Viral ICT teacher’s school gets 27 new computers

The pupil’s teacher who went viral on social media for ingeniously improvising the teaching of ICT due to the lack computers in his school, is not enjoying the largess alone, as technology giant Microsoft has equipped the school with 27 new computers.

Richard Appiah Akoto has personally benefited from a training abroad, among other benefits, since a video of him and his pupils went viral, as he painstakingly sketched the interface of the Microsoft Office software on the blackboard and explained it to the pupils.

Microsoft partnered local education partner eSolutions Consulting, to equip the computer laboratory at Betenase D/A Junior High School, at Betenase in the Sekyedomase District of the Ashanti region.

The equipment included 27 brand new Dell laptops, a projector and screen, printer, and 27 computer desks and chairs.

The equipment is expected to enhance the teaching of ICT, which is one of the examinable subjects in the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE), in the school, which has a student-population of about 127.

In addition to the items, the pupils were also provided with some 127 set of uniforms, mathematical sets, device security units, one-year free 3G connectivity, and UPS backup and routers.

The Education Lead for West East and Central Africa at Microsoft, Warren La Fleur, said: “As a technology brand that is on a mission to empower every person and every organisation on the planet to achieve more – Microsoft believes that enablement must start at the grassroots level – by way of education.”

“It is the teachers and the work they do through their lessons, that allow for this to happen effectively,” he added.

He said Microsoft was extremely impressed by the work educators all over the continent were doing, adding that as economies like Ghana become increasingly digital, technical thinking and understanding technology become supremely important.

“Around the world, a key part of Microsoft’s work is concentrated on empowering educators to create environments in and out of the classroom that guide and nurture student passion and enable students to achieve beyond their wildest imagination – making, designing, inventing, and building the future.”

According to Microsoft officials, teachers across the country will gain access to the Microsoft Certified Educator Programme (MCE), for professional development so that they can nurture their passion for teaching whilst building a rich custom learning experience for students.

According to Microsoft, it has invested in developing over 300 hours’ worth of free courses, where educators are able to participate in training and receive certificates. The duration of each course is between 1 and 3 hours.

Richard Appiah Akoto, whose dedication to duty got the world talking, expressed joy at the gesture, saying it will go a long way to better the grades of his pupils when they sit the BECE.

“We were doing everything on the chalkboard but now with these set of computers the children can learn how to operate the machine,” he stated.

A JHS 3 student, Amelia Serwaa, who got the opportunity to have a practical demonstration using a computer for the first time, was hopeful that she would be able to score high marks in ICT henceforth.

The Chief Operations Officer of eSolutions Consulting, Solomon Adiyah, said: “Working with Microsoft to provide world class solutions to enable Ghana’s education transformation has been a great opportunity.”