Going beyond the “T” in “CTC”: Social Practices as Care in Community Technology Centers

Abstract

Community technology center (CTC) is a term usually associated with facilities that provide free or affordable computer and internet access, and sometimes training, to people in underserved communities. Despite the large number of studies done on CTCs, the literature has focused primarily on the use of ICTs as the main, if not the only, activity in these centers. When it comes to addressing social concerns, the literature has often seen them as an outcome of ICT use. It does not highlight CTCs as an inherent and important social space that helps to tackle social issues. Thus, in this study, I present an ethnographic account of how residents of favelas (urban slums in Brazil)-who are from understudied and marginalized areas-used these centers beyond the "T" (technology) in order to fulfill some of their social needs. I highlight the social practices afforded by the CTCs that were beneficial to the underserved communities. By social practices, I focus exclusively on the acts of care performed by individuals in order to address self and community needs. I argue that CTCs go beyond the use of technology and provide marginalized people with a key social space, where they alleviate some of their social concerns, such as lack of proper education, violence, drug cartel activities, and other implications of being poor.

Open world learning: research, innovation and the challenges of high-quality education Open world learning: research, innovation and the challenges of high-quality education , Edited by Bart Rienties, Regine Hampel, Eileen Scanlon and Denise Whitelock, London, Routledge, Published, January 26, 2022, 298 pp., £38.99 (Paperback), ISBN: 9781032010922; £130.00 (Hardback), ISBN 9781032010922

“…To bridge this digital divide, Community Technology Centres (CTCs), which are public-shared access to ICT resources with computers, Wi-Fi and, in some cases, mobile devices have been deployed in low-income contexts (Nemer, 2018b). Studies assessing CTCs in Brazil and Kenya indicated these facilities provide positive benefits that enable users to access information on education, health, current affairs (Wamuyu, 2017) and provide a social space to address individual and community needs (Nemer, 2018a).…”