Barriers to Accessing Digital Distance Education (DE) in Mozambique: a perspective focused on the lack of infrastructure and social inequalities in compulsory education

Abstract

This study aims to understand the barriers to access to digital Distance Learning (EaD) in Mozambique. The author questions whether infrastructure and social inequalities are the two biggest barriers to access to digital Distance Learning (EaD) in Mozambique? To answer this, he draws on the reflections of some authors who have researched the reality of EaD in other parts of the world, aiming to establish a parallel to understanding the phenomenon. The methodology used is qualitative, and the discussion is conducted considering Epistemological Dialectics, allowing us to build knowledge about Digital Distance Education in Mozambique through thesis, antithesis, and synthesis. The analytical variables were selected based on previous studies, such as those by Preti and Maciel (2024), Zacarias (2017), and Mombassa and Arruda (2018), which refer to some of these as constraints to the success of Digital Distance Education. The results indicated that, along with Digital Social Inequality and Adequate Equipment and Infrastructure, Internet and Technology Access is also a major challenge in the implementation of Digital Distance Education in Mozambique.