Teaching Latha Basic Computer Skills

This week, we took one of the Kodagali site managers, a sassy vibrant woman named Latha, to the neighboring city of Bannur, to teach her how to use email. To me, email is such a regular part of my life, I’m really not sure how functional I’d be without it. In teaching Latha the basics, I realized so many things I take for granted, in terms of computer skills and knowledge. Basic things- such as how to open an internet window, what a “username” or “password” is, or how to identify an email address by the “@” symbol and the .net/.com/.org. Another major thing I’ve taken for granted- having most of the internet in my own language. Plus any time I stumble upon a page that isn’t in English, google automatically translates it for me. Do you know how many webpages are in Kannada? Few and far between, relative to English.

Sanitary Health Clinic...

In our first session, we helped Latha create an email account through gmail. Another thing I take for granted- knowing my date of birth. After making her account, and adding several contacts, we had her practice writing a few emails. We taught her how to write a message by clicking “compose,” entering the recipient address, and then writing the body itself. After each of these emails, which we had Latha send to our personal accounts, we opened our own inboxes to show her that they had been electronically sent to us. Next, we sent her emails from our accounts, and had her open and reply to them.

Early on, we faced some resistance. Initially, Latha wasn’t even comfortable with the idea. She frequently became flustered and merely stared at the screen, quickly giving up. However, with our encouragement, Latha persevered. She began to enjoy herself, enthusiastically composing emails and was pleasantly surprised when we showed her that we had received her emails (and that this wasn’t just some American sorcery performed by charlatans). 

Additionally, we spent two days in Banvari. Life in Banvari moves at the speed of a turtle, but it was a refreshing calm. I realize this sounds so third-world-traveler-pretentious, but life here is extraordinarily real. I mean I can’t tell you how many times a day I have #India #notreallife moments, but at the same time, village life has a purity and a truth to it, that we have long forgotten. Banvari is quite picturesque- the fields and rocky terrain are the deep reds and faded browns of Monument Valley, and the foliage is vaguely tropical. Animals regulate- goats, cows, and roosters roam the dirt paved blocks. We ate a number of basic, but delicious meals- rice and samber, with mystery side dishes. On Friday, Dave and James (the other interns) took a long trek along the road, appreciating the scenery, although unfortunately not running into any elephants despite the warnings.