Project Discovery launched at Ellerslie

Last Friday was the launch of Project Discovery Inc., a Barbados Online Learning and Teaching (BOLT) Programme funded by Legacy Foundation at The Ellerslie School.

Project Discovery began in 2008 with nine students from the then four sixth form schools, the Samuel Jackman Prescod Polytechnic (SJPP), now (SJPI) and the Barbados Community College (BCC). To date in Barbados, Project Discovery has had students from 17 of the 21 secondary schools, the SJPP, the BCC and the UWI currently in, or passed through, the organisation.

Project Discovery now has two country chapters set up, one in Barbados (Project Discovery Barbados) and the other in Trinidad (Project Discovery Trinidad and Tobago), and has an organised presence in other Caribbean countries including Grenada, Jamaica and St. Kitts and Nevis.

When the COVID-19 pandemic descended upon Barbados last year in March 2020, local schools were greatly affected. Although Ellerslie was a leader already with technology teaching and learning, it was not at the level which the response to COVID-19 required.

As teachers sought to teach and children sought to learn, the WiFi capabilities were sadly lacking. One minute they would be online and the next minute, they would be knocked off. The load was too great, and it was frustrating for both teachers and students.

From May 2020, through Project Discovery, young volunteers put their heads together to develop a number of connectivity solutions to address the problems at primary and secondary schools in Barbados so that other students like themselves could benefit.

They approached about six schools with their solutions and all but one turned them down. Not only was it a new concept, but it was being executed by students, young adults, who didn’t have the backing of big corporations. In January 2021, Legacy Foundation and Project Discovery commenced collaboration on the BOLT Project to assist students in realising their dream to contribute to Barbados in a real and meaningful way by solving a major crisis in the country.

The Ellerslie School is the first school to benefit from the Project Discovery (BOLT) solutions to the connectivity crisis in Barbadian public schools. This BOLT solution has allowed all students and teachers of The Ellerslie School to engage in blended classrooms in which each class of students can spend every lesson with their teacher, half online and half face-to-face, all being taught synchronously as opposed to being restricted to blended teaching in which every student spends half the time with their teacher and the other half on their own being taught asynchronously.

Gradually, teachers and students realised that the teaching and learning process was no longer interrupted with frequent loss of WiFi signal. Signal could be accessed in all classrooms, the hall, and any part of the school plant with consistency and this was pleasing to all.

In fact, many teachers have lauded the initiative and the students are marvelling at the programme. Most of the mental health issues which played on the minds of the students have dissipated as smiles and enthusiasm have returned. The Springer Memorial School is scheduled to be the next school outfitted with a BOLT solution providing connectivity to 100 percent of the teaching spaces on the compound.

Persons desirous of donating to the BOLT project should contact project_discovery@yahoo.com.

Project Discovery Board of Directors

1. Tyrone King, B.Sc., Dip. Ed.- Chairman

2. Kemi Brewster, B.Sc. in Computer Science, M.Sc. in Business Analytics (Distinction)

3. Jamarri Gaskin BSc Computer Science and Mathematics, M.Sc. in Education (pending)

4. Adrianna Gooding,  B.Sc. in Accounting and Finance, ACCA (pending)

5. Ramona King, B.Sc. in Mathematics with Management Information Systems, M.Sc. in Logistics and Chain Supply Management (pending)

6. Tymara King, LLB, LLM specialising in Intellectual Property (pending)  (PR)