• What we do
  • The People
  • About Us
  • Why Innovation Africa
  • Contact Us
Innovation AfricaCreating the Future Today
  • Feature Articles
  • Innovation
  • Agriculture
  • ICT
  • Technology
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Health
  • Store
  • Contact Us
Menu
  • Feature Articles
  • Innovation
  • Agriculture
  • ICT
  • Technology
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Health
  • Store
  • Contact Us
  • Throwing an ICT4D BRCK at Hard Education Problems

    October 7, 2015 Editor 0

    kit kit is the olpc of today

    Congratulations to BRCK on their launch of BRCK Education yesterday. The Kio Kit is certainly a very cool hardware solution that has key innovations for educational use. I particularly like wireless charging of the Kio tablets in a customized Pelican case.

    However, I would like to caution the BRCK team on getting too far ahead of themselves on how revolutionary their approach is. Those of us in the ICT4Education space have seen this show before and we know how this story often ends. Time and time again, here are the three acts in every technology for education play.

    Talking Technology First

    Technologists look at a modern classroom, see very little change in the education process from the 1900s or even 1800s, and think to themselves, “There has to be a better way to educate.” They come up with amazing technology designed for students to use directly, assuming away barriers of literacy, motivation, and access.

    Focused on Hardware

    When they announce their innovation, they wow audiences with flashy hardware. $100 green laptops and yellow tablets that are ruggedized against drops and drips, with long battery life come to mind. They also talk of local servers with localized content, though usually in passing, and rarely mention lesson plans, leveled readers, and other teaching aids high in demand.

    Forgetting the Teachers

    While the press fawns over the gadgets and shares pretty pictures of smiling children, teachers wonder what all the fuss is about. Not on stage, and not in the center of the excitement, they look from afar on yet other student-centric solution that doesn’t come with teacher training, or more importantly, teacher motivation.

    In fact, teachers often rightly see the latest tech-toy as a subtle ploy to shift limited education budgets from salaries payable for many hardworking, oft-forgotten men and women far from the big cities, to the pockets of powerful constituencies closer to the capitol.

    After decades of failure, we know that there are no shortcuts to good education. Efforts to improve education in underperforming primary and secondary schools should focus almost exclusively on better teachers and stronger administrations. Not shiny, flashy gadgets for kids, no matter how colorful.

    Am I right, or is BRCK a better education? Tell us in the comments!

    Go to SourceReprinted from ICTWorks

    Related Posts

    • Real Innovators Sail Off the MapReal Innovators Sail Off the Map
    • Sources of entrepreneurial value creation: a business model approachSources of entrepreneurial value creation: a business model approach
    • Low-cost 3D printers available in SALow-cost 3D printers available in SA
    • Local innovation for improving primary care cardiology in resource-limited African settings: an insight on the Cardio Pad(®) project in Cameroon.Local innovation for improving primary care cardiology in resource-limited African settings: an insight on the Cardio Pad(®) project in Cameroon.
    • Africa’s Economic Growth ProspectsAfrica’s Economic Growth Prospects
    • Quotable: Mobile financial services won’t reach scale without women
    Sovrn
    Share

    Categories: ICT

    The Four Key Capacities to Successfully Engage Employees in the Innovation Process Intensifying maize production in integrated crop-livestock farming systems in northern Ghana

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    You must be logged in to post a comment.

Subscribe to our stories


 

Recent Posts

  • Entrepreneurial Alertness, Innovation Modes, And Business Models in Small- And Medium-Sized Enterprises December 30, 2021
  • The Strategic Role of Design in Driving Digital Innovation June 10, 2021
  • Correction to: Hybrid mosquitoes? Evidence from rural Tanzania on how local communities conceptualize and respond to modified mosquitoes as a tool for malaria control June 10, 2021
  • BRIEF FOCUS: Optimal spacing for groundnuts in smallholder farming systems June 9, 2021
  • COVID-19 pandemic: impacts on the achievements of Sustainable Development Goals in Africa June 9, 2021

Categories

Archives

Popular Post-All time

  • A review on biomass-based... 1k views
  • Apply Now: $500,000 for Y... 798 views
  • Can blockchain disrupt ge... 797 views
  • Test Your Value Propositi... 749 views
  • Prize-winning projects pr... 722 views

Recent Posts

  • Entrepreneurial Alertness, Innovation Modes, And Business Models in Small- And Medium-Sized Enterprises
  • The Strategic Role of Design in Driving Digital Innovation
  • Correction to: Hybrid mosquitoes? Evidence from rural Tanzania on how local communities conceptualize and respond to modified mosquitoes as a tool for malaria control
  • BRIEF FOCUS: Optimal spacing for groundnuts in smallholder farming systems
  • COVID-19 pandemic: impacts on the achievements of Sustainable Development Goals in Africa
  • Explicit knowledge networks and their relationship with productivity in SMEs
  • Intellectual property issues in artificial intelligence: specific reference to the service sector
  • Africa RISING publishes a livestock feed and forage production manual for Ethiopia
  • Transforming crop residues into a precious feed resource for small ruminants in northern Ghana
  • Photo report: West Africa project partners cap off 2020 with farmers field day events in Northern Ghana and Southern Mali

Tag Cloud

    africa African Agriculture Business Business model Business_Finance Company Crowdsourcing data Development East Africa economics Education Entrepreneur entrepreneurs Entrepreneurship ethiopia ghana Health_Medical_Pharma ict Information technology Innovation kenya knowledge Knowledge Management Leadership marketing mobile Mobile phone nigeria Open innovation Organization Research rwanda science Science and technology studies social enterprise social entrepreneurship south africa Strategic management strategy tanzania Technology Technology_Internet uganda

Categories

Archives

  • A review on biomass-based hydrogen production for renewable energy supply 1k views
  • Apply Now: $500,000 for Your Big Data Innovations in Agriculture 798 views
  • Can blockchain disrupt gender inequality? 797 views
  • Test Your Value Proposition: Supercharge Lean Startup and CustDev Principles 749 views
  • Prize-winning projects promote healthier eating, smarter crop investments 722 views

Copyright © 2005-2020 Innovation Africa Theme created by PWT. Powered by WordPress.org