In a partnership between Colombia's Ministry of Education, GEB and TGI, we succeeded in getting rural children in 6 schools to receive quality pedagogy with interactive tools in 2019 as part of the Energy to Learn program.
Jesús Alberto Cuadiyó, in ninth grade, sinks his face into a mask that only leaves part of his hair visible. At the age of 14, he has never traveled beyond his birthplace, the municipality Hatonuevo (La Guajira), but with this technology he is transported from the classroom to the ledge of a tall building in Bogotá.
He takes a few steps and then stops with a sense of vertigo as the world bursts opens up under his feet. Five seconds later, his next stop is one of the pyramids in Egypt, and when he turns to one side he feels like he almost bumped into a group of tourists. He is not dreaming or a hallucinating; this magic is possible thanks to virtual reality headsets.
Still overwhelmed, but excited, he narrates his sensations: “This classroom is teach me a lot of things, like information technology, art, and to be more creative with the subjects.” Now, attending school at the Institución Etnoeducativa Rural Guamachito is a trip to a world without borders. And not only through experience, but also through a full range of options, including interactive desktops and tablets, video beams and integrated sound systems. The classroom has an energy system that feeds off of solar panels, which gives it 24-hour energy independence and autonomy to take advantage of the content.
This school is one of six built in 2019 in the development of the Energy to Learn program, which was born as part of the GEB's portfolio of shared value initiatives, in partnership with the Ministry of National Education and TGI. The other interactive classrooms are located at these schools: Silvestre Francisco Dangond Daza (Villanueva, La Guajira), Rodolfo Castro Castro (two sites in Valledupar, named Juan de Atuesta and Santa Rosa), Benito Ramos (El Paso, Cesar) and Alto Cauca (Marsella, Risaralda).
Argelia Ipwana, who teaches art and culture in Wayunaiki, (the Wayuu language) in Guamachito, made the following assessment: “With these information technology rooms, we have an ideal tool available for the students. In my area I will use videos show the origin of the Wayuu, stories and legends, and educational topics that are so necessary. I am grateful those who support our indigenous communities”.
The Interactive Solar Education project, with which we hope to reach educational centers in 11 departments in Colombia by 2020, recognizes education as a trigger for individual, family and collective development (combating poverty and inequality). So it favors social inclusion of the communities of the GEB and TGI, companies that with their cultural attribute Social Awareness, promote the progress of the communities with their projects.