The Ministry of ICT through the ICT Authority will tomorrow, September 30, 2016, officially start the countrywide roll-out of the Digital Literacy Programme (DLP).

The programme, which will radically change teaching and learning in schools by entrenching ICT in the country’s education system, will deliver 1.2 million devices to all public primary schools by December.The devices (laptops for teachers and tablets for children) are loaded with Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) approved content for class one and two in five subjects.

Joe Mucheru Cabinet Secretary Ministry of ICT said DLP (which has been branded Digischool) will play a critical role in enabling Kenya achieve the status of a knowledge based economy.

“We are now starting on a journey that will without a doubt transform not just the education sector but the entire economy. When we put these devices in the hands of our children, we are securing not just their future but that of the country and look forward to being a global IT power house in a few years,” said Mucheru.

The programme is being implemented through a multi-stakeholder approach, bringing together different Ministries, Departments and Agencies. Cabinet Secretaries and Principal Secretaries will lead the inspection of the implementation of the DLP programme in schools.

“Since the programme was conceptualised, we have always ensured that we involve as many stakeholders as possible. This is because there are different facets to the project that cannot be handled by one agency”, said Mr. Mucheru.

In addition to enhancing learning and teaching in schools, the programme has had ripple effects in different areas across the country. These include access to power connectivity, increased security as well as schools benefiting from improved infrastructure.

The country-wide rollout follows a successful pilot that was undertaken in May 2016 and June 2016. Under the pilot, also referred to as Proof of Concept (POC) phase, three schools from every county and nine special education schools received the devices and have since been using them in teaching and learning.

“During the POC phase, we witnessed children from different backgrounds interact with the devices for the first time and within a few hours they were able to use them with ease. Now imagine what such a child will be able to do with the tablet in a few months,” said Mucheru.

Dr. Fred Matiang’i Cabinet Secretary Ministry for Education, Science and Technology said over 70,000 Teachers have been trained on incorporating ICT in teaching and learning. The Teachers Service Commission has been handling the training of teachers.

To guarantee quality delivery of the programme and support the teachers, ICT officers are currently being trained and will be deployed to the counties as quality inspectors.

“This programme is quite crucial to the advancement and welfare of our children and nation and will touch every single household,” he said.

There are plans to start assembly of devices locally, with the two consortia (JKUAT/Positivo BGH and Moi University/JP Courto) already setting up assembly plants. This is expected to transfer skills to Kenyans and ensure sustainability of the project

September 29, 2016