Focus Media (Kigali)
Rodrigue Rwirahira
16 June 2009
opinion
Special attention should be given to ICT promotion alongside science and technology in education if the country really wants to become a hub of technology in the whole region, given that ICT remains at the core of the strategic plan for achieving the objectives of EDPRS and Vision 2020.
Education Minister Gahakwa addressing a workshop on ICT in education recently. (photo Rodrigue Rwirahira)
The ministry of education is therefore collaborating technically with different advanced international organizations dealing with ICT such as Cisco, Microsoft, Google, Motorola and Intel to see how they can invest their expertise in the national education system.
According to Zvi Shechter, the Motorola manager in charge of communication system operations, the company is willing to work with Mineduc on every project that can enhance ICT in education.
"We have been working with other government institutions to connect them with wireless broadband, I don't see why we can't do this also in education. For example, our company can install a tower backbone in two months where districts, hospitals, schools and other local facilities can have high-speed wireless connection. After that, companies like Cisco or Intel can brings in equipment like switches, computers, etc. to complete the system," Shechter remarks.
Rachel Payne, a Google representative in Africa, says that her company is in various countries involved in ICT training of teachers, but they have not yet established an office in Rwanda.
"We have been working with the National University of Rwanda in terms of content development of academic materials like application forms or how to make transcripts forms online, so if the ministry elaborates a specific program and wants the company to get involved, we will be pleased to work with them," Payne says.
Mineduc is also determined to work with these companies to address key challenges on the effective delivery of ICT in education, such as the lack of a clear policy and coordination of the efforts, readiness and commitment at the implementation level, as well as the existence of committed public and private partners in promoting ICT in education.
And there is no lack of potential partners. Cisco, for example, has been working in the country since 2001 and has, amongst others, partnered with institutes of higher learning and universities in terms of equipment maintenance and training in networking. According to Hital Muraj, the East African area academy manager of Cisco, the company through the ministry of education has trained 1,564 students from NUR and KIST in those areas.
Education Minister Daphrose Gahakwa observes that there have indeed been quite some achievements related to ICT policy and strategic plans, but that it is now question of having them implemented.
"The ministry of infrastructure has committed itself to electrifying 70% of schools by 2012, so what we in Mineduc are doing is to make sure they have at least basic equipment such as didactic material and computer labs before that time," Gahakwa says.
To achieve this vision, she adds, they have to collaborate with both national and international partners.
Training instructors
And the Minister points out that some results are already visible. "For example, the implementation of the one-laptop-per-child program is going smoothly and secondary teachers have been trained in using ICT to facilitate their teaching activities," she says. "We have already worked with Cisco, and now that others are coming in we will work cooperatively with them to further improve the use of ICT in education."
However, this program also requires skilled content developers and trained instructors, in which Rwandan is still wanting. It is in this regard that Rwanda Education Commons, a program funded by USAID to expand the country's quality education through the effective use of ICT, intends to conduct a series of workshops at leading education institutions to build the capacity in the field of multimedia educational materials.
According to Steven Ehrneberg, the program's director, in four years time approximately 25% of all primary and secondary school teachers should have been trained to use the internet and other software or hardware facilities that can help them to enhance their professional skills.
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