Training Materials

OVERVIEW

The following training material was co-developed by World Bank's World Links for Development Program (now part of the World Bank's Institute's Education program) and the World Links organization, and draws heavily upon international experience of several partner organizations (e.g. IDRC, UNESCO) involved in the community telecenter movement.

The five-day face-to-face workshop -- Planning for School-Based Telecenters -- material has been piloted and refined through a series of workshops in both Zimbabwe and Uganda and is intended for use in schools around the world. The material addresses management, technical, social and economic issues towards the establishment a sustaining and successful school based telecenter (SBT).

Our hope in making the material more widely available is to strengthen the international community of experiences in this area -- and to encourage other schools to adopt and refine this model to suit their own local context. The material, as presented here, is designed to be used as is -- any adaptation or commercial use should be authorized in writing from the copyright holders.

HOW TO USE THESE MATERIALS

These materials are available online for free use and download conditional upon the Design Science License and Usage Agreement. They are presented on this website in a five day face to face workshop format. The materials are divided into NINE SESSIONS covered over the five day workshop period. Each SESSION is further divided into various MODULES. Each MODULE may have its own list of ACTIVITIES, and RESOURCES - case studies, worksheets, financial planning tools, and other supplementary reading materials.

For ease of use, we have provided all the slides needed for all the modules of a particular session into one PDF file. Each module will list the title of the slides required for that module at the bottom. So you will find total of NINE presentations in PDF format covering the entire set of training materials.

We have also provided facilitation notes for those of you who wish to use these materials to conduct a workshop.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

The overall goals of the Planning for School-based Telecenters workshop are to enable school leaders to:

• Explore the concept of school-based telecenters in relation to their schools and communities

• Connect the operation of a school-based telecenter with the financial sustainability of their WorLD computer lab and their school

• Begin the concrete steps necessary to plan, initiate, and operate a school-based telecenter successfully

In general, the workshop should be as active and interactive as possible. The more time that participants spend discussing, asking questions (of each other or of you) and engaging in the planning process, the more likely they are to continue these processes after the workshop.

OBJECTIVES

To accomplish the workshop goals, specific objectives can be targeted.

Upon completion of the workshop, participants should be able to:

• Convincingly explain the rationale for a telecenter to their colleagues at school and to their community

• Identify clients in their primary, secondary, and developmental markets

• Identify potential partners and sponsors in their communities

• Plan market research based on interviews and focus groups

• Describe a "service mix" that will address the needs of those markets

• Propose various means of staffing and scheduling telecenter operations in their school

• Propose steps in a marketing campaign targeting their identified markets

• Complete a financial plan that will enable budget forecasting, as well as outreach to community groups and potential sponsors or partners

All of these objectives should be accomplished without losing sight of the fact that the proposed telecenters are to be operated in schools, and that the primary goal of the WorLD program is to increase the quality of teaching and learning in schools.

WHY HAVE WE DEVELOPED THESE MATERIALS?

Many schools around the world may be the recipients of computer facilities that have been donated, purchased by ministries of education, or otherwise provided for them. These facilities present challenges and opportunities, both of which must be addressed if the initial investment is going to be returned as enhanced learning and education over the course of time.

In brief, there are two major areas of challenge / opportunity that give the concept of the school-based telecenter and these materials (and workshop) its importance. These areas span both economic development and education reform.

SUSTAINABILITY

The computer facility, under all circumstances, requires ongoing funding to maintain and operate.

Telephone and Internet costs, hardware and software maintenance, upgrades, increased security, and many other expenses may not be addressed in original budgeting for a computer lab. In many instances, hardware may already be out of date. In all instances, it will be out of date soon enough, and will require maintenance throughout the course of its life.

The concept of sustainability may need to be addressed in concrete terms: In Februrary, 2001, the WorLD schools in Zimbabwe reported that roughly eight of ten computers were functioning at the time of the field test for this workshop. It's critical to draw participants' attention to their needs, and to the potential of the telecenter to fulfill these.

The school-based telecenter is, chiefly, a means for schools to ensure the sustainability of their computer facilities.

DIGITAL AND EDUCATIONAL DIVIDES

In many countries and regions, the gap between schools and communities is wide. In developing countries, communities themselves may also be cut off from information skills and resources-in health care, nutrition, governance and civil society, employment and the economy-that can improve the lives of their members.

The school-based telecenter has the potential to bridge both of these gaps: to enhance the connection between schools and families, local government and NGOs, even the private sector, and; to make critical information skills and services available to under-served populations.

Ideally, of course, the initial bridges established by the school-based telecenter will lead to increased participation in knowledge-related activities in all sectors of a community, from its children to its teachers to its families and its leaders.

(In the short term, however, teachers and school heads may see the greatest value in using the telecenter to reach "school-leavers," university students, and other populations that are close to their core constituencies.)

We have tried to address these issues in these materials and the workshops that we have conducted.