NAYITS/Events
August 12, 2008 is Global Youth Day declared by the United Nation. It happens to be the birthday of Kafui Prebbie, country director of oneVillage Foundation Ghana. We celebrated this day by contributing to the ICT learning for the junior high school students and teachers. Through months’ of preparation, the international volunteers from Taiwan National Tsing Hua University and oneVillage staff co-conducted the ICT training courses to 20 school students age ranging from 12 to 15 years old. We started the class each day at 9am until noon and from 1pm to 3pm. Classes modules include the introductory of computing, Internet, search engine and practices, blogging and cultural activities to learn about Taiwan culture.
The students are learning to convert their knowledge of ICT into the language that class participants could understand. They are doing fantastically in my view with their creative way to get the messages delivered. The NTHU volunteers are playing the roles as teaching assistant while the key present of the subject takes the seat as the main presenter. They are attentive to the learning of the junior participants.
During the teaching, our power went off for about an hour. So we took the lunch break while waiting for the power to get back on. This incidence highlights how much Taiwan is enjoying its civic infrastructure, broadband access and modern facility to enable its day to day operation. Compared to the conditions in Ghana, it affords go when I started to know the African ICT development, we have come to a long way.
The participating teacher and students are learning well. They are not shy to ask questions and they are disciplined to respect the instructions in the classroom. The teacher of the junior high school told me that he also needs training as he does not have the chance to learn about the ICT. He along with many workers in all sectors are in need of ICT training. The university in town, University of Education, Winneba, is not catering to the educational needs of the communities. This points out the need to have community based solutions to scale up the human capacity building which is the aim of oneVillage Foundation.
We are grateful to the NTHU volunteers for their passion to serve and learn. They do wonders!
We are encouraged by the attending schools and their students and teachers. We hope this process catalyze the development of Winneba through ICT education from our effort.
We are jazzed to have a team work presented by oneVillage staff. Their enthusiasm and contribution makes the ICT School training possible.
Lastly, we thank to the leadership of Kafui for his undying motion to spearhead the ICT4D from Ghana to Africa continent.
We are all together honoring this day of Global Youth Day of 2008 for a better future.
Joy Tang @ Winneba Open Digital Village, Ghana, West Africa
