Grassroots Organizations and Computer Education

-- By NuriCemAlbayrak - 08 Dec 2021

With only half of the twenty dollars a month you provided, some enterprising Indian men could put over twenty kids in school, giving them an opportunity to realize their potentials. This happened by the initiative of one man, that is you, finding the right group of people, and them making the best use of a mere twenty dollars a month. I have volunteered in Guatemala with an organization called From Houses to Homes. This grassroots organization provides housing to indigenous people, operates a medical clinic and a school that provides free education from pre-K to 9th grade for the children of the families that have received housing from the organization. As you know, tens of thousands of indigenous people were murdered over a few decades, in what is known as the Silent Holocaust. They are still second class citizens in their homelands.

I have a few important takeaways from my time as a volunteer. First is that a grassroots organization dedicated to spending its every cent responsibly is far more efficient than mega organizations (at least in my experience.) Here, the volunteers are not only Americans who are willing to spend $500 per person to come build a house. They are also local Guatemalans who have dedicated their lives to improving their communities. They make sure that the money goes where it needs to go, and without them the organization would be nowhere nearly as efficient as it is today.

Second takeaway is that a roof over one’s head and access to a stable education makes the world of a difference. I saw it with my own eyes. When we did the building work, dozens of children came out to see us. They were malnourished; a kid who looked no more than five years old would tell us he was ten or eleven. Many never went to school, and if they did, the education they received was not going to change much in their lives. And then there were the kids who went to the school that the organization built and supported. They didn’t invoke pity in us; they carried themselves with dignity, looked healthy, and had plans for the future.

After hearing your ideas on the need to give the necessary tools to children everywhere, so they can have the opportunity to realize their potentials, I started to think how grassroot organizations such as the one I volunteered with could do much more with the resource they already have. I saw that a decent, traditional education could do wonders. With an investment of just a few hundred or thousand dollars, a lot more can be accomplished.

There are a few organizations that support computer literacy among children in Guatemala. I was able to identify five. Only one, The Computer Program of Rotary’s Guatemala Literacy Project, teaches a bit of programming (Scratch). However, most of these initiatives don’t go beyond aiming to teach children computer literacy and how to use various functions of Microsoft. Although the Rotary program has been in place since 2001 and helped create computer labs in 32 schools, I believe they are reserved for the well-to-do members of rural communities as families need to make a commitment to paying into a revolving fund, which is a prohibitive cost for the neediest.

I imagine an initiative which does not primarily aim to teach children how to send emails and use Microsoft Office. Why not teach the children how to write software? With cheap hardware and decent internet, they can have full access to information while never leaving their villages. They can put the creative force in them in motion.

The Americans who spend a lot of their time and money in these organizations do so because they want to use their privilege to change the lives of human beings elsewhere. It is a voluntary economic redistribution. They use their resources in ways they think will make the most difference. There is no question that a concrete house, with a concrete floor that is not plain earth, is great. A decent school where the kids who are hungry for knowledge are fed and allowed to study does wonders as well. But it seems to me that there is a missed opportunity.

The problem is, the need to educate children in programming is not a part of mainstream conversation. Only if these giving people could understand the importance of that mission will they demand the organizations they are involved with to work on such matters. Grassroots aid and poverty alleviation organizations may not change the world overnight, but money well spent can change the lives of tens of thousands of children, and consequently their entire communities.

How could this be achieved? As I said, the money is there, and it wants to maximize its impact. The issue isn’t political; many governments are happy to assist foreign aid organizations as they themselves clearly lack the willingness and competency to give life to long-neglected communities. The issue here is the lack of awareness among these benevolent groups of people.

A few ideas come to mind. One option is to start a new initiative and try to recruit people for this cause; though it is achievable, I believe there is a more efficiency way. One can reach out to these numerous grassroots organizations that operate in spaces that would allow them to try out teaching programming. Many organizations already have a network of dedicated locals on the ground. This is likely applicable to all localities where this initiative could have an impact. There is a case for it, and I believe it can be made. Even if it starts by convincing only one organization, an example will inevitably be made out of its success.

Note: I know these ideas need some work, and I very much look forward to your comments.

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