The Universal Service and Access Agency of SA (USAASA) today launched a cyberlab at Lesodi Primary School, in the Mpumalanga town of Lydenburg.
The agency says the initiative aims at promoting e-learning and improving ICT access in the province, and that the Department of Education will provide educational software.
The lab accommodates 21 learners and includes laptops, a projector, furniture and Internet access.
USAASA says a further 14 cyberlabs will be launched in the province this year.
Improved research
Lesodi Primary principal Mokgethi Mahlasela says teachers will use the facility to complement the existing curriculum. "It will be a motivation for the children to use the technology and [encourage] them to seek more knowledge," he says.
Mahlasela notes the lab will expose many pupils to ICTs for the first time. "They will be encouraged and learn so much better. This will be evident when their performance improves."
He says the school will focus on training staff to use the equipment in their teaching.
Struggling matrics
USAASA says there are 60 cyberlabs in Mpumalanga and CEO Zama Nkosi is optimistic about their projected impact on South African learners. "The fact that there has been a dramatic increase in the pass rate of matriculants doing mathematics this year is a clear indication that initiatives like school connectivity are working," he says in a statement from the agency.
Recent matric results indicate a marginal improvement in maths and science marks in the province - subjects pivotal to the ICT industry.
A total of 19 400 Mpumalanga pupils wrote the maths exam in 2013; of those, 11 301 attained a pass mark of 30% or more. This translates to a 58% pass rate in the subject. The class of 2012 had a pass rate of 52%.
Science pupils recorded a 65% pass rate in 2013, as 11 104 students passed, while the previous year's rate was 63%.
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