A Universal and Global Education Infrastructure

The following is a technical contribution to the cause of worldwide education, presented to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on the occasion of a world congress held on the dawn of the 21st Century. The problem of educational infrastructure as the foundation for equity access to educational resources for all the nations and citizens of the world is complex and delicate. In this document the authors make recommendations based on many years of research dedicated to studying and developing technologies that might be deployed, and propose a solution that might be implemented to solve this problem. INTRODUCTION Two fundamental deployments in networked infrastructure have received a lot of attention because of their massive consumer and business application, namely the Internet and direct broadcast satellite (DBS). Internet and DBS are not new technologies but have been recently deployed in large quantities thus driving the price of the technology, infrastructure, and access to consumer affordable levels. Internet deployment in education (just like deployment of PCs in schools) has been touted as a means for bringing the information highway to the classroom (corresponding to bringing computers to the classroom). However, access to these technology tools (information highway or computer) can be made as an analog to providing access to libraries and books without the guidance required to use them and learn from them. Teachers and librarians teach and guide students, not technology tools. In many cases tools, whether print or computational, are only as good as the teachers who guide their uses; and too often their failures have been attributed to poor teacher training relating to their application. For many years, there has been the promise of technology for enhancing education infrastructure, starting with the PC and now the Internet. In the US, for example, the ratio of PCs to students in schools is estimated at 1 to 6, and 50% of schools are already connected to the Internet. In spite of this increased focus in the penetration of technology, as reflected in the many updates from the daily press, it has not been clearly established that these tools translate into tangible benefits for all students. But even worse, they have not yet translated into improved access to educational resources for underprivileged students or remotely located students, the very minimum these tools should provide, the place to start. More specifically, the promise of technology has only benefited isolated pockets of students with technical readiness and resources, and educators competent and oriented enough towards the technologies to be able to guide their use. For the rest the benefits will come later, gradually, some day. In conclusion, the utility of technology for the purpose of learning is somewhat inconclusive, benefits that are in fact realized are not equitably distributed, and even access to the technology, benefits aside is biased in favor of the already privileged by location and status. Isolation and separation do not lead to progress, neither do isolated successes. We must find a more equitable way, and also a better way.