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We are evolving, looking at the joy and smile on these faces really prove how the world has changed with technology. Looking way back getting access to information was very difficult as compared to this era. Learning with digital technology has made everything fast and convenient for all.
And in this evolution access to diverse references and learning resources are only a keystroke away, genuine and up to date.

Massive Open Online Course (MOOCs) a course of study made available online for free has indeed accelerated the way we learn. You can learn via these platforms at your own pace anytime and anywhere. 
Skype Mystery has made it possible for us to collaborate with others virtually.

With the emergence of communication tools; customers, retailers, suppliers, employees and business partners among many others can exchange information, plans and ideas over oceans and continents much easier and faster. These communication tools may include video conferencing, live text and the use of smartphones. The use of these tools will save money and time.    Click to vote here

Destiny Adjaho who just turned 15 this year January 27 is one of the brilliant aspiring engineers from Ghana, a science student and in his final year at the Keta Senior High School. He is passionate about innovation and invention. He has created an animation shot which can be viewed here.

Despite challenges in bringing his animation talent to reality he still enjoys learning and making shots. You can catch a glimpse of some of his animation shots here.

“I always want to invent something and to tell stories with animation but due to material constraints and lack of the right tools I just keep doing the minor jobs on my animation shots and mostly my shots never get completed. But because I am determined to make my dreams come true, I have decided to create this animation shot for everyone to see.

Thanks to Noah Alorwu for inspiring me and being my guide. He has shown me a lot of inspirations from which I see teens invent and make things happen and that makes me always feel that I can also be one of them with my animation talent.”

What motivates you to do animation?
“I never had the dream to animate before then but my dream and love for animation developed through watching samples on television. One day I researched and found out that all these things I watched were made by the computer. From my perception animation has become a way of telling your stories in a realistic manner because we believe when we watch than when we read novels. From this, I felt that I also need to get my stories told by using the opportunity that has come. A mobile device helped me learn about animation with YouTube as my main source of tutorials. I started practicing with an open source tool called blender and within three weeks I got used to the basics of doing animation with blender and after it I created my first shark and train animation from tutorials. The results of these animations triggered me and made me discover the love I have for animation and its related mysteries.”

If you are provided the tools how far can you go with your animations?
“Let me say it will be bliss in my life because all the projects that I have put down are all attractive and the world will love it and appreciate the fact that Africans can do something. In fact, I am hoping for a 30 minutes’ animation video that will tell a story I have in my mind. But it has to do with advance animation skills and I need the tools to advance my skills in the game and so if I am provided with the right tools then I will become an icon on the desktop of the world of fame.”

So what is your aim now?
“My main aim is to master animation at a younger age and become one of the youngest animators in the world because I feel that it is where I belong. I also want to use my skills in animation to help the engineering sector in developing powerful machines because I am also an engineer.”

How do you feel about your talent?
“it is a great opportunity for me because animation is not an easy task and require brilliant people so if I am blessed to have such a talent, then glory be to God.”

Destiny is not just an animator but also an aspiring engineer. Let us see what will become of this young innovator when he gets the tools…

Source: MLS innovation Forum

Science and technology, are the angels who are transforming the world by inventions and innovations. Inventions are from different points and angles of views. But all these inventions are from the whites whom we the Africans look up to because of their fast way of thinking and creativity. With these thoughts behind the minds of Africans, they feel lazy to think creatively and scientifically. But to our surprise, some Africans are not as lazy as we thought they were.

Mobile learning society is a society which was formed to eradicate digital illiteracy and also give the members the chance to be creative. It broadens their mind not only on Learning with digital technology but also on hardware such as toycars, airplanes, and many more that can be created by easy means.

On Friday, February 5, 2016 one of our MLS member Dzikunu Jonas in 1 Visual Art in Ketasco made a simple helicopter with cardboard, motor, bottle, wires and dry cells through his mind of creativity to create this. Although it does not fly, it is quite good because it moves about and has the real image of a true helicopter. We are looking forward to make it fly.

This is one thing which should motivate we the Africans not regarding our status to think creative like him.

I urge you all to join the world of creativity now to better Ghana and Africa as a whole.

Our next challenge is to make it fly…..

Below is his Helicopter:

Our common understanding of salt is that salt is that minute component of our everyday dishes. Even how it was brought forth is not common to everybody but has remained a mystery to those who wonder how it came about.

The mobile learning team has had a doubt of this mystery and decided to embark on a 10 day research project to fully discover the mystery in which ever dimension it took us.

Salt, aside our meals are a very powerful and most specifically important mineral resource in many fields of its possible applications. From the chemists perception, salt is a chemical compound which is made up of two elements; Na (Sodium) and Cl (chlorine) bonded ionically to give its crystalline nature. It is simply referred to as common salt. There is several type of salt in the chemistry world but are all not edible to man except the common salt mentioned above. This piece of information is basically about how this mineral is acquired to be what we see it to be or where it comes from and how it is obtained from such source.

The salt is beneath the earth crust and from Sterling Industry (a salt mining industry situated in Afiadenyigba, Volta Region of Ghana) when they pump water from below the earth surface of about 100 meters or even further, it was salty which means that there was a dissolved salt in the water. The concentration of the salt in the water propounded its usefulness for crystallization where the solid salt can be obtained even after exposing it to the sun’s energy. This process as they termed was solar salt mining which basically is about using the sun’s energy to crystallize salt from its solution (i.e. the underground water).

Sterling industry is a salt mining industry that harnesses the sun’s energy which helps them to extract the salt as easy as possible. On the mining field, there exists about 25 reservoirs; (for temporary storage of water). Water is pumped into a head reservoir which transfers it to the remaining 24 in an order of numbers. The idea that made their process as possible is given below:

• When salt dissolves in water (i.e. taking an amount), a degree of salt taste in the water is generated which becomes the density of the salt in the water.
• When the water is short of volume and the amount f salt is kept the same, the degree of saltiness becomes fairly large.
• A point is reached where crystals of the salt begins to form (i.e. the water volume is almost zero). At this point the density of the salt has reached its maximum point of forming crystals. This degree was 25 as demonstrated by sterling industry by measuring the density of the solution with a hydrometer.

So, in each reservoir, the density of the salt increases randomly in the range 0.9 – 1.5. At 25, the water could form salt but still in the reservoir so a special set of reservoirs were constructed which they called crystallizers. In the crystallizers salt is formed. The salt is then harvested by machines such as tractor which carries the harvested salt and others which do the actual liftoff of the salt from the crystallizers. Below is a plan of the work field (mining field) of Sterling Industry.

From the plan, Sterling industry is a large Industry which is soon to be ranked the largest salt mining industry in West Africa. The total area of the mining field is about 4000 acres of land. Each reservoir is sized 100 meters by 100 meters in area.

Our journey to sterling salt industry has made it our team discovered this mystery of salt.

We have been satisfied with ideas on;

• How salt is mined as described briefly above
• How to choose a good area for Industrial purpose mining
• How to set up a salt mining industry for ourselves as a very good source of income
• Salt twin brother; gypsum which can result from defects of the density factor. Gypsum is used to produce cement.
• Salt several uses apart from preparing our meals. Salt is also used in refining crude oil and to feed some farm animals and other purposes as well
• The problems salt can cause. Even though salt is helpful it is dangerous to our body and thus proper handling specifically is the mining industry must ensure.
• Having satisfied our quest, we are bold to say as a team that; salt, our life, salt our friend and chance.

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

Here we go again into another dimension, this time round as we convert hard copy of Art works into digital format, we identify a problem which is hindering our student in the visual art department. That is lack of digital arts works.

As a team and we know the relevance of this medium of digital files. We thought it wise to change that mode of hard copy of art works, into both the hard and the digital format.
Let’s take this scenario, you are to submit a design for an application.

And the requirement was 100 copies of your art works. Imagine how hectic it will be for you to send the attached files to Germany assuming you are in Ghana. They might get missing, torn apart, destroyed by rain and sometimes your kids might destroy them in your apartment. But comparing digital format to hard copy, I don’t think you will go with the hard copy and even if you send them and you are not picked, sorry you’ve lost everything forever. But with digital format you can still have it and at the same time share it with billions of people in the world.

The main purpose of this project in the school is to change this mentality, match it with the era in which we are and also for;

1. Digital portfolios
2. Reference
3. Easy sharing
4. Record purpose
5. Easy accessibility via cloud storage (i.e. Google drive, Dropbox, SkyDrive)
   
   

We need your support in other to embark on an educational research in August, 2015 on how salt is locally mined. This is the first ever research going to happen in our school. We believe in open source of information.

Our research is not only limited to the salt making but a whole lot will be explore during the research.
We can’t do this without your support. We need that help. Make that donation now via this link https://goo.gl/mX5qYg

Keta Senior High Technical School was established on the 27^th February, 1953, and is located in the Volta region of Ghana. To talk of Keta Senior High Technical School (ketasco), we have four houses namely, Quao house, Fiawoo house, Abruquah house and Kotoka house, which have been categorized into Zongo and City blocks. We also have the administration block, dining hall and the classroom blocks which comprises of the senior block, junior block, sixth form block as well as the ongoing 32-units construction block.

On Friday the 22^nd of May, 2015, around 9 o’clock in the morning, a basic school came to visit ketasco for some practical lessons in our departments and laboratories.

First of all, they visited the science resource centre which was established on the 15^th March, 1997, by Emmanuel Ashiagbor. The science resource centre houses the chemistry lab, physics lab, biology lab, electronics lab and the I.C.T lab. They went to the chemistry lab to test for acidic solutions, how to know if the solution is acidic, alkaline or neutral. They also saw and learnt how to titrate solutions which will help them in the science aspect of BECE which will help upgrade their results.

Secondly, they moved to the physics lab where these basic students learnt of centrifuge which is a device used to separate the components of mixtures or mixtures of different densities which are in suspension or in liquid where we saw a rectangular Perspex, optical pins, prisms, drawing sheet and a whole lot.

Click to watch how the centrifuge operates

Also, to talk of the I.C.T lab, which the basic students visited, they had the opportunity to have a feel of the computers. They got to see the mouse, monitor, LAN cable, components of the system unit, modems as well as the projector and a whole lot.

These students proceeded to the woodwork department whereby the teacher in charge of the woodwork department (Dumashie Pius) took them around the workshop. He explain a whole lot of things to the students, including the dangers associated operating the machines.

Click to watch a demonstration of wood cutting in the woodwork department

Finally, these basic students went to the visual arts department and saw some ceramics artworks, clay, the loom which is used in weaving. Some picture making and artwork were seen where our very own students were drawing physical stuffs which was in a form of a test as well as competition between themselves.

To conclude with the above points, thanks to technology these students were able to have a view and feel of all that went on in ketasco by these basic students, which also help some of we the students to see devices we never thought of seeing in the school.

Guess we’ve all learnt a lot about all that went on in ketasco on Friday the 22^nd of May, 2015.

Keep in touch always.

                                                                                                                              (KETASCO MOBILE LEARNING SOCIETY)

World earth day celebration was amazing in Ghana. The motto “It our turn to lead” was inspiring and catching. This celebration was held at Keta in the Volta Region of Ghana. Led by Noah Alorwu (Eco- Generation Ambassador to Ghana). As the numerous days are passing by so as the earth day celebration is approaching too. I quickly design a flyer for the event. I told myself I would make this celebration captivating. I quickly pick my plan book to draw some plans for the event. I cross checked online to see what are the plans for the event in my country. All search came to zero. I called NGO’s who once done it but all they said was no plans for this year’s celebration. I didn’t hesitate with my plans for the event. I am still having hope to make my plans a reality even though I can’t do it all alone. Whiles reading my mail I came across an NGO in a group I belong to. I called them if they also have any plan for the event. They said no but I asked them if they can partnership with me to bring this action out. They said why not. I told them I will come the following week but instead I went the following day. Impressing right? As a leader you must be motion driven and highly motivated. I went and we discuss about my action plans and theirs too as well. They promise to send their representative on the day of celebration and also donate seedling and trees to the event. That is just by the way. Programme line-up for the event

• Clean-up exercise in all basic schools
• lecture on environmental protection, sanitation and waste management
• Drama and musical interlude (Music composed by Benjamin Ekuadzi and Noah Alorwu-Eco Ambassador to Ghana)
• Tree planting
• Handicrafts All this will commemorate world earth day celebration.OutcomeEarly 22^nd, morning. I woke up and getting ready for the celebration. I went to the various schools to supervise their clean-up exercise. I also joined in cleaning one of the schools, it was intriguing working with the students.The students are very hardworking and dedicated to work.

Afterwards, I talked to them about the importance of this earth day celebration and also how an individual can make a change in his/her big way. After my talk, representatives from all schools went to Keta Senior High Technical School ICT lab for the lecture. This lecture has been led by Mawuena Mensah from Environment360 a local NGO in Ghana. The lecture is focus on these three (3) areas Sanitation Waste management Environmental ProtectionDuring the lecture on waste management, student participants exhibited a lot of creative piece with a sachet water rubber. Some made bracelet, trophy cup, ship, box etc. I mean it was really fun! This is not all, after the presentation. It’s now time for the song I composed with Benjamin Ekuadzi to be launched to commemorate the earth day event, entitled COME MAKE A MOVE. Watch here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvGnbMRmGMc After all this, it is now time to plant trees in the various schools. Before then we snap pictures of the whole group. Now we are ready to go and plant the trees. On the way to one of the schools, name (Ketasco Basic School) one of the student upon what he has learnt during the lecture has started showing it all. It our turn to lead indeed. We are proud of the change and the awareness we have created. We planted the trees, fenced it, prayed and snapped some more pictures again and we dispersed. After that I congratulate everyone for their support in making this event a reality. My special thanks to Tunza Eco-Generation
Cordie Aziz – CEO Environment360
Mawuena Mensah – Representative
Treetap
Heloo Paul
Florence Kuwornu
Yador Michael
Ezekiel Agbomey
Didi – Jubilee Radio
Noble Kpodo – Jubilee Radio
Benjamin Ekuadzi
And one thing we all left home with is “THIS OUR EARTH, OUR RESPONSIBILITY, LETS PROTECT IT”   Click to view images of the event

Breaking news National Volunteer day is here again.  Posters, videos hovering both on Social Medias and television stations about the upcoming event. National Volunteer Day is a program being run by Ghana think foundation, an NGO based both Ghana and USA. They also run other programs including Barcamp Ghana, Junior camp Ghana. National volunteer day, which falls on 21^st of September. The initiative is to get as many people as possible in Ghana to volunteer their time or do community service on founders day holiday.
I have been to a lot of their events here in Ghana and it was inspiring. They even sponsored me to partake in a workshop on Entrepreneurship Skills which happened at West Africa Civic Society (WACSI) East Legon. I wasn’t able to attend to last year’s National Volunteer Day. But this time round I did. I was blissful when I saw the advertisement of the program. Quickly I read through what they posted and I register as a volunteer on Eventbrite.

I volunteer to tutor in Information Communication Technology and Mobile learning. I went to see my Head of Department what I intended doing. He said wow! That is a very good idea. I was feel with joy and happiness upon the go ahead. However my plan is to make it for both Junior High School (JHS)   student and Senior High Student (SHS) but unfortunately the SHS are on vacation.
Nevertheless, I swiftly take a bicycle and ride it to the various schools in the municipality for a representative for the event. I was welcome by all schools in a cordial manner. I really like how they were excited to hear the good news I brought to them. Without hesitating I demanded 5 representative from each school I went to. This is due to lack of enough computers in the lab.
Eventually I needed only 35 participant for the program, at the end of it all 30 of them turned up. I prepared the lab in a delighted manner upon receiving the names of the participants. My Head of Department Mr Heloo Paul Kobla supported me in all endeavour by given out his digital camera, LCD projector just to mention few. The program started with 30 participants on board. We started the program exactly 12:45pm.
I started with a motivational talk afterwards was the tuition. I realise majority of them have no idea about computers. Check this up! The computers were on before they entered during the tutoring I realise most of them are not concentrating so I asked them to put off their monitors. Something miraculously happened in the lab, some were refreshing their computer, and others were pressing the power buttons of their system unit. The serious part of it all was that some are in dilemma. So I base everything from the beginning of a computer. This included

• Part of a computer
• How to fix it
• How to put it on and off
• BIOS
• OS
• GUI
• How to use the mouse/ keyboard layout
• Creating a folder
• Restore and delete things from the recycle bin

And a lot more. We tackled them both practicals and theory. I would like to share another astonishing one that happened when I ask them to research on types of Operating System we have. Here are some of the funny answers that popped up; WordPad, Windows Explorer, Windows 8.5 and a lot of funny answers. I wrote this to highlight what is happening in our schools and how this event has really impacted them. I don’t blame them but I rather blame the country in which we live. There are a lot to be done in this schools, not only they but even SHS and Universities are inclusive. We are in an era whereby technology is everything.  Nevertheless, all the participants are very excited for the event. We closed the program exactly 3:30pm as schedule. We snapped a lot of pictures that day before they departed.

        The next event will be on Monday. Early that Monday morning, I went to the computer lab earlier than ever to arrange it. The edition for Monday’s event is well packaged. We started @ 12:20pm sharp with Internet Browsers. We talked about the types, Extensions, plugins, add-ons, History, Bookmark, Search Engines, Address bar. I mean everything about the web browser. We discussed how to use it to read e-books, how to save a web page to portable digital format (PDF). From there we moved on to the following training;

• How to download
• How to develop content for mobile devices
• What raspberry pi is
• Fixing a Lego Robot

I taught them what they should know about this devices. It was time to do the practical aspect of this devices themselves. I ask who want to work on the Lego robot. Astoundingly all the girls that came wants to work on it.  Most of them exhibited interest for fixing a robot, working on the pi, the kindle e-book reader etc. So I grouped them to brainstorm on making something impressive with the devices.
They did them successfully and were filled with joy. Later on pictures were snapped by the groups and also together. This is not all. Before I draw curtains over this, as a patriotic citizen of the country we sang our National Anthem before we closed the event exactly 6:00pm.

Source: Noah Alorwu