From Sutherland Miller III, RTAC Project Director

On April 8, 2020, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)/U.S. Global Development Lab’s Center for Digital Development (CDD), under the auspices of the Research Technical Assistance Center (RTAC), hosted a live public webinar on “Digital Strategies in Education: Evidence from the Field as part of USAID’s “Digi-Know” series,”  Led by RTAC partner Arizona State University (ASU) a second webinar entitled “Digital Strategies for Offline Communities: Cases and Lessons from the Field,” occurred on August 12, 2020, diving deeper into case studies based on the ASU faculty team’s research.  The webinar was based on two in-person training courses on “Applying Digital Tools to Support the Journey to Self-Reliance” that were provided to USAID staff working in overseas Missions and Washington in 2019 and research presented in the April webinar.  With the completion of this second webinar, RTAC has achieved a major milestone in providing the technical assistance requested of CDD.

The April webinar was moderated by Mr. Ryan Johnson, Senior Sustainability Scholar, and led by Dr. Mary Jane Parmentier, Clinical Associate Professor, and Dr. Faheem Hussain, Clinical Assistant Professor in the School for the Future of Innovation in Society at ASU.  The webinar focused on recent developments in education delivery using digital technologies and the emergence of artificial intelligence in education for ensuring greater learning and achievements.  The team also highlighted the development of an independent, solar-powered educational library that provides localized educational content to resource-constrained locations around the world.  The webinar included a few polls and a live chat stream feature, enabling the ASU team to answer questions as the session progressed.

The April webinar sought to address several key questions, including:

1. How do digital education programs capitalize on resources to prioritize learning populations in need?
2. Where have these programs been implemented and what have the results been?
3. What are the benefits and opportunities of digital education programs?
4. What are the risks and challenges they present?

Participation in the webinars was robust and very international in attendance, reflecting an immense and growing interest in using digital strategies and technologies to enhance education.  Out of 522 individuals who navigated the RTAC website to register for the April event, 233 individuals from 62 countries and territories logged in to watch the presentation.  In addition to the Unites States and Canada, participants were from Africa (14 countries); Central, South, and Southeast Asia (14 countries); Europe (16 countries); Latin America (8 countries); and the Middle East and North Africa (8 countries).

Also open to the public, of the 440 individuals who viewed the invite for August event, ultimately 195 participated, in addition to 9 RTAC staff members.  In addition to the Unites States and Canada, participants were from Europe (8 countries); Latin America (3 countries); the Middle East and North Africa (2 countries); South and Southeast Asia (7 countries); and sub-Saharan Africa (13).  Although planned in advance of the current pandemic, the webinars offered timely, research-based insights into lessons learned from various approaches to digital engagement in education and with vulnerable populations, including refugees and rural communities.

Dr. Parmentier directs the M.S. in Global Technology and Development (GTD) program in the ASU School for the Future of Innovation in Society.  Her research and curriculum development have focused on the role of technology in economic, social, and political development, as well as the regions of Latin America and North Africa.  Dr. Hussain has over 15 years of experience conducting socio-economic development and technological interventions related research in Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and North America.  Dr. Hussain brings subject matter expertise in the intersection of information and communication technology (ICT) with:

1. Women’s empowerment;
2. Refugees;
3. Digital afterlife;
4. Public policy.

For the August webinar, Drs. Parmentier and Hussain were joined by Dr. Laura Hosman, Associate Professor in ASU’s School for the Future of Innovation in Society.  Dr. Hosman’s research focuses on ICT applications in developing countries, particularly as they relate to socio-cultural factors, human development, and economic growth.

The August webinar was again moderated by Ryan Johnson and led by Drs. Parmentier, Hussain, and Hosman.  This second webinar presented two case studies.  The first focused on the digital library project, SolarSPELL, out of ASU, which has been providing locally relevant information via offline solar powered digital libraries for rural communities and refugees around the world.  The second case study explored the Alternative Information Network, designed and implemented by Rohingya refugees from Myanmar.