Video: 'Half computer’ hampers ICT lessons for 323 pupils

The Afari Presby Basic School in the Atwima-Nwabiagya District of the Ashanti Region has just one computer in its computer lab, used for practical ICT lessons for 323 pupils.

Their plight is worsened by the fact that, the old rugged desktop computer has no keyboard and a mouse.

As a result, ICT education at the Afari Presby School involves sharing the single incomplete computer. A visit by TV3 to the school revealed how pupils carried their chairs from their classrooms to the Computer Lab for lessons with a single rusty ‘mouseless’ and ‘keyboardless’ computer.

The school’s ICT teacher told TV3 very little impact was being made.

“You take the kids to the Computer lab and you want to show certain things to them and because we have only one computer they find it difficult to understand. This is because we can’t do any practical thing in the lab”.

A First year JHS student, Chrisbin Adjubo old TV3, students were not absorbing anything meaningful in the course.

“It’s only one computer so we don’t get the chance to do any practicals.”

It appears Government’s efforts at improving ICT education by making computers easily accessible at the basic school level is moving at a very slow pace. The situation is worst in most rural schools where in some cases, ICT teachers are compelled to teach practical computer lessons on blackboards.

The situation is only slightly different in some urban schools where computers are available but not adequate to ensure effective teaching and learning of the subject by all pupils.

Whereas in urban centres some teachers have been offered laptops although inadequate to equip themselves and impact the knowledge on their pupils, majority of teachers are still yet to receive their laptops months after going through a government-sponsored training programme.