1. Project Title and
Shipment Detail:
Bridges to Swaziland
Team Leader:
Dr. Susan Jacques Pierson
Education Department
Cabrini College
610 King of Prussia Road
Radnor, PA 19087
Cell phone: 610-804-6861
I am asking for 127 laptop computers, one per child, for The Cabrini Hostel in Swaziland, Africa.
Initially I am asking for 12 laptops to be used at Cabrini College.
We will be using them for staff development in preparation for visits from teachers from the Hostel in January.
Our department has a partnership with the Cabrini Hostel which serves 127 orphans and vulnerable children in Swaziland.
Our faculty went to Africa this past summer and will be returning in May 2011.
2. Team Participants
Contact Information:
The Education Department Cabrini College
Dr. Susan Jacques Pierson
Mary Budzilowicz
Dr. Beverly Bryde
http://teachersusan.com/computersforchildren.htm
Phone Number: 610-902-8325
Cell Phone: 610-804-6861
In Africa:
Cabrini Hostel in Swaziland, Sisters Barbara and Dianne and their staff
Cabrini Ministries
P.O. Box Mhlatuze
Swaziland, Southern Africa
http://cabrini-ministries-swaziland.blogspot.com/
Phone:011-268-518-6235
Past Experience and
Qualifications:
Faculty members of the Cabrini education department have a lengthy history of work in schools, integration of technology and the development of activities and curriculum for children, including those with special needs. Dr. Susan Pierson has over thirty years teaching experience and has developed activities for English language learners using technology integration.
The Missionary Sisters have served the lowveld region of Swaziland since 1971. In recent years, they have expanded their services due to the HIV/AIDS pandemic. For 15 years they have been directly engaged in educating Swazi children at the hostel. This proposal is designed to support those educational efforts. The computers will provide bridges from the children in Swaziland to their partners in the United States.
3. Objectives
Our objective is to gain a valuable tool to facilitate the education of a population of vulnerable and orphaned children in Swaziland.
Cabrini College is undertaking faculty development of the teachers at the Cabrini Hostel in Swaziland. The XO laptops will help us facilitate a common instructional approach. Our goal is to develop childrenŐs English speaking listening reading and writing skills through technology integration.
Cabrini College has an ongoing partnership with the Hostel in Swaziland.
We will be able to assess learnersŐ growth and continue to develop materials as needed. We will maintain portfolios of student work including electronic portfolios.
Cabrini College students will ŇadoptÓ students in Africa, help develop activities for them to use on their laptops and maintain a blog to document program progress.
4. Plan of Action:
We will begin learning to use the laptops as soon as they arrive at Cabrini College.
The staff from the hostel is coming for staff development in January.
They will begin to use the laptops with the children in Swaziland as soon as they return to the Hostel in February.
Cabrini faculty will be journeying to Africa in late May and June to provide ongoing support of the school/use of the laptops.
In the meantime, children will stay connected via the hostelŐs blog and emails from the Missionary sisters. Each child will maintain a journal to be shared with their partners here at Cabrini College. We will continue to post news of our progress on our own blog, which will be linked to the XO website.
5. Why are they needed?
The XO computers were specifically developed for use by children like those at the Cabrini Hostel, in Swaziland. Our children, who are orphans, need education to participate in the rebuilding of their HIV/AIDS decimated nation.
The laptops will make a tremendous difference in the quality of their education and lives and also enable Cabrini College students and faculty and staff to maintain bridges to their school and communities.
6. Sharing Deliverables:
Blog Address
teachersusan.com/computersforkids.htm
We will post our results regularly.
Our work has implications for those working with vulnerable and orphaned children worldwide, especially those affected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Southern Africa.
7. Quality/Mentor
We could use a mentor for help in developing activities for our XO computers.
We will promote our work via our website.
Experienced mentors from the OLPC/Sugar community will be welcomed by the Education Department of Cabrini College.
8. Timeline
We would like the laptops as soon as possible (September 2010)
As a faculty we would like to become comfortable with the technology
and share with our pre-service and in-service students
When the faculty members from Africa arrive in January we will be ready to help them prepare to use the laptops with the children, especially for their teaching of English as a second language. We will also help them learn to use applications for math, reading, journaling and science.
The laptops should be shipped to Swaziland in February/March
The Education faculty will return to the Hostel in late May/early June to work directly with students and staff implementing laptop use.
All of our work will be documented via our website/blog that be updated frequently by Professor Pierson and others at Cabrini College. We expect weekly updates from the Hostel.
Ideas for Activities:
Use of voice
Photography
Drawing
Song
Collecting personal narratives
Vocabulary development
Listening to stories
Ebooks
At Cabrini, we
believe in education of the heart.
The laptops we obtain
from you will help us build lasting bridges to children in great need of our
love, caring and support.
