TO fully prepare Nigerian children for 21st century e-learning challenges with adequate IT skills and knowledge, Laptops4Learning in partnership with Flour Mills of Nigeria have empowered Kuramo Primary School with 50 laptops for technology based learning.

L4L is a Non-For-Profit organisation with the aim of providing laptops to Nigeria teachers and children as a learning tool. L4L’s goal is to provide primary school teachers and children in Nigeria with laptop computers, software, training and a conducive environment that will empower them to learn, explore, experiment and express themselves in creative and productive ways that will ultimately bring about transformative change in Nigeria.

Already, with permission of the local government area education authority, Kuramo Primary School has made available a dedicated classroom in the school compound for the exclusive use of L4L for initial period of three years.

Preparatory years: The project, it was learnt was targeted at children in pry 5 and pry 6 only as these are the preparatory years ahead of secondary school as they prepare to become responsible, independent and cognizant of the bigger world around them.

Like the one Laptop per child, the programme, it was gathered, was targeted at the under-privileged children in society, especially those from poor homes who may not normally have access to screen-based technologies such as laptops.

The programme, the initiators said has been designed using that experience to accommodate the specific challenges Nigeria faces which include funding, power, teacher literacy, school infrastructure and parental poverty.

It would be recalled that in June, 2011, Kuramo Primary School, Victoria Island with the approval of the education authorities agreed to participate in an L4L Pilot Project.

The school participation included the creation of a L4L facility in one of the school classrooms even as L4L had provided technical and soft skills training for the teachers, laptops for the teachers and students, internet access and technical support.

The objective of the pilot project is to develop a replicable programme for primary schools across Nigeria.

Brains behind the project
Meanwhile, the concerned individuals behind the L4L initaitive are not limited to the following, Mr.Tunde Arogunmati, Carolyn Hall, Phil Hall, Mr. Tomi Davies, Abimbola Okoya-Urey, Funmi Onabolu, Diana Johnson, Ayo Kosamotu and Ria Mastoroudes came together to form Laptops4Learning (L4L).

Re-engineering of one Laptop per child
Speaking last week at the flag off of the pilot project at the Kuramo Primary School, Victoria Island, Maricyn Drennan, one of the founding members of the project told the gathering that the evolution of the L4L project into a Computer Club chain for schools was a significant improvement and brilliant re-engineering of the global One Laptop per Child Initiative to the Nigerian and invariably African educational environment.

She disclosed that Flour Mills of Nigeria has sponsored this whole programme from the training of the teachers, the provision of laptops and hardware and the complete refurbishment of the classroom which includes replacing furniture and fittings to make the room conducive for interactive learning.The L4L Clubhouse will be called the Golden Penny L4L Club House.

Expectations
Commending the programme, the Chief Executive Officer of TechnoVision Communications, Mr. Tomi Davies with optimism said that by the time any child leaves primary school, she/he would have been exposed to using a laptop and the internet so that she/he is not left behind in this new age of information and communications technologies.

He said that the programme is not about teaching IT. It is about exposing the children to screen based technologies in a journey of safe self help discovery , supported by the teachers who act as club leaders.

“To this end, L4L spent over 6months prior to the launch of the Club training the teachers in soft skills, use of the laptops, internet and they now all have their own email addresses, know how to search and use their laptops for day to day work.

“This is a private sector sponsored, government supported project and we have been very fortunate with the support we have had from our private sector sponsors and both the Lagos State and Eti-Osa Local Governments. The roll-out across the country will be dependent on our ability to attract national sponsors and gain the support of other State and Local Governments.

Challenges
“Like OLPC, the project is not directly dependent on the governments education budget but on private-sector sponsors such as corporate social responsibility and marketing funds, development partners and that remains the primary challenge – finding enough good-hearted people who believe that an investment in the underprivileged young Nigerians who attend the schools L4L serve are worth it” he said.