RASUCO Institute of Technology and Business Studies in Bondo Sub County has launched an initiative to partner with local day schools in the region to teach students computer literacy skills.
According to the institutions’ manager Evans Ochieng Akumu, students from various day schools will have the opportunity to visit the college for a whole day to get conversant with both the hardware and software parts of a computer for free.
Ochieng revealed that the decision to engage students on computer skills was informed by the fact that unlike established boarding schools in the region, day schools which are attended by students from financially disadvantaged learners, lack basic ICT facilities and they are therefore disadvantaged in terms of digital skills compared to their counterparts from boarding schools.
“In this day and age computer skills cut across every sector of life. When one group of students is able to access computer skills at a tender age (primary school) or secondary school level, while the other group has never set sight on a physical computer until they complete Form 4, you can already see the disparity. In fact, exposing students to computers after Form 4 in this digital and information superhighway age is already late,” said Ochieng.
“In partnering with schools we have set aside days when they will be visiting our facility to touch, see, and be taken through basic skills of operating the gadgets by our trainers so that they can overcome the ” computer phobia” the student suffers when joining tertiary colleges or when they come for training for the first time after completing form four level of education,” he added.
The manager who was speaking during the launch of the initiative said their role is to bridge the gap to ensure the students in day schools do not feel left behind as well as to create equity and level playing ground for fair competition with students from schools with computer laboratories.
“The government has the responsibility of ensuring access to education for all students in the country but the same government cannot do everything and it is the role of private sector like ours to fill in the gaps to ensure equity in accessing computer training.
He revealed that they will in future target local primary schools with the initiative not only to fight “computer phobia,” but also to trigger interest in computer skills among learners in the new competency-based curriculum.
“Next week we will be having students from Gobei Secondary School, just like today we are having those from Bondo Township Secondary School. After we have completed our day secondary schools our eyes are set on primary schools with the ongoing initiative,” Ochieng disclosed.
Erick Omondi Oyule, a teacher from Bondo Township Secondary School commended Rasuco Institute for launching the program.
By Brian Ondeng
