The World In Whose Pockets?

The internet has provided a world of information in our pockets. In this
blog, I discuss whether this is as universal and beneficial as we would like to
believe.

1-      Access to Internet

In March, the doors of the Sumatran Education Centre I was working at closed. In those rural villages, I don’t know anyone who has Wifi at home, creating reliance on data plans. Unsurprisingly, when a pandemic ends the industry that your village relies on, mobile bills are one of the first things to go. In such an interconnected community, phones are a luxury, for entertainment mainly, to be discarded in the months there is no money, or when sudden torrential downpours cut off the electricity. The UN reports that today, despite the efforts made by fantastic projects such as EASSy, 9 out of 10 people not using the internet are based in Africa, Asia and the Pacific. While the Western world struggled by on Zoom, the rise of online learning drove a further wedge between those with and those without

2-     Boys and Toys

Shockingly, in India, only 29% of internet users are female. Why is this? What impact will it have on girls in this new technology-centred world?

The UN reports that ‘One village governing body in rural Rajasthan stated that girls were not to use mobile phones or social media’. However, it’s important to think subtly, not just point to isolated incidents. We need to consider who has free time to browse the internet and thus we need to consider who is doing the housework. It’s not simply a case of whether a woman can own a phone, it’s whether she has the time and income to use it to the same extent as her husband.

3-     A World in our Pockets

Quite frankly, I miss the days when emails didn’t reach me until 9am on a Monday morning.

So what about those of us privileged enough to have mobiles, free time and access to Wifi? Cynthia Luna Scott is not alone in praising mobile technology for making education accessible anywhere, anytime. Quite frankly, I’m reserved in my praise of this development. Throughout my undergraduate degree I easily juggled coursework, switching off my laptop after a day in the library. Now, is this new world of online learning, gone are the days of 9-6 in the library. It’s a lot easier to close a book at the end of the day, than it is to ignore constant notifications and emails. If you had asked me a few years ago whether phones should be included in schools, I would have agreed. But today, I would give anything to have the freedom to delete my work emails, my University apps and Teams off my mobile. I miss the days when my phone was mine, not a learning device, not a way of an employer reaching me out of hours with a late email. I find being constantly available exhausting and yet it’s impossible to switch off without falling behind.

Here, I have highlighted a few of the negative trends caused by the internet and the subsequent rise of online learning. Going forward, we need to ensure those without regular internet access are not left behind, that we continue to prioritise getting everyone connected, but also ensuring that this development feels positive for all involved.

Bibliography

Cynthia Luna Scott,The Futures of learning 1: why must learning content and methods change in the 21st century?

UNICEF, 2017, Children in a Digital Age

For More information on online learning in Indonesia:

The Pandemic’s effect on Education is not being discussed enough

When Learning is Really Remote

COVID-19 and Learning Inequities in Indonesia

EASSy Website