Mobile Information Literacy: The ripple effect in Myanmar

January 23, 2017

The Mobile Information Literacy project is a growing collection of training materials that are designed to adapt to community and individual needs. The first MIL curriculum was introduced in Myanmar in 2015, and we are now beginning to see the resounding effects this educational program has had which far exceed the expectations of TASCHA and…

TASCHA is hiring an undergraduate research assistant

January 17, 2017

The Technology & Social Change Group (TASCHA) has an outstanding opportunity for an undergraduate student to work on one of our research projects, the Regional Study and Resource Center Evaluation. Undergraduate Research Assistant – Digital Survey Development for Evaluation of Namibia’s Libraries Deadline to Apply: Wednesday, January 18, 2017 Location: UW Information School – Seattle Campus…

Notes from the field: Creating a mobile information literacy program in Kenya

January 11, 2017

In November 2016, TASCHA Research Analyst Chris Rothschild and I visited Kenya to explore working with EIFL and Kenya National Library Services (KNLS) to develop mobile information literacy curriculum and training for Kenya’s public library staff and patrons. Our visit was a jam-packed week full of meetings with EIFL and KNLS staff, various individuals and…

Data for Democracy project supports Myanmar’s emerging data environment

January 3, 2017

The spread of information and communication technologies (ICTs) alone does not necessarily lead to a well-informed society. As TASCHA’s Data for Democracy (D4D) project substantiated during its first year in Myanmar, implementation of new technologies and technical skills to support the use of data for better decision making is only as effective as the data…

Information & media literacy in a post-truth world

November 29, 2016

Remember when we used to read magazines– real, tangible, print magazines? Sometimes we’d pick them up at the dentist’s office, sometimes we’d have them delivered to our doorstep, but most of the time we’d be waiting in line at a grocery store check-out line and peruse the day’s headlines to pass the time. There were…

TASCHA and partners to develop training that will boost mobile information literacy in Kenya

November 1, 2016

TASCHA, along with the EIFL Public Library Innovation Programme (EIFL-PLIP), Kenya National Library Services (knls), and the African Library and Information Associations & Institutions (AfLIA), will attend a series of meetings on mobile information literacy needs in Kenya in early November 2016. The aim of the meetings is to develop a Mobile Information Literacy (MIL) curriculum for…

TASCHA Research Seminar offers students an opportunity to get involved

October 26, 2016

We are often asked how students can get involved with the work that we do at TASCHA. During Winter Quarter 2017, TASCHA is leading a Research Seminar in the Information School (INFX 571), offering students a chance to get real world ICTD and research experience. INFX 571: TASCHA Research Seminar How can information and communication…

Event: Come meet TASCHA

October 25, 2016

Are you interested in the effects of technology on economic and social development? Do you wonder if smartphones will replace PCs? Interested in the role libraries play in community development? Curious about questions that can be addressed through big data? Passionate about digital inclusion & literacy, access to technology, communication, and information resources? Well, we…

Advancing MOOCs for Development Initiative creates evidence-based guides

October 6, 2016

The advent of Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs) boded major shifts in alternative education across the globe; suddenly anyone with access to the internet could take a course from a world-leading university, usually free of cost. The implications for education and international development were wide and complex, opening a new channel of fresh questions for…

TASCHA finds major successes and challenges in first evaluation Namibian libraries

October 5, 2016

Three regional libraries – officially called Regional Study and Resource Centers (RSRCs) – designed to promote a “learning culture” through services and activities, opened two years ago in regions across Namibia as an outcome of the Compact between the Government of Namibia and the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC). The Technology and Social Change Group (TASCHA), contracted…