Loans for teachers to buy PCs

by Lalin Fernandopulle

The Ministry of Education has signed agreements with several State and private sector banks to provide loans for teachers to purchase a computer at an affordable price.

Microsoft Sri Lanka Country Director, Sriyan de Silva Wijeratne said the Ministry of Education signed agreements with the banks to fast-track the Teacher-PC Program and help teachers to purchase computers at a subsidised rate.

Microsoft Sri Lanka and the Ministry of Education launched the Teacher PC Program this year to boost the ICT knowledge among school teachers and enhance IT literacy in the country through the curriculum. Wijeratne said Microsoft decided to collaborate with the Ministry of Education to improve the level of IT knowledge in the education sector which is now at an unsatisfactory level.

Statistics show that the IT literacy rate in Sri Lanka is 10 percent while the use of personal computers in households is 4 percent. The country's average growth rate of IT knowledge is low compared to India, Singapore and Malaysia which have made tremendous progress, Wijeratne said.

The Ministry of Education with the support of the IT partners plans to increase the computer literacy to 50 percent by 2010.

Hardware dealers such as PC House, E-W Information Systems and Kobian Technology will enable teachers to purchase a computer without any hassle. The pay-as-you-go model has enabled teachers to buy computers at reduced initial costs on an instalment basis. The program has also helped widen the use of low-cost computers with all features, Wijeratne said. Over 1,000 computers have been sold since the launch of the program and there has been a very good response from teachers throughout the country, Wijeratne said.

He said ICT can be introduced to the classroom only if teachers are knowledgeable.

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