Self organising systems for mass computer literacy: Findings from the ‘hole in the wall’ experiments
- 1 January 2005
- journal article
- Published by Emerald Publishing in International Journal of Development Issues
- Vol. 4 (1) , 71-81
- https://doi.org/10.1108/eb045849
Abstract
Earlier work often referred to as the ‘hole in the wall’ experiments has shown that groups of children can leam to use public computers on their own. This paper presents the method and results of an experiment conducted to investigate whether such unsupervised group learning in shared public spaces is universal. The experiment was conducted with ‘hole in the wall’ (minimally invasive education, or MIE) kiosks in 23 locations in rural India. Focus groups in each location were tested for computer literacy for 9 months. Results, which are discussed in the paper, show that groups of children can leam to use computers and the Internet on their own, irrespective of who or where they are. The paper also discusses the engineering considerations for building such ‘hole in the wall’ computers in public spaces.Keywords
This publication has 4 references indexed in Scilit:
- Computer skills development by children using 'hole in the wall' facilities in rural IndiaAustralasian Journal of Educational Technology, 2004
- Improving English Pronunciation: An Automated Instructional ApproachInformation Technologies and International Development, 2003
- Minimally invasive education: a progress report on the “hole‐in‐the‐wall” experimentsBritish Journal of Educational Technology, 2003
- Children and the Internet: experiments with minimally invasive education in IndiaBritish Journal of Educational Technology, 2001