A Remarkable Difference

The difference that I found from the two trips to Coen, a town on Cape York Peninsula, is the change in local people's view of, and involvement in the Computer Project. My first observation of the Computer Project tutors at a Tutors' Meeting on their action plan is that they are shy to speak out their thinking even before a very small number of people in the meeting room. However, I was really impressed to see during my second visit that they actually "‘get out of their shell”, become more self-confident and involved in their work and come up with their computer-based bibliography of families in the town. Though some were still unfinished by that time, it indicates their genuine interest, hard work and involvement in the project. Interestingly, as it is stated in the speeches made by the tutors at the Presentation of the Computer Culture Project Launch, the reasons for them to get involved in the project is because their family leaders selected them to do the important job or because they want their children to know where they come from. So simple but important the reason is as the kids in Coen will grow up with pride on themselves and the idea of carrying on the spirits of the great grand parents.

Looking back on the early days of the project when the local people were still confused about the idea of the computer project as Ann Creek put it in her speech (“what is computer project, I dont understand”), the locals now fully understood what they have been doing in the project is actually for their children and future generations' benefit. The computer project not only helps bring about the computer literacy, access to modern-world technology but also reveal people's concern about their children's future and also the kids' aspirations and thinking, which is reflected in their own painting about their life and family. The tutors' performance at this stage marks a promising start of ongoing changes in the local people's life toward a better future for young Aboriginal people.