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  • 10 months ago
Five special needs schools have received state-of-the-art technology labs through the Digicel Foundation's Innovation Lab programme.
The labs have been designed to increase accessibility to the digital world for persons with disabilities.
Here's more in this story.
Transcript
00:00Children with disabilities now have increased access to digital technologies
00:05through the Digicel Foundation Innovative Labs project which was opened
00:12at the school for the blind on Friday. CEO of the Digicel Foundation Penny
00:18Gomez says the labs seek to assist students with varying disabilities to
00:23better access and to be comfortable using technology. This lab along with
00:29four other special schools across the country will be equipped with computers
00:34virtual reality headsets smart boards and various devices. They may need for
00:40instance a foot mouse because they may not be able to use their hands. They may
00:44need the jaws where they can actually read the screens. So there are other
00:48assistive devices that we help them with. Then the smart boards that became
00:52especially useful for them because they're learning differently. A simple
00:56thing like the VR technology. These facilities are equipped with them
01:00because what we may take for granted and for me I've been in a VR space where
01:04it's very unsettling for me persons with disabilities we found it's very akin to
01:08them. So all those assistive technology type devices it's something that they
01:13can really use to just to just learn. Initially conceived as a one-year
01:19initiative to commemorate the Digicel Foundation's 10-year anniversary in 2022
01:25the foundation launched a second call for applications. Ms. Gomez says the
01:31innovative labs also represent the foundation's commitment to provide all
01:36that is required so that children with disabilities can fully participate in
01:43the digital economy. In our 10th year we spent almost a million TT dollars. This
01:48year we spent about four hundred thousand and in our next FY we
01:52expect to spend a bit more. Every time we meet with them we make sure that each
01:57school has what they need. So you will find for instance that some some schools
02:02may want a projector versus a smartphone. Some of them may require a
02:06different kind of assistive technology but whatever they want they get. But at
02:10the very basic we make sure that they have their devices laptops or desktops
02:14and they have connectivity and then we add all the other trimmings so that they
02:18really they can boast and say that they have state-of-the-art technology. Ms. Gomez
02:24reiterated how important it is for the foundation to help level the playing
02:29field for children with disabilities. Principals from the various schools
02:34expressed their gratitude to the Digicel Foundation for providing the necessary
02:39tools for students with disabilities. The other schools that benefited from the
02:44initiative were Lady Hochoi School in Gasparillo, Princess Elizabeth School,
02:50Palmyra Learning Center and the National Center for Persons with Disabilities.
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