Ten Lesso ns fo r ICT and Educ atio n in the
Develo ping Wo rld
Robert J. Haw kins
World Links for Development Program
The World Bank Institute
T
he skills to productively transform know
l-edge and information into innovative
products and services w ill define successful
know ledge economies. Because know ledge and
information have become the most important
currency fo r pro ductivity, c o mpetitiveness, and inc reased wealth and pro sperity, natio ns have plac ed g reater prio rity o n devel-o ping their human c apital. Gdevel-o vernments ardevel-o und the wdevel-o rld are thus fo c using o n strateg ies to inc rease ac c ess to and impro ve the quality o f educ atio n. Dec isio n makers find themselves asking key questio ns: What defines a quality educ atio n in to day’s g lo bal info rmatio n- based ec o no my? Has educ atio n kept pac e with a rapidly c hang ing wo rld? Are there go o d mo dels fo r refo rm that we c an fo llo w?A Changed World w ith Unchanged Classrooms
If yo u c o mpared o ur wo rld to day with the wo rld o ne hundred years ago , yo u wo uld enc o unter amazing advanc es in sc ienc e, c o mmerc e, health c are, transpo rtatio n, and c o untless o ther areas. But if yo u were to c o mpare the c lassro o m o f a hundred years ago with an average c lassro o m to day, yo u wo uld rec o g nize it immediately: students lined up in ro ws, paper and penc il in hand; a teac her at the blac kbo ard jo tting do wn impo rtant fac ts; students furio usly c o pying all that is written and said, expec ting to memo rize the fac ts and spit them o ut o n an exam. While muc h has been c hanged by the advanc es o f sc ienc e and tec h-no lo g y, educ atio n and the way that students learn and teac hers’ teac h have remained largely unc hanged. Ho wever, in to day’s info rmatio n and kno wledge- driven wo rld, a who le new set o f skills is required.
New Skills for the Netw orked World
A relevant educ atio n is mo re impo rtant to day then ever, bec ause to day’s Netwo rked Wo rld demands a wo rkfo rc e that understands ho w to use tec hno lo g y as a to o l to inc rease pro duc tivity and c re ativity. The se skills inc lude “ info rmatio n re aso ning , ” a pro c ess in whic h reliable so urc es o f info rmatio n are identified, effec tively ac c essed, understo o d, c o ntextualized, and c o mmuni-c ated to mmuni-c o lleag ues. Furthermo re, emplo yers require wo rkers to have the skills nec essary to c o llabo rate, wo rk in teams, and share info rmatio n ac ro ss g lo bal netwo rks, that is, to analyze issues fro m a multidisc iplinary perspec tive. Bec ause these netwo rks are internatio nal, emplo yers seek o ut individuals who have the c apac ity to effec tively interac t with o thers ac ro ss
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wo rld. In a rec ent survey o f teac hers in develo ping c o untries c o nduc ted by SRI Internatio nal fo r Wo rld Links, the majo rity o f teac hers in Afric an and Latin Americ an c o untries repo rted that the lac k o f adequate hardware and so ftware as well as unreli-ab le Inte rne t ac c e ss we re sig nific ant b arrie rs to using c o mputers in instruc tio n. This repo rt reflec ts the fac t that many sc ho o ls in develo ping c o untries have a student- teac her ratio as hig h as 80: 1, and must c o ntend with a c o mputer lab o f ten to twenty c o mputers fo r the entire sc ho o l— if they are luc ky. Mo reo ver, mo st sc ho o ls with c o mputers c an o nly affo rd dial- up c o nnec tivity, whic h in many c ases runs o ver o ld lines and antiquated telepho ne exc hanges. With this level o f c o nnec -tivity, a lab with ten to twenty c o mputers in Ug anda is like a fire ho se dang ling o ver a thirsty traveler in the desert that releases o nly dro ps o f water into his parc hed mo uth.
De spite many limitatio ns, sc ho o ls make the se labs wo rk. Sc ho o ls sque e ze as muc h use as po ssible o ut o f po o r c o nne c -tivity thro ug h te c hnic al so lutio ns suc h as sto re - and- fo rward e - mail, c ac hing We b page s lo c ally, exte nsive use o f CD- ROMs, and pulling We b page s thro ug h e - mail. Te ac he rs have also le arne d to manage the ir c lasse s to wo rk with the se limitatio ns. Many te ac he rs divide the ir c lasse s into g ro ups to allo w so me stude nts to wo rk o ff- line while o the rs use the c o mpute r to e ithe r se arc h fo r info rmatio n, input info rmatio n, o r c re ate info rmatio n fo r a pro je c t. Fo r instanc e, in Ghana, Edward Te tte h fro m Ac c ra Ac ade my b ring s his stude nts to the c o mpute r lab to wo rk o n a c o llabo rative pro je c t fo c use d o n HIV/ AIDS ( http: / / www. wo rld- links. o rg / aidswe b / te sting / index. html) . While o ne g ro up o f stude nts re se arc he s the HIV/ AIDS statistic s fo r Ghana o nline, ano the r g ro up re vie ws e -mail me ssage s fro m partne r sc ho o ls in So uth Afric a, Zimbabwe, the Unite d State s, and Ug anda, and ye t a third g ro up be g ins to write a re spo nse to o ne o f the partne r sc ho o ls in So uth Afric a. While Edward manage s his c lass c re ative ly to e nsure that all stude nts are o n task and have so me ac c e ss to the c o mpute r, Edward and his stude nts are in the mino rity in his co untry. The small number o f students who to uch a co mputer in his classro o m and his scho o l is indicative o f a greater chal-lenge— info rmatio n and co mputer techno lo gy needs to beco me mo re readily available to a larger number o f students and te ac he rs. Existing c o mpute r te c hno lo g y is still no t appro priate in terms o f co mplexity and co st fo r a scho o l enviro nment— particularly in a develo ping co untry. Cheaper, easier- to - use techno lo gy must be develo ped and implemented in scho o ls to allo w fo r greater use amo ng students and teachers.
Lesson #2: Technical support cannot be overlooked
Getting c o mputers into sc ho o ls is relatively easy; keeping them wo rking is a g reater c hallenge. A myriad o f pro blems rang ing fro m elec tric al spikes, to viruses, dust, heat, and no rmal wear-and- tear c an bring ac tivity in a develo ping c o untry c o mputer lab to a sc reec hing halt. Mo st sc ho o ls lac k the funds fo r a full-c ultures and lang uages. Finally, kno wledge wo rkers need to be
flexible and able to learn quic kly as wo rk enviro nments c o ntinue to c hange dynamic ally. Wo rkers must learn ho w to learn, and quic kly ac quire new skills. The skills disc ussed here are no t easy to find and, indeed, are a c hallenge to develo p. Ho w do natio ns prepare students fo r suc h a wo rld?
World Links— A M odel for Netw orked Learning
In 1997, the Wo rld Bank initiated the Wo rld Links pro g ram ( www. wo rldbank. o rg / wo rld links) in respo nse to develo ping c o untries’ demand fo r strateg ies to prepare their yo uth to c o mpete in a wo rld inc reasing ly driven by info rmatio n, tec h-no lo g y, and kh-no wledge. Wo rld Links is o ne o f the mo st inh-no va-tive and suc c essful g rant pro g rams initiated by the Wo rld Bank to assist develo ping c o untries in bridg ing the “ dig ital divide. ” Its princ ipal c apac ity- building o bjec tive is to pro vide devel-o ping c devel-o untry sc hdevel-o devel-o ls and ministrie s devel-o f e duc atidevel-o n with sustainable so lutio ns fo r mo bilizing the nec essary tec hno lo -g ies, skills, and educ atio nal reso urc es to prepare students and teac hers to enter the Netwo rked Wo rld.
Over the past fo ur years, Wo rld Links has wo rked with twenty- o ne co untries1 to bring underprivileged scho o ls into a glo bal scho o l
netwo rk. The netwo rk links tho usands o f students and teachers aro und the wo rld fo r co llabo rative learning and helps ministries o f educatio n pilo t and learn fro m this implementatio n o f Netwo rked Learning in scho o ls. Wo rld Links is bridging the gap in skills, kno wledge, and educatio nal o ppo rtunities between students in industrialized and develo ping natio ns, as well as between rich and po o r students within develo ping co untries.
In develo ping its pro g ram, Wo rld Links drew lesso ns fro m the suc c e sse s and failure s o f te c hno lo g y e duc atio n pro g rams thro ug ho ut the wo rld and desig ned c usto mized pilo ts fo r eac h partic ipating c o untry. One o f the key failures o f many past pro g rams was that sc ho o ls were pro vided with expensive equipment but with little o r no suppo rt fo r teac hers’ pro fes-sio nal develo pment, natio nal ICT- in- educ atio n po lic ies, o r c o mmunity invo lvement. Sinc e Wo rld Links launc hed its first pro g ram in Ug anda almo st five years ago , a number o f lesso ns reg arding the c o nstraints, as well as the po tential o f inte-g ratininte-g tec hno lo inte-g y into educ atio n in the develo pininte-g wo rld, have been learned. While getting sc ho o ls wired to the Internet is the first step, a who le ho st o f o ther fac to rs need to be c o nsidered, rang ing fro m teac her training to assessment to sustainability. The fo llo wing are ten lesso ns that Wo rld Links has learned in its effo rts to help develo ping c o untries span the kno wledge divide.
Lesson #1: Computer labs in developing countries take
time and money, but they w ork
Establishing a wo rking c o mputer lab and a reliable c o nnec tio n to the Internet remains a dream fo r mo st sc ho o ls aro und the
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wo rk mo re c lo sely with telec o mmunic atio ns pro viders to sho w them the benefits o f pro viding subsidized ac c ess fo r educ atio n. In the lo ng run, it makes go o d business sense as well fo r the c o mpanies as they build their future user base, po tentially reac h parents thro ug h students, and ac c rue the public relatio ns benefits o f pro viding a so c ial servic e.
Emerg ing wireless tec hno lo g ies is ano ther reg ulato ry area that needs attentio n. Bec ause reliable fixed line c o nnec tivity is still mo stly limited to o nly urban areas in develo ping c o untries, wireless o ptio ns are attrac tive to rural and peri- urban c o mmu-nities. As wireless tec hno lo g ies c o ntinue to develo p and bec o me mo re ubiquito us, ho wever, go vernments need to eval-uate their spec trum allo c atio n and lic ensing po lic ies to ensure that satellite c o nnec tivity o ptio ns allo w fo r a bro ad range o f c ho ic es fo r the c o nnec tio n o f underserved areas o f the c o untry.
Lesson #4: Lose the w ires
Wo rld Links has fo und that the mo st effec tive tec hno lo g y fo r c o nnec ting sc ho o ls in develo ping c o untries is wireless. The telec o mmunic atio ns infrastruc ture is so po o r in many Afric an c o untries, fo r instanc e, that fixed line dial- up c o nnec tivity will never be a viable so lutio n. Develo ping c o untry sc ho o ls are no w bypassing their lo c al fixed line infrastruc ture and establishing wireless Internet ac c ess. In Ug anda, there is a telling c ase o f the sc ho o ls’ evo lutio n to bro ader band Internet c o nnec tivity using wireless so lutio ns. Five o f the o rig inal ten sc ho o ls selec ted to partic ipate in the Wo rld Links pilo t pro jec t in 1997 c o uld no t use the Internet due to antiquated exc hanges. These sc ho o ls were mo ved to a c ellular telepho ne c o nnec tio n thro ug h Celltel, a lo c al c o mpany that do nated o ne ho ur o f free airtime per day. This allo wed students to send e- mail o nly, at a speed o f 9. 5 Kbps. In o rder to o verc o me the defic ienc ies o f the existing fixed line infrastruc ture and the slo w data rates o f the c ellular telepho ne link, a number o f sc ho o ls mo ved to a bro ader band wireless c o nnec tio n. Makerere Co llege Sc ho o l established the first line- o f- sig ht spread spec trum wireless Internet link ( this tec hno lo g y has a limited distanc e o f aro und 20 km bec ause the sender and rec eiver must have a c lear path o r “ line - o f - sig ht b e twe e n the m) with a c apital o utlay o f US$1, 500. The c o nnec tio n has wo rked flawlessly, and has g iven the sc ho o l c o nnec tivity twenty- fo ur ho urs a day, seven days a week. The sc ho o l paid AFSAT, the lo c al Internet Servic e pro vider, US$250 per mo nth in rec urrent c o sts; this was equiv-alent to payments made to the lo c al telec o mmunic atio ns pro vider fo r the slo w, unreliable, limited Internet ac c ess o ver the dial- up c o nnec tio n.
The Wo rld Links pro g ram is no w experimenting with wireless satellite o r VSAT ( Very Small Aperture Terminal) tec hno lo g y in rural areas in a wireless c o nnec tivity pilo t. If suc c essful, the so lutio n will be replic ated in o ther rural areas thro ug ho ut Afric a and elsewhere. With the assistanc e o f a do natio n fro m time c o mputer tec hnic ian, and when o ne is hired and trained,
he is o ften lured away to a mo re luc rative jo b elsewhere, leaving the sc ho o l to start the searc h o ver ag ain. Mo reo ver, mo st ministries o f educ atio n are ill equipped to effec tively servic e a large number o f sc ho o ls. Mo st sc ho o ls are therefo re left with very little tec hnic al suppo rt when inevitable tec hnic al g litc hes arise. Ho wever, a few inno vative so lutio ns have emerged in c o untries aro und the wo rld. One so lutio n is to g ive students mo re respo nsibility fo r maintaining the labs. Many students are as o r mo re adept with the tec hno lo g y than the “ pro fessio nal” tec hnic ians who are o ften hired. An example o f suc h a pro g ram is the “ Kids o n the Blo c k” initiative in Namibia, in whic h Sc ho o lnet Namibia wo rks with yo uth to pro vide them with the tec hnic al training nec essary to refurbish, install, and maintain the sc ho o l c o mputer labs. Pro viding students with so me basic training and a who le lo t o f trust c an save a sc ho o l and a sc ho o l system time and mo ney. Other so lutio ns, ho wever, must also be evaluated, suc h as additio nal training fo r tec h-nic al staf f in sc ho o ls and administratio n o f f ic e s and o utso urc ing this tec hnic al suppo rt to private o rg anizatio ns.
Lesson #3: Noncompetitive telecommunications
infra-structure, policies, and regulations impede
connec-tivity and sustainability
Bec ause mo st develo ping c o untries c harge by the minute even fo r lo c al c alls, reluc tant princ ipals with tig ht budgets limit the amo unt o f time o n the Internet thro ug ho ut the day. Results o f the afo rementio ned SRI study do sug gest, ho wever, that when sc ho o ls o r ministries o f educ atio n invest in hig h speed Internet ac c ess, there is an inc rease in satisfac tio n, use, and integ ratio n into the c urric ulum. Fo r instanc e, in Mauritania the ministry o f educ atio n has made a c o mmitment to c o nnec t the six pilo t sc ho o ls partic ipating in the Wo rld Links pro g ram with dedic ated leased lines pro viding hig h speed ac c ess twenty- fo ur ho urs a day, seven days a week. Bec ause these sc ho o ls have fast c o nnec tivity with subsidized c o sts, o nly a small mino rity o f the teac hers listed unreliable Internet ac c ess as a majo r barrier and the evaluatio n results fo r Mauritania were hig her than any o ther Wo rld Links partic ipating c o untry.
Ministries o f educ atio n c an also make a mo re c o nc erted effo rt to partner with their lo c al o r natio nal telec o mmunic atio ns c o mpany. Suc h partnerships c an lead to a win- win situatio n in whic h no t o nly educ atio nal aims are furthered, but also telec o mmunic atio n c o mpany go als— suc h as an expanded user base. In Chile, fo r instanc e, the ministry nego tiated a deal with the Co mpania de Telec o munic ac io nes de Chile ( CTC) , a pro minent telec o mmunic atio ns firm, to pro vide free Internet c o nnec -tivity fo r up to 6, 500 sc ho o ls fo r ten years. In additio n to the Internet c o nnec tivity, CTC o ffers the sc ho o ls dig ital o r analo g lines and pro vides servic e, an e- mail ac c o unt, Web ho sting up to five meg abytes, Web bro wsing and e- mail so ftware, Internet blo c king so ftware, installatio n, and tec hnic al assistanc e— all free o f c harge. Go vernments need to fo llo w this example and
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Lesson #6: Private-public sector partnerships are
essential
A ministry o f educ atio n c anno t take o n the task o f equipping sc ho o ls alo ne. It is simply to o big a jo b. Go vernments will need to fo rm strateg ic partnerships if they are to suc c eed. India presents a wo nderful example o f an effec tive partnership between the public and private sec to rs. A number o f states in India have implemented a variatio n o f the c o mmunity learning c enter c o nc ept by partnering with private sec to r c o mputer training c o mpanies. The state go vernment o f Karnataka, fo r instanc e, has equipped seven hundred sc ho o ls with ICT labs in an asto nishing ly fast time frame— o nly fo rty- five days! Ho w was this feat ac c o mplished? Thro ug h a partnership with NIIT, a private c o mputer training institute. The Karnataka go vernment c o ntrac ted with NIIT to equip and maintain the sc ho o l c o mputer labs and pro vide an instruc to r fo r tec hnic al training fo r students during sc ho o l ho urs. In exc hange, the training institute is c o mpensated with a five- year c o ntrac t fo r pro viding the training , and is allo wed to use the fac ilities after sc ho o l ho urs fo r delivery o f its private training c o urses to the c o mmu-nity. The initiative also c reated so me unfo reseen externalities. As Ravi Kiran, the manager fo r the pro jec t, indic ated:
In so me distric ts, there was no thing befo re we started this pro jec t. We bro ug ht po wer and telec o mmunic atio ns servic es to these areas where no ne existed befo re. We hired 1, 400 trainers, mo stly fro m the lo c al c o mmunities. We wo uld ride thro ug h to wn with a bullho rn anno unc ing these jo b o pening s and the peo ple wo uld flo c k to us. When we dro ve into a c o mmunity to set up the sc ho o l lab, the kids wo uld run after the truc k and the who le c o mmunity helped with the installatio n. The who le c o mpany is very pro ud o f this pro jec t.
The initiative in Karnataka has received high marks thus far fro m bo th go vernment officials and the private training institutes.
Lesson #7: Link ICT and education efforts to broader
education reforms
These examples o f private- public partnerships to equip labs and pro vide c o st- effec tive Internet c o nnec tivity represent very go o d mo dels o f inno vative public sec to r leadership, but installing the physic al infrastruc ture is the easiest part o f the battle. While many ministries o f educ atio n aro und the wo rld have made the c o mmitment to c o mputerize sc ho o ls, few have develo ped c o herent strateg ies to fully integ rate the use o f c o mputers as pedago g ic al to o ls in the c lassro o m. One o f the sig nific ant bo ttlenec ks that Wo rld Links has enc o untered is the lac k o f a c lear po lic y in ministries o f educ atio n with reg ard to use o f c o mputers in educ atio n. Many ministries o f educ atio n view c o mputers as a stand- alo ne subjec t requiring a c urric ulum fo c using o n basic c o mputer literac y skills. While c o mputer literac y represents a start, the integ ratio n o f c o mputers and the Internet into the bro ader c urric ulum is where real learning the Gates Fo undatio n, fifteen sc ho o ls in the mo st rural areas o f
Ug anda will be c o nnec ted with satellite- pro vided Internet c o nnec tivity, teac hers and students will be trained in use o f the equipment, and the results o f the pilo t will be mo nito red and evaluated to determine the tec hnic al and financ ial sustain-ability o f the satellite so lutio n. Thus far, the pilo t has pro vided a wo nderful learning experienc e. Additio nal funds, fo r instanc e, were required to fenc e in all o f the satellite dishes to keep mo nkeys fro m jumping o n the dishes to eat the c ables.
Lesson #5: Get the community involved
Lac k o f financ ing is o ne o f the g reatest c hallenges to c o nnec ting sc ho o ls in develo ping c o untries to the Internet. Ho w do es a sc ho o l in a c o untry like Ug anda, with a per c apita inc o me o f US$310, affo rd US$250 per mo nth fo r an Internet c o nnec tio n? Part o f the answer is to share the fac ilities and the c o sts with the bro ader c o mmunity. The rural pilo t mentio ned abo ve in Ug anda will be used to test a number o f sustainability mo dels fo r sc ho o ls to rec o up the rec urrent c o sts o f Internet c o nnec tivity. With fifteen sc ho o ls partic ipating in the pilo t, the mo nthly rec urrent c o sts fo r sharing a 256Kps spac e seg ment c o me to aro und US$400 per sc ho o l, per mo nth. The Wo rld Links pro g ram plans to subsidize half o f this c o st fo r two years, while the c o mmunities partic ipating in the pilo t will need to pay the o ther US$200 per mo nth. In o rder to suppo rt these c o sts, po o rer rural areas that partic ipate in the pilo t will need to develo p an inno vative plan. So me o f the reso urc es will c o me fro m a c o mmunity educ atio n tax, and the remaining reso urc es will be raised by o pening the sc ho o l after sc ho o l ho urs, o n weekends, and during ho lidays to the c o mmunity to pro vide training and info rmatio n ac c ess. Wo rld Links has pro vided the partic ipating pilo t sc ho o ls with a fo rty- ho ur training c o urse o n the use o f sc ho o ls as c o mmunity learning c enters. The training helps sc ho o ls identify servic es, market these servic es, staff the c enter appro priately, and manage the financ es o f the c enter. This strateg y no t o nly ac c o mplishes the o bjec tive o f spreading the rec urrent c o sts ac ro ss a larger number o f users, but also eng ages the c o mmunity in the ac tivities o f the sc ho o l and pro vides a venue fo r adult and life- lo ng educ atio n.
Wo rld Links first pilo ted this c o nc ept in Zimbabwe. At the Bindura- Wo rld Links c o mmunity learning c enter in Zimbabwe, o ver half o f the “c lients” are adult learners who c o me to rec eive basic c o mputer literac y training . Ano ther impo rtant user g ro up fo r this fac ility is the Zimbabwe Open University, where o ver three hundred students use the c enter to ac c ess their c o urse material and interac t with pro fesso rs o nline. Finally, appro xi-mately 70 perc ent o f the users o f this c enter in Zimbabwe are wo men. The suc c ess o f these pilo ts sug gests that develo ping c o untries sho uld enc o urage sc ho o ls to o pen up to the c o mmu-nity as a means o f bridg ing the dig ital divide between urban and rural areas o f the c o untry, between in- sc ho o l and o ut- o f-sc ho o l yo uth and, finally, between g irls’ and bo ys’ ac c ess to educ atio n.
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my students and o ften fro m them. They enjo y it and I take pride in it. ” Indeed, the SRI evaluatio n o f Wo rld Links sho ws that as a result o f training , three quarters o f partic ipating teac hers stated that c o mputers and the Internet enabled them to g reatly impro ve their kno wledge o f a subjec t matter. Over 80 perc ent o f surveyed teac hers said that their interest and enthu-siasm fo r teac hing had inc reased g reatly under the Wo rld Links pro g ram— and it is well kno wn ho w impo rtant a mo tivated, e nthusiastic te ac he r is fo r impro ving stude nt o utc o me s. Teac hers need suppo rt, examples o f go o d prac tic e, and leader-ship fro m their sc ho o l princ ipal to rec eive the nec essary time fo r pro fessio nal develo pment, in o rder to truly transfo rm teac hing and learning in the c lassro o m.
Lesson #9: Technology empow ers girls
A small Muslim g irl fro m Mauritania states, “ We get o ur freedo m fro m the Internet, sinc e in o ur so c iety g irls are no t allo wed to go wherever we want… the Internet takes us o ut to o ther peo ple, plac es and realities… it is o ur way o f esc aping fro m o ur c lo sed so c iety. It is vital to us, it g ives us liberty. ”
Amo ng internatio nal develo pment prac titio ners, female educ a-tio n is rec o g nized as o ne o f the c ritic al fac to rs in pro mo ting so c ial and ec o no mic develo pment. Fo r instanc e, an educ ated wo man is mo re pro duc tive at wo rk— studies sug gest that an extra year o f sc ho o ling will inc rease a wo man’s future earning s by abo ut 15 perc ent, c o mpared to 11 perc ent fo r a man ( UNICEF 1996) . Also , bec ause wo men are the primary c areg ivers in develo ping c o untries, it is o ften said that, “ when yo u educ ate a wo man, yo u educ ate a who le family. ” While 80 perc ent o f g irls attend primary sc ho o l in Mauritania, the g ro ss enro llment rates dro p to o nly 11 perc ent at the sec o ndary sc ho o l level ( Wo rld Bank 1998) . In o ther develo ping c o untries, the statis-tic s are wo rse. Educ ating g irls, therefo re, is a to p develo pment prio rity. A rec ent Wo rld Links study o n the differential impac t o f the pro g ram o n bo ys and g irls sho wed that in areas suc h as ac ademic s and c o mmunic atio n skills, g irls have benefited mo re, while in the area o f tec hno lo g ic al skills, bo ys have benefited mo re. Mo reo ver, o nc e o nline, g irls appear to do extensive researc h o n teen- related info rmatio n that is o ften tabo o in their c ultures, suc h as sexually transmitted diseases, teen preg -nanc ies, and AIDS and its preventio n. Seventy perc ent o f g irls in Wo rld Links sc ho o ls in Mauritania, fo r instanc e, emphasize the fac t that the Internet pro vides freedo m to them as wo men sinc e they no lo nger need to limit themselves to the c o ntro lled info rmatio n g iven by their so c iety and family. A g irl fro m Ghana states, “ Our self- esteem has really impro ved bec ause o f the Wo rld Links pro g ram. No w we c an rub sho ulders with bo ys that want to step o n o ur to es. We walk with o ur c hests o ut! Anytime we are c o nfro nted with questio ns we feel c o nfident answering , even with o lder peo ple we c o me bo ldly! ”
g ains will be made. Results o f the SRI- Wo rld Links evaluatio n sho w that teac hers enthusiastic ally eng age in c o llabo rative pro jec ts and c o nstruc tivist pedago g y, but sc ho o l administrato rs o ffer very little struc tural suppo rt and inc entives to effec tively use the tec hno lo g y in the c lassro o m. First, the c urric ulum that teac hers in mo st develo ping c o untries need to fo llo w is rig id and o ve rlo ade d, le aving little time fo r inno vative c lassro o m prac tic e s. Se c o nd, exams re pre se nt the g re ate st inc e ntive fo r the majo rity o f stude nts and te ac he rs. The c o mmo n vie w is that “ if it’s no t go ing to be te ste d, the n it must no t be impo r-tant. ” Ministrie s must make a c o mmitme nt to he lping te ac he rs e ffe c tive ly inte g rate c o mpute rs and Inte rne t te c hno lo g ie s into the ir sc ho o ls by alig ning c urric ulums, exams, and inc e ntive s with the e duc atio nal o utc o me s that the y ho pe to g ain. Co mpute rs by the mse lve s bring ve ry little to the le arning pro c e ss— the y are o nly to o ls, like many o the rs. Linking c o mpute rs and the Inte rne t to le arning o bje c tive s is a c hal-le ng ing go al, but is o ne o f the mo st impo rtant that e duc atio n po lic y make rs c an ac hie ve.
Lesson #8: Training, training, training
The pro fessio nal develo pment o f teac hers sits at the heart o f any suc c essful tec hno lo g y and educ atio n pro g ram. Teac hers need no t o nly fo rmal training , but also sustained and o ngo ing suppo rt fro m their c o lleag ues to help them learn ho w best to integ rate tec hno lo g y into their teac hing . Training must go well beyo nd basic c utting - and- pasting . Teac hers need to be able to transfo rm their c lassro o ms fro m plac es where a static o ne- way flo w o f info rmatio n fro m teac her to student o c c urs, into dynamic, student- c entered learning enviro nments in whic h learners interac t with peers in teams, bo th in their o wn c lass-ro o m as well as with virtual c lasses alass-ro und the wo rld thlass-ro ug h the Internet.
Mo st teac hers, ho wever, are intimidated by tec hno lo g y and are c o mfo rtable with their o wn teac hing styles. Any teac her-training pro g ram sho uld help teac hers see past the tec hno lo g y to the pedago g ic al and educ atio nal g ains that use o f the tec h-no lo g y will bring to the c lassro o m. Furthermo re, teac hers need to be transfo rmed fro m info rmatio n c o nsumers, using the Internet to ac c ess reso urc es, into info rmatio n pro duc ers, adapting the info rmatio n fo r their partic ular c ultural and educ atio nal reality. So me c o untries have established o nline netwo rks o r c o mmunities- o f- prac tic e, in whic h teac hers share reso urc es that enhanc e their c urric ulum, get peer reviews o f lesso n plans they have c reated, and exc hange ideas and go o d prac tic es with o ther teac hers o f their subjec t.
Wo rld Links has fo c used its training o n helping teac hers to use tec hno lo g y as a to o l, and to transfo rm their c lassro o ms into interac tive, inquisitive learning enviro nments. Ac c o rding to a physic s teac her in Peru, “After the training , I no w learn with
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so c iety— fro m go vernments, the private sec to r, c o mmunities, do no rs, parents, and students. Sc ho o ls sho uld be transfo rmed into ac tive learning enviro nments o pen to their c o mmunities; telec o mmunic atio n and po wer infrastruc ture po lic ies sho uld fo c us o n sc ho o ls as starting po ints fo r rural transfo rmatio n; teac hers and students must be empo wered to be c reative agents fo r c hange in their sc ho o ls; and leaders must embrac e a visio n that will prepare their yo uth fo r to mo rro w’s c hallenges.
While the wo rld has fundamentally c hanged o ver the past hundred years and will c o ntinue to do so at an ac c elerating pac e, the c lassro o m has no t. But it will, so o n. The issues o utlined in this paper are no t unique to develo ping c o untries. Sc ho o ls aro und the wo rld fac e the same c hallenges and by and large the same lesso ns apply. It is time to c o llec tively c hange o ur appro ac h to the learning pro c ess, and partic ularly, take advantage o f the po wer o f tec hno lo g y to impro ve learning o utc o mes, enhanc e ec o no mic o ppo rtunities, fo ster g reater c reativity, and realize the dreams o f disadvantaged yo uth in develo ping c o untries. If to gether we c an beg in this transfo r-matio n, sc ho o ls a hundred years fro m no w will sit at the heart o f a learning so c iety and allo w yo uth fro m any c o untry in the wo rld— ric h o r po o r— to have the same o ppo rtunities to c reate a better wo rld.
References
Blo o me, To ny. “ Zimbabwe— The Bindura Internet Learning Center: Mo dest in Size, but Mig hty in Impac t. ” Te chno wlo gia, No vember, 2000.
<www. tec hkno wlo g ia. o rg >.
Ko zma, Ro bert. “ Wo rld Links fo r Develo pment: Ac c o mplishments and Challenges. Mo nito ring and Evaluatio n Annual Repo rt 1998–1999. ” SRI Internatio nal, 1999.
Lo c kheed, Marlaine E. “ Impac t Study o f Wo rld Links fo r Develo pment. ” Wo rld Bank Internatio nal Evaluatio n Briefs, Oc to ber, 2001.
Mc Ghee, Raymo nd and Ro bert Ko zma. “ Wo rld Links fo r Develo pment: Ac c o mplishments and Challenges. Mo nito ring and Evaluatio n Annual Repo rt 1999–2000. ” SRI Internatio nal.
UNICEF. “ The State o f the Wo rld’s Children. ” 1996. <http: / / www. unic ef. o rg / so wc 96/ ng irls. htm>.
Wo rld Bank Develo pment Indic ato rs. Wo rld Bank, 1998.
Endnotes
1 The twenty- o ne Wo rld Links c o untries inc lude Bo tswana, Brazil, Burkina Faso , Chile, Co lo mbia, Co sta Ric a, El Salvado r, the Gambia, Ghana, India, Mauritania, Mo zambique, Palestine Autho rity, Parag uay, Peru, Seneg al, So uth Afric a, Sri Lanka, Turkey, Ug anda, and Zimbabwe; the pro g ram is in a preparato ry phase in Cambo dia, Jo rdan, Indo nesia, Lao s, the Philippines, and Vietnam.
Lesson #10: Technology motivates students and
energizes classrooms
When sc ho o ls are c o nnec ted to the Internet, teac hers taug ht to rethink their teac hing metho ds, and students empo wered to use tec hno lo g y, the impac t c an be pro fo und. Teac hers quic kly see ho w the use o f c o mputers energ izes the students and makes the c lassro o m a mo re interac tive learning enviro nment. In the SRI- Wo rld Links e valuatio n, two - thirds o f te ac he rs, fo r instanc e, repo rted that the Wo rld Links pro g ram had a “ large o r g reat impac t” o n students’ attitudes to ward sc ho o ls. One teac her in Peru said, “ I learned to break the ro utine o f using the c halk and the blac kbo ard. Wo rld Links fo rc ed me to make my c lasses mo re interesting , mo re tang ible— students are mo re interested and attentive.” Teac hers have also repo rted that Wo rld Links has helped students develo p c o nfidenc e, a sense o f respo nsibility, the ability to wo rk as team members, think c reatively fo r so lutio ns, and share kno wledge ( Ko zma 2000) . In a fo c us g ro up o f teac hers in the Palestine Autho rity, the g reatest benefit o f the use o f c o mputers and the Wo rld Links training was that it bro ke do wn the barriers between teac hers and students in the c lassro o m. As o ne Palestinian teac her stated, “ There is no w a mo re c o lleg ial enviro nment and less hierarc hy— students feel c o mfo rtable asking teac hers questio ns and teac hers are less intimidated to seek help fro m students.” Many teac hers, ho wever, initially feel threatened by the lo ss o f c o ntro l in the c lassro o m as students, who are usually mo re adept at using tec hno lo g y, c an quic kly ac c ess info rmatio n and c hallenge the teac her’s ro le as the so le fo nt o f info rmatio n. Teac hers who rec eive pro fessio nal develo pment, ho wever, learn ho w to mo re effec tively manage their c lassro o m and use the tec hno lo g y to c reate a mo re stimulating learning enviro nment. A student in Seneg al no ted that, “ Our teac hers, bec ause o f o ur partic ipatio n in c o llabo rative pro jec ts and Internet ac c ess, have to do a better jo b. They c arefully prepare their lesso ns befo re c o ming to c lass. We c hallenge them; we are no lo nger passive rec eivers o f info rmatio n. We analyze and questio n thing s.”
Conclusion
While limited in sc o pe bec ause o f the fac t that it is a pilo t, Wo rld Links has, in five years, sho wn the effec t that a c arefully tho ug ht- o ut, integ rated appro ac h to intro duc ing c o mputers and the Internet into learning enviro nments in develo ping c o untries c an have o n teac hing and learning . In c o untries where learning reso urc es are limited and teac hers never dream o f having a fully sto c ked library, let alo ne the Internet, teac hers and students have been intro duc ed to a new wo rld o f learning . As a result, tho se partic ipating in the pilo t have been g reatly empo wered, and no w believe they c an c o mpete in a g lo bal kno wledge- based ec o no my bec ause they kno w that their kno wledge, ideas, c ulture, and passio ns are as valuable as any in the wo rld. In o rder to mo re effec tively prepare its yo uth to partic ipate in this Netwo rked Wo rld, g reater c o mmitments and willing ness to share and ado pt inno vative so lutio ns are needed fro m all aspec ts o f
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