Education and Technology Series - World Bank...The authors are grateful for the support and guidance...

18908March 1998

Education andTechnology Series

Special Issue

Computers in Schools:A Qualitative Study of Chile and Costa Rica

byChile: 1\Maria In6s Alvarez, Francisca Roman

Costa Rica: Maria Cecilia Dobles, Jeanina Umafia,Magaly Z-dfiiga, Jackeline Garcia

SRI International: Barbara MeansThe World Bank: Michael Potashnik, Laura Rawlings

EDUCAT "NTHE W ORLD B A N K

A publication of the World Bank Human Development NetworkEducation Group -Education and Technology Team

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Computers in Schools:A Qualitative Study of Chile and Costa Rica

Summary Report of a Collaborative Research Project

Principal Researchers:Chile: Maria In6s Alvarez, Francisca Roman

Costa Rica: Maria Cecilia Dobles, Jeanina Umafia, Magaly Zfifiga, Jackeline Garcia

SRI International: Barbara Means

The World Bank: Michael Potashnik, Laura Rawlings

Abstract

This qualitative analysis explores Chile and Costa Rica's experiences introducing technology into their educationsystems at the program, school and classroom levels. The interview and observational data collected in II schools,selected because of their success with implementing technology programs, report how principals, teachers andstudents perceive and use technology. At the program level, the analysis reveals that the choice of implementationstrategies for launching and disseminating a technology program has important implications for how the program isapplied in the schools. At the school level, the programs have led to greater prestige, pride and opportunities forprofessional development, particularly among teachers. In the classrooms and computer laboratories, patterns ofsocial organization within classrooms echo those observed in computer laboratories where the research recordedincreased interaction among students and less direction on the part of teachers.

March 1998

The authors are grateful for the support and guidance given by Clotilde Fonseca, the Director of the Omar DengoFoundation, Andrea Anfossi, Director of the Programa de Informatica Educativa MEP-FOD, and Joanne Capper ofthe World Bank. The study was funded by the World Bank's Research Support Budget (RPO 68068). The viewsexpressed herein are those of the authors and do not reflect the policy of the Government of Chile, the Governmentof Costa Rica, the institutions associated with this project or of the World Bank.

L INTRODUCTION Enlaces was to create a telecommunications and com-

puter network among 100 Chilean primary schools and

Chile and Costa Rica provide a valuable opportu- associated institutions, with the intent that the cor-

nity to analyze two approaches to introducing computers could be used to promote cooperative learning,puters into developing-country education systems. higher-level thinking, data management, and commu-

Both are democratic, middle-income countries; both nications skills. As part of the school selection pro-

have focused their computer-based education process, individual schools were invited to submit pro-

grams on schools in low-income urban and rural areas; posals to describe how they intended to use the cor-

and both intended that computer use would enhance puters within the context of an overall school improve-

children's cognitive abilities and prepare teachers and ment effort. By the end of 1995, Enlaces had substan-

students to participate more fully in the Information tially surpassed its original targets and had incorpo-

Age. However, these two countries took quite differ- rated computers into some 180 schools at both the

ent approaches to the ways in which the computers primary and secondary levels. However, this number

were used in their schools. Their approaches offer isonlyaverysmallpercentageofChile's 8,250primary

insights into designing and implementing technology schools and 1,700 secondary schools.

programs which enhance teaching and learning in

schools. Having proven so successful in its pilot phase,Enlaces was recently converted into a national pro-

Study Purpose. In early 1996, a set of qualitative gram by the Ministry of Education and provided the

case studies was initiated to analyze the role of com- political and financial support to incorporate all sec-

puters in education in Chile and Costa Rica. The analy- ondary schools and half of all primary schools by the

sis was conducted at the program, school and class- year 2000. By the end of 1997, there were close to 900

room levels. At the program level, the study focused primary schools and 450 secondary schools engaged

on the goals of the technology programs and the strat- in the En/aces network, supported by 26 universities

egies adopted for achieving these goals, with a par- providing training, pedagogical guidance ard techni-

ticular focus on lessons that could be useful to other cal support to the schools.

countries using computers to support education in the

coming years. At the school level and classroom, 11 Costa Rica's Computer Program. Originally

schools (6 in Chile and 5 in Costa Rica) that had suc- launched as a campaign promise of the former presi-

cessfully introduced technology programs were stud- dent and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Oscar Arias, the

ied to assess the resulting changes in the roles and Costa Rican Computers in Education Program was cre-

behaviors of students and teachers. Whereas this ated in 1988 to contribute to the improvement in the

study provides insight into each country's experience quality of Costa Rican education and to provide ac-

with education technology, a much larger, prospective cess to technology to children in rural and marginal

study based on a random sample of schools would be urban areas. The program, which is ajoint effort of the

needed to provide generalizable, systematic evidence Ministry of Public Education and the Omar Dengo

concerning outcomes. Foundation (ODF), has been designed to stimulate

creativity, cognitive skills and collaborative work. Other

Chile's Computer Program. Chile launched En- project objectives have been to rekindle teachers' in-

laces as a pilot project in 1993 as part of a much larger terests in teaching and to provide students with new

and more comprehensive reform to enhance the qual- learning environments and opportunities. The program

ity of primary and secondary education. The goal of reaches yearly 30 percent of the total elementary school

2 Education and Technology Series: Special Issue

population and is present in all regions of the country. has a well-developed education system which cor-

It is based on a constructivist approach to learning pares favorably to its neighbors and to higher-income

and uses Logo as a programming tool and a vehicle for countries. Adult literacy is about 95 percent, with an

creating a constructivist educational environment. The average of 1.0 years of schooling now being attained

specific program used till 1997 is Logowriter, which by Chileans. Access to primary education is essen-

has both graphic and word processing capabilities tially universal, while secondary education is available

making it possible to address different curriculum re- to some 82 percent of the student population, and en-

lated subjects through the development of specific rollment in higher education, while still limited, is ex-

projects. panding rapidly.

From the beginning, teacher training, follow up Despite these impressive achievements, Chile's

and support have been key components of the Costa education system has faced difficult problems in qual-

Ricanpprogram. The initial program design was jointly ity, efficiency and equity, especially in schools serving

developed by a Costa Rican team with the support of low-income urban and rural communities. Low stan-

Seymour Papert and other members of the Learning dardized test scores have revealed poor mastery of

and Epistemology Group of the Massachusetts Insti- curriculum objectives by both primary and secondary

tute of Technology (MIT). It included training of a school students; repetition and dropout rates were

core group oftrainers and program staff from the Omar high; and many schools in rural areas have not offered

Dengo Foundation, the Ministry of Public Education the complete cycle of primary education. Secondary

and the University of Costa Rica. The primary focus education also has shown low external efficiency, fail-

of the training developed with the initial support of ing to provide students with the higher-order thinking

Papert and MIT was centered on educational philoso- and problem-solving skills required by tertiary educa-

phy and fostering constructivist practice in the use of tion institutions and the labor market. Moreover, there

computers. Technical and programming aspects have have been severe disparities between higher and lower

always been intertwined with educational aspects income groups in the quality and access to educational

through a project-based approach. Technical content services at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels.

per se has always had a secondary focus.

In 199 1, Chile launched an ambitious educationalHistorically, the Omar Dengo Foundation has been reform which began with a Primary Education Improve-

responsible for technical, pedagogical, logistic and ment Project (known by its Spanish-language acronym,

financial support. In order to guarantee adequate pro- MECE), a $243 million 5-year program to improve the

gram development, Omar Dengo Foundation created a quality, efficiency and equity of its primary system.

Training and Research Center which has been respon- Under the MECE program, Chile allocated grants to

sible for the creation of training modules and on go- some 5,000 municipal schools to fund innovative multi-

ing support since 1988. Since its inception, the Costa year quality improvement projects designed by the

Rican program has reached over one million children, schools, provided in-service training for some 78,000teachers and adults. teachers and 8,000 principals, distributed textbooks and

complementary reading materials, upgraded and ex-

Country Backgrounds panded school infrastructure, and established the En-

laces computer network in 100 mostly rural primaryChile's Education System. With a population of schools. In its first years ofoperation, MECE wasjudged

close to 14 million and aper capita GNP of$2,700, Chile to be highly successful in achieving its objectives, giv-

Computers in Schools: A Qualitative Study of Chile and Costa Rica 3

ing encouragement to the Chilean government to pro- tific high schools, and the founding of the Costa Rican

ceed with the implementation of a comparable reform Computers in Education Program.

at the secondary level. Chile embarked on a second

phase of MECE in 1994 through the Secondary Educa- Costa Rica has undertaken several initiatives to

tion Quality Improvement Project which was initiated improve the quality and efficiency of basic education

on an experimental basis in 124 of the 1200 secondary and to provide equitable access to educational re-

schools in the country and became a full-scale national sources for those currently underserved. It has also

program in January 1995. Today, MECE includes a tried to increase the relevance of education to Costa

variety of other initiatives serving at-risk students, pre- Rica's emerging labor market requirements and com-

schoolers and accelerated secondary schools. petitive position in the international economy. While

the government has launched important programs in

Costa Rica's Education System. Costa Rica is a recent years, measures to improve educational quality

much smaller country than Chile, but comparable in its have been slow to take effect. This is demonstrated by

level of economic development. Costa Rica's popula- the relatively low average scores attained by i5th grad-

tion of 3.5 million has an annual per capita income of ers on a national assessment of math and verbal skills

US $3,659. It has enjoyed an enviable position among conducted in 1994 and poor results attained by 3rd,Latin American countries in the provision of social ser- 6th and 9th graders in other diagnostic tests. How-

vices, including education. Universal primary educa- ever, in 1997, the National Testing Center identified a

tion was achieved by the early 1960s and by 1995, adult reversal of that trend. There has been an increase in

literacy stood at 95 percent. Over 80 percent of Costa access to secondary education in recent years, par-

Rican elementary school students continue on to sec- ticularly in rural areas through the creation of 76 new

ondary school, a number that is rising due to the cre- high schools. In 1997 one year of preschool educa-

ation of new high schools in recent years. Costa Rica tion became obligatory so that all children enter pri-

has 4 state universities, 4 community colleges, and 39 mary school on a relatively level playing field. Costa

private universities along with a wide range of non- Rica has also introduced bilingual education to 1 of

formal technical, commercial, and agricultural courses every 3 elementary school children, strengthened tech-

are offered throughout the country by the National nical education and supported the expansion and con-

Training Institute. solidation of computers in education programs in both

primary and secondary education. In 1997, the Costa

During the mid 1980s, Costa Rica identified worri- Rican Congress passed a constitutional reform man-

some declines in the quality and efficiency of educa- dating that 6 percent of GDP be devoted to education.

tion, particularly in disadvantaged areas, due in large

part to enormous growth in school enrollments, inad-

equate funding as a result of an economic downturn, IL STUDY METHODOLOGY

and weak planning and administration. Low test re-

sults at both primary and secondary levels, and the Levels of Analysis. This qualitative evaluation

entrance of a high number of unqualified teachers to uses a case study approach carried out at three levels

address the growth in enrollment spurred a national of analysis: country, school and classroom. At the

reform in education. The reform included national stan- country level, the study compares Chile's and Costa

dardized tests to identify deficiencies and reorient poli- Rica's experiences in developing, introducing and main-

cies, the creation of the National Didactics Center taining their school-based technology initiatives. At

(CENADI) to support in-service training, and of scien- this level, each country team explored its own experi-


ence by comparing it with the other's analysis, with staff in both Chile and Costa the opportunity to reflect

the intention that this exchange could be mutually ben- on their own experiences through participatory research

eficial and illustrative for other countries interested in and to compare these experiences to another country's

formulating their technology in education projects. by using a common research methodology. Although

both programs had previously conducted internal re-

At the second level of analysis, the study focused search on their activities, this is the first opportunity

on 11 schools (5 from Costa Rica and 6 from Chile) they have had to do cross- national research. How-

serving middle to low-income students and deemed ever, due to limited funds, the country researchers did

successful by field-based technology program staff. not participate in site visits to each other's countries.

Data were gathered in both school and community

contexts on the characteristics, perceptions and opin- Data Collection Instruments. Interview and class-

ions of individuals regarding the technology program. room observation instruments were developed by the

Additionally, in each sampled school, two classrooms intemationall research team to ensure comparability

were observed, one where computer-based technol- between the Chilean and Costa Rican data. In addi-

ogy was being used and another where it was not. In tion, a detailed history of each country's technology

the technology-using classrooms, the observations program was gathered.

focused on recording the specific applications of the

technology, the interactions among students and be- School principals, teachers, and computer tech-

tween teachers and students, and the pedagogical nology tutors and coordinators were interviewed in

methods used when applying the technology. The each selected Chilean and Costa Rican school. These

non-technology-using classrooms were included to semi-structured interviews were used to gather data

understand how the pedagogical methods and inter- on the individuals' professional and technological back-

personal dynamics in these settings differ from those grounds, their management and/orteaching style, their

observed in the technology-using classrooms, and to attitude toward their role in the school, their relation-

assess whether and how the introduction of computer ship with the technology program, and their percep-

programs in a specific classroom or laboratory influ- tion of the program's impact on the school.

ences the overall teaching and learning environment

in the school. Finally, structured observations using specific

guides were carried out in classrooms and laboratories

Research Team. The study is the collective prod- where computer-based technology is being used, as

uct of an international team of researchers and pro- well as in non-computer using classrooms. These ob-

gram staff based at the Omar Dengo Foundation in servations were applied to characterize the learning

Costa Rica, the University of La Frontera in Chile, SRI environment and teaching and leaming dynamic in each

International in the United States and the World Bank. setting.

The country teams in Costa Rica and Chile con- Sample Selection. Sample schools are all public

ducted qualitative evaluations of their respective pro- or private subsidized schools selected because of their

grams using the methodological framework developed reputed success with computers and their orientation

by the entire multinational team. While acknowledg- serving middle to lower-income communities. A proce-

ing the risk of bias inherent in recruiting staff to con- dure for establishing the selection criteria for success-

duct evaluations of their own programs, the research ful schools was agreed upon by the inteational team

project recognized the advantage of giving program and applied by program staff in each country. To de-


School Characteristics Costa Rica ChileStudent enrollment 1,080 -1,604 400- 1,100Student-teacher ratio 23 -33 16 -27Student-computer ratio 53-73 68-137Principal software applications e-mail; Logo Writer KidPix, ClarisWorks, La Plaza,

e-mailAvailability of computers 18-20 computers per school 5-9 computers per school placed

placed in one lab in labs and some classroomsPerson responsible for computers 2- 3 tutors 1- 3 coordinatorsin the schoolSocio-economic status of students low to lower-middle lowSchool locations urban, marginal-urban, rural urban, marginal-urbanCommunity access to the in all 5 schools I school of 6technologyIntegration of technology not a program priority high priorityapplications and curriculumYears in technology program 5 - 8 2.5 -4Grades with access to technology pre-school to sixth pre-school to eighthprogram% of students in each grade withaccess to technology program 100 percent VariableTechnology targeted to special Yes Yeseducation students

Table 1. Data on sampled schools in the research project, 1996

termine the selection criteria in each country, a ques- ing and non-technology using classrooms alike

tionnaire was distributed to computer technology train- * a high proportion of teachers using the technology

ers, asking them to point out which of the schools e teamwork between teachers, computer coordinators

under their supervision they considered most success- and principals

ful and to identify the specific characteristics of the

schools leading to this conclusion. This short mail Finally, each sample school had to have a mini-

survey yielded the following criteria for a school's suc- mum of 2 years' experience using technology and had

cessful adoption of each country's technology pro- to serve middle to low-income students. However, as

gram: the results of the evaluation will show, the sampled

Both countries: schools do not necessarily reflect all of these charac-

* a perception of technology contributing to a dynamic teristics. Table I provides summary data for the case-

learning environment study schools in each country.

* a perception of technology enhancing students' per-

formance Stages of the Research. The research was carried

* active participation in technology training out from March 1996 to March 1998 by teams based at

In Costa Rica: Costa Rica's Omar Dengo Foundation, Chile's Enlaces

* a high degree of involvement ofthe local community program, the World Bank and SRI International.

in technology-related activities Michael Potashnik, from the World Bank, formulated

* a minimum of 800 students using the laboratory the research proposal with the assistance of Barbara

In Chile: Means, from SRI International. Funding for the re-

* a diversity of technology-based projects search came from the World Bank's Research Program* non-traditional teaching methods in technology-us- and its Latin America and Caribbean Human and Social


Development Group. The project was launched in HL PROGR" DESIGNAND IPLENENTATION

March 1996 at a workshop in San Jos6, Costa Rica,where the entire research team refined the goals, meth- Both Chile and Costa Rica have fielded long-term,

odology and work program for the investigation and large-scale sustainable, successful national programs

developed common sampling strategies, data collec- supporting the application of technology in education.

tion instruments and approaches to data analysis. Each Both projects began with a pedagogical vision and a

country team then selected the case study schools, clear articulation of goals for teacher professional de-

refined the data collection instruments, and pilot tested velopment and for technology use. However, Chile

the instruments in one school. and Costa Rica approached the introduction of com-

puters into their education systems in quite different

A second workshop was held in June 1996 in Wash- ways, with regard to both the sources of support and

ington, D.C. to review the results of the pilot tests, to the strategies used to introduce computers into the

confirm the effectiveness of the methodology, revise schools.

the evaluation instruments and develop a common for-

mat for the school debriefing reports.' Fieldwork was Strategies at the National Level

carried out from July to November 1996, and a final

workshop was held in May 1997 to present drafts coun- Program Design. There are three main features

try reports, to review research findings, and to develop of the Enlaces program's design and implementation

overarching lessons. strategy. The first is the decentralized cluster approach

introduced when the program began as a pilot project.

The summary report was drafted by researchers Under this approach, a university serves as the nucleus

from SRI and the World Bank and sent to the country supporting a cluster of primary or secondary schools

teams for review and comments. Following the receipt that are linked to one another through a wide area net-

of comments from the teams, the World Bank research work. The university provides training to the schools

team visited Costa Rica from March 9-13, 1998 to draft in the use of computers, and assistance in selecting

the final report in collaboration with the Executive Di- and using software specific to the school-based project

rector of the ODF and members of the Costa Rican that each school must develop in order to participate

research team. in Enlaces. This requirement is the second main fea-

ture of the Chilean program and gives it a distinctive,

There are three final products of the research. First, demand-driven characteristic since no school can par-

each country team produced a country report oriented ticipate without having developed a plan for how it

to a national policy-making audience, reflecting the main intends to use the technology. Finally, in Chile a mini-

findings from their own analysis of the school-based mum of 20 regular classroom teachers and the school

case studies in their own country. These country re- principal must endorse the program and participate in

ports summarize each national team's observations and the training elaborated by their corresponding univer-

findings from the field research. This summary docu- Sity.2 These features have resulted in tremendous het-

ment reflects the input of the entire research team and Participants from SRI international, the World Bank, and

provides a comparative analysis of the results from the Omar Dengo Foundation attended this workshop. Chile'seach country. team was unable to attend, but provided comments through

e-mail and telephone.

2 Before 1995, Enlaces has required that a minimum of 12

teachersper school endorse the technology program; thenew minimum requirement reflects the growth in the avail-ability of computers in program schools.


erogeneity in how the technology program is applied but depending on the number children and the number

across schools, but have served the purpose of en- of groups that will require the services. Due to the

couraging schools to define their own programmatic importance given to philosophy and methodology, the

focus for the application of the technology. 2-3 teachers from each school are continuously trained

as teams, and initial training frequently includes the

The Costa Rican program's strong pedagogical principal.

orientation has been accompanied by a focused imple-

mentation strategy spearheaded by the Omar Dengo In sum, both countries' programs emphasize equi-

Foundation in collaboration with the Ministry of Edu- table access to technology across income groups, both

cation. In contrast to Chile's demand-driven approach, require teachers to engage in technology-specific train-

in Costa Rica the Ministry of Education and the Omar ing as a pre-requisite to introducing the program, and

Dengo Foundation select schools from across the both work with existing teachers in the schools se-

country based on agreed-upon criteria, which include lected for the technology program as a strategy for

among others, school and community interest and ex- securing collaboration from the participating schools

plicit collaboration, willingness ofteachers to be trained and for keeping down recurrent costs in the educa-

to become a part of the program, and equitable geo- tional system as a whole. However, the theories and

graphic and socio-economic distribution. The Omar strategies guiding each program are quite distinct. The

Dengo Foundation and the Ministry of Education work Costa Rican program explicitly promotes constructivism

jointly to train the key staff and define the program's through a single type of computer use as the favored

orientation, including the software and methodology pedagogical approach, whereas Chile's decentralized

for its application. Another difference is that whereas model calls upon schools and the universities which

the Chilean program began as a pilot, the Costa Rican provide them technical support, to define the content

program has always held national coverage as a key and direction of the program as part of implementing

component to its goal of having a "meaningful impact their own school-based projects.

on the country's socio-economic development" by

bridging gaps across nations, generations and income Private Sector Support and Involvement. In both

groups (Fonseca, 1993). Chile and Costa Rica, the private sector's involvement

has been critical. Chile's University of La Frontera and

The Omar Dengo Foundation and the Ministry of Costa Rica's Omar Dengo Foundation have served as

Public Education jointly chose a general pedagogical the driving forces behind the design and implementa-

orientation akin to the program's objectives and se- tion of their respective programs. Another striking fea-

lected Logo Writer as the principal tool and environ- ture of both programs is the absence of central control

ment for the program. The selection of a Logo-based from the ministries of education. Although in both

application was meant to provide new opportunities to countries the programs receive support from the min-

build children's cognitive skills throughout his or her istries of education, in neither country has the govern-

primary school years and to encourage students and ment become involved in the daily administration of

teachers to enact greater control over their own learn- the technology program. Instead this role has been

ing. The lab tutors are directly responsible for the left to these private sector institutions in direct col-

specific pedagogical materialization of the project and laboration with the schools. This autonomy has iso-

for the choice of specific areas of work for the lab lated the programs from the political and financial cycles

activities. The number of teachers trained is defined often associated with public sector programs, and each

not depending of the number of teachers per school, institution's strong reputation has contributed to its


ability to attract leading academics and education pro- rich exchange of information and ideas.

fessionals as program collaborators and promoters.

Beyond the support provided by these various

Both programs have also benefited from technical organizations at the national level, the involvement of

support from private firms in the technology field and the private sector has been key to implementation at

national and foreign universities with established en- the local level. In both countries, parents and other

gineering and education departments. In Costa Rica, private individuals or locally-based companies have

IBM won an international bid to assist in developing provided telephone lines, air conditioning and other

an integral approach to both the technical and educa- equipment free of charge to the schools. Additionally,

tional aspects of the program. The idea behind the bid schools often use their technological resources to reach

which was supported by Seymour Papert and other out to the community through adult computer educa-

members of MIT's Media Lab, was to draft a national tion classes and the electronic production of newslet-

program building on existing international experience ters.

and research. However, once the program was

launched in 1988, Costa Rica developed its own na- Stability and Support. Consistent factors in both

tional teaching and learning facilities and implemented projects have been long-term stability and consistent

the project with the support of Ministry of Education, and extensive resources. In addition, both projects

University of Costa Rica and Omar Dengo Foundation began with a statement of goals supported by an ex-

personnel. After the contact with IBM finished, Costa plicit pedagogical vision.

Rica maintained its links with Seymour Papert and the

Omar Dengo Foundation has made him its main advi- The U.S. Agency for International Development

sor and an honorary member of the institution. (USAID) provided the seed capital for launching the

project as well as an endowment which generates rev-

The Chilean programs technical support was pro- enue for the ODF's annual operations. Over the years,

vided primarily by engineering school faculty from the additional support has been provided by international

Catholic University in Santiago who moved to the Uni- agencies such as the United Nations Development

versity of La Frontera in 1993 to help implement the Programme, the Inter-American Development Bank

Enlaces program. Additionally, Apple Computer pro- (1DB), as well as many local and community sources.

vided informal technical support in planning teacher The IDB financed the creation of academic degree

training strategies and selecting software. On several programs in educational computing for program staff,occasions, Enlaces technicians visited Apple's head- the development of new learning environments, the

quarters in California to discuss technical issues and project's telecommunications network and impact

to learn about new solutions being developed for net- evaluation studies. In addition to providing the finan-

working, software design, and the use of computers in cial support, the Omar Dengo Foundation has also

the classroom. Apple staff shared their experience with supervised the project on a day-to-day basis through

the Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow (ACOT) and do- several changes in government. The consistency pro-

nated computer equipment and software to Enlaces vided by the Omar Dengo Foundation has given the

for evaluation purposes. In 1995, Apple's ACOT pro- program a sense of stability unusual among innova-

gram selected an Enlaces staff member, who is writing tive efforts in developing countries.

a book on Enlaces, to receive its first Innovative Schol-

ars Award. This award supported a seven-month resi- Chile also has benefited from stability and ad-

dency at the ACOT Center in California and provided a equate financial support. There has been a stable demo-


cratic government since the project's inception; a large out their administrative duties, whereas in Costa Rica

number of political leaders have supported the project, none of the principals interviewed use the computers

and the World Bank has supplemented government in the labs, either for administrative tasks or other ap-

funds available for the effort. The project director of plications. This difference partially reflects the spe-

the government's overall school reform effort, under cific orientation of each country's program: the En-

which the computer activities have been placed, has laces program is promoted as a tool for the use by the

remained constant since the project's inception. entire school community to be applied toward a com-

mon goal articulated by the school community itself as

Applying Technology in the Schools: Participants and well as more broadly within a school's overall work

their Roles program; in Costa Rica the computers in the labs are a

critical input in a specific pedagogical process cen-

The two countries' implementation strategies for tered on students and tutors mobilizing their own cre-

working with the participating schools are quite differ- ative energies. Correspondingly, in the Costa Rican

ent. Costa Rica's approach vests considerable respon- Computers in Education Program, principals are trained

sibility with the tutor or tutors -those responsible for in the pedagogical, not administrative, applications of

program management and laboratory instruction in the the computer.

school- and, through annual training and site visits

from regional advisors, provides the tutors with direct Teachers. In both countries, implementation of

links to the Omar Dengo Foundation and the Ministry the technology program has introduced new roles for

of Education. In the more decentralized Chilean ap- teachers including creating new positions to support

proach, Enlaces uses its network of universities to pro- the program. However, the different strategies em-

vide a group of staff at each school with two years of ployed reveal interesting contrasts between the two

training and technical support which is intended to countries.

make the schools reasonably self sufficient. Thus, af-

ter the initial two-year period of involvement with a In Costa Rica, teachers wishing to become tutors

school, the Enlaces program leaves the school to fend participate in a selection process organized by the Omar

for itself and moves on to help others. Dengo Foundation. Once selected, they derive the

benefits of a systemic training process and receive a

School Principals. Despite the fact that none of 30 percent or 50 percent salary supplement from the

the school principals interviewed in either country had Ministry of Education for the extra time they work at

had previous experience with computers, they were all the computer lab before or after their regular teaching

key proponents of the technology program and impor- assignment. The number of tutors per school depends

tant to its successful implementation in the schools. on the total number of students, and classes in each

The crucial factor in all cases was the open-mindedness school, with schools usually training 2-3 tutors. Indi-

of the principals regarding the technology and their vidually, or in groups, tutors are responsible for defin-

ability to successfully foster the adoption and devel- ing the educational activities organized for each group

opment of the program within their schools. of students. Tutors are responsible for coordinating

the use of the school's computer resources and are

However, Chile and Costa Rica present an inter- directly responsible for working with students while

esting contrast regarding the role of principals as us- they are in the computer laboratories; the regular class-

ers of the technology. In Chile, all of the principals room teachers, on the other hand, even when present

interviewed use the technology as a tool in carrying in the laboratory, usually do not use the technology,


although they may have provided some input concern- tween the tators and the program, and work on main-

ing the nature and content of the project their students taiing coherence between what takes place at the lab

work on at the lab. and the general objectives and activities of the pro-

gram. In this respect their role is relatively similar to

In Chile, the Enlaces program designers' goal is to that played by the university-based staff working with

have many of the schools' teachers participate in the their corresponding Enlaces school. Their responsi-

technology program and to use the technology in the bility is to design and provide training, pedagogical

context of the school's overall work program. This is assistance, guidance and feedback to laboratory tu-

the objective behind requiring that a minimum of twenty tors and their students. They provide the schools in

teachers participate in the development and implemen- the program with a direct link to the Omar Dengo Foun-

tation of each school's technology project. In addi- dation and meet once a week at ODF to receive train-

tion, each school participating in Enlaces is required ing, share experiences, engage in research and follow-

to appoint one to three teachers to serve as the school's up on specific issues. Although their salaries are paid

technology coordinators. The coordinators provide by the Ministry of Education, their programmatic on-

technical and administrative support to their fellow entation and training comes from thejoint Omar Dengo

teachers and the principal. They are responsible for Foundation-Ministry of Education program.

scheduling the use of computers, maintaining the equip-

ment, securing the necessary materials for the imple- Program Training

mentation of the school's technology-based program,training teachers and students, and encouraging their Both programs emphasize the preparation of

fellow teachers to use computers in teaching basic school-based staff for using the technology as in-

subjects. In contrast to the advisors in Costa Rica, tended and devote considerable resources to training

who provide training and support to school staff, these to ensure each program's intended results.

coordinators are based at the school and their work as

coordinators must be assumed by the school while Training in Costa Rica. In Costa Rica, training is

meeting its other basic obligations. The amount of aimed at the advisors, laboratory tutors and, to a lesser

time devoted to the job of coordinator varies consider- extent, school principals and staff. Every year, advi-

ably across schools, from a few hours a week to a full- sors are required to attend a two-week, 80 hour course

timejob. Furthermore, whereas in Costa Rica the Min- given by the Omar Dengo Foundation and the Minis-

istry of Education provides a financial supplement to try of Education. This training conveys the main theo-

school-based tutors, in Chile payments to the technol- retical and pedagogical facets of the program so that

ogy coordinators are up to the school. Finally, in Chile the advisors can in turn pass this information on to the

there are no new positions funded by the government, laboratory tutors. Advisors also are required to at-

whereas in Costa Rica, the government funds a net- tend several courses during the year on a range of

work of technology advisors subjects from pedagogy to technology, and have the

opportunity to attend a variety of specialized coursesCosta Rica's Advisors. Costa Rica has estab- both nationally and internationally, some ofwhich can

lished a system of advisors that are responsible for 9be quite extensive. Finally, workshops of varying

providing training and on-going support to tutors, length emphasizing Logo programming and other teci-school staff and educational authorities. Many of them nology applications are offered on a demand-driven

work at the regional level and have responsibility for basis throughout the year.approximately seven schools; they act as link be-


The training program for laboratory tutors begins the bi-annual conference. The Advisors and Tutors

with a series of basic foundation courses lasting three Conference provides an additional opportunity for

weeks (120 hours), offered by a group of profession- teachers to share experiences and develop prcfessional

als, most of them program advisors, from the Omar awareness.

Dengo Foundation and the Ministry of Education. For

accreditation, tutors are required to attend a minimum In sum, the close networking by the advisors, the

of 102 hours. Existing tutors are required to annually intensive recurrent specialized training for laboratory

attend the two week, 80 hour, training session each tutors, the national conferences and the consistent

January focused on reinforcing and enhancing the pedagogical orientation promoted by the Costa Rican

theory and practice employed in the program that is program have given the participants a strong sense of

also given to the advisors. Additionally, tutors must mission. However, these same characteristics, and

attend sixteen hours of workshops each year, given by particularly the limited training for principals and class-

the advisors. Finally, tutors are provided pedagogical room teachers, have restricted the latter group's expo-

and technical advice on an ongoing basis by advisors sure to the program and this issue has emerged as one

and have the opportunity to obtain degrees in educa- of the major challenges facing the Costa Rican pro-

tional computing, which were designed with ODF as- gram today.

sistance and are offered at Costa Rica's National Uni-

versity for Distance Education (UNED). Training in Chile. The Enlaces training program

is shorter than the training provided in Costa Rica, but

At the beginning of each school year, principals, includes more people per participating school. The

teachers and interested individuals are invited to a day- Enlaces training program is aimed at supporting the

long presentation to familiarize them with the aims of expansion of the program to new schools; conse-

the technology program and the Logo software. Addi- quently, the majority of resources are focused on train-

tionally, interested staff are invited to attend a week- ing new teachers. When a school joins Enlaces, initial

long course on the objectives of the program and the training is provided for the twenty or more teachers

use of computers for basic functions such as word- and the principal who developed the technology

processing and spreadsheet functions. In all of these project. The training is provided over the course of

activities, the Costa Rica program emphasizes training two years, with the first year focused on familiarizing

in constructivist pedagogical theory and methods and the staff with the selected hardware and software. The

the teacher's role as a facilitator in the student's peda- first year of training takes place in the school in order

gogical development through the use of Logo in the to reach as many teachers as possible. In the second

laboratory. year, the training is focused on using the computers to

support specific classroom activities and admninistra-

In alternating years, Costa Rica holds two confer- tive work. When En/aces was first introduced, this

ences: the Children's Logo Conference and the Advi- training was quite basic and aimed to familiarize the

sors and Tutors Conference. At the Children's Logo staff with the computers and to introduce them to the

Conference, approximately 400 children are invited to locally-developed software program, La Plaza (de-

display the results of their laboratory work in a new scribed below) and the use of its research and net-

learning environment which involves using the com- working functions. Beyond this basic training, which

puter to carry out research on themes such as the envi- was imparted in six two-hour sessions, specific con-

ronment and Costa Rican history. Each school nomi- tent was linked to the school's own goals as reflected

nates a boy and a girl to present the school's work at in each school's project. Both the training and strate-


gies on how to implement the program are developed exclusive use as a laboratory, complete with air condi-

in conjunction with the local university appointed as tioning, furniture, proper illumination and a way of se-

the school's nucleus. In Chile, there are many cases of curing the computers.

teachers taking full advantage of the open-ended na-

ture of the training opportunities. In Chile, the per-school allocation of technology

resources is based on student enrollment. Schools

The teachers selected as school-based coordina- with less than 100 students receive three computers, a

tors receive additional training in technical issues in modem, a CD-ROM player and a dot matrix printer.

order to strengthen their position as the promoters of Schools with 100-300 students receive 6 computers and

the effective use of computers within the school and the same number of peripherals as the'smaller schools,

trouble shooters for the program. while largeschools with over 300 students receive 9

computers, 2 CD-ROM players and the same number

Since 1996, each of the 26 universities serving as a of peripherals. In Chile, the location of the technology

nucleus for the Enlaces schools had the freedom to resources within the school is not specified, although

implement its own courses and develop its own mate- Enlaces requires the school to create or re-allocate

rial, however, many of the smaller universities decide space for the computers. Schools have resorted to a

to replicate the training material and strategies designed variety of solutions, including setting up computer

by the University of Frontera. In addition, the Univer- rooms or installing the terminals in the library. In sev-

sity of Frontera gives technical training to faculty as- eral of the sampled schools, computers were set up on

sociated with the Enlaces program at the nucleus uni- mobile carts, allowing them to be moved from class-

versities. room to classroom. Additionally, Enlaces recommends

that one of the school's computers be dedicated exclu-

Enlaces' two year training plan seeks to ensure sively to the teachers and located in an area separate

that school staff are able to effectively use the soft- from the students' computers in order to give the teach-

ware and hardware provided. If this has not been ac- ers the opportunity to work with the technology with-

complished after two years, additional training is pro- out being scrutinized by their pupils.

vided until these minimum requirements are met.

All of the sampled schools in Chile had experi-

The Distribution of Technology in Schools enced growfh in the number of computers available

since their ii.nitial contact with En/aces, provided ei-

Hardware. The majority of the laboratories in Costa ther by Enlaces or by the community. However, de-

Rica have 20 networked computers and a dot matrix spite this growth, the number of computers available

printer. Each laboratory is also connected to a modem to students in Chile remains limited, with an average of

to facilitate access to the Educational Telecommunica- 68 to 137 students per computers in the sampled

tions Network. Although school size varies, the num- schools. This ratio is well below that observed in the

ber of computers per school is based on the average Costa Rican sampled schools where the ratio of stu-

class size in the school in order to ensure that the ma- dents to computers is 53-73 to 1.

jority of children have access to the computer at least

80 minutes a week. This equipment is provided by the Software. All Enlaces schools use the La Plaza

Omar Dengo Foundation. For its part, any school communications software, which was specifically de-

participating in the program must work with the com- signed for the technology program and consists of amunity which it serves to provide a room dedicated for user-friendly graphic interface representing a town's


main square. In the main square, an icon represented neric learning medium that does not demand constant

by a post office represents access to electronic mail; a investment in upgrading or the purchase of a variety

museum icon provides information and reference ma- of software packages to support various curricular

terial; the cultural center's bulletin board serves as a applications, which is a real concern for projects of

chat room; and the kiosk posts school and community this type in developing countries with limited resources.

news. Beyond La Plaza and a strong emphasis on

networking, software packages and specific training

have varied greatly across schools and over time - an IV. FINDINGS

outcome that is consistent with the individual, school- This section describes the research findings ob-

based approach. As a result of this open and evolu- served in the sampled schools in terms of changes in

tionary approach, Enlaces has never developed a soft- teachers' and students' roles; project implementation

ware "model". Instead, schools use a mix of interna- in the schools; impact on students' motivation and

tional and local software such as KidPix, Claris Works self-esteem; evidence of student learning; impact on

and Carmen San Diego as well as software developed teachers' self-esteem, collaboration and development;especially for exploring national cultural issues in Chil- and impact on school relations with the community.

ean schools such as Chilean Artists and Chilean Ab- The results draw directly from the data collected in the

origines. schools; all quotes are direct citations of informants'

comments, as transcribed in the field interviews, andIn Costa Rica, Logo Writer, a 1988 Spanish ver- all boxes describe classrooms or laboratories observed

sion of Logo which includes word processing capa- in the sampled schools.bilities, is the principal software program used in the

schools. Logo was selected as a learning medium for The results described below are drawn from a small,

both teachers and students. This focus introduced non-random sample of schools selected for their re-

high demands since it made it necessary to train teach- ported success with technology programs. While the

ers and tutors in Logo as a programming language and findings are useful for obtaining insights into success-

to introduce an educational philosophy and ful implementation strategies and illustrate the chal-

constructivist practice associated with the use of that lenges faced in introducing technology into schools,

programming language. Besides Logo, the Costa Rican the descriptions should not be interpreted as repre-

program has provided schools with a computer net- sentative of either the Chilean or Costa Rican school

work administrator, Microsoft Works, and telecommu- experiences as a whole.

nications software. The telecommunications software 1. The Changing Roles and Learning Styles of Stu-

allows for the use of e-mail within the ODF's Educa- dents

tional Telecommunications Network, through which

schools produce and share projects, including an elec- Student Collaboration using Computers. Both

tronic magazine which students produce three times a programs have students working at computers in pairs

year. or in small groups. In Costa Rica, this practice reflects

a philosophical commitment to collaboration'while in

Costa Rica chose Logo for two main reasons. Chile, teachers regard it as a matter of expediency, given

Through the use of Logo it could encourage children the limited supply of computers. In both countries,

and teachers to generate their own projects and soft- the interaction observed among students varies from

ware and not simply become passive users of programs frequent juxtaposition (control of one student over the

produced by others. Second, Logo serves as a ge- other) to cooperation, which is understood as joint


Box 1. Student Collaboration in a Costa Rican Computer Lab

In one observed laboratory session in Costa Rica, a pair of students was using Logo to manipulate four

separate figures in an attempt to fit all four figures into specific positions on the computer screen. This pair

was encountering difficulty in accomplishing their chosen task. When a solution suggested by the tutor

proved ineffective, a fellow student from another pair who had been observing the first pair's program

came over to suggest an effective solution. This was done in a respectful manner, by first whispering the

solution to the tutor, who, instead of giving the correct solution herself, responded "listen to what Rodolfo

has to say" thereby encouraging the pair having trouble to work directly with the student who had found a

solution to their programming problem.

and interactive planning to solve problems and meet In two-thirds of the Enlaces case study schools,

challenges. In two of the schools in Costa Rica, ob- the evaluation team concluded that computers had in-

servers noted that the majority of student pairs worked creased the likelihood of students working in coopera-

in true cooperative fashion-alternating control of the tive groups in traditional classes. One principal re-

keyboard and discussing their goals and reviewing ported how this tendency toward collaboration grew

their programs together. The forms of interaction are out of the need to share computer resources:

related to the way in which the tutor orients the class-

room. It is worth pointing out that neither the Chilean

nor the Costa Rican program provides specific policies only three computers, it is necessary to find a

for generating student cooperation. way to make the number ofgroups equivalent tothe number of computers; this led naturally to a

Working in Groups. Research observations of change in classroom organization and to chil-

students in the Chilean and Costa Rican computer drenforiing groups and being morefriendly.labs revealed stark contrasts to the conventional, non-

technology-based classrooms where lecture and reci- In both countries, the national evaluation teams

tation continue to be the norm. One Chilean teacher recognized the increased collaboration among students

characterized this traditional approach as the "neck as positive and significant given the ongoing pres-

culture" where each student stares at the neck of the ence of mo;re traditional, directive teaching in the ma-

student in the next row up. The country evaluators jority of classrooms in the country.

found that student-teacher relationships within the

computer labs were more personal and that students Serving as Student Computer Assistants. The

were less fearful and showed greater independence Chilean computer program has encouraged schools to

than in more traditional classrooms. Expressing an appoint older students with a special interest in com-

observation shared across both countries, the Costa puters as "monitores" or computer assistants. These

Rican team described children in the computer labora- assistants are assigned various tasks by the lab coor-

tories as "noisy, boisterous and spontaneous yet re- dinators, and often carry out additional projects at their

spectful", thus showing a relaxed and enthusiastic at- own initiative. The main task ofthe student computer

titude when an work. The positive attitude of stu- assistants observed was to help other students in us-

dents and the openness of tutors to this type of ap- ing the computers and the software in the labs and

proach is illustrated in Box 1. classrooms. The research team in Chile found that all

Computers in Schools: A Qualitative Study of Chile and Costa Rica i

Box 2 Student Computer Assistants in a Chilean School Support a Natural Science Lesson in theComputer Lab

In this school, a teacher had divided her class into two groups, sending one group of 12 students to thelab to work with student assistants, while the remaining 27, who would go to the lab the following weekstayed behind in the classroom.

The observer describes how the session is organized: "The session begins in the classroom, theteacher names the students who are going to the computer lab this week and accompanies them to the lab.In the lab she explains the assignment to the student computer assistants and the other students, remindsthe students that the student computer assistants are going to be in charge and that she has asked them tohelp out on specific tasks of the assignment. After giving instruction, the teacher returns to her classroom,returning to the lab two times to oversee the student work. The activity in the lab consists of eachstudent graphing their pulse rate in three different situations (seated, jogging, and running), using datathey had gathered previously and brought to the lab in their notebooks. For this activity, the students usethe educational software "The Graph Maker"... "The children organize themselves into pairs to worktogether on one computer, but each is to prepare his own graph."

The observer notes that the 6th grade computer assistant shows the best command of the technologyand the software and all the students turn to him most often for explanations on how to make the graph."This monitor teaches the children how to use the program [it is the first time they are using it], heapproaches each pair and explains how they should enter the data, where they should note down thevariables, shows them different ways of making graphs, and what they have to do to get the graph on theirscreens. After making these explanations, the monitor leaves the students to work alone, and during thelesson responds to questions, showing the answer or how to execute the operation, and at times too fast forthe students to understand."

The observer notes that there is a lot of noise in the lab while the students are doing their assignment,at times all the groups yell out for help. However, the student monitor is of good disposition and workswell with the students. He is fast and efficient. "Several students learn to use the program through trialand error, the rest depend on the help of the monitors ." When the teacher visits the class during thelesson, she reviews the students' work, asking why they chose a particular graph and reinforcing thelesson.

sample schools had introduced the use of monitors 2. Impact on Student Motivation, Behaviorand Self-

and were using them quite effectively. For example, at esteem

one school, a teacher was observed using three stu-onescool ateche ws bseve uIthe t In both countries, teachers and principals reportdent computer assistants (one from the sixth grade and

two from the eighth) in conducting a class in the lab impact on several aspects of student attitudes and

on the circulatory system for a natural science course. behavior. Anecdotal data show that students were

(Box 2). more motivated to come to school, more excited about

Obsevatonsat oherscholsshowd tat tu- learning and better behaved after the introduction ofObservations at other schools showed that stu-I

dent computer assistants worked along side lab coor- technology.

dinators in preparing computers for student use, an- Affective Impact. Both evaluation teams obtained

swering student questions during lessons, and work- strong, positive reports concerning the programs' in-

ing directly with some students needing more help. fluence on student motivation and self-esteem., In each

country, numerous positive effects on self concept,

aspirations, behavior, and persistence were reported.In Costa Rica, school staff reported positive effects on


self-esteem and students' "excitement to learn."' Chil- puter lab during the course of the study. At first the

ean principals and teachers described students as hav- school used its lab as a resource for regular classroom

ing a greater interest in their school work, taking more teachers to use with their students in working on their

responsibility for their work, and having a stronger will regular curriculum. Later, the school switched to us-

to improve their work, after exposure to technology. ing the lab to teach computer skills directly,At one of the Chilean schools it was noted that stu- decontextualized from the curriculum. In the latter case,

dents were coming to school during their off-hours to the level of computer skills rose, but according to the

use the technology; and at two of the Costa Rican study team, students appeared less interested in their

sites children came to the lab during free periods. computer work. This observation suggests that longer-

One hilan pincpalassetedtha theproram term motivational benefits of technology may dependOne Chilean principal asserted that the program

had increased students' motivation to stay in school: upon how it gets used with students.

Cumulative Impact. Several of the Costa Rican"They are more responsible, less aggressive informants made the argument that technology experi-

and have a greater interest in work. Assign- ences at an early age gave students increased self con-ments used to require a lot of work for teachers fidence, which transferred to their behavior outside of

because children did not assume any responsi- the computer laboratory. One school director described

bility or try to meet work demands. Right now, second graders who had been in the program sinceall of this has improved For instance, the re- kindergarten as "more mature, with less fear to be in

search work they are submitting is impressive, front of the group making a presentation, to speak." Athey wish to improve; we have also noted that tutor at another school stated that "it [the computer

there is greater interest in continuing in school, experience gives children self-confidence, the abilitynot dropping out after the eighth grade and why, to make presentations and ease of expression."because they leave this school and they seek a

school where they can continue learning com- In one of the Costa Rican schools, there was a

puter science; this has been quite noticeable." fifth-grade class that did not participate in the technol-

The increased desire to remain in school appears ogy program and one that did. The laboratory tutor

to be linked not only to greater enjoyment of school reported seeing differences between the two groups:

activities but also a higher level of aspiration. A Costa "Children who come to the lab ... are more

Rican school principal reflected: ready to learn, learn faster, are more mature.

They no longer fear the computer and they arethey [the students] have been encouraged notfearful of anything,

to be computer professionals in the future. Chil-

dren from a community as poor as this, you can Discipline and Self Control. In Chile it was re-

imagine what it means to them... [for these chil- ported that contact with technology helped some stu-

dren] it was an impossible dream to have a com- dents have overcome discipline problems. In a related

puter at home and the fact that these children vein, a laboratory facilitator from a Costa Rican school

have had the opportunity to learn computer sci-

ence, thiswith the InterAmerican Development Bank has found evi-dence corroborating these findings regarding the technology

The linkage between computer work and high program's positive impact on students' motivation and selfesteem. Fundacion Omar Dengo, Banco InterAmericano demotivation was further illuminated in one Chilean case Desarollo Projecto BID-FOD,'La Vivencia en el Laboratorio

de Informatica Educativa del PIE: Un Acercamiento a losstudy school that changed the way it used the com- Procesos Generados en Ninos y Ninas," Informe de

Investigacion Evaluativa No. 2-95, April 1995.


reported benefits for students who otherwise exhib- ture their thinking; they must reflect on what

ited behavior problems: things to do first, how to do it; getting orga-

nized Self-confidence is developing and the"The children who are most troublesome in child must decide what to do - if I do it this

the classroom, the most hyperactive, are the ones this might happen; if I do it another way,

that enjoy it [the technology lab] most. The most there will be another reaction; how do I do it;

beautiful projects belong to them, andI am happy and if the student made a poor choice, he/she

to see how computers have helped these chil- knows that it can be corrected because there

dren. " dren.are other alternatives. Thus this changes the

individual's life entirely; the student's thinking3. Evidence of Student Learning is structured in various ways... Later they will

Teachers and principals in Chilean and Costa Rican learn other packages which is "press a key and

schools generally share the perception that their com- this comes up", butfor that, they have enough

puter programs are having a positive impact on stu- time."

dents' learning, including for students with learning Z. The Omar Dengo Foundation program staff citedisabilities. The reported impacts on student learning this research and corroborating evidence from other

generally fall into the areas of thinking skills and tech-

nical proficiency. studies regarding the ability of students to transferwhat they learn in the Logo lab to life outside the school.

Thinking skills. Some of the teachers and princi- One advisor referred to it as "a small lab representing

pals interviewed believe that the use of computers en- life's realities" and predicted that students wculd later

hanced students' thinking skills. For example, one use what they learned in the lab, especially in making

school principal in Costa Rica reported: decisions.

"It [the technology program] has helped many Standardized Test Scores. The Chilean team ex-

children to develop their critical and rational amined standardized test performance for the schools

abilities, encouraged children with great capa- in their case study sample. They did not observe any

bilities. . . and also encouraged those who are consistent trend over the period of involvement in

slow ... from an intellectual viewpoint I believe Enlaces except for a single school, which had embarked

this has been a tremendous help... upon a comprehensive school-change process and

which showed steady improvement in its performanceA laboratory tutor from another school in Costa relative to other schools serving similar student bod-

Rica reported that the computer lab work has made ies. The Cost a Rican evaluation team did not look atstudents more active learners. In Chile, a principal standardized test scores because they felt that what

reported that the level of research students were doing these tests measure is not directly associated with the

with technology was "quite impressive." Another re- program objectives, and, given the great diversity of

ported positive impacts on language skills and spell- vralsascae ihrslsi tnadzdtss

TvOarib Dsocaeng Foheudtsionpra sta ffze te,

ing. it would be difficult to establish a serious correlation.

One of the tutors from the Costa Rican labs re- Technology-Related Skills. Costa Rican evalua-flected the philosophy underlying the strategy of ex- -

tensive Logo use with young children: To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the ODF, former

students of the program, wrote essays on how computersimpacted on their lives. The ODF has plans to incorporate

"Children orkn itoothem in a future publication.

is Education and Technology Series: Special Issue

tors saw tangible evidence that some children were schools in both Costa Rica and Chile, computers were

advancing in terms of their knowledge of Logo pro- used in classes for children with leaming and physical

gramming. In some of the schools, students had ad- disabilities. In fact, one Chilean school chose a spe-

vanced from following specified procedures that were cial education project for its submission to join En-

given to them, to developing long unitary procedures laces. The coordinator working in this school strongly

by trial and error, and finally to a point where they endorsed the value of using computers with special

could plan and design general programs (super-proce- education students. She noted that with technology

dures) comprised of subroutines. Especially because

there was relatively little direct instruction on the use "the teacher can help these children with so

of the latter approach, the Costa Rican team saw the manyproblems... there are other methods, but it

emergence of the more sophisticated programming [the computerihelps the special education

strategy among some children as an important accom- class.., they concentrate more, they are happier,

plishment because it signifies students' capacity for they are working, they are doing things well,

planning and organizing their own work and for work- therefore, it helps the teacherprovide something

ing effectively in teams. different to these students. "

Other evidence of leamsing of technology skills In otCosta Rica, one of the tutors working together

was the level of sophistication and creativity in some with a classroom teacher concluded that the experi-

of the student-developed work. For example, projects ence with computers proved very helpful in develop-

that students from the case study schools presented ing the self-esteem and abilities of slow learers:

at the 1997 Children's Logo Conference included a so "In 1995, had five slow children. The regular

phisticated animation of Costa Rican swimmer Claudia classroom teacher andl wrote a profilefor each

Poll winning the gold medal at the 1996 Olympics. Otherso

studnt atblm.theenn and otend ofethedscbutoi

examples of complex programming processes gener-edain

atedby tudets n te stdy nclued colecton f cyas..the cofcthe ilre demonytaed hanpier,

hcrease in their self-esteem which helped them toCosta Rican provincial emblems created as a socialsometh

adapgmoefffeciteyvietheclasromtsnceshe

studies project that was presented at the Conference. could express themselves better .... "

In the Enlaces schools, only one school reported 4. New Roles for Teachersa high level of skill in technology use per se. In this

school the greatest proficiency was reported for sixth- In both countries, researchers found evidence that

grade students who became computer "monitores" or the technology programs influenced student and

assistants helping other students in the use of tech- teacher roles - the ways that teachers and students

nology: view their responsibilities with regard to learning, theaTwways teachers interact with students, and the ways

hcthe cdenere Ths thtearedsmo students interact with each other. The researchers

[thne the t ehers] .T h t noeac he was ln found trends toward less explicit direction on the part

owing the wold mea. at rthe o 199hOlmpc.Othe

aeof teachers, greater student initiative, and more col-loaue a adoubt o an prblm he s laboration among students - all similar to findings of

ont orE aoe sthls C e and acho rotuen studies conducted of the evolving roles of teachers

t es o e m te te" and students in U.S. classrooms (Dwyer, Ringstaff, and

Special Education. In the majority of sampled Sandholtz, 1990; Means and Olson, 1995).


5. Changing Teaching Styles: Laboratories and they learn much more by navigating alone.

Classrooms Another thing, with the computer, I give them

The Chilean evaluation team reported greater ber.t1orarely ave at thi tice e

changes in teacher behaviors in those schools that

were among the most active participants in Enlaces.

The teachers in these schools were less likely to lec- Three of the five laboratory tutors observed in

ture or use drill and practice, and were more likely to Costa Rica conducted their laboratory sessions in a

engage students in collaborative group work and to fashion the researchers judged to be generally consis-

give students greater responsibility for planning and tent with their training. For example, the tutors began

executing their own activities. The observers reported by introducing the concepts underlying the program-

that these teachers were able to move fluidly between ming task, the children engaged in the programming

maintaining discipline and monitoring student work and activities linked to those concepts, and then the chil-

attributed this to high student motivation. One Chil- dren were encouraged to design their own programs

ean principal described this evolution: using what they had learned. In interacting vith stu-

"The teacher's role has changed to one dents, the tutors strove to teach by responding to ques-ofprvidng uidace o te goups Itis orttions with questions that provided clues and, helped

ofproviding guidance to the groups. It is sortof aconultat'srol, adisig onhowthethe students visualize the problem in a useful way, rather

of a consultant's role, advising on how the

work is done and making suggestions when

something is missing. The child then feels However, two of the lab tutors used a traditional,that he/she is creating and originating his/ directive style ofteaching. For example, when giving

her own work and managing his/her knowl- assignments, they had students copy all instructions,

edge, and this has changed the mentality of and sometimes even every programming step, into a

the children to be more responsible and to notebook, after which students would have to input

meet work demands on schedule." the programming commands into the computer. These

Onetutors appeared to measure their success by their stu-One eacer wo hd ben a th sae cae sudy dents' ability to achieve the specified effect on the

school for 3 years described a preference for organiz- computer screen, rather than by any indications of stu-

ing her class into small groups so that students can dents' acquisition ofthinking or generalizable program-

profit from learning from each other. She believes that ma

a warmer, more personal atmosphere is maintained with pistskinls halfao the abratie st rates

this small-group structure. She had never used com- howsift it istof ile apeao radi-

puters before coming to this school, but had incorpo- U

rated technology into her teaching by the time of the within a country.

study. She believes that students learn easily with

technology and that they should be given opportuni- In Costa Rica, three of the tutors who also teach

ties to explore and develop their research skills with regular classes were observed in their classrooms as

computers: well as the laboratory to see if the laboratory experi-

ence and training had any influence on their regular"They learn almost intuitively [with tech- ch

nology], in the same way they learn games . .

.True, one can guide them and explain, but 'TwA of the five tutors in the sampled schools in Costa Ricadid not teach outside of the laboratory and were thereforenot observed in a traditional classroom setting.


Box 3: From Laboratory to Classroom: Preparing for Exams in Costa Rica

The teacher, who also works as a computer laboratory tutor, was observed in her regular classroom where

she had distributed question-answer materials to her students to help them prepare for upcoming exams

in Spanish, mathematics, science, and social studies. Rather than having students practice the materials

independently with herself as grader, as one might expect, she broke the class up into small groups to

coach each other on the questions. Groups were given considerable freedom of interaction. The teacher

acted as a guide, responding when a group asked for clarification. In answering student questions, the

teacher typically probed to prompt students' further thinking rather than providing a direct answer. In her

interview, this teacher said that she had taken this discussion group format from her computer laboratory

experience.

fered, all showed some evidence that their training and the Enlace, program's emphasis on promoting the use

experience carried over into their classrooms. For ex- of technology throughout the teaching staff In one

ample, instead of having desks arranged in rows fac- case study school, in fact, all but one of the teachers

ing the teacher and blackboard as is traditionally found had become technology users. This result may also

in Costa Rican schools, all three teachers had reposi- be linked to the Enlaces strategy of designating dt

tioned the student desks so that groups of students least one ofthe computers installed in schools for the

faced each other. Additionally, in one of these class- exclusive use of the teachers and the principal. In the

rooms, the tutor used a student-centered, collabora- Chilean case study schools, teachers and administra-

tive approach to preparing for a standardized test which tors are using technology to produce instructional

is an interesting development considering the type of materials, eKaminations, bulletins, memoranda, and other

task and the traditional way of approaching it. (Box 3). documents that were once produced by hand. Princi-

Toughpals at the case study schools, who were required to

schools participating in the program throughout the

years, this was the first time that a research team docu- implementation at their schools, also have become tech-

mented research evidence in the regular classroom of nology users. This development is impressive given

the non-traditional style of teaching promoted in the

technology laboratory. The team considered this evi- In Chile, student access to computers varies

dence of penetration in the majority of the sampled across schools, with some limiting access to certain

schools to be one of the most important, positive find- grades or students while others give access to all stu-

ings of the research. dents. An estimate carried out as part of another study

6.reveals that, with two students working on a computer,6. Te Srea of echoloy inScholsthe existing Enlaces norms for the provision of cont-

In Chile, the research found that a higher propor- puters would allow for all students in a school to have

tion of staff in the sampled schools made direct use of access to the computer for one hour per week in larger

the technology, as compared to the Costa Rican schools and two hours per week in smaller schools

schools. This finding is consistent with Enlaces' re- (Potashnik 1996).

quirement that a minimum of 20 teachers and the prin- In the Costa Rican project, one of the central ob-cipal develop a program and receive training and with jectives was reaching the largest number of children

Computers in Schools: A Qualitative Study of Chile and Costa Rica

possible. As a result of this, more children per school in which this was to be done varied across schools

have access to computers and for longer periods of since each school is given considerable leeway in de-

time. At present over 30 percent of the primary school veloping its own computer-assisted project. Teachers

population has regular access to computers for an av- in Chile reported that after receiving the training they

erage of 80 minutes a week. felt obligated to use the technology in their teaching.

On te oherhan, srea of he se f cmpuers Technology is being used to support a wide range ofOn the other hand, spread of the use of computersC,

beyond the computer laboratory was never a goal inZ. particularly in Spanish language, social and natural

the Costa Rican project, and therefore it is not surpris- sciences, with less use of the technology in mathemat-ing that in the sampled schools teachers other than the ics.

laboratory tutors were not using the technology pro-

vided by the program. In fact, there was only one In Chilean schools where technology appeared to

instance at the five sites where a teacher was seen to be taking hold within the broader educational program,

use a computer, and this was a case where the regular researchers found a shared vision for instructional use

classroom teacher filled in as a partner for a "slow" among a core group of teachers, including the teacher

student whose partner was absent. In Costa Rica, none acting as the technolog coordinator, and the princi-

of the principals interviewed used the lab computers pal. In some cases the coordinator played a key role,

for administrative or other applications, although prin- providing models for teachers suggesting how to use

cipals receive training on the pedagogical use of com- technology in specific curricular areas.

puters as well as general orientation regarding its use.Z 1 1-1A Chilean teacher was observed teaching her fifth-However, in three of the sample schools, non-programcomputers purchased by the school boards or directly grad Sn cls iaby teachers were being used for school administration

or personal productivity. In two Chilean schools, the research team ob-

served social and natural science classes being taughtIn the case of Costa Rican tutors and regular class-

room teachers, the study also found less evidence of

the use of program-provided computers for personal peoples, both developed locally. In an 8th grade ge-

productivity, although several of the laboratory tutors ography class devoted to the study ofnatural resources,students were using library resources and the comput-

did purchase computers for their own use. Therefore it

is not surprising that teachers other than the labora- ers with the software "Geography of Chile" to studythe distribution of natural resources in Chile. In an-

tory tutors do not use the labs in the schools. In fact, other school, in the South of Chile, where there is athere was only a single instance at the five sites where

a teacher other than the lab tutor was seen to use a

computer, and this was a case where the regular class-room teacher filled in as a partner for a "slow" student the cutotu

whose partner was absent, thus reflecting the occa-

sional participation of the classroom teachers in in- In Costa Rica, teaching the core academic cur-

stances in which their educational support is needed. riculum with the technology is not a program goal, rather

6. Teaching with Technology. the goal is to use computers to enhance teaching andlearning through the development of educational

Enlaces was established with the goal of support- projects associated with different curricular topics,ing a variety of curriculum activities, although the way especially in the core curriculum of math, language


Box 4. Using Technology in a Spanish Class in a Chilean School

This fifth-grade Spanish class was conducted in the computer laboratory where students were

organized into groups of four, although not all groups had access to a computer. Using texts previously

prepared by individual students in the regular classroom, the students began work on a group product.

Students used a word processing program to write letters to students at other schools in the city with

whom they were going to begin a communication project concerning regional literature. The teacher

moved from group to group, correcting spelling, making suggeslions about the writing, and resolving

some technical difficulties. She asked those students who were not working with computers to lower

their voices. As each group finished writing, the teacher printed two copies of their work, one for the wall

newspaper and one for the group. This teacher used similar approaches in her regular classroom,

including having students work in small groups.

arts, science and social studies. In Costa Rica both In the case of Costa Rica, the use of a programming

tutors and students are given considerable leeway in environment and the development of specific program-

the selection of project themes. The projects which ming skills has an even more important teaching pur-

Costa Rican children undertake in the labs are often pose, as stated by a tutor:

coordinated by the tutor with the classroom teacher

and generated from material being studied in class.

One Costa Rican tutor described this type of coordina-

tion as follows:

'7 pannd wth fith gadeteaherandAn advisor states this overriding goal more clearly"I planned with a fifth grade teacher and

asked her what they are doing in their regu-

lar classroom, what she would like us to do "I thin k the computer takes the child to thatplace

in the lab in relation to the specific topics we all have and makes him or her think, reflect, ask

they were studying, and then the three of us questions, know a diferent world ... Being in con-

[two tutors and one classroom teacher] did stant interaction with it brings him or her problems,

the planning: this week we are going to do makes the child develop skills for decision making,

such and such; we'll practice that proce- autonomy, to decide whether or not to do something,

dure, we are going to carry out these activi- whether or not to do it in a certain way. I think it is a

ties." small laboratoryfor what the child is going toface in

In relation to specific curricular content, the Costa hisfuture Lfe."

Rican team made one observation of a student making In none of the case study schools in either coun-a connection between the geometric shapes she had try did the evaluation find evidence of classes where

learned with LogoWriter and the content of a math- computers were being used as the principal vehicle for

ematics lesson in the regular classroom. Consistent the teaching of a core subject. As noted in the afore-

with the Costa Rican program's philosophy, it is note- mentioned examples, the use of technology in the

worthy that it was the student, not only the teacher, schools observed in Chile remains focused on idi-who made the connection. vidual projects. One Chilean teacher explained that in


her school the limited availability of computers for studied participate in the edition of an electronic maga-

teaching has discouraged teachers from using com- zine which has a virtual editorial committee run by chil-

puters more intensively. In Costa Rica, although the dren.

research team found some evidence of core subjectareas being explored in the computer laboratory, innone of the groups that were observed within sampled

schools were teachers explicitly using the technology countries, have enhanced the professional standingto support the teaching of core curriculum subjects. of teachers and promoted contact with other teachers

Both Chile and Costa Rica have provided students and outside professionals. Changing roles and in-

with experience in the use of e-mail; and in some Chil-

ean schools, with the use of the Internet. Since products of participation in technology programs.

Enlaces is designed as a school network project and New Professional Relationships. In Costa Rica,

provides special communications software on all com- teachers reported that their collaboration with the Omar

puters and a server, students and teachers have been Dengo Foundation has provided them with sustained

encouraged to make use of this resource. In one of contact and experience with national and international

the case study schools in Chile, the research team ob- experts and educational ideas. The program has gen-

served a group of fifth and sixth grade students using erated a true network of innovative teachers workingthe e-mail during their free time to correspond with throughout the country who communicate through e-

students at another school. Whereas the teacher serv- mail and regularly participate in annual regional and

ing as the computer lab coordinator was available to national activities through which they exchange expe-

work with the students, the students demonstrated riences and knowledge. The meaning ofa professional

considerable autonomy in carrying out their work as network is summarized in the words of a advisor who

well as mastery of the mechanics of the technology. says:

However, despite the active use of e-mail in the sampledschools in Chile, the use of the Internet as a resource " I r ing s too at

remained limited.the other end of the world .. , that technology

The Costa Rican team found that the Educational challenges me to think about what is not eajy

Telecommunications Network Internet connection I like to know the rules of the game, and then

available in program schools was receiving minimal use experiment.'

within the computer laboratories. Factors that likelycontributed to lack of use include that, at the time of T tn

the study, only one computer in each laboratory had chnetwrk cces; tere eretechica dificutiesre- contributed to the creation of a new professional sense

network access; there were technical difficulties re-

ported in using Logo Writer with the network; and tu- of belonging, which is strengthened by their partici-

tors received little training in the use of the network. pation in the Advisors and Tutors Conferenceas well

The evaluation team also concluded that articulation

of clear program goals for the use of the network and tively every other year with the specific purpose of

policies for integrating it with the better-established fostering a new social and professional network. Fur-

routines for Logo use were needed. However, it is therore, the yearly training sessions are accredited

worthy ofnotice that even within this extremely limited by the Costa Rican Civil Service for salary increases

telec.ommunications platform, three of the five schools and promotion in their professional career, thus con-


tributing to a new category of teachers within the edu- The cocrdinator in the same school reported,

cational system. "We have hadto work with colleagues with whom

In Chile, similar benefits derived from collabora- I had never spoken, and I realized that they are

tions with university faculty, training experiences, and great and that I had not known them... all ofa

simply having access to the technology. sudden they had to sit down face to face with a

In Chile there was evidence that technology also

was functioning as a catalyst for collaboration within not, and they have to help each other and theyneed to talk."

schools. The Chilean country team reported that teach-

ers in that country typically spend most of their time Self-esteem and Changes in Gender Roles. In Chile,

working alone in their classroom and have few oppor- participating in a technology project and in university

tunities for exchanges with other professionals. Sev- training has made teachers in the sampled schools feel

eral of the case study schools reported improved rela- that they have moved to the forefront of their profes-

tions among teachers, more mutual assistance and sion. Relationships have been formed or strengthened

greater respect. This within-school collaboration ap- both between teachers locally and with other institu-

peared to be a by-product of the increased contact tions, such as universities that are providing training

with external resources (e.g., university faculty) and and technical assistance.

the fact that those teachers receiving outside training A Chilean principal reports:were under an explicit or implicit obligation to impart

their new learning to their colleagues. "Until a couple ofyears ago, if we met with

This effect seemed particularly strong at one of professionals who knew about technology, we

the case study schools. The principal reported, didn't lnow what they were talking about. It isso different when you can talk to other profes-

"We are abreast of changes, people are imple- sionalgroups... andask, 'Whydoyousay that?'menting these changes here and now. Several 'How is that going to be?' and this knowledge

colleagues are attending courses on the holistic givesyou status as aprofessional. Consequently,

method and then they tell us what they have there has been an impact on the self-esteem oflearned and in this manner we continue learn- teachers and on their interest to renew their

ing ourselves..." methodolog "

A teacher in the same school commented, Such effects on teachers' self-esteem may be par-

"All of this is exciting because... this year there ticularly salient in countries where teachers are pre-

are several colleagues who are taking different dominantly womei and technology is regarded as a

courses, as something new comes along there male domain. Ofnote, all ofthe Costa Rican tutors and

are people that are applying to attend We did Chilean technology coordinators in the case study

not participate before because we lacked con- schools were women.

tact with people; we are in close contact with In Costa Rica tutors and advisors showed that the

the universities [now], thus we are up to date on introduction of technology within a perspective cen-

what is going on .. . in all schools, exchanges tered on the individual, definitely changes self percep-among teachers in different grades have been tion and promotes change in their personal and pro-taking place. " fessional domains. Tutors report feeling comfortable


with and interested in technology, value themselves too shy. .. this fear to talk, the fear to make mis-

as "capable of learning," therefore changing their rela- takes. And with the technology this is no longer

tionships with their students, as they can see them- the case. IfI do something wrong, the worst case

selves as learners and not only as "the ones who would be that I would need to reinstall it, call

teach." This change is particularly meaningful within the technician."

the Costa Rican educational system where women have

traditionally outnumbered men as teachers, but not as This self-confidence also enables teachers to accept

administrators or innovative leaders. This change has the idea that they do not need to know everything

given Costa Rican teachers a real possibility to modify about how to use the technology; teachers can learn

their traditional role. This has been expressed by one in front of their peers and receive praise for helping

otaes.Anwihtetcnlgthsinolgr

advisor who says: d o i r t rc

"Technology is no longer something cold and 9. Impact on School Relations with the Community

In both Chile and Costa Rica, principals reported

ciansself-ciseidenclealsoscientistseaiteis oneacoee

that participating schools have acquired prestige and

about howstovuseatheitechnlogy;pteachers canllear

howt to serv itfoncain apbpete woerwt stronger linkages with their surrounding communitiesas a result of the technology initiatives and that par-

mdiorutc whoall."

ecoents view the technology programs as special oppor-

Learning Experiences. In both countries, teach- tunities that they wish to exploit. Computers and

ers report that contact with the technology program Internet resources are potent symbols of power,

has given them valuable professional learning experi- achievement, and opportunity in high-poverty co-

ences. munities. As reported by a Chilean principal:

In Costa Rica, the training and technical assis- "I have seen the motivation in the parents,

tance the tutors receive emphasizes the kinds of col- their gratitude. . . Just the other day a parent

laborative, creative learning and problem-solving ex- told me, 'You know, I never thought that my son

periences the program seeks to encourage in the teach- would ever touch a computer. I am poor; I am

ing and learning process, as well as technical profi- uneducated, and my son is bringing thingshome

ciency in Logo programming. In addition, the program that he made in the computer! And he tells me

has underscored the importance of continuous learn- that he saw this and that, and he gets in, he

ing for teachers. Further, in Costa Rica, the laboratory really did it; he had his hands on the computer."

tutors reported gaining a sense of accomplishment and

confidence from their technology learning that spilled In another example, teachers at a Chilean school

over into other aspects of their lives. One tutor stated reported that parents have greater pride in the school

that this increased confidence in her ability to learn and spend more time at the school observing com-

and to surmount obstacles had changed the way she puter-based activities as they wait for their children to

relates to children: finish lessons. Principals in the Costa Rican case study

schools gave similar reports. In both countries par-"... it [learning to use technology] changes ents have some latitude in choosing schools for their

people totally. It gives people confidence. It children and principals cited a positive effect of the

makes us more outgoing and gives us self-confi- computer-supported learning programs on school en-

dence. .th. I may have been withdrawn, always rolhgeet. Reportedly, some parents even try to change


their addresses so that their children can attend a level may be both facilitated by and a contributor to

school with a technology program. community cohesiveness.

Other evidence of parents' involvement with, and

sense of pride in these schools is their contributions

and fundraising. As explained earlier, in both Costa V CONCLUSION

Rica and Chile, the community works with the partici- This study provides a qualitative analysis of two

pating school to provide a suitable workspace in terms different school computer programs in Latin America.

of elements such as lighting, security and temperature It is not so much a comparative study as a study in

regulation as a prerequisite for the installation of the contrast. While Chile and Costa Rica faced many of

computers. the same problems in the design and execution of their

Both programs also have increased community computer projects, they went about solving these prob-

linkages by providing parents and other community lems in quite different ways. While the conclusions

members with access to the computer facilities. In Chile, drawn from this studyare based on a small sample of

the Enlaces technology resources are used for adult schools in both countries, and do not necessarily rep-

education and other community programs. In one Chil- resent the programs as a whole, they provide useful

ean school, for example, the computer lab is open for signposts a; to where these programs have come and

community use after school hours by the neighbors' where they might be going in the future.

association, homeowners, and community members Program Design. Costa Rica pioneered the intro-

generally. Says one Chilean principal: "there are al- duction of computers in primary schools in Latin

ways people from the community here in school, and America. ]ts program, which was launched in 1987,...the school is totally at their service." In that same was desig.ed as a total system underpinned by

school the coordinator holds classes for young people constructivist pedagogy and the Logo programmingand adults.from the city during the evening, using the language. Its goal has been to contribute to the trans-schools computer room and equipment. formation of Costa Rican education though changes

The Costa Rican program brings parents into the in teaching and leaming that are brought about by the

lab for award ceremonies and project presentations. use of computers, the training of teachers, and the

Through a separate Omar Dengo Foundation project, excitement generated by children's self directed leam-

technology programs for adults are offered in the coming, knowledge creation and problem solving. The

puter labs during off-hours such as weekends and eve- program was designed to enable at least one-third of

nings. One of the schools in the study has had an the country's primary school students to have reason-

extracurricular computer club for several years which able access-80 minutes a week-to computers in a

services "former students who want to do high school laboratory setting, working in groups of two per com-

projects or assignments." The advisor highlights the puter with the help of laboratory tutors. The program

fact that tutors provide these students with all the nec- further seeks to build cumulative leaming by offering

essary supplies to work because "there is openness, a the program to children in all grades, from pre-school

broader sense of service for former technology pro- to the end of primary. The laboratory tutors in each

gram students." school provide students with guidance, support andinstruction; classroom teachers are generally not in-

These observations suggest that the successful volved in what goes on in laboratories, although weimplementation of a technology program at the school observed some examples of students working on


projects which stemming from classroom instruction. tice, but have always had a constructivist underpin-s Enace proramis areltivey nw pr- ning. Most recently, tutor training has focused on the

Chile's Enlaces program is a relatively new pro- T t

gram which began operations as a small pilot programin 193 nd hs gown apily nto brad-bsedna- program supports the continuous training of their staff

in 1993 and has grown rapidly into a broad-based na-

tional program. In contrast to Costa Rica's program,

Enlaces is not underpinned by any particular educa- -nder th dct prio the Omar Deg aon

tional philosophy or pedagogical approach. It was udrtedrc uve fteOa eg onatina piosph o edgoialaproc.rt a tion, supported by the Ministry of Education. In con-

designed as a computer network project in which par-

ticipating primary schools were given the opportunitytwo years,tcatin rmr col ee ie h potnt but requires the participation of a broader cross-sec-

as one of the first in Latin America to use computers tion of school-based staff The Chilean program trains

for on-line communication. Chile also required its

schools, as a prerequisite to participating in the pro- principals and a minimum of 20 teachers per school.gram, to design an educational project for using com-puters and to involve a miminum of20 teachers in us-

ing the technology. Thus, there is great diversity inthe way Chilean schools use computers in education

and a higher proportion of teachers making direct use interface. In the pilot phase, the Enlaces management

of the technology. Moreover, student-direction,C, team provided training directly to schools. As the pro-project-based learning, and small-group and collabo-

rative approaches are encouraged through MECE, the been contracted to provide training and other supportnational education reform to which Enlaces is linked.

As the observations in this study illustrate, Chil- teachers more specialized training in the use of avail-

ean schools generally have fewer computers and higher able software and in other applications. However, such

student/computer ratios than Costa Rican schools. training is not obligatory and not all teachers take ad-

The result is less access per student, unless schools vantage of its presence.

limit the use of computers, which they often do. Al-

though high student to computer ratios were less Ipcs ept hi aydfeecs h wthouh hgh sudet tocomuterratos wre ess countries' programs appear to have similar kinds ofmarked in the schools selected for this study, Costa impacts. In both cases, the program is reported to

Rica also has had to limit access to computers to cer-

tain students in some very large schools in order to

ensure a minimum of two hours of laboratory time perand

week for each participating student.and more of them aspire to finish school and go on to

Training. Costa Rica and Chile have adopted dif- technical careers. Teachers involved in using technol-

ferent approaches to training. Costa Rica's training is ogy feel a growth in prestige; they feel revitalized pro-

continuous, requiring advisors and laboratory tutors fessionally and start reaching out for more training and

to attend classes every year. Costa Rica also offers involvement in collaborative projects.

initial training for principals, regular classroom teach-

ers and other educational officials. Its training pro-

thorical raiasetsof cothntucvssm. hetCostgRca

grams have covered many topics, both theory and prac- tta

ndt drawsrupo thei colecive fresoures and eper-

ers to move toward more egalitarian relationships, with


students making more decisions about their own work, personal computers at a discount. Training and fol-

speaking their minds more freely, and receiving con- low up will take place increasingly through distributedsultation rather than lectures from their teachers. In

several sample schools, this new mode oforganization learning processes using Internet and Intranet sites.

seems to have spread from the computer lab to the In turn the Costa Rican Ministry of Education has ex-

classroom. Under these more self-directed circum- panded its high school program to cover 100 percent

stances, teachers reportedly see capabilities in their of high schools. Al of these efforts are ushering in

students that were not observed prior to the introduc- new teaching and learning experiences in Costa Rica's

tion of technology in the schools.tionof tchnoogy n th schols.schools preparing youth for the 2 1st century.

The present study did not address the impact of

the technology on student learning, but provides de-

scriptive information about the impact of computers

on roles and behaviors. A much larger, prospective

study would be needed to provide systematic evidence

concerning learning outcomes. Nevertheless, the kinds

of changes in behaviors and processes documented in

this study-the increased motivation on the part of

students and their teaches, the greater focus on work-

ing with small groups or individual students and diag-

nosing their level or understanding rather than rote

memory-are good predictors of student learning.

Looking Toward the Future. The two projects

which were the focus of this study are undergoing

important changes which merit the continued atten-

tion of policy makers and specialists interested in the

issues of computers in education. Enlaces is fast

becoming a large national program which will make the

Internet increasingly available to teachers and students

in Chilean schools. This development promises to

bring about new and exciting opportunities for using

computers for teaching and learning in the next cen-

tury. Meanwhile, Costa Rica is launching a new phase

of its computer program in primary schools which has

many exciting features including a new computer plat-

form with up-to-date telecommunications and multi-

media capabilities. It is also expanding the program to

multi-grade schools, investing in the pre-service train-

ing of teachers and helping teachers acquire their own


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Development: Lessons Learned from a National

Logo-Based Computers in Education Program"

Journal of Information Technology for Teacher

Education, Volume 2, No.2,E1993, Cambridge Uni-

versity


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