Stott is the science teacher at a small and previously disadvantaged mission school, Domino Servite, at Kwasizabantu. This settlement is situated about 150 km (93 miles) from the metropolitan region of Durban, but that distance could be tenfold, given the socio-economic status of the community. It is, in essence, a typical rural, African community.

The student population consists largely of subsidized, previously disadvantaged learners. The school is proud of its small band of dedicated teachers who have worked hard to establish adequate facilities to make equitable global education possible. One of these facilities is a lab with 20 computers, most of which are old and in need of refurbishment. The lab is connected to a 24/7 Internet connection, most unusual for a school of this nature.

Isak Du Preez

As the school's Science Fair project mentor, Stott was amongst those instrumental in providing gifted learners with individual, enriched and accelerated instruction in science. "Internet access has been most enabling, allowing me to access latest scientific findings for the enrichment program, and for learners like Isak to find information for their projects. Likewise, our access to e-mail has been vital in communicating with various support people who helped Isak over the very many obstacles to success," says Stott.

The student that she refers to, Isak, has been participating in Science Fairs since 1996 and is now in his final year at school. He was the winner of a third class engineering award at the 2004 Intel ISEF. His project, Robosoccer ++, involved highly complex hard- and software development, and has been described by a university professor as being on a level one could expect from a good fourth year electronics engineering student.

"Special education for the highly intelligent is often neglected. Teachers sometimes view giftedness as a troublesome extra to a class situation. The gifted are frequently not identified, or not given appropriate attention. For these and other reasons, many settle for mediocrity. Not so with Isak. The Expo for Young Scientists Science Fair, held annually in South Africa, provided Isak with a platform on which to display and develop his talent, and technology has been central to his success," says Stott. This has drawn the attention of various people, who have subsequently helped meet Isak's special educational needs through the use of electronics magazines, contact with hobbyists and an invitation to spend time at the university during his vacations.

While all of these interventions were valuable in developing the talent of students like Isak, much of their up-to-date knowledge to information has been gained through common information and communication facilities found on the Internet. The Internet provides a source of current information and the opportunity to interact with experts in the field on an immediate and need-to-know basis. It is the single technology that can help rural students overcome their relative isolation and, with the help of their teachers, achieve things of which they are proud.