C3 stands for Cross-Curricular Computing, a programme originating from Nuzhat Kidvai's passion for technology and education. The idea evolved "through observation, reading and through experience. Through a gradual understanding of the problems in the education system and a desire to change it." Nuzhat Kidvai began teaching the use of computers in 1986. Previously, she had been a lecturer at College.

When the early microcomputers came into being, Nuzhat and her husband, Zaheer, found that both the legendary Apple IIe and the BBC micro had enormous potential for teaching and learning. The British school systems, with comparatively less resources than their American counterparts, employed the micros in their schools. Limited resources meant they had to be inventive in their approach to the use of computers in education. Each school would operate with a single computer. To save time and space, the history teacher would collaborate with the geography teacher, or the maths department would work with the literature students. Students began to understand how climate and land formations shaped cultures and civilisations. How language evolved through the ages in various forms, and carried roots from other nations.

It is true that in the early years of computers, most schools throughout the world did not know how to fully exploit them for children. They adopted the business model. Pakistan still persists in following this model. Some countries, however, have adopted the use of computers across the curriculum and they are being effectively used in schools. Schools in developed countries are increasingly opting for this in preference to introducing computer studies as a subject, particularly in primary and middle schools, while some have retained both options. Many have disproved the popular belief that children who are not introduced to computer studies as a subject, at primary and junior level will lag behind. Using computers across the curriculum raises their level of understanding about technology far more.

"Over a period of time, I realised that if there is any hope of bringing major changes in teaching methods it will take place through the use of technology." Nuzhat feels that technology will force a change in perceptions regarding classroom organisation and teaching methodology, that computers may act as the biggest catalyst yet in revolutionizing learning. Those early years were spent in a lot of reading and exploration of education software. The BBCs were being used in schools in the UK and a massive amount of education software was available on it. Not all of it, however, was excellent. It is important to learn to discriminate between software that has lasting educational value and that which has limited use or none at all.

As early as 1985, Nuzhat and Zaheer (now CEO of B.I.T.S.) started a small company, Solutions Unlimited (SU, now being run by Nuzhat), to deal with the niche education market, focusing on the school level. They travelled, researching the technological possibilities already discovered elsewhere. They would return with odd assortments of software, educational applications and new ideas. Rather than teaching Wordstar and dBase, the standard practice of the day, they felt it was more important to teach concepts, using available software in creative ways, emphasizing the idea behind the application. They spent freely on books and software. They held computer classes for young children, where, again, rather than just teaching basic programming, they taught conceptual understanding of programming.

An example of the far-reaching effects of cross-curriculum computing is when Nuzhat asked her students at the Karachi High School to create a database of the students in their school. They were to be a full-fledged company and the Principal was their client. The students created a name, a logo and a letterhead using a graphics package. They wrote a formal letter to the Principal, outlining the feasibility of their proposal. Coincidentally, the class was learning to write formal letters in their English Language class. They made a questionnaire for their survey: a major learning experience. The children went round the school, weighing, measuring, asking questions and collating figures. They presented the final project to the principal at the end of three and a half months.

The activities had provided a purpose to their learning, whether it was to learn to write a formal letter, or to word questions to elicit the required response, or to learn to use a designing package, word processor and a database. With the success of their 'company', the children had taken a giant leap in building their self-confidence.

Ultimately, Nuzhat has the knack of bringing a subject alive for children, even one as seemingly boring as computer science. She used her 25 years of experience in teaching and her observations of education systems in her traveling days, to develop the idea of collaboration and cooperation among teachers and subjects. 'We teach them to be better human beings and all-round citizens.' Eventually, Nuzhat took her proposal to Beaconhouse.

With ninety branches all over the country, logistics at Beaconhouse were not going to be easy to deal with. Yet, Beaconhouse as a school system offers some major advantages. The fact that there is a system promotes organised working. The ongoing Teacher Training Programme means the system is already ahead of most other schools in teaching and learning methodologies. This emphasis on teacher-training, however, means developing an effectively replicable programme. Obviously, a majority of the teachers have no experience with or exposure to technology. The first priority is to develop some basic computer application skills, which would suffice, to begin with.

Once teachers have arrived at this stage, one can begin to implement the cross curricular computing project. Teachers will continue to teach their subjects as they always have, with the added advantage of being able to employ technology if and when they find it necessary. In the initial phase, Beaconhouse will provide computers in staff rooms in all their schools, to facilitate teachers to familiarise themselves with technology at their own pace. Later, as the C3 project takes off, computers will be provided for both teachers and students.

Work on the project has already begun. A pilot project was initiated in six schools last term. The work done by the children and the different ways the teachers used computers in their lessons after a set of introductory workshops and only a small amount of exposure, was quite amazing.

In the end, Nuzhat says, it all depends on how creative a teacher is. Most teachers have expressed the desire to see students grow into all-round achievers. And almost all the teachers were receptive to the initial phase of the C3 project. 'We are providing a springboard, and it is up to the teachers themselves to make the leap.'

Under yesterday's system of education, each subject lived in a box and overlapping to other subjects was largely ignored. The aim of C3 is to bridge that gap, through Information and Communication Technology. As interaction, integration, collaboration and coordination among teachers, and students increases real learning will take place. It will provide children with the motivation to actively participate in their own development.
Technology offers infinite possibilities and can be effectively used for teaching. The Internet, itself an excellent resource for learning, is a prime example of the potential that technology offers.

If the C3 project is successful, its introduction into the Beaconhouse education system will mean that over 40,000 students will benefit from it. We may actually be looking forward to a new generation of thinkers. The future is already looking brighter!