inequality, democracy... An interview with Thierry Leterre, a professor at the Paris Institute of Political Studies and an associate researcher at the CEVIPOF [1], on the social impact of information technologies.

 Label France : What do you think of the frequently suggested idea, particularly in the face of a certain crisis in schooling, of replacing teachers by computers ?

Thierry Leterre : The myth of a school without teachers has been reactivated by the irruption of the new information and communication technologies (ICT). Reactivated and not invented : numerous educational utopias have long considered that it is not at all the authority of the teachers, thought of as professionals in the transmission of knowledge, but the spontaneity of « learners » that must orient the acquisition of knowledge. Children, then young adults, should learn through play, by doing what they want to do, depending on their tastes.

From Illitch [2] schoolless society to the teacherless school that people dream of now, there is only one step. It is a step made all the more quickly in that education is a considerable investment, and there is a great temptation to think that a network of computers will be less expensive than teachers. The dream of education by computer is a dream of a delegated education, where the pupil would be face to face with himself, helped simply by an « educational guide » who would give him or her a few pointers regarding the use of the machine.

 Is this prospect, in your opinion, probable and desirable ?

In some circumstances, especially in the case of pupils who need systematic repetition of exercises, the computer, by nature tireless, is valuable. The same applies to the disabled (thus the partially sighted who benefit from computer-aided reading : they scan a book that the computer reads for them.) « Aid for special needs » is certainly one of the interesting dimensions of computerised teaching.

These cases, however, sometimes risk masking one of the dominant aspects of what we call the « information society » : talking about information, is talking about those who are capable of decoding information and producing it. In other words, education is more of a « prerequisite » than an opening : we use the Internet when we have the cultural resources to do so. This is all the more true in that information on computerised networks is fragmented, in that it demands the ability to evaluate, synthesise and make a critical analysis, which are precisely the skills that are learned at school.

 What benefits can we draw from the use of ICTs in education and teaching ?

The new technologies contribute to education in many ways. We can identify three major directions. First there is the use of the computer network as a reservoir of cultural tools - the « great library » aspect of the Internet for example ; then there is computer-linked education, where we learn all about what can be done with a computer. Lastly, there is the area in which computing supports community activities : creating a site for a school, or producing an on-line newsletter, as we do at Sciences-Po.

It is, in addition, a teaching aid for the faculty : a multi-media presentation on a site makes it possible to download secondary information, to provide course plans, and sundry other details... It may be enriched by students’ comments, and provide a very lively and interactive forum. In this instance, the interactivity is between people and not between the machine and its user.

 Do ICTs make the traditional methods of writing and communication obsolete ?

The best kept secret of the information society is the phenomenal resurgence of the written word ! Through e-mail, websites and discussion forums. In this sense, the computer is a fairly traditional educational medium. It belies the widespread idea of an audio-visual society. In fact, the written word is a fantastic vector of information. Better still : we are rediscovering forms of writing that had been forgotten, like writing every day, what we used to call a « column ».

 What is the impact of these new media (computers and the Internet) on the way we keep ourselves informed ?

A « click generation » is taking shape which is going to replace the « zapping generation » [3]. There is a similarity between clicking and zapping - you move from one subject to another in no apparent order. There is one notable difference. When you « click » on a link to another site, you do it because you are interested in it, and you can anticipate what awaits you. Whereas when you hop from one channel to another, it is the broadcaster who determines what you can watch. Because of this, the new technologies are not strictly speaking a new realm of the media ; they are rather the uncoupling of mass communication from the notion of broadcasting. A website broadcasts nothing, you must go in search of information, and not receive it passively.

 How can we prevent ICTs from worsening social and educational inequalities within countries and on a global scale ?

It is true that the new technologies are inegalitarian - it is the richest countries that are connected, and within these rich countries, the most affluent citizens or those who are the holders of the cultural capital, and within these groups the traditionally dominant - men. The only corrective to this general inequality is that the young are more likely to be better connected than their elders. The trend now is to equalisation. In reality, it is not by teaching the poorest to use a computer that we will rectify this situation - the fight against cyber-exclusion is the fight against exclusion itself.

 Should we fear the triumph of a sub-culture encouraged by ICTs, to the detriment of the general culture and other media ?

The traditional media - television, newspapers and radio - are often already vectors of an americanised sub-culture. In fact, the new technologies allow « high culture » to fight back by providing it with new means of expression. In a real bookshop, the book that sells 10,000 copies chases out the book that sells 5,000. In the cyberworld, both very different products coexist without being subsumed by each other.

 Do you think that the widespread use of ICTs will lead to the atomisation of society where each individual will be able to do everything without leaving home and meeting other people ?

An atomised society is not necessarily a bad thing : it allows the individual to express himself without harming others. In this sense, it is a kind of dream of absolute freedom - at the bottom of the new technologies - to be able to do whatever I want, without this ever being in conflict with others.

 How are ICTs modifying the democratic order ?

The foundations of modern governance are challenged by the new technologies ; they assume the exercise of power in the name of the people or of the nation, or of a defined community. Yet there is nothing of this on the net ; an African can be gripped by a political question debated in Switzerland, while a Swiss will be taking an interest in some other question causing a problem in Africa. It is the idea of general will that is undermined ; but at the same time, this general will was something that excluded : it did not allow just anyone to speak, but only citizens, and better still, their representatives. Thanks to the Internet we are witnessing a kind of « de-authorising » of speech ; each individual is free to express him or herself outside the natural political boundaries.

Interview conducted by Anne Rapin