Govt underscores need of ICT in public primary schools

The government has underscored the need of applying Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in public primary schools in the country, saying that it will help facilitate the Literacy and Numeracy Education Support Programme (LANES) currently being undertaken in public primary schools. The programme was instituted in public primary schools with a view to increase knowledge based for pupils by use of ICT so as to reduce the increased high rate of illiteracy whereby some pupils graduate without knowing how to read, write and counting The Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Administration in-charge of education Zuberi Samataba said last Friday  in Dar es Salaam that, there is no way the government can do in order to reduce the high rate of illiteracy in primary schools if the LANES programmes would not be driven by ICTs. He said use of ICTs would reach many pupils and at a much faster speed if their education curriculums are designed properly and documented in database. “Tanzania will not skip the ICT use at this time when the world is highly technologically developed in digital form as the knowledge based on ICT use has become part and parcel of our everyday life’, he said. However, he further noted that, it was imperative to undergo various research studies to see how ICT can be used in primary schools so as to bring changes within a short time. The deputy PS was closing a week long ICT exhibition in the city which was organized by the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training (MoEVT) and attended by about 38 education stakeholders and some other civil society groups. On her part, the Commissioner for Education in the ministry Professor Eustella Balalusesa said that, it is high time that Tanzania must introduce ICT in teaching methodologies in primary schools so as to attain changes that could enhance the education system in the country. Prof. Balalusesa noted that, the use of ICT ion primary schools will build a strong foundation of knowledge based as the application is quicker and much faster to reach a large audience in far flung areas if applied correctly. She said the programme under the Swahili version known in short form as KKK which stands for ‘Kusoma, Kuandika na Kuhesabu’ will not succeed if communication technology is not applied among stakeholders to save the nation.