Our last morning
at Maranyndo began with a misty shroud that cleared beautifully by the time
Sister Juvenal called the students to their Monday morning Assembly. Daphne,
Sara and I had the chance to say thank you and good bye to the students, the
teachers, the Sisters and all the staff who contribute to our comfortable stay
at MGS. Each time I leave Maranyndo, I am reflecting on how much I learn during
my time there. Each time I leave, I am already planning for the next visit as I
board the van and travel to Kigali.
This morning I
was reflecting on the small but successful Open House that Sister had planned
for yesterday. She invited current members of the Parents Committee to see the
Maker Space in action. Gaspard former mayor of Nyamata, and his wife, Viviane,
former president of the Parents Committee, also attended. The group toured the
two spaces. Sara had worked with her “crew” to be working at the various
stations. It was wonderful to see the girls “step up” and explain the LEGO
building and recyclable activities on the first floor. It was amazing to hear
students like Leslie (S-4) and Sonya (S-5) explain and demonstrate the 3-D
printer process. Other students explained the COSMO robotics, Makey Makey and
other electronics. The students took center stage, as it were, and showed how
competent and confident students can become using Maker technology and
philosophy in just a week. Having refreshments afterwards in the Residence, we
talked with the parents about future directions and ideas for the school.
Sister and the faculty will have supportive parents in implementing thoughtful
technology programs at the school.
We left the campus
and traveled to the FAWE school in Kigali where a Benebikira Sister, Sister Eugenia,
is the Headmistress. In the course of our pleasantries and welcomes, Sister
Eugenia mentioned that the school had been given a 3-D printer over a year ago.
But no one had been able to get it working. Sister Juvenal said, “Sara can help
maybe.” Thus began a rather remarkable scenario of technology connecting a
Mechanical Engineering student from Tufts University in the USA and two IT
workers at a school in Kigali, Rwanda.
Tony, one of the
computer folks, brought the rather extravagant printer into the room. Sara
immediately recognized it as a top of the line Maker Bot printer comparable to
the printers that are used in labs at the university. Tony’s colleague explained
why they had had trouble finding ways to make the printer work. In about 30
minutes, Sara had diagnosed the problem, provided a thumb drive with the necessary
software and the printer sprang to life and began printing a bracelet with
links that could stretch. The smiles that appeared on the faces of Tony and his
colleague will remain with me forever. (I even believe the printer was happy to
be out of its closet and humming away doing what it is meant to be doing!)
Unfortunately,
Sara did not have the software to help install a second 3-D printer that was
smaller. Nor could she install all the programs
that were necessary for the fancy printer. The internet was slow; she needed to
send some other instructions. She promised to send the instruction to Tony ad
Co. from Boston. I am sure they saw Sara as a Super Hero in 3-D Printer
Maintenance!
The story of that 3-D printer is a familiar one. The printer had
been given to the school by a well meaning benefactor. But the kind of training
and preparation to using it in service of what FAWE wanted the girls to learn
was not part of the gift, evidently.
Sara and I thought
about how that is a familiar story in many schools. Resources and materials
gather dust because something is missing that would allow those resources to be
connected to the learning and understanding of students. We always need to be
careful of what we share with schools. The model that we used this trip to MGS
was a good beginning. We brought materials but also Sara, a skilled facilitator
who believes deeply in the ability of young people to work carefully with
material in which they have interest. The Maker Space that Sara left behind at
MGS will have many interested students working there after our plane soars high
over the Kigali landscape. We say thank you to Sara for her tireless
faith in young learners, her impressive talent in understanding technology, her
willingness to embark on an adventure in Rwanda. She has left behind a bit of
the future for the MGS girls to explore.
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