08 Oct 2015

Ministry of Education and Skills Development  has been encouraged to introduce information and communications technology (ICT) that reflects future needs of people in an intensely changing and challenging intellectual environment.

The director of Medi Educational Publishers, Ms Portia Tshoagong said this at Botswana Social Studies Association (BOSSA), IDM national fair in  Francistown recently.

Ms Tshoagong said students and teachers had access to ICT, yet its use supported traditional teaching rather than the shift to new roles and academic practices.

She noted that policy implications included the need to develop expertise within the nation, provide training opportunities and encourage initiative and innovation by teachers.

Ms Tshoagong said ICT was simply technology arising from scientific and technological progress in computer sciences, electronics and telecommunications.

In addition, she noted that it would enable them to process, store, retrieve and disseminate valuable information in text, sound and video form.

Ms Tshoagong said in an increasing interconnected world, brought about by the application of technological advances to all sectors of society, quality education necessitates active and innovative exploration to maximize the benefits of ICT and develop and maintain the partnerships that use of ICT in education requires.

Further, she said this calls for re-conceptualising and restructuring the educational enterprise, so as to confront the technological challenges of this millennium.

“With rapid changes within society and radical transformations in the way people acquire knowledge, new teaching paradigms are required, ones that tune educational systems to modern times and ensure quality training for large numbers of persons,” she said.

For his part, BOSSA National Committee chairperson, Mr Moagi Mukokomani said BOSSA came into being in November 1994, now it marks 21 years of existence.

Mr Mukokomani said such fairs are very significant to the students as they build communication skills development and also assist students to speak before multitudes in a persuasive manner.

He also thanked the MVA Funds for their partnership, adding that it is almost two years and so far P99 000 had been given to them as well as  P80 000 donated by Collegium publishers including the P10 000 from  the same company.

Campus manager Francistown Satellite of Institution of Development Management (IDM) Ms Joyce Kgampi said the fair has shown its transformation in education by giving back to the community.

She appreciated the five year IDM BOSSA partnership adding that it plays a major role to the students at large.

The day was held under the theme: Developing Sustainable Transport and Communication Technologies - A Nexus to Botswana’s Scio Economic Development Beyond 2016. ENDS