23 May 2017

A communications and study skills textbook for tertiary education teaching, titled Key Skills was launched on Thursday at Maharaja Conference Centre in Gaborone.

The book was co-authored by Kabelo Modubeki, a lecturer at Botho Universtiy Campus in Gaborone and module leader of communication and study skills and Tamapo Moatlhodi, a lecturer at Botho University Francistown Campus also under the communication and study skills department.

Guests that graced the event included Botsalano Press Publisher chief executive officer, Ntlogelang Mokgetshane, Daniel Lau from Botswana Press Publisher and David Unyangu from Botho University.

Modubeki explained that the textbook was relevant and covered the trend needed by students for communication and study skills.

“The sole intention of the communication and study skills module and this textbook is to provide students at tertiary institutions with the prerequisite communication skills required for them to excel in the higher education environment and in the work place,” Modubeki said.

He further said they wrote the book the way they would teach in class.

“In principle by being a teacher you are a writer by default. It is only that more often than not we do not put that writing on paper like we have now done,” he said.

He noted that the main challenge for communication and study skills teachers and lectures was that students had their core modules and seemed to think that communication and study skills was a waste of their valuable time.

He said he wished that a review could be done to incorporate communication and study skills at lower levels of learning so that by the time students got to tertiary they were already to some extent moulded.

“We have developed a comprehensive text that covers at least 80 per cent of the key skills in a generic manner,” said Moatlhodi, who is co-author of the book.

She said if the book could be used well they, as teachers and lectures, would have graduates that were aware of soft but important skills such as writing skills, reading skills, listening skills and speaking skills.

She further stated that students would be in a position to learn, practice and then perfect their skills such as managing time, presentation skills and academic skills.

“We were motivated by the lack of a comprehensive text that covers at least 80 per cent of the course, lack of text written in Botswana for our own context and lack of interest by our learners in the theories presented to them,” said Moatlhodi.

Moatlhodi went on to say that they had future plans to create a second edition of the book with feedback incorporated in it as well as developing communication sand study skills text specifically for vocational students, health, colleges of education, engineering, social sciences and sciences. ENDS