A teacher in Ghana went viral after pictures of him were taken showing his class how to use Microsoft Word on a blackboard. In the pictures, students can be seen taking notes about how to use the word processor.
The school where he teaches has no computers, making his task of teaching Microsoft Word much more difficult.
No Computer, No Problem
Photos of Richard Appiah Akoto went viral showing how he was able to teach his students to use Microsoft Word without using a computer. Though it is not by choice. Akoto is an information and communication (ICT) teacher at Betenase M/A Junior High School in Sekyedomase, Ghana.
Students in Ghana are expected to use Word to pass a national exam that serves as a benchmark for them to move on to high school. If they don't pass the test, they cannot go to high school.
Akoto posted the photos to Facebook himself under the name "OWura Kwadwo Hottish." The pictures were meant to show life in Africa and how a teacher can be creative in finding a way to be able to teach children a computer program without having a computer available.
Students have to pass a written exam for which they must know the parts of a computer, how to connect it, and how to boot the computer. Students have to remember the official curriculum to pass the test.
This puts the students at a real disadvantage since they don't have a computer to reference. In the previous school year, just one of his students got an A on the test.
Akoto has been teaching at the junior high school for six years.
Microsoft Help
Akoto's post became viral after a popular Ghanaian comedian shared his original post on Facebook. Eventually, it reached the eyes of tech entrepreneur Rebecca Enonchong. She reached out to Microsoft via Twitter to see if they could provide Akoto with any help.
Microsoft Africa responded to Enonchong's tweet, and said that it would provide Akoto with the resources to be able to teach his class Microsoft Word.
Supporting teachers to enable digital transformation in education is at the core of what we do. We will equip Owura Kwadwo with a device from one of our partners, and access to our MCE program & free professional development resources on https://t.co/dJ6loRUOdg — Microsoft Africa (@MicrosoftAfrica) February 27, 2018
