Vodacom once again goes where they are needed the most, teachers and learners in Limpopo can look forward to digital classrooms, thanks to the roll-out of a countrywide e-Learning programme undertaken by Vodacom in partnership with Samsung. The latest recipients of the project is Seloutjo Secondary School in Ga-matlala, Limpopo.

Limpopo Education MEC Ishmael Kgetjepe today unveiled the new equipment which has been given to the school: 26 tablets, a laptop, an interactive whiteboard, a data projector, a printer, educational aids and free Internet connectivity.

Kgatjepe said: ‘This gift will change the future of education, specifically for our learners in the long term, especially if our school governing bodies, teachers and the school management put measurements in place to secure these new tech tools. It is through technology that everyone can receive the same quality of education.'

Vodacom connects schools

Vodacom Business Chief Officer Vuyani Jarana added: ‘Not only does technology enable quality learning on tablets and interactive boards, it’s also becoming the cornerstone for enabling mass social progress in education, which is the future.’

Jarana continued: ‘Many learners in South Africa do not have access to basic learning requirements such as textbooks, which makes excelling at school more difficult especially in the underprivileged environments. The Vodacom e-Learning initiative gives access to ICT tools and, more importantly, the connectivity where and when they most need it.’

In the first phase rollout, which ended in March 2015, Vodacom connected 371 previously disadvantaged schools across the country, equipping them with ICT tools.

For the second phase, which started in August 2015, Vodacom intends to connect 700 schools nationally. In Limpopo, Vodacom aims to equip and connect 50 additional schools, including Seloutjo Secondary School.

Zero-rated learning

The e-Learning solution will serve as a learning platform with free internet access to education content for learners in grades 8 to 12 across the country. Over and above this, learners who are Vodacom subscribers will also be able to access classroom content that is curriculum-aligned across all major subjects on their mobile device for free. This is because Vodacom has zero rated browsing on the site for its customers.

e-Learning makes learning interactive and simpler for learners and educators. It equips educators with mobile technology to help improve the classroom experience using rich digitised media content.

‘Learners can now complete lessons from their school syllabus, which will help them improve their marks. They can also track their progress and see how they are performing compared to other students in a fun, easy and interactive way,’ added Jarana.

Internet connectivity is an added advantage providing learners with the opportunity to study at home. Educators are able to create lessons, schedule remote lessons and log, monitor and report on learner progress.

Jarana concluded by saying: ‘Supporting education is a key focus for Vodacom. Vodacom e-Learning reflects our commitment to weigh in on and help improve the standard and quality of education in our country.'

As a lead operator in the country, Vodacom is committed to providing a host of technology equipment and services to previously disadvantaged schools. The list of schools is provided by the Department of Communication as stipulated in the amended licence obligation regulations.