Mail & Guardian Reporter
Each of Gauteng’s 2 409 schools will be equipped with 25 networked computers in the next five years if the Gauteng Online initiative meets its goal.
And every one of the 1,5-million learners will be assigned personal e-mail addresses, while more than 12000 educators will be trained in information and communication technology (ICT).
Gauteng Online is the largest single ICT project ever undertaken in Africa to provide schools with equipment. The province has already pledged R500-million to kick-start the scheme.
Gauteng Online project manager Mark Gordon says success for the project depends on a partnership between different stakeholders such as the government, the ICT industry, the academic and research community, parastatals, social facilitators, NGOs and communities.
“Luckily, we have enjoyed the support and enthusiasm of each of these stakeholders. The ICT industry, in particular, has approached this project with fervent generosity. This is an indication of the dedication that South Africa, as a whole, has towards addressing the technological deficit in our country,” he says.
Thami Nxasana, programme manager for Gauteng Online, says the initiative is not just about the supplying of e-mail addresses and Internet accessibility to learners, but is a social engineering scheme on a grand scale.
“Our greatest ambition and challenge is to position Gauteng Online as the leading networked schooling system and social engineering project in the world. Merely supplying the technological tools to access information cannot bridge the digital divide. We must go back to the beginning of human development to be able to find the innate knowledge to utilise these technological tools.”
The project is well under way, and on schedule. These are some of the landmarks already achieved:
R500-million was secured for Gauteng Online to become a reality.
A pilot project featuring 25 schools across the socio-economic, historical, geographical and educational spectrum has been launched.
A high-level project management team has been appointed to facilitate logistical implementation.
Tenders to the ICT industry have been submitted, appraised and awarded.
Monetary and skills support from the ICT industry has been received.
The academic and research community, social facilitators and NGOs have come on board.
Click (Centres of Learning for Intelligent Communities in pursuit of Knowledge) centres, coined so by Gordon, have been launched to provide specialised IT training to Gauteng educators to ensure that the correct skills are in place in the schools.
About 50000 educators will be trained in ICT to facilitate the democratisation of technology among Gauteng learners. A pilot project featuring 25 schools across the socio-economic spectrum is under way to assist the provincial department of education in selecting the best model for implementation across the province.
Mustek, an IT company, has been picked to demonstrate its solution to the Gauteng Online vision. A total of 13 companies, 12 of which are local, are involved in the initiative.
Mustek’s Tony Church believes that his company’s experience in delivering education solutions in South Africa gives it a distinct advantage in this field.
“We have been involved with local education since 1994 when Mecer InterED developed multilingual education software in the 11 official languages, a first in South Africa. We have used this experience and our involvement with the Multilingual Multimedia Teaching Project to tailor-make a turnkey solution for the Gauteng Online project,” he says.
The Multilingual Multimedia Teaching Project was funded by the Netherlands government and implemented by the national Department of Education. Similar to the Gauteng Online project, it helped equip schools with computers. Mustek equipped 11 schools nationwide with 51 PCs each. Completed in June 2000, this project positioned Mustek favourably in compiling its solution for Gauteng Online.
The Mustek consortium has donated the five pilot sites free of charge to the tune of about R2-million. The products chosen intend to demonstrate a wide range of options that will show cross-platform integration. For example, two sites will be running Linux and the other three will be running Microsoft SBS 2000.This will allow the education department to evaluate the optimum configuration of products for the project.
“The three biggest obstacles to the project remain security, power supply and training. Within the consortium we have companies that offer unique solutions to those obstacles. R&A Products has designed a ‘PC Dome’, a PC security desk that locks in the monitor and mini tower. This PC Dome makes it virtually impossible to steal the hardware.
“AVR Power Systems supplies a generator solution while Future Kid, First Campus and Skill Wise, among others, provide training. We believe the consortium can offer a solution that fills every need of the Gauteng Online project … the ultimate make or break for this project is community buy-in.”
Marketing and social awareness campaigns will be integral in ensuring the success of Gauteng Online, but without comprehensive training and community support the project will never realise its revolutionary potential,” says Church.