scholarly journals Times Thirty: Access, Maintenance, and Justice

2018 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 118-142 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roderic N. Crooks
Keyword(s):  
Los Angeles ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Science And Technology Studies ◽  
Public High School ◽  
South Los Angeles ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Maintenance Work ◽  
Student Workers ◽  
Infrastructure Maintenance

Based on an ethnographic project in a public high school in a low-income neighborhood in South Los Angeles, this paper argues that access to information and communication technologies (ICTs) cannot be taken as helpful or empowering on its own terms; instead, concerns about justice must be accounted for by the local communities technology is meant to benefit. This paper juxtaposes the concept of technological access with recent work in feminist science and technology studies (STS) on infrastructure, maintenance, and ethics. In contrast to popular descriptions of ICTs as emancipatory and transformative, in the setting of an urban school, access produced extensive demands for attention, time, and information. This paper focuses on the labor of a group of student workers, Student Technology Leaders (STLs), and how they became responsible for the significant amount of repair and maintenance work involved in keeping hundreds of new computing devices available for use. An expanded process of accounting can more realistically frame issues of justice and its relationship to ICTs. I use a town hall meeting held with these students as an example of a processual vision of justice, one that encourages the beneficiaries of technological access to evaluate costs, benefits, and ethical concerns together.

Cultural Acceptance of ICTs

2011 ◽  
pp. 105-126
Author(s):  
Jasmine M. Harvey
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Global Market ◽  
Global Knowledge ◽  
Development Tool ◽  
New Information ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Information Ecologies

The emergence of new information and communication technologies (ICTs) has generated much debate both in and out of academia in relation to theories ranging from economic advancement to imperialism. In the context of the ‘low-income’ economies, a dominant discourse associated with ICTs persists. The discourse of development predicts that nations which have joined the global market will use ICTs to harness global knowledge that will enable them to be competitive and therefore attain development. This has led to change in policy from international to local as ICTs are embraced as the next big development tool. Recently however, there have been reports of more failures of ICTs initiatives than success as professionals in the industry complain about unsustainability of the systems. A genuine issue is that so far analysis of this discourse has tended to be economically or technically deterministic, with little attention paid to social and cultural perspectives. In order to understand how the role of norms, practices and politics of people in particular communities play in this discourse in ‘low income’ economies, over 1000 semi-qualitative questionnaires were analysed from five geographical locations in The Gambia. A key conclusion that has emerged from the research is that there are different attitudes towards the ICTs in the different locations, which vary from full acceptance to rejection of ICTs. Such diverse reactions are underpinned by the religion and information ecologies in which gender plays a critical part. This result challenges the ICT4D agenda, and might be applied to reports of unsustainable ICT initiatives, especially in Africa.

scholarly journals Perceptions on Connecting Respite Care Volunteers and Caregivers

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (8) ◽  
pp. 2911
Author(s):  
Solange Campos-Romero ◽  
Valeria Herskovic ◽  
Carolina Fuentes ◽  
Esmeralda Abarca
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Older Persons ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Respite Care ◽  
Basic Information ◽  
Caregiver Relationship ◽  
Care Recipients ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Willingness To Use

The most common requirement for informal caregivers is to experience a respite or temporary break from their caregiving routine. Some initiatives have been undertaken to provide respite care through volunteer providers. We report on a qualitative study carried out in Santiago, Chile, to learn about the willingness of potential volunteers to provide respite care for bedridden older persons, as well as their willingness to use information and communication technologies (ICT) to connect to caregivers in a low-income neighbourhood within their own geographic district. A trustworthy institution that mediates the volunteer–caregiver relationship is considered to be important by potential volunteers. Potential volunteers were found to be willing to use ICT to provide respite care, sharing basic information about themselves. However, they were also aware of the digital skill gap that may exist between them and the caregivers and were distrustful of unknown websites that could connect them to care recipients.

ICT as a Public Good

2011 ◽  
pp. 165-184
Author(s):  
Richard L. O’Bryant
Keyword(s):  
Public Good ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Low Income ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Internet Use ◽  
Community Building ◽  
Social Challenges ◽  
Self Sufficiency ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Low Income Families

The presence of information and communication technologies, in particular the Internet, has the potential to be leveraged to address some of society’s most persistent social challenges. This chapter, through the case study of Internet use at Camfield Estates, a low-income housing development in Boston, Massachusetts, argues that public policy should view information and communication technology access as a public good for community building and self-sufficiency. The chapter examines U.S. historical policy efforts to assist low-income individuals and families. It takes on the social–antisocial debate and effects of Internet use for community building. It also presents some of the findings from the Camfield Estates–MIT Creating Community Connections Project and analyzes its meaning for nearly 40 low-income families that were equipped with a personal computer and two years of high-speed Internet connectivity.

scholarly journals From Evidence-based to Market-based mHealth: Itinerary of a Mobile (for) Development Project

2019 ◽  
Vol 44 (6) ◽  
pp. 1048-1067 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marine Al Dahdah
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Science And Technology Studies ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Global South ◽  
Development Project ◽  
Mobile Technologies ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Information And Communication

Information and communication technologies are increasingly used for development in the Global South, and mHealth (health assisted by mobile technologies) plays key role. This paper analyzes the particular relationship to science that characterizes a global maternal mHealth program deployed in Ghana and India. Using science and technology studies (STS), this research relies on qualitative interviews conducted between 2014 and 2016 with funders, implementers, and beneficiaries of this mHealth program. This story begins with a randomized controlled trial, a biomedical experiment with a strong positioning regarding science and the production of evidence. But rapidly the scientific stance disappears to give way to the testing and marketing of a product for the digital economy. From science to market, this paper offers to revisit a classical STS topic through the lens of mHealth. It shows how the various experimental forms taken by this project fundamentally diverge from scientific methods and evidence production and at the same time how it nurtures an ongoing instrumental relationship with science. Thus, from clinical research to product marketing, this paper highlights the tenuous link between evidence-based and market-based mHealth in the Global South.

scholarly journals Materialist Perspectives on Digital Technologies

2016 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 119-132 ◽  
Author(s):  
Holger Pötzsch
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Digital Literacy ◽  
Science And Technology Studies ◽  
Digital Technologies ◽  
Pedagogical Practice ◽  
Digital Competence ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
New Information ◽  
Critical Media ◽  
Information And Communication

Abstract The present article brings critical media research and science and technology studies (STS) into dialogue with approaches to digital literacy and digital competencies in educational contexts. In particular, it focuses on material aspects of new information and communication technologies (ICTs) such as technical infrastructure, economic conditions, ecological consequences, and code-based as well as embodied forms of impact, and argues that digital applications and devices have ambiguous and often contradictory affordances and effects that need to be addressed in academic literature and pedagogical practice. The main objective is to inform on-going debates on the nature and content of digital literacy and digital competence from a critical materialist vantage point, and to facilitate learning and teaching about, rather than with, digital technologies by highlighting salient issue areas in need of continued critical attention.

scholarly journals THE TIMES THEY ARE A-CHANGING

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Carol Scarafiotti ◽  
Martha Cleveland-Innes
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Foreign Students ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Institutions Of Higher Education ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Student Profiles ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
The Times

Higher education is engulfed in change. At the same time that institutions of higher education are endeavoring to transform themselves by integrating information and communication technologies into curriculum delivery, student profiles are changing. Low income-ethnic populations are among the fastest growing segment of 18–24 year old students; male enrollments are lagging in comparison to female; and the “digital natives” have arrived. Also, as the Internet provides students with access to a myriad of global educational opportunities, the potential for serving virtual foreign students increases. These changes present challenges and opportunities to institutions of higher education, which strive to serve their constituents through fully online and blended learning formats and aspire to extend education to new markets as well. This paper raises implications for online learning related to changing student populations. It presents two fundamentals crucial for ensuring student success, as well as, access in an online environment. Finally, it recommends two change strategies.

Information Literacy for Telecenter Users in Low-Income Regional Mexican Communities

2008 ◽  
pp. 389-396
Author(s):  
Antonio Santos
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Research Group ◽  
Basic Education ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Diagnostic Study ◽  
Initial Stage ◽  
Mexican Government ◽  
Information And Communication

The purpose of this article is to propose a methodology to increase information literacy among people who attend telecenters in low-income communities in Mexico. The Mexican government created telecenters, or community technology centers, as part of a national project under which adults lacking basic education who are isolated and living under economically and technologically marginal standards are granted access to educational materials and work training in the form of printed, audiovisual, and electronic media (CONEVyT, 2001). Our research group evaluated the Mexican telecenter program as part of a nationwide qualitative diagnostic study, which represented the initial stage of a three-year research project conducted by the Information and Communication Technologies for Education and Community Development research group at the Universidad de las Americas-Puebla in Mexico for the National Institute for Adult Education. The results of this study combine with the concepts of information literacy and socioconstructivist pedagogy to form the basis for the present proposal.

Understanding E-Government Development

2011 ◽  
pp. 137-154
Author(s):  
Keng Siau ◽  
Yuan Long
Keyword(s):  
United Nations ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Categorical Variables ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
The United Nations ◽  
Post Hoc ◽  
Government Development

Information and communication technologies (ICT) have been used to enhance services and improve the efficiency of government operations. To further improve the e-government operations, understanding e-government development and studying factors that affect e-government development are important research topics. The purpose of this research is to investigate factors influencing e-government development through a social development lens. Based on growth and regional development theories, this chapter hypothesizes that income level, development status, and region are three factors that differentiate e-government development in various countries. Group comparison tests are conducted using secondary data from the United Nations and the United Nations Development Programme. The results support the hypotheses that significant differences in e-government development exist between countries with respect to the three categorical variables mentioned. In addition, the paper applies planned post hoc tests to further investigate the differences in e-government development between different groups of countries (e.g., countries with low income vs. countries with high income). The results of this research are valuable to e-government scholars and practitioners. As the research involves data from countries all over the world, it contributes to understanding e-government development factors on a global scale.

Information Literacy for Telecenter Users in Low-Income Regional Mexican Communities

2005 ◽  
pp. 445-450
Author(s):  
Antonio Santos
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Research Group ◽  
Basic Education ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Diagnostic Study ◽  
Initial Stage ◽  
Mexican Government ◽  
Information And Communication

The purpose of this article is to propose a methodology to increase information literacy among people who attend telecenters in low-income communities in Mexico. The Mexican government created telecenters, or community technology centers, as part of a national project under which adults lacking basic education who are isolated and living under economically and technologically marginal standards are granted access to educational materials and work training in the form of printed, audiovisual, and electronic media (CONEVyT, 2001). Our research group evaluated the Mexican telecenter program as part of a nationwide qualitative diagnostic study, which represented the initial stage of a three-year research project conducted by the Information and Communication Technologies for Education and Community Development research group at the Universidad de las Americas-Puebla in Mexico for the National Institute for Adult Education. The results of this study combine with the concepts of information literacy and socioconstructivist pedagogy to form the basis for the present proposal.

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