You can increase teacher performance by 25%.
Solar Connect can dramatically improve the quantity and quality of education in rural African schools by providing solar power, computers and connection to the internet, along with the training and support that is needed.
What is the problem? Running a school involves a lot of administration. In rural Africa this means head teachers and teachers often have to travel to district offices, often for the day. We estimate that over 25% of teacher and head teacher time is wasted on these journeys.
What is our solution? We connect schools with their district education office through a computer with 3G internet connection powered by solar panels. Teachers and headteachers can complete their administration without leaving school. That means they can spend more time teaching, and children spend more time learning.
Solar Connect delivers a range of additional benefits to the school and surrounding community.
Extending the benefits of international school partnerships
• School partnerships are of real motivational value to often isolated rural African schools. They offer the chance to build friendships and professional advice and support, can bring a new global dimension to the curriculum and the advantage of shared learning, and can bring support for real school improvement. Having access to the internet and email communication brings the wider world into the classroom and opens up the potential school partnerships offer both partners.
Support for teacher and curriculum development
• Many teachers currently teach ICT having never used or seen a computer. Solar Connect will enable teachers to bring ICT studies to life. It gives access to training and learning, and professional development resources. This can improve teacher confidence and motivation, bridging the digital divide, making rural schools more attractive and effective places to work and learn.
Community Development
• Often information about entitlement and responsibility is difficult to access and requires a journey to the nearest town or city for members of the most rural communities. With that information made available in solar centres, community development is possible. The school can also offer its solar power facilities to charge batteries and mobile phones. This can be used to generate enough income to cover running costs and make Solar Connect a sustainable solution to support community and school development.
Increased environmental sustainability action and awareness
• The use of alternative energy sources in rural sub-Saharan African communities, vulnerable to the effects of climate change, reduces green house gas emissions and raises awareness of sustainable energy as a means of rural electrification.
Find out more about the recent Solar Connect installations that took place in eight schools and the District Education Office in the Eastern Cape in South Africa:
If you would like to support this project please download this short presentation which you could use to tell others about the exciting benefits that Solar Connect bring rural African schools.
For more information about the Solar Connect project please contact natalia@lcd.org.uk
“For the world’s poorest, access to sustainable, healthy sources of energy remains a basic critical need… Vast renewable energy resources are available but under-exploited”
International Institute for Environment and Development
ICT in Teacher Education “would enable [teachers] to use different ICT skills and resources to improve their teaching, collaborate with colleagues and become innovative leaders in their classroom and institutions.”
Commonwealth of Learning, International Perspective: ICT in Teacher Education
Solar Connect is part funded by the European Union through the project Partners in Development
