AA in Malawi 

With the 21st century upon us, access to quality education is a right for every child. UltiNetS, a locally based ICT company headed by Richard Chisala, has partnered with USAID, UTSA (University of Texas in San Antonio), MIE (Malawi Institute of Education) and MoEST (Ministry of Education, Science and Technology), and have adopted a special program called Intel Teach.

Already very successful in many other countries around the world, this is now being run as a pilot project at the Teachers Training Colleges in Blantyre and Lilongwe.

The Intel Teach Program basically works through the use of 21st century technology and programs on special laptops powered by Intel called the Classmate PC. This PC, which is especially designed for the classroom, has all the features required to learn and teach.

Each student uses a Classmate PC which is wirelessly linked to the teacher’s Classmate PC and all are linked to a server installed on site.

With technology like this, special programs are used to teach the student through a process very different from the old methods. Due to the wireless connectivity, teachers now become the facilitator/moderator and the student can easily use the wireless connection to do their studies, interact with people around the globe and also to learn as a group, thus creating an accessibility platform for knowledge.

The learning environment becomes student-centred and they have a one-on-one learning platform with their teacher.

The teacher has direct access to each student’s Classmate PC as they work which enables them to monitor their progress and immediately recognise if they are going off track.

Together, students and teachers develop new ways of learning that increase classroom efficiency. Students consistently have more fun, are more interested and have access to vast amounts of information and media via the Internet. Students become more eager to learn and set higher standards for themselves, helping them to reach greater goals as they become more prepared for the fast-paced digital world. Special teaching programs are also provided, which increases the teachers’ educational skills and methods.

UltiNetS not only provides the wireless connections and facilitates the learning process with the institutions, but also provides the support system for teachers, wireless networks, maintains the storage facilities for the Classmate PCs and low-power computing solutions to reduce demand on electricity.

As the project is mainly intended for rural and other less privileged areas, this decision was made to provide those children with a learning platform equivalent to that available within other institutions and for them to have the advantage of being able to tackle the challenges of the 21st century and enter the digital world with a wider range of skills and experience than ever before.

“The Classmate PC has given the children at these demonstration schools their first taste of computers and the Internet and will improve computer literacy for students and teachers. Having access to computers will help students to develop 21st century workforce skills and to be more competitive in the global economy. We believe the Intel Learning Series will help Malawi schools with technology, digital educational content, professional teacher training and infrastructure for ongoing support” said Stuart Winga, Jnr - Head of Technology and Operations at UltiNetS.