BACKGROUND
The One Laptop per Child Programme is a key project that aims at the Enhancement of Education through the Introduction of technology in Primary schools. The OLPC project, through digital, interactive, animated graphic rich content is able to help students visualize, simulate, share various complex concepts which improves their understanding, retention and ability to innovate.
The main objectives of the OLPC program are as follows:
• The enhancement of Education by enabling students to learn by doing through graphically rich, animated, interactive digital courses and gaming.
• To transform the role of the teacher from the knowledge holder to a facilitator who guides pupils to access the vast knowledge on the laptops, servers and on the internet.
• To enable Primary school students an early access to computers where they can develop computer skills through computer science courses which include programming skills.
• To expand their knowledge on specific subjects like Science, Mathematics, Languages and Social Sciences through online research and digital content hosted on school servers.
COMPONENTS
In the first phase of the program implementation in 2008, the Government ensured that every District has a minimum of 5 schools running OLPC. In the second phase deployment which was launched in 2011, we ensured that all administrative sectors in the country have a minimum of 1 school with the OLPC program.
The current deployment provides laptops to schools according to number of students per study shifts (morning and afternoon).
Project Components
The component of the OLPC programme includes;
• School infrastructure readiness
• Content development
• Capacity building of head of schools and teachers
• Repair and Maintenance
• Project sustainability and contribution in ICT growth
CURRENT STATUS
DEPLOYMENT: The distribution has reached a total deployment of 269,116 Laptops in 933 schools with this process on-going.
The current deployment plan covers the number of students studying according to shifts (morning and afternoon) where students who study in the morning shifts can share the laptops provided with the students who study in the afternoon shifts. There are future plans for the redeployment of already deployed laptops to match the proposed ICT in Education Master Plan.
TEACHER TRAINING IN SCHOOLS WITH OLPC PROGRAMME
The deployment of laptops also includes the training of teachers where all teachers from primary
4 to primary 6 have been taught basic ICTs with 9350 teachers in 850 schools trained so far with this process currently on-going.
The teachers are being trained on the ICT basics, basic activities in XO Laptops, how to apply them in class, monitor the usage of laptops in SET subject in its ICT part in the new curriculum and also common technical problems and how to solve them. After training OLPC Provides Training manual to facilitate teachers in teaching
The ICT part in SET subject includes the following main units; in lower level, ICT basic devices (Audio and video) in P1, Computer my friend in P2, How to use Telephone and Computer my friend ( Typing Turtle, Record Activity and Write activity) in P3.
While in the Upper level, Computer my friend has16 periods in P4 and 9 periods in P5, Writing skill has 8 periods in P4, 8 periods in P5 and 17 periods in P6. Graphics and multimedia has 5 periods in P4. Programming of children has 20 periods in P4, 20 periods in P5 and 25 periods in P6. Computer research has 8 periods in P5 and 10 periods in P6, All this programs are found in XO Laptops
The OLPC training is done in three phases;
1. OLPC trainer, training teachers in class
2. Teachers teaching themselves (Microteaching)
3. Teachers practicing on students in their respective class
