Microfranchising Microlearning Centers: A Sustainable Model for Expanding the Right to Education in Developing Countries?

Abstract

While the availability of information and access to it enables education in developing countries, information alone does not secure transmission of knowledge—especially to remote learners in low-tech, infrastructure-poor communities. For this reason, 21st century distance education tools require innovative mechanisms for accessing the hardest-to-reach learners. This paper explores an ethnographic case study from Nepal as a means for illuminating the possibility for expanding the right to education in developing countries through an innovative approach: the micro-franchising of microlearning centers.