Appropriation Of Digital Technologies Research Articles

The Appropriation of Digital Technologies by University Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Towards A Pedagogical Approach to Digital Transformation in Response to Future Pandemics

Concerns about the effectiveness of E-learning in education during the COVID-19 pandemic attracted substantial scholarly attention worldwide. Most of the studies identified the pandemic as a double-edged sword necessitating further scholarly debates. Even though these studies are instrumental in contextualising this topical issue, there is a disconcerting absence of such empirical studies in countries associated with vertical inequality, mostly those in the Global South. Cognisant of the contextual nature of technology and how actors and their interests intersect to shape how such technologies in their contexts maybe appropriated, this study assessed the effectiveness of E-learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, using the case study of a public university. It deployed the model of technology appropriation framework, the social justice theory, and qualitative interviews with 35 undergraduate students across faculties at the university. The findings indicated that just like in other higher education institutions (HEIs) in developing countries, the adoption of E-learning amid the COVID-19 lockdown acted as a double-edged sword. On one hand, online learning provided opportunities for some students, such as the convenience of learning at one's own pace and enhanced performance. On the other hand, empirical evidence demonstrates prevailing several challenges such as the digital gap among students, lack of ICT resources and lack of motivation and skills, inter alia. Thus, technical issues such as network, data and computer malfunctions, hindered the effective use of E-learning during the COVID-19 lockdown. While there are similarities on the challenges of E-learning between those documented in various parts of the world, it is important to acknowledge the differences based on local peculiarities. Going forward, we noted the need to adopt the 21st century pedagogical skills that promote collaboration, critical thinking and inclusivity, in teaching and learning in higher education.

Proceso de apropiación de tecnologías digitales por comités de agua potable rural en la región de La Araucanía, Chile

While the coverage of potable water in rural areas has significantly increased in Chile, challenges persist in ensuring its quality, quantity, and continuity. This has required cooperatives and committees providing this service to engage in projects aimed at improving aspects associated with their management, such as transferring technologies that enable data-driven decision-making. The general objective of this study was to understand the obstacles and facilitators involved in the process of transferring a telemetry system by rural sanitary services, using a conceptual approach composed of three perspectives: sociotechnical systems, technological appropriation, and territorial governance. Information was collected through semi-structured interviews with leaders of rural drinking water committees in the La Araucanía region who have been involved in digital technology projects. The adopted theoretical perspectives, as well as the methodology used in this article, indicate that the appropriation of digital technologies by rural drinking water committees should be understood as a complex, territorial, systemic, multi-agent, and multilevel process.

K-12 Teacher’s Appropriation of Digital Technologies and Innovative Instruction Across EU: A Scoping Review

The K-12 education has lived an upsetting period where teachers have been forced to incorporate technologies intensively, bringing to light numerous issues and opportunities, whose assessment can result in educational renewal. This scoping review’s objective is to examine the positive impact of the pandemic on digital technologies appropriation and innovative instruction across EU from K-12 teachers’ point of view. Within a total of 77 articles, published between 2020 and 2022, research showed that K-12 teachers perceived the lockdown as an opportunity to increase their competences to teach through digital tools and apply novel instructional strategies. Additionally, they have progressed on digital appropriation for assessing and interacting with students and colleagues. K-12 teachers consider the pandemic as an opportunity for professional development in terms of establishment of new digital skills, despite the lack of necessary equipment and the psychological well-being creating challenges in distance education. In conclusion the Covid-19 pandemic enabled K-12 teachers to expand their professional skills to respond to the needs of future schooling. Keywords: digital technologies, innovative instruction, European Union, K-12 teachers, perceptions

Digital Technologies and the Changing Journalism Cultures in Zimbabwe: Examining the Lived Experiences of Journalists Covering the COVID-19 Pandemic

New Information and Communication Technologies (NICTs) are transforming newsmaking practices and journalistic cultures across the globe. Although factors such as lack of Internet access and prohibitive costs are constraining the adoption of these interactive digital technologies in most African countries, journalists are creatively appropriating these digital tools in their everyday professional work. Informed by the concept of journalism culture and the social constructionist approach to technology, this article examines the lived experiences of Zimbabwean journalists covering the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Drawing upon the first-hand accounts of 21 journalists covering this pandemic, this study explores the adoption and appropriation of digital technologies in their newsmaking practices. Despite challenges of resources such as finances, internet access and lack of protective gear, Zimbabwean journalists increasingly relied on interactive digital tools such as WhatsApp and Twitter to generate story ideas, conduct diary meetings, and for virtual sourcing.

Toddlers’ digital media practices and everyday parental struggles: Interactions and meaning-making as digital media are domesticated

Abstract In this article, the Swedish findings from a European comparative study on 0–3-year-old children and their digital lives are presented and discussed in relation to domestication theory, including the concept of moral economy. More specifically, attention is paid to toddler's appropriation of digital technology and the parents’ moral struggles: the negotiations between the parents concerning the introduction of digital media practices in early childhood, the selection of content, and the monitoring of children. Parents of very young children have ambivalent feelings towards digital media technologies and struggle to make the right decision for their children. The study demonstrates that the domestication of digital technology in early childhood is far more multifaceted and troublesome for parents to handle than previous research has found.

Context, Development, and Digital Media: Implications for Very Young Adolescents in LMICs.

The rapidly expanding universe of information, media, and learning experiences available through digital technology is creating unique opportunities and vulnerabilities for children and adolescents. These issues are particularly salient during the developmental window at the transition from childhood into adolescence. This period of early adolescence is a time of formative social and emotional learning experiences that can shape identity development in both healthy and unhealthy ways. Increasingly, many of these foundational learning experiences are occurring in on-line digital environments. These expanding vulnerabilities and opportunities are being further amplified for young adolescents growing up in low resourced settings around the world. Cultural and contextual factors influence access, use, and appropriation of digital technology. Further, neurobehavioral changes associated with the onset of puberty often coincide with entry into social media and more autonomous use of technology. In low-and-middle-income countries (LMICs), disparities in access, use, and appropriation of digital media can amplify prevailing economic gaps, and compound gender inequalities during early adolescence. In LMICs, adolescents are often the early adopters of mobile technology and social media platforms. While the impact of social media on the well-being, particularly mental health, of young adolescents has been a focus of research in high-income countries (HICs), much less is known about the impacts of social media use on young adolescents in LMICs. In this paper, we review what is known about the interaction between digital media and early adolescent development. We highlight crucial gaps in the evidence in LMICs; and describe some hypotheses and areas for future research to address these compelling issues.

The cameras you put on us are going to come back. Social media and the reporting of abuses by law enforcement bodies in Chile's 2019-2020 protests

Social protest takes on new characteristics today, mediated by the use and appropriation of digital technologies. Citizens make use of devices as a central part of the mechanics of the protest, incorporating digital strategies into their repertoire of collective action. One of these uses highlights the centrality of the new screens for the defense of Human Rights, through the recording, publication and spreading the abuses of repressive forces and the montage of fake news through social media. A citizen's capacity to watch over the watcher. Due to its duration and characteristics, the case of the protests that began in October 2019 in Chile is a paradigmatic case from which to study these transformations.

Taking Back the Future

I
 n this article we discuss unique free software-based digital infrastructures and networks that were developed in Brazilian communities, presenting situated models of resistance. We will discuss the background of the networks and characterize their practice and infrastructure, that are largely under-studied. The analysis we pursue highlights the importance of minorized decentralized technological practices that convey integral organizational models opposing capitalist hegemony. In order to describe the intersection of these alternatives in the Brazilian context, we will mobilize a feminist epistemology which considers necessary principles of “intra-action” (Barad 2007) across heterogeneous sociotechnical spaces.
 We will describe how different projects intersect, among them: Baobáxia, “a rota os Baobas” an eventually connected network, that can exist both on the larger internet and disconected from it, as a local local network, which nodes are located in quilombolas communities; “Metareciclagem”a collective of Brazilian technologists promoting the “up-cycling” of discarded computing technologies and their usage for artistic expression through “Gambiarra” (“makeshift”) re-appropriations; and another political articulation of the reflection about the appropriation of digital technologies that has given rise to an international network and practices which are identified by activists and artists as “Technoshamanism.”
 The role and place of digital activism in the Brazilian context is uniquely tied to specific needs of the communities at a moment in time. This led to unique examples of construction of what we have called “singular technologies”, we mean: "intentional and contextual technologies, developed specifically by a community to respond to their specific context." In Brazil, they emerge from a decolonial position and cultural narrative re-appropriation, supported by a benevolent policy. This brings us in the conclusion to qualify the construction of singular technologies that stem from the need to characterize daily practice by citizen groups that deploy their successful institutional arrangements and affordances under the radar and outside the competency of traditional institutions. These concepts do not try to define any tangible essence, but rather articulate social dynamics of the studied groups. We will qualify these social dynamics as the unique relation that technological processes emerge from.

Cuban Society on the Horizon of Digital Transformation: A View from Mediations to the Social Appropriation of Technology

The appropriation of technologies for information and communication is deeply related to the economy, institutions, and social history. This article will propose a list of mediations to explain the characteristics of the computerisation achieved in Cuba so far, with the help of some examples that illustrate the particularities of the Cuban appropriation of ICT's technology. The analysis will show the relevance of regulatory frameworks, economic forms of social organisation and public policies when explaining the social appropriation of digital technology in Cuba. They express the centrality and weight of the State in Cuban society to determine the limits and forms of computerisation available to different social actors.

The Use of Copyright in Digital Times: A Study of How Artists Exercise Their Rights in Norway

ABSTRACT How do artists use copyright to further their creative ends? To approach this question, this article focuses on the relationship between artists’ appropriation of digital technology and exertion of their rights. In particular, it relates the evolving range of production tools and distribution services to the ways in which artists currently create musical works and seek to exploit their economic as well as moral rights. Interviews with eighteen artists in Norway reveal a series of technology-mediated challenges to the ownership of one’s work, the recognition of one’s authorship, and one’s remuneration that demonstrate the need for open discussion of the ethical aspects of copyright in music.

Resistencias sumergidas. Cartografía de la tecnopolítica feminista en México

En este artículo se analizan las redes heterogéneas de actores clave implicados en los procesos de aprendizaje sobre el uso y apropiación de tecnologías digitales entre las mujeres. Mediante una propuesta teórica llamada tecnopolítica feminista, aunada a un abordaje metodológico que entrelaza el Análisis de Redes Sociales con la Teoría del Actor Red, se muestran los alcances y desafíos de las comunidades feministas para activar escenarios, herramientas y redes derivados de las tecnologías digitales.

Older adults in the digital age in Latin America: Bridging the digital age divide

In recent decades, countries across Latin America have entered a stage of sustained population ageing. In parallel, changes associated with the rise of the digital society have profoundly transformed the way in which people in the region interact with each other and with their governments. This paper examines the use and appropriation of digital technologies among older adults in the region. In particular, it describes the evolution of Internet use by older adults in the region, using data from national household surveys; examines the determinants of Internet use among older adults, considering variables such as sex, ethnicity, education level and rural/urban residence using logistic regression analysis; and, lastly, highlights policies and programmes that are being implemented to promote the inclusion of older adults through the use of digital technologies.

Modes of Teacher Participation in the Digitalization of School

Previous research has emphasized the importance and potential of actively involving teachers in the design and implementation of educational technologies in schools. However, only a few studies have explored the development of methodologies for engaging teachers in the appropriation of digital technologies, as the increased digitalization of many education sectors demands. Drawing on experiences from two large-scale participatory research projects, this paper investigates two approaches to involving teachers in the design and implementation of digital learning platforms. Specifically, the paper draws on case examples to examine how participatory data design and future workshops can help to cultivate communities of practice in support of teachers’ appropriation of digital technologies.

Caring for IT Security

Despite being considered a fundamental issue in the design, use, and appropriation of digital technologies, IT security has found but little attention in CSCW so far. Approaches in Human-Computer Interaction and Software Engineering do not account appropriately for the weave of dispersed practices that it takes to 'do' IT security---practices that involve a heterogeneous set of actors and unfold at diverse sites and across organizational, legal, and professional boundaries. In this paper we propose to conceive of IT security through the lens of care, a notion that we draw from Science and Technology Studies. Caring for IT security requires continuous, often invisible work that relies upon tinkering and experimentation and addresses perennial oscillations between in-/securities. Caring for IT security, then, engages with established accountabilities and cultivates a moral stance that refrains from blaming insecurities upon single actors. We conclude with outlining a caring approach to IT security for CSCW.

Trajetória docente na transição e na apropriação de tecnologias digitais em práticas de ensino

Este estudo enfocou a apropriação de tecnologias digitais por duas professoras como instrumento de ensino e instrução em escola de ensino médio. Temos interesse na trajetória docente na transição de práticas tradicionais para contextos híbridos de aprendizagem. Utilizamos métodos mistos a partir da Grounded Theory e aporte da Teoria da Atividade e abordagem dialógica. Optamos pela pesquisa qualitativa com entrevista em áudio, fonte documental e observações de interações entre estudantes em contexto híbrido de aprendizagem. Os resultados indicaram que a trajetória docente perpassa pela apropriação tecnológica na: a) convencionalização de um campo simbólico e semiótico no qual as práticas mediadas por recursos digitais passam pela generalização do objeto na/pela atividade coletiva; b) integração dos instrumentos digitais como um corpo de conhecimentos que podem ser aplicados em tarefas situadas e orientadas para metas.

Young Islamic preachers on Facebook: Pesantren As’adiyah and its engagement with social media

ABSTRACTThis article investigates how social media are utilised and appropriated within the community of a pesantren (Islamic boarding school) in South Sulawesi, Indonesia. More generally, it examines how the exposure and engagement with social media have influenced its religious life and the pesantren tradition which is often associated with conservatism. Nowadays, many pesantren, such as As’adiyah, the oldest and once the largest pesantren in the province of South Sulawesi, have inevitably opened themselves to accept and use modern technology in their teaching and preaching programmes. Since the late twentieth century, the alumni of As’adiyah have been maintaining networks in their South Sulawesi homeland and in other parts of Indonesia through personal encounter as well as the assignment of mubalig (religious preacher) and imam. With the introduction and appropriation of digital technologies, many members of the As’adiyah community have harnessed social media to maintain and strengthen their network and increase their religious reputation.

Digital media, development and political creativity – between Utopia and digital disruption in urban Nairobi

This article explores the concept of digital political creativity in urban East Africa, a context where the dominant articulation of ‘digital media’ has assumed an uncritical relationship with narratives of Africa’s social and economic development. It posits that thinking about the politics of the digital in Africa, we should allow ourselves to simultaneously think through issues of the digital mediation of social action and human communication, as well as the art and aesthetics of digital sensory experience. Exploring a case study from Nairobi, Kenya, I propose that the developmental appropriation of digital technology might not be quite as linear as development’s narrative logic suggests.

O uso da tecnologia/metodologia WebQuest em práticas pedagógicas no contexto de uma Licenciatura em Letras/Espanhol

Discutimos, neste artigo, o uso da tecnologia WebQuest em práticas vivenciadas na disciplina Metodologia do Ensino e Aprendizagem de Línguas, de um curso de Licenciatura em Letras/Espanhol. O objetivo da proposta era que os estudantes pudessem ampliar seus conhecimentos sobre metodologias (com foco no espanhol), melhorar seu nível de letramento digital e refletir sobre a apropriação social das tecnologias digitais no campo do ensino e aprendizagem de línguas. Nas aulas, partimos dos conhecimentos prévios dos alunos e da discussão de obras que tratassem sobre as principais metodologias de ensino e aprendizagem de línguas e de outras que abordassem, em linhas gerais, a questão do letramento digital e, em termos específicos, que versassem sobre a WebQuest. Para tanto, nos apoiamos nos trabalhos de Levy (2010), Xavier (2005) e Dias (2010), dentre outros. Os resultados alcançados foram a criação de WebQuests, o aprofundamento da reflexão sobre a importância do uso pedagógico de tecnologias e a melhora do letramento digital dos estudantes.

Book Review - Favela Digital: The Other Side of Technology

David Nemer's photo book provides snapshots on the lives of residents of the Brazilian favela of Vitoria and their appropriation of digital technology. It is a visual collection that is intriguing for researchers and accessible to the general public.Today, where a significant amount of human interactions are carried over ICTs, it is ever more important to address the rights of digital access, usability, usefulness and literacy around technology. Favela Digital provokes this discussion from the ground-up using words and visions from people living in the favelas, making the message concrete, plausibly accessible and generative for policy and design contributions.

Patterns of and Reasons for Infrequent Internet Use: A Qualitative Exploration of Australian Youth

While there is a popular belief that the digital generation is immersed in and adept at using digital media, recent studies point to a large variation among young people in their appropriation of digital technologies. This study examined the patterns of, and reasons for, infrequent use of digital technology among the younger generation, by conducting semi-structured interviews with 19 school-aged Australian youth. Infrequent users focused narrowly on a small number of applications and did not explore the wide range of available activities. This was mainly due to their lack of confidence and the perceived irrelevance of digital technologies to their lives. Most participants in this study had chosen a vocational path where computers and the internet were not integral to their everyday learning experience. This deterred them from improving their digital media literacy. Based on observations, I argue that it is not sufficient merely to provide access to digital media; rather, users need motivation, skills and perceived benefits in order to utilise this technology fully. In the case of school-aged youth, schoolwork as well as their peer group culture influences how they situate themselves in the digital environment that surrounds them.