A superb educational project

[gerry1011]

During the school holidays two Akha boys came to stay with the family who works at my house.

In order to make their holidays more "valuable", I decided to teach them how to make a website.

They decided to create a website for their own city: Maechan.

Here is is:

http://maechanweb.atspace.com

You may be interested to know that these two boys, who come from the hill tribes school of Maechan, had nowhere to go for the holidays. They come from (really) disadvantaged families.

You can always send them an email... it will make them happy.

[gerry1011]

OUPS...

WRONG URL!

The website is : http://maechan.atspace.com

Sorry

[Trebek]

Nice photos! Look forward to going there....

[Limbo]

My compliments Gerry1011 !

A great idea to do a thing like this.

When the web-site is finished, Maechan will probably be the only little town in this province that can be proud (and benefit) of having its own web-site.

Thanks to some young Akha gentlemen ('with a little help of some friend').

But I am not only thinking about the web-site itself. This project is about much more!

I am also thinking about the process of making it. To gather the information for the different parts of this web-site might be the finest form of 'social studies in practice' you can think about.

Also the backing of a local organization as the Rotary will help and boost the self-confidence of the kids and help to ease co-operation with local individuals and institutions.

Do you make questionnaires together with the kids and some teacher which they can use when they are ging to visit the hospital, the police aso to gather the necessary information?

Anyhow, they can borrow my camera ( as it is in the wrong hands maybe finally a good picture is going to be made with the thing).

Good luck

Limbo

Ps. I hope you don't mind that I changed the topic title. I found your title too modest! Limbo.

Edited April 29, 2006 by Limbo

[Thaising]

My compliments to the boys and you that designed the web. Keep up the project.

Edited April 29, 2006 by Thaising

[gerry1011]

Thank you Limbo for changing the title of the topic.

The real goal of the website is to help the two Akha boys to have a better life.

By first bringing something to their city they can bring a lot to themselves:

As you said, more self-confidence and technique of building a website, but even much more than that.

By making sure that "all the pictures on the website are on the same level", they learn to deliver only the best they can.

They learn that a "half finished product" is not a good product at all.

They learn more about creativity.

They also learn how to make extra revenue. Not by asking anything, but by creating new opportunities for making revenues. In this case through advertisement.

They also learn basic marketing techniques on how to catch the attention of advertisers.

They learn how to present themselves and their new product to the people.

Knowing the situation of these two boys, it can only be benefical to their future.

Thank for your kind support

[Johpa]

During the school holidays two Akha boys came to stay with the family who works at my house.

......

You may be interested to know that these two boys, who come from the hill tribes school of Maechan, had nowhere to go for the holidays. They come from (really) disadvantaged families.

Well done. I use to have friends teaching at the Mae Chan school. The school in Mae Chan as well as its sister school just north of Chiang Mai are decent boarding schools for hill kids.

But after over 25 years being acquainted with, and having Akha friends up north, I would think it is a bit redundant to note that Akha children are from "really disadvanted families." At least the ruling governors of Chiang Rai are no longer rounding up Akha villagers at dawn just prior to harvest time to be unceremoniously transported to the Burmese border as happened in the past.

[gerry1011]

During the school holidays two Akha boys came to stay with the family who works at my house.

......

You may be interested to know that these two boys, who come from the hill tribes school of Maechan, had nowhere to go for the holidays. They come from (really) disadvantaged families.

Well done. I use to have friends teaching at the Mae Chan school. The school in Mae Chan as well as its sister school just north of Chiang Mai are decent boarding schools for hill kids.

But after over 25 years being acquainted with, and having Akha friends up north, I would think it is a bit redundant to note that Akha children are from "really disadvanted families." At least the ruling governors of Chiang Rai are no longer rounding up Akha villagers at dawn just prior to harvest time to be unceremoniously transported to the Burmese border as happened in the past.

Indeed, I guess all of the kids at Suksa Song Kro come from disadvantaged families.

But what I didn't know before was that among the 800 students, around 100 (!) have nowhere to go for the holidays.

It means no parents (like one of the two boys), "absent" parents (like the father of the other boy who is in prison since 11 years), or simply families too poor to feed them...

In that case, the school tries to send them to temples, orphanages, or families, when the school closes.

It's when I heard this from the director of the school that I said we could welcome two of them.

And I am very happy I did it. It's not the first "project" I do with hill tribes kids. I have a tendency to think they are really smart.

One of my friend in Chiangrai did the same. I hope more will do it next year