Technology and Teaching in Haiti: Why?

As part of this year's Educator and Leadership Institute in Haiti, we have welcomed three staff members from Desire2Learn and an executive from Apple. These are two large companies that support education globally. However, the support for education from these companies often is done in what I call the "first 4 billion" ... that is, the richest half of the world. Having representatives from D2L and Apple in Haiti is helping us address the "next 4 billion" as we consider the poorest half of the world.

Our colleagues from D2L and Apple have been providing workshops on how technology can support teachers in the classroom. The workshops are an optional part of ELI so we were not sure how well they would be attended. Incredibly, yesterday's workshop had 150 participants and today's had 110. I was amazed not just by the number of people but by the high levels of interest and engagement. Clearly there is a desire to do something with technology ... but most teachers just don't know what or how.

This is a huge issue that we need to seriously consider: Why should we introduce ways to use technology in Haitian classrooms? After all, most teachers cannot afford high priced smartphones, tablets, or computers nor the data plans that are needed to access the Internet. Shouldn't we just focus on supporting teachers in the classroom and forget technology?

Here's the thing: Even in Haiti, young people are accessing the Internet. We come across high school and university students here who are on Facebook, WhatsApp, and Twitter. All the time. These young people are accessing the Internet to access the world.

So, if teachers don't have any insight into technology they are going to be moving in a very different direction than the students they teach.

As importantly, if teachers cannot access technology, it eliminates a massive resource opportunity. Teachers who have access to the Internet can show their students pictures of moose (not found in Haiti, in case you didn't know), can help them locate the Eiffel Tower in Paris, and multiply the number of books in the classroom by 1,000,000-fold (actually, much more than that). They can access lessons in Kreyol/Creole, the mother tongue of 95% of Haitians. They can provide math activities. They can show them images of the internal organs of our bodies. They can help a student with Autism to understand social situations.

Of course, technology is of limited value if it doesn't provide access to those who live in marginalized communities. In these cases, technology can contribute to widening the knowledge gap between the haves and have nots. That just makes for a more unjust and inequitable world.

But what if we could provide technology and access to the Internet throughout Haiti? Could we increase the number of children who have access to education? Could we increase literacy opportunities? And could we provide ways to increase student learning outcomes? Could we provide opportunities to post-secondary education and partnerships with universities around the world?

This to me is the "why" of why we need to strive for increasing access to technology in fragile contexts like Haiti. I haven't figured out the "how" but I am pleased to have companies like Desire2Learn and Apple who are wrestling with this part of the question.

I am deeply curious whether my hopes for technology "flattening" the world (i.e., providing greater opportunities for the most vulnerable) will indeed become a reality in my lifetime. I am fully confident that if we can figure out a way to do this in Haiti, one of the more challenging contexts in the world, we might be able to do it everywhere.