Pitfalls in Crossing the Digital Divide:

A Case Study of Attitudes Towards ICT Education in Ghana

Simone Wagner

email: wagns409@newschool.edu, sim1rae@gmail.com

Semester of completion: Fall 2013

Advisor: Sumita Chakravarty

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Introduction

In recent years, conversations in education have begun to consider issues of the digital

divide on a global scale. In particular, there have been many initiatives to bring developing

countries up to speed on technology, and teaching them how to use computers. However, there is

a danger in looking at the world from this “us” and “them” perspective. As my personal

experience has shown, technology is not the solution in and of itself, but must be introduced with

a strong consideration for its cultural, economic and political context.

African governments in particular have begun to implement policies around ICT

(Information Communications Technology) education in order to bridge the digital divide,

building in automation and faster communication systems within the country. The issues of

power in this divide seem to be two-tiered– the first between Ghana and the Western World, and

the second within the country, between those in the main cities with the majority of the wealth

and those in the poorer, rural areas with less infrastructure. While discussion of the digital divide

is often talked about in relation to infrastructural and resource challenges, what I am arguing in

this essay, based on my field observations, is that cultural attitudes go a long way in explaining

not only the meanings attached to ICTs but also their use and efficacy.

Current educational practices of computer literacy in African countries are destined to be

unsuccessful unless they are modified to reflect the worldview and expectations of the local

recipients. My fieldwork and classroom experiences as an ICT teacher in Ghana has lead me to

conclude that in treating computers as neutral technologies, educational initiatives fail to

recognize the actual function of the machine as currently configured. There appears to be a lack

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of conversation about the cultural implications of these devices by the government; they

primarily focus on physical infrastructural challenges and ignore how these systems might

function differently in different cultural contexts. However, there is a community of scholars

confronting issues of the digital divide from a cultural perspective, and I draw on their work in

my own analysis of the current Ghana initiatives.

I am concerned with the education of computational literacy in an environment where the

desktop computer acts as a foreign object and faces challenges of cultural relevance, while

simultaneously lacking the general infrastructure needed to support it. I am also interested in

how one might learn to communicate (through or with) a computer for the first time. Thus in this

thesis, I address the issues of cultural relevance in computer literacy through a cultural theory

lens, arguing that as long as the computer literate remain in control of creating content, the

digital divide only widens. In order for cultures to be able to represent themselves, an

understanding of how these systems function is imperative. To be able to change these systems

and transform the dialogue around computing, they must first be able to speak the language of

computing. This can be achieved through a particular teaching perspective.

Methodology

My mode of inquiry is ethnographic description and analysis, supported by relevant

scholarly work in the areas of computer literacy, new media theory, and the critique of

globalization in reference to developing societies in Africa. Rather than summarize certain

theoretical positions, I have woven throughout this text my first-hand experiences in delivering

computer navigation skills in order to demonstrate the cultural and knowledge gaps that are the

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subject of this thesis. This personalized approach provides the necessary grounding for my

observations, and additionally presents the real-world context of my inquiry. Moreover, an

account of the details of my day-to-day experiences as an ICT teacher brings to light the cultural

specificities of my local students. Working closely, albeit for a short period of time, with them

made me aware of their needs, expectations, and actions or responses in a way that may not have

been possible from a purely analytical approach. Because I want to demonstrate how vital the

cultural underpinnings are of ICT education, I have described in detail my interactions with the

students and how this relates to overall attitudes both they and I have to computer technologies. I

want to emphasize that my experiential approach has both practical and intellectual validity.

Below are the substantive details of my methods of data gathering and evaluation.

This past summer I traveled to Ho, a township located in the Volta Region in Ghana, to

teach computer literacy classes based on ICT (Information Communications Technology). My

curriculum was developed by Dream Africa Volunteers Service (DAVS), a locally-based NGO.

As the primary computer literacy teacher, I taught three hour-and-a-half classes a day with six

students in each class. The students I taught varied in age; the youngest student was 16 and the

oldest students were in their mid-30s.

During my six-week stay, I kept a reflection journal to record my daily classroom

observations; this enabled me to map the progress of my students and note the difficulties they

faced during lessons. The second part of my ethnographic research consists of a series of

interviews, both with the students I taught in the DAVS classroom as well as with students at

local schools in and around Ho. I visited a total of 5 schools in the primary school level, the

junior high level and the senior high school level. The ages of the students ranged from 10 to 18

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years old, the students targeted by the government to receive ICT education. The interviews I

conducted within the schools gave me greater insight into the inner-workings of ICT education

and how it is functioning today in local schools.

While this paper will primarily focus on my qualitative research on the students, I will

also take a closer look at the computer systems (hardware and physical connectivity and

infrastructure) as well as the programs (software and their interfaces) they used, considering the

systems themselves played a vital role in affecting behavior and even culture, through their very

use. This particular research is limited to the observations conducted in the DAVS classroom,

due to the limited time and access I had to computer labs and classrooms during my short stay

there.

ICT Education in Ghana

Ghana is at a transitional point in its development with its current attempts at

modernization in order to keep up with the digitalization of information in the Western world. In

recent years, the government has implemented educational reforms to support this developmental

process. The Ministry of Education (MOE) is requiring ICT education for all upper level students

to train a new generation of active participants in an increasingly digitized world. On the

Government of Ghana website, the MOE page describes the 2007 educational reform and its

initiatives for dealing with the “modernization of a predominantly agriculture-based

economy” (Ghana.gov).

ICT education is a term used in Ghana, and many other developing countries, to describe

the pedagogy of computers at a basic level of understanding. The goal of ICT education on a

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greater scale is described as allowing for greater student interactivity in and out of the classroom.

On the UNESCO (United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization) website,

ICT education curriculum is explained as addressing challenges of access, inclusion, and quality

of learning (UNESCO.org). Teaching ICT is essentially teaching the ways in which digital

devices can allow for a greater connectivity to information, communication between people, and

greater understanding of the devices and technologies that allow for that increased access.

While related, this differs from more in-depth computer study, such as computer science.

As Gibbs and Tucker, advocates for liberal arts education in computer science define it,

computer science, and computing in general, is the study of the ways in which information is

represented and organized on a computer. This is demonstrated through series of data structures,

algorithms, and applications and mechanical or linguistic realizations of those (Gibbs and Tucker

204). While ICT education focuses on the use, computer science signifies a greater involvement

in the production of technologies.

The government’s motivations to educate the youth in computers became particularly

apparent with the implementation of the 2010 standardized testing reforms for entrance into

senior high school, also known as the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE). The new

test collapsed Agricultural Science and General Science into one category and added new

categories such as Basic Designing and Technology and ICT. It is a further indication of the

government’s agenda for modernization reform, a common rhetorical practice within not only

Ghana, but many developing countries.

The 2008 ICT Education Policy document also admits certain challenges the government

may inevitably face in such educational reform. It acknowledges one dilemma in particular– if

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they don’t invest in ICTs (a great expense for a developing country such as Ghana) they will

consequently continue to suffer from the technological gap, or the digital divide. The government

expresses a concern that if they don’t try to catch up, they will continue to fall behind.

Infrastructure Expectations

After reading the Ghanaian government’s initiatives for modernization within the

schools, I began my field research with the objective of exploring if this has become a reality. I

started my research by posing the question, what challenges are schools facing adapting to the

objectives of the government? For one, most schools expressed a need for better or more

equipment and as well as a need for technical support.

It was common for me to see computers in the classrooms not being used, many of which

were condemned as being “unusable,” broken, virus-infected or otherwise. In many schools, the

unused equipment just sat there in the back of classrooms. In one school I was told that only

eight out of thirty computers in the lab were usable. The computers that needed fixing sat in the

classroom next to those that worked. When I went looking for those computers in the classroom

next door, I found stacks of older computers, seemingly forgotten at the back of the room. The

ICT teacher there could not tell me if they were salvageable or not, and what the school was

planning on doing with them next. That school was anticipating a large donation of new

computers within the coming months, and was clearing out classroom space for them in the

meantime.

Many of the classrooms were overcrowded and couldn’t accommodate every student.

That same school’s computer lab housed 60 or 70 students each session, all learning on eight

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computers during a 30-minute session once a week. While resources were scarce, and the

student-to-computer ratio at all of the schools I visited never reached 1:1 (a goal set forth by the

Ghanaian government), the greater problem seemed to be the struggle to maintain these systems,

and most of the time there were legitimate reasons for this. Many of the systems used were old,

difficult, and expensive to repair and maintain. Sometimes they were so old that the parts they

needed were no longer manufactured, deeming the computer useless. The only solution was to

replace the computers, if they could afford it, because the schools didn’t have the time or the

resources to fix them.

In my own classroom I struggled with similar problems. The day before my classes

would start I went into the DAVS office for a short orientation. Prince, the director of the

program and founder of the organization DAVs, gave me a brief overview of the history of the

organization and the computer literacy program. As the DAVS website explains, “The [computer

literacy] project aims to provide free access to computer education for young people and adults

in Ghana who cannot afford the high cost of computer education” (DAVS website).

The main office was attached to the computer lab, a small room with six desks holding a

mismatched array of monitors, CPUs, mouses, and keyboards. In the back of the room there laid

a stack of old laptops, which I was told were no longer usable, along with one of the desktops in

the front of the room on one of the six desks, a complete contrast to the 21 computers promoted

on the organization’s website.

During that first meeting I was given an outline of a syllabus from Prince. When I asked

for a more detailed curriculum, Prince suggested that I research computer literacy curriculums

online. I made do with the resources I had, utilizing my own knowledge base as much as possible

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and spending my free time at the internet cafe downloading PDFs on introductions to Word and

watching videos on how to create memorable Powerpoint presentations. Being presented with

the opportunity to create my own curriculum, I was confronted with new questions on computer

education I hadn’t previously considered. How was I taught to use a computer? What kinds of

programs was I initial taught? What approach would I take to introduce the computer to people

who had never used it before? But even more, what kinds of lessons would students in Ghana

benefit from most?

Clearly, there is a huge disconnect between the vision of what computers can do to help

Ghana, what the government says it can do, and the reality of the situation. While there were

definite infrastructural challenges, it was unclear if other factors were playing a role in these

various disconnects. The promise of what these devices could do overwhelmed the reality of how

they functioned in the classroom. Prince himself seemed to focus heavily on software and the

promises and opportunities knowledge of them could bring. Having knowledge of computer

software is very well-respected in Ghanaian society; it meant that you could work in an office

environment, and that you would need to dress up in business attire every day. This focus on

software meant that hardware and infrastructural challenges were often ignored.

In his essay entitled, “There is No Software,” Fredrich Kittler expresses a distrust of

software, saying that it tends to obscure hardware and, by extension, the physical world. He

explains that “perfect user interfaces, since they dispense with writing itself, hide a whole

machine from its user” (Kittler 151). When the machine is hidden from the user, the

understanding of the hardware is lessened. The user is operating the system at a distance, only

through the graphical user interface (GUI). Through the GUI, the amount of interactivity with the

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device is limited, and by extension, so is our understanding of its functions. The hardware is

often seen as just a means to an end.

An example of how this is manifested today is through the use of mobile technology, such

as mobile phones, especially in African countries where mobile technology trumps the use of

desktop computing. The ICT conversation is no longer limited to a single device, but expanded

to include devices more suitable to the infrastructural challenges of more remote areas. The hype

behind the use of the mobile phone is founded on its potential for connectivity, while ignoring

the fact that mobile phones present the user with only software interaction

(Timeshighereducation.co.uk).

This issue is precisely what Kittler warns us about– the machine is hidden from the user

because this type of machine is not to be tampered with. Most mobile phones, especially

smartphones with greater potential to deliver information across the world, are closed systems;

devices that are resistant to hacking from both a hardware and software perspective. While many

of the students I spoke with did not have a clear understanding of the function of a desktop

computer, while they had no trouble accessing the internet on their phones. Many of the students

in my class had Facebook accounts before they knew how to type on the keyboard or use a

mouse.

Taking from Marshall McLuhan’s concept of hot and cold media, the mobile phone is a

very hot medium that limits interaction, arguably in comparison to the desktop computer. This

overwhelming focus on the potential uses of mobile technology in Africa regarding education

and communication tends to ignore aspects of control. In hiding the device from the user, those

in control of the device, by extension, have control over that user. These devices are designed

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and built in faraway places, then sent to the places where there is a market for them to be sold.

The power remains in the hands of those who have control over the production and distribution

of the product.

With the production of hardware development being in the hands of an elite few, those

who wish to partake in technological development are limited to what they have access to– for

many, that means software development alone. In Kenya in particular, recent software

development has been taking place and those developers are benefiting from their creations.

People have begun referring to this market area as the “Silicone Savannah,” although some are

making an important distinction by instead calling it the “Digital Savannah.” This refers to the

fact that hardware is not actually being produced in Africa, only digital software solutions are

(Thenextweb.com).

This has created an unequal dichotomy between producers and developers. All software

developers must adapt to the limitations of the hardware, learning how to work around pre-

existing hardware models, developing software to accommodate them. In order to “catch up,”

societies are being required to find ways to accommodate the infrastructure, or hardware, of the

devices which they are adopting. This is where problems begin to arise. The displacement of

devices means the adoption of the device in a place that may not have the ability to support it

fully.

Access and Implementation

In recent years, certain initiatives have been put in place in Ghana to support the ICT

educational trend. The main initiative in Ghana was the Better Ghana Agenda Laptop Program, a

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government-run program that distributes free laptops to students. I kept hearing about this

program while I was there from the students I encountered, but no one I met had actually

received one of them, or knew of someone personally that did. This may have partially been due

to the fact that the laptops were primarily distributed to students at the university level, while the

majority of schools I visited were at the senior high school level.

The program works as a lottery system– students must apply and then get chosen to

receive them. A list is distributed and the beneficiaries collect the laptops for their school.

However, there are certain requirements the school must comply with in order to receive the

devices. For instance, the school must have an established ICT center with good security, reliable

power supply, tables and chairs to accommodate the laptops, and an ICT tutor. These

requirements limit who is eligible for the laptops, ruling out the schools in more remote areas

with less resources to accommodate the computers.

Programs such as the Better Ghana Agenda Laptop Program have enabled greater access

to these devices, but for the students who are more likely to have already had access to

computers before. The MOE educational reform document explains the strategy for the program

as, “equipping all educational institutions with computer equipment and ICT tools in a prioritized

manner, implementing ICT programs at the pre-tertiary level in a phased approach, starting with

schools already possessing adequate laboratories and teachers” (2008 ICT in Education policy).

The unintended consequence is that in addition to a cross-cultural digital divide, there is another

divide growing within the country between those that who have already had access to computers

and can afford that access and those who never have.

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In recent years, Ghana has tried improving the computational resources and general

infrastructure of the country. Between 2010 and 2012, three additional submarine fiber optic

cables were installed (amounting to a total of four underwater cables). Although this signals an

improvement in the general infrastructure of internet service, the cost of individual service

continues to remain extremely high. The country is reliant on internet cafes and mobile

connectivity, which is a great expense for many people.

With all the recent measures the government has put in place, what are their actions

saying about the needs of the public? Scholars Robin Boast, Michael Bravo, and Ramesh

Srinivasan discuss the relationship between the state and the people. They acknowledge the

government’s tendency to work within measurable and statistical means in order to legitimize

their actions. For this reason, governments tend to value scientific method and claim certain

“truths” about a place from collected data. According to Boast, Bravo, and Srinivasan, the meta-

ontologies of the government often conflict with the ontologies of the communities their actions

affect. They explain ontology as, “the way in which a certain community negotiates the

conceptualization and organization of its knowledge and information” (Boast, Bravo, Srinivasan,

398).

The scholars acknowledge the challenges of infrastructural and technological access, but

instead address new issues of mismatched ontologies of communities and states. They very

intentionally use the word “state” in loose terms, as the term signifying a position of power,

whether it be national or international control. The state’s meta-ontology is one that values

scientific method, following logical data collected from large-scale aggregating methods; for

example, those collected at the voting polls. These methods of collecting information cause a

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simplification of quantifiable data. Data collection in itself is often resisted by communities, as

the ontologies and information valued by the community are under-represented by the state

reports and interventions.

This incongruence between the needs and cultural language of a public and the

government’s actions often result in bad governance, creating solutions for communities that

don’t speak to their particular needs. Not only is this an issue of irrelevant action through

miscommunication, but this is also an issue of what types of communication are valued in a

society, and governments putting more importance on quantitative (statistical) data over

qualitative (ethnographic) data. As reflected in scholarly sources from African universities, this

tends to be the consensus, particularly in a discussion of bridging the digital divide.

Materials such as the syllabus and platforms, which I relied on for teaching, were good

indicators of what has been valued as necessary components of ICT education. On the DAVS

syllabus, the course is described as a “basic level appreciation program for the common man,”

implying that the course is aimed at educating individuals with a general lack of knowledge of

basic computer skills (DAVS syllabus). I found this to be fundamentally true, since the

functionality of computers was not immediately understood by my Ghanaian students, especially

those originally from the rural areas of the country. For me, someone from a developed country

surrounded by computers from a very young age, certain aspects of the computer system are

inherently accepted and understood. For my students, every aspect of the computer was new,

down to the very basic task of turning the computer on.

For the students who had used computers before or had at least taken some theory

courses on its functions, the programs and platforms being taught (be it Microsoft Word or using

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an internet browser such as Internet Explorer) were more easily comprehended. There seemed to

be a steep learning curve between those who had a basic understanding of these applications and

those who had no idea. However, even the basic physical action of holding the mouse and seeing

those actions being translated on screen were new for the majority of students. I spent the first

week of class having them practice navigating around the screen, drawing in the Paint program,

and working through the Mavis Beacon typing training application.

One student in particular had a very hard time using the mouse. She moved the mouse

slowly and awkwardly, often clicking on things she didn’t mean to click on. I could sense her

frustration, but rarely did she express it to me verbally. I attempted different ways to get her to

open up to me, ask me questions, and tell me when she was confused, but all of my attempts

failed. In fact, this became a trend for most of my students. I was given very little indication if

they understood my lesson or not; I very rarely got any feedback from them. I would ask them if

they understood, they would sit there staring up at me, I would ask again and then some would

nod.

After a while I asked Prince why this was; my concern was that they were intimidated by

the material or even intimidated by me. He explained that it was less of an issue of intimidation

than it was about habit. In local schools, teachers are authority figures and they are to be treated

with respect. The teacher should be listened to and never questioned. To my surprise, I was often

addressed as Madam by students, most of whom were older than me. Being addressed in such a

formal way was something I was not accustomed to, and had never experienced before from my

teaching experience in the United States.

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When I confronted my students about this they explained some experiences they had with

teachers in their schools. If they asked their teachers to repeat themselves the teacher would get

very angry and blame the student for not listening well enough. The students that asked questions

were looked down upon, sometimes even punished. Students were habitually trained to listen and

obey, even if they didn’t fully understand the material. For them, questions didn’t necessarily

belong in the classroom. I inevitably found myself fighting back by pushing my students to ask

more questions. I asked them to express their confusion, and if they needed me to repeat myself I

happily would. I explained, sometimes the material might be confusing, and because it was often

hard for them to understand my accent, those requests were welcomed.

In my teaching, I encouraged questions and welcomed misunderstandings or personal

interpretations from the students. From what I saw, education was a large part of the culture in

Ghana. The students took their education very seriously and had definite goals for future

professions and wanted to do everything they could to get there. The students in my classroom

worked hard and would often come in early or stay late to practice their typing skills.

Assessing Computer Education in Africa

What Y.Z. Ya’u, a scholar located in Nigeria, suggests is that the digital divide is less of

an issue of Africa “catching up” to the developed world, and more of an issue of utilizing its own

resources and developing a unique path of its own. In order to achieve this, Ya’u recalls the

NEPAD (New Partnership for Africa’s Development) section on bridging the digital divide, in

which one of the objectives was “to develop and produce a pool of ICT-proficient youth and

students from which Africa can draw trainee ICT engineers, programmers, and software

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developers” (Confronting the Digital Divide, 5). This acts as an indication for the government’s

eventual goal to train creators of content that learn the digital languages of the West.

What Y.Z. Ya’u seems to be calling for is a break away from this cultural dependence, a

dependence that has resulted in an economic disadvantage. He explains, “The continent [Africa]

faces the challenges of imperialism anew, this time represented by knowledge

dependence” (Ya’u, “Globalization, ICTs and the New Imperialism” 1). Ya’u’s main concern

seems to be the lack of promotion of African content, and the fact that ICTs are not locally

produced. Despite an increase in access to devices and internet connectivity, the digital divide is

actually widening; the resources African countries have gained has not been enough to catch up

with the pace the more technologically advanced countries are developing at.

I began my experience with a desire to understand on deep level the obstacles Ghanaian

students face in this attempt at modernization, to uncover where their interests lie as well as their

sources of confusion. When meeting with students in nearby schools, I asked about their personal

educational experiences. My questions ranged from asking about their experience with

computers, in order to gauge their knowledge of computers, to asking their opinions on ICT

education. In my interviews with my own students and the students at nearby schools, I asked

specifically what their impressions were of the governmental testing on ICT, and to explain some

of their personal experiences. I was particularly interested in investigating their relationship with

the desktop computer and how it benefits them personally.

When I asked if they could gauge their knowledge of computers, almost all students, even

students at the senior high school with the most computers, said that they weren’t very good at

the computer. Most of the students felt that they had poor typing skills. Their time in the

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computer labs was often brief so they never got a chance to improve on their typing. Very few

students had access to computers at home, and it was too expensive to go to the internet cafe,

especially when one is paying by the minute and it takes one a very long time to type a short

message. They mostly just heard about computers and talked about them in their classrooms.

When I went to visit a primary school in a village near Ho, the computer lab was locked up.

After talking with one of the teachers it became clear that the school hadn’t used the computers

inside the lab in about a year, since their volunteer instructors had left to go back to their home

countries.

Towards the end of my six weeks in Ghana I interviewed the DAVS students about their

experiences and asked why they wanted to take the class I was teaching. The responses were

pretty consistent; if they wanted to get a job after they finished school, they needed to have a

certification in computer skills. They needed that piece of paper, and my students often asked

about it throughout my six weeks with them. They all agreed that they needed to learn how to use

the computer, but couldn’t give a clear answer why. Those who had not used a computer or the

internet much (or at all) only knew what they had heard or seen on TV.

Through DAVS I met Paulette, a local Ghanaian volunteer working with DAVS in their

health care program; she also worked as a pediatric doctor at a large hospital in the capital Accra.

Paulette had a computer with her in Ho, along with a wireless Mifi router; she was what you

might call “computer literate”. When I asked her if she uses her computer in her work at the

hospital, she replied that is wasn’t a requirement for her. She felt being able to use a computer

was something she needs to know, but not necessary in her line of work. She explained that the

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hospital still relies heavily on a physical paper and folder filing system and nothing in the

hospital has been digitized thus far.

A section of the ICT in education policy suggests that the implementation of ICT

integration would not only be beneficial in schools, but also in the Ministry of Education itself.

In the 2008 ICT Education Policy, Thematic area 1 of chapter 3 explains, “The utilization of

computerized management tools can strengthen the institutional capacity of the Ministry of

Education, Science and Sports, its Agencies and all Education Institutions” (2008 ICT in

Education policy). This implies that there is a general lack of digital tools in the work

environment. Over the course of my research I heard this confirmed many times. I explored this

topic by talking with local young adults who had recently entered the professional environment.

I asked Paulette what she uses her computer for; she replied that she uses it mostly for

leisure, to browse the internet, chat with friends, watch movies and listen to music. The things

that she learned in her computer literacy classes years ago, such as office-related software, are

useless to her now. She explained, “What happens is that you learn it, but then you don’t use it

for a very long time. If you do need to use it again, you have to re-learn it. Or you never have to

use it at all.” Many of these programs were being taught at relatively young ages, long before the

time they may need to know them. More often than not, students never utilized their knowledge

of computers at all. For many it is just a pre-requisite for a job. Paulette continued, “It is a

requirement because it is a standard everywhere else. But it is not a standard here, it is only a

standard on paper. You need it on your CV.”

Scholars Wallack and Srinivasan proposes new solutions for bridging this gap between

the local and global (community and state) divide. The three possibilities include: developing

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new inclusive ontologies, utilizing technological resources, and re-working policymaking to

allow more localized involvement in decision making (Wallack, Srinivasan 5). The first

possibility of developing more inclusive ontologies is explained as leveling the field of

production, empowering the general public to become content creators, as opposed to just

consumers. The second possibility supports this as well, by using technological resources to

engage the public, through information kiosks and otherwise. The last possibility acknowledges

the myth of universality of technology, particularly through access. This possibility asks for

policy decentralization by rethinking institutional design.

Y.Z. Ya’u and Srinivasan seem to be advocating for a similar solution, a changing of the

creation of content to accommodate not only the state power, but also the local communities on

various scales. These issues primarily focus on the information loss that occurs when the state or

general source of information technological power resides in a centralized group. While the

conversations around ICT education tend to revolve around infrastructural challenges, these

scholars (among others) have presented a much more substantial debate around the cultural

challenges as well. This cultural analysis approach to ICT education introduces new solutions

that may assist with the implementation of governmental programs in the rural areas of

developing countries– those that tend to be at the end of the digital divide.

Hardware and Software

When considering the computer as the medium of our time controlling many aspects of

modern life, new issues consistently seem to arise. Specifically, Wendy Chun challenges the

notion of the computer as being a “transparent” device that fosters visual culture in a multitude

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of contexts, stating that the computer is actually “the most non-visual and non-transparent

device” (Chun, 27). Through an explanation of the history of programming, Chun describes

software as analogous to ideology, explaining, “both try to map the material effect of the

immaterial and to posit the immaterial through visual cues” (Chun, 44); in this way, both

software and ideology are hidden from social consciousness.

Chun references Lev Manovich’s term of “transcoding” as a tool for unpacking the myth

of software as merely common sense. Transcoding refers to the process in which media is turned

into data, or more broadly, to translate something from one format to another (Manovich, 63).

New media always consists of two layers, the computer layer and the cultural layer. As

information is processed through these layers, a highly processed, and subsequently, subjective

product is produced. Drawing from traditions in media studies, Manovich advocates for the use

of software studies or software theory to decode our media to uncover the hidden cultural

subjectivities beneath the surface of the computational layer.

On the other hand, these scholars focus primarily on representing cultures or creating new

platforms for users in one particular place, representing a culture instead of allowing that

particular community of people to represent themselves. While with good intention, this is

another indication of “digital-colonization,” a term used to discuss issues of globalization within

our digital networks. If only a certain group of people are producing content on the web, the

content is going to be limited to their world-view.

Many of the students I interviewed expressed a frustration with the lack of access they

had to the computer and materials on it. All students explained this to me in terms of a teaching

of “theory” vs. the activity of “practicals.” Most students attributed their lack of knowledge of

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computing to the lack of practicals in their ICT education. For them, this meant that they had

very little time in front of the computer and, when given the opportunity, they needed to share

computer stations with one or more other students. Their “theoretical” classes taught them about

the computer systems and what they are typically used for. Sometimes their theoretical

knowledge of computers came from books or pamphlets, but the majority of information they

received was told to them by their teachers– teachers who often lacked ICT training themselves.

I became increasingly aware of the absence of discussion around the potential cultural

implications of ICTs; this was especially apparent on government websites and documents. On

these sites there is a notable lack of conversation on issues of digital globalization in Ghana, or

even how the adoption of computer education might help to combat globalization effects. While

the use of computers is thought of as necessary, it is rarely questioned why; nor was it clear if

some aspects of computer education were necessary for development, while others were not. In

other words, the challenges and setbacks of the modernization process were never confronted or

questioned.

One particular statement within the ICT education policy hints at the potential threats

digital tools can bring to the changing of local culture. It explains that the policy is “focusing not

just on knowledge and skills but also attitudinal capacities to develop the right culture with the

appropriate mindset, values, and behavior” (2008 ICT in Education policy). This statement is the

first indication, if not the only one, that expresses a consideration for the cultural implications of

these devices that require particular mindsets, values, and behavior– all integral aspects of

culture.

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The lexicon of semiotics, or the study of signs, used by Roland Barthes, allows for

critical analysis of cultural artifacts and poses questions on the contextualization of them.

Barthesian semiology was primarily focused around advertising messages in Western societies, a

discussion around the semiotics of computers can help update the conversation to contemporary

issues of media messages. In this case, the systems being used in the classroom, such as the

desktop computer, are seen as displaced cultural objects; cultural objects are indeed culturally

situated and will be understood differently in different cultural contexts. Barthes explains, “... the

code of connotation was in all likelihood neither ‘natural’ nor ‘artificial’ but historical, or, if it be

preferred, ‘cultural’.” (Barthes, 27). While the denotation of a cultural object may not change,

what is connoted is dependent on the environment it is placed in at a particular time in history.

This was reflected in my experience in Ghana during the sessions focused around the

Microsoft Office programs. For one, software, such as Word, have limited language options. The

only language the students could use was English, even though their first language is the tribal

language of Ewe. There was no “Ewe” language option on Word. This will only become apparent

to one who is actively seeking to type in Ewe, connoting exclusion for that individual.

When I had them make “About Me” presentations on Power Point, because they didn’t

have Internet access they were forced to use the clip art already available through the software.

The majority of the images were very Western oriented that bore no resemblance to things they

were familiar with. For example, Powerpoint showed dogs and cats as household pets, while

such animals are not seen as pets in their culture. Clip art serves symbolic purposes to represent

everyday life in a simplified manner, but clip art in and of itself is very Western oriented.

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The students also seemed to give great value to Western objects themselves. This was

particularly apparent on the final day of class when I informed them that there would be a short

graduation ceremony. Almost every single student showed up in clothing from Western culture.

What was especially considered to be “nice” was business attire.

Ethnocomputing

A useful methodology for thinking about issues of cultural relevancy in digital devices

and how to approach it through critical analysis, is “ethnocomputing.” Tedre explains the prefix

of the term, being “ethno,” traces back to a Greek origin, meaning ‘people’ or ‘race’. However,

in the context of ethnocomputing, and the related term ethnomathematics, ethno refers also to

differences in culture, “based on language, history, religion, customs, institutions, and on the

subjective self-identification of the people” (Tedre, “Ethnocomputing” 34).

Many of these theorists emphasize an incongruence between the physicality of our

devices and an understanding of their inner workings as they affect the communicative aspects of

our lives. In the spirit of Chun’s work, Tedre and Eglash recollect the past of computing as a

signifier for how it functions today. In their piece “Ethnocomputing,” they date back ICTs as

developed primarily for military and industrial usage in the Western world. They advocate that

the “technology transfer from Western countries to developing countries often ignore aspects of

relevance” (Eglash and Tedre, 97).

Scholars Tedre and Eglash advocate for ethnocomputing as an all-encompassing term that

acknowledges a multiplicity of computer users around the world, many of whom may not be

fluent in the semiotics of Western culture. The ethnocomputing scholars explain, “Usability and

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technology today are built on metaphors and analogies that may not exist or may have different

connotations outside the Western world” (Tedre, Sutinen, Kahkonen, Kommer, “ICT in Cultural

and Social Context” 130). This implies an assumption that most digital tools are already

culturally situated in Western society and serving its needs. This is a claim also made by Chun

when she points to terms such as “slave” and “master” as terms being used in computer

programming to this day, terms loaded with historical implications of inequality. Chun contests

the notion of hardware being separated from culture while software can remain attached to it.

She explains, “Software has become a commonsense for culture and hardware a shorthand for

nature” (Chun, 47). Chun actively disagrees with this notion, believing more-so that software

and hardware are connected; neither one is natural, and both are cultural.

Ethnomathematics, for example, takes the approach that mathematics is not an objective

field of study. Ethnomathematics recognizes the diversity of understanding of mathematical

patterns discovered in nature cross-culturally. Throughout history, different cultures have used

those discoveries and represented them differently to accommodate their local understanding of

them. These scholars advocate for greater attention to be placed on culturally adapted computing

to accommodate local culture. Matti Tedre’s 2002 paper on ethnocomputing is subtitled, “A

Multicultural View on Computer Science,” alluding to the cultural construction of computing.

Tedre begins with an introduction to ethnocomputing and its origin, the ethnosciences.

Tedre quotes Ubiratan D’Ambrosio’s definition of ethnoscience as the "study of scientific and,

by extension, technological phenomena in direct relation to their social, economic and cultural

backgrounds” (Tedre, “Ethnocomputing: A Multicultural View” 28). This proposes a

reformatting of technological history, one that recognizes the development of science and

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technology as the product of particular cultural environments. Cultures have their own histories

and philosophies of science and technology, many of which are ignored and replaced by the

Western worldview, often determined by the West as pure fact. One is prompted to question– At

what point does scientific study become universal fact?

Tedre cites Berger and Luckmann discussing the production of subjective and objective

realities through their research of social constructivism. The subjective, or belonging to the

subject, through the scientific processes eventually turns into objective fact. The process is

described as starting with a hypothesis that turns into scientific study; this repeats and is turned

into an objectification, then internalized as objective knowledge, and subsequently turned into

something other than human product (Tedre, “Ethnocomputing: A Multicultural View” 2). This

process of objectification and internalization leads to an understanding of one’s surrounding

world as being reality, but essentially remains rooted in social acceptances. Therefore, the

realities that begin to manifest may only exist in one’s own social and cultural environment,

while at the same time be rejected by another.

As Tedre expresses, the idea of there being a “universal civilization” is, in fact, an idea

and construction originating in the Western world. This idea also corresponds to Marshall

McLuhan’s concept of the “global village,” in which the modern world is connected

electronically. This implies that in the digital age there is a universal way of communicating, a

common literacy among all human beings. Tedre references Huntington’s 1996 piece “The Clash

of Civilizations,” in which he contends this utopian notion as simply a product of the Western

world. Huntington recognizes other forms of thought, such as particularism in Asian societies as

in direct contrast to the universalism of the West (Tedre, “Ethnocomputing: A Multicultural

272727

View” 27). Instead of focusing on rules or one right way of doing things, particularism

acknowledges the possibility of a diversity of situations and the different responses that may

result from particular interactions.

Tedre claims that contemporary computer science is dominantly Eurocentric, facilitating

the digital divide. Subsequently, this dominant way of thinking restricts computer education in

non-Western cultures. Ethnocomputing is particularly interested in the ways in which

computational concepts are presented. Tedre suggests that we cannot change the foundation or

the history of computer science, but instead must change the way it is thought about today. By

encouraging an expanded view of computer science we can begin to value a multiplicity of

perspectives and encourage curiosity and exploration. This is the difference between an approach

that values separatism and an approach that values diversity; the difference between segregation

and inclusion. This is less about inventing an entirely new way of computing, and more about a

new approach to teaching. Along these lines, computer scientist Anita Borg expresses in her 2001

piece “Universal Literacy–A Challenge for Computing in the 21st Century,” that technology

should be created based on what people need or want, by addressing societal challenges rather

than creating them.

Tedre refers to the absence of a multicultural perspective within the sciences as a new

issue of the 21st century, and not in question in years past. It is only now, when fields of cultural

studies and the sciences are coming into contact more readily, are these questions beginning to

emerge. Computer science is a varied discipline in itself, covering diverse fields of study. Tedre

proposes that this may be intentional; due to the fact that the field is constantly changing because

of new advancements, it remains a term difficult to define. While ethnocomputing scholars focus

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mainly on computer science, this framework for thinking about computers can also be applied to

more general methods of computing, such as ICTs.

The government hopes that through the implementation of ICT curriculum, “... the

culture and practice of traditional memory-based learning will be transformed to education that

stimulates thinking and creativity necessary to meet the challenges of the 21st century” (2008

ICT in Education policy). The government recognizes the diversity of devices that are included

within the ICT spectrum. They explain ICTs as, “a varied set of goods, applications and service

that are used to produce, store, process, distribute and exchange information. They include ‘old’

ICTs of radio, television and telephone, and the ‘new’ ICT of computers, satellite and wireless

technology and internet with their attendant tools” (2008 ICT in Education policy). Many of the

old ICTs are already integrated into Ghanaian culture, and have been for years. This proposal

indicates a new type of learning about media devices, many that are familiar to all.

Multiculturalism in ICT Education

In order to look at these systems critically, we must also look at what these systems

connote, something not described in detail by texts on ethnocomputing. When considering the

computer as any cultural object or artifact, it is useful to consider the ways in which it may be

used or perceived differently in different cultures depending on how one culture might utilize it

differently.

Volunteering as a computer literacy educator through DAVS, I looked at the pedagogy of

computing and tried to gauge its relevance to the developing world; I questioned how computers

are being introduced and approached, what students are required to know, and how that relates to

292929

the use of computers in their everyday lives. I also wondered what is working and being adopted

on the local level and what is being rejected, taking into consideration the ontological

dimensions of Ghanaian communication.

To teach computer literacy backed by cultural considerations, a recognition of the

historical context and understanding of the generic conventions of these devices is required. In

dealing with issues of relevance, issues of irrelevance themselves must also be brought to the

table for discussion. This allows for an open conversation on how these devices might function

locally in surprising ways. If we don’t make room for those discussions to occur, local

innovation is hindered. This is about valuing the ideals of other cultures and different

interpretations.

Digital devices, particularly the desktop computer, are cultural objects, designed and

constructed with Western society in mind. The adoption of digital devices is the adoption of a

product from Western culture. Whether or not these adoptions are met with enthusiasm or

rejection, it is primarily an issue of assimilation; promoting ideologies differing from local

understanding and worldview. Putting equal importance on local and global communications is

necessary for the success of tech implementation.

Taking feedback given to me by Ghanaian students, I found out what these digital objects

connote for them. Ethnographic research is essential in understanding these cultural gaps and

identifying what changes can be made. Without acknowledging these gaps, the gaps cannot be

filled and new trajectories for Ghanaian technological innovation is not possible.

Ethnocomputing can serve as a method for rethinking the pedagogical processes of

computer literacy, or ICT education. Ethnocomputing borrows ideas from cultural theorists of

303030

modern times, adopting and reinterpreting concepts such as ideological critique and semiotic

interpretation to fit this contemporary issue. It fundamentally questions scientific discovery and

creation as the ultimate baseline for discovering “true” things. While the term has been used by

scholars to address issues of local relevance in computer science courses, the concepts behind

ethnocomputing can serve as a methodology for rethinking the pedagogical processes of basic

level computer literacy or ICT classes. Concepts such as ethnocomputing provide critical

thinking tools to equip students in identifying where the disparities may lie and where the

cultural gaps may be.

Conclusion

The underlying obstacles Ghanaian students are facing are the challenges of learning and

adopting a differing ontology through computational devices in order to understand and use the

devices to their full advantage. The device is often only thought of in terms of what it denotes,

ignoring the possibility of connotation. Globalization has transformed towns and cities in the

developing world, reflecting ideals from the Western world; Ho was no exception. The TVs

broadcast top 40 music videos from the US, while the local barber featured African American

celebrities on their street advertisements. Images and knowledge of Western cultural artifacts

serve as cultural currency, a symbol of societal status for many. Paulette, the DAVS Ghanaian

volunteer, expressed her concern for the changing cultural climate to me, as well. She

proclaimed, “you can’t find Ghana within Ghana now.” Bringing local issues to a global

discussion can help address local needs and retain local culture.

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In no way is the teaching of computers impossible for people in different cultural

contexts. The point is that what you can teach one human being you can teach another, regardless

of their background. This is more a question of ethics. But to impose one worldview onto another

is essentially affecting that culture in some way, changing habit, ontology, and operational

structures. To teach ethnocomputing is to teach through a fundamentally new perspective. It

doesn’t necessarily mean that the material changes, but instead the way in which the material is

presented. Treating computers as objective or impartial devices does a disservice to goals of

cultural diverse representations in new media forms.

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