Google for Education team on Friday reviewed the execution plan for Pakistan’s first Educational Innovation Centre of Excellence (EICE).

"I am excited to visit Pakistan to discuss the implementation of EICE at a school in Islamabad, which will be transformed with the help of Google for Education tools and Chromebooks,” Chris Malone, Education Specialist at Google for Education, said during a visit to the Federal Ministry of Education and Professional Training and Tech Valley Pakistan. He said Pakistan has a huge potential for digital transformation in the educational ecosystem, according to a press statement received by WealthPK.

On the occasion, Aamir Ashraf Khawaja, Secretary of Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training, appreciated the provision of EICE in Pakistan. “It can transform the educational ecosystem of Pakistan by empowering teachers with professional development and equipping schools with technology,” he said.

"With our vision and mission to bring the technological revolution to the educational ecosystem, we are happy to share that the EICE will incorporate 21st-century tools, like Chromebooks and Google for Education, with a localised content and context,” said Umar Farooq, CEO of Tech Valley. He shared the progress of other projects and added that with technology, “we can also help flood-affected areas with pilot initiatives like School on Wheels, which can be used later for out of school children.”

The EICE is part of a larger digital education transformation journey that has been previously launched in nine countries across globe. The experience, research, output, and challenges accumulated from different countries will be duplicated in Pakistan with the help of the local country partner of Google for Education, Tech Valley Pakistan. The program will contribute to promoting skill sets for teachers and students with respect to the digital transformation of the education sector.

A comprehensive research will be conducted at this centre with the help of an academic partner where researchers will test different practices to develop a localised content and promote technology adoption among teachers and students. Such centres have previously been launched in Indonesia, Japan, South Korea and Vietnam for successful digital transformation and professional development of teachers, students and administrators involved in education.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk