"ICT have a high potential for education system strengthening, despite the particular obstacles that exist in conflict and crisis settings. Enabling education systems, for example, involves the use of mobile money transfers to ensure teachers receive regular salaries. Two-way communication systems u ... sing SMS (text messaging) over mobile phones promote safe learning spaces by informing parents, guardians, and young people directly about danger near schools. ICT is also being used for data collection about students, teachers, schools, and the larger education infrastructure. However, the project landscape shows much more room for growth with regard to ICT for education system strengthening in conflict and crisis. The two major areas of programmatic focus in ICT for education in crisis and conflict are teacher training and student learning. A characteristic of programs working in postsecondary education – including higher education, teacher training, and vocational training – is that they are using multiple tools for teaching and learning, which gives learners varied opportunities for participation in unstable contexts. This includes the use of locally existing technologies, such as mobile phones. Overall, blended learning is an important component of education at the post-secondary level. The examined case studies also confirm that human resources and teachers are still crucial to the success of educational initiatives and projects. Good blended learning practices involve using technology to support face-to-face learning." (Executive summary) more

"Today, DIY- do-it-yourself - describes more than self-taught carpentry. Social media enables DIY citizens to organize and protest in new ways (as in Egypt's "Twitter revolution" of 2011) and to repurpose corporate content (or create new user-generated content) in order to offer political counternar ... ratives. This book examines the usefulness and limits of DIY citizenship, exploring the diverse forms of political participation and "critical making" that have emerged in recent years. The authors and artists in this collection describe DIY citizens whose activities range from activist fan blogging and video production to knitting and the creation of community gardens. Contributors examine DIY activism, describing new modes of civic engagement that include Harry Potter fan activism and the activities of the Yes Men. They consider DIY making in learning, culture, hacking, and the arts, including do-it-yourself media production and collaborative documentary making." (Back cover) more