An overview of educational technology in Latin America

An o v e r v i e w

of educational technology �9 Latin America i n

Clifton Chadwick

Educational technology has been widely disseminated and applied throughout Latin America. The degree of interest in educational technology is manifest in the wide variety of applications for purposes of achieving various educational goals, of which the most important has been increasing access to education. Others are increasing the quality of education, reducing repetition and desertion, reducing unit costs, amplifying the possibilities for teacher training and improving educational content.

Educational technology (ET) has been defined both amply and in a limited form. Many pro- fessionals insist that it is the application of knowledge from the natural and social sciences to the improvement of education, using the traditional definition of technology as the application of organized knowledge to the resolution of practical problems. Others prefer to use a more limited definition as the use of certain technological products (and processes) in the educational situation. Without pronouncing for or against either of these definitions, this article will tend to emphasize the latter.

Several studies and articles exist that have tried to summarize the activities of ET in Latin

Cli f ton Chadwick (United States). Principal special- ist in educational technology for the multinational project on educational technology of the Organization of American States and editor of Revis t a de Tecno log ia Educa t iva . Author of books and articles in a wide variety of fields relating to educational development and technology.

America or in specific cotmtries. I I t is important to remember that in referring to Latin America we are talking about more than twenty-five different countries with more than 250 million inhabitants, speaking six official languages (not counting the native Indian languages). This article will attempt to give a brief overview of the activities in educational technology, emphasizing trends, areas of im- pact, problems, and tendencies for the future. The references can provide further reading.

A recent survey of projects in educational technology in all of Latin America was able to identify 474 different projects: It does not claim to be exhaustive but is a reasonably good sample of current activities: 69 per cent are in public institutions (ministries of education, state universities, etc.), 29 per cent in private institutions and 2 per cent in mixed programmes. Table I shows distribution by country/region in number and percentage and Table 2 shows the technological media used in these projects.

This survey confirms our earlier affirmation 8 that there is considerable activity in the field in Latin America. Much of the activity is on a large scale, organized at national level, with broad audiences, particularly in Brazil and Colombia. Of the 474 studies, 38 have andi- encies/participants of more than 5,oo0, the most outstanding case being educational television in E1 Salvador, which has 9-23,ooo actual participants. The mean size of these projects is 25,o0o (after leaving out the extreme case of E1

Prospects, Vol. XII, No. 3, x982

3 4 8 Clifton Chadwick

TABLE Z. Distribution of educational technology projects in Latin America

Country Number Percentage

Argentina 36 7.6 (Caribbean) 26 5.5 Central America 66 13.9 Bolivia 23 2.7 Brazil 52 z i.o Chile io i 21. 3 Colombia 48 zo.z Ecuador z r 2.3 Mexico 3z 6.8 Paraguay 5 I.O Peru 23 4.9 Uruguay 8 1.7 Venezuela 22 4.6 (United States of America) 3 Iz 6.5

474 zoo

x. Studies from the United States directed towards or available to Latin America countries.

TABLE 2. Technologies used in educational technology projects in Latin America

Percentage of total projects

Number (474)

Audio-visual combinations (tape/slide, etc.) 113 23.8

Audio-cassettes I36 28.7 Audio-tapes 67 14.1 Slides 79 26.7 Films zo4 21.9 Radio 52 II.O Satellites 5 I . I Television (open, closed

circuit, video-tape recording, etc.) 64 I3.5

Printed materials 395 83.3 Microcomputers or computers 13 2.7

Salvador). On the other hand, 267 of the projects involve only one institution and have a mode of 45 participants.

Television

The number of educational television (ETV) channels in Latin America was fourteen in 1973 but dropped to ten in 1978. ~ During this same

period there was a notable increase in the number of educational programmes using time do- nated by commercial regular (non-educational) channels and a major increase in the use of closed-circuit and video-tape technology. The most important problems involved in the use of ETV have included both practical (infrastruc- rural) and conceptual problems. Tiffin s has suggested that three phases of development exist for ETV systems in Latin America. The first is a stage of rapid growth, accompanied by great enthusiasm and high morale, during which the staff of the channel has high expectations of achieving a noticeable improvement in education. The second stage is a period of decline that is longer, in which the staff, teachers, students and parents become aware that ETV is not magic and 'that learning concrete skills in such subjects as languages and mathematics still depends on a teacher, text and blackboard'. This second stage also contains infrastructural failures such as overused equipment that begins to break down, and typically there is no back-up equipment, no money for spare parts, or new equipment.

Many ETV systems fail to survive this second phase. 6

Those that do survive begin a third phase of slow recovery, basically as a function of experience and the injection of sufficient resources to allow the system to move ahead. Goals are stated in more realistic terms, management improves, new equipment is purchased and salaries are improved.

The systems that survive are the less formal ones such as the tdescuela and tdeposta systems, which are means of offering education when no formal system is available. The conventional ETV schools where television is used as an adjunct to regular classroom operation are those most likely to fail. E1 Salvador has the only truly successful conventional system. Providing television for enriching an existing primary education system is not as useful as offering education in areas that do not have adequate opportunities. For example, Mexico's telesecun- daria system provides secondary schooling in rural areas where formal education is provided

An overview of educational technology in Latin America 349

only to the end of primary school. The teleposta systems are similar but are normally directed towards adult education, at times using tele- novelas, a form of soap opera that serves as a motivational form to induce the adult illiterate or semiliterate to follow the programme and to enrol in literacy training courses.

In terms of scope ETV cannot claim to be very successful. As Tiffin points out, while the Mexican tdesecundaria has about 70,000 people enrolled and ETV in E1 Salvador reaches ~23,ooo students in the regular (formal) education system, no other system can document more than 3%o0o participants and the eight ETV systems in Brazil reach only about lO%OOO per year in a country with more than 30 million illiterates. 7

Smaller technology in television has been developing rapidly, particularly in the use of video-cassettes and small closed-circuit television. The survey of projects in Latin America found fifty projects using video-cassettes as one of the primary ways of presenting information. This is an area where we expect more growth. Advances in video technology and its wide diffusion throughout Latin America has led to the intriguing condition of a significant software shortage as large numbers of schools have acquired video-cassette equipment but have nothing to play to the students.

Radio

As an educational tool radio is widely used in Latin America, particularly in non-formal and adult-education areas. Our survey found fifty- two projects in radio with a wide range of purposes and scope. Here we will mention some typical examples.

Escuelas Radiof6nicas San Rafael in Bolivia programmes for the development of rural dwellers (campesinos) in literacy, health, live- stock, home improvement, and agriculture to 35,5oo persons (according to the OAS survey) through a combination of radio programmes, pamphlets and newspapers.S In Honduras radio provides basic integral education including read-

hag and writing for the rural population (t4years and older) who do not have a chance to enter the formal system, through programmes com- bhaed with manuals, filmstrips, comic strips, pamphlets and other low cost media. This programme currently reaches 15,ooo persons but with a goal of 65,ooo by 1983. 9

Among the more widely known radio systems are Accidn Cultural Popular of Colombia, the Nicaragua Radio Mathematics Project and the Radio Schools of the Shuar Indians in Ecuador.

Accidn Cultural Popular (Popular Cultural Action) of Colombia, known as ACPO, is one of the oldest programmes of educational radio. Founded ha 1947 by a young priest, Joss Salcedo, its purpose has been to improve the lives of the rural poor, giving them hope for a better future through an educational programme directed and designed specifically for them. Father Salcedo formed Radio Sutatenza and the first radio schools ha Colombia in the town of Sutatenza in the Department of Boyac~. From these humble beginnings ACPO has become an organization with a staff of more than I,OOO persons, and has served as a model for more than twenty similar non-formal education programmes in other countries. The basic goal of ACPO is m give basic education and proportion for the social and economic realities of the rural poor, awakening ha them a spirit of in- itiative, stimulating them to search for self- improvement. 1~

The Radio Mathematics Project in E1 Salvador teaches elementary-schoot mathematics within the formal school system with a reasonably high degree of effectiveness, reaching approximately I,OOO students. The basic methodology is a carefully proposed thirty-minute radio presentation each day, followed by approximately thirty minutes of teacher-directed activities for which instructions are contained ha a guide book provided by the project. During the programme the children are required to respond orally and actively, and in writing in each thirty-minute lesson. The programmes and activities have been subjected to extensive formative evaluation. In the evaluation of the project the students receiving radio mathematics answered

3 5 ~ Glifton Ghadwick

half again as many questions correctly as a control group, scoring 1.26 standard deviations better, lz

The radio schools of the Shuar Centres in Ecuador have as their primary objective the maintenance of Shuar Indian culture and re- tention of Shuar Indians in the geographical locations where they live to help them develop according to their own cultural patterns. A secondary objective is to offer complete schooling to the Shuar children as rapidly as possible. The methodology is radiophonic and bilingual and includes I72 organized centres. Each radio lesson is carefully designed with elements of motivation, acquisition, application and evaluation. The programmes follow directly the national curriculum in a bilingual form inter- changing national and local values, not sep- arating the Shuar from their national context, but strengthening their local context? ~

The OAS survey found twenty-three radio programmes dedicated to rural populations, twenty-four to both rural and urban and one for only urban audiences. Thirty-two of the programmes were directed towards non-formal secondary and adult education, fifteen towards formal primary and eleven towards formal secondary education.

Audio-visual combinations

There is widespread use of audio-visual material in Latin America and in this section we will summarize use of material that combines both audio and visual stimuli but is not included in other groups (television or film), and also uses of either audio or visual means used separately. In the survey, 141 responders use combined audio-visual means, 2o 3 use audio stimuli in either cassette or open reel tapes, 79 use slides and lO 5 transparencies as forms of showing visual stimuli. In general these forms are chosen because of their low cost, relative ease of preparation and ease of subsequent use. Audio-cassettes, for example, are easy to dis- tribute through mail, and the playback devices are widely available at relatively low costs. The

same may be said for slides, particularly for 35-ram projectors. The general pattern is to use these materials organized as a learning module and combined with a printed text or manual for the student, often specifically using principles of instructional design and development and at times including formative evaluation.

Films

Educational film is widely disseminated and was mentioned by lO4 of those responding to the survey. The technological aspects of film use are clearly understood and offer an alterna- tive that is relatively low in cost, although the video-recording products seem to be rapidly replacing film. The most typical uses are in natural sciences (biology, chemistry, anat- omy, etc.) and in teaching educational technology, instructional design and related areas (these two areas account for almost one-half of the projects using film).

Computers

Sixteen projects that use computers in some fashion were reported. The majority of these use the computer for research, data-processing, administration, control of students, etc. Three projects use the computer in formative and/or summative evaluation of students while eight use it directly for instructional purposes. A typical project is one at the Belgrano University in Argentina, which uses microcomputers for teaching natural sciences and mathematics to students at secondary and post-secondary levels and also to teachers. 13

Printed material

Of the 474 projects in the survey, 395 reported use of printed material, normally as a mainstay in the teaching-learning process, and at times the major or even only media used (in an instructional module). The use of printed


materials is widely variable. On one end of the continuum is the presence of a pamphlet or worksheet to accompany an educational radio programme. On the other end, a semi- programmed text of more than one hundred pages which serves as a 'master medium' con- taining the educational content combined with ETV programmes whose function is to motivate and establish pacing in the course.

Considerable progress has been made in the area of instructional design and development and many of the widely known models such as those of Dick, Kemp, Gagn6 and Briggs have received wide dissemination in Latin America and are used for the preparation of courses, materials, teaching-learning experiences, etc. All of these models contain a media selection phase (or step) that attempts to rationalize decisions concerning which media are most appropriate for given groups of educational objectives. This use of design models has strengthened the relation between the technologies and the printed materials, in general improving the degree of efficiency, although there is still room for considerably more improvement, particularly in the area of formative evaluation of materials, modules and packages. 1~

Target groups

Educational technology is used at all levels of education in Latin America. The survey reveals 38 projects at the pre-school level, I68 in elementary/primary education, 2H at the secondary level, I8I at the post-secondary (university and advanced technical schools) and 2I 3 ill adult education (formal and non- formal). We may note with interest the rather high number of projects at the pre-school level, given the strong tendency to use methods associated with Piagetian psychology, which normally does not lend itself to the use of educational technologies.

In terms of subject-matter included in the various projects the results are: natural sciences and mathematics, !4I; social sciences and

languages, I2o; adults, rural themes, literacy, etc., 78; technical/vocational subjects, 48; educational technology, pedagogy, instructional design, evaluation, etc., I67; and health, medi- cine, nursing, 30.

In terms of location within the formal education system versus what is referred to as the non-formal area, 3r6 projects are found in the formal education system, I53 identify them- selves as non-formal and 78 as both formal and non-formal. A total of 379 projects had urban audiences, 200 both rural and urban, and 7o had only rural audiences.

Distance education is a modality that has grown considerably in recent years in Latin America, through 'open' universities, rural radio education, etc. Distance education is that in which an educational programme is conveyed to students who are not physically present. In the best of cases, distance education also provides for feedback to the students in terms of their responses to the content of the programmes. In the survey, 277 projects were identified as 'direct'-contact education, 74 as distance- education projects, Iro as combining direct and distance modalities, and 20 projects as providing contact on demand from the students.

At university level there are significant projects in Mexico, Venezuela, Costa Rica and Colombia. The Open University (Universidad Abierta) of Venezuela and the University of Distance Education (Universidad Nacional de Educaci6n a Distancia) in Costa Rica are the two most notable institutions, with r6,ooo and 5,5o0 students respectively. Both have had extensive problems in getting established, including differing learning styles, problems in production of materials, serious difficulties in distribution of the materials, academic evaluation and certification, inadequate study habits, financial and political factors, lack of human resources, and problems with communication media. 15 Recently two of the most outstanding specialists in this area have suggested that distance university teaching should only be done as a part of an existing university, not as separate institutions. 16

The largest number of projects in distance

352 Clifton Chadwick

education (almost one-half) are at the post- secondary level, offered primarily by universities or by ministries of education or other govern- ment-related institutions. More than two-thirds of these projects are directed towards the improvement of teachers, because this area is of particular importance in Latin America. In many countries there are large percentages of teachers who work despite not having completed their formal education requirements, and many of these work in the rural areas. Their improvement is considered important as a means of improving the quality of education. Also many countries are involved in curricular innovations intended to improve quality of education. Further, it is felt that teachers have the disci- pline required to work within the distance methodology.

The second largest group of distance education projects is adult education, in a variety of subjects, generally related to literacy community development and extension of primary or secondary education, About 4 ~ per cent of the projects are found in this area.

About xo per cent of the distance projects are in primary education generally serving students who for various reasons do not have access to formal schools (rural areas, moun- tainous areas, etc.)

At the present time two major journals and five professional associations have been formed in Latin America in the field of educational technology. The journals are Tecnologia edu- cacional [Educational Technology] of the Brazi- lian Association for Educational Technology and the Revista de tecnologia educativa, published by the Organization of American States. In terms of associations the Brazilian Association of Educational Technology has existed for fourteen years and has more than 1,5oo members. The Chilean Association for Educational Technology is three years old and has several hundred members. There are also professional organizations being formed in Argentina, Ecuador and Venezuela.

Transfer of technology

The potential transfer of innovations (both products and processes) is an issue that has received considerable attention. The theme was the focal point of an Interamerican Seminar sponsored by the Organization of American States in I978 in vifia del Mar, Chile, with participations of specialists and governmental representations from almost all countries of the hemisphere, which examined forms and processes of transfer, products and processes transferred, dependency and national policies in the subjects of transfer of technology in education.

There was general agreement that educational materials (software) do not easily transfer from one country to another, not even in natural sciences. Technological products (hardware) do not cause particular problems in education as projects, schools, ministries, etc., are free to choose those elements that serve their needs. Conceptual or process innovations such as open universities or instructional design models require considerable modification to local needs and characteristics. It would appear that national and regional policies in relation to transfer of technology (and contents) may be needed. Given the national and non-proprietary nature of education two of the most important aspects that require attention are information and human resource development, 17

i

Lessons and forecasts

In our experience in Latin America it is possible to draw a number of conclusions from the suc- cesses and failures of educational technology in the last two decades. Educational technology is a way in which multiple variables of an educational, instructional or training situation may be organized, more easily understood and ma- nipulated among other things in order to increase the efficiency of the teaching-learning situation. Educational technology should be a useful tool for improving systems, since it is


based on concepts of physical (natural) and social sciences, though heavy emphasis is placed on those aspects that may be empirically or objectively identified. In the desire to make the outcomes of education more concrete, specific and measurable, two problems arise. First, there can be too much emphasis on those outcomes that can be most easily made explicit, for example, through behavioural objectives. Second, and considerably more danger- ous, is to assume that those outcomes that cannot be made explicit are unimportant, or even do not exist. The result has been a tendency to teach efficiently information and skills that occasionally were of little importance or even trivial, and to overlook information and skills that often were very important or even fundamental.

I t would appear that we are entering into a new period of a more serious understanding of the processes of educational transfer and innovation. Some innovations that have been successful in Europe or in the United States may not work well, or indeed at all, in the Latin American context, either because they are inappropriate to Latin American needs or cultural context, or because the necessary resources and infrastructure do not exist or cannot be relied on to remain in existence. The constraints imposed by economic conditions and political systems, as well as cultural differences, must be taken into account in any innovation.

The applications of educational technology must respond to the specific needs of the so- cieties in which they will be placed; they must be appropriate technologies. They must respond to political variables, to social systems, the language interests of the receiving/participating groups and the demands for increased democratization of educational results. The innovations must respond to the forms of cultures and the unique histories of the groups involved, to the nature and needs of the ethnic groups that compose the society (as was seen in the case of the Shuar Indians of Ecuador).

Educational technology projects must con- tinue to show their advantages in terms of cost efficiency. Many projects do not now do so;

yet many do. The ability to achieve the same level of output for lower costs is not as important as achieving a higher level of output, particularly in terms of improved quality, at the same costs. Often this means taking advan- tage of what is actually available, what can be co-ordinated and organized between existing institutions. Technological bases frequently exist and require better co-ordination, organization of dissemination channels, etc. For example, in Chile the distance education programmes for teacher training in I979 and I98O used the existing television network of the main state channel, the technical expertise of the teacher training centre for preparation of contents and programmes, the offices throughout the country of the Chilean Teachers' Association for registration and distribution of texts, and the University of Chile's nationwide testing system to give the final test. By co-ordinating these organizations it was not necessary to create any new infrastructural elements and therefore the course was carried out at a very low cost. is

In Latin America at this time there is much interest in increasing knowledge of the psychological bases of the teaching-learning process in order to improve the selection, design and application of technological processes and products in education. Psychological concepts have already been successfully applied to the improvement of media selection and instructional design 19 and it is hoped that further progress will be made. Two examples of areas of interest are instructional design models based on Piagetian developmental psychology, a~ and the development of cognitive skills as they relate to media selection. ~1

Al l of these elements lead us to mention the growing importance of the development and use of procedures for analysis and evaluation of probable impacts of technological innovation through studies and projections in the area referred to as technology assessment. The analysis of Tiffin concerning problems in the development of educational television systems and the work of Escotet on adverse factors in the development of open universities are two cases where technology assessment probably

3 5 4 Clifton Chadwick

could have reduced problems and resistance in these innovations. Information is now be- ginning to circulate concerning technology assessment methodology.

Another area of interest and awareness is the desire to increase the degree of active participation of the clients of the various educational innovations. This is often expressed as a desire to 'dignify' the role of the participants, to give them more voice in the decisions that affect their lives, to emphasize again the importance of the democratization of education, not only in terms of access but also in terms of learning results.

This increase in participation combined with the ideas of appropriate technology and creative assessment requires the search for new forms and processes in the use of educational technology. The development of horizontal implementation, the combination of technology with principles of discovery learning, the strengthening of the relation between learning and personal production, the increase in interest in Mastery Learning and the development of new possibilities for secondary education are some of the more pressing interests in Latin America. Closely related is the necessity to improve educational content in order to make it more flexible, relevant, and useful in many areas, including scientific, technological, ecological, and cultural areas, the development of creativity, critical sense, and respect for work.

One of the areas of significant interest and progress in educational technology in Latin America is the improvement of pre-service and in-service teacher training. In-service training has been an area of significant developments, but much remains to be done.

Thus there is progress. There have been many successful projects as well as some particularly unsuccessful ones. There is a growing awareness of the potential for educational improvement through educational technology. There is also an understanding that there are no easy answers, that complex education systems are not subject to miracle cures by the adoption of some particular innovation. Above all, there is an awareness of the

problems of the transfer of technology in education. The lesson has been learned that the transfer of technology has to do with approaches, general principles and experience. It should not be confused with the wholesale transfer of techniques, systems or products. These have to be home-gown, or adapted to local needs and conditions. �9

Notes I. A special number of the journal, Programmed Learn-

ing and Educational Technology (Vol. 17, No. 4, November 1980), prepared by Alexander Romiszowski and Clifton Chadwick, contains nine articles about educational technology in Lat in America. See also C. B. Chadwick and A. Magendzo, cEducational Technology in Lat in America and Personalized In- struction in Chile', Journal of Personalized Instruction, Vol. 2, No. 3, I977, pP. 18I-6.

2. Survey of projects, as yet untitled, to be published in i982 by the Department o f Educational Affairs, Organization of American States, Washington, DC 2ooo6.

3. Editorial by Romiszowski and Chadwick, op. cir., pp. I97-2oo.

4. John Tiffin, 'Educational Television--a Phoenix in Latin America?' , Programmed Learning and Edu- cational Technology, op. cit., pp. 257-61.

5. Ibid. , p. 257. 6. Ibid. , p. 258. 7. Ibid. , p. 260. 8. For more information contact Manuel Molina Pablos,

Director, Emisora y Escuelas Radiof6nicas San Rafael, Casilla 546, Cochabamba, Bolivia.

9. For more information contact Maria de Jesfis de Venegas, Coordinadora Nacional PRONAEEH, Con- sejo Superior de Planificaci6n Econ6mica, Edificio Banco Atl~Jatida, Comayaguela, Honduras.

IO. See in this issue the article by Liliana Muhlmann de Masoner, Paul H. Masoner and Harnando Bernal entitled cA Successful Experiment in Radiophonic Education: Acci6n Cultural Popular'.

I 1. Dean T. Jamison and l~mile McAnany, Radio for Education and Development, Beverly Hills]London, Sage, I978.

12. See Rafael Mashinguiashi, 'Escuelas radiof6nicas de los centros Shuar: consideraciones a partir del diagn6stico', Revista de tecnologia educati~a~ Vol. 4, I978~ pp. 32-49.

13. As reported in the OAS survey. For more information contact Homcio E. Bosch, Decano, Facultad de Tecnologla, Universidad de Belgrano, Amemtbar 1748 (I426)~ Buenos Aires, Argentina.

An overview of educational technology in Lat in America 3 5 5

I4. For a detailed account of the transfer of design models to Latin America, see C. B. Chadwick, 'Difusi6n, adaptaci6n y adopci6n de modelos de disefio de experiencias de ensefianza-aprendizaie en Am6rica Latina', Re~ista de tecnologia educativa, I978, Vol. 4,

pp. 431-55 �9 I5. See Miguel Escotet, 'Adverse Factors in the Develop-

ment of an Open University in Latin America', Programmed Learning and Educational Technology, Vol. I7, I98o, pp. 262--70.

~6. Miguel Escotet, 'La educaci6n superior a distancia en Latinoam6rica: mito y realidad de una innovaci6n', Revista de tecnologia educativa, 198o, Vol. 6, pp. 239-51 ; Luis B.Pefia, 'La teleducaci6n: ~tecnologia o comu- nicaci6n ? Perspectivas y significado de la teleducaci6n universitaria', Revista de tecnologfa educativa, I98o, Vol. 6, pp. 309-22.

r 7. See the special issue of the Revista de tecnologia educativa, Vol. 4, x978, dedicated to the subject of transfer of technology in education, and particularly Ovidio Oundjian B., 'La transferencia de tecnologia en la educaci6n y e n la politica nacional sobre tecnologia educativa' (pp. 50--65), and C. Chadwick and E. Barandiaran, ~Breve resefia de las conclusiones y recomendaciones de los once seminarios de transferencia a nivel nacional y sub-regional' (pp. r27-32).

I8. For more detail see Cristi~n Calder6n, Clifton Chadwick and Nelson Romero, 'Curso de perfecciona- miento a distancia sobre evaluaci6n del proceso de ensefianza-aprendizaje', Revista de tecnologla educatlva, I979, Vol. 5, PP. 351-79.

x9. Chadwick, op. cit., note I5. 2o. Robbie Case, 'A Developmentally Based Theory and

Technology of Instruction'~ Review of Educational Research, x978~ Vol. 48, pp. 439-63.

zI. Gavriel Salomon~ 'Medios y sistemas de simbolos relacionados a la cognici6n y el aprendizaie'~ Revista de tecnalogia educativa, Vol. 6, pp. 6-38.

Documents

An overview of educational technology in Latin America