Post-Event Report- Zambia Focuss.Info Workshop
Wednesday, June 23, 2010 at 5:04PM On the 12th of June, 2010, I facilitated the Zambia Focuss.Info workshop. The workshop took place at a small local public library in north mead area of Lusaka, Zambia. The library was equipped with desktop computers and internet connectivity was available. The training was conducted for only one day. With great internet connectivity, I would say one day training is sufficient.
Participants and special notes on participants
The training drew ten participants although only seven out of the ten confirmed participants were able to attend. Three of the participants were female- two Library and Information Science professional representing the Zambia National Food and Nutrition Commission as the Zambia Association for Research and Development; while one of the females was a researcher from the University of Zambia (UNZA). The other five participants were male- one was a Library and Information Science student from Evelyn Hone College of Lusaka, a Genetics and Microbiologist from the VETLAB of Lusaka, a researcher and lecturer from the University of Zambia, as well as a Research Officer from the Zambia Agricultural and Research Institute under the Zambian Government’s Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives. All the participants were new to most of the tools that I shared with them. But they were a vibrant group and asked as many questions as they could which was motivating to me as the facilitator.
Training methodology
In order for me to carry out the workshop successfully; I used the following methods:
1. Lecture method- I found this method to be useful to transmit information as well as explain
procedures.
2. Demonstration- this particular method proved to be efficient in that, the participants were able to see the sequence of a particular procedure in performing a task and build on it. Demonstrations also proved to be very handy in that key points were emphasized and repeated.
Training covered the following: group productivity and collaboration tools; tagging and social bookmarking; subscriptions, feeds and syndication; blogging; online video and image sharing. At the end of every presentation, the participants were encouraged to ask questions. Responses were given to the best of my ability. There was a hands-on session, completely dedicated to practical exercises.
Language of instruction
English was the language of instruction especially that most online content is in English and report on the workshop was intended for an even wider audience who mostly understand English.
Attendance
Initially ten (10) participants had confirmed their availability to this workshop. Unfortunately due to some unforeseen circumstances; seven (7) out the ten (10) were able to attend the first Zambia Focus.Info Initiative workshop. The attendance was fairly good as 70% of the people invited were able to actually participate.
Constraints/challenges
Internet connectivity, the unavailability of some of the web 2 tools proved to be a challenge for me as facilitator and for the participants too. We lost internet connectivity too many times during the practical session. This slowed down our progress and was a bit discouraging to me. But in the amount of spaces when the internet was available, five out the seven participants present were able to sign up with TWITTER and DELICIOUS. The participants were only able to add a few bookmarks to their delicious account and set a few details on their Twitter profiles before we completely lost the internet connection. In the short time when the internet was available, others had problems opening up Twitter accounts as the twitter website seemed busy and unavailable.
Successes
Despite the challenges, the participants gained a basic knowledge of the Focus.Info initiative, web 2.0 tools and the concept behind social bookmarking and networking. Even though the participants did not spend as much time online as I hoped they would due to the unforeseen connectivity issues, I feel they will be able to still use knowledge they acquired appropriately as they demonstrated willingness and interest to learn. This was very motivating.
Conclusion
The workshop was successful. Participants were equipped with basic skills and knowledge on social bookmarking and how to use web 2.0 tools for networking. They were appreciative that they were amongst the group that had been invited to benefit and be able to contribute to an online community and initiative such as Focus.Info. As facilitator of the workshop, I felt that it was important for me to continue steering the group that was able to attend the workshop. As they have just been introduced to these tools, continuous use of the tools especially twitter, delicious and other social networking media is important. Therefore, I have created a small discussion group for the participants using Google groups. I will continuously share some useful resources with the participants through this group. It is my hope that I can help the participants improve their skills through this group. The group I have created is called FocussZambia. The email address is focusszambia@googlegroups.com. The FocussZambia group is intended to keep the group active and help the members with constant practice, and also steer web 2.0 awareness among the members. For social bookmarking and networking to be realized, I felt there was need to continue discussions and exchanges with the group as they are completely new to these tools.
Workshop in pictures
"Zambia Focuss.Info Workshop" in pictures
Workshop presentation
Zambia Focuss.Info Workshop Presentation
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