The research topic focuses on exploring the connection between technology and education. As the Internet’s fast spread creates an irrevocably networked world, the information age has increased the speed of globalization. As a result, the paper investigates the effects of technological development in countries, focusing on the influence on education. Essentially, the research question is ‘Does a country’s level of technological development affect the quality of education?’. The research question considers the phenomena across countries. It is critical to evaluate if new technology influences how schools, colleges, and institutions educate and whether it impacts the quality and access.
The research question ‘Does a country’s level of technological development affect the quality of education has two variables: technological development (independent) → education’s quality (dependent). The three essential characteristics of technological development include telecommunication connectivity, digital competence, and Artificial Intelligence (AI) research. Firstly, the telecommunications industry has a dynamic competitive environment because of extensive and ongoing technical advancement. New digital platforms and services are causing major upheaval in the digital economy (Oughton et al. 2018). Significantly, telecommunications are necessary for modern commercial activity and a completely functioning society. These technologies can spur economic growth by introducing new products, services, and solutions.
Secondly, digital competence is an essential aspect of a country’s technological progress. The European Union identified digital competence as one of eight core competencies for lifelong learning (Godhe 2019). Moreover, the concepts of digital literacies and digital competence have been used frequently, notably in educational policy papers and the digitization of learning environments and teaching.
Ultimately, Artificial intelligence (AI) is widely employed in various areas. Many governments have actively promoted and funded initiatives in AI algorithm research, AI hardware, and AI-based applications to enhance the development of AI technology (Abadi and Pecht 2020). China, the United States, Japan, the United Kingdom, and Germany are the top five countries in AI research (Wang and Siau 2018). AI technology significantly influences a country’s economic and technical progress.
The three vital characteristics of education’s quality are accessibility, literacy, and public expenditure. Learning is accessible when it is available to everyone and when the education fulfills the requirements of people from various backgrounds, skills, and learning styles. Consequently, literacy is a continuum of learning that enables people to attain their objectives, enhance their knowledge and skills, and actively engage in community and broader society (Montoya, 2018). Education spending by the government or public expenditure has a favorable influence on countries’ economic growth (Nyasha and Odhiambo 2019). Public expenditure refers to the financial amount allocated for education in a particular country.
For the research, the characteristics chosen are telecommunication connectivity and literacy rate. Telecommunication connectivity describes precisely the level of a country’s technological development. The concept can be measured by calculating the percentage of individuals using the Internet from the total population (The World Bank Data n.d.). The literacy rate identifies the education quality because countries with higher literacy rates have better educational accessibility and quality. Moreover, the literacy rate is defined as the proportion of a specific age group’s population who can read and write. Researchers determine the literacy rate by dividing the number of literates in a particular age range by those of that age group and multiplying the result by 100 (UNESCO n.d.). To summarize, the instruments selected are the telecommunication infrastructure index and literacy rate.
The first variable is 4.28.5 Telecommunication Infrastructure Index (egov_tii), the instrument reads “The Telecommunication Infrastructure Index (TII) is an arithmetic average composite of five indicators: (i) estimated internet users per 100 inhabitants; (ii) number of main fixed telephone lines per 100 inhabitants; (iii) number of mobile subscribers per 100 inhabitants…” (See QOG Codebook, p. 179, variable 4.28.5 Telecommunication Infrastructure Index). The second variable is 4.104.182 Literacy rate, adult female (% of females ages 15 and above) (wdi_litradf), whose instrument reads “Percentage of the female population age 15 and above who can, with understanding, read and write a short, simple statement on their everyday life…” (See QOG Codebook, p. 598, variable 4.104.181 Literacy rate).
References
QOG Codebook. 2021. The QOC standard dataset 2021 codebook. Web.
The World Bank Data n.d. “Individual Using the Internet (% of Population)”. Web.
Oughton, Edward, Zoraida Frias, Tom Russell, Douglas Sicker, and David D. Cleevely. “Towards 5G: Scenario-based Assessment of the Future Supply and Demand for Mobile Telecommunications Infrastructure.” Technological Forecasting and Social Change 133: 141-155. Web.
Godhe, Anna-Lena. “Digital Literacies or Digital Competence: Conceptualizations in Nordic Curricula.”Media and Communication 7 (2): 25-35. Web.
Wang, Weiyu, and Keng Siau. 2018. “Artificial Intelligence: A Study on Governance, Policies, and Regulations.” MWAIS 2018 proceedings 40. Web.
Abadi, Hamidreza Habibollahi Najaf, and Michael Pecht. 2020. “Artificial Intelligence Trends Based on the Patents Granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.”IEEE Access 8: 81633-81643. Web.
Montoya, Silvia. 2018. Defining Literacy. Web.
Nyasha, Sheilla, and Nicholas M. Odhiambo. “The Impact of Public Expenditure on Economic Growth: A Review of International Literature.” Folia Oeconomica Stetinensia 19 (2): 81-101. Web.
UNESCO. n.d. “Literacy Rate.” Web.