A PRELIMINARY STUDY OF A DIGITAL AND WEB LITERACY PROJECT FOR YOUNG SOUTH AFRICAN WOMEN.

Digital literacies have an effect on the participation of a population in the digital economy. In this research we evaluate how technology clubs in schools using open educational resources can impact the digital skills growth in a country. The University of the Western Cape (UWC) Information Systems Department, Mozilla foundation web literacy and a local South African NGO Peo Ya Phetogo (PYP), recently embarked on a partnership to start digital literacy clubs that empower young girls in South African schools. The project began in March 2016 where the UWC Department of Information Systems graduate female students would go into schools and teach digital literacy skills to young girls aged between 13-16 years of age. The pilot phase involved 5 clubs with 5 graduate students running clubs consisting of 10-15 clubs in each high school. Using the Mozilla framework, graduate female Information Systems students, used their educational knowledge, open educational resources as well as the Mozilla framework to prepare for club sessions. In this study we explore the role of the clubs in providing basic digital skills to young children and how such initiatives can improve the uptake of STEM related careers amongst young South Africans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]