By Tatiana Mhararira
The Reformed Church in Zimbabwe (RCZ) has taken the Education 5.0 curriculum to another level as it equipped all its schools in some electronic interactive boards in order to keep the learners and teachers abreast with the ever changing technology.
The church, through its Moderator Rev Dr Ezekiel Baloyi, handed over 68 interactive boards to its nine boarding schools on February 19, 2025 at the Reformed Church University (RCU).
An interactive white board is a display that reacts to input from a user or from other digital devices. They can be used to digitize tasks and operations, share messages, presentations and present information as well as engaging in collaborative brainstorming among many other functions.
The beneficiary schools of these smart boards were Pamushana, Jichidza, Makumbe, Nyashanu, Zimuto, Chibi, Henry Murray, Gutu and Alheit Chingombe High Schools.
Rev Dr Ezekiel Baloyi said their goal is to strengthen digitalization as we work towards attaining smart schools.
“I acknowledge the tremendous efforts that has been put into advancing digital learning within our schools. As we move forward, it is essential to remember that smart schools is our ultimate goal. The integration of technology in education is not just a trend but a necessity for preparing our students for the future and these smart boards are a testament to that,” said Rev Dr Baloyi.
“However our journey should not end here; we must continue to strengthen our digitalization efforts by acquiring more hardware such as laptops, tablets, CCTV systems and many other technological tools. This will ensure that our students have access to the resources they need to thrive in the digital age,” he added.
RCZ Education Secretary Dr Witmos Julius Mutumburanzou hailed the idea of buying technological gadgets as a consortium of schools as it ensures that no school is left behind and it gives an advantage for the schools to bargain.
“The decision to form a consortium was a strategic move that allowed us to achieve significant advantages such as cost efficiency because purchasing in bulk allows us to bargain. Also buying as a consortium we shared the costs for logistics such as shipping and customs clearance,” said Dr Mutumburanzou.
“Tailor-made specifications was another advantage as there was ability to customize the boards to meet our exact needs. Initially we were offered boards with Windows 10, Android 10,8GB RAM and 66GB hard drives. However through direct negotiation we secured upgraded specifications Windows 11 Pro, Android 13.0, 16GB RAM and 256 GB hard drives,” Dr Mutumburanzou added.
In an interview with TellZim News, Jichidza High school head Thomson Charambira said these boards will go a long way in improving the teaching in schools.
“I am excited about this new approach to learning in our schools. I hope with these interactive boards we are going to have improved pass rates across all our schools,” said Charambira.
