1. 1. What is the impact of technology and information in community? Are there times when ICT
might have a negative impact? What factors can help bring about a positive impact?
I think the biggest point driven home by all of the readings is that just access to technology is not
enough. Randomly giving computers to groups of people does not automatically lead to those people
becoming proficient with the technology. As mentioned in the Reconceptualizing the Digital Divide
article, programs in Ireland were more successful with less money invested and less technology being
immediately implemented because the groups involved had to think more carefully about what kinds of
technology would benefit the community the most so that they would see a return on the investments.
Randomly heaping on changes did not help the town as much, because it did not take into account how
the town worked and whether or not the changes would be helpful. The funding to Erris ended up being
a waste as many people did not know how to use or wish to learn how to use the technology that had
been dumped on them. If they did adopt it, it would change the social dynamics of the town, possibly
making it more isolating.
2. Randy Stoecker wrote an article several years ago called "Is community informatics good for
community?" Based on the course readings, the above presentation, your visit to East St. Louis,
and your own experiences outside of LIS451, how would you respond to this question? In
particular, think about the conceptual frameworks presented by different authors that consider
the relationship between communities, information, and technology (e.g., Warschauer). Think
also about those readings that focus on community life, history, and issues in East St. Louis,
without mentioning ICTs at all per se. What does the dialectic between these readings say about
the impacts of community informatics on communities?
I am a big idea person, and the gist of the articles seemed to be that community informatics is great, as
long as you don't let the informatics get in the way of the community. An inherent part of community
informatics is that every community has different needs that might be fulfilled by some sort of
technology. It might be fulfilled by some other tool as well. You can not give the same thing to every
community and expect all of them to succeed equally well. People in different areas already possess
different skill sets, and in order to make the adding of technology a success, teaching and integrating
might be needed to a greater or lesser extent.
I feel the need to throw in here that I hate when people use the word “literacy” to apply to things other
than proficiency in reading and writing. It has the root “lit” in it; it is meant to apply to the written
word. That is not to say that literacy is the only kind of communication proficiency, nor is it to imply
that it is any more valuable than proficiency in spoken language, in oral history skills, computer skills,
or any other skill proficiency out there. In general though, I feel using the word “literacy” in contexts
other than that of reading and writing within a particular language muddies the waters and makes
discussions harder rather than easier. </soapbox>
I think all of these things became clear when we went to St. Louis. They wanted things that their
children could learn on, not something super elaborate. But they wanted to have the possibility for their
children (and adults, and seniors) to learn skills to be competitive in advanced schooling and job
situations. Giving them computers designed for an office would not be helpful. Instead, something with
games that taught children computer skills while increasing skills in core areas would be very helpful.
And with anything we give them, instructional material to go along with it will be a must. These are
adults with adequate computer skills in most cases, but if they do not have some easy way to get
answers to questions about the software, then the software itself will be useless to them. Simply
dumping the technology and running will not get the job done. Instead, they need the chance to adjust

2. to it and a place to get help.
3. A friend helps to run a clinic/service agency/community center (student choice on community-
based organization) and is thinking about ways in which technology might be used to help their
clientele with their needs. What advice might you give them regarding such technology
implementations? What should they consider before proceeding?
So my hypothetical friend is running a hypothetical community center. I would ask them what their
current goals are in their overall programs – who are they targeting? Do different populations use the
space at different times of day? Or on different days of the week? What about the center is important to
these people? How could technology be used to further those goals? Do they need just a place to use
office like programs for word processing or spreadsheets? Do they just need a place to access the
internet? Are they looking for more specialized classes on particular programs in particular areas? Are
there already existing programs that could be enhanced by teaching online or computer equivalents?
Are they looking to branch out into completely different skill sets? Does it matter what kind of
operating system the computer has? Does it have to have particular programs? Is the center eligible for
special discounts in some way? Does it have donors for time and/or money to make this happen? What
kind of IT support would be available? Is there someone who can get training to keep the technology
running? All of those questions and many more should start narrowing down what kinds of technology
should be used and what types of hardware and software might be useful for that location with that set
of goals. Other questions would be what are the dimensions of the space? Does the space have to serve
multiple purposes? Who will have access to the space when? Are there accessibility concerns for
disabilities or other special needs? Is there enough power running to the room? Is there a pre-existing
way to get internet to the room? All these questions would need to be answered in order to create even
an approximation of a plan to move forward.