One-to-One Learning Project in Nigeria
About The Program
In 1998, Schlumberger launched an outreach program focused on underserved communities where its employees live and work. Schlumberger Excellence in Educational Development, which is known as SEED, empowers employee volunteers, teachers, parents, and other mentors to share their passion for science and learning with students ages 10 to 18. The program relies on the technology and science expertise of the volunteers to engage students and teachers.
Since it began, SEED has been connecting schools around the world to the Internet through its School Network Program (SNP). The goal of each connection is to create a generation of student leaders who will bring the science and technology of the 21st century to their communities and beyond. The program has impacted the lives of 260,000 students in 42 countries.
In 2009, SEED began a partnership with One Laptop per Child (OLPC) and United Company RUSAL to create a new kind of school network program that would place computer technology and the Internet directly in the hands of every student and teacher in schools that previously lacked exposure to the digital world. In reaching across the boundaries that typically separate business, government, and civil society, the program draws on the expertise, experience, and authority of each partner to revolutionize how children learn in the digital age. In the pilot program in Nigeria, XO laptops have been given to all students and teachers two schools.
Constructionist Learning
In Nigeria, SEED is applying its own educational programs through the use of technology and new approaches to teaching and learning.
The foundation for SEED’s educational method is constructionism, a theory of learning developed by Seymour Papert at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). According to Papert, better learning will not come from finding better ways for teachers to instruct, but from giving learners better opportunities to construct their knowledge (Ackermann).
Through its own approach to constructionism, known as learning-while-doing (LWD), SEED is empowering students at selected schools to take charge of their learning and actively engage in problem-solving. SEED’s standard offerings focus on global issues: water, health and safety, and global climate change and energy. Each theme includes a variety of science- and technology-based activities, many of which are relevant to Nigerian students, including malaria, road safety, water quality, water sources, and energy.
One-to-One Learning
Each student in this program will receive a laptop, as will each teacher. This is what is known as saturation. The laptop empowers and educates children through technology and connects the world's next generation of thinkers to each other.
The OLPC laptop, known as the XO, contains an advanced processor, 1 GB of flash memory, a dual-mode (monochrome and color) SVGA LCD screen, a built-in wireless network interface, and color camera. When applied to education, technology can provide valuable opportunities to rethink how people learn and how to teach, as well as how to explore the many domains of knowledge.
A Unique Collaboration
The partnership brings together collaborators from around the globe, starting with United Company RUSAL and its local subsidiary ALSCON, which are the main donors of the computers and sponsors of this program.
Schlumberger Nigeria Limited offers a local presence for the project management and operational support and also provides a network of local contacts.
OLPC is the provider of the laptops and of the technical infrastructure know-how, OLPC also provides resources for teachers and ongoing support.
SEED brings proven educational content, science activities, and related expertise, which will be used throughout the implementation, including in training and professional development for teachers.
School Activity
Two schools were selected by SEED to participate in this program.
• Bayelsa College of Arts and Science (BYCAS)*, Bayelsa State
• Community Secondary School, (UBE) Rumuomasi and Rivers State
*Schlumberger has had a relationship with BYCAS since 2005 when it received a SEED SNP grant.
In addition, SEED assisted two schools in Akwa Ibom State, the ALSCON Secondary and Primary Schools, with training of teachers and educational support. These schools were selected by our partners and were the recipients of OLPC laptops.
These schools serve varied populations and over time will give us a good benchmark for issues we are likely to encounter in different settings.
Schlumberger in Nigeria
Schlumberger supplies technology, integrated project management, and information solutions to customers working in the oil and gas industry worldwide. Schlumberger employs 140 nationalities and has operations in 80 countries, including Nigeria. In 1956 Schlumberger logged the first oil well in Nigeria, and has since logged many other historical wells. It has operated as a locally incorporated company since 1970. To its Nigeria clients, Schlumberger provides services that include logging, well construction and completions, well testing, intervention, project management, and reservoir management.
