By Frédéric Renet, Geekcorps Mali volunteer

Before we at Geekcorps Mali began work with SchoolNet, the computers in its schools were poorly installed and slow. In each school, however, we met very dedicated people trying to make the most of what was available to them.

Because the computers were old, and it would have been too expensive to upgrade each one, we decided to transform them into “dumb terminals” and connect them to relatively powerful servers where the processing would be done. To do so, we used special software called Skolelinux. In addition, Geekcorps made some modifications and created a supplemental CD specifically designed for the project. This CD contains several educational software programs and other resources such as Wikipedia and an encyclopedia targeted to computers (commentcamarche.net). After some initial skepticism people realized the solution worked and that the system could perform like a modern computer. The most appreciated software installed included a local Wikipedia mirror, and the computer learning game “gcompris.”

One teacher looking at a Mandeliev table, a kind of science software, was amazed how easy it was to get all the data related to an element, and after switching between iron, hydrogen, and copper to see if the data displayed, he scratched his head and said, “Well, with all this data immediately available to the students, I will have to change my teaching methods.”

While some teachers will learn on their own to use the computer, many will be scared of it, or feel it is not worth the time investment. To successfully extend the use of computers in Malian schools Geekcorps needs to focus on software specifically designed as a teaching aid, and to help teachers to use the computer to make their work easier.

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