Teachers in the Western Cape will be the first in the country to benefit from an international training programme on how best to use information and communication technologies (ICT) to improve teaching practice.

André Gaum, the Minister of Education in the Western Cape, and Intel South Africa will sign a Memorandum of Understanding today (Monday, 20 October 2003) to provide Intel’s Teach to the Future programme in the Western Cape.

The Western Cape Education Department (WCED) is the first provincial education department to sign a Memorandum of Understanding for the programme, which seeks to provide educators with the means to better integrate information and communications technology into their teaching methods.

According to the memorandum, 10% of the teachers in the Western Cape will take part in the programme initially. The programme will run over the next three years and will train 50 Facilitators on the effective use of technology in education. The Facilitators will in turn train 6 000 Participant Educators. Intel will provide the curriculum and trainers for the training of the facilitators as well as the curriculum for the training of the Participant Educators.

Says Minister Gaum, "There is a definite need to educate the educator in the areas of technology to better equip them to teach into the future as well as stimulate the education system through professional development. Companies such as Intel which engage in programmes designed to impart skills and knowledge to our educators and learners, lead the way in developing our people and providing them with the skills required to succeed in an increasingly globalised and technology-based world.

"This programme complements our existing ICT-related projects perfectly. These include our Khanya initiative, which is using ICT to enhance teaching and learning in our schools, and the Dassie project, which is engaged in similar work in our Further Education and Training colleges.

"The Intel Teach to the Future Project will also complement our eCurriculum project, which will require ICT literacy if teachers are to make the most of it, and all that ICT can do for education in this province and the country."

Intel Teach to the Future is a global project which forms part of Intel’s Innovation in Education initiative, a multi-million dollar effort to help realise the possibilities of science and technology in education. Participants receive extensive training and resources to promote the effective use of computers and the Internet in the classroom. Based on a sustainable model, Intel® Teach to the Future is the largest teacher development programme in the world having reached more than 1.4 million teachers thus far. The first group of 15 Facilitators in the Western Cape, and who are, incidentally, also the first to participate in the programme in South Africa, have already undertaken training over the April and July school holidays.

Say’s Parthy Chetty, Intel’s Education Manager in South Africa, "It is a common phenomenon that many South African educators lack the important dimension in their ICT training that focuses on integrating ICT with their learning programmes. Intel Teach to the Future enables educators to overcome this barrier to the benefit of both themselves and their students." The programme is based on an international curriculum that has been adapted by the Faculty of Education at the University of Pretoria. It has been developed by educators for educators and has been recognised as one of the official professional development programmes of the South African Council for Educators (SACE).

Adds Chetty, "Intel is committed to the development of teachers worldwide and monitors the needs and evolution of the education community on a long-term basis. With the emphasis on up-skilling and personal development in the workplace as well as an economy that is increasingly driven by technological development, the Intel® Teach to the Future programme will prove a valuable tool for the South African teaching community."

Issued jointly by the WCED and Intel South Africa