January 2020 Tech Camp Kicks-Off With Team-Building Sessions
First day at the annual January 2020 Oysters & Pearls-Uganda Tech Camp with several fun challenges for the participants.
Robotics Training Gives Students Solid Foundation for Future Science Jobs
Evening’s last light got us disembarking from the last taxi that brought us from Gulu, one of the districts in northern Uganda. Then, the next morning’s first light brought a promise of a long day, going from school-to-school. The work awaiting us, robotics training, would prove enlightening to trainees, on the warm Saturday.
For students who study in schools with ill-equipped computer or technology labs- where there are no robotics instructors-salvation depends on enrolling for a free robotics training by Oysters & Pearls-Uganda, even if that means spending an extra hour in class, or having to forego Saturday’s much needed rest.
To Joyce Atim, an A’ Level student of Lira Town College, spending 30 or 60 minutes more in class, is a privilege. Prior to the Robotics training, Joyce struggled to grasp the concepts in ICT. She experienced firsthand, the effects of lack of practicals in that class. She attended it like she would any other Arts subject.
Much as she desired to have a career in ICT, the prospects seemed grim, given the hypothetical conception she was being given by her school.
“Our class is massive. The teacher can’t handle us one-on-one. Besides, students are always distracted; this demotivates the teacher more,” Joyce observed.
However, this year, Oysters &
Technovation Ambassador Determined to Recruit more Girls to Develop Apps
For women and girls in Uganda, a dream career in computing is still incredibly challenging. Despite its extraordinary rise over the last five decades, and the country’s ever increasing reliance on technology, women and girls still constitute the lowest percentage of the workforce in Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) careers.
The dismal percentage of women in the field of STEM is explained by a number of barriers that smother their ideas right from childhood.
The notion that computing can only be handled by the male gender is deeply ingrained in Ugandan society. Consequently, the few girls who aspire to join the computing world first ponder if they haven’t been overrating themselves, and hesitate to geek.
“During initial mentoring in Technovation, girls took so long to finally share their idea. And when they did I wondered why they were afraid to express it,” said Sabrina Atwiine.
A student ambassador for Technovation in Uganda, Sabrina hopes to change the status quo by recruiting more girls in Uganda to join Technovation when she returns from the international Technovation Pitch event in August in California.
“I want to contribute in changing the misconception that girls can’t handle anything scientific.”
The cultural and systemic barriers to STEM fields has led to
Oysters & Pearls-Uganda Offers Hands-on Training to University Students
The president of the Faculty of Science at Gulu University, is grateful for the hands-on training given by Oysters & Pearls-Uganda, to students of Information Technology and Computer Science.
Jimmy Lukwago, a final year student of Information Technology at the University, expressed his gladness during a career guidance and practical computing seminar at the University, where Oysters & Pearls was a main contributor.
During the event, Oysters & Pearls-Uganda’s director of technology, Jacob Odur, showed the students how a 3D printer works.
Victor Paul, our robotics trainer introduced the students to embedded systems using Arduino. Victor and the students explored the Arduino hardware; looking at both digital and analog pins, power pins, and barrel jack for external power. Other fields that the students experienced was Arduino Integrated Development environment, IDE, and installation of Arduino software and UNO board drivers.
The students also practiced basic programming, for instance, blinking a Light Emitting Diode, LED, and other hardware, such as breadboard used in electronic prototyping/testing of circuits, among others.
Jimmy acknowledged that many of the science students had not experienced such practical work, and had definitely not seen a number of the materials used.
“The university does not have enough materials for practical work, so a majority of the science students are not exposed. This
Robotics Training Inspires Ugandan Youth
Lack of school fees will not kill Daniel Mwa Okocha’s dream of becoming a technologist. As a teenager, Daniel dropped out of Our Lady of Africa, Mukono, where he was studying Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics.
After dropping out of school, the Makerspace, a technology lab at Oysters & Pearls-Uganda, became a perfect haven for realizing his dream.
Oysters & Pearls-Uganda has been offering the robotics training for communities in Gulu, Northern Uganda since 2013. The Makerspace opened in town in 2016 and offers training to students and interested members of the community, who have a minimum qualification of Ordinary Level and importantly, passion for innovation and technology.
Daniel notes that with knowledge, one can solve any problem.
“I want to make a flying bicycle. Nowadays, transport is a problem, so I want to make my own means of transport.”
At the end of the lesson, Daniel is busy working with a set of wires and batteries. After a short while, the transistor multi-vibrator circuit he has just made, illuminates. He smiles widely at his achievement.
Jude Barnabas Kibwota, is another trainee at Makerspace. To him, the training brings his dream alive. Sitting at a table littered with wires, Jude sees a solution in each of them.
“When I see anything electronic, I want to
Gulu Annual Tech Camp
Please read the article by Lindsay Craig about the class he taught in Gulu at the annual Oysters & Pearls Technology Camp.
I’m starting a robotics toy company called QuestBotics (which is another story), but in my copious free time every year I go to Uganda, Africa to teach a Technology camp with Oysters & Pearls – Uganda. It’s a two-week event and kids in northern Uganda flock to a school called Gulu High where they get to play with sensors, tiny robot brains (microchips), Legos, video games, motors and virtual reality.
With over 120 students and 50 staff members at the camp in Uganda, we have our hands full just getting the power turned on, but that didn’t stop us – this year, we found the time to add four new subjects for the students–shortwave radio, audio, art and solar energy.
Pushing the boundaries in Uganda Tech Education
We’re always pushing the boundaries of what we can teach at the Gulu Annual Tech Camp. The second year of its existence we were teaching printed circuit board design as a part of the prototyping course. Students had clamored in the past for the opportunity to work with Bluetooth and other wireless technology. So, we bought a bunch of low-cost short-wave
2016 National Technovation Challenge in Uganda
Please read the article regarding the “2016 National Technovation Challenge in Uganda” in which Oysters & Pearls sponsored the participation of the Gulu High School team.
Click to read an article about the Gulu Team from New Vision – “Girls Create App for Bodabodas” by Jeff Andrew Lule
New Vision – “Uganda will be technology hub for Africa by 2030” by John Agaba, 5th August 2016
The Minister for Science, Technology and Innovation, Elioda Tumwesigye said Uganda will be a hub for science and technology in whole of Africa by 2030 during a technovation challenge at the Makerere University School of Public Health-powered ResilientAfrica Network.
It was Tumwesigye’s first day out in the field after he was appointed to the office as inaugural minister by President Yoweri Museveni late June.
During the technovation challenge that attracted teams from over 15 girl secondary schools from across Uganda, the new minister reiterated the need for science and innovations, pledging support to the network. – READ MORE
Coverage also included the Resilient Africa Network website: “The 2016 Uganda Technovation Challenge”
This year’s
Uganda – Holiday Robotics Training Sept 2016
Above are the photos from the Holiday Robotics Training held in September 2016. Below is Ntananga Phyllis blog post (from Tech Women Uganda) describing the training.
In early September 2016, I got another opportunity to mentor a group of young people from Gulu in Mobile application development during the Holiday Robotics Training organized by Oysters & Pearls – Uganda at their Gulu town premises. Running for two weeks, this training covered areas like Video Game Design, Robotics and Electronics, Minecraft and Mobile Applications Development. Unlike the January camp, this training was not residential and participants attended from Monday to Saturday between 8AM to 5PM.
A day before the official start of the training, mentors made preparations and arranged the different equipment to be used. It had been 7 months since I was last in Gulu and I couldn’t help but notice in awe the progress Oysters and Pearls had made in regards to their Maker Space – all thanks to Sandra Washburn for her love, dedication and motivation in equipping tech-savvy young people with technological skills to aid them become the change makers this nation needs.
The Maker Space is perfectly set up with all the requirements that anyone with a dream of changing the world
Teaching STEM in Uganda, an indelible memory
August 14, 2013
I recently returned from an enlightening excursion to Uganda. I spent 3 wonderfully filled weeks in Gulu, a city 6 hours north of the capital, Kampala. My purpose for the trip was to teach STEM and Leadership to girls enrolled at Gulu High school, the second oldest school in the entire country. What made my trip even more significant was the connection this institution shares with ours: Both are celebrating a centennial of impacting lives through service. What an honor to have participated in dual centennial celebrations. I tell you, turning 100 never looked so good!
As an educator, I am passionate about the work I do to impart knowledge on the lives of future generations. More than just “teach”, I aim to inspire them to be bold, take charge, make decisions, and more importantly, impact society to advance us all. I carried that same spirit with me to Uganda, and connected instantly with my students. My classes consisted of 25 energetic, and eager-to-learn young women who were on the verge of a new journey. I say ‘new’ in the sense that they are aware of a global need for change, but struggled to find a way to bring the importance and significance of their role
Open Hardware, Software & Minds
By Linday Craig, Consultant, Educator, Technologist and Artist: questbotics.com
The people who attended the 2016 Annual Gulu Technology Camp found a doorway to future that they had never seen before — who knows where it will lead them?
Imagine a camp for 10 to 18 year-olds that combines robotics, microcomputers, pcDuino, video game design with Unity, self-defense training with an international kickboxer, Samsung’s virtual reality gear, Android app design, musical performances, quadcopters, and Legos. Now imagine this camp took place in previously civil-war-torn northern Uganda.
Just to make things interesting, throw in a small documentary crew and a large group of technically savvy instructors who wandered the grounds amongst the energetic students. Finally, add to all of this the fact that almost half of the camp’s 100+ students were blind. Even if you have an extremely active imagination and you can wrap your head around these foundational facts, I can guarantee that you can’t imagine the amount of sheer joy, inquisitiveness, and boisterous energy that inhabited Gulu High School in the form of children during the 2016 Oysters & Pearl’s Annual Technology Camp.
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