If the Tablets in Schools Pilot Project is to be successful, principals and school boards must incorporate the project into the management of their schools, says Manley Haye, TIS Project Manager at e-Learning Jamaica Company Ltd (e-LJam).

Since the TIS Pilot Project started last school year, anecdotal evidence indicates that the project is working better in infant and primary schools than in high schools. This is so because the children, being smaller, are more likely to conform to rules, Mr. Haye suggests.

“The role of management of the schools is vital, in that the tablets must be viewed as an asset to be used in education. We have experienced a higher than anticipated level of damage which is costly to repair. In the same way that they would ensure other physical equipment in the schools is taken care of, schools must take measures to minimize the extent of damage to the tablets. In this respect some schools have a more holistic attitude and better procedures toward implementation of the Project”, Mr. Haye told e-Learning Jamaica Today.

Because of the way the tablets are managed in infant schools and some primary schools, they tend to have better outcomes in terms of the care and use of the tablets”, noted Mr. Haye.