Listening to the other projects and the feedback given to each by Stuart and the other fellows, I have another possible pitch for mine.

Blogriculum. Building a literacy curriculum around emerging multimedia blogging infrastructures.

Q&A (I still have to investigate hard numbers, but all these answers are loosely based on previous research I've done.)

Why multimedia blogging as oppposed to first generation text blogging? To lower (and I hope eliminate) the entry barrier to blogging we need to re-define blogging not as entering text, but simply as a way to continually express thoughts and get feedback on it. This way, the "expressing" can be done even for those who are illiterate, via, for example, voice or photo blogs.

How is this a technological innovation? Multimedia blogging interfaces and infrastuctures are now maturing. This could not have been done before.

How is this any different from other literacy curricula? Authoring and interacting with other authors is "built in". Also, using the same underlying principle of blogging, different levels of literacy can be easily reached.

Can't this be done with paper and pencil? Yes and no. Yes, great teachers will always be able to teach with whatever they have, but there are not enough of them. Blogging infrastructures exist and are for the most part free to use today. Also, the multimedia aspect is what breaks the literacy entry barrier. The interactive capabilities built-in to existing blogging tools would be difficult to scalably replicate with paper and pencil, or with populations that cannot aggregate on a regular basis (street children don't go to class).

Why use the street children of Rio de Janeiro as a pilot site? Connection with local NGO Projeto Uere. Population with varying literacy levels to emphasize and test the concept. Right level of technical readiness in the country.