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<DIV><SPAN class=375560707-25022009><FONT size=2>Sorry if this is short or
disruptive ... the comments that follow are not meant as criticism. I just
want to provoke a little thought.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375560707-25022009><FONT size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375560707-25022009><FONT size=2>The point of education is to
prepare children for the future. Now, I'm not one who argues that
kids should only be taught that which they need to know to work. I
believe in a broad education.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375560707-25022009><FONT size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375560707-25022009><FONT size=2>I do think, tho, that
computing-wise, they need to be prepared for what they will face.
Currently, they'll need to deal with word processors, spread sheets, and
presentation software.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375560707-25022009><FONT size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=375560707-25022009><FONT size=2>How does Sugar translate into
computing skills for later life? Will Sugar skills help
them?</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<P><SPAN class=375560707-25022009><FONT size=2>In the majority of cases, will
computing skills even be needed? The schools I have visited desperately
needed materials. Basic materials. Computers would be a huge
luxury. </FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN class=375560707-25022009><FONT size=2>Sorry if these thoughts are
jumbled, I'm quit sick ... </FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><FONT size=2>James Shields<BR></P></FONT>
<BLOCKQUOTE>
<DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Tahoma
size=2>-----Original Message-----<BR><B>From:</B>
olpc-philippines-bounces@lists.laptop.org
[mailto:olpc-philippines-bounces@lists.laptop.org]<B>On Behalf Of </B>Arthur
Soller<BR><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, February 25, 2009 2:10 PM<BR><B>To:</B> OLPC
Philippines/Pilipinas grassroots<BR><B>Subject:</B> Re: [OLPC-Philippines]
Vision, Mission,and harnessing the power of
volunteers...<BR><BR></FONT></DIV>To two cents complicated is my tow dents
worth; I've seen kids in the US learn computing with a limited access to
computers. Let the learning become an exploration. We have taught
limited-English-speaking adults with grade three level of education with
success in the US. So get the organization structure up with responsible
people to manage it and start it.<BR><BR>
<DIV class=gmail_quote>2009/2/23 Ryan Letada <SPAN dir=ltr><<A
href="mailto:rletada@gmail.com">rletada@gmail.com</A>></SPAN><BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE class=gmail_quote
style="PADDING-LEFT: 1ex; MARGIN: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; BORDER-LEFT: rgb(204,204,204) 1px solid">
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman">Hello
Everyone,</FONT></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT
face="Times New Roman"></FONT> </P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman">Hmm. Where to
begin? </FONT></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT
face="Times New Roman"></FONT> </P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman">Essentially,
this goes back to the question of what our purpose and mission are as an
organization. With Jerome's important points regarding sugar, and despite
the instability of OLPC and G1G1 program,<SPAN> </SPAN>I think we have
to continuously look at the bigger picture – which is using technological
innovation to improve access to quality education for Filipino youth. The
current discussion regarding organizational focus is certainly an important
one, especially in regards to scalability and sustainability. Regardless of
whether we use Sugar on a Stick or XO laptop, or even both, we need to focus
on increasing access to education through whatever means. </FONT></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT
face="Times New Roman"></FONT> </P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman">Depending on the
capacity of our team, we can focus on both sugar and XO development in the
meantime. Despite my lack of technological knowledge, I still see the
benefits of deploying XOs. For examples, we can deliver education to
indigenous communities, and rural communities that do not necessarily have
stable electricity or reliable infrastructures [which is a major percentage
of the population]. Sugar on a Stick, on the other hand, is cost effective
and can be deployed in urbanized areas, Netopias and internet cafes.
Developers can begin to focus on creating content, but how do we deliver
these contents? I do not see why we cant focus on both. I guess this is how
we differentiate ourselves from other OLPC grassroots movements. We can
employ numerous strategies in answering the "education access"
question.</FONT></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT
face="Times New Roman"></FONT> </P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman">Second, I feel
that it is important for us to begin to build our capacity by developing an
efficient and effective <SPAN> </SPAN>volunteer model. For the past
months, our conversations have centered on content delivery and development.
However, there are other numerous important matters that we need to address
-funding capability and development, partnership development, education and
curriculum development. For the past few months, numerous interested parties
and individuals with different specializations have approached our group. I
think that we can appropriately harness their potential contributions in
parallel to the development of content. </FONT></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT
face="Times New Roman"></FONT> </P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman">Third, I was
given the task of scouting for some possible schools for an information
sessions. I have approached a couple of schools and educations groups
regarding our intentions, however, I am somewhat hesitant
to finalize anythign them. We have a vision, but we do not
have a clear mission yet. Our who, what, where and why have yet to be
clarified, even within our group. Once we answer these questions, we can
then provide some sort of value proposition to potential benefactors of our
vision. I just fear we may be jumping the gun, without actually having a
solid foundation. So…. Would you guys still like me to schedule a meeting
with these schools?</FONT></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT
face="Times New Roman"></FONT> </P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman">Phew. These are
definitely tough questions and I hope I didn't overwhelm anyone or set us
back. As my mentor would say <B>"you have a sexy idea, but it the
not-so-sexy work that you have to focus on."</B></FONT></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT
face="Times New Roman"><B></B></FONT> </P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman">Cheers guys, and
thanks for reading this long-winded email,</FONT></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT
face="Times New Roman"></FONT> </P><FONT color=#888888>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman">Ryan
</FONT></P></FONT><BR>_______________________________________________<BR>OLPC-Philippines
mailing list<BR><A
href="mailto:OLPC-Philippines@lists.laptop.org">OLPC-Philippines@lists.laptop.org</A><BR><A
href="http://lists.laptop.org/listinfo/olpc-philippines"
target=_blank>http://lists.laptop.org/listinfo/olpc-philippines</A><BR><BR></BLOCKQUOTE></DIV><BR></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>