Anyone with Internet access knows there can be temptation to misuse its power. What has the potential to bring understanding across social and geographic divides and make accessible information from every discipline and denomination is often instead used to watch cats behaving quirkily or play video games. Lamentable as that misuse is, it is unlikely to change. Knowing this, Common Sense Media created Graphite.
Graphite is a website that rates games, apps, websites from the Internet, gaming consoles and more, on a tripartite rubric to help teachers and students sort the games with educational content from those which are purely time-wasters. Some games are small and virtually unknown; others are as universally recognized as SimCity.
The idea has earned support ranging from philanthropic dignitaries such as Bill Gates, teachers across the country, and students themselves, who can rate the games on a separate tier from the teachers’ ratings.
Graphite is not alone in this new take on learning. Khan Academy, which has been an unequivocal success, has incorporated game-like elements into its curriculum as well, such as awards and points, which can be used to buy avatars. The old doctrine of repetition and memorization from a black and white textbook is on the way out.
However, there are concerns that making education more about fun is fool’s gold. Numerous studies have linked playing video games and heavy computer usage to temporarily reduced cognitive ability, suggesting that there are benefits to learning by rote. Furthermore, there are social consequences to consider: public school systems are, in part, dedicated to instructing children on the way to be effective workers.
Children learn more than facts in school – they learn a new milieu which home life does not typically comprise. By buckling the complaints of children who find school boring or difficult, parents and teachers may be creating a lenient mentality that could cause issues in the future.
Of course, traditional schooling has its own achilles heel, which leads back to the anecdote that opened this article: the Internet. It is an all too common practice for children to escape from the stresses of school and immediately deluge themselves with cartoons, videos, and games, possibly negating the benefits from earlier in the day. Slumping test scores and the declining ability of Americans to compete globally for top-tier jobs in science, medicine, and technology can be seen as testament to this.
It is in this respect that Graphite and its ilk must be viewed not as the solution to a learning problem, but as a complementary tool which can, if not cultivate further learning, at least lend a hand in retaining what traditional methods are able to instill. Like public school, Graphite’s secondary, and possibly more important function, is social.
It has the power to teach children to recognize and acknowledge the difference between games with value, and those without. Hopefully, what Graphite will one day accomplish is to create a lifestyle among an entire generation in which free time is not spent watching strange cats.
– Alex Pusateri
Sources: Graphite, Forbes, Pulse 2, Pravad.Ru
Photo: Memphis Flyer
Graphite Offers Way-Markers to Teachers and Students
Anyone with Internet access knows there can be temptation to misuse its power. What has the potential to bring understanding across social and geographic divides and make accessible information from every discipline and denomination is often instead used to watch cats behaving quirkily or play video games. Lamentable as that misuse is, it is unlikely to change. Knowing this, Common Sense Media created Graphite.
Graphite is a website that rates games, apps, websites from the Internet, gaming consoles and more, on a tripartite rubric to help teachers and students sort the games with educational content from those which are purely time-wasters. Some games are small and virtually unknown; others are as universally recognized as SimCity.
The idea has earned support ranging from philanthropic dignitaries such as Bill Gates, teachers across the country, and students themselves, who can rate the games on a separate tier from the teachers’ ratings.
Graphite is not alone in this new take on learning. Khan Academy, which has been an unequivocal success, has incorporated game-like elements into its curriculum as well, such as awards and points, which can be used to buy avatars. The old doctrine of repetition and memorization from a black and white textbook is on the way out.
However, there are concerns that making education more about fun is fool’s gold. Numerous studies have linked playing video games and heavy computer usage to temporarily reduced cognitive ability, suggesting that there are benefits to learning by rote. Furthermore, there are social consequences to consider: public school systems are, in part, dedicated to instructing children on the way to be effective workers.
Children learn more than facts in school – they learn a new milieu which home life does not typically comprise. By buckling the complaints of children who find school boring or difficult, parents and teachers may be creating a lenient mentality that could cause issues in the future.
Of course, traditional schooling has its own achilles heel, which leads back to the anecdote that opened this article: the Internet. It is an all too common practice for children to escape from the stresses of school and immediately deluge themselves with cartoons, videos, and games, possibly negating the benefits from earlier in the day. Slumping test scores and the declining ability of Americans to compete globally for top-tier jobs in science, medicine, and technology can be seen as testament to this.
It is in this respect that Graphite and its ilk must be viewed not as the solution to a learning problem, but as a complementary tool which can, if not cultivate further learning, at least lend a hand in retaining what traditional methods are able to instill. Like public school, Graphite’s secondary, and possibly more important function, is social.
It has the power to teach children to recognize and acknowledge the difference between games with value, and those without. Hopefully, what Graphite will one day accomplish is to create a lifestyle among an entire generation in which free time is not spent watching strange cats.
– Alex Pusateri
Sources: Graphite, Forbes, Pulse 2, Pravad.Ru
Photo: Memphis Flyer
Haiti’s Hunger Crisis
Last June, when reports abounded of the chronic hunger and food insecurity crisis that was ravaging Haiti, the world learned that 1.5 million people were in need of food assistance in the struggling nation, while another 6.7 million people were failing to meet their food needs on a regular basis.
Soon, images of broomstick-thin children with distended stomachs crossed the globe, while international donors and NGOs pledged additional donor dollars to the nation that was devastated by an earthquake in 2010. Despite the international assistance, a staggering 67 percent of the population still has limited access to food, according to the government’s National Coordination of Food Security.
Much of the crisis stems from extreme weather conditions such as floods and droughts which destroyed key crops last year. Worse still, scientists predict that more natural disasters are on their way due to climate change.
Klaus Eberwein, general director of the government’s Economic and Social Assistance Fund believes that the current hunger crisis is due to “decades of bad political decisions,” last year’s storms and drought, and the fact that hunger is not new to Haiti.
The country’s food insecurity issues also have to do with the fact that 80 percent of Haiti’s rice and half of all its food is imported now. With so much depending on imports, meals are becoming harder to obtain on a minimum wage, which is about $4.54 a day.
To make matters worse, Haiti has lost almost all of its forest as poor Haitians continue to chop down trees to make charcoal. Consequently, the loss of trees does not help to contain heavy rainfall or to yield crop-producing soil.
One of the organizations that continues to help stem the widespread hunger is USAID, which has provided over $38 million for emergency and development food assistance in Haiti. This past month, the organization launched a four-year food security program to improve nutrition and access to locally produced foods for the most vulnerable households in Haiti. The project, the Kore Lavi Program, is part of the U.S. government’s global hunger and food security initiatives Feed the Future and Title II.
The program supports the Haitian government in establishing a voucher-based safety-net system to increase poor household’s access to food and prevent malnutrition in children under 2 years of age. It is expected to reach 250,000 households by providing food vouchers, improving maternal and child health and nutrition knowledge, strengthening links between households and health systems, and improving the quality of health and nutrition services. Additionally, it aims to develop a national database system within the Government of Haiti’s Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor to target vulnerable households.
The goal is to change the harsh reality of the statistic that two in three Haitians currently face hunger as the country’s woes continue to mount.
– Nayomi Chibana
Feature Writer
Sources: USAID AP
Photo: TIME
50 Years of Aid: Amnesty International
Since its inception in 1961, Amnesty International has transformed the developing world through the philanthropic efforts of its 2.2 million members. Its work has pervaded over 150 countries and territories, making it one of the largest non-profit organizations in the world.
Launched by the British lawyer Peter Benenson, Amnesty International completed its first mission in Ghana in 1962. For the next eight years, the organization focused on improving prison conditions in Portugal, South Africa and Romania.
By the end of the 1960s, Amnesty had secured the release of around 2,000 prisoners of conscience – individuals who, according to Amnesty, had “been jailed because of their political, religious or other conscientiously-held beliefs, ethnic origin, sex, color, language, national or social origin, economic status, birth, sexual orientation or other status.” Following this success, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) granted Amnesty International a consultative status.
In 1970s, Amnesty widened its concerns, launching its first international campaign to eradicate torture in 1972. In part due to Amnesty’s efforts, the United Nations adopted the Declaration Against Torture in 1977, and the organization was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
In the following decades, Amnesty continued to promote its human rights agenda. In 1985, it published its first educational packet, “Teaching and learning about Human Rights.” It also create several new initatives, aimed at protecting individuals against the violence of armed opposition groups and protecting those imprisoned due to sexual orientation. During this time, Amnesty’s membership grew, exceeding one million members by the 1990s.
Currently, Amnesty’s presence is larger than ever. In 2002, the organization launched a campaign against the Russian Federation, working to call attention to the human rights violations perpetrated by the Russian government, and in 2004, it started its “Stop Violence Against Women” campaign. The organization celebrated its 50th anniversary two years ago, and continues to transform the world through aid and reform.
– Anna Purcell
Sources: Amnesty International, Learning to Give
Photo: The Guardian
Hugh Jackman: the Humanitarian
Hugh Jackman is perhaps best known for his role as Wolverine in Marvel’s X-Men series. Outside of acting, though, the Australian actor is also well-known for his efforts as a great humanitarian. His involvement with the Global Poverty Project and various other charity programs, ranging from AIDS prevention to Children’s Hospitals, show that is he is someone who uses his status to bring awareness to the various problems in our society and help those in need.
Global Poverty Project is an organization that combats extreme poverty through various campaigns of awareness and government action. One of their campaigns is 1.4 Billion Reasons—one for each person living in extreme poverty all over the world (extreme poverty is defined as living on less than $1.25/day). The campaign is one of awareness: the presentation introduces the viewers to the persistence of poverty, and the many possible solutions to it.
Hugh Jackman is associated with another campaign of the Global Poverty Project: Live Below the Line. For five days, the participants of this campaign live below the poverty line, spending only $1.25 a day on food. This takes a great deal of commitment and helps to develop sympathy for those for whom this is an everyday reality.
In addition to supporting such campaigns, Hugh Jackman also recently did some fundraising for charity. He charged all the guests to attend his birthday party, and after performing a musical number, dancing, and telling stories the whole night, sent all the proceeds to the Motion Picture and Television Fund, which gives services such as healthcare to those who work in and have retired from the entertainment industry.
Clearly, Hugh Jackman understands the importance of helping those both near and far—those with whom he works, and those who he will probably never meet in his life. He brings awareness to serious issues and is a great role model to people everywhere. He feels the need to help those all over the world, and that shows he’s a true humanitarian.
– Aalekhya Malladi
Sources: Newsday, Look to the Stars
Photo: Zimbio
What is Measure DHS?
How prevalent is anemia in children and women? Is there a good vaccine against malaria available where it’s needed the most? What are the consequences of domestic violence? And what are some complications resulting from second-hand smoke?
Seeking to provide accurate answers to these, and many other questions of similar nature, MEASURE DHS (Monitoring and Evaluation to Assess and Use Results of Demographic and Health Surveys) is a comprehensive database which employs a wide variety of household surveys and evaluation methods around the globe.
There are over 300 survey templates spread across more than 90 countries. Complementing the survey results, biological markers and GPS data are often collected together with the survey questions for maximum accuracy. Through an online platform called STATcompiler, DHS results are viewable in scatter plots, charts and maps – these are all sorted by indicator and year.
The purpose of DHS is not solely to collect and catalogue, though. Evaluating valuable statistics on disease, fertility and nutrition is crucial to solving global issues within those, and other categories.
Two kinds of surveys are utilized to ensure the most precise measuring data technique: standard and interim. The former is conducted at circa five-year intervals to allow for comparison over time, and the latter deals with key performance monitoring. Although both types are nationally representative, sample sizes for standard surveys tend to be much larger than interim.
Started in 1984 by ICF International and funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), data collected by DHS is used for planning new programs in host countries and policy formation. Developing countries are specifically targeted in this long-running project, and many of the findings are published online.
For instance, an interesting trend has recently been discovered that seems to disprove the common misconception that HIV affects impoverished communities most: factually, HIV-afflicted citizens of many of the countries surveyed have a tendency to belong to the wealthiest families.
MEASURE DHS is open to communicating with the media for coverage of results and promotion of new survey distributions; this way, it becomes possible to reach as many people as possible and collect an accurately representative sample.
When new information comes to light and is indicative of a desired policy change, MEASURE DHS often forms partnerships with other organizations in order to help understand and get the most out of the results and develop new, effective programs as a response. For example, after the 2003-2004 Tanzania HIV Indicator Survey, MEASURE DHS developed a curriculum which aided hundreds of professionals in their work with AIDS/HIV, and worked together with Pathfinder, Pact Inc., and the Tanzania Commission on AIDS.
Together, they organized new training for staff working with HIV/AIDS, which lasted for three days and provided valuable insight for the future of AIDS studies, both on location and in the U.S.
Overall, MEASURE DHS provides essential data from the past few decades which supports and shapes the partner USAID’s (and others’) global work. First-hand quantitative and qualitative questions on the surveys allow for unique and accurate depiction of an entire country’s population. Although the project itself tends to be somewhat underappreciated in social media, it has since its start been the sturdy backbone of humanitarian workers across the nation.
– Natalia Isaeva
Sources: Measure DHS, ICFI
Malala’s Weapon of Choice Revealed on The Daily Show
With a comprehension of human nature typically not seen in someone of only 16 years of age, Malala Yousafzai
In an interview with Jon Stewart of Comedy Central’s The Daily Show, well-known educational activist Malala Yousafzai once again stunned the world through the embodiment of such pure compassion and altruism that left her usually quick-witted host speechless.
The empowerment and liberation these young girls felt in school was too great for their community to surrender to the Taliban. Schools went underground, removed school signs and tried to continue educating children even under the possibility of being attacked by the Taliban.
When asked what motivated her to stand up for education, she spoke of the inspiration her father gave her who was also an activist for women’s rights and education. His example gave her the courage to take the fight for her rights into her own hands rather than wait for the government to intervene.
After a friend told her that the Taliban were targeting her, she described what she planned to do if a member of the Taliban was about to kill her. With her steel resolve, she stated to Jon Stewart and everyone around the world watching that she would never retaliate against the Taliban, because doing so would make her no different than a terrorist.
Dialogue and compassion would be her weapons of choice, and she would tell the Taliban she fights not for her education, but for the education of all – including the Taliban’s children. Such blunt advocacy for peace and pacifism momentarily left Jon Stewart in silence until he comically asked if Malala’s father would be mad if he adopted her.
Other great leaders in history have came to similar conclusions when faced with the idea of violent suppression. Martin Luther King Jr., Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Theresa, and now Malala Yousafzai have displayed a similar capacity for compassion and peace that great change often necessitates.
It requires a certain level of vision and passion to make people gravitate towards the leaders of grand social movements and it is evident in the actions and resolve of Malala Yousafzai that she poses such qualities. It is now up to the people across the world to pick up their pens and raise their voices as Malala has done and join the fight for equality she has risked her life for.
Sources: The Daily Show, USA Today
Photo: Jezebel
Malaria Deaths are Decreasing in Africa
Africa faces the world’s most dramatic public health crisis. Although polio is close to eradication, and more than half of African children have received the measles immunization, key public health issues continue throughout Africa.
Malaria is preventable and curable, yet it kills about 655,000 people worldwide every year. Malaria is transmitted through mosquitos infected with parasites, and it can also be passed to a growing fetus from an infected mother. Malaria causes fever, chills, muscle pain, and if not treated can result in death.
According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), 91 percent of malaria-caused deaths occur in Africa. Moreover, 86 percent of malaria deaths globally are children. Malaria is a disease of poverty. The most vulnerable are children under five and pregnant women living in rural areas.
Malaria deaths decreased by 25 percent globally from 2000 to 2010. How was this achieved?
1. World Health Organization (WHO)
According to the WHO, 33 African countries have adopted artemisinin-based combination therapy as malaria treatment, which is the most effective antimalarial medicine. Other treatments include insecticide-treated nets, indoor residual spraying, and intermittent preventive treatment during pregnancy. In the WHO African region, malaria cases decreased by 50 percent between 2000 and 2008 due to these measures.
2. United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)
From 2000 to 2012, UNICEF provided over 120 million Insecticide-Treated Nets (ITNs). During this time, children sleeping under ITNs increased from 2 percent to 39 percent. As malaria-infected mosquitos bite at night, the regular use of ITNs can reduce child mortality by 20 percent.
3. The Global Fund
Through funding from the Global Fund, 310 million mosquito nets and 181 million cutting-edge antimalarial treatments have been distributed.
4. The President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI)
PMI is led by USAID under a U.S. Global Malaria Coordinator and jointly implemented with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). PMI is one of the largest donors for malaria. Its goal is to half malaria for 70 percent of the at risk sub-Saharan population. PMI has chosen 19 focus countries. In Tanzania, PMI efforts, through the malaria control scale-up, have reduced all-cause child mortality (ACCM) by 10 deaths per 1,000 live births.
Through all these efforts over a million lives have been saved. Still a child dies every minute from malaria.
Widespread malaria is an obstacle to the development and growth of affected African countries and communities. For every $1 invested in malaria commodities, a $40 return can be expected in the form of productivity from healthier, better educated more productive working communities.
– Caressa Kruth
Sources: WHO, CDC About, WebMD, UNICEF, Forbes John Lechleiter, Forbes, CDC Resources
Photo:
Pepper Boy: Young Rapper Brings Fight against Poverty to Mainstream
Most entertainers shirk social responsibility until they have struck commercial gold and attained stardom. In general, it is only then that they suddenly claim to be steadfast supporters of children in Africa or staunch opponents of animal abuse.
Up-and-coming rapper, Pepper Boy, defies this trend. Hailing from Little Rock, Arkansas, Pepper Boy is the definition of “real.” With a no-frills lyrical style, he is perhaps best known for the sincerity in his tone and the intensely personal nature of his music.
Although his latest mixtape, “Days of Grace,” has garnered critical acclaim–and though hip-hop heavyweight, Lil B, has recognized his music by rapping over his 2010 song, “Tha Parts”–Pepper Boy has yet to score a major label deal or perform at well-known venues. His relative lack of recognition by the masses, however, has not deterred the young rapper from making his activist voice heard–as both a musician and a philanthropist.
On his mixtape track, “Child Soulja,” Pepper Boy tells the story of a young child fighting in Joseph Kony’s Lord’s Resistance Army through a first person perspective. The track, which features a sped up loop of Cutting Crew’s 1986 hit, “(I Just) Died in Your Arms,” opens with the emotionally rousing lines, “Civil war changed everything … Joseph Kony—that’s the man. As a child, he put a gun in my hand. AK-47, almost tall as me. They burned the whole village; then, they took me.”
Similarly, despite lacking a million-dollar recording contract, Pepper Boy has made much of his music available for download via ReverbNation, through which 50 percent of proceeds for sales of select songs will go toward Keep a Child Alive–a non-profit supporting the welfare of families and children infected with or affected by HIV/AIDS. The organization currently works with individuals in Kenya, India, Uganda, Rwanda, and South Africa.
Pepper Boy’s openness to releasing unorthodox songs pertaining to international affairs is refreshing. Conversely, his selflessness in relinquishing potential profit in the name of charity is admirable. Few independent artists have taken such great strides in distancing themselves from material culture and raising awareness for the side effects of global poverty.
One can only imagine the impact Pepper Boy could make if he had a greater audience and more resources at his disposal.
– Melrose Huang
Sources: SPIN, Mishka NYC, Reverb Nation, Keep a Child Alive
AMK Cambodia
Angkor Mikroheranhvatho (Kampuchea) Co. Ltd. (AMK) began as a part of Concern Worldwide; their initial work was with savings and credit in Cambodia. From the years of 1997 – 1998, this area of work was separated from their broad-spectrum focus in regards to community development programs.
The vision of this branch of the organization was long-term, a Cambodian society in which citizens would have “equal and sufficient economic and social opportunities to improve their standard of living, and where they could positively contribute to the overall development of the country.”
The section had grown significantly by the year 1999, having accumulated a value of about KHR 1,000 million (US $250,000). With this success in mind, Concern Worldwide began the process of making this division an independent legal entity.
In 2001, the name of the organization was set to Thaneakea Ponleu Thmey (TPT) and became an officially recognized Cambodian Microfinance Institution (MFI). As things progressed from 2002 to 2003, the organization finally gained its current title – AMK. It was now independent from Concern Worldwide.
Over the years, AMK has built itself up to be a highly successful organization with a large amount of growth and stability. AMK even weathered the global financial crisis of 2008. It is currently regarded as one of the leading financial institutions in Cambodia.
The staff of AMK keeps ethics high on the priority list. Their Code of Practice includes the following: inclusion of the poor, transparency and honesty in transactions, ethical and respectful behavior, avoidance of over-indebtedness, freedom of choice, reasonable and collaborative collection practices, accessible complaint and problem resolutions, and privacy of client data.
At this moment, AMK provides credit to over 250,000 Cambodian customers (over 2 percent of the entire population and 9 percent of the households in Cambodia). This large number gives AMK Cambodia the ability to exercise great influence over financial inclusion in the country.
Other information regarding the organization’s successes and current assets can be found at AMK Cambodia’s Highlights.
– Samantha Davis
Sources: AMK Cambodia, Britannica
Photo: Oiko Credit
Russell Crowe Movie Fights for the Underdog
Cinderella Man, in which Russell Crowe plays the role of James Braddock, is an endearing film that anybody can get behind. This is a classic story of the underdog who sees his fate turn for the worst but then becomes a conquering hero. The film is based on the incredible life of James Braddock who, as middle-weight boxer before the great depression showed promise of becoming the next great fighter but, fell on a string of bad luck. After breaking his hand in a boxing match, he kept on losing his bouts. Being older in age, his skills in decline, and a mounting losing record, his boxing license was revoked, prohibiting him from boxing professionally. James Braddock was stripped of his profession prematurely, because of factors that he could not control.
James faced the same experiences that the majority of Americans faced during the Great Depression. Like many, it was difficult for him to find work, which caused him to be unable to provide for his family. Not only was boxing his livelihood, but it was his passion. Losing the ability to compete created a huge void in his life. Jim’s personal demons and the emotional, physical, and psychiatric state of his family would cause many to give up, but Jim was resilient in keeping his family together and overcoming all the obstacles in life. Just when we think that James Braddock would succumb to all the pressures of his situation, he goes out and fights his way out of poverty.
Finally James gets a golden opportunity to return to the ring. After being away from the ring for many months, without any training, and only two days notice, James is able to defeat his opponent. The surprise victory provided James with additional opportunities to continue his career as a boxer. He continued to excel in the ring, eventually gaining the title of world champion.
Cinderella Man teaches us to confront all our problems, no matter how big or small, using grit, determination, and poise. James Braddock and Russel Crowe teach us that no problem is so big that it cannot be fixed. He defied all the odds to overcome the obstacles of poverty, rapid depression, family struggles, and superior competition, to come out as the champion of the world.
– Travis Whinery
Sources: IMDB, James J Braddock.com, Universal Studios
Photo: El Cinefilo