Sate-of-the-art technology takes over local school
Black boards are out, interactive boards, laptops and tablets are in.
Gone are the days of writing with chalk on a black board. Laptops, tablets and interactive boards are now the future of the school classroom.
Lodirile Secondary School is the latest public school to receive seven laptops, 226 tablets and interactive boards as part of the Wired for Life programme that has seen 17 000 tablets purchased for matric pupils and 18 000 digital or interactive boards fitted into classrooms at targeted schools.
Gauteng’s Department of Education has selected 375 high schools with Grade 12 classes in rural and township areas which will be equipped with the paperless education programme. Most of the schools have been refurbished, ceilings replaced and fitted with specialised lighting for this project.
“We believe Gauteng schools will improve their performance through the introduction of paperless classrooms,” Gauteng MEC for Education, Panyaza Lesufi, said earlier this year. The Wired for Life programme is a pilot project that started earlier this year in schools around Gauteng with the aim to completely eliminate black boards form school classrooms.
Thutu-Lefa Secondary School in Munsieville also received these technological advances earlier this year, but many of the devices went missing soon after it was given to the students and educators.
Now, tablets are fitted with tracking devices to ensure better security.
Speaking on behalf of Mogale City Executive Mayor, Councillor David Letsie said that they are excited that Lodirile is one of the schools that benefited from the Wired for Life programme.
“We live in a global world and the introduction of these smart boards and tablets is an indication that our pupils will now be on par and compete with learners in developed countries. We also want our pupils to look after these gadgets and protect them from criminals.”
Mlamuli Jiyane, the school principal, said this will make teaching and learning easier for educators and pupils.
“The smart boards and tablets will relieve pressure off educators and make teaching enjoyable.”
An teacher who wishes to remain anonymous, told the News that at the public school where she teaches, these gadgets have been locked away.
“Most of the pupils and even the educators don’t even know how to use them.”
Do schools need to go paperless and are we ready to handle the responsibility it entails?
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