Perhaps the biggest problem with particularly most public learning institutions is that there is too much theory and too little (if any) practical. Our previous feature of the Ghanaian teacher, Richard Appiah Akoto underscores that fact.
Mr. Akoto was trending on social media after a picture of him drawing the Microsoft Word application on the chalkboard to teach his students word processing. No easy task as you can imagine the GUI has a lot of buttons and other interfaces. It is even harder for the student to grasp how to utilize the word processor from merely observing a knock-off drawing of it on a chalkboard. It would take at least using the application to begin actually grasping how to use it.
Well, long story short. Mr. Akoto trended on social media, and Microsoft got wind of the herculean task he has been doing to teach his students how to use their (Microsoft’s) app. The African wing of the company, Microsoft Africa promised him not just one computer, but a couple of them. In addition to flying him out to attend the Microsoft Education Exchange (E2) Conference in Singapore.
The Microsoft Education Exchange (E2) program has been running for over a decade now. The conference aim is to celebrate outstanding educators and provide them the opportunity to network and hopefully find a way to collaborate.
The educators who get to attend E2 are selected by Microsoft and must have shown exemplary achievement and commitment to their work. No doubt, Mr. Akoto’s drawing of MS Word on the chalkboard shows an exemplary teacher committed to ensuring his students get the best education under the given circumstance.
The E2 conference saw 400 educators and leaders from 91 countries welcome Mr. Akoto with a standing ovation. The VP of Worldwide Education at Microsoft praised Mr. Akoto for overcoming the challenges facing his class.
“Your work has really inspired the world. It really shows the amazing innovation and commitment and passion that teachers have for helping their students get ready for the future,” said the VP, Microsoft Worldwide Education.
As part of its promise, the Redmond tech giant also wants to horn Mr. Akoto’s skills in using its Office suite and thus have granted him access to the Microsoft Certified Educator Program (MCE).
So that he can build a richer learning experience for his students. Microsoft also gifted his school with the devices and software they will need to teach ICT to their students properly.
