ETEC 511 64B Assign 2 Iris C., Ada C. & Natalie G.

CHINA’S DIGITAL DIVIDE

ETEC 511 64B Assignment 2: China’s Digital Divide

October 14, 2007

Group 2:

Iris Chan

Ada Cheung

Natalie Giesbrecht ETEC 511 64B Assign 2 Iris C., Ada C. & Natalie G.

Table of Contents

Introduction...... 3

Policy, Power and Sustainability...... 3

Accessibility...... 5

Connectivity...... 5

Censorship...... 6

Training and Technical Support...... 6

Conclusion...... 7

2 ETEC 511 64B Assign 2 Iris C., Ada C. & Natalie G. Introduction

The Internet's growing importance within China has called to attention the penetration of technology in relation to educating the masses, and improving socio- economic conditions within the country. This growth is especially important for e- learning because the Internet is causing China's internal digital divide. This gap is both global and local; hence, it influences the growth of such web-based programs. Education is stifled when we consider both the disparate distribution of technologies and IT infrastructures while simultaneously compromising the quality of education. The friction between the developed technological regions in the West versus the developing Central and Eastern regions is of concern. This examination launches a vital dialogue about government policies, accessibility and training issues between the potential of e-learning and China's digital divide.

Policy, Power and Sustainability

In contrast to westernized models of commercialized e-learning, China’s government has stated that its motive for implementing e-learning is not for profit, but to adequately educate its population (Zhang, 2005). E-learning commonly holds the promise of equitable and accessible education which in turn as Carr-Chellman (2005) indicates,

“hold[s] the promise of democracy” (p.7). Zhang (2002) suggests that though China’s educational system is highly progressive and is of low cost to learners, global capitalism and the commercialized economy make China’s operation model difficult to sustain

(p.33). The central government has only allocated 10% of its educational fund to IT despite a serious shortage of educational facilities in rural areas (Zhang, 2005). For e-

3 ETEC 511 64B Assign 2 Iris C., Ada C. & Natalie G. learning to fulfill its promise, the government will need to reassess the dramatic economic, social and educational differences between rural and urban populations. The

Ministry of Education (MOE) has attempted to promote a democratic education system through its consistent commitment to accessible education across the country. However, the diffusion of IT infrastructure, equipment, training and funding has been imbalanced and efforts have not been aggressive enough to eradicate current inequalities.

Carr-Chellman (2005) points out that the “widening gap between the haves and have-nots is not so much about economies as it is about power” (p.6). In addition,

Franklin (1999) further points out that “technology [i]s a catalyst for the spread of control and management” (p.49). In the early nineties, China used the web as a tool to control public knowledge, when policy changes were implemented and access was limited to information in fields such as education, finance, and business. Funding was cut and access to the Internet became too costly for many. This policy change perpetuated the preexistent digital divide between rural and urban populations. It also further fostered exclusivity through inequitable dissemination of knowledge to particular urban educational institutions (Zheng, 2001).

To prevent further marginalization of rural regions from occurring, the speed and volume that e-learning programming is implemented needs to be considered. Lack of government regulations has opened the door for rapid growth of IT in the coastal provinces and further contributed to inter-provincial income disparities (Harrington,

2001). Policies, best practices and funding need to be put in place to ensure a future of quality and equitable education. The fate of the “haves and have nots” along with the

4 ETEC 511 64B Assign 2 Iris C., Ada C. & Natalie G. success of e-learning will not only rely on funding and policy, but significantly on the sustainability and maintenance of equipment and IT infrastructure.

Accessibility

Connectivity

A survey by the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC) depicts the presence of a digital divide, in Internet use especially, between China's urban and rural areas. The Internet's penetration rate has reached 5.1% in rural areas but when compared to the statistics for the urban areas of 21.6% there is still a remarkable gap (China Internet

Network Information Center, 2007, para.1). Although rural users are doubling every six months, only 0.3% of China's Internet users live in the country side; this contributes to the divide (Ford, 2007, para.10).

This gap in accessibility influences the development and distribution of e-learning programs. Due to low speed and bandwidth capabilities, and poor Internet infrastructure, potential learners will have difficulty accessing e-learning programs which heavily rely on web-based content (even if it was an option). Rural citizens also experience difficulties with necessities like electricity and costs for access and equipment, so the

Internet becomes a luxury (China Daily, 2003). In urban regions where "higher education institutes have better accessibility to the Internet and modern technology" and accessibility decreases to the elementary level, it is problematic (Zheng, 2002, p.91). In a study of 150 university students in China, 91.3% got computer access from school, only

8% owned one, and they were able to have access for an average 4.68hrs/wk, whereas

80.1% American university students owned one and accessed it for 14.75hrs/wk (Janem

5 ETEC 511 64B Assign 2 Iris C., Ada C. & Natalie G. et al., 2002, p.235). When we consider 51.2% of rural nonusers have less than a junior secondary education, rural learners will be at a further disadvantage with a lack of proper facilities than coastal areas (CNNIC, 2007, para.2).

Censorship

In Lo's (2001) case study, face-to-face learning and e-learning strategies, both are discussed as vital because of China's firewall and censorship policies. The study discusses how visual design education like graphic arts cannot rely on the Internet to provide students with the diversity of visual experiences when many of the sites that stimulate creativity are censored. E-learning in China is compromised by the government's dissemination of knowledge since China struggles between regulation and flexibility. With censorship policies preventing the development for e-learning programs, will that jeopardize the qualifications of the future workforce on the global stage?

Political content and information that are considered dangerous to the state are still censored. Illegally, Chinese citizens can bypass the firewall, but this isn’t an option for official institutions.

Training and Technical Support

Even with funding and accessibility issues solved, training and technical support are vital for e-learning to be successful. To feel confident about e-learning, faculty of institutions need opportunities for hands-on learning, support by technical experts, and, like Noble (1998) discusses, an assurance on copyright issues once their materials are available online. Also, current online content is inaccessible to Chinese instructors because web-content is Western culture-based as well as written in a language foreign to

6 ETEC 511 64B Assign 2 Iris C., Ada C. & Natalie G. them (Wensheng, 2002). Hence, more useful Chinese web-content needs to be created.

However, the current culture of the public, government, and faculty gives priority to research, policy, and practice that do not focus on distance education as an efficient delivery system because teacher-centered, Confusionist philosophies are still widely used in traditional classrooms. Also, this methodology is drastically different from the constructivst learner-centered approaches of many e-learning programs in technologically advanced global regions. Therefore, training in accepting new teaching methodologies needs to be implemented first (Carr-Chellman, 2005). Moreover, China needs to be pro- active through access and training programs to increase their female Internet users, so to prevent gender imbalance in technology experts (CNNIC, 2007). When the various training and technical issues are solved, then the shortage of technologically experienced teachers in both urban and rural China can be tackled through proper professional development and re-locating trained human resources.

Conclusion

China has been deeply affected by the digital divide, both locally and globally.

The government’s goal of educating the masses through e-learning and attempts to improve socio-economic conditions, have further contributed to the disparate distribution of technologies. In efforts to strengthen national identity and gain economic clout on the global market, the government has used the Internet as a tool to control and censor the dissemination of information, privileging certain social-economic groups and e-industries over others. At the same time, rural China’s access to technology and infrastructure has been severely limited, further disadvantaging this population of skills development.

Without proper training and infrastructure, a gap in the future workforce will be

7 ETEC 511 64B Assign 2 Iris C., Ada C. & Natalie G. inevitable.

The digital divide between the rich and poor in China is widening despite the growth of e-learning. Even with funding, policy and accessibility issues solved, faculty training and technical support still need to be addressed. Frequent assessments of technology, infrastructure, policies and socio-economic conditions are vital to ensure a sustainable high quality e-learning education system that will equip learners to be contributing participants in today’s China and in that of the future.

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