Slightly over a year ago, the journey to digital literacy in primary schools began in Kenya when the government started distributing tablets to primary schools across the country. This project is a potentially potent tool for effective teaching and learning.
The government was keen on integrating Information Communication and Technology (ICT) in curriculum delivery in our schools.
ICT integration in education means seamless incorporation of information and communication technologies in the learning environment to support and enhance the attainment of curriculum objectives, enhance the appropriate competencies including skills, knowledge, attitudes and values, and to manage education effectively and efficiently at all levels.
Tech-driven competitiveness requires an educational system that is strongly oriented towards producing citizens who are comfortable and productive in this information age world. This is the major principle underlying the Electronic Classroom in Kenya.
The intention is to prepare an entire generation of world-beating scholars, innovators, entrepreneurs and leaders who will take Kenya beyond Vision 2030. The aim is to transform Kenya in a dramatic, positive and lasting way. It must lay a new platform for progress.
One year later, the country’s education system is on the verge of creating virtual classrooms for this youthful nation. This form of e-learning has been hailed as an effective teaching tool of the future. It opens up for lifelong learning allows teachers to provide instruction from anywhere across the country.
These virtual classrooms provide a lifelike experience. Students are able to see the teacher and fellow learners using mobile devices. This will give teachers and students the impression that they are in the same physical space.
So far, the laptop project has proved to be a driver of pupil-driven learning culture and individualized learning thus has freed teachers to concentrate on coaching and learner support. Future e-learning will use technology that will deliver a course in the same way as happens in a physical classroom.
The inherent characteristics of the lesson sequence in a face-to-face classroom which would be reproduced in the e-learning framework will be so accurately replicated so that the learner will feel physically in the presence of both his and her teacher and fellow students. On the devices front, many tech companies have been working on devices that can support the e-learning programs across the country.
Already, LG is fostering active learning by bringing mobility and connectivity to the learning experience. Recently the tech giant unveiled the ultralight Gram laptops which have a long-lasting battery and an ergonomically designed backlit keyboard that gives students the freedom to study in a variety of different environments.
The laptop’s unique Reader Mode optimizes reading conditions while Daylight Mode makes the screen easily visible even under bright sunlight – perfect for outdoor lectures or study sessions. The company also launched portable projectors that have proved to be an excellent addition to the modern classroom with their ability to create an ideal environment for effective learning by keeping students engaged and improving information retention
