Innovation DramaTech Exercises – 10/07/2010

Innovation Dramatech Practice Exercise #1

Time Frame: Recent Future

The Location: The Dominican Republic

The Stakeholders: Ministry of Education, Minister, Staff, Dominican Government.

Your Innovation Proposal:

-Pilot Project: Provide laptops to every child on twenty five different K-12 schools

-Create an online national education website where students can access freeware and shareware educational games, their emails accounts (through a partnership with Google), and a safe environment in which to network with other students across the country (through a partnership with Facebook or another major social network provider).

-Install 250 “Hole-In-The-Wall” type kiosks across the country. More will be installed as the program continues with the goal of having hundreds across the Dominican Republic.

-Have a national competition where the best math students receive augmented reality devices, including “sixth sense” devices.

-Develop mobile learning software (There are as many cellular phones as there are people in the Dominican Republic) Mobile software development will originally focus on language teaching software.

-Partnership with Blizzard, Electronic Arts, or other major video game providers to provide games with education applicability at low costs to students across the country. (Not so sure about this)..

-Invest in a marketing initiative with the objective of developing local business partnerships and ensure the sustainability of the project through advertisement.

-The program will focus on teaching English to students, promoting innovation, reducing the digital divide, and preparing students for the increasingly globalized competitive economy of the 21st century.

Key Person Minister of Education Responded:

The program may be seen as foreign and we do not have the human capital to develop such a system. We are also wary of foreign influence and establishing a dependent relationship on foreign technology and equipments.

The program may also increase disparities between the rich and poor. Also, we cannot provide laptops to every child on the island. Why will some benefit, while the others continue to have no access to technology?

The country currently has a shortage or teachers, and the quality of education has been severely affected in a number of rural areas. Some areas have no electricity. How will computers help?

You Said:

Technology will increasingly play a role in the economy of nation-states. We need to reinvest the revenues generated through tourism in a way to promote development and eventually break away from the vicious cycle of dependency. Latin American countries, including the Dominican Republic can no longer be dependent on importing both technology and knowledge but the state must transform into a knowledge and innovation generating society.

While it is true that at first only a few will benefit, by introducing Kiosks and well as spending revenues on an innovative advertising campaign, the program hopes to grow at a rapid rate.

The program will also focus on promoting endogenous Dominican values as well as promoting national festivities. By using modern technology to develop with a “Dominican style”, the program hopes to obtain the support of the national population, particularly the support of the working class and parents.

The Key Person Seemed Satisfied, And Said: Your project is in line with the objectives of the administration of Leonel Fernandez. Key to your success will be to partner with the right group of individuals (cross pollinators, directors, anthropologists, architects, etc). Many talk the talk, but will you be able to succeed? Your project needs to be very specific in its proposal including a very detailed list of estimated costs. We had problems with corruption in the past, and the government wants to make sure that such problems are addressed before they develop. Please tell us more about your marketing ideas and how do you plan to promote endogenous values in a way in which they have not been promoted before? How exactly will you sell this program to the average Dominican? How many years will it take for your program to be sustainable?

You Turned To the Stakeholders and Told Them the Major Innovation Goal Implications of the Exchange: Our objective is to develop with a Dominican, “Quisqueya” style. For too long we have been in the shadow of other nations. We were a young developing country and it takes time before a country can develop the infrastructure and institutions that will allow it to flourish and succeed. Unfortunately, we are not there yet and part of the problem in achieving our goals has been the result of the short-term vision of previous development policies. In contrast, this program includes both short term and long term objectives.

The Dominican Republic is blessed with a tropical weather and beaches that the whole world envies, yet over the years, we have not truly invested on our human capital. Through this initiative and other programs that look towards tomorrow, perhaps we will be able to not only catch up with more developed countries, but to leapfrog them, to a future where not only our beaches but also our human capital is envied by the rest of the world.

Later, a Reviewer Watching the Innovation Drama Unfold Commented: While the program is very hopeful about the possibilities of truly changing the Dominican Republic and developing a future oriented society with an innovative economy, why should Dominicans believe that this program will succeed where others have failed? As Dominicans, we are used to empty words and broken promises. Perhaps something, even if minor, will change, yet most likely we will continue to spend our profits on bars and brothels every weekend and our public education system will continue to be a shame even within Latin America.

………………Page Break………………Innovation DramaTech Practice Exercise #2

Time Frame: The Recent Past (4 Years)

The Location: Gainesville, Florida

The Stakeholders: Dr. Rosa Brito, Alfonso Sintjago, Tania Sintjago, Rinaldo Sintjago.

Your Innovation Proposal: I am interested in working in Brazil. They have some very innovative education programs such as Bolsa Escola and the PT has also advocated major changes to the distribution of land in the agrarian sector. Brazil is also the largest economy in South America. In addition, visiting Brazil during the summer will allow me to learn Portuguese. Would it be possible to study there? I know you are interested in the changes that are taking place in Venezuela, but to be honest, the changes in Venezuela are very controversial. The animosity Hugo Chavez has instigated worsened inter-social class communications and relationships. Brazil, is also polarized, but to a lesser extent. What do you think? Would it be possible to change my area of research?

Key Person Dr. Rosa Brito Responded: I understand your concern, yet it is exactly because of the highly polarized and tense political environment that is taking place in Venezuela, that we need you to go there. A lot is being said, but most of what is published is either from government officials and partisans or from the opposition and its leadership. Having leftist roots, but coming from a University in the United States, you would be able to access information unavailable to others. When you applied to the University, we were very interested in your potential to research the current state of affairs of a reform taking place in Venezuela.

You Said: Yes. I understand that in some ways I seem as an the ideal candidate, but as a Venezuelan student coming from the United States, I will likely not obtaining access to documents which would portray a controversial image of the government, and I would be taken around to various Potenkim villages around the country. They will definitely showcase their most successful programs to me as to portray themselves as more successful than they truly are. In addition, the crime rate in Venezuela makes researching uncomfortable. According to foreign affairs magazine, Caracas is currently the most dangerous city in the world. Venezuela’s “achievements” are in most instances little more than smoke and mirrors. Let’s say I go there. How valid will my study and the data resulting from it be? I am sure, they will not let me roam around and access controversial data. Will my thesis not be more than government propaganda? With limited access to data, how critical will I be able to be?

The Key Person Seemed Dissatisfied, And Said: The situation in Venezuela is not as “regulated” as you believe. Venezuela has maintained a high level of freedom of press, speech and assembly. Unlike traditional dictatorships, there are no gulags or disappearances. I am sure you will be surprised by what you find. Now if you go in there with such a critical attitude, it is likely that the access you have to information may be limited than if you went there with a positive attitude. Don’t transform your perceptions into a self-fulfilling prophesy! Be positive and I am sure you will find your participants receptive to both comprehensive and critical questions.

You Turned to the Stakeholders and Told Them the Major Goal Implications of the Exchange: Unfortunately, despite my desire to distance myself from a highly polarized environment and instead research in an area where individuals will be more likely to participate in my study, I may have no choice but to research a reform taking place in Venezuela. It is also likely, that I will focus on a topic similar to that that my advisor is interested on. I feel a bit frustrated, but we (my family) came to America to survive. This is just another hurdle. Hopefully in the future I will have the academic freedom that I desire, but for now, despite my ability to tweak some situations, I definitely need to follow the money and opportunity trail. I tried my best to argue my case, but she is adamant that I conduct my research in Venezuela. I will do so, but I will structure my research in a way that I will be able to research the topics that most interest me within the context of Venezuela.

A Reviewer Watching the Innovation Drama Unfold Commented: Is there ever true academic freedom? If there was a scale, academia would in most regards be one of the most traditional institutions for which to work for, and in some ways, one of the least flexible places. For the most part, professors are interested in other’s research only in as much as it relates to their own work. A student is but only a small part of the human capital of the university. If a student want to graduate on time and obtain a future letter of recommendation, (s)he better tow the line and pursue a research project that pleases both my advisor and the department chair. While this should not be the case, it is often the reality.

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Innovation DramaTech Practice Exercise #3

Time Frame: The Recent Past (1 Years)

The Location: Gainesville, Florida

The Stakeholders: Eleanor Lewis, And Alfonso Sintjago, Sintjago Family, Lewis Family.

Your Innovation Proposal: We should go to England! There I can focus on studying on my own and avoid paying any tuition. Some of the best computer programmers and most innovative individuals in the world are self-taught. We should leave this place, I am sure we will manage. Plus, England sounds a lot more interesting than America and you will be able to hang out with your friends in London. Formal education is too rigid and too expensive. Perhaps, by studying and working on projects on my own, I will be able to finally devote the time I need to promote the growth of free access to educational material on the internet like OpenCourseWare but promote the development of material in less spoken languages as well as to promote “brain gain” initiatives, where individuals who have migrated from their countries for a variety of reasons will be able to give back to their countries of origin and other developing countries not only money in the form of remittances but also give back part of their knowledge as “knowledge remittances”. We will not make much money, but who cares about that too much anyhow. It will certainly be more of an adventure…!

Key Person Eleanor Lewis Responded: Don’t be a fool Alfonso. What jobs have you held until now? Some were alright, but others were pretty mechanical, repetitive and boring. You kept complaining on a daily basis. Is that what you want to return to? Also, your family has been trying to migrate to America since 1998. To leave the United States now and simply migrate to England would really bother them. You know how your mother, your father, and brother want you to move closer to them, not further away. Just moving to a more distant city within the United States to study for a PhD will bother them a bit. Stay focus and do not get discouraged. We have no hidden stash of money available, but I am sure somehow things are going to work out. They have worked out until now haven’t they?

You Said: Yeah, it’s been alright so far. Something always happens. But then again, I am not going to place all my eggs in one basket. Aside from applying to various schools and looking for a job, I am also going to start thinking of what things would be like if we went to England. I know what I want, but there is more than one way to get there. Going to the UK will not be as bad as soon will say.

The Key Person Seemed Dissatisfied, And Said: Stop thinking about least likely scenarios. It is more likely that you will find some form of assistance and you will be able to start a PhD. I will then look for a job and together, as a team, we will work it out. No thinking about going to Great Britain! It is only a last resort. If we can’t make it here after trying through all means possible during this and the upcoming year, then maybe we can reevaluate this decision and our situation.

You Turned to the Stakeholders and Told Them the Major Goal Implications of the Exchange: While I am sure that either thru one scenario or another I will eventually succeed, when the whole family is part of the equation and the decision is taken for what is best for all the shareholders, the options rapidly diminish. Then, on these situations, it is important to sit down and explore how under the new scenario, more choices can be added. Knocking on all doors and persevering despite obstacles will likely enhance one’s opportunities for success.

A Reviewer Watching the Innovation Drama Unfold Commented:  The team work you both displayed is encouraging. By nurturing a supportive, cooperative relationships where both of your openly express your opinions and think of your options as a team, you will both be more likely to find a way in which both of your personal objectives are fulfilled as well as your joint objectives. It is important to have alternatives, but it’s also important to remain focused on your original target and intentions.

The Future of Education in the Dominican Republic 

December 17, 2010

The Future of Education – The Volatile Nature of Change and the Growing Impact of Technologies

Moving into the 21st Century it will be important for countries to prepare for a more flexible work place and economy. No longer will individuals retain the same job for their whole careers, but in society 3.0, as “knowmads,” will work for different bosses, changing jobs on a regular basis (Moravec, 2010). In an increasingly complex and volatile market place, children must be educated for an innovation, rather than an industrial, society. Learning is becoming ever more often invisible and personalized while modern media increasingly plays a greater role in extending the reach of the ivory tower (Katz, 2008; Cobo, 2010). Through the growth of OER and by freeing up data, information will reach a greater segment of the population (Downes, 2007; Berners-Lee, 2009; Rosling, 2007). With the ability to access information anywhere in the world, the politics of knowledge are changing. Previously unheard or marginalized voices can create a space for themselves in the largely accessible and deregulated worldwide web. Through the mobile phone individuals living in the poorest countries are now able to communicate with loved ones, rapidly find help when needed, and even have access to financial services (Donner, 2008; Sunkel & Trucco, 2010). The growing use of mobile phones is a clear example of leapfrogging by some third world countries (Moravec, 2009; INDOTEL, 2010). Within just a few decades, mobile phone subscriptions extended from 12.4 million in 1990 to 4.6 billion by 2009, the Internet has reached most places in the world, and “research firm Gartner, Inc., predicts that there will be 2 billion computers in use worldwide by the year 2014” (Katz, 2008; Heeks, 2008; ITU, 2010). Facebook, a social network site which launched only in 2004, already has an estimated value of over 30 billion dollars (Hardy, 2010). All of these changes and the increasing flattening of the world lead one to ponder what the future holds (Sachs, 2005; Friedman, 2007). The future is difficult to predict, and few people a hundred years ago envisioned a world similar to the one in which we live today.

As the world flattens, more individuals obtain the capacity to generate media and reach a wide audience. Marc Prensky (2009) recently argued that Youtube and other online media have increasingly replaced printed media as a mainstream form of communication (Prensky, 2010) Through Youtube and other media uploaders, individuals can publish their homemade or low budget TV series, recorded family events, remixed videos, personal news accounts, or even transform education through initiatives such as Khan’s Academy (http://www.khanacademy.org/).  Salman Khan teaches anyone interested in learning about a wide variety of subjects through his NGO, Khan’s Academy using ten minute video clips.  Ten minutes, Khan believes, is the ideal length of a lesson because of students’ short attention span (PBS, 2010) . Other OER initiatives such as MIT’s OpenCourseWare video allow a person to take a class by a world renowned scientist free of charge online (Abelson, 2008). The OpenCourseWare consortium (http://www.ocwconsortium.org/) and the Connexions consortium (http://cnxconsortium.org/) are spreading educational material across the world, promoting lifelong learning, supplementing traditional classroom lectures and discussions, increasing the availability of study materials for students, and in the future might possibly provide a free accredited education (http://www.uopeople.org/). Programs such as Nixty (http://nixty.com/) and OpenStudy (http://openstudy.com/) are trying to bridge the gap between having access to OER and quality information but lacking a learning structure, a curriculum and a certificate. Currently, the University of the People, a free online institute, is attempting to obtain accreditation. Also, the Technological Institute of Monterrey recently began offering free course to a limited number of students.

In the near future, perhaps through an algorithm tailored to the students learning style or through crowdsourcing, a “glocal” free online accredited university will develop where a large number of students will be able to obtain a quality education independent of their economic means. Having both the tool and the demand, it is only a matter of time before this happens, particularly in developing countries. The increasing rate of technological improvement allows for previously weaker economies to gain ground on G-8 states, and transform the relationship between the center and the periphery. Harkins (2010) argued that without modifications to the educational system of the United States, the US may increasingly revert towards becoming a developing country (Harkins, 2010). And this may well be the case, but as important to this recent change is the question, what is development? When have countries stop transforming and changing? Which country today could be argued to be truly developed? Should developing countries follow shadows of countries that have not yet developed, or should their chart their own water, leapfrogging into an unknown future. This paper looks at ways in which the Dominican Republic (D.R.) could move beyond a traditional development agenda by reforming their education system through the increased use of information communication technologies (ICT), augmented reality, open education resources (OER), and educational games (Faber, 2002; Benkler, 2008). If the trends of the Moore’s Law are to continue, the world may eventually reach a technological singularity where change will be a daily occurrence (Kurzweil, 2005; Schaller, 1997). The D.R. and other countries need to enact the best policies to meet this challenge. These are the exciting times in which we are living!

Video games are one of the recent changes that have rapidly expanded and taken the world by storm. According to Prensky (2009), young people today have spent twice as much time playing video games than they have reading books. They have spent even more time watching television, which together with video games have allowed individuals to visualize and learn about every area of the globe. Instead of being captivated by novelty in school, children increasingly “power down” during their school hours (Prensky, 2009). A small industry dominated by a monochromatic game in 1975, Pong, and the video game system (VGS) Atari allowed popularization of the playful interaction between men and an electronic program of limited astuteness but lightning fast reflexes. Today, VGSs are in their seventh generation. According to Tom Chatfield (2010), the video game industry has expanded at a very rapid rate, from 10 billion in 1990, to 20 billion in 2000, and 50 billion in 2010 , surpassing the net worth of the music industry (Chatfield, 2010). The video game industry is expanding and is expected to continue expanding. While a recent PEW (2008) survey showed that 97% of teenagers play video games, a large percentage of people at every age level are playing video games, including 60% of individuals between the ages of 50 and 64 (Lenhart, Jones, & Macgill, 2008).  The average video game player is 35 years old and has been playing for more than 10 years. Women represent 40% of gamers and almost all children do not remember a world without games (ESA, 2008 ). To them, video games are a place where they are truly engaged, where they can be part of a colorful, interactive, rapidly changing and exciting environment. People are increasingly spending greater amounts of their free time playing games and over 10,000 hours playing video games throughout their youth (McGonigal, 2010; Prensky, 2007).

Whatever their intellectual contribution, or lack of, games are a major component of modern day life. Not understanding games may make an instructor ineffective or distant to students. To harness the influence of games for the benefit of society, serious games have been developed in health, defense, religion, education, among other sectors (www.seriousgames.org). The term serious games was defined by Michael Zyda, author of Serious Games (1970), as “Serious game: a mental contest, played with a computer in accordance with specific rules, that uses entertainment to further government or corporate training, education, health, public policy, and strategic communication objectives.” (Zyda, 2005)

Within education, MIT’s The Education Arcade (www.educationarcade.org) and Games for Change (www.gamesforchange.org) (G4C) are two well known initiatives that are focus on developing, increasing access, and popularity of video game learning. However, despite the best intentions, serious games developed with an education purpose in mind have yet to evolve into a mainstream application and their quality is generally inferior to that of traditional games. Even so, many of them are increasingly engaging students. In this essay I evaluate a series of educational games, evaluating all of the games included in the G4C poverty games category. I will analyze these games based on the understanding of successful games from my personal experience as well as Tom Kelley’s 2007 archetypes developed in his book, The Ten Faces of Innovation.

Education and Games – Endless Possibilities for Growth and Research

“The possibilities for using a game like Civilization as a springboard into studying history are endless, but so far, there are less than three magazine or journal articles published on the topic and no one has done empirically-grounded research in the successes and challenges of using such a game to support learning (See Berson, 1996; Hope, 1996; Lee, 1994; Prensky, 2001; Teague & Teague, 1995) (Squire, 2002)”

The term educational games can be seen as an oxymoron (Kolson, 1996). While games can be informational and useful, labeling them as educational could reduce their appeal. Yet, as games continue to expand, this underperforming genre may transform in the context of the new challenge, the new frontier for education. The ability to replicate virtual products allows a game to potentially reach every child with a computer or a cell phone, thus increasing the impact an individual can have in education, particularly in places that are experiencing a brain drain and limited human capital. Through video games and other modern technologies individuals that have migrated from their home countries, can send back not only cash remittances, but “knowledge remittances” through videos they record and upload on YouTube, software they develop, or information they type on a forum or anywhere in the World Wide Web.  OER and educational video game development is also a way in which people from anywhere in the United States or another developed country can enhance the education of another person anywhere across the world, a way in which to transfer knowledge without borders. Yet, despite the promise of educational video games or the regular use of video games for education, Squire (2002) contends that neither video games advocates or opponents have scientifically demonstrated to a large extent the detriments or benefits of video games (Squire, 2002). Greater research is needed, and as more information is recorded and replayed, perhaps educators will work collectively on open education software projects to find a way to better tell the same old stories.

Taking aside educational games, many of which are included in the aforementioned websites, some highly popular traditional games have been used for education. Games such as Civilizations, SimCity, SimEarth, Colonization, Age of Empires, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Rome Total War and World of Warcraft have been studied for their educational potential and contribution (Kolson, 1996; Lobo, 2004; Pirius & Creel, 2010; Gee, 2003). Many of these, and other, games were developed to model a simplified version of reality while holding certain variables constant. Yet, because of their structure, it has been difficult for teachers to integrate video games into the classroom, and they are currently relegated primarily to a child’s “invisible learning.” More should be done to encourage the use of games in education, yet opponents to video game learning have other reasons to fear their increasing use, many of which are not unfounded.

Unfortunately, for some individuals, the urge to play video games can be difficult to control. Video game playing can be addictive and is an increasingly recognized medical condition (APA, 2007). Yet how many gamers use games in an unhealthy manner is highly debated. Trying to better understand the nature of Gamer, Yeh (2006) developed 10 categories and aggregated them into three groups: achievement, social, and immersion. His study found that playing games for achievements such as gaining power, competing with others, and optimizing character performance were most common with male players, while women tended to emphasize socializing and building relationships. Immersion was divided into discovery, role playing, customization, and escapism. After coding and quantitatively analyzing 3,000 surveys, and analyzing for problematic usage of online games, escapism and hours played were there the best predictors (Yee, 2006). A recent an Iowa State University study showed that 8.5% of youth gamers between 8 and 18 were considered addicted to video games (Gentile, 2009). Video games allow individuals to live in an environment where anything is possible. These are places where a person can look a different way, be of a different gender, have special powers, solve world-saving mysteries, or control the planet with God-like powers. Working primarily under a for-profit model, most games are also designed to develop a brand, to retain players, create a following, and make a profit, inadvertently, developing  an addiction for some users, as with other forms of entertainment. While this is only the minority of video game player, it is a factor that needs to be taken into consideration. Not only for parents and teachers to be observant of unwarranted behavior, but to learn what elements of games and which games are primarily linked to players’ addictions.

Games can reach students in ways that few other stimuli can replicate. Merrilea Mayo (2007) argued that video games massive reach, use of effective learning paradigms (experiential, inquiry based, goal setting, cooperation, continuous feedback, tailored instruction, cognitive modeling), enhanced brain chemistry, time spent on task, and the well documented outcome data, were ideal for engaging math and science students (Mayo, 2007). Not only are games increasingly “gamifying” education, but they can also influence others sectors of society, such as the workplace (Corcoran, 2010). Tom Chatfield (2010), in a very engaging TED talk, explained seven different ways in which games engage the brain and how this could be adapted for business, education, and government (Chatfield, 2010). He summarizes the impacts of games into: experience bars to measure progress, including both long term and short term aims within games, rewarding participants for their efforts, having rapid, frequent and clear feedback, including an element of uncertainty, providing windows of enhanced attention where a person can feel special, and developing an environment where individuals can interact with other people.

As education and other sectors of society increasingly become gamified, more detailed analyses of how different games could be utilized should be developed. The introduction of basic programming through programs such as Scratch (which uses actions blocks rather than code to program) to students is also very important (Corcoran, 2010). Games have a large number of genres and some genres may be more effectively used for educational games, yet all being capable of captivating a particular audience, it would be beneficial if a number of games in different genres were developed for different subjects to explain the same or similar concepts or topics. By doing so students would be able to learn from the game that best fits their ability. Mark Wolf (2001) categorized games according to interactivity with the player rather based on iconography, as normally used to categorize films. Some education games he mentions include basic math games; typing games; number games; spelling games and word games. (Wolf, 2000)

World of Warcraft (WoW) / Runescape / and Minecraft – Unlimited Education Possibilities

World of Warcraft, or WoW, is without contest the most used and best known MMORPG currently available (Sterling, 2010). World of Warcraft has over 11 million active accounts, most of which are located in the United States, with a strong following in Asia and Europe. Despite being developed 6 years ago, the game continues to grow and evolve. On December 7, 2010, the WoW changed once again with the release of Cataclysm, a new expansion pack. Since its beginnings, World of Warcraft has captivated hundreds of thousands of youth through its extensive and interactive world. Unlike other games, WoW is constantly providing players with new and exciting experiences (McKenna, Gardner, & Myers, 2010). In World of Warcraft individuals create characters on a server that holds up to 20,000 players and help characters within their faction to succeed (Nardi & Harris, 2006). The game characters are divided into two groups; The Horde and The Alliance. The characters complete quests for experience points and to win favor with a particular faction or city. While there are a few neutral cities inhabited by goblins, the cities accessible by the Horde cannot be peacefully visited by members of the Alliance, and vice versa. As such, many players create a second character to visit other cities and learn more about this virtual world.

Because of the appeal of the game to K-12 students and its emphasis on cooperation, various initiatives have developed to incorporate World of Warcraft into the afterschool curriculum (Pirius & Creel, 2010; McGonigal, 2010; Roscorla, 2010). Educators have explored the collaborative aspects of the game, as players are able to form guilds and battle through instances together (separate environments where only the five team members who entered can face a group of enemies (McKenna, Gardner, & Myers, 2010). The instance requires each player to agree to enter. Other teams of players entering would fight in a separate, exact replica of the instance), allowing them to have a shared experience and to learn about the importance of teamwork. Surviving and thriving in Warcraft requires students to work together, particularly when completing an instance. A balance of powers and abilities is needed for players to survive through the most difficult arenas.

WoW is also tailored to an individual player’s taste as he/she can choose to join either a PvP (Player vs. Player), non-PvP (Non-Player vs. Player), or a role playing server, each of them with a different community and traditions. Pirius (2010) analyzed cultures within WoW and argued that by requiring students to write interesting backgrounds for their characters they would enthusiastically engage themselves in creative writing exercises. Students could also learn about the math behind the character categories, as well as the inner workings of supply and demand through the various action houses (Pirius & Creel, 2010). Cognitive Dissonance, (http://cognitivedissonance.guildportal.com/), a wiki and a guild designed by educators developed a guild for teachers to explore the environment. Many educational programs using WoW focus on engaging at risk students. Reaching these students is imperative for decreasing the achievement gap, and reducing inequality in the United States and other parts of the world.

Competing for children’s attention against the entertainment business, it is not surprising that teachers are increasingly using games such as WoW to reach their students. Yet unlike other games available other the internet, WoW may not be the most useful tool to reach students in developing countries. While these students are also playing video games, most of the games they play are either pirated versions or available free of charge over the internet. As such, conducting a similar study in the D.R. would likely involve a different gaming environment. During recent visits to South America it was common to see groups of students playing Runescape at cybercafés. Allowing students to play free of charge, there are currently millions of Runescape accounts and over a million active users, and the second most played MMORPG according to the latest subscription chart (Sterling, 2010). Similar to WoW, Runescape also offers an expansive world in which to interact with thousands of other players and the ability for individuals to personalize their characters and sell their goods to other players. Both games are unofficially affected by “gold farming” or individuals selling game goods and game currency to other players for real money outside of the game environment, (a topic recently researched by ICT for Development scholars) and both games exhibit a high level of group play as players form long term relationships and groups where they compete and collaborate with one another (Heeks, 2008; Dibbell, 2007; Bilir, 2009). While Runescape lacks a permanent team system comparable to the guilds in Warcraft, Runescape players communicate and forms groups using the game chat system. As a free game with smaller bandwidth requirements, Runescape will probably have a greater rate of success than WoW in retaining students involved in Latin American countries.

Another online game which could be studied in the future could be Minecraft, an increasingly popular game where the world is an individual’s sandbox (Callaham, 2010). Players have been known to create rollercoasters, cannons, castles, a working 16 bit computer, and the battleship USS Enterprise in this lego-like environment (halnicholas, 2010). Minecraft could allow K-12 students to develop a community and create items such as a school, a sculpture or anything that occurs to their imagination. This virtual sandbox does not require a very powerful internet connection to function. Having a lifetime fee of 10 dollars (less than the monthly cost for WoW), and being able to run offline after logging in for the first time, this game would allow some students to work in their projects at home without an internet connection.

Exploring the use of Runescape, Minecraft and WoW at telecenters, cybercafés and information centers in the D.R., Venezuela and Argentina could serve as the basis for a comparative analysis of the impact of games and their possibilities for learning in Latin America to their use in the United States, as well as comparing and contrasting these three different games, observing their different strengths and weakness in regards to education. Collecting this information could help develop a video game that builds on the positive, inclusive aspects of highly popular MMORPGs while reducing the traditional hack and slash behavior of these games for critical thinking and educational components. The country in which I will most likely research in the near future will be the D.R.

A Background Overview of ICTs and Dominican Republic

With 10% of the population receiving close to 40% of the country’s GNP in 2007 (San Roman, 2009), the high level of inequality in the D.R. raises questions as to whether expenditure on ICT, rather than on improving the quality of the primary and secondary education levels, represents the best way for the country to increase equality while improving its economic outlook. Yet, as technology plays an ever increasing role in modern society, it could also be argued that in order to leapfrog into the future, the D.R. needs to prepare its workers for the increasingly knowledge and innovation driven nature of the economy (Davison et al, 2000), attempting not to imitate the west, but develop in its own style. With a limited tradition of research and innovation, the D.R. could invest in the development of OER to not only increase access to quality education material for all, but also to promote innovative and more constructive ways of teaching and learning. However, without an increased investment in education, present reforms will likely have a limited impact within the poorest sectors of the population.

The high level of inequalities in the D.R. dates back to the colonial era. Despite governmental efforts, the educational system and economic system developed by European colonists made increasing economic prosperity and reducing inequality a difficult challenge for former colonies to overcome (Bulmer-Thomas, 1994). The D.R. and neighboring Haiti had in place a plantation system in which only a small number of whites, constantly fearful of a revolt, controlled a much larger black slave population, who were constantly monitored and whose education was not encouraged (Moya Pons, 1992). As argued by Rodney (1972), the colonizers were fearful of educating slaves as it would make them more difficult to control. Out of up to 400,000 “taino” natives that inhabited Hispaniola when it was “discovered” by Columbus in 1492, only 3,000 remained by 1519 (Ibid. p. 29). Most of the natives died from epidemics as well as from the harsh treatment to which they were subjected by the colonists.

To continue the economic production and “development” of the island, the Spanish crown quickly began to import slaves from Africa and organized the island’s economy along various agricultural plantations. According to local documents, by 1546, black slaves accounted for around 12,000 individuals and were controlled by a white population of only 5,000 (Ibid. p. 34). While over time most of the population intermarried, and 84% of the population considers themselves mixed or of African ancestry, vestiges of the colonial system remain (CIA, 2010).

Just a few decades ago, in 1937, the then Dictator of the D.R,. Rafael Leonidas Trujillo (1930-1961), ordered the massacre of over 15,000 Haitians for having migrated to the D.R. without authorization. It is believed that many Dominicans with darker skin, and who resembled Haitians, also lost their lives. Trujillo’s government encouraged Europeans to migrate and open businesses with the aim of increasing the business sector as well as whitening the Dominican society. As a consequence, to this day, the poorest citizens of the D.R. are often of Haitian origin and tend to be of darker skin than wealthier families (Prado, 2009; Lozano, 2008; Murray, 2005; Lilon, 1999).

Recent demographic trends as well as a transition to a service economy have also increased the challenges faced by the government in fostering development. In recent years, the Dominican economy has transformed from a primarily agricultural economy to a service economy. Primarily through the growth of tourism, the service industry has grown to over 66% of GDP. This change has been beneficial to the D.R.’s economy, which has grown steadily since the 1980s, having an average economic growth rate of 5.43% from 2007 to 2009 and a Per Capita GDP of $8,300 (CIA, 2010). Free trade policies have led to the improvement of aggregate economic statistics for most Latin America countries, including the D.R. (UN Millennium Project, 2005). However, in 2008, 42% of the population lived below the poverty line (World Bank, 2008). In 2007, 11.2% of the population continued to live with less than a dollar a day (UNESCO, 2010), and the country had an unemployment rate of 14.9% (CIA, 2010).

Rapid urbanization and population growth has contributed to the government’s difficulties in developing the human resources needed to deal with the demands for new skills from the changing economy (OECD, 2008). While in 1950 the D.R. had a population of 2.134 million, of which 23.8% were urban dwellers, by 2010 the population had increased to 10.169 million inhabitants, with 68.54% living in urban areas (CEPAL, 2010). Similar to other developing countries that rapidly urbanized, the D.R. was faced with a complicated development challenge, a challenge that could be best met over time by empowering individuals to be creative and critical thinkers through a student-centered, progressive and competitive education system.

Previous governments attempted to increase both quality and access to primary and secondary education through a number of reforms (OECD, 2008, p. 92). In 1992, the country approved a major education reform through a 10 Year Plan (Plan Decenal) which promoted: 1) modernizing the educational structure, 2) the introduction of new technologies, 3) the promotion of literacy, 4) strengthening vocational education, 5) increased investment in education and 6) increasing community involvement (p. 104). The government programs yielded various positive results. Among them, the literacy rate increased steadily from 60.8% in 1980 to 70% in 1990, 78.5% in 2000, and 81.6% in 2008 (World Bank, 2010). Through Plan Decenal, the proportion of children between 6 and 17 that were attending school increased from 71.3% in 1991 to 86.4% in 2002 (p. 10).

However, despite moderate success in some areas, several indicators remain below expectations. By 2008, the average enrollment rate for Latin America and the Caribbean in secondary school was 94%, while in the D.R. enrollment was only 80%. The literacy rate remains below the regional average of 91% at 88.2% and total public spending on education (% of GDP) is low, at a level of 2.2% in 2007, compared to a world average of 4.6% in 2006 (World Bank, 2010). Primary education enrollment rate is also lower than the regional average, at 104% compared to 116%. In addition, according to a 2001 assessment of education throughout Latin America  by PREALC, urban children in the D.R. performed worst, and rural children only outperformed children in Bolivia and Peru, for whom Spanish is often a second language (Murray, 2005). The limited quality of the public education system has led to the rapid growth of private education institutions. While there were only 24 private schools in 1961, there were at least 2,500 by the year 2000 (Murray, 2005).

In recent years, however, the despite the implementation of the second Plan Decenal (2008-2018), the government has not substantially increased its education expenditure, instead focusing to a large extent on increasing access to ICT technologies for the general population. The government’s investments in ICT technologies recently resulted in the First Lady of the D.R. receiving the World Information Society Award in 2007 from the United Nations. She was honored for her contributions to building a more equitable and inclusive society by empowering Dominican families to improve their living standards through access to ICTs at Community Technology Centers (CTCs) (Cedeño Fernández, 2007). However, it is hard to assess to what degree these technologies are reducing inequalities and influencing primary and secondary education.

Other recent technological initiatives include the establishment of the Technological Institute of the Americas, (ITLA) founded in 2000, the Dominican Telecommunication Institute (INDOTEL), established in 1998, the Cyberpark of Santo Domingo, founded in 2001, and the new Network Access Point (NAP) of the Caribbean built in 2008 (INTEC, 2010; INDOTEL, 2010; PSCD, 2010; Dominican Today, 2008; ITLA, 2010).

The increased investment and emphasis on ICT development has contributed to the rapid expansion of Internet use in the D.R. in recent years, increasing from 183.687 Internet accounts in 2006 to 508.603 Internet accounts by June 2010.  Based on the average users per Internet connection, INDOTEL believes that 33% of Dominicans, or 3,214,371 people, had access to the Internet by June 2010 (INDOTEL, 2010). The D.R. has a cell phone use rate of 0.91 cellular phones per person (INDOTEL, 2010), and mobile phone coverage is increasing in rural areas. In addition, through the rural connectivity program, INDOTEL hopes to bring broadband access to every town with over 300 inhabitants by 2012 (San Roman, 2009; INDOTEL, 2010). The telecommunications industry has grown by over 15% annually between 1997 and 2004, with most of the traffic from the D.R. destined for the United States (Stern, 2006). With 1 million, or 9%, of Dominicans living outside the country, most of them in the United States, the D.R. received 3.477 billion dollars in remittances in 2009 (World Bank, 2010). Remittances are not only a major source of foreign revenue but  have also fueled the growing development of ICT, as families are in favor of investing to increase communication with their loved ones.

Regarding ICT and education, the government has promoted ICT through CTCs, the Educando.edu.do online community, Red-Wan, Virtual Areas for Education (AVES), and OER and software development at ITLA (ITLA, 2010; Khelladi, 2003) The most popular initiative in ICT for Education has been the CTCs. CTCs originated from the Costa Rican Little Intelligent Communities (LINCOS) initiative which was built in partnership with the MIT.  The project’s innovative approach of using decommissioned shipping containers to house computer labs proved enticing to donors (Granqvist, 2003; Granqvist, 2005; MIT, 2001).

This model was appealing to donors, but it was perceived as foreign, temporal, and inconvenient to Dominican users. LINCOS originated in Costa Rica, but it was exported soon after to the D.R. where it was subsequently modified. Granqvist (2005) argued that the lack of participation by the community in the planning stage of the program resulted in designers ignoring the fact that the containers felt hot and crowded, and that some of the software and manuals, including the operating system, were sp,eto,es not provided in Spanish (Granqvist, 2005). The container model was dropped and replaced with a traditional building during the Hipolito Mejia administration (2000-2004). It was further modified during the second presidency of Leonel Fernandez (2004-2008) to include meeting rooms and a radio station (Prado, 2009). They are also hoping to include libraries and other educational materials within the CTCs in the future. Working in collaboration with the Technological Institute of Monterrey, a pioneer in virtual education and OER, the CTCs include a variety of educational software and material (ibid).

Originally, most of the software and manuals were in English and they were limited in quantity and scope, yet that has increasingly changed as the initiative has developed (Granqvist, 2005). By the spring of 2009, there were 49 operational CTCs (Prado, 2009) and the Office of the First Lady has set a goal of building 135 CTCs in the upcoming years (Cedeño de Fernández, 2005). Comprehensively, the ICTs for Education initiatives in the D.R. are slowly bridging the digital divide. More and more individuals are obtaining access to advanced technologies.  In doing so, the D.R. is meeting the last Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 8-8f, which promotes increasing access to telephone lines, cellular subscriptions, and Internet use per 100 population (UNDP, 2010). The likelihood that OER and other educational technology tools will improve over time and the constructionist nature of their design allow for individuals who were previously unable to study to have the opportunity to learn how to use computers, operate a radio, and learn how to read, as well as use the educational software within the computer. Such resources provide a one of a kind opportunity for the individuals that have access to these newly built centers (Lozano P., 2007).

However, are the centers visited by a large percentage of the population? Who visits them? Prado’s (2009) study showed that, despite being located in rural areas where there is a higher poverty rate than in the cities (54.1% live under the poverty line),  most of the users of the three CTCs she surveyed had a higher level of education than the average population (World Bank, 2010; World Bank, 2008; Prado, 2009). According to Prado (2009), 61.5% of the CTC users in the locations she studied had completed high school, a level which is significantly higher than the national average in 2004 of 40%. In addition, 12.8% of the CTC users had a university degree, in comparison to the 3% nationwide enrollment rate in higher education in 2008 (pg 80).

Therefore, are these ICTs programs reducing or increasing the digital divide? Being unable to find a job with computer or IT skills in rural areas, individuals who become competent in ICT are likely to migrate to the cities. ICT also do not seem to be targeting individuals of Haitian descent. Prado’s (2009) studied showed that, as a result of anti-haitianismo, individuals were hesitant to label themselves as Haitian or of Haitian descent (Prado, 2009). Similar to previous studies mentioned within the InfoDev’s ICT Knowledge Map (Trucano, 2005), studies of the D.R. and the effectiveness of ICT are not supported by education outcomes data. After modifying the LINCOS project and increasing the participatory element of the CTC establishment process, individuals appear to be more supportive of the project (Prado, 2009; Granqvist, 2005) yet the initiative appears to be serving only a limited number of individuals, at high operating costs.

While CTCs and increased broadband access, as well as the introduction of educational programs through mobile phones, could, in the future, extinguish the digital divide and promote lifelong learning, current international indicators show that the D.R. public education system is failing to meet the MDG for universal primary education, while only a few students are benefiting from their ICT initiative. As such, the D.R. could pursue two courses of action; either increase, and perhaps as much as triple, the budget allocated to public education in an attempt to better national results, and/or increase access to ICT for every individual in the country by joining the OLPC initiative and providing every single child with a laptop and CTCs in all communities. In order to leapfrog and properly meet the challenges facing the D.R. in the 21st century, a much greater national emphasis needs to be given to all areas of education, not just ICT. This effort should be linked to the national Dominican identity, by promoting athletic activities such as baseball, and music education after school programs similar to Venezuela’s “El Sistema”, but with a bachata or merengue emphasis. While there have been noticeable improvements during the past decades, the D.R. continues to lag behind in educational achievements compared to other Latin American countries (Murray, 2005). ICT development and reducing the digital divide are part of the solution, but to fully reduce the inequality that have plagued the D.R. since the colonial years, a greater expenditure on education and improved relationships with Haiti would be beneficial.

• Students will develop a character (including time projections of who they want the character to be 5/10/20/50 years into the future and how will the character get there). Students will develop both realistic and imaginative characters.
• Students will develop a number of characters throughout the school year as well as continuously adding information to their particular characters which will then be compiled into a database. Characters can be related and linked through family or social relations.
• Students will research the different professions they would like their character to work in, and what constitutes their regular daily schedule. Students will be encouraged to find information about particular professions through different types of media and sources.
• Students will discuss the positive and negative aspects of their characters, as well as compare and contrast their realistic to their imaginative characters. They will discuss how the development of both realistic and imaginary characters differs.
• Steps in the design process may include: Choosing a Goal and a Topic, Research and Preparation, Design Phase, Pre-Programming Phase, Programming Phase, Play-Testing Phase, Post-Mortem (Crawford, 1982)
• Students will map the city and/or areas they wish to include within the video game. These areas can be mapped by the use of either drawing or pictures. The possibility for mapping them through video should also be researched as more students have the ability to record videos through mobile phones. Creative ways of drawing the city, from simplified, cartoonish versions or accurate representations will be encouraged.
• Open source software will be used for editing and to bringing ideas together. To encourage creativity and cooperation, students will encourage others by providing a positive comment to their work before providing any constructive criticism.
• Students will interview adults and other people about their life experiences, asking questions about their history and what is important to them. They will act as anthropologist as well as cross pollinators, not only asking and recording individual’s statements but also seeing how they interplay with other individuals’ experiences. After returning to school students will discuss their findings.
• Through their research, students will learn about the hurdles and struggles individuals faced during their lives and how they reacted to them. Students will be encouraged to record and write a family history.
• Students will discuss the concept of memes as units of culture (a concept developed by Richard Dawkins in the Selfish Gene, 1990) and analyze which memes are prevalent and how they interrelate. They will discuss what makes a meme to fail while others replicate. Within this discussion, students will think of ways in which the games embody the concept of memes.
• Game designs will be posted on a bulletin board where students will be able to learn more about different students’ ideas, incorporate others’ concepts, and collaborate and promote the projects that appear most appealing.
• The instructor will serve as the director, making sure that the project keeps moving along the timeline.

• Students will begin by using block building tools such as Scratch or Google mobile apps developer. Older and more advanced students will learn programming codes such as Visual basic, C++ or Python. Through tutorials and trial and error students will be expected to learn to debug programs. Students will also learn Flash and html.

• Students will be responsible for evaluating and learning about the limitations of various programming languages.
• Games will be developed for a number of platforms, and students will learn about the strengths and weaknesses of every system. An evaluation of the game control system as well as the interface are important to provide the best gamer with the best possible experience.
• Advanced students will analyze how a number of open source games were built by reverse engineering and fragmenting their code. They will then attempt to improve on some of those games’ features. Students will work on projects independently or in groups. To promote creativity, game improvements do not have to be educational in nature.

• What is the objective of the game? (What is the game trying to solve? How does it end?)
• What is the genre of the game? (Role Playing, Adventure, First-Person Shooter, etc)
• What is the topic or environment in which the game is played? (18th century, poverty in the 3rd World, etc)
• What are some of the spatial properties of the environment? (list, specify what you found interesting)
• Is the game captivating? Why? ( 1 to 5 and open ended response)
• What is the difficulty of the game within its expected audience? (1 to 5)
• How is this game marketed, how should it be marketed?
• How long does the game take to understand? (Learning Curve)
• How long does the game take to complete? (Game Playing Time)

• Students will play all types and generations of group computer games.
• Budget constraints may limit the use of other platforms. Mobile games will also be used.
• The titles of the games as well as the lesson plans will be predetermined.

• This list of games for the course will be evaluated at the end of every semester to include additions from the games students who took the video game evaluation class found insightful.
• Students will not only learn through video games, but will also play traditional games such as Life and Monopoly.
• Students will play games such as World of Warcraft, Runescape and Minecraft for a longer amount of time. Within these games students will forms groups to solve quests and build a guild or an online community.
• The students will periodically write reflections of their experiences.
• The students will switch between these major game titles various times during the year. In Minecraft they will be building group cities.
• Other games such as the Total War series, as well as the Sims series may take longer than a week per game to explore. SimCity, SimEarth, Spore, and the Sims are all complex games that may benefit from longer gameplay sessions and reflection.

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Final Paper – Focal Institution: The Dominican Telecommunication Institute (INDOTEL) 

December 15, 2010

“We see the future full of hope because we know what we have to do throughout this decade ahead of us: prepare ambitious action plans to ensure compliance with the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and learn to use the ICTs as the leading mechanisms to achieve them” (Cedeño de Fernandez, 2005).

The Dominican Republic (D.R.), a Latin American country with 10.1 million citizens, and a per capita GNI of 4,510 dollars has increasingly promoted Information Communication Technologies (ICT) as a way in which to increase economic production, improve the quality of the education system, and strengthen communications with Dominican emigrants (World Bank, 2010; Ferguson, 2003; Sachs, 2005). ICT not only affects education, but also has a strong impact on government efficiency, accountability and transparency (e-government) as well as business efficiency through increased communication (e-commerce) (Kirkman et al, 2002). Because of the multilateral effects of ICTs, ICTs in the D.R. and throughout the world are promoted by both the government and the private sector (San Roman, 2009; Stern & Townsend, 2007; Stern, 2006; Kirkman et al 2002; Khelladi, 2009; Moura Castro et al, 2000).

Yet, despite the strong promise of ICTs and their rapid rate of improvement, the impact of ICTs on education has been moderate and widely debated (Trucano, 2005; Chapman & Mahlck, 2004). With Open Education Resources (OER) becoming broadly available and the costs of technology decreasing over time, ICT hold great promise for education (Norris, 2001; McKenzie, 2007; GAID, 2009; OECD, 2006). Through the establishment of the Dominican Telecommunication Institute (INDOTEL), the Dominican government has promoted the expansion of ICT and ICT for Development (ICT4D). This essay will take a macro to micro approach, focusing on INDOTEL as an institution and how its initiatives are reducing the digital divide, explaining it detail it’s most researched program, the Community Technology Centers (CTCs). While, ICT use has expanded in recent years, with a broken education system, the Dominican government should increase its general expenditure on education, while promoting the use of m-learning and ICT programs for marginalized Haitian immigrants, or broader and more inclusive initiatives such as One Laptop per Child (OLPC) (IDB, 2010; Naslund-Hadley et al, 2009). The D.R. should promote greater community participation through institutions such as INDOTEL in the decision making process of its projects.

Historically and currently, the D.R. has underachieved regionally in both primary and secondary education levels (Moya Pons, 1992; Murray, 2005; OECD, 2008). As it is the case in most Latin American countries, educational underachievement is closely correlated with socio-economic conditions, with the poorest sectors of the population performing worst. With a long history of inequality, the D.R. is not an exception. In 2008, 42% of the population lived below the poverty line and 12% of the population was living on less than a dollar a day (UNESCO, 2010; CIA, 2010). While the economy of the D.R. has improved in recent years, inequality has been pervasive.

One way in which the income of many Dominicans has increased has been through remittances. With over a million Dominicans living abroad, and most Dominican migrants living in the United States, remittances currently represent 6.8% of the GDP of the Dominican Republic. Immigrants from the D.R. are known to travel and contact their family members more often than most other Latin American migrants (Duany, 2010; World Bank, 2010; Ferguson, 2003). With over 400,000 Dominicans living in New York City, most emigrants have been widely exposed to the capabilities of modern media (Appadurai, 1996). As such, it is not surprising that many Dominicans express a strong support for investments in ICT (Prado, 2009). With a strong desire to communicate with their loved ones, migrants have likely helped to increase the cell phone subscription density of the D.R. to .91 (INDOTEL, 2010). Such a high density illustrates the pervasiveness of one form of ICT throughout the country. Paradoxically however, despite the government’s promotion of ICTs and the extensive use of mobile technology for development, the use of mobile technology for education has not been promoted (Heeks, 2008; Donner, 2008).

Hoping to remain competitive, Caribbean and Latin American states have expressed their commitment to reducing the digital divide and promoting regional cooperation through the eLAC 2007 and eLAC 2010, setting 103 goals for the increased use of ICT as a long term strategy for national development in line with the Millennium Development Goals (CEPAL, 2005; CEPAL, 2008). The eLAC Plan of Action 2007 promotes increased access and digital inclusion, capacity-building and knowledge creation, public transparency and efficiency, participatory policy instruments, and an enabling environment for development (CEPAL, 2005). Reaffirming the eLAC 2007 commitment, the eLAC Plan of Action 2010 promotes the increased use of ICT to improve the quality of education, infrastructure and access, health sector, public management, production sector, and reforming policy instruments (CEPAL, 2008).

In accordance with the 8th MGD, target 8f, the D.R. and other Latin American countries have invested in increasing access to telephone lines, cell phone coverage, and internet use throughout the country. To achieve these and other MDGs, the D.R. has developed various programs that increase access to ICTs. Particularly during the administrations of Leonel Fernandez (1996-2000), (2004-2008), (2008 until 2012), the government created and invested in institutions that promote the use and expansion of ICTs. Among these initiatives are the establishment of the Technological Institute of the Americas, (ITLA) in 2000, INDOTEL in 1998, the Cyberpark of Santo Domingo in 2001, and the new Network Access Point (NAP) of the Caribbean in 2008 (INDOTEL, 2010; PSCD, 2010; ITLA, 2010). Of these institutions, INDOTEL has played the greatest role in promoting the inclusion of rural and impoverished communities into the digital age.

INDOTEL was established through the enactment of the General Law of Telecommunications of 1998 with the objective of improving the telecommunication sector by providing universal access to telecommunications, and through it improving the nation’s socio-economic conditions (Congreso Nacional, 1998). INDOTEL was founded following the parameters encouraged by the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), with the intent of increasing competition, increasing privatization, learning from past mistakes of previous institutions and opening the market within the telecommunication sector (Ramió, 2007). Latin America’s long history of “delegated democracy,” weak institutions and non-existent regulatory organizations, strengthened the appeal of similar market-oriented changes and the importance of regulatory reforms across the region (O’Donnell, 1994; Ramió, 2007; Linz & Stepan, 1996).

As part of a regulatory movement, Ramio (2007) argues that INDOTEL has been successful in increasing efficiency and transparency but has failed to promote participation. INDOTEL originally developed as a small meritocratic institution, but after a few years it experienced a brief period of clientelism, during which it increased its employees from 300 to 4,000. However, INDOTEL subsequently underwent a period of reorganization, managing to reduce the level of clientelism and cut the number of employees down to 500 (Ramio, 2007).

Within ICT for education, the Dominican Republic and INDOTEL have promoted a movement towards an information society through the Fund for the Development of Telecommunications (FDT). The FDT and INDOTEL are financed by a 2% tax that is charged to every telecommunication sale, which is then allocated to providing universal access to telecommunications (Kirkman et al, 2002). INDOTEL has used these funds to provide access to ICTs for the poorest sectors of society. 1.8% of the tax is invested in the FDT, while .2% is used to run INDOTEL’s administration (ibid).

Programs promoted by INDOTEL through the FDT include: installing 40 more CTCs across the country; a pilot program to increase access to broadband internet to 100 education centers; providing computers to 3000 outstanding students from poor families in the country; providing computers and ICT training to 5000 teachers; installation of 10 digital rooms for students with disabilities, installation of 600 computer rooms to rural and impoverished urban; establishing a pilot program in six universities to create a broadband network among these education institutions, allowing them to collaborate in their research and education projects; establishing Wi-Fi access in public places across the country;  increasing fiber optics access to areas not previously included; providing broadband access to areas with over 300 inhabitants; providing with ITLA scholarships (1,100 so far) to promising students to study technologically oriented careers; and creating an youth oriented online education website, JUVENTEC. As part of their promotion of transparency, the progress and cost of these initiatives are regularly updated at INDOTEL’s website: http://www.indotel.gob.do/proyectos-indotel/. Nevertheless, Despite the extensive aim of these programs, if some children are unable to access these new technologies, new inequalities will develop (Norris, 2001; Trucano, 2005). As of yet, there are no major initiatives to provide personal computers to every child (OLPC). No m-learning initiatives are currently being promoted.

During the past few years there has been a rapid growth in the use of the internet and cell phones in the D.R., this success may be partly related to INDOTEL’s effectiveness as a regulatory organism. Internet accounts increased from 183.687 in 2006 to 508.603 Internet accounts by June 2010.  Based on the average users per Internet connection, INDOTEL believes that 33% of Dominicans, or 3,214,371 people, had access to the Internet by June 2010 (INDOTEL, 2010). In addition, the telecommunications industry has grown by over 15% annually between 1997 and 2004, with most of the traffic from the D.R. destined for the United States (Stern, 2006).

However, despite the government commitment to increasing access to new technologies, INDOTEL has implemented programs without substantial participation of local voices and communities (Granqvist, 2005). Haitian immigrants, poorer than many rural Dominicans, has not been identified as a priority or area for future action (Narayan, 2000). An in-depth study of CTCs, and INDOTEL programs, reveals how participation could have increased the initiative’s success. CTCs originated from the Costa Rican Little Intelligent Communities (LINCOS) initiative, built in partnership with the MIT (Granqvist, 2003; Granqvist, 2005).  LINCOS were built by refitting and using a decommissioned container that was in a good enough condition to house a computer lab (MIT, 2001). The project proved very appealing to donors, attracting considerable funding from a number of sources.

However, although this model was interesting to donors, it was seen as foreign, temporal, and inconvenient by Dominican users. The LINCOS project began in Costa Rica, but it was exported soon after to the D.R. where it was subsequently modified. Granqvist (2005) argued that the lack of participation by the community led designers to ignore the fact that the containers felt crowded and hot, and that some of the materials, including the operating system on some occasions, were not in Spanish (Granqvist, 2005). Eventually, the container model was dropped for a traditional building during the administration of Hipolito Mejia (2000-2004). It was further modified during the second presidency of Leonel Fernadez (2004-2008) to not only house a computer room but also meeting rooms and even a radio station (Prado, 2009). They are also hoping to include libraries and other educational materials within the CTCs in the future. Working in collaboration with the Technological Institute of Monterrey, a pioneer in virtual education and OER, the CTCs currently provide access to a variety of educational software and material (ibid).

Originally, most of the software and programs were in English and were limited in scope, yet this has increasingly changed as the program has developed (Granqvist, 2005). By the spring of 2009, there were 49 operational CTCs (Prado, 2009). The Office of the First Lady, in cooperation with INDOTEL, hopes to build 135 more CTCs across the country during the upcoming years. In addition, while CTCs are built in the poorest areas of the country, Prado’s (2009) study showed that, despite being located in rural areas where there is a higher poverty rate than in the cities (54.1%), most of the users of the three CTCs she surveyed had a higher level of education than that of the average population (World Bank, 2010; World Bank, 2008; Prado, 2009). According to Prado, 61.5% of the CTC users in the locations she studied had completed high school, a level which is significantly higher than the national average of 40% (2004). In addition, 12.8% of the CTC users had a university degree, compared to a 3% nationwide enrollment rate in higher education in 2008 (ibid).

Therefore, is ICT reducing or increasing the digital divide? Being unable to find a job with computer or IT skills in rural areas, individuals who become competent in ICT are likely to migrate to the cities. ICTs also do not seem to be targeting individuals of Haitian descent. Prado’s (2009) studied showed that, as a consequence of anti-haitianismo, none of the individuals surveyed at CTCs labeled themselves as Haitian or of Haitian descent (Prado, 2009). Hopefully these ICT initiatives will also have positive repercussions for neighboring Haiti. It is estimated that one million Haitians live, mostly illegally, in Bateyes (low income, temporary housing) throughout the D.R. To be truly considered inclusive, ICT projects in the D.R. cannot ignore this important sector of the country’s society. Furthermore, the rate of return for ICT investments varies and has not been easy the evaluate (Trucano, 2005). Increasing participation and democracy within the program will likely increase the programs appeal with marginalized communities. After increasing the participatory element of the CTC development process, individuals increased their support for the project (Granqvist, 2005; Prado, 2009). INDOTEL could benefit from increasing participatory element within their projects.

Despite the achievements of INDOTEL and CTCs in reducing the digital divide, current international indicators show that the Dominican public education system is failing to meet the MDG for universal primary education, while only a portion of the students are benefiting from their ICT initiative. To address this problem, the D.R. should increase the budget allocated to public education (2.2%) of a percentage of GDP closer to the international average of (4.6%) as well as achieve universal access to ICTs, provide every child with access to or with a computer, and construct CTCs in all communities. In order to leapfrog and properly meet the challenges facing the D.R. in the 21st century, a much greater emphasis needs to be given to both formal and informal education (Davison et al, 2000; Moravec, 2009). In addition, INDOTEL could promote a transition towards ICT4D 2.0 through the increased use of m-learning and other new technologies (Heeks, 2008).

Borrowing from Peet and Harwick (2009) this paper supports a critical modernist perspective. Countries and communities should appropriate technological improvements to promote their own voices, regulate capitalism and decrease inequalities (Peet & Hartwick, 2009). Despite their promise, ICT initiatives can increase rather than decrease inequalities (Hernes, 2006), While capitalism and technology have fueled an improvement of overall socio-economic conditions (Sachs, 2005; Mason, 2006), inequality has been pervasive. Through the Internet local communities can develop their own OER, improve their socio-economic status and increase their access to information. Yet, without a participatory development approach and the identification and inclusion (if they would like to participate) of the most remote communities, ICT development policies in the DR may increase inequalities (Narayan, 2000). The D.R. has done very little to include Haitian Bateyes into their ICT initiatives, and the voices of a large segment of the poorest communities in the D.R. remain marginalized.

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