By: Ilyasa Baa
Sixty-one Pupils attending the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) Preparatory School in Freetown, Brookfileds are currently benefiting from Information Technology (ICT) training offered by the Salvation Academy which is on the verge of extending their ICT training program to other schools across the country to equip kids with computer skills.
At the end of the training, the kids will take an exam and the one who comes out with the best result will be granted scholarship. The kids were in a jubilant mood when they saw their trainers and according to them they are happy about the computer class. They expressed that the training they have acquired will take them through their education and will help them become productive citizens.
The President of Salvation Academy, Brima Deen who happens to be an expert in ICT training, told this medium that the YWCA Preparatory School is just their pilot stage in the project, noting that there is need for the opportunity to be extended to other schools especially in rural communities. He said they provided twenty desktop computers and set up a whole computer center to train pupils of the YWCA school in their campus.
During his lectures on Thursday morning, Mr. Deen called on the pupils to always study hard so that will be productive citizens to develop the country. He said ICT has taken over the world calling on them to listen attentively to what he and other trainers will be telling them.
According to Mr. Deen, the Salvation Academy introduced this project to complement the efforts of government in its drive to empower its people with ICT skills. He said they are preparing the stage for robust ICT infrastructure in the country like it is happening in advanced countries like the United States of America.
“I came from the USA with a goal to upgrade young people in Sierra Leone so they can attract the job market’, he said, adding that Ambassador Bum Wurie, Special Adviser to His Excellency, has been supportive to the Academy making sure they acquire their goal.
He said the Academy has not got funding but he as a patriotic citizen sees the need to go ahead until funding is made available.
It could be recalled that provisions for ICT utilization are embedded in the National Science and Technology Policy, with assertions such as making science and technology education compulsory in the basic education system by integrating it into the curricula of all schools and at all levels. The policy also states that “the rapid development and exploitation of ICTs shall be targeted.” At the same time, the National Education Master Plan 1997–2006 outlines plans for upgrading teachers through the use of distance education.
All the major tertiary institutions, such as the university and polytechnics, have computer centres for training students and giving concessionary Internet access to staff and students. The University of Sierra Leone has a computer centre that provides teaching in basic computer skills to all staff and students.
The centre also offers Internet and electronic library services. At the school level, there is very little infrastructure in terms of computers and the Internet. The competing education needs mean that very little has yet been done in the area of equipping schools with computers and efforts in this area are mainly through the support of NGOs.
