Hello friends and family. It’s been a while since I wrote and I think you are due for a general update. There hasn’t been any individual recent event worthy of an entire blog entry, but several small things can be reported. Read on and enjoy!
First off, I returned from Nairobi in early April to a week of preparations for a week long teacher computer training that I organized and helped teach. The class was held during the April school holidays, when teachers are more available than when school is in session. The event was a great success. There were 21 teachers who enrolled, and 19 stayed the whole week and earned certificates for basic computer skills. By the end many were even showing up in the morning on “muzungu time” (muzungu means white person in Nyanja. So, this was the class joke for the concept of coming at the stated time, instead of the local habit of showing up 15 – 45 minutes late). In addition to the basic computer skills, the course covered an introduction to touch typing and instruction and discussion on how to use the computers and the internet to improve academic work in schools. The participating teachers all gave the course rave reviews, and thought it should be offered again next year at the same time. I was also pleased that the schools all paid a fee for the teachers to participate. This was the first time that the trust that I volunteer for had actually charged anybody for anything related to the computers, and was a very tiny step towards the goal of program sustainability.
Second, I can report that I am slowly making progress on the investigation of a possible community computer center. The target community (chosen only because it is a low-income community located close to the majority of the schools we have been involved with) and the city councilor responsible for that area have had several meetings with me, and an interim steering committee for the potential project has been formed. In addition, a community survey was distributed and 105 copies returned. Of those surveyed, 42 said they had no computer skills and 82 said they would like to learn or learn more computer skills. The survey also showed a high level of enthusiasm for a center that would offer internet access, business services and some sort of skill training that would help people earn money or gain employment. These are tall orders, but hopefully we can found a center that will at least meet some of the community needs. One big worry I have from the survey results is that many people expressed concern about the possibilities of corruption, mismanagement of resources, theft of equipment, and a general lack of trustworthiness in community members. The community also, however, wants to have a computer center that is run by a local committee. A lot of work is going to need to be done to make sure that this committee has operating principles and procedures that don’t allow for any foul play.
Finally a bit about the weather – the rain stopped in early April, and won’t be back again until around November. Things are drying up a bit, and the mosquitoes are decreasing in number. Our garden still has lots of frogs, though, and large grasshoppers that like to come into the kitchen and hang out in odd places such as on the spigot or in the dish drain. The evenings are cool now (the locals are wearing sweaters already, but I have resisted thus far) and the days are warm and sunny, but not too hot (maybe low 80’s?). I can still go swimming, but the water is cooling off too, sadly, and it won’t be long before I need to put the swimsuit away. The scenery is beautiful, as usual, particularly when I venture a bit outside the city. The uniform green has now been replaced by a range of colors in the vegetation. This picture is from a “booze cruise” I recently took with a friend on the Kafue River, about an hours drive from Lusaka. The views were beautiful, but went by a bit too slowly. I think the captain was trying to make sure no drinks got spilled!
First off, I returned from Nairobi in early April to a week of preparations for a week long teacher computer training that I organized and helped teach. The class was held during the April school holidays, when teachers are more available than when school is in session. The event was a great success. There were 21 teachers who enrolled, and 19 stayed the whole week and earned certificates for basic computer skills. By the end many were even showing up in the morning on “muzungu time” (muzungu means white person in Nyanja. So, this was the class joke for the concept of coming at the stated time, instead of the local habit of showing up 15 – 45 minutes late). In addition to the basic computer skills, the course covered an introduction to touch typing and instruction and discussion on how to use the computers and the internet to improve academic work in schools. The participating teachers all gave the course rave reviews, and thought it should be offered again next year at the same time. I was also pleased that the schools all paid a fee for the teachers to participate. This was the first time that the trust that I volunteer for had actually charged anybody for anything related to the computers, and was a very tiny step towards the goal of program sustainability.
Second, I can report that I am slowly making progress on the investigation of a possible community computer center. The target community (chosen only because it is a low-income community located close to the majority of the schools we have been involved with) and the city councilor responsible for that area have had several meetings with me, and an interim steering committee for the potential project has been formed. In addition, a community survey was distributed and 105 copies returned. Of those surveyed, 42 said they had no computer skills and 82 said they would like to learn or learn more computer skills. The survey also showed a high level of enthusiasm for a center that would offer internet access, business services and some sort of skill training that would help people earn money or gain employment. These are tall orders, but hopefully we can found a center that will at least meet some of the community needs. One big worry I have from the survey results is that many people expressed concern about the possibilities of corruption, mismanagement of resources, theft of equipment, and a general lack of trustworthiness in community members. The community also, however, wants to have a computer center that is run by a local committee. A lot of work is going to need to be done to make sure that this committee has operating principles and procedures that don’t allow for any foul play.
Finally a bit about the weather – the rain stopped in early April, and won’t be back again until around November. Things are drying up a bit, and the mosquitoes are decreasing in number. Our garden still has lots of frogs, though, and large grasshoppers that like to come into the kitchen and hang out in odd places such as on the spigot or in the dish drain. The evenings are cool now (the locals are wearing sweaters already, but I have resisted thus far) and the days are warm and sunny, but not too hot (maybe low 80’s?). I can still go swimming, but the water is cooling off too, sadly, and it won’t be long before I need to put the swimsuit away. The scenery is beautiful, as usual, particularly when I venture a bit outside the city. The uniform green has now been replaced by a range of colors in the vegetation. This picture is from a “booze cruise” I recently took with a friend on the Kafue River, about an hours drive from Lusaka. The views were beautiful, but went by a bit too slowly. I think the captain was trying to make sure no drinks got spilled!
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