Today I’m deciding which Android versions to target for Tidepool. Given that the first public beta will likely be next fall, I’m hoping for a more modern landscape. Here’s a screenshot that shows today’s current distribution:

As you can see, more than half are still using ancient Gingerbread. A quarter are using Ice Cream Sandwich. What will this look like in ten months? Place your bets!

Here’s a TED talk from a very inspirational 17 year old woman from Columbus School for Girls.  She missed the 2011 Waveplace St John trip, but found her passion in Egypt instead.

 

Today, Waveplace is very excited to announce a new software project …

Tidepool® .. a place to play and learn.

Taking the experience we’ve gained over the last five years teaching Sugar, Etoys, and Scratch in places like Haiti and Nicaragua,  we’ve decided to create a brand-new learning system, one that furthers the cause of constructionist learning through a multi-touch interface, open API, and new programming paradigm.

When will it be available?   When it’s ready.   We’re currently in the alpha stage with our core group of twelve collaborators.  We’ll start an open beta sometime in 2013.

To see our “big bullets”, visit http://waveplace.org/tidepool.

Follow our blog at http://waveplace.org/news/blog.

We’ve thought about what kind of software we’d create for years, now’s our chance to make it real.  We hope you like it!

“Once upon a time, there was a magic island surrounding by clear blue waters, where animals could talk to each other, and all was in balance.”

Spoke with Christophe today . . . a return to Waveplace Island.

More to come.

A 7.6 magnitude earthquake just struck less than 100 miles from the site of our Nicaragua pilot. Tsunami warning is in effect. Our thoughts are with our mentors and students, along with everyone else in southern Nicaragua and northern Costa Rica.

(from http://zoranjeschool.blogspot.com/)

Computer Class Graduation
We want to congratulate the graduating class of the Waveplace Zoranje. In the six week course, 20 students aged eight to 17 learned how to perform basic functions using the internet and Microsoft Word. They also learned how to design their own stories using the computer program ETOYS. During the graduation ceremony on March 2, 2012, students delivered presentations of their stories to their peers and family members. The graduating class also showed their family members how to use the computer programs that they had learned in the course. The students were taught by a team of four local professors from the community—Agenord Alain, Alexis Oberjo, Maeva Pierre, and James Vernelus—and earned a certificate for their participation and successful completion of the course. They hope to continue to improve their computer skills in future courses.

Waveplace Trainer Site Visit Report

Before the work of Michena, I have visited with Adam and Junior pilot of Athletic Prodev last 12 of August after the workshop to Cap Haitian.I have seen that the mentors and children work very well and the children make Good project, and mentors use projector to teach children,mentors learn another mentor how he can use etoys and teach children, I have seen that he was very intelligent and teach children well.They don’t have problem with laptop and other materials.They do good management of materials.

About Michena’s visit in prodev she told me that she has very glad to see the work of children, she told me that mentors work very well, according to her  and me we can say that Athletic Prodev is the better pilot in port-au-prince after Acacia school, she have seen the responsible of the pilot,she was visited other part of school with the responsible,the responsible was very glad for the visit, they have a room of informatics very confortable, in prodev there are three classes with are finish to learn etoys and storybook, mentors do other activities with children. Like the responsible talk to you and me about certificate, mentors also ask to me by phone and Michena too to have theirs certificates and I can say that they do effort and work well to have theirs certificates.  BRAVO FOR ATHLETIC PRODEV!!!