Abstract: Evaluating shared access to ICTsBook Review of Public Access ICT across Cultures: Diversifying Participation in the Network Society, Edited by Francesco J. Proenza, Cambridge: MIT Press 2015.Two decades ago when the dot com revolution was at its height, the for communication technologies (ICTs) for development movement had just taken off. It sought to bring the benefits of ICTs to the masses through the deployment of desktop computers in telecentres across the world. The movement floundered with poor network connectivity, expensive machines, arduous maintenance costs and little relevant content.With the advent of mobile and laptop technology, attention shifted away from the public provision of access to the internet to personal ownership of ICT devices through programs such as OLPC (one laptop per child) and facilitating connectivity through mobiles. With the growing numbers of middle income households joining the elite in shifting to private access, there was little pressure on governments to provide and maintain affordable public access to ICTs.This edited volume Public Access ICT across Cultures: Diversifying Participation in the Network Society is a very timely reminder that there is still a large segment of the world's population that is dependent on public access points. In light of the recent World Development Report 2016, Digital Dividend, emphasing the need to bring people into the digital fold, this book provides valuable insights on the experience of ICT inclusion projects around the world. It presents a collection of case studies of urban and rural telecentre projects from ten countries including Malaysia, Thailand, China, Argentina, Chile, Peru, India, Jordan, Cameroon and Rwanda.The role of ICTs in shaping educational outcomes was the subject of the case study on Cameroon. The Government of Cameroon set up thirty-four rural telecentres to provide computer and internet training, and facilitate communication through technology, along with introducing IT in the school curriculum. Out of these, 1015 users across five centres were surveyed. These centres were frequented by students, most of whom learned to use the internet for the first time. An interesting finding was that students who did well in school and spent more hours studying, were also the ones using the internet to improve their access to learning materials, including text books.However, it was not possible to conclude that the internet was giving them an edge over others; rather, being motivated to learn and putting in the required effort to study, were still the dominant variables in determining school performance. These rising performers were able to use the internet more effectively to further their learning goals, compared to stable or falling-performers. Further, there was some evidence that more than three hours of internet use per visit correlated negatively with school performance. This study did not provide information about the class, ethnicity or religious background of users, which may have influenced the ability of students to access the telecentres and to be able to derive benefits from its use. Thus, although the study supported the view that internet access could enhance learning outcomes, it could not be established that without the internet, learning outcomes would suffer.Two case studies of internet usage in China provided a rare glimpse into the world's largest non-English speaking internet population. Ninety million people (15 per cent of all internet users) were connecting to the internet in China from public places in 2013. The first study on China's internet cafes sought to understand what value they brought to people's lives by comparing what goals users perceived as having been achieved by visiting such places, with goals and achievements of nonusers. Based on self-determination theory, which emphasizes the 'self-determination' of goals as a motivational force behind every day activities, it showed that younger users reported higher achievement of life goals such as 'learn more knowledge', 'leisure, entertainment', 'keep in touch with friends and family who don't live nearby', and 'relax, relieve tension' in comparison to nonusers. …
Publication Year: 2016
Publication Date: 2016-12-31
Language: en
Type: article
Access and Citation
AI Researcher Chatbot
Get quick answers to your questions about the article from our AI researcher chatbot