Supporting rural citizens’ access to knowledge: one more aspect of e-democracy Pavlos Koulouris, Sofoklis Sotiriou R&D Department, Ellinogermaniki Agogi Greece Presented by Pavlos Koulouris

‘Rural Learning’: a Vehicle to Development Rural development: Rural development: incl. competitiveness, quality of rural life, attractiveness of rural areas incl. competitiveness, quality of rural life, attractiveness of rural areas Lifelong learning: Lifelong learning: access to development opportunities access to development opportunities greater economic development greater economic development reversing ‘brain drain’ reversing ‘brain drain’

ICT for Capacity Building in the Rural Space UN World Summit on the Information Society (Geneva 2003, Tunis 2005), EU strategic guidelines for rural development in : UN World Summit on the Information Society (Geneva 2003, Tunis 2005), EU strategic guidelines for rural development in : building an inclusive Information Society building an inclusive Information Society reducing the digital divide reducing the digital divide knowledge and ICTs at the service of development knowledge and ICTs at the service of development mainstreaming of the Information Society into rural development policies mainstreaming of the Information Society into rural development policies Some of the means: Some of the means: rural citizens’ knowledge and skills rural citizens’ knowledge and skills technology-enabled/enhanced lifelong learning technology-enabled/enhanced lifelong learning Rural citizens should be given opportunities to interact with contemporary knowledge and artefacts in a continuous line of personal involvement from childhood to third age, as well as opportunities to collaborate with each other and across age group borders. In this way the rural community as a whole will produce its own sustainable solutions to create conditions for rural well-being and development.

Today’s reality Rural Europe needs more and better lifelong learning opportunities Rural Europe needs more and better lifelong learning opportunities low ICT adoption low ICT adoption low entrepreneurship low entrepreneurship vulnerability to unemployment vulnerability to unemployment shrinking of rural schools shrinking of rural schools Rural schools: a key factor to be mobilised Rural schools: a key factor to be mobilised

Rural schools: ‘borderers’ of the education system Rural school: a point of reference in the local context Rural school: a point of reference in the local context access to education for all access to education for all serving also many other social and cultural functions serving also many other social and cultural functions a source of vision and hope for the future a source of vision and hope for the future keeping small and aging communities ‘alive’ keeping small and aging communities ‘alive’ a potential tool for growth a potential tool for growth an important element in the community’s social capital an important element in the community’s social capital

Difficulties for Rural Schools and Teachers Urban vs rural: Urban vs rural: widening economic and social gap widening economic and social gap digital divide digital divide Small numbers of school-age children Small numbers of school-age children multigrade schools multigrade schools Teachers’ personal and professional isolation Teachers’ personal and professional isolation Problematic provision of training and professional support to rural teachers Problematic provision of training and professional support to rural teachers

Using Technologies for Rural Teachers’ Professional Development Technology-supported distance learning, support, networking Technology-supported distance learning, support, networking Alleviating teachers’ isolation Alleviating teachers’ isolation Helping them in their course of personal and professional development Helping them in their course of personal and professional development

Our Experience: Facilitating Rural Teachers to Respond to the Challenges Teachers’ competence development through training content over the web (MUSE project) Teachers’ competence development through training content over the web (MUSE project) Testing more advanced technologies for broadband delivery over satellite, further developing the content (ZEUS and RURAL WINGS projects) Testing more advanced technologies for broadband delivery over satellite, further developing the content (ZEUS and RURAL WINGS projects) Development of a network (NEMED) and an increased interest in concepts and tools related to lifelong learning networks, incl. the use of social software and Web 2.0 tools (SoRuraLL). Development of a network (NEMED) and an increased interest in concepts and tools related to lifelong learning networks, incl. the use of social software and Web 2.0 tools (SoRuraLL).

A model for training delivery

Networking and creating and sharing a resources repository

Turning the school into a ‘Learning Hub’ open to the local community

New leadership roles for rural school teachers Inviting the teacher to work with, and for, the local community Inviting the teacher to work with, and for, the local community                

A Proposed Framework for Rural Learning through Teacher Development 1)Rural teachers should be offered in-service professional development and networking opportunities to enhance their performance as educators and school administrators, as well as community inspirers, development agents and multipliers in the rural context. In this process, rural teachers can learn a lot from each other, through formal and informal interactions and networking.

A Proposed Framework for Rural Learning through Teacher Development 2)The design of the professional development programmes should be grounded on a sound understanding of the rural context in which they are implemented, a thorough analysis of the local needs and an attention to important differences that exist between small rural schools and the ‘mainstream’ urban educational provision.

A Proposed Framework for Rural Learning through Teacher Development 3)The responsibility and control over the content and processes of the professional development should be passed as much and as soon as possible to the rural teachers themselves. Instead of imposing generic ‘solutions’, the emphasis should be on facilitating the teachers and their local communities to invent their own solutions to the problems they recognise as pressing or important.

A Proposed Framework for Rural Learning through Teacher Development 4)Teachers should be kept closely involved in the processes of designing the programmes, starting from the early stages of needs analysis through field surveys and workshops, to a continuous ‘dialogue’ between users and designers in the implementation phase, in consecutive cycles of co-design which fine-tune the programme to user response and decisions.

A Proposed Framework for Rural Learning through Teacher Development 5)The choice of technologies to be used should be seen as a dynamic process, in which the best available solution is selected each time without affecting the pedagogical rational and core objectives of the programme. Aiming to provide ever better access to richer content (e.g. faster or more reliable connectivity) is a major driving force, given the still existing obstacle of the digital divide.

Looking into a not very distant future Exploring the use of virtual worlds Exploring the use of virtual worlds