![]()
Abstract Over 10 years ago, an oilfield services company launched an outreach program focused on underserved communities where its employees live and work. The program empowers employee volunteers and educators—including teachers, parents, and other mentors—to share their passion for science with students aged 10 to 18. The program draws on the technology and science expertise of the volunteers to engage students.
Today, an innovative multisector collaboration among the company's community outreach program, two nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), a mining company, and a national government is expected to produce fundamental improvements in how children learn in several Nigerian schools. Under the program, 6,000 students will each receive a laptop computer specially designed by the One Laptop per Child (OLPC) educational initiative. Students will use these computers to learn mathematics, science, and other fundamentals—both independently and collectively.
The initiative combines technology with established educational methods to actively engage students in their own education. 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 addition to containing tools for learning standard curricula, the laptops provide programs that teach selected global sustainability themes—developed, proven, and supported over the years by the oilfield services company's outreach program.
This paper will present the details of the collaboration process as well as describe the challenges and successes that the program has faced in Port Harcourt, Nigeria, and nearby locations, where it will soon be implemented.
Site News