Education is key to economic growth and a country’s economic performance is directly linked to the skills of its workforce and the quality of its education system.
Skills shortages and challenges in delivering quality education in rural areas in South Africa stresses the importance of smart education solutions for businesses, communities and the education system.
The education system in South Africa faces severe challenges, such as accessibility to schools in rural areas and access to up-to-date resources.
Studies show that learners lack basic skills and knowledge compared to peers across the world. The knock-on effect on universities and the workforce can be seen in low graduation rates and high unemployment rates.
Internships and on-going in-house training are great ways to bridge the gap but more can be done to ensure a stronger educational foundation and a competitive future workforce. Fortunately, there are many new initiatives dedicated to bringing education and the workforce up to speed.
The Sizwe Africa IT Group has taken the application of solar to the next level by turning sun energy into state-of-the-art mobile education centres. Sizwe’s solar-powered Green Smart Centres provide businesses and government schools, especially in rural areas, with secure and self-sustaining computer-driven classroom facilities.
Learner accessibility is key. These secure mobile structures seat 27 learners and can be transferred between locations. Each centre can extend its reach with a wireless router that can facilitate additional external devices such as laptops, smartphones and computers.
Educators using the centre will be fully trained by the online content provider and will support the demand for full-time educators. Interactive e-learning content supplied by the online content provider consists of interactive copy, videos and assessments, which supplement all major subjects in the public and private school syllabus.
Each centre comes with an interactive smartboard that allows educators to record and save lessons, notes, verbal explanations and comments onto the server. Educators can develop unlimited educational material and resources. All learning information, progress monitoring, assessment data and reports are stored locally within the unit.
Safety and security is in place to create a productive and enjoyable learning environment. All viewing screens and furnishings are securely bolted and a security camera keeps a close eye on the classroom and server room.
Whether to get new employees up to speed or swiftly address a critical skills shortage within the business, Sizwe’s plug-and-play Green Smart Centres can significantly improve the speed and productivity of onboarding and internal training sessions.
Businesses can donate centres as part of their CSI initiatives.