Three-in-1 [2015-02-14]

One of the popular drinks here in the Philippines is Nescafe Three-in-1©.  It’s a delicious combination of coffee, creamer, and sugar, and it’s the way I always start my mornings when we’re here in Cebu.  This week was also a “Three-in-1” for Reneal IEO: system installation at Arcelo Memorial National High School in Liloan, a workshop for all teachers at Compostela National High School by Reneal IEO Board Member Sharon Fingold on creating a “meander book”, and a training for science teachers conducted by former Reneal IEO Board member Antonio Martinez on the new science equipment donated by NSTIC (also at Compostela National High School).  It was so exciting to see each of these unfold as the week went by!

Every day saw a different set of team members reporting to Arcelo, with Sir Jade being the constant theme but joined by various combinations the CTU OJT students, Jillian, and me as the week went by.  The biggest challenge this week was troubleshooting some of the units generously donated by Free Geek (www.freegeek.org).  The RAM evidently had jiggled out on some of the units, but everything worked perfectly once the guys had removed and reseated the memory modules.  Although these computers would be obsolete for most applications, they are absolutely fantastic thin clients.  We send our thanks to Free Geek and to Reneal IEO Board Member Priscilla Batty for picking up the units in Portland and bringing them back to our headquarters in Fremont for shipping.  On Friday, Sir Jade provided orientation training to 25 teachers, including representatives from each subject area.  Our work at Arcelo is done for now, but we look forward to returning in the next few weeks for updates and fixes.

Sharon and Antonio have been visiting us here in Cebu and graciously offered to share their talent and love for art and science, respectively.  Sharon taught a short workshop at our home school, Compostela National High School, on creating a “meander book” from a single sheet of paper.  This book can be used for projects in all subject areas.  The workshop was organized by department, and she taught sessions on Monday afternoon for four departments and finished with the remaining three departments on Tuesday afternoon.  The teachers seemed to find it very useful, in addition to it being a fun activity!

In support of the new extended K-12 curriculum in the Philippines, Compostela National High School recently received a large donation of science equipment.  Antonio spent three days this week working with the science teachers to explore the new equipment and demonstrate and practice hands-on use.  One of the highlights was the telescope viewing on Monday evening.  A big crowd of students, teachers, and passers-by stopped by to check it out!  It was wonderful timing, and Antonio and the science teachers had three fantastic days of discovery and learning together.  It will be exciting to see the teachers put this learning into action with the students in coming months!

In the coming two weeks, Team Philippines hopes to complete installations of the Reneal IEO computer system at Liloan National High School and Kawit National High School (Medellin).  This will complete our 2015 project plan for the Philippines.  However we have enough units and a server for a sixth school.  This week I will be meeting with the head teacher of the Compostela Night High School to evaluate the possibility of installing a lab for the students there.  This is a relatively new school, intended to provide the opportunity for a high school education for working students.  We are excited about the chance to support these students in their quest to better themselves.  More on this soon, but it looks like a very promising possibility.