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TodaysMeeting

October already! First Thursday is our time for a chat - e-meeting in WorkNets Chat Room

Meeting details - Topic and times

We will discuss "Collaboration". I will share some information about the TT Kenya participants, and how they might collaborate with others. I hope we will also learn about other projects and personal interests with a focus on collaboration. What do we want to achieve? What overlapping interests do we have? How can we help each other through closer collaboration? Thursday October 4, 2007. Starting 16:00 Kenya time, 14:00 London, 9:00 New York.

Pam

Meeting outline

Informal chat as we meet and greet, then start of more formal structured meeting

Apologies

Hi Pam This sounds great as it will most members discuss variuos issues that affects them on the ground. The other challenge that we all face about the internet connections is very well addressed. I am not in a position to make it for the session on 4th but would be looking out for others that will come. Also brief us on how it all goes Good luck Ronald

Share information about our interests - some is coming in in advance of the e-meeting, see below.

Interests 1 - Kenya go via a train and reach each village and provide healthcare

On 03/10/2007, [email protected] <[email protected]> wrote: ..... I have been trying to get the train system that my colleagues were working on to be more effective, but we need to be more consistent and could use more partners (for Kenya) - where we go via a train and reach each village and provide healthcare, but would now like to introduce ICTs and proper drinking supply of water and a septic/sanitary system. The healthcare issues have been a lot about mother and child care, childbirth healthy delivery, sanitation and malaria. We are interested in someone providing us the nets so that we may distribute them (for anti-malaria). Hence, if we can figure out a way to join forces, that would be great.

Asif Daya.

Interests 2 - Teachers Talking Kenya

Any other interests?

Using the "three legged stool model of ICT4Ed&D" (i.e. ICT4? then issues of Information, Communication, Technology) lets look at these interests in order to think clearly and then recognise areas of potential collaboration.

First "ICT4... ?" What are we trying to achieve?

• 1 - On the health train Asif is trying to provide a mobile health service. How can ICT help him to do that more effectively?
• 2 - In TT Kenya Pam has been introducing the potential of the Internet to secondary school teachers in rural Kenya for a variety of reasons
• For ongoing professional development (acquiring information, entering into discussions, opportunities for formal and informal education)
• To be able to share information with their colleagues, pupils and communities.
• To be able to enter into informed debate in order to influence policy decisions.
• 3 - People with other interests........ we will get details during the meeting

"Information" - what content are we concerned with?

• See Asif's email above for his health interests - he can say if he has all the necessary information or is still gathering it.
• Ref TT Kenya - at this stage Pam will try to limit the list of content to the things teachers are already asking about - rather than wider, more long term information requirements. Some of the teachers want subject knowledge (including ICT) some want information about educational systems (such as support/provision for children with special needs), others have enquired about agricultural information.
• People with other interests........ we will get details during the meeting.

Thirdly Communication - who are the relevant People-with-Purpose involved in the example of ICT4....?.

• 1 - We will need Asif to explain who is already around and who else he needs to involve.
• 2 - TT Kenya - The people are the TT Kenya participants, TT organisers/facilitators/presenters, and people who might have the information that teachers need - or who know how to help them to find it. We need more of those people, because the teachers need more information than they can gather for themselves in the limited time they can go online.
• 3 - People with other interests........ we will get details during the meeting.

Fourthly - Technology - what are the issues about technology and its availability?

• 1 - Asif to explain regarding the health train.
• 2 - TT Kenya - the participants suffer all the usual problems related to equipment and infrastructure in rural Africa and poor access to the Internet - lack of time online, cost, distance travelled to access online computers, insufficient computers so needing to share, lack of support during online sessions so time is wasted, unreliable power supplies so sessions are cancelled, lack of bandwidth so what can be achieved during online time is restricted, lack of computers available off-line to develop skills, prepare emails to upload, and access CD-ROMS etc. equipment which is available tends to be out of date and unreliable and has insufficient maintenance and support. See teachers comments in the chat here. Pam is trying to act as an information channel for the participants - representing their needs, raising their visibility and making up for some of the shortfall in their direct access to the Internet..

3 - People with other interests........ we will get details during the meeting.

Recognising areas for collaboration Building on the information gathered through structured discussion as above it should be possible to recognise areas of overlapping interest and start to discuss collaboration.

Depending on how time goes the next step of planning collaboration may be covered formally during the meeting - or we will simply break up for informal chat, and to exchange contact details etc. Collaborations take time to build. This meeting can help people to make a start. Practical outcomes will rely on a process of trust building and idea exchanges, through lists, follow-up chats, personal emails, or whatever people choose to arrange.

Pam is happy to help people arrange e-meetings through the chat room or through audio-graphic conferences - for background information to Pam's interest in using these effectively see the introduction to LearnByDoing http://learnbydoinguk.blogspot.com/

The structured meeting gives way to informal chat and networking

Next meeting - same time, same chatroom, first Thursday in the month - November 1st.

Sat, 12 Jan 2008 16:43:30 UTC Kayiwa Fred: Am happy that since Kenya crisis started, the chat room have been s active am all the members have given thier time and money and other help to ensure that we find the ways of helping Kenyans. I appreciate you all for the good heart you showed and you are continuing to show lets met tomorrow and chat also.

Mon, 21 Jan 2008 21:58:47 UTC Norman: I have appreciated so much for the work and kind heart your folks have showed towards the Kenyans and the global at large l have to thanks you all at the platform and May God bless you

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 20:37:40 UTC Kennedy Owino: Am so sorry i missed today's (Thursday 5th June 2008) e-meeting due to some technical hitch. I would wish to update myself on all that were discussed and make appropriate contributions. Where can i access the archived chat? Thanks Pam for structuring such forums.