OLPCorps Dickinson Ghana

Team Members

Name	College	Year	Roles	Background
Jeremy Pesner	Dickinson College	2009	Project Manager, Game Designer, and Co-Software Engineer	Computer Science
Jennifer Strater	Hamilton College	2010	Quality Control, Data Management, and Co-Software Engineer	Computer Science, Psychology

Who, What, When, Where?

Laptops will be distributed to 100 primary school (6-12 year-old) children at the Somey National School in Agbozume, Ghana. The program will last from the end of orientation in Rwanda until our return to the US in mid August (based on travel arrangements/ flight availability). If flight arrangements permit, we will use the week prior to orientation in Rwanda for set-up with the NGO and school. The children are in school during June and July. August will be spent making the transition to the Elikplim Foundation. English is the primary language in Ghana and for the school.

Our Goals

• Educational gaming is shown to improve test scores and enhance learning (Schmidt and Vandewater, 2008). By gaining greater attention than traditional lecture methods, computer games may be a way to enhance motivation in school aged children and adolescents. Significant improvements in learning have been observed for many different subjects when computer games were used to supplement classroom instruction including learning languages (Purushotma, 2005) and geography (Tuzun, Yilmaz-Soylu, Karakus, Inal, and Kizilkaya, 2009).
  

• Our group will provide educational games to supplement learning in the classroom. By working with teachers and administrators, we will develop games for any subject needed and developed to the specific needs of these students. We can incorporate local customs, specific styles of learning, and age specific topics. Based on Mr. Pesner's experience in educational gaming and Ms. Strater's experience in psychology, we will work to develop games that increase learning in any subject matter desired. The children will be monitored for statistically significant progress and the games adapted if they do not meet the needs of the children and educators. After we leave in August, this project can be continued on a limited-basis during the school year with the support of the Elikplim Foundation and additional gaming assistance from Mr. Pesner and Ms. Strater. The transition period will make sure we can stay involved.

• This opportunity for the children of the Somey National School is life changing. Like the expression goes, “Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime.” In the same way, we are giving these children the opportunity to grow and succeed. Technology, particularly the internet today, provides us with the opportunity to do anything we want. For these children, we can give them the opportunity to meet people all over the globe and inspire them to succeed whether through furthering their education or founding an organization for changing the world. This project allows their dreams to become reality by enabling them to take on the world. We hope to enable the children to become independent and create their own games.

• currently editing, feel free to comment, but I should be adding more soon. (3/24/2009)

Credentials

Jeremy Pesner - In addition to several years of programming experience, Mr. Pesner has led committees which have been charged with discussing and improving technology. His strong communication skills, wide knowledge of technology and its applications, and his experience with the XO laptop and published work in Educational Gaming (ACMSE '09) makes him well-positioned to lead this educational gaming project.

Jennifer Strater - As a recent computer science convert, Ms. Strater's experiences are mainly in psychology and research methods. In addition, she has spent a Spring Break volunteering/tutoring at an underprivileged Elementary School and works for an organization that teaches English as a second language. She also possesses a strong background in medicine that will be useful in rural areas where health care facilities are limited.

References

Purushotma, R. Commentary: You’re Not Studying, You’re Just... Language Learning & Technology. 9(1): 80-96. Jan 2005. Link to Article[1]
Schmidt, M.E., Vandewater, E.A. Media and Attention, Cognition, and School Achievement. The Future of Children. 18(1): 63-85. Spring 2008. Link to Article[2]
Tuzun, H., Yilmaz-soylu, M., Karakus, T., Inal, Y., Kizilkaya, G. The effects of computer games on primary school students’ achievement and motivation in geography learning. Computers and Education. 52: 68-77. 2009. Link to Article[3]

Local Organizations

Somey National School
Agbozume
Volta Region
Ghana
Elikplim Foundation[4]
Agbozume
Volta Region
Ghana

Budget

Transportation to JFK - $300 (from Syracuse, NY and Carlisle, PA)
Airfare for 2 from JFK to KGL to ACC and back to JFK -approx $6000 (travel between Kigali and Accra is expensive)
Travel within Ghana (to include trips to pick up equipment and travel to the airport) - $200
Lodging - $900 ($100/wk for 9 weeks)
Food - $400 (about $5/day) Passports, Visas, and Immunizations (x2) - $600
Medical Preparedness Kit (advised for Travel to Ghana and includes first aid items for 3 months. Ms. Strater is certified in First Aid and First Responder) - $100
Other expenditures for the school (technical expenses incurred, use of materials, etc) - $300

Total: $8800