My friend Liam describes me as an "online learning-and-collaboration explorer". I think he's right.
So if that's what I am - what does it involve? And does it have any value? Of course it all depends on how you define value. I believe in the value of learning by doing, gaining information by sharing information, gaining new knowledge by exploring ideas with others, and having high trust relationships. This means that I value the incidental contacts I had during the day with various people, mostly friends, who all either teach me things or we collaborate (sometimes of often) or a mixture of both.
John Dada sent me some great photos of training sessions Kazanka Comfort was doing recently for women entrepreneurs. (at Fantsuam Foundation http://www.fantsuam.org/index.htm North Central Nigeria)
Nikke Fishman (SE London) gave me news that Collage network's logo is now going to be posted all over Croydon as part of Croydon Enterprise week http://collage-network.co.uk/ asCo;;age is giving a workshop.
I caught up with Linus Nnok at Kings Cross station. He's here from Nigeria in connection with a Comic Relief, Development Technology. Fantsuam Foundation project http://dadamac.posterous.com/countdown-to-comic-relief-assessment-meeting. He was on his way to see Marcus Simmons who he knows from Marcus' time at Fantsuam.
folarin: hi
me: hi
I just got home
Your drawings are great. Are the photos from your new school? ![]()
folarin: yes they are the picture of the new school that is the computer i drew and i still have more to post soonfolarin: i am still in town - ago-arefolarin: planning to go home soon
folarin: still in the computer shop
where i trainned students
and do photocopying
folarin: so i will soon go home
now
me: so your days are very busy
with your teaching
folarin: the megabyte will soon finish
me: and your extra teaching
and the computershop
folarin: so i might lose the network any moment
it is my pleasure to train others
folarin: and they are happy
too
me: you are a true teacher
folarin: i am now in ofiki
ATISBO
me: your new school....
folarin: THE O Stands for ofiki
me: ofiki
folarin: yes
the place is better off
more pupils
folarin: more classrooms
unlike the other school
it was a village
i have move to other town
transffered
me: they will miss you in the village
folarin: happy for this
folarin: but others have been transfferd though
me: You were not reallly a rural person originally
folarin: i still cherish my 7 years
stay in the school
lol
folarin: i adapt
folarin: adjust over time
though not an easy one
i hope to send more picture when i get a new megabyte
internet plan
folarin: this one just finishes now
soon
folarin: or when i get to ibadan
i will upload the school pictures
we have more than 300 pupils
in this new school
me: how many in your old school?
folarin: funny
25
me: the whole school?!
how many teachers in the old....
and in the new...
folarin: though we av more than these
but they are migrant farmers
they move over time
they are fulinis
and farmers thay migrate
me: I have visited Fulani villages
folarin: so this affects the school
development
folarin: we were close to 100 when i got to the school
but overtime they keep migrating
and the school keep going down
in terms of pupils
we tried moving aound the vilages
to orientate the fulanis
and other migrant farmers
folarin: but it is sometimes difficult
government need to do lots of things
and put lots of things on ground
for the teachers going to these rural schools
folarin: it was from this schol i had series of accidents
my bike got old
and lots of hardships
me: accidents? road accidents?
folarin: it was not interesting working invillage schools
yep
the scar is still on my leg
not onece
nottwice
we were almost killed by thieves
and lots of risks
folarin: but thank his goodness i came out
and now in another town
though not as big as Ago Are
but it is quite better of working in such a place
folarin: because there are lots of things that are not on ground
in those villages
it saddens my heart to say all these
i thinks these pupils need help
folarin: they really do
they really need intervention
i mean it
folarin: working in that place has opened my eyes to lots of things
i have never seen when in Ibadan
the lifestyle
technology
economy
and the rest
many were seeing computer for the first time
when i took my laptop to the village
though risky ideas
but i did
many were seeing camera for the first time from mefolarin: they were happy seeing these things
folarin: and how will they feel if they are now privileged to use them or have them
it was funny sometimes
but these are truth
me: ref - if they are now privileged to use them ?
folarin: as in if they could be exposed more to computer and other technology
to handle them
because i really (rarely) take my phones and other gadjet to vilage
because of armed robbers
it might be dangerous
me: ah - you think it would make a good difference for the village?
folarin: yeah
me: indeed the robbers are a problem
folarin: technology will at anytime make the difference
me: I lost my phone and camera to armed robbers when I was with Chief one time folarin: you learn faster when aided with technology
me: it can make all teh knowledge of the world available to you folarin: sure
me: If you know how to ask good questions
folarin: when you are stuck internet will help you out
without much hassle
yep
me: so the role of the teacher is changing
folarin: yes
me: now we teach pupils how to ask questions
folarin: i wish government imbibe the use of thechnology
me: before Interent we taught them to remember answers ;-)indeed
I thought there was some progress in Oyo state?
i wish you could be an adviser to the government
folarin: i hope so me: Ah - I thought your megabytes were finished - welcome back
folarin: someone came and bought a 10 meg for me to help him pay some money online
to his school
me: how does that work ... i mean the paying online
folarin: using card
me: and buying 10 megso.. he had some money? or he had a phone card wiht 10 meg? or what?
folarin: it is 100 naira
for 10 meg
me: so now he has given you 10 meg
folarin: no he just bought a recharge card
me: are you selling recharge cards?
folarin: he use 100 naira to buy recharge cardme: where does he buy the card?
and if he has a card... how does that help you? I am confused
folarin: I WILL EXPLAIN ALL WHEN I HELPED HIM WITH THE PAMENT
me: He has the card... but suddenly you have more megs tor your phone to google chat with me ???
thank you
:-)
hmm - and what payment are you helping him with? and how do you help him to make it?
it is long since I have been in Nigeria. I do not know how things are working
folarin: I WILL TELL YOU
ALL
me: :-)
folarin: NEVER MIND
me: now that you have more megs
folarin: he wanted to pay for his school fee
and he needed to pay with atm
and he needed internet to do this
me: ah - I will check the link
folarin: so i was on it when i got disconnected and he just went to buy a 100 recharge card to subscribe for a data plan
10 megabyte with 100 naira
and then we just started doing it
though we were unsucesful
because his card was rejected
i thought it was because it was verve card
if it were to be mastercard
it will be accepted
because i do buy things online with my mastercard
i am cleared
at all
me: I know mastercard. i don't know verve card
folarin: any question
me: I will go back and read carefully
folarin: that is what i use mastercard
and it is accepted online
but verve is another nigeria debit card
me: so his verve card was to pay the fees . i understand that.
folarin: though it is not provisioned for online transaction
so i adviced him to get a master card
for the payment of the school fee
me: and you were not able to stay online with him to make the payment because your phone ran out of megs
and so he went to buy a new phone card for you so that you could continue
folarin: though we buy another 10 megabute date for 100 naira
me: is that right
folarin: it will last for 24 hours
10 megabite only
and it could last for 10 minutes
depending on the downloads
so small a data
he has gone
i told him to either go get a mastercard
me: but if you do not use it all in 24hours you lose what is left on the card?
folarin: yes
not card
but data
100 wiill give 10 megabite
and in most cases it will not last more than 15 minutes these plan is made for phone
not computer
me: yes - it is pay as you go and you put in a number or something to say you have paid
me: have I remembered right about buying the megs fro teh phone
folarin: to get a data with 100 naira you wil need to load the crd and send *127*51# to get the data
on glo network
and other networks have their codes for this data
okay
your money would be deducted and you wil be credited with 10 meg
data
to be use within 24 hrs
for me it is just around 10 to 15 minutes
before it finishes
me: hmm - your money would be deducted? so you pay by card not by cash
I think soon your time will be up :-(