Open Learning ExchangeUniversal Basic Education 2015

OLE will host a meeting of leaders of OLE Centers the week of December 3rd at its One Broadway headquarters in Cambridge.  Representatives from Nepal, India, Canada, and Haiti will present reports on the development of their centers.  Participating educators from Maine and from the Massachusetts schools systems in Springfield, Lawrence and Fitchburg will also attend.

“This will be the first get together of those who are developing country-based OLE centers,” said Richard Rowe, Ph.D., Chair of OLE, Inc. “They will share their experiences gained during the startup phases of their centers and will advice OLE on the kinds of technical, management and financial support they need in order to achieve their goal of Universal Basic Education in their country by 2015.  A key part of the meeting will be to examine various means for evaluating the effectiveness of technology and interactive courses in achieving national educational standards.

The schedule includes visits in Maine with students, faculty and administrators where over the past five years Middle School students have used personal laptops as an important aspect of their education.

18 November 2007, Kathmandu. OLE Nepal and the Department of Education signed a Memorandum of Understanding today to work together to build quality educational content in Nepal to be delivered with the assistance information technology. The agreement was signed by the Director of the Department, Mr. Mahashram Sharma from the Nepal government side, and Executive Director Rabi Karmacharya, on behalf of OLE Nepal.

13 November 2007, Cambridge Massachusetts. Tony Franke, CEO of the Danish IT Society and Richard Rowe, on behalf of OLE, today signed a Memorandum of Understanding that lays the foundation for a multi-faceted and mutually beneficial long term relationship. The Society, in conjunction with its 50th Anniversary celebration next year, will initiate a Campaign to promote basic education in lesser economically developed parts of the world through the effective use of information technology. This will include the purchase of XO laptops for use in educational projects supported by the Danish foreign ministry. OLE Nepal will be the first to receive laptops from the Society. These laptops will be used in a pilot school project in Nepal next Spring. The Society will also introduce OLE to some of its sister organizations in other European countries with the prospect that some of them may wish to follow the Danish IT Society’s lead and sponsor similar projects.

Michael Peterson Mouli Ramani Tony Franke Richard Rowe Matthew Carlos

“Tony Franke and the Danish IT Society have shown enlightened leadership in being the first professional association of this kind to step forward with a major commitment to improve the quality of basic education for poor children throughout the world by the use of new and appropriate information technologies,” said Dr. Rowe in announcing the agreement.

2 November 2007 – Kathmandu. In a meeting today with Minister of Education and Sports, Pradip Nepal, OLE Nepal has received strong support for its proposal to launch an important first stage project on Nepal’s path to Universal Basic Education.

Rabi Karmacharya, Dr. Richard Rowe, Minister of Education Pradip Nepal, and Dr. Saurav Dev Bhatta

With a formal Memorandum of Understanding expected to be signed within the next few days, OLE Nepal will provide teachers and students in a limited number of rural schools new interactive course materials for students and workshops for teachers. Students in the pilot project will be provided a laptop computer for them to use not only in school but at home as well. The purpose of the project is to demonstrate with hard data the effectiveness of interactive learning environments for students and the positive impact that such a program will have upon their families and communities. Support for this effort is expected from the Danish government which has a long-term commitment to assist the Nepali government in achieving its goal of Universal Basic Education.

OLE Nepal was established earlier this year with a goal to ensure Universal Basic Education for all Nepalis by 2015. Based in Kathmandu it has a staff of eight. It works in close cooperation with the Nepal Ministry of Education and other government agencies to develop innovative ways involving free and open learning materials and the latest educational technologies.