 |
 |
 |
|
| |
Theme 13: Digital Education, Distance
Learning and the Creation of the Information Society |
| |
Number
of abstracts currently posted to this Theme: 1 | 2 |
3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
13 | 14 |
| |
 Return
to List of Themes |
|
|
| |
(Last updated:
September 29th, 2005) |
|
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
Glocal Youth: Texts and
Contexts in the North and South of the World |
|
| |
Sandra
Federici, Director |
|
| |
Africa e Mediterraneo, Sasso
Marconi, Italy |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
The paper will focus on the role of mass media
and new technologies in shaping youth identities,
both in the North and South of the world. It will
also explore the possibilities of an intercultural
pedagogy. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
The dissertation will present the project of
e-learning and media education Glocal Youth. Our
research has investigated media addressed to youth
in the Northern and Southern regions of the world.
After a selection of significant media, a didactic
e-book, available on the web, has been elaborated. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
The research has concentrated on the following
issues:
- Intercultural education through media: in order to create a “culture
of interculture”, it is necessary to foster a formation process using instruments,
such as media, which are appropriate to face the contemporary challenges of the
intercultural dialogue.
- Relation North/South, Globalization/Localism: differences and similarities
between the media of the Western countries and the ones of the developing countries.
Does “Globalization” create proximity or distance?
- The digital divide: the conditions of access to media are related to other
social issues, such as economic and political conditions, alphabetization, human
rights. The “alternative” systems that facilitate access often constitute
a creative way to overcome these constraints.
- Youth as subject of communication: in order to exercise a full citizenship,
an aware and active use of media should become one of the main competences of
young people. When young people get possession of the communication instruments,
they exercise their right of speech, creating products that better represent
their ideas, and projects. |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
|
|
|
| |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
Fostering Youth Literacies
through Digital Media Projects |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Jack
Shuler, Director
of Development |
|
| |
Brooklyn College Community
Partnership for Research and Learning |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Scott
Dexter, Associate
Professor |
|
| |
Department of Computer
and Information Science |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Brooklyn College of the
City University of New York (CUNY), Brooklyn,
New York, USA |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
Most studies of the digital divide in US schools
focus on the extent to which technology has penetrated
the classroom, placing primary value on the potential
for students to learn how to use technology in
school. By the fall of 2002 almost 99 percent of
public schools in the United States had access
to the Internet and, in turn, to computers. But
according to a recent government press release,
even though access for public school students during
the daytime has risen, access during the after-school
hours is still marginal—specifically for
minority and poor students. How, then, does the
lack of consistent access to innovative information
and communications technologies influence the ways
in which youth in underserved communities are represented
and/or represent themselves? And what happens when
youth do have access? In this study, we consider
technology in the schools as a vehicle for fostering
a variety of fluencies – of language, of
technology, of inquiry – which ultimately
prepare the student for participatory citizenship
in a democratic society. In particular, we will
examine after-school programs in which students
with diverse backgrounds and widely varied competencies
complete a digital video project. We will analyze
the teachers' missions and pedagogical approaches,
and we will qualitatively evaluate students' development
over the life of the project. Finally, we will
discuss the ways in which this project addresses
the various literacies of the information age and
the ways in which youth develop critical analyses
of their lives and communities using sophisticated
technologies that a decade ago would have not been
possible. |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
Distance Education |
|
| |
Walid
Shaban, Lecturer,
Department of Computing |
|
| |
Middle East College of
Information Technology, Al-Rusayl, Oman |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
The Paper will focus on how to use tools and
techniques to support the creation of online learning
communities in distance learning.
Common theory
Higher education will become cheap that competition will no longer be driven
by price. Consumers will choose among several inexpensive educations.
What is Distance Education?
Distance education is any learning experience that occurs when learner and instructor
are separated by time and space. Most learning already occurs at a distance. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Traditional Classroom Vs. Distance Classroom
In a traditional classroom, instructors are in control of the learning environment,
while in a technology enhanced distance classroom, the students are in control
of the learning environment. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
How is Distance Education Delivered?
There are common technological options:
Print - Voice - Video - and Data.-
Computer applications for distance education are varied and include:
• Computer-assisted instruction (CAI).
• Computer-managed instruction (CMI).
• Computer-mediated education (CME). |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Types of Online Education
We may generalize the instructional modes into four types: training, education
toward an undergraduate degree, continuing education, and graduate work. |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
Teaching Teachers through Technolgy: |
|
| |
Using ICTs
to Improve the Quality of Education in the Developing
World |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Emily
Rozalija Wheeler, Consultant |
|
| |
The Academy for Educational
Development, Washington, D.C., USA |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Sébastien Jodoin,
Manager |
|
| |
Center for International
Sustainable Development Law, Montréal,
Canada |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
If Universal Primary Education (UPE) is to be
achieved by 2015, more energy must be focused on
improving teacher quality and on the creation of
locally-relevant curricula materials. Low survival
rates and the persistent failure of those enrolled
in school to reach minimum mastery levels pose
significant challenges to education systems in
the developing world. Enrolee motivation and parents’ decision
to send their children to school can depend upon
the quality of instruction and its relevancy to
the needs of community members. If school systems
cannot maintain current enrolment levels or adequately
educate students, initiatives to reach UPE by enrolling
the 100-150 million children presently out of school
will be wasted. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs)
are an effective tool to improve teacher and curricula
quality. Currently, governments, NGOs and IGOs
incorporate ICTs into in-service training programs
that expose teachers to child-centered pedagogy,
while providing them with materials designed specifically
for their students’ needs. This paper seeks
to assist practitioners who are attempting to integrate
ICTs into curriculum design and teacher instruction
by identifying a series of best practices. These
recommendations are derived from an analysis of
nearly 100 teacher education projects undertaken
world-wide by UNESCO, NGOs, and local government
organizations. Recognizing that ICTs are not a
panacea, this paper also discusses the critical
limitations of ICTs in professional development
projects. As such, it touches upon the complex
relationships between education and ICTs in the
context of the Information and Communication Society. |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
Unassisted Learning-Promoting Computer Literacy
in Previously Disadvantaged Areas of South Africa |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Ronel Smith, Project
Manager |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Grant Cambridge, Communications
Engineer |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Kim
Gush, Electronic
Engineer |
|
| |
|
|
| |
CSIR Information Society
Technologies Centre, Pretoria, South Africa |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
Initiatives aimed at harnessing ICT for development
are hampered by the lack of end-user capacity,
technology literacy and confidence to use the technology.
In response, the Digital Doorway project provides
a unique approach to promoting functional computer
literacy by overcoming the enormous hurdles of
technology use and familiarity. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
The innovative approach of minimally invasive
education (MIE) differs fundamentally from other
ICT provision interventions in that it holds that
everyone has the inherent cognitive ability to
teach themselves, provided computers can be made
easily accessible to potential learners and an
environment can be created in which they can learn
through experimenting |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
Computer Aided Learning
Programme (CALP) in Indian Government School |
|
| |
-An
Experiment of Azim Premji Foundation |
|
| |
Manisha
Solanki, Member |
|
| |
Technology Initiatives,
Azim Premji Foundation, Bangalore, India |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
The need for the application of ICT in development
has international, national and local context.
In this age of globalization, ICT is paving a clear
pathway to induce economic and social development,
including health and education, in developing countries
like India. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
India has become an important hub for the Information
technology and skilled talent pool. However the
statistics for the Indian primary education are
not “shining” and illustrate that out
of the estimated population of 205 million in the
age group of 6-14 years on March 1, 2002, nearly
82.5 per cent was enrolled in schools. The drop-out
rate still is very high, especially in the case
of girl students, for whom the rates in 2002-03
were 33.7 per cent and 53.5 per cent, at the primary
and upper primary levels, respectively. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
The equitable and quality primary education is
still a distant goal for Indian government schools.
Is there any possibility to enhance retention rate
in government schools, and equity and quality of
elementary education using technologies, in particular
computer, as an Aid to teaching and learning? With
this exploratory inquiry, Azim Premji Foundation,
an Indian not for profit organization, initiated
Computer Aided Learning Programme (CALP) in 2001.
This case study paper aims to discuss the main
components of CALP including its objectives and
strategies, CD content development and its child-oriented
approach, and different models of its implementation
in government schools. |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
Project on ICT Implementation
in Secondary Schools in Kenya |
|
| |
Esther
Mwiyeria Wachira, Capacity
Development Manager |
|
| |
Computers for Schools Kenya,
Nairobi, Kenya |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
Computers for Schools Kenya, is registered as
an NGO (non-governmental organization). It was
started in 2002 but donated its first 200 computers
to 10 schools in March 2003. This project was started
with the following expected outputs in its initial
stages:
• Conduct a research on the state of ICT in our secondary schools
• Establish local and international partnerships to support the program
in it’s initial stages
• Establish a refurbishment centre in Kenya
• Donate the first 200 computers to 10 institutions in rural Kenya.
• Provide a basis for scaling up the project a national level.
This was to serve as the first step towards breaking the second level of digital
divide that exists in Kenya. This divide has developed as a result of the high
cost attached to the acquisition of computer literacy skills in the country thus
making it a reserve for only those who can afford. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Availing computers to our secondary schools was
to bridge this gap as these skills would be availed
to Kenya’s young generation at an affordable
fee. Further introducing a computing culture to
these young minds early enough means that they
will easily learn to use the computer as a tool
for learning, information gathering and communication. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
With the introduction of the first batch of computers
to schools, CFSK was quick to realize that this
was the first step in a long journey and to be
more specific it was like giving shoes without
laces. There were several missing links as outlined
below:
• There was no curriculum in place and whatever had been provided by the
government was quite flawed in the sense that the objectives were not the driving
force.
• There were no teachers to implement any curriculum as the teacher training
colleges in the country have not been training teachers who can take up IT training
in the schools. Some of the teachers graduating from our colleges are not even
computer literate.
• There were no resources materials to be used in the teaching of ICT both
as an add on subject and as tool encompassing other subject.
• Acquisition of IT skills was not an end in itself but a means to integrate
ICT into the learning matrix.
• Connectivity was a far fetched idea and the cost attached to this in Kenya
was prohibitive.
• The school administrators had a lot of cynicism and were not informed
enough so as to make any decision as far IT issues were concerned. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
From these finding CFSK learnt that it could
not be everything to everyone of our schools and
had to work with a lot of partnerships to go over
the outlined hurdles. By March 2005, CFSK had
• Placed 2400 computers in 120 institutions.
• Trained over 100 school principals, IT teachers for schools
• Installed networks in the equipped computer labs.
• Embarked on connectivity with local partnerships
• Established a refurbishment centre and decentralized to the rural areas.
• Offered literacy skills to all the students in the recipient institutions
• Developed a model which has been replicated in other African countries
like Uganda, Rwanda through sharing our experience.
• Established local and international partnerships and a pre-owned computer
donation procedure. |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
Enabling and Constraining
Factors of ICT Access Amongst Higher Education
Students in the Western Cape, South Africa |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Cheryl
Brown, Researcher |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Laura
Czerniewicz, Director |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Center for Educational
Technology, University of Cape Town, South Africa |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
Higher education (HE) has a critical and central
role to play in contributing to the development
of an information society. In order to build an
information economy it is essential to ensure that
HE graduates have the necessary skills and knowledge
to participate fully in this knowledge society
both locally and globally. However, in order to
be able to effectively address this issue it is
crucial to understand more about access to Information
and Communication Technologies (ICT’s) within
the HE context and what enables or constrains their
use by students. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
In 2004, 6576 HE students, in the Western Cape
South Africa, were surveyed about their access
to computers and how they used them for learning.
This paper reports on the findings of this research.
We will describe what students use, need and draw
on in order to gain or acquire access to specific
ICT uses and practices in terms of different kinds
of resources namely technology resources; resources
for personal agency; contextual resources; and
online content resources. (Czerniewicz and Brown
2004). |
|
| |
|
|
| |
We will also discuss what divides are evident
in terms of social class, language, nationality,
age and gender, as use of ICT’s are dependent
both on the broader socio-economic and political
contexts, and on the local struggles and strategies
around the distribution of resources and other
aspects of redressing historical inequities in
educational institutions. |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
Use of ICT in Education: |
|
| |
A Chance for Bridging the Digital Divide-Perspectives
from a Private African University |
|
| |
Cheibane Coulibaly & Koffi
Alinon |
|
| |
Mande Bukari University,
Bamako, Mali |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
The recent 2003 Geneva World Summit on Information
Society has focused attention on the advantages
of using ICT in circulating knowledge worldwide.
It has particularly emphasised on the fact that
the use of ICTs in all stages of education, training
and human resource development should be promoted,
taking into account the special needs of persons
with disabilities and disadvantaged and vulnerable
groups (Declaration of Principles, B, 30.) |
|
| |
|
|
| |
This statement brings again onto light the role
of higher education institutions as they are in
charge of the trainng of national and continental
elite. In the African context, opinions on the
introduction of ICT into education establishments
seem to be dominated by common places and standardized
reflections. Advocates of the introduction of ICT
into education establishments frequently use general
arguments related to the wide range and in-deep
of knowledge accessible while on the other hand
ICT were said to contribute to a substantial reduction
of costs for education. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
These general arguments may sound convincing.
The accuracy of the last one could be verified
by the exemple of the management of a private university
like ours where public funds or subsides are not
availaible but a high quality taining is seek by
trainees. However the first assumption needs to
be balanced with the following considerations:
How can one use ICTs to accelerate progress towards
education for all and throughout life? How can
ICTs bring about a better balance between equity
and excellence in education? How can ICTs help
reconcile universality and local specificity of
knowledge? This last question is particularly of
the highest interest for our institution. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Thus, the projeted paper will present the niche
that current research activities undertaken by
the Mande Bukari University in cooperation with
Belgian universities are trying to explore by assessing
the long term cognitive and social impact residing
in the growth in use of ICT and dominant universal
languages. This impact will likely be especially
strong on traditional environment knowledge, decentralization
process and natural resources management, which
are the main components of the currculum of our
graduate students. |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
Harnessing the Internet
as a Medium for Local (School-level) Quality
Analysis and Planning of Primary Education in
Peru |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Brent Hall,
Professor
and Associate Dean, Facutly of Environmental
Studies |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Michael Leahy, Masters
Student in Geography |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Juan Alperin, Masters
Student in Geography |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Nathan Engler, Masters
Student in Planning |
|
| |
|
|
| |
University of Waterloo, Ontario,
Canada |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
The rapid growth in availability and use of the
Internet through affordable and high bandwidth
public Internet cafes or cabinas in Latin America
in general and Peru in particular provides a previously
non-existent window of opportunity to deliver data
and information generating tools to support decision
making at local levels of administration in multiple
domains. This paper discusses the opportunity created
by recent growth in Internet access to bridge the
digital divide in the area of primary school level
education quality assessment and planning. Specifically,
consistent with the world millennium goals, as
well as the goals of two UNESCO sponsored world
summits on education in 1990 and 2000, the paper
describes work underway between Canadian researchers,
Peruvian partner organizations and the Peruvian
Ministry of Education to develop Internet-based
software that provides decision support for education
planners, school administrators, teachers and members
of the public to access and use school-level data
to assess the quality of education at multiple
levels of analysis. The tool, named EduCal uses
Open Source software and features the use of on-line
maps for study area selection and displaying education
quality analyses. The approach allows data collected
from schools to be returned back to those schools
as well as to local and regional management offices
of the Ministry via the Internet, facilitating
the decentralized education quality assessment
and planning that is mandated by Peruvian law.
The approach, software and sample analyses are
presented. |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
Reaching the Poorest in
Their Own Environment: The Internet in the Street
Project |
|
| |
Bruno
Oudet, Professor |
|
| |
Joseph-Fourier University
of Grenoble, France |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Jean-Pierre, Volunteer,
Fourth World Movement |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
The digital divide is the result of the combination
of two factors: lack of access to the network and
the lack of knowledge and/or desire to use the
network. The poorest are faced with these two obstacles. “Internet
in the street”, is a a project launched by
the fourth world movement and the Leibnitz research
laboratory. Its purpose is to determine through
field case-studies how we can overcome these obstacles
in order to use Internet to [re]create social links.
The case studies are conducted in Paris and in
a department in the West of Paris . Our approach
is to go to meet the poorest in their own environment
(which justifies our project name “Internet
in the street”). In our paper we will describe
the first findings of the projects. We will present
what are the access obstacles (our population have
no internet access and are reluctant to use telecenters),
which are the expectations of very poor people
related to data processing and Internet, what are
the “popular” internet services… We
shall also present our expression-notebook which
permits the excluded population to speak about
their lives, their environment, the society where
they live. We will draw conclusion of the use of
Internet to develop the social links, and the importance
of training social workers to use Internet to reach
this goal. A comprehensive bibliography on the
digital divide will be provided. |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
Educate the Parents by
Subsidizing Their Children: Changing the Digital
Divide Through Social Interactions |
|
| |
Raffaele
Miniaci, Associate
Professor of Econometrics |
|
| |
Department of Economics
and the Faculty of Statistics, University of
Padova, Italy |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Maria Laura Parisi, (pictured)
Assistant Professor |
|
| |
Department of Economics,
University of Brescia, Italy |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
In light of recent policies aiming at raising
the computer literacy of young generations and
at reducing the digital divide, this paper analyzes
to what extent the probability of an individual
to have computer abilities is affected by the computer
skills of her household's other members, i.e. if
there are significant within household peer effects.
We show how peer effects can be identified when
skills are measured with a continuous variable
and the learning costs are increasing and convex.
Our application for a sample of Italian households
indicate that peers' abilities inside a family
increase significantly one's own probability, and
this amplifies the effect of owning a computer
at home. |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
Transitioning from Computer
Training to Information Literacy: A Case Study
of an Open Admission College |
|
| |
Mirella
R. Shannon, Interactive
Arts and Media Faculty |
|
| |
Columbia College Chicago,
Chicago, Illinois, USA |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
This case study documents the two-year process
of transitioning a computer training course into
a student-centered program focusing on information
and communications technology (ICT). |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Columbia College Chicago, the United State's
largest arts and communications college, has
an open-admissions policy providing access to
higher education to graduates of Chicago’s inner
city schools. Upon entrance to our college, many
of these students do not have the technical skills
required to compete equitably either in higher
education or in the workplace. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Twenty years ago Columbia College took the
initiative and mandated that all Columbia College
students, as part of their graduation requirement,
take a computer training course. The course objective
was to develop basic computer skills with student
outcomes focused on learning software applications. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Although today students are coming in with
somewhat better computer skills, many still lack
the essential information literacy needed for
future competitive edge. In addition, students
are asking for flexible ways to fulfill their
graduation requirements and for coursework tailored
to their individual needs. The students’ demands
for flexibility coupled with the dynamic growth
of technology compelled us to expand our objectives
to include an ICT literacy curriculum that could
be delivered in new and innovative ways. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Having been the architect of this transition,
I will discuss the challenges of having this
type of program adopted by college governance
and accepted by the student population. I will
also present some of our results which can be
useful to other schools wishing to provide similar
opportunities to their students. |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
Reference Groups Among
Internet Users: A Theoretical and Methodological
Approach |
|
| |
Ardeshir
Entezari, |
|
| |
University of Allameh
Tabatabaei, Tehran, Iran |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
| . |
. |
. |
| |
At the threshold of entering and creating the
information society, the people in different
societies of the world have confronted the information
society in variety of ways. The kind of their
enjoyment of different virtual capacities and
possibilities in the cyberspace is hardly under
the effect of their reference groups. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
On the basis of reference group theory, we
are going to design a theoretical frame for studying
the effects of reference groups on the kind of
confrontation with and enjoyment of cyberspace.
Besides, the effects of the kind of usage of
Internet on reference group selection process
also will be discussed. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
The core of most of definitions is that: the
reference group that is not necessarily the membership
group presents standards of self and others appraisals.
Applying these standards affects the individuals’ attitudes
and behavior and orients them in the way of life. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Investigating through cyberspace has some specifications
and special requirements that should be realized
in performing related researches. Whether qualitative
or quantitative methods are more useful and how
we can access to a better generalization is going
to be discussed. We are going to evaluate applying
participant observation method in pilot or preparatory
phase for more validity and survey method for
more reliability and a better generalization. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
The critical point in this process is the rate
of response. Is it possible to access to a representative
sample so that the generalization does not confront
serious problems? |
|
| . |
. |
. |
|
| |
|
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
