The Secondary School Teachers Union of Zambia (SESTUZ) has asked government not rush in implementing Information Communication Technology ICT compulsory examinations in the country.
SESTUZ Secretary General Emmanuel Zulu told ZANIS in an interview today that the decision of compulsory ICT examinations will be disastrous as the country is not yet ready.
Mr. Zulu argued that most schools in Zambia do not have infrastructure and enough advanced equipment for the subject of ICT.
He further said teachers have to be trained for the programme so that pupils can to receive thorough education on the same subject.
He added that pupils in rural areas will not benefit because computers require electricity hence places without electricity cannot implement the ICT programme.
Mr. Zulu has however said the idea of introducing ICT in schools was a good one despite the fact that the decision to make it a compulsory was done in hasty.
He has since called on government to put in place all the equipment that will ensure that the programme was a success and of benefit to all the pupils.
The government decided to introduce ICT as a compulsory subject in all Zambian schools but this decision has brought controversial opinions.
Everything is a rush program with pf. Train teachers first or introduce it as a topic in one of the science subjects then after two years you make it a full subject. They are the dullest government ever and they want to pretend as tech champions, atase!
Please include ICT professionals among the 5000 teachers being recruited. We have to take ICT seriously as this is the 21st Century
There is a subject called CTs- according to my son says it is Creative and Technology Studies. Why don’t we slowly introduce aspects of ICT in this one and bring in a practical perspective at a later stage? Just thinking!
It is not indisputable that we need ICT if our children will have to keep abreast with modern trends and technology. However, this whole idea becomes emptied of its progressive intentions if it is rushed and the advice here by the SESTUS General Secretary is timely.
What is exigent is to establish at what level of preparedness our schools are in terms of both computers and teachers themselves. Once that is done Government should as much as possible ensure there is uniformity of resources both in computers and teachers. between schools in rural and urban areas.Anything to the contrary is luxuriating in symbolism and not substance.