Innovating Educators

    When thinking about creation and innovation, it seems very natural to want to address needs like access to potable water or shelter. Innovations that accomplish this objective, like LifeStraw, are certainly of exceeding importance, however they fail in a rather unique sense. That is, these innovations don’t train the next generation to innovate for themselves. While LifeStraw can be considered a substantial product for giving those in developing countries access to potable water, its users have a higher potential to lack understanding of the process that is cleaning their water.
    This result is unfortunate for a very significant reason. It only takes one change in a system, in which an innovation operates, to require an more robust response to the same problem. For example, newly introduced bacteria in a water source could render LifeStaw useless in its current form and require a more innovations in the product to appropriately address the problem. However, those who bear the consequences of such a change first and most harshly are the least equipped to confront it. Importantly, innovators in the field of education such as Raspberry Pi Foundation and Khan Academy are providing an alternative models of success.
    The Raspberry Pi Foundation sells “credit card-sized single-board computers” around the world for under $35. In fact, they are best selling UK-made computer in the world as of 2016 selling more than 10 million computers. While the tiny but powerful machine is used for a variety of fun projects like playing video games or streaming music among hobbyists, the Foundation’s primary goal is to promote the teaching of computer science in the developing world as well in schools across the developed world (Chacos, Raspberry Pi Foundation). It accomplishes this goal through mentoring programs for both teachers and students, financial support for continued education, and outreach programs for underrepresented groups in the field of technology (Blanchette). Through its own efforts, the Foundation could very well be creating and supporting the next generation of computer innovators. In other words, the Foundation has focused its efforts on sustaining innovation in its own field.
    To be clear, the argument is not that innovating to provide better access to potable water is the same as creating a small and powerful single-broad computer. However, the suggestion is that innovators who work to provide basic needs to those in developing areas should put more focus on the sustainability of their products and services. If creators of products and services like LifeStraw were to designate more resources to informing their users about the development of their work, users could have a greater opportunity to innovate themselves. Doing so could open up development to important technologies to a much greater population, hastening the pace of innovation worldwide.

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Blanchette, M. (n.d.). 4 ways the Raspberry Pi is being used in education - O’Reilly Radar. Retrieved September 13, 2016, from http://radar.oreilly.com/2015/07/4-ways-the-raspberry-pi-is-being-used-in-education.html

Chacos, B. (2016, March 14). 10 surprisingly practical Raspberry Pi projects anybody can do. Retrieved September 13, 2016, from http://www.pcworld.com/article/3043022/computers/10-surprisingly-practical-raspberry-pi-projects-anybody-can-do.html

Raspberry Pi Foundation. (n.d.). Raspberry Pi - Teach, Learn, and Make with Raspberry Pi. Retrieved September 13, 2016, from https://www.raspberrypi.org/

This $35 Computer Just Passed a Major Sales Milestone. (2016, September 8). Retrieved from http://fortune.com/2016/09/08/raspberry-pi-10-million/