Thursday, January 25, 2007
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
Digital Divide Solutions?
DIGITAL DIVIDE!
We have spent the past few months trying to understand what this means, what is the cause of it and how can it be solved? In the United States we are fortunate to have easy access to computers and the internet. In rural Kenya this is not the case. As technology advances in developed areas those living in less developed areas are left behind.
We see this in our ENO activities. The Nyanduma school does not have access to internet or computers in their school and do not have access to a digital camera. Lessons are printed and shared with classes this way. Pictures are scanned and then sent via email to us and we post the work on the ENO site.
The problem is easy to see, the causes of this problem are harder to understand and the solution is difficult. This is where we would like your input.
- If your school does not have access to the internet, how do you manage to participate in ENO or other internet programs?
- What do you see as the cause of this problem?
- What solutions can you think of?
Please post your thoughts. Thank you
KENYA PERSPECTIVE
DIGITAL DIVIDE
What is digital divide?
It is the uneven distribution of technology and its usage around the world. It is specifically in information, transport and communication technologies.
∑ For effective use there must be access of network.
∑ The digital devices may include: radio, television, telephones/cell phones and computers.
∑
What causes digital divide?
∑ Poverty
∑ Invention of different devices
∑ Education system
∑ Different technical educations
∑ Differing education levels
∑ Difference in language
∑ Difference in development levels
∑ Lack of exposure
∑ Ignorance
∑ Illiteracy
∑ Means of marketing
∑ Trade taxation
∑ Cultural lifestyle e.g. Nomadic
∑ Weight and volume
∑ Government and trade union policies
Situation today
∑ The third world countries often lack the access of financial resources to establish and maintain forms of communication like telephones, Internet e.t.c. to majority of the citizens. This has created a wider gap in economic advancement compared to first world countries.
∑ Due to digital divide, there has been a great discrimination between the wealthy and poor people i.e. the wealthy would want to socialize with the wealthy and same to the poor.
∑ In the past, time was being consumed by the early forms of communication like the runners. They could easily distort some information unlike now whereby we have modern forms, which have brought the world to a global village.
∑ New technologies have established due to digital divide like in the field of Agriculture there are inventions of new methods of farming and harvesting of the products with a shorter duration, which never existed before.
∑ To talk about future, the divide shall bring up more advancement on technology whereby information shall be as fast as reaching the information within microseconds.
∑ All the divides that exist as per now will be somehow useless to the people because the upcoming ones will be more complicated than the ones we have currently.
∑ For this one to be in future we should rely on education mostly to acquire knowledge so as to make them more complicated.
∑ There are those people who don’t have the ability on how to use the digital devices and to make all people have that ability, there are some solutions to it and they may include:
∑ Those individuals with more resources should fund technology sharing.
∑ Technology clubs for both girls and boys should be created so that the young girls are not interfered with. This is because young girls of today get married in early ages. After all the purpose that they may take in their communities are lost and even to places where they are married they forget about it and start thinking about their lives alone. This is the end result to poor enhancement of technology.
∑ Older students should teach the younger classes.
∑ Internet clubs should be created for senior citizens.
∑ The government should create Internet centres for all schools in the country
Effects of digital divide
∑ It brings cultural erosion
∑ It causes laziness to addicts
∑ It entertains and educates the community.
∑ Reduces the expenses especially to those who pass information to people at far distances.
∑ It aids in interaction and social relationship.
∑ Pollute the atmosphere
∑ Waste is not decomposable
∑ Pollutes the environment
∑ Destroy nature
∑ Causes health problems
∑ It is expensive
Recommendations
∑ We should reduce the current digital divide by promoting facilities to reach all the future generation.
∑ Those who have the ability to teach those who are illiterate on how to use them so as to reduce maintenance cost
∑ Everybody should have access to them
∑ The well-wishers and sponsors in developed countries should help the third world countries by giving them the devices e.g. the computers
∑ We should unite with the companies, which are dealing with the devices so that they can bring us some in our communities and that may reduce the digital division
∑ The government should at least employ some teachers who are perfect in the field of digital use to teach the third world countries
∑ Digital devices should be made cheaper and affordable to majority
∑ Education should be geared towards us of these devices in all countries
∑ The servers in Internet use should be many and be made to use wireless lines hence portable.
We have spent the past few months trying to understand what this means, what is the cause of it and how can it be solved? In the United States we are fortunate to have easy access to computers and the internet. In rural Kenya this is not the case. As technology advances in developed areas those living in less developed areas are left behind.
We see this in our ENO activities. The Nyanduma school does not have access to internet or computers in their school and do not have access to a digital camera. Lessons are printed and shared with classes this way. Pictures are scanned and then sent via email to us and we post the work on the ENO site.
The problem is easy to see, the causes of this problem are harder to understand and the solution is difficult. This is where we would like your input.
- If your school does not have access to the internet, how do you manage to participate in ENO or other internet programs?
- What do you see as the cause of this problem?
- What solutions can you think of?
Please post your thoughts. Thank you
KENYA PERSPECTIVE
DIGITAL DIVIDE
What is digital divide?
It is the uneven distribution of technology and its usage around the world. It is specifically in information, transport and communication technologies.
∑ For effective use there must be access of network.
∑ The digital devices may include: radio, television, telephones/cell phones and computers.
∑
What causes digital divide?
∑ Poverty
∑ Invention of different devices
∑ Education system
∑ Different technical educations
∑ Differing education levels
∑ Difference in language
∑ Difference in development levels
∑ Lack of exposure
∑ Ignorance
∑ Illiteracy
∑ Means of marketing
∑ Trade taxation
∑ Cultural lifestyle e.g. Nomadic
∑ Weight and volume
∑ Government and trade union policies
Situation today
∑ The third world countries often lack the access of financial resources to establish and maintain forms of communication like telephones, Internet e.t.c. to majority of the citizens. This has created a wider gap in economic advancement compared to first world countries.
∑ Due to digital divide, there has been a great discrimination between the wealthy and poor people i.e. the wealthy would want to socialize with the wealthy and same to the poor.
∑ In the past, time was being consumed by the early forms of communication like the runners. They could easily distort some information unlike now whereby we have modern forms, which have brought the world to a global village.
∑ New technologies have established due to digital divide like in the field of Agriculture there are inventions of new methods of farming and harvesting of the products with a shorter duration, which never existed before.
∑ To talk about future, the divide shall bring up more advancement on technology whereby information shall be as fast as reaching the information within microseconds.
∑ All the divides that exist as per now will be somehow useless to the people because the upcoming ones will be more complicated than the ones we have currently.
∑ For this one to be in future we should rely on education mostly to acquire knowledge so as to make them more complicated.
∑ There are those people who don’t have the ability on how to use the digital devices and to make all people have that ability, there are some solutions to it and they may include:
∑ Those individuals with more resources should fund technology sharing.
∑ Technology clubs for both girls and boys should be created so that the young girls are not interfered with. This is because young girls of today get married in early ages. After all the purpose that they may take in their communities are lost and even to places where they are married they forget about it and start thinking about their lives alone. This is the end result to poor enhancement of technology.
∑ Older students should teach the younger classes.
∑ Internet clubs should be created for senior citizens.
∑ The government should create Internet centres for all schools in the country
Effects of digital divide
∑ It brings cultural erosion
∑ It causes laziness to addicts
∑ It entertains and educates the community.
∑ Reduces the expenses especially to those who pass information to people at far distances.
∑ It aids in interaction and social relationship.
∑ Pollute the atmosphere
∑ Waste is not decomposable
∑ Pollutes the environment
∑ Destroy nature
∑ Causes health problems
∑ It is expensive
Recommendations
∑ We should reduce the current digital divide by promoting facilities to reach all the future generation.
∑ Those who have the ability to teach those who are illiterate on how to use them so as to reduce maintenance cost
∑ Everybody should have access to them
∑ The well-wishers and sponsors in developed countries should help the third world countries by giving them the devices e.g. the computers
∑ We should unite with the companies, which are dealing with the devices so that they can bring us some in our communities and that may reduce the digital division
∑ The government should at least employ some teachers who are perfect in the field of digital use to teach the third world countries
∑ Digital devices should be made cheaper and affordable to majority
∑ Education should be geared towards us of these devices in all countries
∑ The servers in Internet use should be many and be made to use wireless lines hence portable.
Costs associated with using the internet
NAIS is expensive: -
As you all assume that everybody has access & can access the internet any where in the world. This is very wrong when you consider developing and underdeveloped countries where in most cases the majority of their population have not heard about computers, not seen it or touch it while the community of modern digitals is just a dream to them. Take for the case of Kenya which is a developing nation; digital use is rampant in the cities only because the cities are well supplied with the power/energies that are used to operate them while the rural areas are very unfortunate as they are not enjoying the same.
The NAIS project is conducted through the internet, to me and my students we are finding it to be expensive for the following: -
1. Commercialized internet access. - We have to pay for the duration of time we spend browsing and because the city where we have the internet is a distance, not all the students can visit there so we have to print the information which we carry home for all to see and read. And again, on sending information we spend a lot of time and money when typing, scanning and e-mailing. When considering the frequency at which we have to download and send back the project work, it is just but too much money.
2. Mobility: -We have been moving around to the internet centres, contacting some resource facilities and persons for information, arranging meetings for local exchange of ideas about the digitals. All this needs money.
3. Amount needed now.
Comparing the remaining weeks (7weeks) to the past where we have been using an average of US $ 40 every week. We may still assume that we need this also for every week that is a total of US dollars 280 to complete the task of NAIS, 2006/7.
Rapemo
Costs in the USA
In Colorado if you do not own a computer you may use one for free in a public library. In many libraries you can sign up for a time and the computer will be reserved for you to use for one hour. These computers are connected to the internet. If you own a computer in your home you can connect to the internet for $10 - $50/month depending on the speed of your internet connection. If you own a laptop computer you may use the internet for free in many coffee shops.
As you all assume that everybody has access & can access the internet any where in the world. This is very wrong when you consider developing and underdeveloped countries where in most cases the majority of their population have not heard about computers, not seen it or touch it while the community of modern digitals is just a dream to them. Take for the case of Kenya which is a developing nation; digital use is rampant in the cities only because the cities are well supplied with the power/energies that are used to operate them while the rural areas are very unfortunate as they are not enjoying the same.
The NAIS project is conducted through the internet, to me and my students we are finding it to be expensive for the following: -
1. Commercialized internet access. - We have to pay for the duration of time we spend browsing and because the city where we have the internet is a distance, not all the students can visit there so we have to print the information which we carry home for all to see and read. And again, on sending information we spend a lot of time and money when typing, scanning and e-mailing. When considering the frequency at which we have to download and send back the project work, it is just but too much money.
2. Mobility: -We have been moving around to the internet centres, contacting some resource facilities and persons for information, arranging meetings for local exchange of ideas about the digitals. All this needs money.
3. Amount needed now.
Comparing the remaining weeks (7weeks) to the past where we have been using an average of US $ 40 every week. We may still assume that we need this also for every week that is a total of US dollars 280 to complete the task of NAIS, 2006/7.
Rapemo
Costs in the USA
In Colorado if you do not own a computer you may use one for free in a public library. In many libraries you can sign up for a time and the computer will be reserved for you to use for one hour. These computers are connected to the internet. If you own a computer in your home you can connect to the internet for $10 - $50/month depending on the speed of your internet connection. If you own a laptop computer you may use the internet for free in many coffee shops.
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