Key constraints & waste in educational technology

Please check the Key constraints on pages 10 to 18, see below some key constraints. Will they be prominent in the debate and final policy advice, or just be ignored? Should these constraints be targeted first in every systematic strategy to bridge the digital divide?

from:
Survey of ICT in Education in India and South Asia
Price Waterhouse Coopers India - commissioned by InfoDev, 2010

Launched in New Dehli with the debate: 'Most investment in technology in schools is wasted.' A live debate web-casted around the world 20-21 April. A InfoDef - UNESCO event
Curriculum & Content Development

e.g. page 10
Key constraints in developing relevant content:
• lack of IT professionals in the country
• lack of funding, infrastructure and resources
• lack of local content development initiatives
• no clear defined standards for digital educational contentno focus on digital content • in traditional curriculum areas

e.g. page 12
Key constraints in effective use of ICT for professional development:
• teacher attitudes towards ICT
• lack of relevant content
• lack of access to computers and the Internet after school
• lack of adequate funding and resources
• lack of training focusing on pedagogical innovation and learner-centered strategies

Here preliminary results Survey ICTs for Education
in India and South Asia

To close the digital divide systematically, see:

• ICT-IT harmonised
  
• 20 yrs IT in reality
• Sound pedagogy

Bleak impact of IT on learning

infoDev is a global development financing programme co-ordinated and serviced by the Global ICT Department (GICT) of the World Bank. InfovDev rarely consider low-tech ICT applications such as school radio, TV or the overhead projector as serious options, even when the implementation of new technologies are likely, or better: doomed to fail. In a Briefing Paper five years ago infoDev summed up what is debatable about much classroom use of ICT to support learning and is soon to host a debate in Delhi on the theme of 'Most investment in technology in schools is wasted.'

Briefing Paper
Impact of ICT on Learning and Achievement

A Knowledge Map of Information & Communication Technologies in Education

It is generally believed that ICT can empower teachers and learners, promote change and foster the development of ‘21st century skills' but data to support these beliefs is still limited.

Download the full text here

Read also 20 years of IT in education and Silver bullets

A white elephant in Uganda

Get your country, schools and teachers ready before introducing computer assisted teaching and learning in the classroom - see our 'IT and ICT harmonised'. Too many things can go wrong!
From:

Uganda lays wrong ICT cable
By Vision Reporter, Sunday, 4th April, 2010

UGANDA is laying the wrong fibre optic cable for the national backbone infrastructure - local and international experts have said. 


Uganda is using the G652 type whereas it should be using G655 for the kind of data Uganda will need to transmit. 


But despite instructions from the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and Parliament to halt the second phase until the technical issues have been resolved, the Chinese company, Huawei Technologies, has refused to stop. 


Every day the works continue, the company is using up more of the $106m (sh212b) for what experts say will prove to be a 'white elephant'. 



Read the full story here

Read more on policy advices to introduce IT and ICT harmonised, at manageble cost

Educational Technology Debate - India

About the need for a fundamental rethink
organised by InfoDev (World Bank) and UNESCO.

From: InfoDev April 2010

'Most investment in technology in schools is wasted.' Discuss.
On 21 April, 2010 Infodev launched its Survey of Information and Communication Technology for Education in India & South Asia. The launch in Delhi (India) was marked with a Oxford Union style debate on the motion: 'Most investment in technology in schools is wasted.'

The goal of the contributors will be to persuade the audience to reach one of two conclusions:
1. Most current investment is being wasted and needs a fundamental rethink (FOR the motion)
2. Existing schemes are already bearing fruit and need only ongoing support (AGAINST the motion).

More information here