NetAfrica Eritrea Science Project

Peace Corps Online: Peace Corps News: Peace Corps Library: Reference: Issues: July 12 - It's Time for an Electronic Peace Corps: NetAfrica Eritrea Science Project

By Admin1 (admin) on Wednesday, November 28, 2001 - 10:44 am: Edit Post

Silicon Valley Leaders Come Together in Support of Math/Science Nucleus' NetAfrica Eritrea Science Project



Silicon Valley Leaders Come Together in Support of Math/Science Nucleus' NetAfrica Eritrea Science Project

Silicon Valley Leaders Come Together in Support of Math/Science Nucleus' NetAfrica Eritrea Science Project

Nov 27, 2001 - Business Wire Author(s): Business Editors/Education Writers

FREMONT, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 27, 2001--

Featured Speaker Tom Campbell, Among Others to Address the

Importance of Internet-Based Training in Third-World Countries

Math/Science Nucleus (MS Nucleus), a long established innovator in the development of math and science school curriculum in the United States, announced today that it is hosting a gala event on the Stanford University campus on Saturday, December 8th, to celebrate its NetAfrica Eritrea Science Project (NetAfrica ESP).

Based on the theory that students need to experience a scientific concept in order to learn and retain it, MS Nucleus has created a math and science curriculum for the NetAfrica ESP that is delivered to students by teachers accessing Internet-resident lesson material that is projected on an electronic chalkboard using an infrared pen interface.

The featured speaker for the event will be Stanford Law Professor, Tom Campbell, a former member of the committee on Africa in the U. S. House of Representatives who will discuss his personal commitment to do volunteer teaching in Eritrea, at the University of Asmara. "As a member of the House committee on Africa, I got to know the people of Eritrea and I developed a great deal of respect for them," said Tom Campbell. "They are anxious to build better lives for themselves and future generations. My wife and I are volunteering to teach there because we firmly believe that education at all levels is the key to helping them reach that goal."

During the event, Dr. Joyce Blueford, chairman and founder of MS Nucleus will demonstrate the key features of the MS Nucleus curriculum that reflects the concepts she has evolved over the years. "We wanted to sponsor a unique and fun event in connection with the first implementation of a MS Nucleus curriculum in a third world country and to draw attention to the plight of the Eritrean people, " said Dr. Blueford enthusiastically. "What better way than to host an evening sharing Eritrean culture, demonstrating our technology and including speakers who are very involved with this project."

The December 8th event will be held at the Fairchild Center on the Stanford University campus from 6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. Highlights of the evening include an Eritrean cultural show featuring local children of Eritrean descent who will perform traditional Eritrean dances and wear the traditional and colorful Eritrean dress.

In addition, there will be a demonstration of the Eritrean Science Project and the evening will conclude with a traditional Eritrean meal. "In Eritrea, breaking bread is a symbol of sharing, trust, loyalty, unity and friendship and we hope to evoke those sentiments on December 8th," commented Teclu Tesfazghi, an Eritrean living in the Bay Area and member of the MS Nucleus Board. Tesfazghi is working as liaison to the Eritrean government in setting up the pilot project that is now underway.

"As a Peace Corps volunteer in Eritrea in the late 1960's, I was touched by the people of Eritrea and their intelligence and motivation to learn," said Craig Johnson, founder of Venture Law Group and co-sponsor of the NetAfrica ESP. "The NetAfrica ESP is harnessing the power of the Internet to deliver innovative math and science education to Eritrea and bridge the digital divide between the have and have-not nations."

The Ministry of Education has provided MS Nucleus with a computer- based teaching lab in the Teacher Training Center in the capital city of Asmara. The Danish Government has donated funds to construct schools and to equip the Teacher's Training Institute (TTI) with computers.

MS Nucleus will instruct teachers on the use of the MS Nucleus curriculum at the Teacher Training Center. These teachers will in turn travel the country and train teachers who will be using the MS Nucleus curriculum for classroom instruction. The "classroom" will consist of a computer presentation setup, which includes a pen-based computer, an LCD projector, access to the Internet, and hands-on materials to accompany the presentations.

It is estimated that 600 hundred classroom teachers will be trained annually for use of the MS Nucleus curriculum in elementary school classrooms throughout Eritrea.

About Eritrea

Eritrea is a small country located along the Red Sea on the Horn of Africa and has borders with Ethiopia and Sudan. An independent nation since 1991, Eritrea underwent a difficult thirty-year war of independence with Ethiopia which had a devastating effect on the educational infrastructure throughout the country.

"The Ministry of Education there needed help in this vital area and that is where the NetAfrica ESP comes in," said Dr. Blueford. "Our paradigm for science instruction is particularly well suited to the needs of Eritrea and we believe we can establish an instructional model which will be applicable in other third-world countries."

About Math/Science Nucleus

MS Nucleus is a twenty-year-old non-profit group of scientists, mathematicians, technologists, lawyers and educators who have committed themselves to the development of effective science education through the design of a curriculum implemented through the latest available technology. MS Nucleus now is advancing its horizons to use computer and Internet communication technology to deliver the benefits of its program to even the most remote places in the world. MS Nucleus has been funded in the past by grants of Xerox, Hewlett Packard and Microsoft. It has introduced its curriculum in many major school districts in the United States.

It is headquartered in Fremont, Calif.

For more information, please visit: http://msnucleus.org or call 510/790-6284.



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This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; Special Interests - An Electronic Peace Corps; COS - Eritrea

PCOL2636
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By Martha Ellen Henniger on Tuesday, March 04, 2003 - 4:10 pm: Edit Post

I live with one of the original freedom fighters
from Eritrea who joined the ELF in 1969.
I have started wriing his memoirs and trying to place them in some kind of acurate historical context.
I am very impressed with all I have read about
Eritrea as well as by stories he has told me, mostly about their values of kindness and sharing
.I came to this sight because I typed in his name,
Tecluberhan Major Tesfagi. Am I Naive to think there might be a connection with the gentleman from Silicone Valley?


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