By Yu Jincui
The Annual Award Ceremony for the Dell YouthConnect program in China took place on Tuesday in the Beijing Guo Yi Hotel.
The program to support education and digital inclusion initiatives for young people in rural areas was launched in Beijing in November 2009. Dell provided $2 million in cash and product grants to the China Education Development Foundation and the China Youth Development Foundation to spread Information Communication Technology (ICT) education to young people in remote areas. 32 Dell Learning Centers and 50 ICT Supporting Centers have been set up and many youngsters in rural areas have benefited.
The Dell YouthConnect program targets pupils from grade three to grade six. Teachers are encouraged to carry out student-centered inquiry learning using information technology, and help students expand their knowledge through practice, cooperation, exploration, experiment and observation. The program builds an online community where teachers and students can exchange ideas, and schools can share education resources. This boosts the quality of education in rural schools and helps students discover new ways of learning.
At the ceremony, prizes were awarded for 69 projects completed by the students as part of the program. By using information technology to explore nature and culture, and produce literary and artistic work, young Chinese in remote areas learn knowledge and master social skills.
Zhang Baoqing, former vice-minister of the Education Ministry and the Director-General of CEDF, spoke highly of the Dell YouthConnect program. He said that the program had been welcomed by both teachers and students, and had helped students improve their learning methods and become more autonomous in their learning. He pointed out that although China had been carrying out education reforms for many years, there was still a big gap between China and the developed countries. The Dell program helps address some of the deficiencies in the Chinese education system.
Dell views education and digital inclusion as a key means of connecting youth to a more promising tomorrow. A global program, Dell YouthConnect has cooperated with many non-government and non-profit organizations in helping youth in backward areas of countries such as Brazil, India, Mexico, South Africa and China. Li Guoqing, Vice President of Dell China, General Manager of Dell China Public Sector, vowed to promote the program in China on a larger scale
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