Mobile Technology in Meeting Demand for Education Information: An Ezperience from Teletathya
The paper presents experience of using mobile telecommunication technology in meeting demand for education information. Bangladeshs mobile telecommunication sector experienced phenomenal growth thanks to proper competition policy in the sector and contributed to raise the teledensity to 30.5%. The total number of Mobile Phone Subscribers has reached 45. 75 million at the end of March 2009. D. Net, as a research institution, could predict in 2003, further growth of mobile telecommunications market and increased affordability, and started experimenting scope of providing value-added services for underprivileged population in 2004. Teletathya helpline was the first mobile telecommunication-based helpline in the country. The consultation, counseling and directory services were provided on a few livelihood areas: health, education, law and human rights, employment, agriculture, non-farm income generating activities, and government services. Based on the experience of Teletathya helpline, GrameenPhone started its help line 789 for health consultation in 2007. This paper focuses on only experience of extending education information services. Teletathya model consists of a few important elements: mobile infomediary who reaches households to offer the services at the door-step of the clients physically handicapped people; a helpdesk with experts on various livelihood areas, a rich knowledge-base and directory database for the use by the help desk experts and an expert panel who provides expert opinion on the issues, which are not possible to address by the helpdesk experts. Most of the mobile infome-diaries are attached with a Pallitathya Kendra, a brand of telecentre in the country. Initially, the service was offered through voice call and letter, now service is being offered through voice call, sms, email, skype (depending on Internet availability). Referral service is the strength of the helpline. Through initial needs assessment research, demand analysis for education information was conducted and required content-based was developed. Major areas education information are result of various public examination, counseling on admission, information on availability of scholarship, admission information, mainly for university, college, education facilities through Bangladesh Open University, name of books and their availability and price, information about coaching centers. Using the BOI framework, it was found that access to education information and counseling could save cost of livelihood only, which was possible to measure immediately. However, opportunity gain was estimated due to lack of appropriate methodology. Value of sav-ing cost of livelihood was 213%, i. e. for BDT 1 expenditure incurred without availability of helpline has been reduced to BDT 0.47.
mobile education m-learning teletathya
Asma Ayub
D. Net (Development Research Network) , Bangladesh
国际会议
2009 World Congress on ICT for Development(2009世界信息通信与发展大会)
北京
英文
147-153
2009-09-10（万方平台首次上网日期，不代表论文的发表时间）