[liberationtech] Upcoming TechChange Online Course On Mobile Phones for International Development

Thu Jun 14 09:22:08 PDT 2012

From: TJ Thomander <tj at techchange.org>

I am the director of communications at an organization called
TechChange<http://techchange.org/>:
the Institute for Technology and Social Change here in Washington DC. We
specialize in delivering innovative and interactive online courses on the
role of technology in addressing urgent social and global challenges.

I wanted to pass along some info about our upcoming course Mobile Phones
for International
Development<http://techchange.org/mobiles-for-international-development-new-platform-for-public-health-finance-and-education/>
(course
description included below). The course will run from June 18th -July 13th.
We've already got an amazing line-up of guest experts and participants but
we'd love to have more folks that are SE minded join the course. Feel free
to circulate to your colleagues.

Cheers and hope you have a great week.
TJ

***

*Mobile Phones for International Development: New Platforms for Public
Health Finance and Education*

http://techchange.org/mobiles-for-international-development-new-platform-for-public-health-finance-and-education/

The mobile phone is rapidly bringing communication to the most remote areas
of the world. NGOs, governments and companies alike are beginning to
realize the potential of this ubiquitous tool to address social challenges.
This four-week online professional development certificate course will
explore successful applications that facilitate economic transactions,
support public health campaigns and connect learners to educational
content. It will also critically engage with issues of equity, privacy and
access. Participants can expect a dynamic and practical learning
environment with a number of real-world examples and case studies.

*Apply now:* http://techchange.org/application/

*Course Topics:*

   - Banking the Unbanked: the Promise of Mobile Money Systems
   - Mobile Diagnostics and other Tools for Public Health Delivery
   - New Approaches to Monitoring, Evaluation and Data Management
   - Many to Many Communication the Integration of Mobiles and Radio
   - Mobile Learning: Best Practices for Education on the Move

*Techn**ologies and Case Studies:*

   - Mobile Money Transfer Platforms (MPESA)
   - Mobile Survey and Data Collection Tools (FormHub, GeoPoll, EpiSurveyor)
   - Mass Texting Software Interfaces (FrontlineSMS RapidSMS/Souktel)
   - Mobile Diagnostics Platforms (Sana Mobile)
   - Mobile Incentive Structures and Programs (TxtEagle)
   - IVR Systems (FreedomFone)

*Dates:* The course will run for four weeks from June 18th through July
13th, 2012. Course content, exercises and material however will be
accessible for up to 4 months after course ends.

<http://techchange.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/mobile.png>

*Teaching Method/Class Format: *The entire course is delivered online.The
total time commitment is a minimum of 7-9 hours a week. The course is
designed to be highly interactive and social, but we also work hard to
ensure that the majority of content can experienced in a self-paced manner.
We do feature real-time interactions each week such as live discussions,
live expert interviews, and live simulations. In order to accommodate busy
schedules of learners from around the world we’ve set up a learning
environment where participants have plenty of options and can choose the
ones they’d like to be involved with depending on their availability and
interest. Participants can also access all course content up to three
months after course completion so if you get pulled away at the last minute
for part of the course you can still revisit the material afterwards.

*Sample Guest Experts: *We will be joined by a number of guest experts
throughout the course. Stay tuned for a list of confirmed speakers.* *

   - *Bill Siemering, Founding Director of NPR and Director of Development
   Radio Partners*
   - *Jacob Korenblum, CEO of Souktel*
   - *Joel Selaniki**o, CEO of DataDyne*

*Course Facilitator: *TechChange
staff<http://techchange.org/about/meet-the-team/>
, advisory board <http://techchange.org/about/advisory-board/> members and
a number of guest experts will all be heavily involved in the design and
facilitation of the course. The lead facilitator for the course will be
Nick Martin. Nick is an educator, technologist, and social entrepreneur
with significant international peacebuilding and development expertise. He
is an adjunct faculty member at American University, George Mason
University, George Washington University and the United Nations University
for Peace (UPEACE), and has given a number of guest lectures and speeches
on the role of technology in peacebuilding, development and humanitarian
work. Contact Nick at nick [at] techchange.org. <nick at techchange.org>

*Learning Outcomes:*

   - Participants will be able to critically analyze both the opportunities
   and the pitfalls that emerge when working with mobile technology to address
   social problems in public health, education, and fiance sectors
   - Participants will be able connect relevant development, humanitarian
   and peacebuilding theories to the mobile technological strategies and tools
   discussed in the course
   - Participants will be able to manage specific mobile platforms and
   utilize various mobile technological tools for responding to social problems
   - Participants will be able to design dynamic and effective strategies
   for using mobile technology platforms and tools to respond to social
   challenges in fields of education, health and finance
   - Participants will be able to work collaboratively with others using
   new tools by participating in dynamic group exercises and simulations
   - Participants will develop confidence and critical self-awareness in
   working with mobile technology to address social problems

*Cost:*

   - $495 if application and payment is submitted by June 5 ($595 if
   application and payment is submitted by June 18)

*

 Apply now:* http://techchange.org/application/

-- 
TJ Thomander
Director of Communications | TechChange
TJ at TechChange.org | 650.814.9287
Twitter: @TechChange <https://twitter.com/#!/techchange> or
@thomandini<http://twitter.com/thomandini>

Skype: tthomander
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