International Summit on ICT in Education EDU-SUMMIT 2009 Working groups Panel Session June 11, 2009 Policy Perspective Paul Resta University of Texas, Austin TX, USA

Addressing Global Digital Divide CLAIMS: 1.Digital exclusion is part of broader divide contributing to social and economic exclusion of people 2.Digital divide encompasses a number of aspects, including economic, geographic, language, literacy, and gender 3.Digital divide widens an even more alarming divide – the knowledge divide. ( Closing the digital divide will not close the knowledge divide, because access to relevant knowledge is more than a matter of technology access)

Addressing Global Digital Divide GOALS/OBJECTIVES: – Provide access to: Computer hardware, software, and connectivity to the Internet meaningful, high quality, culturally relevant content in local languages creating, sharing, and exchanging digital content educators who know how to use digital tools and resources high quality research on the application of digital technologies to enhance learning

Addressing Global Digital Divide ACTIONS TO ADDRESS GOALS – Exploit new generation of technologies such as low cost sub-notebook computers, cloud computing, and WiMax. Based on the explosive growth of mobile phones in developing countries, explore potential for formal/informal learning. – Foster cross-institutional and trans-national collaborations to develop high quality, free and open source, culturally-relevant content and tools. – Use UNESCO Teacher competency standards to strengthen pre- and inservice teacher development. – Develop cross-institutional collaborations to conduct research on application of digital technologies to enhance learning.