Interview with ICT Teacher Harry Mwailengo from PJ Mwangola High School
PJ Mwangola High, hidden far in Taita Hills, Kenya, is one of the youngest partner schools to the SoteICT project. The students received computers just half a year ago and despite the fact that their ICT Club has been functioning only for a month now, they have already managed to surprise by their fast progress and creativity. We spoke to their ICT teacher, Mr. Harry Mwailengo, who also has a proven track of experience with community development projects and women’s rights (such as the World Youth Empowerment Association, Sweet Mother International, Coast Youth for Change), about the implementation of the project and its benefits for the students as well as the local communities.
Q. Having experience with community work, what do you consider the main benefits of the project and how can it, in your opinion, contribute to the local community development?
H. The real value of the SoteICT project is that besides supporting the enhancement of theoretical knowledge, which we have been doing through our curricula, it provides the students with an opportunity to develop their skills through practical experience. These ICT clubs and training companies cut across the borders – they not only integrate computer skills, but also business and life skills. Development of these abilities is going to be essential for students’ lives once they finish school. Also, engaged learning is essential. 'Chalk and talk' does have a place at schools, but technology can be an effective way of getting the message across. Studies have shown that even students with learning difficulties learn better when stimulated visually.
Furthermore, by educating the children, you educate the community, which they belong to. Recently, we have seen an increase in penetration of ICT, such as mobile phones, in remote places, as well as amongst low income groups. The phones have improved communication, but also business opportunities as thanks to the mobile payment smaller businesses can trade more easily. The communities can benefit even more if they have access to internet, which would, for instance, allow them to gain information about market rates of their products and then sell it to middlemen for better, fair prices. This could then result in improved income. However, for people to benefit from such technologies, they need to learn how to work them first, which could be a problem especially at remote places. But having an opportunity to master ICT, once our students leave the school they can go home and educate their families and friends.
Q. Your ICT club has been operating only for a month now, but you have already delivered very nice presentations and videos and come up with a unique business idea amongst our training companies, which is your Invest Taita, ltd.. What is in your opinion important in implementation of the ICT clubs and setting up an active practice enterprise?
H. Well, thank you! My role in the project is to provide a pedagogical leadership, to ensure that the students achieve the outlined aims and objectives. For me, all this goes around innovation and creativity. For the students to benefit they must cooperate. A way of how to ensure that is to make them understand the purpose of the project and the activities they carry out. I want to encourage students to be innovative and to learn to take a lead. Before, we only had one computer so everything was more theoretical, but now we can support students’ interest in ICT by letting them try things in practice, which makes them more eager to learn.
Also, it is important that the school administration is supportive. They need to look at these clubs as helping the students to increase their potential. By doing so they also help increase the potential and reputation of the school, even though the clubs sometimes may be burdening as, for example, the ICT members need to go out of the school compound to take pictures or shoot videos.
Q. Having mentioned the support of the school administration, could you, please, tell us how your school approaches integration of ICT in teaching, which is also an important part of the project’s objectives?
H. At this school, we do not have a secretary, who would keep records or type in information about exams. So all the teachers had to learn to work with computers and do it themselves. As I said, the school administration is very supportive and recently we have had a meeting with the principal looking at how to design teaching strategies based on ICT and project-based learning. Besides using chalks at our classes, we can add some interactive sessions using the projector, so that the student will not just be falling asleep. The teachers are very positive and are eager to learn and I am prepared to help them or train them whenever they need me.
Q. To conclude, could you tell us about your future vision for your ICT club?
H. The project is a new concept to our school and we are just starting. We need to encourage students to join, be active and motivated. I would like to see the clubs helping the children to develop skills useful for their after-school life, but also for their communities. Now, the aim is to use the clubs to make our students more productive and maybe also improve their academic performance.
And very finally, we hope that our school ICT project with the help of the SoteICT Team will be so developed that it will be able to serve as a model to other schools adopting this concept!
Q. Thank you for the interview and good luck with your future endeavours!
Ivka Ulicna, our volunteer interviewed Mr. Harry Mwailengo on 15 March 2014 at PJ Mwangola High School
