Department of Physical Sciences, Meru University of Science and Technology (MUST)

About Meru University of Science and Technology 

Meru University of Science and Technology (MUST) is a young public university in Meru County of the Republic of Kenya having been chartered in March 2013 established under The Universities Act of 2012. Prior to the University status, MUST was a constituent college of Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT).

Meru University of Science and Technology Raspberry Pi Project

Meru University of Science and Technology has won a KENET Raspberry mini grant. This project is geared towards using a credit size gadget called Raspberry Pi (RPI) to teach computational units in the University. Raspberry Pi is a small device that was developed for teaching Computer Science in schools. Besides being portable, RPI is affordable and can be easily interfaced with the outside and used to perform automation projects.

As a pilot project, we will use RPI to teach three computational units on offer in the university during the April - August 2015 semester. We will also be conducting RPI related projects with an aim of publishing the results in referred journals. Students will be encouraged to develop their own projects using the pi and eventually showcase them within the University and other forums organized by RPI stake holders. Read more.

Executive Summary

The overall objective is to establish a Raspberry Pi teaching Laboratory in Meru University of Science and Technology (MUST). To achieve this a minimum of three computational units will be used to pilot the use of Raspberry Pi in teaching. Instructional manuals for teaching these units using Raspberry Pi will be developed and provided to the students. Student learning outcomes will be assessed throughout the semester. Publications regarding novel findings observed in the pilot stage will be presented in a refereed conference. Prior to the grant the university had already acquired a number of Raspberry Pi units and its accessories, developed exhibits of how Raspberry Pi can be used for teaching computer related courses in schools and showcased the projects in Commission for University Education exhibitions and ASK shows. Work is also in progress to develop a security surveillance system and an electronic device for early detection of crop diseases and other plant stress using Raspberry Pi. Upon successful completion of the pilot stage the university will upscale the use of Raspberry Pi in teaching more courses and launch a campaign for popularizing the adoption of Raspberry Pi in teaching computer related course in tertiary institutions of learning, secondary and primary schools within the environs of the university.

Team Members

• Mr. Daniel Maitethia Memeu - Department of Physical Sciences - Lead Researcher
• Mr. Ronoh Wycliffe – Department of Information Technology & Computer Science - Team member
• Mr. Abkul Orto - Department of Information Technology & Computer Science - Team member
• Mr. Kinuthia Mugi – Department of Engineering - Team member

Methodology of Implementation and Assessment

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The University currently has four teaching computer laboratories fully connected to the internet. One of these computer labs will be used to establish a Raspberry pi based teaching laboratory. Facilities such as computer monitors, USB keyboards and mice, internet connectivity and computer desks will be shared by the existing PCs and the Raspberry Pi modules to be acquired. A suitable mode of embedding the Raspberry Pi modules in the system unit will be adopted.

Meru University RPI team first training

On 2^nd march 2015 RPI project team underwent their first training on getting started with RPI. The course focused on the key components of the Pi, downloading and load the Raspbian (Raspberry Pi official OS) to the SD card, powering up the Pi, configuring the pi OS, launching basic Pi applications for word processing, spread sheet, presentation and internet browsing. Members were also introduced to Python programming using the Python IDE which comes with Raspbian.

Launch of RPI to Computing students

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On 15^th March  2015, the Meru University RPI team introduced RPI to computer science students. The students were explained the capabilities of the gadgets with demonstrations. In this meeting students resolved to organize themselves into groups to learn and develop more RPI applications. 

RPI related projects in progress

RPI imaging module for crop stress monitoring

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We are developing a system for detecting crop stress in green houses using Raspberry imaging module. The module comprises of the RPI connected to RPI camera. An executable Linux script for periodically taking photos is written and incorporated to the Linux task scheduler (cron) so that upon reboot the pi starts taking photos after a specified period. The system is powered by solar. So far the imaging module is complete and has been tested in the green house and has been found to be working fine. We are now working on suitable algorithms for processing the images captured for stress. We intend to use python and open CV imaging processing library to accomplish the task.

Raspberry pi Tutor project

Meru university Raspberry pi team is working on making Raspberry pi an ideal gadget for learning. The team is specifically developing educational applications for running on the Pi geared at making learning interesting right from early childhood. So far applications incorporating elementary English, mathematics, and technology lessons have been developed. Images, videos, and sound are used as learning aids in these subjects. 
The project has been showcased in various forums including the Commission of University exhibition held in Machakos in from 19th to 21st March, 2015, the NACOSTI exhibition week held in the University of Nairobi from 11th to 16th May 2015, and the Meru National ASK show held in Meru ASK show ground from 3rd to 6th June, 2015. members of the public were interested by the capabilities of the little device and agreed the Pi can make a great learning companion to the pupils and students as well as teachers.
The team main agenda as pertaining this project is to advocate for the adoption of the Raspberry pi (RPI) as an alternative to desktop/laptops/tablets computers in learning of IT related courses.

The presentation was categorized as an exhibition, and apart from showcasing our amazing gadget, the team was also able to interact and learn where to improve and the many possible challenges that the project is likely to encounter in the near future.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION (By developers: students from Meru University)
Target Audience: Class 1-4 students, Teachers
Application: Teaching Aid, Student management
Detailed Description:

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“CHEESE” is an innovative program that is aimed at teaching young students different subjects in an immersive and well interactive manner.
The Graphical user interface is developed in such a way to allow different students to log in so as to start the lesson
The student is required to type in their name and the teachers name after which a log is kept.
The teacher can then use the log to trace and make a follow up of which students were present for the class and also be able to access the student performance.
The program also allows working in groups by allowing login of different group members. This data is very useful to the teacher for progress assessment and grading.
From the login phase the student can choose from a range of different subject. Our personal favorite is Technology as a subsidiary of Science. In this subject the program present different logos and graphics and the students is supposed to recognize them and key in the correct answer. Points are awarded for correct answers.
But thats not all.

Teachers also have the ability to upload their own images that they feel may be appropriate and defining the correct answers thereby further extending the capability of the program.
This is because during the development of this program we not only have the students in mind but also the teachers who are supposed to be supervising the students.
There is a total of six subjects that students can select from:

SUBJECT	DESCRIPTION
Mathematics	The subject has simple arithmetic questions that the student is tasked with finding the answers to, awarding points for each correct answer answered
English	Aimed at the young children, this subject requires that the student identifies pictures and spells the correctly
Kiswahili	Graphics is core to the subject with students being tasked with translating and spelling different pictures.
Christian Education	Morals are an important lesson both to us and the society, which is why as part of our development in the project we designed simple stories some borrowed from famous tales to teach children different morals and life skills
Social Studies	<Under development>
Music	<Under development>
Art and Craft	<Under development>
Technology	In this subject the program present different logos and graphics and the students is supposed to recognize them and key in the correct answer.
	NB: For all of the above subjects, point are awarded for each correct answer

Developed by Mr. Michael Kamau and Steve Kisinga, both students from Meru University, we believe that the application has huge potential as a teaching aid as well as a good student management program that is user friendly.

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We also presented the same project at the Meru ASK show where we scooped various awards, among them being the best innovation stand. Major efforts are being carried at ensuring that the project succeeds, and a lot of dedication is being displayed by the team members

RASPBERRY AS A TEACHING AID

CIT 3102 – FUNDAMENTALS OF COMPUTER PROGRAMMING

The raspberry pi has been used in Meru university as a teaching aid to teach among other units, Fundamentals of computer programming.

Students were introduced to the raspberry pi, what it is, it's capabilities and its advantages. As part of the lesson students were required to use the raspberry pi to access the internet and use various search engines to find out the technical specifications of the device.

Students were intoduced to programming basic programming and taught basic proramming skills. Geany was used as the IDE of choice to teach C programming. Ranging from displaying simple text on the terminal to the more complex programming skills of assigning variables and accepting input, the raspberry pi has offered a great deal in helping teach the unit.