[Telecentres] requesting immediate feedback: telecentres/educationstatement

[Gurstein, Michael]

Andy,

Thanks for this opportunity and I've forwarded this to the Community
Informatics CIResearchers elists where there will likely be some
additional interest and response...

I'd like to contribute a few points as well, although I'm not sure from
your note as to whether this might be the appropriate place to introduce
these...

I think that mention should be made of the need for:
	1.	funding for bottom up and self or community organized
ICT initiatives

	2.	support for local content development including
training, applications development, market development

	3.	the means to utilize ICTs as supports to citizenship and
e-participation including in exercises such as the WSIS and particularly
in any agency or institution created as a follow up to the WSIS.
 
	4.	an "effective use" approach to public investments in
ICTs for Development at the local level, that is one which focusses on
locally significant/valuable ICT application areas such as learning,
health, local economic development, emergency and disaster management,
environmental management among others. An "effective use" approach is
one that ensures that the range of elements required for successful
implementation of an application at the local level are recognized and
supported and including
		a.	Carriage facilities -  the telecommunications
service infrastructure is needed to support the application being
undertaken? 
		b.	Input/output devices - the devices (computers,
pda's, etc.) which users need to undertake the particular activity? 
		c.	Tools and supports - the software, physical
supports, protocols, service supports required? 
		d.	Content services - specifically designed content
needed for particular application areas including in local languages and
for various levels of literacy (or non-literacy)?
		e.	Service access/provision - an appropriate and
supportive social and organizational infrastructure, links to local
social networks, para-professionals, training facilities are necessary
for the particular use being developed? 
		f.	Social facilitation - the local regional
authorities/resources, community and environmental infrastructure,
training, animation required to locally enable the desired application
or use? and
		g.	Governance - the required financing, regulatory
or policy regime, either for governance of the application or to enable
the implementation and long term sustainability of the application
within the broader national, regional and local legal or regulatory
systems? 

Hope this helps,

MG

Michael Gurstein, Ph.D.

(for information only and does not imply organizational endorsement)
Member Advisory Board: Telecenters of the Americas; Member Advisory
Board Association for Community Networking; Board Member Telecommunities
Canada; Board Member Carrefours Mondial; Foundation Chair Community
Informatics Research Network


-----Original Message-----
From: telecentres-bounces at wsis-cs.org
[mailto:telecentres-bounces at wsis-cs.org] On Behalf Of Andy Carvin
Sent: February 22, 2005 1:36 PM
To: telecentres at wsis-cs.org
Subject: [Telecentres] requesting immediate feedback:
telecentres/educationstatement




Hi everyone,

I've been working with Divina Frau-Meigs and Jane Johnson from the
education caucus to craft language to be presented in tomorrow morning's
plenary. As we wrote down our ideas, we realized that much of what we
had to say was similar to some of the ideas we have discussed on the
telecentres list.

So I would like to propose that we consider issuing a joint statement
with the education caucus on areas of agreement regarding the role of
schools, universities and telecentres in meeting the MDGs. Please give
me feedback on the following ideas as soon as possible, because our
telecentres meeting tomorrow afternoon will be too late in the process
to impact the discussion on financing mechanisms. thanks! -ac

ICTs are a key tool in achieving universal education, while wired
schools and non-formal learning institutions such telecenters can play a
major role in promoting development.

1. When considering financing mechanisms, do not neglect the role that
schools, universities and informal educational institutions such as
telecentres an play as a community hub for building knowledge and
integrating marginalized communities into the information society.

Schools, libraries and other institutions are existing infrastructures
that focus on the future -- the potential of our children and young
people. Young people should be a priority for accessing these
educational ICTs as they cannot afford to wait for policymakers; their
longterm prosperity is at stake.

2. It's not enough to finance infrastructure - professional development
for educators and curriculum development must also be addressed -
curriculum that is linguistically and culturally appropriate, including
open courseware.

3. Multi-purpose access points: schools should be able to serve as
telecentres, while telecentres can serve as educational institutions in
themselves

4. Encouraging local/community vested interest in the success of these
institutions. Community members must have a true stake in their
technological and educational development.

5. Promote the development of regional open courseware initiatives as a
primary means for cultural and linguistic diversity, for pluralism of
educational formats. These initiatives should be networked for worldwide
capacity building.



-------------------------------------------------
Andy Carvin
Program Director
EDC Center for Media & Community
acarvin @ edc . org
http://www.digitaldividenetwork.org
http://www.edwebproject.org/andy/blog/
-------------------------------------------------

_______________________________________________
telecentres mailing list
telecentres at wsis-cs.org
http://mailman-new.greennet.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/telecentres
To unsubscribe, send a message to telecentres-request at wsis-cs.org with
the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.