EQUIP1 Collaboration with AIR, World Education

& KAPE

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Funded by

ContentsContents

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1. Cambodian Context

2. Past Efforts to Provide ICT Access

3. The Thin Client Solution

4. Future Challenges

The Cambodian Context: Educational System

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• Enrolment at Primary School Level is 92%

• Enrolment at Lower Secondary School Level is only 33% suggesting a very large rate of dropout after primary school

• At Lower Secondary School Level, Net enrolment at urban level is 53% but only 33% in rural areas, suggesting a big divide between town and countryside

School Infrastructure and Facilities

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• Most lower secondary schools in Cambodia have no access to electricity

• Although schools have recently received operating budgets, these come irregularly and are very restrictive in how they can be used

Access to Information Technology in Cambodian

Schools

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• Of the 1,112 lower secondary schools in Cambodia, fewer than 1% have access to ICT

• For the 1% that do have access to ICT, the primary funding source has been private (mainly organizations and philanthropists)

• Cambodian schools lack ICT facilities for many reasons including lack of investment, little access to electricity, and lack of human resources

Cambodian Government Policy & Information Technology

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• The Ministry of Education has a desire to bring Cambodia into the Information Age

• There is currently a policy in place to provide ICT access to all lower secondary school by 2015

• This will require an increase in access of 9,900% over the next six years

• There is little hope that this grand target can be achieved under the current situation, even with a very large amount of investment

Past Efforts to Provide IT Access to Cambodian Schools

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• Past efforts have focused mainly on secondary school level, not primary

• There have been two competing models for ICT access. These include: • One Laptop per child approaches • Computer Lab Provisions

A Tale of Two Models

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• Has not worked well because: • Maintenance has been difficult• Students have no way to charge the computers• Managing hundreds of units is an administrative nightmare

• This model seems to be wining out in Cambodia because:• There are fewer management units to administer and oversee• Energy needs are more manageable• Less maintenance involved

One Laptop per ChildComputer Lab Provisions

But . . . There have still been problems

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• Maintenance of Labs with only 15 computers is still human resource intensive• Schools have no money for electricity or fuel•Upgrading is expensive and time consuming• Investment costs for equipment & generators are still high• Local management issues

Case Study: The Lab that Failed

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• Date established: 2003

• Total investment: $15000

• Non-Functioning computer: 50%

• Current status: closed because school owes $500 to electric utility

The Thin Client Solution

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• Thin clients are not a new technology

• They have been around for a long time

• But advances in personal computers have enabled them to be re-applied in new contexts

• They address many of the problems with labs mentioned earlier

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Future Challenges

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• Availability and Modes of Procurement

• Training Requirements and Capacity Building

• Software Requirements and Compatibility

• Finding the Investment Funds for Solar

More Information

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http://www.equip123.net/EQ_Dispatch/Aug08.htm

Thank You!