Parents welcome new eBook computer rollout

Many of the parents of students at the All Saints Secondary School (ASSS) have placed their faith in the newly distributed eBook computers to transform the way their children learn, and stated that they are in support of the initiative.
OBSERVER media spoke to a number of parents yesterday during the first few hours of the distribution of the devices at the ASSS by the Board of Education (BoE).
One young mother of a third form student said, “It’s good to see that they are upgrading”, while another declared: “It is a good thing and a good step that could benefit the children.”
The father of a fourth form student argued that the introduction of technology to the classroom had the potential to steal children’s attention away from their personal electronic devices.
“One the complaints that parents and teachers have is that students like more business on their phone than they like their school work – WhatsApp and Facebook. This will give them a reason to work,” he said.
While, the mother of a third form student said that a common problem among secondary school students is that some have difficulty in comprehending information when they are required to do work on their own.
“The eBook actually reads back to them so that’s a plus as if someone was reading it to you. They are not allowed social media – none at all and the only time they can access the Internet is if the teacher gives them specific access during the class time,” she said.
The reasons for which parents supported the initiative were varied. The father of a second form student told OBSERVER media, “For my daughter especially – she’s skinny and the amount of books that she has too bring to school – sometimes she says her back hurts her and things like that.”
When asked how the eBook computer scheme – properly known as the Antigua Barbuda Common Digital Education (ABCDE) programme – compared with the Government Assisted Technology Endeavour (GATE) tablet initiative, the man said, “How they have done this is better. There are no social media, no Facebook. There’s nothing else on there but the eBooks and the interactive learning material.”
(More in today’s Daily Observer)