[kictanet] {Disarmed} Re: Open Data - Where does it sit?

[Andrea Bohnstedt]

I think I have probably mentioned this once already a while ago: A few years
ago, I did an article on Intel's Classmate mini-netbook. When kids use this
netbook, they made huge progress in learning. But, Intel emphasised, only
under certain conditions: the teachers have to be trained on how to
integrate the Classmate and the teaching materials on it into their lesson
plan. And they had to have teaching materials developed for the Classmate
and the use of digital media. If anything, using this gadget put higher
requirements on the teachers.

I think this is particularly important with young pupils because you
effectively need to teach them how to learn first. Once they've achieved
that, digital learning materials will be come a lot easier for them.

That's aside from issues like having power, connectivity, and having a means
of ensuring that the gadgets don't get stolen. Those brick and mortar issues
are important.

Bridge International Academies here in Nairobi have chosen a different
approach: as far as I know, they don't use such gadgets for their kids, but
they have streamlined everything in the management of the schools as much as
possible to bring costs down. They invest a lot of money into their teaching
materials and lesson plans, though, and also in teacher training. That
allows them to keep school fees down to about the same sum that parents have
to pay in 'free primary education schools' for desk fee, motivation fee etc,
but provide a teaching quality that is infinitely higher.

Have a good afternoon,
Andrea

On 12 July 2011 12:35, <bitange at jambo.co.ke> wrote:

> Barrack,
> You can never replace the teacher.  By providing content to students, you
> only force the teacher to be more prepared or else the student gets bored.
>  You will enable lively discussions instead of teachers reading notes to
> studentsm
>
> There are content opportunities on tertiary education especially on how to
> do it yourself.   These opportunities lie from plumbing to carpentry.  We
> talk about unemployment yet we have broken cistern pouring expensive water,
> broken sewers spewing diseases, broken furniture, broken vehicles etc.
>
> Then there are economic opportunities in delaying consumption.  How to dry
> tomatoes, potatoes, mangoes etc.
>
> We must start to think beyond our selfish ends.
>
> Ndemo.
>
>
>
> Sent from my BlackBerry®
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack at gmail.com>
> Sender: kictanet-bounces+bitange=jambo.co.ke at lists.kictanet.or.ke
> Date: Tue, 12 Jul 2011 07:17:26
> To: <bitange at jambo.co.ke>
> Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions<kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>
> Subject: {Disarmed} Re: [kictanet] Open Data - Where does it sit?
>
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> The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform for
> people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and
> regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT
> sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development.
>
> KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors
> online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth,
> share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do
> not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.
>



-- 
Andrea Bohnstedt <http://ke.linkedin.com/in/andreabohnstedt>
Publisher
+254 720 960 322

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