Learning & Leading Through Technology

in Action

Clare Strawn, formerly a senior research associate with ISTE’s
Research and Evaluation Department, discusses the
reach of HP’s Catalyst Initiative and its impact
on remote and developing regions of the world.

Most of us focus our attention on the demands we face right in front of our noses. But once in a while, it is a good idea to pop up and discover what is happening in the rest of the world. Who knows, you might find a solution you need!

Between 2010 and 2013, ISTE partnered with the HP
Catalyst Initiative, which supported more than 50 STEM
education innovation projects in 16 countries worldwide.

Many of these projects have now developed free mini courses ( catalyst-academy.org) for teachers to learn how to implement these innovations in their classrooms. Other projects focused on out-of-school learning in developing countries.

The Catalyst Initiative encouraged and supported sharing and collaboration among its members. In New York City I visited Reach the World (RTW), which matches college students studying abroad with classrooms in low-income neighborhoods so they can learn about the world beyond their streets. These New York kids have after-school “geo clubs” where they play RTW’s Geo Games ( bit.ly/1dnrvtU) online and learn about other countries.

Through the Catalyst project, Tonia Lovejoy visited Agastya International Foundation ( agastya.org) in rural southern India and brought back its low- and no-cost science fair model to implement in the Bronx. I got to visit the Agastya campus, where they bus in rural children after the formal school day to offer hands-on, playful science learning. Agastya also brings science education to children by sending vans with “lab in a box” projects to villages.

The Center for Digital Inclusion (CDI, cdiglobal.org),
headquartered in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, is collaborating
with RTW to implement its global citizenship program-
ming in community technology centers located in poor
neighborhoods. The Soccer World Cup and 2014
Olympics will take place in Rio, and CDI wants to use
the events as an opportunity to build the skills of favela
youth to join the global labor force. The center I visited
in the City of God offers young people ages 4–24 (and
some older people too!) access to computer labs, a digital
library, and hardware refurbishing training as after-school
programs. Brazil recently mandated universal education
for all children. However, the infrastructure for teacher
professional development and technology in the schools
has lagged behind. Nonprofits such as CDI can help fill the
gap by providing technology training for teachers. I talked
with a principal at the high school in City of God, and she
commented that kids who attend CDI really stand out as
self-directed learners.

South Africa is another country that has a large poor rural population without internet connectivity or technology infrastructure in its schools. But a Catalyst project called Dr. Math ( www.csir.co.za/meraka/Dr_Math.html) has developed a student-directed math tutoring approach that is deployed through cell phone texting. More than 100 university engineering students volunteer as tutors to more than 37,000 users. A kit with guidelines for implementation is available on the website.

If you need a shot of inspiration, I highly recommend visiting these exciting projects around the world. You can simply go to the HP Catalyst showcase (catalyst-academy. org/projects) and watch videos or sign up for a mini course to bring innovation into your classroom. You can also find more descriptions of my visits on the ISTE Connects blog ( blog.iste.org) by clicking on the HP Catalyst tag or searching for Clare Strawn.