Kingston.
Jamaica is planning the distribution of “thousands” of tablet computers to students and teachers in the country as part of a new pilot project,this was disclosed by Minister of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining Philiop Paulwell. The distribution, called the “Schools Tablet Computer Programme,” will begin in September.
“Under that programme, every single student and and teacher at 30 schools — five childhood institutions, 10 primary schools, five junior high schools and 10 high schools across the country, will be given a tablet computer free of cost,” Paulwell said.
According to the Minister over 20,000 tablets, will given to schools that have been deemed to be underperforming academically by the Ministry of Education.
The project will be undertaken by the Ministry of Education, the E-Learning Company Jamaica and the Universal Service Fund, Paulwell said it would fundamentally change the approach education in Jamaica.
“The joint team is currently designing the project’s key performance indicators and other critical factors, and the Minister of Education will give further details in his Sectoral presentation,” he said.
The tablets will be Wi-Fi and 3G enabled, pre-loaded with certain games and apps.
The aim is to eventually expand the programme throughout the entire education system.
“Technology allows us to break down the old traditional barriers to accessing learning resources, and this administration is going to pilot the removal of all those barriers, to allow every Jamaican child an equal shot at achieving his or her goals,” Paulwell said.
The government did not disclose the specific manufacturer of the tablets.
You must be logged in to post a comment.