Don’t rush free laptop plan, caution teachers

What you need to know:

  • Headteachers want challenges tackled before the project is implemented

The government has been urged to tackle challenges currently facing public primary schools before dishing out laptops to pupils.

The Kenya Secondary School Heads Association praised the government for pledging to give Standard One pupils laptops but said the project should not be implemented before issues raised by various stakeholders are addressed.

“It is good for the government to think in that line and we want to encourage it, but it will disrupt a lot of things if implemented abruptly,” said the association’s vice-chairman, Mr John Awiti.

He said teachers to handle the computers must first be trained to not only know how to operate them but also to change their attitude.

This would help the teachers learn how to deal with vandalism and theft which are common in schools.

“The primary teacher training curriculum has never thought of training the teachers to teach computer (skills) in schools and that has to be changed first,” he said.

Mr Awiti, who was addressing Siaya County Student Leaders Conference which ended on Tuesday at Rang’ala Girls High School, said the government must also prepare to deal with poor infrastructure in many public primary schools countrywide.

The infrastructural challenges, according to the St Mary’s School Yala principal, include lack of electricity in many schools and burglar proofing in most buildings.

He said most public primary schools, especially in the villages, were not well-fenced and had structures that could easily be broken into.

According to education lobby group Uwezo Kenya, only five per cent of public primary schools in the country (estimated at 27,000) have computers, and about half of the teachers are computer illiterate.

Cost implications

“The first question therefore is, will the laptop be a toy or a learning tool or both, and will it be for school or home use? Who will guide these Class One pupils on how to use the laptops?” Uwezo Kenya coordinator John Mugo had asked.

Mr Awiti noted that not all secondary schools offered computer studies due to the cost implications and lack of qualified teachers.

“The government must therefore think carefully along these lines before going ahead with the ambitious project,” he said.

President Uhuru Kenyatta in his inaugural speech pledged to introduce the solar powered laptops to children joining Class One next year.