Programming!
Today was the first day where we had no electricity for most of the day… Ah, we’re so lucky to be using laptops sometimes! While we only had about 2 hours of battery power, this was enough to finish a few sessions and then start teaching computer-focused topics using paper.
So, what did we teach? HTML, of course! I was surprised at how fast some of the people picked up HTML, especially since a few of them only began to use computers about six weeks ago (three weeks prior to our visit). I also began doing some informal lessons on Java, which makes Kenya feel much closer to home. It’s nice that programming languages don’t change when you cross borders, and I’m surprised that it’s such a good way to avoid homesickness.
Java and HTML only began today, but people seem excited and I hope to see some cool work tomorrow. Aside from that, I finished working with GIMP and started using InkScape (when there’s electricity), so we’re moving fast. I don’t know if we’ll achieve everything we want to in the next three weeks, but there’s definitely time to make a lasting impact in terms of the technical lessons… Kennedy, Hannah, and I will be having a formal meeting on Friday to discuss continuity and sustainability, so I’m sure some good plans will come out of that.
We’re also starting to work on the book and photo contests, and will begin uploading much of this material in the coming week or two. We’ll keep you posted.
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