News

January 28, 2013

This iSchool Research Conversation and TASCHA Talk, presented by Araba Sey, discusses insights from the Global Impact Study. It outlines some dimensions of public access as a strategy for socio-economic development, addressing questions such as: who uses public access ICTs and why, what value do users perceive, what types of outcomes have users experienced and in what areas? Based on these findings we suggest how vested interests might realistically characterize the nature of public access impacts and make decisions about the role public access could play in their development agendas.

September 7, 2012

TASCHA Talk: Chris Coward September 27, 2012 To kick off the new academic year, this session was an introduction and overview of the Technology & Social Change Group and the US Impact Study. We covered the fields we operate in, our mission, research projects, and other activities, and we introduced our audience to the fabulous…

August 2, 2012

TASCHA Talk: Sara Vannini August 9, 2012   Social representations are systems of ideas, values, and practices people adopt to interact with their reality. Starting from this construct, this research investigates community multimedia centres in Mozambique and their perceptions by the local communities. Community multimedia centres are a particular kind of public access to ICTs…

July 16, 2012

TASCHA Talk: Buhle Mbambo-Thata August 1, 2012 The 21st century could be dubbed the “century of connections.” It is a century characterized by networks, digital content, cyber space and “internationalized spaces.” The information and library world has lived out these connections in several arenas. Dr. Mbambo-Thata discussed international librarianship as an energizing concept in a…

April 3, 2012

TASCHA Talk: Chris Coward April 12, 2012 We all know what the typical telecenter or library computer space looks like—people sitting behind monitors along rows of desks, working away on whatever it is they are doing. This model serves a purpose, and as our research indicates, people can benefit greatly from the sort of access…

March 22, 2012

TASCHA Talk: Maria Garrido March 26, 2012 This TASCHA Talk, in conjunction with the iSchool Research Conversation series, examined the different uses of information and communication technology (ICT) tools in the trajectory and evolution of the April 6th Youth Movement in Egypt. The April 6th Youth Movement emerged from a Facebook page created by two activists…

January 30, 2012

TASCHA Talk: Chris Coward and Michelle Fellows February 2,  2012 Public libraries play vastly different roles in providing Internet access and information services around the world. In some countries they are active players and have adopted new technologies to help people meet their information needs. In other countries, libraries are routinely overlooked when new information…

November 18, 2011

TASCHA TALK: Samantha Becker & Rebecca Sears December 1,  2011 Rebecca Sears discussed TASCHA’s new project to develop a framework for digitally inclusive communities. In cooperation with the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and as part of the U.S. National Broadband Plan, this framework will provide communities with a resource for assessing and…

November 4, 2011

TASCHA TALK: Cortney Leach November 17, 2011 Conducted in 2009, the U.S. IMPACT Study provided evidence that use of public access technology services offered at U.S. public libraries has a profound and measurable impact on individuals and communities. The IMPACT Survey project aims to extend the benefits of the study by making its patron web survey…

October 10, 2011

TASCHA TALK: Araba Sey & Chris Rothschild October 27, 2011 The Global Impact Study surveys were designed to collect comparable data on uses and outcomes of public access ICT use in five countries on three continents. Araba and Chris reflected on a range of research design and project management issues encountered during various stages of the…