7 - Stories from e-Bario

Summary

INTRODUCTION

Bario has no road access and previously meagre or non-existent telecommunications services. The e-Bario project provided public telephones, computers for the two schools, a telecentre with computers and satellite access to the Internet. The project's objective is to demonstrate the opportunities for sustainable development in a remote and isolated rural community in the use of ICTs, and how they could be applied to the problems and opportunities for development among remote communities of ethnic minorities. E-Bario has won many awards and was featured by the International Telecommunications Union as “one of the most notable of Malaysia's Internet development initiatives” (ITU 2002). As the project continues to evolve, it is timely to evaluate its outcomes and impact on the community. In this regard, this paper examines a collection of stories told by members of the Bario community and situates them within the context of a wider, more comprehensive evaluation.

STORIES AS RESEARCH

According to Dart and Davies (2003), who originated the Most Significant Change evaluation technique, there are five advantages to using stories for evaluation: engagement, insight, sense-making, memory, and discussing hard messages.

Most Significant Change (MSC) is a methodology for participatory impact monitoring that involves the collection and systematic participatory interpretation of stories of change. It is a qualitative approach that does not rely on quantitative indicators. It has been widely used in the monitoring of aid projects throughout the developing world.

Engagement: Unlike other forms of evaluation which may involve using survey instruments, stories are inherently engaging for people. People love to experience and hear other people's stories. People warm to stories and become engaged. Stories are one of the more participative forms of communication. In the telling of a story, the story can be thought of as being told twice; once by the speaker, the next time by the listener. Stories engage the mind and the person.

Insight: Stories told in casual conversation can harness another sort of information; they provide insights into how storytellers construct reality and to what they attach importance.