First Nations ICT Summit Vancouver 2009

Barbara Craig School of Policy and Implementation Faculty of Education Victoria University of Wellington New Zealand

Windy Wellington

Wellington Capital City

CONNECTING COMMUNITIES
Building community, providing digital opportunities, connecting home and school

Computers in Homes
Education project that is ICT-based
Organised around families whose children attend schools in low-income, geographically isolated, indigenous, Pasifika, refugee communities with low education and employment profiles.
Intergenerational learning – parents, caregivers, grandparents, extended family to become involved in the education of their children or mokopuna

Family literacy
Books in Homes : creating an environment rich in books
Computers in Homes creating an environment rich in electronic reference materials
Family activities

This has been an awesome , fun, ego boost for myself that I have enjoyed coming to each week at ….. school baby in tow nothing but support , help , kindness and patience from ….. and the other parents I have new friends to say hello to outside of this classroom it has been a win win situation all round for me thanks again for your computer in homes programme 4 weeks ago I wanted to go from this class but I feel the opposite now
September 21, 2005

Connecting Families

Digital Opportunities

Connecting Home and School

Context for Computers in Homes as a Project
A community informatics initiative
Focus of research on empowerment and social inclusion through provision of ICTs to disadvantaged communities

Digital disadvantage Digital exclusion
ICT users
If you miss the evening news you can go to the Website and download items of interest
Best airline deals only available online
TradeMe best deals
Help with health, education, jobseeking
Non-users
Many live in communities with fewer phone lines, no library, local bank or PO long since closed, no car or reliable, affordable transport
Most don’t know anyone with a PC, no contact with PCs at work
Low income and lots of demands on their $$, including supporting family abroad

Why do families join?
opportunity to own PC
incentive to train
internet 6 months
relationship with school
technical support
entering world of ICT
further opportunity

The Structure
Fulltime coordinator who sets up NetPod, PC’s, training, ISP, graduation, technical support & project management
CIH manages projects, budgets, delivers programme & reports to sponsor
2020 administers the funds and budget
Trustees attend graduations and launches

School /Community Enquiry 2020 submission to MoE CIH Information & Expertise CIH Relationship & Commitment from School Community CIH Recommends Schools to 2020 Trust MoE contracts 2020 to deliver CIH programme CIH manages projects, budgets, delivers programme & reports to MoE 2020 Trust Administers funds CIH sets up NetPod, PC’s, training, ISP, graduation, technical support & project management

Policy recognition of ICTs for disadvantaged communities
Digital Strategy
National vision
Crusade for Literacy
National’s vision is for ultra-fast broadband for all New Zealanders. We want a fibre connection to every home, supported by mobile and satellite solutions where it makes sense.

The Scheme- local variations
Recycled computers
Training at local school
Technical support
Internet access for 6 months
Internet safety and computer security
Family agreement

Recycled Computers
CANZ
Computer Access NZ Trust

Technical support

Training at the school

Graduation

Cannon’s Creek

Tala’s Story

Tuhoe Rohe

Wireless

“ Computers are essential for the future. We won’t need phone, radio, TV, not even buy a newspaper, don’t have to go to the movies. Good for someone in the country. You don’t miss out on things, get it at the same time as everyone else, don’t have to wait for the paper and TV news.”

Some parents were creating their own webpages and content online, starting up businesses to sell local art. Another family created a database of their Whakapapa and a list of the lands that the whanau own and share this by email attachment. They also distribute a monthly family newsletter “Purongo’ which all whanau can contribute to. Several families wanted to download Maori script so that they could more easily write in the Maori language.

Confidence

Self-esteem of families Intergenerational learning
It has improved my confidence in actually reading a book. I mean now – before I wouldn’t – but now I would pick up a book and think I would like to read that story
“ You need a computer to write essays. You get much better grades. With the course I am taking now everyone says how come your essays look like that. I say I have a computer in the home”

Education and training
“ I did a lot of studies off it. I was getting a lot out of …research for my assignments. Mostly the Wellington Public Library and the Turnbull Library in Wellington and the Auckland archives. Then there’s a lot of like university students who put their papers on the net. And they put more than you can use. During the weekends I sit there from Friday night to Sunday night”.
“ Computers in homes has given me the opportunity to finish my assignments when doing a social science course with the access to information for research when it was needed. It also cut library time for the kids with their homework”.

Employment
Helping find a job
A small number of parents (20%) say they found employment through the internet.
Many more are looking for a job through the internet.
“ It has helped me to get the type of job that I am looking for by being in the comfort of my own home and by saving me the money I would have otherwise spent on a newspaper to find the job”
Self-employment
Online trading
“ Buying games and trading them as well and selling them on as people get in contact with me. I do a lot of bank deposits. Because on the trading sites its pretty secure. When a deal goes through you don’t pay out until you receive the goods”
‘ One of the things I do is grow raspberries. The other night I got pages and pages on how to grow raspberries, different ways of planting the, and how to increase height of the cane and number of canes…”
“ we have our own farm out on lease. I’m learning to do the bookwork for both shearing and farming”

Helping with current job
“ I’m an Avon rep and I do all the ordering and paying online and this has made it so much easier”
Working as a teacher aide with special needs students
Before she had a computer at home this mother had trouble giving support to her students because of her lack of knowledge of computers “Now I can take it all in – interpret the instructions – and help the child through it. I can also access resources and teaching aids through the internet”
“ Currently I am working at a rest home and found word processing great for keeping files on the residents there. Database is excellent for their personal information so it’s there for me at my finger tips”.
I have more confidence with having to work on the computer in the library at work. Not so unsure about trying new things when it comes to learning a new programme on the computer”.

Volunteer work
“ I have volunteered my new admin skills of typing and word processing to community groups. I have got something from the community and it feels like it is good to be giving something back”.
“ Bot minutes. I am the secretary”
“ I don’t know why they wanted me to be the secretary of the church. I look at the minutes of the Board of Trustees and think that is how you do minutes. I have to do it all in Samoan”

Benefits for the children
Social and cultural
Means of entertainment and a tool for self expression and communication
Belonging to the Net Generation, creating an identity on Bebo and posting onto YouTube
Positive Computer for Parents programme
Education
Parents speak the language of the school
Homework, use internet resources, email to school for printing
AnyQuestions –online reference service from the National library
StudyIt- NCEA students easy access to teachers across the country

Benefits for Whanau & family In their own words
Thank you very much for bringing this project to Nuhaka. I have 4 children at the school and it's just great that we've got a computer in the house which they can use. My 6 year old is quite the whizz kid on it and my 12 year old does alot of my on-line searching and e-mailing for me. I've only had to ban her from e-mailing once (questionable language!!!). As for the 3 boys well while they love the wrestling sites they do also check out the Encarta encyclopedia and a lot of the learning websites which they get referred to from the school. Me, well I love the ease of paying bills on line and I'm slowly learning more about the web and e-mailing. Thanks also for your online learning programs. We've continued on using Watchdog - it makes me feel safe.
Computer in Home mother
It's hard to say but inside me I'm very happy of having the computer at home, because it really helps my children with their homeworks especially my big boy who is sitting his School Cert this year. I may say thank you very much for this chance that you gave to us. May God Bless you. I know some of the things in the computer because my kids teach me how to find out.
Computer in Home father
Thing's are going really well I have a Uncle who is really good with computer's and he has been helping me alot. I now have Internet banking and pay all my bills via net which a big step for me so thing's are great. Thank you again for giving my family and myself the chance to "move into the 21st century!

Local content and blogs – community benefit

Other 2020 initiatives grown out of the project
Our WSIS commitment to Small Island Developing States - helping our Pacific neighbours
2 schools, 5 businesses, one island
9 Laptops, 2 Printers, free internet for schools, Samoan education content
2 Months to design and install

Refugee & migrant groups

Adult Literacy
Computers in Homes
Reading off the screen that’s been easy for me. But I mean think about a book - having to read a hardcover book. It just takes a while for it to sink in. But I can just sit here at the screen and keep reading. I can scroll down and I can scroll back up or whatever. I have always found it easier for me to read something off the computer than sitting reading a book. I don’t know why.

Issues
Technical
Part of the problem of owning a computer is that it needs continual upgrading
“ It is very good to know that I can now use a computer and that it’s there to help me if I need it. We have just bought a new one as my one didn’t work. It was fixed but only lasted a week…”
We don’t succeed with everyone!!

Stepping Up – Launch at Parliament

Trustees and Local champions

Where to from here?
100,000 families with school aged children still do not have access to the internet in their homes.
56% of families with children in Opotiki do not have internet access, whereas only 13% of families on the North Shore do not.
2006 Census

First Nations ICT Summit Vancouver 2009

by Barbara Craig on Jun 23, 2010

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First Nations ICT Summit Vancouver 2009 — Presentation Transcript