CYBER KIDS was a nation-wide experiment launched in 1992 in Cyprus by Yiannis Laouris, George Vakanas and Maria Symeonides. The Research and Development of its award winning curriculum was done by the Cyprus Neuroscience and Technology Institute.
CYBER KIDS was based on a concept we then called the “profitable dream:
- We envisioned that introducing advanced computer technology in the lives of a critical number of young children using an educationally relevant and socially responsible, peace-enhancing curriculum would allow us to “transcend” the country’s educational and political life and move the new generation a decade ahead.
The project was founded on a well-defined vision statement:
- ... to re-define the tools, methods and purpose of education, in light of relevant social change.
The vehicle chosen to disseminate the impact of the project and its vision was the profit-making concept of franchising. Within the first five years (1992-1997) 26 computer- learning centers were launched with average of 50-150 students enrolled in each location. By 1999, the number of children who benefited from the Cyber Kids curriculum exceeded 15,000, which is approximately equal to 20% of the country’s youth population (ages 6-15). During the same period, the organization trained and employed 186 young and talented university graduates, thus combating brain drain while simultaneously spreading the Cyber Kids philosophy and knowledge to many more spheres of social life.
External Links
http://www.mlearn.org.za/CD/papers/Laouris%20&%20Anastasiou.pdf