Introduction to the Workshop

Students listen intently to the presentation on digital tools

When we first envisioned Aventura Digital, we knew we wanted to do more than just hand students a computer. Based on the One Laptop Per Child Project, we learned from some of the failures that arose from it, such as relying too much on theories of technological determinism, constructionism, and, most importantly, leaving out the guidance and overall involvement of the local teachers in the respective communities. Technology cannot be properly introduced or implemented into education systems without context, teacher support, or cultural understanding. Our goal therefore was to build a pathway where students, teachers, and technology could walk together.

Why We Had to Do Things Differently

Paraguay’s digital divide is about more than just infrastructure —we saw that even when students had internet access or devices, their use of digital tools for school or creative projects was limited. This digital gap was therefore more based on providing greater support for learning rather than literal resources.

This time, we wanted to make sure teachers weren’t sidelined, so we started by training the teachers first.

For months, our team worked with instructors and discussed, What would engage your students best? What would make the learning process of implementing these new digital devices easier?

From those conversations, the 10-step workshop was born.

The 10-Step Blueprint

In Session 1, we talked about how technology touches daily life, how to create folders, and even played a game identifying common devices. By Session 2, we were tackling real-world topics: internet safety, spotting scams, protecting digital identities.

In Sessions 3 to 6, we embraced creativity. Students began crafting stories in Word, turning them into digital comics, and presenting them to peers. By Session 7, they were using Excel to plan mock events and even organize a fictional city tour.

This stream of learning both practical and creative skills with the aid of technology, but not driven by it, was continued through the final two workshops, where students took to explore play-like learning using apps like Duolingo. By the end of these workshops, the students were able to demonstrate their internalization of these skills through creating presentations on PowerPoint.

What Made This Curriculum Different

Students didn’t just learn Word or Excel, but they also used them to talk about their communities and personal interests through allowing them to choose the topics of their projects and presentations. This level of personalized learning is what made the Digital Equity Project different. Furthermore, every session was built with teachers, not around them. Their insights on pacing, engagement, and relevance shaped the workshops. Lastly, the workshop gradually shifted from guided exercises to open-ended creation, which showed that this project didn’t expect or encourage students to understand the materials and tools all at once and opted for a more natural, immersive but long-lasting process.