Technology is the New Basic

Kai Dupé

Guest Blogger: Kai Dupé
Technical Trainer at Riversand Technologies
Cross-posted from LinkedIn Network

I was having a discussion via Facebook recently regarding technology integration in our schools. Many people still wish to hold on to this notion that our schools should not focus on technology and just focus on the basics. They are mistaken. These attitudes are why the digital divide still persists. I am so tired of hearing this silly argument.

This mindset must be changed. And to be honest I spend a great deal of time trying to change this mindset. I do not want the next generation of our young people to be the designated serfs of the information age. What exactly are the BASICS? Most folks would define the basics as reading, writing and arithmetic.

So, the idea is that we should not teach our young people about technology but focus on the basic subjects. Here is the problem with that. Do you think those subjects are taught without using technology? What exactly do these folks think a chalkboard, a pen, a book, a pencil or an overhead projector is. These things are technology.

What do you consider the basics? What do you consider technology? There is no such line between learning the basics and using technology. This is why I used the word INTEGRATION. It should all be one and the same the way it was when we learned in school. We did not learn 'the basics' sans technology.

Technology was all around us and we learned the basics. Technology is now part of the basics. Those who are unable to navigate technology will be locked out the same way that years ago those who could not read or write were locked out. Remember we did not learn our basics without technology. A book is technology.

No one said learn how to read, and you can use the technology (book) after you learn to read. No. You learned to read from a book. And now you may learn to read a Kindle or a iPad. Please tell me what is the difference?

Take a look at the comments from a PhD student in Carnegie Mellon's Computer science department regarding the teaching of computer science in our schools. These comments are from a recent study:

"The point is not that every student needs to become a computer scientist, but that all students have the basic knowledge they need to understand an increasingly technological world", said Leigh Ann Sudol, a PhD student in Carnegie Mellon's Computer Science Department and another study co-author.

Make no mistake about it technology is the new basic.

Take Five: Kai Dupé (BDPA Dallas)

Kai Dupé is a brother who has been advocating for Blacks in technology via his articles, blogs, presentations and online radio shows. Kai agreed to participate in our recurring 'Take Five' interview series.

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1. How did you get involved with BDPA? - I actually do not remember how I got involved with BDPA. I know that my first interaction with BDPA was via BDPA Dallas vice president of member services Donna Tyler. She sent out a request for speakers. She told me that she received my name from you (Wayne Hicks) as a result of my presentation done at the National Conference that year. I think that may have been 2007 when the conference was in Washington DC. Once I connected with BDPA and you that was it for me. BDPA for Life!
2. What do you see as the biggest benefit of BDPA membership? - In my mind the biggest benefit of BDPA is the community. One of the main challenges our people face when choosing a career in Information Technology whether it be in corporate America or on the college campus is isolation. As as software developer for over 25 years, I have always been the only Black software developer on the team and it has been no different on most of my corporate positions since college. This problems persists today. The ability to connect with a community of Black IT professionals, and take advantage of the wealth of knowledge and experience of those who have taken the same journey is is the biggest benefit in my opinion.
3. What future evolution or change would you like to see in BDPA? - I would like to see a move toward publishing. BDPA publishing. :-) The same way BETF initiated the BDPA iRadio program, I would like to see information products based on the years of learning from the programs related to encouraging African Americans to embrace technology and technology careers.
4. What would you like the Black community to know about BDPA? - I would like MORE of the Black community to be AWARE that BDPA exists. I am baffled by this. But as I speak, mentor and connect with our people and direct them to connect with BDPA more times than not, they are not aware of BDPA. This is unfortunate. I work very hard to make sure that our people who are interested in careers in technology locate their local chapter and take advantage of all of the good work that BDPA is doing.
5. Any advice for people considering a donation to BETF? - My advice would be to donate. We have many problems and issues in the Black community for sure. But I consider the digital divide to be our generation's civil rights issue. We must close this gap. Technology gives us access to the economic engine of this country and we cannot continue to lag. No organization is more equipped and more dedicated to closing this gap than BDPA. My advice would be to give and give often.

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Share some love with Kai in the COMMENTS section!

BDPA iRadio Show - January 24, 2012

BDPA Education and Technology Foundation (BETF) is very proud to be the creator of the BDPA iRadio Show. Our Internet Radio Show has been up and running for seven months with over 70 guests. You can listen to the archive version of the show using the widget shown in the right-hand sidebar of this blog.

Episodes of the BDPA iRadio Show are now available for immediate and FREE download from the iTunes Store.

If you missed the live show, then we encourage you to listen to the archived audio-clip of the show that aired on Tuesday, January 24, 2012.

Listen to internet radio with BDPA on Blog Talk Radio

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The guests on the show:

1. Mildred Allen - chapter president, BDPA Greater Columbia - Mildred has over 20 years of experience in Information Technology starting from Computer Operations, Information Security, System Integrations and Project Management. She currently works for SCANA Services in Columbia, South Carolina for the Information Systems and Technology Department (IST) as an IST Project Manager. Mildred earned her Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Southern Wesleyan University in 2012. Mildred has a long and distinguished career within BDPA. She has served in a variety of leadership positions including National BDPA VP-Membership Management, National BDPA Community Outreach Director, National Youth Technology Camp program manager and BDPA Greater Columbia chapter president. She is a past winner of the Outstanding Member of the Year and Outstanding President’s awards. Her chapter was named ‘chapter of the year’ in 2002. She has rare insights to share about the ability of BDPA to advance the careers of African Americans in the IT industry from the ‘classroom to boardroom’.
2. Kai Dupé - speaker and consultant, Kai Dupé Productions - Kai is a technical trainer and software development consultant with over 25 years of experience. He is also a educational technology doctoral student at Pepperdine University researching the lack of African American males in the information technology field. Kai is focused on technology integration in urban schools as well as societal digital equity issues and the educational failures of African American males. He utilizes his life lessons as well as his educational experiences expertise and skills to develop software for businesses large and small as well as promote technology integration in American schools, and encourage African Americans to participate in the digital society via workshops, seminars and speaking engagements. Kai publishes a syndicated column and a blog under the title, “Where Are the Blacks in Technology?” You can follow Kai on Twitter - @KaiDupe
3. Monique Berry - president, National BDPA - Monique has a powerful BDPA legacy. Her chapter won chapter-of-the-year honors during both of the years that she was a chapter president. She currently serves as our national president. She led the team that planned a successful 2011 BDPA Technology Conference in Chicago. She has a vision for where she would like to take BDPA in 2012-2013 as our national president and she shared some of that vision with us during her interview. Monique is on Twitter - @BDPA_Conference

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What questions would you like to see answered by these guests?

Why Technology Networks Are Important to African Americans

by Kai Dupé

The lack of support networks has been identified as a critical aspect to involving more African Americans in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).  While I agree that this is very important, I do not agree that African Americans lack technology support groups.  I assert that the problem is that the African American community at large is not aware of the networks that do exist.

There are three that I have worked with over the years. I am sure there are others and I am even more certain that most of our people, particularly our young people are not aware of these groups.  I know this because I do quite a bit of public speaking around the country.  When I ask students if they are familiar with The Black Data Processing Associates (BDPA), BiTWiSE, or Blacks In Technology the answer is invariably no.

In all fairness, BiTWiSE and Blacks in Technology are recent developments.  But BDPA has been around since 1975.  I have been a professional software developer since 1986 and I only recently became aware of BDPA.  We must do a better job of making our folks aware of these organizations.

This is not an indictment against BDPA as I personally know that they make every effort to ensure that our people know about their good work.  The charge is ours.  Any time I speak to a young person who has demonstrated an interest in technology, the first question I ask is ‘where do you live’ and if BDPA has a chapter in that city, I direct him or her to contact the chapter in their area.

The abundance of knowledge, experiences and social capital that exists within BDPA must be leveraged if our community is to become a player in the global technology game.  As a speaker and blogger I am constantly receiving questions related to technology and how to get involved in the technology arena.

I am happy to answer these questions but how much better would it be for the learner to not only pose the question to a larger group but possibly someone who has experienced the same circumstance.  This is a common occurrence on the web community, Blacks In Technology (BIT).  BIT is a wonderful online community of Black technologists who are ready to share their stories, knowledge, wisdom and encouragement not only to those who are looking for others like themselves who are already involved in technology careers but also technology aspirants.

Without these kinds of support groups, African Americans in technology may began to deal with feelings of isolation.  I can attest to this circumstance personally.  Since I graduated from college with my undergraduate degree in computer science in 1986 I have rarely had the pleasure of working in an IT department with another African American.

This issue of isolation occurs in high school, the workplace as well as on college campuses.  It is also one of the main reasons that African Americans do not persist in STEM careers.

Many scholars studying this issue from S. Craig Watkins in his book The Young and the Digital as well as Jane Margolis in the book Stuck in the Shallow End have reported on the importance of support groups or networks to combat the issue of isolation.

I would have loved being a part of either of these groups when I first became a software engineer.  Why? Because it is great to be able to speak with someone who can relate to your circumstance.  Someone who can understand what you may be going through.

I can remember having to explain to members of my family and friends what exactly it was that I did as a computer programmer.  The people in my community simply did not understand that I was CREATING software, not using it!  I also never had anyone to talk shop with for the early years of my career.

This is why I am so excited about this third group, BiTWiSE, which is a networking group dedicated to the African American software engineer and is sponsored by Microsoft.  You can find BiTWiSE on LinkedIn under LinkedIn Groups.  You can simply search Groups and enter ‘BiTWiSE’.

Technology support groups do indeed exist in the African American community.  However they become less effective if they are unknown to the people who can benefit from them the most.  We must do a better job of promoting the efforts of these groups in order to remove yet another obstacle to the inclusion of African Americans participation in the digital society.

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 Kai Dupé is a doctoral student at Pepperdine University where he is conducting research on Why African American Males Are Underrepresented in Computing. Kai can be reached by email at kai.dupe@kaidupe.com or by visiting his website at www.WhereAreBlacksInTechnology.com or follow him on twitter @KaiDupe

How Many Mobile Apps are Produced by African-Americans?

Kai Dupé

Article by Kai Dupé, Cross-posted from Atlanta Post

There are over 425,000 mobile apps available on Apple’s App Store for the iPhone. The Android Marketplace now has well over 30,000 apps for their devices. According to the website TechCrunch, there has been more than 1 Billion downloads from the App Store as of April 2009. Here is a question? How many of these apps are produced by African Americans?

I would venture to guess we are producing very little. Mobile phones are the most ubiquitous way people communicate and interact with information. With more than 5 billions users communicating and interacting on these devices, the lack of African Americans producing mobile apps has to change.

Further, suppose you want to support Black-owned mobile businesses? How would you go about doing that? We need more African Americans creating products in the mobile space, but in order for that to happen we must support those who are doing just that. How do we find them? I am happy to report things are changing.

In the August issue of Black Enterprise, there is a feature about African Americans who are shaking things up in Silicon Valley called Rule Breakers, Risk Takers: The New Faces of Silicon Valley. This is a very inspiring read and I highly recommend the article. Also, not only is there now an online market for applications for the undiscovered and undeveloped, Inky-Apps, but brothers and sisters are also fully engaged in developing applications for the mobile platform.

Inky-Apps is one of Americas first web stores dedicated to the promotion, advertisement, and development of mobile applications for the undeveloped and undiscovered mobile markets. The site was founded by Richard Fields. Fields is a long time Silicon Valley veteran with over 20 years of information technology experience in computer networking for the enterprise. He has worked for such companies as Xerox, MCI, LSI Logic, MFS DataNet, Tandem Computers, Compaq Computers and Hewlett Packard.

I have also learned of several apps that have been developed for mobile devices that were developed by African Americans. The first to come to my attention is an application called Multiple Madness, which is a math game that tests how well you know math multiples.

The application was developed by Veda Rogers. When I spoke with Veda a few months ago, she revealed that she made the decision early in the development process to keep the app simple. It only took her 3 months to develop the application working part-time in the evenings and on weekends.

Then there is Celly. Celly can be used on any cell phone. I am currently evaluating it on my iPhone 3Gs (I am awaiting the release of the iPhone 5). Celly creates mini social networks called cells that connect you with people and topics that matter most to you. A cell can contain anybody with a cell phone, people from your existing social networks, or any web feed.

The app lets you define filters based on hashtags, location, time, and user identity so you can eliminate noise and get alerted only when relevant messages occur. The potential for this application is huge for schools. The beauty of Celly is that you do not need a Smartphone. Any phone that allows text messaging will work fine.

Finally, there is the Sankofa Solar app, which is more informational in nature. The ability to access information on the go, particularly information that is relevant to the African American community is certainly important and at the present time very unique.

Sankofa Solar provides solar technology innovations from the Black community and the solar industry. This is a free app and you can learn more about it and install the application by visiting the Android MarketPlace and searching on “Sankofa Solar”.

There is simply too much opportunity here and we as African Americans need to make sure that we get our share of this mobile app pie. I received my blessing from Apple this week to provision my creations to the App Store. I intend to do just that. I have two ideas that I will submit before the end of the year. What are you going to do?

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Kai Dupé is a doctoral student at Pepperdine University where he is conducting research on Why African American Males Are Underrepresented in Computing. Kai can be reached by email at kai.dupe@kaidupe.com or by visiting his website at www.WhereAreBlacksInTechnology.com or follow him on twitter @KaiDupe

Tech Tip: Using iPad

BDPA member Kai Dupe' loves his iPad. He recently shared a Tech Tip about Apple's iPad that I thought would be of interest to BETF-Blog readers.






Kudos to Kai for making this Tech Tip available to us.

Do you own an iPad?

Blacks In Technology Podcast #2: Kai Dupe' (Where Are The Blacks in Technology?)

This blog seeks to support the efforts of the Blacks In Technology folks as they interview remarkable IT professionals of color.

In this podcast Greg Greenlee spoke with Kai Dupe' back in November 2010.  Kai is a technical trainer and software development consultant with over 25 years of experience. He is also a educational technology doctoral student at Pepperdine University researching the lack of African American males in the information technology field. Kai is focused on technology integration in urban schools as well as societal digital equity issues and the educational failures of African American males. He utilizes his life lessons as well as his educational experiences expertise and skills to develop software for businesses large and small as well as promote technology integration in American schools, and encourage African Americans to participate in the digital society via workshops, seminars and speaking engagements.

Click the green arrow below to listen to the podcast interview.

Podcast Powered By Podbean

Kai is frequently featured on this blog and he has his own blog under the title, “Where Are the Blacks in Technology?” You can follow Kai on Twitter - @KaiDupe

How to Build Your Techie Network in One Weekend

by Kai Dupe

Have you ever heard of the Black Data Processing Association (BDPA)? BDPA has been around since 1975. The organization came into being when Earl Pace and David Wimberly met in Philadelphia to discuss their concerns about people of color in the computing industry. People of color were under represented in the field and an overall lack of career mobility existed for those who were in the field.

I first learned of BDPA in 2008. As someone who has been a computer scientists for over 20 years at that time, it is unacceptable to me that it took me so long to learn of its existences. I am not sure what took me so long to learn of this wonderful organization, but part of my mission going forward is to make sure people of color who are interested in technology (which should be all people of color!), are aware of the opportunities that BDPA provides.

The lack of Blacks and other minorities continues to be a problem. Many, including myself, are still studying this problem in 2010. One of the factors that have come to the fore is the social conditioning of people of color when it comes to computing.

It is social conditioning that plays a role when we see Blacks over represented in entertainment and athletics and it is social conditioning when there is an under representation of Blacks in computing. The best resource on this topic that I have found thus far is Stuck in the Shallow End by Jane Margolis.

Now I have attended many conferences on technology and education and the BDPA conference is by far the best technology conference I have ever attended. I have never attended an event where there were so many Black men and women who were technology professionals. There were thousands. The conference provides an opportunity for learning in a environment that is culturally relevant.

The conference is also a place where the youth are encouraged and exposed to technology. Every year the youth participate in the High School Computer Science Competition (HSCC). During the conference, each chapter that entered the competition presents their project which could be anything from developing a piece of desktop software, a website, or perhaps an iPhone app. The winner is crowned as part of the conference.

My observation is that the conference is strictly business during the day and a lot of fun and mingling in the evening! This year the conference is being held in Philadelphia July 28 - July 31. If you are interested in a career in information technology or you are a technology professional who wants to learn what is hot in terms of technology or simply want to connect with other black professionals in information technology, you should make it a point to be in Philadelphia the last week of this month!

I know I will be there!

For more information about BDPA, please visit their site at http://www.bdpa.org/.

Google Digitizes Books

In this space I continue to make the case that we need to get down with computers and technology. There are no more excuses. The Internet, SmartPhones, and Computers are no longer a luxury. This technology is now a requirement to participate in the world. Many still beleive that this is an economic issue. It is not. African Americans have plenty of disposable income. And for those of us who are unable to afford access to technology there are many free avenues that provide the kind of access I am advocating. If we need to discuss these resources please comment here and I will be happy to provide.

There are so many areas in your life that you can simplify and save money simply by owning a computer and having a high-speed connection to the Internet. Here is another example. Google has a project that entails digitizing books. What this is means is that you will be able to access books online electronically. I think this is an excellent project. In education we are always hearing about the poor quality of the textbooks in the urban public schools. Technology once again can play the role of the great equalizer. If you are prepared to take advantage of it.

Read more about the google project here.

3 Ways I Use My iPhone for Learning

I would like to suggest to you today that using an iPhone or some compatible mobile device can you give you great flexibility and allow you to adopt a mode that I use frequently to prepare for my toastmasters speeches. Mobile Learning also known as on-demand Learning is becoming increasingly more popular as busy business executives and young millennials start to take advantage of the capabilities of devices such as Apple's iPhone. I was reading an article just the other day in Success magazine. The article entailed 27 resources that successful people use to get ahead. Guess what? Of the 27 resources that were listed, 14 of them were technology based. And even further, 8 of those were really tied to the abilities of a portable or mobile device. I am an avid iPhone user. Today I would like to share with you three of the ways I use my iPhone for learning: Audiobooks & Podcasts, Videos and the Internet.

First lets talk about Audiobooks. Audiobooks are a great device for those who have to keep up with changing information and who do not always have opportunities to read. Many popular books are now also on Audiobooks. You can download these Audiobooks from iTunes or audible.com and listen to them on your iPhone. Just last month I listened to the very popular The Four Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss. How does this work? It is very simple. I downloaded the Audiobooks using iTunes and it is automatically incorporated into my Audiobooks library. I plug my iPhone into my macbook and press the sync button and voila I now have the audiobook on my iPhone for my listening pleasure. This gives me the ability to listen to my audiobook anywhere I have my phone. Which of course is everywhere. I listen at work. I listen while jogging. I listen while driving. It is a wonderful way to receive the information I need and I do so repeatedly. It has been a great way to learn on the move.

The same can be said for Podcasts. The idea behind Podcasts is the same as for audiobooks. It is recorded content. The difference is usually a podcast is shorter in length and usually they are free and available via the web for download. I use podcasts to listen to lectures from my professors at Pepperdine. There are also some great niche podcasts that I used to gain knowledge on a variety of subjects. For example, there is a podcast called The Apple Phone Show. I use this podcast to keep up with information and techniques for keeping up with and getting the most of my iPhone. The Apple Phone Show has a new podcast each week. You only need to subscribe to the podcast using iTunes or the website and anytime there is a new content it is automatically downloaded to your computer when you start iTunes and synced to your phone the next time you connect it. Recently, Oprah Winfrey used podcasting technology to distribute a recording of her worldwide class on spirituality that she hosted on Eckhart Tolle's new book, A New Earth.

If that is not enough the iPhone also plays video. You can use it to view custom videos or videos that are on YouTube. How does playing a video help me learn? Well let me tell you. In my craft as a public speaker one of the first things I was advised to do to improve myself was to record my talks. I have been following that advice for everyone one of my speeches. My phone does not record video, not yet anyway. So, I use my flip video to record my talks and then I load them onto my phone and review my performance. Sometimes to save space on my phone I upload the video to YouTube and view it from my phone. This has worked tremendously well for me. And of course I can view other videos to learn such as movies, documentaries, discovery channel content, and video demonstrations or how-to videos. Using my iPhone for video viewing is another one of the great ways I use my phone for learning.

And finally I use my iPhone to browse the Internet. The phone is equipped with the Safari browser. Many phones claim to allow web surfing. I have had many of these phones that make this claim. Most of them are useless. The iPhone actually allows you to surf the web and be able to actually read the content. Most phones don't. Also, there are many sites that are customized for the iPhone. So there is an iPhone version of Amazon, Facebook, and Google. Which brings me to my next point on distributed learning. With my trusty iPhone in my pocket I am only a click away from a Google search that answers any question on any topic I may need. Sometimes, I am listening to an audio book and in the book there is mention of another good book or perhaps a website that I need to research. I immediately pause the audio book and do a Google search and bookmark the information. Sometimes I may even head over to amazon.com and purchase the book. I can also access my gmail account. If someone sends me information in an attachment I can view the information right there on my iPhone. All right there in real time. Google has an entire suite of applications known as Google Mobile that is designed for mobile devices such as the iPhone.

As I have stated before I love to learn. I consider myself a life-long learner. And I consider life-long learning a prerequisite for success. Today I have given you 3 of my favorite ways I use my iPhone for learning. We have talked about using the iPhone for Audiobooks and podcasts. We have also discussed how I use video for learning. And finally I gave a brief example of using my iPhone as a means of distributed learning by searching the Internet and using Google Mobile. Mobile Learning is fast becoming the wave of the future so don't get left behind. Become familiar with these mobile devices and kick your learning up a notch.

Questions?

Technology Job Fair (Dallas)

BDPA Dallas chapter is the 13th largest chapter in the nation. The chapter leadership is serious about the BDPA mission to advance the careers of African Americans from the classroom to the boardroom within the information technology (IT) industry.

BDPA Dallas chapter and El Centro College join forces to host a Technology Job Fair. Dallas Metroplex employers are converging on El Centro and you need to be there. Dress professionally, bring plenty of resumes and talk with area employers about the career opportunities available for IT professionals.

Participating employers include:

• Blue Cross Blue Shield
• City of Arlington
• City of Garland
• Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport
• Dallas Area Rapid Transport
• JPMorgan Chase
• Microsoft Corporation
• and many more...

One of the exciting aspects of this Technology Job Fair is that Kai Dupe will be a featured speaker on the Second Life virtual revolution. Kai gave this presentation at the 2007 National BDPA Technology Conference in Washington DC. It was very well received by the participants.

Here are the logistics for the Technology Job Fair:


Date: Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Time: 4:30 pm - 8:00 pm

Place: El Centro College
801 S. Main Street; Dallas TX 75202

If you have questions or wish to discuss further you can reach out to Mike Henderson on (214) 860-2066 or click here to register.

Emerging Technologies (Web 2.0) Applications

Kai' Dupe was kind enough to share with us the 10-page slideshow that he used for his presentation to the BDPA Dallas chapter last month. I thought that it would be a good precedent to share it with those of you that visit our BETF-Blog.

• Click here to view the 10-page slideshow
• Click here to download the 10-page slideshow

Let us know if you have questions about what you see on any of these slides. We will try to get the author/presenter, Kai' Dupe to join us to respond personally.

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BDPA Dallas chapter program meeting held on Tuesday, August 28 @ 6:00 pm at the Allstate Insurance Company; 8711 Freeport Parkway, Building A; Irving, TX. At this stage of our life, we know that learning is messy, however, it does not appear that more powerful pedagogies are possible given our current infrastructure. What tools can we use to support authentic and engaging learning experiences? Emerging Technologies (Web 2.0) Applications may be the answer.

BDPA members, supporters and sponsors attended this presentation about futuristic web technologies that will combine discussion and demonstrations via the Internet.

The presenter was Kai' Dupe. Mr. Dupe is a professional speaker and educational consultant. He earned his Masters in Education in 2005. He's an online instructor for Kaplan University and is working on his doctorate degree at Pepperdine University. Mr. Dupe is the founder and president of UpSouth Consulting.

For more information you can click here to contact BDPA Dallas chapter.