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Making reading attractive with e-reading

A non-profit organisation in the United States has introduced the e-reading technology in Ghana to make reading more attractive and friendly to children and to empower students and pupils to develop the habit of reading.

The organisation, Worldreader,  which is dedicated to transforming reading in the developing world, has already begun the project with the distribution of a total of 1200 e-readers to students and teachers in the Kade, Adeiso, Suhum and Ayensuano districts in the Eastern Region to enable them to read more and better, as well as enhance their skills in using the technology.

An ‘e-reader’ is a device in the form of a tablet, technically used to display lengthy text.

Under the ‘Impact on Reading of E-Readers and Digital content’ (iREAD) project, Worldreader seeks to provide education by making available personal digital library for all children in developing countries to "awaken their passion for reading and consequently improve their lives".

It is also using technology as an approach to encourage literacy in parts of the developing world where books are scarce.

In an interview with the Daily Graphic, the immediate past Worldreader Country Director for Ghana, Mr Michael Yaw Sam, said the increased access to reading materials could broaden the thinking of students and help develop their creativity by allowing them to explore even beyond the school syllabus, as they follow different reading interests.

He said the project was a great source of information on the impact that e-readers could have in a classroom setting at each level of education.

“This year we are expanding into about 200 students in primaries four, five, and 6. In 2014 we plan to expand to JHS (one-three) to a total of about 300 students,” he added.

“Publishers are joining us because they have realised the importance of distributing books in digital format and saving the cost of printing and distribution of books. Teachers are embracing our programme because the e-reader is a simple tool to use in classrooms and allows them the ease of effectively creating and delivering lessons plans,” he added.

The iREAD project has been running in schools in the Eastern Region since October 2010 with the aim of giving students access to a variety of books through e-readers.

 

Importance of Education

A 2009 survey by the Ghana Ministry of Education found that 42.4 per cent of Primary three pupils in Ghana did not meet the minimum competency standards in English reading, writing and listening.

Only 20.0 per cent of students achieved proficiency in English, indicating that four out of five Ghanaian children cannot read and understand simple English texts by Primary three. These statistics are troubling, considering that there is substantial data on education and literacy as key drivers of economic growth, with social scientists drawing a positive correlation between low literacy and high poverty levels in the developing world.

He said the country’s goal of offering accessible, affordable and improved quality education from kindergarten to senior high school could not be fully achieved without providing teachers, pupils and schools with appropriate and sufficient books.

With collaboration from about 12 local publishers, device manufactures, mobile operators, the Ghana Education Service, the Ministry of Education and sponsorship from USAID, World Vision and Australia Aid, the project which was first launched in Ghana has been expanded to Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia and is now moving to Nigeria.

The price of e-readers, which was about $300 four years ago, is now between $40 and $50 and it will continue to decline.

Mr Sam urged mobile operators and towers companies to support them because Worldreader is using their networks to deliver books in a more efficient way.

He also appealed to the government for assistance in order to sustain and expand the project nationwide.

The iREAD programme is aligned with the Ghana Government Education Strategic Plan 2010-2020 (ESP) and the Reading Action Plan, and to the commitment of the Ghana Government to the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals to improve the quality of teaching and learning and the  promotion of science and technology education at all levels to reduce poverty.

By Ruby Efe Ani-Adjei

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