The last posting suggested that one must consider the cleanliness of computer facilities. When one enters such a facility and it is not squeaky clean, it may be that that its users do not understand the reasons why it must be kept clean.
Of course, it could be reasoned that people do not always react on what they understand. For instance, why is it that people continue to fill their lungs with tobacco smoke even though the consequences are clearly understood by them? However, understanding the reason why something is harmful is an essential starting point for taking corrective action.
Consider the following compelling reasons why one should take exceptional care to keep the computer facility clean:
• Dirt and grime are the enemies of electronic equipment, resulting in malfunctioning and breakdowns. Keeping the facility clean therefore forms an important aspect of preventative maintenance.
• Sustainability of expensive facilities is a huge challenge for schools and maintenance requirements are minimized by keeping expensive equipment clean.
• If dirt is a cause of hardware failures, it follows that valuable time will be wasted in down time and maintenance time. A clean environment contributes significantly towards greater productivity.
• A clean environment engenders a feeling of pride in the facility, as well as an awareness of the fact that everyone making use of it should contribute to its care.
• A state of the art computer facility is usually located in an area most conducive to learning and one wishes to retain that good atmosphere by keeping it in good repair.
• A clean environment indicates appreciation for the huge investment made in technology.
• Cleaning requires very little money, yet it can make an enormous contribution towards the upkeep and good repair of the facility.
• Dirt is a breeding ground for germs and other larger organisms that could spread disease. Scary, isn't it?
Are there any other reasons why one should keep a computer facility clean? Or is this matter over stated?
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Why do you wash your hands before you eat? Since childhood you have been taught that dirty hands will give you germs. And germs can give you a disease. And a disease may cause your death.
So do you continue eating with dirty hands or do you wash them before you eat? Every child in your school knows what the answer should be.
If it can be proved to you that dirt is harmful to the technology in your school, that it can even destroy your computers, would you try your best to keep it dirt free? You know what the answer should be.
It is expensive to establish a computer facility in a school; the maintenance thereof is likewise costly. The term "total cost of ownership" is often used in connection with such a facility and some experts argue that the maintenance and upkeep of a computer room cost more than its initial establishment.
Schools must explore every possible way of cutting down on such costs. One simple way of doing this is to keep the computer facility clean.
It has been observed in many schools that deterioration of equipment takes place when it is not cleaned properly and regularly. This is particularly regrettable when it happens in a school that cannot afford the high cost of maintenance.
Everyone involved in the school must therefore accept the responsibility to keep the facility clean: the learners; the teachers who take them into the room; and the principal who manages the teachers.
What about the facilitator who visits the school and discovers that the room is dirty? Would it be facilitator's responsibility to draw the dangers of a dirty lab to the attention of the staff and the principal in a tactful way? Or would they be trespassing their boundaries?
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If you are an ICT facilitator do you sometimes feel that the whole world rests on your shoulders? You are being expected to perform all sorts of tasks, such as loading of software, training of teachers, encouraging them to use ICT as a curriculum delivery tool, and many more.
In addition to that, teachers are pestering you with all their little problems. The email is down and they can't send or receive their messages. The printer does not want to print. They have lost a file. It seems as if they had a system crash. The software that worked yesterday does not want to work today. The list of problems seems to be never ending.
You may feel as bothered as Hercules, the god of Greek mythology. He was such a capable, strong and energetic hero, but there were some things that wore him down. Consider this situation in one of Aesop's fables and try to find the moral to the story.
A man was driving an ox-wagon along a country lane, when the wheels sank down deep into a rut. The rustic driver, stupefied and aghast, stood looking at the wagon, and did nothing but utter loud prayers to Hercules to come and help him.
Hercules, it is said, appeared and thus addressed him: "Put your shoulders to the wheels, my man. Goad on your oxen, and never more pray to me for help, until you have done your best to help yourself, or depend upon it you will henceforth pray in vain."
Yes, the moral of the story is: "Self-help is the best help."
Not even Hercules could stand people bothering him for help when it was entirely possible for them to do things for themselves.
Perhaps the answer for facilitators lies in showing teachers how to put their shoulders to the wheel (teach them where their shoulders are and what a wheel is). Then teach them how to goad their oxen (make sure they have oxen). And let them know that you are only there to help them once they have exhausted all other avenues.
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When I was a child I hated olives. My mother maintained that a love of olives is an acquired taste and suggested that I eat one whenever they were presented. For fifty years I closed my eyes, chomped away at an olive, spat out the pip and swallowed the rest down with the help of a glass of water. Until one day I realized that, when I put the glass down, I do not get goose pimples anymore. Today I can eat two olives at each sitting.
The demands on teachers in disadvantaged schools are substantial (and rising). If they are presented with a list of all the challenges they are facing and asked to select those for which they most urgently desire a solution, what would they choose? How would they rank the items in the following list in terms of importance?
• Smaller classes
• More text books
• Better teaching resources
• Higher salaries
• More ICT
• Improved safety and security
• Decent class room accommodation
Which item would be on top of the list? Which one would probably be at the bottom? Come on, regardless of how you, as a reader of an "ICT in education" blog may feel about technology, do you really think that the average teacher would even consider "more ICT" as a priority in the face of the other issues?
The reality is that the other issues are there; they are real; they are pressing. Is it then surprising that we may find it hard to convince some teachers that they should give priority to coming to grips with ICT as a teaching tool?
Perhaps they have no appetite for it. Our task should therefore be, not only to teach them ICT skills, but also to help them to acquire a taste for it.
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A marketing company placed an advertisement on the web under the heading:
" Sales And Marketing - Let Others Do The Work "
Their service was described as follows:
" There are many different ways in which businesses of today approach potential prospects and customers - email, the internet, direct mail, commercial advertisements, the yellow pages and more. Consumers are bombarded with sales pitches which make them sceptical when the time comes to purchase a desired product or service.
"Would you be excited if you found a form of marketing that created credibility, ended barriers of distrust, and was able to expand your business in a most cost-effective and time-efficient way? Look no further, there IS a way! It is called referral marketing. This is an orderly process that you are able to put into place in order to capture qualified prospects by way of partnerships that are forged with people in your own community. "
Focus on this concept, as indicated in the heading, "Let others do the work" and also the last words, "by way of partnerships that are forged with people in your own community."
When faced with a massive task and limited resources, this seems to be a sensible approach. Use others to do the work for you.
How is this applicable to Khanya? Consider an example.
Facilitators are encouraged to do ICT training only when there is nobody else to do it. When starting an involvement with a school, it is often found that that there is a highly computer literate educator on the staff. This teacher has the computer skills; has teaching skills (being trained as a teacher); so what prevents this individual from training the other educators? Perhaps the only stumbling block to date was the absence of facilities. But once the equipment has been installed, there is no reason why the facilitator should do the ICT training. The role of facilitator should rather be to arrange and ensure that training does take place.
Be innovative – let others do the work. Explore other ways in which the principle of referral marketing can be applied.
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