a voice in the crowd

[Walter Bender]

Maybe we need to get Karen to write our pitch...

-walter


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: K Freundlich <kfreundlich at comcast.net>
Date: Fri, Dec 19, 2008 at 8:23 AM
Subject: Fwd: "Sugar" for Stuart
To: Walter Bender <walter.bender at gmail.com>




Begin forwarded message:

From: K Freundlich <kfreundlich at comcast.net>
Date: December 19, 2008 8:19:31 AM EST
To: Anne Pierpont <apierpont at stuartschool.org>
Cc: joel freundilich <joelf at princeton.edu>
Subject: "Sugar" for Stuart
http://sugarlabs.org/go/Main_Page
Hi Anne,
Happy Christmas party day to you. When you are on vacation, if you
have time, please check out the page above.
I attended the Walter Bender (Exec. Dir. of MIT Media Lab) lecture
last night at Sarnoff and learned of  Sugar and its goals regarding
providing opportunities for children to" learn how to learn" using the
Sugar platform. In only a few minutes, one can understand the software
and begin using it. It is the software used on the OneLaptopPerChild
initiative.
I propose that Stuart assess this program for the following reasons:
1) The technology component of the Stuart curricula states:
At Stuart, lower school computer classes are designed to teach
students to be at ease using technology in their lives.  The girls
learn to use the computer as a necessary and useful tool for learning,
gaining  and presenting information.
I would boldly suggest that the girls would benefit more by including
a component that Sugar can provide, which is:
Sugar provides a simple yet powerful means of engaging young children
in the world of learning that is opened up by computers and the
Internet. With Sugar, even the youngest learner will quickly become
proficient in using the computer as a tool to engage in authentic
problem-solving. Sugar promotes sharing, collaborative learning, and
reflection, developing skills that help them in all aspects of life.
2) Learning by doing is crucial for enabling girls to have the
confidence needed to fully realize their potential in life. Sugar is
all about "learning by doing". Girls as young as first grade can use
TurtleArt to program a simple software program to draw a square in
different colors, repeating and growing it multiple times to create a
stunning graphic. I can show you this, but it is simultaneously
powerful, fun, beautiful and provides a catalyst for asking, "What
else can I do if I change one thing?". This is where the idea of using
a computer as a tool for computing, and hence increasing opportunities
for learning is crucial, and differs from the other goal of using a
computer to "gain and present (others) information". This subtle
extension is quite powerful.
3) The software is Free and Open, hence easily accessible to all
students. It can run on most computer platforms, although, there may
be some small effort involved to load it onto existing computers. It
runs on any Linux platform.
4) Finally, this project is the software on the OneLaptopPerChild
initiative (http://www.laptop.org/en/). This can also help Stuart
girls learn and interact with children, especially those in developing
nations, which are using it with much success. There are also
charitable opportunities with the the Get a Laptop, Give a Laptop
program (http://www.laptop.org/en/).
I know this is alot to propose on a Friday morning before Christmas,
but I would like to help Stuart at least consider the pros and cons of
incorporating this MIT-based initiative into their curricula. I think
it would add so much to the experience the girls get at Stuart and be
really innovative and progressive in this community.
I could go on and on, my brain was on fire last night listening to
this man. The idea is genius, and affirmed my own experiences in
learning, being confident in learning and finally making a decent
contribution in an area of knowledge that excited me. Isn't that what
we all want for our girls, no matter what subject they are passionate
about.
Have a great day and we can talk about this when both of us have more time!
Merry Christmas to your and your family and to all at Stuart!
Fondly,
Karen









-- 
Walter Bender
Sugar Labs
http://www.sugarlabs.org