The Greater Newburyport / Bura Alliance is a Sister Cities International organization that fosters friendship, cultural understanding, and mutual respect between the people of the Newburyport, Massachusetts area and Bura, Kenya.
Our team is doing a pilot project with our partners at the Bura Primary School. We will set up 10 XO computers in a newly renovated computer lab at the school. Our goal is to work with teachers and students who are early adopters to transform this school into a model for e-learning on the primary school level. The first phase of this project will introduce teachers to the research and communicative aspects of the internet as well as the XO tool set. The second phase will work with Standard 2 thru Standard 8 students to familiarize them with the XO tool set and to encourage independent learning.
Our trip goals are:
• Establish a stable internet connection at the Bura Primary School
• Demonstrate the power of computing and the internet to the teachers of Bura Primary School by enabling them to meet their teacher needs using internet tools and the available software on the XO, adapting the XO to line up with the curriculum requirements they face, and creating an awareness of the creative educational possibilities offered by the sugar operating system and its tools.
• Strengthen the role of the Kidawida language in the culture of the Taita people.
• Build confidence in the teachers and students of their ability to participate as active creators in the e-education revolution underway in Kenya.
