Educational Consultant who doubles as the CEO of Leyden Educational Foundation-Ghana, Dr. James Owusu, has taken a swipe at critics for castigating the government’s decision to distribute 1.3 million tablets to Senior High School students.
He has urged the critics to rather rally behind the government to invest in digital literacy to enhance teaching and learning instead of denigrating the ‘one student, one tablet’ initiative.
Stakeholders in the education sector appear to be divided as they have raised diverse concerns over the government’s move to distribute smart tablets to SHS students.
Even though the initiative is aimed at encouraging digital literacy in secondary schools, yet, it has been criticised as some stakeholders have argued that the government could have used the funds to provide the needs of the schools.
Dr. James Owusu, speaking on Onua FM Etifi Nsem show on Saturday March 30, struck down the argument and maintained that the ‘one student one tablet’ initiative should be prioritized to encourage digital literacy in the schools.
“The demographics show that things are changing and there is the need for Ghana in particular to prioritize skills development in the education system through the provision of digital literacy skills”.
“Ghana has come far in digitalization as compared to other African countries and so if someone says that our schools have challenges and therefore the government shouldn’t invest in digital knowledge, then I will say that the person has not seen the bigger picture,” he contested.
He emphasized that the Ghana Smart Schools Project will equip the youth with the requisite skills after school to fit into the digital economy hence entreated all the stakeholders to support the initiative.
He also challenged the government to ensure that the policy is sustained to empower the youth in the digital space.
Story by Maxwell Otoo Onua FM/3News.com