Ila mo (come in): the use of collaborative technologies to mediate collective meaning making

We propose a multimedia interactive installation to be implemented at the 2nd African Conference for Human Computer Interaction that takes place in both a virtual and physical space. The installation utilizes educational social software, a face to face activity and a joint work space as collaborative technologies. It follows a socio-cultural approach to collaborative learning and utilizes a taxonomic design framework of collaborative learning support. The participants will be the conference delegates. The installation aims to function as an artifact for mediating shared understanding, to cultivate community building, as well as to function as a unit of analysis for future research. This responds thematically to the lack of African voices in the discussion of technology in Africa, and theoretically to the successful use of collaborative technologies in complex contexts.