Cambodian Children Face 21st Century.

Jan. 3, 2012 - PRLog -- The Khmer Rouge nearly killed every professional, every educator, and anyone with a passion for learning.  Thankfully, the younger generation was not robbed of its thirst for knowledge. The Windows of Wonder Institute or WOWi (wow-ee) is creating new types of interactive digital media environments meant to pierce through the darkness of ignorance and provide a bright spark of wisdom for every Cambodian child to see and experience.

Kim Smith is the President and Co-Founder of WOWi.  He is also without question a Renaissance man.  Smith is devoted to teaching, learning, traveling and embracing change.  At UC Berkeley he earned a Master of Arts in painting.  Later he headed east and traveled thousands of miles to attend Brown University in Providence Rhode Island.  There, he earned a Ph.D. in Semiotics or the study of signs and Art History.

Smith is an inventor, interface designer and holds 20 U.S. patents.  He is the recipient of numerous technology awards that make our lives both better and easier.  His university students are the fortunate beneficiaries of his expertise on the innovative use of the Internet and digital technology at the University of Texas at Austin.  

Recently, Kim Smith, the president and co-founder of WOWi, spoke with Duane Conder, the group’s Director of Communications about a high school teacher in Austin who provides for his students the kind of lesson plans WOWi would like to provide for the children in Cambodia.  The teacher is David Conover, and he’s an enterprising, technologically savvy educator.  Smith shared his impressions of Conover and why he admires his work in as well as outside of the classroom.  

Conover is the kind of high school teacher a student who loves to learn dreams about. A teacher who doesn’t read to them from a book, but a teacher who writes a book they should read. Conover educates students in Austin, Texas’ Pflugerville Independent School District.  

Conover is considered by students and colleagues alike as an educator who ‘gets digital interactive media.”  So much so he teaches game design to his high school students.  When Conover’s students graduate they are and will be ahead of the gaming curve with job infinite job potential. He’s recently been distinguished as an Adobe Impact Teacher award-winner.  Conover created a popular game design course in which students  generate content, work in teams to solve problems, meet deadlines and make public presentations.

Conder to Smith: He [Conover] and his class seem like a perfect fit for the Angkor Wat project and WOWi... tell me a little about how fortunate Austin and WOWi is to have him in the community and onboard.

Richard Florida, who developed the concept of the “creative class,” ranked Austin as the second most creative city in the US. Technology and education are two big factors in Austin’s high rating. Art – in the broadest sense of that term – is another. In common practice, these factors don’t often overlap, in fact they are typically “silos.” Since the late 90s there’s been a lot of talk of a “digital convergence.” Riffing on the Schopenhauer quote, the convergence targets for most efforts have too often been targets that most people see.

In my opinion, a convergence of art, technology and education takes the whole enterprise in a more profitable target-to-be-discovered direction. For WOWi, this is encapsulated in the tagline “ARTS + WEB + LEARNING.” David and his students perform this type of convergence where, in reference to this tagline, “WEB” is embodied by “serious game” development. I think it will be this kind of convergence that David and his students are pioneering that will ultimately justify and maintain Austin’s high “creative class” rating.


Conder to Smith: What do you hope his [Conover’s] students will get from the experience?

A vigorous exercising and growth of their digital media skills - An opportunity to coach and mentor their Cambodian peers, who are not as advanced as they in digital media production; the chance to learn about another very different culture and, in the process, learn more about their own.  The satisfaction of displaying their work in very public venues, some of which are worldwide in scope.  And, the satisfaction of knowing that their efforts contributed to a greater good, spanning a great physical and cultural divide.


Conder to Smith: Describe for me why it's important to help Cambodians recover in a way that is going beyond the basics of food and shelter?  Specifically, help that involves education and bringing their culture into the 21st century.

Cambodia is one of the poorest countries in the world. Tragically, the Khmer Rouge succeeded in destroying the country’s intellectual capital, making it difficult to maintain even a viable agrarian economy.   The sort of economy that the Khmer Rouge sought was a pure return to agriculture.  Of course, agriculture is an important base for any economy but, even there, along with other technological advances, computers and digital technology now play a key role in successful farming. It is WOWi’s goal in February to begin a program of schooling Cambodian youths in digital technology by first involving them in creating digital media content.


Conder to Conover: How did Dr. Smith find you and what were your initial thoughts on the Angkor Wat project?

I was speaking at a conference and Dr. Smith learned about some of the digital projects that I am developing at my high school.

My initial thoughts on the project was that this would be a perfect opportunity for my students to learn about Cambodia while using digital tools to collaborate and explore.  The students, globally, can share their history, music language and art.


Conder to Conover: Tell me about what types of students are in your classes at Austin’s John B. Connally High School?

My high school students come from a diverse background and they all have an interest in innovation, problem solving, collaborating with students from around the world.


Conder to Conover: What types of projects are your students working on?

Some my digital interactive media projects include podcasting, storyboards, video narratives, documentaries, graphic design, sound design and impressionistic artwork. Other projects include creating videogames that address social issues such as, water conservation, land conservation, prevention of child obesity and healthy eating habits.


Conder to Conover: What aspect do you like about the project and WOWi in general?

I like this project because it takes the digital toolset, a series of connected lesson plans and applies it across the high school curriculum. The result is a rich multicultural global learning experience.  The students will like communicating with other high school students.


Conder to Conover: Are your students aware of Cambodia’s violent past, the atrocities that happened and what it’s like for many kids who live there today? What does it mean to you and what do you suppose it will mean to your students to help young Cambodians bring their culture into the 21st century and why that’s important?

My students are not yet aware of Cambodia’s violent past or the atrocities that occurred.
This will be a cultural shock for some of my students.  The writing of how it feels to be helping these people recover in a way that’s going beyond the basics of food and shelter is what will be documented. The deeper understanding as to why it is important will be captured in the forms of poetic podcasts, graphic arts, historical timelines and social web 2.0 applications.  I look forward to launching this project in February.  


For more information, contact Duane Conder, WOWi Director of Communications
(877) 992-6636
Email: DuaneConder@wowi-austin.org
Website: www.wowi-austin.org

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The Windows of Wonder Institute (WOWi), a 501(c)(3) org, uniquely combines ARTS+WEB+LEARNING to build & connect communities locally, regionally & globally.