Classrooms featuring IT equipment are set up at the Vientiane Secondary School in Vientiane, Laos, ready to welcome the new students.
“I can’t wait for classes to begin.”
After sitting through his first ICT-based lesson, Phetsakhat Sorphainam, a student at the Vientiane Secondary School, was smiling from ear to ear. “The new classrooms come with electronic boards, an electronic lecture desk for the teachers, and laptops for the students, which means we can go online using the latest technology,” said the student, full of excitement.
These new ICT-enabled classrooms opened their doors for the first time on Nov. 25, and will be used by some 3,000 students and 156 teachers at the school. The classrooms come furnished with a range of electronic equipment and e-learning software, providing the resources to customize lesson plans and develop learning materials.
“We look forward to the impact the ICT classrooms will have on the students, from increasing their computer literacy to providing motivation to work harder in school,” said Laotian Deputy Minister of Education and Sports Kongsy Sengmany.
The “Innovative ICT-based Classroom” is a part of the Korean government’s official development assistance (ODA) program, and it has been run by the Ministry of Education since 2011. The program aims to share Korea’s experiences with IT-assisted education, to help developing countries strengthen their e-learning capabilities, and to reduce the educational gap in these communities. As of 2015, the ministry has set up such classrooms in 11 countries, including Mongolia, Cambodia and Paraguay.
By Lee Hana
Korea.net Staff Writer
Photo: Ministry of Education
hlee10@korea.kr
