‘Guidelines for technology must be clear’

Philanthropist Aron Truss says it is sad that in 2019 there are still no clear guidelines regarding the use of technology in schools.

Speaking at the launch of the Wikinotes website, at the Deighton Griffith School last Friday, the Founder of the Aron and Christina Foundation said it was sad that Barbados was still waiting for policies outlining the rules for wifi and use of electronic devices in schools.

“I mean everybody knows that the students have the devices and that there is this informal sort of use. That needs to be formalized and endorsed. I would like to see a little more of that coming out of the Ministry of Education,” he said.

Wiki-Notes is a revolutionary website designed to assist students in Barbados studying Caribbean Examinations. It will provide students with the relevant knowledge and opportunity to learn and will be available to all. Students and teachers will be able to submit notes to the website.

During the launch, Truss said he hoped that the Ministry of Education would embrace, promote and contribute to the website, which he made clear is a non-profit exercise.

“I believe this would be a beneficial site. It took six people in their extra time to sort of not only come up with the site but actually have it constructed and have it live within six months. So really if the six of us can do that, I would hope that more could be done from the professionals who are supposed to be pushing our education system.”

Deighton Griffith’s principal Anthony Alleyne said that if students were to become creators and to move on from being social media users to building skills to carry them forward in the 21st century more projects such as the Wiki-Notes would be needed.

“We who are in education. We who are responsible for guiding them and moulding them and mentoring them, are the ones who are going to have to show them the way to use the awesome tools that they have to help them develop as young men and women, and most importantly to help bridge that gap where we are right now within schools and education and society and where we want to do. The reality is that the future will involve technology in a major way,” Alleyne said. (AH)