|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
||
|
||
|
|
|
MINERAL
WEALTH AND HUMAN CAPITAL: Introduction I Programme I Documents
Information
and communication technologies for networking and learning
EXECUTIVE
SUMMARY
Information
and Communication Technologies
(ICTs) can be classified as
analog and more recent digital technologies. Some of the most important
traditional analog ICTs
are radio, television, video and audio conference (although they can
also be digital). Some of the more recent digital ICTs are computers,
digital networks and all the applications that can be run on them. Probably
the most important digital ICTs are the Internet and two of its
applications: electronic mail and the WWW. Internet,
also known
as “the network of networks” or simply “the net”, is a set of
computers linked by phone lines, coaxial cables, optic fiber, satellite,
etc., which can interchange information in a wide variety of formats; text,
graphics, audio and video. Internet makes possible the interconnection of
Universities, research centers, libraries, enterprises, government
dependencies, and non-government organizations. Electronic
mail and the World Wide Web are two of the most popular Internet
applications. Electronic
mail (email) is a system
that allows the interchange of messages between users of computers connected
to the net. Like postal mail, electronic mail allows sending private
messages from person to person, without the messages being read by other
persons. The World
Wide Web (WWW or just Web) is a multimedia and hypertext technology
that works through the Internet. The term “World Wide Web” is intended to be a metaphor about the complexity of the
Internet connections covering the World. Knowledge
should not be regarded as simple information. Knowledge implies an
internal process in which an individual forms a personal point of view or
interpretation of the world. In some cases reading or hearing is enough to
“know” something. In most cases, to get to know something implies a dialogue
in which an individual negotiates his or her understanding of the world with
other individuals of the community. ICTs
are mostly used to communicate and share information but they can also be used
to learn. Some of the ICTs that are relevant to share knowledge are
electronic mail, discussion groups, tele-, audio- and videoconferences,
radio, television, recorded media (audio- and videocassettes, CDs and DVDs),
chat, IRC and ICQ. Some of these technologies are more suited to share
information. Some others are more suited to support a dialogue in which a
networked community can share and construct knowledge. If ICTs are to be
used in order to learn it is necessary to analyze their pedagogical
characteristics. Building
a computer network requires: (i) special hardware
(repeaters, hubs, bridges, switches, routers and gateways); (ii) software
(TCP and IP protocols, Domain Name Systems (DNS), different clients and
servers, firewalls and proxies); and (iii) telecommunications media to physically connect a network to the
Internet (Dial on demand routing, Frame relay, Asynchronous Transfer Mode
(ATM), POTS, ISDN or ADSL, Satellite dishes, and - very soon - 3rd
generation wireless access). Just
as happens in a human relation, relationships between computers are ruled by
protocols
that allow two computers to “shake hands” and “interchange
information”. TCP
and IP
are two of the main protocols used by computers connected to the Internet.
Other protocols of the TCP/IP stack are the HTTP protocol, used to transfer
pages from the Web, the FTP protocol, used to transfer files through the
Net, the SMTP protocol, used to send electronic mail, and the POP3 protocol,
used to receive email. A Strategic
Plan is very important to set the philosophy and direction for the
use of ICTs within the organization. The organization should have a vision
for the use of ICTs: it should know what it has, where it wants to go, and
how it is going to get there. Key
concepts to consider are the design of the workplace, the development of
hardware and software, the definition of user roles, server start-up, and
security. In
order to implement networking and learning programs in Africa and Latin
America, a Strategic Plan for ICTs should include the following actions:
The
establishment and maintenance of global or even regional networks for
communicating and learning is a major undertaking that requires a
significant investment in material and human resources. Consequently, any
new networking or teaching/learning exercises should consider carefully the
opportunities of sharing existing networks, such as the global system under
construction by the World Bank or the regional system established through
the Virtual University at ITESM. Finally, an important and difficult challenge for both new and established networks is to address language and cultural differences in the design of communications and teaching/learning projects. This is especially relevant to projects involving a broad-based multidisciplinary and/or participatory approach, which is increasingly the case for projects dealing with sustainable development. Fortunately, the multimedia nature of ICTs, including the creative use of sound, graphics and video, helps to address this challenge. Much remains to be done, however, to inspire confidence in new users of ICTs and expand the outreach of networking and learning projects.
______________
Introduction I Programme I Documents
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
NRSD Home | MRF Home | About MRF | What's New | Site Index | Site Map | Search | Help |
|
| Copyright © UNCTAD 1997 - 2001 |
|
download the summary 
Comments and suggestions to: