Training for TLI teachers

After a five-year delay, the Teacher Laptop Initiative (TLI) was officially rolled out by deputy minister of basic education Enver Surty yesterday, at an event that highlighted teacher training and development.

Surty named 19 July as the date from which teachers can actually begin getting their laptop packages.

Manager of corporate affairs at Intel Parthy Chetty says teacher training is an integral part of this initiative. He adds that the training and development is what will help to close the digital divide.

Training in how to use e-mail, for example, will help speed up change, because now teachers can have access to the director-general of the Department of Basic Education (DBE), instead of having to go through several people first, says general secretary of the Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC) Dhaya Govender.

A specific team was established by the TLI to plan and manage professional development in effective use of the laptops, according to the TLI. “This team comprises the Department of Basic Education, the teacher unions and Education Labour Relations Council, and the strategic consortia partners.”

Angela Schaerer, head of Microsoft SA's Partners in Learning programme, which is being used for the TLI, explains that the strategic partners formed a sub-committee to look at how they could integrate their different programmes that were already in place.

“We're not doing pure digital literacy training. We want teachers to learn how to use laptops to enhance their teaching, instead of just how to use Word, Outlook and Excel. We want to help improve the learning outcomes. When we looked at teacher training that was our focus.”

She explains that training starts at a novice level, for teachers who have never used a laptop before. There is also an intermediate level and an advanced one.

The training model and strategy will happen in three phases, according to Schaerer.

Phase one started yesterday and will run until September. The purpose of this phase will be to enlighten teachers on the value of having laptops and why they should get them.

Schaerer says phase two is the orientation part, which will happen from September onwards. She explains that this phase is for teachers who have laptops. The one-day sessions will show teachers basics like how to open programs and navigate pages.

The approximate timing for the third phase has been set as from January 2011 onwards. Schaerer cites this as the most important and complex phase. It involves a depth scale model for ongoing teacher development.

“The target is to use trained master trainers to train more people so teachers will be training their colleagues,” explains Govender.

The TLI says all training initiatives will be supported by programming broadcast on Mindset Learn, which is available on DStv, TopTV and Sentech Vivid.

It might take up to three years to get through all the available training, says Schaerer. However, Surty seeks a closer deadline. “In the next 18 months, we shouldn't have to say that we need to train our teachers in the use of ICTs. They would be competent by then. I am confident of that.”

“The delay was because first we had to understand the depth of the work and implement the systems. Then we had to try and drive down the prices, and the interest rate is still too high, so we still have a lot of work to do,” says Govender.

He adds that the ELRC will engage in discussions with finance houses to drop the interest rate from 18%-20% to 10%-12%. “If we can assure them the risk is minimal, then we can definitely drop the rates.”

However, despite previous optimism, the deadline for about 400 000 teachers having laptops by 2011 will not be met, according to Govender.

“The aim now is that within the three years every permanent teacher must be given a chance at least once [to get a laptop],” adds Govender.

The 12 accredited suppliers at the moment are Dell/Laptitude, Fujitsu, Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo, MTN, Pinnacle Technologies, Sahara Systems, Telkom, Mustek, Vodacom, LG and CellC, says the ELRC.

The strategic partners to the initiative are the software suppliers Microsoft, Symantec and Adobe. Other strategic partners who will be involved in teacher training and development are Cisco Systems, Mindset Network, SchoolNet and Intel.

“The provisionally accredited service providers have identified outlets or 'one-stop shops' where a teacher may purchase the complete package (including the connectivity and finance agreement).”

The initiative also has a technical partner. “Attempts to ensure no fraud or corruption takes place is managed by taking a centralised approach. This is done through a central registry or the Central Process and Records Database developed and maintained by Dimension Data.

“The accredited service providers have a 'good, better, best' range of packages where the maximum all-inclusive monthly repayment will not exceed R390. Qualifying teachers will receive a monthly allowance of R130 (taxable) and are required to fund the difference between the allowance (R130) and the monthly repayments of the package,” says the ELRC.

It adds that most of the packages from the provisionally accredited suppliers cost between R250 and R350 per month. The repayments are spread over a period of five years.

Laptops will not be handed out to teachers, but it will be up to the teacher to purchase a laptop that meets the requirements of Government Gazette 32207. It is important to meet these requirements because teachers will only qualify for subsidies if they do so.

The laptops must have a 160GB hard drive, wireless LAN, Ethernet LAN, voice-fax modem Internet connectivity and a Windows XP, or higher, operating system.

The laptop must be loaded with Microsoft Office software. The education department will also provide content, such as a school administration package and national curriculum materials, which will be installed on the laptop.

“ICT integration in the classroom is an extremely positive addition to the learning environment, as it brings rich and diverse resources into the classroom. This in turn leads to the formation of a more dynamic and productive learning environment,” says the ELRC.