On Sunday 09 Sep 2012 2:37:23 AM mokurai@earthtreasury.org wrote:
We need to provide for schoolchildren who have no access to human guides. In fact, we need to provide for children who have no access to schools. OLPC is conducting an experiment with XOs in villages without schools, without even a single literate adult. The children are learning a lot of computer skills, and are learning the alphabet. The next step should be Same-Language-Subtitling (as in India) with text-to-speech in local languages.
I understand your position. Learning requires two way communication, so canned radio shows or video clips don't help much. A text-to-speech program does not listen and correct the learner's mistakes. Tech can assist mothers/teachers in teaching their wards but cannot substitute for them.
I didn't find Etoys suitable pre-literate or illiterate middle-schoolers. Though, the presence of a computer and peers working on them may motivate them to learn the letters.
For your requirement, take a look at :
https://www.youtube.com/user/SikshanaFoundation23/videos
We tried to pair students with a literate peer. The books are selected by the reader. Each reading session lasts for about an hour and the peer is a passive listener who will assist only when the reader gets stuck for more than a couple of seconds or explicitly requests for help. The joy of helping also serves to boost peer's motivation to learn further.
Regards .. Subbu