Stats SA donation boosts digital innovation at schools
STATISTICS SA (Stats SA) has donated 7 500 mobile devices to the Mpumalanga Department of Basic Education.
The recent handover of the tablets took place at Acorns Oaks Secondary School in Bushbuckridge. According to the department, the tablets will be used to pilot a full-scale roll-out of the Ubuhlebuzile e-Learning Programme for Grade 8-12 pupils in eight schools.
“The collaboration between the department and Stats SA is driven by a common goal, to promote access to learning through use of technology,” the department said.
Stats SA conducted its first digital census population count in 2022 and the use of technology was a distinctive feature. Statistician-General and head of Stats SA, Risenga Maluleke, said the mobile devices were necessary to transform the traditional ways of learning and teaching.
“We are truly convinced that these devices will not go to waste but are to be utilised to advance the modern teaching and learning trajectory. We are grateful to the Mpumalanga Department of Education for their receptiveness and foresight. We wish that these gadgets will take the delivery of education to greater heights,” Maluleke said.
Education MEC Bonakele Majuba expressed appreciation for the donation and said the contributions would revolutionise the education landscape of the province.
“We are excited by the generosity and the patriotic gesture of Stats SA.”
The department said the tablets will be loaded with educational content, which includes textbooks, study guides and previous exam question papers.