By Russell Williams

Last week, the long promised Caribbean Knowledge Learning Network (CKLN) took a step forward with the signing of a contract with telecom provider LIME to provide connectivity throughout the region for its learning network.

While those of us in St. Kitts-Nevis would rightly have some reasons for scepticism over LIME’s ability to deliver based on long-standing quality of service issues. I won’t elaborate or dwell on those issues or disclose the alternative meaning of LIME.

The CKLN press release is available here and having read it, I was left with some concerns and questions. For almost 10 years some of us have witnessed the erratic progress of the CKLN project and having read the press release I remain unconvinced. Furthermore, having visited www.ckln.org web site my position seems to be reinforced. The aim of the CKLN is to link tertiary education establishments and promote online learning and collaboration among students and institutions across the region.

However, over the last 9 years I know of only two persons who have received any training in content creation through the CKLN project! Neither of them was trained to the level of trainer, where they could get on with the task of training others here locally. So, again the recurring question surfaces – whose content will these students be accessing?

In all the years leading up to the signing of the contract for the provision of connectivity, it’s my opinion that the priority should have been in changing the culture of education and teaching methods. The project speaks to creating a network to facilitate the sharing of knowledge and promoting collaboration. Yet one must ask are our lecturers collaborating now? Let’s face it we don’t need an internet connection to collaborate! Are our lecturers equipped to create the content which this network is supposed to carry?

If we look at this collaboration point for a little while, are the functions or requirements of a births and deaths system any different in St. Kitts, Nevis or Grenada? What about immigration and business registration for example? Yet every single island have their own system. A few years ago, with a lot of fan-fare St. Kitts announced the implementation of a new hospital management system developed “in collaboration with the People’s Republic of Taiwan”, yet Nevis is in the process of developing their own system! So are we in the habit of collaborating?

If we look at how classrooms are organised and current teaching methods in St. Kitts-Nevis at least, where students are not organised in groups and do not collaborate with their colleagues in the same physical classroom, yet we expect them to do so with a student in Grenada or Barbados?

Another key point from the press release is the continued proposition that the cost of bandwidth is too high, particularly for distance education or e-learning, or video conferencing or anything beyond the domestic packages typically offered by the ISPs. But there has been little effort spent on addressing the fundamental cause of “the high cost of internet bandwidth” – there is still effectively a monopoly in terms of the supply of internet. The CKLN has in fact proven that with the signing of the contract with the monopoly provider!

There is potential in the CKLN, however I think we really need to focus less on infrastructure and more on developing skills and changing the culture. Technology can only be an enabler in a receptive and ready environment, availability of technology and the internet in of itself is not the answer.

2 Responses to “If The High Cost Of Internet Is Not Holding Back Development What Is? – Part 4”

1. Gerry George
   September 24th, 2011 @ 5:43 pm

   I also wonder about the direction and focus of CKLN. Regarding the purchase of bandwidth for linking CKLN nodes, why is this necessary? Currently, every site with Internet access is potentially connected to each other. Thus, St. Georges University in Grenada, with an internet connection, currently has connectivity to SALCC in Saint Lucia, UTech in Jamaica, and UWI at St. Augustine in Trinidad, Cave Hill in Barbados and Mona in Jamaica.

   Why, then, is there need for dedicated “CKLN Bandwidth”? If secure connectivity is needed, there is VPN technology to provide this. If the pipe is not big enough, then seek to increase it at the various sites. But a CKLN Caribbean communications network, to me is spending money in areas where it is really not necessary, or needed, hence a waste of money that can be spent on other areas, such as training.

2. Gerry George
   October 8th, 2011 @ 3:23 pm

   After sitting at a CKLN meeting, I have re-considered the position on the need for dedicated bandwidth. The concept was explained and it makes sense.

   The issue of training stands, though, and this is one area were CKLN will need to put much effort, plus to ensure continued local buy-in, else we would have just spent lots of money with no achievable benefits.

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