Digital classroom

Site: Unguja Ukuu primary school

Installed:  APRIL, 2016; updated March 2018

TEAM AND PARTNERS: ROTARY CLUB of Zanzibar in stone town; brighton and hove soiree rotary club

Project manager: CAROLINE RICHARDSON

In April 2016 we invested in a Kio Kit - a set of 40 resilient computer tablets that come pre-loaded with activities and resources that are relevant to African children and help with teaching English language, literacy and numeracy. In an environment where there's no internet access and no text books, the impact of the system is amazing. The Kio Kit was designed by BRCK to withstand the heat and dust of Africa. Since we've had a Kio Kit in Zanzibar, other educational organisations have visited to see the potential of the system.

The students love using the Kio Kits - it's fantastic to watch them all engaged with learning different topics at their own speed either individually or in small groups. Resources include English language flashcards, games to teach maths skills, videos, a young person's Wikipedia, novels, activities and science projects.  All materials are appropriate for different age groups and language levels. Initially the students are unused to having text books so there was much excitement about the entire class reading the same book at the same time.  However, now that English levels have improved, the students love to select their own subject materials.

Meanwhile, the teachers are continuing to develop their PC skills on the laptops that have been donated to the school.  They particularly like to use the new printer for developing classroom resources.  The advanced students have been learning computer skills and we now run a "Laptop Home Loan" scheme so that students can improve keyboard skills.
The hot, dusty, humid, salty environment of Zanzibar isn't great for electronic equipment.  However, thanks to the generosity of the Brighton and Hove Soiree Rotary Club we have recently been able to upgrade the computer room in Unguja Ukuu by tiling the floor and replacing the chalk board with a painted white area.  As a result the computer room is seeing greater usage by students and teachers.

To find out more about Kio Kit, please follow this link: http://education.brck.com/kiokit