computers – Goducate … Go And Educate!

2010-01-132010-01-13

Urgently needed: English teachers and computer teachers for Indonesia

Yesterday, Ibu Roska, our co-worker in Indonesia came to the Goducate office to share with us her need of English teachers and computer teachers for Indonesia. Ibu Roska has been my long-time friend and co-worker in Indonesia. All our three centers in Batam, Indonesia, have been started with her help. Without her experience and expertise in starting projects in Indonesia, we would still be groping our way through the complex web of Indonesian immigration laws, corporate laws, educational laws, etc.

Ibu Roska has built about 20 schools in different parts of Indonesia – most of them in poorer communities. Besides these schools she has built so many other community projects that she is unable to remember them all! When I say “built,” I mean that she has been the one who was instrumental in planning, raising the funds to build it, recruiting the faculty and staff, raising the funds to pay for the running of the school until such time that it could be self-financing, etc. This is certainly no mean feat for a lady who has no funds of her own, who is not part of a large organization and who has three teenage children studying in Singapore to look after. As far as I can see, what drives this dear lady is her strong desire to help Indonesians help themselves through education.

A Goducate center in Indonesia started witht the help of Ibu Roska

Yesterday she told me that each of the schools she has started is in need of English teachers and computer teachers. There is a dire shortage of competent English teachers in Indonesia, and a shortage of competent computer teachers and computers in the Indonesian school system. This fits in nicely with our Goducate strategy of helping poor Asians in these two important areas of education.

We ended our meeting with an agreement for Goducate to send English and computer teachers to two of her projects – a school in a remote place near Pekan Baru, Sumatra, and a new center that she has just built in Batam. (More information of the places and scope of work will be posted after we have worked out the details.)

We look forward to helping Ibu Roska help her people help themselves – through provision of Goducate English teachers and computer teachers and computer resources.

Will you volunteer to teach English or computer skills to Indonesians?

Will you give your computers to them?

2010-01-062010-01-05

Computers – the key to the world in the hand of Asians

Computers are so much a part of our lives that we can hardly imagine living without one. But for the vast majority of Asians owning a computer is only a dream. This is a tragedy because the ability to “handle” a computer is the key to the world and a means to get a job – even an entry level job such as a sales-girl, receptionist. Even poor Asians know this but they just do not have the means to learn to use a computer or even touch one.

Computer class for Telugu migrant workers in Singapore

Goducate aims to help poor Asians learn computer skills. We have already started Goducate computer learning centers in Indonesia and Singapore (for migrant workers). At first, we employed computer teachers to teach the subject. This pilot project was successful but we could not expand our work to other centers because of the shortage of trained computer teachers. When we faced this dilemma, a Goducate volunteer offered to develop a computer-based learning system for us. He had worked in a similar center in UK for migrants and used his expertise and experience to develop a system that is suitable for Indonesia (which can quite easily be modified for other Asian countries). With this computer-based learning system students of all different ability levels can be trained – and learn at their own speed. Only one facilitator will be required to help out when the students encounter problems.

Computer class at the Goducate Learning Center in Batam Indonesia

It is a joy just to watch simple folks “unlock” the potential of the computer and enter a whole new world. All it takes is for people to collect the unwanted computers of affluent countries and install the right learning software (which we have developed) in them and we have a Goducate computer center! Presently, we have developed/put together software to teach English and computer skills. In the near future, we hope to develop/put together other learning programs – the skies the limit when the computer “door” is unlocked.

Goducate hopes to help poor Asians help themselves by opening a whole wide world to them. These dear people do not need to watch the world go by but can join the world! Let’s help put the future in their hands!

2009-12-072009-12-03

Lessons from an Indian trip – English, computer and foreigners! (3)

On my recent trip to India, I met many Indians of different ages, from the cities and the villages and from all walks of life. Though there were so many “types” of Indians, basically I found that I could divide them into two main categories, namely, the “old Indian” and the “new Indian.”

The “old Indian” was basically local in his outlook, traditional in the way he did things and unlikely to make a real difference to his own life or to those around him. The “new Indian” was basically more international in his outlook, more progressive in the way he did things and likely to make a difference to his own life and to the lives of those around him. What were the factors that produced these two types of Indians?

It certainly wasn’t the place where they were born or grew up in because many of the “new Indians” grew up in very remote villages. Neither was it their family background because many “new Indians” came from poor families. Neither was it their caste – because “new Indians” come from all the castes (including the so-called “untouchables’).

I think that 3 major factors made the difference, namely, an English language education, use of computers and exposure to foreigners.

An English-medium school in a small Indian town

I found that most “new Indians” had an English medium education. Indians have a choice of being educated in either English or an Indian language (eg. Tamil, Hindi, Telugu). It usually cost more to send a child to an English medium (EM) school but many parents scrimp and save to do so because they know that there are advantages to do so. The ability to read English opens many doors to the world of science, new ideas, etc.

Secondly, I found that most “new Indians” have access to the internet – through which they have access to the whole wide world. Many of their parents too were fluent with English but lacked the access to the world of ideas that is available on the internet. Therefore, though the older generation of English speaking Indians had the means to read English, they had little access to English language materials.

Thirdly, I found that many of the “new Indians” had contact with foreigners – often through their work (because many of them work in “off-shore” offices of Western corporations). Through their constant contact with foreigners, they learned many new ways of doing things (eg. punctuality, office discipline).

In my course of travel through Asia, I’ve found that these 3 factors (English, computers and foreign friends) are in demand not only in India but in almost every Asian country.

In the past the 3 R’s – reading, (w)riting and (a)rithmatic – made the difference between success and failure.
Today, it’s English, computers and foreign friends that often makes the difference between success and failure!