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PHILIPSBURG--The Council of Ministers has approved the "One tablet per child" project aimed at providing elementary school pupils with a tablet, starting with those in public education which fall directly under the ministry.
A total of NAf. 4,277,775.46 has been secured from the division of assets from the Antillean Bureau of Telecommunications and Post for the initiative. The St. Maarten Development Fund will manage and supervise the disbursement of the funds for the project.
Education Minister Patricia Lourens-Philip said on August 26, she had presented the Council of Ministers with several policy documents to ensure that the project was embedded in an Information Communication Technology (ICT) Policy in Education in general and in particular in an ICT policy for the schools.
"The preparation of this project took several months to be completed because I wanted to ensure that everything would be in place to guarantee the sustainability and continuity of the project after the transition of government," Lourens-Philip said in a press release on Wednesday. "When I took office a little over a year ago I put together a list of goals that I would have liked to accomplish during my short tenure as minister."
She said introducing ICT in education topped her priority list as she was convinced that providing pupils with the necessary skills and knowledge in the use of information and communication technologies will guarantee accelerated sustainable economic and social development for St. Maarten.
"Only through an ICT-literate labour force will St. Maarten be able to dispose of a critical manpower pool of highly-skilled professionals such as engineers, technicians and software developers who will support a growing local ICT industry," the minister said.
"This industry has the potential to contribute to the diversification of our one pillar economy. The one-tablet-per-child project will also provide career opportunities for talented St. Maarteners and others to participate in the ICT knowledge generation. Where the schools are concerned the administration and management of these institutions will also benefit from this project through effective use of ICT tools in their day-to-day operation, thereby transforming the educational landscape of St. Maarten."
This innovative step in education is the realisation of one of the minister's dreams for education.
