[kictanet] Laptops for 2014 class 1 entrants

Wed Apr 10 16:45:44 EAT 2013

@Ikua,

Indeed it is never too early for ICTs. As the tweeting class, all our Kids have these gadgets at home and its largely beneficial. 

But trust me, the 'private' experience takes a whole new shape when done nationally and on a public basis. Other than the well known economic concept of the 'tragedy of the commons' there are those are other challenges I highlighted earlier.  These risks/challenges are 10 times lower under our high school system when compared to our primary school system. Our high schools already have curricula beyond IT (Harry H?), theres already a small but emerging community of ICT high school teachers and quite a good group of high schools already have substantial  Computer Lab Management experience.

As a risk management consultant, @Ikua, you will agree with me that this project has a better chance of success and bigger social dividends if it kicked off at high school level rather than at primary level. After all, by the time these standard 1s get to high school, they will get this free device/ict ystem extremely mature. And as these form1s get to University, we shall be ready to graduate the true knowlege workers in just another 8yrs rather than in the next 20yrs- when std1s graduate.

So guys, am not fighting the idea, am just increasing its chance of success by suggesting changes to its point of entry within our educational system.

walu.

------------------------------
On Wed, Apr 10, 2013 2:36 PM AST (Arabian) Evans Ikua wrote:

>A good place to start would be to get the laptops installed with Qimo for
>Kids.
>
>Qimo is a desktop operating system designed for kids. Based on the open
>source Ubuntu Linux <http://www.ubuntu.com/> desktop, Qimo comes
>pre-installed with educational games for children aged 3 and up. Qimo’s
>interface has been designed to be intuitive and easy to use, providing
>large icons for all installed games, so that even the youngest users have
>no trouble selecting the activity they want.
>My kids use it and the one in class 1 has really improved his grades
>because of its educational games that improve memory, language and maths
>skills, not mention that his keyboarding and mouse skills are very good.
>For those who think class 1 is too early, he started using this about 2
>years ago. and i wish I had discovered it earlier.
>
>Also, I hope and pray that my tax money will not be used to pay for any
>software that we do not need at all.
>
>
>On Wed, Apr 10, 2013 at 1:28 PM, Dorcas Muthoni <dmuthoni at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> +1 Harry!
>>
>> As you can see on literacy (*age 15 and over can read and write*) here:
>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_literacy_rate , Kenya
>> is one of the leading countries in Africa but still a distant from getting
>> it to the best level.
>>
>> There is no world map indicating IT literacy by country
>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_literacy, we should support this
>> move by the new government so that come 2030, we shall be leading on this
>> space.
>>
>> We should begin now.
>>
>>
>> On Wed, Apr 10, 2013 at 11:49 AM, Harry Hare <
>> harry at africanedevelopment.org> wrote:
>>
>> Hey Walu et al,
>>
>> I do not expect the President to have answers to your questions below.
>> You know the workings in government, what has been made is a high level
>> policy pronouncement now it will be unto the technocrats like yourself to
>> craft a working strategy and plan for this to work.
>>
>> I expect that a team within the Ministry (may be include KIE and the ICT
>> Integration Unit) will be set up to work on the detail of how to deliver
>> this policy. And on your point "1", shouldn't we be targeting IT for
>> Eduction and not IT education? Why would yu need an IT curriculum for class
>> one?
>>
>> Kindest Regards
>>
>> Harry Hare
>>
>> Director  |  African eDevelopment Resource Centre
>> PO Box 49475 00100 | Nairobi, Kenya
>> Tel +254 20 4041646  |  Cel +254 725 650044
>>
>>
>> From: Owino Jakakaeta <mpodhiambo at yahoo.com>
>> Reply-To: Owino Jakakaeta <mpodhiambo at yahoo.com>
>> Date: Wed, 10 Apr 2013 00:24:38 -0700 (PDT)
>> To: Cio_Magazine Hare <harry at africanedevelopment.org>
>> Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>
>>
>> Subject: Re: [kictanet] Laptops for 2014 class 1 entrants
>>
>> 50 + 1 @ walu
>>
>> Owino Jakakaeta
>> Life is too SHORT to eat Green BANANAS!
>>
>>
>>   ------------------------------
>> *From:* Walubengo J <jwalu at yahoo.com>
>> *To:* "mpodhiambo at yahoo.com" <mpodhiambo at yahoo.com>
>> *Cc:* kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke
>> *Sent:* Tuesday, April 9, 2013 10:40 PM
>> *Subject:* Re: [kictanet] Laptops for 2014 class 1 entrants
>>
>>
>> @Yawe,
>>
>> I was on travel (not to SA :-) but caught up with our two new
>> Principals.  Great speeches. But if there's someone already in the new
>> Presidents kitchen cabinet plse pass the following news.  Just drop the
>> laptop business or at least modify it because of the following reasons.
>>
>> 1. Curriculum.
>> Ok. So the kids have laptops next year. What to do with them? Play games,
>> watch porn? In other words do we have an IT curriculum for these youngsters
>> or we believe they will automatically become Bill Gates once we throw
>> gadgets at them.?
>>
>> 2. IT Teachers.
>> Assuming we cobble together some curriculum before next year. How soon
>> can we get out primary teachers upto speed on the same? Do we have a ToT
>> program in place. ToT= Training of Trainers for the non-academics.
>>
>> 3. Examinations.
>> It is known that Kenyans learn ONLY when it is examinable. Indeed
>> teachers make space in their timetables if they know the unit is
>> examinable. Otherwise you can as well do your IT lessons at home as your
>> hobby since the lesson will NOT be scheduled at the expense of say
>> Mathematics which is examinable. So is the KNEC ready with this exam?
>>
>> 4. Security/Theft.
>> If folks can still IEBC laptops from secure strongrooms, what about
>> laptops hanging either in staffrooms or  on standard 1 pupils?  What about
>> a poor parent who opts to trade in the laptop in favour of cash to use for
>> other purposes? This is not far fetched since even the largely successful
>> Wezesha Laptop initiative were University students got subsidized Laptops
>> and quite a number sold them off at market price.
>>
>> 5. Maintenance\Disposal program.
>> Usually laptops are rarely maintained. Just dump them after 3-4yrs. So we
>> need to think efficient disposal mechanism for 1million+ gadgets across
>> rural and urban Kenya. Worse still those Kids will now be in standard 4 and
>> so our buget for laptops will double -both for Sdt1s and the Std4s.
>>
>> But I have a simple solution for our new digital President. Just traget
>> Form1s and perharps forget Laptops and adopt Networked
>> PCs. The ecosytem described above is more mature to take on this great
>> idea. Our Primary schools will just drain this initiative with little
>> returns to the taxpayer.
>>
>> walu.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> ------------------------------
>> On Wed, Apr 10, 2013 7:56 AM AST (Arabian) robert yawe wrote:
>>
>> >Hi,
>> >
>> >I like the confirmation by the President - sworn and his deputy on the
>> issue of laptops for class 1 students from next year, it is commendable and
>> quite easily achievable but as ICT experts are laptops the ideal items or
>> would low power touchscreen tablets be more practical and appropriate?
>> However .com that the two principles are I suspect that they might not be
>> up to speed on devices.
>> >
>> >Here again for the umpteenth time the opportunity for us to become
>> relevant presents itself, shall we take action or sit back to carry out a
>> forensic analysis when only 80% of the students get the devices?
>> >
>> >Regards
>> >
>> >PS.  A new dispensation, a new dedication and new vigor
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >Robert Yawe
>> >KAY System Technologies Ltd
>> >Phoenix House, 6th Floor
>> >P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200
>> >Kenya
>> >
>> >
>> >Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696
>>
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>> https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/harry%40africanedevelopment.orgThe Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform for
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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
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>>
>> --
>> Muthoni
>>
>> My Blog: http://rugongo.blogspot.com/
>> --------------------------------------------
>> Mahatma Gandhi once said:-
>>
>> First they ignore you,
>> Then they laugh at you,
>> Then they fight you,
>> AND THEN YOU WIN!!!
>>
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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.
>>
>
>
>
>-- 
>*----------------------------------------------------
>Kind Regards,
>Evans Ikua,*
>lanetconsulting.com,
>lpi-eastafrica.org,
>ict-innovation.fossfa.net,
>Skype: @ikuae
>Cell: +254-722-955831