The 1st Vietnam-Japan Workshop on Youth Mediated Communication to Promote Rural Development in Vietnam
Pangaea co-hosted the three-day academic Workshop on Youth Mediated Communication (YMC) with Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), Vietnam, and Vietnam National University from Friday May 20th to Sunday May 22nd, 2011 at University of Science, Vietnam National University, HCMC.
The workshop is organized to initiate the Vietnam-Japan interdisciplinary academic group among researchers in informatics, agriculture and education to promote rural development in Vietnam. Reviewing the results from the YMC field test held between February and March 2011 in TràÔn District, Vĩnh Long Province, Vietnam and discussing short and long term objectives, the interdisciplinary group met to deliver further enriched research and development to contribute to the rural development in Vietnam utilizing YMC.The 1st YMC Academic Workshop by Pangaea was covered by multiple media in Vietnam:
Click here for the article by Thanh Nien, the newspaper in Vietnam.
Click here for its English translation by Google.
Click here for the press release issued by YMC Workshop.
Participants visited the site in TràÔn District, Vĩnh Long Province on the 2nd and 3rd days of the workshop. In the field test, children reported the data including temperature, humidity and the hight of the rice plant properly and regularly to the satisfaction of Japanese agricultural experts. As it is technically difficult to accurately measure the height of the plant by sensors, researchers has high expectation to the data collection by children.
Also, all 30 children has achieved the highest rank of the "Rice Test" quiz on the Internet to be given certificates by Pangaea. The academic team could confirm that children genuinely enjoyed the project and was highly motivated.
It is still premature at this point to judge if the project has impacted the volume and / or the quality of the harvested rice, however, the Workshop participants were happy to find out that the harvest after the field test was a good one.
As a result of the survey held after the YMC field test, it was found that children enjoyed using mobile phones and PC's, became interested in farming, while their parents could obtain helpful information from their sons and daughters. As children became interested in farming, there were more conversation between parents and children, which improved their relationship. Overall, the expectation is high for the continuation of the project among local farmers and their children.
Also, all 30 children has achieved the highest rank of the "Rice Test" quiz on the Internet to be given certificates by Pangaea. The academic team could confirm that children genuinely enjoyed the project and was highly motivated.It is still premature at this point to judge if the project has impacted the volume and / or the quality of the harvested rice, however, the Workshop participants were happy to find out that the harvest after the field test was a good one.
As a result of the survey held after the YMC field test, it was found that children enjoyed using mobile phones and PC's, became interested in farming, while their parents could obtain helpful information from their sons and daughters. As children became interested in farming, there were more conversation between parents and children, which improved their relationship. Overall, the expectation is high for the continuation of the project among local farmers and their children.
Posted by: ayako | 5. Media Coverage
