The school digitalisation project will be launched by President Ranil Wickremesinghe on March 19, enabling schools to share their resources effectively, Education Minister Susil Premajayantha told Education Times. 2,500 smart boards will be distributed among selected lead schools which will share their teachings and lessons with smaller schools. The Chinese Government is spending USD 20 million for the project and providing 1,000 smart boards, while the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC) will provide 1,500 smart boards.
Minister Premajayantha said teachers in the lead schools will share their lessons with other schools. “The same lesson may be picked up by 5-10 schools at the same time”, he added. It would be useful in teaching subjects such as languages, technology, and IT, he said. The system also could be made use of whenever there are teachers absent from school. The minister said they hope to expand the programme in the next phase. The Chinese Government will also assist in developing a studio to develop e-content to be shared among students. -DWI