[OLPC-Chicago] [IAEP] Laptops build bridge to Ireland (from Chicago)

[Edward Cherlin]

On Fri, Mar 20, 2009 at 7:18 AM, Sean DALY <sdaly.be at gmail.com> wrote:
> http://forestparkreview.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&SubSectionID=38&ArticleID=3934&TM=83377.22
>
> Despite the Chicago journalist being very confused about his
> geography, what I really like about this story is that the students
> will be communicating an ocean apart.

+1

> But, "Teachers are still developing ways to make the most of the
> partnership in their lessons".

I hope they will share their ideas with all of us, so that we can
offer their help to the next group of teachers to do something like
this. I want to see regular sister school relationships spring up all
over the world.

> As I understand the article, the Forest Park (Chicago) kids have XO-1s
> running Sugar while the St. Patrick's School, Barrow, Co. Cork kids
> don't.
>
> The solution? Sugar, running on whatever St.Patrick's has in the
> school connected to the Internet!

Plus a school server, or at least a jabber server that both schools
can connect to.

> I think this is an excellent opportunity to demonstrate the
> collaborative nature of Sugar's Activities - because the initiative
> came from the Governor of Illinois, whom I understand was instrumental
> in organizing the 100 get many give many XOs.

No, he was responsible for Illinois HB5000, proposing the Children's
Low-Cost Laptop Act, last year when he was Lieutenant Governor. The
plan is to let schools order laptops of their choice, study the
results, and then roll out the best version to the entire state.

http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Illinois#HB5000:_the_Children.27s_Low-Cost_Laptop_Act

I am in contact with one of Gov Quinn's staffers who lurks on the
OLPC-Chicago list. Gov. Quinn plans to reintroduce the bill after
dealing with some more urgent unfinished business from the Blagojevich
administration, and the current economic crisis. Some of us are
talking to the Governor's office about design of experiments so that
they can yield meaningful results.

> I propose to contact the Governor's office and offer to coach both
> sides in connecting to each other and sharing Activities online.

Let's get together on that.

> thanks
>
> Sean
> _______________________________________________
> IAEP -- It's An Education Project (not a laptop project!)
> IAEP at lists.sugarlabs.org
> http://lists.sugarlabs.org/listinfo/iaep
>



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And Children are my nation.
The Cosmos is my dwelling place, The Truth my destination.
http://earthtreasury.net/ (Edward Mokurai Cherlin)