1 000 students score tablets

R5.2m TO PURCHASE DEVICES AT WSU

WALTER Sisulu University (WSU) has spent R5.2-million purchasing tablets for students amid challenges relating to the shortage of infrastructure.

However, WSU spokeswoman Yonela Tukwayo said yesterday this was critical to the core business of the university, which was teaching and learning.

“This initiative is a critical intervention in the university’s endeavours to improve and provide appropriate learning and teaching materials to some of its students,” she said.

She added that the money was allocated by the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) through the Foundation Provision Grant.

“The grant is used to enhance education by providing appropriate learning and teaching support through provision of learning and teaching materials; course development; enhancing undergraduate research capacity; and language development,” Tukwayo said.

She said the provision of the devices mitigates institutional under-provision of computer labs and internet access. More than 1 000 students across WSU’s four campuses in Buffalo City, Mthatha, Butterworth and Queenstown have benefited.

Tukwayo said this was specifically intended to improve teaching and learning in the institution’s extended curricular programmes (ECP). About 1 375 first-year ECP students studying engineering, information technology, analytical chemistry and public relations received Samsung tablets.

Attempts were made to get comments from DHET spokesman Khaye Nkwanyana and WSU Student Representative Council president Buhle Noah-Tetyana but they had not responded to questions at the time of writing.

WSU’s ECP institutional coordinator Thabile Loqo said the tablets act as tools to provide electronic copies of student support notes, electronic research papers and electronic versions of textbooks (e-books).

She said the provision of the devices would enable internet access to student via Wi-Fi.

Loqo said students will be able to enhance their own learning by engaging more with IT and research in the English language medium, which was critical in the performance of first year students.

The tablets will also allow lecturers to develop e-learning mechanisms on par with national and international standards.

Other advantages included a learning software that will provide video and MP3 tutorials and access to virtual laboratories in which students can conduct laboratory experiments.

Loqo said this has massive potential of leading to research on the different teaching methodologies and on methods beneficial for student success.