Technology31.03.2018

Microsoft donates computers to Ghanaian school that went viral

Microsoft

Computer giants Microsoft have donated dozens of computers to the school where a Ghanaian ICT teacher stole the hearts of social media users when he drew features of a Microsoft Word processing window on a chalkboard.

The innovative Ghanaian teacher instantly become a social media sensation after pictures of him drawing the features went viral early this month.

According to This is Africa.com , Okwura Kwadwo had no computer to demonstrate Microsoft Word to his students, so he drew it on the chalkboard.

In a Facebook post, he wrote: “Teaching I.C.T in Ghana’s school is very funny. I.C.T on the board paa. I love ma (my) students so have to do what will make them understand what am [I’m] teaching.”

His creativeness soon grabbed the attention of a Cameroonian entrepreneur Rebecca Enonchong, who set out to find him and also sent a message to Microsoft Africa.

The computer giant immediately pledged to equip Kwadwo with a teaching device.

Delivering on its promise, Microsoft collaborated with eSolutions Consulting – a local Education partner in Ghana – and delivered technological resources to equip a computer lab at Betenase Junior High School, located in Sekyedumase, Ashanti Region, Ghana.

The computer lab donation includes devices for students and lab teacher, tables and chairs, school uniforms, mathematical sets, device security storage units, 1-year free 3G connectivity, a projector, screen, UPS back up and routers. All devices will also be provided with Office Professional Plus software.

Warren La Fleur, Education Lead for West East and Central Africa at Microsoft said, “As a technology brand that is on a mission to empower every person and every organisation on the planet to achieve more – Microsoft believes that enablement must start at grassroots level – by way of education. It is the teachers and the work they do through their lessons that allow for this to happen effectively.

“We are extremely impressed by the work educators all over the continent are doing. – As economies like Ghana become increasingly digital, technical thinking and understanding technology becomes of supreme importance.”

Quartz Africa said that Kwadwo had been teaching ICT for the past six years.

The report quoted Kwado as saying that although he had a personal laptop, he did not use it because the features differed from what was in the official syllabus, which required him to teach his students, among other things, parts of a system unit and monitor, the steps connecting them and how to boot a computer with a desktop as their reference.

“[So] if you bring a charged laptop to class and just press the power button, then all of a sudden, everything will be on… [and that does not work],” he was quoted as saying.

The school needed at least 50 computers to fully achieve its goal.

News24

Now read: Microsoft to add new accessibility features to Windows 10

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