Literacy Without Borders- World Libraries & ICT

Image courtesy of Room to Read

Having just started my graduate diploma in teacher-librarianship, I'm only beginning to wrap my head around the idea of managing a learning commons, and to be honest, the concept of world libraries had never crossed my mind.  I began my inquiry unsure of where to start or what to look for.  That being said, 21st century learning has been embraced by many developed nations around the world.  Countries such as England, Canada, and Germany have the already established infrastructure needed to support the integration of web 2.0 technologies in the classroom.  Developed countries are economically, financially, and politically stable enough to utilize these resources.  But what about developing countries?  How do they support literacy, library, and information computer technology (ICT) skills?  What initiatives are currently in place to assist developing nations acquire the resources they need?  In order to explore these questions further, I will focus my inquiry on a specific organization called Room to Read.

Image courtesy of Room to Read

Room to Read focuses on providing quality education to communities across Asia and Africa.  The organization aims to increase literacy and gender equality in education. Room to Read offers several programs ranging from library development and book publishing to to school construction and reading and writing initiatives.  In terms of developing a world library, Room to Read works with existing communities in the construction and management of the libraries it establishes. Having established more than 17,000 new libraries since the year 2000, Room to Read has reached many local communities that have limited access to resources and as a result, have promoted literacy and independent learning.

Building partnerships with local communities and government bodies, Room to Read provides access to many resources that increase literacy.  That means providing the logistics involved in the organization of educational developments.  However, Room to Read doesn't provide much insight into how they foster ICT skills within these countries.  Most of the programs the organization offers involve increasing literacy skills through quality goals, construction, instruction, and print resources.  The only piece of technology information that their website details is somewhat unclear.  Room to Read states that "in places where community libraries or Internet access are non-existent, Room to Read libraries serve as one of the few resources for independent learning and information-gathering for curious young minds ".  A reader can only infer from this statement that Room to Read provides Internet access to the communities it assists.

Ideologically, Room to Read is great! As are many other organizations that promote literacy in developing countries.  Thinking critically though, I wanted to delve into the barriers that these organizations face when attempting to integrate ICT technology.  The Educational Technology Debate has published a great article by Clayton R. Wright that considers these obstacles called 5 Key Barriers to Educational Technology Adoption in the Developing World.  Wright's barriers include: electrical power, Internet connectivity, training and professional development, value teachers, and sustainability.  It is my hope, that organizations like Room to Read fully explore these barriers when they consider the access to information they are providing rural communities with.  Personally, I believe Wright's issue of sustainability is the most important aspect of integrating ICT technology in developing countries.  The question of sustainability is at the heart of ICT success in these nations.  Key questions need to be raised such as what happens when initial funding has ended?  Who will support the program after volunteers have left?  So while providing communities access to tablets, libraries, and other ICT resources has educational merit, organizations should fully consider how they plan on sustaining their developments after they have implemented them.  In another of his articles titled Recurring Issues Encountered by Distance Educators in Developing and Emerging Nations, Wright implores organizations to "recognize that technology is only one component of educational transformation".  I immediately understood what Wright was saying.  Providing rural communities with access to ICT resources is not the sole factor in assisting developing nations transform their educational practices.  Like students in developed countries, organizations need to consider the many literacies involved with ICT, digital literacy, information literacy, network literacy, media literacy, and computer literacy etc still need to be taught!  Wright also explores other factors that need to be considered before implementing ICT technology such as copyright issues, troubleshooting, technology updating, curriculum, cultural considerations, and many more.

There is a myriad of issues that face organizations like Room to Read.  The ideology behind assisting developing nations with ICT technology and education reform is fantastic, however the practicality of the issue is much more complex and many organizations face heavy criticism if they are not fully prepared.

References

1. "Room to Read." Room to Read. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Mar. 2015.

2.  Wright, C. (2014, April 16). 5 Key Barriers to Educational Technology Adoption in the Developing World. Retrieved March 1, 2015, from http://edutechdebate.org/2014-ict4edu-trends/5-key-barriers-to-educational-technology-adoption-in-the-developing-world/

3.  Wright, C., Dhanarajan, G., &Reju, S. (2009).  Recurring Issues Encountered by Distance Educators in Developing and Emerging Nations. The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning. 10(1) Retrieved from http://www.irrodl.org/index.php/irrodl/article/view/608/1180