E-Learning for Kids Courseware to be Available for 2000 Children in Ghana

During school hours, more than 2002 children at the Takoradi Educational Centre in Ghana operated by To Be Worldwide, visit the facility with their class where they follow a basic computer skills or reading development course. After school, children use the library or sign up for after-school activities such as computer training, creative reading or arts and crafts. The facilities aim to become self-supporting and are accessible after hours to the local community. By offering the E-learning for Kids courseware as one of the standards, the facility will be able to provide the necessary content for quality education at the Takoradi Centre says Nellie Kirschner-Timmer, founder of To Be Worldwide. Specific e-Learning for Kids courses have already been selected and a plan is underway for its implementation and the training of local staff.

The Takoradi Centre will additionally act as a test ground for the e-Learning for Kids courseware in developing countries. Questionnaires and focus groups are being jointly planned to receive feedback from the children and recommendations from teachers and tutors. Nick van Dam, Ph.D., founder and chairman of e-Learning for Kids and Chief Learning Officer for Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, is extremely pleased about this partnership and the possibilities for mutually supporting the goals of both organizations.

All e-Learning for Kids courseware is available for free and unlimited use to schools, parents and community centers and goes through a thorough quality review by QA experts, parents, children and teachers prior to release. Established in 2004, over 80 courses in math, science, reading, computers, health and life skills are available for free for children ages 5 to 12 over the Internet or via CD- ROM where Internet access is not feasible. Currently, more than 40 e-learning-related companies, associations and NGOs are sponsors and supporters of the Foundation and a volunteer staff consists of education and e-learning experts as well as business professionals from around the world. E-Learning for Kids is actively seeking funding, sponsors and courseware developers. For more information, please visit www.e-learningforkids.org.

Established in 2002, To Be Worldwide operates offices in the Netherlands and in Ghana. All facilities operate in partnership with the local institutions for basic education in primary and junior secondary schools. Their plan is to first open Educational Resource Centres in all regions of Ghana, with its second facility in 2008 to service approximately 13 000 children, and another two facilities before 2011 in combination with partners in other African countries. More information is available at www.tobeworldwide.org.

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