Children separated by continents and cultures discovered their commonalities this past spring thanks to a partnership between Africa ICT Right (AIR) and Global Partners Junior. Students in years 5 and 6 at the British International School in Accra, Ghana connected with their peers in Dublin, Ireland.The collaboration is part of AIR’s mission to bring computers to schools so that students can develop basic computer and internet skills. Global Partners Junior is a wide-ranging international program with multiple partners on every continent.
The topic of this year’s discussion was city parks. Using a common curriculum, both classes prepared projects and then shared what they learned with each other. Students in Accra learned about the importance of green space—which provides oxygen and shelter for local species—and about the differences between organic and fertilizer-based cultivation. As Russell in year 5 summed it up, “I learnt that cultivated green spaces are a vital part of a living city.”
Students also exchanged cultural information, talking about foods common in their culture. The opportunity to connect with students in a different culture generated lots of excitement. Myron Afram Gyening in Year 5 declared, “It is cool participating in Global Partners Junior. It is the best project ever.”
Whether talking about green space or their favorite foods, students crucially developed their information and communication technology (ICT) skills. They learned to use time zone converter websites, as well as basic ICT vocabulary.
Eniola Adbayo recounts that she “learnt new words such as: Link—a link is part of a webpage that takes you to another address.” Just as importantly, Eniola saw how ICT allows her to link up with other students: “Global Partners Junior helped me make friends through computer communication.”
At a time when the world is becoming increasingly globalized, ICT is helping Ghanaian students connect with students of other nationalities—an important step towards becoming global citizens.
Computers in classrooms not only transform students by connecting them with new people and environments; computers also transform students’ relationship to their own environments. After learning about the importance of green space, Eniola planted some trees of her own, “and now I have three trees growing at home.”
