Lessons from ICT in Education Workshop in Cambodia

Just returned from the “ICT and Pedagogical Development” follow up workshop in Phnom Penh Cambodia which was attended by about 30 people (Change Agents, Supervisors and colleagues)

The workshop was intended to

– To support a selection of change agents and their organizations in order to strengthen their network.
– To discuss and analyze experiences from networking and define success factors for scaling up change efforts at a regional level.
– To discuss and analyze challenges as well as opportunities in usage of digital tools that promotes collaboration and networking.
– Together find opportunities for change agents and their organizations to further develop networking with the help of digital and physical communication methods.
– To engage with the supervisors of the change agents in order to gain a deeper insight into development opportunities and commitment to the ongoing efforts for change.

Two Things I enjoyed most

a) Facilitation Methods and Techniques
I particularly liked the varied, innovative methods of facilitation used in the workshop. Presentations, Experience sharing, Group work, panel discussions, brainstorming, drawing to represent ideas, team presentations and field visits were used to great effect in such a short workshop.

The facilitators took time to explain why they were doing what they did, like when Beat was talking about “Facilitation” and proposed variations to their exercises. So, in part, this was a capacity building workshop that equipped us with skills which can be used in our organizations and (change projects) or for training colleagues in Networking.

I liked it that they modelling of new techniques. When Mr. Jacob Rubenson talked about banning email and instead using collaborative platforms, we actually tried it out with google docs where each team contributed.

Facilitators were so skilled that they able to have participants generating ideas and strategies for the future without committing the organization and unnecessarily raising expectations. This is often the trap when you invite people to envision the future. I had a feeling that all of us understood that we needed to create a strong network, that each of us has a responsibility and that Life Academy will do its best to ensure all of succeed.

b) The warmth of Participants
All participants were supportive, unassuming, collaborating, ready to learn, contribute and share. These guys would laugh freely, dance, and be serious despite or perhaps because of their high academic papers and rank in society!

Three Reasons for Success? Lessons for us who conduct workshops

1. Get the right team in the room – (facilitators, participants, organisers).

2. Dynamic programming – Don’t get stuck with the pre-planned program. Be ready to change as the program develops

3. Be involved in the workshop proceedings even if you are the one with the moneybags. Life Academy team invested itself in the workshop, doing activities and assignments alongside the participants.

Four Things to follow-up on my part
1. Continue the focus on using media as a tool to develop creativity, critical thinking and problem solving skills. We are at the cutting edge!

2. Strengthen national networks – Train, coach, share experiences, participate in conferences etc. No activity is too small to share; no conference to small/too big to participate in, no one so insignificant to ignore!

3. Strengthen Sustainable Change Solutions (http://www.sustainablecs.org) as a platform that brings together Change Agents and International Program Alumni from different programs to support and follow up their work and experiences.

4. Advocate for ICT integration and use of mobile devices in Schools. The emphasis on Technology literacy has brought us far. We now have the critical mass of teachers, students, policy makers and administrators who can use these devices and understand why we must move forward. Time has come to shift emphasis and look at how to use ICTs to improve learning outcomes. And the use of ICTs needs to go beyond a PowerPoint presentation to engaging learners in finding, creating and sharing knowledge, experiences and wisdom with peers in class, community and other parts of the world.

Integration of ICT is the new agenda; an agenda we had started way back in late 1990s with World Links for Development, World Bank, I*EARN and SchoolNet. This agenda lost steam due to a combination of factors.

I am excited and grateful to Life Academy and Sida for re-igniting this agenda that is so close to my heart.

Video Reports : Detailed 06.32 Min –>  https://youtu.be/n1O0c6Zp2oA

Video Report : Short (Happy People) 3.49 Min  –>  https://youtu.be/LQ8DTzQlqCE

Feel Free to edit.