I suppose that depends on the country in which the classroom is located. In Uganda, where I will be, classrooms will likely look similar to the way they look now: small, stone floors, dirt walls, children in uniforms, a separate area for eating lunch, outdoor pit latrines, and no technology aside from a blackboard. I have a hard time picturing progress in any way, including technologically, especially since there is no public education system and therefore no public education funding. But one advancement I can see is that the government has become more aware of the schools being started and requires regular government approval, as well as health inspections; this could lead to additional government sponsorship. The other advancement I see is the possibility of faster/cheaper internet; as it is, internet is incredibly slow and incurs per-minute fees. But my brother-in-law and others have informed me that an under-ocean telephone link between Europe and Africa is being started; this will likely improve internet speed. However, the issue of power is still around; until power is more consistent, students can't count on using computers regularly, especially in rural areas. Personally, regarding the technology I will be using, I will try to introduce the use of such things as inexpensive laptops, as well as overhead projectors when in developed areas; in rural areas, no such thing will be possible until a long time in the future. I never expect to use a SMARTboard or an ELMO or anything like that in any of my Ugandan classrooms.
Addition to the original post:
It dawned on me, at 4:00 this morning, as I was helping my fiance with his homework, that Uganda actually is more advanced than I had given it credit for. My fiance is currently completing another degree (he already has one in theology and one in computer science), yet he lives far away from where the school is located. The way it works is this: the school has computer books available- books which exist in print but have been typed up and saved on the computer. So his professor sends my fiance a file link to his email. My fiance then downloads the book file to his jump drive, transfers it to his laptop, reads the material over a couple weeks' time from his laptop, types out his assignments, then emails them into his professor. (My fiance does not have internet available for his laptop, so he must visit an internet cafe to email his assignments.)
3 comments:
Have you heard about the computers that were made for places that can't afford high priced computers? They sell for about $100and they do not rely on a power source and they are durable. you can read more about it here if you want: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6246989.stm
Thanks for the link Gina; it was really helpful. I had heard of these computers but didn't know that they might be available to the public. That would be great if I could personally bring some of these kind of laptops over to Uganda; even if it wasn't one per child, it could possibly serve in teaching students necessary skills in computer operation or just simply enhance the curriculum.
I really anjoyed/appreciated your blog about the technology in Uganda. It's pretty much the same way I feel about technology in the Philippines. I guess I just feel a little differently than you in that I know the technology is available in the Philippines, but it probably won't be available for the kids I'll be teaching. They're just too poor. It makes me sad but I take heart in the fact that education has happend for centuries, if not millenia, without the technology we have now. I know I will be challenged to think outside the box...so you should pray for me :)
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