Attitude And Inspiration: The Ghanaian Teacher Who Teaches Computer Science With Chalk And Blackboard

Without resources, but with motivation. Without a computer, but with the will to teach computer science to his students with chalk, a blackboard and a lot of energy. The image of this professor from Ghana drawing the Word interface in his classroom has gone viral, inviting us to reflect that sometimes, to change the world (or improve it) you only need attitude and will.

The protagonist of this story is Owura Kwadwo, a teacher of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) who works in a small school in Kumasi, Ghana. It is a rural environment, with few educational resources and no Internet connection. However, and although it is paradoxical,  within the school curriculum it is stipulated that children acquire basic computer skills.

Mission Impossible? Of course not. Because even if the conditions are not optimal,  the human being can overcome any obstacle with his attitude, and what is better, he can also inspire others so that they do not see deficiencies, so that they are only aware of the possibilities.

This is what Professor Kwadwo achieves with his students on a daily basis. There is no boy or girl who is not motivated in this class, because they know that new technologies will serve as progress for their country, and that when the time comes, when they finally have a computer in their hands, they will surely know how to handle it thanks to the will of this professor from Ghana.

The professor from Ghana who teaches computer science without a computer

The ease with which images go around the world in a few minutes is astonishing. A few months ago we were moved by the story of Wang Fuman, an 8-year-old boy from a Chinese province who walks about 4.5 km every day to go from his home to school. The temperature in January is around 10 below zero, and Wang came to class one morning with frozen hair and eyebrows and puffy cheeks.

His classmates greeted him with laughter, while his teacher decided to take a photo of him to share a reality that most of us is distant and unknown to us. The same is true in this small classroom in a Ghanaian village. Here the protagonist is not the cold, it is the irony, it is the story of a computer science teacher without a computer, they are students who must assume computer skills because every year they are required to pass an exam to demonstrate their ability in this subject .

We could now talk about the already known differences between the first world and the third world; However, before leading to those reflections on which we undoubtedly all agree, let’s stop at their protagonists. In the little stories that bear their own names. Owura Kwadwo teaches the operation of a program to which he has not had access, however, this is not an obstacle for his students to become familiar with the image of a basic resource in office automation.

Every day, with the help of colored chalk and a blackboard, draw that Word sheet in detail and with precision. According to him, he adores his students and does what is necessary for them to learn each lesson. Every teacher in that school manages as best they can, and this teacher from Ghana tries to make all these pictures as soon as possible so that every process, function and command is clear. He knows that among all the subjects that children can learn, computing will make them more competitive and attractive for companies that invest in his country.

Attitude and inspiration

Will these students really learn to use Microsoft Word through a blackboard and the explanations of a teacher who is not used to using a computer either? Many may think not. However, these children feed every day on curiosity, motivation, a visual and imaginative stimulus that puts their minds ahead of any other child in the first world. They feed on the dream of having a real computer in front of them and knowing what to do with it.

We must remember that such outstanding figures in this technology, such as Bill Gates, were educated without a computer. They spent their entire academic stage without this technological resource and even so, they managed to stand out from others in this field. This teacher from Ghana makes the kids watch out; If there is something we know about educational matters, it is that one of the most basic components to stimulate students is motivation, it is attitude.

Owura Kwadwo educates from the heart and need. He knows that teaching computer science without a computer is like teaching how to drive without a car. It is difficult, but not impossible, not if one puts the will and manages to capture the interest of the students through images, colored chalk and commands where one can visualize each step, outline each function.

Thus, and just a few days after the image of this Ghanaian teacher went viral, Microsoft ended up connecting with this school to provide them with a computer. In addition, the solidarity that has been generated with this story has also been very inspiring, and it is indeed expected that in the coming weeks more teams will arrive for this village and other schools in Ghana. Sometimes the little stories and the attitude of the most humble people are what manage to change the world and open our eyes.