must be literate in end-user computing, and must at least own a personal computer.

Tuition Fees

The total fees for the programme is MK150,000.00. The fees include tuition and cost of training equipment and materials for practical lessons. Scholarships will be made available to candidates that will meet the programme-set criteria.

Entry Requirements

Applicants should be serving geography secondary school teachers, especially those in rural Community Day Secondary Schools (CDSS) and any other interested candidate. Those from SHEAMA target rural districts of Karonga, Kasungu, Salima, Balaka, Mulanje and Chikwawa are particularly encouraged to apply.

Application Procedure

Application forms can be downloaded from Mzuzu University website (www.mzuni.ac.mw) under ODeL programmes. Prospective applicants can also obtain applications forms at Mzuzu University campus or Mzuzu University ODeL satellite centers located in Karonga (Karonga Teachers Training College), Lilongwe (Lilongwe Teachers Training College), Balaka (Balaka Secondary School) and Mulanje (Mulanje Secondary School). 

The filled forms should be sent to the following address by 29th June, 2021:

University Registrar (ODeL GIS course), Mzuzu University, P/Bag 201, Luwinga, Mzuzu 2 or email [email protected] 

Duration of the Course

The course will run for four weeks from 26th July, 2021 to 20th August, 2021.

Contacts

For more information, please contact the ODeL Director at 

Mzuzu University, through [email protected] or the Director, of Scholarships and Grants at SHEAMA, through [email protected] 

The Assistant Registrar- Codel, Centre for Open, Distance and e-Learning, Mzuzu University, Private Bag 201, Luwinga, Mzuzu 2