User:Kathypuente

Update December 2009

Our team took a trip to the Lower Virginia community outside of Monrovia, Liberia in October to access the communities needs for education. The community has numerous needs, but we found two that we've decided to focus on for the coming year. The instruction in the schools tends to be very rote with an emphasis on memorization. There is a need for a teacher training hands on student centered learning that emphasizes thinking skills. There is also an absence of reading materials. Literacy rates are low probably due to the fact that is very little (or nothing) to read.

Our plans for this year will include teacher training and the beginning of some adult community ed classes. Our plans for the XO have shifted a bit. The programs on the XO do encourage creativity, collaboration and thinking outside the box. We like this aspect a great deal, however, we have found that there are limited materials for the XO's e-reader capabilities. This has been dissappointing as one of our main goals is to get more reading materials to the students.

Proposal

1. Project Title Name of Project: The Palaver Project

Number of Laptops (or other hardware) You Request to Borrow: Loan Length—How Many Months:

We would like to borrow 2 XO machines and 2 solar chargers. We would need to use them for at least six months.

2. Team Participants Kathy Puente - kathy-puente@sbcglobal.net Prince D. Koikoi Pastor Emmanuel Gyomfi Allyn Anderson

Employer and/or School:

Liberia! Now P.O. Box 781767 San Antonio, TX 78278 210-487-0307

School: Virginia Christian Academy Lower Virginia, Monrovia, Liberia

3. Objectives Objective 1: To gather interest in the community by teachers, parents and students in having laptops as learning tools. Objective 2: To have a laptop for each student and teacher at Virginia Christian Academy in the Lower Virginia community in Liberia. There are approximately 150 students. Objective 3: To increase literacy in the community by having ebooks available for the children and their families to practice and enjoy. Liberia has only a 40% literacy rate. Objective 4: To break down tribal barriers and create an atmosphere of collaboration through the use of technology and a network.

4. Plan of Action The country of Liberia struggled through two civil wars lasting 14 years. In the last 3 years the country has been struggling to reverse the destruction brought about by these wars. Liberia! Now, a nonprofit organization, seeks to participate in helping to revitalize the major channels of the Liberian culture in a holistic approach linking the international community with the needs and opportunities that exist there today. The five channels of cultural transformation Liberia! Now seeks to address are health, education, economics, infrastructure and life skills. The education channel is headed by Kathy Puente in the U.S. and Prince D. Koikoi in Liberia, who work together to bring educational innovation to the children of the Lower Virginia suburb of Monrovia. Efforts in the U.S. will focus on gathering the resources needed to equip every child at Virginia Christian Academy with a laptop. Efforts in Liberia will focus on gathering community support and buy in for this project. Together we hope to bring technology, literacy, and human collaboration to a community that has little or no electricity, a 40% literacy rate, and tribal loyalties that had kept them in two civil wars for 14 years.

5. Needs Why is this project needed? Locally? There are several reasons why this project is needed in this community. First there is a scarcity of resources in the schools and the community. Many of the children at the school are attending with scholarships provided by Liberia! Now. Textbooks are too expensive for this community. With the XO the children will have greater access to textbooks, literature and collaborative technologies. These technologies will bring up literacy in the community and create a community that sees the need for tolerance and sharing of ideas.

In the greater OLPC/Sugar community? In the greater OLPC/Sugar community this project will push forward the goals of OLPC in helping to educate children in developing countries.

Outside the community? Supplying the students with XO machines will enable them to create and communicate with students at Oak Hills Terrace Elementary School in San Antonio, Texas, thereby sharing experiences and ideas and opening up the worlds of both communities.

Why can't this project be done in emulation using non-XO machines? This project cannot be done in emulation as we would need an example of an actual XO machine to present the technology to the community and to prospective partners in the project.

Why are you requesting the number of machines you are asking for? We are asking for two machines so that one can be used to present the technology in the United States and the other can be used to do the same in Liberia.

Will you consider (1) salvaged/rebuilt or (2) damaged XO Laptops? We would prefer 2 new machines as they will be used as tools to help with buy in to our program in the community and to the people who may choose to invest in this community.

6. Sharing Deliverables

How will you convey tentative ideas & results back to the OLPC/Sugar community, prior to completion? We will publish news and pictures on the OLPC wiki.

How will the final fruits of your labor be distributed to children or community members worldwide? The goal is to obtain one computer for each of the students at Virginia Christian Academy and one for each teacher. We would also set up a network to enable the children and their teachers to communicate with each other. A connection with the internet will also be sought out as a way to possibly connect to other school children around the world.

Will your work have any possible application or use outside our community? If yes, how will these people be reached? Connecting children living in poverty in a developing nation to each other, to others in their nation, and to other children in other nations would have positive effects in the lives of all concerned since with knowledge comes understanding of other peoples and other cultures. Only through an understanding like that can peace come to people in the same community and people in different communities. Once internet service is provided, students can email and share with students from other countries, including the students at Oak Hills Terrace Elementary in San Antonio, TX.

Have you investigated working with nearby XO Lending Libraries or Project Groups? The closest group is a couple of hours away, but they only lend for a month. We would need the two computers for approximately 6 months.

7. Quality/Mentoring Would your Project benefit from Support, Documentation and/or Testing people?

Teachers' input into Usability? One of the components of this project is to get the teachers’ input on using the XO machines in their schools and communities and then developing lessons to fill their needs.

How will you promote your work? The project will be presented in the community in Liberia in October 2009. If the community sees the need for this technology, the project will be shared with potential partners in the United States.

Can we help you with an experienced mentor from the OLPC/Sugar community? Yes, help would be greatly appreciated from organizations or individuals who have done a similar project so that we can avoid mistakes and make the project run as smooth as possible. We would also like a contact person at OLPC to field any questions and provide guidance as we go forward with this project.

8. Timeline (Start to Finish) September - October 2009 – The XO machine is explored and shared. A plan will be written as to how to present to the community during the October 2009 trip. October 2009 – Liberia! Now members will be traveling to Monrovia/Lower Virginia, Liberia for 6 days. The XO machine will be presented to the community for questions and feedback. This data will determine how to proceed next. November 2009 – March 2010 – Resources will be gathered and plans will be made to implement the project. July 2010 - Machines will be delivered to Liberia. Network will be set up. Training for teachers will take place. September 2010 – Students will receive their laptops and begin learning how to use them as well as learning with them.

Specify how you prefer to communicate your ongoing progress and obstacles! We would like to communicate by email and phone.

[ X] I agree to pass on the laptop(s) to a local OLPC group or other interested contributors in case I do not have need for the laptop(s) anymore or in case my project progress stalls.