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No. 00292 |
October 18-24, 2003 |
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Make sure we all know what IT isBy Charlotte Hill O’Neal
I related how as a child growing up in Kansas City, our school made field trips yearly to museums, galleries and places of cultural interest. It was no big thing other than the fact that we would get dressed up, greased and shiny and make sure that we were on our best, most proper behavior. Even though we appreciated and thought they were fun, these cultural/arts trips were no big thing to us because we did it so regularly that it seemed merely one more natural thing to do. Recently as I sat observing the people who came to the Arusha IT Exhibition 2003 that was held for three days (Oct. 3 –5) at the Equator Hotel, I saw that there is still a need to encourage parents to bring their children to events such as that. I must say that I did see a few families with children in tow, again mostly foreign and a few Tanzanian, but surely more youngsters should have been there to learn about the wonders that internet technology (IT) can bring. As a matter of fact, we should begin by making sure that our children (and plenty of adults too) know what those two letter, IT, stand for! I had several people ask me before the opening of the exhibition "what is this IT thing (read ‘it’)! Seems to me that teachers should have organized for student groups to attend. There were plenty of people on hand to explain the intricacies of the displays and there was quite a variety of technology available. That was my very first IT exhibition so frankly I didn’t know what to expect and was even prepared for it to be a bit boring…but I was pleasantly surprised at the atmosphere. There was an air of excitement. It had a good community feel to it…almost like a county fair or perhaps more like the citywide science fairs that I used to participate in as a schoolgirl. I can’t go further with this article without expressing my congratulations to the principle organizers, mainly Alex Righolt and his lovely wife and partner, Agnes, both of A & A Computers for hosting such a well planned event. I also appreciate the fact that our NGO, the United African Alliance Community Center UAACC was invited to participate, along with several companies specializing in IT technology including A & A Computers; Arusha Node Marie; Swift Holdings; KK Security; Bushlink; Exact Software and SatCom Networks Africa Ltd. . Amidst all the high tech stuff ringing the room, UAACC were in the island space in the center of the room, with all our practical demonstrations of how IT can be of use even in village settings. Among all the steel and plastic we had our more organic display complete with plants and potato stamps. Many people really appreciated the contrast and relevance. We had examples of things we have learned and been inspired from on the internet like the history and designs of fabrics from West Africa like kente, adire, bogolon (mud cloth) and adinkra,; calligraphy, haiku and origami from Japan; appliqué techniques used in our clothing designs, etc. and a power point presentation of our work at UAACC created by our advanced computer class. Even the UAACC based Kush Kemet Actors Group performed on Saturday showing how IT has impacted both the rural and urban communities in Arusha. Many people have expressed the wish that more exhibitions such as the Arusha IT Exhibition 2003, be held in Arusha in the future. I agree. But next time, Arushans, bring your children…but only if they are well behaved and disciplined. We certainly wouldn’t want any broken monitor screens or banged up keyboards because of little unruly hands and feet! Let’s build a comfort zone for our watoto, but one of wonder and restraint!
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Last modified:
October 16, 2003. Webmaster: WDJMallya |
I
wrote an article a few years or so ago after having observed for several days
the people attending an art exhibition that I was participating in at the
National Natural History Museum. I took note then that most of the people
attending the show were either foreigners (read Wazungu) or well off
Tanzanians. In that article, I implored teachers and parents to realize the
importance of making sure that our children begin at an early age to attend art
exhibitions, museums and such, to not only learn to appreciate and possibly be
inspired by art and history, but also to build up a level of psychological
comfort to ensure that they feel a fundamental right to attend such ‘high
falutin’ happenings around town or in any city around the world.
