Tablets for elementary schools

Children in Central Province have a new-found love of reading, thanks to tablets provided through the PNG-Australia Partnership.

Two elementary schools in Central Province received 40 tablets under the Together for Education (T4E) project.

The tablets contain a library of 250 e-books authored by Papua New Guineans.

The stories and illustrations reflect everyday life and culture in PNG, which the children can relate to.

Kairuku District Education Coordinator, Priscilla Pyakalua, highlighted the need for a creative approach to learning at the early childhood stage.

“We have to continue to try new ways of imparting knowledge to our children and providing an e-library through the use of such technological devices will help to stimulate children’s interest in reading,” she said. “We are excited that students in rural elementary schools are receiving this support.”

Teachers from the two elementary schools also received training on how to use the tablets in their daily lessons and to monitor the reading progress of each child.  

Pyakalua said the tablets will help address the shortage of teaching and learning materials and will be used in lesson planning to enhance teaching skills.

Australian High Commission’s Acting Counsellor - Education, Janelle Denton, said Australia is proud to support innovative approaches to improving the literacy and numeracy skills of children.

“We hope these new tablets encourage parents to participate in their children’s learning,” she stated.

Of the 247 elementary schools in Central Province, 20 percent are being reached through this project and are located in rural communities.

Two elementary schools in Madang and another two in Morobe Province have also received tablets with e-books.

The T4E project is aimed at enhancing literacy and numeracy skills at the elementary school level.

The T4E project in Central is implemented by Child Fund and World Vision coordinates programs for elementary schools in Madang and Morobe provinces.

This project is supported by Australia and the National Department of Education through the Papua New Guinea-Australia Partnership and is part of a package of support to improve literacy and numeracy skills of early grade learners across ten provinces of Papua New Guinea.

(E2 student reading e-book)

Author: 
Press release