PM urges affluents: Help pry schools have multimedia, laptops

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UNB, Dhaka :
Stressing the importance of digital education, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday urged the affluent section of society to come up with support like providing multimedia projectors and laptops to primary schools of their respective areas.
“I hope those who are rich and well established will donate something to schools of their areas as gifts and this is my ardent call to the nation,” she said. The Prime Minister was addressing a function while inaugurating the ‘Primary Education Content; Conversion to Inter-Active Multimedia Digital Version’ programme held at her office in the city.
Hasina said, some 1,500 multimedia classrooms have already been set up while some 5,000 laptops have also been provided, aiming to flourish the operations of multimedia classrooms across the country.
“I’ll call upon all the Bangladeshis that they you’re students in primary schools and now you’ve become established like businessmen or job holders…why not you take initiative to provide at least one multimedia projector or a laptop as gift to your former school,” she told the well-off section.
The Prime Minister said it is not so tough to have at least one multimedia classroom in 63,601 primary schools across the country. “We’ll take our steps from the government, but alongside this all should have to come up with self -initiatives.”  
Noting that education is the most important tool for building a nation, Hasina said it is education which can free a country from poverty. Mentioning that the country’s children and students are talented and meritorious, Hasina said scopes should be created for flourishing their talents for which her government gives greater importance to technology-based education.
Cautioning guardians over exerting too much pressure on the children for their academic activities, Hasina said guardians should stop such practice. Hasina said the lessons should be more attractive for students and schools should have such an environment so that they feel more encouraged in their academic activities.
The Prime Minister also vowed to make a stronger foundation of education for the future generation using modern technologies.
Most schools in hilly areas of the Chittagong Hill Tracts will be turned into residential one for the convenience of students, the Prime Minister reiterated.
The main aim of Inter-Active Multimedia Digital Version’ programme is to prepare interactive multimedia digital education content of 17 books in Bangla, English, Mathematics, Science, Bangladesh and World Affairs related in light with the curriculum of primary education framed by the National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB).
The digital education content incorporated in various kinds of pictures, charts, diagrams, audio, video and other multimedia components and thus presenting those through animation for making the textbook contents more attractive and easily perceivable.
Primary and Mass Education Minister Mostafizur Rahman Fizar, State Minister for ICT Junaid Ahmed Pakak, Brac founder and Chairperson Sir Fazle Hasan Abed and Interim Regional Director of Save the Children Michael McGrath also spoke on the occasion. ICT Division Secretary Shyam Sundor Sikder delivered the address of welcome.
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