Dawhenya-Ghana, July 26, GNA – Two hundred pupils and 67 teachers from the public basic schools in the Ningo-Prampram District have received coding training under the ‘Coding Caravan’ initiative.
The ‘Coding Caravan’ is a digital skills education campaign initiated by the Ghana Chamber of Telecommunication in partnership with the Institute of ICT Professionals Ghana.
The beneficiaries, who were drawn from all six educational circuits in the district, were taking courses in scratch coding, code to animate for building games, 3D drawings, and 3D printing.
Engineer Doctor Kennith Ashigbey, the Chief Executive Officer for the Ghana Chamber of Telecommunication, said the caravan was started in 2022 as part of the 10th anniversary of the Chamber, during which pupils in three districts received coding training.
Doctor Ashigbey noted that the programme had been expanded to four districts this year to ensure that more teachers and pupils would benefit, explaining that while the pupils would be used as peer-to-peer educators, the teachers would help to maintain the programme and teach more pupils practical ICT lessons.
He said the idea was to have some mobile clinics equipped with computers that the teachers and pupils could use in their communities to train others.
He said even though they have challenges with finances, they have designed the programme in a way that enables them to provide the practical within a day.
He called on the GES and examination stakeholders to consider a mode shift from conducting ICT examinations on paper to practical to properly equip the learners.
Mr. David Gowu, the Executive Director for the Institute of ICT Professionals Ghana, said it was not enough to call for the equipping of children in ICT; therefore, the ‘Coding Caravan’ was to walk the talk.
Mr. Gowu said the training was to give the children the opportunity to design and develop things by themselves through the knowledge the team imparted to them.
He said technology was changing the way work was done, therefore the children must be properly equipped in technology as it will be more intense when they reach the age to work.
Mr. Simon Delanyo Kpormego, the District Training Officer, Ningo-Prampram Educational Directorate, expressed joy at the project, saying it has provided the pupils with some practical skills, especially those who do not have computers in their school.
Mr. Kpormego said ICT was mostly being taught abstractly and therefore such practicals were timely, adding that teachers in the district who had been given laptops would be contacted to create a pool of equipment in their area to provide some practicals to the children at scheduled times.
He pleaded with institutions and individuals to consider donating some of the old but functioning computers to support the schools’ efforts to teach ICT.
Miss Ophelia Teye, a JHS two pupil of Dawa Basic School, and Master Joel Oberko, a form one pupil of Old Ningo Basic A, expressed joy for the opportunity to learn coding, saying they coded the Ghana national anthem and a birthday party.
