Personal Statement
I have traveled to over 70 countries and have visited ministries, national projects, community resource centers, schools, and classrooms. From Uganda to Finland and India to Chile, I have talked with policy makers, project directors, village leaders, teachers, and students. In my research and classroom visits, I have seen the powerful things that developing countries, communities, schools, teachers, and students can do with information and communications technologies (ICT).
With ICT:
- industrialized countries can reform their education systems to advance an information economy and knowledge society where innovative, highly skilled workers and citizens use digital resources to create new products and cultural artifacts and connect with others.
- developing countries can support education reform and economic development.
- rural villagers can access information they need to improve agriculture, health, and nutrition.
- villages and schools can connect with remote experts and collaborate with communities, teachers, and students in other countries.
- communities and schools can develop websites that share their culture and products with the rest of the country and world.
- teachers and students can collect and analyze data, create multimedia productions, and visualize abstract concepts in science and math.
As a result, nations can prepare their students for the challenges of the 21st century. Developing countries improve their economic productivity and develop their social structures. Communities improve their local economy and increase their standard of living. Students learn at a deeper level, master technological skills, become active learners and prepare themselves to participate in the knowledge economy and information society.
ICT can be a tremendous force for human development — but only for those that have access and only when it is used wisely. Unfortunately, the growing use of ICT around the world can also create significant disparities within countries and between developed and developing countries. ICT can also create significant problems by changing the nature of the workforce, displacing workers and requiring new skills. Â Social media, when not used wisely, can misinform and destabilize society.
During my consulting career, I was dedicated to working with multi-national, national, and non-governmental policy makers and corporations in developed and developing countries to create policies and resources that reduced the digital divide between developed and developing countries, increased the impact of ICT on education reform, economic and social development, and advance the UN Millennium Development Goals.
I am currently retired. Â On rare occasion I engage in projects in these areas, for which I can make a unique contribution.